SPFL Tier 2 Play-off, Semi-Final, Second Leg, The Rock*, 5/5/18.

This was excruciating. We made it much harder than we ought to have done.

We came out of the blocks well and took the lead with Dougie Hill’s header from a Tom Walsh corner. We kept up the pressure and had several efforts, the best of which probably fell to Andy Stirling but he blazed it over the bar.

We weren’t in any danger till Liam Dick made a poor defensive header and put Andy Dowie in trouble. His short pass back went to their player who had the easiest finish imaginable.

After that we simply fell apart, every effort at the ball rushed, every clearance sclaffed, every second ball not gained.

Despite that we had some efforts on goal in the second half with Tom Walsh beating the keeper and having the ball cleared off the line, Danny Handling through on his own but lacking the pace to beat the defender and finally in injury time Liam Burt chipping the keeper on a one-on-one but missing the goal.

Scott Gallagher did have a few saves to make but was never really troubled.

Referee Craig Charletson was his usual arrogant self. Several times their players went through one of ours and not a free-kick to be had. The only one we got anywhere near their goal was given by the linesman. The man seems to hate us for some reason.

So. We have to go through all this again on Wednesday and Sunday against Alloa. I don’t think my nerves will stand it.

*Now The C&G Systems Stadium after our new, local, sponsors.

SPFL Tier 2 Play-off Semi-final, first leg, Gayfield Park, 2/5/18.

Now here’s a rarity.

I was composing this post in my head just before the final whistle and it began, “Well, I’ve still not seen us win at Gayfield,” when – lo and behold – we do just that, Craig Barr knocking the ball in at the second attempt.

Admittedly this followed an almost continuous run of Sons pressure where both Iain Russell and Liam Burt perhaps should have scored.

But it all ended up rather better than it might have.

Scott Gallacher had already had to make two (comfotable) saves before we threatened their goal but their keepers saves were of a higher order, first from Danny Handling’s header and then from Tom Walsh’s shot from the rebound. A defensive mix-up at the bakk almost let Arbroath score but their forward amazingly pulled it back too far and it escaped the post.

Second half we were more in the game and got the opener when fine work by Andy Stirling allowed him to cross. Tom Walsh’s header was perfect for Calum Gallagher to loop his header over the keeper.

Their equaliser came from a free-kick given at the edge of our box but play should never have got that far as a shove in the back tokk one of ours out of the play in the build-up. The goal encouraged Arbroath and they came at us with Scott Gallagher having to make two fine saves. Then after Iain Russell and Liam Burt came on for Calum Gallagher and Tom Walsh came that late push.

It’s not over yet, Arbroath showed they could theaten us, but we go into Saturday’s second leg in a better position than I had feared.

It will still be a nervy affair though.

SPFL Tier 2, St Mirren Park, 2/12/17.

What a welcome – and unexpected – three points.

Mind you we’ve apparently played quite well the past few weeks – certainly did at Dunfermline – and with St Mirren having gone down to ten men just before half-time I would have been disappointed not to take anything from the game. But I’d have snatched your hand off for three points before it started.

I was reduced to listening to the radio in the car for snippets and was increasingly worried we wouldn’t score in the second half but Tom Walsh came up trumps and – marvel of marvels – we held out for the win. (If only we’d done that in the past two games we’d only be below Queen of the South* on goal difference.)

Too early to get carried away though but surely we needn’t fear anybody in this league.

Down to earth with a bump next week?

*Edited to add: And Dunfermline, and only a point below Morton! I was only looking at 6^th place when I originally posted.

SPFL Tier 2, East End Park, 25/11/17.

In the end this was one point more than I thought we’d get but in reality two dropped.

First half we were in control but neither side really looked like scoring. It was a good enough game nevertheless – even if Dunfermline appeared poorer than a team in third place in the division ought to be. They weren’t really on it, but that may have been due to us not letting them play. Not that that would excuse their misplaced passes…

I have to say the atmosphere im the away end was brilliant with youngsters having brought along a drum. I’m sure this must have communicated to the players. It was noisy enough!

