This Is Not The Greatest Title In The World, This Is Just A Tribute

[Brian of Nazareth]

The Lisbon Lions Challenge

Background

In 1967 Glasgow Celtic became the first British Club to win the European

Cup, beating Inter Milan 2-1 in Lisbon. This was a magnificent achievement

for Manager Jock Stein and his players and it was achieved with an all-out

attacking style which at the time changed the face of European football (in

stark contrast to the Italian's beloved and ultra-defensive

"catenaccio-system"). What was all the more impressive was that all of the

players in the team were Scottish; in fact they were all born within a

25-mile radius of Glasgow. Of course that was 1967 - an all-Scottish team

could never win a European trophy in today's era of multi-national squads.

Or could they?

The Challenge

1. Take charge of Rangers, Celtic or indeed any other Scottish Club.

2. Build a 100% Scottish playing squad

3. Win either the UEFA Cup or the Champions League

4. After that (or at the same time if you wish) take charge of the Scottish

National Team and achieve history by taking them to the knockout stages of

the European Championship Finals and the World Cup Finals.

Bonus Challenge

In season 1966/67, Celtic won every competition that they entered - for the

ultimate challenge, see if you can emulate that feat in a single season.

[Brian of Nazareth]

The Lisbon Lions Challenge

Background

In 1967 Glasgow Celtic became the first British Club to win the European

Cup, beating Inter Milan 2-1 in Lisbon. This was a magnificent achievement

for Manager Jock Stein and his players and it was achieved with an all-out

attacking style which at the time changed the face of European football (in

stark contrast to the Italian's beloved and ultra-defensive

"catenaccio-system"). What was all the more impressive was that all of the

players in the team were Scottish; in fact they were all born within a

25-mile radius of Glasgow. Of course that was 1967 - an all-Scottish team

could never win a European trophy in today's era of multi-national squads.

Or could they?

The Challenge

1. Take charge of Rangers, Celtic or indeed any other Scottish Club.

2. Build a 100% Scottish playing squad

3. Win either the UEFA Cup or the Champions League

4. After that (or at the same time if you wish) take charge of the Scottish

National Team and achieve history by taking them to the knockout stages of

the European Championship Finals and the World Cup Finals.

Bonus Challenge

In season 1966/67, Celtic won every competition that they entered - for the

ultimate challenge, see if you can emulate that feat in a single season.

[Brian of Nazareth]

“ Can we have a story daddy?!†“ Please! We really want to hear a story! We ate most of our food and, and mummy did give us an awful lot! Please Daddy! Give us a story!?â€

“ Of course you can, anything for my children. However we’re not having any of this Winnie the Pooh bollocks you hear?â€

“ Mummy said bollocks is a rude word – what does it mean daddy?â€

“ Oh cra -! Erm Don’t worry about Heather, you’ll find out soon enough when you’re old enough! Now then – does anyone have a story they’d like me to tell them?â€

“ Err..â€

“ Yes George? Do ye wanna another historical epic?!â€

“ Och no Daddy – you tell them all the time – I don’t really like them that –

“ WHAT DID YOU SAY! YE DONNAE LIKE ME HISTORICAL STORIES?!†Henry exploded upon hearing of his sons treachery. This was not right. “Right! That’s it, I was saving this for the future laddie, but I think we need to invigorate the soul! Get yer pride back! We’ll be having two wee epics tonight!â€

“ Oh fuc –“

“ None of that around here Heather you hear! We don’t want your nursery teachers kicking up a fuss again do we! Now then. I swear you’ll like this one Heather and George. You may only be 4 years old, but you should learn about your homelands history. We’ll be having a double bill tonight. Let’s see – what time is it now? Half past seven… hmm. Ok good we should be done around about 1:30 tomorrow morning – that’ll give you what 5 hours sleep before the morning run… excellent – best be cracking on with it then…â€

As Henry Cameron rounded up the evening supplements of milk and cheese biscuits, Heather and George simply looked at each other and groaned – it was going to be a long night…

“ Now then kids, you remember that time we went to Inverlochy Castle, you must have been about 18 months old then… you remember what I was telling you? By god there’s a story to tell here. You see in 790 the French and the Picts signed a treaty here…

… and of course that sodding Marquis of Argyll in 1645 had to start poking his face where he bloody well shouldn’t! But they didnae reckon with the forces of the Royalists who defended the castle! We struck hard and countering them with a pincer movement and your ancestors were there on that fine day as the blood of the highlanders spilled into the river! My what a day that was! Argyll’s men were slaughtered and as legend says, more than 1500 of the canny bàstards were killed in that battle! We were outnumbered by more than a thousand men yet we destroyed them. My what an event! Heather! Stop falling asleep it’s quarter to ten and we still have another battle to get through yet! Jesus Christ! Here just look at this picture

we had the scúm on the run! The Cameron Clan had won – yes indeed! A magnificent victory for the Cameron Clan!

[Brian of Nazareth]

That concludes the first of our tales! Now onto the second! Comments so far?â€

“ I need a wee-wee daddy!†said Heather. “I’m tired! Please can’t we have a happy story?â€

“ What on earth do you mean Heather! This is another tale in the glorious Cameron Clan history as we strive to overcome the Campbell bàstards!â€

“ But Daddy, everyone else listens to stories about talking animals and they seem so funny! Why can't we have talking animals?â€

“ Listen boy, your mother may preach to you on such wild hallucinations, but not me! With me you learn about the history of our family! Are you not proud to be a Scot George?â€

“ Well of course I am daddy, I like to be Scottish but these stories make me scared. I don’t like it when people get killed. It’s not nice. Mummy told me?â€

“ Did she now! Well! FINE! Take a break and go to sleep pansy! Tomorrow we shall learn about the siege on Fort William in 1746! I know that must mean something to you,George and Heather! Good night!â€

“ Good night daddy!â€

Night night Daddy!â€

Henry kissed his children, took them to their bedrooms before returning to his rocking chair, he sat pensively, looking up at the grand portraits of Donald “The Gentle Lochiel†XIX Chief of Clan Cameron, McDonald of Keppoch, and just to be different, Robbie Burns, that adorned his sitting room wall. And his kitchen wall. And his bedroom wall. And his children’s walls. In fact they were all over the house – and for some reason this surprised many of his guests. Nothing wrong with displaying some heritage he thought – unless they just don’t care? No! What an evil thought! Still he’d teach his children about the Siege of Fort William. It may have been a failed attempt but he had to be open about all aspects of the Cameron history. One day though, Fort William would belong to the Cameron’s, he knew it!

* * * * *

[HD]

Robbie Burns?!?!?!?

Try Robert or, at a push, Rabbie.

[Brian of Nazareth]

I always called him Robbie

[Peacemaker7]

I'd give up on the poor attempt at a Scots accent as well, sounds more like Groundskeeper Willie

[HD]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Brian of Nazareth:

I always called him Robbie <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Well given that I grew up a 2 minute walk from Burns Cottage, I'd politely suggest that in this case I know better

[Brian of Nazareth]

I know you do , although we always celebrate Burns Lunch so I'm not utterly ignorant ( but still ignorant enought o get his name wrong )- but enough and I'll remember that next time.

Don't worry PM - there'll hardly be any more dialogue in this story - apologies for any offence caused.

[Peacemaker7]

ROFL its hardy offensive really, more hilarious But anyway.......

[Daz the Imp]

Firstly, 10 out of 10 for the Tenacious D reference

Secondly, keep up the good work

[Brian of Nazareth]

thanks! well I've finally got it up and running at last..

--- ---

30 years later…

George contemplated the job at hand. Take Fort William into the SPL – a tricky one no doubt but it had a cash windfall to die for. His father would be proud, well he would have been, were he not dead. It seemed Heather’s marriage to Alan Campbell had been too much for the old man and he’d suffered an unfortunate heart attack.

That had been 3 years ago. Now George had the chance to make Fort William a Cameron stronghold – well that’s what part of him thought. The other bit told him that nothing really mattered anymore. He could be proud to be who he was – a Scot that is all. Not a Cameron. This ancient bickering was futile and pointless. Who really cared about what had happened hundreds of years ago? George would bring back harmony and unite the clans. It would probably be met with derision and opposition initially but he could do it and he would. Unite the clans under the one banner, the Scottish banner.

Firstly he needed to make a quick once over of the squad to see what was available to him:

Goalkeepers:

-

-

-

Defenders:

-

-

-

-

-

Midfielders

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

Forwards

-

-

-

-

As he could see and as his fellow coach Mike Murray would agree, there was not a lot to go on, on early showings.

[Brian of Nazareth]

Season 2000-2001 Fort William

Players In:

July to December Report

Since joining the club, George knew he would be in for a tough spell. No players, No money and no foreseeable source of revenue, made life somewhat tricky to start with. In searching for new players, he immediately sought to find a list of all players actually interested in joining. As a result contracts were offered to 19 year old left back Ricardo Costa of Portugal and 32 year old Liberian striker James Debbah. Of course George wanted a Scottish side, but that would have to come. Establish the club first, and then think about moving on to creating the Scottish dream. Unfortunately his bid for Oxfords rejected Canadian keeper Hubert Busby Junior fails, as the English side were not prepared to accept a no cash bid. Rejection followed swiftly in the form of Forfar telling George that despite advertising centre back Graeme Ferguson as available for loan… they weren’t actually prepared to let him go out on loan.

With no players in, George was faced with quite the conundrum over who to select for the pre-season friendly against Heriot- Watt University. At the last second, his fellow coach Paul McPherson pulled together a bunch of young no hopers from the surrounding villages and they set forth in the orthodox 4-4-2. In front of a throbbing 106 crowd Fort William actually secured a 3-0 victory, thanks to Andrew Goldie and Chris Burns over the part time students. A welcome start – just a pity he would not be able to sign any of the lads up in the future. Still when you’re acting as both Chairman and manager who’s going to tell you otherwise?

In the weeks that followed George was disappointed to miss out on further signings. Fellow Scots rejected his loan bids, whilst Costa joined Start instead. James Debbah joined Ajax Cape Town and suddenly George was looking at the very real prospect of playing with the no hopers all season.

Certainly by the time pre-season was over and the season started he still didn’t have any players officially contracted to the club, a slight err one must admit. It wasn’t for lack of trying though, some loan bids were actually accepted although Scott Steele of Woking clearly wasn’t looking for a return to his homeland at that point.

The month ended of course with a League Cup first round tie. The trip was to fellow division three side Elgin City, and George at least ensured his side entered into the spirit of the game with gusto. The boys worked, they created one or two chances themselves and were a credit to themselves, only succumbing to an unfortunate Gary Bruce own goal midway through the second half.

As August was about to dawn, George Cameron was finally blessed with his first capture, a loan signing. Albeit from the Auld Enemy, but Forest Greens Martyn Sullivan was welcome nonetheless. An attacking right-winger, he would at least help the inexperienced lads to a certain degree.

As the season began with a trip to East Stirling the squad looked a little something like this:

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Fort William - Saturday 5th August 2000

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

Squad

================================================================================================

No Name Position(s) Nat Born Age Caps Gls Wages Expires Value

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Sullivan, Martyn AM R ENG 13.11.75 24 - - £0 26.11.00 £2K

</pre>

[Brian of Nazareth]

December

Looking back over the first 5 months in charge it was quite a difficult period for George. It had started with a brave 1-0 defeat to East Stirling in a game that Fort William had actually dominated. Successive defeats did follow in the Challenge Cup and the league, but the squad picked up with 2 loan signings! Scott Steele swallowed his pride and joined the Fort on the left wing, whilst fellow Scot David Kerr a 25 year old central midfielder signed from Chester City. Fort William now had ¾ of a midfield. The club were growing stronger by the day.

Astonishingly the team managed to eek a draw out of an away trip to Dumbarton ending 0-0. The first point of the season arriving quite a bit sooner than George had expected. George was soon kept very busy attempting to bring in new players and on the eve of the home clash with Elgin City, the fourth loan signing arrived in the form of Craig Brittain, the Dumbarton player. He also happened to be Fort William’s very first defender. George almost cried.

He was in tears of joy after 10 minutes as Scott Steele scored the clubs first goal to give the home side the lead, making 675 people very happy indeed. Of course the final result was 4-1 to Elgin, but that’s hardly the point – it’s progress – little by little.

This progression took a big leap on the 29th August as 33 year old Dave Carol became the very first signing as he moved from Wycombe. As an added bonus he was Scottish and further to that he was actually quite talented! That was the close of play as far as any action in August was concerned.

September started with failed attempts at bringing either Chris McKenzie or Michael Kuipers into the club. Both goalkeepers were unhappy at their clubs but sadly their clubs are also demanding a fee which is something Fort William cannot consider. 40 year old James Calder soon followed suit leaving George a little perplexed as to how long he would be working without a recognized keeper.

What also didn’t help was Carol’s torn groin muscle injury which left him out of action for the first couple of weeks in September, but it’s unlikely his presence would have significantly improved the deficit incurred at Brechin. Still the squad began to grow with the acquisition of two further Englishmen, a detail George was willing to overlook for the time being, with Peter Dyer a young 17 year old winger, and Mark Setori, a 33 year old utility player coming in to add depth.

It was only marginally of concern to George that this had a considerable impact on the wage bill as it shot up by a further 155 pounds per week. This was money the club did not have.

Fortunately though, as a means of rectifying the high levels of “English†in the squad, two Scottish defenders arrived before the home tie with Montrose. Brian Clark was a hard working 18 year old who was willing to give his all to anywhere in a defensively based role, whilst Gary Moore was a half competent right back who could throw himself about. George had creating something which now was bearing shape. Just a couple of strikers and a goalkeeper to go now.

The signings certainly added a boost in morale on the training side as they could just about fit in a 5 a side game with George and Mark Whyte the other coach taking up the goal keeper roles. Attendances increased to by a further 20 –30 or so, but the lack of quality could not prevent a 3-0 reverse to Montrose.

After that it was nice to hear that the invisible board were backing Fort William, had proffered 220k to help keep the club in business and stave off the threat of administrators, although it was a pity that didn’t allow the club to purchase any new players. Instead George was battling with Woking over Scott Steele’s contract.

Apparently they claimed he was only off for a months loan and had recalled him, to the irritation of George. The battle did not end swiftly and the midfielder was absent for Fort Williams clash with Cowdenbeath, a game which had many wondering what might have been after it finished a scoreless draw. Another point always helps but what if Scott Steele had been playing?

