CantGetEnoughOfJelavic
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Hope you make it up this year!
Turning Queen's Park into kings
- Thread starter CraigWL
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Thanks mate! No doubt we'll end up in the play offs again and the squad will mysteriously disappear again.
CantGetEnoughOfJelavic
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Happened to me on my Road to Glory story but i managed to fix it. It had saved us as the play off was starting then I realised everyone was gone, a quick close and open job had their holidays cancelled. Was weird.
NOVEMBER 2015
We kick off the month again by learning who we shall be coming up against in the 4th round of the Scottish Cup...
View attachment 246174View attachment 246173
Not a bad tie, we had a good record against Berwick last season and Brechin are a similar sort of level side to them. Will be a good game regardless of who wins their match, could have been better, could have been worse!
EAST STIRLINGSHIRE V QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
View attachment 246170
Just the one change here, as Sean Burns replaces Gregor Wylie. We should be looking to pick up 3 points from this one, East Stirlingshire have only taken 9 points from 10 games, we need to exploit their poor form.
We kicked off the match perfectly as Sean Burns found Berry on the penalty spot with a corner, his blocked shot fell to Collins, who calmly laid off Hardie for an easy finish from inside the 6 yard area. We almost doubled our advantage mere moments later, but Sean Burns put his effort right into the keeper's hands following a counter attack.
We gifted East Stirlingshire an opportunity to get back into the game midway through the first half, when Hardie bundled over McKenna after a free kick was crossed in towards him. Frances stepped up and blasted his penalty right down the middle to make it 1-1. We came desperately close to regaining the advantage just before the break, when Sean Burns found space 25 yards out, allowing him to rifle a shot away which struck the crossbar and bounced clear. We were nearly gifted a goal just after half time when Anderson could only clear as far as Berry inside the centre circle after he had ran wide to intercept a long ball forward, but Berry hit a long range effort just wide as Anderson scampered back to his goal.
We made no mistake just before the hour mark however, when Sean Burns found Tierney on the penalty spot with a short pass, allowing Tierney to rifle past Anderson to give us back our advantage. We were intent on not throwing this one away, and following a lofted ball over the top by Baptie, substitute Mathis was able to bring the ball down beautifully before placing it into the net to make it 3-1.
View attachment 246168View attachment 246167
A great result for us, which means we are now 3 games unbeaten in the league, a result which also moves us up to 3rd for the time being. I also learned later on in the week that we will be facing Brechin in the cup at teh end of the month. We'll do our best!
A good turnout in the team of the week as well...
View attachment 246165
Barry Burns has been playing for Scotland's U19s recently too, very nice to see! He may not be our player now, but we brought him through! Hopefully this will encourage more players to join up with us in the future.
ELGIN CITY VS QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
View attachment 246163
Only one change for this game, as Gibson comes in for Barry Burns, who is still with the Scotland U19s. This will be an interesting game. We don't have a great record against Elgin, but the bookies don't seem to be giving them much chance. We'll see how this one goes.
Indeed we wanted to prove the bookies right, and started off brilliantly as Tierney headed in an inswinging Burns free kick from the right hand side. We nearly doubled our advantage just minutes later when Collins struck the crossbar after he latched on to a Smith cross. We were gifted another chance just before half time when Finlayson dawdled on the ball inside the box, allowing Tierney to nip in and put the ball past Fraser to double our lead. We nearly gifted Elgin a goal right back in the second half, when Gibson was caught in possession just outside his own box by Graham, whose shot was thankfully saved by Muir.
We almost scored a third 20 minutes from time, when Chris Smith cleared the ball only as far as Collins, who unleashed a sweet left footed volley from the edge of the box, rattling the crossbar. Elgin's would not be the only crossbar to be rattled however, as Sutherland headed onto our bar from a narrow angle following a Graham cross. We wouldn't escape from the game unscathed, as Berry pushed MacLennan inside the area in the 93rd minute to award Elgin a penalty, which Graham converted.
View attachment 246155View attachment 246154
A good win for us away to tough opposition, which importantly puts us just 4 points behind Clyde at the top of the table. It also brings us back to a neutral goal difference, which is nice to see after our early season pastings!
QUEEN'S PARK V ALBION ROVERS (League 2)
View attachment 246152
Barry Burns is back from international duty and replaces Gibson in our only change for this match. Another match against our arch rivals Albion, who happen to be in 4th place, it should be a good encounter! The applause seemed to be getting louder with every passing home match as the team walked out of the tunnel, showing our growing support from the stands, hopefully we don't throw it all away here.
We almost took the lead late into the first half when Sean Burns was set through the middle following an Albion free kick after a 50 yard through ball by Berry. Burns could sadly only fire his low shot wide of the post, however. Burns would be the catalyst of our breakthrough just minutes later however, as he whipped in a free kick from the right hand side, allowing Tierney to rise high and nod in from close range, almost identical to the opener against Elgin!
It was never going to be that easy however, as not long into the second half, Maguire leveled the scoreline as Fisher found him on the edge of the 6 yard box with a corner, allowing him to volley home. Poor defending. We would punish ourselves even further on the hour mark, as Auriemma stupidly fouled McGuigan following a cross despite the ball going nowhere near him. Chaplain stepped up and placed his penalty into the bottom left corner excellently. We weren't laying down however, and Garry O'Connor came up trumps from the bench, heading in a Smith cross with 15 minutes left.
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A decent result, one which keeps us in 2nd place. We can't expect to win everything after all, and we did well to come from behind against our rivals. Unfortunately, Sean Burns suffered a twisted knee during the game and will miss 4-5 weeks of football.
After the match, a headline in the local paper caught my eye...
ARBROATH EYE UP MCBRIDE, MCINALLY AND LUCOCK AS POTENTIAL MOORE REPLACEMENT
View attachment 246146
Certainly not what i was expecting to see. Arbroath would probably have more potential for future development with them being semi professional, but i'd find it hard to leave Queen's Park right now, especially given our comparative league positions
ANNAN V QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
View attachment 246144
I have been aiming for consistency lately, and have only made one change here, a forced one, with Wylie replacing the injured Sean Burns. Our last match with Annan resulted in a 1-0 win, but we got thrashed 3-0 against them last season, this one could go either way.
We nearly took the lead within the first 10 minutes, as Smith fired the ball across the six yard box and found Tierney at the far post, who somehow hit his close range shot against the post. We should be ahead. We did in fact take the lead a little later on however, when Wylie was found at the near post with a Berry corner, he swiveled and fired a shot which looked like it was going wide, but it ended up hitting Phinn and deflecting into the net for an own goal. There certainly wasn't any complaints from our dugout!
We were holding strong in the match, but took a blow just past the hour mark when Smith was forced off with an injury and replaced by Marr. Things didn't look good for Annan going into the final 5 minutes of the game, when Connor Murray flopped to the floor when challenging with Hardie. He was accused of diving by the referee and shown a second yellow card. Annan would end the game with 9 men when Michael Donald went off injured after they had used up all of their subs.
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A solid win which once again puts us just 4 points behind Clyde, and means we are unbeaten in 6 games in the league. It also gives us plenty of momentum going into our game against Brechin in 4 days. Injuries weren't being kind to us however, as Steven Smith had in fact suffered a damaged neck in this game, and will miss 5-7 weeks. I guess not everything can go our way.
BRECHIN CITY V QUEEN'S PARK (Scottish Cup 5th Round)
View attachment 246140
Two changes for the visit to Brechin in the cup, as Mathis replaces Wylie up top while Marr comes in for Smith at the back. The bookies were actually giving us the edge here, an interesting choice considering that Brechin are a tier higher than us. Still, we'd give it our best shot!
Things got off to a pretty poor start as after just 5 minutes, McLauchlan rose highest to head in a Mungall corner to give Brechin the lead. That would be the only event in the first half, which left me feeling rather disappointed at the break. We were a tier lower, but surely we were a bit more dangerous than this?
It appeared we were, as just 2 minutes into the second half, Mathis was able to tap in from inside the 6 yard area after McGuigan had tipped a Tierney free kick onto the bar. We breathed a collective sigh a relief near the end of the game, as Andy Jackson had a goal disallowed following an early cross from Todd. Quite frankly, it didn't look offside to me.
View attachment 246136View attachment 246135View attachment 246134
We did well to get a replay there, i certainly would have taken that at the start of the match. The only downside is that this would lead to quite a bit of a clustered schedule in the coming weeks.
And we would learn who awaits us in the next round if we can overcome Brechin at Hampden...
View attachment 246132
Potentially another opportunity to face our affiliate there. We did get a draw against them in pre season, so who knows!
We had a good presence in the monthly awards and team of the week too...
View attachment 246120View attachment 246130View attachment 246129View attachment 246128
I couldn't help but brim with pride when i found out i received the award. It was even more important that players like Tierney got recognition for their part though, as they were the ones playing their hearts out on the field.
PLAYER OF THE MONTH
View attachment 246126
Steven Smith, he has been a real driving force down our right flank in the past month, popping up with more than his fair share of key balls and goal saving interceptions.
WORST PLAYER OF THE MONTH
View attachment 246124
Barry Burns, despite being arguably our best defender in terms of pure ability, he has been rather inconsistent over the last few matches. He's easily got it in him to turn it around though.
We kick off the month again by learning who we shall be coming up against in the 4th round of the Scottish Cup...
View attachment 246174View attachment 246173
Not a bad tie, we had a good record against Berwick last season and Brechin are a similar sort of level side to them. Will be a good game regardless of who wins their match, could have been better, could have been worse!
EAST STIRLINGSHIRE V QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
View attachment 246170
Just the one change here, as Sean Burns replaces Gregor Wylie. We should be looking to pick up 3 points from this one, East Stirlingshire have only taken 9 points from 10 games, we need to exploit their poor form.
We kicked off the match perfectly as Sean Burns found Berry on the penalty spot with a corner, his blocked shot fell to Collins, who calmly laid off Hardie for an easy finish from inside the 6 yard area. We almost doubled our advantage mere moments later, but Sean Burns put his effort right into the keeper's hands following a counter attack.
We gifted East Stirlingshire an opportunity to get back into the game midway through the first half, when Hardie bundled over McKenna after a free kick was crossed in towards him. Frances stepped up and blasted his penalty right down the middle to make it 1-1. We came desperately close to regaining the advantage just before the break, when Sean Burns found space 25 yards out, allowing him to rifle a shot away which struck the crossbar and bounced clear. We were nearly gifted a goal just after half time when Anderson could only clear as far as Berry inside the centre circle after he had ran wide to intercept a long ball forward, but Berry hit a long range effort just wide as Anderson scampered back to his goal.
We made no mistake just before the hour mark however, when Sean Burns found Tierney on the penalty spot with a short pass, allowing Tierney to rifle past Anderson to give us back our advantage. We were intent on not throwing this one away, and following a lofted ball over the top by Baptie, substitute Mathis was able to bring the ball down beautifully before placing it into the net to make it 3-1.
View attachment 246168View attachment 246167
A great result for us, which means we are now 3 games unbeaten in the league, a result which also moves us up to 3rd for the time being. I also learned later on in the week that we will be facing Brechin in the cup at teh end of the month. We'll do our best!
A good turnout in the team of the week as well...
