I
said in my last post that I would return to blogging on 42 Grounds but I didn’t
think it would be this soon (although I was sorely tempted by Hibs inept
performance on Thursday night, but that would have been more of a full-blooded
rant than coherent post).
But
two events in the past week has irked me enough to provoke me to write.
Last
week saw the launch of the SPFL – the one body amalgamation of the SPL and SFL.
The league is due to kick off this Friday and yet there is no sponsor and also
no guarantee that one of the clubs in the top flight (Hearts) will be able to
fulfil their fixtures. A brave new world this ain’t.
The
launch of the branding saw John Collins, Neil Doncaster (Scottish football’s
J.Peterman) and Graeme Souness take part in a photocall at Hampden Park.
Clearly the first question is what on earth is Graeme Souness’ relevance to
Scottish football? Aside from receiving an EBT from Rangers, Souness has
contributed absolutely nothing since his departure to Liverpool in 1991.
Surely
a launch day for a brand new 42 team league should have been a carnival? Why
weren’t chairmen, managers, coaches and players from every team made available
to the Scottish media? If this is the 42 club solution where was the evidence
of it? Even a photocall with the 42 captains of the SPFL would have given a
strong message that things in this new era might
be a little different. Instead we got the same old faces trotted out. The lack
of imagination is almost staggering – the league names even ape England. Where’s
the heritage? Where’s the proud history? Where’s the build-up to this weekend’s
opening league fixtures in the Premiership? Why, as Gordon Waddell excellently
pointed out in his column,
aren’t under 12s getting in for free for games this weekend?
Even
BBC Scotland’s advert for the new season is full of images shot in a park –
where’s the goals, the rollicking tackles and tête-à-têtes from last season and
yesteryears that we love so much? Frankly, the whole idea of a new SPFL season
is distinctly underwhelming. And that’s from someone who loves football.
But
I also like other sports, and today saw Scottish Rugby announce shirt
sponsorship deals for Edinburgh Rugby and Glasgow Warriors. This season they’ll
carry BT Sport on their jerseys. A very canny move from BT, who through this
deal circumvent Sky’s ban on BT advertising on their channel. But look at the coverage.
To launch the deal the players are wearing BT t-shirts. Not the Glasgow or
Edinburgh branding. Those shirts aren’t available yet. Fans have to wait until
19th August to see their new kit. The whole set-up is budget. Can
you imagine any major sporting clubs from around the world doing something like
this? I can’t.
Apologies
for the doom and gloom just before the season starts but one can’t help but
feel that whilst our players might be professionals, we in Scotland are
absolute amateurs in marketing and selling our sports.
A mere two hectic months after I finished 42
Grounds – the new football season is underway. For me, last season ended with a
defeat for Hibs at Hampden and the new season will begin this Thursday when
Hibs try to overturn a 2-0 defeat against Malmo.
It’s taken me two months to get round to this post
for a number of reasons. First of them was that I’ve been incredibly busy with,
well, life. Work, weddings and everything else in between. Secondly, I was
probably suffering from a little bit of footballing fatigue, writing up reports
after every match. But also, I wanted to delay the post because I wanted to
have a little bit of perspective on the season.
Two months has given me time to reflect.
And you know what? Scottish football isn’t all
that bad. We’re mired in negativity surrounding the game, but I believe this is
for two simple reasons: 1) we’ve have the richest league in history playing
next door and, as is our want as Scots, we’ll always compare ourselves to what
is happening down south and 2) we are far too inward looking in Scotland. There’s
leagues of similar sizes throughout Europe that are undergoing just as many
problems (just look at the mess in Portugal for starters) but we choose not to
focus on them because we prefer to moan
about Scotland’s continual decline from the world-beaters of the ‘60s and ‘70s
without recognising the world around us has changed and will continue to
change.
But what of last season?
