fm07 Rics Sunday night clan-A new beginning[Established Clan]

[richard thomson]

Ayr's season so far

Elgin Home

sat 7th aug div2 4-2

a 3 goal salvo for mcglinchey was enough to insure all 3 points went to the home side Wardlaw had opened the scoring as Ayr went into the half time break 2-0 up a 3rd was added before Elgin closed the gap to 3-2 Mcglincheys 86th min goal made sure of all 3 points

Stranraer Stair Park

Tue 10th aug Lge Cup 2-1

Mcglinchey hits his 4th for the season in the derby in front of only 288 fans Dunn leveled the match before new signing Paton became the hero with the 91st min winner

Raith Stark's Park

sat 14th aug div2 1-2

A game of two halfs saw the home side dominate the 1st half taken the lead just before half time Ayr came out all guns blazing and equalised through centre half Dean Keenen raith claimed all 3 points with a last minuete goal in a exciting tie watched by a healthy crowd of just short of 1500

[richard thomson]

East stirling Firs Park

wed 18 aug Challange cup 1-0

Another cup tie that Ayr won with Mcglinchy hitting the goal in the 12th min before East Stirling woke up but could not find the way to score past the injured Mathieson who played most of the game carrying a knock

B]Cowdenbeath Home[/b]

Sat 21 aug div 2 1-1

Ayr were Disapointing and should have been looking to take all 3 points a crowd went home disapointed as Ayr had Patton to thank for the point as players obviously had there eye on the midweek tie against spl Dundee unt

Dundee Unt Tanadice park

Tue 24th Aug League cup 2nd rd 3-3 Dundee win on Penalties

Dundee unt were shown up sitting 3rd in the spl Mcglinchy opened the scoring Unt hit straight back Mcglinchy scored his 2nd of the Game just before half time he increased Ayrs lead in the 59th min Unt hit back and craig and costa brought the score to 3-3 Ayr were reduced to 10 men with 8 mins remaining but held out for E/T UNt's Feeney thought he had won the tie when he scored early on in the 1st half of E/T but Mcglinchy hit his 4th of the match to take the tie to penalties Dundee scored there opening 3 spot kicks while Ayr Missed all theres Manager Thomson was said to be "Delighted with his teams efforts

[richard thomson]

i still have a few games left to report on from that sesion will finish this off later today

[richard thomson]

Stirling Forthbank Stadium

sat 28th aug Div2 2-0

Ayr well expecting a far tougher game than they got with Stirling strikers not been able to hit a cow's @rse with a Banjo Mclinchey opened the scoring who else could before Ayr were reduced to9 men with 2 sendings off on the 67th and 70th min but anyone watching would not have guessed Ayr were 2 players light and mcglinchey sealed the points with 6 mins to go

Stranraer Home

Wed 1 Sep Challange cup rd 2 4-1

for a Change the ayr goals were shared out in a easy win Mcglinchy did score the opener but Wardlaw Lafferty and Daquin from the spot got on the score sheet also

Berwick Home

Sat 11th Sept Div2 1-0

A dull game looked like being a no score draw till Masterton scored a late winner for the Honnest Men

Queen's Park Hampden

Tue 14th Sept Challange cup 3rd round 0-3[/i ]

A tie that was only ever going to have 1 winner Ayr won 3-0 but could have won by a lot more Paton opend the scoring with the 1st of his double from ths spot before Mcglinchy scoring in between this advancing to the last 4

Stenhousemuir Ochilview

Sat 18th sept Div2 3-4

A Seven goal match gave there fans with kevin ross opening the scorring for the warriors from the penalty spot Patom equalised for Ayr before Stenny when 4-1 up Ayr hit back but rang out of time with goals from Wardlaw and McGlinchey hit his 14th of the season

[vVMarkVv]

hey im interested in joining the scots clan. if im accepted e-mail me plz

[richard thomson]

Mark we are currently full just now you can find a application form for the clan on the Clan website which you can find by this linkClan website

We have a waiting list which any suitable candidate will be added to if this is not suitable may i suggest posting on the Available players Thread on this website

[richard thomson]

Anyone wishing to see the Latest tables they can now be found on the clan website

[richard thomson]

Heres a run down on who's who Just now in the Scots clan Including our 2 new members filling the spaces in the clan

Richard Thomson2 - Ayr Unt

Ad Kelly - Berwick Rangers

Polo Brownley 2 - Raith

Ben Grant - Forfar Athletic

Nick Bott - East Stirling

Mark Griffith - Albion Rovers

Paul Carey - Stirling Albion

Fergus Martin - Arbroath

Craig Seery - Queen Of The South

Howard Sowrey - Dumbarton

[chopra_hill]

Great reports Ric.

