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  1. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: Fourth

    LAST SEASON: Second, 73pts

    NOTABLE INS: Tomas Cerny (Partick Thistle), Lewis Ferguson (Hamilton Academical), Chris Forrester (Peterborough United), Stephen Gleeson (Ipswich Town), Dominic Ball (Rotherham United, loan), Tommie Hoban (Watford, loan)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Kari Arnason (Vikingur), Daniel Harvie (Ayr United), Anthony O'Connor (Bradford City), Adam Rooney (Salford City), Danny Rogers (St. Mirren, loan), Ryan Christie (Celtic, end of loan), Chidi Nwakali (Manchester City, end of loan), Greg Stewart (Birmingham City, end of loan), Freddie Woodman (Newcastle United, end of loan), Nicky Maynard

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Lewis, Logan, McKenna, O'Connor, Considine, Shinnie, McLean, McGinn, Christie, Mackay-Steven, May


    You'd have been forgiven for thinking at times that last season was a poor one for Aberdeen.

    Sure, they were not as cohesive in attack as in the 2016/17 campaign, scoring far fewer goals. They failed to make a cup final after managing two in the previous campaign. And - until the final game of the season at Celtic Park - they continued to disappoint in matches against the two big Glasgow sides.

    But they actually finished second in the table - for the fourth time in a row. Their final points total was only three lower than in 2016/17. For the most part, the Dons still got the results.

    However, there remains a much bigger gap to Celtic than the nine point margin last year suggests. And in turn there is very little to separate Aberdeen from the clubs that finished just below them. Rangers seem to have improved, and if Hibs continue their trajectory from the end of last season then they will do better too.

    Can Aberdeen avoid being knocked off the podium?

    On the one hand, it looks like they might finally (famous last words) have sorted out their chronic problem at centre-half. Scott McKenna has emerged as a fine player who is likely to go on to be the club's most expensive ever sale. They now also have Michael Devlin, who looks fully recovered from the knee injury that kept him out for the whole of last season, and Watford loanee Tommie Hoban who should be a massive upgrade on the departed Kari Arnason and Anthony O'Connor.

    Hoban can also play at left-back, where the club still have Andrew Considine as a solid, unspectacular option. Shay Logan was disappointing last year by his high standards but there's no reason why he can't bounce back. And with Joe Lewis in goal too, Aberdeen should be very difficult to beat.

    The problem is very much at the other end of the pitch. The side of 2016/17 could boast Jonny Hayes, Kenny McLean, Ryan Christie, Niall McGinn and, in the first half of that season, James Maddison as creative options. Now only McGinn is left, and he has struggled to get near the form he showed before his brief move to Korea. McLean has signed for Norwich; Christie has returned to parent club Celtic.

    McInnes has brought in three new midfielders, plus Dominic Ball on loan again as a more defensive option. It was interesting that against Burnley the manager preferred to partner Graeme Shinnie with ex-Hamilton teen Lewis Ferguson rather than Irish playmaker Stephen Gleeson or attacking threat Chris Forrester. Ferguson might be considered one for the future, but they really need Gleeson and Forrester to succeed in the present if they are to compensate for the loss of McLean and Christie.

    The creative burden therefore is likely to fall on McGinn and the entertaining-but-erratic-as-ever Gary Mackay-Steven. If Scott Wright pushes on after a season of stagnation then that would help; otherwise another flair player would be most welcome to prevent the club relying solely on direct balls to Sam Cosgrove or Stevie May.

    And if McInnes has to go forward with only those two strikers to choose from he won't be happy either. May was a huge letdown last year and there are now concerns that he'll never bounce back to his old St. Johnstone form. Cosgrove is certainly a hard worker but he is still young and should really be considered as a project. It's no surprise they keep being linked with Louis Moult and other attackers, and one would imagine the crazy fee received for third-choice Adam Rooney will go towards a new signing in this area.

    And to cap it all this could well be the thinnest squad in the Premiership at the time of writing, considering that Mark Reynolds is out long term and Greg Tansey has been frozen out. A handful of injuries and they would have a problem early doors.

    Ultimately the defensive reinforcements are all very well but the weakness in attack is a huge concern. No question the club will make more transfer moves between now and the end of August but until we see who has come in - and whether they flourish - it's hard to see Aberdeen holding onto that second spot yet again.


    THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1997 in italics)
    Goalkeepers: Tomas Cerny, Joe Lewis
    Defenders: Dominic Ball, Andrew Considine, Michael Devlin, Tommie Hoban, Shay Logan, Scott McKenna, Mark Reynolds
    Midfielders: Dean Campbell, Lewis Ferguson, Chris Forrester, Stephen Gleeson, Gary Mackay-Steven, Frank Ross, Graeme Shinnie, Greg Tansey
    Forwards: Sam Cosgrove, Stevie May, Niall McGinn, Connor McLennan, Scott Wright

    THE BEST XI?


    Lawrie Spence (LS) has ranted and spouted his ill-informed opinions on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007.  He has a life outside this blog.  Honestly.
    View the full article
  2. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: Twelfth

    LAST SEASON: Promoted via playoffs

    NOTABLE INS: Cameron Blues (Falkirk), Callum Crane (Hibernian), Liam Kelly (Rangers), Ricki Lamie (Greenock Morton), Steven Lawless (Partick Thistle), Kenny Miller (Rangers, player-manager), Steven Saunders (The New Saints), Craig Sibbald (Falkirk), Ross Stewart (St. Mirren), James Brown (Millwall, loan), Ryan Hardie (Rangers, loan), Egli Kaja (Milton Keynes Dons, loan)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Gregor Buchanan (Greenock Morton), Jackson Longridge (Dunfermline Athletic), Dylan Mackin (Falkirk), Josh Mullin (Ross County), Steven Boyd (Hamilton Academical, end of loan), Adam Frizzell (Kilmarnock, end of loan), Jordan Thompson (Rangers, end of loan), Neil Alexander (retired)

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Alexander, Gallagher, Halkett, Lithgow, Da Vita, Mullin, Byrne, Pittman, Longridge, Miller, Hardie


    This writer has always found rooting for Livingston to be rather difficult.

    Historically it was due to a close rivalry with Caley Thistle as the two sides raced up the divisions, and the resentment that Livingston tended to be a step ahead.

    More recently there has been the distaste left by their administrations in 2004 and 2009, the latter of which resulted in demotion to the fourth tier; the use of a loophole to bring in 'amateur' signings to help avoid relegation in 2005; a points deduction in 2014 for tax breaches; and, currently, the employment of one player who served a jail sentence for fracturing someone's skull with a baseball bat, another who was previously placed on the sex offenders register, and an assistant manager who spent several years in prison for his part in cocaine dealing. As you do.

    And yet it was a joy watching Livingston see off Dundee United and Partick Thistle in last season's promotion playoffs. Having only just come up from League One, David Hopkin's side were expected to aim for consolidation rather than further progress...expected by everyone else, that is. They were grossly underestimated by opponents on a weekly basis, even when it became clear they were heading for second spot in the Championship and even in the aforementioned playoffs.

    For Livi showed how far excellent organization, work ethic and stamina can take a team. Difficult to break down - not least thanks to an outstanding centre-back trio - they frustrated opponents whilst in turn wearing them down with seemingly tireless running. It's possible that the only time midfielder Scott Pittman stopped moving all season was when he ended up in the back of the net, with the ball, after scoring a crucial goal against Partick Thistle; of course, he had made a lung-busting burst from deep to get into the box to score.

    Hopkin deserves a huge amount of credit; in fact he should have been Scotland's manager of the year and surely would have been were the award not announced before those playoff matches. And yet a week later he chose to let his contract run out and leave. Linked with Morton, St. Mirren, Bradford and Carlisle at various points, he curiously remains unemployed.

    Time will tell whether his former club sink or swim without him. It took thirty days to appoint a new manager. In that time assistant boss David Martindale seems to have taken control of transfer policy and the new faces that arrived before Kenny Miller did.

    Livi fans will not have fond memories of having a player-manager in the top flight - Paul Lambert managed only two league wins in six months in the role in 2005/06. Kenny Miller can hardly do worse, though given that he is now well into his thirty-ninth year and last season there was finally evidence of the inevitable decline in his performances on the pitch, any positive impact surely has to come from the dugout.

    In the short-term, he could do worse than rely on his predecessor's strategy. It helps that the triumvirate of Craig Halkett, Declan Gallagher and Alan Lithgow remain - Halkett was outstanding last season and will surely have had offers from bigger clubs. Pittman, the closest thing Scottish football has to a Duracell Bunny, remains also. Out of those who have left only Josh Mullin and the retired Neil Alexander were regulars last season.

    But it's reasonable to expect that guts and grit won't be enough on their own for the step up. Opponents at this level will be better and fitter. And relying on team spirit is easy when the results are coming, but less so when you're not winning most weeks.

    And the club themselves have made it clear that, whilst their playing budget will treble this season they are not going to break the bank to increase their slim chances of survival. Miller will have to do what he can with what he has inherited, augmented by the signings made before he arrived plus whatever he can find himself.

    For a start he needs to improve on his striking options unless he really is betting big on himself. Getting Ryan Hardie back on loan from Rangers for a third time is a huge boost and it will be intriguing to see how effective he is in the top flight, but until he recovers from a foot injury the manager only really has himself and namesake Lee as options - with a combined age of 73 between the duo. The latter will win a lot of headers and put himself about it but is only really useful as a late sub.

    The midfield will not be short of sweat with the aforementioned Pittman and Keaghan Jacobs, but quality? Raffaele Da Vita is out injured long-term, so they desperately need Craig Sibbald to finally step up and fulfil the awesome potential he showed at Falkirk as a teenager. They have also brought in widemen Egli Kaja (on loan) and Steven Lawless. If they can create the chances and Hardie can put them in, they have hope.

    That is, of course, as long as the defence continue to combine well and new keeper Liam Kelly can fill Neil Alexander's gloves. Kelly has lots of caps at age levels for Scotland, but he also has no league experience above League One. It's a big opportunity for him and a big risk for Livi.

    Ultimately the plan is clear. Staying up would be fantastic but it isn't worth putting the club at risk; better to think of the future and make sure that in the event of relegation they are strong enough to bounce straight back up again and have a better shot at survival next time.

    And that's just as well because they are relegation favourites and surely the weakest side to come up since Dundee were belatedly promoted in 2012 without getting any time to prepare.

    But fans can look to Hamilton Accies for hope - a club who keep staying up against the odds, who also have a plastic pitch (Livi installed one this summer) and who, on paper, also look pretty weak this season. Accies have proved everyone wrong for years. Can Livi follow their lead?


    THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1997 in italics)
    Goalkeepers: Liam Kelly, Gary Maley, Ross Stewart
    Defenders: James Brown, Callum Crane, Declan Gallagher, Craig Halkett, Ricki Lamie, Alan Lithgow, Jack McMillan, Steven Saunders
    Midfielders: Cameron Blues, Shaun Byrne, Nicky Cadden, Raffaele De Vita, Keaghan Jacobs, Egli Kaja, Steven Lawless, Jack Ogilvie, Scott Pittman, Scott Robinson, Craig Sibbald
    Forwards: Jack Hamilton, Ryan Hardie, Matthew Knox, Kenny Miller, Lee Miller, Kyle Sampson

    THE BEST XI?




    Lawrie Spence (LS) has ranted and spouted his ill-informed opinions on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007.  He has a life outside this blog.  Honestly.
    View the full article
  3. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: Seventh

    LAST SEASON: Seventh, 48pts

    NOTABLE INS: Liam Donnelly (Hartlepool United), Mark Gillespie (Walsall), Danny Johnson (Gateshead), Neil McLaughlin (Partick Thistle), Alex Rodriguez (Sepsi Stantu Gheorghe), Aaron Taylor-Sinclair (Plymouth Argyle), Conor Sammon (Heart of Midlothian, loan)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Russell Griffiths (AFC Fylde), Cedric Kipre (Wigan Athletic), Deimantas Petravicius (Falkirk), Shea Gordon (Partick Thistle, loan), Jake Hastie (Alloa Athletic, loan), Ross MacLean (Greenock Morton, loan), Neil McLaughlin (Stirling Albion, loan), Tom Aldred (Bury, end of loan), Nadir Ciftci (Celtic, end of loan), Stephen Hendrie (Southend United, end of loan), Ellis Plummer, Luke Watt

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Carson, Tait, Aldred, Kipre, Hartley, Dunne, Cadden, McHugh, Campbell, Main, Moult


    There is a fair bit of optimism in the air at Fir Park. Fair enough - they're coming off a campaign where they reached two cup semi-finals and finished comfortably in mid-table.

    Can they kick on further? The fans certainly think so. Manager Stephen Robinson thinks so too. But it will be hard, not least because however astute the club are run, their budget is not in the same league as Aberdeen or the Edinburgh clubs, let alone the Gruesome Twosome. And like the other six clubs in the division, the first priority always has to be to stay clear of the drop.

    Motherwell should be confident of that happening, unless there is some sort of implosion in form and attitude. Whether they can finish higher than last season will probably depend on what sort of goal threat they offer.

    Louis Moult's goals were always going to be difficult to replace, and in fact Robinson did quite well to come up with Curtis Main, a battering ram who scored eight times after arriving in January, as well as bullying many a centre-back into submission.

    But other players weren't hitting the net sufficiently, to the point that Moult was the top scorer despite playing his last game for the club on 2 December. Ryan Bowman managed to score ten in all competitions but he doesn't look like a good fit alongside Main, given that he is taller but less strong and neither offer much in the way of movement or pace. Bowman has been linked with a move away, whilst Nadir Ciftci showed only brief flashes in a loan spell and is long gone.

    In come two new options, Danny Johnson and Conor Sammon. The latter is a surprising arrival on loan and has done precious little in recent years to justify any faith in him. Johnson is a busy player who had a good goalscoring record at Gateshead...but so did Bowman before he moved north. Ultimately, the best option in the squad to partner Main is probably Craig Tanner, but he may not return from a knee injury for several months yet.

    Elsewhere there are few question marks. Robinson tended to use a back three for most of the second half of last season which could easily switch to a back four if necessary, though only Elliott Frear is the only natural winger available. The loss of Tom Aldred will be offset by the return from injury of new club captain Peter Hartley, but the loss in recent days of Charles Dunne to injury and then, on the eve of the new campaign, Cedric Kipre to Wigan Athletic suddenly leave gaping holes. Carl McHugh may drop into the backline as a stopgap solution, but the sizeable fee for Kipre needs invested in a replacement pronto.

    New boys Liam Donnelly and Aaron Taylor-Sinclair are comfortable both as full-backs and wing-backs, though Donnelly will struggle to dislodge the extremely underrated Richard Tait on the right flank. Taylor-Sinclair always used to look good back in his Partick Thistle days and may provide better balance in a 3-5-2 than Frear.

    In the middle of the park there's no shortage of options either. Chris Cadden has steadily continued his upward trajectory and surely won't be around for much longer. Allan Campbell came to prominence last year and the tigrish midfielder, who only turned 20 this summer, should only get better. With Campbell, Liam Grimshaw, McHugh and Andy Rose the Steelmen have, er, no shortage of midfield steel.  (I'm sorry, I'll stop doing this now).

    It would be nice to have a creative player in there, mind. Tanner could fill that role when he returns, but with Gael Bigirimana failing to live up to his pedigree from his Newcastle days Robinson will hope Alex Rodriguez Gorrin, a Spanish midfielder long coveted by the boss, proves an astute signing.

    All in all, Motherwell look to be in decent nick for the new campaign. Will that be enough to separate that from the teams around them, or to turn them into this season's Kilmarnock? That's surely the target.


    THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1997 in italics)
    Goalkeepers: Trevor Carson, Rohan Ferguson, Mark Gillespie
    Defenders: Liam Donnelly, Charles Dunne, Peter Hartley, Adam Livingstone, Barry Maguire, Richard Tait, Aaron Taylor-Sinclair
    Midfielders: Gael Bigirimana, Liam Brown, Chris Cadden, Allan Campbell, Elliott Frear, Liam Grimshaw, Carl McHugh, Alex Rodriguez Gorrin, Andy Rose, Craig Tanner, David Turnbull
    Forwards: Ryan Bowman, Danny Johnson, Curtis Main, George Newell, Connor Sammon, James Scott

    THE BEST XI?



