The Weekends Scottish Cup Games Bumper Preview

January 9th, 2009

There’s a pretty busy four days of football coming up in Scotland. The fourth round of the Scottish Cup takes place between Saturday and Tuesday and, as well as all that, there’s some domestic league action down in the Second and Third divisions too. Up in the Highland League there are five games scheduled but, like all of the games planned, whether any or all of these go ahead depends very much on the weather.

We’ll take a quick run through the fixtures taking place (hopefully), beginning with the action in the Scottish Cup.

The Scottish Cup

Alloa Athletic v Aberdeen
Aberdeen travel down to Alloa to face the team that provided the first ever Scottish Cup opposition for the Dons back in 1904. That game, on the 23rd January of that year, was won by Alloa, but it would be the only time the Wasps would beat Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup. The last meeting in this competition was back in 2001 when the Reds won 3-0. Darren Mackie (who scored the second goal) and Derek Young are the only remnants from that team still at the club. Alloa are currently second from bottom in the Second division, but as we saw in our article about Scottish Cup upsets, lower league opposition does not always guarantee victory – just ask Stenhousemuir (at the time also a Second division side) who beat the Dons in the same competition back in 1995. The tricky surface aside (Recreation Park comes equipped with an artificial pitch), expect Aberdeen to win this one. Prediction: 0-3

Falkirk v Queen of the South
Falkirk and Queen of the South, two sides for whom the Cup is pretty much the only salvation given the poor season they’re both having, have only met twice in the Scottish Cup, both games taking place in December of 1979, The first game ended in a 1-1 draw before The Doonhamers came through 4-0 winners in the Boxing Day replay. Queen of the South are slowly sinking to the bottom of the First and currently sit level on points with 9th placed Clyde. It all seems so far from last season when the Dumfries side knocked out Aberdeen (who ironically put out Falkirk in a previous round) in the Scottish Cup semi-final and narrowly lost to Rangers in the final. That Cup run and the UEFA Cup games which followed was probably one of the high points in the SFL last year. For Falkirk who, despite some spirited displays are one point above bottom side Caley in the SPL a good Cup run is just what the doctor ordered. John Hughes is resigned to not being able to bring in new talent in the transfer window given the club’s finances, meaning that games like this take on that bit more meaning. We think Falkirk will win tomorrow.

Airdrie United v Spartans
Spartans have earned their place in the round of the Scottish Cup thanks to a bizarre chain of events that saw them complain to the SFA after Elgin City, their previous opponents, fielded an ineligible player in their 2-1 win. Hoping for the SFA to throw the Moray side out for breaching competition rules, the story had a sting in the tail when it was discovered that Spartans had themselves fielded an ineligible player – Dean Hoskins – in that tie. The game was ordered to be replayed (Spartans won 2-1) but the club have been fined £2500 for their troubles. Against Airdrie they’ll fancy their chances. The Diamonds are bottom of the First division and there for the taking we reckon – a cheeky bet on a league side to get turned over by a non-league side?

Inverurie Loco Works v Motherwell
(Postponed until January 20th – frozen pitch)
In what is probably the biggest League gap between two sides in this competition, Highland League challengers Inverurie Loco travel to Motherwell. If this mythical ‘pyramid’ league structure would ever come into existence, you’d discover that Inverurie are some 39 places behind their SPL opponents. Loco’s had been doing well in the Highland League up until recently, but game cancellations due to bad weather and other cup commitments means Locos have not played a game since the 20th December. With five games in hand, they’re now 10 points behind leaders Deveronvale. Motherwell, as we highlighted earlier this week in the preview [link] to their game with Hearts are not exactly in the chasing pack in the SPL, but are clearly too strong opposition for Locos. A comfortable win for Motherwell is how we see this one going.

Ross County v Hamilton Academical
The first ever meeting between these sides in the Scottish Cup will take place up in Dingwall. Hamilton won the First division at a canter of course, but not without getting nicely stuffed by Ross County back in March of 2007. The Accies got off to a good start in the league but recent results have seen them drop. Their win last week against a terrible Aberdeen side was well deserved and keeps the team safe from relegation – for now. Ross County sit in the lower half of mid-table (if you can follow that) after a season of indifferent results. They got to the fourth round following their win over Third division Dumbarton (it took a replay though), while, being an SPL side, this is Accies’ first game in this years competition. Got to go for an Accies win here.

