Alphabet games

Whilst not exactly screaming from the rooftops, the majority of Warriors supporters will probably be quietly contented with our recent progress. Though our league position is not yet the healthiest, we appear to have turned a corner in terms of form. And securing our passage through to the Fourth Round of the increasingly bizarrely named 'Active Nation Scottish Cup' is, of course, a welcome bonus.

In the midst of all this optimism, then, it might come as a surprise to learn that - in the League at least - we are seemingly incapable of beating teams beginning with any letter other than 'A'. Of our four league victories this season, two have been against Alloa and two against Arbroath. Unfortunately, however, before our next meeting with Arbroath on 16 January, we face five clashes against teams beginning with other letters.

This is, of course, partly the fault of the SFL, who, back in July - with their decision to relegate Livingston to the Third Division, thus handing Airdrie United a First Division spot for this season - reduced the number of teams beginning with 'A' in our league, by the not inconsiderable margin of 33%. Whilst that may be a cross we have to bear, we really do need to break the hoodoo tomorrow. The Clyde game will not be easy - they have a capable new coach in one-time Stenny assistant John McCormack - but this is still a great chance for us to pull clear of the danger zone.

It would be remiss of me not to mention the recent off-field developments at the club. The long-standing plan to become a Community Interest Company (CIC) has finally come to fruition, and looks set to benefit the club in a number of ways - safegaurding our future on the one hand, whilst also giving formal recognition to the club's work with the local community. For those readers who are still looking for that last-minute stocking filler, I urge you to follow my lead and buy a share in 'Stenhousemuir FC CIC' - the perfect gift!

Return of the blogger...

It has, for various reasons, been a long time since I posted to this blog - the usual, more regular updates will recommence henceforth. My last post was immediately prior to our victory in the play-off final, and much has happened since then. Over and above the football, of course, everything was put well and truly into perspective during the summer, by the tragic deaths of Gordon Lennon and Paul McGrillen, two former Stenny favourites. My thoughts remain with both sets of families and friends, as I'm sure do those of all readers.

As for matters on the pitch, the opening weeks of the season have been nothing but varied. After a flying start, we now find ourselves at the wrong end of the table after a run of poor results. Yet there are a number of reasons to be positive - we have shown we can compete well in this league, and with a bit more luck we would undoubtedly have been further up the table.

This was most obviously borne out by last Saturday's derby defeat to Stirling Albion. Unlike many Warriors supporters, I have always tended to regard Stirling as geniune rivals. As such, there was no chance of me missing their first visit to Ochilview since 2001 - hence my 6:30am departure from my London home last Saturday! Whilst the result was ultimately disappointing, the first half display was the best I've seen from any Stenny team for several years. Fingers crossed, therefore, that we can take the positives from defeat, and pick up a few victories in the coming weeks.

Double D

Currently engaging the posters on the main forum is the question of “who is best”? Diack or O’Reilly; two of our three frontline strikers. For me it seems that the problem is that neither of them is the complete player. They both have their plus points and their negatives, and probably more of one than the other, unfortunately. Diack is now in his second phase with the club, so we know what we get from him. He is a poor man’s Kenny Miller. A nuisance of a striker, who causes problems for opposition defences, and some would say was the perfect foil to someone like our current no. 9 Scott Dalziel. Unfortunately, like Miller, he can’t hit a barn door with a banjo. Fundamental flaw for a centre forward really. O’Reilly, has always impressed me when I have seen him play against us, however, so far, in the limited opportunities he has been given, he has not been the threat I had hoped. It may be that him and Dalziel are the “Lampard and Gerrard” of the Scottish Second Division. Great individually, but can’t play in the same team (some might say), but so far this season Diack has seemed the bigger threat when partnered with Dalziel. O’Reilly may not be as nimble as Diack, but he does have a number of other attributes e.g. pass the ball to him and there is a good chance he will control it, give him a chance in front of goal and he will score more often than he misses. However, ask him to run on to one of Scott Dalziel’s flicks or, pass it 10 yards in front of him, and there is a good chance it will dribble out for a throw. Up front Coughlin’s preference seems to be Double D (Diack and Dalziel) but that could easily change as form fluctuates and injuries and suspensions kick in. No doubt O’Reilly will get a run in the team at some point in the season, which will please some and disappoint others.

Here we go (again)

