Ground 31: Recreation Park

The elevated Main Stand at Recreation Park

Game: Alloa Athletic 0 v 1 Brechin City

Date: Saturday 16^th March

Competition: Scottish Football League Division 2

Attendance: 382

Admission: £13

Programme: £2

Apologies it’s taken so long for this post to get up. I’ve just returned from a wee break in Iceland (which I thoroughly recommend by the way). There was also a hesitance in writing this post as there wasn’t a great deal to say.

I was grateful to learn that my Dad and brother fancied this game which allowed us to travel by car, which mercifully, is half the time that the same journey would take by train. It was also a horrible way weather wise throughout Scotland with lots of rain. Thankfully, it held off for the duration of the game at Recreation Park.

The ground itself is quite central to the town of Alloa (once again I’d recommend that you buy a copy of Stramash by Daniel Gray. His chapter on Alloa, much like the rest of the book, is excellent) and Recreation Park affords some excellent views of the Ochil hills (in fact it offers more Ochil views that Ochilview in Stenhousemuir).

This was a clash between 2^nd and 3^rd place in the Second Division, but sadly the game didn’t live up to their top of the table billing. Perhaps the tone for the game was set by Alloa’s choice of music to take to the field – Yellow by Coldplay. What an awful and morose selection.

There wasn’t much to report on in a tense and terse first half. My personal highlight was an assessment of his own clearance by Alloa’s left back which could be heard throughout the ground, “that’s fucking shite” as his ball launched forward went straight to a Brechin player.

 

Strange warm-up technique used by Alloa players at half-time

Alloa were probably on top in the first half but there was little goal threats as both teams went into half time at 0-0.

The second half was an improvement on the first as we moved behind the goal facing the Ochil hills, excepting an Alloa onslaught. However, it was Brechin who took the lead after Alan Trouten cut in from the left wing and curled a superb shot in from 20 yards out.

Alloa attempted a comeback and came close several times with Callum Elliot, but at the same time, looked devoid of ideas when they held the majority of possession.

Perhaps it was the weather, or the fact that both sides are looking assured of a play-off place but this game lacked the intensity of most of the games I’ve seen this season. Recreation Park is a charming ground and definitely worth a visit, and judging by Alloa’s results already this season, I was unfortunate to catch them on an off-day. The Wasps certainly didn’t sting on this day.*

* Sorry, couldn’t resist.

Ground 30: Firhill

Firhill for Thrills

Game: Partick Thistle 3 v 0 Dumbarton

Date: Saturday 9^th March

Competition: Scottish Football League Division 1

Attendance: 2,715

Admission: £17

Programme: £2.50

Highlights of Saturday’s game are available on the Partick Thistle website here. Also well worth a look is their video to promote attending games at Firhill. It captures what being a football fan means beautifully.

In the previous weeks I’d contemplated the fact that we were getting closer to the end of the season and as such, I would soon be able to attend games without twelve layers of clothing. Both Forfar and Kilmarnock were pretty mild, but this thought didn’t last for long. When I think of my visit to Firhill, I’ll remember how cold I was! There’s no chance that the thick coat, gloves and hats will be retried just yet. There was a clear chill in the air as 2^nd placed Partick Thistle hosted Dumbarton, currently residing in 9^th position in SFL 1.

The visit to Firhill also saw another form of transport on this 42 Grounds adventure – after getting off my train from Edinburgh, I took the Glasgow’s subway, the Clockwork Orange, to St George’s Cross and then a short walk up Maryhill Road to Firhill, home of Partick Thistle since 1909.

I’ve been to Firhill several times before, when Glasgow Warriors played rugby at the ground, but this was my first visit to see the Maryhill Magyars. This was my second time seeing Thistle this season, having seen them in action at New Douglas Park where Graeme Smith punched the ball into his net for the game’s only goal. This, however, was my first sighting of Dumbarton. The Sons had a horrid start to the season, but since the appointment of Ian Murray the club have undergone resurgence and are aiming to stay in the division, which looked unthinkable when the 31 year old was appointed in November. Thistle have also seen a managerial change – with Jackie McNamara departing to Dundee United, Alan Archibald has taking over the reins on a temporary basis. With results like today, there’s a good chance he’ll secure the job on a permanent basis.

The game started with a bang. Both sides went out with the clear intent of attacking from the kick-off. Partick looked the more threatening and early on, right back Stephen O’Donnell seemed to find himself in plenty of space a lot in the early stages. His cross was nodded back and Steven Lawless was there to fire Thistle into a 1-0 lead after nine minutes.