Second half things livened up a bit. I’d just remarked to Onebrow that Tom Walsh’s shooting could be improved. Next move he opened the scoring, taking the ball up, moving past a man and placing his shot into the corner. We could see it was in and the keeper wasn’t going to get it from the moment it left his foot.

It didn’t last long. Just after they made a double substitution a ball into our box was taken down and as soon as the player turned with it I knew it was going in.

Our first sub had a spectacular effect. Our Dimitris, back from injury, came on, with his first two touches of the ball swept past two defenders and with his third pinged it across the keeper into the far top corner. A goal to grace any game. Wonderful. Mind you he was pretty anonymous from then on, apart from having his legs taken away from him towards the end.

Dunfermline then threw everything at us and despite some good defending up to that point unfortunately with a minute or so to go managed to get their second equaliser after a bit of ping-pong in our box. So a potential three points became one.

The referee was poor though. A lot of decisions went against us when they shouldn’t have. At one point one of Dunfermline’s players threw himself into Christian Nade and bounced off him. Free kick to Dunfermline! Several times their players went right through one of ours and we didn’t even get a free kick, still less the yellow cards the challenges deserved. Nick Walsh was the guilty man.

But the performance showed we can compete with teams in this division.

SPFL Tier 2, Glebe Park, 4/11/17.

So, a welcome return to the Glebe. Though the beech hedge has been given a terrible scalping.

This was a reminder of what lower league Scottish football is all about. Standing on the touchline two feet from the referee’s assistant, hearing all the verbals between the players. Pity about the standard of the football….

This was a bit of huff and puff, not much real quality on show. Not surprising really considering the import of the game. Plus we were missing about six players for various reasons.

We had much the best of the first half and made a few openings but nothing ever quite clear cut, Brechin always getting a body in the way. During a succesion of corners which all came to nothing I began to wonder if we’d suffer a sucker punch in the second half.

That looked more likely after the interval as we fell badly out of it and Brechin pressed. But they didn’t open us up either; only a long range effort put Scott Gallacher under any pressure but it cannoned off the top of the bar. This was the sort of game which our Dimitris could have made his own and the absence of Christian Nade shows how little we have in the way of aerial threat without him.

With a few minutes left the ball fell to Tom Walsh in Brechin’s box. Here’s the chance I thought. His shot too went over. That there was at least two points gone, it seemed.

That reckoned without Chris McLaughlin who got down the line one more time and whipped over his cross into that six yard danger area. It bounced off a Brechin player and towards the goal. It felt like it took ages before trundling into the back of the net. It’s the sort of goal a team concedes when nothing is going for it. Brechin must have been gutted.

Yet overall we deserved the win I would say, especially for our first half dominance. Special mention to Kyle Hutton, who gets a lot of stick from Sons fans but more or less ruled the midfield today. His long passing can be awry but when he keeps it short things are better.

Scottish Challenge Cup*, Third Round, The Rock, 6/10/17.

An odd night statistically. I’m sure that’s the first time we’ve won three Challenge Cup ties in one season and it marks four home games in a row we’ve won 2-1 – and the away game in that sequence was lost by the same score. And we don’t usually beat Stranraer.

I must say Stranraer turned out for this in an ugly black strip with horrible luminous yellow flashings and socks.

We should have had this dead and buried after ten minutes. At least four great chances in that time. Mark Stewart charged down a defender’s forward pass and set up Calum Gallagher who didn’t shoot first time but instead dollied round another defender and his subsequent shot was saved by the keeper’s legs. Then a Chris McLaughlin cross gave Calum Gallagher a free header and he didn’t get anything like enough on it. The goal came after a fine driving run into the box from David Wilson to set up Craig Barr who still had a lot to do but did it superbly. A minute or so later Dimitris Froxylias hit a chance over the bar. Pretty much it for the half except for Scott Gallacher going off to be replaced by Jamie Ewings and us letting Stranraer have too much possession.

