SPFL Tier 4, Forthbank Stadium, 1/8/26.

Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose; or, it’s déjà vu all over again.

This panned out more as I feared than as I hoped. The similarities to a lot of our displays of last season are disquieting.

We were okay for the first ten minutes or so but never troubled their keeper. When they got the ball we looked distressingly open, though. One of their players was booked quite early and almost immediately committed another yellow card offence but wasn’t shown it. He should have seen red.

If we hadn’t given away the penalty (it looked a foul certainly) things might have been different I suppose but we always looked vulnerable. Just before half-time one of their players was shoving ours at a corner and things got fraught with several joining the melee. He was booked as was Mike Doyle for us. While the ref was noting things down their player started up the shoving again and got away with that. Stirling were thereafter diving at every opportunity and the ref was frequently conned into giving them fouls. Frustratingly, exactly the same sorts of challenges by them on us were not punished.

Not that we really deserved anything from the game. In the second half we only started playing after their second goal went in, far too easily for them.

Too many of our players were looking like square pegs in round holes, Deryn Lang and Leighton McIntosh up front were living off scraps.

David Craig in midfield looked sound, Aidan Rice in goal had no chance with the goals and made a great save at 2-0. Josiah Sowa on the left had pace and some tricks but his touch was often awkward (his brain seemed unconnected to his feet) and he went up blind alleys when he did have the ball. New loanee Owen Hartington  at least showed for the ball but, sadly, bore no comparison to Smudger  (Alexander Smith) late of this parish, who thoroughly impressed at the same venue when he came on and changed the game for us last season.

Things need sorting out quickly. Performing like this against Clyde next week could see us endure a thumping.

SPFL Tier 4, The Rock,* 2/8/25.

So after the phoney war of the League Cup group stage (see Group E) comes the start of the league season.

It somehow seemed right that after the tribulations of last season this should begin with a win but it wasn’t easy. After they scored just before half-time – and then missed a sitter – it was always going to be a tense second half. But we saw it through.

We had only three players in our starting line-up who’d  been with us last season (and one of them, goalie Shay Kelly, only for a couple of months  at that) with one other on the bench. It’s going to take a while for the new ones to gel and we looked that way.

Clyde started brighter but we began to come into it. The turning point came with us getting a corner. Ryan Blair dropped it right onto Clyde keeper (and former Son, Jay Hogarth) who didn’t deal with it and Ally Roy headed it in.

The second was almost a carbon copy. Again Hogarth didn’t deal with the corner and Mark Durnan was credited with putting it in at the far post. On Clyde’s highlights though it looks as if he made no contact as the ball seems to hit the post and go in so it would be Ryan Blair’s goal.

In the second half we sat back too much and so Clyde had a lot of possession. Shay Kelly had two very good saves but apart from that they didn’t really threaten our goal. We had a couple of breakaways where a run of the green would have seen us score but generally we didn’t link up as well as is necessary. That may come.

Morgyn Neill at centre half seemed to really enjoy himself. Big-hearted, throwing himself to get the ball, rousing the crowd.

There were signs of there being a team in us. I hope they come to fruition. I don’t think I can be doing with many games where we’re hanging on like we were here.

*Edited to add: the Rock is now officially the Marbill Coaches Stadium.

SPFL Tier 4, the Rock, 23/12/23.

I was at this but haven’t got round to writing about it since I had a big birthday at the weekend and there was of course Christmas.

Clyde must have won the toss as they chose to change ends – no doubt to utilise the wind. It and the driving rain were atrocious throughout.

We started OK but soon fell out of it as Clyde were aided by the conditions. Harry Broun, in goal due to Brett Long’s long-term injury, had to face a one-on-one early on and manged to put the attacker off enough for the shot to go past the post.  Then we were awarded a penalty though no-one near where I was sitting had a clue what for. Handball most likely. Tony Wallace converted.

Harry Broun stood up to another one-on-one, blocking the shot. Our goal was leading a charmed life through a series of corners where the ball was being driven towards the goal by the wind but the equaliser came from an attacked cutting inside and hitting a shot from outside the box. Maybe Broun was unsighted but it looked potentially savable; but the shot shild never have been allowed.

We took the lead again when an Aron Lynas cross was deflected and looped over the keeper. But it didn’t last. Once again an attacker was allowed to cut towards goal and the despairing lunge caught his leg. Penalty to Clyde. 2-2.

I was having kittens every time they went up the park and especially at corners. The ball was somehow scrambled away several times. I was glad to get to half-time still level.

The second half was different. We basically controlled it without ever threatening their goal much. Sub Ryan Wallace livened things up a bit though and scored with a header from a cross.

A stramash from a corner led to Aron Lynas hitting the bar and then heading in our fourth.

That ought to have been it. 4-2 up and with the wind in our favour there ought to have been no way back for Clyde. But one of our party’s number then fatally said, “I wonder when was the last time we won 4-2 two games in  a row.” I pointed out there was still time, but that was because I was hoping for a fifth.

That didn’t happen. Their subs up front made a difference. Had we not had a scratch defence (a regular centre half plus a right back out and our usual left back shuffled to centre back for the game meant we missed our normal drive from the full back positions) then we might have coped. As it was their lad got free and fairly blasted the ball through Harry Broun. The strike was so ferocious and the conditions so poor but it was still a surprise he could have scored from the angle he had.