Happy Easter to all in the clan

[Bottster]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by chopra_hill:

Happy Easter to all in the clan </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

WHS!

[adkelly]

Sorry guys gonna be late for tonights session, going out for a meal for easter, ill try to get back to play

[Bottster]

East Stirlingshire show intentions!

After a good season last year East Stirlingshire bought well during the transfer window with many new signatures coming in and many reserves leaving. The Shire yet again were given a small transfer budget but I managed to bring in no less than 17 signatures AND 3 Loan Signings for the season from parent club Celtic.

We will definitely be looking for at least a play off spot this year and possibly sneaking promotion, however one thing that does worry me is how East Stirlingshire are being tiped by all the human managers, we have the smallest reputation and the smallest transfer budget, it's a disgrace to put pressure on my boys like that!!

Transfers In

We signed 17 players so i will just give a report on the key signings.

Neil Janczyk - 1K - St. Johnstone

Neil was one of two players we picked up from St. Johnstone who had a lot of experience at a higher level. Neil is a very fast midfielder who can play in the centre or on the left wing. Neil will push for a first team place this year.

Neil McCallum - Free Transfer - St. Johnstone

Another St. Johnstone player who we snapped up, Neil is a real forwards forward, extremely quick and with an eye for goal, a definite bargain, i was very happy to sign him.

David Watters - Free Transfer - Cowdenbeath

Our only weak positions this year were fullbacks, After Robertsons loan finished we were on the lookout for a solid right back, which enabled us to move Dempsie back to the left. David fitted the bill perfectly, quick, strong and with a good cross on him, i believed he would fit into our style of play well.

Andrew Dick - Free Transfer - Queen's Park

Andrew is a solid defensive midfielder who i have watched and scouted for two years, i was delighted to have signed him finally. Andrew will provide us with a lot of bite and energy in the centre of the park and will drive the team forward.

Kevin Smith - Free Transfer - Celtic

Kevin was a great find, an extremely talented keeper who was just 18 yrs old. Snapped up by from Celtic after they deemed him surplus to requirements. Will probably be our first choice keeper.

Chris McGaharan - 26K - Elgin

Delighed to sign Elgins star player, i had watched Chris a number of times and he was just too good not to sign. A left sided winger who we believe will develop into a star player in time. At 26K he cost more than our transfer budget at the start of the season, but the forced sale of our star defender funded the sale.

Loans In

Celtic sent us 3 youngsters for the season, and each one oozes quality.

Ross Gaynor - ST

Brian McEwan - DC

Vincent van den Berg - AMR,ST

Players Out

We released 21 Players on a free and sold 2

David Dunn - Ayr Utd - 10K

David had been surplus to requirements for a full season and i was delighted to get 10K for him!!

Andy Hughes - St. Mirren - 250K

Sooner or later Andy was going to leave, he oozed class and had broken into his international team. A lot of clubs had tracked him and made plenty of offers which i had turned down. Unfortunately when St. Mirren came in with a 250K offer the chairman felt it was too good to turn down. A big loss, but it boosted my transfer budget for the year.

Probable First X1

GK - Kevin Smith

DR - David Watters

DL - Alan Dempsie

DC - Brian McEwan

DC - Kyle Mackay

RM - Richard Walker

LM - Chris McGaharan

CM - Andrew Dick

CM - Anthony Giglio

FC - Ross Gaynor

ST - Sean O'Connor

Subs

Keith Cuthbert

Paul Rudden

Neil Janczyk

Steven McManus

Neil McCallum

[richard thomson]

Happy Easter all dont eat to many Chocolate Eggs that you cant make tonights sesion as i speek Nick is on his 4th on msn

[Bottster]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by adkelly:

Sorry guys gonna be late for tonights session, going out for a meal for easter, ill try to get back to play </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Have a cracking meal Ad and we wills ee ya when you get back.

[richard thomson]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Bottster:

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by adkelly:

Sorry guys gonna be late for tonights session, going out for a meal for easter, ill try to get back to play </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Have a cracking meal Ad and we wills ee ya when you get back. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yep Adam enjoy your meal come in to mirc when you return as we may cont a little latter tonight with peeps being off on Holiday

[Old Git]

Well if the highlight of this weeks session wasn't the absolute battering that Stirling Albion took at the hands of a rampant Arbroath, then it must have been the absolute nuttiness of the banter!

In fact, since Arbroath were so awful in every other match the highlight was def the banter, superb stuff lads, hope you all enjoyed your Easter!

[chopra_hill]

Easter Session Update

We are staying up say we are staying up!

A great session yesterday, Stirling got off to a flyer gaining 12 points from the first 15 available. Every game they did win in that run was by one goal.