View attachment 246165
Barry Burns has been playing for Scotland's U19s recently too, very nice to see! He may not be our player now, but we brought him through! Hopefully this will encourage more players to join up with us in the future.
ELGIN CITY VS QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
View attachment 246163
Only one change for this game, as Gibson comes in for Barry Burns, who is still with the Scotland U19s. This will be an interesting game. We don't have a great record against Elgin, but the bookies don't seem to be giving them much chance. We'll see how this one goes.
Indeed we wanted to prove the bookies right, and started off brilliantly as Tierney headed in an inswinging Burns free kick from the right hand side. We nearly doubled our advantage just minutes later when Collins struck the crossbar after he latched on to a Smith cross. We were gifted another chance just before half time when Finlayson dawdled on the ball inside the box, allowing Tierney to nip in and put the ball past Fraser to double our lead. We nearly gifted Elgin a goal right back in the second half, when Gibson was caught in possession just outside his own box by Graham, whose shot was thankfully saved by Muir.
We almost scored a third 20 minutes from time, when Chris Smith cleared the ball only as far as Collins, who unleashed a sweet left footed volley from the edge of the box, rattling the crossbar. Elgin's would not be the only crossbar to be rattled however, as Sutherland headed onto our bar from a narrow angle following a Graham cross. We wouldn't escape from the game unscathed, as Berry pushed MacLennan inside the area in the 93rd minute to award Elgin a penalty, which Graham converted.
View attachment 246155View attachment 246154
A good win for us away to tough opposition, which importantly puts us just 4 points behind Clyde at the top of the table. It also brings us back to a neutral goal difference, which is nice to see after our early season pastings!
QUEEN'S PARK V ALBION ROVERS (League 2)
View attachment 246152
Barry Burns is back from international duty and replaces Gibson in our only change for this match. Another match against our arch rivals Albion, who happen to be in 4th place, it should be a good encounter! The applause seemed to be getting louder with every passing home match as the team walked out of the tunnel, showing our growing support from the stands, hopefully we don't throw it all away here.
We almost took the lead late into the first half when Sean Burns was set through the middle following an Albion free kick after a 50 yard through ball by Berry. Burns could sadly only fire his low shot wide of the post, however. Burns would be the catalyst of our breakthrough just minutes later however, as he whipped in a free kick from the right hand side, allowing Tierney to rise high and nod in from close range, almost identical to the opener against Elgin!
It was never going to be that easy however, as not long into the second half, Maguire leveled the scoreline as Fisher found him on the edge of the 6 yard box with a corner, allowing him to volley home. Poor defending. We would punish ourselves even further on the hour mark, as Auriemma stupidly fouled McGuigan following a cross despite the ball going nowhere near him. Chaplain stepped up and placed his penalty into the bottom left corner excellently. We weren't laying down however, and Garry O'Connor came up trumps from the bench, heading in a Smith cross with 15 minutes left.
View attachment 246149View attachment 246147
A decent result, one which keeps us in 2nd place. We can't expect to win everything after all, and we did well to come from behind against our rivals. Unfortunately, Sean Burns suffered a twisted knee during the game and will miss 4-5 weeks of football.
After the match, a headline in the local paper caught my eye...
ARBROATH EYE UP MCBRIDE, MCINALLY AND LUCOCK AS POTENTIAL MOORE REPLACEMENT
View attachment 246146
Certainly not what i was expecting to see. Arbroath would probably have more potential for future development with them being semi professional, but i'd find it hard to leave Queen's Park right now, especially given our comparative league positions
ANNAN V QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
View attachment 246144
I have been aiming for consistency lately, and have only made one change here, a forced one, with Wylie replacing the injured Sean Burns. Our last match with Annan resulted in a 1-0 win, but we got thrashed 3-0 against them last season, this one could go either way.
We nearly took the lead within the first 10 minutes, as Smith fired the ball across the six yard box and found Tierney at the far post, who somehow hit his close range shot against the post. We should be ahead. We did in fact take the lead a little later on however, when Wylie was found at the near post with a Berry corner, he swiveled and fired a shot which looked like it was going wide, but it ended up hitting Phinn and deflecting into the net for an own goal. There certainly wasn't any complaints from our dugout!
We were holding strong in the match, but took a blow just past the hour mark when Smith was forced off with an injury and replaced by Marr. Things didn't look good for Annan going into the final 5 minutes of the game, when Connor Murray flopped to the floor when challenging with Hardie. He was accused of diving by the referee and shown a second yellow card. Annan would end the game with 9 men when Michael Donald went off injured after they had used up all of their subs.
View attachment 246143View attachment 246141
A solid win which once again puts us just 4 points behind Clyde, and means we are unbeaten in 6 games in the league. It also gives us plenty of momentum going into our game against Brechin in 4 days. Injuries weren't being kind to us however, as Steven Smith had in fact suffered a damaged neck in this game, and will miss 5-7 weeks. I guess not everything can go our way.
BRECHIN CITY V QUEEN'S PARK (Scottish Cup 5th Round)
View attachment 246140
Two changes for the visit to Brechin in the cup, as Mathis replaces Wylie up top while Marr comes in for Smith at the back. The bookies were actually giving us the edge here, an interesting choice considering that Brechin are a tier higher than us. Still, we'd give it our best shot!
Things got off to a pretty poor start as after just 5 minutes, McLauchlan rose highest to head in a Mungall corner to give Brechin the lead. That would be the only event in the first half, which left me feeling rather disappointed at the break. We were a tier lower, but surely we were a bit more dangerous than this?
It appeared we were, as just 2 minutes into the second half, Mathis was able to tap in from inside the 6 yard area after McGuigan had tipped a Tierney free kick onto the bar. We breathed a collective sigh a relief near the end of the game, as Andy Jackson had a goal disallowed following an early cross from Todd. Quite frankly, it didn't look offside to me.
View attachment 246136View attachment 246135View attachment 246134
We did well to get a replay there, i certainly would have taken that at the start of the match. The only downside is that this would lead to quite a bit of a clustered schedule in the coming weeks.
And we would learn who awaits us in the next round if we can overcome Brechin at Hampden...
View attachment 246132
Potentially another opportunity to face our affiliate there. We did get a draw against them in pre season, so who knows!
We had a good presence in the monthly awards and team of the week too...
View attachment 246120View attachment 246130View attachment 246129View attachment 246128
I couldn't help but brim with pride when i found out i received the award. It was even more important that players like Tierney got recognition for their part though, as they were the ones playing their hearts out on the field.
PLAYER OF THE MONTH
View attachment 246126
Steven Smith, he has been a real driving force down our right flank in the past month, popping up with more than his fair share of key balls and goal saving interceptions.
WORST PLAYER OF THE MONTH
View attachment 246124
Barry Burns, despite being arguably our best defender in terms of pure ability, he has been rather inconsistent over the last few matches. He's easily got it in him to turn it around though.
DECEMBER 2015 (Part 1)
No messing around here, we're going straight into one of the biggest games of the season so far...
QUEEN'S PARK V CLYDE (League 2)
View attachment 245945
2 changes for this game, with Wylie and Scott coming in for Mathis and Marr. What a massive game this is, if we win, we put ourselves a point behind Clyde, we lose, we're 7 points adrift. This really could change our season for the better or worse.
We conceded early on in truly gutting fashion, as Muir palmed a Marenghi save out wide, McMillan got on to it and attempted to play the ball back in, but the cross was tipped high by Muir, the ball then fell down to Ferguson on the right hand side of the area who headed it towards goal, but was denied by another acrobatic save by Muir, the ball dropped onto the post and was eventually tapped in by Johnston. Muir couldn't have done any more to keep that ball out, and we were still behind. To make matters worse, Collins would go off with an injury just a couple of minutes later. Muir was again tested just after the half hour mark, somehow getting his body in the way of a close range Ashgar effort.
We hit back on the brink of half time, when Tierney got onto the end of a Berry free kick, lashing it beyond Martin to restore parity. Clyde would take advantage of another free kick 15 minutes before time, as Ferguson volleyed in after Stirling whipped a free kick in from a good 35 yards out. Clyde put the game beyond any doubt when Johnston found Buchanan with a lofted through pass, allowing him to slam home just moments later. Things got even worse for us when substitute Lee Davison went off with an injury in the dying moments.
And our numbers would get thinner, as Barry Burns was sent off for tripping Ferguson.
View attachment 245938View attachment 245937
Quite simply not good enough, considering this was 2nd vs 1st, it was a mismatch. We're a lot better than this, and i know we are.
The day after the defeat, my mobile phone started ringing... Unkown number, what on earth could this be?
"Hello Mr Lucock, this is Henry McClelland, Annan Athletic chairman. As you may know, we decided to sack Jim Chapman after the 1-0 defeat against Queen's Park last month, and i have to say, i'm very impressed with how you've been handling yourself and the situation there. Having that club in 2nd place without paying out a pound in wages is certainly an accomplishment. With that in mind, we'd like to invite you over for an interview about the possibility of becoming our new manager.
I know that we may not seem very attractive, currently sitting in 10th, however, we believe that with a talented manager such as yourself at the helm, we will climb the table with ease. If you look long term, there is far more potential for development and growth here, you will never truly have what you need to succeed at Queen's Park, and i believe that you will have it here, what do you say?"
I had a decision to make...
No messing around here, we're going straight into one of the biggest games of the season so far...
QUEEN'S PARK V CLYDE (League 2)
View attachment 245945
2 changes for this game, with Wylie and Scott coming in for Mathis and Marr. What a massive game this is, if we win, we put ourselves a point behind Clyde, we lose, we're 7 points adrift. This really could change our season for the better or worse.
We conceded early on in truly gutting fashion, as Muir palmed a Marenghi save out wide, McMillan got on to it and attempted to play the ball back in, but the cross was tipped high by Muir, the ball then fell down to Ferguson on the right hand side of the area who headed it towards goal, but was denied by another acrobatic save by Muir, the ball dropped onto the post and was eventually tapped in by Johnston. Muir couldn't have done any more to keep that ball out, and we were still behind. To make matters worse, Collins would go off with an injury just a couple of minutes later. Muir was again tested just after the half hour mark, somehow getting his body in the way of a close range Ashgar effort.
We hit back on the brink of half time, when Tierney got onto the end of a Berry free kick, lashing it beyond Martin to restore parity. Clyde would take advantage of another free kick 15 minutes before time, as Ferguson volleyed in after Stirling whipped a free kick in from a good 35 yards out. Clyde put the game beyond any doubt when Johnston found Buchanan with a lofted through pass, allowing him to slam home just moments later. Things got even worse for us when substitute Lee Davison went off with an injury in the dying moments.
And our numbers would get thinner, as Barry Burns was sent off for tripping Ferguson.
View attachment 245938View attachment 245937
Quite simply not good enough, considering this was 2nd vs 1st, it was a mismatch. We're a lot better than this, and i know we are.
The day after the defeat, my mobile phone started ringing... Unkown number, what on earth could this be?
"Hello Mr Lucock, this is Henry McClelland, Annan Athletic chairman. As you may know, we decided to sack Jim Chapman after the 1-0 defeat against Queen's Park last month, and i have to say, i'm very impressed with how you've been handling yourself and the situation there. Having that club in 2nd place without paying out a pound in wages is certainly an accomplishment. With that in mind, we'd like to invite you over for an interview about the possibility of becoming our new manager.