    Lawrie Spence (LS) has ranted and spouted his ill-informed opinions on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007.  He has a life outside this blog.  Honestly.
    View the full article
  4. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: Second

    LAST SEASON: Third, 70pts

    NOTABLE INS: Scott Arfield (Burnley), Connor Goldson (Brighton & Hove Albion), Jon Flanagan (Liverpool), Nikola Katic (Slaven Belupo), Allan McGregor (Hull City), Jamie Murphy (Brighton & Hove Albion, loan made permanent), Lassana Coulibaly (Angers, loan), Ovie Ejaria (Liverpool, loan), Ryan Kent (Liverpool, loan), Umar Sadiq (Roma, loan)

    NOTABLE OUTS: David Bates (Hamburg), Bruno Alves (Parma), Fabio Cardoso (Santa Clara), Harry Forrester (Tractor Sazi), Liam Kelly (Livingston), Kenny Miller (Livingston, player-manager), Michael O'Halloran (Melbourne City), Jordan Thompson (Blackpool), Joe Dodoo (Blackpool, loan), Ryan Hardie (Livingston, loan), Eduardo Herrera (Santos Laguna, loan), Jason Holt (Fleetwood Town, loan), Carlos Pena (Necaxa, loan), Jason Cummings (Nottingham Forest, end of loan), Dalcio (Benfica, end of loan), Sean Goss (Queen's Park Rangers, end of loan), Russell Martin (Norwich City, end of loan)

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Foderingham, Tavernier, Bates, Bruno Alves, John, Jack, Holt, Candeias, Windass, Murphy, Morelos


    Off the field, nothing much has changed. Rangers are still a mess. £17million in debt as of this time last year, they admitted in their last accounts that they would need £7million of external funding over the next two years to keep going. Their 'penniless' (his own lawyer's words) chairman keeps finding increasingly spurious excuses to delay his takeover of the club and is facing a Contempt of Court charge as a result. And in the last few days a case has been settled out of court that will require the club to pay about half a million in legal fees to long-term bugbear Mike Ashley.

    But on the field, are we finally seeing progress?

    Steven Gerrard's start in the Ibrox hotseat has been quietly encouraging. Rangers haven't blown away their Europa League opposition so far, but they've won their two ties and looked solid and well-organized. That in itself is a dramatic improvement from recent years. It's still early days, but so far it is hard to find fault with the rookie manager.

    Crucially, he quickly identified the weakest area in the squad - central defence - and set about improving it. Most of the budget has been blown on Connor Goldson and Nikola Katic, but that's no bad thing, though the decision to let David Bates walk looks dreadfully shortsighted. With Jon Flanagan also added, apparently to play left-back, the hope is that the consistent concession of cheap goals that has been characteristic of the last two years will stop.

    Gerrard's pragmatism is a good sign; rather than having delusions of playing reckless attacking football straight off the bat he has instead concentrated on the fundamentals and trying to make Rangers difficult to beat. The question is whether, if the entertainment value is initially poor and/or there is a slow start - trips to Aberdeen, Motherwell and Celtic in their first four games is not exactly an easy opening to the league campaign, he will be given time. Ibrox is not exactly renowned for its patience.

    There have been additions elsewhere too, of course. Four midfielders have come in, including Ryan Kent and Ovie Ejaria on loan from Liverpool. Lassana Coulibaly, another loanee, is expected to add a physical presence alongside Ryan Jack at the base. Scott Arfield, often a regular in the Premier League with Burnley, should be a good signing if he can be fitted into Gerrard's system, but he isn't quite enough of a winger for a 4-2-3-1 system - unlike Jamie Murphy - and may find it hard to find a place in the centre of midfield with so many options available.

    Up front they still look a bit light as well, especially if Josh Windass, a perfectly viable second striker, leaves. Umar Sadiq is a bit of an unknown quantity, whereas we know what we will get from Alfredo Morelos - a lot of hard work, a headache for the opposing centre-backs, and too many missed chances. Morelos has plenty of room to improve (he is only 22 after all) but Gerrard will want to bring in at least one more forward, with Kyle Lafferty recently linked.

    There will be plenty of departures yet, either permanently or on loan. Greg Docherty has been deemed not ready for first team action, which is a shame. Wes Foderingham has been frozen out in favour of Allan McGregor, which seems more of a sideways move than an upgrade in goal. Lee Wallace could also be moved on if a suitor can be found, after his fallout with the club at the end of last year.

    The bottom line is that Rangers are still a hell of a long way behind Celtic, and therefore a hell of a long way away from where they want to be. The trick is recognizing it, and thinking in terms of gradual improvements instead of desperate attempts at big leaps which end up in a Luxembourger bush. If they trust Gerrard, and he proves worthy of their faith, they should surely climb one step on the podium this year. That might not sound much to their fans, but it would be positive progress for the first time in a long while.


    THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1997 in italics)
    Goalkeepers: Jak Alnwick, Wes Foderingham, Allan McGregor
    Defenders: Myles Beerman, Kyle Bradley, Jon Flanagan, Connor Goldson, Lee Hodson, Declan John, Nikola Katic, Ross McCrorie, James Tavernier, Lee Wallace
    Midfielders: Scott Arfield, Jamie Barjonas, Liam Burt, Daniel Candeias, Lassana Coulibaly, Greg Docherty, Graham Dorrans, Ovie Ejaria, Andy Halliday, Ryan Jack, Ryan Kent, Glenn Middleton, Jordan Rossiter, Josh Windaass
    Forwards: Alfredo Morelos, Jamie Murphy, Umar Sadiq


    THE BEST XI?

    Lawrie Spence (LS) has ranted and spouted his ill-informed opinions on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007.  He has a life outside this blog.  Honestly.
    View the full article
  5. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: THIRD

    LAST SEASON: 4th, 67pts

    NOTABLE INS: Funso Ojo (Scunthorpe United, £125k), Luc Bollan (Dundee United), Craig Bryson (Derby County), Ryan Hedges (Barnsley), Curtis Main (Motherwell), Michael Ruth (Queen's Park), Ash Taylor (Northampton Town), James Wilson (Manchester United, loan made permanent), Jon Gallagher (Atlanta United, loan), Greg Leigh (NAC Breda, loan)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Gary Mackay-Steven (New York City), Mark Reynolds (Dundee United, loan made permanent), Graeme Shinnie (Derby County), Dominic Ball (Rotherham United, end of loan), Tommie Hoban (Watford, end of loan), Max Lowe (Derby County, end of loan), Greg Stewart (Birmingham City, end of loan), Greg Halford

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Lewis, Logan, McKenna, Devlin, Lowe, Mackay-Steven, Shinnie, Ferguson, McGinn, May, Cosgrove



    How big a deal is it that Derek McInnes signed a new contract this summer? After all, it won't stop him leaving if another club offer sufficient compensation. But he could have hedged his bets and let it run down. But six years into his tenure, he has chosen to commit himself to the club going forward. 

    It's a huge boost to the club because the Dons' squad appears to be going through something of a rebuild. It feels like a long time since the 2017 Scottish Cup Final, where an Aberdeen side containing Graeme Shinnie, Ryan Jack, Jonny Hayes and Kenny McLean went toe-to-toe with Brendan Rodgers' Invincibles. Club captain and Duracell bunny Shinnie became the last of that quartet to depart at the end of last season. Gary Mackay-Steven has decided to take his chances in the USA. Max Lowe has proven an all-to-brief answer to the club's longstanding question at left-back - if anything, Clive, he was too good, so Derby County wanted him back.

    After slipping to fourth last season, following four straight second place finishes, could it be that Aberdeen cracked their heads off the glass ceiling and are on their way down again? It seems McInnes thinks not. With the new stadium at Kingsford due to open in 2021, and the decision to become a PLC to attract further investment, perhaps he has reason to believe that the Dons are going places.

    In the meantime, he still has the third biggest wage budget in the country to work with, a budget that has allowed him to entice Craig Bryson back north and to keep James Wilson. The latter will have taken a massive wage cut from the thirty grand a week he was making at Manchester United but will still surely be on a decent wad. The thing is, he was an overwhelming disappointment during his loan spell last season, managing just four goals and often looking disinterested. Retaining him looks like a considerable leap of faith by McInnes, especially since Sam Cosgrove has proven himself a consistent goalscorer and a very capable loan striker.


    He has also ventured back into the left-back loan market and come up with former Manchester City youngster Greg Leigh, while out wide a lot he has taken three throws of the dice at replacing Mackay-Steven; Scott Wright returns from a loan at Dundee where he showed flashes, while Welsh international winger Ryan Hedges has arrived from Barnsley and most curiously Jon Gallagher, an Irishman playing in the USA, has arrived on loan. Gallagher looks raw as heck but has pace to burn. Signs from the European games are that two of these three will do fine interchanging with Niall McGinn as part of the '3' in a 4-2-3-1.

    At the other end they look pretty set. Joe Lewis seems to have decided to spend the rest of his career in the North-East after signing a new contract. Shay Logan was a bit below his usual high standards last season but remains one of the better right-backs in the country. It's only a matter of time till Scott McKenna goes on to bigger things but until then they have excellent quality and quantity at centre-back, especially if Michael Devlin can stay fit. Otherwise Ash Taylor has returned after two years back in England and Andrew Considine is reliable enough. 

    The loss of Shinnie is a blow but rather than try and find a like-for-like replacement. McInnes instead landed Funso Ojo, who is more of a typical holding player. This may be no bad thing as the large spaces between Aberdeen's defence and midfield have been an obvious weakness for years. And Lewis Ferguson looks more than ready to take on Shinnie's mantle. The ex-Accie doesn't turn 20 till August but the £240,000 fee the tribunal set for him last summer looks like robbery. There's also Bryson who will be on a decent wage but who may actually find it tough to break into this side.

    Ferguson isn't the only youngster who the Dons have high hopes for. Connor McLennan looked great on the flanks when given his chance last season, while Bruce Anderson showed signs that he could be a capable striker. Anderson will have to wait his turn though behind Cosgrove, Wilson and new signing Curtis Main and may go out on loan again. Stevie May, meanwhile, will be on his way.

    Time will tell if the Dons are weaker than they were last season but third place looks like a very achievable target. Frustratingly for the support, the gap to Rangers looks insurmountable, whereas the difference between the Dons and the likes of the Edinburgh clubs - and of course Kilmarnock if their new boss picks up where the old one left off - is not that great at all. McInnes' remit for now is surely to make them the third best club in the country for the next couple of years...and then hope the Kingsford move can spark something special.


    THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1998 in italics)
    Goalkeepers: Tomas Cerny, Joe Lewis, Danny Rogers
    Defenders: Luc Bollan, Andrew Considine, Michael Devlin, Jon Gallagher, Greg Leigh, Shay Logan, Scott McKenna, Ash Taylor
    Midfielders: Craig Bryson, Dean Campbell, Lewis Ferguson, Stephen Gleeson, Ryan Hedges, Funso Ojo, Ethan Ross, Miko Virtanen
    Forwards: Bruce Anderson, Sam Cosgrove, Curtis Main, Stevie May, Niall McGinn, Connor McLennan, Michael Ruth, James Wilson, Scott Wright

    THE BEST XI?

     

    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
    View the full article
  6. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: FIRST

    LAST SEASON: 1st, 87pts

    NOTABLE INS: Christopher Jullien (Toulouse, £6m), Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo (Rapid Vienna, £3m), Hatem Abd Elhamed (Hapoel Be'er Sheva, £1.6m), Lucas Connell (Bolton Wanderers, £250k)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Scott Allan (Hibernian), Dedryck Boyata (Hertha Berlin), Marvin Compper (Duisburg), P.J. Crossan (Dumbarton), Mikael Lustig (Gent), Filip Benkovic (Leicester City, end of loan), Oliver Burke (West Bromwich Albion, end of loan), Jeremy Toljan (Borussia Dortmund, end of loan), Timo Weah (Paris St. Germain, end of loan), Dorus De Vries (retired), Cristian Gamboa, Emilio Izaguirre, Youssouf Mulumbu

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Bain, Lustig, Ajer, Boyata, Tierney, McGregor, Christie, Forrest, Rogic, Sinclair, Edouard 


    So Celtic have got to eight-in-a-row. And how many of those titles have been hotly contested? None. Don't believe any hype about there having been a title race last year. There wasn't. And nor should there have been. Even with Rangers apparently getting their house in order the gap between the the blue and green buttocks of Scottish football is still huge. In fact, it should probably be larger than the nine points that separated the sides over the whole of 2018-19.

    There really shouldn't be a contest this time around either. Celtic' wage bill remains double that of their closest rivals and several times that of each of their other domestic rivals. The quality and depth which that buys should be enough for nine-in-a-row even if you, I or Ronny Deila were in charge.

    That means expectations should be, correctly, different...and always makes writing a season preview for Celtic a headache. Of course they should be stronger everywhere on the pitch than everyone else in Scotland. Winning the league is the absolute minimum of what they should achieve. A properly successful season requires them to go far in Europe - and I don't mean to the last 32 of the Europa League. They would most likely be hammered several times in the Champions League Group Stages - what do you mean, it's unfair because the other clubs have so much more money than you? - but they need to be there for the prestige and for the cash. Otherwise there's a decent-sized hole in the accounts that ends up being filled by selling a star player.

    And Celtic should get there. It may be harder than it was a few seasons ago but they will be a seed in every qualifying round that they play and on paper should be stronger than any opponent they can draw. Another run of Thursday-Sunday gamedays will not be welcomed.

    There would be a lot more confidence if Brendan Rodgers was still here though. Celtic's results just about held up after he left, but they were unquestionably less creative and more sluggish under Neil Lennon. His eleven league games did produce a solid 24 points but included draws at home to Aberdeen and Livingston and away at Hibs, as well as late winners against Hearts (twice) and Dundee. Most galling, their sole defeat was at Ibrox where they didn't turn up. Whether the title was in the bag or not, such an appalling performance in the derby rang alarm bells.

    So too did the first hour of the Scottish Cup Final, before Odsonne Edouard pulled a finger out. Time will tell whether Peter Lawwell really should have been so excited by the combination of Treble Treble elation, hospitality booze and being in the post-match showers that he offered Lennon the job permanently.

    The new manager's first task was to trim the bloated squad Rodgers left behind. With Mikael Lustig essentially done, the only players Lennon would probably have liked to retain were Dedryck Boyata and Filip Benkovic but £6million signing Christopher Jullien looks more than capable for the physical challenge and should settle quickly. With Kristoffer Ajer developing into a hell of a player and Jozo Simunovic available as well, centre-back remains a position of strength (at least in comparison to other Premiership clubs).

    At left-back, Boli Bolingoli has clearly been purchased on the assumption that Kieran Tierney's move to Arsenal will happen. A player of Tierney's quality is essentially irreplaceable but the Belgian will have to try. He's incredibly athletic and a threat going forward but far more suspect defensively than his predecessor and is likely to be found out by stronger opposition.

    As for right-back, it's still not clear what the strategy is. Hatem Abd Elhamed was touted as a right-back when he arrived from Hapoel Be'er Shiva but he has in fact spent most of his career in central defence. Lennon showed a penchant for three at the back at Hibs and might intend to use James Forrest as a very, very, very high right wing-back. Whether that's the way to get the best out of the flying winger, and whether it would also be a huge vulnerability in continental action, are questions that need answered though.

    It'll be interesting to see what midfield combination Lennon settles on. He claimed in April that he intended to build his team around Scott Brown, despite the fact the skipper is 34 and looked increasingly leggy last season. Brown has bounced back before after being written off but I'd be surprised if he was still a regular by the end of his current two year deal. The player that he should be building around is Callum McGregor, who was the best player in the country last year. However one feature of the post-Rodgers era is that he finds it far harder to find space in between the lines.

    There is also the case for playing McGregor deeper; many would argue Celtic's best performances last season came when Brown was injured and McGregor had to play in his position. However with Nir Bitton having been rehabilitated after dropping out of favour with Rodgers, that's unlikely.

    It's a bit of an embarrassment of riches, to be honest. Also competing for starting places are of course Ryan Christie, who has looked great in the European qualifiers, Olivier Ntcham, Tom Rogic and Scott Sinclair. Sinclair is the only one who looks happy out wide, but in turn he wasn't great last year and Lennon seems keen on Mikey Johnston as the long-term option there.

    Rogic seems to have fallen behind Christie in the queue for the number ten position. Ntcham remains an enigma, a star when he feels like it and a plodder when (as is too often) he doesn't. It's no secret he wants away and it's probably in the club's interests to take the money...especially if there is less emphasis on keep-ball than there was in the past.

    As for up top, they aren't exactly short either. Odsonne Edouard has all the tools as long as his body holds up. Leigh Griffiths looks refreshed after time out to deal with mental health issues. There's also the lesser spotted Vakoun Issouf Bayo who hasn't been fit since arriving in January.

    In conclusion? Even to those who are sceptical about the Lennon appointment, its clear that Celtic have so much quality and depth in the squad that they are still the best team in the country by some way. In Europe however, they almost certainly aren't strong enough to make waves, whoever is in the dugout. Plus ça change...


    THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1998 in italics)
    Goalkeepers: Scott Bain, Craig Gordon
    Defenders: Hatem Abd Elhamed, Kristoffer Ajer, Boli Bolingoli, Jack Hendry, Christopher Jullien, Calvin Miller, Anthony Ralston, Jozo Simunovic, Kieran Tierney
    Midfielders: Daniel Arzani, Nir Bitton, Scott Brown, Lucas Connell, Jonny Hayes, Ewan Henderson, Eboue Kouassi, Callum McGregor, Lewis Morgan, Olivier Ntcham, Tom Rogic, Maryan Shved, Scott Sinclair
    Forwards: Jack Aitchison, Vakoun Issouf Bayo, Ryan Christie, Karamoko Dembele, Odsonne Edouard, James Forrest, Leigh Griffiths, Michael Johnston

    THE BEST XI?