In 42 games I saw:
123 goals
Saw games with 186,326 people
Paid a total of £597 in admission
Bought £90 worth of programmes (having
sourced programmes from Hibs and Hearts online, missed the Bet Butler programme
sellers and discovered Brechin no longer do programmes)
Travelled 2,689 miles (roughly)
Most expensive ticket: £30 for Hearts
vs. Hibs, 3January 2013
Cheapest ticket: £5 for Aberdeen vs.
Hearts, 18 May 2013
Most goals: Cowdenbeath 4-4 Raith Rovers,
20 October 2012
Four 0-0 draws
15 home wins, 16 away wins and 11
draws
Most of the time, I had a great time and saw some
thrilling matches. There were certain moments when I questioned by sanity
(being so cold I bought a cup of tea at Ochilview just to feel warmth again
springs to mind) but overall I loved my time watching the great and the good of
Scottish football.
I’ve said often that the ticket prices are far too
expensive for what’s on offer but hopefully that will be resolved – I’m picking
up a real sense from clubs that they need to attract new fans to watch the
games, not bleed the diehards dry.
There’s a lot to look forward to in the coming
season, and I intend to continue writing about Scottish football and with the
advent of the Lowland League and pyramid structure there could be some new
grounds to write about shortly.
Any round-up wouldn’t be complete without a list
of awards – so here are my 42 Grounds awards for 2012/13
Best
game: This was a tough one, but across the 42, the most
thrilling match to watch was Dundee United’s defeat to St Mirren at Tannadice on 30 December 2012. Tannadice is
a great, compact place to watch a top-flight game and then this end to end
encounter took place. An afternoon game under floodlights, plenty of rotten
defending, great goals and a sending off. Enough to warm the coldest of hearts.
Best
team performance: Without a shadow of a doubt – Ross County in their 3-0 demolition of
Motherwell in February. I’ve never seen a team work so far for each other –
they covered a tremendous amount of ground, defended together and attacked in
flurries (over-lapping fullbacks, my favourite). They dismantled the league
runners-up in such a fashion that even ‘Well manager Stuart McCall didn’t have
any complaints.
Best
individual performance: Honourable mention to Leigh
Griffiths, without whom Hibs would have struggled in almost every single game I
saw them in (seven). I was also delighted to see Aidan Connolly make his debut
for Queen’s Park back in November. From the very first minute he looked assured
on the park and despite his size he’s done well to bag a move to Dundee United
in the summer. However, the winner is Peterhead’sRory McAllister. He was
instrumental in Peterhead’s 2-0 win against Annan in March. Peterhead looked an
average side even with McAllister in the side, but his sheer will to drag the
team along to victory was most impressive. Evidentially he is far too good a
player for the Third Division.
Highlight
of the season: During the season it became clear to
me that I was developing more than a casual interest in Elgin and that I was
suddenly becoming a supporter. Therefore, Gavin Morrison’s free kick to give Elgin a 2-1 lead in the final minute against Annan in April was a highlight.
Suddenly the possibility of promotion via the playoffs seemed a real
possibility as I danced a jig on the Galabank terrace. Cruelly that moment was
taken away within 90 seconds as Annan equalised and broke City hearts.
Honourable mention should also go to Inverness Caledonian Thistle’s chairman
Kenny Cameron for getting in touch after the reading this post and ensuring I
could attend ICT-Celtic. Top guy, who really restored my faith in those in
Scotland’s boardrooms.
Best
programme: A lot of competition for this one –
but Aberdeen get the nod – many interesting articles and designed brilliantly.
It just pipped Motherwell, which is another cracking read. Both Inverness and
Stirling should be applauded for having a different approach to the traditional
matchday programme. Stranraer and Cowdenbeath should also get a mention for
very readable publications despite presumably much smaller budgets.
Best
matchday experience: There’s only two clubs that have the
budgets to put a real effort into the ‘matchday experience’ – the Old Firm and
I can only be honest when I say Celtic’s is streets ahead of the other 41 clubs.
