Claggan Park (Fort William v Wick Academy)

Today the journey went to Fort William to see my first Highland Football League game. The Sunday Mail had another offer of a Citylink return ticket to anywhere in Scotland for a fiver and I decided to go for Fort William as the pictures I had seen of the ground looked stunning. The bus journey itself is attractive as well. It took us about two and half hours to reach Fort William bus station, making it by far the easiest Highland League ground to get to from Glasgow.

What is unusual about the Scottish football pyramid is that it does not look like a pyramid at all. The four top divisions are clear, however clubs cannot get relegated from the SFL Third Division. Below the lowest 'professional' division there are three 'senior' leagues that are not interconnected. One of them is the Highland Football League. Founded in 1893 the Highland League is often considered the strongest league under the SFL and all Scottish papers publish the results and league table on Sundays and Mondays. Inverness Caledonian Thistle, Ross County, Peterhead, and Elgin City are all former Highland League clubs who joined the SFL in recent years. At present there are 18 teams in the Highland League.

Fort William FC were founded in 1984 and joined the Highland League in 1985. It has not been a success story. They have never ended a season in the top half of the league and they were bottom of the table ten times in the last thirteen seasons. The Fort had won their first league game in two years last week (2-0 at Turriff United) so I suppose everyone was hoping they could keep the momentum going against Wick Academy. However when the players left the pitch at half-time Fort William were already 3-0 down. In the second half the men from Wick took their foot of the gas but Fort William were not able to bring back much suspense, their only goal scored only minutes before time.

Panorama shot showing the stunning scenery.

The club house was open from 2pm.

The stand can be seen on the opposite side.

You are quite far from the action as a spectator at Claggan Park but the location of the ground is very impressive.

The stand is probably the best way to watch the game but is also quite far from the action.

The 3-0 came from a penalty just before the half time whistle.

The entrance to the ground.

Saturday 10th October 2009
Scottish Highland Football League
Fort William 1 Wick Academy 3
Fort William: Hewitt 88.
Wick Academy: Weir 26, Allan 33, MacAdie (pen) 45.
Att: less than 100

Links Park (Montrose)

For pictures of a Montrose game at Links Park see this post.

After the game in Arbroath was cancelled yesterday afternoon I decided to make the most of my day so I took the train to Montrose. Montrose were playing Queen's Park in the Scottish Third Division. It took about fifteen minutes on the train to go to Montrose and it was a ten-minute walk to Links Park, home of Montrose FC. I had not really prepared this trip of course but the ground was easy enough to find. Unfortunately however I soon found out that this game was cancelled too. And I was not able to get inside the ground either so all there was left was taking some pictures holding my camera over all kinds of walls and fences.

The Main Stand.


The Main Stand seen from the side.


A panorama view of Links Park. From left to right the roofed Welling Street End terrace, the Union Street Side, the Beach End, and the Main Stand.

They like building things near the water in these parts...I now had to wait till 17:13 to take the train to Glasgow, or so I thought. A tree had fallen on the tracks near Stonehaven and all trains between Aberdeen and Dundee were affected. Eventually my train arrived at about 19:30. I spent the time in between cancelled trains in The Picture House, a large modern pub near the station.

This was the end of a long day with two new grounds but without any football.

Gayfield Park (Arbroath)

Yesterday I took the train to Arbroath, a journey of one hour and 40 minutes, to pay my first visit to Gayfield Park. Arbroath were playing Clyde in the Scottish Second Division. I had never been to Arbroath before but had already seen on Google Street View that it was a town worth visiting and had been looking forward to it for a couple of weeks. I arrived at Arbroath railway station at around 13:20, which me gave a bit of time, but not too much, to explore the town.


The first thing I noticed were the ruins of Arbroath Abbey so I walked up there to take a few pictures. I did not have time to visit the museum and to get on the actual premises so I just took a few snapshots from outside. There was a nice blue sky and it looked like a nice day for a football game, even though it was a bit windy. I remembered reading on Wikipedia the night before that 'sadly, excessive health and safety concerns in recent years, have meant more frequent cancellations in recent [years] due to excess wind, frost, snow, fog, rain.' Surely it was not that bad today?

After having visited the Abbey I walked to the shore. I have to say it was very windy here and I struggled to keep my camera still. After having taken a few pictures I walked back into the town to have something to eat.


