SPFL Tier 4, Meadowbank Stadium, 2/5/26.

Oh dear. What a way to end the season. We simply weren’t at the races.

Mind you that’s the way it’s been for much of the past ten months.

We made Edinburgh City – bottom of the table and who hadn’t even scored a goal for two months – look like Real Madrid.

If you were charitable you could say it was an illustration of the reason for the change to ten-team divisions in 1994. Before that there were many so-called ‘end of season’ games (ie dead rubbers) where neither side had much to play for towards the end of the season.

But I’m not in the mood to be charitable.

We were just awful. They waltzed through us at will. And Brett Long in goal, while he made a few saves, didn’t cover himself in glory for two of the goals.

Mind you, the ref killed the game when he showed Kai Kirkpatrick a straight red for a late challenge at 1-0.  There was no malice in it, and no force.* Any chance we might have had vanished at that point; especially when they scored their second a minute or so later. That’s two reds for Kai in successive games he’s played in. Maybe he’s got himself a reputation. Or maybe the ref just wanted to show himself off.

City have won ten games all season. Four of them were against us. That’s 40% of their wins. (To put it in perspective, we only won ten as well but we didn’t beat anyone four times.)

I’m not overly encouraged that manager Frank McKeown is the right man for the job. It was noticeable that most of the exhortation coming from our bench area (curiously audible in a way such shouts aren’t at the Rock) was tantamount to abuse. And he made some very odd substitutions yesterday; not for the first time.

He now needs to make good signings who are considerable upgrades on most of what we had here – and improve his tactical nous.

But I fear it could be another long, hard season.

*Edited to add: I’ve now seen City’s highlight footage and Kirkpatrick’s foot was high: higher than I remembered seeing it in real time. The red card was fair enough.

SPFL Tier 4, The Rock, 21/3/26.

Another welcome win: three on the bounce at home now. But we weren’t quite as fluid as against Spartans two weeks before.

The first half was largely forgettable with us playing too many hopeful long balls always liable to be gobble dup by Annan’s back line and Annan themselves pretty toothless. They dived at every opportunity and moaned a lot at the ref and lino. I find those sorts of things a difficult watch. They weren’t the only mysterious decisions they made either.

There was really nothing to speak about in the way of goal efforts apart from their keeper making a brilliant save from Michael Doyle’s close range volley from a great Alexander Smith cross.

It looked as if things might peter out as a 0-0 draw till we suddenly scored. Scott Honeyman went through one-on-one with the keeper whose save squirmed away from him and Scott managed to poke the loose ball home despite the attentions of a defender.

Then a corner resulted in Leighton McIntosh drilling the ball in for the second.

We could have done with another to make sure of the three points but we began to sit back and let them dominate possession. This was made worse by manager Frank McKeown’s substitutions. Ryan Blair coming on for Honeyman on 75 minutes and proceeding to do very little before Jack Duncan and Ally Roy replaced front two McIntosh and Scott Tomlinson late on which immediately reduced our threat. Smith and Doyle were hooked for Tony Wallace and Gordon Walker on the verge of added time. This disrupted our organisation even further and most likely contributed to Annan’s late goal. Thankfully too late to give them much hope of an equaliser, but it was unneccessary.

Home again next week but without two players away on International duty. Not something a Sons fan can say often. Ali Omar is off to play for Somalia in an Afcon qualifier while Alexander Smith is with Scotland’s under 19s.

SPFL Tier 4, Forthbank Stadium, 28/2/26.

Given recent results – we haven’t won this year – I was in two minds about going to this. But Forthbank is about the nearest ground in the Division to my home so if I wasn’t going to this where would I go?

Another baffling selection choice from manager Frank McKeown. No width picked at all. It looked as if he’d sent the team out to play for a draw; an utterly daft exercise as it’s wins we need and we’ve only now got ten games left to secure any.

Still, we had more of the possession first half but lacked confidence in shooting. Leighton McIntosh came on to a good cut back from Scott Honeyman but miscontrolled the ball into the air which gave the keeper time to narrow the angle for his subsequent volley. All the other cutbacks went to a defender’s foot.

