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Scottish football doesn’t need a winter stop

Tuesday, December 16th, 2008

In The Motion, we’ll bring you a hot topic of discussion for you to get your teeth into. To get involved, simply read the motion below. Then, having calmed down sufficiently, leave your comment arguing for, or against the motion. There’s no prize, there’s no winner and there’s no right or wrong – just your opinion.

The Motion

With the amount of games being called off in the last few weeks, there have been calls for a winter stop to be introduced in the Scottish game to avoid the fixture build-up and hordes of angry fans who have spent the best part of four hours getting to a game that has been cancelled. Every season it’s the same old story.

But what is really needed is not a winter stop, just better facilities at the grounds, together with better communication between the leagues, the clubs and the fans.

Discuss

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The Monday Wrap

Monday, December 15th, 2008

So, that’s the weekend behind us. There’s been plenty of action across Scotland’s football grounds this weekend, with lots of goals and one or two surprise results.

The SPL

In the SPL, Aberdeen continued their fantastic run of home form with a good first half performance against a Falkirk side that just didn’t get going. The 2-1 win (Lee Miller with both goals and former Aberdeen striker Stevie Lovell scoring for the Bairns) sealed a win that seemed comfortable in the first half, less so the second when shades of the Aberdeen of old returned. Nevermind though, it’s another 3 points on the board for Jimmy Calderwood.

The early game of the day saw Dundee United and Rangers serve up another high-scoring ding-dong of a game. Like we said in the preview on Friday, games between these two rarely disappoint and Saturdays encounter was no exception. Kris Boyd got on the score sheet again, but it took an equalizer 15 minutes from time to secure the points for Rangers. Walter Smith would not have been happy with that result; Rangers have now only gained four points from a possible nine in the last three weeks, not the sort of form that you want when you’re chasing your biggest rivals.

The good news then for Rangers was that Celtic also dropped points. The 1-1 against Hearts in Glasgow came, like the game at Tannadice, thanks to a goal 15 minutes from the end of the game. Andrew Driver put Hearts in front on the half hour. Celtic then huffed and puffed their way to a share of the points when Stephen McManus equalised. Celtic’s lead then remains four points, but Strachan must be feeling the pressure a wee bit now.

Hibernian piled more misery onto Hamilton with a deserved 2-0 win, Derek Riordan and captain Rob Jones getting on the score sheet. St Mirren beat Inverness 2-0 to extend their recent run of form. The win has the two sides swapping places, with Hamilton three points adrift at the bottom. Motherwell and Kilmarnock play this evening.

First Division

In the first, there was another good win for Clyde. Their 1-0 win over Dundee was not a friendly affair – both sides where reduced to 10 men. Airdrie United lost 2-1 away at Partick Thistle, their cause not helped by a McLaughlin own-goal that won the match for Thistle. Queen of the South lost another game at home, this time to Dunfermline, while new Livingston manager Paul Hegarty got off to a flyer with a convincing 4-1 over Ross County in Dingwall. League leaders St. Johnstone needed a late Kevin Rutkiewicz  goal to overcome a resolute Morton side.

Division Two

There’s no change at the top of the Second division. Raith and Ayr both won (against Queens Park and Alloa respectively), while Brechin’s game at Stranraer was postponed. Arbroath had a convincing win over Peterhead,  the 4-0 win over the Balmoor side pushing them into 7th place, and mid-table safety. Lichties manager John McGlashan must be congratulated for the way he has steered the club into the right direction following a pretty disastrous start to the season.

Division Three

The Third division had three players sent off in five games, suggesting a scrappy Saturday, the sort you’d expect really at this level.  Stenhousemuir maintain their lead at the top of the Third division. The 1-0 win over Albion came thanks to an Ian Thomson goal, but the match was soured with the dismissal of Stennie’s Steven Ferguson near the end of the game. Montrose where also down to 10 men towards the end of the game. Cowdenbeath, their opponents had already scored the goal that would win them the match, the Blue Brazil not making the best use of their advantage to finish the game off completely. Dumbarton sailed past Forfar by three goals to nil, while Berwick Rangers picked up their first win in ages against a 10-man Annan Athletic.