     

    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
    View the full article
  7. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: TENTH

    LAST SEASON: 10th, 33pts

    NOTABLE INS: Blair Alston (St. Johnstone), Will Collar (Brighton & Hove Albion), Brian Easton (St. Johnstone), Markus Fjortoft (Southern United), Owain Fon Williams (Inverness Caledonian Thistle), Kyle Gourlay (Dundee), Johnny Hunt (Stevenage), Ciaran McKenna (Falkirk), David Moyo (St. Albans City), Korede Adedoyin (Everton, loan)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Ziggy Gordon (Central Coast Mariners), James Keatings (Inverness Caledonian Thistle), Gary Woods (Oldham Athletic), Tony Andreu (Coventry City, end of loan), David McMillan (St. Johnstone, end of loan), Dougie Imrie (retired), Tom Taiwo (retired), Matthew Kilgallon, Jacob Marsden, Alex Penny, Lennard Sowah, Delphin Tshiembe

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Woods, Gordon, Kilgallon, Gogic, McGowan, Martin, MacKinnon, Andreu, Imrie, Miller, Oakley



    This is the sixth straight season I've had to write a Hamilton Accies season preview. In the first four I predicted they'd come bottom, and last year I had them finishing eleventh. I wasn't alone in my thinking. And each time Accies have collectively given the finger to the likes of me by staying up.

    How they've done it is hard to say. Their points totals in recent years have been dreadful - 35,33 and 33 in the last three campaigns. They never seem to score enough goals nor keep enough out. They're the MC Escher of football teams. It's impossible and yet here they are.

    And over time my feelings towards them have moved from considerable annoyance at their unambitious and unpalatable style of play to increasing (albeit grudging) respect at the fact that whilst clubs like Dundee United, Dundee, Partick Thistle, Inverness and others languish outside the top flight, Hamilton have avoided that fate.

    The question now is whether things take a different direction with a new man in the hotseat. Well, I say 'new' but Brian Rice has been Head Coach since January. It was probably true that the only way was up at that point, but Rice guided Accies clear of relegation. He actually managed only four wins and four draws in sixteen games, so it tells you something about the state they were in that this was a marked improvement on the final days of Martin Canning.

    But despite the change of boss it's been a pretty typical Accies summer. Their budget remains a fraction of even the mid-table Premiership sides so the signings have been the usual motley crew of Premiership castoffs, Championship wannabes, kids released from English under 23 sides and the odd unknown from non-league.

    The hope is that Rice will do a superior job of moulding them together. As assistant boss at Falkirk, Hibs and Caley Thistle he was highly respected as a training ground coach. Mind you, the way some of the new boys have been talking you'd think he's the Scottish Guardiola. Certainly though it's reasonable to expect that Accies will be better organized than they were at any time in the Canning era.

    Do they have enough quality though?

    They haven't lost all that much, at least. Ziggy Gordon was a regular in defence but hadn't hit the heights expected of him and he is replaceable. Goalkeeper Gary Woods had quietly excelled but Rice might have found a gem in Owain Fon Williams, largely frozen out for two years at Caley Thistle because of his wages. The Welshman struggled when ICT were relegated before that but played that whole year with a back problem and is a far better keeper than many realize.

    In front of him it looks like it'll be a back three, though it may be hard to find a competent combination. Alex Gogic missed most of last season after a knee injury but if he's back to 100% he should be a capable performer; however he also looked like the best (or least-bad) option in defensive midfield in the League Cup games. 

    Brian Easton is also not long back from an extended layoff and seems more likely to be used on the left side of that three rather than as a left-back. Ciaran McKenna flashed some potential at Falkirk last season but is really raw after spending his formative years in the USA. Markus Fjortoft is a typical Hamilton 'take a flyer on a guy who won't cost us much if he isn't up to it' move. And Shaun Want has shown nothing to suggest he's going to hack it as a Premiership player in the short- or long-term.

    In theory, the standard at wing-back is a lot higher. Aaron McGowan certainly came onto a game in the second half of last season. Frustratingly Scott McMann still hasn't lived up to the billing he was given as a youngster by Alex Neil all those years ago. Now 23, he really needs to become consistent. The more experienced Johnny Hunt will not have moved up from Stevenage just to be a backup.

    In midfield it seems certain there will be a place for Darian MacKinnon, though the captain, 34 in October, does appear to be slowing down a little. The other two positions may be up for grabs. Will Collar, signed from Brighton, should fill the most defensive role though he's not been sighted so far. Blair Alston was let go by St. Johnstone because he influenced games only sporadically, so Rice needs to get the best out of him if Accies are to create chances. 

    But if Rice is willing to give youth a try he can call on Ross Cunningham, Lewis Smith, Reegan Mimnaugh and Ronan Hughes in this area. Cunningham was particularly impressive in July, scoring four League Cup goals; three were penalties but it is encouraging that the 21 year old took on such responsibility. Smith is more attack-minded and could be deployed in the number ten role if Rice opted for one up top in some games. There's also Scott Martin who was something of a marquee signing by Canning's standards last summer but who seems out of favour. 

    There is however a dearth of natural wingers in the squad which will leave Rice short of a plan B if things aren't going well. Steven Boyd, Mickel Miller and new signing David Moyo can all play wide if necessary but they would prefer to be through the middle. Miller was great in the first half of last season but is a rare case of a player regressing under Rice; however he was given a new deal in the summer so it seems reasonable to assume the boss has faith in him.

    Up front though he's likely to go with two of Marios Ogkmpoe, George Oakley and Steve Davies. Ogkmpoe is the battering ram, Davies is the best natural finisher but doesn't do enough to link play, and Oakley is reasonably strong, reasonably quick and okay in front of goal but doesn't really do anything especially well. If one was to break through this season, I'd pick Ogkmpoe - the Greek did well to come back from an ACL injury in the spring and has looked sharp in the League Cup. He looks like he has a point to prove and could reward Hamilton's faith in him.

    The target as always is survival but this might be the first time that the odds of that are in their favour. First, the coaching has improved. Second, there are other teams in the division who look unsettled and lost at the moment. Hamilton and their fans would probably prefer that they were written off again, but there's a chance that this could be a less stressful campaign than the last few.


    THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1998 in italics)
    Goalkeepers: Owain Fon Williams, Ryan Fulton, Kyle Gourlay
    Defenders: Brian Easton, Markus Fjortoft, Alex Gogic, Johnny Hunt, Aaron McGowan, Ciaran McKenna, Scott McMann, George Stanger, Shaun Want
    Midfielders: Blair Alston, Will Collar, Ross Cunningham, Ronan Hughes, Darian MacKinnon, Scot Martin, Reegan Mimnaugh, Lewis Smith
    Forwards: Korede Adedoyin, Steven Boyd, Steve Davies, Mickel Miller, David Moyo, George Oakley, Marios Ogkmpoe

    THE BEST XI?



    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
    View the full article
  8. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: FIFTH

    LAST SEASON: 6th, 51pts

    NOTABLE INS: Craig Halkett (Livingston), Steven Naismith (Norwich City, loan made permanent), Jamie Walker (Wigan Athletic), Conor Washington (Sheffield United)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Arnaud Djoum (Al-Raed), Ryan Edwards (Burton Albion), Marcus Godinho (FSV Zwickau), Conor Sammon (Falkirk), David Vanecek (Puskas Akademia), Daniel Baur (Bonnyrigg Rose Athletic, loan), Alex Petkov (Clyde, loan), Demi Mitchell (Manchester United, end of loan), Conor Shaughnessy (Leeds United, end of loan), Aaron Hughes (retired), Maluary Martin

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Zlamal, M.Smith, Souttar, Berra, Mitchell, Clare, Djoum, Haring, Mulraney, Naismith, Ikpeazu


    It's easy to forget that at the end of October 2018 Hearts were top of the league. They had twenty-six points, four more than Celtic (who had a game in hand). That was one more point than they scored in the remaining twenty-seven league games. They won only twice after the first day of February.

    That's not a small sample size. It's certainly large enough to put a manager in trouble. Craig Levein's saving grace was a run to the Scottish Cup Final...though he was fortunate to avoid Premiership opposition until the showpiece itself. Then the Jambos surprised many by giving Celtic a proper fight before succumbing 2-1. Was that a blip, or a sign of what Hearts are truly capable of?

    The late autumn collapse coincided with a spate of injuries that left the team often looking leaderless. Christophe Berra and Steven Naismith may be past their best but their experience was crucial. When both went down, no-one filled the gap. The loss of John Souttar and Uche Ikpeazu for long periods was also crucial. But that excuse doesn't wash for their torrid League Cup performances, where the Jambos toiled against Stenhousemuir and East Fife and supporters started to make their exasperation clear.

    It's not like Levein had a small squad. He filled gaps not with the talented youngsters that have been knocking on the first team's door but with other signings. Too many of these didn't look up to it. Perhaps the manager has learned his lesson, letting several players go this summer and adding only three. Expect left-back Aaron Hickey - who impressed after his unexpected Hampden start - midfielder Harry Cochrane and skilful wideman Anthony McDonald to see a lot more action this year.

    Naismith is back to guide them; his permanent move was delayed till the start of August because he would have forfeited a month's salary at his former club if he signed with someone else sooner than that. His nous and leadership are critical. He also seems to bring the best out of Ikpeazu, who at his best is astonishingly strong, as good with his back to goal as anyone in this league since Chris Sutton and with a decent turn of pace too. His form in July was honking though and even at his best he did only score eight goals last time out. Hearts need him to make double figures this campaign and damage plenty of opposing defenders in the process.

    There's still canny veteran Steven Maclean, and one of the new boys is Northern Irish international striker Conor Washington, a busy player who has spent most of the last four years coming off English Championship benches. That's decent depth, so much so that another decent young player, Aidan Keena, will surely be loaned out again.

    Crucially, the club also brought back Jamie Walker. Often Levein was criticized for playing hoofball, which was harsh mainly because it wasn't that Hearts always looked to go long, just that too often they only looked dangerous when they did so. Expect Walker's presence to alter that. The midfielder is expert at finding space between the lines, a skill that the squad lacked as a whole last season. Having him and Naismith playing off Ikpeazu should in theory work really well.

    Central midfield is more of an issue with Arnaud Djoum having moved on and Peter Haring struggling with a chronic pelvic injury. The attack-minded Sean Clare has played in a deeper role in the League Cup games but doesn't do the defensive side well enough . In addition to Cochrane, Andy Irving is another young player fighting for a place in the team, while amongst the older players Olly Lee has been told he can go and Oliver Bozanic failed to impress last season. If there is to be another new signing, it'll be in this area.

    There has already been one in the centre of defence where Craig Halkett, who shone for Livingston last season, will hopefully inherit Berra's mantle; the skipper too often runs out of legs in the second half these days and a partnership of Halkett and Souttar is likely going forward. Berra could always be deployed in a back three; Levein has plenty of options available in wide areas if he wishes to to play with wing-backs or a back four. 

    Hickey, still only 17, will compete with another teenager, Bobby Burns, and newcomer Aidy White for the left-back slot. Flying winger Jake Mulraney was one of the few squad members to enhance his reputation after Christmas and could also be used as a wing-back. Fellow widemen Dario Zanatta and Anthony McDonald impressed in Championship loans last season and could make the step up. Michael Smith could be right-back, right wing-back, on the right of a back three or a solid defensive midfielder. Callumn Morrison played right wing-back for much of last season too. The question is whether this is a case of quantity over quality, and whether Levein - and the Hearts fans - have enough patience to stick with the youths.

    The ingredients appear to be there though. And it shouldn't take a gourmet chef to cook up something decent. Too often last year Hearts served up mediocre fare. If they can't make the step up to haut cuisine then Levein will be back under pressure very quickly.


    THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1998 in italics)
    Goalkeepers: Colin Doyle, Kevin Silva, Zdenek Zlamal
    Defenders: Christophe Berra, Jamie Brandon, Bobby Burns, Clevid Dikamona, Ben Garuccio, Craig Halkett, Chris Hamilton, Aaron Hickey, Cammy Logan, Michael Smith, John Souttar, Aidy White
    Midfielders: Oliver Bozanic, Sean Clare, Harry Cochrane, Peter Haring, Andy Irving, Olly Lee, Anthony McDonald, Lewis Moore, Callumn Morrison, Jake Mulraney, Connor Smith, Jamie Walker, Craig Wighton, Dario Zanatta
    Forwards: Rory Currie, Ewan Henderson, Uche Ikpeazu, Aidan Keena, Steven Maclean, Leeroy Makovora, Steven Naismith, Connor Washington

    THE BEST XI?

     

    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
    View the full article
  9. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: Fourth

    LAST SEASON: 5th, 54pts

    NOTABLE INS: Christian Doidge (Forest Green Rovers, £250k), Scott Allan (Celtic), Steven Bradley (Queen's Park), Adam Jackson (Barnsley), Tom James (Yeovil Town), Joe Newell (Rotherham United), Josh Vela (Bolton Wanderers), Chris Maxwell (Preston North End, loan)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Lewis Allan (Raith Rovers), Marvin Bartley (Livingston), Ross Laidlaw (Ross County), Mark Milligan (Southend United), Thomas Agyepong (Manchester City, end of loan), Adam Bogdan (Liverpool, end of loan), Ryan Gauld (Sporting Lisbon, end of loan), Darnell Johnson (Leicester City, end of loan), Marc McNulty (Reading, end of loan), Stephane Omeonga (Genoa, end of loan), Gael Bigirimana, Andrew Blake, Miquel Nelom, Jonathan Spector

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Marciano, Ambrose, Hanlon, Porteous, Stevenson, Milligan, Mallan, Omeonga, Boyle, Horgan, McNulty


    Neil Lennon might have guided Hibs to fourth place just over a year ago, but by the time he left at the end of January it had all gone pear-shaped. The circumstances of his departure were bizarre to say the least but his exit was justified in terms of results; at that point Hibs were only eighth.

    Under Paul Heckingbottom they then went unbeaten in the league until after the split, where they lost the last three games of the campaign. Only Celtic and Rangers managed more points in that fifteen match period. So far, so very good for the Englishman. He showed he could get the best out of the squad he inherited.

    Now he needs to show that he can recruit.There have been a lot of departures this summer and while the list was mainly made up of depth pieces it also included impressive loanees Stephane Omeonga and Marc McNulty. Both have joined new clubs.

    And so Heckingbottom has got biz-zay. McNulty;s replacement up front, Welshman Christian Doidge, commanded a £250,000 fee. At this level, that's a decent amount of money and therefore expectations of Doidge, whose goalscoring record at English League Two level was good and who would have signed permanently for Bolton in January had the Championship side not hit financial trouble, should be high.

    Doidge joins Flo Kamberi and Oli Shaw as options up front. The lack of numbers there hints that the manager may look to play one up front more often than not. Kamberi spent a lot of time out on the flank in the second half of last season but whilst he was more than willing it isn't his best position and there are surely better options to start there. His goal return last season was disappointing and too often it seems like lack of confidence is holding back the Swiss forward's considerable talent. Shaw is a great prospect and has been attracting interest from down south, but it seems like he is third in the queue here.

    One reason Kamberi can go back to the centre (or the bench) is the return from injury of Martin Boyle. The flying winger shone for a year and a half before hurting his knee with Australia in January. With Daryl Horgan impressing under Heckingbottom and the arrival of another wideman in Joe Newell there should be no difficulty in creating chances. And that's before acknowledging the return of prodigal son Scott Allan for a third spell at the Easter Road. He and Stevie Mallan should provide an excellent goal threat from midfield.

    The obvious gap in the early League Cup games was the lack of a natural holding midfielder. Mark Milligan did well last year but was moved on, presumably because he will be 34 next month. Fan favourite Marvin Bartley was well past his best too. Against Stirling and Alloa teenager Josh Campbell was deployed in front of the back four but Josh Vela, brought in from Bolton Wanderers, will surely fill this role going forward. Vela was very highly thought of in Lancashire and could be a really good signing.

    He can also play right-back effectively as well, though there is not a shortage of options in defence. Left-back Tom James and centre-back Adam Jackson have been added to the mix, though they'll do well to shift stalwarts Lewis Stevenson and Paul Hanlon, as well as outstanding youngster Ryan Porteous (just back from a long-term injury as well) from the starting lineup. Veterans Darren McGregor, David Gray and Steven Whittaker are all here too. Whittaker looked done last year but the 35 year old impressed the management team in preseason and has forced his way back into the reckoning.

    Whoever starts at the back will protect Israeli Ofir Marciano, who blossomed in the first half of 2019 and has become one of the league's outstanding shotstoppers. That didn't stop Heckingbottom signing experienced goalie Chris Maxwell to compete with him, but Marciano should be first choice going forward.