It was typical of the tyke that he agreed to return after the game was over but it’s a case of better late than never of course. The Albion Rovers game a week later was another sign of progression. This time George was able to leave Dyer on the bench as his squad grew.

Huddersfields Chris Hay had joined on a months loan and the striker went straight into the line up. Dave Carol had also returned. The improvements were clearly noticeable as Fort William managed to score a second goal of the season through Carol even if they did lose 2-1 overall.

Before the final game of the month against East Fife there were more transfer activities. Mass Sarr the Liberian forward joined on a free transfer and the forward would partner Chris Hay in a very experimental line up. The search for a “hands man†continued to fail as Coventry and Portsmouth snubbed the clubs attempts to loan Chris Kirkland and Aaron Flahavan

As September ended with a 2-0 defeat to East Fife, another defensive midfielder came in on loan. Simon Rush of Peterborough would no doubt be glad of the experience.

[Brian of Nazareth]

October began with another signing, one of the most talented players to join Fort William was Jamie McAllister of Aberdeen. The left back would provide George with something he’s desperately been lacking – someone with a left foot.

Finally though on the 8th George got his goalkeeper. David McMillan signing on a free transfer. Guaranteed first team football was the deciding factor for the young man who had offers from other more financially stable, and half decent clubs. Joining him a day later was Peter Duncan, an out and out left back on another free transfer. The Scottish force was rising.

Capping off a fine week that had seen Scotland grab a draw in Croatia in the World Cup qualifiers, Mass Sarr scored a delightful 90th minute equalizer at home to East Stirling. Iain Swan and David White came in on loans once more to bolster the squad and George became almost overwhelmed by the wealth of options available to him! He could choose amongst several and there was competition!

Those signings plus others sandwiched a 2-0 defeat to Elgin City before more reinforcements arrived. Experienced keeper Andy Dibble arrived on a free transfer whilst John Robertson arrived on a months loan from Oxford. George was left wandering whether he’d ever seen so many players on loan at one club before.

With all these new players performances were bound to improve and so they did although George was left heartbroken after a Roddy Black strike denied his men a deserved victory over Brechin after Mass Sarr had given the home side a lead, in spite of Chris Hay’s early dismissal. All things were looking good going into November:

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Fort William - Saturday 28th October 2000

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

Squad

================================================================================================

No Name Position(s) Nat Born Age Caps Gls Wages Expires Value

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Brittain, Craig D C SCO 10.1.74 26 - - £0 23.1.01 £4K

- Carroll, Dave AM RLC SCO 20.9.66 34 - - £200 17.6.01 £2K

- Clark, Brian D/DM RC SCO 3.1.82 18 - - £65 28.6.03 £3K

- Dibble, Andy GK WAL 8.5.65 35 3 - £200 11.6.02 £14K

- Duncan, Peter D L SCO 7.5.80 20 - - £150 21.6.03 £18K

- Dyer, Peter AM RL ENG 6.9.82 18 - - £65 28.6.03 £3K

- Hay, Chris S C SCO 28.8.74 26 - - £0 25.2.01 £825K

- Kerr, David M C SCO 6.9.74 26 - - £0 11.1.01 £10K

- McAllister, Jamie D/M LC SCO 26.4.78 22 - - £0 6.2.01 £85K

- McMillan, David GK SCO 18.5.80 20 - - £140 28.6.03 £22K

- Moore, Gary D R SCO 5.8.80 20 - - £90 Rolling £1K

- Robertson, John D RC SCO 28.3.76 24 - - £0 26.2.01 £22K

- Rusk, Simon DM C SCO 6.1.81 19 - - £0 28.6.01 £28K

- Sarr, Mass F LC LBR 6.2.73 27 45 - £160 31.5.04 £24K

- Sertori, Mark D/M/S C ENG 1.9.67 33 - - £170 28.6.03 £3K

- Steele, Scott M L SCO 19.9.71 29 - - £30 15.1.01 £1K

- Sullivan, Martyn AM R ENG 13.11.75 24 - - £0 26.11.00 £2K

- Swan, Iain D/M C SCO 16.10.79 21 - - £75 15.11.00 £3K

- White, David DM C SCO 6.10.80 20 - - £55 17.11.00 £3K

================================================================================================

2000/1 Senior Club Stats

================================================================================================

No Name Apps Gls Con Pens Asts Yel Red MoM Av R

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Brittain, Craig 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.75

- Carroll, Dave 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00

- Clark, Brian 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5.40

- Dibble, Andy 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 7.00

- Duncan, Peter 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 6.67

- Dyer, Peter 2 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5.67

- Hay, Chris 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 5.00

- Kerr, David 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.50

- McAllister, Jamie 3 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 6.67

- McMillan, David 2 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 7.00

- Moore, Gary 5 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00

- Robertson, John 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.00

- Rusk, Simon 3 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 6.67

- Sarr, Mass 4 2 0 0 0 1 0 1 6.50

- Sertori, Mark 5 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.50

- Steele, Scott 4 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 5.50

- Sullivan, Martyn 10 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 6.40

- Swan, Iain 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00

- White, David 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ----

================================================================================================

2000/1 Transfers

================================================================================================

Date Player In From Fee

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

29.7.00 Martyn Sullivan Forest Green Loan

13.8.00 Scott Steele Woking Loan

14.8.00 David Kerr Chester Loan

24.8.00 Craig Brittain Dumbarton Loan

29.8.00 Dave Carroll Free Transfer Free

3.9.00 Peter Dyer Free Transfer Free

3.9.00 Mark Sertori Free Transfer Free

4.9.00 Brian Clark Free Transfer Free

4.9.00 Gary Moore Free Transfer Free

15.9.00 David Kerr Chester Loan

16.9.00 Scott Steele Woking Loan

22.9.00 Chris Hay Huddersfield Loan

24.9.00 Craig Brittain Dumbarton Loan

26.9.00 Mass Sarr Free Transfer Free

30.9.00 Simon Rusk Peterborough Loan

6.10.00 Jamie McAllister Aberdeen Loan

8.10.00 David McMillan Free Transfer Free

11.10.00 Peter Duncan Free Transfer Free

15.10.00 Iain Swan Leigh Loan

18.10.00 David White Cowdenbeath Loan

26.10.00 Chris Hay Huddersfield Loan

27.10.00 John Robertson Oxford Loan

28.10.00 Andy Dibble Free Transfer Free

Date Player Out To Fee

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

None

================================================================================================

2000/1 Fixtures

================================================================================================

Date Opposition Ven Competition Res Attend Scorers

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

14.7.00 Heriot-Watt Uni. H Friendly 3:0 106 A.Goldie 2, C.Burns

29.7.00 Elgin City A League Cup 1st Rnd 0:1 637

5.8.00 East Stirling A Third Division 0:1 732

8.8.00 Clydebank A Challenge Cup 1st Rnd 0:1 372

12.8.00 Peterhead H Third Division 0:2 969

19.8.00 Dumbarton A Third Division 0:0 827

26.8.00 Elgin City H Third Division 1:4 951 Steele

2.9.00 Brechin A Third Division 0:4 566

9.9.00 Montrose H Third Division 0:3 628

16.9.00 Cowdenbeath H Third Division 0:0 690

23.9.00 Albion Rovers A Third Division 1:2 584 Carroll

30.9.00 East Fife H Third Division 0:2 830

14.10.00 East Stirling H Third Division 1:1 648 Sarr 2

21.10.00 Elgin City A Third Division 0:2 512

28.10.00 Brechin H Third Division 1:1 935 Sarr

4.11.00 Peterhead A Third Division --- -----

11.11.00 Dumbarton H Third Division --- -----

18.11.00 Montrose A Third Division --- -----

25.11.00 East Fife A Third Division --- -----

2.12.00 East Stirling A Third Division --- -----

16.12.00 Cowdenbeath A Third Division --- -----

26.12.00 Albion Rovers H Third Division --- -----

1.1.01 Elgin City H Third Division --- -----

13.1.01 Brechin A Third Division --- -----

20.1.01 Peterhead H Third Division --- -----

3.2.01 Dumbarton A Third Division --- -----

10.2.01 Montrose H Third Division --- -----

17.2.01 Cowdenbeath H Third Division --- -----

24.2.01 Albion Rovers A Third Division --- -----

3.3.01 East Fife H Third Division --- -----

10.3.01 East Stirling H Third Division --- -----

17.3.01 Peterhead A Third Division --- -----

24.3.01 Dumbarton H Third Division --- -----

31.3.01 Elgin City A Third Division --- -----

7.4.01 Brechin H Third Division --- -----

14.4.01 Montrose A Third Division --- -----

21.4.01 East Fife A Third Division --- -----

28.4.01 Albion Rovers H Third Division --- -----

5.5.01 Cowdenbeath A Third Division --- -----

</pre>

[Brian of Nazareth]

November began in fine fashion, as George’s men recovered a draw at Peterhead despite being 2-0 down for most of the match. Two late goals from Craig Brittain and Mass Sarr rescuing the point. The good form extended into some sort of miracle run for George as he saw his side claim a late leveler at home to table topping Dumbarton, thanks to Martyn Sullivan whilst the following week, Fort William was in ecstasy as the club celebrated it’s first even win in the Scottish Third Division. Jamie McAllister and Andy Legg, two loan signings exchanged goals before Mass Sarr struck an 89th minute winner, sending George and his boys home very, very happy!

That victory was followed up with a 2-1 reverse to East Fife, Chris Hay getting the consolation, but it had still been a good month on the field for George’s men. Off it though there had been problems. The loan signings who’s contracts were up for renewal were suddenly met with hostility from the clubs and as such Martyn Sullivan and Iain Swain were on their way back to Forest Green and Leigh.

December started off with the third game against East Stirling in the campaign and it was another 2-1 scoreline, terrifically in favour of Fort William as Chris Hay and David Kerr grabbed the goals.

As a means of attempting to bolster the strike force, George had approached ITV’s commentator Ally McCoist but sadly the international didn’t even have the time to spare to come down for a day or two. That news was only compounded by the sudden spate of impending retirements. Dave Carroll, Mark Setori and Andy Dibble had all had enough of the beautiful game and would be quitting in the summer.

On field improvements continued again with another superb victory away to Cowdenbeath, courtesy of David Kerr which hilariously, lifted Cameron’s side off the bottom of the table into 9th place, leaving Montrose to face the butt of several jokes in the Scottish dailies.

December’s league campaign ended with a blank draw with Albion Rovers, although Craig Brittain was forced to leave the pitch with a calf injury, something which will keep him out of action for 3 weeks. The final game of the month and the year was in fact away to Huntly in the Scottish Cup second round. It saw many changes to the side as George elected to save on legs, with several nobodies coming in to have a game. The 1-0 defeat was surprising but not a result that George would fret over, he was more worried by Peter Duncan’s 6th minute dismissal for foul play.

Mid point review:

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

================================================================================================

2000/1 Senior Club Stats

================================================================================================

No Name Apps Gls Con Pens Asts Yel Red MoM Av R

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Brittain, Craig 11 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 6.73

- Carroll, Dave 12 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 6.25

- Clark, Brian 6 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5.86

- Dibble, Andy 8 0 8 0 0 0 0 0 7.13

- Duncan, Peter 11 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 6.45

- Dyer, Peter 4 (7) 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 6.55

- Hay, Chris 7 2 0 0 2 0 1 0 7.00

- Kerr, David 10 (1) 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.64

- McAllister, Jamie 10 (1) 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 7.27

- McMillan, David 3 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 7.00

- Moore, Gary 6 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00

- Robertson, John 8 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 6.50

- Rusk, Simon 10 0 0 0 2 2 0 1 6.80

- Sarr, Mass 11 4 0 0 0 1 0 1 6.55

- Sertori, Mark 7 (5) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.58

- Steele, Scott 10 (1) 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 6.36

- White, David 1 (2) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5.67

================================================================================================

2000/1 Fixtures

================================================================================================

Date Opposition Ven Competition Res Attend Scorers

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

14.7.00 Heriot-Watt Uni. H Friendly 3:0 106 A.Goldie 2, C.Burns

29.7.00 Elgin City A League Cup 1st Rnd 0:1 637

5.8.00 East Stirling A Third Division 0:1 732

8.8.00 Clydebank A Challenge Cup 1st Rnd 0:1 372

12.8.00 Peterhead H Third Division 0:2 969

19.8.00 Dumbarton A Third Division 0:0 827

26.8.00 Elgin City H Third Division 1:4 951 Steele

2.9.00 Brechin A Third Division 0:4 566

9.9.00 Montrose H Third Division 0:3 628

16.9.00 Cowdenbeath H Third Division 0:0 690

23.9.00 Albion Rovers A Third Division 1:2 584 Carroll

30.9.00 East Fife H Third Division 0:2 830

14.10.00 East Stirling H Third Division 1:1 648 Sarr 2

21.10.00 Elgin City A Third Division 0:2 512

28.10.00 Brechin H Third Division 1:1 935 Sarr

4.11.00 Peterhead A Third Division 2:2 819 Brittain, Sarr

11.11.00 Dumbarton H Third Division 1:1 838 Sullivan

18.11.00 Montrose A Third Division 2:1 523 McAllister, Sarr

25.11.00 East Fife A Third Division 1:2 556 Hay

2.12.00 East Stirling A Third Division 2:1 723 Hay, Kerr

16.12.00 Cowdenbeath A Third Division 1:0 890 Kerr

26.12.00 Albion Rovers H Third Division 0:0 704

30.12.00 Huntly A Scottish Cup 2nd Rnd 0:1 1470

1.1.01 Elgin City H Third Division --- -----

13.1.01 Brechin A Third Division --- -----

20.1.01 Peterhead H Third Division --- -----

3.2.01 Dumbarton A Third Division --- -----

10.2.01 Montrose H Third Division --- -----

17.2.01 Cowdenbeath H Third Division --- -----

24.2.01 Albion Rovers A Third Division --- -----

3.3.01 East Fife H Third Division --- -----

10.3.01 East Stirling H Third Division --- -----

17.3.01 Peterhead A Third Division --- -----

24.3.01 Dumbarton H Third Division --- -----

31.3.01 Elgin City A Third Division --- -----

7.4.01 Brechin H Third Division --- -----

14.4.01 Montrose A Third Division --- -----

21.4.01 East Fife A Third Division --- -----

28.4.01 Albion Rovers H Third Division --- -----

5.5.01 Cowdenbeath A Third Division --- -----

************************************************************************************************

Scottish Third Division - Saturday 30th December 2000

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

2000/1 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st East Stirling 19 7 2 1 21 13 2 3 4 8 15 32

2nd Peterhead 18 4 3 2 21 14 4 4 1 16 12 31

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3rd Dumbarton 18 5 3 1 13 6 3 4 2 13 14 31

4th Brechin 18 5 3 1 22 12 3 3 3 11 10 30

5th Elgin City 18 4 4 1 10 7 3 1 5 16 17 26

6th East Fife 17 3 4 2 13 9 2 1 5 11 15 20

7th Albion Rovers 18 4 2 3 13 11 0 6 3 7 10 20

8th Cowdenbeath 18 3 2 4 8 9 1 5 3 3 8 19

9th Fort William 19 0 5 4 4 14 3 2 5 9 15 16

10th Montrose 17 1 4 3 10 13 1 3 5 14 19 13

</pre>

[HD]

Robbo \o/

[Brian of Nazareth]

*checks history of Robertson - suddenly understands*

January and the new year started positively for George as he was delighted to hear from the SFA that Peter Dyer and Andy Dibble were December’s recipients of Young Player and Player of the Month awards. It was a terrific boost.

