SPFL Tier 3, The Rock, 18/12/21,

I’m seriously depressed now.

That’s us won 1, drawn 3 and lost 5 at home this season. Just dreadful. Compare that with won 4, lost 5 away from home, though.

But it’s individual errors that are costing us for the most part.

We started slowly but came into it and managed to score from our first ‘proper’ (ie floated as opposed to driven in at knee height) corner, Andy Geggan heading in at the back post. (Not that I actually saw it; the fog was so bad that the Pixellot camera on the stream coudn’t follow the ball.)

We couldn’t hold on to it, though. An inexplicable failure to make any challenges in midfield left Sam Muir exposed down our left and the guy ran on to put it under Sam Ramsbottom.

Amazingly we didn’t fall out of it at once. instead a great run by Sam Muir saw his cross missed by everybody except Conner Duthie at the back post (near post to the camera’s view.) Again I didn’t see it but it seems his finish was composed.

Could we hold on?

No.

Sam Ramsbottom’s mistake this time, failing to control a back pass and making a foul for the penalty or so the commentary said. Sam saved it but the rebound fell to the taker. 2-2.

Our best hope at half-time was probably for a postponement as the visibility was even worse in the second half due to the sun going down. The floodlight glare on the stream all but obliterated the view at either end of the pitch. But the ref played on. And the Pixellot camera trained itself more or less consistently on the middle of the pitch – except when the nearside ballboy was juggling with a spare ball.

Andy Geggan again had the ball in the net from a Joe McKee free-kick but the assistant’s flag had gone up. How he managed to make out it was offside in the gloom goodness only knows.

That might have made a difference but it was all over when Peterhead scored after a corner. Again I didn’t see the goal and had to rely on the stream’s commentary – apparently the tallest guy on the pitch had been left unmarked.

That was game over, we don’t come back from deficits.

We’re seriously in trouble now.

The annoying thing is we can score. But we can’t defend. Not a recipe for success.

Queen’s Park away on Boxing Day. We’ve lost 3-0 to them twice already.

Not a happy Christmas then.

SPFL Tier 3, The Rock, 11/12/21.

This all started quite well. We had the better of the first part of the game, even if Montrose looked tidy on the ball they didn’t threaten our goal. Eoghan Stokes put a header against the post from a narrow angle, Conner Duthie latched onto an exquisite pass from Andy Geggan, rounded the keeper and slotted it. The retreating defender could only put it in the net. Callum Wilson hit the bar from a corner.

Then the roof fell in. Paddy Boyle misjudged the bounce of the ball and his attempt to recover caught their attacker who tumbled to the ground. Penalty. No question. Then two minutes later they pulled our defence out of shape and had a man over on the left. Goal. Eoghan Stokes was through one on one just before half-time but the keeper narrowed the angle well and saved with his legs.

Again at the start of the second half we looked as if we might get back into it but the third goal killed it. Failure to challenge properly allowed the attacker to manœuvre the ball into a striking position. Game over.

It’s especially disappointing as we looked bright enough going forward when we passed the ball. We can only hope that a Ryan McGeever return might improve our defence (and provide an extra attacking threat on set pieces.)

Down to second bottom. Next Saturday’s game against Peterhead looks like a six pointer even this early. Lose it and I reckon we’re stuffed.

SPFL tier 3, The Rock, 7/8/21.

We got away with this one.

After a brief early flurry where Edin Lynch ought perhaps to have hit the target on a rebound we mostly fell out of this, but when in possession we did look like we wanted to play football. (A blessed relief after the last two seasons.)

Nevertheless their first goal came a bit out of the blue when their forward looped a header back over Callum Erskine (deputising for an isolating Sam Ramsbottom.) For the rest of the first half we weren’t in it and Airdrie ought perhaps to have scored again, Connor Duthie cleared a shot off the line.

It seemed all over when the ref awarded them a penalty with the second half barely started. I’ve seen them given – and not given – but the guy slotted it.

The game changer came when Sam Wardrop was yellow-carded for the second time giving us a man advantage. Fron then on we had the majority of possession but didn’t really trouble their keeper till Ryan McGeever powered in a header from a corner to provide hope.

A few minutes after that Andy Geggan pounced on a loose ball at the edge of the box to drive it low into the corner and secure us a point.

There were some good signs here but if not for the sending-off we would most likely not have got back into this. Then again we didn’t quite have our full team out due to injuries.

Amazingly we’re still joint top of the table. Away to fellow four pointers Queen’s Park next week will be a tough one.

SFL Div 2, The Rock, 7/5/11

Well. We’ve had four clean sheets this season in the league and I’ve seen two of them!

This was as much of a non-event as might be expected when nothing rode on it for either side but that’s two points in successive games from teams who had beaten us thrice already. Two points I thought we’d struggle for.

Here’s a typical scene from the game. All twenty outfield players within a space of about twenty by ten yards. Absolutely no width.