    All in all, it's hard not to be positive about the Hibees' upcoming campaign. They look well set in most positions as long as the injury bug doesn't bite so hard. If anything, the biggest concern right now is that a panicking English Championship club steals Heckingbottom early in the season. Certainly another top six finish is the absolute least that should be expected; if Doidge, Kamberi or A.N. Other hits a hot streak then they will be dangerous opponents for anyone anywhere. They look certain to be top sixers, and might even fancy their chances of pushing for third.


    Lawrie Spence (LS) has ranted and spouted his ill-informed opinions on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007.  He has a life outside this blog.  Honestly.
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  10. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: SEVENTH

    LAST SEASON: 3rd, 67pts

    NOTABLE INS: Mohamed El Makrini (Roda JC), Laurentiu Branescu (Juventus, loan)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Daniel Higgins (Cove Rangers), Jordan Jones (Rangers), Daniel Bachmann (Watford, end of loan), Conor McAleny (Fleetwood Town, end of loan), Liam Millar (Liverpool, end of loan), Youssouf Mulumbu (Celtic, end of loan), Mikael Ndjoli (Bournemouth, end of loan), Aaron Tshibola (Aston Villa, end of loan), Kris Boyd (retired), Scott Boyd (retired), Will Graham

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Bachmann, O'Donnell, Broadfoot, Findlay, Taylor, Dicker, Power, Mulumbu, Stewart, Jones, Brophy

    Steve Clarke, man. Sure, Jesus turned water into wine, but could he have guided Kilmarnock to third in the league? Dunno about that. I'm sure I wasn't the only neutral rooting for Killie last season. They weren't always pleasing on the eye but I've not seen a better organized team in Scotland. And whoever Clarke sent out onto the pitch would have jumped in front of a bullet if it meant getting a result. He was so damn magnificent that he was able to frequently (and publicly) criticize the SFA and still get the national team job.

    And so, midway through June, the club appointed Angelo Alessio as Clarke's successor.

    I was instantly on board with the move. Appointing another name from the ranks of Scottish football, a la Allan Johnston, Gary Locke, Lee McCulloch et al would have inevitably meant regression back to where they were before the Clarke era. Taking a punt on Alessio obviously came with risk - his previous management posts were in Italy's lower divisions and he has never worked in Scotland before - but like his predecessor his coaching CV is impressive - he assisted Antonio Conte at Juventus, Chelsea and with Italy's national team. If Killie were to have any hope of kicking on, it would be by pulling off a high risk, high reward move like this.

    Then along came Connah's Quay Nomads. What's that noise that sounds like something going down a drain? Why, that's most of the goodwill and benefit-of-the-doubt the fans had given Alessio being flushed away.

    A (very, very) generous person would point out that the new man has had only a few weeks and made only two additions to a squad that lost a lot of players at the end of last season. Most however would point to the fact that the Welsh side needed a penalty shootout to see off League Two Edinburgh City at home in last year's Challenge Cup. All, I think, are worried that the reason no-one had really heard of Alessio is because he is actually just Gary Locke standing on Lee McCulloch's shoulders, surrounded by a ridiculously large overcoat and putting on an outrageous accent.

    And a couple of weeks later there have been no further additions to the squad. Alessio has said himself he needs at least another centre-back, two wingers and a striker. In truth he probably needs even more than that.

    As we said, 'high risk'. If the ceiling is a repeat of third place (a thought that now seems optimistic to the point of delusional), how low is the floor? Certainly bottom six, though the spine of the team is surely far too strong to prevent disaster. Assuming Kirk Broadfoot has enough left in the tank, a back four of him, Stuart Findlay, Stephen O'Donnell and Greg Taylor is stout and talented. The latter three may have been called up for Scotland by their former boss, but they all earned it on merit rather than favouritism.

    Taylor has flown under the radar a bit because left-back is a real (the only?) position of strength for the country, but he has played more than 100 league games and is still just 21. Findlay made a real breakthrough last season, and O'Donnell is one of the best right-backs in the country. The return of Alex Bruce provides centre-back cover, and Taylor's backup Calum Waters is highly thought of at Rugby Park. But more depth is essential now Scott Boyd has retired.

    Alessio can also hang his hat on central midfield duo Gary Dicker and Alan Power, both of whom blossomed under Clarke. Veteran Dutchman Mo El Makrini is probably more of a squad player. The problem, as the manager has identified, is out wide where 35 year old Chris Burke remains the best option. Dom Thomas found his level on loan at Dumbarton last year and Adam Frizzell's development has stalled. Greg Kiltie is best as a number ten, but needs a manager to give him a run of games to show what he can do. Of the club's youngsters, the powerful Innes Cameron is probably the best bet to succeed. He doesn't turn 19 till August though and it may be a bit too soon for him.

    And if you think the wing options look poor then take a peek at the attackers - or attacker, singular. The only striker on the books currently is Eamonn Brophy. Brophy was a hit under Clarke partly because of his workrate and willingness to do the defensive work. He did lead the club with 12 goals last season, but he can be really streaky and his 'shoot first, think later' policy really needs to be binned if he is to push on. At the moment he has no competition to push him.

    And at the other end of the pitch, Jamie MacDonald faces the possiblity of yet another season where he starts as first choice and finishes on the bench. It's safe to assume Laurentiu Branescu has been signed on loan to play, though he will do well to emulate the efforts of Daniel Bachmann last season.

    So a lot now depends on who Killie procure between now and August. The hope is that Alessio can use his contacts to find some gems, and that the players respond positively to another tactical manager. The fear is that Connah's Quay is a sign of what's to come, and that within a few months the dreaded 'safe pair of hands' will be required to dig them out of a hole.


    THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1998 in italics)
    Goalkeepers: Laurentiu Branescu, Jamie MacDonald, Devlin Mackay
    Defenders: Kirk Broadfoot, Alex Bruce, Stuart Findlay, Ross Millen, Stephen O'Donnell, Greg Taylor, Calum Waters, Iain Wilson
    Midfielders: Chris Burke, Innes Cameron, Gary Dicker, Mohamed El Makrini, Adam Frizzell, Greg Kiltie, Rory McKenzie, Alan Power, Dom Thomas
    Forwards: Eamonn Brophy

    THE BEST XI?

     


    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
    View the full article
  11. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: ELEVENTH

    LAST SEASON: 9th, 44pts

    NOTABLE INS: Marvin Bartley (Hibernian), Robbie Crawford (Ayr United), Nicky Devlin (Walsall), Cece Pepe (Rieti), Ibrahima Savane (Bezieres), Aymen Souda (Dunarea Calarasi), Matija Sarkic (Aston Villa, loan)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Liam Kelly (Queens Park Rangers, £50k), Shaun Byrne (Dundee), Nicky Cadden (Greenock Morton), Callum Crane (Edinburgh City), Declan Gallagher (Motherwell), Craig Halkett (Heart of Midlothian), Matthew Knox (Brechin City), Henk Van Schaik (Greenock Morton), Cameron Blues (Greenock Morton, loan), Raffaele De Vita (Partick Thistle, loan), Jack Hamilton (Queen of the South, loan), Dolly Menga (Petro de Luanda, loan), Ciaron Brown (Cardiff City, end of loan), Ryan Hardie (Rangers, end of loan)

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Kelly, Lithgow, Halkett, Gallagher, Lawless, Jacobs, Byrne, Pittman, Lamie, Robinson, Hardie


    How to write about Livingston's efforts last season without sounding patronizing? On reflection, all I can do is ask you to give me the benefit of the doubt.

    Livi came ninth in the Premiership last season, which is some effort for a club that had been promoted via the playoffs, which was operating on (probably) the lowest budget in the league, and who changed manager twice between winning promotion and the first international break of the next campaign.

    How did they do it? When Gary Holt replaced Kenny Miller as manager, he basically undid all the changes Miller tried to make and went back to the formula that worked so well for David Hopkin. No-one was more direct than they were, that isn;t the same thing as aimless punting up the park. Long balls were sent into space for busy forwards to chase, and the midfield, which appeared literally tireless, hoovered up second balls. Free-kicks, corners, long throws - all of them were dangerous as hell. And they were superbly organized defensively.

    Okay, so it wasn't exactly hipster football. But nor was it dull. At Almondvale they did over Hearts 5-0 and Dundee 4-0, and beat Rangers too. This was not a team riding their luck. They were safe by Christmas.

    They did, however, win just three of their final twenty league matches. Was this a case of easing back once the pressure was off, or regression to the mean? We'll find out soon enough. And if this season was already at risk of becoming the 'difficult second album' regardless, it'll be even tougher without some of the talented tunesmiths that took them to their previous heights.

    That solid backline? No more. Their two most talented central defenders, Craig Halkett and Declan Gallagher, have moved on to bigger things (or at least bigger wages) at Hearts and Motherwell respectively. Not only was Halkett a Team of the Year candidate for many (including this writer) but his set-piece threat and ability to ping one in from miles out meant he was, remarkably, Livingston's joint top scorer in the league with seven goals. 

    Now Alan Lithgow is the only one left of the back three which took the Lions up two divisions in consecutive years. And, down two excellent central-defenders, it makes sense that Holt has moved to a flat back four for the new season. Ricki Lamie and new signing Nicky Devlin will be the full-backs, while at the moment Lithgow's most likely companion in the middle is Cece Pepe, a Frenchman who last played in Italy's Serie C.

    Also away is Liam Kelly, the outstanding young goalkeeper who cracked the Scotland squad last year. It turns out that in order to attract him to sign last summer the club had to agree to a clause that allowed him to leave for a derisory fee after a year. Queens Park Rangers paid it. So Aston Villa loanee Matija Sarkic takes up the gloves.

    The midfield picture isn't particularly brighter. One of its perpetual motion engines, Shaun Byrne, has chosen to join Dundee in the Championship. Byrne, Halkett, Gallagher and Kelly were four of Livingston's best five players last season. Thankfully the fifth, Scott Pittman, is still here. Pittman literally covers every blade of grass and without him they really would be in a fix. Keaghan Jacobs will start in a deeper role, alongside veteran Marvin Bartley. Bartley loves a tackle, which means he is a great fit for this team. However he is 33 and so will sit in front of the defence rather than push up to break up play. Holt also brought in Ayr United's Robbie Crawford, who is a bit more technically gifted but runs less than Byrne and tackles less than Bartley.

    Oh, and the forward line isn't in great shape either. Ryan Hardie, the other joint top scorer from last season, isn't coming back from Rangers for a third loan spell. Dolly Menga, who tailed off after a bright start, has returned to Angola on loan to boost his international prospects. And Lee Miller is 36 and surely nothing more than a 'bring on for the last five minutes if we're a goal down' option. 

    In came Lyndon Dykes (technically signed in January but loaned back to Queen of the South for the rest of last season) and Tunisian Aymen Souda. Dykes works as hard as heck (again, a good fit) and loves a shoulder barge. He does not, however, have a great scoring record even at a lower level. In contrast Souda has looked like a goal threat in the League Cup games when coming in from the flank. He could also play more centrally as a number ten, but Holt is more likely to choose between the flair of Craig Sibbald and the more workmanlike Scott Robinson for that role; the latter is better at the defensive work.

    The change of formation allows Steven Lawless to concentrate on being a winger again after he did a passable impersonation of a wing-back last season. It also means that there is potentially a role for Chris Erskine, who looked a bit out of place after signing in January.

    I am aware that I'm painting a picture of doom and gloom here. Nevertheless it would be hard for any club to bounce back from losing so many talented players. And their up-and-at-em style no longer surprises anyone, and their form in 2019 so far suggests that they might have been found out to some extent. Livingston's second season back in the top flight may go the way everyone wrongly expected their first to go - not very well at all. On the other hand, no-one thrives quite as much on being written of as Livingston do... 


    THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1998 in italics)
    Goalkeepers: Gary Maley, Matija Sarkic, Ross Stewart
    Defenders: Nicky Devlin, Ricki Lamie, Alan Lithgow, Jack McMillan, Hakeem Odoffin, Cece Pepe, Ibrahima Savane
    Midfielders: Marvin Bartley, Robbie Crawford, Chris Erskine, Keaghan Jacobs, Steven Lawless, Steve Lawson, Scott Pittman, Scott Robinson, Craig Sibbald, Gregg Wylde
    Forwards: Lyndon Dykes, Craig Henderson, Lee Miller, Aymen Souda, Scott Tiffoney

    THE BEST XI?



    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
    View the full article
  12. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: SIXTH

    LAST SEASON: Eighth, 51pts

    NOTABLE INS: Jake Carroll (Cambridge United), Declan Gallagher (Livingston), Jermaine Hylton (Solihull Moors), Christian Ilic (TSV Hartberg), Christopher Long (Blackpool), Christy Manzinga (RSC Chatelet-Fanciennes), Liam Polworth (Inverness Caledonian Thistle), Sherwin Seedorf (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Casper Sloth (Silkeborg), Devante Cole (Wigan Athletic, loan)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Chris Cadden (Columbus Crew), Shea Gordon (Partick Thistle, loan made permanent), Jake Hastie (Rangers), Danny Johnson (Dundee), Curtis Main (Aberdeen), Carl McHugh (ATK), Neil McLaughlin (Edusport Academy), Alex Rodriguez Gorrin (Oxford United), Rohan Ferguson (Linfield, loan), Tom Aldred (Bury, end of loan), Gboly Ariyibi (Nottingham Forest, end of loan), Ross McCormack (Aston Villa, end of loan), Connor Sammon (Heart of Midlothian, end of loan), Liam Brown, Elliott Frear, Christian Mbulu, George Newell, Aaron Taylor-Sinclair

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Gillespie, Grimshaw, Aldred, Dunne, Tait, Campbell, Rodriguez Gorrin, Turnbull, Ariyibi, Hastie, Main



    When Motherwell's management team signed new contracts this summer, there was much joy amongst the support.

    They might not have felt the same as recently as the end of 2018; the direct and physical - often overly so - play that had taken them to two cup finals the previous season had more than run its course both in terms of its watchability and its results. On Boxing Day, the Steelmen were ninth, only just above the bottom three.

    Over the winter break, they transformed from an ugly caterpillar into a beautiful butterfly. Not only did 'Well start winning, but they did so with panache. No longer did burly targetmen like Curtis Main and Ryan Bowman define the team; now the focus was on fearless youngsters like David Turnbull and Jake Hastie getting the ball down and doing thrilling things with it.

    Sadly Hastie has gone after his contract expired, and Turnbull would have been away too but for a knee injury picked up in his Celtic medical. Motherwell have lost out on £3million as a result, but only temporarily. They will at least get a few more months of their wonderful young midfielder who should return for the second half of the season.

    In the meantime, his absence may not be as damaging as you think. True, they've lost regular starters in Hastie, Chris Cadden (who was injured for most of last season), Alex Rodriguez Gorrin and loanees Tom Aldred and Gboly Ariyibi. But Robinson has never been shy of wheeling and dealing and has brought in ten new players.

    So in defence Declan Gallagher, so solid for Livingston last season, should fill the Aldred gap. Either Peter Hartley or Charles Dunne, who can also play left-back, will partner him. This is probably the weak spot in the side though and if Robinson was to sign one more player it probably would be a central defender.

    There's no such problem at full-back though. Richard Tait is of course more than capable on either side, Liam Grimshaw was converted into a fine right-back last season, and newbie Jake Carroll can compete with Liam Donnelly, back from long-term injury, for the left-back role. In goal, Mark Gillespie took advantage of Trevor Carson's prolonged absence with an arm DVT to make himself first choice keeper. The stats suggest he's a big upgrade over the Northern Irish international.

    There's no shortage of midfield options either even if Turnbull isn't considered. Allan Campbell is a tackling machine, and he'll probably be joined in the middle by Casper Sloth, who might have lost his way in recent years but is still only 27 and has eight caps for Denmark. I say 'probably' because Donnelly played like a boss in that role in the League Cup games and might keep him out of the team.

    A more attacking option is former Inverness assist machine Liam Polworth who should thrive now he's surrounded with better players; the forwards can expect many a defence-splitting through ball from him. Craig Tanner, who hasn't played since March 2018 because of his own injuries, will back up Polworth in that role.

    Out wide the loss of Ariyibi and Hastie has been compensated for by picking up Jermaine Hylton and Sherwin Seedorf from down south and Croatian winger Christian Ilic, who can also play as a left-back. Another new face, Devante Cole, can also play wide but is more suited to being a striker.

    However he may not find many opportunities there unless Motherwell play two up top. It's more likely they'll go for one though. Reputation says Christopher Long should be the favourite given his experience down south but local product James Scott, who doesn't turn 19 for another few weeks, seems to be getting better by the week. If more of an orthodox target man is needed, they can turn to Belgian Christy Manzinga, signed after an audacious overhead kick goal in a friendly.

    And while it might only be the League Cup Group Stages, early signs are encouraging that Robinson is gelling this bunch together. They won all four games, scoring thirteen goals without reply. It might only have been Queen of the South, Morton, Dumbarton and Annan but that was more impressive than most of their peers.

    So what's the target? It's got to be top six. And they're more than capable of managing it. Hopefully they should give us some fun whilst they're at it.


    THEIR BEST XI?



