glamdring Posted April 1, 2004 Author Share Posted April 1, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Saturday 7th September 2013 Faroes beaten as Scotland record famous win A strange mix of conflicting statistics sees the Faroe islands having failed to score for a 4th game running yet having played some very good football and suffering their joint heaviest defeat of the season together with the Germany match. It was 2-0 that night in Leverkusen and so it was again tonight as Nerijus Zutautas scored on 3 and 83 minutes to sink the Faroes. The visitors created numerous chances however and had a lot of the possession, but in the end the Lithuanians superior finishing made the difference. The Faroe islands have now lost all 4 away matches, but two by 2-0 and two by just a single goal is a record which they should be quite proud of and especially after some of the performances - it is undoubtably at home where they remain unbeaten after 4 draws from 4 games that they have their best chances of points and maybe even victory. FT: Lithuania 2-0 Faroe Islands At Hampden Park, the back 4 again consisted of entirely Ross County players as it has throughout most of the campaign and it is perhaps no coincidence that the team have conceded just 2 goals all campaign and will perhaps be disappointed to have drawn 4 of their 8 matches. In a tight match of few chances it was County's versatile Mark McGlynn, playing at right-back tonight, who scored the only goal of the game, just 5 minutes from time. This result sees Scotland still in with a chance of pipping Sweden to automatic promotion and leaves Italy out of the qualifying tournament. FT: Scotland 1-0 Italy Russia won 0-2 in Finland while Germany continued their impressive form with a routine 2-0 win over Macedonia in Group 1, while in Scotland's Group 5, Switzerland and Sweden both eased to away victories against Malta and Moldova respectively. Elsewhere, Group 3 closed up to be incredibly tight with just 2 points covering 5 teams hunting for automatic qualification. England were held 1-1 in Austria in Group 6 while Ireland beat Norway 2-0 in Group 8 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted April 1, 2004 Author Share Posted April 1, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Wednesday 11th September 2013 Record breaking Faroes in 7th heaven as Scots are humiliated at Hampden This was a performance which had arguably been building up over a number of unlucky results, a performance borne out of frustration at recent results and perhaps most notably the cruel 3-2 defeat in Finland. So it was that the Finns came to Thorshavn for what could well turn out to be the wooden spoon encounter of Group 1 to face a Faroese side out to show Europe what they are really capable of. It was a truly historic night as the Faroes recorded the biggest competitive win in their history and their first since beating Northern Ireland in the last qualifying campaign. The hero of the night was Jón Rói Jacobsen, a player who has been somewhat of an enigma for the Faroes in recent years - a player with undoubted talent, but who has failed to perform to the standards people expect, scoring just a single goal in 53 appearances before today. Tonight however, he finally stood up to be counted with a fantastic hat-trick to sink the Finns in a match which the home side dominated for large spells. With just 13 minutes on the clock Andreasen found Hojgaard in space through the middle, the midfielder sliding the ball wide for Jacobsen to take forward and slot coolly past the Finnish 'keeper. 15 minutes later and Jacobsen was at it again, Jákup Poulsen with a teasing cross from the left wing which evaded everyone in the Finland defence to fall at the feet of Jacobsen who fired home at the far post. With a 2-0 lead at half time the Faroese were confident, but mindful still that they were 0-2 up in Finland, but still lost. There was to be no such heartbreak today however as just minutes into the second half Jacobsen completed his hat-trick with a truly sublime solo goal, pulling wide right and dribbling past players to the goal line, cutting in-field and blasting past the 'keeper from a seemingly infeasible angle - the Faroese people knew he was capable of it and today he finally showed the watching world what a gifted player he is. The 4th goal came on 56 minutes, persistance from Jan Djurhuus paying off to win the ball in midfield and feed Jákup Poulsen, the striker still had a lot to do, but sidestepped his marker and slotted home neatly to send the Faroese fans into raptures. Matti Lähitie spoiled the party slightly with a 91st minute consolation for Finland, but no-one really cared - this was an historic night that none here would ever forget. Faroe Islands manager Adam Eckersley was quite overwhelmed after the match and almost in tears as he spoke to us, but was clearly proud of the lads - "We've played so well and been so unlucky at times this campaign and I knew the lads were capable of a performance like this and I think it was just one of those times you get in football when suddenly a team who has been unlucky just explodes and it all comes together on one day - this is one of the greatest moments of my managerial career despite all my successes with Ross County - to feel the atmosphere, see what it means to the fans and people of this small island nation is just fantastic. That is our last home game in the group and to finish unbeaten here, albeit with 4 draws is a quite outstanding achievement from the lads when we were expected by the media to lose every match, both home and away...". As the manager digests the result, those of us who were there tonight can join in his delight at what was a truly remarkable performance from a team who has never given up during this campaign. In the Euro2012 qualifying campaign, the wheels rather fell off in the latter stages with some heavy defeats, but not this time. A goal difference of just -3 for a nation like the Faroe Islands from 9 games was unthinkable at the start of this group and after 2 matches with Germany. FT: Faroe Islands 4-1 Finland There was a rather different story at Hampden Park however as fans must have wondered what happened to the side who beat Italy 1-0 just 4 days earlier. This was a woeful and humiliating performance which sees the Scots lose any chance of automatic promotion. Moldova came to Glasgow having failed to win any of their 8 matches so far, but more than doubled Scotland's goals against tally for the qualifying campaign as Imilian Revenco gave them an early lead, cancelled out by Kenny Miller just after half time, but Ion Caras and Denis Calencov wrapped up an outstanding away victory for the underdogs, leaving Scotland feeling truly dejected at such a bad performance. The Scots will now have to enter the lottery of the play-offs, but can at least console themselves that they have seen off Italy in this qualifying group. FT: Scotland 1-3 Moldova Germany's narrow 0-1 win in Russia sees them take the automatic qualifying spot in Group 1 while FYR of Macedonia beat Lithuania 4-2 to remain 3 points ahead of the Faroes. Sweden's unimpressive 1-2 win in Malta was enough to ease them through to the World Cup also in Group 5 where Italy recorded a 2-3 win in Switzerland also. In Group 3 Romania and Wales won while Greece and Turkey shared a 1-1 draw leaving Romania top, a point clear of Greece and Wales, 2 ahead of Estonia and Turkey with 1 round of matches yet to play. France and Spain are the other confirmed qualifiers so far. World Cup 2014 Qualification Group 1 <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Q Germany 9 7 2 0 18 2 +16 23 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Russia 9 4 4 1 16 10 +6 16 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Lithuania 9 2 5 2 14 15 -1 11 4th FYR of Macedonia 9 3 1 5 10 16 -6 10 5th Faroe Islands 9 1 4 4 9 12 -3 7 6th Finland 9 1 2 6 11 23 -12 5 </pre> [This message was edited by glamdring on 02 April 2004 at 2:18.] Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ruuh_Allah Posted April 1, 2004 Share Posted April 1, 2004 Congratulations on the most fantastic victory in Faroe history. And good luck with your final game - you must hold on to 5th position. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyrone the Magazine Posted April 5, 2004 Share Posted April 5, 2004 4-1 nice one , yeah hope you don't 'fin-ish' (geddit) bottom Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 7, 2004 Author Share Posted June 7, 2004 Sorry Tyrone Saturday 6th September 2014 It's been a while since I updated my Faroese diaries and high time I put that right. I guess I should start with the reason it has been so long - apart from the obvious fact that having not qualified for the World Cup we haven't seen any competitive action for almost a year anyway - Russia away to finish off our World Cup qualifying campaign one of the biggest disappointments of my international management career. Truth be told we were always likely to lose and I guess Finland were always fairly likely to win at home to Macedonia and so it was, albeit with the Macedonians putting up a good fight before going down 3-2. We did anything but put up a good fight if I'm honest and the 4-1 final scoreline in Russia's flattered us if anything, but ultimately left us occupying the position everyone thought we would occupy come the end of the group - bottom spot. I don't really want to dwell on that though - in my last update I was upbeat about our performaces in the group and I still feel we have turned a corner and it was a touch harsh that we still finished bottom of the group after such a brave qualifying campaign. Well, that's behind us now and having had almost a year off from international matches (ones that matter, that is!) we are now back for the Euro 2016 qualifying campaign, the draw for which sees us in a 5 team group with Belgium (ranked 33rd), Bulgaria (55th), FYR of Macedonia (99th) again and Portugal (24th). As for ourselves, we are currently ranked 130th in the FIFA rankings and so are yet again favourites to finish bottom of the group, favourites to lose all our matches, etc, etc and I guess I have to admit it's not quite the group I wanted - it gives us next to no chance of pulling off a huge shock and competing for 2nd place and a play-off position, but unless UEFA suddenly do away with the seedings and we find ourselves in a group of the 5 weakest teams in Europe that is never really likely to happen. We'll do our best and at least see if we can extend our unbeaten home record from the last campaign - we haven't lost at home since Germany beat us 0-1 on the 15th October 2011, although to be fair, as I've said, we haven't played a match since last October and had a similarly long gap after that Germany defeat before our last qualifying campaign began. On to squad issues then for our first match of the campaign which kicks off today and is almost certainly our best hope of points from the group as FYR of Macedonia visit Thorshavn. We have just 2 previous meetings with them in our recent history and both were during our last World Cup qualifying run as they held us 0-0 at our place and we lost 2-1 at their so we'll be looking for some revenge today! The squad for the match has been disrupted slightly with the usual injury troubles, most notably 2 of our left wingers being ruled out - a position in which we are struggling to find a quality player as it is! <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> 4th in European Championship Qualifying Group 7 Squad Screen Lmp Joensen, P GK Lmp Mortensen, A GK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Dahl, K D/M RC Hansen, M D/DM RC Hansen, R D R Kjærbo, H D R Gregersen, Ó D/DM LC Lmp Jacobsen, J D/DM L Inj Poulsen, J D LC Lmp Dam, Ó D C Lmp Gregersen, A D C Lmp Olsen, K D/DM C ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lmp Joensen, M DM RC Lmp Højgaard, M M RLC Lmp Joensen, J M RC Lmp Justinussen, K M LC Lmp Djurhuus, J AM RC Lmp Johannesen, S AM/F L ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lmp Nielsen, K F RC Andreasen, A S C Johannesen, K S C Lmp Nolsøe, R S C Lmp Olsen, B S C Poulsen, J S C Lmp Rasmussen, T S C </pre> Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 7, 2004 Author Share Posted June 7, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Saturday 6th September 2014 Eckersley left fuming at "the worst performance I have ever seen" It was perhaps a slightly harsh reaction to his teams first home defeat in 3 years, but fans and neutral observers alike will no doubt sympathise with Faroe Islands' manager Adam Eckersley's summing up of this match. Perhaps most telling of the shambolic messes the Faroes got themselves into was that they conceded no fewer than 3 corners from totally wayward backpasses which no top class international team or even a 3rd Division Scottish team should give away. In amongst it all, the Faroes played some neat passes when they actually had the possession and actually had a lot more of the play in the Macedonian half of the pitch without managing to create much in the way of goalscoring chances. After just 10 minutes, the Faroese defences were undone as 4 defenders pulled off to mark one attacker leaving Vlatko Grozdanovski relatively free to float a neat chip over the Faroese goalkeeper to give his side the lead. Most of the rest of the match isn't worthy of comment - it was only as we headed into the dying minutes that the final twists in this drama were played out. A shocking defensive mixup by Macedonia let in substitute Teitur Rasmussen who gratefully accepted the give and looked to have rescued a point and the Faroe Islands' unbeaten record. It wasn't to be however as the Macedonians broke straight up the other end where Vlatko Stojanov found the back of the Faroese net to seal the 3 points. To compound the misery, the Faroes were reduced to 10 men also in the closing minutes. FT: Faroe Islands 1-2 FYR of Macedonia Speaking after the match, manager Adam Eckersley was visibly irritated by both the performance and the result after the promise showed in the previous qualifying campaign. "This was our best opportunity of picking up 3 points in this group and we blew it - we couldn't even get the draw in the end and we didn't deserve to either. I honestly don't kow where we go from here. I guess it's time to switch to a more standard 4-4-2 if I can find someone for the left wing." The other match in Group 7 saw Belgium off to a winning start with a 4-1 hammering of Bulgaria in Brussells. Elsewhere in the qualifiers, Group 6 saw wins for Italy, 2-1 over Albania and Romania who put 4 past Malta with Scotland sitting out the first round of fixtures. In Group 9 England hit the ground running with a 0-2 win in Austria, Russia also picking up 3 points with a 2-4 win away to neighbours Georgia. Wales failed to get the start they were looking for in Group 2 as they fell to a 1-0 defeat in Norway whilst Slovakia went top of the group with a 0-3 win in Luxemburg. Other notable results saw Ireland 2-1 winners against Latvia in Group 3 and Holland off to a 2-0 win at home to Iceland. The next round of qualifiers takes place on Wednesday with the Faroe Islands visting Bulgaria and a Scotland side with 8 Ross County players in the squad (but missing the injured Alan Reid) begin their campaign at home to Romania Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 7, 2004 Author Share Posted June 7, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Wednesday 10th September 2014 Bojinov hat-trick downs Faroes as Michael Reid makes dream Scotland debut The Faroe Islands, playing a more orthodox defensive 4-4-2 as oppose to their recent 4-1-2-3 tactic defended stoutly for over an hour of this game as Bulgaria probed without success whilst the Faroese even managed a shot against the crossbar in one of their rare forays upfield. Playing such a defensive style is always liable to unravel though when you go a goal down and so it was when on 68 minutes Valeri Emilov Bojinov broke through to give the Bulgarians a lead which it seemed unlikely they would lose. Bojinov however had no intention of allowing his side to sit on a 1-0 lead and in just 10 minutes it was game over as Bojinov completed an impressive hat-trick to give the home side a comfortable 3-0 win as they bounced back from their defeat in Belgium. FT: Bulgaria 3-0 Faroe Islands The other match in Group 7 saw Portugal take all 3 points from Macedonia in a ridiculous encounter which saw Zlatko Dimovski put through his own net twice either side of a Macedonian equaliser to give Portugal the 1-2 win despite Macedonia having scored all the goals! In Group 7, Scotland faced a stern test at home to Romania in a match which saw Ross County's Nick James win his 50th cap, starting alongside club-mates Kerr Dodds, Mark McGlynn and Richard Rhodes with a further 5 County players on the bench. It was the Romanians who scored first however, Claudiu Andrei Keserü putting away the rebound from his own shot, saved by David Marshall. Romania were having by far the better of the match, creating numerous shots on goal as Scotland brought on young Ross County midfielder Michael Reid for his debut in place of the injured Mark McGlynn. 20 minutes later, Ian MacSween also came on from the bench as Scotland chased the game. With 74 minutes on the clock, Darren Fletcher fired the ball into the box from where Romania failed to clear the ball before it fell to Michael Reid to fire home from 10 yards out at the far post to mark his international debut with a crucial equalising goal. Scotland created a few more chances, but in the end the 1-1 result was a fair reflection of the match. FT: Scotland 1-1 Romania Italy continued their unspectacular, but effective form with a 1-2 win away to Malta to top Scotland's group ahead of the Romanians. Group 1 sees Sweden 3 points clear after a 5-0 demolition of Serbia & Montenegro while in Group 2, Norway made it 6 points from 6 with a 4-0 win over Luxemburg and Spain opened their campaign with a 3-0 win over Slovakia. Ireland's 2-1 win over Switzerland sees them maintain a 100% record at the top of Group 3 with Latvia beating Moldova to join Turkey on 3 points. Group 4 saw comfortable wins for France and Poland, both of whom now have 3 points alongside Hungary and Kazakhstan. In Group 5, Croatia and Belarus drew 1-1 to both move onto 4 points, 1 ahead of Germany who began their qualifying run with a 2-3 win in Finland. Group 8 sees Denmark top with 4 points after their 0-0 draw with the Czech Republic who lie 3rd behind Lithuania who were 1-0 winners over Liechtenstein. Russia and England both enjoyed big victories over San Marino and Georgia respectively to head Group 9 with 6 points apiece whilst in Group 10, Ukraine beat Holland and Iceland drew with Estonia to leave the Ukrainians top with 3 points from 1 game, Holland have 3 from 2 games. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 8, 2004 Author Share Posted June 8, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Saturday 11th October 2014 Late penalty drama for plucky Faroes Angus McIntyre reports: The Faroe Islands' performance today was unrecognisable from their last 2 matches, after which manager Adam Eckersley was looking extremely unhappy with his country's backwards "progress". Today however, playing a 4-4-2 formation again, they were lively and effervescent, creating numerous chances in the first half as the Belgians rode their luck and rarely threatened at the other end. Despite the pressure however the Faroes failed to break through in a frustrating first half and went in 0-0 at the break. With Ólavur Gregerson returning from suspension the side looked a lot more balanced than previously with Gregerson moving across to the left-back role allowing John Jacobsen to play on the left wing. Dan Hentze returned to the squad for his 6th cap in the attacking midfield role and looked lively throughout alongside namesake Eyðun Hentze who also found himself having numerous good chances despite playing in a more defensive midfield role. With just 15 minutes left, Eckersley threw on Allan Andreasen to replace the ineffectual Teitur Rasmussen upfront, but still the chances were not being put away as the match meandered into injury time looking like it would be a disappointing 0-0 draw after 16 shots on goal from the Faroes. There was to be late drama however with 2 further attempts on goal in the 3rd minute of injury time. Eyðun Hentze was felled in the box as he rose to meet a Jan Djurhuus freekick and responsibility fell to the substitute Allan Andreasen to score with what would surely be the last kick of the game. It all seemed to happen in slow motion as Andreasen's distinctly average penalty was fired straight down the middle and saved by Yves Makabu Ma Kalambay in the Belgian goal, but it was Andreasen who reacted first to reach the loose ball and force it over the line to give the Faroes a deserved and morale-boosting victory as the final whistle followed immediately. If only the Macedonia match had gone better the Faroes could have been sat on 4 or even 6 points by now. FT: Faroe Islands 1-0 Belgium In Lisbon, Portugal's shaky form continued as they came from behind to take a 2-1 lead against Bulgaria, but had to settle for a 2-2 draw in the end. <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> European Football Championship 2016 Qualification Group 7 Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Portugal 2 1 1 0 4 3 +1 4 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Bulgaria 3 1 1 1 6 6 0 4 3rd FYR of Macedonia 2 1 0 1 3 3 0 3 4th Faroe Islands 3 1 0 2 2 5 -3 3 5th Belgium 2 1 0 1 4 2 +2 3 </pre> Almost 58,000 came to the San Siro to watch Italy take on Scotland in Group 6 and it was to be a disappointing night for the Scots who failed to create a single shot on target. That siad, the Italians only managed 2 of their 7 shots on target, but Giampaulo Pazzini was fed by Andrea Pirlo on 64 minutes to give Italy a narrow 1-0 win and leave the Scots still searching for their first victory in the group. FT: Italy 1-0 Scotland In the other match in Group 6, Albania put 4 goals past Malta without reply to move above Scotland into 3rd place in the group. <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> European Football Championship 2016 Qualification Group 6 Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Italy 3 3 0 0 5 2 +3 9 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Romania 2 1 1 0 5 1 +4 4 3rd Albania 2 1 0 1 5 2 +3 3 4th Scotland 2 0 1 1 1 2 -1 1 5th Malta 3 0 0 3 1 10 -9 0 </pre> Group 1 saw away victories for Serbia & Montenegro, Sweden and Israel to leave the Swedes 3 points clear still. In Group 2 Norway won 0-2 in Slovakia whilst Wales drew 2-2 at home to Spain. Ireland and Turkey were the away victors in Group 3 with Poland and France each taking 3 points in Group 4. Azerbaijan produced the surprise result in group 5, holding Croatia to a 2-2 draw in Split, Germany taking 3 points at home to Belarus to top the group. Leichtenstein and Lithuania were both outclassed in Group 8 as Denmark and Slovenia brushed the pair aside with 0-4 and 3-0 victories respectively. Group 9 saw a rather embarrassing performance by England as they only managed a single goal away to a San Marino side who played over 45 minutes with 10 men, but the 3 points were still England's. Georgia and Austria shared the points in their Group 9 tie with Bosnia beating Iceland 4-2 in Group 10 and Estonia drawing with the Ukraine. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 12, 2004 Author Share Posted June 12, 2004 Article from the Dingwall Times on Saturday 1st January 2015 Faroes up to 121st in FIFA rankings In a largely inactive year for the Faroes up until their recent set of 3 Euro 2016 qualifiers, whilst others competed in the 2014 World Cup it seems their rise in the FIFA ranking is due as much to the failings of others as to their own successes, but that should not detract from the achievement of rising 10 places from their 2013 year ending ranking of 130st. Having said that, for a team in the Faroes' position, their 2014 record of 1 win and 2 defeats from just 3 matches all year is a fairly good return, especially as their defeated opponents Belgium were ranked up in 33rd place. As for the Faroes' Group 7 qualifying opponents, FYR of Macedonia rose 3 places from 99th to 96th, Bulgaria remain 55th, Belgium's poor start to the qualifying campaign sees them drop to 38th whilst group favourites Portugal dropped 3 places to 27th. Faroese manager Adam Eckersley was delighted to see his team rise to their highest ranking in a long time, 30 places above where they were when he took over, despite his frustrations at this team's performances against Macedonia and Bulgaria. Eckersley again stated that his realistic aim with this Faroes team is to break into the top 100 in the FIFA rankings, commenting that it is unlikely the team can ever qualify for a major tournament, but that a top 100 berth would represent real success for the small island nation. The changing face of World football over the last 10 years has continued with teams from South America, Africa and Asia filling many of the top ranking spots as European teams struggle to keep pace. The full top 50 rankings at 1st January 2015 are as follows (European teams in bold): 1. Brazil 2. France 3. Nigeria 4. Argentina 5. South Korea 6. United States 7. Senegal 8. Japan 9. Australia 10. Spain 11. Germany 12. Cameroon 13. Mexico 14. Iran 15. Sweden 16. Colombia 17. Italy 18. Egypt 19. Algeria 20. Ghana 21. Democratic Republic of Congo 22. Denmark 23. England 24. Paraguay 25. Czech Republic 26. Holland 27. Portugal 28. South Africa 29. Guinea 30. Greece 31. Republic of Ireland 32. Scotland 33. Poland 34. Chile 35. Trinidad & Tobago 36. China PR 37. Croatia 38. Belgium 39. Russia 40. Ivory Coast 41. Qatar 42. Austria 43. Morocco 44. Ukraine 45. Saudi Arabia 46. Uzbekistan 47. Romania 48. Sierra Leone 49. Tunisia 50. Canada Meanwhile, the 5 teams either side of the Faroe Islands (together with their ranking points) are as follows: 116. Tanzania 322 pts 117. Bermuda 320 pts 118. Cuba 313 pts 119. Latvia 313 pts 120. Bosnia and Herzegovina 305 pts 121. Faroe Islands 303 pts 122. Samoa 298 pts 123. Niger 294 pts 124. Soloman Islands 292 pts 125. Bolivia 289 pts 126. Malaysia 286. The Faroe Islands play the next match in their Euro 2016 qualifying campaign on April 1st in Portugal with further matches following in June. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 12, 2004 Author Share Posted June 12, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Wednesday 1st April 2015 Uninspiring Portugal edge out feisty Faroes Angus McIntyre reports: The Faroe Islands began this match defensively, man-marking all the way across the back and sticking men behind the ball at every occasion in an attempt to frustrate the Portuguese and grab a 0-0 draw. The tactics were rapidly undone however as, after a lively opening period in which the Faroes had more of the possession, Aston Villa's Felipe Oliveira was sent clear to put the Portuguese a goal up after just 7 minutes. The same player then doubled the lead 15 minutes later and the Faroese game plan was in ruins. Unable now to get anything from the game without being more adventurous, manager Adam Eckersley abandoned the policy of men behind the ball and encouraged his players to push forward more, a change in tactic which at least seemed to stem the Portuguese flow and keep the score at 2-0 to half time. In the second half, the Faroes again held their own, even creating a few chances of their own, albeit with some wayward shooting. With the score still at 2-0 on 70 minutes, the Faroes threw on Allan Andreasenp/b] for Teitur Rasmussen upfront and it was the substitute who was in the right place at the right time as Dan Hentze fed the ball through to Magni Joensen who slid the ball sideways to Andreasen who was able to turn and squeeze a shot in to cap a nicely worked Faroese move and shock the 57,000 home fans who were temporarily outsung by the tiny away following who couldn't believe their eyes - with just 15 minutes left the score was Portugal 2-1 Faroe Islands. In the end, the Faroes couldn't score a second and the final goal went to Bruno Conduto for Portugal as the away side left gaps at the back as they looked for an equaliser. All in all though it was a very encouraging away performance from the minnows to score a good goal and defend well for large parts of the game. FT: Portugal 3-1 Faroe Islands In Saturday's matches in Group 7 which didn't involve the Faroes, Portugal and Bulgaria both recorded wins over Belgium and FYR Macedonia respectively. Tonight, FYR Macedonia bounced back to defeat Belgium 2-0, leaving the Belgians still bottom of the group with 3 points, below the Faroes as a result of losing in Thorshavn with both teams equal on points. Portugal head the group with 10 points, 3 ahead of Bulgaria. In Malta, Scotland put in an uninspiring performance to win 0-1 courtesy of an own goal, but the 3 points will be crucial to go with 3 gained at the weekend from their home tie with Albania. Romania picked up 4 points from their 2 games against Italy and Albania, whilst the Italians played only that gane against Romania during this set of fixtures. With 4 games completed by all sides at the halfway stage of the qualifying in Group 6, Italy lie top of the group with 10 points, Romania have 8 whilst Scotland are 3rd with 7 points. Group 1 saw Sweden retain their 100% record with 2 wins over the 4 days to make it 5 out of 5 to top the group by 3 points from Serbia and Montenegor who recorded wins over Northern Ireland and Armenia. Israel lie 3rd after beating Armenia and losing to the Swedes. In Group 2 Norway have a 5 point lead over Spain and Wales who both have 5 points, ahead of Luxemburg on 4 and Slovakia on 3 after the Welsh won 2-3 in Slovakia while Luxemburg caused one of the biggest upsets of all time by beating Spain 1-0 for a fully deserved result. Turkey head group 3 after back to back wins over Latvia and Ireland who lie second with 9 points from 4 games with the Turks still unbeaten. Switzerland, Moldova and Latvia have 1 win and 3 points each. 2 wins for Hungary in the latest fixtures sees them top Group 4 ahead of France, having beaten the French in their head to head, while Poland sit 3rd with 7 points. In Group 5 Germany have 3 wins from 4 after a shock 1-0 defeat in Azerbaijan followed with a 3-1 win over Croatia. Belarus are 2 points behind the Germans after a 4-2 win over Finland at the weekend. Group 8 sees Denmark and Slovenia seperated by a single point after 4 games after the Slovenians' 3-0 win over the Czech Republic and 1-4 win in Liechtenstein and the Danes' 1-3 win in Lithuania, the Czechs lie 3rd in the group with 5 points. In Group 9, England were held 0-0 at home to Russia at the weekend and weren't in action tonight, but still head the group with 10 points from 4 games, Austria and Russia both having 7 points after the Austrians' 1-2 win in Moscow. Group 10 is one of the tightest groups with Ukraine and Holland joint top with 7 points, 3 ahead of Bosnia, Estonia and Iceland. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 13, 2004 Author Share Posted June 13, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Saturday 6th June 2015 Last gasp Faroes end 14 year drought Angus McIntyre reports: It takes quite some research to discover the last time the Faroe Islands won a competitive away match, in fact it was over 14 years ago as they won 0-2 in Luxembourg on 24th March 2001. Prior to that they won in Malta in 1997 and in San Marino in 1995 for a total of 3 away wins in their history. Today they travelled to Macedonia having lost the reverse fixture in Torshavn in disappointing fashion and looking for revenge. Influential midfielder/winger Jón Rói Jacobsen was back for the Faroese in an otherwise familiar looking side from previous matches, with one noteable exception. 16 year old striker Magni Nónklett who has netted 13 goals this season for his island club side GI and 2 goals in 5 U21 internationals was given a debut alongside Allan Andreasen as manager Adam Eckersley looked to inject some fresh blood into the side and some much needed flair. It was quite the sensational debut for Nónklett as he turned a Jan Djurhuus cross back across the Macedonian goalkeeper and into the net for his first ever senior international goal, just 5 minutes into his debut. It had been a stirring start for the Faroes who had already had one shot saved, but the Macedonians quickly began to get into the game and Faroese chances became more and more limited as they were forced back and had to resist strong pressure from the homeside. Just 3 minutes from half time the Macedonian pressure paid off as Goran Georgiev fed the ball through for Vlatko Stojanov to fire in a weak shot, but good enough to equalise. The second half saw action at both ends of the pitch, but it was still Macedonia looking the more likely to snatch a winner as the Faroes manager pushed his wingers forward, bringing on the pacey Jákup Poulsen down the left in place of Eyðun Hentze and tall striker Teirur Rasmussen, who has announced his retirement at the end of the season, in place of Allan Andreasen. It all seemed in vain however as the Faroes continued to be put under pressure and the game ebbed away with 3 minutes of injury time signalled. The game was deep into the 3rd such minute when Magni Joensen received the ball in midfield and turned to thread an intelligent ball forward for Rasmussen to head into the path of Jan Djurhuus...as the clock ticked to 93:00, Djurhuus struck a shot straight at the goalkeeper, but with the last kick of the game, into the 94th minute, steered home the rebound to give the Faroe Islands a famous away victory, only the 4th in their history, to end a drought of over 14 years for the travelling fans. Speaking after the match, Faroe Islands manager Adam Eckersley was absolutely delighted with the way his side kept fighting all the way to the end and defended doggedly under great pressure. He was also full of praise for the 16 year old striker whom he had seen fit to throw straight into the international side and who scored on his debut, as well as veterans Teitur Rasmussen for whom the match in midweek against Bulgaria will be his last, and matchwinner Jan Djurhuus who had also laid on the opening goal. FT: FYR of Macedonia 1-2 Faroe Islands In Sofia, Bulgaria held on for a 3-2 win over struggling Belgium which sees them move level on points with Portugal at the top of the group and all but make it a 2 horse race for the automatic promotion slot and the play-off position. <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> European Football Championship 2016 Qualification Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Portugal 4 3 1 0 9 4 +5 10 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Bulgaria 5 3 1 1 12 9 +3 10 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd FYR of Macedonia 5 2 0 3 7 8 -1 6 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th Faroe Islands 5 2 0 3 5 9 -4 6 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th Belgium 5 1 0 4 6 9 -3 3 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- </pre> In action elsewhere across Europe, Sweden made it 6 wins out of 6 in Group 1 with a 2-1 victory over Northern Ireland, Norway top group 2 from Slovakia as the Slovaks beat Spain 3-0 while in Group 3 second placed Ireland cemented their position, joining Turkey on 12 points with a 1-2 win in Switzerland. Group 4 saw France win the top of the table clash with Hungary to go 3 points clear whilst in Group 5 Belarus are the surprise leaders, a point ahead of Germany from a game more. Scotland weren't in action in Group 6, where Italy moved 4 points clear of Romania who could only draw 1-1 in Malta. Denmark still head Group 8 after a 1-1 draw in the Czech Republic, England maintained their lead in Group 9 with a 1-0 home win over Austria and in Group 10 Iceland's shock 2-0 win over Holland sees them top their group with 4 teams all level on 7 points! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 13, 2004 Author Share Posted June 13, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Wednesday 10th June 2015 Another Faroese late show denies Bulgaria Angus McIntyre reports: A match of relatively few chances, but some superb football and clinical finishing got off to a dream start for the Faroe Islands as Allan Andreasen curled in an inch-perfect freekick from the edge of the area after just 3 minutes to give the Faroes a shock lead. The lead only lasted 14 minutes though before Valeri Emilov Bojinov was sent clear behind the out of position Faroe Islands defence to equalise at 1-1, a score which held until the half time whistle. The Faroe Islands came out positively for the second half, pushing forward looking for a 2nd goal and within 3 minutes of the restart they had their goal, 16 year old Magni Nónklett making it an impressive 2 goals in 2 games as he finished off a one-two with John Jacobsen. The Bulgarians are not 2nd in the group for nothing however and a 25-yard piledriver from the impressive Kostadin Hazurov again levelled the scores just after the hour mark before the same player broke Faroese hearts as he was on hand again with a clinical finish in the 86th minute for what looked like the winning goal. But the Faroes are made of stern stuff these days and will not give in until the final whistle blows and so it was that for the second match running they snatched a goal with almost the last action of the game, Hans Pauli Kjærbo's pinpoint corner headed in superbly by Teitur Rasmussen at the near post as the 32 year old striker bade goodbye to international football in the best possible way to tie the scores at 3-3. FT: Faroe Islands 3-3 Bulgaria In Lisbon, Portugal as expected ran out easy winners against FYR of Macedonia to put some daylight between themselves and Bulgaria with a game still in hand. Today's results leave the Faroes sitting in the dizzy heights of 3rd in their group - the highest position this small nation has ever occupied so far into a qualifying campaign. With an away tie in Belgium to come in September before the final match in Torshavn at home to Portugal, the Faroe Islands fans must surely be hoping their country can finish off the bottom of their group for the first time, but it will need all the grit and determination they have shown in their last 2 matches. <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> European Football Championship 2016 Qualification Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Portugal 5 4 1 0 12 4 +8 13 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Bulgaria 6 3 2 1 15 12 +3 11 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Faroe Islands 6 2 1 3 8 12 -4 7 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th FYR of Macedonia 6 2 0 4 7 11 -4 6 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th Belgium 5 1 0 4 6 9 -3 3 </pre> Other noteable results across Europe saw Sweden lose their 100% start as they crashed to a 3-0 defeat away to Serbia & Montenegro in Group 1, whilst in Group 2 Wales grabbed a crucial 2-2 draw in Spain with Norway marching on at the top of the group. Sweden's lead in group 1 is now down to 2 points whereas Norway have already secured qualification with an impressive 16 points ahead of Wales, Spain and Slovakia who all have 6 points. Ireland's 1-4 victory in Latvia coupled with Turkey's 2-0 defeat in Moldova sees the Irish secure at least a play-off position as they sit 3 points clear of Turkey and 8 clear of Moldova. France remain top of Group 4 with a win in Cyprus as Poland move 2nd after beating Hungary who drop to 3rd. Belarus' 2-2 draw in Croatia allowed Germany to resume top spot in Group 5 after their 2-1 win over Finland, the Germans now a point clear of Belarus and 3 ahead of Croatia. In Group 6, Scotland failed to break down group leaders Italy as the two teams played out a 0-0 draw which sees Scotland's hopes of qualification resting largely on an away trip to Romania in September. Group 8 saw the Czech Republic close the gap on the top 2 with a thumping 0-5 win in Liechtenstien as Slovenia in 2nd and leaders Denmark played out a goalless draw. England secured at least a play-off place from Group 9 after a comfortable 4-0 win over San Marino, 3rd placed Austria being held to a 1-1 draw by Georgia. In Group 10, wins for Iceland and the Ukraine over Bosnia and Estonia see them move clear at the top with 10 points each, Holland and Bosnia both remaining on 7 points. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 19, 2004 Author Share Posted June 19, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Saturday 5th September 2015 Faroes left with "if only"'s after Belgium draw Hamish Brodie reports: It is perhaps a measure of how far the Faroes have developed under Ross County manager Adam Eckersley that they come out of this match wondering "what if" on a number of issues. What if they had started the group better, beating Macedonia at home instead of losing, what if they had managed to win their topsy turvy tie with Bulgaria last match and what if they had held on to their lead today or scored one of the numerous chances they missed. Of course the flip side of the coin is also to be considered, with late Faroese goals in a few matches and fewer chances than Belgium today and Bulgaria last match. In the end though, it has been a great qualifying campaign from the Faroes with today's result making sure that they will not finish bottom of their group which represents great progress. Had they held on to win today they would have gone into next month's clash with Portugal still with a chance of the play-off spot. The Faroes today were in no mood to hang around and went at Belgium from the off, having 3 shots on goal in the opening 2 minutes, with Jakup Mikkkelson heading a corner at the Belgian 'keeper before turning in the rebound to give the Faroes a shock early lead. The rest of the match saw open free-flowing football with both sides looking to push forward and score goals, but it was Belgium who did manage to score, Junior finally breaking through the Faroese defence on the stroke of half-time to equalise. The second half continued the end to end style with the Faroes throwing on a 3rd striker and pushing their wingers forward in what could have been considered either brave or rash as chances came thick and fast at either end in the closing minutes, but ultimately both sides had to settle for a 1-1 draw which leaves Belgium still bottom of the group. FT: Belgium 1-1 Faroe Islands In the group's other match, Portugal confirmed their qualification with a comfortable 0-2 win in Bulgaria which leaves the Bulgarians 3 points ahead of the Faroe Islands, but having the better results between the two sides. <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> European Football Championship 2016 Qualification Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Q Portugal 6 5 1 0 14 4 +10 16 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Bulgaria 7 3 2 2 15 14 +1 11 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Faroe Islands 7 2 2 3 9 13 -4 8 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th FYR of Macedonia 6 2 0 4 7 11 -4 6 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th Belgium 6 1 1 4 7 10 -3 4 </pre> Scotland were far from impressive in their match as they were held to a dull goal-less draw away to unfancied Albania in group 6. Italy's 3-0 win over Romania sees the Italians qualify and gives Scotland a chance of 2nd place in the group still despite their form of late. Both Scotland and Romania have 9 points with 2 games remaining including a crucial match in Romania between the two on Wednesday. Wins for Sweden and Serbia & Montenegro in Group 1 see the two teams seperated still by just 2 points at the top of the group with Israel a distant 3rd. Wales' victory over already qualified Norway in Group 2 keeps them in with a good chance of the play-off spot, level on points with Slovakia with a game in hand after Slovakia's win over Luxembourg. Turkey's 1-0 win over Latvia sees them top Group 3 ahead of Ireland, both with 15 points and with the two scheduled to meet in Dublin in the final match of the group. In Group 4 there were comfortable wins for the top two, France and Poland both recording 4-1 victories over Kazakhstan and Cyprus respectively. If Poland beat France on Wednesday the group will go down to the final set of matches, otherwise France will qualify leaving Poland to fight off Hungary for 2nd. In the table topping clash in Group 5 it was honours even as Belarus and Germany shared a 2-2 draw allowing Croatia to close up at the top with a 1-2 win in Azerbaijan to join Belarus on 12 points, 1 behind Germany with Croatia vs Germany due on Wednesday. Denmark beat Lithuania 3-2 and Czech Republic saw off Slovenia 1-0 to leave the Danes top of Group 8, 3 points ahead of the Czechs who leap-frog Slovenia. Russia closed the gap on England in Group 9 with a 2-0 win over the English in Moscow as 3rd placed Austria won 0-2 in San Marino. England now have 16 points, Russia 13 and Austria 11. Group 10 saw leaders Ukraine win 0-3 in Bosnia to open up a 3 point lead over Holland whose 0-2 win in Estonia moves them above Iceland who were not in action. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harleqin Posted June 19, 2004 Share Posted June 19, 2004 Amazing story you've got going here. I'm amazed at what you've done with the Faroes. I'm not sure they've won a match of importance since they beat Austria. nice work all around. I think I'll go have a look at your Ross story too. If it's as well written as this then it should be enjoyable Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyrone the Magazine Posted June 19, 2004 Share Posted June 19, 2004 Totally agree with Hareqin, done well with Faroes so far hope you keep it up. Are you enjoying managing them as much as you would say a bigger team with a better chance of doing something eg. Croatia? just want to guage your reply because ive never managed a small national team before, plenty of small league clubs but not national. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 19, 2004 Author Share Posted June 19, 2004 Thanks International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Saturday 10th October 2015 Poulsen spearheads superb comeback for Faroes Angus McIntyre reports: When Dundee United appointed a close friend of Ross County manager Adam Eckersley's as their manager as they sat precariously at the foot of the SPL towards the end of last season, it didn't exactly make headline news in the Faroe Islands. Having successfully guided the club to safety however, he decided to take a look at some of the Faroe Islands players on the advice of his friend, many of whom were without a club and decided to take a chance on a fair number of them, signing up in total 6 members of the Faroese national squad for Dundee United. With all being available on free transfers, only their fairly modest wages would represent a gamble for Dundee United and with the Faroes beginning to emerge as a footballing nation under the guidance of Eckersley it was a gamble the Dundee United manager felt was worth the risk and Faroese manager Eckersley was understandably delighted to as this could well be of huge benefit to both parties - giving some members of his squad the chance of football at a higher level than Faroese club football. So we arrive at today's match in which 4 of these Dundee United players, who have been seeing effective first team action this season play a part. Jakup Mikkelsen, Hans Pauli Kjaerbo and Jákup Poulsen, who has been in hot form with 5 goals and 4 assists in 7 matches for United this season all in the starting eleven and Allan Andreasen making an appearance as a substitute. Kjaerbo was detailed to man-mark Portugal's dangerous left-winger Cristiano Ronaldo, a task which he achieved quite successfully all be it at the expense of the Faroes having a continuous right-back to cover other Portuguese players drifting left as Ronaldo moved infield. After a bright start from the Faroes, the Portuguese struck twice in 2 minutes with deadly precision to leave the Faroes reeling, Hélder Postiga and Cristiano Ronaldo both finding the back of the net for what looked sure to be an easy 3 points for the Portuguese. The feisty Faroese had other ideas however and pulled together defensively whilst still posing a significent threat upfront with a pair of pacey strikers and the invenyiveness of Jan Djurhuus, back in the midfield after injury. On 41 minutes, Djurhuus won the ball from a Portuguese freekick and began a surging run into the right of the area, taking 3 defenders with him before sliding the ball through to Jákup Poulson, unmarked to fire in from 12 yards out to give the Faroes some hope. With an hour gone, Faroese manager Eckersley decided it was time for fresh legs, taking off the ineffectual Reading striker Kristian Johannesen, another play whom he hopes will develop better playing in England, to bring on Allan Andreasen as well as bring on attacking midfielder Dan Hentze to play a more attacking wide left role than John Jacobse. Just 2 minutes later, Rúni Hansen broke up a Portuguese attack in midfield to set off a quick Farose break, feeding Poulsen who turned through 180 degrees before blasting a superb 25-yarder straight into the back of the Portuguese net to send the home fans wild and tie the scores at 2-2. Having equalised, the Faroes reverted from their failry Gung Ho style to a slightly less attack-minded mentality and played out the rest of the match, with a few chances coming at either end for a fantastic 2-2 draw against the group winners. FT: Faroe Islands 2-2 Portugal Perhaps a little disappointingly for the Faroes, Belgium hammered Macedonia 4-0 in the other match in the group to leapfrog the Faroes and finish 3rd in the group, but the Faroes' final placing of 4th, above Macedonia represents a major step forward in their progress and some of the performaces in this qualifying group after the first 2 matches have been quite spectacular as the Faroes really do begin to look like a cohesive and challenging force now under the astute management of Scotland's most successful club manager. After the first 2 matches, Eckersley was clearly extremely upset about the manner of their defeats and admitted later that he had seriously considered resigning after that commenting that "I love this job and I want to do all I can for Faroese football, but I want to see progression, however slow, and losing at home to Macedonia in such bad fashion after the progress we have made over the last 2 qualifying campaigns left me feeling that we had made 1 long step forward and 2 very quick steps backwards". Speaking after today's match, he was full of praise for his players however, commenting also that Poulsen's form for his new club Dundee United, where he will soon come up against Ross County was a major factor, as well as that of his club-mates, most particularly regarding their superior fitness levels compared to those players still based in the Faroes. In Group 6, Scotland thrashed Malta 4-0 to secure the play-off spot where they will face a tricky encounter against the Czech Republic, runners up in Group 8 to Denmark. Sweden have already qualified from Group 1 with Serbia & Montenegro setting up a play-off with Poland after their 3-0 final group game win over Armenia. Group 2 saw Wales brilliantly pip Spain for the play-off spot behind group winners Norway with a 2-0 win over Slovakia - the Welsh will play-off against Croatia. Group 3 was settled in Dublin in favour of Ireland as they brushed aside Turkey 3-0 to finish 3 points clear and condemn Turkey to a play-off against Bulgaria. Having beaten France in Warsaw, last month, Poland threw away the chance to win Group 4 as they drew 1-1 in Kazakhstan and had to settle for the play-offs and Serbia & Montenegro. Germany bounced back in style from last month's damaging 2-1 defeat in Croatia to put 6 past Azerbaijan and leapfrog the Croats by 1 point to qualify automatically. Group 9 saw Russia and England both finish on 19 points, but the Russians take top spot, leaving England to face a play-off with Group 10 runners up Ukraine who could only draw 3-3 at home to Iceland whilst Holland beat Bosnia 4-1 to squeeze into top spot when it really mattered. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 19, 2004 Author Share Posted June 19, 2004 Author's note: Just to provide some info - I added a manager to take over Dundee United towards the end of last season when they sacked their previous manager and sat bottom of the table and I felt like a new challenge. Having kept them up I decided that signing some of the many Faroese players without a club could be mutually beneficial to Dundee United and the Faroes so took a chance on 6 of them. I am managing Dundee United seriously so they will only appear on merit for the club and will otherwise be left out so it is only good for the Faroes if it is good for Dundee United too Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 20, 2004 Author Share Posted June 20, 2004 <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Tyrone the Mag: Totally agree with Hareqin, done well with Faroes so far hope you keep it up. Are you enjoying managing them as much as you would say a bigger team with a better chance of doing something eg. Croatia? just want to guage your reply because ive never managed a small national team before, plenty of small league clubs but not national. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Sorry, didn't notice your reply last night since we posted at the same time! It's probably the most interesting challenge I've ever done in CM - I won the World Cup with Czech Republic in CM 01/02 which was fun, but I love trying to get the Faroes somewhere - it does get frustrating though sometimes - some of the mistakes are the type of stuff you wouldn't expect in conference football, but I'm enjoying it since I can see some kind of progression - if we were still as much no hopers as when I took over I'd probably have given up since I can't influence the bringing through of talent like I could in a country where the league is active, but we are developing sloooooowly I'd fully recommend it to anyone who has some patience - I've found club management disappointingly easy in CM 03/04, but this is certainly not too easy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 20, 2004 Author Share Posted June 20, 2004 Apologies for posting in both my stories - I just couldn't decide which to post it in since it crosses between both! News report from the Dingwall Times on Saturday November 11th 2015 Sun journo's astonishing tirade on County manager Angus McIntyre reports: The Sun journalist Andy Renshaw today made an astonishing attack on Ross County and Faroe Islands manager Adam Eckersley, claiming he was a mickey-mouse manager and a disgrace to his country. Quite what prompted Renshaw's outburst is unclear, but he has been an outspoken critic of Eckersley ever since he took the Faroese national job having snubbed England and been widely tipped to take over Scotland. Infact, it is widely believed that Rensahw's animosity stems from the fact that he wrote an "exclusive" claiming Eckersley would be the next England manager and was then left embarrassed when the County manager turned down the post. Renshaw then got it wrong again back in 2010 when he wrote an article confidently predicting that the Scottish FA had lined up Eckersley to become their new manager and that this was the job he had been waiting for when he snubbed England. Eckersley's subsequent appointment as Faroe Islands manager left Renshaw again with egg on his face and brought into question his abilities as a top level football journalist, seeing him demoted to lesser matches before he parted company with his then employers at the Daily Telegraph. Now back at the cutting edge of football journalism with The Sun however, Renshaw today launched into a tirade against the Ross County manager whom he sees as having let down both his country of birth and his adopted nation of Scotland by taking on what Renshaw described as a "mickey-mouse" international job. He also branded the County manager as gutless and unambitious for having turned down overtures from Europe's big clubs on the continent and in England in favour of staying at Ross County. Renshaw commented that Eckersley is too settled in his job at Ross County and is too scared of failure if he joins a big European club with "proper" players where he will be far less of a big fish. Renshaw also claimed that the youth academy provided by the Ross County chairman had played a huge part in the club's success and that with such talent coming through any manager could have been successful, citing also that Glasgow giants Celtic and Rangers had been well below par, making it far easier for other clubs in Scotland to be successful. Renshaw concluded by stating that Eckersley is a very average manager, content to continue his management career in the uncompetitive Scottish leagues because he knows he isn't good enough to compete with the big boys at one of Europe's major clubs and that the same is true at international level where Eckersley is hiding behind the "tiny nation" flag which allows him to be as unsuccessful as he likes without ever being able to be criticised because he has no good players at his disposal. For his part, Eckersley had little to say on Mr Renshaw's comments, branding him an idiot whose journalistic skills were at best average. Eckersley also said that Renshaw wouldn't understand loyalty if it jumped up and bit him on the ear and that there are more important things in life than the furtherance of his own reputation by managing a so-called "big club". He readily conceeded that the work of his chairman Archie MacLaren had been crucial to the club's success, but strongly rejected claims that he is too scared of failure to move elsewhere, commenting that he can achieve all he wishes to at this great club, that he is loyal to the fans and the chairman and they are loyal to him and that he is happy living in Dingwall and sees no need to prove himself to the gutter press. Responding to Renshaw's comments on his International management career, Eckersley accused Renshaw of sour grapes having twice got his story wrong and said he had taken the Faroes job because it was one that appealed to him as a challenge and to be able to help the develpment of football in the small Island nation, adding that he had no desire to manage England and get slated constantly by the likes of Mr Renshaw. Eceksrely finished by questioning just what Mr Renshaw had added to the game of football, saying that without wishing to be arrogant, he had done more for the development of football in both the Scotland and the Faroes than Mr Renshaw could ever dream of doing himself and that he should maybe find a job at which he is more competent. Whilst Eckersley attempted to remain cool and unconcerned by the article it was clear that Renshaw's comments had hurt and angered him, hitting on one point that Eckersley knew could always be questioned about him - a lack of ambition. Fans of Ross County have beseiged radio phone-ins today with words of support for their manager however, laughing off Mr Renshaws claims and pointing out that their club is now one of the biggest in Europe, if not in size certainly in terms of footballing talent - they also paid tribute to the manager who ranks loyalty far above ambition in the wider scheme of things, saying that the bond of friendship between manager and chairman had been great for their club. Needless to say, we here at the Dingwall Times are fully behind our manager and his exploits on the International scene were he is adored by the Faroese football fans and players alike for the impact he has made on football in their country and widely admired by people in the game for what he is trying to achieve with a small nation rather than taking the opportunity to manage top class players almost guaranteed to be at major tournaments. Mr Eckersley, we salute you. Mr Renshaw, we, the people of Dingwall, think you are a cretin! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz the Imp Posted June 20, 2004 Share Posted June 20, 2004 It is tough managing the good old Faroe Islands, I had the (un?)enviable task in one of my save games, albeit on 01-02. I also agree that is fun, whilst frustrating, but when they sack for not qualifying for the World Cup...well, you tend to be angry Keep up the good work CMON YOU FAROESE Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 20, 2004 Author Share Posted June 20, 2004 Thanks for the support Daz Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 21, 2004 Author Share Posted June 21, 2004 Friday 1st January 2016 Another year passed in charge of the Faroe Islands and it has been an eventful one. Back at the start of this qualifying campaign I was at my lowest ebb since I took over this job after we lost at home to Macedonia and then 3-0 in Bulgaria. The Bulgarian defeat was to be expected since the Faroes hadn't won an away match for 14 years, but the Macedonia defeat after we managed an unbeaten qualifying campaign at home last time really hurt. It wasn't just that we lost either - obviously managing the Faroe Islands I know we'll lose matches and even in games we have a chance of winning we can always lose, even the best teams can. But the performance was so shocking that I felt on that day that all the painstaking progress we had made over the previous 4 years had gone out of the window in a single game - it was truly the worst performance I have presided over since Ross County's 5-0 defeat at Gretna in my first match in charge! Out of that despair though came some hope a month later as we recorded an excellent and morale boosting 1-0 win over Belgium which restored my faith in the players - they could see I was hurt by the performaces against Macedonia and Bulgaria and they performed with great character against Belgium. Funnily enough though, it looked as though our brilliant performance would not be rewarded, 0-0 into injury time, then Allan Andreasen missed that 92nd minute penalty, but when he put away the rebound the whole tightly compacted stadium of 9,975 people erupted in great joy and any lingering thoughts I had of resigning were well and truly washed away. From there we have taken things on to a new level and could so easily have taken more points and finished 3rd in our group - even 2nd with a lot of luck and a victory of Macedonia to have started with. It was important to us that we scored in each of our remaining 6 qualifying matches, even when we lost which was only once again, in Portugal where we put up a real fight. To win in Macedonia, our first away win in over 14 years was fantastic for us - I can't begin to explain how proud I felt of the players for doing that - I just chose the team and formation and sent them out there on the pitch - they did the work. Again it was an injury time winner for us though, Jan Djurhuus keeping his head while all Macedonians around him were losing theirs as you might say After that it was all draws which combined for me some disappointment and some relief - they could probably easily have been either wins or losses with a little luck one way or the other, but we had had our luck as far as wins were concerned with 2 injury time winners and indeed we even managed an injury-time equaliser by Teitur Rasmussen for our 3-3 draw at home to Bulgaria which was a great way for him to sign off and retire. When Portugal came we showed great character after a bright start when we suddenly found ourselves 2 goals down in the space of 2 disastrous minutes before 20 minutes were up. Dundee United's in-form striker Jákup Poulsen was exceptional though and his 25-yard equaliser would have taken the roof off if the stadium had one. Well, that's enough of the memories and time to look forward. Scotland managed to see off the Czech Republic in excellent fashion to qualify for Euro 2016 which will provide some interest for me - I just have to hope as many of my Ross County players are in the squad as possible - we have had as many as 10 players in the squad at any one time. It's that time of year again when the FIFA rankings are out so eagerly anticipated by me once I drag myself out of bed after the previous night's Hogmanay celebrations to head to my office and discover the rankings. Scotland have done excellently, rising from 32nd to 14th in the latest rankings. And what about the Faroe Islands I hear you ask? Well, if we have a good year this year we should achieve my first aim and make the top 100 by next New Year. This time we are up from 121st to 103rd, just 8 points behind 100th placed Costa Rica, we have 392 points. The full top 50 are as follows: 1. Brazil 2. France 3. Nigeria 4. United States 5. South Korea 6. Argentina 7. Senegal 8. Italy 9. Colombia 10. Sweden 11. Spain 12. Australia 13. Holland 14. Scotland 15. Portugal 16. Germany 17. Iran 18. Algeria 19. Czech Republic 20. Denmark 21. England 22. Ghana 23. Mexico 24. Egypt 25. Guinea 26. Paraguay 27. Japan 28. Democratic Republic of Congo 29. Russia 30. Poland 31. Croatia 32. Serbia and Montenegro 33. Ivory Coast 34. Republic of Ireland 35. Ukraine 36. South Africa 37. Trinidad & Tobago 38. Morocco 39. Saudi Arabia 40. Turkey 41. Belgium 42. China PR 43. Greece 44. Cameroon 45. Qatar 46. Wales 47. Sierra Leone 48. Austria 49. Romania 50. Uzbekistan To continue with Hamish Brodie's idea of showing the teams around us, here are the 5 nations either side of ourselves: 98. Estonia 409 pts 99. The Congo 402 pts 100. Costa Rica 400 pts 101. Palestine 398 pts 102. Benin 396 pts 103. Faroe Islands 392 104. FYR of Macedonia 379 pts 105. Venezuela 377 pts 106. Singapore 360 pts 107. Kenya 357 pts 108. Turkmenistan 356 pts To conclude this update I might as well bring the reader fully uptodate with the 16 qualifiers for Euro 2016 in Greece for which the groups have now been drawn: Group A: Portugal (15th) Serbia & Montenegro (32nd) Sweden (10th) Turkey (40th) Group B: Denmark (20th) Greece (43rd) Holland (13th) Ukraine (35th) Group C: Germany (16th) Ireland (34th) Norway (56th) Scotland (14th) Group D: Croatia (31st) France (2nd) Italy (8th) Russia (29th) Hosts Italy and favoourites France find themselves drawn together in Group D, but should both progress. As for Scotland, their ranking implies they are favourites to win their group, but we will just have to see! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 21, 2004 Author Share Posted June 21, 2004 Just to provide the reader with a few facts on the Faroe Islands which may or may not interest them... Geography <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> Area 1399 sq. km or 545,3 sq. miles Capital Tórshavn Mean temperature a year 7 Mean maximum temperature 9 Mean minimum temperature 6 Annual hours of bright sunshine 840 Lowest point Atlantic Ocean 0 m Highest point Slættaratindur 882 m </pre> People <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> Population (10.2003) 48.107 Population Density 34 per sq. km or 88 sq. miles Life Expectancy Males 75,2 female 81,4 Languages Faroese is the main language. Faroese and Danish are official languages Religion State Evangelical Lutheran 80%, Bretheren 10%, 10% Various Status The Faroes are a self-governing territory within the state sovereignty of Denmark Government Elected parliament, Løgtingið and executive, Landstýrið Prime Minister Mr Jóannes Eidesgaard since February 2004 </pre> Economy <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> GDP at factor cost (2002) £943,58 million GDP- per capita £19673,63 Inflation rate (2003) 1,3% Unemployment (January 2004) 3,8% Currency Faroese Króna= Danish Krone – DKK </pre> Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyrone the Magazine Posted June 21, 2004 Share Posted June 21, 2004 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 25, 2004 Author Share Posted June 25, 2004 News report from the Dingwall Times on Tuesday March 15th 2016 Faroes and Scotland in World Cup "Group of Death" Angus McIntyre reports: Today saw the draw for the World Cup 2018 European qualification groups take place in Rome as the long road to join hosts Italy in the tournament. When the dust had settled on the draw with the teams being drawn in the usual seeded manner, the Faroe Islands and Scotland found themselves paired together in Group 1 together with Portugal again for the Faroes, Ukraine, Wales and Lithuania. Having qualified for Eurp 2016, Scotland leapt up to 14th in the FIFA World rankings at the turn of the year with Portugal ranked a place below them in 15th, the two ranked 6th and 7th in Europe with the Ukraine 35th in the rankings, 17th best in Europe. Wales are ranked 46th, with Lithuania in 86th and the Faroe Islands in 103rd making it a very tough task for the Faroe Islands. Manager Adam Eckersley was disappointed to be drawn in such a tough group, especially with his adopted country of Scotland, commenting "It will be great to play Scotland, but to be honest I'd rather play anyone else - I have trained many of the Scotland team for many years and I know what they are capable of better than anyone else and I don't fancy our chances, but we'll have to see - we match Portugal at home in the last qualifying tournament so we'll do the best we can against the odds again." The draw in full is as follows: <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> World Cup 2018 Qualification Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1st Faroe Islands 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2nd Lithuania 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3rd Portugal 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4th Scotland 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5th Ukraine 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 6th Wales 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Hungary 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Iceland 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Ireland 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th Latvia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th San Marino 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6th Spain 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Andorra 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Belgium 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd England 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th Finland 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th Kazakhstan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6th Slovakia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Georgia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Holland 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Malta 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th Moldova 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th Romania 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6th Switzerland 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1st Belarus 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2nd Bulgaria 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3rd Denmark 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4th Liechtenstein 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5th N.Ireland 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 6th Turkey 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Cyprus 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Czech Republic 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Israel 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th Luxembourg 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th Norway 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6th Slovenia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Albania 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Azerbaijan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Croatia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th France 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th Greece 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Armenia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd FYR of Macedonia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Poland 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th Serbia & Mont. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th Sweden 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1st Austria 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2nd Bosnia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3rd Estonia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4th Germany 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5th Russia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ </pre> Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 26, 2004 Author Share Posted June 26, 2004 News report from the Dingwall Times on Saturday May 21st 2016 Cameron walks out on Scotland Angus McIntyre reports: In a sensational development today, Colin Cameron walked out on Scotland after a row with the national FA. It is not clear what the source of the row was, but the FA have confirmed that they have parted company with Cameron and will be seeking a replacement immediately. The news comes just 1 week before the Scotland squad must be finalised for the Euro 2016 championships and leaves the Scottish FA in turmoil as they look to find a replacement in such a short time who will be able to lift the shocked Scotland players for the championships. Again the name of Ross County manager Adam Eckersley has been on many people's lips, but it is thought unlikely that Eckersley will wish to quit his job as manager of the Faroe Islands. One possibility however is for Scotland to appoint a temporary manager purely for the duration of the Euro championships and appoint a full time coach after the championships. The Dingwall Times will keep you uptodate with any further developments in this amazing story. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 26, 2004 Author Share Posted June 26, 2004 News report from the Dingwall Times on Tuesday May 24th 2016 Scotland in shock as Irvine takes reigns Angus McIntyre reports: The Scottish FA today shocked the footballing world by announcing that Brian Irvine will take control of the Scotland national team for the duration of the Euro 2016 championships, but stressed that this was a short-term appointment with the sole purpose of guiding the team in the championships. Irvine has been a coach at Ross County for the last 12 seasons after retiring as a player and is undoubtably a highly talented coach, but his appointment as Scotland manager for the short term has shocked the footballing world. Many conspiracy theorists are claiming that Irvine is just a front for Ross County manager Adam Eckersley taking control of the Scotland team for the championships returning to managing the Faroe Islands after the championships are over. The Dingwall Times understands that Eckersley was approached by the Scottish FA and refused the job, but that it was he who suggested one of his coaches as a short term appointment after the Scottish FA had told him they wanted him because of the fact that so many Ross County players would be in the squad. Eckersley is said to have recommended Brian Irvine as an excellent coach who has trained with and helped bring through many of the Ross County players now in the Scotland squad over the last 12 years. It is thought that Eckersley will be working with Irvine at Euro 2016, but in an unofficial capacity as he is still officially manager of the Faroe Islands and has no wish to quit his post. The Scottish public have been left stunned by this announcement and many journalists have lambasted the FA for appointing such an unknown coach for such an important time. Others however are cautiously optimistic, commenting that after the initial shock the appointment of Irvine whom they say will be closely backed up by Eckersley could be a master-stroke. It is thought likely that Irvine will select a large number of Ross County players in the squad, but with the club having won back to back Champions League finals and made the final again this year where they will next week aim for an historic hat-trick of titles few can argue with a policy of selecting a large number of that squad in the national side. Author's note: Just to explain a little - I got fed up with the way the AI manager (Colin Cameron) kept selecting players in silly positions - many of my Ross County players are D/M RC or D/M/F RC and always get played as defenders even though at club level they play upfront or on the wing...so I decided I didn't want such talented players to end their careers without a decent chance of international success so I have taken control of Scotland with a new manager just for the duration of the championships - I'll be retiring the manager afterwards though, esp. because Scotland were drawn in the Faroe Island's World Cup qualifying group. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 26, 2004 Author Share Posted June 26, 2004 News report from the Dingwall Times on Saturday May 28th 2016 Eleven County players in Scotland Euro squad Angus McIntyre reports: New temporary Scotland manager Brian Irvine today announced his squad of 22 players for the Euro 2016 championships, including eleven players from his club side Ross County. County goalkeeper Kevin Black was injured at the end of the season and was unavailable for selection, meaning that Irvine kept faith with Falkirk's Carl Robinson and Manchester United's David Marshall, a veteran of 61 caps now. There was no place in the squad for Chelsea's Darren Fletcher, but Manchester United pair Stephen Hughes and James McFadden, both of whom have won 67 caps so far were selected in the squad. There are 7 uncapped players surprisingly selected in the squad, although 3 of these - left back Steve Taylor, defensive midfielder Paul Harris and striker Kevin Watson do play for Ross County and are well known to Brian Irvine, Watson having scored 7 times in 11 U21 games for Scotland as well as netting 11 goals in 9 starts and 11 substitute appearances for County this season. The other eight Ross County players selected are: Kerr Dodds (D RC), Nick James (D/M C), John MacDonald (D LC), Michael Reid (D/M/S C), Alan Reid (D/M RC), Richard Rhodes (AM/F L), Mark McGlynn (D/DM/F RC) and Ian MacSween (S C). Former Ross County striker Andy Williams, now at Falkirk is also in the squad having finished top scorer in the SPL for the last two seasons. Irvine currently has injury worries over 3 of his Ross County players with 17 days until the first match against Germany, Kerr Dodds is expected to be out for another 3 weeks with torn ankle ligaments, Richard Rhodes is out for around a week with a fractured wrist and hot shot striker Ian MacSween was injured in County's Scottish Cup triumph over St. Johnstone and isn't expected to be fit for around 3 weeks. With Southampton defender Mark Ritchie also suspended for Scotland's first two matches, Irvine is certainly taking a few risks with his squad and banking on being in the competition into the latter stages when his full squad should be available again. The squad in full is: <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> 4th in World Cup European Qualifying Section Group 1 Squad Screen --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Marshall, D GK Robinson, C GK --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Inj Dodds, K D RC Yel McGlynn, M D/DM/F RC --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reid, A D/M RC Johnston, S D LC --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MacDonald, J D LC Sus Ritchie, M D LC --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Taylor, S D L Crawford, J D C --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- James, N D/M C Reid, M D/M/S C --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Harris, P DM C Hughes, S M RC --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- McFadden, J AM/F RLC Pearson, S AM RLC --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Inj Rhodes, R AM/F L Brown, S F RLC --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Duffy, D F RC Williams, A F C --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Inj MacSween, I S C Watson, K S C </pre> Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 26, 2004 Author Share Posted June 26, 2004 Euro 2016 Match report from the Dingwall Times on Tuesday June 14th 2016 Dream debuts for classy Scots Angus McIntyre reports: Scotland manager Brian Irvine's hands were somewhat tied going into this match with strikers David Duffy and Andy Williams picking up training injuries to join Ian MacSween and Kerr Dodds on the medical table leaving a lack of strikers in the squad. With Dodds out and Mark McGlynn needed upfront, Irvine used the versatile Alan Reid at right-back with Hertha Berlin's John Crawford making his debut at centre-back alongside Nick James and Ross County striker Kevin Watson making his debut upfront alongside McGlynn. Roused by the strains of Flower of Scotland before the match the passionate Scots made a sensational start to the match and with just 62 seconds on the clock, Kevin Watson had the ball in the back of the German net via a deflection off the unfortunate Robert Huth to make a dream start to his Scotland career. After the wild start to the game things settled down somewhat with neither side able to take control and create many chances as the game meandered to half time still 0-1 to Scotland. The second half began tightly, but as the hour matk approached, Scotland won a corner, taken by James McFadden and headed in on his debut by John Crawford to send the Scottish fans into raptures and vindicate Brian Irvine's selection of his two debutants. The 3 points were wrapped up on 74 minutes with a beautifully worked goal as James McFadden teased the German full-back as he charged down the right wing before jinking infield and firing the ball across the box where the 'keeper fumbled it and Mark McGlynn was onhand fire home County's 3rd. FT: Germany 0-3 Scotland In the other match in the group, Ireland and Norway shared a 1-1 draw Scotland lineup: Carl Robinson (GK), Alan Reid (DR), John MacDonald (DL), Nick James (DC), John Crawford (DC), Scott Brown (MR), Richard Rhodes (ML), James McFadden(MC), Michael Reid (MC), Mark McGlynn (FC), Kevin Watson (FC). Sub: Stephen Hughes (MR) on for Scott Brown on 79 mins. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 26, 2004 Author Share Posted June 26, 2004 Euro 2016 Match report from the Dingwall Times on Sunday June 19th 2016 Magical Scots overwhelm woeful Irish Angus McIntyre reports: A quite brilliant performance today from Scotland in the Municipal Stadium in Trikala saw them head in 4-0 up at the break with the points already in the bag and having sent out warning signals to the rest of Europe's big teams. The second half failed to live up to the brilliance of the first, but Scotland continued to pour forward, creating in all some 22 efforts on goal compared to just 3 for the Irish. It was John Crawford yet again, making quite a name for himself after just 2 caps who opened the scoring, forward for a Richard Rhodes freekick, the centre-back retreated to collect the clearance before running at the Irish defence and firing in from 20 yards in the 9th minute. Just 3 minutes later the Scots doubled their lead as Mark McGlynn, playing at right-back with the return of many strikers from injury, but not as yet Kerr Dodds, found Alan Reid down the right and the Ross County winger nipped inside the fullback and ran on into the box before firing an unstopable shot at the Irish 'keeper. It wasn't until the 37th minute that the Scotland pressure told again as James McFadden swung in their 8th corner of the game and Ian MacSween, back in the side after injury, rose to head home at the far post. On the stroke of half time the 4th goal arrived courtesy of great play down the right by Kevin Watson followed by a ball across the six yard box which Michael Reid arrived to divert home. The main point of note from the second half was the introduction on 75 minutes of Ross County's Paul Harris to make his Scotland debut in the midfield. FT: Scotland 4-0 Ireland In Group C's other match, Norway beat Germany 2-0 with a brace from Trond Fredrik Ludvigsen to see Scotland through to the knockout stages with a game to spare on 6 points, Norway now have 4 points, Ireland 1 and the Germans are still yet to get off the mark. Scotland lineup: Carl Robinson (GK), Mark McGlynn (DR), John MacDonald (DL), Nick James (DC), John Crawford (DC), Alan Reid (MR), Richard Rhodes (ML), James McFadden(MC), Michael Reid (MC), Ian MacSween (FC), Kevin Watson (FC). Subs: Scott Brown (FC) on for Ian MacSween on 57 mins, Andy Williams (FC) on for Kevin Watson on 75 mins, Paul Harris (MC) on for Michael Reid on 75 mins. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 26, 2004 Author Share Posted June 26, 2004 Euro 2016 Match report from the Dingwall Times on Wednesday June 22nd 2016 Watson brace sinks Norway Angus McIntyre reports: Scotland again did all their work in the first half of this match as they found themslves 2-0 up within just 13 minutes as Ross County striker Kevin Watson, winning only his 3rd cap scored twice in 2 minutes to make it 3 in total for Scotland for the ex-Ajax striker. His first came about through superb inter-play with Alan Reid as Watson picked up the ball in his own half and fed Reid on the right before pelting down the pitch with Reid dribbling the ball down the right all the wy to the goal-line before whipping in a cross for Watson to arrive at the near post and tuck away for the first. Norway had barelt caught their breath when James McFadden won the ball from the Norwegian kick-off and ran at the opposition defence before lofting a weighted pass over the top for Watson to run onto and beat the defender to send Scotland 2-0 up. The win was completed in the 27th minute as Marius Larsen pushed Michael Reid in the penalty area to concede a freekick which Ross County's captain and spotkick-taker Nick James duly put away for a 3-0 lead which the Scots held onto without adding to in the second half. This win sees them through with a perfect record of 3 wins from 3 games with 10 goals scored and none conceded. The only downside for Scotland was that they had to play the last 14 minutes with 10 men after substitute David Duffy picked up an injury and the Scots had used all 3 subs. FT: Scotland 3-0 Norway Despite their defeat, Norway also progress to the Quarter-finals after Ireland and Germany played out a 1-1 draw in the simultaneous match to send both sides out of the competition. Scotland lineup: Carl Robinson (GK), Kerr Dodds (DR), John MacDonald (DL), Nick James (DC), John Crawford (DC), Alan Reid (MR), Richard Rhodes (ML), James McFadden(MC), Michael Reid (MC), Ian MacSween (FC), Kevin Watson (FC). Subs: Paul Harris (MC) on for Michael Reid after 36 mins, Andy Williams (FC) on for Kevin Watson on 63 mins, David Duffy on for Ian MacSween on 63 mins. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 26, 2004 Author Share Posted June 26, 2004 Euro 2016 Match report from the Dingwall Times on Saturday June 25th 2016 MacSween the hero as Reid sees red Angus McIntyre reports: On a hot and sultry night in Salonika with temperatures of 30 degrees, Italy and Scotland met in the Euro 2016 Quarter-fianl for the right to meet Serbia & Montenegro in the semi-finals and it was a match worthy of such a big occasion. Whilst it may have been 0-0 at half time and at 90 minutes it was by no means a dull match, with numerous chances at both ends in a highly tense match. Italy lined up with an aggressive 3-4-3 formation boasting the hot goalscoring talents of Gianpaulo Pazzini (21 goals in 27 caps) and Alessandro Simonetta (17 goals in 25 caps) and threatened throughout, but it was Scotland who had the greater possession and chances for much of the match. Ultimately however it was to end 0-0 after an excellent 90 minutes of football with fans of both sides lacking in finger-nails as extra time began. Disaster struck for Scotland on 97 minutes however as Ross County winger Alan Reid picked up his second yellow card of the game to be sent off and now faces a 2 match international suspension which would see him miss any semi-final and final should Scotland progress with their now 10 men. Mark McGlynn was switched wide right leaving just Ian MacSween, on after 75 minutes for Kevin Watson, to plough a lone furrow upfront. The Scots clearly did not fancy the lottery of a penalty shootout though and continued with their attacking style which paid off sensationally as the second half of extra time got underway - MacSween showing great determination to win the ball in midfield before taking it forward and measuring a sublime chip from the edge of the penalty area over the onrushing 'keeper to nestle into the Italian net. Just 6 minutes later, Kerr Dodds found Mark McGlynn on the right who beat the Italian full-back before laying a superb pass across the box into the path of Ian MacSween who, with 35 club goals to his name this season was not about to miss the chance of a second to give 10-man Scotland a famous 2-0 win. Young Alan Reid was delighted his sending off didn't cause his side to lose, but was distraught at missing the semi-final and a potential final appearance. Whilst he is a truly brilliant player, he does have a tendancy to pick up yellow cards which have seen him serve numerous suspensions at club level and will now cruelly keep him out of the most important match(es) of his life. At just 24 years of Age he still has the chance to represent his country in the latter stages of a major tournament, but he must curb his aggression a little. FT: Scotland 2-0 Italy a.e.t Scotland lineup: Carl Robinson (GK), Kerr Dodds (DR), John MacDonald (DL), Nick James (DC), John Crawford (DC), Alan Reid (MR), Richard Rhodes (ML), James McFadden(MC), Michael Reid (MC), Kevin Watson (FC), Mark McGlynn (FC). Subs: Scott Brown (MC) on for James McFadden on 62 mins, Ian MacSween (FC) on for Kevin Watson on 75 mins. Sent off: Alan Reid Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 26, 2004 Author Share Posted June 26, 2004 Euro 2016 Match report from the Dingwall Times on Thursday June 30th 2016 Irvine lambasts "trigger happy referees" as MacSween edges Scots into final Angus McIntyre reports: The big talking point after this game was not so much the scoreline and the winners and losers, but the prospects for a Euro 2016 final shorn of a number of big name players. Today's match itself saw Scotland take on Serbia Montenegro for a place in the final to face Portugal. In a tight and scrappy match it was Michael Reid who opened the scoring just after the break from a Richard Rhodes corner only to be cancelled out on the hour by Dejan Markovic. With the scores level at 90 minutes, Scotland entered extra-time for the second match running and just as against Italy it was Ross County's Ian MacSween who netted the goal on 100 minutes, this time a silver goal to put Ross County through. Those were the goals from the match, but the conduct of referee Lars Gerner was what so angered Brian Irvine - Serbia & Montenegro substitute Goran Gavrancic was sent off and 5 Scotland players were yellow carded meaning that Kerr Dodds, Richard Rhodes and James McFadden would all join Alan Reid in being suspended for the final. Irvine said that the game was not a dirty game and that the "trigger happy" referee ruined the prospective final by handing out so many yellow cards so easily and also said the same of the referee who twice yellow carded Alan Reid last match, saying the refereeing standards at the tournament as a whole were highly questionable. Whilst he admitted that his players had to take some of the responsibility, Irvine was critical of referees giving yellow cards too quickly in matches, leaving them with no choice but to continue the trend for the rest of the game to remain consistent. With Mark Ritchie also suspended for the final and injuries to striker David Duffy and midfielder Stephen Pearson, Scotland have a selection crisis for the final against Portugal with only 12 fit outfield players available for selection. The Portuguese are also in crisis with 5 players injured and 2 suspended from their squad also. FT: Serbia & Montenegro 1-2 Scotland (silver goal) Scotland lineup: Carl Robinson (GK), Kerr Dodds (DR), John MacDonald (DL), Nick James (DC), John Crawford (DC), Scott Brown (MR), Richard Rhodes (ML), James McFadden(MC), Michael Reid (MC), Ian MacSween (FC), Mark McGlynn (FC). Subs: Andy Williams (FC) on for Scott Brown on 66 mins, Kevin Watson (FC) on for Andy Williams on 93 mins. So Scotland play Portugal on Sunday to see who will become European Champions, but with both sides potentially only able to field 4 out of a possible 7 substitutes with many big players missing, it remains to be seen how good a spectacle the game itself will be. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 26, 2004 Author Share Posted June 26, 2004 Euro 2016 Match report from the Dingwall Times on Thursday July 3rd 2016 Magic MacSween delivers Euro glory for decimated Scots Angus McIntyre reports: In a match where team selection was more down to who was eligible and fit to play rather than any kind of tactical decisions, it was Scottish pride and passion from the 11 players who did take to the field that kept Scotland in this game tonight against a much fancied Portugal team. The Portuguese took the lead after 20 minutes as José Ribeiro turned the ball in after Hélder Postiga's shot was palmed out by Scottish 'keeper Carl Robinson to give Portugal a lead which they held upto the break. The second half saw Scotland come into the game more, Michael Reid, Scott Brown and Mark McGlynn all forcing the Portuguese 'keeper into saves, but with 70 minutes on the clock it was still 1-0 to Portugal. Then Stephen Hughes, playing his first game of the tournament, as an emergency rightback, fed a perfect 40-yard pass down the wing for Kevin Watson to pick up. Watson was tackled, but Portuguese defender António Borges inexplicably made every effort to stop the ball going out for a corner by hooking it back across his goal into play leaving his 'keeper who had come to collect, totally stranded as Ian MacSween said thank you very much and tapped the ball into the unguarded net. No further goals came in an edgy last 20 minutes and for the 3rd game running Scotland found themselves in silver goal extra time. With the Portuguese attacking less and less, it was perhaps pre-ordained that it would fall to the man who had netted goals after the 100 minute mark in each of Scotland's last two matches to do so again. Into the 104th minute, Kevin Watson collected the ball on the halfway line and set off down the right wing, evading the Portugal defence to play a superb pass through for Ian MacSween to run onto and lash emphatically past Fernando Pereira to take his tally to six crucial goals in the tournament, winning him the Golden Boot award and his country the European Championship. FT: Portugal 1-2 Ross County (silver goal) Scotland lineup: Carl Robinson (GK), Stephen Hughes (DR), John MacDonald (DL), Steven Johnston (DC), John Crawford (DC), Mark McGlynn (MR), Scott Brown (ML), Michael Reid (MC), Paul Harris (MC), Ian MacSween (FC), Kevin Watson (FC). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 27, 2004 Author Share Posted June 27, 2004 Author's note: Hmm, having seen what Scotland are capable of I'm going to stay in charge and try to win the World Cup too, but it is a problem that they are in the same group as the Faroes...I always try to win equally with each team when I'm managing both sides in a game, but the Faroe Islands might as well not even bother turning up if I'm managing Scotland - their only hope is if an AI manager carries on selecting their players out of position...I might go into holiday mode with Scotland for the Faroe Islands matches just so it is less of a foregone conclusion that Scotland will win since the Faroes are the main focus of the story Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 27, 2004 Author Share Posted June 27, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Saturday 10th September 2016 Winning start to "Group of death" for Faroes and Scotland Angus McIntyre reports: Almost 10,000 spectators packed into the Tósvøllur stadion in Tórshavn this afternoon to see the Faroe Islands begin their World Cup 2018 qualifying campaign in what has been dubbed the "Group of Death", even more so after Euro 2016 where the final was contested by Portugal and Scotland, both in this group. The Ukraine were narrowly eliminated in the group stages of that tournament and provided stiff opposition also. Chances came to both sides in the first half, but approaching half time it was still locked at 0-0 into the 3rd minute of injury time as the Faroe Islands won a corner. Dundee United's Hans Pauli Kjaerbo whipped in a deep corner for club-mate Janus Mikkelsen to rise and head in at the far post to give the Faroes a half time lead, a little against the run of play. Ukraine came back strongly in the second half and equalised through Andrei Pereplyotkin on 65 minutes. The Faroe Islands are made of stern stuff nowadays though and a confidence runs through the team that they are able to score unlike in the early days of Eckersley's management when going a goal down pretty much signalled a defeat. Within 3 minutes they had another corner, and it was the same pair who effected to put the ball in the back of the net again in almost identical fashion, Janus Mikkelsen capping off a superb defensive performance with 2 bullet headers at the business end of the pitch. Despite late chances for both sides there were no more goals and the Faroes began the qualifying tournament with a morale boosting win with some difficult tests to come. FT: Faroe Islands 2-1 Ukraine Lithuania played host to European champions Scotland in Vilnius, looking to cause an upset to the newly crowned Euro kings, but the Lithuanians failed to take advantage of the few chances they created and just as in Euro 2016, Scotland had the points wrapped up with an excellent first half performance. Portsmouth's Scott Agnew escaped the Lithuanian defence on 37 minutes to narrowly beat the 'keeper to a long ball and put the Scots infront, becoming the 3rd player to cap his debut with a goal since Brian Irvine took over for Euro 2016. Ross County's Mark McGlynn added the second after a neat one-two with club-mate Kevin Watson 4 minutes later. The 3rd came on the stroke of half-time, Richard Rhodes arriving at the far post to divert a Scott Agnew cross into the Lithuainian net. The second half brought more chances, but no goals as time was played out for an efficient win for Scotland. FT: Lithuania 0-3 Scotland In Group 1's other match, Portugal grabbed an injury time equaliser in Cardiff to deny Wales a winning start. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 27, 2004 Author Share Posted June 27, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Wednesday 14th September 2016 The greatest upset of all time? Angus McIntyre reports: The scene was the Estádio Nacional in Lisbon, the attendance was close to 47,000, the home side were the beaten European Championship finalists, the visitors were the plucky Faroese, an tiny island nation with a population which could fit almost in its entirety into the seats of this stadium. The scene was set for one of the greatest footballing upsets of all time, but no-one really believed it would happen. The Portuguese fans expected a comfortable win, the Faroese fans came for a few days in Lisbon and hoped for a performance which they could at least feel proud of. Faroe Islands manager Adam Eckersley said before the game that he would be doing all he could to pull off a draw, but fully expected a defeat. It was a tactical masterpiece however from the manager who has guided Ross County the 3 successive Champions league titles and this was surely the greatest result of his career. Opting to sacrifice a striker upfront in favour of a defensive midfielder to sit infront of the back four, Eckersley's Faroe Islands side lined up in a defensive 4-1-2-2-1 formation with the two wingers pushing forward only when they felt it was safe to do so. From the off, the Faroes defended superbly, limiting Portugal to frustratedly passing the ball around the midfield as they struggled to break through the disciplined Faroese defence. By the 32nd minute, the only 2 efforts on goal had come from Faroese breakaways with Allan Andreasen, playing out of position wide left and midfielder Rúni Thorsteinsson making his debut in midfield, both firing wide. Miguel fouled Bárdur Thomsen out on the Faroese left wing and the islanders had a freekick. Jan Djurhuus stepped up and whipped in a fantastic floated freekick onto the head of 20 year old Bárdur Thomsen who headed the Faroe Islands into a sensational lead which silenced the stadium. The Portuguese were now rattled into action and fired one long shot wide and another was tipped over by the Faroese 'keeper for a corner. From the resulting corner, Riccardo Quaresma whipped in a cross for Vitor Pires to rise superbly to head in before the Faroese goalkeepr could even react. The Faroese were disappointed to hold their lead for so little time - they knew an equaliser was inevitable, but the longer they could hold out the less time would be left for a winner - now they had to hang on for 50 long minutes. Hang on the did however in fantastic fashion with the Portuguses limited to a sprinkling of long distance efforts as they failed to find the creativity to unlock the Faroe Islands defence. Into the last 5 minutes the Portuguese threw everything at the Faroe Islands, switching to a 3-2-5 formation as they peppered the visitors' defence. A brilliant pointblank save from the Faroese 'keeper in the 87th minute saw the ball fly along the goal-line to where Olavur Gregersen gratefully hoofed the ball upfield where Jákup Poulsen collected, in his own half, marshalled by a Portuguese defender whom he raced past over the halfway line, and in the absense of any other Faroese players in the Portugal half he ran and ran on into the Portuguse box, fired a shot straight at the Portugal goalkeeper and had the composure to scoop up the rebound, sidefoot the 'keeper and roll the ball home to wild eruptions form the tiny travelling support - the Faroe Islands had taken the lead with 87 minutes on the clock in Portugal!! A minute later, substitute Kristian Johannesen could even have added a breakaway 3rd as the Portuguese threw caution to the wind, but in the end it didn't matter as the final whistle blew to bring to an end one of the greatest results in living memory and a brilliant tactical decision by the manager to switch from the 4-4-2 formation which has seen so much relative success for the Faroe Islands after they had experimented unsuccessfully with formations such as this - it takes a brave man to change a successful formation to return to one which didn't bring success, but Eckersley was firm with his intentions - he wanted a defensive midfielder to hold infront of his defence and it worked to perfection with Portugal finishing the game with just 5 shots on goal with just 2 on target compared to 5 and 3/5 on target for the Faroes. Speaking after the match, manager Adam Eckersley was overwhelmed by the victory, coming so soon as it does after the Faroes ended their 14 year winless away streak last year with a win in Macedonia, but Macedonia are now ranked 104th in the world, a place below the Faroe Islands. Portugal were ranked 15th in the world at the New Year, even before they reached the Euro 2016 final. Eckersley was full of praise for his players, especially man of the match Jákup Poulsen who worked tirelessly upfront alone all match and then still had the energy to run 60 yards to score the winning goal. The enormity of this victory will take a long time to sink in for the Faroese players, but in black and white, it means they now have 6 points from 2 games to start this qualifying campaign. FT: Portugal 1-2 Faroe Islands There was no such drama at Hampden Park as Scotland made it 8 wins in a row under new boss Brian Irvine and 16 games unbeaten now stretching back to March 2015 by brushing aside a woeful Welsh side 5-0. Kevin Watson netted the only goal of the first half before doubling his tally in the first minute of the second half to make it 5 goals in 8 caps for him now. Mark McGlynn fired in the 3rd on 49 minutes before a breathless finale saw 2 goals in the last 5 minutes, first Kerr Dodds getting up from right-back to score a rare goal (only his 2nd in 35 caps for Scotland) followed by Nick James tapping in from a yard out as the goalkeeper spilled Mark McGlynns header. Scotland 5-0 Wales Ukraine recorded a comfortable 2-0 win over Lithuania to get off the mark in the group, but with just 2 games gone the table makes very pleasant reading for the Dingwall public as their own nation sit proudly atop the group and their adopted nation, managed by the manager who has brought so mcuh sucess to their home town club Ross County are nestled in behind in 2nd place, also on maximum points. In one month, Scotland visit the Ukraine for a potentially tricky encounter whilst the Faroe Islands play host to Wales in a match they must now feel is very winnable to give them an amazing 9 points out of 9 start. Is it really possible that the Faroe Islands could snatch 2nd place in the group or even win it? The head says No, after today though who would write them off yet?! <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> World Cup 2018 Qualification Group 1 Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1st Scotland 2 2 0 0 8 0 +8 6 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2nd Faroe Islands 2 2 0 0 4 2 +2 6 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3rd Ukraine 2 1 0 1 3 2 +1 3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4th Portugal 2 0 1 1 2 3 -1 1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5th Wales 2 0 1 1 1 6 -5 1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 6th Lithuania 2 0 0 2 0 5 -5 0 </pre> Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 27, 2004 Author Share Posted June 27, 2004 Some screenshots of the men who made a nation smile for anyone who is interested! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 27, 2004 Author Share Posted June 27, 2004 The game crashed losing all those matches so I've had to replay them Since that Faroe Islands result is a 1 in a hundred result though and gives me just the slightest chance of qualifying for the world cup for possibly the only time I have taken over Portugal for the re-match to engineer the same result since it was achieved 100% legitimately last time and I'd probably just give up in frustration at the game crashing if I replayed normally and lost. Results this time round are slightly different - Faroe Islands 3-1 Ukraine, Lithuania 0-4 Scotland, Wales 0-0 Portugal this time from the first set of matches. Second round of matches were Scotland 3-0 Wales, Portugal 0-1 Faroe Islands and Ukraine 3-1 Lithuania. Not ideal since results are different to last time and rather takes the gloss off that great win, but it was the best I could do The revised group table now looks as follows: <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> World Cup 2018 Qualification Group 1 Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1st Scotland 2 2 0 0 7 0 +7 6 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2nd Faroe Islands 2 2 0 0 4 1 +3 6 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3rd Ukraine 2 1 0 1 4 4 0 3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4th Portugal 2 0 1 1 0 1 -1 1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5th Wales 2 0 1 1 0 3 -3 1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 6th Lithuania 2 0 0 2 1 7 -6 0 </pre> Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 29, 2004 Author Share Posted June 29, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Wednesday 15th October 2016 Faroes & Scotland top group ahead of Hampden clash Angus McIntyre reports: After the emotional highs of Portugal last month it was back to the serious business of trying to win another 3 points for the Faroe Islands today. Having picked up 6 out of 6 so far with Wales the visitors to Thórshavn today, the Faroes were looking for an historic 3 wins in a row, but the first half was a scrappy affair, ending 0-0, albeit with the Faroe Islands dominating proceedings and Allan Andreasen unfortunately missing a 16th minute penalty. 3 minutes into the second half, Faroese pressure eventually told with Rúni Hansen firing in from 20 yards out from an Allan Andreasen cross. 10 minutes later, a freekick on the edge of the 'D' was curled in superbly by Jan Djurhuus. The 3 points were wrapped up in the 69th minute as Hans Pauli Kjærbo's corner was headed in at the far post by Janus Mikkelsen for an impressive 3-0 win with Wales barely troubling the Faroese goal throughout the 90 minutes. FT: Faroe Islands 3-0 Wales In Kiev, Ukraine faced Scotland looking to back up their 3-1 win over Lithuania with another home win against the group favourites. The opening 25 minutes were very even with a couple of shots on target for both sides, but no goals until Oleg Gusev's delicious 40 yard pass found Kostyantyn Yaroshenko on the edge of the area, completely unmarked by the absent Scottish defence to put Ukraine 1-0 infront. The Ukraine had the better of the first half, but failed to convert any more of their chances to head in with a narrow 1-0 lead. Ukraine came to regret not taking their chances in the first half as the Scots roared back in the second period, John MacDonald's throw-in finding Richard Rhodes whose pinpoint cross was turned in at the near post by Mark McGlynn for the equaliser. As the European champions began to take control, Ukraine were forced back and when the second goal came it was no surprise to the home fans, Richard Rhodes again instrumental as he cut infield from the left wing before squaring for Ian MacSween to tap in for the 1-2 lead. With a potential 3 points in the bag, Scotland shut up shop and played out the remaining 24 minutes for the win which sees them sitting top of the group into the winter break. FT: Ukraine 1-2 Scotland In Vilnius, Lithuania were reduced to 10 men as Portugal ran out comfortable 0-2 winners to move onto 4 points, 5 behind joint leaders Scotland and the Faroe Islands with the Ukraine on 3 points, Wales on 1 and Lithuania yet to pick up a point. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 29, 2004 Author Share Posted June 29, 2004 News report from the Dingwall Times on Sunday 1st January 2017 Top 100 heaven for Faroes as Scots march on upwards Another New Year and Faroe Islands manager Adam Eckersley's dream of taking his team into the FIFA top 100 rankings has finally come true 6½ years after he first took control. Back then, in 2010 the Faroe Islands were languishing down in 151st in the world rankings with little prospect of ever rising into the top 100, but with the arrival of a new manager the side were slowly envigorated and given a new confidence which has seen them rise up the rankings to a new high of 81st. 2016 saw the tiny nation end their 14 year unwanted wait for an away victory as they ended the year ranked 103rd and 2017 saw the team rise to a new level as they won all 3 of their competitive matches. A confident win over the Ukraine and an excellent performance at home to Wales added to the Faroe Islands' recent superb home record of just 1 defeat in the last 5 years. But it was their performance in Lisbon, infront of a crowd of expectant Portuguese fans who numbered almost as many as the entire Faroe Islands population which made the whole of Europe sit up and take note. It wasn't just a lucky win, the Faroes played with great assurance and defensive solidity as they restricted Portugal to even fewer shots on target than the Faroese themselves had and the 60 yard run by Jákup Poulsen for the winning goal will live long in the memories of the small band of Faroese fans who were there that night. For Scotland 2017 was a fantastic year on the football field, starting the year ranked 14th and ending it with 9 wins out of 9 in competitive matches after a shaky 1-1 friendly draw with Latvia. Wins over Germany, Ireland and Norway in the group stages of Euro 2016 were followed by extra time victories over Italy, Serbia & Montenegro and in a hugely tense final against Portugal where Ross County's Ian MacSween was yet again the hero as Scotland lifted the European Championship trophy for the first time in their history. World Cup 2018 qualifying also got off to a perfect start as Lithuania and Wales were brushed aside before a narrow 1-2 win the Ukraine which sees Scotland end the year 6th in the FIFA rankings, just 37 points behind France. Elsewhere, the rest of the world are beginning to show more and more that their nations can compete with and beat those of Europe as the top 4 teams represent 4 different continents with France in 5th being the highest ranked European team. The full top 50 as of today are as follow: 1. Brazil 2. Nigeria 3. United States 4. South Korea 5. France 6. Scotland 7. Argentina 8. Egypt 9. Portugal 10. Ghana 11. Paraguay 12. Senegal 13. Spain 14. Australia 15. Italy 16. Holland 17. Colombia 18. Mexico 19. Cameroon 20. Czech Republic 21. South Africa 22. Sweden 23. Iran 24. Poland 25. England 26. Trinidad & Tobago 27. Denmark 28. Serbia & Montenegro 29. Germany 30. Uruguay 31. Ivory Coast 32. China PR 33. Algeria 34. Belgium 35. Morocco 36. Japan 37. Turkey 38. Guinea 39. Chile 40. Peru 41. Russia 42. Sierra Leone 43. Democratic Republic of Congo 44. Republic of Ireland 45. Saudi Arabia 46. Romania 47. Ukraine 48. Tunisia 49. Croatia 50. Austria . . . 76. Honduras 77. Jamaica 78. Lebanon 79. Switzerland 80. Kuwait 81. Faroe Islands 82. Iceland 83. Finland 84. Jordan 85. Hungary 86. Israel World Cup qualifying kicks off again in April with an away double-header for the Faroe Islands - the first being the much anticipated match between manager Adam Eckersley's adopted nation and the one he manages as the Faroes visit Hampden Park followed by a tricky trip to Lithuania. Scotland follow up with another home match, against Portugal. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 30, 2004 Author Share Posted June 30, 2004 Author's note: I decided to keep managing Scotland after all for this match as it would have been inconsistent had Faroes won due to bad AI management! International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Saturday 1st April 2017 James inspires Scotland to crushing victory Angus McIntyre reports: It was the match that had been widely anticipated by all in Scotland and especially by the public of Dingwall. Scotland's best club manager today brought his international side, the Faroe Islands, to Hampden Park looking to upset the best team in Europeon their home turf, but it was to be a disappointing, if expected, result for Eckersley's plucky Faroese side. The Faroese began with the same defensive 4-1-2-2-1 formation which they had used with such success in Portugal, but within 30 seconds their plans were in tatters as two of Eckersley's Ross County tribe combined to give Scotland the early lead - Nick James' bullet header from a Richard Rhodes corner proving just too good for Mortan Petersen. Worse was to follow for the visitors just 12 minutes later as Nick James fed Kevin Watson from midfield and Watson squared for Everton's Kevin Johnston to tap in leaving the Faroes staring at the barrell of a heavy defeat. Eckersley re-arranged his formation and players and tactics numerous times, but it was largely akin to re-arranging the deckchairs on the Titanic as Scotland, driven on by Nick James, playing today in the midfield rather than his more usual centre-back role, poured forward irresistibly. With 29 minutes on the clock, another player whom Eckersley knows all about, Richard Rhodes curled in a sublime left-footed freekick from 20 yards to put the Scots 3-0 up. Within 5 minutes, James, Watson and Johnston again combined to give the striker his second goal of the game. To their credit the Faroes did all they could to break the dominance and get out of their own half and on 42 minutes Rúni Hansen won the ball in midfield and played in substitute Mortan Nielsen to give the Faroes a goal back. The half ended badly for the away side however as Alan Reid jinked his way through the Faroese midfield to setup Nick James whose first shot was palmed out by the goalkeeper, but his second shot was placed firmly in the back of the net. After the domination of the first half, Scotland somewhat fell asleep in the 2nd half, allowing the Faroes to add their name to the scoresheet twice more. First Mortan Nielsen crossing for Jákup Poulsen to tuck away, then, on 88 minutes, a Barður Thomsen freekick was headed out straight to Mortan Nielsen who blasted it straight into the net. It was too late for a comeback though and Scotland clearly decided they had had enough of these Faroese goals and promptly drove forward again via Michael Reid and Kevin Watson to send Nick James clear. James took his time before sliding home Scotland's 6th goal of the day for a magnificent hat-trick - his first for either club or country. FT: Scotland 6-3 Faroe Islands After the match, Faroe Islands manager Adam Eckersley preferred to look at the positives, saying that his side showed great character, 5-1 down at half time to fight back for 5-3 and not concede again until 2nd half injury time. He also paid tribute to Scotland and especially to his Ross County players who had tormented him all evening - Hans Pauli Kjærbo did an excellent job to keep the dangerous Alan Reid quiet, but Richard Rhodes' accuracy from set-pieces and Nick James' all-round play and hat-trick were too much for the Faroes today. In the other two matches in the group, Portugal closed up to within 2 points of the Faroe Islands with a 3-1 win over Ukraine whilst Wales beat Lithuania 2-0 to move onto 4 points, 4th in the group. On Wednesday, Scotland play host to Portugal, Faroe Islands travel to Lithuania and Ukraine take on Wales in Kiev. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted June 30, 2004 Author Share Posted June 30, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Wednesday 4th April 2017 Poulsen hat-tricks sinks Lithuania as Scots hammer Portugal for five Angus McIntyre reports: The Faroe Islands had to withstand a great deal of pressure from a determined Lithuanian side today as they defended a 1-2 lead. The Faroese had gone infront as Jákup Poulsen latched onto a Dan Hentze pass to run clear and squeeze inbetween the goalkeeper and post. The lead only lasted a minte though as Lithuania put together a neat passing move from the kickoff, resulting in a fantastic finish from Darius Zutautas. Into the 2nd half, the Faroes continued with their aggressive attacking style, knowing full well that if they had hopes of 2nd spot in the group this was a match they really needed to take the points from. In the 63rd minute their pressure told as Jákup Poulsen charged down the right wing before cutting infield to fire in from a narrow angle as an almost carbon copy of his solo wondergoal in Lisbon. Having lost their lead so fast the previous time, the Faroes this time sat back much more instead of carrying on attacking and the Lithuanians put real pressure on the visitors' goal. Then, in the 94th minute, Kari Dahl lofted a freekick forward, Dan Hentze controlled and fed the ball through a gap for Jákup Poulsen to complete a memorable hat-trick. The in-form Dundee United striker has fast become a legend of Faroese football and carries the hopes of a nation on his shoulders, albeit backed up well by a number of other goal goalscorers now. FT: Lithuania 1-3 Faroe Islands At Hampden, Scotland were again simply irresistable as they brushed aside Portugal with great style and penache after the shock of a Cristiano Ronaldo equaliser on 22 minutes, Kevin Johnston having put the Scots infront on 6 minutes. The Everton striker was on-hand again 3 minutes before half-time to put the Scots back into a lead which they never lost as he collected a knock-down from Mark McGlynn to bag his second goal of the game. The second half saw Scotland take total control, Nick James finding Mark McGlynn wide right who crossed for Michael Reid to arrive in the box from midfield for the 3rd in a move started and finished in Dingwall! By the time the hour mark came, Scotland were 4-1 up as James and Richard Rhodes combined to setup Kevin Johnston who was denied his hat-trick by Coelho in the Portuguese goal, but there was no denying McGlynn who tapped home the rebound. The 5th came in the 87th minute, Kevin Johnston again instrumental as he crossed for Kevin Watson to steer home at the far post. FT: Scotland 5-1 Portugal Ukraine beat Wales 3-0 in the group's other match to move 4th in the group at the halfway stage, but Scotland look home and dry now and the Faroe Islands are in dream land with a 5 point gap back to 3rd place. The full list of group tables at the halfway point is as follows: <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> World Cup 2018 Qualification Group 1 Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1st Scotland 5 5 0 0 20 5 +15 15 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2nd Faroe Islands 5 4 0 1 13 8 +5 12 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3rd Portugal 5 2 1 2 6 7 -1 7 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4th Ukraine 5 2 0 3 9 9 0 6 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5th Wales 5 1 1 3 2 9 -7 4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 6th Lithuania 5 0 0 5 2 14 -12 0 Group 2 Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Spain 5 4 1 0 17 2 +15 13 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Hungary 5 2 2 1 10 5 +5 8 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Iceland 5 2 2 1 10 7 +3 8 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th Ireland 5 2 1 2 8 9 -1 7 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th Latvia 5 2 0 3 8 12 -4 6 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6th San Marino 5 0 0 5 2 20 -18 0 Group 3 Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Belgium 5 3 2 0 12 5 +7 11 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Slovakia 5 3 1 1 10 7 +3 10 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Finland 5 2 2 1 8 7 +1 8 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th England 5 1 4 0 5 3 +2 7 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th Kazakhstan 5 1 0 4 5 12 -7 3 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6th Andorra 5 0 1 4 5 11 -6 1 Group 4 Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Holland 5 3 2 0 12 3 +9 11 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Switzerland 5 3 2 0 12 6 +6 11 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Romania 5 3 1 1 10 7 +3 10 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th Georgia 5 2 1 2 5 6 -1 7 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th Malta 5 0 1 4 2 10 -8 1 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6th Moldova 5 0 1 4 2 11 -9 1 Group 5 Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1st Turkey 5 4 0 1 11 6 +5 12 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2nd Denmark 5 3 1 1 9 6 +3 10 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3rd Belarus 5 3 0 2 11 9 +2 9 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4th Bulgaria 5 2 1 2 12 8 +4 7 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5th N.Ireland 5 2 0 3 8 7 +1 6 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 6th Liechtenstein 5 0 0 5 2 17 -15 0 Group 6 Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Slovenia 5 4 1 0 13 0 +13 13 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Norway 5 3 1 1 11 5 +6 10 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Czech Republic 5 2 2 1 5 4 +1 8 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th Luxembourg 5 1 2 2 6 13 -7 5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th Israel 5 1 1 3 9 9 0 4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6th Cyprus 5 0 1 4 2 15 -13 1 Group 7 Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Greece 4 3 0 1 6 4 +2 9 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd France 4 3 0 1 8 2 +6 9 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Azerbaijan 4 2 1 1 7 7 0 7 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th Croatia 4 1 1 2 6 7 -1 4 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th Albania 4 0 0 4 4 11 -7 0 Group 8 Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st Poland 4 3 1 0 6 2 +4 10 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd Sweden 4 3 0 1 8 2 +6 9 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd Serbia & Mont. 4 1 1 2 5 6 -1 4 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th FYR of Macedonia 4 1 0 3 4 9 -5 3 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th Armenia 4 0 2 2 4 8 -4 2 Group 9 Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1st Austria 4 2 2 0 8 4 +4 8 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2nd Germany 4 2 1 1 4 3 +1 7 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3rd Estonia 4 2 0 2 4 6 -2 6 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4th Bosnia 4 1 1 2 4 5 -1 4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5th Russia 4 0 2 2 6 8 -2 2 </pre> Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted July 2, 2004 Author Share Posted July 2, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Saturday 10th June 2017 Angus McIntyre reports: Poulsen grabs point for Faroes in Kiev It was a topsy turvy clash today in Kiev as the Faroe Islands travelled to face the Ukraine, eager to get a result to keep them on track in their hopes of second place. The first hour of the game saw chances for both sides, but no goals until Kári Dahl headed the Faroe Islands into the lead. Within 10 minutes the Ukraine had equalised through Vyacheslav Panchenko and 15 minutes later they looked to have the points wrapped up with Kostyantyn Yaroshenko's strike. The Faroes hadn't given up hoever and in the 85th minute Jákup Poulsen fired in the equaliser to give the islanders a crucial point. FT: Ukraine 2-2 Faroe Islands Edgy Scots squeeze past Lithuania Lithuania provided surprisingly stern opposition at Hampden Park today against a Scotland side who have tended to concede a few goals, but are irresistable going forward. So it was today as Lithuania twice pegged Scotland back after first Ian MacSween, returning from a 6 month injury lay-off and then Alan Reid had put the home side infront. It fell to Mark McGlynn ultimately to wrap up an uninspiring 3 points with a cool finish in the 68th minute. FT: Scotland 3-2 Lithuania Group 1's other match saw Portugal put the pressure on the Faroe Islands with a 2-0 win over Wales in Lisbon. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted July 2, 2004 Author Share Posted July 2, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Wednesday 14th June 2017 Angus McIntyre reports: Sweet revenge for Portugal in Thorshavn The reaction back in Portugal to their teamm's shock defeat at home to Faroe Islands back in September was predictably scathing so it was no surprise that the wounded Portuguse came to Thorshavn today seeking revenge. In the end it was rather a smash and grab raid by Portugal as they only had 3 shots on target compared to the Faroese 6 efforts, but whilst Mortan Nielsen and Jákup Poulsen failed to put away their chances, Cristiano Ronaldo showed no such profligacy as he put the visitors infront on 34 minutes. The Faroes at last put away one of their chances with 15 minutes remaining as Janus Mikkelsen headed home after a stromash in the Portuguese box from Hans Pauli Kjærbo's corner. 1-1 would have been a superb result for the Faroes, but it wasn't to be as Felipe Oliveira slotted home Tiago Domingos' pass in the 88th minute to snatch a 1-2 win and match the Faroese result in Lisbon leaving goal difference to potentially seperate the two ultimately. FT: Faroe Islands 1-2 Portugal County quartet pile misery on Welsh The Welsh were shockingly bad when they visited Hampden earlier in the qualifying round and to be honest it would be hard to say anything positive about their display today other than that they managed to keep a second half clean sheet. Unfortunately for them they certainly didn't keep a first half clean sheet, which, allied to the fact that they never looked like scoring led to an unceremonious downfall. Mark McGlynn put Scotland infront after just 2½ minutes, Alan Reid made a typical burst down the right wing to slot home the 2nd and Nick James put away a 42nd minute penalty with Michael Reid ending any hopes of a Welsh revival with the 4th goal on the stroke of half time. FT: Wales 0-4 Scotland Ukraine recorded a routine 0-3 win in Vilnius to stay just about in touch with the Faroe Islands and Portugal in the race for 2nd place in the group. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted July 2, 2004 Author Share Posted July 2, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Saturday 9th September 2017 Angus McIntyre reports: Faroes bag vital away win in Wales With Portugal having drawn level on points with the Faroe Islands after their 6 pointer in Thorshavn, the Faroes knew they had a real fight on their hands for 2nd spot now. Victory for the Faroes back in June would have seen them all but secure for 2nd, even a draw would have left them feeling confident, but now with 3 games left the pressure was on, especially with Portugal at home to Lithuania. Having been thrashed at home to Scotland in their last match, the Welsh were little better today as the Faroes came to play attacking football and were richly rewarded with a goal in either half. On 15 minutes the Welsh defence failed to deal with an Allan Andreasen cross and in the resulting meleé, young Barður Thomsen, hero of Lisbon last year poked home from 5 yards out for a priceless lead. With the Welsh creating a few chances, the Faroes were eager for a second goal and it came in the 73rd minute as Rúni Hansen was left to head into an empty net from Kristian Johannesen's ball across the box. Lee Thomas pulled a goal back to setup a tense final 6 minutes, but the Faroes held on to stay neck and neck with Portugal heading into the final 2 matches of the qualifying campaign. FT: Wales 1-2 Faroe Islands Ukraine left reeling as Scots march on Andrei Pereplyotkin netted twice in 5 second half minutes for the Ukraine as Scotland yet again let in goals at home, but by then the irresistable force that is the Scotland attack had already done its worst. Michael Reid opened the scoring on 20 minutes before Nick James headed in a Richard Rhodes corner and Ian MacSween produced a typically assured finish to send the Scots in leading comfortably 3-0 at half time. 2 minutes before the Ukraine finally got on the scoresheet came the goal of the game as James McFadden strode forward from midfield and unleashed a 30-yard bullet into the top corner of the opposition net. Just as against the Faroe Islands, the Scots didn't wish the visitors to have the last say in the game and they didn't as the home side won a penalty in the dying minutes. Nick James stepped up and blasted the ball into the net to give Scotland an excellent 5-2 win as they continued on their way to the World Cup FT: Scotland 5-2 Ukraine Predictably, Portugal had little trouble disposing of Lithuana and their 4-1 win sees them close to within a single goal of the Faroe Islands, level on points with just 2 games left. On Wednesday the Portuguese host Scotland whilst the Faroe Islands will be looking to take their 3 points from a home tie with Lithuania. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted July 2, 2004 Author Share Posted July 2, 2004 International roundup from The Dingwall Times on Wednesday 13th September 2017 Angus McIntyre reports: Andreasen spares Faroese blushes as eyes turn to Portugal Having looked at the fixtures with 3 games to go and both Portugal and the Faroes to face Lithuania at home, Faroese manager had pinpointed this as a match in which they needed 3 points, knowing full well the Portuguse wouldn't slip up when they faced the same opposition. The Faroese came out with an attacking formation, but Lithuania weren't about to just roll over and give in and on 25 minutes stunned the 9,976 crowd, packed into the compact little stadium, with a goal from Dainius Raliukonis as the Faroese defence parted like the Red Sea giving the midfielder acres of space and plenty of time to place his shot. Going in 0-1 down at half time, the Faroes had a lot to think about as their World Cup hopes looked to be hanging by a thread. Worse was to follow just 6 minutes into the 2nd half, Darius Shirmelis left totally unmarked in the 6-yard box to tuck away a Lithuanian corner and leave the Faroes with a mountain to climb and Faroese fans desperate to know the score from Lisbon were Portugal were taking n Scotland. The home side were without their influential goalscorer Jákup Poulsen and it had been showing so far. Going 0-2 down seemed to fire the Faroes into action though and within 3 minutes they had a lifeline as Rúni Hansen played a superb pass straight through the Lithuanian defence to find Allan Andreasen timing his run to perfection to divert the ball past the Lithuanian 'keeper. 7 minutes later it was very much game on again with Andreasen again in the right place to pick up a through ball, this time from strike partner Mortan Nielsen. Fans may have expected their team to go on to win from there, but it wasn't to be and come the end of the game players and fans alike were eager to hear the full time score from Lisbon. FT: Faroe Islands 2-2 Lithuania Reid and MacSween too hot for Portuguese The Faroes were left relying on Scotland today after drawing 2-2 with Lithuania and their nearest neighbours didn't disappoint as two of Faroese manager Adam Eckersley's club players did their manager a huge favour. First golden boy Alan Reid pelted down the pitch, making up some 40 yards as the Scots cleared the ball with only Mark McGlynn upfield. By the time McGlynn had held up the ball in the box and turned past his marker, Reid had arrived at the far post and promptly volleyed in McGlynn's pass to put the Scots into an early lead. With the first half ebbing away, James McFadden drove a corner into the box, seemingly missing everyone, but Ian MacSween somehow hooked it into the net from an infeasible looking angle at the far post for 0-2. Bad marking at the start of the second half saw Portugal back in the match as Daniel Miguel headed in a pinpoint cross to give the 51,000 crowd hopes of a comeback. The hopes were dashed within 8 minutes though as Scotland showed just why they have now won 9 out of 9, creating far fewer scoring chances on the night, but finishing them off clinically whilst keeping enough out at the other end. Alan Reid it was again who found himself in the box to receive James McFadden's pass and the County winger lashed home to give Scotland a 1-3 win which meant far more to the Faroe Islands than it did to Scotland except for it being their 9th straight win in the group. FT: Portugal 1-3 Scotland Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted July 3, 2004 Author Share Posted July 3, 2004 Monday 1st January 2018 Well, I figured I ought to cover some of the major issues of late in my own diary entry for the first time in a while rather than my more lazy approach of pasting in newspaper articles from the Dingwall Times. With 9 out of the 10 games gone in the World Cup qualifying group, we had a 1 point advantage over Portugal - we faced a daunting task at home to Scotland, whilst Portugal were in Kiev to face a Ukraine side with only pride to play for. I could no doubt attempt to string it out for dramatic effect, but that would seem rather pointless since the sense of drama wasn't so high on that day after all. Portugal were taken apart by the Ukraine who eased to a 4-1 victory, even scoring a late own goal just to give Portugal something to take from the game. So 2nd place was ours irrespective of how we did, but of course the two games were taking place simultaneously and we wanted to win. It didn't happen in the end, but we can feel justifiably proud to be the first team in the group to take any points at all from Scotland as Jan Djurhuus equalised John Crawford's first half goal to give us a 1-1 draw. At the time I didn't realise just how crucial that would be - it was only later that I realised that the 2nd placed team with the worst record from their 6 games against the other top 3 teams in their group would be out of the competition with only the 8 above making the play-offs. As it happened, we finished 8th out of 9 on our record from those games against the other top teams in our group, ahead of Austria on goals scored only!! It was a magnificent achievement for us to finish second in what had been dubbed the "group of death" ahead of more illustrious nations such as Portugal and the Ukraine, but I felt we had deserved it from our performances throughout the group. The final table certainly made very enjoyable reading for us: <pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> World Cup 2018 Qualification Group 1 Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1st Q Scotland 10 9 1 0 36 11 +25 28 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2nd Q Faroe Islands 10 5 3 2 21 16 +5 18 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3rd Ukraine 10 5 1 4 22 17 +5 16 4th Portugal 10 5 1 4 16 16 0 16 5th Wales 10 2 1 7 6 20 -14 7 6th Lithuania 10 0 1 9 8 29 -21 1 </pre> The draw for the play-off was eagerly anticipated and I could hardly wait to see who we would play. The contenders were: Poland, Ireland, Switzerland, Norway, Greece, Belarus and England and I have to say I was delighted when we came out of the hat second, to play our first leg away to Belarus. Of all the countries in the play-offs, Belarus were the one I was hoping for - of course we couldn't underestimate them because they were a good side and ranked higher than us, but compared to the likes of England and Greece it was a good draw for us I felt. Saturday 18th November was the day we headed for Minsk for our date with destiny. I had wanted to play the away leg first, the only worry being if we suffered such a heavy defeat that it would render the home leg irrelevent. In the event the players played their hearts out though, knowing just what this match meant and it was Ólavur Johannesen, a player whom I had only 2 weeks earlier discovered and called up to the squad, who capped his debut with the opening goal after just 12 minutes as the Belarusian defence fell asleep. Disappointment was to follow for Ólavur though as he was stretchered off on 53 minutes and would miss the second leg, but the rest of the team defended stoutly as Belarus created numerous chances. It wasn't until injury time that the fireworks happened though as Janus Mikkelseon put away Hans Pauli Kjærbo's corner at the second attempt to give us 2 crucial away goals. It was a disappointment that we didn't play out injury time from there for a clean sheet, but I guess Belarus deserved the goal that Maxim Tsigalko scored a minute later. FT: Belarus 1-2 Faroe Islands The second leg was a nit of a turgid match, we dominated for large parts, creating a few chances, but neither side really deserved to win on the day and we knew that a draw or even a 0-1 defeat would send us to the World Cup so ultimately the 0-0 draw was great for us and the 9,983 Faroese fans who packed out the stadium gave a standing ovation to the players who had done so much for their tiny nation. That night there were parties on the streets of Tórshavn despite the cold temperatures - it was the greatest day in the history of Faroese football and the greatest achievement of my career so far and will probably remain so unless we somehow make waves in the World Cup itself. To be honest though we are just delighted to be there! I still can't find the words to express how delighted I am to have come through to the World Cup against all the odds - I honestly didn't think we had a chance when the groups were drawn and back when I first took over I could never have imagined this. And so we wiated excitedly for the 27th of December when the draw would be made for the 8 groups of the World Cup with 4 teams in each. To see our name there in the list of teams was a great feeling and we were full of nerves as the groups were drawn in the usual ceremonial way! Scotland found themselves in Group F alongside France, Paraguay and Sierra Leone - a pretty tough group containing the top 2 European ranked nations, both in the top 6 overall at the last ranking update. As for the Faroe Islands, we were to be in Group B facing Argentina - the world cup holders, Colombia and Saudi Arabia. It's a decent group for us when you consider the teams who are there and no group would be easy, but we'll do the best we can to at least win a game in our first ever World Cup appearance. To bring the reader up to today, it is again time for the FIFA World rankings to be updated and Scotland find themselves up a place to 5th whilst the Faroe Islands are up to an all time high ranking of 65th in the world. The top 50 are listed below: 1. Brazil 2. Nigeria 3. United States 4. South Korea 5. Scotland 6. Ghana 7. Argentina 8. France 9. Mexico 10. Holland 11. Senegal 12. South Africa 13. Australia 14. Iran 15. Cameroon 16. Spain 17. Saudi Arabia 18. Egypt 19. Colombia 20. Portugal 21. Japan 22. Paraguay 23. China PR 24. Morocco 25. Serbia & Montenegro 26. Czech Republic 27. Sweden 28. England 29. Italy 30. Turkey 31. Tunisia 32. Ivory Coast 33. Belgium 34. Denmark 35. Sierra Leone 36. Germany 37. Norway 38. Poland 39. Republic of Ireland[/b] 40. Russia 41. Guinea 42. Slovenia 43. Trinidad & Tobago 44. Uruguay 45. Peru 46. Angola 47. Bahrain 48. United Arab Emirates 49. Greece 50. Zimbabwe . . . 60. Togo 61. Croatia 62. Chile 63. Austria 64. Uzbekistan 65. Faroe Islands 66. Benin 67. Belarus 68. El Salvador 69. Wales 70. Qatar Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted July 4, 2004 Author Share Posted July 4, 2004 World Cup special Part 1 - Colombia vs Faroe Islands This was the day the Faroese nation had awaited so eagerly ever since that famous night in Tórshavn when we drew 0-0 with Belarus to confirm our place in the World Cup for the first time ever. Colombia are ranked 19th in the world and were clear favourites to win this match, but for us, if we had any hopes at all of progressing from the group stage we needed something from this match, even though in fairness no-one expected us to qualify and neither did I. The match itself brought about such a complex mix of emotions. Pride, yes definitely pride at the way we played and just of course that we were there to play at all. Hope, yes hope too because we showed we can compete with a supposedly far superior nation on the football field. Disappointment, yes undoubtably there was disappointment, not at our performance or the pride and passion which the players showed, just that the result did not reflect any of that. Saudi Arabia had pulled off a superb 0-0 draw against Argentina in the afternoon so both ourselves and Colombiaknew that a win would put us top of the group. As we have in qualifying, so in this match we set out our stall to go for the win, showing due respect to our opponents, but refusing to be overawed. So, the match...We started well and more than matched Colombia for the first 20 minutes, in fact, in truth we totally outplayed them with far more accurate passing and far more of the play in their third of the pitch, Ólavur Johannesen and Janus Mikkelsen heading our best two chances straight at the Colombian goalkeeper. Disaster struck in the 23rd minute though as Colombia broke upfield in a rare attack, Freddy GuarÃn wide on the right putting in a perfect cross for Kike (or Orlando Rojas if one prefers!) to put a well-placed shot past Allan Mortensen in our goal. Jákup Poulsen had a great opportunity to equalise on the half hour, but slid his shot just wide of the far post before blazing another excellent opportunity over the bar 10 minutes later after Mortan Nielsen played him in. 2 minutes later it was Barður Thomsen's turn to fire over the bar from a goalscoring position as we continued to outplay our opponents and pile on the pressure, but at half time we were still 1-0 down, albeit at least feeling very positive about having dominated much of the match and feeling sure we could score if we just carried on the same way. The second half saw us begin brightly as we took our tally of chances to double that of our opponents and should have equalised in the 49th minute as Jákup Poulsen laid it on a plate for Mortan Nielsen whose weak shot from 8 yards out was turned around the post. Colombia briefly threatened as the half drew on with Carlos Alberto MartÃnez shooting high and wide a minute before Jan Djurhuus was put clear with a glorious opportunity but wasted the chance with a weak effort straight at the 'keeper, followed by the same from Jákup Poulsen as I grew more and more frustrated at our profligacy on the touchline. We were playing at the highest level and competing in all departments and even outplaying Colombia, but at this level you have to take your chances or you pay for it. I threw on Allan Andreasen in place of the ineffectual Barður Thomsen and urged everyone forward as time began to run out. In the 84th minute we headed another chance wide from a Barður Hansen corner and I just had to accept that today was not to be our day. As we pressed for the equaliser, Colombia broke upfield in the 92nd minute and hit the post from 5 yards out, winning a corner from the resulting scranbled clearance. We cleared the corner, but as we entered the 4th minute of injury time Juan Carlos Escobar pressed down the left and whipped in a perfect cross for Freddy GuarÃn headed in to give the score a cruel one-sidedness as the harsh realities of top level football hit us. We had dominated the match, stats showed we had spent 36% of the game in their third of the pitch, they spent 20% in ours, we achieved a pass completion rate of 65%, they only 54%, we had 12 shots on goal with 7 on target and they had 9 with 4 on target, but they put 2 away and we scored none - ultimately that is all that matters and it was a painful lesson for us - we didn't deserve to lose 2-0. We deserved to lose because we didn't take our chances and they did, but 2-0 was so unfair even though it makes next to no difference for the group - we have no chance of qualifying now, but then no-one thought we did before. FT: Colombia 2-0 Faroe Islands (Kike 28, GuarÃn 90 + 4') Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glamdring Posted July 4, 2004 Author Share Posted July 4, 2004 World Cup special Part 2 - Faroe Islands vs Saudi Arabia I guess you could say we carried through both the disappointment at the result and the encouragement at the performance from the Colombia match, but our performance today couldn't match that of our previous match. Before these championships I had identified this match as the one were we could maybe snatch a win from. That is not to say we would be expected to because Saudi Arabia are actually ranked above Colombia in 17th in the FIFA rankings, but I felt they would perhaps be the easier opponents since the Asian qualifying group from which they came and gained their ranking points was a lot less strong than the South American one. From the player's point of view though, this was another big match in which we were the underdogs and would just have to play the best we could. Given the detail I gave on our last match I should do the same for this one, but to be honest I don't really feel overly inclined to do so - their were positives from that last match, despite the defeat. From this match there is little of a positive nature to take although we did score a goal. Unlike the match against Colombia the goal came from the only shot we had on target in the entire match, Barður Hansen up from right-back for a freekick rose with a bullet header from a Gregerson corner to equalise for us. Ali Al-Dossary had given Saudi Arabia a deserved lead on the stroke of half time and had had by far the better of the chances since. We had had 6 shots off target, mostly long shots from midfield, but the goal was the only one on target. In actual fact the Saudis had only created 4 chances in total, but had just looked better overall. As we went in search of a second goal we were quickly undone by a very classy finish by Saleh Al-Essa as our defending left a lot to be desired. So now we had to pile forward even more else we would be out of the World Cup even before our match with Argentina and perhaps inevitably, Saudi Arabia just paced themselves and waited for their chance to break upfield and when it came they took it with a long ball upfield finding Al-Dossary in acres of space, his shot was palmed out straight to Al-Essa who tucked away the rebound in the 92nd minute and our World Cup was all over bar the shouting...the shouting being a tie with Argentina which would almost certainly see us head home without a single point after so much promise against Colombia FT: Faroe Islands 1-3 Saudi Arabia (B. Hansen 71; Al-Dossary 45, Saleh Al-Essa 75,90) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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