They make proper use of the big screens that are available to them, fan
interaction in the build-up to the game is used throughout and once the game
begins, the Green Brigade make enough of a racket for the 55,000 in attendance.
Admittedly, I was there on the day they clinched the title, but I can only
judge on what I saw over the season.
Favourite
ground SPL: This isn’t a hard one – nothing beats
a full Tynecastle under the lights. I was there later in the season for another
midweek game and it is still special. Compact and steep, it keeps the noise in –
quite an achievement when the game was as bad as the 3Jan stinker.
Favourite
ground SFL1: Honourable mention goes to
Cowdenbeath. I know some who are not fans of the ‘rustic’ charm of Central
Park, but I love it. There is simply nothing else like it in Scottish football
and we should appreciate that – especially as the First Division has a number
of new identikit stadiums. But the winner is Cappielow, home to Greenock Morton. A glorious green surface, three beautiful terraces and an old-fashioned
grandstand with one of the best views in Scotland. On a sunny day, I defy
anyone not to enjoy their day out at Cappielow.
Favourite
ground SFL2: Gayfield.
I had been warned about Arbroath’s ground – especially as I’d chosen to visit
late January, when the weather could be temperamental to say the least. But we
found a beautiful wee ground – noisy fans, covered terraces and a wonderful
local derby. Standing on the north east corner of the ground, where you can
watch the waves crash against the land as well as a football game is pretty
special.
Favourite
ground SFL3: Although it only spent one season
hosting Third Division games, Ibrox is by far and away the most impressive
ground in SFL3. The sheer size of the ground is impressive and once inside the
ground you can’t help but be impressed by the scale of it. It felt like a
proper arena where you couldn’t tell if you were in or out. Scotland is truly
fortunate to have a number of magnificent stadia.
That concludes 42 Grounds for 2012/13. Thanks to
those who have visited the blog, got in contact via twitter and the like. It’s
been a blast and I’d recommend it to any Scottish football fan – you’ll come
away with more love for the game, something I didn’t think was possible.
This
is it. The final game of the season. The 42nd ground of the year.
You would have thought by this point I’d have learnt to take a jacket to a
game. Even one in May. Instead I got wet. Really very wet. And damp. And
miserable. All this before kick-off.
I’d
booked my train up to Aberdeen as soon as the SPL split fixtures were
confirmed, so I knew that my adventure would be finishing at Pittodrie. In a
way, it was fitting as Aberdeen were the team I first supported as a four year
old before, gasp, horror, I switched my allegiance to Hibernian.
I
arrived in Aberdeen an hour before kick-off. By this point the torrential rain
that had followed me on my journey all the way to the Granite City seemed to
have dissipated. So I chanced my arm and decided to talk the 20 minutes from
the train station to Aberdeen’s home ground. Big mistake. By the time I got to
the ground I was absolutely drenched and my mood was made worse by checking my
ticket to see I had a seat in Row D – right where the stand stopped being
covered by the roof.
I
thought I’d wait and see if all the seats in the covered section were occupied
by kick-off and mercifully there were not and I was able to dive in a seat just
as the game got underway.
The
crowd of 10,465 meant that Pittodrie was only half-full, which was slightly
disappointing given the much reduced admission for the dead rubber encounter
but I imagine many people were put off by the weather. Completely
understandable if I’m honest.
Yet
there may not be a football ground near the city centre in Aberdeen for much
longer. The club plan to move to a brand new stadium to the south of the city.
It’s a move that I feel, could be disastrous for the club. There is no doubt
that Pittodrie has seen better days, but when has a move to a new out-of-town
stadium ever galvanised a club in Scotland? On the whole, they’ve become white
elephants and the lack of transport links for the new Aberdeen stadium leaves
me with a feeling this could be the same. Construction of the stadium has been
delayed for a year, so perhaps common sense will prevail. What’s clear, however
is that little money has been invested in the ground in the past twenty years –
in fact, it looks the same as it did when I went to my first match here in
1994/5.