Back on the field, Peter Duncan lasted only 17 minutes longer on the pitch before getting on the bad side of referee Stuart Logan, but had Scott Steele to thank for rescuing a point with a last minute strike to cancel out Colin Milne’s first half effort. Duncan now faced a 2-match league ban for collecting 16 points, going hand in hand with his 1 match Cup ban for his previous dismissal. A fiery rogue this one!

Immediately following, George failed in his attempts to sign a few more forwards on loan as Kidderminster and Cardiff rejected approaches for Thomas Skjoberg and Leo-Fortune West , before Chris Hay’s goal was the only positive of a 3-1 defeat to Peterhead. Simon Rusk departed injured.

Several more failed loan attempts followed, including the departure of Scott Steele who was no determined to get back in the Woking side instead. January develops into a nightmare as Captain Simon Rusk actually signs for Inverness. Peterborough accepted a 20k offer and of course there is nothing the club can do… and off trots centre back Craig Brittain to Dumbarton again, before eventually returning on a 1 month loan ( not the security George was after ). Craig Milne of Clydebank joined Fort William on loan before the trip to Dumbarton.

February began with a 1-1 draw away to Dumbarton courtesy of Dave Carroll’s late equalizer, when who should come crawling back up the M1 like a sniveling little shît? Scott Steele , spurned by Woking returned after George informed him Woking were plotting to get rid of him anyway.

It is always better to have players like Scott in the side though and he helped Fort William secure two successive draws; a thrilling 3-3 tie with Montrose in which Hay, Sarr and Setori were on the score sheet and a 1-1 non event with Cowdenbeath; Hay again the scorer. Unfortunately he couldn’t inspire the side against a much stronger Albion Rovers side, as they went down 2-0 with John Robertson also suffering an injury in the process sidelining him from the pitch for a good few weeks.

That was all the short month of February had to offer, save for a few worrying moments re-signing Brittain and Milne on month loan contracts. Why they couldn’t commit to the end of the season George could never understand.

Into March and George had selection problems against East Fife, with loan signigns not available as they considered their extensions and Scott Steele considered a permanent free transfer once his loan had expired in February. It was of no surprised they lost 1-0, even if it was just a penalty following Andy Dibble’s dismissal in the second half.

George was left kicking himself when Steele’s agent informed him an agreement had been reached and the player would join in 3rd June. He’d mistakenly thought he was available now and not at the end of the contract, but at least he was here permanently and was Scottish, two quite valuable criteria.

Still, though he was pleased by Jamie McAllister agreeing to extend his loan spell at the club to the end of the season and was back in the side, which was again shuffled around to accommodate injuries, as a few more nobodies were on the bench for the home match with East Stirling. A 2-2 draw was the end result, although after Setori and Hay had given a 2 goal lead with 30 minutes remaining, it certainly felt to George a case of 2 points lost rather than a point gained, even more desperate as it would have secured their first home win of the campaign.

The home win did at last arrive on the 24th as an excellent display by the midfielders helped secure a 2-0 victory over Dumbarton. Mass Sarr and Jamie McAllister were the goal scorers.

Before the final game of the month there was further good news with the completion of another permanent signing, even if he wasn’t Scottish. Martyn Sullivan, released by Forrest Green headed north to complete a 2 year deal, and to eat a slice of humble pie.

The transfer deadline came and passed without and further movements so the squad at present is what George hoped would be able to finish a respectable 9th place this season.

April was a less than successful month comparatively for George’s side though with defeats to Brechin and East Fife, and draws with Montrose and Albion Rovers ending 1-1 and 0-0 respectively. Chris Hay scoring early on against Montrose.

The final event of Fort William’s debut season in the Scottish Third Division was the trip to Cowdenbeath on the 5th. Lying 5 points behind Montrose, the boys, including those about to retire from the professional sport altogether were playing for pride. As per usual Mass Sarr missed the game through internationals, something which had happened far too often for George’s liking that year.

After Reon Juskowiak had put the home side ahead in the 8th minute, Fort William fought back strongly and in the closing moments of the first half turned the game on its head through first Chris Hay and secondly Peter Dyer . Thankfully the team were able to repel a second half onslaught from the home team to secure an excellent season ending victory, marred only by Chris Hay’s late knee injury. 31 points was the final tally, not bad for a team which had started out with no recognized players on its books at all. The challenge next season would be rebuilding another team fit to improve their standings.

[Brian of Nazareth]

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

***********************************************************************************************

Fort William - Saturday 5th May 2001

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

Squad

================================================================================================

No Name Position(s) Nat Born Age Caps Gls Wages Expires Value

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Carroll, Dave AM RLC SCO 20.9.66 34 - - £200 17.6.01 £2K

- Clark, Brian D/DM RC SCO 3.1.82 19 - - £65 28.6.03 £4K

- Dibble, Andy GK WAL 8.5.65 35 3 - £200 11.6.02 £12K

- Duncan, Peter D L SCO 7.5.80 20 - - £150 21.6.03 £18K

- Dyer, Peter AM RL ENG 6.9.82 18 - - £65 28.6.03 £2K

- Hay, Chris S C SCO 28.8.74 26 - - £0 25.5.01 £650K

- Kerr, David M C SCO 6.9.74 26 - - £0 11.5.01 £8K

- McAllister, Jamie D/M LC SCO 26.4.78 23 - - £0 7.5.01 £85K

- McMillan, David GK SCO 18.5.80 20 - - £140 28.6.03 £22K

- Milne, David M C SCO 25.10.79 21 - - £0 28.5.01 £5K

- Moore, Gary D R SCO 5.8.80 20 - - £90 Rolling £0

- Robertson, John D RC SCO 28.3.76 25 - - £0 26.5.01 £24K

- Sarr, Mass F LC LBR 6.2.73 28 45 - £160 31.5.04 £22K

- Sertori, Mark D/M/S C ENG 1.9.67 33 - - £170 28.6.03 £3K

- Sullivan, Martyn AM R ENG 13.11.75 25 - - £90 23.6.05 £3K

- White, David DM C SCO 6.10.80 20 - - £10 17.6.01 £3K

================================================================================================

2000/1 Senior Club Stats

================================================================================================

No Name Apps Gls Con Pens Asts Yel Red MoM Av R

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Carroll, Dave 25 (4) 2 0 0 3 0 0 0 6.24

- Clark, Brian 16 (6) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.36

- Dibble, Andy 19 0 20 0 0 0 1 1 7.37

- Duncan, Peter 26 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 6.58

- Dyer, Peter 14 (9) 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 6.30

- Hay, Chris 10 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.80

- Kerr, David 5 (5) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.80

- McAllister, Jamie 12 1 0 0 0 3 0 0 6.50

- McMillan, David 9 (1) 0 13 0 0 0 0 0 6.80

- Milne, David 4 (3) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.14

- Moore, Gary 13 (4) 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 5.88

- Robertson, John 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.13

- Sarr, Mass 23 6 0 0 1 1 0 2 6.57

- Sertori, Mark 22 (6) 2 0 0 3 1 0 0 6.57

- Sullivan, Martyn 6 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 6.17

- White, David 11 (4) 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 6.27

================================================================================================

2000/1 Transfers

================================================================================================

Date Player In From Fee

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

29.7.00 Martyn Sullivan Forest Green Loan

13.8.00 Scott Steele Woking Loan

14.8.00 David Kerr Chester Loan

24.8.00 Craig Brittain Dumbarton Loan

29.8.00 Dave Carroll Free Transfer Free

3.9.00 Peter Dyer Free Transfer Free

3.9.00 Mark Sertori Free Transfer Free

4.9.00 Brian Clark Free Transfer Free

4.9.00 Gary Moore Free Transfer Free

15.9.00 David Kerr Chester Loan

16.9.00 Scott Steele Woking Loan

22.9.00 Chris Hay Huddersfield Loan

24.9.00 Craig Brittain Dumbarton Loan

26.9.00 Mass Sarr Free Transfer Free

30.9.00 Simon Rusk Peterborough Loan

6.10.00 Jamie McAllister Aberdeen Loan

8.10.00 David McMillan Free Transfer Free

11.10.00 Peter Duncan Free Transfer Free

15.10.00 Iain Swan Leigh Loan

18.10.00 David White Cowdenbeath Loan

26.10.00 Chris Hay Huddersfield Loan

27.10.00 John Robertson Oxford Loan

28.10.00 Andy Dibble Free Transfer Free

19.11.00 David White Cowdenbeath Loan

15.1.01 David Kerr Chester Loan

28.1.01 Craig Brittain Dumbarton Loan

29.1.01 David Milne Clydebank Loan

1.2.01 Scott Steele Woking Loan

9.2.01 Jamie McAllister Aberdeen Loan

27.2.01 Chris Hay Huddersfield Loan

27.2.01 John Robertson Oxford Loan

2.3.01 David Milne Clydebank Loan

28.3.01 Martyn Sullivan Free Transfer Free

Date Player Out To Fee

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

None

================================================================================================

2000/1 Fixtures

================================================================================================

Date Opposition Ven Competition Res Attend Scorers

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

14.7.00 Heriot-Watt Uni. H Friendly 3:0 106 A.Goldie 2, C.Burns

29.7.00 Elgin City A League Cup 1st Rnd 0:1 637

5.8.00 East Stirling A Third Division 0:1 732

8.8.00 Clydebank A Challenge Cup 1st Rnd 0:1 372

12.8.00 Peterhead H Third Division 0:2 969

19.8.00 Dumbarton A Third Division 0:0 827

26.8.00 Elgin City H Third Division 1:4 951 Steele

2.9.00 Brechin A Third Division 0:4 566

9.9.00 Montrose H Third Division 0:3 628

16.9.00 Cowdenbeath H Third Division 0:0 690

23.9.00 Albion Rovers A Third Division 1:2 584 Carroll

30.9.00 East Fife H Third Division 0:2 830

14.10.00 East Stirling H Third Division 1:1 648 Sarr 2

21.10.00 Elgin City A Third Division 0:2 512

28.10.00 Brechin H Third Division 1:1 935 Sarr

4.11.00 Peterhead A Third Division 2:2 819 Brittain, Sarr

11.11.00 Dumbarton H Third Division 1:1 838 Sullivan

18.11.00 Montrose A Third Division 2:1 523 McAllister, Sarr

25.11.00 East Fife A Third Division 1:2 556 Hay

2.12.00 East Stirling A Third Division 2:1 723 Hay, Kerr

16.12.00 Cowdenbeath A Third Division 1:0 890 Kerr

26.12.00 Albion Rovers H Third Division 0:0 704

30.12.00 Huntly A Scottish Cup 2nd Rnd 0:1 1470

1.1.01 Elgin City H Third Division 1:1 979 Steele

13.1.01 Brechin A Third Division 1:1 1080 Hay

20.1.01 Peterhead H Third Division 1:3 963 Hay

3.2.01 Dumbarton A Third Division 1:1 864 Carroll

10.2.01 Montrose H Third Division 3:3 631 Sertori, Hay, Sarr

17.2.01 Cowdenbeath H Third Division 1:1 687 Hay

24.2.01 Albion Rovers A Third Division 0:2 826

3.3.01 East Fife H Third Division 0:1 968

10.3.01 East Stirling H Third Division 2:2 771 Hay, Sertori

17.3.01 Peterhead A Third Division 0:1 601

24.3.01 Dumbarton H Third Division 2:0 822 Sarr, McAllister

31.3.01 Elgin City A Third Division 0:0 780

7.4.01 Brechin H Third Division 0:2 925

14.4.01 Montrose A Third Division 1:1 745 Hay

21.4.01 East Fife A Third Division 0:1 551

28.4.01 Albion Rovers H Third Division 0:0 708

5.5.01 Cowdenbeath A Third Division 2:1 1124 Hay, Dyer

************************************************************************************************

Scottish Third Division - Saturday 5th May 2001

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

2000/1 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st C Brechin 36 9 7 2 34 19 10 3 5 29 19 67

2nd P Elgin City 36 11 6 1 28 13 5 5 8 26 28 59

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3rd East Fife 36 8 7 3 30 19 6 3 9 25 30 52

4th Peterhead 36 8 5 5 34 25 5 7 6 28 30 51

5th Albion Rovers 36 10 3 5 26 17 2 10 6 14 21 49

6th Dumbarton 36 9 4 5 27 20 3 7 8 20 31 47

7th East Stirling 36 9 5 4 32 26 3 5 10 18 36 46

8th Cowdenbeath 36 7 3 8 23 21 4 8 6 12 16 44

9th Montrose 36 5 8 5 25 25 3 4 11 26 39 36

10th Fort William 36 1 10 7 14 27 4 6 8 14 23 31

</pre>

Manager of the Year: Dick Campbell Brechin

Top Scorer : Gary McDonald East Stirling

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

================================================================================================

2000/1 Goals

================================================================================================

Pos Player Club Apps Gls

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Gary McDonald East Stirling 33 (2) 22