Despite going a goal down, Dumbarton didn’t let their heads drop and proceeded to try and attack whenever possible, their forward line being led by the evergreen Robbie Winters, who at 39 is almost a decade older than his manager. Winters is also looking slimmer than at any other point in his career, which is some achievement! Dumbarton’s play was positive and unexpected from a part-time team in their league position. It was great to see two sides trying to pass the ball as quickly and as often as possible. They were thwarted a little by an inconsistent refereeing performance, although I should point out that the Thistle fans were strongly partisan and perhaps not the best judge of each decision.

Patience is a virtue, but it must be said that many Scottish football fans do not possess this attribute. Patience build-up play is not particularly appreciated, which is a shame for sides who want to keep possession and slowly build moves. Too often this season I’ve heard cries from the sidelines to “get it forward” “just shoot” or something similar and it was the same at Firhill. I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt: that Thistle are involved in a promotion race and every single goal counts.

University flats overlook the action

Firhill was certainly a family-friendly place to visit – there were lots of families, young children and youth teams in attendance, which is really heartening to see. This feeling was furthered at half-time when Chris Erskine came out to do the prize draw and then spent the next ten minutes posing for pictures and signing autographs for youngsters at the bottom of the stand. I think football clubs underestimate just how big a deal meeting players is to kids. At every level, clubs have heroes that can and should be utilised to make casual fans into hardcore supporters.

The second half saw Thistle get nervy, and a minority of the fans started to get on their back, despite the fact they were still winning! I was glad this wasn’t just a phenomenon that was unique to Hibs fans.

The South Stand, ripe for development

The game was put out of doubt in the 74^th minute when Steven Lawless grabbed his second of the day with a beautiful strike from the edge of the box that rattled off the bar. It was the piece of quality that Partick Thistle had and Dumbarton were without.

Partick then compounded Dumbarton’s misery with a third and final goal when the Jags broke down the left and Christie Elliot drove the ball across for Kris Doolan to bundle it. It was a goal that was probably reflective of the gap in quality between the teams.

As the crowd filed out of Firhill, we were greeted to news that Glasgow’s bigger sides – Celtic and Rangers had both lost to Ross County and Annan Athletic respectively. Glasgow’s new footballing force? Perhaps. I think there’s a good chance we’ll see Partick returned to Scotland’s top flight by the summer.

Ground 29: Rugby Park

Rugby Park hosting a game between teams who play in blue & white and green, who both wore their away shirts...

Game: Kilmarnock 2 v 4 Hibernian

Date: Saturday 3^rd March

Competition: Scottish Cup 6^th Round

Attendance: 7,272

Admission: £20

Programme: £2.50

This is a quick post, as I’ve been rather busy. Normal service will be resumed for the next post about Firhill.

Quite simply, this was an exhilarating game that was a great advert for Scottish football.

I wouldn’t even pretend to be a neutral when covering this game – it was fantastic being a Hibee at this match.

Hibs took a phenomenal amount of fans to a match that was being televised, the estimated number being around 4,000, which meant there were more Hibs fans there than Kilmarnock supporters.

Rugby Park is always a favourite destination for many Scottish football fans and it’s not because of what’s served up on the pitch, but rather what’s served in the concourses – the famous Killie Pie. We arrived at the ground with about 15 minutes to spare so we made a beeline for the catering kiosk and headed to our seats in the Chadwick Stand. However, for the 90 minutes the seats were unoccupied as every Hibs fan stood. Aside from the Edinburgh derby back in January this was the loudest game I’d been at all season, and the Killie fans made a racket at times too.

Rugby Park has been home to Kilmarnock since 1899. The ground was formerly much larger in size as this photo demonstrates. The ground was redeveloped in the mid-1990s, leaving the ground with a capacity of 18,128. One of the more usual aspects of the ground is the tapering of the East Stand around 15 yards before the north end. One could argue that Rugby Park is too big for Kilmarnock’s needs, and on this day the Moffat Stand was closed. One of my favourite features of Rugby Park is the tunnel, which is so small than only one player can come out at a time.

As for the game itself, it was great. Both teams tried to play football on a pitch that has seen better days. Kilmarnock shot themselves in the foot several times with some Hibs-esque defending. Hibs were clinical when they needed to be (or more accurately Leigh Griffiths was clinical) and the referee had a shocker. So pretty much your standard Scottish football match.

A Hibs-themed empire biscuit, a nice touch from the Killie caterers

The pie was excellent by the way!   