I know that we may not seem very attractive, currently sitting in 10th, however, we believe that with a talented manager such as yourself at the helm, we will climb the table with ease. If you look long term, there is far more potential for development and growth here, you will never truly have what you need to succeed at Queen's Park, and i believe that you will have it here, what do you say?"
I had a decision to make...
PatrickLFC
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Steven Smith tearing up the UK and the Ashes hasn't even started yet 
Steven Smith tearing up the UK and the Ashes hasn't even started yet
I hope for everyone's sake that he stops right now, or at least by the time the Aussies start batting!
PatrickLFC
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DECEMBER 2015 (Part 2)
"Thank you for the phonecall Henry, and i really appreciate your comments just now. It does give me a bit of confidence that the work i'm doing here is viewed as good work by some people, with that said however, i'm going to have to turn down your offer of an interview. Queen's Park gave me my chance in football, and i feel i would be betraying them if i left to join another club at this point. Best of luck in finding a new manager and i wish you the best for the rest of the season"
"Ok Craig, i appreciate you being straightforward with me, and i admire your loyalty. Best of luck in the promotion hunt"
Phew. It's sort of nice to get those sorts of phonecalls but i don't really like turning people down like that. I was going nowhere for now though, i've still got a job to do here, despite our last result we're still determined as ever to go up.
MONTROSE V QUEEN'S PARK (LEAGUE 2)
View attachment 244644
Four changes from the last game, as McElroy, Winter, Gibson and Marr come in for Collins, Wylie, Burns and Marr. This promised to be a very good game, Montrose were only behind us on goal difference, and a win here would be vital to give us a bit of breathing room in the promotion race.
After an uneventful first half, we were let off the hook 10 minutes after the restart when Wood turned in a McDonald cross, only for the linesman to raise his flag for offside. We took the lead after 66 minutes with our first meaningful attack of the half, as O'Connor threaded a beautiful through ball to Winter, who poked the ball past Edwards to make it 1-0.
I made the decision to park the bus going into the last few minutes to try and hold on to the lead, but we still managed to bag a second goal in bizarre fashion, when McMillan tried to pass the ball back to Edwards, who was on the halfway line, but Edwards found himself flat footed, allowing McElroy to nip in and fire the ball into an empty net despite Edwards' best attempts to get back to his goal.
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A solid result against a good opponent, i made sure to praise the defenders following the match, as they were superb in limiting Montrose to half chances. The only bad news coming out of the game was that Ryan Tierney suffered a stubbed toe and will miss 9-12 days. In addition, McNab has reached the yellow card limit and will be banned for one game from the 19th of December.
Hardie and Berry were named in the team of the week for their performances.
View attachment 244634
QUEEN'S PARK V BRECHIN (Scottish Cup 4th Round Replay)
View attachment 244630
Five changes from the last game, with Wylie, Collins and Burns coming in for McElroy, Winter and Gibson. Collins replaces the injured Tierney and Horne comes in for Marr to make his senior debut.
Disaster would strike for our debutant, as he misjudged the flight of a long kick over the top from Graeme Smith, allowing Todd to run in and fire past the onrushing Muir. Not a good start at all. Things would get even worse for us later on in the half, when Hardie had a rush of blood to the head and went in late with a challenge from behind on Thomson which saw him receive his marching orders. The red card seemed to spark life in to us however, and we equalised on the half hour mark when McCormack took a poor touch inside his own area after a Horne cross, allowing Wylie to nip in and slam the ball home.
McCormack was again at fault roughly 10 minutes later when he gave the ball away cheaply to McKeown in midfield, allowing McKeown to thread the ball through to a free Wylie, who ran through and scored his second of the game despite Smith getting a hand on it. We had Muir to thank 5 minutes after the restart, when he produced a fantastic save to tip a Thomson shot from 12 yards wide after Thomson got free of McKeown. We took advantage of Muir's heroics mere moments later when McVey played the ball to the far post and found Mathis, who beat Smith with power to double our advantage. Things nearly got even better for us when Collins ran from just inside Brechin's half to the edge of the box before jinking round McLauchlan, but he could only drill his shot over the bar.
Brechin weren't laying down and taking it though, and Muir was on hand again with 15 minutes left, as Jackson was played through by Thomson, he parried the effort out only as far as Tapping, before leaping to his feet and pushing Tapping's effort out to the side. Incredible. We amazingly scored another goal 4 minutes from time, when Collins drove infield before threading through Mitchell down the right flank, who played the ball inside to Mathis. Mathis then threaded through Collins, who had continued his run, allowing him to fire past Smith to give us our 4th of the game.
View attachment 244626View attachment 244625
Brilliant stuff from the lads, there, it never once looked like we were down to 10 men, especially against a higher level opposition. This has set up a tie with our affiliates Dumbarton in the next round, and the £8k from winning this game will do us no harm!
QUEEN'S PARK V ARBROATH (LEAGUE 2)
View attachment 244620
Four changes from the win over Brechin, as McElroy, Winter and Marr come in for Wylie, Mathis and Horne. Billy Mortimer also comes in for Collins to make his senior debut. This would be a tough game, Arbroath may be 9th, but they have a knack for beating us.
We were very lucky not to fall behind just after half time, when Gunn launched a ball over the top which found the run of Sykes, who thankfully drilled his shot wide of the left hand post. We suffered a blow with just 10 minutes to go, as McNab went off with an injury after we had made all of our substitutions.
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Arguably the most uneventful game of football that i've seen since taking charge here. The fact that Annan thrashed Clyde made this seem like a bit of a missed opportunity too, but a point is a point. It transpires that McNab hasn't suffered any real injury, but he will miss the next game regardless due to suspension
Sean Burns did resume full training after returning from his twisted knee, however he then almost immediately came down with a cold, leaving him a doubt for the Peterhead clash.
PETERHEAD V QUEEN'S PARK (LEAGUE 2)
View attachment 244617
4 changes from the Arbroath game, as Wylie, Collins, Mathis and Mitchell come in for McElroy, Mortimer, Winter and the suspended McNab. We should win this game, Peterhead are rock bottom of the league, but knowing us, anything can happen.
We were again thankful to Muir just before the 10 minute mark, when a long ball over the top set through Carrol, whose shot was thankfully blocked by the legs of Muir. Sadly, we can't rely on Muir to stop everything, and Peterhead took the lead when McAllister found himself behind the defensive line following a cross from Carrol, allowing him to smash the ball home. We were able to strike back after half an hour however, when Auriemma's free kick was parried out by Cowe only as far as Mitchell, who tapped home to equalise.
We seemed completely incapable of dealing with Peterhead's long ball game however, and fell behind again when Carrol placed the ball past Muir after a long ball over the top by Cameron. We took another blow on the stroke of half time, when Hardie attempted to clear after tackling McAllister, the ball hit the grounded McAllister and fell perfectly into the path of Carrol, who put it past the wrong footed Muir to make it 3-1. We were given a golden chance to get back into the game 10 minutes from time when Wylie was floored by Hay after breaking into the area, leading to the ref awarding a penalty. O'Connor stepped up and placed it perfectly into the bottom left corner.
Half the ground thought we had snatched a point at the end, when Baptie volleyed a Winter cross towards the bottom left corner from the edge of the box, only to see it dramatically clawed out by Cowe.
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Very poor on our part, we should definitely have won that game, and Clyde once again dropping points was making me regret each passing match.
EAST FIFE V QUEEN'S PARK (LEAGUE 2)
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Three changes from the last game, as Tierney, Winter and McNab come in for Tierney, Winter and Mitchell. We could really do with a win from this, to regain some momentum after the poor performance in the last game.
We fell behind after 20 minutes when Cook met a Mullen corner and headed towards goal before Herd deflected the ball past Muir to give East Fife the lead. We nearly equalised late in the first half when Tierney volleyed a Berry cross over the bar. We made no mistake 5 minutes into the second half however, when Berry found Auriemma with a cross, allowing him to jink inside and fire a left footed shot past Gott to equalise. East Fife would once again take the lead however, as the ball rebounded off several players and fell to Cook, who fired home.
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I'm not sure what has happened to us over the last couple of games, we performed so well against Brechin and since then we have just gone slowly downhill.
I also discovered that i had the support of the fans on the Kenny Deuchar front...
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I also caught this headline while browsing...
View attachment 244599
That would certainly be a change of scenery!
Finally, i had a disagreement with Garry O'Connor over a lack of first team football, and he was unwilling to stand down and is now set on leaving the club.
This caused a minor rift in the squad, leading to me being approached by Gavin Mitchell, David McWilliams and Darren Miller over my treatment of O'Connor. I couldn't help but note that the three of them also had disagreements with me in the past. Taking every opportunity they can to moan i suppose.
I was able to convince Mitchell and Miller that i was doing the right thing, but McWilliams wasn't as easy to convince.
A minor positive was that Auriemma came 2nd in the YPOTM award
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PLAYER OF THE MONTH
View attachment 244593
William Muir, who produced some excellent saves over the month. It was often in vain, but his efforts haven't gone unnoticed.
WORST PLAYER OF THE MONTH
View attachment 244590
Robbie McNab, who really hasn't hit his peak performance levels over the last few games.
"Thank you for the phonecall Henry, and i really appreciate your comments just now. It does give me a bit of confidence that the work i'm doing here is viewed as good work by some people, with that said however, i'm going to have to turn down your offer of an interview. Queen's Park gave me my chance in football, and i feel i would be betraying them if i left to join another club at this point. Best of luck in finding a new manager and i wish you the best for the rest of the season"
"Ok Craig, i appreciate you being straightforward with me, and i admire your loyalty. Best of luck in the promotion hunt"
Phew. It's sort of nice to get those sorts of phonecalls but i don't really like turning people down like that. I was going nowhere for now though, i've still got a job to do here, despite our last result we're still determined as ever to go up.
MONTROSE V QUEEN'S PARK (LEAGUE 2)
View attachment 244644
Four changes from the last game, as McElroy, Winter, Gibson and Marr come in for Collins, Wylie, Burns and Marr. This promised to be a very good game, Montrose were only behind us on goal difference, and a win here would be vital to give us a bit of breathing room in the promotion race.
After an uneventful first half, we were let off the hook 10 minutes after the restart when Wood turned in a McDonald cross, only for the linesman to raise his flag for offside. We took the lead after 66 minutes with our first meaningful attack of the half, as O'Connor threaded a beautiful through ball to Winter, who poked the ball past Edwards to make it 1-0.
I made the decision to park the bus going into the last few minutes to try and hold on to the lead, but we still managed to bag a second goal in bizarre fashion, when McMillan tried to pass the ball back to Edwards, who was on the halfway line, but Edwards found himself flat footed, allowing McElroy to nip in and fire the ball into an empty net despite Edwards' best attempts to get back to his goal.
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A solid result against a good opponent, i made sure to praise the defenders following the match, as they were superb in limiting Montrose to half chances. The only bad news coming out of the game was that Ryan Tierney suffered a stubbed toe and will miss 9-12 days. In addition, McNab has reached the yellow card limit and will be banned for one game from the 19th of December.
Hardie and Berry were named in the team of the week for their performances.