2nd Moray Leask Brechin 36 19

3rd Stevie Clinton Elgin City 26 (2) 16

4th Derek Smith Peterhead 36 15

5th Andrew Gibson Peterhead 36 13

6th Colin Milne Elgin City 36 12

7th Barrie Moffat East Fife 32 12

8th Roddy Grant Brechin 26 (3) 10

9th John Martin East Fife 29 (3) 10

10th Alex Martin Albion Rovers 28 (1) 10

11th Martin Johnston Peterhead 31 10

12th Jerry O'Driscoll Montrose 29 10

13th Gary Dewar Brechin 30 (6) 10

14th Chris Hay Fort William 28 9

15th Gregor McKechnie East Stirling 29 (1) 9

16th David Craig Peterhead 31 9

17th Scott Brown Peterhead 28 (4) 8

18th Jonathan Mitchell Montrose 6 (4) 8

19th Brian McGinty Dumbarton 35 8

20th Martin Mooney Dumbarton 30 8

21st Duncan Shearer Albion Rovers 29 8

22nd Adrian Coote Norwich 15 8

23rd Reon Juskowiak Cowdenbeath 35 8

24th Thomas King Dumbarton 35 7

25th Yannis Begue Albion Rovers 34 7

26th Mass Sarr Fort William 23 6

27th Roddy Black Brechin 33 (1) 6

28th Keith Wright Cowdenbeath 23 (1) 6

29th Martin Shand Montrose 18 (5) 6

30th Paul Riley Brechin 36 5

================================================================================================

2000/1 Assists

================================================================================================

Pos Player Club Apps Asts

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st James McKellar Montrose 33 (2) 12

2nd Jonathan McKeith Brechin 36 11

3rd John Martin East Fife 29 (3) 10

4th Paul Riley Brechin 36 10

5th Gary Dewar Brechin 30 (6) 9

6th Michael Green Elgin City 29 (1) 8

7th Kevin Tindal Peterhead 36 8

8th Alan Lawrence Cowdenbeath 36 7

9th David Elliot Dumbarton 34 7

10th Dougie Todd East Stirling 32 7

11th Yannis Begue Albion Rovers 34 7

12th David Craig Peterhead 31 7

13th Stephen Jack Dumbarton 36 6

14th Jordan McDonald Elgin City 33 (1) 6

15th Thomas Harrison Montrose 34 6

16th Duncan Shearer Albion Rovers 29 6

17th Martin O'Neill East Fife 22 (6) 6

18th Reon Juskowiak Cowdenbeath 35 6

19th Andrew Gibson Peterhead 36 5

20th Scott Brown Peterhead 28 (4) 5

21st Colin Milne Elgin City 36 5

22nd Steven Ellis Elgin City 6 (10) 5

23rd Gregor McKechnie East Stirling 29 (1) 5

24th Jamie McKenzie Albion Rovers 36 5

25th David Muirhead Montrose 32 5

26th Jerry O'Driscoll Montrose 29 5

27th Roddy Grant Brechin 26 (3) 4

28th Chris Devine East Fife 17 (16) 4

29th John Allison East Fife 36 4

30th Connor Campbell Elgin City 9 (9) 4

================================================================================================

2000/1 Average Rating

================================================================================================

Pos Player Club Apps Av R

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Stevie Clinton Elgin City 26 (2) 7.79

2nd David Craig Peterhead 31 7.71

3rd Thomas Graham Elgin City 22 (1) 7.61

4th Gary McDonald East Stirling 33 (2) 7.60

5th Alex Martin Albion Rovers 28 (1) 7.55

6th Colin Milne Elgin City 36 7.53

7th Gary Dewar Brechin 30 (6) 7.50

8th Duncan Shearer Albion Rovers 29 7.45

9th Andy Dibble Fort William 19 7.37

10th John Martin East Fife 29 (3) 7.34

11th Keith Wright Cowdenbeath 23 (1) 7.33

12th Moray Leask Brechin 36 7.33

13th Jonathan McKeith Brechin 36 7.33

14th Dougie Todd East Stirling 32 7.28

15th Connor Campbell Elgin City 9 (9) 7.22

16th Dean McPherson East Stirling 14 (4) 7.22

17th Paul Riley Brechin 36 7.19

18th Jamie McKenzie Albion Rovers 36 7.19

19th Thomas Harrison Montrose 34 7.18

20th Derek Smith Peterhead 36 7.17

21st Jordan McDonald Elgin City 33 (1) 7.15

22nd Ciaran Quinn East Stirling 34 7.12

23rd Yannis Begue Albion Rovers 34 7.12

24th Greig Smith Brechin 32 7.09

25th Brian McGinty Dumbarton 35 7.09

26th Roddy Grant Brechin 26 (3) 7.07

27th Murray Hunter East Fife 31 (1) 7.06

28th Barrie Moffat East Fife 32 7.06

29th Martin Parkyn Brechin 36 7.06

30th Mark Booth Albion Rovers 23 (3) 7.04

================================================================================================

2000/1 Man of Match

================================================================================================

Pos Player Club Apps MoM

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Gary McDonald East Stirling 33 (2) 9

2nd Brian McGinty Dumbarton 35 6

3rd Alex Martin Albion Rovers 28 (1) 5

4th Colin Milne Elgin City 36 5

5th William Burns Cowdenbeath 35 5

6th Duncan Shearer Albion Rovers 29 5

7th Stevie Clinton Elgin City 26 (2) 5

8th Jonathan McKeith Brechin 36 5

9th Jordan McDonald Elgin City 33 (1) 4

10th Derek Smith Peterhead 36 4

11th Barrie Moffat East Fife 32 4

12th Yannis Begue Albion Rovers 34 4

13th Adrian Coote Norwich 15 4

14th David Craig Peterhead 31 4

15th Jerry O'Driscoll Montrose 29 4

16th Moray Leask Brechin 36 4

17th Roddy Grant Brechin 26 (3) 3

18th Jonathan Mitchell Montrose 6 (4) 3

19th Keith Wright Cowdenbeath 23 (1) 3

20th Stephen Jack Dumbarton 36 3

21st Thomas Graham Elgin City 22 (1) 3

22nd Martin Johnston Peterhead 31 3

23rd Thomas King Dumbarton 35 3

24th Gary Dewar Brechin 30 (6) 3

25th Todd Lumsden Albion Rovers 36 3

26th Marc McCulloch Cowdenbeath 15 3

27th James McKellar Montrose 33 (2) 3

28th Murray Brown East Stirling 35 2

29th Mass Sarr Fort William 23 2

30th John Martin Cowdenbeath 36 2

</pre>

Whilst elsewhere:

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Scottish Premier Division - Saturday 5th May 2001

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

2000/1 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st C Rangers 37 15 3 0 49 1 11 3 5 33 20 84

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2nd Celtic 37 14 4 1 34 8 8 3 7 21 21 73

3rd Hearts 37 13 3 2 30 11 5 7 7 32 33 64

4th Dundee 37 11 3 5 33 20 8 3 7 23 20 63

5th Kilmarnock 37 11 2 5 33 13 8 1 10 21 28 60

6th St. Mirren 37 11 1 7 33 24 1 4 13 13 42 41

7th Motherwell 37 7 6 5 36 32 6 5 8 21 26 50

8th Hibs 37 11 3 5 32 25 2 4 12 21 42 46

9th Aberdeen 37 6 6 7 24 28 5 2 11 22 37 41

10th St. Johnstone 37 8 4 7 23 22 1 7 10 12 31 38

11th Dundee Utd 37 6 7 5 23 24 2 6 11 12 30 37

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

12th R Dunfermline 37 3 5 10 21 37 2 2 15 14 41 22

</pre>

Manager of the Year: Dick Advocaat Rangers

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Scottish First Division - Saturday 5th May 2001

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

2000/1 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st C Ayr Utd 36 16 2 0 36 9 10 1 7 25 18 81

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2nd Airdrie 36 11 4 3 35 18 9 3 6 34 26 67

3rd Falkirk 36 12 2 4 32 17 7 5 6 28 26 64

4th Livingston 36 10 5 3 28 18 7 5 6 21 18 61

5th Ross County 36 7 5 6 24 18 7 5 6 24 23 52

6th Inverness C. Thistle 36 8 4 6 27 25 4 4 10 23 37 44

7th Morton 36 7 4 7 23 27 2 6 10 23 30 37

8th Raith Rovers 36 7 5 6 30 26 2 3 13 8 26 35

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

9th R Alloa 36 5 5 8 20 24 2 4 12 20 42 30

10th R Clyde 36 7 3 8 28 32 1 3 14 8 37 30

</pre>

Manager of the Year: Alex Fotten Falkirk

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Scottish Second Division - Saturday 5th May 2001

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

2000/1 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st C Queen of Sth 36 8 8 2 19 9 10 4 4 21 14 66

2nd P Partick Thistle 36 7 6 5 20 15 10 5 3 30 20 62

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3rd Stranraer 36 9 7 2 23 15 5 6 7 15 22 55

4th Queen's Park 36 8 5 5 37 24 7 3 8 19 18 53

5th Stenhousemuir 36 8 4 6 26 19 4 8 6 18 24 48

6th Stirling 36 9 2 7 26 23 3 6 9 22 37 44

7th Berwick 36 4 7 7 20 26 7 3 8 18 23 43

8th Arbroath 36 7 3 8 20 17 4 6 8 16 16 42

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

9th R Clydebank 36 7 5 6 15 16 2 9 7 15 22 41

10th R Forfar 36 6 6 6 27 25 2 3 13 15 37 33

</pre>

Manager of the Year: Colin Greenall Queen of the South

Scottish Cup Final

Dundee 2:1 Hearts Nemsadze 20, Artero 38; Reynoso 74

Scottish League Cup Final

Celtic 3:2 Hearts Benayoun 2, ( 1-0) McSwegan 8,( 1-1) Larson 20, ( 2-1), Juanjo 28, (2-2), Mjallby 90. (3-2)

Scottish Challenge Cup Final

Airdrie 3 Elgin City 2 Prest 2,( 1-0) McCann 10,(2-0) Pacifio 58;(3-0) O’Brien 90 (3-1), Green 90, (3-2)

[This message was edited by Brian of Nazareth on 04 February 2004 at 1:32.]

[BobBev]

Brian, you have a hard road ahead of you but you've made a great start - good luck

[Peacemaker7]

Yup. Its about time we had a story where it wasnt success all the way, so I hope you stick with it. You'll get there in the end

[Brian of Nazareth]

thanks. I've definitely found it fun to play and it's generally more enjoyable writing about as well, even if it might just take me a little longer to finish

Season 2001-2002

As the lazy period of June arrived, George relaxed as much as he could. He’d survived a tough opening season and not surprisingly finished bottom of the pile, but it wasn’t a complete humiliation as certain quarters of the press had forecast.

Scott Steele soon arrived permanently on his free transfer, whilst all the loanees returned to their respective clubs. George wasn’t going to worry about bringing the new batch in for a while. He’d try and get permanents sorted first. He’d made a couple of moves, albeit one for a Welshman who’d be coming to sign as soon as they’d returned from their sunny holiday breaks.

Marc Williams a 28 year old forward had struggled to make an impact at York City and George was hoping he’d be able to add some quality to his depleted side. Also arriving was a Montrose player. Experienced utility man Ross McWilliam arrived on a free transfer to create options.

With the end of June, arrives contract expiry time and George set about seeing who was interested. 1 Tanzanian apparently. As a result he sent out a host of offers to non contracted players regardless of their stature in the hope that the law of averages would secure at least 1 or 2 new signings.

July arrived and within it a sucession of rejections. Stanley Collymore declined the chance to slaughter division 3 defenses, before Mark Delaney , David Platt , Gilles Grimandi , Darren Caskey and John Filan also turned down the opportunity of a lifetime, preferring to wait out the summer in case a more attractive proposal came along.

One signature that did arrive was the one George most expected. 37 year old Northern Ireland defender Colin Hill arrived to add some experience to the back line. Elsewhere, Keith Lasley a no good 21 year old midfielder decided he preferred the high life of working in bar instead of having a trial with Fort William.

Another problem George initially faced was finding warm up opponents. Berwick, Kidderminster and Stenhousemuir all rejected chances to visit the Cameron Stadium ( renamed after George won his battle to replace the boring Hamilton Academicals in the league.

Gordon Durie of Wimbledon and aging striker Kevin Gallagher of Newcastle Reserves soon swiftly decided at the same time to choose semi regular reserve football over a move back north of the border. George was not a happy man.

Eventually though players did agree to join on, as the loan season arrived. Various lengths ranging from a month to 4 months brought in first Delton Francis of Nuneaton Borough, a young striker who had wicked pair of feet upon him for 3 months, before Barnet finally accepted one of the several bids we made for their players, allowing John Doolan a 27 year old defensive midfielder to join. Both sadly were Englishmen but again a detail that would be rectified at a much later date.

A Dutchman joined George’s Army soon after, Tom Van der Ham arriving on loan from Stirling. The 21 defender looked to have a good head on him and would provide some valuable cover.

The following week two more Englishmen arrived on loan, another defender slash midfielder in the form of 27 year old Steve Dickinson from Southport , for 3 months, and Doncaster’s 24 year old forward Neil Campbell . George almost blew a fit when he heard of Neil’s second name, but the clam voice in his head began to help subside the anger instilled by his father, and a rational mind secured the 4 month deal.

George was getting so carried away with the ‘sign whatever bugger wants to join us’ policy that he almost ended up bringing 26 year old striker Dean Birkby of Forrest Green [/b] before realizing there was a reason why he had never played at all the previous season at Conference level.

Young Ashley Wooliscroft almost joins from Stoke, until the Potters decide they want compensation, and so George pulled out. Negotiations continued with Peterhead defender Bruce Morrison , whilst George was delighted, that out of all the options available to him, including first division Bristol City, John Filan had decided to prolong his career with Fort William.

With that, George had the first chance to view the new staff in action with a home friendly Armadale on Friday 13th. Going into the match, he was proud to be able to name a 17 man strong squad, full of professionals and not nobodies from the village.

[Brian of Nazareth]

Marc Williams opened the scoring in the 13th minute, before Armadale hit back and took a 2-1 half time lead. It stayed that way until the 82nd minute where Neil Campbell also making his debut, came off the bench to level the scores. It was a good work out for the boys and it provided enough entertainment for the 268 who turned up although, Tom Van der Ham did have a goal ruled out at the death.

Soon after George, completed the signing of Bruce Morrison, although not in time for him to play in the second friendly, hosting Bromsgrove Rovers. The game favoured Fort William and it was no surprise that they took a 2 goal advantage early on through Neil Campbell and Martyn Sullivan . Sadly though, the second half wasn’t so successful and the game ended in a 2-2 draw as the home team abandoned the art of defending.