Pittodrie
is dominated by a massive two-tier stand at the Beach End of the stadium,
called the Richard Donald Stand. It towers above the rest of the ground, and
makes it lopsided. The main stand is a typical construction and the South Stand
where I was sitting is a large 8,400 embankment which in the east sections
hosts away fans.
As
I had mentioned, the weather was shocking. It was easily the worst playing
conditions I’d seen all season – with puddles forming in parts of the pitch. It
was clearly going to be a skiddy surface for the players.
The
game didn’t really get off to a flyer and the most entertaining action in the
early stages took place in the stands as a group of Dons fans unveiled a banner
with the slogan: “Stewart Milne: epic fail”. Milne is the unpopular chairman of
the underachieving Aberdeen and soon the fans right to protest was halted as
the stewards moved in, removed the banner after a small confrontation and
ejected one or two of the rowdier fans. The natives are clearly not happy.
And
in all honesty, who can blame them? Aberdeen are an underachieving club. They
are a one club team in Scotland’s third biggest city, which has been recession
proof in these recent turbulent economic times. They are not a bottom six club,
but have largely underachieved since the start of the 1990s. The shadow of Sir
Alex Ferguson’s success in the 80s looms large over this club.
The
news of the great man’s retirement was covered in Aberdeen’s excellent
programme – certainly one of the best I’ve read this season, with lots of
interesting content and lengthy pieces.
The
game itself was what I was expecting from two underperforming clubs on the
final day of the season. It wasn’t bad, but it hardly set the heather alight.
Aberdeen had all the early chances and Hearts keeper Jamie Macdonald kept them
in the game with several great saves in the first half.
Hearts,
on the other hand could be summed up in one word: turgid. This was the third
time I’d seen them in the flesh this season and they are not a pleasing outfit
on the eye. Obviously matters have not been helped by off-the-field problems but
for too long they’ve overpaid people to play football in an unattractive
manner. By the amount of money they spend on personnel, Hearts should be
finishing third every season in the SPL no problem, but that looks unlikely to
be the case for the foreseeable future as belts get tightened around
Tynecastle. Fortunately, they have a good few youngsters coming through, so
hopefully footballing brains will replace brawn.
Despite
Aberdeen’s penchant for 0-0 draws this season, I was impressed by how they were
playing under new manager Derek McInnes. They passed a ball a lot better than I
expected and one can only hope that will get better if the playing surface is
allowed to repair itself over the summer, as certain games at Pittodrie this
season have been notable for having more soil on display than grass!
However,
what was disappointing about Aberdeen’s performance was that they still played
it safe despite the outcome of the game not really mattering. It was rare for
the midfield to push further up and support the attackers and even rarely for
either of the fullbacks to support the players in front of them by overlapping
or for those wingers to run at the shaky Hearts defence. Despite being denied a
half dozen good chances by Macdonald in the Hearts goal, it was somewhat
inevitable that Hearts were the team to take the lead. Having not looked in the
game, Hearts pushed up and got a corner. From the set piece, Ryan Stevenson was
able to wander free from his marker and head the ball home unchallenged. A simpler goal you will not see for a very
long time.
It
would have been an injustice for Hearts to walk away with all three points and
fifteen minutes after going behind, the Dons equalised after good work from
Johnny Hayes saw Jamie Hamill put the ball in his own goal.
The
rest of the game petered out, with both teams probably quite happy to not lose.
It’s probably that sort of attitude that has them sitting 8th and 10th
in the league respectively.
As
the final whistle blew, it also signalled the end of my 42 Grounds adventure. I’ll
be doing a few wrap up posts soon, so look out for that. One thing is for
certain – I’ve thoroughly enjoyed (almost) every minute of it.
As
I’m reaching the dog end of the season I was aware of the possibility that I’d
be watching some games that would be dead rubbers. If the game at Dens Park was
anything to go by, then I’m all for meaningless games.
I
journeyed up to Dundee on the train with a hangover that was more brutal than a
Siberian winter. Therefore, my decision to walk to Dens Park was a tad
foolhardy, especially as the route took me up Hilltown, a rather steep hill.
