Sunday 2nd January 2011 - Raith Rovers v Dunfermline Athletic [Preview]

Click here or read below of my preview of the forthcoming Fife derby between Raith Rovers and Dunfermline Athletic. It was published on The Away End.

Title honours up for grabs in Ne'erday clash

Raith Rovers are fighting to get their pitch ready for their eagerly anticipated fixture against Dunfermline Athletic on Sunday. The pitch at Starks Park is still frozen in areas, but the club are confident that it will be playable in time for the Fife derby.

The consequences of this game are huge in the race for the First Division title. A Dunfermline win would send the Pars seven points clear of their Kirkcaldy neighbours, a sizeable gap for the turn of the year. However, a win for Raith would see them close the gap on Dunfermline to just one point, with a game in hand.

Raith, despite occupying third place, are on a poor run of form. They have failed to win since 30 October and were unable to score in their last two games. However, John McGlynn's side will be pleased that they have managed to keep a clean sheet in these previous two games after they fell to a shocking 4-2 defeat at Alloa Athletic in November.

Dunfermline on the other hand are on a fairly decent run. They have picked up eight points in their last four games and thrashed Cowdenbeath by five goals on Wednesday night. Jim McIntyre's side have a great attacking threat but have been known to crumble defensively. They have thrown away 2-0 advantages against Dundee and Raith to draw 2-2 in recent months.

What we can expect in this New Year derby is a very stuffy game played at a frantic pace. Raith have a very well organised and hard working defence and it is unlikely that Dunfermline's attacking threat will be sharp enough to penetrate the home defence very often. Dunfermline will probably have slightly more of the ball, but when Raith have possession, they will look to break quickly with the pace of their attacking line.

Raith's key player will undoubtedly be Gregory Tade. The big Frenchman causes havoc every time he plays due to his sheer athleticism and pace. He will be the target man for any long balls and is a key part of the Raith counter attack system.

Dunfermline's key player would normally be Steven Bell or Willie Gibson, but they will miss out due to injury and illness. Therefore, Andy Kirk will be the player that Pars fans will look to for a spark. The First Division joint top goalscorer has struggled to rediscover his scoring form recently, but found himself back on track after he scored the opening goal in the romp against Cowdenbeath on Wednesday.

You don't have to look far for a classic game between Raith and Dunfermline. The sides last met in a 2-2 draw at a packed East End Park on 13 November 2010. The Pars dominated the first period and went in 2-0 up at the break thanks to goals from former Rover, Pat Clarke and Callum Woods. Rovers fans stood in silence at half time as they tried to comprehend the sheer dominance of their west Fife rivals.

The second half began with Rovers finally creating a few decent chances. However, Dunfermline should have sealed the game shortly after the break when Kirk missed an open goal after a deep Clarke cross. The Pars fans had their heads in their hands once more when Neil McGregor picked up his second yellow card of the game after scything down Scott McBride.

Raith were now well in control but fifteen minutes from time their fans were almost rioting. Kirk had left the pitch to be treated by the physio, while manager McIntyre made two substitutions. Kirk was unaware that he had been subbed and after receiving treatment he strolled back onto the pitch to make the teams even again at 11v11. Referee Eddie Smith soon turned his attention to the Raith fans screaming “cheats!” and booing incessantly. He finally realised that Kirk had incorrectly come back onto the pitch and booked the striker before he trotted back off the pitch onto the bench.

Raith managed to grab a goal back on the 83^rd minute when keeper' Chris Smith failed to hold onto the ball and former Par Ian Williamson nicked it off him and slotted home into the empty net.

Minutes later Williamson rattled the bar and Craig Wilson fired a belting shot inches over. The Pars looked to have held out for the three points, but two minutes into stoppage time Allan Walker looped the ball over Smith into the back of the net to level the game at 2-2.

For Dunfermline fans it felt like a defeat, for Rovers, it was a victorious feeling.

With so much to play for, Sundays game should be a cracker too.

Wednesday 29th December 2010 - Falkirk 0 v 0 Raith Rovers

Click here or read below for my match report of the Irn Bru Scottish First Division fixture between Falkirk and Raith Rovers. It was published on the official Raith Rovers website.

 

Stalemate At Falkirk

Raith Rovers rounded off a fantastic year with a well earned draw at the Westfield Stadium.

The majority of the match was an even contest with both sides unable to break each other down but as legs began to tire near the end, opportunities followed.

It was the visitors that had the best two chances, both falling to Gregory Tade in the dying embers of the game. However, Falkirk goalkeeper Robert Olejnik was in fine form, denying the Frenchman one-on-one both times.

Despite a poor first half display from both sides, the signs were initially positive as Falkirk's Mark Stewart broke free at the back post only for former Falkirk stopper Mark Campbell to make a superb sliding tackle just in time.