As that game finished though, George Cameron walked out onto the field with a microphone in his hands, and although he didn’t do a Tom Jones number as some fans were bizarrely hoping for, he announced the return of a fans favourite on loan for another 4 months. Jamie McAllister was back, and the news was warmly received by the crowd, especially as they’d heard rumours Cowdenbeath had also been trying to secure his services on loan.

He made his first friendly appearance against The Spartans at the Cameron Stadium, and he helped repel the opponents attacks, whilst Delton Francis and Ross McWilliam grabbed goals either side of half time to secure the victory.

That was the final warm up of July though before the Scottish Cup 1st Round clash with Queens Park. As preparations began for sorting out the team line up, George was surprised to see Mark Whyte introduce him to a young boy by the name of Ian Gardiner . He was a 17 year old left back, who’d been plying his trade in the youth academy until Mark had spotted him. George was stunned by this news, partly that Mark was acting in a scouting role for the club, and more importantly he had never known there was an academy in the first place.

Within minutes of kicking the ball around he was offered a contract, he had talent, a future and for some reason a passion for Fort William – the perfect mix of ingredients.

The 28th soon approached and it was kick off time in terms of competitive football as Queens Park came to town. George put out what he thought was his strongest side as they sought to compete with their Second Division opponents. A 2-1 loss was in the creditable, considering Fort William had only 1 shot on target, scored through Mass Sarr compared to 23 shots that John Filan was left to contend with.

With that, George contemplated the successful summer gone, and looked forward to returning to Division Three, Season 2001-2002.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Fort William - Sunday 29th July 2001

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

Squad

================================================================================================

No Name Position(s) Nat Born Age Caps Gls Wages Expires Value

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Campbell, Neil F LC ENG 26.1.77 24 - - £60 7.11.01 £16K

- Clark, Brian D/DM RC SCO 3.1.82 19 - - £65 28.6.03 £4K

- Dickinson, Steve DM R ENG 11.9.73 27 - - £0 7.10.01 £20K

- Doolan, John DM C ENG 7.5.74 27 - - £0 7.11.01 £16K

- Duncan, Peter D L SCO 7.5.80 21 - - £150 21.6.03 £10K

- Dyer, Peter AM RL ENG 6.9.82 18 - - £65 28.6.03 £2K

- Filan, John GK AUS 8.2.70 31 2 - £200 Rolling £0

- Francis, Delton S C ENG 7.1.80 21 - - £0 7.10.01 £9K

- Gardiner, Ian D L SCO 9.9.83 17 - - £110 Rolling £1K

- Hill, Colin D C NIR 13.11.63 37 27 1 £200 28.6.04 £2K

- McAllister, Jamie D/M LC SCO 26.4.78 23 - - £300 16.11.01 £75K

- McMillan, David GK SCO 18.5.80 21 - - £140 28.6.03 £9K

- McWilliam, Ross D/AM/F RC SCO 13.3.70 31 - - £90 11.6.04 £5K

- Moore, Gary D R SCO 5.8.80 20 - - £90 Rolling Free

- Morrison, Bruce D C SCO 8.5.74 27 - - £200 12.6.03 £4K

- Sarr, Mass F LC LBR 6.2.73 28 47 - £160 31.5.04 £16K

- Steele, Scott M L SCO 19.9.71 29 - - £90 1.6.05 £2K

- Sullivan, Martyn AM R ENG 13.11.75 25 - - £90 23.6.05 £2K

- Van Der Ham, Tom D C HOL 23.6.80 21 - - £0 7.11.01 £10K

- Williams, Marc S C WAL 1.6.73 28 - - £200 11.6.05 £5K

</pre>

[Brian of Nazareth]

As July left, and August arrived, a second bid was made for Gordon Durie following his free transfer from Wimbledon . He was a talented striker, but just needed to bring his wages a long way down from 2 grand a week. Several other loan bids were submitted, unfortunately they all received negative replies inside hours rather than days.

On the pitch the season started with a trip to Albion Rovers ,and the new look team performed creditably picking up a 0-0 draw that automatically lifted the club to the heights of 6th in the league, a club record, albeit after just the one game. That game was soon followed with the signature of Ashley Wooliscroft on a free after Stoke released him, thereby relinquishing any necessity to pay compensation fees.

There followed a heart breaking defeat in the Challenge Cup first round to Clyde as a 94th minute goal won it for the home team. Mass Sarr had initially leveled before Clyde went 2-1 in front again. It stayed like that until the 78th minute when Marc Williams stroked home a close range effort. The game seemed to be heading for extra time before Jamie Mitchell struck.

Next up was a home clash with East Fife where astonishingly George managed to conjure up a victory. Fort William had one effort on goal all match, which crept in, in the 40th minute by Marc Williams and thereafter the away side could not get through despite successive amounts of pressure. The first home win was secured at the first opportunity, incredible given that it took pretty much until right at the end of the last season to achieve the same landmark. Temporarily it also lifted Fort William into 3rd spot.

In the run up to the Clydebank game on the 19th , Gary Moore casually dismissed himself from the wage bill, for no visible reason. Having released himself, George weighed up the finances involved and offered him a lower wage on a years contract, as opposed to his rolling one, and voila, one cheaper player signed on.

The game itself saw another 0-0 draw as Fort William continued their unbeaten start to the season although it did create more problems. John Filan’s fine performance in goal was attracting attention across the globe, and his refusal to sign a fixed contract was worrying George to the extent where he considered looking for a loan signing to arrive, in case Filan decided to leave.

Ashley Wooliscroft splintered his pancreas, resulting in a 2-week lay off from action. As Stan Collymore prepared to move to NEC and not Fort William, George was preparing for the final game of August, a home game with East Stirling.

After reshuffling the line up to accommodate some niggling injures, the game started in even fashion as both sides had plenty of opportunites to score. However in 2 minutes before half time it appeared as though East Stirling would take the 3 points as they scored twice through Hislop and Gary McDonald. After the break though the home team responded swiftly as substitute Marc Williams pulled one back on 50 minutes, and 5 minutes later it was 2-2 as Mass Sarr headed home a Ross McWilliam center. Despite incessant pressure, Fort William could not gain the winner they deserved and George had to settle for a point. Still when he was now thinking in terms of settling for a point it was clear things were going well, as they sat in mid table.

[Brian of Nazareth]

Into September and a trip to Peterhead to kick start the month. No changes were made, and they fully justified the line up as George watched in astonishment as his men raced into a 3-0 half time lead, courtesy of Marc Williams and a double from Mass Sarr . The match finished like that, and perhaps it was now confirmation that expectations had changed at the highland club.

Fort William was now a more attractive proposition as a club and George had done his local reputation no harm at all after the excellent start to the season, which still saw them unbeaten. It was a relief to know that two of his key performers, Sarr and Williams were permanent signings, unlikely half of the squad. The only down side was Barnet rejecting the clubs approach for midfielder Steve Searle whilst accepting Hendon’s – an introduction to club politics for Mr. Cameron.

Sadly the week after, what George had dreaded might happen, did. John Filan was approached by Argentinean side Talleres and although it was not set in stone, the likelihood of ending a career in a sunny climate might prove too tempting. As insurance, George successfully loaned Andy Collet from Darlington .

However on the 8th a shocking result happened, as, following a 2-1 home win over Cowdenbeath , thanks to Marc Williams and John Doolan first half efforts, Fort William ascended to the very top of the third division. An unprecedented event, that caused all the staff and players to celebrate jubilantly at the final whistle. The big downside though was an injury to Mass Sarr that would keep the Liberian out of action for a month.

Tuesday 11th September 2001 was a dark day for many people at Fort William. John Filan signed for Talleres. The bright side being the move would not go through until the middle of December, giving George plenty of time to secure a replacement. Andy Collet would be given game time to see if he was adequate.

With confidence on the up, the trip to Montrose , the side George was competing with for the wooden spoon last season, some more optimistic followers were predicting another high scoring victory. Well it was, but 3-0 to the team in blue was not what they were thinking of and Fort William were brought back down to earth with a bump as reality set in. Filan was replaced at half time after the damage had been done, and Collet looked more than capable.

In some ways George was glad his side lost. It brought the team back to reality and hopefully brought a halt to training ground whispers of promotion. The objective was still the same, improve the squad and finisher anywhere but bottom.

The following week’s hosting of Forfar , relegated last season, brought further woe big time, as Fort William were resoundingly crushed 5-0 in a game they were never in. The dreams of 2 weeks ago were shattered by this result but they were still in 5th place in the league, holding their own for the time being.

The final match of the month left fans happier again, although the sudden jump in attendances this year ( 1659 ) showed how the local community was becoming enamoured with Cameron’s progress. A 1-0 victory over Dumbarton thanks to Marc Williams pushed the side back up to 4th in the league. Unfortunately it was overshadowed by the injury to Jamie McAllister and one of the most consistent performers for Fort William would miss all of October.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Scottish Third Division - Sunday 30th September 2001

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

2001/2 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Forfar 9 3 0 1 6 1 3 1 1 18 10 19

2nd Cowdenbeath 9 4 0 0 11 2 1 2 2 5 7 17

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3rd Clydebank 9 2 3 0 4 2 2 0 2 7 6 15

4th Fort William 9 3 1 1 6 8 1 2 1 3 3 15

5th Montrose 9 3 1 1 14 9 1 0 3 1 3 13

6th East Stirling 9 4 0 0 14 8 0 1 4 7 16 13

7th Albion Rovers 9 3 1 1 7 3 0 1 3 2 8 11

8th East Fife 9 2 1 1 5 3 0 2 3 2 6 9

9th Dumbarton 9 3 0 1 11 9 0 0 5 1 10 9

10th Peterhead 9 1 2 2 4 7 0 0 4 6 13 5

</pre>

[McRob]

Looks like your fortunes are picking up!

Great story very enjoyable indeed

[Faramir]

Good work- as always BoN

[Brian of Nazareth]

Thanks very much for the support, it is always appreciated. I'm not sure how long the bubble will last though

Into October and George began with an email from Livingston who were faxing a 6,000 pound offer for young Scottish keeper David McMillan . With Filan’s imminent departure and Collet only a loan signing the offer was quickly rebuked, although George did feel a little sense of pride in receiving a bid for one of his players. Perhaps he had underestimated young David.

Soon after it was awards time and none were forthcoming for George, although the board did invite him to take 2 shortbread biscuits at the board meeting instead of the usual 1 and a quarter.

Another player who wished to leave was Ashley Wooliscroft the summer signing from Stoke. He wanted a permanent contract which was no problem for George but he also wanted a significant wage rise. George could have afforded it but seeing as Ashley was English he really couldn’t be arsed and acceded to his transfer request.

It was unsurprising to learn therefore the following day that the left back granted himself a free transfer in order to pursue a career ambition with Caerfernon Town in Wales.

As George’s long wait for club action to arrive in October, thanks to Internationals, he passed the time by applying for the Ireland and Norway jobs for a laugh, and attempted to renew loan contracts for Steve Dickinson and Delton Francis with some difficulty.

Eventually after much bickering, George decided to end his interest there and start an active policy of pursuing Scottish only players. To hell with foreigners except Marc Williams, although he was hopeful the Welsh boy could spring a Scottish relative from somewhere down the line.

The 14th eventually saw pitch action and another excellent 2-1 home victory over Albion Rovers thanks to first half efforts from Marc Williams and Ross McWilliam . George was really beginning to wonder how he was going to replace the Welshman. Still might as well leave that kind of decision until the end of the season.

To help replace departures this month George brought in further Scottish loan signings in Dumbartons’ Gary McDonald up front, Scott Sinclair of East Stirling and Alex Grace also of Dumbarton, plus the hilariously named Laura Gilogy of East Stirling. His excuse was his parents couldn’t be bothered to change what was a very nice name in the first place.

Before the trip to East Fife George brought in a further Scot, Gordon Burns, who had been released by Ayr in the summer. Sadly not even his substitute appearance could help Fort William overcome a strong side as they went down 3-0.

The following week saw Fort William host Clydebank and in a tight game, George will have been pleased to take a point from the 2-2 draw, twice coming from behind, thanks to the recently returned from injury Mass Sarr and midfielder John Doolan . The game had also seen a fine performance from David McMillan in goal, rewarded with a start after fine displays in training.

[Brian of Nazareth]

That was the close of play in October, and as the club moved into November ,. The board added a little more clout following a whip round to keep the club only very marginally in the red, whilst Jamie McAllister returned from injury.

Back on the field and it was a chance for Laura Gilogly and Scott Sinclair to renew acquaintances with their official employers at East Stirling and sadly they may have been wishing they were on the other side as Fort William went down 5-3 in a thriller of a match. George’s men had ample opportunities to level the match and even win but sadly finishing cost them and they couldn’t add to first half strikes from Gary McDonald, Laura Gilogly and Martyn Sullivan . Worse was Gilogly pulling a hamstring midway through the second half, which would mean 3 weeks at least on the sidelines.

Young David McMillan did his chances of a move to Livingston the world of good from George’s point of view after his shocking performance that gave the youngster a record of 10 conceded in 3 competitive games this season. He needed to get better and fast.

Sadly though, after a week of electing against renewing loan contracts on Van der Ham and Campbell ( both foreigners and both had little impact ) on pitch results deteriorated further with a 3-0 home deficit to struggling Montrose , something that the fans weren’t too happy with – it was tough for George now dealing with a new level of expectation following the bright start.

At least John Doolan returned to sign an extension on his loan deal from Barnet until March. The midfielder, despite not being Scottish had been important in George’s early season floury.

Still even that good news couldn’t lift George after his side proceeded to lose 2-0 to high flying Cowdenbeath the following weekend. Although the side were still comfortably in mid table, he still felt a sense of underachievement despite it being only the clubs second season in Division 3. The run of defeats played on his mind a little, subsided by Jamie McAllister extending his loan spell until March. That had worried him for a while. Aberdeen scouts had been attending Fort William games recently, when young Jamie had put in some terrific performances. He was sure the lad could cope with a much higher level of football but all the same he was glad Aberdeen were willing to let him stay on.