Dens Park on the right, Tannadice in the distance on the left
This
was only my second visit to Dens, the home of Dundee since 1899. The ground has
two modern stands behind each goal. The Main Stand at Dens is unusual in
Scottish football in that it is oval shaped, which isn’t too noticeable from
inside the ground, but can be seen outside due to the shape of Sandeman Street.
The stand on the opposite side is the Derry stand which runs for two thirds
alongside the pitch. For my previous visit to Dens when Dundee played Aberdeen
in the League Cup I know the Derry stand is where most of the atmosphere at
Dens is created.
Dundee
had been relegated the week before, so had nothing to play for but pride whilst
Kilmarnock only had positional money to play for as the teams trotted out of
the Dens Park tunnel and down onto the pitch. The weather was all over place
(four seasons in one day) and I was heartened to see the home fans giving their
team a warm welcome despite relegation. Truth be told, Dundee never had a
chance of SPL survival as their arrival to the division was only confirmed a
matter of weeks before the start of the season. This made it very difficult to
get a squad capable of competing in Scotland’s top division.
The
game was only four minutes gone when Kilmarnock took the lead through Rory
McKenzie. McKenzie picked the ball up from ten yards inside his own half and
ran with the ball. Dundee players backed off and eventually two of them tackled
each other as McKenzie took the ball into box and stroked it home with his left
peg. It was hard to describe a solo goal like that as nothing short of
ridiculous. Evidentially, luck has not been kind to Dundee at all this season.
A
visit to Dens is always aesthetically pleasing, and the home side have the
classiest shirts in the SPL this season. What is not so pleasing is the clear
bumps in the playing surface, which must have an impact of playing passing
football. Another unpleasing aspect of the encounter was the performance of the
referee (this looks like it’s becoming a theme doesn’t it?) who at no point
looked like he had authority over the players on the park.
Dundee
equalised in the 19th minute through Ryan Conroy’s close range
effort after some good close passing from the boys in blue. Dundee had missed a
good few chances preceding the equaliser as the Kilmarnock back four gave
Dundee plenty of space, which has probably been the story of their season.
At
half-time Dundee said goodbye to a club legend. Rab Douglas is departing the
club after falling out with current manager John Brown and he received a
touching standing ovation from the fans as he walked round all three sides of
the ground occupied by Dundee fans. Even the biggest cynic could not have been
touched by his kissing of the goalposts at the Bobby Cox Stand end.
Rab Douglas says goodbye
The
second half continued in the vein of the first, with both sides attacking and
trying to create chances. Kilmarnock took the lead for the second time in the
58th minute when midget left Chris Johnston cut inside from the
wing, fired a shot at the edge of the box that was blocked and returned to him
and the youngster blasted his second attempt into the faraway corner.
Johnston
looks like a great prospect and I’ll be following his development as he’s a
player that could get fans on their feet. Likewise Dundee’s Gary Harkins, a
player who infuriates and delights in equal measure – he’s a lovely passer and
a very skilful player but his work ethic is less than exemplary.
Kilmarnock
doubled their lead seventeen minutes from time when Rabiu Ibrahim showed
wonderful poise and balance to escape his marker and lay the ball into the path
of Clingan, who curled a beautiful effort beyond Simonsen from 20 yards.
Mark
Stewart pulled a goal back for Dundee in the 82nd minute with a neat
lob of Cammy Bell but it wasn’t enough to get the Dee back in the game.
At
full time the home fans were quite muted when their players were leaving the
pitch, which was not surprising given relegation before the last home game of
the season. There was glimmers of quality in this match, but not enough from
Dundee to garner anything from the match. Which is probably the story of their
season. If the club had got a proper pre-season in the knowledge they would be
playing SPL football then no doubt they would have had a better tilt at staying
in the division.