The first game was against Cowdenbeath and it was Bryan Scott who came off the bench with 20 minutes too go, he then rammed home the winner in the 83rd minute to send the Stirling faithful home delighted. Won 1-0

Next up was a tricky trip to Elgin, a place below myself, and it was once again a close affair, however with little over 25 minutes left it was that man Bryan Scott who popped up with the winner for the second match in a row. Won 1-0

Next up was a game against mid table Berwick, they were 3-0 up at half time, undeservedly I must add. Bryan Scott pulled 2 back to make it interesting but they had a dodgy penalty and another goal which gave them the win. Lost 5-2

Next up was the highlight of the session for me, a 2-1 battering of East Stirling was the revenge I had in mind for the defeat on the opening day. What made this all the sweeter was that Striling were battered from pillar to post but hung on due to two early goals from Bryan Scott and Marcus Fotheringham. East Stirling pulled one back before half time but Stirling hung on to record a victory over there rivals. Good game Nick! Won 2-1

We then played Stenhousemuir in a great game. We took the lead after half an hour with a penalty from

Gibson who despite a rating of 8 for penalties stuck in top corner without a care in the world. Stenny got back into the game and drew level before half time. An inspired team talk from manager Carey gave the Stirling players the boost they wanted and Stirling were back in front after 47 minutes when Bryan Scott volleyed home from outside the area to the delight of the Stirling fans. Stenny once again drew level after 70 minutes and with the scoreline at 2-2, there was all to play for. Then in the 84th minute that man Bryan Scott hit a shot from at least 30 yards that crashed (and nearly broke) the crossbar, the keeper didn't know what was happening and Ian Harty stuck it into an empty net with little time remaining, cue ecstatic dancing round the room from myself 3-2 Win 6 in 5 games for Bryan Scott!

I then had a defeat against Aidrie United before traveeling away to play Ric's Ayr United. We took an early lead through a great free kick from Marcus Fortheringham but Ric's Ayr continued to dominate us and they got there reward 10 minutes before half time when a player smashed in an unstoppable effort from over 30 yards out. We were then reduced to 10 men before half time when our Rb got sent off for two yellows. We had to change to 4-4-1 but it seemed to galvanise us as we played much better after the break. Unfortuately Ric's player grabbed his second of the game with 20 minutes too go and we never really looked like getting back into it. Was a good efoort from the lads though, having to play 50 minutes with 10 men. Good game Ric. Well Played.Lost 2-1

A few more defeats followed before we had what i considered a definite banana skin in the shape of Fergus Martin and his Abroath side. I was tempted to play my first strength side but when Fergus decided not too use managerial mind games but simply threaten to plant a bomb in my car I decided to play my under 12's

The only two players missing from my first team were Bryan Scott and Gibson. However we decided to use this game to play like **** and Arbroath punished us! 3 good goals, especially the last one which flew top scorner sent Arbroath through to the next round and sent Stirling home! (Although I made sure I went home on the coach not in my car after Fergus threat!) If Fergus team play like that every game then they would ocme up, no question but Fergus told us they don't and they are normally crap, I can only wonder if they were up for the game as they were playing a BIG team Lost 3-0

A few more defeats followed against crap teams and the relegation battle looks on again.

This was the best session in a while, the banter was awseome as well as the managerial mind games. Life on Mars? hehe! Looking forward to next Sunday already! Have a good bank holiday all!

[richard thomson]

Good post paul Showing up some of our more senior members who still need to do there predictions!

[richard thomson]

A long sesion saw Ayr's good start disapear 14 games Ayr managed in very few would Have Ayr manager Thomson leaving the ground with a smile

East Stirling Home

wed 22nd sept Div2 2-2

Ayr Started of well With Mcglinchey opening but Ross Gaynor who has been attracting intrest from a few sides equalised on the 29th min the 2nd half was more of the same and again the goals came from the big 2 players in div2 Mcglinchey and Gaynor Ayrs goal Comming from a great pass out by ex East stirling left back Robertson to Mcglinchey

Stranraer Stair Park

Sat 25th Sept Div 2 4-2

A local Derby as Such saw Ayr hit 4 And Mcglinchey only got 1 for a change Paton opened the scoring before Stranraer hit back Mcglinchey put Ayr back in front before Starnraer hit back Masterton secured a 3-2 lead for Ayr at H/T but it wasnt till 84 mins that Ayr took a 2 goal lead through Wardlaw

Partick Thislte Firhill

Tue 28Th Sept Challange Cup S/F 1-4

a Strange day for Ayr as they were out Done by Partick despite the stats showing a even game Partick's ability to put the ball in the net was the difference Ayr could even point out that they out shot and out Passed there opponents Ayr goal was a late goal by Wardlaw