    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
    View the full article
  13. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: SECOND

    LAST SEASON: 2nd, 78pts

    NOTABLE INS: Filip Helander (Bologna, £3.5m), George Edmundson (Oldham Athletic, £600k), Joe Aribo (Charlton Athletic, £300k), Steven Davis (Southampton, loan made permanent), Jake Hastie (Motherwell), Jordan Jones (Kilmarnock), Greg Stewart (Birmingham City), Sheyi Ojo (Liverpool, loan)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Daniel Candeias (Genclerbirligi, £250k), Ryan Hardie (Blackpool), Lee Hodson (Gillingham), Lee Wallace (Queens Park Rangers), Jak Alnwick (Blackpool, loan), Eduardo Herrera (Necaxa, loan), Stephen Kelly (Ayr United, loan), Ross McCrorie (Portsmouth, loan), Jordan Rossiter (Fleetwood Town, loan), Lassana Coulibaly (Angers, end of loan), Ryan Kent (Liverpool, end of loan), Joe Worrall (Nottingham Forest, end of loan), Myles Beerman, Kyle Bradley, Liam Burt, Kyle Lafferty, Gareth McAuley

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): McGregor, Tavernier, Goldson, Katic, Halliday, Kamara, Jack, Candeias, Arfield, Kent, Morelos


    Rangers finished last season only eight points better off than they were under the combined 'direction' of Pedro Caixinha and Graeme Murty. That doesn't sound like much.

    However the eye test suggests a marked improvement under Steven Gerrard. For a start, there was a coherent strategy in place. There wasn't much of a Plan B, but even having a good Plan A was a big step forward.

    That said, by the middle of March the press pack were beginning to doubt Stevie G's credentials. The positivity generated by beating Celtic at New Year had been obliterated by a number of draws and a cup exit to Aberdeen, Then they ran their rivals damn close at Celtic Park with ten men and that sparked an impressive finish to the campaign that included another derby win...and a dominant one at that.

    So in just a few months Gerrard has gone from naughty boy to Messiah again. Some folk have even drunk the Kool-Aid and think Rangers might win the league.

    Those people are crazy. The gap between them and Celtic feels bridgeable just now because of the way last season finished and because of the feeling that with Neil Lennon now in charge the Champions might be vulnerable. But in truth the difference in resources remains huge. The Gers are stuck in a Catch 22 situation where they need Champions League money to have a shot at winning the league but can't get Champions League money without winning the league.

    The signing of Swedish central defender Filip Helander at least reassures the fans that there is some cash there. Up till then the transfer window had been a distinctly bargain basement affair. One problem is that there are still a plethora of unwanted players on the wage bill; until they can be shifted it's going to be hard to finance new arrivals.

    As for Helander, his signing seemed a strange one because centre-back wasn't a huge need, with George Edmundson having been signed as cover for Connor Goldson and Nikola Katic. It will be interesting to see whether Helander has been signed as an upgrade or because Rangers want the option of playing a back three.

    Usually though it's been a 4-2-3-1, which became increasingly lopsided last season. There was a massive upturn in the quality of attacking play when Gerrard started deploying Scott Arfield on the right; the Canadian international naturally came into the centre but right-back James Tavernier is so impressive going forward that he doesn't need a winger in front of him. Early indications are that Gerrard has taken advantage of this to tinker a bit, going with a third central midfielder and using Arfield and Sheyi Ojo, on loan from Liverpool, just off the front man. 

    The hope is that this allows them to get by without Ryan Kent, who was so impressive in the second half of last season but who looks increasingly unlikely to return for another loan spell. Even if they go back to the old system Ojo can play on either flank and Greg Stewart, Jordan Jones and Jake Hastie have all been added as wide options, which is why Daniel Candeias proved surplus to requirements.

    That means the onus is on the full-backs to provide attacking width. That's no problem with Tavernier on the right. Borna Barisic has the capability to fill that role on the other side but wasn't great last season. His crossing ability might give him the nod over Andy Halliday though; Halliday has found a new lease of life after being converted from midfield.

    It's likely to be three from four in midfield - or from five if Greg Docherty really has forced his way back into the reckoning. Joe Aribo has looked good after his move from Charlton and is likely to be the most adventurous of the trio. The other two more restrained roles will be filled by a combination of Ryan Jack, Glen Kamara and Steven Davis. Davis was honking when he came back in January but got better as he got fitter; he seems likely to sit deepest, though Kamara can do that too. 

    Such is the depth that Graham Dorrans has been frozen out and Ross McCrorie loaned out. McCrorie's temporary move means there is a distinct possibility that the only Academy product to start a league game this season will be...goalkeeper Allan McGregor, who made his debut in 2002 and who spent six years away from Ibrox (and who a certain type of fan will claim isn't a product of 'this Rangers').

    And of course we haven't touched on the strikers yet. Should we go on about the five red cards Alfredo Morelos got last season, or the thirty goals the Colombian scored? Even for the most ill-disciplined player so many sendings off looks like an anomaly. The goalscoring however came hand in hand with frequently brilliant centre-forward play. His performance at Pittodrie last season - until he, er, got sent off - was at a level not seen in Scottish football for some time. Even if Morelos spends some time on the suspension list, Jermain Defoe (37 in October) still seems to have enough in the tank to step in from time to time; I wouldn't want to rely on him as a first choice all year long though.

    So I'd conclude Rangers are on the up. But they're still not ready to slip the surly bonds of the diddy teams and touch the face of the Champions (unless, of course, Scott Brown pisses off Ryan Kent again). The difficulty for Gerrard may be managing expectations. Finish with more points, win a home derby or two and - most importantly - avoid dropping so many points to teams that should be beaten comfortably - and 2019/20 will be another step in the right direction.



    THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1998 in italics)
    Goalkeepers: Andy Firth, Wes Foderingham, Allan McGregor
    Defenders: Borna Barisic, George Edmundson, Jon Flanagan, Connor Goldson, Andy Halliday, Filip Helander, Jordan Houston, Nikola Katic, Matt Polster, James Tavernier, Aidan Wilson
    Midfielders: Scott Arfield, Joe Aribo, Jamie Barjonas, Steven Davis, Greg Docherty, Graham Dorrans, Eros Grezda, Jake Hastie, Jason Holt, Ryan Jack, Jordan Jones, Glen Kamara, Josh McPake, Glenn Middleton, Sheyi Ojo
    Forwards: Serge Atakayi, Jermain Defoe, Joe Dodoo, Dapo Mebude, Alfredo Morelos, Jamie Murphy, Greg Stewart

    THE BEST XI?


     

    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
    View the full article
  14. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: NINTH

    LAST SEASON: Promoted as Championship winners

    NOTABLE INS: Josh Black (Queen's Park), Joe Chalmers (Inverness Caledonian Thistle), Lee Erwin (unattached), Ross Laidlaw (Hibernian), Jack Ruddy (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Blair Spittal (Partick Thistle), Nathan Baxter (Chelsea, loan), Simon Power (Norwich City, loan)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Jamie Lindsay (Rotherham United, £300k), Russell Dingwall (Elgin City), Scott Fox (Partick Thistle), Greg Morrison (Brora Rangers), Callum Semple (Queen of the South), Declan McManus (Falkirk, loan), Ross Munro (Raith Rovers, loan), Andy Boyle (Preston North End, end of loan), Ross Maciver

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Fox, Fraser, Watson, Fontaine, Van Der Weg, Mullin, Draper, Lindsay, Gardyne, Stewart, Mckay



    Ross County deserved to win the Scottish Championship last season. They were the best team in the division, and the most consistent.

    Is that the same as saying they were terrific? It's hard to say. They knew how to win matches. If you'd asked one of their supporters about their result, they'd have told you they won with a bit to spare. If you'd then asked about the performance, they'd probably have given a shrug.

    But that winning habit is a good one to have and often puts newly promoted teams in good stead initially, especially if the players who enjoyed such success have remained. And so is the case in Dingwall where it could be argued that of all the players who left in the summer only Scott Fox and Jamie Lindsay will be missed.

    And even then Fox was not all that outstanding a goalkeeper - at least, not as outstanding as he thought he was when he claimed in 2015 that he was joining County to improve his international prospects. But he certainly has a better pedigree than Ross Laidlaw, one of life's substitute keepers, who has been signed from Hibs. Young Chelsea loanee Nathan Baxter was expected to be first choice but he needs a shoulder operation and won't play until November so the club has brought in the inexperienced Jack Ruddy from Wolves to compete with Laidlaw. Not ideal.

    Lindsay was an outstanding midfielder though, bringing a rare combination of energy and ability to proceedings. Ex-Inverness player Joe Chalmers will replace Lindsay's running and is better on the ball than he's given credit for, and he's got his mojo back after being converted from left-back following a nightmare spell at Motherwell. Whether he can cope at Premiership level remains to be seen though.

    Ross Draper should do fine, and if County will either pair him with Chalmers, or if they go with three in the middle of the park, use the duo to do the ballwinning and running for playmaker Iain Vigurs. Vigurs is great at dictating play but his defensive weaknesses were frequently exploited the last time he was in the top flight. It will be a surprise if we see much of 36 year old Don Cowie who is surely heading for a player-coach role with heavy emphasis on the 'coach', while Lewis Spence has disappeared from the picture somewhat.

    Out wide, they look well set. Josh Mullin was a real stand out in the Championship with plenty of goals and assists from the right flank. On the opposite side is Michael Gardyne who despite being 33 shows no signs of taking a step backwards...yet. As insurance though County have signed young Irishman Simon Power on loan from Norwich City and first impressions are that his exceptional pace could cause havoc. Another new boy, Blair Spittal, will compete with Mullin after joining from Partick Thistle, but he's not an upgrade. You may remember Davis Keillor-Dunn, who showed some flashes a couple of years ago? He's been frozen out amid rumours of attitude problems. 

    In fact, the Spittal signing somewhat sums up County's business so far - a new player who doesn't look like an improvement on what the club had last season. Expect further additions before the end of August though - as shown with Declan McManus the club are not concerned about moving on players who signed new deals only a few months earlier.

    Until then the defence and attack will be the same as last year. Billy Mckay should initally lead the front line after scoring 20 goals last year. Once Lee Erwin is fit, he may partner or supplant the Ulsterman; after a year in Iran and then on the sidelines, it's hard to know what state the former Motherwell talent is in. Alternatively, Brian Graham or Ross Stewart can each provide an aerial threat. Graham has more experience but Stewart is more mobile.

    The backline was good enough for the second tier but there are question marks over all of them this season. Captain Marcus Fraser was excellent last year but has previously seemed too lightweight to be a good Premiership centre back and not good enough going forward to be a Premiership right-back. However the hope is that he's improved enough to become the latter. Keith Watson also comes off a good campaign but was previously only good enough to be a backup at St. Johnstone. However converting him to central defence may be the making of him.

    Watson's likely companion in the middle is Liam Fontaine, now 33 and coming off a number of serious injuries. He's now slower than a week in Dingwall and it remains to be seen if his vast experience compensates for that. The backups are the green Tom Grivosti, who they have high hopes for, and Callum Morris, who they probably don't. And neither Sean Kelly nor Kenny Van Der Weg are particularly palatable options at left-back, though if forced to plump for one you'd choose the Dutchman, who loves a tackle. The management team seem to prefer Kelly though for his superior play in possession.

    And what of the duo in the dugout, a sight we rarely see in football? The bottom line is that Stuart Kettlewell and Steven Ferguson have done what was expected of them so far. This season will be the acid test of what their capabilities are.

    After all, the momentum County carry from last season could carry them really quite far into the new season but at some point the lack of overall quality will probably catch up with them. That said, they will still fancy that they're strong enough to avoid being dragged into the mix at the bottom of the table.

    And if they do have a rocky start and end up in a relegation fight? Expect owner Roy MacGregor to bust out that cheque book in January. He treasures this club, and saw their relegation in 2018 as a failure on his part. He'll be damned if it happens again on his watch. And as long as he doesn't appoint Owen Coyle, it surely won't.


    THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1998 in italics)
    Goalkeepers: Nathan Baxter, Ross Laidlaw, Jack Ruddy
    Defenders: Liam Fontaine, Marcus Fraser, Tom Grivosti, Sean Kelly, Tom Kelly, Callum Morris, Kenny Van Der Weg, Keith Watson
    Midfielders: Dan Armstrong, Josh Black, Joe Chalmers, Don Cowie, Ross Draper, Mark Gallagher, Michael Gardyne, Davis Keillor-Dunn, Josh Mullin, Jack Murray, Harry Paton, Simon Power, Lewis Spence, Blair Spittal, Iain Vigurs
    Forwards: Lee Erwin, Brian Graham, Billy Mckay, Ross Stewart, James Wallace

    THE BEST XI?




    Lawrie Spence (LS) has ranted and spouted his ill-informed opinions on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007.  He has a life outside this blog.  Honestly.
    View the full article
  15. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: TWELFTH

    LAST SEASON: 11th, 32pts

    NOTABLE INS: Tony Andreu (Coventry City), Oan Djorkaeff (Nantes), Ilkay Durmus (Wacker Innsbruck), Sam Foley (Northampton Town), Dean Lyness (Raith Rovers), Sean McLoughlin (Hull City, loan)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Adam Eckersley (Airdrieonians), Mateo Muzek (Sheriff Tiraspol), Laurentiu Corbu (Dinamo Bucharest, end of loan), Anders Dreyer (Brighton & Hove Albion, end of loan), Lee Hodson (Rangers, end of loan), Jordan Holmes (Bournemouth, end of loan), Brad Lyons (Blackburn Rovers, end of loan), Kyle McAllister (Derby County, end of loan), Duckens Nazon (Sint-Truiden, end of loan), Mihai Popescu (Dinamo Bucharest, end of loan), Danny Rogers (Aberdeen, end of loan), Anton Ferdinand, Josh Heaton, Simeon Jackson, Sam Jamieson

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Hladky, Muzek, MacKenzie, Popescu, P. McGinn, S. McGinn, Lyons, Hodson, Magennis, McAllister, Mullen


    Just over a year ago, Jack Ross had guided a talented and entertaining St. Mirren side back to the Premiership. Such was the optimism about the place that when Chief Executive Tony Fitzpatrick claimed the club should be aiming for the top six eyebrows were only slightly raised.

    When Fitzpatrick said the same thing at the end of June it sounded like the ranting of a lunatic.

    Since that promotion, the Buddies have suffered the departure of Ross for Sunderland, 87 nightmare days under Alan Stubbs (who tried to replace the promotion-winning team with a bunch of duffers from down south), and then a proper rollercoaster ride with Oran Kearney in the dugout. The Northern Irishman had to wait ten matches for his first victory and won two of his first twenty-two league games in charge...and yet through a combination of against-the-odds squad unity and even-more-against-the-odds incompetence at Dundee the club managed to finish eleventh and then held their nerve in a penalty shootout against Dundee United to preserve their top flight status.

    At which point nearly all the gazillion short-term signings Kearney had made left...and then, in the last week of June, so did Kearney. Apparently he wanted to commute from Ulster and the club, not unreasonably, thought that was ridiculous.

    All in all, Jim Goodwin is not exactly being given the best chance to succeed in his first management post at a full-time club. When the signing of winger Ilkay Durmus was announced, the boss said "When I done my assessment on the team in my first couple of weeks I felt that we lacked a little bit of pace". He declined to mention that they lacked pretty much everything else, not least numbers. 

    He inherited just 12 players aged over 21, including defender Josh Heaton (the most notorious of Stubbs' duds - he cost £75,000 and played only two games before being released earlier this month), long-term casualty Greg Tansey and striker Cody Cooke who ruptured his ACL in the League Cup. 

    If anyone can pull this off though, it'll be Goodwin. An ultra-competitive and ruthless - to say the least - player who captained the club to the 2013 League Cup, he accomplished a miracle in keeping part-time Alloa in the Championship last season. He was the logical option to replace Kearney.

    But he's got a hell of a task on his hands. 

    Only in goal do they look sorted - Czech Vaclav Hladky made himself a hero with the fans with his shootout heroics in the playoff but he had already been excellent up to that point. There are however only three senior centre-backs. The third of those, Sean McLoughlin, pitched up on loan from Hull City just a day before the start of the new season. He should go straight into the lineup but expectations should be tempered by the fact that he only signed for Hull from the League of Ireland last week. 

    Alongside him will be either Jack Baird, who has never looked comfortable in the top flight, or Gary MacKenzie, who is 34 and missed most of last season with injury. His experience was crucial in the Spring, but the question is whether he was just rusty in the League Cup group games or if he is done.

    There is also no natural left-back, which is extraordinary. Paul McGinn can at least do a job on the other side, but has no natural backup. Hardly ideal. In the short-term talented youngster Ethan Erhahon will drop back from midfield but a better long-term solution is a huge priority.

    Up front, there's Danny Mullen, who scored only four times between the end of August and the end of last season. And, given that Cooke's injured, that's it. Incredible.