Second half followed the pattern of the latter part of the first but we always looked comfortable. Scott Agnew (formerly of this parish) pinged over a few great cross-fields balls with that left foot of his but was otherwise uninfluential.

The game was all but over when Tom Walsh skinned the full back yet again and put over a beautiful cross. Mark Stewart showed Calum Gallagher how it’s done.

Froxy did track back more than I’ve seen him but when on the ball occasionally tried too much. He was perhaps a bit too cute with a late shot which was deflected then cleared off the line.

They had a couple of moments from corners where the ball flashed across the box but were nowhere near clinical and only two shots, both long range, on target in all of normal time both of which Jamie Ewings dealt with easily. Three minutes stoppage time was announced and I thought we might actually get a clean sheet. But another poorly given away and defended corner led to them scoring with the second last touch of the game.

It’s the first time I’ve seen us win this season, since late January at Raith in fact.

I’m glad we’re not in the third tier. I thought Stranraer were brutal (football fan speak for not very entertaining.)

*Irn Bru Cup if you must.

SPFL Tier 2, Almondvale Stadium, 30/9/17.

On another day we would have won this.

We started quite brightly but they soon came into it. By the time they scored I felt it had been coming. For the rest of the first half we showed nothing – not even a shot on target in the whole half. Froxy looked a good player with the ball at his feet but sometimes wanting defensively. Their goal was another lost to a set piece. That needs sorted.

Second half was a different story. We dominated it with Tom Walsh skinning their right back almost at will. Unfortunately his crosses were not met by any of our players. Christian Nade did have a header that crashed off the bar and cruelly bounced off the line. In the meantime Livi had begun the time-wasting early.

In the end Tom Walsh did it all by himself, again taking the right back to the cleaners before his shot beat the keeper. From our angle it looked like he’d chucked it in but there may have been a deflection.

For a while after that we looked very lively and Walsh again tried to beat the keeper at his near post but this time he saved it.

Livi came out of their shell and started to threaten. If they’d played like that the whole half they might have found the game a lot more comfortable.

Communication at the back seems a problem for us. It was an attempted header backwards that undid us, their forward pouncing on it to head home.

From then on Livi’s time-wasting was even more blatant.

A frustrating day in the end. Two, or even three, points lost.

SPFL Tier 2, The Rock, 16/4/16.

It started well. It finished; well…..

Pity about the bit in between. And the injury to big Christian Nade is a blow as we’ve only looked a team this season after he joined us.

I watched this courtesy of BBC Alba of course and things were looking okay at half time. Tom Walsh had even hit a good cross!

What happened in the second half though? We totally fell out of it even before Nade’s injury. Jamie Ewings didn’t have much of a hope with any of the three goals; a poorish kick-out led to one of them but the defence should still not have let Raith through so easily. They seemed to just walk through for two of the three, the other coming from a not deep enough clearance by Fraser Wright.

Despite never having hit a decent cross before this game Tom Walsh ended this with two assists, and doesn’t Steven Saunders love a goal against Raith? Too little too late of course.

We really need something from Saturday now but a draw against St Mirren might not be good enough. We don’t want to be relying on Rangers and Raith even if Queen of the South do the needful.

I note that with Rangers and Hibs progressing to this year’s final East Fife’s record of being the only team outwith the top division to win the Scottish Cup has now been lost. And wouldn’t it be just the thing if Hibs finally win the thing again after totally horsing up the league? (Or Hibsing it as now seems to be the parlance.)

Mind you it’d be a laugh to see them navigating a European campaign from the second tier.

Then again maybe not.

SPFL Tier 2, The Rock, 12/4/16.

Football’s an odd game and this one was certainly an example. Hardly started when their keeper made an absolute hash of a kick-out, hitting it straight to Christian Nade who strode forward with the ball, shot while still well outside the penalty box and buried it.