Ground 28: Station Park

Forfar's Main Stand with slope from the tunnel to pitch

Game: Forfar Athletic 3 v 1 Stranraer

Date: Saturday 2^nd March

Competition: Scottish Football League Division 2

Attendance: 448

Admission: £12

Programme: £1.50

It may have been sunglasses weather in Edinburgh when I left the capital city at lunchtime, but it was decidedly overcast in Angus by the time I reached Forfar twenty minutes before kick-off. Thankfully the weather was mild, so there was no need for gloves (perhaps I can put them away for the rest of the season?) however, there was snow topped hills in the difference to remind you that this was still March.

Station Park was far bigger than I had anticipated, with four enclosures. When you enter you have to climb some steps onto the East terracing as the pitch is elevated. There’s a new looking terracing on the south side of the ground that runs the length of the pitch, and a steep modern terracing called the “mert end” as the cattle market is just over the wall. The main stand is a bit of a charming relic, elevated on bricks that contain the tunnel and changing rooms below. This allows for a small enclosure below where fans can stand, behind the dugouts (or lean on them in some cases). It’s really quite a charming ground. Ironically, there’s no station anywhere near Station Park after the railway was removed in 1968 as part of the Beeching cuts, which makes getting to Forfar by public transport a difficult task.

The pitch at Station Park is artificial, which received praise from the Chairman in his programme notes. At the moment SFL players are being surveyed on their opinions on the pitches, but it looks like they are here to stay. If they allow more games to be played on a Saturday (thus improving attendances compared to midweek) and ensure that clubs can be more active in their community with coaching, training and games for all levels on the park, then I’m all for it. The players might not like it compared to grass, but it looks like something they’re just going to have to put up with.

This was only my second time watching Forfar this season, my first being their comprehensive defeat by Arbroath, whereas this was the fourth time I’ve seen Stranraer, more by accident that design I can assure you.

Snow-topped hills in the background as the players make their way onto the pitch

Stranraer started the brighter in an even game early on. Both sides still have something to play for – Forfar are chasing a place in the promotion play-offs whilst Stranraer are currently in a relegation play-off position. Both sides have clubs around them, which meant every game is going to be a scrap. The tension was clearly getting to both sides early on as I witnessed both teams having what could be politely described as a robust exchange of views amongst themselves.

In the 18^th minute, Forfar took the lead when Gavin Malin’s deflected driven shot hit the back of the net after some neat work from ‘The Loons’ in attack.

After the first goal I realised that I hadn’t eaten since breakfast so headed to the catering cabin for the world famous Forfar bridie, which is essential a pasty but without the potatoes. And very tasty it was too. That combined with a small coke was £2.20, so approximately the same price as an average pie at an SPL ground. That price combined with a £1.50 programme makes Forfar come as close to a bargain as you can get in Scottish football.

After going a goal down, Stranraer looked fairly underwhelming, almost bereft of ideas – they huff and puff but don’t quite get anywhere. Stranraer are in the same boat as Dundee and Airdrie, having being promoted last minute due to the Rangers fiasco that dominated the summer. The very fact that they aren’t bottom is an achievement in itself.

Forfar put the game out of Stranraer’s reach with two goals just before half-time. Man of the Match Omar Kader scored a tap-in after some good work from Gavin Swankie and Chris Templeman made it 3-0 with a simple header.

The second half began with Forfar really putting the pressure on, they squandered several good chances and hit the woodwork numerous times. At that point, I genuinely thought I was about to watch Stranraer get a hiding.

However, Stranraer manager Stephen Aitken brought on Robert Love to play on the right hand side and his arrival onto the park gave the Blues some much needed impetus. Suddenly Stranraer looked sharper and it was Love’s flicked on header in the 63^rd minute that gave Stranraer striker and full-time menace Michael Moore the opportunity to cross a low ball across the box for Craig Malcolm to tumble in.

The Stranraer battering ram duo: Moore and One

Stranraer were on top after the goal and introduced Armand One, moving to a 3-3-4 almost. They were further aided by the referee Don Robertson reducing Forfar to 10 men for one of the softest straight red cards I’ve ever seen. The aforementioned menace, Moore picked up the ball, and although Michael Bolochoweckyj did foul him, there was no way that it merited a red card. It brought howls of incredulous shouts from the Forfar fans. Stranraer weren’t able to take advantage with their chances as both teams toiled for a final goal that never arrived.

Station Park provided another entertaining SFL game with plenty of goals and drama. The standard might not be the highest, but there’s lots of endeavour and an aspiration to play entertaining football. For £12, you can’t say fairer than that.