Ground 35: Bet Butler Stadium

Bet Butler Stadium, in the shadow of Dumbarton Rock

Game: Dumbarton 1 v 2 Raith Rovers

Date: Tuesday 9^th April

Competition: Scottish Football League Division 1

Attendance: 553

Admission: £15

Programme: n/a

My original plan for a visit to Dumbarton was to get to the town early, climb Dumbarton Rock which overlooks the ground and the town to get some spectacular photographs of the town, ground and coastline. However, it didn’t quite work out like that. My brother and I got stuck in terrible traffic several times along the M8 which meant we didn’t arrive at the Butler Butler Stadium until after kick-off.

Dumbarton have played at their current ground for 13 years now – after moving from the lovely sounding Boghead in 2000. Originally called the Strathclyde Homes Stadium (until the company entered receivership in 2011), the ground, which fans call ‘The Rock’ was given its third name of the Bet Butler Stadium in July 2012.

The ground is built on what was originally Denny’s shipyards and current has one main stand holding 2,025 seats. Sadly the stand is in the shadow of the Dumbarton Rock. If it faced the Rock it would surely be one of the most picturesque stadiums in Scottish, nae, world football. Instead, from our front row seats we were afforded a nice view of Dumbarton in the distance as the set over Scotland’s west coast. It’s a picturesque setting for watching a game of football, although the temperature dropped noticeably after the sun went down.

I’ve already seen both teams this season, with Rovers performing better in the league where they currently hold a midtable position of 6^th. It looks unlikely that they will finish any lower in new manager Grant Murray’s first season in charge. Dumbarton looked odds-on certainties for relegation until Ian Murray took over in December. The former Hibs, Rangers and Norwich star has a player registration too, but has yet to pull on a jersey for the Sons this season as his side have slowed accumulated points. They might just avoid a relegation play-off yet.

They have been aided in this mission by Dunfermline, whose 15 point reduction for entering administration was announced on the radio as we made our way to the game. It’s trying times at East End Park, a club that played European football before Liverpool did. It would be a terrific shame if they were to disappear from the Scottish Football League.

Raith took an early lead with 14 minutes gone as sloppy Dumbarton defending saw Greig Spence nod his team in front after a clever knock-down from Brian Graham.

For the second Tuesday in a row we watched a game where both teams wore their away kits. Not sure I’ll ever understand why teams in amber and blue respectively needed to be wearing white and red kits.

Despite going a goal behind, Dumbarton didn’t change their game plan. They impressed me with their range of passing. They were also able to mix it up, causing Raith problems with goalkicks that had Jim Lister chasing the Rovers’ centre backs.

Both teams tried to attack, with pace at every opportunity. It was one of the better games I’ve seen in the First Division this season.

The second half started and Dumbarton came out the blocks faster, with three good chances early on, which they were unable to convert. The game was getting niggly and you could foresee at least one red card ahead.

To counter Dumbarton’s pressure, Raith manager substituted himself with Joe Cardle, a recent free agent signing after being released from Dunfermline. It was an astute move, with Cardle upping the tempo of the game. In one of his first moves, he cut inside and shot, forcing a save from Stephen Grindlay, who could only divert the ball to the feet of Brian Graham, two yards out. Unfortunately for Raith, Graham dithered on the ball and his shot was cleared off the line by a covering Dumbarton defender.

The missed sitter looked like it might cost Rovers the three points when Dumbarton scored a well-worked goal. The ball was put back in the box with Jim Lister getting the ball to Mark Gilhaney (arguably Dumbarton’s best player on the night) who shot from the edge of the area across the goal and past David McGurn.

Parity didn’t last for long as five minutes later Brian Graham scored a really good low glancing header into the bottom corner. Dumbarton will understandably be frustrated by the defending that lead to the goal, but there wasn’t much they could do about Graham’s assured finish. One suspects that Graham will attract attention from SPL clubs if he continues his current scoring spree.

The first goal aside, there was little between the teams until the introduction of Cardle, who gave Raith the pace they needed and cause problems for the home team. Dumbarton tried for an equaliser but their efforts were in vain. A draw would have probably been a fairer result but Raith were more decisive in taking their chance and that’s why they have the comfort of a mid-table finish whilst Dumbarton will have to fight for their place in the division.

The only downside to the night was the crowd. Or lack of it. Only 553 people turned up. Of course there are many reasons for this, but it must be a concern for clubs that people are not turning up for midweek fixtures like this.