Raith Home

Sat 2nd Oct Div2 0-1

Ayr yet Again found hitting the net there problem as they failed to take anything from this top of table Clash

Aidrie Unt Home

Sat 16Th Oct Div 2 0-1

A second defeat on the trot 1-0 saw Ayr face another top side with Relgated Airdrie.Airdrie were favourites but on play would feel very lucky to have taken a point let alone the Three they got

Elgin Borough Briggs

Sat 23rd Oct Div2 2-0

Ayr were back on winning Ways but should have won by a load more Mcglinchey opened the scoring Early on and a O.G put Ayr up 2-0 but the worry must be if McGlinchey dosnt score Ayr

struggle

Cowdenbeath Central Park

Sat 30th Oct Div2 1-0

Paton score the only goal of the game as Ayrs change of Formation claims it's 6 point from 6

i will post November's Games when i get a chance

[Polo]

Predictions for the Season

Ric - Ayr - 4th In div 2 and a play off place

Polo - Raith 1st in Div 2 Cant face another play off defeat!!

AD - Berwick 6th in div2 mid table

Paul - Stirling 9th and a relegation play off

Nick - East Stirling - 3rd Promotion through the play offs?

Mark - Albion 6th another poor season

Ben - Forfar 7th struggle?

Fergus - Arbroath 3rd Promotion through the play offs!!

[Old Git]

No news is good news, but some news is great. I have just signed a contract to do some consultancy work for the MOD. I have to go to newport and may be unable to make Sunday unless the posh hotel i get the MOD to pay for, has internet available. In any case i will be travelling Sunday, and if all goes well will probably make it later that normal. Further Updates to follow!

[Old Git]

Righty. Wife has got me a hotel in Newport which apparently has the tintaweb, so Ishould be able to get online on Sunday. If it's wireless, I hope to god it's more stable than might. I may be a bit late getting in tomorrow though, but I'll give it a shot.

[adkelly]

Gonna be late for tonights game, should be on from 8:30

[chopra_hill]

The session started badly for Stirling with a 1-0 defeat to Berwick even though my assistant was in charge this just wasn't acceptable.

Next up was the derby, East Stirling away. They took an early lead but were soon pegged back when Bryan Scott scored for Stirling. A shock was on the cards when Stirling made it 2-1 with 55 mins gone with Bryan Scott grabbing his second. Nick pulverised me and in fairness to him deserved to draw level. I then tried to hold onto a valuable draw but Nick grabbed the win with little over 15 minutes too go. I am proud of the fact I had Nick sweating when in the last minute I had a corner and everyone including the goalie were up. Wasn't too be though. Good game and deserved victory Nick.

Next up was a visit from Strnaraer, a 6 pointer. Win and i'd go 9 points clear of relegation. Lose, and i'd be 3 points clear. Went 1-0 up after 35 minutes when Ian Harty scored a peach. They then punished me with 2 easy goals in 2 minutes before half time. My midfielder called Fotheringham then took it upon himself to elbow there player and we were down to 10 men for the 2nd half and never looked like getting back into it.

Next up was Airdrie, who wear doing very well in the league. We held on for the first half but they scored 2 goals in the second half to give them the win. They deserved it. Stranraer lost 4-0 so we were still outside relegation.

Last game of the session saw me welcome Ric's Ayr United to *was going to say name of ground but don't know it* hehe.

We had the worst possible start when we were reduced to 10 men in the 4th minute. Our odds of winning this pre match were 20/1 (Hope polo's son invested those national winnings on this) and with that red card so early on the odds must have rocketed. However, some swift tactical decisions left us 1-0 up after 20 mins thanks to Bryan Scott- the man for the big occasions. Ric battered me for the rest of the half but couldn't break through. 1-0 at half time. Second half and we had a glorious chance to make it 2 early on but Konte headed over an open goal. Ric continued to batter me and in the 75th minute i'd had enough and went an ultra defensive 5-3-1. Ayr's teams frustration spilled over and they then had a player sent off in the 87th minute. This was the 5th sending off in 3 games between the sides this season. We held on for a great victory which was fully deserved considering we played with 10 for 86 minutes!

Good game Ric, I suppose you deserved a win really!

Ps - When I checked at the end of the session, Fergus' Arbroath were still languishing in the basement of the scottish league a.k.a Division 3!

P.P.S Nick - Karembeu

Good session all!

[Bottster]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by chopra_hill:

P.P.S Nick - Karembeu

Good session all! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

For the record young Paul, Karembeu - 00/01 Season, not mid 90s

[Goldy]

Congrats!!

Well done chaps! Your now an established clan!

Thanks for your efforts of a wonderful clan and game and presenting it to us here in FMO, keep it up!