    At least there are options in the middle of the park, which have been augmented by the arrival of the experienced Sam Foley and Frenchmen Oan Djorkaeff - Youri's son - and Tony Andreu. Andreu wasn't great on his return to Hamilton last year and the fear is that his days as a goal threat from midfield are gone. Foley and captain Stephen McGinn will surely start, with veteran Ryan Flynn and youngster Cameron MacPherson also options.

    The arrival of Durmus will hopefully provide width that was sorely lacking in the League Cup games. Kyle Magennis will play on the opposite side. He could have a breakout season, but the 20 year old would really benefit from being in a stable team for a change.

    There will undoubtedly be new faces still to come. But it has a feeling of too little, too late about it. It feels like the Buddies are playing catch-up before the Premiership season has even started. Their best hope of survival is that someone else emulates Dundee's sheer awfulness. And that probably isn't going to happen.


    THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1998 in italics)
    Goalkeepers: Vaclav Hladky, Dean Lyness
    Defenders: Jack Baird, Gary MacKenzie, Nicholas McAllister, Paul McGinn, Sean McLoughlin
    Midfielders: Tony Andreu, Oan Djorkaeff, Ilkay Durmus, Ethan Erhahon, Ryan Flynn, Sam Foley, James Kellermann, Cameron MacPherson, Kyle Magennis, Stephen McGinn, Greg Tansey
    Forwards: Cameron Breadner, Cody Cooke, Danny Mullen

    THE BEST XI?

     

    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
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  16. hislopsoffsideagain
    It's fashionable to slag off the Scottish Championship because of its lack of quality, but in recent times the gap between the bottom of the Premiership and the best sides in the second tier hasn't been big. The problem is that during the season the clubs that are - or should be - at the top of the division have, either due to overconfidence or lack of confidence, developed a habit of playing down to the opposition.

    And that's what makes it so intriguing. This is the sixth consecutive season that at least one of Rangers, Hearts, Hibs and Dundee United - generally considered amongst the largest half-dozen clubs in the country - have been stuck in this league, and only the Jambos got out at the first attempt.

    So quality? Not much, though more than its detractors would believe. Competitive as hell? Damn right. And now we have Dundee derbies added to the mix.

    Let's get the lowdown on the ten clubs fighting for promotion to the promised land or to avoid demotion to the seaside leagues...


    ALLOA ATHLETIC
    Jim Goodwin pulled off a miracle by keeping the part-timers up last season; to lose him was a terrible shame, but to lose him mid-summer was a disaster. Peter Grant now has the task of doing it all again but with, as it stands, a weaker squad. Goodwin played the loan market magnificently and Grant needs to do the same if the Wasps are to avoid the drop again. It's probably an even tougher task than last time around


    ARBROATH
    Dick Campbell is the face of lower league Scottish football - both metaphorically and literally - but this is the first time since 2007 he's managed at this level. And it's the first time the Red Lichties have flown this high in sixteen years. Budget constraints mean Campbell is largely stuck with the squad that won League One. There's lots of experience here and they'll be a tough nut to crack but as with any part-time side they'll find it hard to keep up with full-time opponents over a whole season.


    AYR UNITED
    Ayr's fourth place finish was down to their lightning start; they won just 5 of their last 24 games last season. And now Lawrence Shankland has gone. So have stalwart defenders Liam Smith and Michael Rose. Thankfully Ross Doohan has returned in goal for another season but the other holes will be hard to fill. Ian McCall has been active in the loan market, bringing in Rangers' Stephen Kelly and Aberdeen's Frank Ross to boost the midfield, but he'll need veteran forwards Kris Doolan and Michael Moffat to roll back the years if United are to get anywhere near the playoffs again.


    DUNDEE
    Rookie manager plus high expectations plus a huge squad revamp often equals disaster, but James McPake talks the talk and the signings of Jordon Forster in defence, Shaun Byrne and Jamie Ness in midfield and Danny Johnson up front are impressive. If the team gels together quickly and avoids a slow start then they should challenge at the top but the pressure is likely to grow quickly if early results aren't good (and if they are better at the other end of Tannadice Street).


    DUNDEE UNITED
    For Arabs, the new season is the equivalent of Father Jack sobering up and shouting "don't tell me I'm still on this fecking island?!". Surely their fourth campaign at this level will be their last, now they've added the firepower of Lawrence Shankland to an attack that already includes Osman Sow and Nicky Clark? And they have Cammy Smith, Peter Pawlett, Adam King and Paul McMullan for creativity. Yet, if any team can possibly screw this up, its United...


    DUNFERMLINE ATHLETIC
    The Pars have changed tack considerably, cutting their budget and putting the emphasis on signing "young, hungry players" and, er, Paul Paton. Their hope is that they can find some gems in Scotland's lower divisions and in English under-23 sides that can push them towards promotion and earn the club lucrative transfer fees. It's a bit risky though. Reassuringly there's still plenty of experience at the back, and former Raith striker Kevin Nisbet has looked sharp up front in the League Cup games.


    GREENOCK MORTON
    It's been all change at Cappielow on and off the pitch with David Hopkin replacing Jonatan Johansson as manager and only a handful of first teamers retained. John Sutton coming out of retirement was a curious one and makes one wonder what the budget is like; a decent chunk of it is likely to have gone on Aidan Nesbitt and Robbie Muirhead, two youngsters who so far have failed to realize their potential. It will be a tough ask for Hopkin to repeat the success he had at Livingston.


    INVERNESS CALEDONIAN THISTLE
    Caley Thistle will struggle to replace assist machine Liam Polworth; the addition of James Keatings suggests a move to a more orthodox 4-4-2 this season. In Aaron Doran and Tom Walsh they have a tremendous duo of wide players and the onus is on them to provide the chances. Coll Donaldson and Jamie McCart might be the best centre-back duo in the Championship but they need a reliable goalscorer if they are to get promoted.


    PARTICK THISTLE
    The signs at the end of last season were reassuring that Gary Caldwell is on the right track, and there's been talk of new investment at the club which may lead to the squad being augmented further. Tam O'Ware's return from injury boosts the backline and getting midfielder Shea Gordon back permanently might be one of the best moves anyone's made this summer. Another side whose challenge depends on finding a consistent source of goals - we'll see if 39 year old Kenny Miller still has enough in the tank.


    QUEEN OF THE SOUTH
    Allan Johnston was parachuted in to save them from relegation and did so. Now he has to put a team together on possibly the smallest full-time budget in Scotland. He's done well to get defender Callum Semple back and to win the race to sign highly-rated keeper Robby McCrorie on loan. At the time of writing they are hideously short in midfield though and they will lean more heavily than ever on 36 year old talisman Stephen Dobbie to carry them.


    And here's how I think the table will end up:

    1. DUNDEE UNITED

    2. DUNDEE
    3. INVERNESS CALEDONIAN THISTLE
    4. PARTICK THISTLE

    5. DUNFERMLINE ATHLETIC
    6. GREENOCK MORTON
    7. AYR UNITED
    8. QUEEN OF THE SOUTH

    9. ARBROATH

    10. ALLOA ATHLETIC


    But I still expect United fans will claim I hate them anyway...;-)

    Lawrie Spence (LS) has ranted and spouted his ill-informed opinions on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007.  He has a life outside this blog.  Honestly.

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  17. hislopsoffsideagain
    In League One, we inevitably find a handful of full-time teams who really shouldn't be down here, and a bunch of battle-hardened part-time clubs who look forward to knocking them off their f****** perch.

    And often they succeed, as shown last year when Arbroath won the division. It was another part-time side, Forfar, who came second. But it would be a huge shock if a full time side *cough* Falkirk *cough* didn't win it this time.

    And the trouble with being part-time is that squads are often pretty small which means lack of options if injuries mount up or players lose confidence, and things can go wrong very quickly.

    Here's the runners and riders...

    AIRDRIEONIANS
    Airdrie have returned to a mostly full-time setup for this season; the last time they did this they ran into all sorts of problems but this time round they have a steadier ship. Ian Murray has basically revamped the entire squad but on paper it certainly looks strong enough to challenge at the right end. Calum Gallagher and Ally Roy should provide plenty of goals.


    CLYDE
    Cumbernauld's finest are back at this level for the first time in nine years and their best hope of staying here is of course David Goodwillie. Danny Lennon is an accomplished manager at this level and has looked to improve supply to his star man by signing Chris Johnston and Darren Smith. They'll fancy their chances of making the step up.


    DUMBARTON
    Looked to be in a bit of a crisis early in the summer due to uncertainty about budget and whether Jim Duffy was staying. This seems settled now but has left them playing catchup, never a good thing. However Duffy has a great reputation for developing young players and has also grabbed a gem or two; Joe McKee should stroll this league.


    EAST FIFE
    Collapsed at the end of last season when seemingly certain to make the playoffs. Their League Cup form has been good though so hopefully that was just a blip. Crucially they've retained impressive striker Anton Dowds and brought back Chris Duggan to partner him. You could imagine them getting into the top four...and you could imagine them getting into the bottom four too.


    FALKIRK
    It's embarrassing they're down in this league and they look determined to steamroll it. Cammy Bell, Michael Tidser, Denny Johnstone, Connor Sammon, Declan McManus...just some of the players who have signed for the Bairns this season. Anything other than top spot by a country mile would seem an a massive letdown.


    FORFAR ATHLETIC
    Came on leaps and bounds under Jim Weir last season but repeating second place will be tough with Dylan Easton and Thomas Reilly having followed the money to Kelty Hearts and John Baird having retired to Australia. Ross Forbes, Jordan Kirkpatrick and Andy Jackson look like great signings though and they are still one of the division's better teams.


    MONTROSE
    Stewart Petrie should get far more credit for turning these perennial losers into League Two winners and then the fourth best team in League One. It'll be hard to make it stick as other sides try and improve, but attracting Kerr Waddell and Cammy Ballantyne to the club shows just how far they've come. Again, underestimate them at your peril.


    PETERHEAD
    Back up after a two year absence and they're always dangerous because of Rory McAllister's goals. They did well to attract the highly thought of Aidan Smith, Scott Hooper and Gary Fraser in the summer. Having made the League One promotion playoffs earlier in Jim McInally' long reign they will have aspirations to do so again.


    RAITH ROVERS
    Somehow failed to win this division last year or the year before despite having the biggest budget...and this season will be tougher because of Falkirk's presence. Their League Cup form has been poor too. John McGlynn has tried to refresh the squad and look out for striker Lewis Allan and midfielder Regan Hendry to impress.


    STRANRAER
    They've done remarkably well to stay afloat despite gradual costcutting in the last few years but it gets harder each time. Grant Gallagher, Ryan Thomson and Scott Robertson return to the club after periods away but they'll need Mark Stewart to roll back the years and score plenty if they are to stay up again.


    So this is my prediction of how it'll finish:

    1. FALKIRK

    2. RAITH ROVERS
    3. AIRDRIEONIANS
    4. FORFAR ATHLETIC

    5. DUMBARTON
    6. MONTROSE
    7. EAST FIFE
    8. PETERHEAD

    9. CLYDE

    10. STRANRAER


    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.

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  18. hislopsoffsideagain
    The addition of a relegation playoff has changed the dynamic of Scotland's fourth tier dramatically. No longer can a club coast along, safe in the knowledge that being the SPFL's bottom club is the worst that can happen. As the hapless Berwick Rangers found to their cost, there are well-funded, hungry teams looking to get out of the regional leagues. Stagnate at your peril.


    At the other end, last season was ultimately one for the 'haves' - those who could afford impressive part-time wages to players who probably should be playing for one of the smaller full-time teams. It was Peterhead and Clyde who got promoted in the end. It'll be interesting to see if 2019-20 is a season for a club that are well-organized (think Montrose in 2017-18) or for one that splashes a bit of cash. Let's look at the ten clubs...

    ALBION ROVERS Coatbridge's finest looked doomed for the drop until the Spring but came to life in the run-in. Kevin Harper has retained as many of the players that saved them as he could and the aim this season is to get back towards mid-table. It might be a long way to go though, given they finished 16 points adrift of eighth last time out.


    ANNAN ATHLETIC Annan arguably punched above their weight by getting into the promotion playoffs last season. It'll be much harder to do so this time around as manager Peter Murphy has lost the majority of his first XI to League One and Two clubs that can offer more money. He needs to find some gems amongst the new signings he has made if they are to avoid sliding down the table.

    BRECHIN CITY
    After back-to-back relegations, Barry Smith has gutted the squad. There are certainly newcomers who arguably belong at a higher level, such as Chris McLaughlin, Luke Watt and Ross McCord, but the question is whether Smith can gel them together quickly enough. Anything other than a promotion challenge would be a disappointment.

    COVE RANGERS
    How quickly will the newcomers find their feet? They've essentially kept together the squad that won the Highland League and the reinforcements they have made, especially ex-Killie defender Daniel Higgins, are more than good enough for this level. They certainly won't fear anyone, and shouldn't worry about the drop. Could they even push for back-to-back promotions?


    COWDENBEATH After consecutive relegation playoff escapes the Blue Brazil consolidated somewhat under Gary Bollan, a boss who knows what it takes at this level even if it isn't always aesthetically pleasing. They've lost their veteran spine of David McGurn, Jason Talbot and Mark Fotheringham and star player Gary Fraser though.

    EDINBURGH CITY The citizens faded badly at the end of last season after challenging for the title for months. They've done well to attract a number of talents by offering decent wages for part-timers. Striker Blair Henderson needs to prove last season's goal glut wasn't a one-off. On paper they have a squad that can win the league, as long as they don't have another attack of the wobbles.

    ELGIN CITY
    Their situation looks a lot rosier now Shane Sutherland has returned for a third spell - their form fell off a cliff after he left in January. Their summer business looks decent but they'll need to play the loan market well again if they are to get back into the top half...or even to avoid getting dragged into a relegation battle.


    QUEEN'S PARK
    The great amateurs have realized that in the current era luring decent players for expenses only is becoming too hard - especially when in a year's time they'll no longer be able to offer the lure of playing at the national stadium. For now though, it's a team of decent Junior League players and young cast-offs. Will it be sufficient to get by?

    STENHOUSEMUIR In Mark McGuigan, Stenny can boast a striker who will score for fun in League Two - which makes a massive difference at this level. There has been a big squad turnover following relegation - part of which is down to Colin McMenamin wanting to shape the squad to his taste - but moulding them together may take a while.


    STIRLING ALBION
    The Binos improved massively after Kevin Rutkiewicz took over midseason and will fancy they can push on this time around. This is another club who have chopped and changed significantly over the summer but crucially there's plenty of players here who know what League Two is about. A decent loan signing or two could push them over the top.


    And here's how I predict it'll go...

    1. EDINBURGH CITY

    2. STENHOUSEMUIR
    3. STIRLING ALBION
    4. BRECHIN CITY

    5. COVE RANGERS
    6. ELGIN CITY
    7. COWDENBEATH
    8. ANNAN ATHLETIC
    9. ALBION ROVERS

    10. QUEEN'S PARK


    As ever, I expect time will prove that I don't know what I'm talking about!


    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
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  19. hislopsoffsideagain
    PREDICTED LEAGUE POSITION: EIGHTH

    LAST SEASON: 7th, 52pts

    NOTABLE INS: Wallace Duffy (Celtic), Elliot Parish (Dundee), Max Johnstone (Sunderland), Madis Vihmann (Flora, loan)

    NOTABLE OUTS: Blair Alston (Hamilton Academical), Aaron Comrie (Dunfermline Athletic), Brian Easton (Hamilton Academical), Joe Shaughnessy (Southend United), Tony Watt (CSKA Sofia), Olly Hamilton (Brechin City, loan), John Robertson (Cove Rangers, loan), Cammy Bell (Partick Thistle, end of loan), Sean Goss (Queens Park Rangers, end of loan), Niall Keown (Partick Thistle, end of loan), Mark Hurst

    LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (Departed players crossed out): Clark, Foster, Shaughnessy, Kerr, Tanser, Craig, Davidson, O'Halloran, Kennedy, Wright, Watt


    As the saying goes, "all good things..." Are we reaching that point in Perth?

    Between 2011 and 2017 St Johnstone were fixtures in the top six, with a Scottish Cup triumph thrown in. They came seventh last year, and eighth the season before that. However it seemed like the club were going through a transition period with a lot of older players needing replaced. Unquestionably they deserved that benefit of the doubt. And manager Tommy Wright said all the right things about feeling reinvigorated and, more importantly, looked like he meant them.

    And yet for the first time since they returned to the top flight in 2009 there is concern at McDiarmid Park. Not a Blackadder "twelve-storey crisis with a magnificent entrance hall, carpeting throughout, 24-hour portage, and an enormous sign on the roof, saying 'This Is a Large Crisis'". But its certainly a wee bit of a crisis.

    St. Johnstone just don't lose League Cup games to the likes of Montrose. Nor do they collapse at home to the likes of Ross County as soon as they concede a goal. Worryingly this is an ongoing trend since January. They won just four of their last eighteen games of 2018-19, and three of those wins were against either St. Mirren or Dundee. At one end of the pitch they struggled to score, and at the other they conceded the sort of cheap, stupid goals that they never let in when they were a top six side.

