Vale of Leven v Annbank United

Vale of Leven 7-2 Annbank United
SJFA West Region League Two
Millburn Park
Saturday 20th October 2018

It’s been slightly better weather than it was this time last week and that means there’s no waterlogged pitches hampering my Saturday plans. So it’s back to the Millburn for some more League Two action.

The Venue

Millburn park has been extensively profiled on this site a couple of times. You can see here, here and here for details.

The Teams

With last weekend’s trip to Muirkirk a victim of the weather, the Vale have played just once in the league since I saw them draw 1-1 with Ashfield. That was an impressive 3-0 win over Salcoats Victoria, although their Junior Cup run came to an early end when they were on the wrong end of the same score up north against Islavale. The Vale are in fourth place in League Two, just three points off leaders Lanark United.

Annbank United were formed in the eponymous former mining village in 1939. They reached the Scottish Junior Cup Final once, in 1953, where ironically they lost to today’s hosts. The two clubs have met several times in the cups, but today is the first ever league meeting between the sides. Annbank won the Ayrshire Second Division in the 1989-90 season, but have spent most of the recent years in the district leagues.

This season, the club – co-managed by Graeme Neil and Tom Robertson, started well with two wins in their Sectional group, although they failed to qualify for the knockout stages. They defeated fellow League Two side Ardeer Thistle comfortably in the Scottish Junior Cup, but are firmly in the lower half of the table on league duty with 11 points from nine games.

The Game

The game was barely 30 seconds old when Lee McGeachy sent the ball across the face of the Annbank goal to find the head of Greg Ross, who nodded in to give the home side an early lead. The early goal shellshocked the visitors, who took a while to get themselves into the game. Ross had a chance to double the lead with ten minutes gone when he headed wide from Craig Cowan’s cross. Annbank had their first chance in 13 minutes, but Andrew Campbell in the Vale goal was the equal of a decent effort.

With 20 minutes gone it was 2-0. McGeachy swing a corner into the box, and Ross scored his second of the day as he nipped in, in front of the keeper to knock the ball into the net. It was 3-0 just a few minutes later. Chris Jackson was upended in the box, and Cowan stepped up to slam the penalty past the Annbank goalkeeper. It was to be four before the half hour as McGeachy played in Robbie Dolan on the left hand side. Dolan’s low, driven cross was deflected into the net by an unfortunate Annbank defender, as the visitors saw the game slip out of their reach.

Annbank pulled one back with 42 minutes gone as a long ball deceived the Vale defence and allowed Stephen McLelland to latch on and finish well below Campbell. The scoring wasn’t done in the first half though, as just two minutes later, Andy Biddulph got himself on the end of Dolan’s back post cross and drilled the ball low into the net. And on the stroke of half time it was 6-1. Ross swung a free kick to the back post which was met by the head of Mark Butler, who headed it back across goal into the patch of Jackson who knocked it in for the simplest of goals.

The second half was to be a much tamer affair, although Vale were still creating chances, with both Biddulph and David McNaught coming close. Biddulph was sent off for a second bookable offence with an hour played, but the man advantage never really let Annbank back into the game to any great degree.

With 68 minutes gone, it was 7-1, as McGeachy’s cross was nodded in at the back post by Stuart Bryson. Two minutes later, Annbank reduced the defecit through a well taken penalty from Jordan Ryan. Both sides worked hard on the wet pitch but it was to be the last real action of a game that saw the home side’s first half dominance see them run out as comfortable winners.

The Pies

It goes without saying that the Vale’s steak pies are worth eating every single time. They are outstanding, and it’s no exaggeration to say they might be the best in football at any level.

Admission: £5
Programme: None
Pie: £1.60 (scotch) £2 (steak)
Bovril: 90p
Attendance: 53

Ashfield v Vale of Leven

Ashfield 1-1 Vale of Leven
SJFA West Region League Two
The Peugeot Ashfield Stadium
Saturday 22nd September 2018

I hadn’t actually planned on a game today, but when I realised the West Juniors weren’t taking the September Weekend off this year, a quick scour of the fixtures threw this one up. Not too far from home, a venue I really like, and a chance to see my local team again, it was into the car for the short trip to Possilpark.

The Venue

Saracen Park, currently known as The Peugeot Ashfield Stadium in a sponsorship deal, has been the home of Ashfield since 1937. Due to the ground also being used by the Glasgow Tigers professional speedway team, it is one of the most well kept and best appointed stadiums in the West Juniors. The ground has a capacity of around 3,500, of which 600 are housed in the all seater (padded bench seats) main stand, which despite a couple of support poles, gives a great view of the pitch. There are also two large standing enclosures next to the stand, which seem to only be used when the speedway is on. The rest of the ground is stepped terracing and banking.

You are a wee bit further away than normal from the pitch due to the speedway track that encircles it, but it’s not as noticeable as some other tracks. An interesting sidenote is that the pitch is as narrow as permitted by the laws of football. This is because if it was any wider, the speedway track would encroach onto the pitch. In fact, while taking a corner, players will have to take their run up from the track. The ground has also been used in the past for greyhound racing, and between 1956 and and 1998 it was a huge revenue stream, before being converted for speedway in 1999 – as it had previously been used between 1949 and 1953. My favourite quirk at this ground is that you buy your match ticket from the bar at the ground’s entrance before handing it over at the door to the main stand to gain entry.

The Teams

Ashfield were formed in 1886, and have been based at Saracen Park in the Possilpark district of Glasgow since 1937. The club were one of the most successful in the early days of Junior football, winning the Scottish Junior Cup on four occasions between 1894 and 1910. They won the West of Scotland Cup twice in the 1920s, and the Glasgow Junior League six times between 1906 and 1921. They have had a leaner time of things in more recent years, but did win promotion to the West Super Premier by winning the Super First Division in 2011. A slide down the leagues unfortunately followed, and with reconstruction this season, they found themselves in the bottom tier League Two.