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QUEEN'S PARK V BRECHIN (Scottish Cup 4th Round Replay)
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Five changes from the last game, with Wylie, Collins and Burns coming in for McElroy, Winter and Gibson. Collins replaces the injured Tierney and Horne comes in for Marr to make his senior debut.
Disaster would strike for our debutant, as he misjudged the flight of a long kick over the top from Graeme Smith, allowing Todd to run in and fire past the onrushing Muir. Not a good start at all. Things would get even worse for us later on in the half, when Hardie had a rush of blood to the head and went in late with a challenge from behind on Thomson which saw him receive his marching orders. The red card seemed to spark life in to us however, and we equalised on the half hour mark when McCormack took a poor touch inside his own area after a Horne cross, allowing Wylie to nip in and slam the ball home.
McCormack was again at fault roughly 10 minutes later when he gave the ball away cheaply to McKeown in midfield, allowing McKeown to thread the ball through to a free Wylie, who ran through and scored his second of the game despite Smith getting a hand on it. We had Muir to thank 5 minutes after the restart, when he produced a fantastic save to tip a Thomson shot from 12 yards wide after Thomson got free of McKeown. We took advantage of Muir's heroics mere moments later when McVey played the ball to the far post and found Mathis, who beat Smith with power to double our advantage. Things nearly got even better for us when Collins ran from just inside Brechin's half to the edge of the box before jinking round McLauchlan, but he could only drill his shot over the bar.
Brechin weren't laying down and taking it though, and Muir was on hand again with 15 minutes left, as Jackson was played through by Thomson, he parried the effort out only as far as Tapping, before leaping to his feet and pushing Tapping's effort out to the side. Incredible. We amazingly scored another goal 4 minutes from time, when Collins drove infield before threading through Mitchell down the right flank, who played the ball inside to Mathis. Mathis then threaded through Collins, who had continued his run, allowing him to fire past Smith to give us our 4th of the game.
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Brilliant stuff from the lads, there, it never once looked like we were down to 10 men, especially against a higher level opposition. This has set up a tie with our affiliates Dumbarton in the next round, and the £8k from winning this game will do us no harm!
QUEEN'S PARK V ARBROATH (LEAGUE 2)
View attachment 244620
Four changes from the win over Brechin, as McElroy, Winter and Marr come in for Wylie, Mathis and Horne. Billy Mortimer also comes in for Collins to make his senior debut. This would be a tough game, Arbroath may be 9th, but they have a knack for beating us.
We were very lucky not to fall behind just after half time, when Gunn launched a ball over the top which found the run of Sykes, who thankfully drilled his shot wide of the left hand post. We suffered a blow with just 10 minutes to go, as McNab went off with an injury after we had made all of our substitutions.
View attachment 244619View attachment 244618
Arguably the most uneventful game of football that i've seen since taking charge here. The fact that Annan thrashed Clyde made this seem like a bit of a missed opportunity too, but a point is a point. It transpires that McNab hasn't suffered any real injury, but he will miss the next game regardless due to suspension
Sean Burns did resume full training after returning from his twisted knee, however he then almost immediately came down with a cold, leaving him a doubt for the Peterhead clash.
PETERHEAD V QUEEN'S PARK (LEAGUE 2)
View attachment 244617
4 changes from the Arbroath game, as Wylie, Collins, Mathis and Mitchell come in for McElroy, Mortimer, Winter and the suspended McNab. We should win this game, Peterhead are rock bottom of the league, but knowing us, anything can happen.
We were again thankful to Muir just before the 10 minute mark, when a long ball over the top set through Carrol, whose shot was thankfully blocked by the legs of Muir. Sadly, we can't rely on Muir to stop everything, and Peterhead took the lead when McAllister found himself behind the defensive line following a cross from Carrol, allowing him to smash the ball home. We were able to strike back after half an hour however, when Auriemma's free kick was parried out by Cowe only as far as Mitchell, who tapped home to equalise.
We seemed completely incapable of dealing with Peterhead's long ball game however, and fell behind again when Carrol placed the ball past Muir after a long ball over the top by Cameron. We took another blow on the stroke of half time, when Hardie attempted to clear after tackling McAllister, the ball hit the grounded McAllister and fell perfectly into the path of Carrol, who put it past the wrong footed Muir to make it 3-1. We were given a golden chance to get back into the game 10 minutes from time when Wylie was floored by Hay after breaking into the area, leading to the ref awarding a penalty. O'Connor stepped up and placed it perfectly into the bottom left corner.
Half the ground thought we had snatched a point at the end, when Baptie volleyed a Winter cross towards the bottom left corner from the edge of the box, only to see it dramatically clawed out by Cowe.
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Very poor on our part, we should definitely have won that game, and Clyde once again dropping points was making me regret each passing match.
EAST FIFE V QUEEN'S PARK (LEAGUE 2)
View attachment 244614
Three changes from the last game, as Tierney, Winter and McNab come in for Tierney, Winter and Mitchell. We could really do with a win from this, to regain some momentum after the poor performance in the last game.
We fell behind after 20 minutes when Cook met a Mullen corner and headed towards goal before Herd deflected the ball past Muir to give East Fife the lead. We nearly equalised late in the first half when Tierney volleyed a Berry cross over the bar. We made no mistake 5 minutes into the second half however, when Berry found Auriemma with a cross, allowing him to jink inside and fire a left footed shot past Gott to equalise. East Fife would once again take the lead however, as the ball rebounded off several players and fell to Cook, who fired home.
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I'm not sure what has happened to us over the last couple of games, we performed so well against Brechin and since then we have just gone slowly downhill.
I also discovered that i had the support of the fans on the Kenny Deuchar front...
View attachment 244600
I also caught this headline while browsing...
View attachment 244599
That would certainly be a change of scenery!
Finally, i had a disagreement with Garry O'Connor over a lack of first team football, and he was unwilling to stand down and is now set on leaving the club.
This caused a minor rift in the squad, leading to me being approached by Gavin Mitchell, David McWilliams and Darren Miller over my treatment of O'Connor. I couldn't help but note that the three of them also had disagreements with me in the past. Taking every opportunity they can to moan i suppose.
I was able to convince Mitchell and Miller that i was doing the right thing, but McWilliams wasn't as easy to convince.
A minor positive was that Auriemma came 2nd in the YPOTM award
View attachment 244597
PLAYER OF THE MONTH
View attachment 244593
William Muir, who produced some excellent saves over the month. It was often in vain, but his efforts haven't gone unnoticed.
WORST PLAYER OF THE MONTH
View attachment 244590
Robbie McNab, who really hasn't hit his peak performance levels over the last few games.
CantGetEnoughOfJelavic
Member
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- Jan 12, 2012
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Didn't see you had Garry O'Connor! Playing Highland League football now and in a council flat after splashing his cash on cocaine, fast cars and the bookies!
Thought his experience would do the squad some good!
Although i hope he isn't passing on that sort of experience! He's definitely picked up the moaning ability from the rest of the squad mind!
JANUARY 2016
I received a phonecall from Ronald Jack to kick off the month...
"Hi Craig, just thought i'd check in with our feelings, as you know, we expect you to make it to the play offs this season, and are thrilled that we're currently well on course to make that, the fans have also informed me that they are very happy with the signing of Steven Smith so far. We do have to point out again however that the morale among the players is shocking, and we feel that is what is causing these poor strings of results and that, given the football we're capable of playing, we'd probably be closer to the title right now if there was more togetherness"
"I understand Ronald, i do stress however that i am always trying to do what's best for the club on the field, and there are players making noises who are nowhere near ready for first team football and that it puts me in a seriously awkward predicament"
There were instances in the past where i might not have believed what i was saying, but with youth players complaining about a lack of first team football, i was really struggling to appease everyone.
QUEEN'S PARK V EAST STIRLINGSHIRE (League 2)
View attachment 244268
Just the one change for this game, as Collins comes in for Winter. We really needed something from this one to regain a bit of momentum.
We started off brilliantly, as a diagonal ball from Collins found Baptie, who marauded into the box before cutting it back to Wylie, who finessed a left footed shot into the corner to give us the lead in just the second minute. East Stirlingshire weren't lying down, and put the ball in the net when Shirkie met an early cross from Johnston, but was left disappointed when the goal was disallowed for offside. We took advantage of our break and doubled our lead in the 28th minute when Burns knocked a corner down to Hardie, who laid the ball off to Collins, allowing him to slam the ball home.
We came forward again just after the half hour mark, and after receiving a through ball from Wylie, Baptie superbly knocked the ball round Tapping and cut it back to Tierney, unfortunately the ball was slightly behind him and he could only drag his shot into Anderson's arms.
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A good win which will hopefully put us in good stead for the rest of the month, Arbroath's shock win over Clyde was a sight for sore eyes too. I made sure to give Berry an extra pat on the back after the match, he bossed the midfield today. Unfortunately, this match saw Burns pick up his 6th yellow card, meaning he will miss the Albion Rovers match.
A good showing in the team of the week this week too!
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QUEEN'S PARK V ELGIN CITY (League 2)
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An unchanged lineup for this game, i didn't feel any changes were needed. We had to go into this game with a degree of confidence, Elgin haven't won in their last 6 matches, and have drawn 5 of those.
We came close to opening the scoring just after the 10 minute mark when Burns launched a ball over the top and found the run of Tierney, but his effort was well stopped by the legs of Fraser. Our task got that little bit tougher close to half time, when Marr recklessly jumped in Sutherland and received a straight red card. Stupid on his part. Indeed, 10 minutes into the second half we would fall behind, when Sutherland beat both of our centre backs with a through ball and found Ally Graham, who hit his shot past Muir to gave Elgin the lead.
And the game was put beyond us in the 89th minute, when Cham's effort was blocked by McKeown but fell right back to him, allowing him to double Elgin's lead.
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I'm not even going to say that the red card cost us, as we just weren't good enough. Typical that after such a bad run on Elgin's part, they would end it against us. Gregor Wylie also picked up a facial injury in the match and will miss 2 weeks of football.
ALBION ROVERS V QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
View attachment 244261
Four changes for this match, as Winter, Gibson and Jones come in for Tierney, Marr and the suspended Barry Burns. Sean Burns also makes his return to the squad in place of the injured Wylie. Another hotly anticipated derby match, we must play better than we did against Elgin.
We took the lead just after the half hour mark when Winter whipped in a wonderful early cross and found Collins, who volleyed home past Parry. We doubled our advantage straight from kick off in the second half, when a good passing move led to Baptie being set through down the left hand side, his cross struck Mullin on the head and deflected past Parry to give us a 2-0 lead. We couldn't have expected this to be an easy game however, and Albion hit back just after the hour mark when Kevin Smith headed in from a Phillips cross, despite Muir's best efforts.
We saw a bit of individual magic for the next goal, as Winter picked the ball up 30 yards out before jinking past the slide tackle of Maxwell, then striding past McGregor before slamming it in at the near post to double our lead. We put the exclamation point on the game in the dying minutes when Collins got on to an early Baptie cross and backheeled it from the byline to Winter, who hit it under Parry to kill Albion off.
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A smashing result, one which will definitely send our fans away happy. The only downside is that Ryan Baptie will miss our first game in February after picking up 6 yellow cards.