Dumbarton had the balance of the play but made few chances although the Forfar keeper made two good saves from Pat Walker and Andy Geggan in the second half. Stephen Grindlay barely had a save to make yet Forfar should have gone ahead late on when their forward headed it wide instead of on target.

Was Stephen Grindlay making a bid to be retained here? He actually came for two crosses. Even more astonishingly he caught them both!

In the photo below the players leave the field at the final whistle.

So Stenny made safety and Alloa face the play-offs. Interestingly our total of forty points would have seen us relegated or in the play-offs in seven of the seventeen previous seasons where there have been ten teams in Division Two.

Isn’t it bizarre though that Alloa choose now to get rid of Alan Maitland as manager? Either it ought ot have been done months ago (I gather he offered to resign but was turned down) or else they should have waited till after the play-offs. The team is hardly going to be in the best frame of mind for these crucial games. Though if he’d “lost” the dressing room then I suppose there may be an improvement. But they now face an Annan team surely on a high after making the play-offs, and if they get through that they will play a side on a roll. Wierd timing.

SFL Div 2, Glebe Park, 26/3/11

Whatever Alan Adamson said to the boys at half time it didn’t work. We started it as slowly as the first and lost an equally quick, if not quicker, goal. After that any semblance of defensive organisation disappeared and it was like the early season again.

We were pretty much abject throughout. Only Ryan McStay – who somehow nearly always seems to create space for himself – and Jon McShane get pass marks, the rest looked like they’d never played together.

Brechin were by far the better team and thoroughly deserved the win. But…

They are the most annoying bunch of shameless whingers I’ve ever seen. While the game was still in the balance every time a decision went against them two or three would be in the ref’s face moaning. Ryan McStay’s booking apart* Dumbarton’s players by and large accepted decisions – even the offside goal (well; it looked offside to me) – but maybe that’s why we lost.

*Ryan had gone in to protect Martin McNiff after Brechin’s neddish no 7 had raised his hands to Martin. The Brechin player should have been sent off – and therefore not on the pitch to score their second, which may have been the critical goal as we more or less fell apart then.

Our day was summed up when Andy Geggan wasted our best chance. He lofted the ball over an absolutely open goal.

A lot of Brechin’s goals came from crosses (get your act together Stephen Grindlay) the last two from pinball melées. When there’s pinball in our area there’s only ever one result.

Nevertheless we could (should?) have had three penalties, two for handball in the first half and a third for a blatant push in the last few seconds.

But we deserved nothing from this game.

It’s getting tight at the bottom again. Alan Adamson has a big job getting the boys up for a crucial game at Stenny on Tuesday night. I’m not at all confident.

SFL Div 2, Station Park, 26/02/11

Ah well. Situation normal resumed. But if losing the first goal was a test I think we passed it.

Forfar are a big strong team. Ben Gordon and Jon McShane aside we are midgets in comparison.

They looked very good going forward in the first few minutes despite not carving us open the way East Fife did. When the goal came it looked a great strike. Stephen Grindlay had made a good save from an earlier effort but had knocked it back out, the guy just thumped it.

We barely registered until much later in the half then came into it. Jon McShane’s beautifully struck free-kick was finely placed but still should have been saved by the keeper who only turned it onto the post/bar and in. The ref looked as if he wasn’t sure it was a goal but eventually gave it. I briefly wondered if we had scored an equaliser in this season before yesterday then remembered we had – at Forfar, in the first game.

At half-time I thought we were lucky to be level.

Different story second half; we dominated and played some very good stuff. We had a fair few chances, Pat Walker desperately unlucky to have a curling shot go just wide, Mark Gilhaney electing to shoot first time twice when he had more time were the best of them.

We were pushing for the winner when Andy Geggan lost the ball three-quarters into their half and they broke upfield. Our cover had been sucked forward and the Forfar scorer had too much space available to him.

Alan Adamson withdrew two midfield players and threw on two more players in forward positions to go for it but the second equaliser wasn’t to be.

Had we won, and therefore equalled the 119 year old consecutive away wins record, I’d have felt obliged to go to Brechin on Tuesday night. As it is I’ll probably give it a miss.

It’s not over yet and those below us have games in hand, but we have enough in the team now to suggest we can beat the teams we have to, if not the ones pushing for the promotion play-offs.

Famous last words.

SFL Div 2, Recreation Park, 05/02/11

I witnessed a few minor miracles yesterday.

I saw Dumbarton score three goals in an away game. We doubled our away goals tally in the one game (for the second time in a row – though last game at Airdrie we actually tripled it, from one to three – only six now required in the next to keep that sequence up,) we won two games in a row for the first time this season, moved up two places in the league table…….. and Stephen Grindlay caught a cross under some pressure. To be fair to Stephen he kept us level with a very good save when it was 0-0.