[richard thomson]

Cheers Goldy and a big thank you to all that have been involved in the clan especially my two right hand men Nick and Polo

[Bottster]

East Stirling surprise the bookies!

At the beginning of the season the bookies predicted we would come 8th, we are currently sittingtop of the table and looking very strong. The second division is a very tough one this year and it still looks like any 1 of 5 could take the top spot at the end of the season, however the talk is that Airdrie, Raith and East Stirling are the favs at present.

We have had some fantastic games this year and i will give a brief outline of the season to date...

August Key Game vs rivals Stirling 6-1 Win

A good start saw us climb quickly to the top of the division and stay there.

East Stirling vs Stirling (H) 6-1 Win

East Stirling vs Berwick (A) 1-0 Win

East Stirling vs Stenhousemuir (H) 2-1 Win

East Stirling vs Elgin (A) 3-0 Win

SeptemberKey Game vs Airdrie 2-1 Loss

September was harsh for us and it felt like maybe we were not quite as good as August had suggested! Draws against fellow Clan hopefuls Polo's Raith and Ric's Ayr along with a loss to Airdrie brought us crashing back down to reality!

East Stirling vs Stranraer (A) 2-0 Win

East Stirling vs Airdrie Utd (H) 2-1 Loss

East Stirling vs Ayr (A) 2-2 Draw

East Stirling vs Raith (H) 2-2 Draw

OctoberKey Game vs Stenny 4-3 Win

A good October saw some strange results and saw Stirling get some revenge, they stole a 2-1 win against us even though we totally dominated the game from start to finish!

East Stirling vs Berwick (H) 5-1 Win

East Stirling vs Cowdenbeath (A) 2-2 Draw

East Stirling vs Stirling (A) 2-1 Loss Stirling has 2 shots on goal all game and scored twice!

East Stirling vs Stenhousemuir (H) 4-3 Win Stenny led this game 3-0 at half time and we came back and won 4-3, awesome result!

NovemberKey Game vs Elgin 6-0 Win

November only had 3 fixtures but we were on fire up front and scored a total of 13 goals during those fixtures!

East Stirling vs Elgin (H) 6-0 Win Chris McGarahan scored a brace against his old team.

East Stirling vs Stranraer (H) 2-1 Win

East Stirling vs Cowdenbeath (A) 5-2 Win Vincent Van Den Berg starting to make the right wing position his own

DecemberKey Game vs Raith 1-0 Win

December was always going to be tricky with games against Airdrie, Raith and Ayr, a key period of the season for us.

East Stirling vs Airdrie (A) 0-0 Draw

East Stirling vs Raith (A) 1-0 Win Mackay and McEwan both rocks at the centre of the East Stirling defense.

East Stirling vs Ayr (H) 3-1 Win After trailing 1-0 to Ayr we came back and dominated the game to win 3-1

East Stirling vs Stirling (H) 3-2 Win What a cracking game! After going 1-0 up and then trailing 2-1 to Stirling even though we totally dominated i thought they were going to pull off another upset against us!3-2 Win with late goals from O'Connor and Mackay and some last gasp defending!

East Stirling vs Berwick (A) 2-1 Win

Currently sitting top of the table and looking strong, all could change though with big games against Airdrie, Raith and Ayr to come soon!

[richard thomson]

Ayr go in to tonight sesion needing a winning run to have any hope of making the playoffs a disapointing season for Ayr who have been hamered by suspensions costing many vital points

[Bottster]

hi guys,m just fyi gonna be late be on around 8ish

[richard thomson]

Ayr's season can be somed up in one word discipline The team could have delivered a lot more if they had shown discipline 8 red cards and enough yellow cards to paper a mansion with is the reason Ayr have missed the playoffs to many times Ayr were missing players in key games better disciplined teams have got the rewards they deserve and Ayr will rue what could have been a good season

[richard thomson]

Still THINGS COULD BE WORSE THOSE WHO I SHALL NOT NAME BUT PLAY IN GREEN AND GREY SIT 7 POINTS BEHIND DUNDEE UNT no not going for the tittle but ther sitting in 12th place Good luck to all the teams who play them next season in the 1st!

[Polo]

With 3 Games to go Raith are in 2nd position and 4 points behind leaders Airdrie. The play offs look likely again for the 3rd time.

Breaking News

Paul Brownley looks set to leave Raith at the end of the season after turning down a new contract. The fans are not happy but it looks almost certain that Brownley will move to pastures new at the end of the season whether promoted or not. Rumours are abound to Brownleys destination but both Partick Thistle and Motherwell are possibles with both clubs without a manager. Another rumour is that Celtic will part company with O Neil and Brownley will take over to restore former glories. Another theory is that Rangers are set to get taken over by a mixed consortium from Yorkshire & Dumbarton and want Brownley to take over. Brownley has refused to comment on the situation but has called a press conference for later in the week. We will bring you that LIVE here on FM Sports Scotland.