My enjoyment only lasted so long...
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"Right, i'm tired, you've got a history of breaking promises to me and my lack of consistent first team football over the last month or so proves that, this is the last straw, i want a move to a team where i'll play under a manager who i can trust."
Didn't he just play in the last game?
"I'm sorry that you feel that way Sean, but i have been putting you in the first team squad quite a bit recently, and you were excellent in the last game, and i'm hardly going to forget that performance, i think we should just let this go and put it behind us"
"I don't want this to go overboard as i pride myself on professionalism, but you're making a mistake by denying me a move, i've got a lot of friends here and they will feel the same way"
"You know what, i'm also sick of this, i'm tired of people coming to me and making false claims, at the end of the day, you knew when you signed that you weren't going to be playing every game, so just get on with it."
"You will regret this, you'll have a mutiny on your hands in this club by the time i'm finished"
Great
And indeed it turned out that way, as seventeen players gathered to discuss this matter with me, including players such as Sean Burns, Vincent Berry and William Muir
"Ok lads, i understand some of you aren't too happy about what's been happening recently, can one of you stand up and explain to me exactly what the problem is?
Garry O'Connor: "Some of the squad feel that you have been treating Sean Winter unfairly and want to know why"
"I make decisions on a person by person basis and i believe my actions to have been 100% necessary"
Darren Smith: "I see, you clearly have some tough decisions to make as manager and it's probably best if we trust you to make them"
Robbie McNab: "You're missing the point, it doesn't matter how you make decisions if you clearly keep getting them wrong"
"I can see it's pointless trying to argue the point with some of you, let's leave it there for now and bring it up again later if need be"
Sean Burns, Fraser, Muir, McKeown, MacLean and McNab were still not satisfied, that could be a problem...
QUEEN'S PARK V ANNAN (League 2)
View attachment 244295
Two changes for this game, as Barry Burns and Mathis come in for Gibson and the rebelling Winter. This would be a very interesting game, i could potentially have been manager of Annan, but i feel that my rejecting of them has proved best for both parties, we have held on to 2nd place, and Kevin McBride has guided Annan from bottom of the league to 4th, a mere 4 points behind us. A tough ask to get a win here, i feel.
We came very close to breaking the deadlock 5 minutes before half time, when the ball eventually fell to Barry Burns following his namesake Sean's free kick, but his powerful effort from inside the 6 yard box was saved by Smith. Smith came to Annan's rescue 10 minutes into the second half, when Sean Burns latched onto a through ball from Collins, only to see his shot superbly saved by the Annan keeper. These misses could cost us...
Our eventual opener came in calamitous fashion, when Auriemma teed up Berry on the edge of the box, his effort struck the foot of the left hand post, rolled along the line, and Neill's attempted clearance struck the right hand post and went in. They all count! Neill was again at fault mere moments later when McElroy beat him for pace and burst into the box, Neill could only fell him with a slide tackle, giving away a penalty. McElroy dusted himself down and put his penalty into the roof of the net to make it 2-0.
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A great result against a form side, just a shame that Clyde also got the 3 points. Also, in typical fashion, we suffered 3 injuries during and after this match, Mathis will miss 5-6 weeks with a pulled hamstring, McVey will miss 4-5 weeks with a thigh strain and Dale Jones will miss 4-5 weeks with a damaged foot.
In more positive news, Marr and Hardie made it into the team of the week.
View attachment 244282
QUEEN'S PARK V MONTROSE (League 2)
View attachment 244281
Four changes for this game, as Wylie, Ryan Smith, Davison and Steven Smith come in for Sean Burns, Collins, Mathis and Marr. A win in this game would be huge, as it would give us an 8 point gap over our opponents which could be vital in the run in.
Unfortunately, it seemed the lads didn't get the memo, as in the 3rd minute, Spence headed in a Mercer free kick to give Montrose the lead. The goal spurred us on however, and Davison restored parity, heading in a Wylie cross at the back post just 3 minutes later. We took the lead just after half time, when Steven Smith crossed in towards Wylie, who was about to tap in before a superb block by Boyle, but the ball fell to Davison, who easily finished from well inside the 6 yard box.
We were pegged back in the 65th minute however, when Muir parried a Mercer free kick onto Wylie, who was standing on the post, the ball fell to Wood who had an easy finish to equalise. The match ended on a bad note as McNab went off with an injury in stoppage time.
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Not a bad result on reflection, considering how well Montrose are doing this season. The match was also a fan day, and hopefully many of the 531 people will be returning in the future.
We were runners up in a couple of the monthly awards, too...
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PLAYER OF THE MONTH
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Vincent Berry, once again, incredibly consistent, and bosses the midfield on a regular basis, definitely our best player right now.
WORST PLAYER OF THE MONTH
Ryan Tierney. For a player of his calibre, he hasn't been producing the goods recently, and his ratings recently have been a let down. With that said, his goal scoring record this season isn't terrible, and i'm sure he will come good.
I received a phonecall from Ronald Jack to kick off the month...
"Hi Craig, just thought i'd check in with our feelings, as you know, we expect you to make it to the play offs this season, and are thrilled that we're currently well on course to make that, the fans have also informed me that they are very happy with the signing of Steven Smith so far. We do have to point out again however that the morale among the players is shocking, and we feel that is what is causing these poor strings of results and that, given the football we're capable of playing, we'd probably be closer to the title right now if there was more togetherness"
"I understand Ronald, i do stress however that i am always trying to do what's best for the club on the field, and there are players making noises who are nowhere near ready for first team football and that it puts me in a seriously awkward predicament"
There were instances in the past where i might not have believed what i was saying, but with youth players complaining about a lack of first team football, i was really struggling to appease everyone.
QUEEN'S PARK V EAST STIRLINGSHIRE (League 2)
View attachment 244268
Just the one change for this game, as Collins comes in for Winter. We really needed something from this one to regain a bit of momentum.
We started off brilliantly, as a diagonal ball from Collins found Baptie, who marauded into the box before cutting it back to Wylie, who finessed a left footed shot into the corner to give us the lead in just the second minute. East Stirlingshire weren't lying down, and put the ball in the net when Shirkie met an early cross from Johnston, but was left disappointed when the goal was disallowed for offside. We took advantage of our break and doubled our lead in the 28th minute when Burns knocked a corner down to Hardie, who laid the ball off to Collins, allowing him to slam the ball home.
We came forward again just after the half hour mark, and after receiving a through ball from Wylie, Baptie superbly knocked the ball round Tapping and cut it back to Tierney, unfortunately the ball was slightly behind him and he could only drag his shot into Anderson's arms.
View attachment 244267View attachment 244266
A good win which will hopefully put us in good stead for the rest of the month, Arbroath's shock win over Clyde was a sight for sore eyes too. I made sure to give Berry an extra pat on the back after the match, he bossed the midfield today. Unfortunately, this match saw Burns pick up his 6th yellow card, meaning he will miss the Albion Rovers match.
A good showing in the team of the week this week too!
View attachment 244265
QUEEN'S PARK V ELGIN CITY (League 2)
View attachment 244264
An unchanged lineup for this game, i didn't feel any changes were needed. We had to go into this game with a degree of confidence, Elgin haven't won in their last 6 matches, and have drawn 5 of those.
We came close to opening the scoring just after the 10 minute mark when Burns launched a ball over the top and found the run of Tierney, but his effort was well stopped by the legs of Fraser. Our task got that little bit tougher close to half time, when Marr recklessly jumped in Sutherland and received a straight red card. Stupid on his part. Indeed, 10 minutes into the second half we would fall behind, when Sutherland beat both of our centre backs with a through ball and found Ally Graham, who hit his shot past Muir to gave Elgin the lead.
And the game was put beyond us in the 89th minute, when Cham's effort was blocked by McKeown but fell right back to him, allowing him to double Elgin's lead.
View attachment 244263View attachment 244262
I'm not even going to say that the red card cost us, as we just weren't good enough. Typical that after such a bad run on Elgin's part, they would end it against us. Gregor Wylie also picked up a facial injury in the match and will miss 2 weeks of football.
ALBION ROVERS V QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
View attachment 244261
Four changes for this match, as Winter, Gibson and Jones come in for Tierney, Marr and the suspended Barry Burns. Sean Burns also makes his return to the squad in place of the injured Wylie. Another hotly anticipated derby match, we must play better than we did against Elgin.
We took the lead just after the half hour mark when Winter whipped in a wonderful early cross and found Collins, who volleyed home past Parry. We doubled our advantage straight from kick off in the second half, when a good passing move led to Baptie being set through down the left hand side, his cross struck Mullin on the head and deflected past Parry to give us a 2-0 lead. We couldn't have expected this to be an easy game however, and Albion hit back just after the hour mark when Kevin Smith headed in from a Phillips cross, despite Muir's best efforts.
We saw a bit of individual magic for the next goal, as Winter picked the ball up 30 yards out before jinking past the slide tackle of Maxwell, then striding past McGregor before slamming it in at the near post to double our lead. We put the exclamation point on the game in the dying minutes when Collins got on to an early Baptie cross and backheeled it from the byline to Winter, who hit it under Parry to kill Albion off.
View attachment 244260View attachment 244259View attachment 244258
A smashing result, one which will definitely send our fans away happy. The only downside is that Ryan Baptie will miss our first game in February after picking up 6 yellow cards.
My enjoyment only lasted so long...
View attachment 244257
"Right, i'm tired, you've got a history of breaking promises to me and my lack of consistent first team football over the last month or so proves that, this is the last straw, i want a move to a team where i'll play under a manager who i can trust."
Didn't he just play in the last game?
"I'm sorry that you feel that way Sean, but i have been putting you in the first team squad quite a bit recently, and you were excellent in the last game, and i'm hardly going to forget that performance, i think we should just let this go and put it behind us"
"I don't want this to go overboard as i pride myself on professionalism, but you're making a mistake by denying me a move, i've got a lot of friends here and they will feel the same way"
"You know what, i'm also sick of this, i'm tired of people coming to me and making false claims, at the end of the day, you knew when you signed that you weren't going to be playing every game, so just get on with it."
"You will regret this, you'll have a mutiny on your hands in this club by the time i'm finished"
Great
And indeed it turned out that way, as seventeen players gathered to discuss this matter with me, including players such as Sean Burns, Vincent Berry and William Muir
"Ok lads, i understand some of you aren't too happy about what's been happening recently, can one of you stand up and explain to me exactly what the problem is?
Garry O'Connor: "Some of the squad feel that you have been treating Sean Winter unfairly and want to know why"
"I make decisions on a person by person basis and i believe my actions to have been 100% necessary"
Darren Smith: "I see, you clearly have some tough decisions to make as manager and it's probably best if we trust you to make them"
Robbie McNab: "You're missing the point, it doesn't matter how you make decisions if you clearly keep getting them wrong"
"I can see it's pointless trying to argue the point with some of you, let's leave it there for now and bring it up again later if need be"
Sean Burns, Fraser, Muir, McKeown, MacLean and McNab were still not satisfied, that could be a problem...
QUEEN'S PARK V ANNAN (League 2)
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Two changes for this game, as Barry Burns and Mathis come in for Gibson and the rebelling Winter. This would be a very interesting game, i could potentially have been manager of Annan, but i feel that my rejecting of them has proved best for both parties, we have held on to 2nd place, and Kevin McBride has guided Annan from bottom of the league to 4th, a mere 4 points behind us. A tough ask to get a win here, i feel.