Forfar Athletic v Forres Mechanics
Forres are the other Highland League side to survive, having beating non-league Dalbeattie Star in the previous round. Forfar took care of Stranraer, thus setting up this north-of-Scotland tie. Forfar finished bottom of the Third division last year making them Scotland’s worst league side, but things seemed to have picked up this season for the Loons. Under manager Dick Campbell, the club are now mid-table, safe that unless managerless Elgin City somehow make up the 13 point gap between them, the wooden spoon will not be staying as Station Park this season. Forres Mechanics, like fellow Highland League side Inverurie Locos, have not played a game since the 20th December (a 2-0 win over Nairn County) and currently find themselves mid-table in the Highland League. This could be a tight game, but we go with Forfar to come through in this one.

Inverness CT v Partick Thistle
Inverness Caley have the honour of knocking out Celtic twice in previous Scottish Cup competitions. The first, in 2003, was a narrow 1-0 win, but the second, back in January 2000 was a bit more remarkable. Not only was the huge scoreline a shock (3-1) but more the fact that Caley where a First division side at the time (it would take another 12 games for Caley to beat Celtic again). There have been four meetings in the Cup between Caley and Thistle, all won by the Glasgow side and all having to go to replays. Thistle are currently third in the First division while Caley have somehow found themselves bottom of the SPL. Manager Craig Brewster must be feeling the pressure to keep his side in the SPL, so whether this game is a distraction or a chance of at least some glory this season is open to debate. Tough to call this game – we wouldn’t be surprised if this game also has to go to a replay.

Celtic v Dundee
There’s no getting away from Celtic’s pedigree in this competition. Having win it a record 34 times (the last time in 2007), they have a bit of a lead on the Dark Blues. Dundee, enjoying a bit of a revival in fortunes under new manager Jocky Scott, won their one and only Scottish Cup in 1910 when it took two replays to beat Clyde (who knocked out eventual League Champions Celtic 3-1 in the semis). It was back in 1988 when Celtic last beat Dundee and 1984 when these two sides last played each other in the Scottish Cup. Again, a replay was needed to determine the winner, Celtic eventually coming out on top and going on to win the Cup that year with a final victory over the other team from Dundee; Frank McGarvey and Davie Provan scored in the 2-1 win. It’s hard to see Celtic losing this one to be honest but if Dundee can do what their city rivals did last week and hold Celtic to a draw then it’ll be a good result for the Dark Blues.

Stenhousemuir v East Fife
Second division East Fife are, together with Queens Park, the lowest placed team left in this years competition to have actually won the Scottish Cup. Back in 1938, they worked their way through Aberdeen, Dundee United before beating Kilmarnock 4-2 in the final replay. There’s just been the one meeting between these two sides in the Scottish Cup: back in 1956, Stenhousemuir won 3-1 away from home in the fifth round. East Fife won promotion to the Second division last season, but given Stennie’s performance this year, it wont be long before the two fight it out again on a regular basis. It’s something to look forward to anyway: there’s been some high scoring games over the years, including a 7-0 win for Stennie and a 5-3 victory for East Fife. A tough game to call, but we’re going to go with Stenhousemuir to win this one.

Ayr United v Kilmarnock
We told the story of Ayr United’s remarkable run of Scottish Cup triumphs over Kilmarnock in yesterdays posting so we wont go over it here again, but suffice to say that we don’t think an upset is on the cards this time around. Kilmarnock will win this one, nae danger!

Dunfermline Athletic v Clyde
Clyde, three times winners of the Scottish Cup (1938, 1955 and 1958) take on Dunfermline, themselves lucky recipients on two occasions (1961 and 1968). The Pars can boast a slightly better record than the Bully Wee, having been runners up on three occasions, most recently in 2007 when they lost 1-0 to Celtic after a lengthy campaign that also saw them knock out Rangers in the Third round, Hearts in the Fourth round and Hibernian in the semi-final. Unfortunately, they’d be relegated at the end of the season, but the Cup appearance did result in a short-lived UEFA Cup run. Both sides are now in the First division of course, Dunfermline having the slightly better run at the minute – second top, as opposed to Clyde’s second bottom. An exiting 4-4 draw was the last league result back in December. We’d like more of the same please, with Dunfermline to win through in the replay.