In
the end, it just wasn’t enough. Due to their inconsistent form, Elgin needed a
miracle to happen on the final day of the season, to allow them to reach the
play-offs. They needed to beat basement side East Stirlingshire and hope that
Rangers would defeat Berwick Rangers. That in itself wasn’t difficult to
imagine, but the margin of victories had to total seven. Given Rangers recent
form, it looked inevitable that they would grind out a win by one or two goals
(which is frankly an embarrassment to a team of handsomely paid professionals
in a very much part-time league). Therefore, Elgin had to go all-out from the
moment the referee blew his whistle at 12.30pm.
For
some reason, this was the game I was most excited about all season. I even
dreamt about it twice in the build-up to the game. It’s become increasingly
evident to me this season that I really enjoy watching Elgin play, even if they
are as frustrating to watch as my other team (Hibs). What I enjoy most about
it, I suppose, is the intimate surroundings of the grounds and the fact you are
so close to the action.
First,
however, a confession: this wasn’t my first visit to Borough Briggs this
season. Earlier in the season when we attended Inverness-Celtic, we mooted the
possibility of a single day double-header, taking in Elgin vs. Annan following
the SPL encounter. However, traffic getting out of the Highland capital was a
nightmare and so we arrived at Borough Briggs at 3.25pm, with no turnstiles
open. Thankfully, someone was around from the club who let us in (for free),
but at that point Elgin were already two goals to the good. I didn’t think a
post about that game would be particularly fair.
Borough
Briggs is also the site of my first experience of the disappointment of postponements
in football. As both sets of my grandparents lived in Elgin, we were used to
spending Christmas there, and we’d try to catch City in Highland League action,
which invariably would be called off due in inclement December weather. Back in
those days, Elgin were a good Highland League side and Borough Briggs contained
a unique feature: a pill box from World War 2, which sadly was removed when
Elgin became SFL members in 2000, alongside Peterhead. Sadly, I couldn’t find a
picture of the pill box on the internet, but a photo of it proudly sits in the
club’s catering stall.
Aside
from the lack of pill box, little has changed at Borough Briggs in the past
twenty or so years. There’s a small main stand (with seats provided by
Newcastle United) with a covered terrace on the opposite side and uncovered
small terracing behind each goal. Borough Briggs is also home to one of the
biggest pitches in Scotland, although that might change if plans for an
artificial playing surface goes ahead over the summer.
East
Stirlingshire started brightly, hitting the post before a powerful deflected
header from Jamie Duff in the 16th minute put Elgin in the lead.
Suddenly a seven goal swing looked possible. However, that feeling of hope were
short-lived as East Stirlingshire equalised through Jamie Glasgow in a
well-worked move that had stretched Elgin’s three man defence.
The
home fans weren’t worrying too much as Elgin piled on the pressure and by the
39th minute found themselves in the lead once more. This time,
Stuart Leslie coolly finishing to give Elgin a small chance of promotion. But,
just four minutes later, East Stirlingshire had equalised again with a comical
goal – a free kick was floated in that evaded everyone before bouncing and
hitting the bar, falling to Paul Quinn who poked the ball against Elgin goalkeeper
Joe Malin and the ball slowly dribbled into the net. It was a defensive
shocker, combined with an element of bad luck, which summed up a lot of Elgin
this season.
It
was beginning to dawn on most fans in the ground that a seven goal swing was
just going to be out of reach as Rangers slowly proceeded to a 1-0 win over
Berwick. It produced a somewhat subdued atmosphere for the second half where
Elgin kept trying to push on but without much luck – they genuinely looked like
they had run out of steam. One couldn’t help but imagine a scenario where they had
held onto their leads for a little longer and also to think back to a number of
games this season where Elgin threw away points from a leading position. Close,
yet so far.
The
second half wasn’t much to write home about and Ross Jack made three substitutions
in an attempt to change the score. Just as it looked like the teams would share
the points – a long floated ball was headed on for Ceiran McLean to rifle a
magnificent half volley right into the roof of the net. It was a magnificent
goal, worthy of winning any game, yet somehow, felt underwhelming.