We came very close to breaking the deadlock 5 minutes before half time, when the ball eventually fell to Barry Burns following his namesake Sean's free kick, but his powerful effort from inside the 6 yard box was saved by Smith. Smith came to Annan's rescue 10 minutes into the second half, when Sean Burns latched onto a through ball from Collins, only to see his shot superbly saved by the Annan keeper. These misses could cost us...
Our eventual opener came in calamitous fashion, when Auriemma teed up Berry on the edge of the box, his effort struck the foot of the left hand post, rolled along the line, and Neill's attempted clearance struck the right hand post and went in. They all count! Neill was again at fault mere moments later when McElroy beat him for pace and burst into the box, Neill could only fell him with a slide tackle, giving away a penalty. McElroy dusted himself down and put his penalty into the roof of the net to make it 2-0.
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A great result against a form side, just a shame that Clyde also got the 3 points. Also, in typical fashion, we suffered 3 injuries during and after this match, Mathis will miss 5-6 weeks with a pulled hamstring, McVey will miss 4-5 weeks with a thigh strain and Dale Jones will miss 4-5 weeks with a damaged foot.
In more positive news, Marr and Hardie made it into the team of the week.
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QUEEN'S PARK V MONTROSE (League 2)
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Four changes for this game, as Wylie, Ryan Smith, Davison and Steven Smith come in for Sean Burns, Collins, Mathis and Marr. A win in this game would be huge, as it would give us an 8 point gap over our opponents which could be vital in the run in.
Unfortunately, it seemed the lads didn't get the memo, as in the 3rd minute, Spence headed in a Mercer free kick to give Montrose the lead. The goal spurred us on however, and Davison restored parity, heading in a Wylie cross at the back post just 3 minutes later. We took the lead just after half time, when Steven Smith crossed in towards Wylie, who was about to tap in before a superb block by Boyle, but the ball fell to Davison, who easily finished from well inside the 6 yard box.
We were pegged back in the 65th minute however, when Muir parried a Mercer free kick onto Wylie, who was standing on the post, the ball fell to Wood who had an easy finish to equalise. The match ended on a bad note as McNab went off with an injury in stoppage time.
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Not a bad result on reflection, considering how well Montrose are doing this season. The match was also a fan day, and hopefully many of the 531 people will be returning in the future.
We were runners up in a couple of the monthly awards, too...
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PLAYER OF THE MONTH
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Vincent Berry, once again, incredibly consistent, and bosses the midfield on a regular basis, definitely our best player right now.
WORST PLAYER OF THE MONTH
Ryan Tierney. For a player of his calibre, he hasn't been producing the goods recently, and his ratings recently have been a let down. With that said, his goal scoring record this season isn't terrible, and i'm sure he will come good.
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FEBRUARY 2016
Before heading into our key game against Clyde, i had to deal with a flurry of incoming contract offers...
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Sean Winter finally got what he was craving and made a move to Montrose, Raith have also poached youth players Cammy Campbell and Alan Bell from us. Not ideal, but there's not much i can do in our situation.
In more positive news, centre back Scott Gibson has decided to stay with the club, and turned down a move to our rivals Clyde.
Vincent Berry was also named in the team of the week following our last match.
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CLYDE V QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
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Four changes for this game, as Sean Burns, Collins, Gibson and Marr come in for Ryan Smith, Wylie, Steven Smith and the suspended Baptie. This game is vital, we win and we're 7 points behind Clyde, lose, and we're trailing by 13 points. We're going to struggle to win the league either way, but we'll keep ourselves in with a shout by winning here.
We certainly didn't start this game looking like the trailing side, and we took the lead almost immediately, when Collins put in the rebound after striking the near post. Clyde would hit back however, as Johnston volleyed home after an early Blackett cross.
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Not a bad result at the end of the day, although looking at the stats, we really should have put the game to bed.
QUEEN'S PARK V DUMBARTON (Scottish Cup Fifth Round)
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Another four changes for this game, as Wylie, Ryan Smith, Mitchell and Baptie come in for Sean Burns, Collins, Davison and Hardie. Another opportunity to take our cup run further here, our 2 games with our affiliates Dumbarton in the past have ended in draws, so we shall see what happens here.
Things didn't get off to the best of starts however when van Zanten volleyed in after an excellent cross by Linton. Things got worse later in the first half when Gibson clattered Graham inside the area, giving away a penalty. However, Turner blasted his penalty wide!
We came out firing in the second half, and restored parity when, following a couple of blocked efforts by Berry, the ball fell to Baptie, who teed up Wylie to fire in the top left corner. More drama was to follow, when Sean Burns crossed from the byline and found Auriemma, who took a touch inside before hitting it past Ewings to make it 2-1.
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A superb second half performance from the lads, they're clearly determined to get as far as they can in this competition, and rightfully so! The glory is great and the money is a big help too.
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I was hoping that we would get Morton (all due respect to them!) to give us a decent chance at getting through, but we'll have to deal with Dundee United the best we can. Whatever happens, we've done incredibly well to make it to the semi final.
Collins was also named in the team of the week after his performance in the Clyde game.
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I also decided to begin studying for my National A license, i felt that it would be beneficial, to help with coaching the players at Queen's Park, and to potentially further my managerial career in the future. Queen's Park decided to cover the cost of the course, which i am very grateful for given the financial situation that the club is in. In other news, i found out that Vincent Berry is now considered a member of the club's favoured personnel, very deserved considering his recent efforts.
ARBROATH V QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
View attachment 244137
Another four changes for this match, as Sean Burns, Collins, Davison and Hardie come in for Wylie, Ryan Smith, Mitchell and Gibson.
We started off poorly, and fell behind when Sykes hit his shot into the roof of the net after Gunn's initial effort was parried out by Muir. It got no better for us later on, when Ross brought down a Malone free kick and lashed it beyond Muir to make it 2-0. We hit back 10 minutes before the break when Davison played a ball to the back post, allowing Hardie to tap in. We were back on level terms when Davison set up Collins, who fired in from 15 yards. We lost our concentration at the end of the half, and fell behind again when Nicoll played through Sykes following some good build up play, allowing him to rattle away a shot which hit the underside of the bar before going in.
We were incredibly unlucky not to be back on level terms in the 60th minute, when Berry placed a shot towards the bottom right corner following a corner, the ball cannoned around numerous players on the goal line before eventually being cleared. Then, in the 93rd minute, Berry teed up Barry Burns on the edge of the box, who drove an exceptional right footed shot into the top right corner to spark mass scenes of jubilation on the bench and in the away end. Note to self, never let Ade Akinbiyi jump on you ever again.
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An incredible game for the neutrals, but not one you particularly enjoy as a manager. James Marr will also miss the East Fife game due to picking up 6 yellow cards.
Burns and Berry were included in the team of the week following the game.
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QUEEN'S PARK V PETERHEAD (League 2)
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Just the two changes for this game, as Wylie and Steven Smith replace Sean Burns and Marr.
After a completely uneventful game, the first moment of any interest game in the 86th minute, when Allison was shown a second yellow card after committing a foul on Davison on the edge of the box, a bit of a suspicion that Davison dived, too. McKeown struck the resulting free kick against the woodwork, the ball fell to Costello 6 yards out, and he somehow managed to head the ball wide.
Just when i thought it wasn't going to be our day, Baptie whipped in a cross in the 91st minute, which Collins met to head in a dramatic winner for us.
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Not an entertaining match by any means, but the 3 points is ultimately what counts. The result means we haven't lost in our last 7 games in all competitions, we're hard to beat, which is very pleasing to see.
Collins was named in the team of the week after his last minute heroics
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It was again that time of the year, when i head out to view the batch of youth candidates that David McCallum has found.
View attachment 244120
Once again, some very promising signs, on first viewing most of these players could probably be good enough to play at our current level at some point. I was paying particular attention to Jamie Miller and especially Colin Martin, who both look like they could have an impact on the first team squad sooner rather than later. Glasgow can certainly throw up some talent! Like last time, all of the players were invited to join our youth squad.
QUEEN'S PARK V EAST FIFE (League 2)
View attachment 244119
Just the one change here, as Sean Burns comes in for Wylie. We really should be looking to win this one, East Fife are only a point off the bottom of the league and haven't been playing well recently. Those sorts of stats don't usually bode well for us though.
We should have taken the lead just after the 20 minute mark when Auriemma threaded through Collins, but his shot was brilliantly saved by Gott. We took the lead after 63 minutes when Davison headed in at the far post following a pinpoint cross by Sean Burns. Davison was again able to use his head to devastating effect in the 89th minute, heading a Collins cross just past the despairing dive of Gott.
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A good win at the end of the day, and Montrose's thrashing of Clyde has helped us close the gap at the top to 7 points. Still a big ask, but we won't give up. Unfortunately for us, Gabriel Auriemma twisted his ankle during the game, and will be out for 6-7 weeks. A big miss to be sure. He will most notably miss the Scottish Cup quarter final against Dundee United.
We had a good showing in the monthly awards, too.
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We were doing ourselves proud recently, and it's good to see the lads putting in performances like they have been.
PLAYER OF THE MONTH
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Lee Davison, he has been exceptional over the last few games and has really come into his own. Notching up 2 goals and 2 assists and generally being dangerous, he has proved to be a big difference maker for us.
WORST PLAYER OF THE MONTH
View attachment 244110
Robbie McNab, again, potentially a little harsh, but he hasn't really been able to put in the performances that we know he is capable of recently.
Before heading into our key game against Clyde, i had to deal with a flurry of incoming contract offers...
View attachment 244159View attachment 244158View attachment 244157
Sean Winter finally got what he was craving and made a move to Montrose, Raith have also poached youth players Cammy Campbell and Alan Bell from us. Not ideal, but there's not much i can do in our situation.
In more positive news, centre back Scott Gibson has decided to stay with the club, and turned down a move to our rivals Clyde.
Vincent Berry was also named in the team of the week following our last match.
View attachment 244154
CLYDE V QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
View attachment 244151
Four changes for this game, as Sean Burns, Collins, Gibson and Marr come in for Ryan Smith, Wylie, Steven Smith and the suspended Baptie. This game is vital, we win and we're 7 points behind Clyde, lose, and we're trailing by 13 points. We're going to struggle to win the league either way, but we'll keep ourselves in with a shout by winning here.
We certainly didn't start this game looking like the trailing side, and we took the lead almost immediately, when Collins put in the rebound after striking the near post. Clyde would hit back however, as Johnston volleyed home after an early Blackett cross.
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Not a bad result at the end of the day, although looking at the stats, we really should have put the game to bed.
QUEEN'S PARK V DUMBARTON (Scottish Cup Fifth Round)
View attachment 244142
Another four changes for this game, as Wylie, Ryan Smith, Mitchell and Baptie come in for Sean Burns, Collins, Davison and Hardie. Another opportunity to take our cup run further here, our 2 games with our affiliates Dumbarton in the past have ended in draws, so we shall see what happens here.
Things didn't get off to the best of starts however when van Zanten volleyed in after an excellent cross by Linton. Things got worse later in the first half when Gibson clattered Graham inside the area, giving away a penalty. However, Turner blasted his penalty wide!
