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, 13/11/21.

From the moment Stuart Carswell, standing in at centre half for the injured Ryan McGeever, misjudged the bounce of the ball and handed Falkirk an easy chance I watched this with an air of resignation.

Nothing went right.

Our deliveries into the area were poor, we were never first to any loose balls, we created nothing. If not for Sam Ramsbottom in goal this could have been a cricket score.

Not that Falkirk were really good: they didn’t have to be. Competence was enough.

Sure, Ryan Schiavone up front made life a bit uncomfortable for their centre backs but to no avail, he was on his own for the most part.

We are now nine points worse off in the second quarter of the season than we were against the same teams in the first. It’s seven games since we last won.

Our next seven league games are against sides above us in the table. That’s not good reading.

SPFL Tier 3, Balmoor Stadium, 2/10/21.

Ouch!

I wouldn’t normally have watched this but my younger son invited myself and the good lady over for the afternoon and dinner. Not a good afternoon as it turned out but the dinner he cooked was lovely.

I kind of knew it wasn’t going to be our day when they scored flukily early on. Their player’s shot was mishit well wide but another stuck his foot out to deflect it in. Thereafter we dominated the first half but couldn’t find the net. The wind was playing havoc and our players couldn’t seem to judge it well. Still, 1-0 down at half-time was recoverable.

Two nil down three minutes later wasn’t, a cross swung into the box met at the back post. Then Ryan McGeever tied himself in knots at another cross and only succeded in letting it hit off him into the path of the attacker.

The wind was so bad that at one point a Sam Ramsbottom goal kick reached halfway to the halfway line and then blew out for a corner kick! It looked like our players suggested to the ref that the conditions were such that the game should be abandoned but at 3-0 I doubt he was going to do that.

Their fourth wouldn’t have happened at 1-0 or 2-0, their player just swung at the ball from a tight angle and it screamed in off the post.

The fifth was a penalty where I thought their player had just fallen down rather than being fouled but the Pixellot camera angle and distance from the action make it difficult to tell.

Bizarrely I thought we actually played quite well – even the Peterhead stream’s commentators admitted this was not a 5-0 game – and I was impressed by the players’ commitment even at 5-0 down. The wind took away our best weapon as our crosses into the box didn’t find their targets.

So, nine games in, we’ve played everyone else and we’re fifth – possibly sixth if Montrose beat Queen’s Park tomorrow.* And our goal difference is back down to 0.

We’re equal points on third but only three points above eighth. It’s a ludicrously tight league.

*Perhaps not likely since Queen’s haven’t lost yet.

SPFL Tier 3, The Rock, 11/9/21.

Wow!

What a contrast to the last few seasons.

This was our biggest league win for ten years. (Curiously that one was also against East Fife, 6-0 at their place in our last promotion season.)

Mind you there wasn’t much sign of it in the early stages where both teams didn’t threaten much. But then we got a free-kick which was flighted in by Connor Duthie and headed towards goal by Ryan McGeever. It looked to be going wide but ex-Son Scott Gallacher in the Fife goal palmed it out straight to Ross MacLean who gleefully stuck it away.

For a spell towards the end of the half East Fife had a lot of possession but their best – their only – chance came from a free-kick. Sam Ramsbottam looked beaten but the ball crashed off the bar and out.

Just before half-time a Callum Wilson corner saw Gregor Buchanan get a free header yards out. 2-0.

Things meandered round for a bit second half but we put the game to bed when another Callum Wilson delivery was met by Buchanan again despite the attentions of the defence.

Two more goals from set-pieces gave the result a welcome gloss, Ryan McGeever was left all alone in the box to put away Kalvin Orsi’s knock-back from a long corner before Eoghan Stokes headed in from a beautiful delivery from fellow sub Joe McKee following a short corner to him.

If you can be churlish about a five-nil victory here comes the churl. We didn’t score from open play. Indeed we didn’t create a chance from open play except for Ross MacLean’s dribble and shot from a narrow angle which hit the post.

That’s curmudgeonly though. It was such a delight to watch a Sons second half performance with absolutely no trepidation.

They won’t all be like this though.

Falkirk away next week. I never thought we’d be heading there next Saturday above them in the table. (Even if it is only on goal difference.)

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.

SPFL Tier 3 Playoff Final, First Leg, Ainslie Park, 17/5/21.

Well. Where did that come from?

I thought we had played quite well first half and had the better opportunities but we had fallen a wee bit out of it even if they hadn’t had a shot on goal. I must confess when they scored, out of the blue really, (Sam Ramsbottom could maybe have done better?) I thought the tie was over.

But we came out and started to get at them.

Unusually a short corner worked for us, Ross Forbes playing a wicked cross on to Ryan McGeever’s head. No doubt where that was going. Our first ever goal at Ainslie Park.

The second was due to Forbes driving at the defence. His shot wasn’t properly dealt with by the keeper and Tomas Brindley, even though he hit the rebound directly at him, still had enough on the ball to get it past him.

The third was Forbes again, putting in the free-kick sweetly for Morgyn Neill’s bullet header.

Three assists for Ross Forbes. His legs may have gone but he’s still capable of delivering a free kick.