After twenty minutes of play being stuck in midfield, Mark Twaddle made a neat run down the left hand side but was averted by Rovers captain Grant Murray. After the resultant corner, Raith broke up the pitch and Scott McBride hit an effort wide of the post.

Moments later, the ball was at the other end of the pitch as Kenny Deuchar nodded a dangerous header across goal, but thankfully for the 547 away fans, Campbell was on hand to head over his own bar for a corner.

The rest of the half produced few other chances and it was made harder to watch by referee Stevie O'Reilly as he persisted in talking to players for long spells after strong tackles. Indeed, three minutes from the break Raith gaffer John McGlynn was given a warning by O'Reilly for seemingly voicing some concerns over his performance.

Within five minutes of the second period Raith created the best chance of the match so far, as a cross-cum-shot from McBride was nearly diverted in at the back post by Tade.

John Baird and Allan Walker had attempts on goal for Raith which were followed by a tricky Kieran Duffie shot, however, David McGurn in the Raith goal did well to tip over.

Half chances appeared at both ends, with the majority created for Raith by Tade and Walker while Burton O'Brien and substitute Kallum Higginbotham fired over for Falkirk.

The Kirkcaldy side looked to have taken the lead on the 76th minute as Baird fired a well struck effort into the bottom corner but he was adjudged to be offside.

As the game drew to a close, Falkirk had numerous scrambles in the Rovers box, with the home support often crying for a penalty to be awarded.

In the last minute of regulation Raith should have taken the lead as Tade found himself clean through on goal after a long ball but his effort was well saved by Olejnik.

Much to the Falkirk keeper's horror, three minutes into stoppage time, Tade was one-one-one with him again. The Austrian made another fine block with his legs, but this time the ball fell to Baird on the edge of the box, who fired another shot at goal. With Olejnik beaten, Rovers fans thought Baird had scored, only for Scobbie to clear the ball off the line.

The final action of the match was a Raith corner swung in by Walker and the home fans watched on through their fingers as Laurie Ellis headed the ball across goal, inches from the head of the inrushing Baird, and wide of the post.

A draw was the fairest result, but both teams will still feel that they had enough chances to win the match.

With Dunfermline Athletic thumping Cowdenbeath by five goals, the New Year derby between the Pars and Raith becomes more important. A Raith win on Sunday would take them just one point behind their West Fife rivals, with a game in hand.

The Future's Rosy, The Future's Red

Click here or read below for my article on the recent Aberdeen AGM. It was published on The Away End.

The Future's Rosy, The Future's Red

On Monday night Aberdeen held their 107^th AGM to around 100 weather-beaten shareholders. Nothing out of the ordinary was revealed, but on show was proof that chairman Stewart Milne and the board still put their hands in their pockets more than some Aberdeen fans give them credit for.

First on the agenda was the possibility of new signings for new gaffer Craig Brown. David McNamee does appear to be expected as the first signing, but Milne warned fans that there would not be an abundance of new talent through the doors of Pittodrie in January. Milne then stated that he believes Brown and his assistant Archie Knox can keep the club in the SPL with most of the resources that he has at hand already.

“There's not bags of money available in Scottish football.

“Football is all about getting the best out of a squad available.

“That's what Craig and Archie will set out to do.”

It therefore appears that there will not be a huge turnover of players in the winter transfer window, but more of a gentle alteration.

Also for discussion was the move of the club from Pittodrie to Loriston Loch, which Milne revealed should be in place for the 2013/14 season.

“The aim would be to have all the funding in place by the first quarter of 2012 with a view to starting the project in the second part of 2012 to have the stadium ready to play in for season 2013-14.”

The inevitable question of how and why Mark McGhee was sacked at the beginning of the month was then answered by Milne.

“We came to the conclusion it was the right time to make a change.

“When you don't make a change, there is potentially an even greater cost of not making a change.”

After many Dons fans questioned whether the club could afford to sack McGhee, Milne quickly proved that he and the board were still willing to put hands in their pockets to benefit the club. Quite rightly so, since they were the ones who appointed McGhee in June 2009 for what can only be described as a disastrous reign.

“In neither case did the funds come out of the football budget, we have found that money from elsewhere.”

Some Aberdeen fans should probably be a bit more thankful to have a chairman who puts his hand in his pocket time and time again for what can from the outside, look like a impossible task. In McGhee, Milne may have appointed the wrong man, but on paper it looked like a fairly good appointment. Ultimately it failed, but it is always hard to predict who would do the best job at a football club.

Aberdeen fans should take comfort in the fact that Milne is trying to build a rosy future for the once proud club. The completion of a new stadium may still seem miles away, but once it goes through it should rejuvenate the club and can hopefully be followed up by a fruitful youth academy.