    Let's deal with the attack - or lack of it - first. Tony Watt got a lot of plaudits at the start of last season - he was Player of the Month for August - but even when he was playing well he wasn't scoring, and his form dropped off a cliff. At the moment the options at centre forward are David McMillan (loaned to Hamilton last season and unwanted by the club), Callum Hendry (young and raw, if we're being generous) and Chris Kane (who finally got a run of games at the end of the season, and proved why he shouldn't get a run of games). That trio and Watt managed just ten league goals between them. The club's top league scorer was Matthew Kennedy, with just six.

    The return of prodigal son Stevie May would have given the place such an enormous lift. The shock last-minute collapse of the transfer threatens to do the exact opposite. There's still time to find a striker, but it is slowly running out and in the meantime the fugue could increase further.

    Even in the successful times Wright often needed the midfield to provide goals and that dependence isn't ending any time soon. Kennedy's superb wing play is cause for optimism at least. Michael O'Halloran looked rusty as heck after returning in January but improved by the split and will hopefully be back to his hard-running best after a full preseason. It's easy to forget Drey Wright was the club's best player early last season until he wrecked his knee, though it may be too much to expect him to return to that form in the near future when he returns imminently from that injury. And Danny Swanson will still provide a spark off the bench, since it turns out his upcoming move to the USA was apparently just a ruse to try and avoid a conviction for assault (!).

    Defensively, the problem at the moment is numbers. Whilst goalkeeper Zander Clark and central defender Jason Kerr are top-rate - and should both go onto better things soon enough - the rest of the backline looks dicey. Richard Foster still looked up to it last season but at 34 they'll do well to get a full season out of him; however new signing Wallace Duffy is young and inexperienced and one for the future rather than the present. Scott Tanser is good going forward but has some shockers defensively. With Brian Easton gone there is no competition for him though.

    As for centre-back, the departure of Joe Shaughnessy has left a big hole. Relying on Liam Gordon or the increasingly decrepid Steven Anderson to fill it looked very risky. Estonian behemoth Madis Vihmann has arrived on loan and will surely be first choice alongside Kerr, but he needs to bed in very quickly. To be honest they could probably do with another defender or two. 

    Not all is necessary well in midfield either. Liam Craig had a bit of an indian summer last year but he will be 33 in December. Murray Davidson's history of injuries makes him a very old 31. Ross Callachan works hard but isn't someone to build the midfield around. However, when Wright tried to introduce a playmaker, Sean Goss, to the team last January it was a spectacular failure. He basically needs to find younger versions of Craig and Davidson. The manager has talked up Kyle McClean and Ali McCann but it would be a surprise if they managed to make the step up.

    So the situation looks grimmer than it has done for sometime. Some folk have even talked of them as relegation candidates, which has been met with a guffaw from most. That's probably still the appropriate reaction, if only because there are still clubs in this division who look rather weaker and rather more of a shambles. At the very least though the concern is that this downward trend is becoming irreversible. And if the season starts badly, panic sets in and a centre-forward can't be procured, who knows what could happen?


    THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1998 in italics)
    Goalkeepers: Zander Clark, Max Johnstone, Elliot Parish
    Defenders: Steven Anderson, Wallace Duffy, Richard Foster, Liam Gordon, Jason Kerr, Scott Tanser, Madis Vihmann
    Midfielders: Ross Callachan, Liam Craig, Murray Davidson, Matty Kennedy, Ali McCann, Kyle McClean, Danny Swanson, David Wotherspoon, Drey Wright
    Forwards: Callum Hendry, Chris Kane, David McMillan, Jordan Northcott, Michael O'Halloran


    THE BEST XI?

     

    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
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  20. hislopsoffsideagain
    I did kinda already look at the Championship sides a month ago.


    What's changed? Not a lot.


    Hearts should stroll this. Even if their entire starting XI were ruled out with Covid the next eleven players up would still be stronger than everyone else. There has been a worrying hint of the same trait that dogged Robbie Neilson's Dundee United team last season - doing just enough to win and not a lot else, rather than blowing away opponents - but if that's the most negative thing I can come up with then you can tell they must be good. Craig Gordon at the back, Stephen Kingsley, Craig Halkett and Michael Smith in the defence, Peter Haring and Jamie Walker in the midfield, Liam Boyce up front; no-one else should even be in the same postcode by May.


    Simply going by budget, Dundee should be the best of the rest. Too often last season they looked limited by the tactics (or lack of) used by rookie manager James McPake. Either he has to improve, or new signings like marquee man Charlie Adam and the 150,000 (give or take a few) forwards they've brought in need to overcome his deficiencies. I got slaughtered on Twitter for claiming that the club had no obvious recruitment plan, but the fact remains that a team intent on playing a back three has only three centre-backs on the books, and whilst Adam, Graham Dorrans and Paul McGowan will make pretty passing patterns when they have the ball, who is going to do the running?


    As for the rest, I think it's anyone's guess. Inverness Caledonian Thistle were second when play stopped in March but they've lost lots of first choice players and now have a completely different back four from the one that they could deploy as recently as December. Players like Robbie Deas and Wallace Duffy are the sort of talented youngster and reclamation projects respectively that have done well under John Robertson in recent years, but for a team whose defence was a strength in recent years they don't half look vulnerable there now. At the other end it's not clear who will get the goals, or even who will start up top: Nikolay Todorov as the replacement for fellow target-man Jordan White, or pacey Miles Storey in a complete change of style? They'll hope on loan Rangers winger Kai Kennedy can be a wild card. This team could finish top three again, but there could also be a 'Peter Houston at Falkirk' sort of collapse.


    If ICT are weakened, so you could argue that most of the other full-time clubs are in the same situation. Dunfermline Athletic's new German investors haven't found them any players from the continent yet, but their finance is probably why things look a lot better than when they butchered the playing staff in May. Kevin Nisbet will be irreplaceable but Stevie Crawford has done his best to plug the gap with Ross County's Declan McManus and Kevin O'Hara who was super for Alloa last year. Tying up winger Dom Thomas on a permanent deal was a great move too. All in all, they've probably managed to come up with a squad close to the level of last year's, which is no mean feat in the circumstances.


    Ayr United's strategy has been to try and amass as much talent in their starting eleven at the possible expense of depth, So whilst newbies such as Patrick Reading and Jack Baird in defence, Joe Chalmers and Michael Miller in midfield, Tom Walsh and Dario Zanatta out wide and Bruce Anderson up front look like terrific signings there isn't a huge amount on the bench especially now Craig Moore is out long term.  If everyone else stays fit I think they could do really well; if the injury bug bites they could be in a hell of a lot of trouble.


    Greenock Morton are very bullish about manager David Hopkin's ability to build a team, and they will need him to live up to that billing. They lost their most dangerous creator, Nicky Cadden, and too many players - Aiden Nesbitt, Robbie Muirhead, Craig McGuffie and Gary Oliver spring to mind - have yet to live up to their potential. This could however be the perfect place for loanee Josh McPake to kick on and watch out for left-back Lewis Strapp developing into one of this division's best players this season.


    If I was to pick a dark horse though it would be Raith Rovers. Newly promoted sides tend to have few problems making the step up and it's not long since Livingston managed back-to-back promotions. The additions that John McGlynn has made have been astute and focussed at the side's weaknesses. Manny Duku already looks impressive up front and if Lewis Vaughan can stay fit they should be really dangerous up top. Regan Hendry should establish himself as one of this level's pre-eminent midfield players and having the experienced Jamie MacDonald between the sticks will do them no harm too. I certainly don't see them in a relegation battle.


    Queen of the South, in contrast...their early League Cup results were far better than I anticipated but the fact remains that but a handful of players remain from last season, Stephen Dobbie will be 38 in December and they really will rely on Wullie Gibson, who is 36 and hasn't played at this level for five years, to contribute. On the positive side Joe McKee deserves one more crack at full-time footie and Aidan Fitzpatrick is an exciting loan signing from Norwich. But QOS were on the slide back in March and will need yet more Dobbie miracles to avoid a dogfight at the bottom.


    I've left the part-timers to last for good reason, and that's not because I think they'll be bottom. Arbroath in particular are an intriguing prospect. Dick Campbell has kept together his solid backbone and once more augmented it with loan players - what on earth is Miko Virtanen doing playing at this level for another season? If one of their strikers can score regularly - probably either Luke Donnelly or Michael Ruth - then they could spring many a surprise.


    As for Alloa Athletic, I'm tired of getting slagged off by @AlloaStats at the end of every season for having predicted they'll go down. The news that Iain Flannigan had retired might have tempted me to do so again - hey, even a stopped clock is right twice a day - but incredibly they managed to replace him with Stefan Scougall. If Edin Lynch can fill the CB slot vacated by Robbie Deas, they'll do fine.


    So here's my inevitably wrong predicted table:


    1. HEART OF MIDLOTHIAN


    2. DUNDEE
    3. AYR UNITED
    4. RAITH ROVERS


    5. DUNFERMLINE ATHLETIC
    6. INVERNESS CALEDONIAN THISTLE
    7. ARBROATH
    8. GREENOCK MORTON


    9. ALLOA ATHLETIC


    10. QUEEN OF THE SOUTH


    Feel free to bookmark this to use against me in May (I'm sure @AlloaStats will...)


    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.

    View the full article
  21. hislopsoffsideagain
    I did kinda already look at the Championship sides a month ago.


    What's changed? Not a lot.


    Hearts should stroll this. Even if their entire starting XI were ruled out with Covid the next eleven players up would still be stronger than everyone else. There has been a worrying hint of the same trait that dogged Robbie Neilson's Dundee United team last season - doing just enough to win and not a lot else, rather than blowing away opponents - but if that's the most negative thing I can come up with then you can tell they must be good. Craig Gordon at the back, Stephen Kingsley, Craig Halkett and Michael Smith in the defence, Peter Haring and Jamie Walker in the midfield, Liam Boyce up front; no-one else should even be in the same postcode by May.


    Simply going by budget, Dundee should be the best of the rest. Too often last season they looked limited by the tactics (or lack of) used by rookie manager James McPake. Either he has to improve, or new signings like marquee man Charlie Adam and the 150,000 (give or take a few) forwards they've brought in need to overcome his deficiencies. I got slaughtered on Twitter for claiming that the club had no obvious recruitment plan, but the fact remains that a team intent on playing a back three has only three centre-backs on the books, and whilst Adam, Graham Dorrans and Paul McGowan will make pretty passing patterns when they have the ball, who is going to do the running?


    As for the rest, I think it's anyone's guess. Inverness Caledonian Thistle were second when play stopped in March but they've lost lots of first choice players and now have a completely different back four from the one that they could deploy as recently as December. Players like Robbie Deas and Wallace Duffy are the sort of talented youngster and reclamation projects respectively that have done well under John Robertson in recent years, but for a team whose defence was a strength in recent years they don't half look vulnerable there now. At the other end it's not clear who will get the goals, or even who will start up top: Nikolay Todorov as the replacement for fellow target-man Jordan White, or pacey Miles Storey in a complete change of style? They'll hope on loan Rangers winger Kai Kennedy can be a wild card. This team could finish top three again, but there could also be a 'Peter Houston at Falkirk' sort of collapse.


    If ICT are weakened, so you could argue that most of the other full-time clubs are in the same situation. Dunfermline Athletic's new German investors haven't found them any players from the continent yet, but their finance is probably why things look a lot better than when they butchered the playing staff in May. Kevin Nisbet will be irreplaceable but Stevie Crawford has done his best to plug the gap with Ross County's Declan McManus and Kevin O'Hara who was super for Alloa last year. Tying up winger Dom Thomas on a permanent deal was a great move too. All in all, they've probably managed to come up with a squad close to the level of last year's, which is no mean feat in the circumstances.


    Ayr United's strategy has been to try and amass as much talent in their starting eleven at the possible expense of depth, So whilst newbies such as Patrick Reading and Jack Baird in defence, Joe Chalmers and Michael Miller in midfield, Tom Walsh and Dario Zanatta out wide and Bruce Anderson up front look like terrific signings there isn't a huge amount on the bench especially now Craig Moore is out long term.  If everyone else stays fit I think they could do really well; if the injury bug bites they could be in a hell of a lot of trouble.


    Greenock Morton are very bullish about manager David Hopkin's ability to build a team, and they will need him to live up to that billing. They lost their most dangerous creator, Nicky Cadden, and too many players - Aiden Nesbitt, Robbie Muirhead, Craig McGuffie and Gary Oliver spring to mind - have yet to live up to their potential. This could however be the perfect place for loanee Josh McPake to kick on and watch out for left-back Lewis Strapp developing into one of this division's best players this season.


    If I was to pick a dark horse though it would be Raith Rovers. Newly promoted sides tend to have few problems making the step up and it's not long since Livingston managed back-to-back promotions. The additions that John McGlynn has made have been astute and focussed at the side's weaknesses. Manny Duku already looks impressive up front and if Lewis Vaughan can stay fit they should be really dangerous up top. Regan Hendry should establish himself as one of this level's pre-eminent midfield players and having the experienced Jamie MacDonald between the sticks will do them no harm too. I certainly don't see them in a relegation battle.


    Queen of the South, in contrast...their early League Cup results were far better than I anticipated but the fact remains that but a handful of players remain from last season, Stephen Dobbie will be 38 in December and they really will rely on Wullie Gibson, who is 36 and hasn't played at this level for five years, to contribute. On the positive side Joe McKee deserves one more crack at full-time footie and Aidan Fitzpatrick is an exciting loan signing from Norwich. But QOS were on the slide back in March and will need yet more Dobbie miracles to avoid a dogfight at the bottom.


    I've left the part-timers to last for good reason, and that's not because I think they'll be bottom. Arbroath in particular are an intriguing prospect. Dick Campbell has kept together his solid backbone and once more augmented it with loan players - what on earth is Miko Virtanen doing playing at this level for another season? If one of their strikers can score regularly - probably either Luke Donnelly or Michael Ruth - then they could spring many a surprise.


    As for Alloa Athletic, I'm tired of getting slagged off by @AlloaStats at the end of every season for having predicted they'll go down. The news that Iain Flannigan had retired might have tempted me to do so again - hey, even a stopped clock is right twice a day - but incredibly they managed to replace him with Stefan Scougall. If Edin Lynch can fill the CB slot vacated by Robbie Deas, they'll do fine.


    So here's my inevitably wrong predicted table:


    1. HEART OF MIDLOTHIAN


    2. DUNDEE
    3. AYR UNITED
    4. RAITH ROVERS


    5. DUNFERMLINE ATHLETIC
    6. INVERNESS CALEDONIAN THISTLE
    7. ARBROATH
    8. GREENOCK MORTON


    9. ALLOA ATHLETIC


    10. QUEEN OF THE SOUTH


    Feel free to bookmark this to use against me in May (I'm sure @AlloaStats will...)


    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
    View the full article
  22. hislopsoffsideagain
    To be blunt, League One should be a two horse race.


    That's not being harsh on the other eight clubs; there are plenty of dangerous teams and quality players elsewhere in this division. But Falkirk and Partick Thistle have so much more to throw at this league than any of the others. As Ray McKinnon discovered at the former last season, struggling to make the top two is not an option.


    David McCracken and Lee Miller have been the Bairns' co-management team since November 2019 and were unbeaten in the league between then and lockdown. That record surely won't last, but given they've been able to sign Blair Alston - Blair Alston! - Aidan Keena, Callumn Morrison and Scott Mercer to play in League One they have every right to fancy their chances.


    The problem for them is that like last year with Raith Rovers, they aren't the only big fish in this pond. Ian McCall has won at this level before with Ayr United and will feel he can repeat that feat with a Thistle squad that retained impressive strikers Zak Rudden and Brian Graham and quality midfielders Stuart Bannigan, Shea Gordon and Joe Cardle. A defence containing Thomas O'Ware, Darren Brownlie and newbie Ciaran McKenna should be solid enough and the arrival of Salim Kouider-Aissa and Blair Spittal on loan means depth shouldn't be a problem.


    Airdrie are the other full-time(ish) club which should mean they are the best bet for third spot. Griffin Sabatini (an Argentinian loaned from a Ukrainian club, as you do) and Thomas Robert (son of Laurent) are surely the most curious signings in the SPFL this summer but they have held onto most of the squad that had got into the playoff places last season. Manager Ian Murray has plenty of quality up front with Calum Gallagher, Dale Carrick, Ally Roy, Eoghan Stokes and Kyle Connell so how far they can go will depend on how well they defend.


    Montrose again did an amazing job of punching above their weight last season - apparently the reason that esteemed boss Stewart Petrie hasn't gone on to better things is that he has a plush day job - and have performed the remarkable feat of not losing a  single senior player from last season (other than loanees going back to parent clubs). The return of Blair Lyons to Partick is somewhat offset by the homecoming of Martin Rennie, and this experienced, well-coached and well-drilled bunch will again look to put 'bigger' clubs to shame.