[Old Git]

Arbroath For the Second Division

Odds on Arbroath being anything better than 7th at the start of the season were not good, however a few of the diehard Red Lichtie fans have won a few bob recently as the team has defied the odds to sneak into the playoff places with three matches left in the season. Whether they are good enough for the final push remains to be seen, however, hope springs eternal!

A recent fantastic run of results pushed the Red Lichties into contention, though Brechin and Queen of the South are too far in front too be caught one reckons. Well done to Craig Seery for pulling off the QOS job. (Not a bad position to be in for a new arrival, take over the team at the top, instant success. Some had to work for it!)

So to the matches that saw the Arbroath fans dreaming:

Albion Rovers Away – A 1-0 win was secured against Mark’s Rovers when Scott Patterson, a loanee from Dundee Utd scored a area goal, but when he gets them, he gets them good, a screamer from distance. Arbroath dominated this match from start to finish and the scoreline could have and should have been greater! (Note, Mark signed in about five minutes after this match finished!)

Forfar at Home – A local derby! At this point, Young Waddell returned to his club, thus the Lichties were light up front, Stirling saw fit to sign Craig Allen on a pre-contract (silly boy) and Pattersons loan was due for renewal. A confident Arbroath battered our bitter rivals for 45 mins and went in at HT 2 goals down. Some harsh words at half-time reminded the players of where their £50 a week wages came from, and a blistering second half performance bagged a point in a tricky away match.

Brechin City Away- Yet another match against bitter rivals. By this time Patterson had not renewed his extension, however Lichtie fans were able to welcome back Waddell, (thanks Polo) and also brough in another of Raiths youngsters Owusu. (The others on offer were no better than I had mate!) Waddell resumes service as normal with a goal in the 3rd minute, however for the next 40 Arbroath suffered “scored too early†syndrome and proceeded to give away two goals to a far superior Brechin side. The second half however was a joy for Lichtie fans as the team came back from the HT deficit to record a 4-2 victory over close neighbours Brechin. Waddle nets a second, Owusu gets a debut goal and Scott Brown, our 18yr old right winger wades in with the 4th. A superb second half performance had the fans drooling.

Peterhead at Home. The very dangerous trip up the A9 to Peterhead obviously had some weird effect on the Lichtie legs as a very dull match ended in a 0-0 draw. Nothing gained nor lost against one of the leagues challengers.

East Fife Away. A 1-0 victory is always sweet, especially in a surprisingly even game. Darren Gribben returned from a slight knock and the clubs leading scorer netted the only goal of the game. (Craig Allen is now playing reserve team football Paul!)

Montrose at Home – It seems all the teams from this part of the world play in the 3rd Divisionas this is billed as yet another Derby match. Waddell is out injured so step in Jamie MacDonald (no recall for Allen) and he must take the credit for the only goal in a match in which Arbroath dominated. His pressure on the Montrose defence caused the left back to force the ball past his own keeper. Unfortunately, Arbroath could not make their pressure count a one nil win proved sufficient for another three points.

Dumbarton Away – 2-1 Defeat. One of the teams tipped to be near the top of this Division are struggling, however are always capable of digging in when it matters. A dream start sees Dumbarton taking the lead after only 2 mins, and at this stage the Lichties are looking like a teram that should be in 7th place. That man Waddell equalised and it looked like it had 1-1 written all over it until the 89th minute when Dumbarton scored a winner. In truth it was a poor match by recent performances, and was the team was beginning to look very jaded!

Queen of the South (Seery) A 1-0 win was secured with a very early Waddell goal, however, with about seven changes of tactics from Craig, this game was probably the longest in history. However the Lichties back four were solid and Craigs valiant efforts were repelled. In truth, they battered me and should have had at least a point, but I never said that!

At this point, Arbroath need three points from the remaining five games in the season to be guaranteed a play off place and next up were Mark’s Albion Rovers. By this time Mark is running scared and has left the building. The best that can be said about this match is that it can only be described as your archetypal BORE DRAW. With some tough matches coming up and the team looking out of sorts it was very difficult to see where the three points were going to come from.

Forfar Away – A Derby match which started off like a dream for the Lichtie fans. Darren Gribben scores in 2 mins, however gets injured in six, and from that point on, we never really looked like pushing on. It is too Forfars credit that they nicked a point, however the point gained pushes Arbroath to within touching distance of the playoffs.