The Highland League

Of the games that survived the weather in the North and North-east, Deveronvale extended their lead at the top of the ScotAds Highland League. In a match with many bookings, a single goal by Deveronvale’s McGowan proved enough to beat Lossiemouth. Fraserburgh won 3-1 away at Brora, Inverness side Clachnacuddin and Nairn County played out a good 2-2 draw (Nairn equalising in the last minute) while Huntly overcame local rivals Keith thanks to goals from Richard Craig and Michelle Lombardi.

With Fort William’s game against Cove Rangers called off, it was up to Buckie Thistle to provide the goals this weekend, with their 6-0 demolition of Rothes more than making up for the unusually quiet weekend in the Highland League.

Lastly, our congratulations go out to Forres Mechanics, whose oft-cancelled Scottish Cup game against Dalbeattie Star finally went ahead. The Highland League side emerged 4-2 winners after extra-time. The win puts the Highland League side into the Fourth round of the competition.

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The Weekender (13th December)

Friday, December 12th, 2008

Ho ho ho and all that.

The Xmas decorations have gone up at Inside Left Towers, signalling the start of the festive season. Or the expensive season, depending which side of the parent-child fence you stand on. It’s all Wii this, Nintendo that; the outgoings are pure murder polis so they are. Back in the day we where happy with a football and a packet of Panini stickers (the ones missing from your collection that season) but now the kids want all sorts of electronic crappery, most of which involve preliminary meetings with the bank manager.

Anyway, where are we going with all this? Nowhere really, but the cost of Xmas – no, the cost of life generally – has seen the good people of Scotland make some hard decisions about where to spend their hard earned Pesos. While prices at football grounds in the top division are not quite up to EPL levels, attendances around this time of year tend to drop anyway as money goes to the toy shops and not the football grounds. We wonder how this years credit crisis will affect the clubs, but having seen the highlights of some of the games during the last week you could fire a canon down the main stands of most club grounds safe in the knowledge you wont hit anyone. So, going into the festive period our message to you is this: Wii’s are for Xmas, your football club is for life. Support your team and get along to the grounds!

Right, end of that party political broadcast on behalf of the “Scottish Football Party” – on with the action!

The SPL

It’s game 18 of the season and Celtic still lead the way but only by four points, that defeat last week at Hibernian cutting into their seemingly unassailable lead. This weekend they face a tricky home tie against Hearts, the team currently in fourth spot. Celtic of course had that symbolic but superb win against Villareal on Wednesday and their confidence is no doubt high. Hearts had their game against Motherwell called off last weekend so possibly lack a bit of sharpness, but there’s no denying they’re playing well and should put up a spirited fight. We expect Celtic to win this one because they are on form (as indeed are Hearts) but they have that added sharpness of a good midweek win.

Aberdeen look to continue the recent return of their home form when they look to make it four-in-a-row against Falkirk. Sone Aluko was named Young Player of the Month for his recent performances, but the Dons will have to do without the young Englishman as he shakes off the injury incurred against Motherwell. Falkirk lost their last game against St. Mirren and John Hughes will no doubt be hoping to get back to winning ways and avenge the 1-0 defeat the Dons inflicted earlier on in the season. Another side who had their game called off – controversially – last weekend, the Dons are probably grateful it’s Falkirk they’re playing and not one of the Old Firm. Falkirk wont lie down and roll over, but we fancy Aberdeen to win this one, given their home form.

If we get another repeat of the last meeting between Dundee United and Rangers back at the start of November, there wont be too many a neutral complaining. A pulsating 3-3 draw was how it ended, with Kevin Thomson saving Rangers in front of their own crowd with an injury time equaliser. Games between these two are generally full of goals (we had a 3-3 and a 2-2 last season) so expect more of the same – we hope.

Hamilton found themselves at the wrong end of a 7-1 scoreline last week against Rangers and, thanks to a St. Mirren win at Falkirk, back at the bottom of the table. The Accies are struggling a wee bit and will no doubt still be feeling the bruises from that trashing. They’ve a lot to prove to their fans, so we expect them to come out guns blazing against tomorrows opponents Hibernian, looking for a win to get them out of that danger zone. Hibs had that good win against Celtic to keep them going during the week and should carry that form through to win tomorrows game. It was a narrow victory in the last meeting – thanks to a Derek Riordan strike on his debut game since returning to the club from Celtic – but we expect more goals for Hibs this time around.