But
Elgin fans can console themselves with the fact that the new season is just
around the corner.
Apologies
for the lack of updates on here – I’ve completed the 42, just not had the time
to write up the posts!
I
headed up the road quite early with my Dad knowing that we would have to
negotiate at least one, if not two sets of rush hour traffic in Edinburgh and
Dundee. Luckily, we arrived in the Angus town of Brechin with plenty of time.
Too much time in fact, as when we arrived at Glebe Park at 7pm the ground
wasn’t even open!
Eventually
the turnstiles were open and it gave us an opportunity to walk round one of
Scotland’s more interesting grounds. The largest stand in the ground is behind
the goal, there’s a small, covered terrace behind the other goal and a small
wooden main stand with around 200 seats. Opposite the main stand and running
down half the side of the pitch is the famous Glebe Park hedge. The video
embedded above does much more credit to Glebe Park than my words ever could.
What
we also discovered is that Brechin City no longer offer programmes for punters
to buy. This was a bit of a disappointment, but we overheard a conversation in
the compact club shop that they weren’t economical for the club, which is a
disappointment. However, it’s clear that for most SFL clubs, the matchday
programme is a labour of love for a small band of dedicated contributors. Perhaps
with the move to an increasingly digital world that programmes may be another
victim of ‘progress.’
Taking
our seats in the row behind the small directors box at the Glebe it became
increasingly clear that Glebe Park was another Scottish ground with a
pronounced slope and bobbly surface. I can’t be alone in thinking that an
uneven surface is not conducive to even, passing football. Another appeal of
the artificial surfaces that will soon dominate the lower leagues.
Unsurprisingly,
the opening stages saw a lot of mishits in a game that secured a playoff berth for
Brechin. Albion Rovers were already relegated, with their focus now turned to
preparing for SFL 3 next season.
I
was once again impressed by Albion Rovers’ right winger, David Crawford, a
player who I imagine will not remain at the club next season. From what I’ve
seen from him this season he should be challenging for a place in an SFL1 side.
Brechin
took an early lead in the 19th minute when Gary Fusco rocketed a
shot from outside the box which was parried away but in the direction of City’s
Derek Carcary who stroked the ball home from 12 yards.
Rovers
keeper Graeme Shepherd kept his side in the game shortly after, saving well
from a Gerald McLauchlan header. Rovers then had the ball in the net but left
back Andrews had clearly pushed the ball goalwards with his hand.
Andrews
then contrived to lose the ball in possession allowing Andy Jackson a clear run
at goal from the half way line but he managed to push his shot wide.
At
times, Albion Rovers look competitive enough to do well in SFL2 but they lacked
a certain something, they seemed too ponderous in possession and lacked
anticipation for breaking balls. Rovers had the ball in the net for the second time
and again it was ruled out. This time it was for offside, but it was a
well-worked move that gave some indication of Rovers’ potential.
Before
I’d arrived at Brechin, I’d be recommended on twitter to try the soup at the
pie shop. It was a great call, a lovely
chicken soup which has got to be an essential for any visitor to the Glebe. Soup
at football seems like a rarity, which was followed by another strange event –
the playing of a Right Said Fred (You’re My Mate) song on
the tannoy. Who knew the brothers had another hit in their back catalogue?
Returning
to matters on the pitch, the game was littered by a number of poor decisions from
the referee. Nothing too disastrous, but a series of nitpicking decisions ensured
that the game didn’t flow as well as it should. I’ve rarely been critical of
refs this season, but this was an unnecessarily picky performance.
The
second half matched the pattern of the first, with Rovers once more putting the
ball in the net for it to be ruled out. We also had a moment of light relief
when the ball ended up on the top of the hedge and a groundsman was duly
dispatched to retrieve the ball with his ladder. Sadly, both attempts to line
up the ladder to the ball were wide of the mark – a fact that was obvious to us
on the other side of the park, but not the groundsman.