Club legend Paul Maxwell took over as manager in the summer, and after finishing bottom of admittedly tough Sectional League Cup group, Ashfield went on a bit of a run and were sitting unbeaten at the top of League Two before a surprise defeat at Newmains United last weekend. They remain top of the table, however and will be looking to bounce back with a win this afternoon.

As readers of this blog will know, I saw the Vale last week as they were beaten 4-1 at home to Lesmahagow. They will also be looking to bounce back, and will be without Andy Biddulph, who is suspended after picking up a red card last Saturday.

The Game

There wasn’t a whole lot of quality on show in the first half, with both teams struggling to keep a hold of the ball and get anything going in the early stages. With four minutes gone, Scott Gallagher broke through the Ashfield defence and forced John Mullen into a good one on one save. With 13 minutes gone, an excellent sweeping move from Ashfield resulted in Ciaran Friel having the chance to shot, but his effort was blocked by Stuart Bryson. Two minutes later, the league leaders had the lead though. Graeme Hearton was played in just inside the box. His shot was muffled by Andrew Campbell in the Vale goal, but Billy Stevenson managed to bundle it over the line at the back post.

Two minutes later, Ashfield almost doubled their lead when Keigan Parker sent a fantastic cross into the box, that Friel just failed to get his head on despite an acrobatic effort to get there. The home side continued to have the better of the ball and with 25 minutes gone, there was a bit of pinball in the Vale box, and they eventually managed to clear after shots from Hearton and Friel were blocked. Vale’s best chance of the first half hour came as the thirty minute mark approached. Mark Butler nodded on Lee McGeachy’s long throw, but the ball was cleared for a corner before a Vale foot could get onto it.

Vale were having a decent spell of it, and with 34 minutes gone, Gallagher was released from a Richie Stewart throw. He sent a tantalising ball across the six yard line, but no-one could get on the end of it. Five minutes later an Adam Monaghan free kick was picked up in the box by Butler, whose shot on the turn went just wide and rippled the side net. Stevenson had one last chance in the half for Ashfield, but after a good move, he could only fire over the bar. 1-0 at the break, and the home side merited their slender lead.

The second half was a spicy affair, and burst into life after fifty minutes. David McNaught was the beneficiary of some slack defending by Ashfield as he found himself with the ball inside the box. His shot bounced off the base of the post and into the grateful arms of Mullen. Two minutes later, an impressive passing move from Ashfield saw Parker chest the ball to Mark McManus on the edge of the box, but his shot flew just over the bar. With an hour played, McGeachy’s corner was headed goalwards by Vale substitute Ben Craig. His header was cleared off the line by Patrick Cullen, to huge shouts of handball from the Vale bench. The protests were waved away and Ashfield retained their lead.

The action was flying from end to end, although ball retention was still proving elusive for both sides. With 68 minutes on the clock, an Ashfield corner very nearly ended up ion the net before being scrambled away by the Vale defence. Five minutes later, Campbell was forced into an excellent save from Hearton, as Ashfield looked to double their lead. With ten minutes remaining, McGeachy made an excellent run down the left hand side and found Gallagher inside the box. Despite having two defenders stuck to him, Gallagher just about managed to get a shot away, but it fell just wide.

Just a minute later though, Vale had the equaliser. A deep cross from Butler seemed to have drifted out of the danger zone, but was picked up by McGeachy. He put it back across goal and Gallagher stepped onto the ball to strike it past Mullen and into the net. Two minutes later, McGeachy once again found the ball in a wide area and found McNaught with his cross. McNaught was never really on balance though, and his effort was held easily by Mullen.

The game was in for a frantic finish, and with just five minutes left, Vale were reduced to ten men when Greg Ross was shown a second yellow card after tangling with McManus after a heavy challenge. Two minutes later, Stevenson had a golden opportunity to seal the three points, but sclaffed his shot well wide after getting the break of the ball. There was still time for one last chance, and Vale have Campbell to thank for saving the point, as he made a fine save from Friel at the end of a good run.

The Pies

The Tiger Den cafe/bar only had Scotch pies on offer today, and it was a fairly decent, if very standard effort.

Admission: £5
Programme: £1
Pie: £2
Bovril: £1
Attendance: 43

Vale of Leven v Lesmahagow

Vale of Leven 0-4 Lesmahagow
SJFA West Region League Two
Millburn Park
Saturday 15th September 2018

It’s not the best of days weather wise, but Millburn is just a few minutes from my house and has a large shed that (just about) keeps the rain off, so a wee trip to see my first league game since the West Region switched to region wide leagues.

The Venue

Thankfully, the forecast rain actually stayed away today, so I didn’t even have to venture over to the shed with the visiting support. I always prefer to stand at the top of the terracing on the entrance side, and pleasingly got to do so today, even though I forgot to lift my brolly!

The Teams

Since I last saw the Vale in the Sectional League Cup, they have had a very good start to their league campaign, and sit third in the League Two table with five wins from their six games. They will travel north to Aberdeenshire to take on Islavale in the second round of the Scottish Junior Cup in two weeks time.

Lesmahagow play at Craighead Park in the Lanarkshire town and were formed in 1885. They won Division One of the Central District in 1989 and 2005, and were Scottish Junior Cup runners up in 1990. They finished towards the bottom of Central District League Division One last season, meaning they would be part of League Two this year.

Their season has been a roaring success so far, having defied all the odds to reach the Sectional League Cup Final. They will play Auchinleck Talbot at Newlandsfield in four weeks time. Their league campaign has also started strongly, with 14 points from seven games having them sitting in fourth place. Robert Irving is their current manager.