Queens Park Away – 2-1 Victory. This turned out to be a pretty even affair with Simon Joyce netting a rare goal early on, however QP equalised on the stroke of half-time when Ross MacDonald gave away a free kick on the edge of the box. Match stayed fairly even until Iain Anderson scored his first for the club from a free-kick on 79 mins. QP then battered Arbroath relentlessly but the back four held out for a precious three points and secured a play-off place. (The hard way Craig!)

And so, Arbroath make the playoffs. With matches against Brechin, Peterhead and East Fife still to come, this could be the perfect opportunity to blood some players Polo’s got his eye to ensure the others are fresh!

[Old Git]

As if by some spooky coincidence, the real Arbroath have made the playoffs. Whether either incarnation can make it up remains to be seen. Watch this space!

[Old Git]

A happy Fergus Martin is pictured outside Gayfield Park, having achieved a playoff position.

There are sure to comparisions between reality and fiction in the coming weeks

[richard thomson]

Nice post Fergus bat cant beleive they locked you out after what you did for Abroath !

[richard thomson]

guys game will be up at 6 oclock tonight for starting at 6.30 the awards will be next week so tonight have a look and send me by E-MAIL not via mirc your nominations for

Best Manager -Can not nominate yourself

Best Newcomer - As Above

Top result vs Ai -nominate your own best result

Top result vs Human--nominate your own best result

Best Post on Thread-Can not nominate yourself

Best Patter in Mirc-Can not nominate yourself

Player of the season- nominate your own player

[richard thomson]

Ayr Players today were sent to Anger Managment after 8 sending offs and more yellow cards than you could count but after 20 mins the sesion was Stoped as the counciler left the sesion saying there was nothing he could do he was last seen in the pub drinking heavy in fact vodka anything he could get his hands on

the Ayr lads will be trying Yoga next week in a attempt to calm them down to just plain PSHCO

[richard thomson]

Fergus not that i want to upset you but is there anything you want to tell us your 2 teams share a very dodgy ground name is there any truth that the hlf time entertainment is the Village people "Y.M.C.A."

[chopra_hill]

Will be on a little late, have full faith in Bryan Scott to carry on banging them in!

One man team but I don't care

He can even give the team talk if he wants!

See you later.

[richard thomson]

Thomson fails to keep Thistle up

After being apointed Thistle Manager Thomson found his team in the playoffs as Thislte finished 2nd bottom on goal difference a shock win by Livingston and hamiltons better goal difference put Partick in the playoffs a fine win over Raith over to legs which should have been by a wider margin the lack of fire power would later cost them as east stirling won the final 2-1 on aggragate

[richard thomson]

End of season Tables Posted on the web site

[richard thomson]

[Old Git]

Push for PlayOffs

Three league games to go and Arbroath had secured a Play-off place. Last three league games would see Arbroath play one local Derby, a game against another play-off qualifier and a final home match against East Fife.

Home to Brechin. We welcomed the Brechin lads with open arms, mocking them liberally with our success in making the playoffs, and after a pretty dull first half, first loanee Waddell, then Darren Gribben (2) sealed a comprehensive win despite Brechin equalisiung whilst the score was 1-1.

Away to Peterhead. With Hay injured, Bennion made only his 6th appearance of the season and after a quite scintillating first half where Waddell and Darren Gribben added to their rising star status, Arbroath went in 2 up at half time. The manager decided enough was enough and decided to freeze himself on the beach at Peterhead. No worries, as by the team he returned, another 3 points had been secured and a guaranteed third place.

Home to East Fife. Arbroaths last game of the season was at home to struggling East Fife and another 3 points were secured through first half goals by Darren Gribben (again), and a rare Ross MacDonald strike. An early East Fife strike threatened to spoil the party, however after a very nice piece of football one of the East Fife defenders netted, for Arbroath! Another three points secured, however the wait was on for the results of the top two. A win for QOS and a defeat for Brechin would see Arbroath play Brechin, whilst any other result would see Brechin crowned champs and set up the human play-offs with QOS and Arbroath

Queen of the South! Craig Seerys team had dominated the league from the start and had only begun to falter in recent months (coinciding with Seery’s appointment, but that’s incidental! Lol) The two leg affair began with a home start for Arbroath up first. Again Bennion started and after a very poor start, QOS took the lead with a goal which had its foundations in some really stupid play by the Arbroath midfield. Despite a tactical change in the second half and running QOS ragged, the Arbroath boys had decided that they didn’t know where the net was. Second Leg started very poorly with another early goal conceded, after which the Arbroath players could not get near QOS. It soon became 2-0, (3-0 on aggregate) and the game was well over. Despite O’Neill pulling one back, QOS went in at HT 4-1 up on aggregate. A second half strike saw QOS seal a 5-1 aggregate win which was fully deserved.