The Dons may be bottom of the SPL right now, but fans should have faith in the wily old foxes that are Brown and Knox. Firstly, to keep their club up this season, push them further up the table the following season and by then the new stadium and youth academy should be well on the way for what will be the start of a new era for Aberdeen Football Club.

Play-off Madness

Click here or read below for my article on the radical SPL play-offs proposed by Dundee United chairman, Stephen Thompson. It was published on www.theawayend.net.

Play-off Madness

Dundee United chairman, Stephen Thompson, has controversially proposed his own Scottish Premier League plans which would determine the winner through a play-off system at the end of each season.

All twelve current SPL clubs were due to meet on Monday to discuss the possibility of a ten team league,only for the snowy weather to scupper the plans. The discussion was to be based around the system proposed by SPL Chief Executive Neil Doncaster, a system which would see the bottom side in the Scottish top tier automatically relegated, with the winner of a 'SPL2' moving up a division automatically. As the regular season finishes, a play-off scenario containing the ninth placed team in the SPL and second, third and fourth in the SPL2 would then take place.

However, Thompson believes the SPL proposals are not radical enough and says that the top four teams to finish in the SPL should battle for the title in a play-off.

Thompson has stated that "just going back to a top 10 will not change anything. If we are to have just 10 in the top league, we have to look at really radical proposals.

“Fans of teams outwith the Old Firm have become fed up of those two sharing the title between them.

"It is incredible and extremely regrettable that the last non-Old Firm title win was 25 years ago.

"I think we need to go further and make things more interesting at the top of the table as well as having promotion/relegation play-offs."

Fair?

Is Thompson's idea fair though? Is there really any justification for a team to finish top of a league after 36 gruelling fixtures, only for the SPL to turn around and say “sorry guys, but now you have a match against the fourth placed side who finished 'x' points behind you, to see who are the champions”. If that fourth placed side knocked out the table toppers and went on to win the play-offs, would they really be worthy winners? Despite (for arguments sake) finishing twenty points behind the first placed side, why should they be rewarded with the trophy because they managed to collect a decent amount of points during the regular season and then winning four games on the bounce, right at the end?

Surely, the worthy and correct champions of a long league system are the side who collect the highest number of points? Scotland's top flight already has two competitions which have a knock-out system. The Scottish Cup (a competition that Thompson's side won last season) and the Scottish League Cup are already in place and give teams outside the Old Firm a better chance of winning competitions because teams do not have to be consistent over a long period of time to win it.

Crowds

Thompson asks us to consider “a top-four play-off with home and away games and a play-off final at Hampden.

"There would be full houses for all the games and it would create huge interest from the TV companies and the fans and would generate a lot of money, perhaps as much as £2m extra income for the teams in the SPL.”

That is all fine and well, the play-off matches would indeed be absolutely exhilarating. However, what about the money and crowds that Celtic and Rangers will lose during the regular season? The last time an Old Firm side finished outside the top four in Scotland was in the 1989/1990 season, when Celtic finished fifth. In every other season since, both of the Old Firm have finished in the top four. So what exactly is appealing to Celtic and Rangers fans about this play-off ending season? All Old Firm fans will realise that their clubs have an extremely rare chance of not making the play-offs. So why do they need to bother going to any league games until the play-offs? There is no incentive at all. Most Old Firm fans would find something else to do on a Saturday because there would be no reason to turn up to watch their team play a meaningless match.

Thompson may not care if Old Firm home crowds drop sharply, but what he would certainly miss, as a chairman, is the thousands of Old Firm fans that pay to come through to Dundee to watch games containing his football club.

Conclusion

Not only is Thompson's proposal grossly unfair, but it is also selfish and clearly only in the interests of his and similar sized clubs. We may well see Hearts or Dundee United win the top tier of Scottish football once more with this new system, but if they finish ten or twenty points behind the actual winner after 36 games, do they really deserve to be holding the trophy?

Scotland says 'snow way' to winter break

Click here or read below for my article on a winter break in Scottish football. It was published on www.thefootballreporter.com.

In recent weeks Scotland has been pounded with copious amounts of snow. Postponements have been rife and so to avoid all the hassle caused by these call-offs, fans and pundits have started calling for a winter break again. But could it really work?

To be blunt, no, it could not.

Some of the flooding during the storm

On 21 July 2009, Scottish First Division side Raith Rovers hosted a friendly against Hibernian. Everything was going well until the second half. The players came out and started the second period, but after just two minutes there was a power surge and the floodlights cut out. In just the next ten minutes, as the lights were turning back on, a freak storm occurred and flooded the pitch. Unfortunately, the match had to be abandoned.