The Game

I don’t like to make these match reports all about the referee, because that usually means an “it’s all about me, never mind the game” referee gets exactly the type of self-serving publicity he wants and doesn’t deserve. Two red cards, two questionable at best penalty decisions and a host of yellow cards might point at the referee having lost the plot. That would suggest that he had the plot to begin with though. Yes, Vale’s discipline did leave them somewhat in the second half, but this admittedly biased spectator (and I would like to think anyone who was at least neutral) could completely understand why they were reacting in such a manner, having seen everything that had gone before. I’m led to believe that this referee has previous for this type of performance, and that’s something that surely has to be looked at.

That opening salvo is to take nothing away from the Gow, who took their chances well and were worthy of the three points this afternoon, even if the four goal margin was a tad on the flattering side. Vale started well, and good work on either win from Lee McGeachy and Richie Stewart gave Andy Biddulph and Mark Butler chances that were dealt with well by Gow’s keeper inside the first fifteen minutes. With sixteen minutes gone, came one of the strangest refereeing decisions I’ve ever seen. McGeachy was fouled just outside the box, stayed on his feet, continued into the box and was brought down again. For some inexplicable reason, the referee gave a free kick for the first offence, rather than a penalty. No-one watching could quite believe it, and the free kick came to nothing.

Gow took the lead against the run of play after 24 minutes when Jonny McStay broke down the left. His cross took a deflection off Stuart Bryson which took it past Andrew Campbell into the net. McStay will definitely be claiming the goal, but it looked more like an O.G. from where I was standing. Vale tried to get back into the game, but couldn’t find the final ball.

Gow had taken confidence from taking the lead and with 36 minutes played extended their lead in controversial circumstances. Gary Nicholson broke on the left and knocked the ball well past Adam Monaghan inside the box. The Gow striker appeared to run directly into Monaghan while making what looked to be an in vain attempt to collect the ball. The referee decided that this was a penalty, much to the disgust of the home side. Kyle Weir stepped up and slammed the penalty straight down the middle to make it 2-0.

Gow came out strongly in the second half, and Weir forced Campbell into a good save after fifty minutes. Two minutes later, a defensive mixup allowed McStay a chance, which again Campbell managed to keep out. With just less than an hour played, Vale were reduced to ten men in controversial circumstances. Gow’s keeper reached a loose ball just before Vale striker Ben Craig, who couldn’t stop his run on time and made what looked to be minimal contact with the keeper. Craig, who had already been booked for “dissent” was shown a second yellow card.

Five minutes later, Vale were down to nine, but there could be no complaints about this one. Biddulph lunged in with two feet from behind and was shown a straight red card for what was a shocking tackle. Five minutes later, Gow took charge of their two man advantage. Nicholson found space down the left hand side and sent an excellent cross into the box. Monaghan was left with no choice but to try and clear it, but could only turn the ball into his own net. The game was sown up with nine minutes to go when McStay found himself on the end of a long ball and slid his shot under Campbell to make it 4-0. A comfortable win in the end for Gow, who go second in the table, and Vale will need to regroup ahead of a trip to table topping Ashfield next weekend.

The Pies

The steak pie at the Vale is a real contender for the best pie in Scottish football. This is no hyperbole, it is absolutely perfect. I’d say if you’re in the area and there’s a game on, it’s worth coming along as much for the pie as the football.

Admission: £5
Programme: None
Pie: £1.60 (scotch) £2 (steak)
Bovril: 90p
Attendance: 57

 

Vale of Leven v Vale of Clyde

Vale of Leven 2-1 Vale of Clyde
SJFA West Region Sectional League Cup Group 9
Millburn Park
Wednesday 1st August 2018

The American adventure has concluded with a heavy heart and a new appreciation for baseball, and it’s back to the normality of every day life once again. Thankfully, the Scottish football season seems to be starting earlier and earlier each year and I can dive right back into domestic action with the last game of this season’s SJFA West Region Sectional League Cup group stage.

The Venue

I’ve talked about Millburn before way back in the early days of this blog. Being by some way the closest club to my house, it’s somewhere I visited on a regular basis last season, and plan to continue to visit regularly this year. The Vale committee have done a wonderful job here over the last year, and the place has been freshened up considerably. It’s incredible what a lick of paint and some TLC can do to an old place like this, and it’s a venue most teams must now look forward to visiting.

A notable addition to the ground since the last time I was here is that the large grassed area behind the goal at the pavilion end has been marked out for the newly established and already very popular Walking football team associated with the club. It’s a fantastic use for this piece of land and an addition I’m really happy to see.

The Teams

The Sectional League Cup has been revamped this season, with teams assigned into fifteen sections of four teams and one section of three. The same sections will be kept for next season with the fixtures reversed before being redrawn for the following year. The sixteen group winners will proceed to a straight knockout cup to determine the overall winner. In the event of a draw in a group match, a penalty shoot out is played, with the winner receiving a bonus point.

Vale of Leven have had their full history written up on here before, and given that I will see them multiple times this coming season, I’ll got into some historical titbits in the future and talk about the current side. The club have retained the services of most of last season’s squad, although notably, club captain Kenny Wilson has moved on. Several players have been brought in, including Ross Lyden from Clydebank, goalkeeper Ben Fulton and forward Scott Gallagher. Several players have also stepped up from the highly successful under 21 side with Mark Meechan, Robbie Dolan and Anthony Pilkington all making the step up. The season has seen a rough start with two losses in the Sectional, 3-1 at home to Yoker Athletic and 3-0 away to Clydebank. They will be looking to finish strong tonight ahead of the new League Two campaign.

Vale of Clyde, based in the Tollcross region of Glasgow have been around since 1873 and call Fullerton Park their home. They were one of the most successful teams in the early days of junior football winning the Scottish Junior Cup three times in the 1890–91, 1892–93 and 1903–04 seasons. In more recent years they have flitted around the lower divisions, but did win promotion to the Superleague First Division with a Central District Division One title in 2005.

Mark McKay was appointed as the club’s new manager for the 2018-19 season and he has assembled an almost entirely new squad, retaining just a few key players from last season’s mid-table side. They started the Sectional campaign with a 2-0 defeat away to Clydebank, before a fine 4-0 victory over Yoker on Monday night. They go into tonight’s game knowing that a victory could see them top the section depending on Clydebank’s result against Yoker.