An utterly miserable November ended with a 3-1 home defeat to bottom club Peterhead on the 24th . Despite McDonald equalizing in the first half, the Fort William defence opened up as they conceded 2 sloppy second half goals, as the side slid into 6th place. Two injuries were also sustained in the process, Scott Sinclair tore a groin and would miss 3 months of action – therefore making more economic sense to cancel his loan deal which ended in February anyway, and midfielder Martyn Sullivan picked up a calf strain – meaning a 1 month stay on the sidelines.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Scottish Third Division - Saturday 1st December 2001

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

2001/2 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Forfar 16 4 2 1 9 3 6 1 2 25 15 33

2nd Clydebank 16 5 3 0 10 3 4 2 2 15 11 32

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3rd Cowdenbeath 16 6 1 1 18 7 3 2 3 10 10 30

4th East Stirling 16 7 1 0 28 17 0 4 4 13 22 26

5th Montrose 16 4 1 3 15 12 2 0 6 5 8 19

6th Fort William 16 4 2 3 11 17 1 2 4 6 13 19

7th Dumbarton 16 5 1 2 16 12 0 1 7 3 16 17

8th East Fife 16 3 3 2 12 8 0 4 4 4 10 16

9th Albion Rovers 16 3 2 3 10 11 1 2 5 9 16 16

10th Peterhead 16 1 3 4 9 14 2 1 5 14 17 13

</pre>

[Terk]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>

I'm not sure how long the bubble will last though <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

not very long it would seem. four points from your last seven games is hardly promotion form at least the story is good

[Brian of Nazareth]

cheers, getting consistency is pretty hard at the moment but it's utterly good fun tryin

December began with an offer too tempting for George. Dunfermline were offering 70,000 pounds for young David McMillan . Perhaps the 21 year old would turn out alright, but George couldn’t count on that happening any time soon – plus the money would be welcomed by the board – perhaps even allowing him to sign a permanent replacement.

A trip to Albion Rovers steadied the ship a little as a 1-1 draw ended the run. John Doolan equalizing a James McLees penalty, hotly disputed by the so called perpetrator Colin Hill who had argued he played the ball first.

That game also saw the last of David McMillan who had been watching from the benches. He swiftly secured his big move with plenty of well-wishers saying goodbye to the ever polite, if somewhat rubbish goal keeper. George also noticed he had a wee outlay of 6000 pounds to work with in bringing in a replacement. It was a chance he was going to take advantage of.

Meanwhile to bolster the midfield, David Kerr returned one more to the side he had frequented for much of the previous season. He took an immediate role in the Scottish Second Round cup game with Clyde . A 2-1 defeat followed but Fort William had put up a magnificent effort against their superior hosts. Ian Gardiner scored his first club goal in the 70th minute to level the tie but George’s side couldn’t hold out as Clyde scored right at the death. The upshot was though at least legs weren’t worn down by extra time.

Behind the scenes George was trying to pull some strings to bring in a permanent man between the sticks. It seemed sadly as though no Scotts were currently interested. There weren’t even any aging 45 year olds without a club who were looking to Fort William. With a heavy heart George knew where he’d be looking – and began negotiations with Nuneaton Borough .

On the 11th December, shortly before John Filan departed for Argentina, Chris MacKenzie was unveiled as the clubs first cash purchase, arriving for the princely sum of 4000 pounds. George had tried to sign him earlier on a loan deal but Nuneaton had rejected initially. Now though, the conference side were in need of some funds, and looked to get Chris off their wagebill. The 29 year old would now have the chance to resurrect his career.

In Annual Retirement Week when footballers across the globe announce to their press their intent of leaving at the end of the summer, George was shocked to see 2 Fort William figures in the list. Ross McWilliam and Colin Hill were both quoted as saying they were too old for the game now and were looking forward to a peaceful life on the Isle of Skye. Colin’s decision at 38 was of no surprise but 31 year old Ross’ did raise a few eyebrows, especially considering the form he’d shown for Fort William.

The trip to Dumbarton only saw the losing streak return though in John Filan’s final game. The defeat also moved Fort William down into 7th as they began to move into familiar territory, something George was not happy with. He enjoyed being able to look over his shoulder and see teams scrapping below him and unless he changed styles soon Fort William would be propping up those scraps once again.

Boxing Day saw some seasonal cheer for Fort William fans as the club finally ended their winless streak – impressively away to table toppers Forfar . Having been massively outplayed at the beginning of the season and with a no win in 9 games, George had every right to be concerned, but a rare solid display by his defence coupled with an excellent debut from MacKenzie helped keep their weary opponents at bay. Their front line led by former England international Tony Cottee couldn’t find a way through and in the second half Scott Steele pounced on a loose ball to give the away side the lead, one they duly held on to for the remainder of the game to the delight of many.

Sadly New Year’s Eve did not see quite the result the club was hoping for as they slipped to an undeserved 1-0 home defeat to East Fife . All huff and no puff was again the order the day, before the players slinked off home to sip a few non alcoholic beverages. Well that’s what George had told them to have anyway.

[Brian of Nazareth]

January began very quietly with little in the way of action, so George began scouring various club lists and scout reports to see who might be interested in joining, be it now or in the summer. After a couple of intensive days Phil Cannie a 24 year old forward at Clyde became the first bosman signing, as he agreed to join Fort William instead of Dumbarton.

Before the away trip to Montrose, the only other note of interest was the renewal of Andy Collet’s loan deal from Darlington. For George it was becoming standard procedure, reviewing loan deals and was glad that this one went smoothly. He needed some cover and seeing as Andy cost nothing, he was only too happy to keep him on until May.

After which Danish midfielder Thomas Skjovberg agreed to move from Kidderminster Harriers in the summer too. These efforts sandwiched further attempts at brining in Scott MacKenzie and Andy Harris .

Furthermore Neil Tarrant that youngster who hit the headlines at Ross County a few years back had agreed to end his Aston Villa nightmare. Of course that meant 700,000 pounds in compensation but George was banking on the age old trick of canceling the deal at the eleventh hour and then resigning the lad once he had been released by his current club.

Such trickery clearly did not sit too well with Fate and a 2-1 defeat to Montrose followed, although Marc Williams was at last back on the goal trail, leveling after 24 minutes.

Leaving the club again was Alex Grace , the loanee from Dumbarton who had failed to impress enough to secure an extension. However given the lack of depth available to George he could receive a call back in the near future. His talent was so weak though, that GC was tempted to turn his attention to Barnet left winger Austin Berkely who was no stranger to short spells ,with no less than 6 different loaned clubs under his belt.

Fort William F.C. receded further with the loss of Gary McDonald . The forward departed to Dumbarton again who categorically refused to even negotiate a successive spell to George’s dismay. By way of replacement though, Elgin City allowed Jonathan Mitchell to arrive on a months loan, the young forward eager to snap up any chance to play football.

The players responded to the defeat to Montrose by putting in one of the performances of their careers at home to East Stirling. In a tough game, Fort William found themselves 2-0 down inside 15 minutes thanks to a cheating Jamie Spence, and doom and gloom seemed to set in around the Cameron Stadium.

Then though the match began to turn, inspired by a team spirit instilled by George, the boys began to slowly turn the match around. With 30 minutes gone it was 2-1 as Mass Sarr reduced the arrears and on the stroke of half time the stadium erupted as Marc Williams collected a Steele pass and buried the ball home. At 2-2 the momentum swung the other way and in the second half Mass Sarr again and John Doolan sealed an incredible victory to give George a 4-2 victory.

With his strikers back on form, George was able to smile a little more easier now, even Mitchell impressed in his brief run out towards the end. The next fixture wasn’t until February, a tricky encounter with Clydebank so for now, Fort William were safely in 8th , and he had time to try out new tactics ahead of the trip to the league leaders.

As January ended, George belatedly realized one minor tournament could scupper his attack – the African Nations tournament – of which Mass Sarr would no doubt play an integral part.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Scottish Third Division - Wednesday 30th January 2002

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

2001/2 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Clydebank 22 7 3 1 18 9 4 3 4 19 19 39

2nd Forfar 22 5 2 4 14 11 6 2 3 28 19 37

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3rd Cowdenbeath 22 8 2 1 26 12 3 2 6 11 14 37

4th East Stirling 22 8 1 1 34 23 1 4 7 23 35 32

5th Montrose 22 8 1 3 24 15 2 0 8 8 14 31

6th Albion Rovers 22 5 3 3 13 12 3 2 6 13 18 29

7th East Fife 22 4 5 2 15 10 2 4 5 7 12 27

8th Fort William 22 5 2 4 15 20 2 3 6 9 18 26

9th Peterhead 22 3 4 4 15 18 3 2 6 20 23 24

10th Dumbarton 22 6 2 3 19 15 0 3 8 7 21 23

================================================================================================

2001/2 Goals

================================================================================================

Pos Player Club Apps Gls

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Gary McDonald East Stirling 22 26

2nd Jerry O'Driscoll Montrose 18 (1) 12

3rd Gregor McKechnie East Stirling 20 11

4th Mike McKenzie Montrose 22 11

5th Scott Morrison Forfar 20 10

6th Graeme Brown Cowdenbeath 13 (5) 9

7th Marc Williams Fort William 16 (3) 8

8th James Allan Cowdenbeath 21 8

9th Alex Martin Albion Rovers 20 7

10th Willie Stewart Forfar 21 (1) 7

11th Tony Cottee Forfar 22 7

12th Barrie Moffat East Fife 22 7

13th Eddy Fal Clydebank 11 (4) 7

14th Mass Sarr Fort William 16 (2) 6

15th Andrew Cargill Forfar 18 (2) 6

16th Brian Hamilton Clydebank 21 6

17th Derek Ferguson Clydebank 20 6

18th Raphael Jacquin Clydebank 20 6

19th Ciaran Quinn East Stirling 18 5

20th Derek Smith Peterhead 22 5

21st Richard Livingstone Peterhead 5 (3) 5

22nd Jim McIntyre Reading 7 5

23rd Yannis Begue Albion Rovers 15 (1) 5

24th Paul McGrillen Dumbarton 13 5

25th Steven Hislop East Stirling 19 (1) 4

26th Brian McGinty Dumbarton 14 (4) 4

27th John Doolan Fort William 18 4

28th Martin Johnston Peterhead 17 (1) 4

29th David Craig Peterhead 20 4

30th James Spence East Stirling 5 (8) 4

================================================================================================

2001/2 Assists

================================================================================================

Pos Player Club Apps Asts

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Dougie Todd East Stirling 21 11

2nd David Young Montrose 22 8

3rd Steven Hislop East Stirling 19 (1) 7

4th Dean McPherson East Stirling 22 7

5th Scott Morrison Forfar 20 7

6th David Muirhead Montrose 22 7

7th David Elliot Dumbarton 22 6

8th Derek Ferguson Clydebank 20 6

9th Andrew Harrow Forfar 19 (1) 6

10th Ciaran Quinn East Stirling 18 5

11th Gregor McKechnie East Stirling 20 5

12th Ian Diack Albion Rovers 20 5

13th Kevin Tindal Peterhead 18 (3) 5

14th Roberto Morris Forfar 15 4

15th Scott Brown Peterhead 12 (2) 4

16th Alex Martin Albion Rovers 20 4

17th Andrew Cargill Forfar 18 (2) 4

18th John Doolan Fort William 18 4

19th Darren Kearney Cowdenbeath 18 4

20th Scott Steele Fort William 17 (2) 4

21st John Gallagher Cowdenbeath 17 (4) 4

22nd John Walker Clydebank 22 3

23rd David Sinclair Forfar 22 3

24th Brian Hamilton Clydebank 21 3

25th Murray Hunter East Fife 18 3

26th Gary McDonald East Stirling 22 3

27th Martin Mooney Dumbarton 22 3

28th Derek Smith Peterhead 22 3

29th Tony Cottee Forfar 22 3

30th Stuart Easton Clydebank 21 3

================================================================================================

2001/2 Average Rating

================================================================================================

Pos Player Club Apps Av R

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Gary McDonald East Stirling 22 8.14

2nd Scott Morrison Forfar 20 7.90

3rd Ciaran Quinn East Stirling 18 7.61

4th David Craig Peterhead 20 7.60

5th Barrie Moffat East Fife 22 7.59

6th Mark Wilson Cowdenbeath 19 7.58

7th Darren Kearney Cowdenbeath 18 7.50

8th Eddy Fal Clydebank 11 (4) 7.40

9th David Young Montrose 22 7.36

10th Gregor McKechnie East Stirling 20 7.35

11th John Doolan Fort William 18 7.33

12th Liam Keogh Clydebank 11 (1) 7.33

13th Tony Cottee Forfar 22 7.32

14th Derek Ferguson Clydebank 20 7.30

15th Raphael Jacquin Clydebank 20 7.30

16th Derek Smith Peterhead 22 7.23

17th Yannis Begue Albion Rovers 15 (1) 7.19

18th David Muirhead Montrose 22 7.18

19th Graeme Brown Cowdenbeath 13 (5) 7.17

20th Martin Johnston Peterhead 17 (1) 7.17

21st Martin Hamilton East Fife 13 7.15

22nd Scott Reilly Cowdenbeath 10 (3) 7.15

23rd Gary Fisken Cowdenbeath 21 7.14

24th Willie McCulloch East Fife 22 7.14

25th Roberto Morris Forfar 15 7.13

26th Kevin McBride Albion Rovers 14 (2) 7.13

27th Alex Martin Albion Rovers 20 7.10

28th William Burns Cowdenbeath 22 7.09

29th Dougie Todd East Stirling 21 7.05

30th John Walker Clydebank 22 7.05

</pre>

[Terk]

the foot of the table awaits

[Brian of Nazareth]

--

February arrived, and with a sharp hit of freezing cold weather, as temperatures dropped as low as –18 in some parts and it must have affected the players somewhat as the match with Clyde was no pretty spectacle. Although Fort William lost 2-0 to the league leaders it didn’t reflect the balance of play as George had his team playing some solid sensible soccer on the field and it was only the misfiring boots of Jonathan Mitchell that stopped the away side from taking a point or all 3 from the clash.

To cheer himself up, plucky George decided to try and lure John O’Shea away from the pits of Manchester United reserve football up to the Scottish Third Division, but the Irishman cited differences of culture and language problems as a reason for not making the trek north of the border.

The lack of goal scorers in the side became quite obvious following the 0-0 draw with Cowdenbeath . The chances were there, they just couldn’t be converted and sadly with results against them, Fort William dropped to the bottom of the pack again, to the depression of George.