We were ragged in the middle of the park and let their players advance considerably before making any sort of challenge.

Then Stirling got a mysterious penalty, Brett Long penalised for a challenge which appeared relatively inoccuous, with Brett, Mark Durnan and the attacker getting there at the same time. Long was booked though and despite taking an age to get back into his goal was easily sent the wrong way from the spot. It was about the only shot he had to face all day apart from a longish range effort in the second half. Stirling were poor which makes our approach all the more frustrating.

We came out more strongly in the second half and made their keeper make a few saves from long range but Stirling didn’t appear to be bothered about trying to score a second.

Triple substitution time came a bit earlier than usual, the ineffectual Ryan Blair and Jack Duncan being replaced by new loanee signing (and diminutive) Alexander Smith and Scott Tomlinson respectively _ potential width at last – and, more surprisingly, Adam Livingstone off for Ally Roy.

Scott Honeyman seemed to have been fouled in the box but was booked for diving – it certainly hadn’t looked like a dive.

Smith began to grow into the game and had a great low cross begging to be buried but Gordon Walker blasted the ball wide when it looked easier to score. (Walker’s crossing was poor all game, rarely getting past the first man.)

In the end we got a deserved equaliser when Smith popped up on the right, came back on his left foot and delivered a beautiful cross for Mark Durnan to head home. Cue delight on the pitch and the away stand. It was noticeable that Durnan immediately ran towards the fans to celebrate.

Stirling woke up for a bit, then, but their efforts came to nothing.

This was a game where we needed three points and they were there for the taking. The players are, I’m sure, up for it. The manager seems to have other ideas.

SPFL Tier 4, Galabank, 10/2/26.

Well, I wasn’t at this, but it could vey well be the death knell for our SPFL tenure.

Made worse by the fact their winner was scored by Joel Mumbongo who couldn’t hit a barn door for us last season.

It’s now five points taken from the past thirty three possible. That’s not just relegation form. It’s oblivion.

We’ve only won twice at home in the league all season.

And this Saturday we’re at home again – to Stranraer, historically our Kryptonite.

There’s no hiding place any more. We’ve played the same number of games as Edinburgh City and are only two points in front – which could be evaporated by game end on Saturday (though they are playing leaders The Spartans.) But we can’t rely on others.

The overly hasty appointment by new owner Mario Lapointe of Frank McKeown as manager after Stevie Farrell was given the boot looks increasingly disastrous.

Mario may have a brain for business but it seems he doesn’t know a lot about football.

It’s now very, very difficult to see where even a point is going to come from – never mind a win.

Moreover, finishing bottom will mean we’re gone. We won’t win the Tier 4 play-off. And going down into the Lowland League (West) will be all but impossible to come back from.

SPFL Tier 4, The Rock, 31/1/26.

Well, this was a six-pointer and we lost it. So, instead of being 8 points ahead of them with a win or 5 with the draw we are now only two in front.

We started the season ten points ahead due to their fifteen points deduction. They have now made up eight of a difference – and nine of them were against us. They seem to have a hex on us.

We started well enough and had most of the possession and loads of corners. Mark Durnan had a good header well saved by the keeper before we scored. From a corner the keeper only just tipped the ball against the bar and the header back came down from the bar again and fell for Leighton McIntosh to put it in from two yards. Said keeper by the way ought to have been off for continuing to contest his yellow card for time wasting while Leighton McIntosh was gettng treatment for an injury. He must have been at it for at least two minutes moaning at the linesman.

They hadn’t troubled Brent Long in our goal at all then not long before half-time Adam Livingstone was booked for walking into somebody – they fell over at the slightest excuse all game, refs really should be more wise to this – and as a result backed off a challenge in the ensuing attack allowing his man inside where a pass to a free man led to an uncontested shot into the net.

It was all over when they scored again even though there was most of the second half to go.

Yes we did hit the bar twice but that’s what happens when you’re on a bad run.

I would have said Edin City didn’t deserve to win they only had three shots on target all game but they scored twice and we didn’t so they did deserve it.

It now looks increasingly likely we will finish bottom and I can’t see us winning the play-off. It will after all be against a team who will have momentum with them.