The Game

The torrent of rain over the last few days that followed our long, dry spell rendered the usually flawless Millburn pitch unusually both heavy and slippery and both sides struggled with the conditions – which got progressively worse as the evening proceeded. It took until the sixteenth minute for the first real danger to present itself at either end. Vale of Leven picked the ball up deep inside their own half and played a serious of excellent passes that eventually released Ben Craig down the right wing. His cross fizzed across the box and was met at the back post by Robbie Dolan, who forced Vale of Clyde’s keeper Chanda Sula into a good, point blank stop.

The chance kickstarted a flurry of activity that saw the home side take the lead two minutes later. Some more good movement down the right hand side saw Craig’s cross only half cleared. The ball fell to Mark Butler twenty-five yards from goal and his strike took a big deflection to take it past Sula for the opening goal. The visitors were only behind for a matter of seconds however, as almost straight from the restart they marched down their own right wing and Chris Kennedy’s cross was met by the head of Cameron Wilson, who steered the ball past Ben Fulton in the Vale of Leven goal for the equaliser. Wilson almost put his side ahead just three minutes later when he got the break of the ball at the angle of the box and shot just inches over the bar.

Just before the half hour, Vale of Leven found more joy down the right through Craig, whose cross was spilled by Sula to the feet of Dolan. It was a fantastic chance to retake the lead, but the winger saw his shot cleared off the line by a spectacular lunge from Kevin Turner. Five minutes later, full back Adam Monaghan’s free kick from just inside the Vale of Clyde half was flapped at by Sula, but Dolan fired the rebound over the bar. With half time approaching, the home side were having the bulk of the chances, and a fine 1-2 between Craig and David McNaught looked promising until a scuffed shot. Vale of Clyde looked menacing going forward but were lacking a cutting edge and failed to work Fulton on several occasions. Unbelievably, the home side had another shot cleared off the line by Turner before the break, when Scott Gallagher – on as a substitute for the injured Anthony Pilkington – snapped off a shot after a poor clearance. It was a breathless end to the half, but the sides went in level.

The second half began much in the same vein as the first, with neither side settling immediately. With 52 minutes played, a slack pass in the Vale of Leven midfield allowed Mark Little a clear run at goal. His initial shot was straight at Fulton, but the keeper failed to hold on and gave the striker another bite at the cherry, which he really should have done better with. Three minutes later, the home side has a gilt edged chance when Butler’s shot was saved well by Sula but only into the path of Gallagher, but the new signing couldn’t hit the target with his effort.

It took until the 68th minute for any more real action, and it saw the home side retake the lead. Craig Cowan floated in a harmless looking free kick from inside his own area, but the slippery ball was spilled by Sula. A Vale of Leven trialist (who I didn’t catch the name of) slid in to knock the ball into the net. Once again though, Vale of Clyde stormed straight up the pitch and were handed a golden chance to draw level for a second time. Little’s run into the box was halted when he was upended by Stuart Bryson and the referee had no hesitation in pointing to the spot. Little picked himself up to take the penalty, but his powerful strike came back off the bar to retain the home side’s advantage.

The game was turned on it’s head with 72 minutes played when a long ball over the top saw two Vale of Clyde players bearing down on goal. Fulton rushed out of his box to block the ball, but used his hands and was shown a red card by the referee. With all three substitutes used (and no sub keeper that I could see on the bench anyway) forward Ryan Kerr, who was only just on as a substitute, took over in goals for the home side. Vale of Leven did an excellent job of protecting Kerr, and largely managed to keep Vale of Clyde at bay even with a man down.

With seven minutes remaining, Kerr’s inexperience in goal showed when he spilled a fairly routine shot at the feet of Little. He recovered superbly though to make an excellent save from the Vale of Clyde striker’s follow up, and the danger was cleared. The visitors were throwing everything they could at the hosts in order to equalise, but Vale of Leven’s defence held resolute.

As the game entered stoppage time, Dolan broke free down the left and beat several Vale of Clyde players before being brought down in the box. With the opportunity to seal the win, Cowan stepped up but saw his penalty saved by Chula. With six minutes of stoppage time to be played, it set up a nervy finish, but the home side held on to pick up three points and finish the campaign on a high note in a highly entertaining game.

The Pies

I assume the club predicted that a second midweek fixture of the week, coupled with the poor weather and Celtic’s Champions League qualifier on the TV would result in a low crowd, so the pie hut wasn’t open tonight. Thankfully I had also predicted this and ate before I headed along to the game!

Admission: £5
Programme: None
Pie: None
Bovril: None
Attendance: 31

Port Glasgow v Yoker Athletic

Port Glasgow 0-2 Yoker Athletic
SJFA West Region Central District League Division One
Parklea Stadium
Wednesday 25th April 2018

The weather from last Wednesday’s round of midweek madness seems to have deserted us, but with plenty of fixtures still to play (not least Wishaw, who still have a ridiculous 19 league games to go) it was off to Inverclyde and a first visit for me to Port Glasgow.

The Venue

Port moved to this ground, officially called the Port Glasgow Community Stadium in 2012 after a twelve year period sharing with their local rivals Greenock at Ravenscraig and Battery Park. Their previous ground at Woodhall Park had been sold by the local council for an industrial development. As suggested by the “Community Stadium” part of the ground’s name, this is one of the increasingly prevalent 3G cages, albeit with a bit more to it than the ones that tend to stand in public parks and high schools. Inverclyde Council spent £4.4 million on the facility.

Both sides of the excellent surface have a permanent spectator rail installed, and on the side that houses the impressive changing facilities and amenities are two reasonably sized covered enclosures. The enclosures have a couple of steps of terracing, while the rest of the spectating area is hard standing. The cage also boasts some screening on the lower portion to give the pitch a more enclosed feeling. While this is clearly one of the “council sports centres” that are so derided by the traditionalists, Port have done a really good job of making it a pleasant place to watch football.