Brechin City v St. Mirren
By the time you read this, and hopefully before this game kicks off tomorrow, former Hibs and Dundee manager Jim Duffy will have take over at the Angus club. He’ll take over from Michael O’Neill who left to manager Irish side Shamrock Rovers. And what a great way to get started, a tie against SPL opposition. St. Mirren bade farewell to old ground Love Street last week in the turgid 0-0 draw with Motherwell, but it’s time to put away the hankies and get on with spankin’ some lower league fodder. Brechin are no mugs though. For a long time they’ve been in the pack of three teams chasing promotion to the First, but they’ve started to fade a wee bit and now find themselves some nine points of the lead. If I was Duffy I’d forget about this competition and focus on getting promotion instead, something that is well within their reach. St. Mirren are in 8th place in the SPL, Saints last won the Cup in 1987 after a 28 year wait. Brechin, needless to say have never won the Scottish Cup and are certainly in no danger of winning it anytime soon. Some of you may remember Brechin from last years Scottish Cup after they incurred the wrath of the SFA by fielding not one, but two ineligible players in their tie with Hamilton Accies; they where promptly thrown out of the competition. So, perhaps better luck this year? Nah. St. Mirren to win.

Peterhead v Queen’s Park
In a repeat of last Saturday’s game at Hampden, won by 2-1 by Scottish football legends and 10 times Scottish Cup winners (although the last time was 1893 when they beat Celtic in the final) Queen’s Park, it’s the turn of Peterhead to play host in this Cup encounter. The Blue Toon, managed by former Aberdeen legend Neale Cooper are fourth in the Second division while the Spiders are in 7th place. We expect Peterhead to come out on top in this game,

There are two games taking place on the Sunday, beginning at Ochilview Park in Stenhousemuir.

East Stirlingshire v Dundee United
First off, an apology to East Stirlingshire. We awarded them our prestigious “Performance of the Week” award back in December for their amazing run of results down in the Third division. Since then, the team have lost twice in a row, conceding 7 goals to Cowdenbeath and Stenhousemuir. We’d love to say that we hope they’ll do better in tomorrow’s game, but somehow we just can’t see it. United third in the league, fresh after that amazing 2-2 draw with Celtic would be looking to keep their Cup run going a bit longer and against East Stirling we see that as a distinct possibility, Mind you, the Shire did put out First division Livingston in the previous round. Dundee United won the cup in 1994 beating Rangers 1-0 in the final. An easy win for United we reckon, though if we’re proved wrong, another Performance of the Week award will be heading down to Ochilview Park quicker than you can say “3 game losing streak coming up”.

Hibernian v Heart of Midlothian
The other game taking place is another tasty Edinburgh derby, which seem to be popping up like mushrooms after the rain. A week after the last one, another one appears. Last week, an entertaining game ended 0-0, but the headlines where not about the events on the field, rather the events off the field. It all started when a minority of Hibernian supporters broke the one-minute silence held before the start of Saturday’s game in memory of the late George Miller. No doubt spurred on by this, some sections of the Hearts support then jeered Hibs’ Dean Shiels over the loss of his eye. Both clubs have come out and denounced their respective fans behaviour, but the events may well give this game a wee edge.

As far as the football in concerned, Hearts have a better record in the competition, having won the Cup 7 times in total. The last time was in 2006, when they beat Hibs 4-0 in the semi-final. Hibs last won the Cup in 1902 (a win over Celtic on that occasion).

Scottish Football League

There are a few games going on in the Second and Third divisions for those teams unlucky enough to get knocked out of the Cup in previous rounds.

In the Second division, high flying Raith Rovers take on mid-table Stirling Albion in a game they should win easily. With the chasing pack all in Scottish Cup action it’s a good chance for Raith to put even more distance between themselves and the teams below them.  The Third division game of the weekend is without a doubt the meeting of second placed Cowdenbeath against third placed Dumbarton. Annan Athletic continue their first season in senior football against Albion Rovers, while Montrose take on bottom side Elgin.

The Highland League

A limited card up in the Highlands will no doubt be even more limited by the time 3pm comes around tomorrow. In case it all goes ahead, Brora Rangers entertain Cove Rangers, Fraserburgh travel along the north east coast to Buckie Thistle, Fort William will try to their single point this season with a game against second-placed Keith, Lossiemouth welcome Huntly and it’s 11th against 13th as Clachnacuddin take on Rothes.

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A History of Scottish Cup Upsets

January 8th, 2009

Scottish winger Kris Commons scored a cracking goal for his side Derby County last night to record a memorable victory over league, European and World Club champions Manchester United last night. His rasping drive from 30-yards out give the Championship side (relegated from the English Premier League earlier this year after winning only one game all season) a cracking win on the day new manager Nigel Clough was introduced to the fans. There’s still the return leg at Old Trafford to get through of course, but nevertheless it was a result not many expected.