St. Mirren against Inverness is the last game of the weekend. The Saints are staying close to the bottom of the table, always just doing enough to stay out of real trouble. They’d do well to get some distance between themselves and Hamilton, and this game against Inverness might just be the ticket. Billy Mehmet scored in the 2-1 win over the highlanders in the first meeting of the sides and his 8 goals so far this season are coming in handy. Caley are just above them in the league – a defeat could see them slip to bottom if Hamilton somehow beat Hibs and Motherwell overcome Kilmarnock on Monday.

The First Division

It was a quiet week in the First Division – indeed all of the SFL last week – due to frozen pitches everywhere. The only game to go ahead was the game at McDiarmid Park between St. Johnstone and Queen of the South which ended goalless. Weather permitting, we should have a few more games to enjoy this Saturday.

We kick-off at the Broadwood Stadium where Clyde meet Dundee. Clyde’s season has taken a bit of a turn for the better following good wins over Montrose (Scottish Cup) and Queen of the South and that 2-2 draw with St. Johnstone, while Dundee’s honeymoon with new manager Jocky Scott still looks very much on track – the Dee have not lost since Scott returned to Dens Park. Airdrie United are propping up the league, while tomorrows opponents Partick are one of six teams that currently make up the middle of the table, all separated by just five points. Queen of the South have hit a rocky patch, losing to Dundee, Clyde and Morton lately and their opponents tomorrow, Dunfermline, are tough opposition for anyone. The Pars, second in the league have won their last two games. Ross County are now in fourth after spending most of the season in the lower half of the league. The disappointment of losing that Alba Challenge Cup against Airdrie has been avenged, and against Livingston, for whom Paul Hegarty makes his managerial debut they should win – Livingston have not won a game since the start of November. League leaders St. Johnstone welcome Morton to Perth. It should be an easy win for the Saints – they’re playing well while Morton are still not winning with enough regularity. Ok, so they beat Queen of the South, but looking back over this review, who hasn’t?

The Second Division

There’s a bit of a gulf appearing in the Second division. The top three teams, Raith, Brechin and Ayr are separated by just one point, yet there’s a full 9 points between third and fourth. Remarkable. Arbroath will be glad with the 15k they’re getting from Hearts following the long protracted discussions around the sale of Andy Webster and must boost morale as they take on another team from up the coast, Peterhead.  Two of the top three teams play at home this weekend: Ayr welcome second bottom Alloa while Brechin take on bottom side Stranraer. Raith Rovers face an away trip to Hampden to play Queens Park. The only other fixture taking place is the middle of the table clash between fifth-placed East Fife and sixth-placed Stirling.

The Third Division

It’s all pretty tight in the Third division also. Stenhousemuir still lead the chasing pack by four points and will make sure that stays that way when they take on Albion Rovers. Cowdenbeath take on Montrose in the Third Division Game of The Day. Level on 25 points, something has to give between these two sides. Elgin City, who survived the Malin-gate scandal and will get a chance to replay their Scottish Cup fixture against Spartans, take on fifth placed East Stirling. Berwick face a short journey by their standards when they travel to Annan, while in the final game of the day, Dumbarton welcome Forfar Athletic to the west of Scotland.

The Highland League

This time of year is always a bit of a risky time to be playing football in the Highlands, but at the time of writing, all the games are still on. The derby game of the day is between Keith and Huntly, two teams separated by only a 10 mile stretch of the A96 and five league points. Fraserburgh, who scored three goals against Cove Rangers last week and still lost 6-3 take on second-from-bottom Brora Rangers. Leaders Deveronvale welcome Lossiemouth to Princess Royal Park and Wick Academy make another long, long, long journey south to Inverurie for their match against Locos.

The final fixture is between Fort William (good for some 15 goals against in 9 games at home this season) against defending champions Cove Rangers, who despite banging in 33 at home this season have only scored 6 on the road. Cove Rangers won 6-3 last weekend and are one of the many teams to have given Fort William a pounding last season, so expect more of the same. We keep saying it: one day, and one day soon the Fort will win a game. But not this week though.