Both old school traditional venues and modern facilities have their place in football in my book and I for one am just as happy watching a game somewhere like Parklea as I am at somewhere like Dunterlie Park where I was last week. They are undoubtedly very different, and the experience isn’t the same, but personally I enjoy the contrast. You make your own experience. Again using Dunterlie Park as an example because it’s fresh in my mind, cracking old fashioned venues like it have history which seeps out of them. I had never visited before last Wednesday, and I’ll hope to go back and take in another (hopefully better quality!) game there in the future because it was a fantastic place to watch a game. But I also enjoyed my time here. The two types of venue offer something different for sure, but there’s absolutely no problem with enjoying both. I take each ground on it’s own merits, and when facilities are as good as they are at Parklea, I can find little to complain about.

The Teams

Port Glasgow were formed in 1948 as a breakaway team from local juvenile side Clune Rock. They are the second junior club to serve the area, following Port Glasgow Athletic who were around from the 1890s before disbanding at the outbreak of World War II. Their most successful season was in 1978-79 when they won the “A” division of the Central District, just three years after playing in the “C” division. Their most recent triumph came in 1999-2000 when they won Evening Times Cup after winning the Central District Second Division. They were promoted to the Superleague Division One in 2008 after winning the Central First Division, but lasted only one season at that level. They are currently managed by Brian Heron and go by the nickname of “The Undertakers”

Port currently sit in fifth place in the Central League Division One table, although they are ten points behind Neilston, who occupy the promotion playoff spot. With six games still to play, they are clinging on to slim promotion hopes, but would need a spectacular collapse from the teams above them. They finished second in their Sectional Cup group behind Renfrew to start the season, but have fallen at the first hurdle in all the other cups, losing out on penalties to Wishaw in the Central League Cup, to Neilston in the West of Scotland Cup, and exited the Scottish Junior Cup after a replay to Petershill.

Colloquially known as the “Whe Ho,” Yoker Athletic were formed in 1886 and play out of Holm Park. Yoker itself sits right on the boundary between Glasgow and West Dunbartonshire, and while it is technically part of Glasgow, Holm Park is situated just on the Clydebank side of the border, meaning they play in West Dunbartonshire. The club were extremely successful in the 1930s, winning the West of Scotland Cup in the 1930-31 season, and the Scottish Junior Cup in 1932-33. They also reached the final of the Scottish in the 1935-36 season. They haven’t reached the top league since the West Region reconstruction, but have played in the Superleague First Division. Last season they reached the final of the Central League Cup, but were beaten by Petershill. Graeme George appears to be in caretaker charge of the team after manager Steven Reilly left sometime after their December game with Troon (who’s online programme from that day is the only reference I can currently find)

Yoker currently sit in eleventh place in the league table, but still have ten games to play including tonight. Mathematically they could still reach the promotion or playoff spots, but it seems unlikely at this point. Their season started by finishing third in the Sectional Cup group, with a point against their derby rivals Clydebank being the highlight of a disappointing campaign. They have exited at the first round stage of the Central League and West of Scotland Cups to Shettleston (on penalties) and Maybole respectively. The main talking point of Yoker’s season has been their run to the quarter finals of the Scottish Junior Cup. They dispatched of Ardeer Thistle, St Anthony’s, Troon and Whitburn, before succumbing to fellow Central District League Division One side Wishaw in a twice postponed quarter. The cup run was a big talking point around the club and reinvigorated their season. A seven game unbeaten league run was only halted by table topping Benburb on Monday night.

The Game

The advertised kick off of 6.45 had been switched to 7.15 without my knowledge, so when I showed up just after half six, there were multiple kids’ teams still in full flow on the pitch. It was suggested to me by someone who seemed to know what was going on that the kids always have the pitch on a Wednesday until 7. I almost reconsidered my defence of community facilities above on hearing this, but it is important to get youngsters involved, so I digress.

I have to apologise that there isn’t really much of a match report here tonight. My phone was very quickly dying, and I didn’t want to drain the battery any faster by using my usual note taking app. In all honesty it wasn’t really a game to write home about anyway, this was the third game in five days for both teams, and the fatigue was definitely showing. The main highlights of the first half saw Yoker break forward with a good passing move before skewing a shot wide, and a 25 yard Port strike being pushed just round the post by the Yoker keeper.

Yoker had the ball in the net five minutes before the break, but after initially appearing to award the goal, the referee gave a free kick to the home side for a foul in the build up. The Yoker players were furious, but the ref’s mind was made up and it was 0-0 at half time.

Ten minutes into the second half saw the breakthrough in controversial fashion. A through ball from midway inside the Yoker half was collected by Hynes, who beat the offside trap, ran through and rounded the Port keeper. Hynes dragged the ball wide but managed to squeeze his shot into the net. The Port players and coaching staff protested vigorously as the visitors celebrated, but the goal stood. From where I was standing, it was a borderline decision, and without assistants, it was a tough call for the referee to make.

The rest of the half was of slightly higher quality than the first, but neitehr side could really get much going in front of goal. Yoker hit the bar with a long range strike with two minutes remaining, and in stoppage time added a second through Henry. I actually missed the goal, as I had left thinking there were only about 30 seconds left! Not the best game I’ve ever seen, but definitely not the worst way to spend an evening.

The Pies

The pie stall is in the club room inside the main club building and is staffed by an absolutely delightful woman who was making funny conversation with anyone who came in to see her. The pies were a standard Scotch pie, nice and meaty and peppery. I had two. I was hungry and it merited a second bite!