Alloa had the better of the first half hour or so, though we had one half chance which Pat Walker could only snatch at, then we scored a breakaway goal from one of their corners, all our players that were involved made correct decisions in the build up; a rare occurence.

Mark Gilhaney played well on the right wing, curbing his tendency to stray up blind alleys, and it was his cross that Jon McShane swept in for the second with a good finish. I then remarked to onebrow, “we’d got our two.” We always concede. I didn’t think then that we’d be pegged back so quickly.

Their first was a consequence of Andy Geggan, who had a good game overall, trying to be too clever in midfield and giving the ball away. It was played up and Ben Gordon unnecessarily put his hand on the forward challenging for the ball to give away the free kick. Straight in the back of the net. I don’t think Grindlay could have done much to prevent it. Their second was the result of a good cross and a very well placed header. I was too far away to say whether Grindlay ought to have come for the cross or not.

Earlier in the season we would not have been two up and if we had been we would certainly have crumbled at the equaliser.

Yesterday we didn’t. Ryan McStay, who more or less ran the midfield all game, took a great free kick into the bottom corner. It was a case of holding out for the win then, taking the ball to the corner flag and so on.

I was impressed with McShane and Walker up front, they can hold on to the ball and play others in. They even tried to make space for themselves at throw-ins. (Don’t the know this activity is against the decades honoured Dumbarton players’ code of conduct?)

Obviously away wins are also like buses. You wait all season for one then two come along at once.

So we reach the heady heights of eighth.

Don’t get too excited. Both Stenny and East Fife have games in hand.

[Edited to add: About a minute before the final whistle one of Alloa’s defenders swore directly at the ref’s assistant after a decision had gone against him. Despite the fact that said assistant was between the player and me, and I heard it, no action was taken – even though I went on to remind the linesman (it was a man) that foul and abusive language to an official is a sending off offence.

OK, I was winding him up a bit but I do think that officials ought not to be sworn at by players (I know it’s not an ideal world.) Acceptance of such abuse from players is, however, the beginning of a slippery slope.]

SFL Div 2, Ochilview, 23/10/10

League goals for predictor:- 15.

Two must win games in succession both lost.

Now every game will be a must win until relegation is confirmed. (At this rate that will be sometime in January.)

This is the penance we must suffer for the good times.

Onebrow opined during the game that he’d always thought that the way we won promotion two seasons ago was too good to be true. And so it proves.

This was 4-0 going on a complete embarassment. And to the team merely one place above us in the division.

It was over as a contest as early as the third minute when we lost the sort of scruffy goal you concede when you are going to be relegated.

A routine ball into the box wasn’t hoofed away by Devlin as it should have been – Chissie would have got rid of it no bother – Grindlay flapped at it, knocking it onto the Stenny player, off whom it trundled into the net.

I don’t think Michael White would have fumbled that ball. He was in goal, as Onebrow pointed out, in the only two games where we’ve managed to get any points this season.

Grindlay doesn’t come for crosses – the defence is clearly unsettled; three of them had a go at him for staying on his line a few minutes after the goal, when we could easily have lost another – and his kicking from back passes is appalling.

Next up, the obligatory penalty against us at Ochilview. I thought Ben Gordon got there first, the ref didn’t. That all started when Andy Geggan had, I think Devlin, free in space on his right in a good position in their half but hit the ball too short, straight to a Stenny player. Promptly up the park, whistle.

Up steps Ross Clark. Remember him, Chappie?

Stenhousemuir could have gone home then. We still wouldn’t have scored.

The next one you could see coming from halfway through the move. The defence was posted missing from the crossball and Ross Clark (remember him, Chappie?) drilled it home. Grindlay stood still.

We played a bit better in the second half but Stenny had taken their foot off the gas.

We keep finding ever more bizarre ways of conceding goals. The fourth was a complete joke. Nugent had the ball covered. All he had to do was play it, back to Grindlay (OK, maybe not) or out the park, or pass to Ben Gordon, or even turn and go upfield. Instead he just stops running and a Stenny player breezes past him – the report on the club website says as if out of nowhere but he was clearly visible all the way – rounds Grindlay and pops it in.

The Stenny announcer gave the man of the match to Ross Clark. (Remember him, Chappie?) He did score twice, I suppose, but (a much slimmed down in appearance – Ed) Stevie Murray had a good game for them, too. Remember him, Chappie?

Stenny won’t have an easier three points all season.

Until they play us again of course.

It’s past time for Jim Chapman to consider his position. The players either aren’t playing for him or just aren’t good enough. He’s got rid of, or let go, the more robust characters. There was nobody on the field inspiring the team to get into the game. A complete lack of fight, competitiveness and effort. Where’s Chissie when you need him?

During the week Gordon Strachan was noble enough to fall on his sword. Sadly, I don’t expect Chappie to have it in him do the same.

Oh; and Grindlay must go.