    Further north, Cove Rangers are not simply aiming to make up the numbers in the third tier after two consecutive promotions. Paul Hartley's side are ambitious, signing Motherwell duo Adam Livingstone and Jamie Semple (on loan) and bringing Leighton McIntosh back to Scotland. Of course, Fraser Fyvie, Mitch Megginson and Rory McAllister are still here too. It would surprise few people if they ended up closer to the top than the bottom.


    East Fife have finished between fifth and seventh in four straight seasons but it seems like Darren Young's job is getting harder every year. Highly-rated striker Anton Dowds has moved onto full-time football but that may be offset by the loan signing of Livingston's Jack Hamilton. Veteran Danny Swanson should have enough nous to shine in the third tier and joins an already experienced bunch that includes Chris Higgins and Stewart Murdoch at the back and blogger extraordinaire Danny Denholm on the wing.


    In contrast Clyde clearly aim to push on in their second season back in League One. Bringing back defender Tom Lang and midfielder Ross Cunningham permanently looks like a coup for a team that will always be dangerous as long as David Goodwillie is up front. He scored twenty league goals last season but no-one else managed more than two. Whilst there has been a lack of attacking reinforcements, Lang, Jamie Bain and Matthew Shiels should strengthen the backline.


    It was a tumultous offseason at Dumbarton, where Jim Duffy had a heart attack in June (he has thankfully recovered) and budget decisions were put off longer than most. That meant the exit of regulars like Joe McKee and Kyle Hutton, but they still have Ross Forbes pulling the strings and he now has Denny Johnstone leading the line in front of him. Getting Sam Wardrop back permanently at right-back was a boost and young Hearts defender Chris Hamilton could do very well on loan.


    Arguably Peterhead had the trickiest summer of the lot; a club that in the past offered better part-time wages than most found themselves being gazumped somewhat by others; a number of players left for League Two or ambitious Lowland League sides instead. Evergreen centre-back Gary McKenzie and forward Isaac Layne are the names that stand out amongst the new boys, while they have taken a chance on futsal star Derryn Kesson and will need big contributions from young loan players from the Dundee clubs.


    And finally Forfar Athletic have been super busy in the last few months as Stuart Malcolm looks to put his stamp on a squad he inherited in November. The pick of the twelve new signings are midfielder Mark Hill, ex-St Johnstone skipper Steven Anderson and attacking trio Jordan Allan, Archie Thomas and Scott Shepherd who step up from League Two. Malcolm will hope that he can prove his success in charge of East Kilbride was no fluke.


    So here's my (inevitably wrong) prediction of how the table will finish:
    1. PARTICK THISTLE


    2. FALKIRK
    3. AIRDRIE
    4. COVE RANGERS


    5. MONTROSE
    6. CLYDE
    7. FORFAR ATHLETIC
    8. DUMBARTON


    9. EAST FIFE


    10. PETERHEAD


    Make sure you take a screenshot so you can remind me of this in May...


    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.

    View the full article
  23. hislopsoffsideagain
    To be blunt, League One should be a two horse race.


    That's not being harsh on the other eight clubs; there are plenty of dangerous teams and quality players elsewhere in this division. But Falkirk and Partick Thistle have so much more to throw at this league than any of the others. As Ray McKinnon discovered at the former last season, struggling to make the top two is not an option.


    David McCracken and Lee Miller have been the Bairns' co-management team since November 2019 and were unbeaten in the league between then and lockdown. That record surely won't last, but given they've been able to sign Blair Alston - Blair Alston! - Aidan Keena, Callumn Morrison and Scott Mercer to play in League One they have every right to fancy their chances.


    The problem for them is that like last year with Raith Rovers, they aren't the only big fish in this pond. Ian McCall has won at this level before with Ayr United and will feel he can repeat that feat with a Thistle squad that retained impressive strikers Zak Rudden and Brian Graham and quality midfielders Stuart Bannigan, Shea Gordon and Joe Cardle. A defence containing Thomas O'Ware, Darren Brownlie and newbie Ciaran McKenna should be solid enough and the arrival of Salim Kouider-Aissa and Blair Spittal on loan means depth shouldn't be a problem.


    Airdrie are the other full-time(ish) club which should mean they are the best bet for third spot. Griffin Sabatini (an Argentinian loaned from a Ukrainian club, as you do) and Thomas Robert (son of Laurent) are surely the most curious signings in the SPFL this summer but they have held onto most of the squad that had got into the playoff places last season. Manager Ian Murray has plenty of quality up front with Calum Gallagher, Dale Carrick, Ally Roy, Eoghan Stokes and Kyle Connell so how far they can go will depend on how well they defend.


    Montrose again did an amazing job of punching above their weight last season - apparently the reason that esteemed boss Stewart Petrie hasn't gone on to better things is that he has a plush day job - and have performed the remarkable feat of not losing a  single senior player from last season (other than loanees going back to parent clubs). The return of Blair Lyons to Partick is somewhat offset by the homecoming of Martin Rennie, and this experienced, well-coached and well-drilled bunch will again look to put 'bigger' clubs to shame.


    Further north, Cove Rangers are not simply aiming to make up the numbers in the third tier after two consecutive promotions. Paul Hartley's side are ambitious, signing Motherwell duo Adam Livingstone and Jamie Semple (on loan) and bringing Leighton McIntosh back to Scotland. Of course, Fraser Fyvie, Mitch Megginson and Rory McAllister are still here too. It would surprise few people if they ended up closer to the top than the bottom.


    East Fife have finished between fifth and seventh in four straight seasons but it seems like Darren Young's job is getting harder every year. Highly-rated striker Anton Dowds has moved onto full-time football but that may be offset by the loan signing of Livingston's Jack Hamilton. Veteran Danny Swanson should have enough nous to shine in the third tier and joins an already experienced bunch that includes Chris Higgins and Stewart Murdoch at the back and blogger extraordinaire Danny Denholm on the wing.


    In contrast Clyde clearly aim to push on in their second season back in League One. Bringing back defender Tom Lang and midfielder Ross Cunningham permanently looks like a coup for a team that will always be dangerous as long as David Goodwillie is up front. He scored twenty league goals last season but no-one else managed more than two. Whilst there has been a lack of attacking reinforcements, Lang, Jamie Bain and Matthew Shiels should strengthen the backline.


    It was a tumultous offseason at Dumbarton, where Jim Duffy had a heart attack in June (he has thankfully recovered) and budget decisions were put off longer than most. That meant the exit of regulars like Joe McKee and Kyle Hutton, but they still have Ross Forbes pulling the strings and he now has Denny Johnstone leading the line in front of him. Getting Sam Wardrop back permanently at right-back was a boost and young Hearts defender Chris Hamilton could do very well on loan.


    Arguably Peterhead had the trickiest summer of the lot; a club that in the past offered better part-time wages than most found themselves being gazumped somewhat by others; a number of players left for League Two or ambitious Lowland League sides instead. Evergreen centre-back Gary McKenzie and forward Isaac Layne are the names that stand out amongst the new boys, while they have taken a chance on futsal star Derryn Kesson and will need big contributions from young loan players from the Dundee clubs.


    And finally Forfar Athletic have been super busy in the last few months as Stuart Malcolm looks to put his stamp on a squad he inherited in November. The pick of the twelve new signings are midfielder Mark Hill, ex-St Johnstone skipper Steven Anderson and attacking trio Jordan Allan, Archie Thomas and Scott Shepherd who step up from League Two. Malcolm will hope that he can prove his success in charge of East Kilbride was no fluke.


    So here's my (inevitably wrong) prediction of how the table will finish:
    1. PARTICK THISTLE


    2. FALKIRK
    3. AIRDRIE
    4. COVE RANGERS


    5. MONTROSE
    6. CLYDE
    7. FORFAR ATHLETIC
    8. DUMBARTON


    9. EAST FIFE


    10. PETERHEAD


    Make sure you take a screenshot so you can remind me of this in May...


    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
    View the full article
  24. hislopsoffsideagain
    It's no secret that the Covid pandemic has hit football clubs hard. With fans unable to attend games, income is down and chairmen are having to be very frugal indeed.


    Except at Queen's Park.


    Having decided that they could no longer continue as amateurs, they have decided that, if they're going to have to pay players, then they're going to pay them. So the squad is filled with folk who were playing full-time last season, some of whom - Bob McHugh and Lee Kilday, for example - were regulars in the Championship. Most remarkably they've signed Simon Murray, the former Dundee United and Hibs forward who returns from two years in South Africa. Anything other than the title for the Spiders and manager Ray McKinnon would be a catastrophe.


    Their closest rivals are most likely to be forever-bridesmaids Edinburgh City, who were promotion challengers in each of the last two seasons and have kept together a squad that includes prolific striker Blair Henderson, fellow attackers Danny Handling and Alex Harris and seasoned defender Conrad Balatoni. Wideman Danny Jardine looks like a good signing from Stirling too. Expect them to be up there but they may yet again lose out to a side with even more megabucks than they do (Cove last year, Peterhead the year before).


    After that duo, it's hard to say who might be the third-best side in this division; however one would assume that as the side who have dropped down from League One, Stranraer will have aspirations of at least making the promotion playoffs. They stood behind boss Stevie Farrell despite relegation and shouldn't be short of goals with Joao Victoria and veteran Darryl Duffy up top and Andy Stirling providing ammunition. Certainly they should not emulate previous relegated clubs such as Cowdenbeath, Albion Rovers and Brechin by slumping straight to the bottom end of this tier too.


    Elgin City were third in the table when the action was halted in the Spring, and their manager Gavin Price has concentrated on keeping together as much of that squad as possible. But they lost star striker Shane Sutherland and winger Rabin Omar to Championship sides and have been remarkably quiet on the signings front so far. It will be hard for them to emulate last season's success, even though Conor O'Keefe, Kane Hester and Smart Osadolor provide plenty of quality.


    Cowdenbeath, who were fourth when play stopped, have also chosen to mostly stick rather than twist, but will miss the departed Jordan Allan and Archie Thomas. Like any Gary Bollan side they will be tough to break down - not least with the legendary Craig Mango Barr in the backline - but goals may prove tough to come by unless loan striker Olly Hamilton proves an astute signing.


    Amongst those with genuine promotion playoff aspirations are Stirling Albion, who stood by manager Kevin Rutkiewicz after a poor start to last season and whose 2020 form was pretty decent. They've backed their boss well with striker Andy Ryan joining from Dunfermline and midfielder Jack Leitch from Peterhead. Certainly the club will be expecting an improvement on last season's sixth spot.


    Stenhousemuir, who had a rough first half of 2019/20 but seemed to have finally turned the corner just before lockdown, look intriguing. Manager Davie Irons has been well backed and has essentially revamped the squad since his arrival early last season. Defender Creag Little and midfielder Callum Tapping look the pick of the bunch that have pitched up this summer, joining a squad that contains former Falkirk and Swansea City prospects Ryan Blair and Botti Biabi and seasoned strikers Mark McGuigan and Greig Spence.


    It seems like every season Annan Athletic lose most of their best players to other clubs, yet Peter Murphy still finds a way of putting out a competitive team. Can he do the same this year? Getting forward Aidan Smith back after a year away at Peterhead will give them a boost, while Jack Purdue and Aaron Splaine could improve their midfield. But it could be tough to keep those standards up.


    There was also considerable turnover at Albion Rovers, including in the dugout where Brian Reid has replaced Kevin Harper. Reid has a young squad aside from Paul Cairney, who has come out of retirement, and relying on youths such as Finn Ecrepont and Scott Glover at the back feels like a high-risk, high-reward strategy. Midfielder Callum Wilson was highly-rated a few years ago at Partick and has the chance to jumpstart his career.


    And lastly, Brechin City got to avoid an inevitable relegation playoff after the last campaign ended early. Can they avoid such a fate this time around? Two heavy League Cup beatings - albeit to top flight opponents - suggest that manager Mark Wilson still has his work cut out, even though new signings such as Rory Currie, Michael Paton and Connor Coupe should do very well at this level. At the time of writing Wilson has won 3 out of 26 matches in charge of Brechin and unless something changes there those iconic hedges may drop out of the SPFL.


    So my (inevitably wrong) prediction for how the season will finish:
    1. QUEEN'S PARK


    2. EDINBURGH CITY
    3. STENHOUSEMUIR
    4. STRANRAER


    5. STIRLING ALBION
    6. ELGIN CITY
    7. COWDENBEATH
    8. ALBION ROVERS

    9. ANNAN ATHLETIC


    10. BRECHIN CITY


    Feel free to bookmark this to point out my mistakes come May...


    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.

    View the full article
  25. hislopsoffsideagain
    It's no secret that the Covid pandemic has hit football clubs hard. With fans unable to attend games, income is down and chairmen are having to be very frugal indeed.


    Except at Queen's Park.


    Having decided that they could no longer continue as amateurs, they have decided that, if they're going to have to pay players, then they're going to pay them. So the squad is filled with folk who were playing full-time last season, some of whom - Bob McHugh and Lee Kilday, for example - were regulars in the Championship. Most remarkably they've signed Simon Murray, the former Dundee United and Hibs forward who returns from two years in South Africa. Anything other than the title for the Spiders and manager Ray McKinnon would be a catastrophe.


    Their closest rivals are most likely to be forever-bridesmaids Edinburgh City, who were promotion challengers in each of the last two seasons and have kept together a squad that includes prolific striker Blair Henderson, fellow attackers Danny Handling and Alex Harris and seasoned defender Conrad Balatoni. Wideman Danny Jardine looks like a good signing from Stirling too. Expect them to be up there but they may yet again lose out to a side with even more megabucks than they do (Cove last year, Peterhead the year before).


    After that duo, it's hard to say who might be the third-best side in this division; however one would assume that as the side who have dropped down from League One, Stranraer will have aspirations of at least making the promotion playoffs. They stood behind boss Stevie Farrell despite relegation and shouldn't be short of goals with Joao Victoria and veteran Darryl Duffy up top and Andy Stirling providing ammunition. Certainly they should not emulate previous relegated clubs such as Cowdenbeath, Albion Rovers and Brechin by slumping straight to the bottom end of this tier too.


    Elgin City were third in the table when the action was halted in the Spring, and their manager Gavin Price has concentrated on keeping together as much of that squad as possible. But they lost star striker Shane Sutherland and winger Rabin Omar to Championship sides and have been remarkably quiet on the signings front so far. It will be hard for them to emulate last season's success, even though Conor O'Keefe, Kane Hester and Smart Osadolor provide plenty of quality.


    Cowdenbeath, who were fourth when play stopped, have also chosen to mostly stick rather than twist, but will miss the departed Jordan Allan and Archie Thomas. Like any Gary Bollan side they will be tough to break down - not least with the legendary Craig Mango Barr in the backline - but goals may prove tough to come by unless loan striker Olly Hamilton proves an astute signing.


    Amongst those with genuine promotion playoff aspirations are Stirling Albion, who stood by manager Kevin Rutkiewicz after a poor start to last season and whose 2020 form was pretty decent. They've backed their boss well with striker Andy Ryan joining from Dunfermline and midfielder Jack Leitch from Peterhead. Certainly the club will be expecting an improvement on last season's sixth spot.


    Stenhousemuir, who had a rough first half of 2019/20 but seemed to have finally turned the corner just before lockdown, look intriguing. Manager Davie Irons has been well backed and has essentially revamped the squad since his arrival early last season. Defender Creag Little and midfielder Callum Tapping look the pick of the bunch that have pitched up this summer, joining a squad that contains former Falkirk and Swansea City prospects Ryan Blair and Botti Biabi and seasoned strikers Mark McGuigan and Greig Spence.


    It seems like every season Annan Athletic lose most of their best players to other clubs, yet Peter Murphy still finds a way of putting out a competitive team. Can he do the same this year? Getting forward Aidan Smith back after a year away at Peterhead will give them a boost, while Jack Purdue and Aaron Splaine could improve their midfield. But it could be tough to keep those standards up.


    There was also considerable turnover at Albion Rovers, including in the dugout where Brian Reid has replaced Kevin Harper. Reid has a young squad aside from Paul Cairney, who has come out of retirement, and relying on youths such as Finn Ecrepont and Scott Glover at the back feels like a high-risk, high-reward strategy. Midfielder Callum Wilson was highly-rated a few years ago at Partick and has the chance to jumpstart his career.


    And lastly, Brechin City got to avoid an inevitable relegation playoff after the last campaign ended early. Can they avoid such a fate this time around? Two heavy League Cup beatings - albeit to top flight opponents - suggest that manager Mark Wilson still has his work cut out, even though new signings such as Rory Currie, Michael Paton and Connor Coupe should do very well at this level. At the time of writing Wilson has won 3 out of 26 matches in charge of Brechin and unless something changes there those iconic hedges may drop out of the SPFL.


    So my (inevitably wrong) prediction for how the season will finish:
    1. QUEEN'S PARK


    2. EDINBURGH CITY
    3. STENHOUSEMUIR
    4. STRANRAER


    5. STIRLING ALBION
    6. ELGIN CITY
    7. COWDENBEATH
    8. ALBION ROVERS

    9. ANNAN ATHLETIC


    10. BRECHIN CITY


    Feel free to bookmark this to point out my mistakes come May...


    Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
    View the full article
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