All of which got us thinking -- as it’s the Scottish Cup that takes over the league program north of the border, we thought we’d look back over some of the great Scottish Cup upsets over the years, beginning with a team that has caused it’s fair share of heartache to one SPL side in particular.

Ayr United, currently second in the Scottish second division finally go through their fixture with Lochee United after the sixth attempt. A 1-1 draw in the third round forces the first of five replays which all fell foul of the weather. The Honest Men finally won 3-1 against the East of Scotland junior side just before Christmas to set up a tasty tie with SPL side Kilmarnock.  Now, Kilmarnock would do well to remember Ayr United, for their rivals from down the coast along the A77 have beaten them several before in the same competition. Beginning in 1998, Ayr won 2-0 thanks to goals from Jim Dick and Ian Ferguson, repeating the achievement again the following year when, on the 23rd January 1999, Ayr United came out 3-0 winners in a game that saw one sending off and two penalties. Clearly a scrappy affair, the Kilmarnock team on the day also featured two former Rangers legends seeing out the twilight of their careers -- Ian Durrant and Ally McCoist.

In February 2000, roughly around the time when Kilmarnock where knocked out of the Cup by lowly Alloa, a Second division side, Ayr again took one of the Dundee sides to a replay before eventually going through. This time it was the turn of the dark blue half of Dundee to get a taste of some Ayrshire humble pie. A drab game that finished goalless at the end of ninety minutes, Gavin Rae put SPL side Dundee ahead pretty much straight from the kick-off extra-time, before Neil Duffy scored ten minutes later. With no more goals, the dreaded penalty kicks followed which, happily for Ayr United, they won 7-6. Their reward? Another tie against SPL opposition, this time in the shape of Motherwell.

Despite some pretty hefty defeats to the Old Firm that season (in particular Rangers, who beat them 4-1, 6-2 and 5-1) and that epic 5-6 defeat at home to Aberdeen, Motherwell where doing alright. They’d finish the season in fourth place, helped by veteran keeper Andy Goram in goals. Clearly then, the odds where stacked in the Steelmen’s favour when Ayr United come to town. A cracking game unfolded in which six goals where scored before half-time. Gary Teale opened the scoring for Ayr in the 8th minute, before Lee McCulloch and Don Goodman restored Motherwell’s pride. Two penalties followed shortly after  (Teale again converting from the spot) before Ged Brannan put Motherwell’s nose out in front again. The lead would not last long: Neil Tennant equalised for Ayr just before half-time, meaning the teams went in to the break three goals a-piece.

The 5,000 spectators inside the grounds must have been grateful for the 15 minute break to catch their breath again, but 10 minutes after the restart Neil Tennant popped up again to give the visitors an unlikely lead. Despite playing most of the half with only 10 men (forward Michael Reynolds having been sent off), Ayr held on for the win -- and another SPL scalp. Check out the highlights below.

In 2002, Ayr once again managed to eliminate two SPL sides. The first, the Fourth round victory over Dunfermline (managed at the time by Aberdeen gaffer Jimmy Calderwood and featuring former Aberdeen player Barry Nicholson and Falkirk defender Lee Bullen) came courtesy of goals from James Grady and John Robertson as well as an own goal from (current St Mirren manager) Gus McPherson. In the next round Ayr United again played Dundee United and again took them to a replay. The 2-2 draw at Tannadice was followed two weeks later by a splendid 2-0 win for Ayr thanks to goals from Scott Crabbe and Paul Sheerin. Check out the highlights below.

So, all in all, Ayr United have a pretty good record against SPL sides in the Scottish Cup: Kilmarnock, Dundee, Dundee United, Motherwell and Dunfermline.

Another SPL side, one with a bit more of a track record has also had it’s fair share of upsets. By the time they reached the semi-final, Celtic had worked their way through Clydebank (5-0), Hibs (2-0) and eventual league champions Rangers (2-0) before they faced First division Falkirk. The Bairns (who would finish in the lower half of the table that season) had an easier route to the semis (Berwick, Dunfermline and Raith) and no one expected them to get much from the game. But a 1-1 draw at Parkhead in April (Kevin James scoring eight minutes from time for Falkirk) meant the teams would have to do it all over again. For Falkirk it meant another pay-day at Parkhead: just over 45,000 saw the first game and another 35,000 would see Falkirk’s Paul McGrillen score in the 19th minute to put the Bairns into the Scottish Cup Final. They’d lose to Kilmarnock, but that win over Celtic would go down as a definite Cup upset.