A nice settler you’d think in such an important game but we promptly fell out of it allowing Queens too much space and time. But still Garry Fleming could have settled nerves further if he’d put away the chance that came to him but the keeper redeemed himself a little with a good save. Jamie Ewings performed the needful on a one-on-one but only delayed the inevitable. The atmosphere was strangely quiet, the crowd perhaps too nervous to make much noise – except when the stand-side linesman made a ludicrous decision to award a throw-in the wrong way after a ricochet.

Still, Queens’ pressure gradually built up then Ian Russell did what he has done against us ever since he left. Quite why he was given the space at the edge of the box to pick up a headed clearance is another thing entirely.

Then what should have been a body blow when they cut through us just before half-time to take the lead. I couldn’t see us getting anything from the game at that point.

But a few minutes into the second half the match had turned on its head. First Tom Walsh cut out a pass near their penalty area, beat the last defender and curled a beauty high past the keeper into the top corner. In our next foray upfield Christian Nade got his head to a Mark Docherty corner and scored. (It may have bounced off a defender’s back on the way in.)

That same stand-side linesman failed to make a decision at all after a Queens player had got a nick on a crossfield pass and a Queens player took it on himself to take the throw. The ref put his whistle to his lips as if to amend things but didn’t. What are these guys paid for?

It was all still a bit nervous with not much goalmouth action but with five minutes to go after another corner Greg Buchanan was attempting an overhead kick when he was bumped in mid-air and the ref gave the penalty. (It looked a bit six and half a dozen to me but I’ll take it.) Garry Fleming tucked the award away. 4-2. Breathless stuff.

That’s the first time this season we’ve scored more than three in a league game. Timely indeed.

SPFL Tier 2, Almondvale Stadium, 5/3/16.

Opportunity missed. Big time.

Livingston started nervously, seeming to be lacking in confidence. Apart from a brief foray or two we dominated the early exchanges. Several chances went abegging – mostly through Livingston losing the ball in dangerous areas but first Calum Waters delayed his cross too long, then Tom Walsh at least tested the keeper. A magnificent through ball from Waters to Christian Nade ought at least to have produced a shot but he checked back and the chance was lost. At least six Sons corners came and went without any rewal threat to Livi’s goal appearing.

It only takes a goal to boost confidence, though. Unfortunately it wasn’t us who got it. Tom Walsh lost the ball in our attacking third and we were too stretched. There were still chances to block the cross or the attackers but Frazer Wright seemed to slip in the box and despite Jamie Ewings blocking an almost point blank shot he could do nothing about the rebound. A few minutes later Jamie saved us when Gregor Buchanan tried to play football just outside our penalty area, lost the ball and their player was one-on-one. Jamie Lindsay was prominent in midfield first half but faded in the second.

Midway through the second half our 4-1-4-1 changed to 4-4-2 when Garry Fleming came on. Later still in a vain attempt to get something from the game it was 4-3-3 as Donald McCallum was added up front. Jamie Ewings made another good stop, this time from a long range effort. A Jamie Lindsay free kick more or less straight at the keeper was about all we had to show though.

The goal that killed it also ought to have been prevented. Frazer Wright failed to deal with the long ball and again lost his footing, leaving the player with an easy side foot in.

Late on sub Jordan Kirkpatrick beat his man in the box and was caught on the way past: a stonewaller but the ref didn’t give it. Not that it mattered by then as it would have been too late. Perhaps this was karma for all those games at Livi where we’ve gone behind and went on to win.

Christian Nade was fouled throughout the game but got little protection (or support from midfield come to that.) Tom Walsh has some good control and can drift past players but can’t cross; Donald McCallum is eager and quick but lacks strength as yet; he’s not really one to come on when we’re chasing something. The game could be our penance for having Frazer Wright in the side – not that the first goal was entirely down to him. Let’s hope all his mishaps were reserved for this one.

At season’s end this could turn out to have been a pivotal game. In which case it will have tipped against us.

Tuesday’s match against Alloa assumes great importance now.