It’s still only half time though. Second leg at the Rock on Thursday. If they score first things will doubtless get jittery.

SPFL Tier 3, The Rock, 8/4/21.

Well. Two goals.

Count them.

Two goals – and we had a penalty saved. Who’d have thought it?

In one game we have increased our goals tally in the league by 33.33%.

It helped that we scored early; a Ryan McGeever header from a Ross Forbes corner. Typical that my live-streaming feed froze momentarily and I didn’t see it, just heard the commentators go tonto. (I did wind back the feed after the game and saw how thumping a header it was.) McGeever had another close effort – with his foot! – a few minutes later which crashed off the bar and a second free header in the second half where he was way off with his direction.

Thereafter it was not quite like Groundhog Day. We did look to be more on the front foot than in recent games even if East Fife had more possession. They didn’t do a lot with it though – except for Scott Agnew’s delivery at corners which I knew would catch us out in the end, and did. Thankfully that came too late.

Our second goal was a neat through ball from Ross Forbes and a shimmy past the defender by Adam Frizell before he buried it emphatically.

I was still figuratively biting my nails. We’ve cocked up so many games since the restart.

Pity that Clyde also got a win.

On to Cove on Saturday now.

Scottish Cup, Round 3, The Rock, 3/4/21.

We should change our name officially to Dumbarton Nil.

Fair enough they are two leagues above us but they didn’t look great shakes. You might say they were there for the taking.

Admittedly they ought to have won by more then one goal since they created quite a few chances. We were indebted to Sam Ramsbottom and the defence for keeping the score down but on the other hand, that is their job.

But we could have played all week and not scored. (If only that Ryan McGeever chance had fallen instead to Jaime Wilson.)

In fact we have played all week and not scored (except for a deflected shot against Falkirk.) If you’re looking for a reason for our league position it’s right there.

So now we’re likely to be knackered and playing a very good Montrose team on Tuesday night and a not too bad East Fife on Thursday.

The three teams we’ve lost against since the restart are arguably the ones we stood most chance of gaining something from and those games are gone, with zero points to show for them.

Scottish Cup, Round 2, The Rock, 23/3/21.

Well, maybe we’re not so rubbish after all.

Mind you this was Huntly’s first game after the long lay off (and probably their last for this season.)

We pretty much controlled the early stages with Huntly more or less sitting in but they began to make inroads after about twenty minutes.

We broke the deadlock following a corner where Ross Forbes played the ball to Adam Frizell outside the box; he ferreted it on to P J Crossan on the right who beat his man and cut it back for Jaime Wilson to score.

Just before half-time we scored again, another Forbes corner was powered into the net by Ryan McGeever.

Second half we never looked troubled apart from a free-kick which Chris Smith (thank goodness) in goal dealt with well. We played the ball about at the back a lot trying to pull Huntly out of shape. The third came after a great through ball from Forbes to Wilson whose chip the keeper got just a fingertip to on its way over him into the net.

The fourth was down to Adam Frizell worming his way through the defence and feeding Forbes who looked stretched but poked it past the keeper.

This was far more comfortable in the end than I had feared. The chances we made we by and large took. It ought to give the confidence a huge boost.

Onwards to the next round and Aberdeen at home on April the 3^rd.

We’ve got three other games in the league before that though, one of those only two days before it.

Strange times.

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

Well.

It turns out this was a must-win after all.

It wasn’t just a defeat. It was a calamity. They came to within two points of us and Peterhead won to stretch their lead over us to five points. Our game against them (next up in the league) has now become a real must-win.

What’s more Forfar showed very little to suggest they are or will be a good side.

The trouble is neither did we.

Even making allowances for the lack of games this was dire. Both teams will be lucky to avoid relegation. I hardly think Clyde can be worse than us both.

To cap it all, Stefan McCluskey is now going to have an operation and will be out for the season. As if we didn’t have few enough bodies already.

Make no mistakee; this was the performance of a side doomed to relegation.

In the absence of Rico Quitongo, Tomas Brindley filled in at left back. He was okay but at least twice was in a great crossing position with players free in Forfar’s box and miserably failed to get the ball in to them. Too many passes in midfield were misplaced. There was some neat link-up play at times but it never led to anything. Everyone had a game to forget – except for one player, who has a very cogent reason to remember it, as a warning.

For the goal was utterly preventable. I would say it was comical but it was worse than that. It was totally abject. New signing Sam Ramsbottom had hit three out of four clearances against one of our players already as well as getting away with several other low kick-outs. But while having plenty of time to make sure his kick would be well-placed he did it again, clattering the ball against poor Ryan McGeever’s back, from which it rebounded goalwards. Ramsbottom’s dive after it was futile. He only helped carry it into the net.

Ramsbottom will now linger in my mind (along with Peter Shaw of dreaded memory) as being just about the worst goalkeeper I’ve ever seen in a Sons jersey. He was woeful. Not just his kicking, his ball catching skills also leave a lot to be desired, he seemed to punch or palm away just about everything that wasn’t the easiest of catches.

I would say that it would be for the best if we lost in the Cup against Huntly on Tuesday, to save us the fixture pile-up, except for the effect such a defeat would likely have on morale.

My mood is despairing.