Clyde then sensed the draw and threw everything forward. Again our normal defence might have stopped their third equaliser. By that time it seemed almost inevitable they would score but it was still a poor one to lose.

That was a chance to catch Peterhead, who lost at home, and keep pace with Stenhousemuir spurned. The league is most likely gone now, even with just over half the season to go.

The reward for Sons win at Clyde in Round 3 of the Scottish Cup on Saturday is an away draw against Kilmarnock.

Not a tie likely to see us progress I fear, but there should be a fairly decent share of gate money to be had.

Sons reward(?) for beating Cumnock on Friday is an away tie against Clyde in Round 3 of the Scottish Cup.

The 3rd round is scheduled to take place on the weekend of November 26^th but since Clyde are renting New Douglas Park, the home of Hamilton Accies, who have also been drawn at home, the date of the game has yet to be confirmed.

SPFL Tier 3, The Rock, 30/4/22,

Too little too late.

Except for when we played East Fife this was our only home win in the league this season – and it came in the last regular game. Add to that that we have had only had three clean sheets all season and you can see where the problems lie.

Our team featured nine changes from last week’s starters – no doubt the manager trying to preserve players for the more important play-off games coming up.

We started brightly enough though I thought Clyde looked less than interested and in ten minutes Kristoffer Syvertsen executed a lovely turn in the box and shot past their keeper.

Thereafter we more or less dominated the half and ought to have scored when Ross Maclean had a one-on-one but he lost his footing just as he shot. Anothe rlovely move saw Kris Syvertsen set up by Gregg Wylde but his shot was either blocked by a defender or tipped over the bar by the keeper; it was hard to see which on the stream.

Then with half-time looming we lost centre-back Adam Hutchinson to a shoulder injury. No sub came on. Of course they came up the park and scored – albeit at the second attempt. Being a man short may have cost us that. Carsy came on as sub for the kick-off. Typical.

So far so like the last home game against Peterhead.

The second half was pretty much nothing but Conner Duthie and Josh Oyinsan on for the half looke dlively at times. It was due to Josh we got the winner. He rolled his defender on the halfway line and passed to Duthie who mishit his pass but Gregg Wylde got enough power to beat the keeper.

In the last seconds Josh took a sore one from former Son Kevin Nicoll who was immediately red-carded. What a ridiculous challenge to perpetrate in the last knockings of the season. I hope Josh will be fit to take part in the play-offs.

So a win at last. But is it enough to instil confidence for Tuesday night?

For myself, the nerves are shredded already.

SPFL Tier 3, Broadwood Stadium, 12/2/22.

Well, that was much needed, but by all acoounts Clyde were rubbish.

Still, a win’s a win and not to be sniffed at.

And it was done without big Josh Oyinsan up top. (Pulled hamstring apparently.)

I wasn’t at the game and haven’t seen any higlights yet but it seems Carsy scored from open play! Our other two came from Ross MacLean.

And we’re up to the heady heights of seventh.

Mind you, Peterhead may be two places below us but they’ve got two games in hand.

Next Saturday against Alloa (in eighth) at home is a potential big one.

SPFL TIer 3, Links Park, 5/2/22.

Another welcome point. That’s two from two games against teams in the top three. Last month we would probably have lost them both.

Big Josh Oyinsan got his second for us too and the club website says new loanee keeper Kieran Wright (in his first game for us) was a major factor in us getting a draw.

It’s a big week for us with a game away to Queen’s Park (in fourth) on Tuesday and Clyde (in fifth) away next Saturday. Points from those would be much appreciated, but we’ve lost 3-0 to Queen’s Park twice already this season.

SPFL Tier 3, The Rock,6/11/21.

It was a mustn’t lose – and we didn’t lose.

However we ought to have won.

There were enough dangerous crosses etc for us to have got on the end of one of them and then there were two sitters; Paul Paton scooped one high and wide when he ought to have buried it, then he was through one on one but failed to get the ball past the keeper and Eoghan Stokes skied the rebound. That was really the only save their keeper had to make.

I had the fear when I realised how bad the wind was – I’m still traumatised by that game up at Peterhead – and for a long time this resembled those dreadful games we witnessed last season. We barely made an effort at shooting from range (Sam Ramsbottom had to make a good save from a wind-assisted one of theirs first half.)

Still a change of tack at a corner when Callum Wilson came on saw his driven cross deflected on and saw Eoghan Stokes burying it. That was on the cusp of injury time we ought to have held out.

So what happened?

They strolled up the park, got in a unopposed cross and two of them were queuing up to put it in. Two points dropped.

With not taking the chances we create and defending like that we’re in a relegation fight again.

All September’s optimism has gone.

SPFL Tier 3, Bayview, 30/10/21.

Normally you couldn’t keep me away from a Sons game at Bayview, but these are not normal times. I don’t want to be in relatively close contact with people even in the relatively outdoors setting of a football stadium and I was feeling a bit under the weather anyway.

PLus this was a game we really could have done with not losing.

Suspensions and injuries apparently forced the manager to go to a back three. That didn’t seem to work.

Next week’s game against Clyde really is a must not lose.