Admission: £5
Programme: None
Pie: £1.50
Bovril: £1
Attendance: 31 (headcount – there may have been an extra 3 or 4 in the second half)

Arthurlie v Clydebank

Arthurlie 2-0 Clydebank
SJFA West Region Superleague Premier Division
Dunterlie Park
Wednesday 18th April 2018

The annual fixture pile up in the junior game is something that frustrates the life out of teams and many supporters. But the silver lining that I take from it is that I can pop into a game on my way home from work once or twice a week. With Barrhead only a few miles away from my work, so not much of a detour, Dunterlie Park was my destination for the first midweek madness trip of the season

The Venue

Dunterlie Park is well situated within Barrhead, right across the road from the train station. The ground opened in 1919, and is the third home of the club to bear the same name. It’s a proper old school junior ground with concrete stepped terracing on two sides, one of which houses a moderately sized covered enclosure capable of sheltering a couple of hundred souls from the elements. The opposite side from the enclosure has a small hard standing area that the diehard home support seem to use.

The ground has a current notional capacity of 3,000, which doesn’t look too far off the mark for me. Somehow 10,500 crammed in for a Scottish Junior Cup tie with relative neighbours Cambuslang Rangers in March 1939. Given that I’m told the footprint of the ground was the exact same back in those days, it’s a bit mind boggling. Health and safety has come a long way from the interwar years.

The Teams

Arthurlie can trace their history back to 1874 and the original iteration of the club were members of the Scottish Football League for two spells between 1901-1915 and 1923-1929. They won the SFL Division Three title in the 1923-24 season and were regular competitors in the early rounds of the Scottish Cup. The club folded in 1929 due to financial difficulties and were immediately reformed as Arthurlie Amateurs. After only a year in the amateur setup, the club once again became Arthulie FC and joined the junior setup. The club won the Scottish Junior Cup for the first time in 1937, just a few years into their tenure in the junior game. They won the showpiece competition for a second time in 1998, beating their fierce rivals Pollok 4-0 at Motherwell’s Fir Park. Arthurlie were also Central District League champions on four occasions before the West Region was formed.

It’s been a tough season so far for Arthurlie, despite a good start with three wins from four games in the Sectional League Cup. They sit bottom of the Superleague Premier Division, with just one win and seven points from their thirteen games so far, with their lone win coming on the second day of the league season. Their Scottish Cup run did take them to the fifth round when they were eventually defeated by Carnoustie Panmure, but they have exited the West of Scotland and Central League Cups at the first hurdle. Billy Ogilvie is the current man in charge.

Clydebank’s history is long, storied and tumultuous, and is going to take way longer than my usual spiel about the teams in action. Given that I’m intending to see them again in a couple of weeks, today I’m going to focus on the current iteration of the club, which has been active since 2003. With the fans of Clydebank left without a team to follow after their club’s collapse, the supporters group UCS secured the rights to the club’s name, badge and history from Airdrie United and began the process of setting up a new club. After a year out of the game, Clydebank returned as a junior club, in the fourth tier Central District League Division Two for the 2003-04 season. Groundsharing with Drumchapel Amateurs at Glenhead Park, the club won the league at the first attempt, often playing in front of four figure crowds, unprecedented for the division. A second promotion to Superleague Division One followed in 2006-07, with promotion to the Premier League coming at the end of the 2010-11 season. The club were relegated in 2015, and after two seasons in the First Division, gained promotion to the top level again last year.

Clydebank reached the Scottish Junior Cup Final in 2008-09, losing 2-1 to Auchinleck Talbot in front of over 8,000 fans at Rugby Park, Kilmarnock. Since returning to the junior game, the Bankies have won the Central League Cup twice, and the Sectional League Cup another twice. This season has been a tricky one for the club, hovering at the bottom of the league table. A recent run of good form however, has lifted them to eighth, although they still do only have 11 points from 14 games and are not yet safe from relegation playoffs. The club lost at the first hurdle in the second round of the Scottish Junior Cup to Kennoway Star Hearts, won the Sectional League Cup and are still active in both the West of Scotland and Central League Cups. The club’s members recently voted to rejoin senior football, and a deferred application to the East of Scotland League for the 2019-20 season has been made to allow ground improvements to be carried out at Holm Park. Kieran McAnespie is the current manager, having taken over from the long serving Budgie McGhie in January 2017. McAnespie retired from playing just a few weeks ago.

The Game

Clydebank almost had the perfect start to the game just seconds after kick off. A poor clearance from the Lie defence allowed Steven Higgins to get a shot away, but Grant Hay got down well to save. Just a few minutes later the Bankies came close again from a corner, but Jamie Darroch’s header flew just past the post. The home side took advantage of their first real foray up the field with eight minutes gone. A free kick was given around 25 yards out on the left hand side. Despite the protestations of the Bankie’s support, Lie captain Kieran McAleenan curled a superb strike past the despairing Waters in the Clydebank goal to give his side the lead.

It was to be the high point in a largely drab first half, as despite the glorious sunshine overhead, the Dunterlie Park pitch was cutting up badly, and was making things difficult for both sides. Clydebank continued to attempt to play a passing game, but time after time found the ball bobbling away from the intended target. The Lie had the best of the chances, but despite James Marks working hard up front and showing good strength and movement, there was little final product to show. Marks himself had a header just wide from a corner midway through the half, and should have done much better with a poor shot from inside the box with halftime approaching. Marks pouncing on a poor clearance should have cut the ball back to James MacLennan instead of firing well wide. The Bankies had the last chance of the half, but MacLean fired a shot from just outside of the box wide after a promising run.

Not a whole lot of quality on show in the first half, and it was confounding why Clydebank didn’t try to change up their gameplan when it became clear that the surface was less than perfect.

The second half brought a lot more action as Arthurlie began to adapt to the underfoot conditions. An attack straight from the kick off gave the Bankies defence a fright, but Waters smothered the ball. The visitors had a great chance with fifty minutes gone when the ball broke to Steven Higgins, but the normally reliable striker hit a soft shot straight at Hay while bearing down one-on-one. Five minutes later it was Lie on the attack again, but Marks’ cutback wasn’t picked up by any of his team mates. Arthurlie continued to look more dangerous, restricting Clydebank to mainly long range efforts, including a Ryan Deas free kick which sailed over the bar.