OK, that’s it for this weekends roundup. As always, if you’re going to the games, drop us a note when you get back to let us know how you got on.

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The weekend SPL Fixtures on video

Thursday, December 11th, 2008

With another weekend of Scottish football nearly upon us, we bring you four of this weekends fixtures courtesy of a trawl through the archives on YouTube. Some classic games from the past to get you into the mood for the weekend.

Dundee United 1-1 Rangers

Goalkeeper Alan Main makes his debut for Dundee United. That season, 1985/86, Dundee  United managed to draw 1-1 with Rangers three times. United would finish the season in third place, three points behind Hearts and eventual league champions Celtic.

Aberdeen 3-1 Falkirk

It’s October 1992 and Eoin Jess, Mixu Paatelainen and Scott Booth score the goals for Aberdeen, while  Falkirk pulled on back through Scott Sloan. In one of the few season in which the Old Firm where split, it was Aberdeen who finished the league in second place between champions Rangers and Celtic. Falkirk where relegated, together with Airdrie.

Hearts 3-1 Celtic

The 1956 Scottish Cup final, featuring John Cumming, who sadly died earlier this month. The Hearts team on the day featured others legends such as Jimmy Wardhaugh (who played at inside left), Alex Young, Alfie Conn, Dave Mackay and Willie Bauld, the “King of Hearts”.

Hamilton 0-2 Hibernian

Russell Latapy, now with Falkirk scores twice to help Hibernian beat Hamilton 2-0 in April of 1999. Mixu Paatelainen, the current Hibs manager sets Latapy up for both goals. The win confirmed Hibernian’s promotion to the SPL, while Hamilton where relegated down to the Second division, from which they would be relegated to the Third division the following year.

The full fixture list for this weekend is:

Aberdeen v Falkirk
Celtic v Hearts
Dundee Utd v Rangers (12:30 KO)
Hibernian v Hamilton
St Mirren v Inverness CT

Motherwell take on Kilmarnock on Monday.

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The SPL Half Time Report (Part II)

Thursday, December 11th, 2008

We’ve reached the half-way stage in the SPL for this season, give or take a few games, so it’s about time for Inside Left to take a look at how the season has been going for all the senior clubs in Scotland. We’ll also take a look at how our predictions for the season are doing and reveal our nominations for Team of the Season (so far) and Player of the Season (so far) once we’ve gone through all the teams.

In yesterdays review, we looked at the top four teams in the league. In the second part of a three-part series, we look at the teams taking up 5th to 8th place in the table.

Hibernian

Hibernian. We like them. Hell, any club that gets referenced in cult flick Trainspotting and Inside Left’s favourite Proclaimers tune ‘The Joyful Kilmarnock Blues’ has to be worth a wee look. Last season’s sixth place finish was disappointing but not unexpected. The Hibees never got higher than fourth during the previous campaign and a series of results going their way on the final day dropped them from fifth to sixth, and a big reduction in prize money. This season has not all been plain sailing, manager Mixu Paatelainen (now in his full first season in charge) in particular having felt the wrath of the referees and the SFA, spending quite a lot of the beginning of the season watching from the stands.

The Good..
The return to Easter Road of the prodigal son Derek Riordan, following his largely undistinguished spell at Parkhead, has created one of the most exciting strike-forces outside of Glasgow, namely Messrs Fletcher, Riordan and Nish. Between them, they’ve scored 17 goals so far this season and are one of the reasons why the Hibees are now in fifth place in the league, albeit six points behind city rivals Hearts.

The Bad..
Just as well they can score, because a goal difference of -1 says it all. Having a deadly strike force is only any good if you have a watertight defence to match. 22 goals for, 23 against is what the table says and clearly needs to be looked at. David van Zanten and Soeleymane Bamba where drafted in to strengthen the defence, while in goal the club have cant seem to decide on McNeil or Ma-Kalambay.

The other thing (and this is becoming a common theme for Scottish clubs this season, and we’ve yet to cover Motherwell) is that Intertoto Cup exit prior to the start of the season against IF Elfsborg, a team that would later be knocked out by Irish part-timers St Patricks Athletic. Kind of says it all really..