Carcary
killed off the game in the 69th minute, after a series of loose
passing from both sides opened the middle of the park up for Carcary to drive a
shot from 20 yards out into the bottom corner of the net, sending the home fans
away to dream of play-off possibilities and Rovers’ fans with a lot to
contemplate on their drive home to Coatbridge.
Although
I’ve only got four grounds to go, I think I can safely say that I’ve found my
favourite ground in Scottish football. Welcome to Cappielow, home to Greenock
Morton. Obviously, all these things are subjective, and should I have been here
in a wet and windy February evening I might have said something different. But
I was in Greenock on a mild spring afternoon and the sun was shining. Perfect
conditions to watch some football.
Perhaps
the fact that this was Morton’s final home game of the season and second place
was assured added to the relaxed atmosphere my Dad and I experienced. There was
little tension, just a leisurely encounter between two teams who are no doubt
already dreaming of next year. Hamilton could potentially finish 3rd
in the First Division, but it would be some distance behind Morton, who ran
Partick Thistle close until the start of April.
We
arrived at Cappielow around thirty minutes before kick-off which gave us enough
time to admire the old ground. Home to Morton since 1879, it’s a compact but
fantastic ground. We entered at the Sinclair Street side of the ground and
stood for a bit admiring the view of the big crane in the distance. As you can
see from the photos it’s a smashing ground and I’d thoroughly recommend you going
if you get the chance.
We
took a standing position on the half-way line in the covered Cowshed. A pie and
a Capri Sun later, I couldn’t help but notice that it wasn’t the first SFL
ground I’ve been to this season where the ground didn’t stock the league
sponsors product (Irn Bru). I have to say, I find this very bizarre and I’d be
interested to know why this isn’t the case.
Another
terrific aspect of Cappielow is the playing surface. It looked immaculate, only
Peterhead could compare from what I’ve seen this season. The pitch also had an ‘old
school’ feel to it as there was a definite slope on the pitch, which reminded
me of Easter Road when I first started attending games. The Cowshed was also
terrific at retaining a lot of noise, I bet it sounds terrific at big cup games
and matches against local Renfrewshire rivals St. Mirren.
The
game, however, was far from a classic. So far this season, Morton had failed to
register a victory over the Accies and today was no different. Accies, who are
in the midst of six (now seven) game undefeated streak looked more comfortable
and confident on the ball. Morton seemed to have their tactics all wrong. They
pumped long balls forward (not the first team I’ve seen down this against the
towering Accies’ centre halves) unsuccessfully. More disappointedly, whenever
Colin McMenamin or Archie Campbell did break, the support from midfield was
lacking.
Even
in a benign game like this, there’s still the potential for the referee to wreak
havoc, and Alan Muir did that, with a series of poor decisions that were
inconsistent and hard to explain. He never once looked in charge of the game.
Accies
took the lead in the 39th minute when an Ali Crawford cross found
the prolific Stevie May just inside the box. With some good play he managed to
curl the ball into the corner of the net. It was a well-worked goal that even
some of the ‘Ton fans surrounding us applauded. A nice touch that was only
making it easier for me to enjoy my trip to Cappielow.
May
never stopped moving the entire 90 minutes and it will be interesting to see
where he’ll be next season after his year-long loan to Hamilton from St
Johnstone finishes. He’s had a terrific scoring record in both this and last
season, and he grabbed his 14th for the month ten minutes into the
second half when a Michael Devlin header was knocked to the back post for May
(who had lost his marker) to poke in.
Morton
shuffled the pack, making all three substitutions by the 63rd
minute, but truthfully they were too lumbering on the ball and were caught in
possession far too often. They looked most like scoring through Martin Hardie
free kicks, but nothing came off for the SFL1 runners-up.
The
final whistle brought celebrations from the small band of Accies fans housed in
the main stand and warm applause for the Morton players, who were being
recognised for a great overall season, rather than today’s off-key performance.