Soon after Andrew Thompson , a 30 year old Scot at Gillingham arrived on loan until the end of the season to provide a different outlet, and on his first appearance he grabbed the equalizer in the 1-1 home draw with Dumbarton . It was of no surprise to George that Dumbarton scored through a certain Gary McDonald . The reason for not letting him go again was quite apparent. Of irritation in the match though was the dismissal of Jamie McAllister only a minute after a Dumbarton player had received his marching orders and it would mean a 3 match suspension.

Monday 18th saw the arrivals of two loaned forwards. After Jonathan Mitchell’s ended, in came Wayne Gray from Dover and Jason White from Cheltenham . Sadly it also seemed though as if Mass Sarr had been getting friendly in Africa with some colleagues of other nations too and they’d all laughed mercilessly when he admitted to playing for Fort William. Since which he had decided he wanted to move to a bigger club. George rejected. Sarr asked again. George rejected. Sarr asked again. George rejected. Sarr asked again. George rejected. Sarr asked again. George rejected and finally Mass Sarr slammed the phone down muttering some incoherent curses.

So bottom of the table again, a 3 match suspension for his best loaned player and a passionate desire to leave the club from his most accomplished striker. Terrific.

Tuesday though brought a brighter out look for the future with the arrival of Kettering’s Duncan Goodwin and the bosman capture of a striker he’d been seeking all summer long regardless of his nationality. Leo Fortune West , the Cardiff City reject was moving in July. Another player of proven caliber at least.

Back in action again on the 20th and a home clash with Forfar . The game ended all square at 1-1 although for much of the game it seemed as though another defeat was on the cards until Jason White, came off the bench, replacing Mass Sarr, scored in the 87th minute with a diving header to push the Fort up into 9th place in the table.

Whilst waiting for the next against Peterhead to arrive, George really couldn’t help but notice the headlines in the papers concerning Alex Ferguson’s resignation from the post of manager at Manchester United after they were 5th in the table, behind talented teams such as Sunderland and Southampton, not to mention the great Tottenham Hotspurs. Still it would be interesting to see if the miserable git would find employment back north of the border again though.

[Brian of Nazareth]

March started in depressing fashion though with a 2-0 defeat to Peterhead that saw Fort William slip to 10th place out right, 2 points adrift, extending the winless streak to 5 games and George began to feel a headache arriving as to which inadequate strikers to stick up front.

Still it was funny to read of Joe Royle, formerly of Manchester City taking the reigns at Old Trafford to the consternation of many fans, and George had no problems securing an extension for John Doolan until the end of the season. Unfortunately it didn’t help as Fort William were resoundingly beaten 3-0 at home by Albion Rovers as that sinking feeling continued. Wayne Gray picked up a leg injury in the process, lengthy enough that it was worth canceling his loan deal.

George had been thinking of the phrase “ cream always rises to the top†when he created one especially for Fort William. “ Turd is always stuck at the bottom.†Both were quite apt. At the same time as that was entering his mind Laura Gilogly fed up of the mickey taking and awaiting a contract that was not forthcoming, he returned to East Stirling.

Which was probably a good move for him as he watched from the sidelines as East Stirling demolished Fort William 4-1, with Andrew Thompson grabbing the only goal in the first half. That match also signaled the end of Jamie McAllister’s spell at the club, at least for this season anyway as Aberdeen steadfastly refused their youngster to continue in the Third Division. Duncan Goodwin returned to Kettering without having played a game for Fort William and George was face down in a pint of McEwans, semi conscious of all the ranting from fans surrounding him.

The miserable run continued on the 23rd as Fort William entertained Clydebank , and although hopes were raised of a victory following Clint Hill’s first half strike, all hope of 3 points vanished 1 minute into the second half as Clydebank leveled and any hope of a point went up in smoke with 2 goals conceded around the 75 minute mark.

With 1 win in 17 games, George Cameron knew his job was trickier than he had imagined. The false dawn at the start of the season only served to herald more misery. He’d have to work hard in the summer for sure.

It was of no surprise to many at the club that March ended in a whimper away to East Fife . As soon as Barry Moffat had scored a 3rd minute goal there was only one winner in this game. Heads dropped, confidence was low and the home side didn’t even have to shift into second gear to secure a 3-0 win and it could have been even heavier.

[Brian of Nazareth]

April arrived and with it a pathetic attempt at a joke that didn’t raise a smile with George. Some anonymous individual had sent emails from clubs supposedly offering him quality players. Another one said he’d won the lottery.

Dave Kerr returned to Chester before the Montrose game and frankly George didn’t care. Few of his loan signings had really done enough to warrant extensions, he’d only offered them because he needed players.

Jimmy Gibson condemned Fort William to yet another home defeat with a second half penalty to give Montrose a 2-0 win and suddenly the complete lack of confidence became sorely obvious to everyone, including the rapidly declining crowds as George’s side began to firmly consolidate themselves as the worst league side in Scotland.

Against Cowdenbeath a respite arrived in the form of a 0-0 draw as the barren pointless streak had ended. It was in all fairness one Fort William fully deserved and were it not for a combination of good keeping and poor finishing, might have resulted in an even better result. George had employed a more attacking approach in a “we don’t care anymore, we’re going for goals†style approach in the hope that it would boost some confidence and chances were indeed created, although Mass Sarr and Andrew Thompson couldn’t convert.

Soon after as Jason White left, his loan expired, Chris Hay recently released by Huddersfield agreed to join on a free transfer in the summer. The Scot would add some much needed firepower. With that, George elected to get rid of Mass Sarr , seeing as he had to anyway at some point if he was to ever recreate the Scottish Dream.

Listed on the 20th Mass Sarr was put in the side to face Peterhead in a game that could see Fort William overtake their opponents in the league. The aftermath statistics will show this was a game that was high in entertainment with chances a plenty, and Fort William out edged their opponents with 12 shots hit goal boand to Peterhead’s 8. Sadly though, and of more importance to George, Peterhead won it 3-1. The goals arrived in an exciting opening half hour. Where Andrew Thompson gave Fort William the lead in the 9th minute, yet it lasted mere seconds as Martin Johnson instantly equalized. He soon doubled his side’s tally 5 minutes later and 12 minutes after that goal he set up Derek Thompson for the 3rd and final goal. A second half saw a home side onslaught but again nothing materialized and left Fort William 4 points adrift with 2 games remaining. Bruce Morrison also decided to burn in his hand in a domestic cooking accident, which saw his flat burn down, and he’d miss the end of the season.

The huge disappointment of Saturday was soon replaced by the thoughts of bringing some money into the club by the sale of Mass Sarr . Bids arrived from Stirling, Emley and Hednesford Town to the tune of 10,000 pounds. Negotiations continued and eventually he decided to join Stirling for the princely sum of 20,000 pounds.

April ended with a trip to Forfar in a game where no one expected the club to do well. With Forfar needing just a point to secure promotion it was always going to be a long afternoon. However it was one that almost saw a miraculous win for George’s side only to be denied by that smug bàstard Tony Cottee.

After a quiet opening exchange, it was Andrew Thompson who forced the opening goal on 35 minutes and the fans, still clinging to optimism where thinking “ Can We?!†5 minutes after the break – Andrew Harrow equalized and the fans were thinking “Bugger†once more. However to the teams eternal credit, George watched on as departing Liberian Mass Sarr , content at securing his move for the club decided to score another goal for his club as he fired in 77th minute strike from a Scott Steele corner. Victory was in sight and fans hopes were raised – until the 90th minute. When Tony Cottee scored. The git.

However it was yet another point on the scoreboard, and although they couldn’t catch Peterhead it was pleasing for George to see character still abundant in the team. Somewhat against his better thoughts, he lured Englishman Austin Berkely from Barnet, despite offering the worst wages available to him.

[Brian of Nazareth]

May arrived at last and the end of the season was in sight, players and staff alike were imagining their holidays in such wonderful places like “Anywhere But Here†and “Not in F*cking Fort Williamâ€. However there was one final league game to play away to Dumbarton who were also 6 points ahead of Fort William.

For many players it was their last game for Fort William as they were either retiring, moving on or returning to their clbs so George was hoping they would leave something memorable behind, at least for the fans sake. 2-0 down in 3 minutes is certainly memorable, although it wasn’t quite what many were hoping for.

Still credit to the players who fought back and prolific loan forward Andrew Thompson brought the gamer back to life on 30 minutes before Martyn Sullivan had a goal disallowed on the half time whistle. With the momentum turning it was surely Fort William’s chance to end the season on a brighter note and perhaps pick up a point. Son 46 minutes they conceded another one. 3-1 was the final score and the butt of Scotland jokes were about to start all over again…

Fort William Club Stats

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

Fort William - Sunday 5th May 2002

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

Squad

================================================================================================

No Name Position(s) Nat Born Age Caps Gls Wages Expires Value

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Burns, Gordon M C SCO 2.12.78 23 - - £45 12.6.04 £1K

- Clark, Brian D/DM RC SCO 3.1.82 20 - - £65 28.6.03 £4K

- Collett, Andy GK ENG 28.10.73 28 - - £0 7.5.02 £10K

- Doolan, John DM C ENG 7.5.74 27 - - £230 7.5.02 £16K

- Duncan, Peter D L SCO 7.5.80 21 - - £150 21.6.03 £8K

- Dyer, Peter AM RL ENG 6.9.82 19 - - £65 28.6.03 £2K

- Gardiner, Ian D L SCO 9.9.83 18 - - £130 25.6.04 £2K

- Hill, Colin D C NIR 13.11.63 38 27 1 £200 28.6.04 £1K

- MacKenzie, Chris GK ENG 14.5.72 29 - - £200 9.6.04 £5K

- McWilliam, Ross D/AM/F RC SCO 13.3.70 32 - - £90 11.6.04 £3K

- Moore, Gary D R SCO 5.8.80 21 - - £60 15.6.03 £1K

- Morrison, Bruce D C SCO 8.5.74 27 - - £200 12.6.03 £4K

- Sarr, Mass F LC LBR 6.2.73 29 47 - £160 31.5.04 £20K

- Steele, Scott M L SCO 19.9.71 30 - - £90 1.6.05 £1K

- Sullivan, Martyn AM R ENG 13.11.75 26 - - £90 23.6.05 £1K

- Thomson, Andrew S C SCO 1.4.71 31 - - £210 10.5.02 £20K

- Williams, Marc S C WAL 1.6.73 28 - - £200 11.6.05 £6K

================================================================================================

2001/2 Senior Club Stats

================================================================================================

No Name Apps Gls Con Pens Asts Yel Red MoM Av R

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Burns, Gordon 11 (2) 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 6.62

- Clark, Brian 36 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 6.14

- Collett, Andy 1 (2) 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 7.00

- Doolan, John 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.89

- Duncan, Peter 11 (5) 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 6.56

- Dyer, Peter 5 (4) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.22

- Gardiner, Ian 6 (5) 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 6.36

- Hill, Colin 25 (11) 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 5.75

- MacKenzie, Chris 17 0 29 0 0 0 0 3 6.65

- McWilliam, Ross 28 (3) 1 0 0 2 3 0 0 6.42

- Moore, Gary 4 (3) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00

- Morrison, Bruce 34 (1) 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 6.26

- Sarr, Mass 22 (9) 9 0 0 1 1 0 2 6.87

- Steele, Scott 32 (3) 1 0 0 6 0 0 0 6.06

- Sullivan, Martyn 30 (1) 1 0 0 4 1 0 1 6.32

- Thomson, Andrew 9 (1) 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.70

- Williams, Marc 28 (6) 9 0 0 3 0 0 2 6.65

================================================================================================

2001/2 Transfers

================================================================================================

Date Player In From Fee

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

2.6.01 Scott Steele Woking Bos

16.6.01 Ross McWilliam Montrose Free

29.6.01 Marc Williams York Bos

2.7.01 Colin Hill Free Transfer Free

8.7.01 Tom Van Der Ham Stirling Loan

8.7.01 Delton Francis Nuneaton Borough Loan

8.7.01 John Doolan Barnet Loan

8.7.01 Neil Campbell Doncaster Loan

8.7.01 Steve Dickinson Southport Loan

12.7.01 John Filan Free Transfer Free

16.7.01 Bruce Morrison Peterhead Free

17.7.01 Jamie McAllister Aberdeen Loan

7.8.01 Ashley Wooliscroft Free Transfer Free

21.8.01 Gary Moore Free Transfer Free

7.9.01 Andy Collett Darlington Loan

13.10.01 Laura Gilogly East Stirling Loan

13.10.01 Scott Sinclair Stirling Loan

13.10.01 Alex Grace Dumbarton Loan

13.10.01 Gary McDonald Dumbarton Loan

16.10.01 Gordon Burns Free Transfer Free

8.11.01 John Doolan Barnet Loan

17.11.01 Jamie McAllister Aberdeen Loan

3.12.01 David Kerr Chester Loan

11.12.01 Chris MacKenzie Nuneaton Borough £4K

8.1.02 Andy Collett Darlington Loan

16.1.02 Jonathan Mitchell Elgin City Loan

11.2.02 Andrew Thomson Gillingham Loan

19.2.02 Wayne Gray Dover Loan

19.2.02 Jason White Cheltenham Loan

19.2.02 Duncan Goodwin Kettering Loan

9.3.02 John Doolan Barnet Loan

Date Player Out To Fee

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

18.6.01 Dave Carroll Released Free

15.8.01 Gary Moore Released Free

6.10.01 Ashley Wooliscroft Released Free

2.12.01 David McMillan Dunfermline £70K

17.12.01 John Filan Talleres Bos

================================================================================================

2001/2 Fixtures

================================================================================================