Transfers..
Nothing too noteworthy, apart from Riordan of course. Since the season started, Clayton Donaldson (Crewe), Martin Canning (Hamilton) and Sean Lynch (Falkirk) have all departed.

From the Sublime…
Sorry to keep harping on about this, but seriously, that front-line has all the potential of being this generations ‘Famous Five’, providing Stephen Fletcher doesn’t get sold to some mid-table English EPL side as the persistent rumours about his future seems to suggest.

To the Ridiculous..
Thanks to a 3-4 defeat to Morton in the League Cup, Edinburgh are not represented in this years competition. While Hearts went out to Airdrie (who were in mid-table in the First Division), Morton where bottom at the time. Dear oh dear.

The Outlook..
Hibs are definitely a club capable of a top-six finish. The risk of losing Stephen Fletcher has been mitigated by the signing (on a pre-contract deal) of Jonatan Johansson though manager Paatelainen insists that this does not mean Fletcher is on his way out. We think differently and the loss of Fletcher, and the subsequent break-up of that front line could cost Hibs at least one place in the table.

Aberdeen

Aberdeen are Scotland’s third biggest team, potentially. A fourth placed finish last year -  thanks to that memorable win against Rangers on the last day – bookended a season for the Dons in which they tasted European highs (4-0 thumping of Copenhagen) and domestic lows (losing to Queen of the South in the semi-final of the Scottish Cup). In other words – another typical campaign. This season has been distinctly average so far, despite some good summer purchases. Aberdeen cant defend with confidence, they cant score and the club even turned on the fans at one point, a recipe for success in anyone’s book.

The Good..
Sone Aluko. The pacey left winger signed on a permanent deal from Birmingham City at the start of the season – a fantastic coup by Jimmy Calderwood. In a largely mediocre team, Aluko stands out thanks to some great performances. Club finances are also in good shape so the credit crunch should not hit Pittodrie.

The Bad..
The Dons got off to a poor start, not winning a game at home until the start of November. That record officially made Aberdeen the worst club in Britain for a short while. The defence is also not performing well, giving away daft goals and leads. Calderwood’s obsession with Richard Foster seems to know no bounds either. He’s pacey for sure, but he’s not really very good …

Transfers..
Unusually for the club, quite a few players have come through the door. Some good (Mark Kerr, Charlie Mulgrew, Jared Hodgkiss and, as previously mentioned, Sone Aluko), some bad (Bertrand Bossu, a backup for Jamie Langfield in goal) and some indifferent (hard-man Tommy Wright, yet to start a game for the Dons).

From the Sublime..
Sure they lost, but the 3-2 defeat to Celtic and the first half against Rangers in that 2-0 defeat showed that the Dons are capable of putting up a good show when they need to.

To the Ridiculous..
Scraping past Ayr United in the League Cup was followed by a solid thumping at the hands of Kilmarnock – that’s at least one piece of silverware that will not be troubling the tin of silver polish at Pittodrie this season. In an effort to deflect attention away from the disaster happening on the (away) pitches, the club only went and blamed unrealistic expectations the supporters have for the teams poor performances, something that did not go down well with the Red Army.  And oh God, that 4-0 panelling by Peterhead (in which Aberdeen fielded a full-strength squad) during the pre-season is a nightmare best forgotten.

The Outlook..
The Dons are too inconsistent, so don’t expect them to make third spot this season. Fifth or sixth is possible, anything beyond that is a miracle. Some silverware might be nice as well  and which might be enough to keep Calderwood in a job at the end of the season.

Kilmarnock

Killie are one of the great yo-yo teams in the SPL. Not that they get relegated, but rather that they generally follow a bad season with a good one. Last season, where it not for the desperately poor Gretna, Killie would have finished bottom of the league. The season before, they finished fifth. This season they got off to a good start. In August, the club  won three and drew one in the league and made progress in the Co-op Cup with a win at Brechin, all without conceding a goal in the SPL.  That sort of record wins prizes – a Manager of the Month for Jim Jefferies, the SPL’s longest serving manager. Since then, it has been a bit harder for the Rugby Park club. Heavy defeats to Celtic (twice), Rangers and, ahem, Inverness Caley where offset with good results against Aberdeen and Dundee  United.

