SPFL Tier 3, The Rock, 20/4/21.

Dumbarton nil again.

But we looked fairly lively in the first half.

Unfortunately we lost Nat Wedderburn and Sam Wardrop* to injury before half time and the team’s balance was upset.

Couple that with Thistle upping the tempo in the second half and we were under the cosh for most of it.

We had Sam Ramsbottom to thank for not losing by more. He had two very good saves and another where Thistle claimed the ball had gone over the line but he scrambled it clear.

Their first came immediately after our best chance of the game when Adam Frizzell wriggled past three of their players on the edge of the box, shot hard but their keeper was very well positioned. From his clearance they scored and it was game over.

I thought Ross Forbes was poor on the set pieces tonight.

Four games to save the season.

Unless we can score that won’t happen.

*Sam took an elbow to the face but their guy only got a yellow card. If he’d been sent off we’d have had a man advantage for the second half. (Water; bridge.)

SPFL Tier 3, Broadwood Stadium, 15/4/21.

Well, I didn’t watch it (I had something else on last night) but this is a welcome win. A Nat Wedderburn header from a Ross Forbes free-kick was enough to give us the three points.

It takes us above Clyde before the last of the 18 home and away games on Tuesday.

Ours is a daunting prospect against Partick Thistle (who thumped Montrose 5-0 yesterday) while Clyde play bottom team Forfar.

Then it’s into the four games of the split. I suppose there’s more likelihood of us gaining some points from those since they will be versus the other teams in the bottom five but this is Dumbarton nil we’re talking about. One goal is usually enough to beat us.

SPFL Tier 3, The Rock, 12/12/20.

Our first ever game against the visitors – and we got a welcome win.

It probably wasn’t that long ago but I can’t remember the last time we beat a team above us in the league.

Watching on the live stream is a peculiar experience. It seemed even more nerve-racking than actually being at a game. It didn’t help that, once again, as against Clyde, we were holding out for a win – this time only for 40 mins rather than the majority of the game.

It was fairly even in the first half but I felt Cove always looked more comfortable on the ball than us. We had the first effort on target though, a fairly centrally aimed Ross Forbes free-kick. Our failure to score despite some pressure (and no truly clear-cut chances) is the sort of thing that can come back to bite you. And it almost did as Cove forced Kevin Dabrowski in goal into two very good saves indeed and a further block outside his near post. Then Rico Quitongo danced round the defender on the bye-line and cut it back to Jaime Wilson who hit it fiercely but nearly straight at their keeper. Half-time 0-0.

Not long after, we were ahead – from an unlikely source. Nat Wedderburn – a strong presence in midfield throughout – bulleted a Ross Forbes corner into the net on 50 minutes, his first goal for the club.

From then on Cove pushed forward and we did not seem to be able to find an out ball. Hence the racked nerves. They did hit the post late on and it seemed the ball must go in but it trundled along the goal line for what seemed like ages before Stuart Carswell cleared it sideways – Kevin Dabrowski having to dive over his clearance.

We did manage to venture forward in the last few minutes but the final whistle still came as a relief.

So we’re now two points off third place and five clear of ninth.

It’s a tricky visit to Montrose (in fourth) next week though.

SPFL Tier 3, The Rock, 24/11/20.

My second experience of live-streaming. It was slightly less odd than before. The emotional engagement is diluted compared to actully being at the game.

We had more possession for the first ten minutes or so but never really threatened their goal. It’s always ominous when you know the opposition is likely to be good but don’t show anything. Sure enough once they came into it we were more or les on the back foot.

Their first was a good cross but the guy who scored it, coming in at the back post, was totally unmarked.

Their second – a great strike from a free-kick – I thought came from a foul that wasn’t a foul. Whether Kevin Dabrowski in goal might have done better is difficult to tell on a live stream. He is a bit susceptible to long-range hits it seems. He was also beaten by a shot from well outside the box which hit the bar.

In the second half things just went downhill. Ryan McGeever had had to be substituted at half-time, then Adam Frizell, then Rico Quitongo and finally Nat Wedderburn all for injuries it seemed. We’re lucky we’ve got ten days before our next game for the chance to recover.

Even so, sub Denny Johnstone managed to hit the post in an attack which the stream mostly missed, then a fine Robert Jones cross from the bye-line was headed wide by Jaime Wilson.

Their third was another defensive shocker from us, a long through ball from that Wilson chance wasn’t dealt with and their player managed (luckily?) to evade Dabrowski’s attempt to steal the ball as he went round him.

Very late on Johnstone again had a strike which the keeper tipped round the post at full stretch. Even later Wilson played in Robert Jones for a sitter but he took too long to hit it and allowed the defender to block it wide.

So in a game where Falkirk more or less strolled it we could have scored three times – and that with players shoe-horned into positions not their usual. But we didn’t score at all.

The good start to the league season feels like a long time ago now.