The other half of the Old Firm may have a world record 51 league titles and have won more major trophies than any other football club in the world, but there’s been at least one cringe-worthy moment.

Back in 1967, Berwick Rangers (also known as ”The Wee Rangers”) where part of the old Second division (we’d call it the Third nowadays) while Rangers where then, as now, a top team in Scotland. Having finished runner-up to Celtic in the previous season (the win that would start their memorable 9-in-a-row series), their Scottish Cup win in April 1966 was their only silverware and, naturally, they where keen to hold on to it. Surely for a team that could field John Greig, Willie Henderson, Willie Johnston and Alec Smith, wee Berwick would prove no problem?

Berwick had a young goalkeeper playing for them at the time who would, in later years, have a big influence on Rangers. His name was Jock Wallace, and he was kept busy for most of the game, especially as, against the run of play (and logic), Sammy Reid scored for Berwick.

Despite much pressure from the Gers to equalise, Berwick held out for a famous victory. They would go out to Hibernian in the next round, while Rangers striker Jim Forrest and centre-forward George McLean, deemed responsible for the defeat -- where transferred out of Ibrox shortly afterwards as result of this game. There was some good news for Rangers though -- while they didn’t win the league that season, they’d reach the Cup Winners Cup final that year where they lost to Bayern Munich.

In January of 1959, Highland League outfit Fraserburgh beat Dundee 1-0 in the Scottish Cup.  Dundee, at that time one of the top teams in Scotland had Bill Brown and Doug Cowie  back from the ‘58 World Cup Finals as well as future Everton star Jimmy Gabriel in the side. Gas Board clerk Johnny Strachan scored the goal that sent the Dee’s packing and Dundee still regard this as one of their most embarrassing moments.

And another Highland League side, Buckie Thistle, beat Queens Park in a 4th round replay in 1954, making them the only non-league side ever to have won a Scottish Cup game at Hampden.

Right, that sums up our look at some great Scottish Cup upsets. If you know of any others, drop us a comment.

Posted in Front Page, If You Know Your History | Comments Off

Motherwell v Hearts

January 7th, 2009

Prior to heading into the corresponding fixture with Hearts at this stage last year, Motherwell where riding high in the SPL. Third in the league (a position they’d hold retain right to the end of the season), still in the league cup following wins against Raith Rovers and Hibernian and with new manager Mark McGhee at the helm, things seemed to be going well down in North Lanarkshire.

In a troublesome season that included the death of captain Phil O’Donnell during the 5-3 win against Dundee United in the final game of 2007, and the high-profile cancellation of their game against Celtic (and temporary lodgers Gretna to play some of their games in nearby Livingston) due to a pitch that resembled a World War I battlefield, fuelled by goals from Chris Porter (14), Dave Clarkson (12) and Ross McCormack (8), the side ploughed a steady furrow that saw them hold on to third spot and a valuable UEFA Cup spot. Motherwell finished the season on 60 points, seven ahead of fourth placed Aberdeen (but a massive 26 points behind second placed Rangers).

One year on – almost to the day – the league table tells a very different story. The Steelmen currently lie in 9th place, four points clear from bottom side Inverness Caley and have so far managed only 6 wins, 3 draws and 11 losses – a record that is pretty much a direct opposite to the same statistics last year when McGhee managed to won 11, draw only 2 and losing seven. Losing Ross McCormack over the summer to Cardiff City was a great loss. The young striker became unsettled at the club as manager Mark McGhee seemed to leave to take over the managerial seat at Hearts. A last minute re-think on the steps of the plane to Lithuania made McGhee decide to stay with Motherwell, but by that time McCormack had already left. Poor performances in Europe (a first round UEFA Cup exit at the hands of French minnows Nancy) and the League Cup (a first round exist to South Lanarkshire rivals Hamilton) saw this season get off to a disappointing start. Between the 2-0 defeat to Celtic at the beginning of November to the 3-2 win over Inverness Caley in the final game of 2008, Motherwell didn’t win a single game, scoring two while conceding 13 (mind you, that run did include a credible 0-0 draw with Rangers).