I had already seen on the internet that there was a JD Wetherspoon's in Arbroath as well, The Corn Exchange, so I went there for a quick pint and something to eat. However I almost choked in my spicy tomato pasta when I saw on Sky Sports News that the Arbroath game had been postponed. I was obviously quite annoyed to have made this journey for nothing now but I decided to make the most of it anyway. Going back to Glasgow immediately was no option as I had an advance ticket for the 17:29 train. I remembered nearby Montrose were playing Queen's Park so I walked up to the station. I had just missed the 14:22 train to Aberdeen and the next one was at 15:22. If I took that one I would arrive at Links Park in time for the second half, better than nothing. It also gave me some time to walk up to Gayfield Park and take some pictures there before heading for Montrose.

It was a short walk to the ground. It was very windy indeed and I struggled to keep the camera still in order to take a half-decent picture. Luckily the gate was open and I could take a few pictures inside as well.

The Harbour End.

The East Terrace.

The Seaforth End.

The Main Stand.

Another view from outside. Supposedly Gayfield Park is the closest to the sea of all stadiums in Europe. I am not sure if this is true but it is very close! After having taken these pictures it was back to the train station to take the train to Montrose.

Ochilview Park (East Stirlingshire v Livingston)

Last night it was off to Ochilview Park for East Stirlingshire against Livington. I was at this ground to see a Stenhousemuir game last July but as part of my plan to complete 'The 42' I had to visit it again to see the Shire. Normally I go to these 'neutral' games as a home supporter however I decided to enter the ground through the away gate so I could take some pictures from the roofed terrace.

This Scottish Third Division match was originally scheduled for 8th August however Livingston did not turn up at Ochilview Park because they did not accept their relegation from the First to the Third Division as a punishment for going into adminstration. However after having lost all their appeals the Lothian club decided to get on with it and they played all their scheduled home games from the second match day onwards.

East Stirlingshire originally hail from Falkirk and they used to play their home games at Firs Park (the ground is still there, for some excellent pictures click here). However the pitch was deemed too small according to new SFL regulations and the club did not have the funds to make the necessary improvements so they agreed on a groundshare deal with neighbouring Stenhousemuir FC. Many people wrongly believe East Stirlingshire come from the city of Stirling as the name of the club is often abbreviated as East Stirling.

In the past decade the Shire has acquired somewhat of a cult status as 'the worst football club in Britain.' The club ended bottom of the Third Division for a few years in a row. Author Jeff Connor even followed the team during the 2004/2005 season and turned it into a book called 'Pointless', which was subtitled "A season with Britain's worst football team". I have not read it myself yet. However recently the tide has turned somewhat. Last year the club ended in third place and nearly missed out on the play-off final in the semi final against Cowdenbeath.

Obviously the tide has turned for Livingston as well but in a rather more negative way. After promotion to the SPL in 2001 they qualified for the UEFA Cup after finishing third in their first season in the top flight. In 2004 they won the CIS Cup. From there it went downhill and there is still the possibility of a hefty point deduction for not showing up for their first scheduled Third Division match.

Last night the Shire started the match well and Stephen Maguire scored two first-half goals in give the part-time team a comfortable lead. Robbie Winter pulled one back for Livi just before the half-time whistle. Normally attendances at East Stirlingshire rarely exceed 350 so last night's 567, obviously helped by the relatively large travelling support, counts as a bumper crowd. I have to say the Shire fans were very vocal and created an excellent atmosphere at times.

In the second half the Lothian club looked the stronger team but they were not able to find the net. In fact it was East Stirlingshire's Simon Lynch who scored the only goal in the second half. The deserved 3-1 win meant the Shire climbed up to second place. Livingston are now in fifth place after having lost already three times in the league.

Fore more (and better) pictures of this ground see this post.

The Livingston fans on the terrace.

The stand in the background.

Wednesday 30th September 2009
Scottish Football League Third Division
East Stirlingshire 3 Livingston 1
East Stirlingshire: Maguire 18, 27, Lynch 82.
Livingston: R. Winters 44.
Att: 567

St Mirren Park (St Mirren v Celtic)

Panorama view from the South Stand.

A forgettable game for the St Mirren supporters and probably for the Celtic supporters too. I brought my camera to have a go at a panorama shot, which I took from the South Stand. The most entertaining part of the day was the family who were loudly cheering the first Celtic goal being removed from the stand and probably from the ground as well. The dad's arguments that he 'did not know it was a St Mirren stand' and that 'at Parkhead everyone can sit together wearing their own colours in the family stand' unsurprisingly fell on deaf ears...

For more pictures of this ground click here.