If you had not already observed, this was a friendly abandoned due to weather, not in winter, but in the heart of summer. Admittedly it was a freak storm, but it underlines the point that Scottish weather is unpredictable at the best of times.

The current league campaign has seen postponements because of large amounts of snow (and referee strikes) as early as 27 November, while last season, Scottish clubs still saw matches called off as late as 2 March because of frozen pitches. So going by the events of just one year, 2010, if a winter break was to cover all possibilities of postponed fixtures, it would have to start in mid November and continue till mid March.

Of course this is far too long a period for no football to be played in the current league set up. How are Scottish teams supposed to find enough time to play their 36 or 38 league games, plus cup fixtures, between August and mid November, and mid March till May? Some clubs would have to play at least two games a week for the entire season to fulfil their fixtures. The product on display is bad enough already without having to watch the same players trying to perform whilst physically shattered.

Three or four months of fixtures cannot be wiped out because pitches 'might' freeze or flood, or snow 'might' compromise the safety of fans. Instead, the country has to continue to battle on with what the weather serves up. If Scotland is hit by adverse weather during December and January, then so be it. It can not be predicted when conditions will be unsuitable, so clubs have to stay tough and play the hand they are dealt by nature.

Some may say the solution would be to employ a winter break and extend the season by a few months. However, this would lead to league campaigns finishing in June or July. How are pitches supposed to repair themselves if football is still being played deep into the summer? How are clubs going to afford paying wages for one or two months longer when they struggle to pay wages as it is? And how are players going to have enough time to recuperate for the following season if they have just a few weeks to rest?

The 'winter break' is a pipedream and always will be.

Boyd Seeks Gers Return

Click here or read below for my article on Kris Boyd and his proposed move to Rangers in the January transfer window. It was published on The Away End.

Krismas Comes Early For Boro Fans As Mowbray Punts Flop

Just over a week ago it was revealed that Middlesbrough manager Tony Mowbray had informed striker Kris Boyd, that his services were no longer required, as the Teesside club aimed to reduce their wage bill. Now, it has been sensationally revealed that Boyd may be seeking a return to former side, Rangers.

Boyd: During happier times at Ibrox

Pre-season promotion favourites Middlesbrough, currently sit second bottom of the English Championship after a staggering eleven losses and just five wins after nineteen games. Gordon Strachan, who resigned after just under one year in charge, was replaced by Boro legend, Mowbray in October and he now seeks to dispose of surplus players which disturb the 'balance' of the side.

Boyd arrived at Middlesbrough from Rangers in July this year with the aim of scoring goals, and lots of them. However, Boyd has struggled to find his finest form and has scored a measly five in nineteen appearances. After chatting with Mowbray, the 27-year-old has reportedly informed his agent to speak to Rangers to try and negotiate a way back into Glasgow.

Rangers of course are still in financial turmoil and currently in talks with a potential buyer, so now is probably not the best time for the club to be signing an expensive player.

Another problem is that Rangers have moved on as a club since Boyd's departure. He was replaced in the summer by strikers James Beattie and Nikica Jelavic and it would therefore be reasonable to suggest that the Gers cannot afford £18,000 a week of wages that were offered to Boyd before he left for England.

Moreover, there seems to be a fairly muted response from Rangers fans around Scotland with the news of Boyd seeking a move back 'home'. After all, some fans feel betrayed that he left for a club they regard as smaller than Rangers and believed it was a money-motivated move.

However, this is not the main root of concern from Rangers fans. In Boyd's last thirteen appearances for Rangers, he only scored four goals, of which two came from the penalty spot. Add this to Boyd's recent Middlesbrough record, Rangers do not need an expensive out-of-form striker on their books.

The other problem holding back a Boyd move to Glasgow is that Rangers do not appear to need the SPL top goal-scorer of all time. The Gers sit top of the SPL, two points clear of bitter rivals Celtic, with a game in hand. They are still in Europe and both of the Scottish cups. This is largely thanks to Kenny Miller, who has looked a totally different player since Boyd left and has scored eighteen goals in the SPL so far, which is seven more than any other player. The importance of Miller is obvious, because Rangers have not had the help of Beattie and Jelavic to boost the 'goals for' column as they have been injured for a large part of the season. Beattie is almost back to full fitness and Jelavic is hoping to be back in the next month so it seems that Boyd is not wanted, nor needed at Ibrox any more.

Miller has been on top form since Boyd left Rangers

So, if Rangers are happy with what they have, where next for Boyd? His perceived laziness on the pitch certainly lowers his chances of finding a top club, but to have scored more goals than Henrik Larsson in the SPL by the age of twenty seven is a fine achievement and should appeal to many managers in the Championship, or even at a higher level. People may scorn at the idea of Boyd in the English Premier League, but it has been argued by many that if you give Boyd enough chances at any level, he will stick the majority of them away.