Mark McGhee faces a tough challenge to get Motherwell back up the table, starting with tonight’s game against a team who are doing rather better than last year, Hearts (ironically, these sides met at the same stage of the competition last year, albeit a 2-2 draw in the Scottish Cup).  It’s the second time the teams have played each other this season – back in August it was Hearts who came out on top in the first game of the 2008/09 campaign, recording a 3-2 win in a pulsating game of football with Dave Clarkson scoring both goals for Motherwell. Hearts lost a rather scrappy game away to Aberdeen last week, a game marred by incidents in the tunnel after the game and damage to the visiting teams’ dressing door. Both Marius Zaliukas and Lee Wallace where sent off. Motherwell where away to St Mirren (0-0) in a game remarkable only for the fact that it was the Saints’ last home game before they move to their new ground.

Mark McGhee welcomes back Marc Fitzpatrick, while Calum Elliot returns to the Hearts lineup following his return from his on-loan spell at troubled Livingston.

Posted in The Game | 1 Comment »

Messrs McGhee, Hughes, Brewster and Reid: come in, your time is up.

January 3rd, 2009

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

Frankly, the directors of Motherwell, Falkirk, Inverness Caley and Hamilton have had enough of the poor performances that have seen their teams slump to the bottom of the table. Decisive action is needed before another season in the First division beckons and goodness only knows that there’s a recession on and every SPL penny could be another year in existence.

It’s time to take those resolutions seriously and ring in the new year with a new manager.

Discuss

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(Scottish) Season (2008/09) Greetings

December 18th, 2008

Aye aye everyone.

Just a quick note before we depart for foreign shores. The football might not stop up in Scotland despite the weather or the time of year, but here at Inside Left we like to take a break at this time of year to spend time recovering from our injuries and so on. Before we go though, here’s a quick round-up of all the things you can expect over the next few weeks while we’re gone.

In the SPL, we have one Old Firm derby coming up. On the 27th December, Celtic travel across the river for the second clash of the season. Celtic’s lead over Rangers has been cut to four points, making this game all the more exciting. Celtic of course got trounced 4-2 earlier on in the season in the first Old Firm derby – it was their worst loss to Rangers in years. Celtic still battle with injuries and the rather distracting kerfuffle around the row between Strachan and McGeady is not the sort of thing they need right now as they head towards the end of the year.

Before all that happens though, the game of this weekend is up at Tynecastle where the teams in third, Hearts and Dundee United meet up. There’s another Lanarkshire derby between two sides struggling this season. Hamilton are bottom of the league, while their opponents Motherwell are suffering from second-season blues.

Down in the lower divisions, it´s top versus bottom as St. Johnstone travel to Airdrie. For both sides this is a must-win game; the Saints need to keep that lead they’ve built up going, while Airdrie need to start winning games to keep up with the rest of the league.

In the Second Division, the game to watch is the one happening on the 30th December, when two teams who have been pretty close this season, Brechin and Ayr play each other. With these teams a clear distance away from the team in fourth, they need to win this game to keep up with leaders Raith who themselves face tricky ties away to Arbroath and fourth-placed Peterhead.

In the Third, the game we’re going to watch out for is the derby game between Stenhousemuir and the team with which they’re currently sharing Ochillview Park, East Stirlingshire. The Shire of course are current holders of our prestigious Performance of the Week award – their run of form has gotten our attention and should certainly be catching yours. By the way, if  you’re interested in the fortunes of a team once called  “Britain’s Worst Team”, get yourself along to their website and register for Shire TV, through which you can get all the match highlights for free!

Other than the football, the transfer window opens up again on the 1st January. We’re all keen to know how your clubs will fare in this seasons scrum for players. If you’re not a fan of one of the Old Firm teams, you’ll no doubt be anxiously awaiting which obscure player your clubs has managed to unearth from some other never-heard-of-before competition. Unless you’re a Hearts fan, in which case your next signing will be from Kaunas. Hibs fans – what are the odds of Fletcher still being at the club come the end of January?

From a personal point of view, we hope you like the new Inside Left. To think we nearly did a Gretna and go under a few weeks ago. After some soul searching and honest appraisal we decided to keep going with it. We’ve discovered a new-found enthusiasm for keeping the site going and hell,  a new lick of paint does wonders.

As we approach our first year in existence, we genuinely think we’ve built up one of the best Scottish footie sites on the net. Hopefully you think so too, and who knows, maybe next year we’ll get some of you writing for the site. No pressure though!

We’re back on January 4th, so  all that remains is for us all to wish you, dear readers, a happy Christmas, and a happy and healthy 2009 from all the staff at Inside Left.

 

 

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