We came out firing in the second half, and restored parity when, following a couple of blocked efforts by Berry, the ball fell to Baptie, who teed up Wylie to fire in the top left corner. More drama was to follow, when Sean Burns crossed from the byline and found Auriemma, who took a touch inside before hitting it past Ewings to make it 2-1.
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A superb second half performance from the lads, they're clearly determined to get as far as they can in this competition, and rightfully so! The glory is great and the money is a big help too.
View attachment 244140
View attachment 244139
I was hoping that we would get Morton (all due respect to them!) to give us a decent chance at getting through, but we'll have to deal with Dundee United the best we can. Whatever happens, we've done incredibly well to make it to the semi final.
Collins was also named in the team of the week after his performance in the Clyde game.
View attachment 244138
I also decided to begin studying for my National A license, i felt that it would be beneficial, to help with coaching the players at Queen's Park, and to potentially further my managerial career in the future. Queen's Park decided to cover the cost of the course, which i am very grateful for given the financial situation that the club is in. In other news, i found out that Vincent Berry is now considered a member of the club's favoured personnel, very deserved considering his recent efforts.
ARBROATH V QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
View attachment 244137
Another four changes for this match, as Sean Burns, Collins, Davison and Hardie come in for Wylie, Ryan Smith, Mitchell and Gibson.
We started off poorly, and fell behind when Sykes hit his shot into the roof of the net after Gunn's initial effort was parried out by Muir. It got no better for us later on, when Ross brought down a Malone free kick and lashed it beyond Muir to make it 2-0. We hit back 10 minutes before the break when Davison played a ball to the back post, allowing Hardie to tap in. We were back on level terms when Davison set up Collins, who fired in from 15 yards. We lost our concentration at the end of the half, and fell behind again when Nicoll played through Sykes following some good build up play, allowing him to rattle away a shot which hit the underside of the bar before going in.
We were incredibly unlucky not to be back on level terms in the 60th minute, when Berry placed a shot towards the bottom right corner following a corner, the ball cannoned around numerous players on the goal line before eventually being cleared. Then, in the 93rd minute, Berry teed up Barry Burns on the edge of the box, who drove an exceptional right footed shot into the top right corner to spark mass scenes of jubilation on the bench and in the away end. Note to self, never let Ade Akinbiyi jump on you ever again.
View attachment 244132View attachment 244131
An incredible game for the neutrals, but not one you particularly enjoy as a manager. James Marr will also miss the East Fife game due to picking up 6 yellow cards.
Burns and Berry were included in the team of the week following the game.
View attachment 244129
QUEEN'S PARK V PETERHEAD (League 2)
View attachment 244126
Just the two changes for this game, as Wylie and Steven Smith replace Sean Burns and Marr.
After a completely uneventful game, the first moment of any interest game in the 86th minute, when Allison was shown a second yellow card after committing a foul on Davison on the edge of the box, a bit of a suspicion that Davison dived, too. McKeown struck the resulting free kick against the woodwork, the ball fell to Costello 6 yards out, and he somehow managed to head the ball wide.
Just when i thought it wasn't going to be our day, Baptie whipped in a cross in the 91st minute, which Collins met to head in a dramatic winner for us.
View attachment 244123View attachment 244122
Not an entertaining match by any means, but the 3 points is ultimately what counts. The result means we haven't lost in our last 7 games in all competitions, we're hard to beat, which is very pleasing to see.
Collins was named in the team of the week after his last minute heroics
View attachment 244121
It was again that time of the year, when i head out to view the batch of youth candidates that David McCallum has found.
View attachment 244120
Once again, some very promising signs, on first viewing most of these players could probably be good enough to play at our current level at some point. I was paying particular attention to Jamie Miller and especially Colin Martin, who both look like they could have an impact on the first team squad sooner rather than later. Glasgow can certainly throw up some talent! Like last time, all of the players were invited to join our youth squad.
QUEEN'S PARK V EAST FIFE (League 2)
View attachment 244119
Just the one change here, as Sean Burns comes in for Wylie. We really should be looking to win this one, East Fife are only a point off the bottom of the league and haven't been playing well recently. Those sorts of stats don't usually bode well for us though.
We should have taken the lead just after the 20 minute mark when Auriemma threaded through Collins, but his shot was brilliantly saved by Gott. We took the lead after 63 minutes when Davison headed in at the far post following a pinpoint cross by Sean Burns. Davison was again able to use his head to devastating effect in the 89th minute, heading a Collins cross just past the despairing dive of Gott.
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A good win at the end of the day, and Montrose's thrashing of Clyde has helped us close the gap at the top to 7 points. Still a big ask, but we won't give up. Unfortunately for us, Gabriel Auriemma twisted his ankle during the game, and will be out for 6-7 weeks. A big miss to be sure. He will most notably miss the Scottish Cup quarter final against Dundee United.
We had a good showing in the monthly awards, too.
View attachment 244114View attachment 244113View attachment 244112
We were doing ourselves proud recently, and it's good to see the lads putting in performances like they have been.
PLAYER OF THE MONTH
View attachment 244111
Lee Davison, he has been exceptional over the last few games and has really come into his own. Notching up 2 goals and 2 assists and generally being dangerous, he has proved to be a big difference maker for us.
WORST PLAYER OF THE MONTH
View attachment 244110
Robbie McNab, again, potentially a little harsh, but he hasn't really been able to put in the performances that we know he is capable of recently.
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MARCH 2015 (Part 1)
EAST STIRLINGSHIRE V QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
View attachment 243635
Five changes for this clash with East Stirlingshire, Wylie, Ryan Smith, Gibson and Mathis come in for Sean Burns, Collins, Baptie and Davison, while Mitchell comes in for the injured Auriemma. This was a good opportunity to keep our good run going, hopefully we get the job done.
I realised i needed to stop getting my expectations up after just over a minute when Johnston half volleyed the ball to the far post for an unmarked Love to tap in. We nearly got back on level terms when Mathis latched on to a long ball over the top and finessed a shot towards the far corner which was superbly tipped wide by Anderson.
Things got even worse for us when Holden crossed from the byline, allowing McKenna to somehow get in between our centre halves and tap in. We hit back after 41 minutes however when Marr crossed in and found Ryan Smith, who glanced a header in the far corner from inside the 6 yard area. We nearly got a lucky break in the 55th minute when Mitchell crossed from the left hand side, which saw the ball land on the top of the bar and bounce out. We were reduced to 10 men early on in the second half when a loose touch by Costello allowed McKenna to nip in, Costello reacted by felling McKenna, which saw him receive his marching orders.
The resulting free kick saw East Stirlingshire extend their lead when the ball eventually fell to O'Brien, who struck his shot against the underside of the bar and in. We gave ourselves a fighting chance with 15 minutes to go when 16 year old debutant Colin Martin came off the bench and scored from the edge of the box following a corner. We pushed hard for an equaliser, and should have got one when Wylie got onto the end of a long ball over the top, before seeing his initial effort saved by Anderson, the ball fell back to him, but he could only hit his shot wide of the far post. The away end was sent into raptures mere moments from time when Martin was once again the hero, heading in a Mathis corner to equalise. And people question me for playing the lads!
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A little disappointing not to win, but a great fightback on our part with 10 men.
We have also decided to terminate the contract of Jim Cameron after his complaints over a lack of first team football, he joined up with us last season and didn't make a first team appearance.
DUNDEE UNITED V QUEEN'S PARK (Scottish Cup Quarter Final)
View attachment 243575
Six changes for this cup tie, as Sean Burns, Collins, Davison, Baptie and Steven Smith come in for Wylie, Ryan Smith, Mathis, Gibson and Marr. Colin Martin also makes his full debut in place of Mitchell after bagging a brace in the last game. This was going to be a near impossible task, the fact that Dundee United have a player like Ciftci on the bench just shows the gulf in class between the two teams.
We fell behind in desperately unlucky fashion when Petrie hit a volley from the edge of the box which hit Murray on the way through, beating the wrong footed Muir and giving Dundee United the lead. They would go on to double their lead after Hardie knocked the ball away from Campbell inside the box with a slide tackle, the ball fell to Aidan Connolly who squeezed the ball past the arm of Muir. We weren't going to lie down though, and we halved the deficit just after half time when Sean Burns hit a great left footed shot into the top right corner after being set up by Baptie. Me and the rest of the staff leapt to our feet in the 55th minute, when McMillan tripped Collins just inside the area and gave away a penalty. Who would step up to take it? None other than Colin Martin. He set himself and fired his penalty into the top right corner to equalise. Fantastic composure for a 16 year old!
Our joy would be short lived however, as Ciftci managed to head a Connolly cross past Muir from just inside the box to give Dundee United the lead back. Ciftci would again display his quality after being played through by Dixon before hitting in at the near post.
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A shame that our cup run has came to an end, but it was an admirable effort against a much stronger side. Ciftci was just too good for us when he came on and his quality really showed.
Colin Martin was named in the team of the week after his brace against East Stirlingshire.
View attachment 243551
Ryan Tierney also sadly suffered a bruised rib during a game against Celtic's U20s and will be out for 11 days - 2 weeks.
ELGIN CITY V QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
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Two changes here as Marr comes in for Martin, while Gibson replaces the injured Baptie. This promised to be a tough encounter, Elgin lay only a point outside the play offs and will be fighting tooth and nail to break into them.
We again started off poorly however, and fell behind when Graham headed in a hopeful early cross from Hamilton to score his 23rd goal of the season. It took us until the 76th minute to hit back, when Martin knocked a corner down to Wylie, who hit past Fraser for an equaliser.
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All in all a bit of a disappointing match, there was little to no action barring the two goals, and i feel quite disappointed to only be walking away with a point for the second league game in a row.
Five days before our match with Albion Rovers, i received a call from Ronald Jack...
"Hi Craig, i'm just phoning to tell you that we've received an approach from Limerick F.C regarding you. They made the decision to sack their manager on the 4th of March after their 2nd competitive game of the season and are currently looking at you as a potential replacement, they're currently sitting 3rd in the Irish First Division after two games. We really value the good work that you are doing here at Queen's Park, and we want you to stay, but due to the circumstances here at the club, we thought it only fair to inform you of their interest, and leave it up to you where your future lies."
Certainly not what i expected to hear. A move to Ireland would certainly be a big change of scenery and would take a lot of getting used to, but again, the potential for growth at Limerick would be bigger than it is here... What to do...
EAST STIRLINGSHIRE V QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
View attachment 243635
Five changes for this clash with East Stirlingshire, Wylie, Ryan Smith, Gibson and Mathis come in for Sean Burns, Collins, Baptie and Davison, while Mitchell comes in for the injured Auriemma. This was a good opportunity to keep our good run going, hopefully we get the job done.
I realised i needed to stop getting my expectations up after just over a minute when Johnston half volleyed the ball to the far post for an unmarked Love to tap in. We nearly got back on level terms when Mathis latched on to a long ball over the top and finessed a shot towards the far corner which was superbly tipped wide by Anderson.