New owner Mario Lapointe’s lack of knowledge and instinct for football is costing us big time. The decision to replace sacked manager Stevie Farrell with his deputy Frank McKeown within a day or so is utterly inexplicable.

It’s a more scary time to be a Sons fan now than it was when we were in admin.

SPFL Tier, Meadowbank Stadium, 6/12/25.

Well. Not a good start to the new era. It might as well be a continuation of the old one. (Oh, wait.*)

We lost four goals again. That’s three games in a row now. And we lost a goal early on – to another penalty conceded. Yet another penalty followed just before half-time and things were made worse before the break by losing another goal at 45+5 minutes.

We couldn’t even keep it tight after the break. 4-0 down after 47 minutes.

I’m guessing Edinburgh City took their feet off the accelerator then – or it may have been their substitutions weakened them. Whatever, we actuually managed to score three unanswered goals from then on, two of them penalties of our own – but all much too little too late.

*The installation of Frank McKeown, the previous assistant manager  under Stevie Farrrell, late in the week probably means it is a continuation. I would have said it’s an ill-considered appointment except it maybe wasn’t considered at all. It smacks too much of haste and didn’t really inspire much hope, a feeling only underlined by this loss.

McKeown has a lot to do to win the fans over and increasingly the same might apply to new owner Mario Lapointe, to whom many thanks are due for saving the club from going under totally but whose lack of knowledge of Scottish football and the way things work is beginning to look a touch ominous.

SPFL Tier 4, New Bayview*, 9/3/24.

Well; I wouldn’t have given you odds that the game would be this close after the first five minutes. Nathan Austin had scored from a loose ball after their player had waltzed through our left hand side and Jay Hogarth only partially blocked the shot. Austin then somehow managed to hit the post when another goal looked certain and then they hit the bar with a long range effort. Another 5-0 or 6-0 shellacking as on Tuesday night loooked very much on the cards.

Our main tactic seemed to be to lump it up to the small man. Michael Ruth is a decent hold-up player but he’s not the tallest guy on a pitch.

Towards the end of the half we settled down and began to create. A great Michael Ruth turn allowed him to get a shot away from among a few bodies but it was straight at the keeper. Then Finlay Gray worked himself into a one-on-one but his shot went past the post.

The first ten minutes of the second half were a total turn round. We were all over them. A nice interchange between Ryan Blair (on as a sub for a harshly booked but not very effective at left back Blair Malcolm) and Tony Wallace got the ball to Finlay Gray just outside the box. He killed the pass then blasted the ball into the het in almost the same movement.

Our next goal was entirely down to Michael Ruth’s selfless running. He chased down a ball he had no right to get, made the defender play it and then nicked the ball before sending it across the edge of the area.  Finlay Gray gave it a nice dummy (he probably got a call)  and Jinky Hilton stroked it past the keeper. Delirium in the away end.

It didn’t last; we conceded poorly from a corner. (Why we didn’t leave at least one man up on opposition corners I have no idea. If we had, the penalty area would have been less crowded with more chance to clear a ball and someone to play it to.)

East Fife were more into it late on and I got increasingly annoyed that our assistant manager, Frank McKeown, kept telling our players to slow the game down. We might have won the game if we’d gone for it. (We might not have but I’ll never know now.)

Late on Jay Hogarth pushed a swerving shot somewhat uncomfortably onto the bar. A stronger hand would have pushed it out for a corner and subsequent events might have taken a different turn. East Fife reworked the situation and the ball got crossed to Nathan Austin whose header looked savable but was only deflected into the net by Jay Hogarth’s hand, not pushed away. Another late goal lost. I don’t suppose any Dumbarton fan was surprised. We make a habit of it. As we do of no-one moving to create space at our throw-ins (but on that one we always have.)

It was my first look at Hogarth, Gallagher Lennon, Cian Newbury and Aaron Healy. They all seem to be a bit raw yet for the hurly-burly of our division. Marc Kelly and James Graham came on for the last few minutes. On that evidence Kelly is no Michael Ruth.

*Apparently now the MGM Timber Bayview Stadium. Please yourselves.