The West Stand.

The Main Stand.

The North Stand housed the Celtic Fans.

Saturday 26th September 2009
Scottish Premier League
St Mirren 0 Celtic 2
Goals: McCourt 27, Maloney 78.
Att: 6,164

Rugby Park (Kilmarnock v St Mirren)

Panorama view from the Chadwick Stand.

Yesterday it was off to Ayrshire for the third round Co-operative Insurance Cup clash (I have to say 'CIS Cup' sounded a lot simpler) between Kilmarnock and St Mirren. St Mirren had beaten Kilmarnock at Rugby Park only just over three weeks ago so the Saints were confident they could progress to the quarter final of this competition for the first time since the 2000/2001 season when they reached the semis and lost 3-0 to...Kilmarnock.

Rugby Park is a fairly impressive ground for a club of Killie's stature. Redeveloped in the 1990s, it holds 18,128 which makes it the fourth biggest ground in the SPL after Celtic Park, Ibrox, and Pittodrie. The club rarely use even half of the full capacity at least according to the official attendance figures. The Moffat Stand was closed last night but it looked busier than the 3,561 attendance given. I sat in the away section in the Chadwick Stand and I have to say the leg room was very limited.

Kilmarnock is 40 minutes on the train from Glasgow. It is an old-fashioned non-electrified track and there is only one train an hour. Unlike the other Ayrshire trains it does not pass through Paisley so I had to take the train to Glasgow Central first. From Kilmarnock railway station it is about a 15-minute walk to the ground.

In the first half Killie had the better chances however neither team were able to find the net. Stephen McGinn scored the opening goal for the Buddies after 63 minutes, his third of the season against Kilmarnock. St Mirren got a few more chances as the Ayrshire men desperately tried to score an equaliser however the Saints failed to finish it off and Kevin Kyle equalised three minutes before time. Extra time now looked likely. Andy Dorman however scored the winner in the dying seconds of injury time to book St Mirren a place in the quarter finals of the Scottish League Cup.

For pictures of the 2010 Scottish Junior Cup Final at Rugby Park see this post.

The East Stand.


The Moffat Stand remained closed tonight. This is normally the family stand.


The Main Stand.


Buddies on the Chadwick Stand celebrating Andy Dorman's injury time goal...


...and all hoping for a favourable quarter final draw.

Tuesday 22nd September 2009
Co-operative Insurance Cup Third Round
Kilmarnock 1 St Mirren 2
Kilmarnock: Kyle 87.
St Mirren: McGinn 64, Dorman 90+3.
Att: 3,561

City of Manchester Stadium (Man City v Arsenal)

Today Martijn and I took the train to Manchester and I paid my second visit to the City of Manchester Stadium. City were playing Arsenal, the same fixture I attended last season. And just like last season the Gunners were well beaten. Unlike last year however, today's game was a sell-out and City were looking to extend their perfect start to this Premier League season.

The first City goal was a lucky one, Emanuel Malinia headed into his own net, but the Blues managed to go into half-time with a 1-0 lead. The second half was more spectacular. Robin van Persie equalised in the second half but twelve minutes later Craig Bellamy ensured the Citizens were in the lead again.

After scoring the third City goal former Gunner Emmanuel Adebayor sprinted all the way to the other end of the pitch to celebrate in front of the Arsenal fans which of course did not go down well with the supporters from North London. All the focus afterwards was on Adebayor's misguided antics but I have not read much about the loutish behaviour of some of the supposedly grown-up Arsenal fans. Objects were thrown onto the pitch and it looked like one of the stewards was hit by an object that was thrown from the away end.

The game continued however and Shaun Wright-Phillips made it 4-1 seven minutes before time. Tomas Rosicky's pulled one back for the Gunners in the dying minutes but it was too little, too late and City bagged their fourth win of the season, giving them plenty of confidence ahead of next weekend's Manchester derby.

The South Stand housed the Arsenal fans.

The Colin Bell Stand.


The North Stand.


Arsenal fans did not respond well to Adebayor's provocative goal celebrations.

After the game we paid another visit to the massive fan store.

A panorama shot, taken from our seats on the East Stand. The game was a sell-out.

Another panorama, this time taken after the game, again from the East Stand.

Saturday 12th September 2009
Manchester City 4 Arsenal 2
Premier League
Man City: Almunia (og) 20, Bellamy 74, Adebayor 80, Wright-Phillips 84.
Arsenal: Van Persie 62, Rosicky 88.
Att: 47,339