The Good..
Hanging on to manager  Jim Jefferies. With every passing year life at Rugby Park must get harder, yet Jefferies hangs on in there. Why is this good – well, who else would take over? The club doesn’t have much in the way of money, finding players is always a problem if you’re in a bit of a backwater (sorry Killie fans) and with an average attendance of 5900 this season, you’re not going to life from gate receipts alone. So, keep your manager, stay consistent. Other than that, Mehdi Taouil has impressed in midfield, while journeyman midfielder David Fernandez has found a home after indifferent spells at Celtic and Dundee United. Alan Combe has had a good season in goal, which leads us directly to …

The Bad..
Alan Combe is out of contract in January and looks set to leave the club to go to either Hearts or Hibs, two clubs in desperate need of a good goalkeeper. Chad Harpur, Damien Rascle and Peter Logan are all waiting in the wings. Fills you with confidence doesn’t it? Jim Jefferies is also looking for a striker to solve the goal-scoring problems with former Aberdeen and Dundee United striker Robbie Winters set to be high on the list.

Transfers..
No new faces since the start of the season. Gary Wales went to Raith Rovers.

From the Sublime..
That start to the season, the wins over ’stronger’ teams – Hearts, Aberdeen and Dundee United.

To the Ridiculous..
The fuss about the postponed game against Aberdeen last weekend looks set to rumble on. The SPL is set to launch an inquiry into the events leading up to the cancellation of the game, which, depending on who you believe was due to wrong weather reports, forgetting to switch on the heating or just plain stupidity. The repercussions, which could include fines and points deductions are not what Killie need right now.

The Outlook..
Going by past seasons, Kilmarnock are due a good season. However, ‘WDWWWLLWLWWLLLLLWLL’ is football speak for inconsistency, the worst nightmare for any team looking to break in the top half of the table. We expect Killie to finish in the bottom half this season.

Falkirk

Jings, where did they come from all of a sudden? The eight place they currently hold (for the third time this season) is very much the high point for a club that plays nice football, but which just doesn’t seem to get the breaks. John Hughes has built a good squad around an experienced spine (McNamara, Bullen, Lovell and Higden) augmenting it with a sprinkling of youth – Arfield, Barr, Oljenik and Flinders.

The Good..
A good manager who has built Falkirk into a team with a reputation for pretty football. Also, while they’re still losing more than they’re winning, they generally avoid the heavy defeats that sides towards this end of the table can generally expect. Of the teams in this particular group of teams, only Hibs have scored more and conceded fewer goals at home.

The Bad..
Playing pretty football does not a title-challenge make; just ask Arsenal. Falkirk play good football but lack that ruthless final ball. The Bairns have been in the bottom half of the table all season, mainly on the back of a terrible away record. Four defeats in eight attempts, scoring ten goals but conceding fifteen. For the super-anoraks amongst you, the most commons scores at games involving Falkirk is 1-1 (24%), 0-1 and 1-2 (22%) and 1-1 (38%). The heaviest defeat so far was that 3-0 away to Celtic.

Transfers..
Nothing of note. Sean Lynch was signed from Falkirk after the season started, but the youngster has only made one appearance so far, coming on as a substitute for Graham Barr in the 4-1 win over Hamilton back in September.

From the Sublime..
Aside from the style of football the first team play, the U19’s are doing rather well, reaching the Quarter-finals of the Youth Cup. That kind of investment in bringing youngsters through the ranks is how clubs at this end of the table have to survive, so it’s nice to see a club that seems to be rather good at it.

To the Ridiculous..
Ball boys are being replaced with ball builders at Falkirk. Building contractor Ogilvie is building a new South Stand – and the traditional ball boys have been banned on health and safety grounds from nipping into the site on matchdays. An Ogilvie worker – a “mature ball person” – is on hand to lob the ball back whenever it was booted into the site.

The Outlook..
Hmm, not good if you ask us. They wont get relegated, but we cant see them making it out of the bottom 4, let alone the bottom 6.

That’s it for now. We’re back tomorrow with the bottom half of the table – Motherwell, Inverness, St. Mirren and Hamilton.

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