Things got even worse for us when Holden crossed from the byline, allowing McKenna to somehow get in between our centre halves and tap in. We hit back after 41 minutes however when Marr crossed in and found Ryan Smith, who glanced a header in the far corner from inside the 6 yard area. We nearly got a lucky break in the 55th minute when Mitchell crossed from the left hand side, which saw the ball land on the top of the bar and bounce out. We were reduced to 10 men early on in the second half when a loose touch by Costello allowed McKenna to nip in, Costello reacted by felling McKenna, which saw him receive his marching orders.
The resulting free kick saw East Stirlingshire extend their lead when the ball eventually fell to O'Brien, who struck his shot against the underside of the bar and in. We gave ourselves a fighting chance with 15 minutes to go when 16 year old debutant Colin Martin came off the bench and scored from the edge of the box following a corner. We pushed hard for an equaliser, and should have got one when Wylie got onto the end of a long ball over the top, before seeing his initial effort saved by Anderson, the ball fell back to him, but he could only hit his shot wide of the far post. The away end was sent into raptures mere moments from time when Martin was once again the hero, heading in a Mathis corner to equalise. And people question me for playing the lads!
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A little disappointing not to win, but a great fightback on our part with 10 men.
We have also decided to terminate the contract of Jim Cameron after his complaints over a lack of first team football, he joined up with us last season and didn't make a first team appearance.
DUNDEE UNITED V QUEEN'S PARK (Scottish Cup Quarter Final)
View attachment 243575
Six changes for this cup tie, as Sean Burns, Collins, Davison, Baptie and Steven Smith come in for Wylie, Ryan Smith, Mathis, Gibson and Marr. Colin Martin also makes his full debut in place of Mitchell after bagging a brace in the last game. This was going to be a near impossible task, the fact that Dundee United have a player like Ciftci on the bench just shows the gulf in class between the two teams.
We fell behind in desperately unlucky fashion when Petrie hit a volley from the edge of the box which hit Murray on the way through, beating the wrong footed Muir and giving Dundee United the lead. They would go on to double their lead after Hardie knocked the ball away from Campbell inside the box with a slide tackle, the ball fell to Aidan Connolly who squeezed the ball past the arm of Muir. We weren't going to lie down though, and we halved the deficit just after half time when Sean Burns hit a great left footed shot into the top right corner after being set up by Baptie. Me and the rest of the staff leapt to our feet in the 55th minute, when McMillan tripped Collins just inside the area and gave away a penalty. Who would step up to take it? None other than Colin Martin. He set himself and fired his penalty into the top right corner to equalise. Fantastic composure for a 16 year old!
Our joy would be short lived however, as Ciftci managed to head a Connolly cross past Muir from just inside the box to give Dundee United the lead back. Ciftci would again display his quality after being played through by Dixon before hitting in at the near post.
View attachment 243565View attachment 243564
A shame that our cup run has came to an end, but it was an admirable effort against a much stronger side. Ciftci was just too good for us when he came on and his quality really showed.
Colin Martin was named in the team of the week after his brace against East Stirlingshire.
View attachment 243551
Ryan Tierney also sadly suffered a bruised rib during a game against Celtic's U20s and will be out for 11 days - 2 weeks.
ELGIN CITY V QUEEN'S PARK (League 2)
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Two changes here as Marr comes in for Martin, while Gibson replaces the injured Baptie. This promised to be a tough encounter, Elgin lay only a point outside the play offs and will be fighting tooth and nail to break into them.
We again started off poorly however, and fell behind when Graham headed in a hopeful early cross from Hamilton to score his 23rd goal of the season. It took us until the 76th minute to hit back, when Martin knocked a corner down to Wylie, who hit past Fraser for an equaliser.
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All in all a bit of a disappointing match, there was little to no action barring the two goals, and i feel quite disappointed to only be walking away with a point for the second league game in a row.
Five days before our match with Albion Rovers, i received a call from Ronald Jack...
"Hi Craig, i'm just phoning to tell you that we've received an approach from Limerick F.C regarding you. They made the decision to sack their manager on the 4th of March after their 2nd competitive game of the season and are currently looking at you as a potential replacement, they're currently sitting 3rd in the Irish First Division after two games. We really value the good work that you are doing here at Queen's Park, and we want you to stay, but due to the circumstances here at the club, we thought it only fair to inform you of their interest, and leave it up to you where your future lies."
Certainly not what i expected to hear. A move to Ireland would certainly be a big change of scenery and would take a lot of getting used to, but again, the potential for growth at Limerick would be bigger than it is here... What to do...
At this point in the story i'd like to take the opportunity to say 2 things.
1) Thank you to everyone who has been following the story so far, i started this up hoping that i would be able to entertain some people and i'm genuinely humbled that people have been following for as long as they have, it may not seem like much but it means a lot to me guys
2) Would anyone have an opinion on what the response to the interview offer should be? I originally started this as a Queen's Park story but i'm leaning towards making it a story about the actual manager rather than just the club. Of course i want to cater to people and i'm very happy taking either option, i just want to know what people's opinions are.
1) Thank you to everyone who has been following the story so far, i started this up hoping that i would be able to entertain some people and i'm genuinely humbled that people have been following for as long as they have, it may not seem like much but it means a lot to me guys
2) Would anyone have an opinion on what the response to the interview offer should be? I originally started this as a Queen's Park story but i'm leaning towards making it a story about the actual manager rather than just the club. Of course i want to cater to people and i'm very happy taking either option, i just want to know what people's opinions are.
I am not very good at commenting on the threads that I follow, but this is one of my absolute favourite stories. Love your writing style!
As for the Limerick offer: I would say definitely stay in Glasgow and take Queen's Park to the SPL, even if it takes a couple of decades! (H)
As for the Limerick offer: I would say definitely stay in Glasgow and take Queen's Park to the SPL, even if it takes a couple of decades! (H)
Thank you so much man! It's nice to know that there are some silent followers of this story haha! I appreciate any comment that is left on here! It means a lot to me that, given how there are so many talented writers on this section of the forum that this is one of your favourites and i'm glad you're enjoying it! And i shall definitely take your advice into consideration
PatrickLFC
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I agree with the above, stick with Queen's Park. Besides, Limerick has already been done by coolmcool
MARCH 2016 (Part 2)
"Thank you for the call Ronald, i appreciate your honesty, it means a lot that you would allow me to make the decision. Do not worry though, i don't want to leave, i'm perfectly happy with what we have here right now and am committed to carrying it on. This is my home right now"
I was determined to take Queen's Park as far as i could.
We received a boost going into our upcoming clash with our rivals Albion Rovers, as Ryan Baptie has resumed full training. I will have to assess his fitness before the game, however.
QUEEN'S PARK V ALBION ROVERS (League 2)
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Three changes for this anticipated clash, with Wylie, Mathis and Mitchell coming in for Collins, Davison and Steven Smith. I wasn't sure what to make of this game, we haven't lost any of our last 9 league games, but we have a tendency to mess it up against our rivals.
We took the lead early on when Ross Fisher missed an attempted clearance after a Sean Burns free kick, the ball carried through to Hardie, who unleashed an absolute rocket into the top left corner to give us the lead. That would be the only real action of the first half, i certainly wasn't complaining!
Albion were reduced to 10 men not long after half time, when Gary Fisher tripped Wylie on the halfway line and received a 2nd yellow card. This only seemed to make things harder on us however, and we gifted them a chance to get back into the game when substitute Colin Martin tripped Chaplain inside the area. Looking back on it, it was a bit of a harsh penalty. Nevertheless, Chaplain got back up and converted his penalty into the top right corner.
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Another draw. Not ideal, but at least we weren't getting beat. I was slightly disappointed that i wasn't there to see the East Stirlingshire v Annan game! This matchday also confirmed that Clyde will at least be playing in the play offs this season, and considering that we're 8 points behind them with a mere 5 matches left, i'd say they're a shoe in for the title.
I was approached by a journalist on the way out of the stadium...
"Mr Lucock, do you have any thoughts on the controversial penalty decision that was given against you today?"
"Listen, these things happen, but i think if the officials look back at the replays, they may be inclined to apologise."
And indeed, the Scottish FA said nothing about my criticism of the officials, and the replays did indeed show that it was not a penalty. Frustrating, but we'll have to get on with it.
Gordon Hardie was named in the team of the week after his goal.
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We got a couple of mentions in the monthly awards, too...
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It was certainly special for a 16 year old to win the Player of the Month award. He certainly has a bright future ahead of him.
PLAYER OF THE MONTH
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Colin Martin, despite not actually starting a league game this month, i feel he deserves it. To score a brace on your debut for the club is exceptional.
WORST PLAYER OF THE MONTH
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Vincent Berry, he sadly hasn't been his usual self recently, and has been consistently below par.
"Thank you for the call Ronald, i appreciate your honesty, it means a lot that you would allow me to make the decision. Do not worry though, i don't want to leave, i'm perfectly happy with what we have here right now and am committed to carrying it on. This is my home right now"
I was determined to take Queen's Park as far as i could.
We received a boost going into our upcoming clash with our rivals Albion Rovers, as Ryan Baptie has resumed full training. I will have to assess his fitness before the game, however.
QUEEN'S PARK V ALBION ROVERS (League 2)
View attachment 243245
Three changes for this anticipated clash, with Wylie, Mathis and Mitchell coming in for Collins, Davison and Steven Smith. I wasn't sure what to make of this game, we haven't lost any of our last 9 league games, but we have a tendency to mess it up against our rivals.
We took the lead early on when Ross Fisher missed an attempted clearance after a Sean Burns free kick, the ball carried through to Hardie, who unleashed an absolute rocket into the top left corner to give us the lead. That would be the only real action of the first half, i certainly wasn't complaining!
Albion were reduced to 10 men not long after half time, when Gary Fisher tripped Wylie on the halfway line and received a 2nd yellow card. This only seemed to make things harder on us however, and we gifted them a chance to get back into the game when substitute Colin Martin tripped Chaplain inside the area. Looking back on it, it was a bit of a harsh penalty. Nevertheless, Chaplain got back up and converted his penalty into the top right corner.
View attachment 243231View attachment 243230
Another draw. Not ideal, but at least we weren't getting beat. I was slightly disappointed that i wasn't there to see the East Stirlingshire v Annan game! This matchday also confirmed that Clyde will at least be playing in the play offs this season, and considering that we're 8 points behind them with a mere 5 matches left, i'd say they're a shoe in for the title.
I was approached by a journalist on the way out of the stadium...
"Mr Lucock, do you have any thoughts on the controversial penalty decision that was given against you today?"
"Listen, these things happen, but i think if the officials look back at the replays, they may be inclined to apologise."
And indeed, the Scottish FA said nothing about my criticism of the officials, and the replays did indeed show that it was not a penalty. Frustrating, but we'll have to get on with it.
Gordon Hardie was named in the team of the week after his goal.
View attachment 243229
We got a couple of mentions in the monthly awards, too...
View attachment 243227View attachment 243226
It was certainly special for a 16 year old to win the Player of the Month award. He certainly has a bright future ahead of him.
PLAYER OF THE MONTH
View attachment 243224
Colin Martin, despite not actually starting a league game this month, i feel he deserves it. To score a brace on your debut for the club is exceptional.
WORST PLAYER OF THE MONTH
View attachment 243223
Vincent Berry, he sadly hasn't been his usual self recently, and has been consistently below par.