Quicker than it takes to blink, another season is upon us. Coughlin has chosen to avoid wholesale changes from the team that scraped through the play offs having finished 4th in what was a pretty mediocre third division last season. So, what makes him think that the team that gave us a pretty horrid time of it last season will be good enough to avoid a quick fire return from whence we came? The new additions are something of a mixed bag. Chris McCluskey is not your typical goalie. Someone who makes Scott Johnstone look like a giant between the sticks won’t fill you with confidence. He had a cracking game against Alloa in the Stirlingshire Cup, but I’ll feel a lot more comfortable with Bennet back in goals. Steven Thomson – bit of an unknown quantity. I cannot recall having seen him play before he arrived at Ochilview, probably because he was punted by Montrose after a handful of appearances before turning up at Tranent. Hardly a glowing CV. He played for Blackburn aswell – presumably the team hailing from Susan Boyle’s home town as opposed to the more illustrative Rovers. Pat Scullion has turned in some impressive performances pre season. From memory he caught the eye for the wrong reasons playing for Elgin i.e. he was hopeless, but Coughlin does seem to have done a good bit of business getting him to Ochilview as there was quite a bit of competition (allegedly) for his signature. He had mixed reviews at Alloa, but generally he seems to be a decent signing. Craig O’Reilly – impressed when playing for Clyde, and last season scored a couple of belters against us for Montrose; before our Second Coming. Pre season he looks very good and I think will be first choice up front, with the other strikers battling it out to partner him. He could get us a lot of goals next season (finger etc crossed) Kevin Bradley impressed last season with Montrose. He is a nippy wee player who Brechin were after aswell. So far he has been OK from what I have seen, but I think over the season he will prove to be an important player for us. Having spent the last season watching too many turgid low scoring matches, it seems we have gone from one extreme to the other. Our defence, which last season was so strong, now looks like the weak link. General perception is that we need a left back (Alan Reid please) – Steven Thomson, or Kevin Motion, are not the answers. Chris McLeod also looks a poor replacement for John Ovenstone in my opinion. And he gets suspended quite a lot. All of which puts more pressure on Gary Thom and Jordan Smith – an injury or suspension to them would make things awkward. Saturday will give us a better impression on how things will pan out – I will have to keep abreast of it via the wonders of the internet unfortunately – but despite the low key build up to the new season I can’t wait for it all to start again.

Celebrity striker spot #3

Continuing my long list of former centre forwards spotted ambling through the pub lined streets of Rose Street, Edinburgh, is Andy “Bomber” Brown. He looks a lot better in a suit than he ever did in an ill fitting Stenhousemuir shirt. His torso really was too long. Who’s next? Darren Johnstone, Willie Watters, Kenny Miller…

What a day

By the end of the day on Saturday I was absolutely knackered. A combination of a sleepless night (I would love to say it was due to a dodgy baked potato, or something, instead of pre match nerves, but who am I kidding), a nerve jangling 120 minutes (I kept finding myself literally on the edge of my seat during the match), the drama of the penalty shoot-out (which seemed to fly past) and then the sprint from my seat on to the pitch and then back again (I almost felt as if it was me who had won promotion when I ended up giving Kevin Motion a hug in the middle of the pitch) meant I was done in by the end of the day. And all for promotion to the 2nd division! For once I fancied getting to the match earlier than my usual 2.55 on the basis, that (1) it would be good to sample the pre match atmosphere and (2) I didn’t fancy having to debate with some glory hunter (ha) who had managed to perch themselves in my seat that it would be a good idea if they moved – this was going to be a day of celebration, not confrontation, I told myself. Best laid plans and all that – I left my wallet at home and had to dash back to get it. This was not good for the blood pressure that was about to be pushed to it’s limit. Fortunately I had left myself some wriggle room so that I still got to the ground in good time. I even managed to secure 2 seats next to me for my friends / glory hunters! The match itself was a tense affair. What did I expect? Ovenstone had slotted in to the back line as if had never been away. He had had an excellent season for us (well, three quarters of one) and it was good that he got the chance to be part of the promotion winning team, as he deserved it. My guess is that he won’t be with us again next season, but he will be fondly remembered. Otherwise the team was pretty much as expected. Of course Scott Bennett took all the plaudits for his penalty save but his performances, not just in the last match, but in the period after the Montrose debacle were superb. Having pencilled him down as one of the players who wouldn’t feature next season, all of a sudden he has made himself irreplaceable. And at the same time gone down in Stenhousemuir folklore. I had made arrangements to be collected after the match, not really considering what might happen in the event of Extra Time and even Penalties. However, it worked out nicely, as my 3 year old daughter arrived just in time to witness her first ever penalty shoot out. Fortunately, her mum was with her which meant that when I was leaping about like a buffoon on the pitch she was in safe hands. Safer than mine, obviously. She now has a new song to sing (which is great because it means I don’t have to listen to her repertoire of Grease songs quite as much) – “Stenny for ever, Cowden in the river” – I presume she means the Firth of Forth. As for next season, well we’ll enjoy the feeling for now before starting to worry about what might happen next. Personally, I would just like to thank the players and management for providing such a great day as Saturday.

Bricking it

I don’t think I have looked forward to a Stenhousemuir match quite as much as I am tomorrow’s match. The last match in an unpredictable season that seems to have flown past. Yet the last three games have been fraught, tense matches. It crossed my mind last Sunday at Hampden and then again at Central Park (one benefit of this play off final is at least I will get one season‘s grace from visiting that god forsaken place), that this is just not an enjoyable experience, yet I can’t wait for tomorrow. The last two matches, goal-less matches, have been tense affairs. The quality of the football on show has been abysmal. You wouldn’t pay to watch it. Yet I did - twice. Who knows what tomorrow will be bring, but it will be a day to remember, one way or the other, irrespective of the quality of the 90 minutes. I think we are going to do it.