Rumours of the managers departure started to appear in the press when he was linked with the vacant position at Hearts. This however went to John Robertson, and there are some sections of the media predicting that Martin may have fulfilled all he can with Arbroath, the limited resources and intransigent chairman. Martin is quoted as saying to the local press “Everyone has ambitions and I am no different from everyone.†So the rumours continue. Will he won’t he, the jury remains out on that one!

[Old Git]

Push for PlayOffs

Three league games to go and Arbroath had secured a Play-off place. Last three league games would see Arbroath play one local Derby, a game against another play-off qualifier and a final home match against East Fife.

Home to Brechin. We welcomed the Brechin lads with open arms, mocking them liberally with our success in making the playoffs, and after a pretty dull first half, first loanee Waddell, then Darren Gribben (2) sealed a comprehensive win despite Brechin equalisiung whilst the score was 1-1.

Away to Peterhead. With Hay injured, Bennion made only his 6th appearance of the season and after a quite scintillating first half where Waddell and Darren Gribben added to their rising star status, Arbroath went in 2 up at half time. The manager decided enough was enough and decided to freeze himself on the beach at Peterhead. No worries, as by the team he returned, another 3 points had been secured and a guaranteed third place.

Home to East Fife. Arbroaths last game of the season was at home to struggling East Fife and another 3 points were secured through first half goals by Darren Gribben (again), and a rare Ross MacDonald strike. An early East Fife strike threatened to spoil the party, however after a very nice piece of football one of the East Fife defenders netted, for Arbroath! Another three points secured, however the wait was on for the results of the top two. A win for QOS and a defeat for Brechin would see Arbroath play Brechin, whilst any other result would see Brechin crowned champs and set up the human play-offs with QOS and Arbroath

Queen of the South! Craig Seerys team had dominated the league from the start and had only begun to falter in recent months (coinciding with Seery’s appointment, but that’s incidental! Lol) The two leg affair began with a home start for Arbroath up first. Again Bennion started and after a very poor start, QOS took the lead with a goal which had its foundations in some really stupid play by the Arbroath midfield. Despite a tactical change in the second half and running QOS ragged, the Arbroath boys had decided that they didn’t know where the net was. Second Leg started very poorly with another early goal conceded, after which the Arbroath players could not get near QOS. It soon became 2-0, (3-0 on aggregate) and the game was well over. Despite O’Neill pulling one back, QOS went in at HT 4-1 up on aggregate. A second half strike saw QOS seal a 5-1 aggregate win which was fully deserved.

Rumours of the managers departure started to appear in the press when he was linked with the vacant position at Hearts. This however went to John Robertson, and there are some sections of the media predicting that Martin may have fulfilled all he can with Arbroath, the limited resources and intransigent chairman. Martin is quoted as saying to the local press “Everyone has ambitions and I am no different from everyone.†So the rumours continue. Will he won’t he, the jury remains out on that one!

[richard thomson]

predictions

PREMIER LEAGUE

Nick Bott- them

nick saved them from relgation last season much to the disgust of many of the clan

prediction-who really cares !!! 4th

Division 1 and rest to come soon

[chopra_hill]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by richard thomson:

predictions

PREMIER LEAGUE

Nick Bott- them

nick saved them from relgation last season much to the disgust of many of the clan

</div></BLOCKQUOTE>

WP Nick!!

[Bottster]

Over Achievers Extrodinaire!

PROMOTION!!!!!!!!!!!

Well what can i say, we finished the season in 2nd and after sealing the fate of Richard Thomson's managerial career with Ayr in my last game in charge of East Stirling (Thomson was sacked directly after that game) it was fate that East Stirling would take on Thomson's new team in the division above in the play off final! East Stirling won and secured there place in Division 1. A remarkable achievement!!!!

However, as i mentioned above, we beat Ayr in my LAST game as East Stirling manager.

[Bottster]

Celtic have sensationally sacked Marton O'Neill!

Celtic who currently reside at the foot of the Bank of Scotland Premier league have sacked long serving manager Martin O'Neill, Celtic are currently 7 points off 2nd from bottom Kilmarnock and there is 5 games to play. Rumour has it Celtic directors have approached a young and passionate manager to take over the helm.

Celtic have appointed Nick Bott as the new manager at Celtic Park, Nick has previously had a very succesful career at East Stirling where he won the Division 3 championship in his first season and narrowly missed out on a play off spot in Division 2 in his second season, while this season, his 3rd, he has taken East Stirling to the brink of the Division 2 title on a shoestring budget.

It is rumoured that controversial manager Bott had taken the post just to entice a little extra banter in the managerial pub known as mIRC

Bott has a tough task on his hands to firstly save Celtic from relegation and then secondly turn the team into a title challenging side for the near future.