With 71 minutes played, Marks picked up a long ball, but could only hit his shot right at Waters. But only a matter of seconds later, Marks had doubled the home side’s lead. The Bankies attempts at playing out of defence backfired as Marks pounced and drilled a powerful low strike across Waters from 30 yards out. Marks almost doubled his own tally about 90 seconds later when Waters’ kick out hit him on the back, but the spin on the ball didn’t allow the striker to get the ball under control quick enough to find the target.

Clydebank tried in vain to get themselves back into the game, but the damage had been done and the visitors never really looked like scoring. It wasn’t the greatest game I’ve ever seen, and Clydebank’s performance was as bad as I’ve seen from them. Arthurlie were more than worthy of only their second league win of the season, and with Hurlford not playing this midweek, it’s 3 points that lifts them off the bottom of the table.

The Pies

Heading to the game straight after work meant that I was using the pie stall for my dinner. I decided to plump for two steak pies, which were packed to bursting with really tender meat. Good job.

Admission: £6
Programme: £1.50
Pie: £1.50 (Scotch) £1.80 (steak)
Bovril: £1
Attendance: 170 (approx headcount)

Johnstone Burgh v Vale of Leven

Johnstone Burgh 2-2 Vale of Leven
Central District League Division Two
Keanie Park
Saturday 17th March 2018

Watching the Vale will probably become a recurring feature on this blog, as I explained last week, they’re my local team and I’m invested in their fortunes. Today, they were playing just about half an hour away from home, so I jumped in the car and braved the gale force winds to head to deepest, darkest Refrewshire and a ground I’d never visited before. Passing through Elderslie on the way, I saw the memorial statue to William Wallace (Wallace was born in the town) at the side of the road, so that was a nice wee extra before I arrived.

The Venue

Keanie Park is tucked away at the back of a residential area so I’m very grateful to Google Maps for the directions, as I feel I could have been driving about Johnstone for quite some time without them. The ground eventually appears at the top of a hill, provided you know that you’re looking for what looks like an industrial warehouse, rather than a typical football club. After paying in through the single turnstile in operation, I was greeted by a cracking, old fashioned junior ground with tons of character. The ground’s notional capacity is 5,000.

Down one side of the pitch is a classic corrugated metal enclosure, with stepped terracing inside, capable of holding several hundred. On a day like today with wind absolutely howling around, it didn’t provide much shelter, but I imagine it’s normally a fantastic shed. On the opposite side of the pitch at the top of some more stepped terracing is a strange wooden structure which is essentially some posts with a roof attached. It’s functionality in terms of protecting spectators from the elements looked suspect to me, but it seemed like a popular congregating place for the home support. The rest of the ground is grass banking, and I don’t think there would be a bad view wherever you choose to stand. Keanie Park is a ground I’ll look forward to returning to, it’s a bit of a hidden gem.

The Teams

Burgh were formed in 1956, when a local journalist was sent out by his editor with instructions not to return to the office without a story. He decided to ask locals about their interest in a new football team to replace the town’s long defunct former side. The team found almost instant success, winning both the Central League Championship and West of Scotland Cup in the 1958-59 season. Another Central League and West of Scotland Cup double came in 1964-65, with a third Central League win coming in 1967-68. The club’s greatest success came in 1963-64 and 1967-68, when they won the Scottish Junior Cup twice. More recently they won the Central District Premier Division in 2001-02, but since league reconstruction they have struggled. They won the fourth tier Central District Division 2 in 2010, but were relegated after finishing bottom of the First Division last season. Burgh have had a rough season once again, and have been rooted in the bottom 3 of the table all season, although postponements have seen them play less games than everyone else. Jamie McKim took charge at the end of January, and today was his first home game in charge.

As I’ve gone into the basic history of Vale of Leven already, I thought I’d tell a different piece of their history for this entry. When the original Vale of Leven Club ran into financial difficulties in the mid twenties, due mainly to the Great Depression coupled with the club’s provincial geography, they were struck off by the SFA after withdrawing from a Scottish Qualifying Cup tie in 1929. A new club, Vale of Leven OCOBA (Old Church Old Boys Association) were formed almost immediately, and actually entered the Scottish Cup throughout the 1930s. In 1939, the team was invited to join a reformed version of the Scottish Football Alliance, which was intended to be competition to the Scottish Football League. OCOBA was dropped from the name and Vale of Leven were once again officially part of football in Scotland. The outbreak of World War II caused the Alliance to disband after just two rounds of games, and the Vale were accepted into the junior ranks.

The Game

Before the game, there was a minute’s silence for Burgh’s legendary manager Jimmy Blackburn, who sadly passed away earlier in the week aged 88.

For the second week in a row, conditions weren’t exactly perfect for free flowing football. But when the wind decided to take a break for a few minutes, there was actually some decent stuff being played. In fact, it was an action packed game from start to finish, with both teams creating chances, despite neither goalkeeper having too much work to do. Vale made the first breakthrough after 23 minutes when Mark Butler’s cross was picked up by Lee McGeachy. His first effort was blocked by a Burgh defender, but he buried the rebound under the onrushing goalkeeper. Both sides had half chances as the first half progressed without any real threats. That changed on 38 minutes, when Jack Heron picked up the ball just outside the Vale box. The big number 9 curled a spectacular curling strike past Campbell in the Vale goal to equalise and take the game into halftime at 1-1.

