Shyberries

I write this immediately prior to my departure for the Shyberry Excelsior Stadium, which I still insist on referring to as such even though it seems to change its name every five minutes. Since I last wrote the season has certainly begun to take shape – we have learnt that Brechin and Livingston are good (no surprise there then), and that Dumbarton are useless (again, not a huge surprise).

 

Our last two matches have each been characterised by comical defending, but whilst two weeks ago it was our defenders who were culpable at Almondvale, last week the tables were turned and we were gifted goals by Dumbarton. I was especially pleased to see Ross Clark restored to the line-up against his former club; he was in danger of becoming something of a forgotten man, but his two goals will certainly have helped him avoid that fate.

The national side have of course also been competing for our attention in recent weeks – whilst the recent double header with the Czexh Republic and Spain yielded nothing in terms of points, it was certainly memorable (whether for good or bad reasons). Levein has taken a lot of stick for his 4-6-0 formation in Prague, and I must confess that – even though my conception of football tactics is more defensively-minded than most – I think he pushed it a bit too far. (Giving ourselves no attacking outlet simply made the defensive work more difficult.) Nevertheless, in view how new he is to the job, and of his excellent track record at club level, I think we have to cut him a bit of slack – he showed against Spain that he is more than capable of learning from his mistakes, and I don’t think we’ll be seeing the 4-6-0 again any time soon. Honourable mentions, also, to Stevie Naismith and David Weir – the former is something of a goal machine just now, whilst the latter defended impeccably in both matches and continues to defy his 40 years.

Closer to home, I am keeping my fingers crossed that today’s trip north will be a more rewarding one than my last (the 2-0 defeat to Ayr in September). Airdrie United are a club for whom I have great respect – their stadium is excellent (certainly a pleasant change after Somerset Park), and they are building on a great footballing heritage in Airdrie. That said, I confess to being surprised at their relative suceess this season – with a squad of relative unknowns I had expected them to struggle. Jimmy Boyle has done a great job with them, however, so we will certainly have to be on our guard this afternoon…