...or so the saying goes. 2008 was undoubtedly an eventful year for the Warriors, but as the New Year dawns, we find ourselves celebrating in time-honoured fashion: the obligatory handsome win against the Shire. Perhaps, though, it means even more than usual this year, for two reasons. For one thing, the day before the match, over a pint in a London pub, I discovered that one of my new work colleagues was a Shire fan - so the match was inevitably going to take on an added significance within our office.
The other major difference between this game and previous derbies, of course, was simply that few people were expecting a three goal margin of victory. The Shire have hit form for the first time since the Bronze Age, and are beginning to look like genuine promotion contenders. Their pre-match preparations were disrupted by the loss of their regular goalkeeper Jamie Barclay, but rumours of a 12-year old stand-in proved to be unfounded: Jim McInally had managed to recruit Barry John Corr, the entirely competent ex-Celtic and Stranraer keeper. So from a Warriors point of view, Saturday's result was nothing if not impressive.
Whilst it may not have been a classic, the players showed their quality and demonstrated their capacity to grind out a result. The first two goals were extremely well taken: Dalziel showed great predatory instincts after ex-Warrior Craig Tully worked his 'magic' in the Shire defence, whilst Motion's goal was something else. Surely he is the first player in history to perform two overhead kicks in such quick succession, including one after going to ground! Shirra also looks to be on top of his game going forward, whilst at the other end Bennett did all that was asked of him. All in all, then, an excellent afternoon's work, and all the more reason to look forward to next Saturday's clash with East Fife.
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