I featured Forthbank Stadium, home of Stirling Albion FC, in 2011.

In March last year I took more pictures of which only the two below are substantially new.

East stand from car park:-

Looking north from east stand:-

These are a few photos I took at the last away game of the season proper at Forthbank Stadium, Stirling.

It’s traditional for the Sons fans, aka the Apache Army, to dress up for the last journey of the season. You can spot a few in fancy dress here.

This is the fans celebrating clinching third spot and a play-off place.

The players returned the tribute.

SFL Div 2, Forthbank Stadium, 28/4/12.

So for the second year in a row our post-season destiny is settled with a game to spare. And we’re in the play-offs!

This is an outstanding end to a campaign where I’m sure most Sons fans would have been happy with survival in the Division. Very well done to Manager Alan Adamson, the backroom staff and the players.

The game itself wasn’t a classic. There was perhaps too much riding on it with Stirling hoping to avoid relegation. We had the better of the first half with Pat Walker coming close twice early on, Brian Prunty almost converting a Scott Agnew cross-come-shot and Stirling only the one really threatening effort on goal.

Their goal was well taken if a little out of the blue. Stirling hadn’t really looked threatening with too many wrong decisions on the ball and misplaced passes or shots.

Arlan Mptata came on and looked skillful, if perhaps too inclined to elaborate a bit – at this level players sometimes get in the way by accident rather than design – but he glided past his defender with ease a couple of times.

Our equaliser was bizarre. It’s the sort of goal you lose when you’re bottom of the Division, nothing is going for you and you’re doomed to relegation. A cross was headed into the air by Stirling’s no 2, it looped up and the keeper grabbed it as it came down but it had carried over. The lino flagged straight away. The keeper was maybe hampered by the injury he’d sustained earlier in the half but both should have dealt with it better.

After that Stirling threw the kitchen sink at it, playing men up. They had a four on two at one point where the attacker still managed to let one of the two get in a tackle. They also had what looked a penalty from where I was sitting up the other end but the ref blew for a dive and booked the attacker. A let-off I thought, but seeing the footage on Sons Player the ref got it spot on.

Then in stoppage time, at a corner, sub Craig Dargo was left totally unmarked to head the winner. Third in the Division sewn up – our highest finish in the SFL since 2004.

So there’s a nothing game next week against Brechin but the boys need to keep focused.

Then the play-off with Arbroath. Not a team we have an especially good record against.

Forthbank Stadium* is one of those modern identikit type constructions and a little soulless. But at least it has stands on two sides plus two bits of terracing, one behind each goal – though they are seldom used.

Saturday was a bit gloomy and so the photos are not as sharp as they might be.

This is from the access road, mainly showing the away supporters stand.

This is the home stand.

The terracings behind the goals are opened only when a big crowd is expected – so not for Dumbarton games.
This is the south end – to your left in the photo above.

And this the north.

This is a rather blurry view of the away stand from the north end.

*Edited to add:- I know it’s the Doubletree Dunblane Stadium now.