The second half started off as a scrappy affair with neither team able to really get a grip on the game. Burgh were handed a golden chance to take the lead after 64 minutes when Josh Grace failed to clear the ball properly and brought down Jordan Keenen causing the referee to point to the spot. Goalscorer Heron stepped up, but his tame effort was saved by Campbell. It looked like Burgh would rue the miss on 82 minutes when Lee McGeachy did well to beat two players before finding Andrew Clark who finished well to give Vale the lead. But it wouldn’t be a Vale game without late drama, and with just over a minute to go, the visitors couldn’t get the ball clear and were punished by Jack Heron who stabbed home his second equaliser of the game. 2-2 was probably a fair result on balance, but Vale will be gutted to have lost two points so late on

The Pies

Burgh’s pie hut is inside the main club building, with a large indoor area for people to eat and drink. It must have been absolutely stowed at half time, because I was one of about only ten people who decided to stay outside in the cold during the interval.

The snack bar menu was fairly good, and I was sorely tempted to see what their giant hot dog looked like instead of my pie today, but a calmer head prevailed. Burgh’s Scotch pie was a delight, packed full of meat with just the right amount of black pepper, with a fantastic, crispy crust. The Bovril I had today was probably the main reason I still have fingers, and was extra strong, just the way I like it. Good job, Burgh.

Admission: £5
Programme: None
Pie: £1.50 (Scotch)
Bovril: £1
Attendance: 68 (headcount)

Vale of Leven v Carluke Rovers

Vale of Leven 3-1 Carluke Rovers
Central District League Division Two
Millburn Park
Saturday 10th March 2018

Save for the few years I spent living on the east coast, Vale of Leven have always been my local club. For whatever reason though, I had never set foot inside Millburn Park until the start of this season. Since then I’ve become a regular visitor and have seen the whole spectrum of performances from the team. Today’s match saw two mid table teams clash on an absolutely sodden day. In fact, only 24 hours before the game, the Millburn pitch was still covered in a layer of snow and it was something of a minor miracle that the game even managed to take place.

The Venue

Millburn Park is one of the oldest grounds still in use in Scottish football, dating back to 1888 and once hosted eight thousand spectators for a 1922 Scottish Cup game against Alloa Athletic. Today, the ground notionally holds 3,000, but that claim hasn’t been tested in many years. It’s a cracking junior ground, with a well kept stepped terrace down one side, and a large enclosure on the other. The enclosure runs about halfway down the pitch, and can hold a good amount of people, although the holes in the corrugated roof mean that on a day like this, you have to pick your spot carefully. The changing rooms, clubroom and pie stall are housed in a single, roughcast pavilion, which for some reason has barbed wire on top. It’s a classic ground which has seen better days, but the playing surface is fantastic, and the charm can’t be denied by anyone.

The Teams

The current junior iteration of Vale of Leven, while embracing the history of the famous side from the early days of Scottish football were actually formed in 1939, ten years after the demise of the original club. This is a technicality however, and the two technically separate clubs are in reality a continuation of the same. They have played at Millburn since joining the junior ranks. The Vale’s greatest achievement in the junior game was winning the Scottish Junior Cup in 1953, beating Annbank United 2-1 in the final. They also also won the B Division of the Central League in 1969-70. Since the restructuring of the Central and Ayrshire districts into the West Region in 2002, Vale have played in only the bottom two divisions of the setup.

Carluke Rovers were formed in 1887 as Carluke Milton Rovers, dropping “Milton” from their name following World War I. They played at Loch Park in the town from 1919 until 2011, when they moved into the John Cumming Stadium, a state of the art, hybrid football and athletics venue. It’s been a bit of a tumultuous season for Rovers, who are incredibly on their fourth manager of the season, with both on and off-field factors leading to Derek Wilson being placed in caretaker charge last month.

The Game

It was not a day for pretty football, but both teams came out to make the most of the conditions, and what was lacking in quality was more than made up for by the fight and spirit of the two sides. Unfortunately the referee had other ideas, putting in one of the most bizarrely awful officiating performances I’ve ever seen. Carluke’s official match report would suggest that all of his terrible decisions went one way, and while it’s true that they definitely suffered from the ineptitude more than Vale, this was a referee out of his depth completely, who can count himself lucky that there was no observer in attendance.

Vale went ahead after 17 minutes when Mark Butler’s long ball was picked up by Andrew Clark. Clark took the ball into the box and fired low under the Carluke goalkeeper. To the amazement of everyone watching, the ref pointed to the centre circle and gave the goal, despite the fact that Clark was clearly at least 4 or 5 yards offside. The official continued his bonkers display as the half progressed, showing a number of yellow cards to both sides – in fairness mostly deserved – but letting similar offences go completely unpunished. Carluke equalised five minutes before the break, when Sean McKenna finished off the best move of the first half.

The second half was only a little over ten minutes old when the referee finally lost control of the game and himself. An innocuous looking coming together between Stephen Griffin and Carluke’s Weir ended with Weir motioning his head towards Griffin. The ref produced a straight red card despite the fact that there was at the very least six inches of clear air between the players. Rovers’ woes were added to just four minutes later when another bit of handbags saw Griffin and Kane both shown a yellow card. As Vale prepared to take their free kick, Kane was quickly shown a second yellow card, for reasons that I didn’t manage to pick up.

The nine men of Carluke fought hard and dug deep, but were undone in the 88th minute when David McNaught reacted fastest to a rebound and drilled the ball into the net. Vale were then awarded a penalty deep into stoppage time, which was dispatched by Craig Cowan, making the final scoreline a lot more convincing than the balance of the game would have suggested.

The Pies

I will add the disclaimer that this picture was clearly not taken at this game, but earlier in the year when the weather was better and I first discovered that these beauties were on sale. A few months into this season, Vale gathered the sponsorship of a local butcher. These incredible steak pies are as a result now on sale for £2 a pop. They are an absolutely delightful, juicy, crispy and all round magnificent pie, by far the best I’ve ever had at any non-league ground so far, and probably the best football pie I’ve yet to try. Just make sure you grab an extra napkin or two, because they do have a tendency to explode slightly.

Admission: £5
Programme: None
Pie: £2 (steak)
Bovril: 80p
Attendance: 80 (approx headcount)