Date Opposition Ven Competition Res Attend Scorers

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

13.7.01 Armadale H Friendly 2:2 268 Williams, Campbell

16.7.01 Bromsgrove Rovers ENG H Friendly 2:2 1057 Campbell, Sullivan

19.7.01 The Spartans H Friendly 2:0 247 Francis, McWilliam

28.7.01 Queen's Park H League Cup 1st Rnd 1:2 2052 Sarr

4.8.01 Albion Rovers A Third Division 0:0 834

7.8.01 Clyde A Challenge Cup 1st Rnd 2:3 454 Sarr, Williams

11.8.01 East Fife H Third Division 1:0 1704 Williams

19.8.01 Clydebank A Third Division 0:0 1696

25.8.01 East Stirling H Third Division 2:2 999 Williams, Sarr

1.9.01 Peterhead A Third Division 3:0 897 Williams, Sarr 2

8.9.01 Cowdenbeath H Third Division 2:1 997 Williams, Doolan

15.9.01 Montrose A Third Division 0:3 1101

22.9.01 Forfar H Third Division 0:5 961

29.9.01 Dumbarton H Third Division 1:0 1659 Williams

13.10.01 Albion Rovers H Third Division 2:1 955 Williams, McWilliam

20.10.01 East Fife A Third Division 0:3 800

27.10.01 Clydebank H Third Division 2:2 1208 Sarr, Doolan

3.11.01 East Stirling A Third Division 3:5 741 G.McDonald, Gilogly pen, Sullivan

10.11.01 Montrose H Third Division 0:3 1232

17.11.01 Cowdenbeath A Third Division 0:2 676

24.11.01 Peterhead H Third Division 1:3 1017 G.McDonald

1.12.01 Albion Rovers A Third Division 1:1 838 Doolan

8.12.01 Clyde A Scottish Cup 1st Rnd 1:2 680 I.Gardiner

15.12.01 Dumbarton A Third Division 0:2 847

26.12.01 Forfar A Third Division 1:0 1816 Steele

31.12.01 East Fife H Third Division 0:1 1331

12.1.02 Montrose A Third Division 1:2 1121 Williams

19.1.02 East Stirling H Third Division 4:2 981 Sarr 2, Doolan, Williams

2.2.02 Clydebank A Third Division 0:2 1654

9.2.02 Cowdenbeath H Third Division 0:0 1216

16.2.02 Dumbarton H Third Division 1:1 1636 Thomson

23.2.02 Forfar H Third Division 1:1 975 White

2.3.02 Peterhead A Third Division 0:2 597

9.3.02 Albion Rovers H Third Division 0:3 993

16.3.02 East Stirling A Third Division 1:4 513 Thomson

23.3.02 Clydebank H Third Division 1:3 1230 Hill

30.3.02 East Fife A Third Division 0:3 750

6.4.02 Montrose H Third Division 0:2 1229

13.4.02 Cowdenbeath A Third Division 0:0 1151

20.4.02 Peterhead H Third Division 1:3 1028 A.Thomson

27.4.02 Forfar A Third Division 2:2 1188 Thomson, Sarr

4.5.02 Dumbarton A Third Division 1:3 575 Thomson

</pre>

Fans Player of the Year

Manager’s Player of the Year – Marc Williams

Scottish Third Division Stats

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

***********************************************************************************************

Scottish Third Division - Sunday 5th May 2002

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

2001/2 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st C Clydebank 36 9 5 4 28 18 9 4 5 29 22 63

2nd P Montrose 36 11 2 5 37 20 9 0 9 20 18 62

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3rd Forfar 36 10 3 5 30 18 8 4 6 40 29 61

4th Cowdenbeath 36 10 5 3 34 19 5 5 8 22 25 55

5th Albion Rovers 36 8 5 5 25 18 7 2 9 23 28 52

6th East Stirling 36 12 3 3 52 40 2 6 10 33 49 51

7th East Fife 36 8 5 5 26 18 3 7 8 15 27 45

8th Peterhead 36 6 5 7 29 31 5 2 11 31 42 40

9th Dumbarton 36 11 2 5 33 23 0 5 13 12 39 40

10th Fort William 36 5 5 8 19 33 2 5 11 13 34 31

================================================================================================

2001/2 Goals

================================================================================================

Pos Player Club Apps Gls

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Gary McDonald East Stirling 36 37

2nd Jerry O'Driscoll Montrose 31 (1) 21

3rd Mike McKenzie Montrose 34 19

4th Gregor McKechnie East Stirling 33 16

5th Alex Martin Albion Rovers 34 15

6th Graeme Brown Cowdenbeath 24 (5) 14

7th Tony Cottee Forfar 36 14

8th Derek Smith Peterhead 36 13

9th Barrie Moffat East Fife 36 13

10th Willie Stewart Forfar 34 (1) 12

11th James Allan Cowdenbeath 35 12

12th Scott Morrison Forfar 34 12

13th Paul McGrillen Dumbarton 27 12

14th Brian Hamilton Clydebank 31 (2) 11

15th Martin Johnston Peterhead 29 (2) 11

16th Yannis Begue Albion Rovers 29 (1) 11

17th Andrew Cargill Forfar 31 (2) 10

18th Richard Livingstone Peterhead 19 (3) 9

19th Martin Hamilton East Fife 27 9

20th Marc Williams Fort William 26 (6) 8

21st Liam Keogh Clydebank 24 (1) 8

22nd Eddy Fal Clydebank 12 (8) 8

23rd Raphael Jacquin Clydebank 34 8

24th Mass Sarr Fort William 20 (8) 7

25th Ciaran Quinn East Stirling 25 7

26th Ian Rankin Albion Rovers 29 (2) 7

27th Liam Miller Cowdenbeath 21 6

28th Derek Ferguson Clydebank 28 6

29th Craig Lynes East Stirling 26 (2) 6

30th John Walker Clydebank 36 5

================================================================================================

2001/2 Assists

================================================================================================

Pos Player Club Apps Asts

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Dougie Todd East Stirling 35 16

2nd David Young Montrose 36 12

3rd Scott Morrison Forfar 34 12

4th David Elliot Dumbarton 36 10

5th Derek Ferguson Clydebank 28 10

6th Dean McPherson East Stirling 36 10

7th David Muirhead Montrose 34 10

8th Kevin Tindal Peterhead 30 (4) 10

9th Gregor McKechnie East Stirling 33 9

10th Andrew Harrow Forfar 33 (1) 9

11th Yannis Begue Albion Rovers 29 (1) 8

12th Ian Diack Albion Rovers 29 (4) 8

13th Roberto Morris Forfar 29 7

14th Derek Thomson Peterhead 19 7

15th Steven Hislop East Stirling 27 (2) 7

16th Raphael Jacquin Clydebank 34 7

17th Gary Fisken Cowdenbeath 35 7

18th Murray Hunter East Fife 32 6

19th Graeme Donald East Fife 34 6

20th Stuart Easton Clydebank 32 (1) 6

21st David Craig Peterhead 34 6

22nd John Gallagher Cowdenbeath 27 (8) 6

23rd Alex Martin Albion Rovers 34 5

24th Andrew Cargill Forfar 31 (2) 5

25th Ciaran Quinn East Stirling 25 5

26th Mike McKenzie Montrose 34 5

27th Scott Steele Fort William 31 (2) 5

28th James Spence East Stirling 16 (10) 5

29th James McKellar Montrose 28 (5) 5

30th Scott Brown Peterhead 16 (3) 4

================================================================================================

2001/2 Average Rating

================================================================================================

Pos Player Club Apps Av R

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Scott Morrison Forfar 34 7.94

2nd Gary McDonald East Stirling 36 7.92

3rd Liam Miller Cowdenbeath 21 7.62

4th Tony Cottee Forfar 36 7.53

5th Ciaran Quinn East Stirling 25 7.48

6th Mark Wilson Cowdenbeath 30 7.47

7th David Craig Peterhead 34 7.44

8th Derek Smith Peterhead 36 7.42

9th Darren Kearney Cowdenbeath 32 7.41

10th Barrie Moffat East Fife 36 7.39

11th Eddy Fal Clydebank 12 (8) 7.35

12th Derek Ferguson Clydebank 28 7.32

13th Raphael Jacquin Clydebank 34 7.29

14th Derek Thomson Peterhead 19 7.26

15th David Young Montrose 36 7.25

16th Martin Hamilton East Fife 27 7.22

17th Roberto Morris Forfar 29 7.21

18th Mike McKenzie Montrose 34 7.21

19th David Muirhead Montrose 34 7.21

20th Dougie Todd East Stirling 35 7.20

21st Liam Keogh Clydebank 24 (1) 7.20

22nd Gary Fisken Cowdenbeath 35 7.20

23rd Martin Johnston Peterhead 29 (2) 7.19

24th Gregor McKechnie East Stirling 33 7.18

25th John Doolan Fort William 31 7.16

26th Jerry O'Driscoll Montrose 31 (1) 7.16

27th Richard Livingstone Peterhead 19 (3) 7.14

28th Yannis Begue Albion Rovers 29 (1) 7.13

29th Alex Martin Albion Rovers 34 7.12

30th Scott Reilly Cowdenbeath 17 (3) 7.10

================================================================================================

2001/2 Man of Match

================================================================================================

Pos Player Club Apps MoM

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Gary McDonald East Stirling 36 8

2nd Alex Martin Albion Rovers 34 7

3rd Barrie Moffat East Fife 36 7

4th Tony Cottee Forfar 36 6

5th Scott Morrison Forfar 34 6

6th Mark Wilson Cowdenbeath 30 5

7th Mike McKenzie Montrose 34 5

8th David Craig Peterhead 34 5

9th Derek Smith Peterhead 36 4

10th Stephen O'Donnell Dumbarton 20 (3) 4

11th Axel Wingård East Fife 35 4

12th Liam Miller Cowdenbeath 21 3

13th David Young Montrose 36 3

14th David Stewart Dumbarton 34 3

15th Kevin McBride Albion Rovers 23 (5) 3

16th Brian McGinty Dumbarton 26 (5) 3

17th Ciaran Quinn East Stirling 25 3

18th Derek Ferguson Clydebank 28 3

19th Chris MacKenzie Fort William 17 3

20th David Muirhead Montrose 34 3

21st Martin Hamilton East Fife 27 3

22nd Raphael Jacquin Clydebank 34 3

23rd Jerry O'Driscoll Montrose 31 (1) 3

24th Willie McCulloch East Fife 36 3

25th John Gallagher Cowdenbeath 27 (8) 3

26th Marc Williams Fort William 26 (6) 2

27th Mass Sarr Fort William 20 (8) 2

28th David Sinclair Forfar 36 2

29th David Elliot Dumbarton 36 2

30th James Allan Cowdenbeath 35 2

</pre>

Third Division Manager of the Year - Alex Caldwell (Clydebank)

[Brian of Nazareth]

Other Scottish Leagues / Cups / Awards

Scottish Premier Division

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Scottish Premier Division - Tuesday 21st May 2002

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

2001/2 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st C Rangers 38 17 1 1 62 4 12 6 1 47 21 94

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2nd Celtic 38 14 5 0 46 10 10 5 4 30 21 82

3rd Dundee 38 12 1 6 38 21 8 4 7 19 27 65

4th Aberdeen 38 10 4 6 25 16 6 4 8 18 31 56

5th Dundee Utd 38 7 6 6 26 21 8 4 7 24 24 55

6th Hearts 38 9 3 7 32 25 5 3 11 19 38 48

7th Ayr Utd 38 12 4 3 22 10 2 7 10 17 35 53

8th St. Johnstone 38 11 0 8 33 32 5 1 13 9 30 49

9th Hibs 38 5 8 5 31 31 5 6 9 25 34 44

10th Kilmarnock 38 9 2 8 28 25 2 1 16 10 37 36

11th St. Mirren 38 7 3 8 20 24 1 3 16 16 45 30

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

12th R Motherwell 38 4 7 9 20 27 3 0 15 12 40 28

</pre>

Manager of the Year Dick Advocaat Rangers

Top Scorer Hakim Sar Temseney Hibs

Scottish First Division

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Scottish First Division - Tuesday 21st May 2002

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

2001/2 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st C Falkirk 36 11 6 1 30 14 7 6 5 31 22 66

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2nd Livingston 36 10 5 3 26 15 6 8 4 24 23 61

3rd Dunfermline 36 9 3 6 36 28 8 3 7 27 25 57

4th Airdrie 36 9 4 5 24 15 5 6 7 21 23 52

5th Inverness C. Thistle 36 8 5 5 25 23 5 4 9 26 33 48

6th Ross County 36 8 5 5 31 25 4 5 9 23 31 46

7th Partick Thistle 36 8 6 4 25 20 3 4 11 18 30 43

8th Morton 36 5 7 6 27 33 4 7 7 18 29 41

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

9th R Raith Rovers 36 5 3 10 22 30 5 5 8 22 26 38

10th R Queen of Sth 36 6 8 4 23 19 2 4 12 12 27 36

</pre>

Manager of the Year Alex Totten Falkirk

Top Scorer Mark Roberts Falkirk

---

Scottish Second Division:

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Scottish Second Division - Tuesday 21st May 2002

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

2001/2 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st C Clyde 36 13 2 3 38 19 7 3 8 26 33 65

2nd P Queen's Park 36 9 6 3 29 19 7 7 4 25 23 61

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3rd Elgin City 36 9 7 2 36 22 6 2 10 28 39 54

4th Stirling 36 8 4 6 30 27 6 4 8 25 23 50

5th Brechin 36 8 6 4 23 13 3 8 7 17 21 47

6th Stenhousemuir 36 9 4 5 25 16 4 3 11 16 29 46

7th Alloa 36 7 4 7 32 29 4 7 7 28 34 44

8th Stranraer 36 8 5 5 34 26 4 3 11 20 31 44

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

9th R Berwick 36 7 7 4 20 17 2 7 9 9 24 41

10th R Arbroath 36 8 5 5 29 23 1 6 11 17 39 38

</pre>

Manager of the Year Alan Maitland Clyde

Top Scorer Ross Hamilton Alloa

Scottish Cup:

St. Mirren 1 Dundee 0 McKnight 16. (1-0)

Scottish League Cup:

Hearts 3 Rangers 0 Quitongo 18 (1-0), Naysmith 59 (2-0), Graham 65 (3-0)

Scottish League Challenge Cup:

Dunfermline 3 Clyde 2 Bullen 3(1-0), Moss 23 (2-0), Tod 43 (3-0), Henderson 44 (3-1), McPherson pen 83 (3-2),

Scottish Player of the Year 2001-2002

Michael Mols Rangers 40 games, 21 goals, 18 assists 11 MoM

Scottish Young Player of the Year

Hakim Sar Temseny Hibs 41 games, 26 goals, 6 assists, 6 MoM [/i]

Scottish Top Goalscorer Award

Gary McDonald East Stirling 40 games 39 goals

Other Awards/ Titles

European Champions Cup

Barcelona 3 Milan 1 Rui Costa 12, (1-0), Serginho 33, (1-1), Kluivert 45, (2-1), 65 (3-1)

UEFA Cup

Chelsea 2 Fiorentina 0 Flo pen 23 (1-0), Stanic 41 (2-0)

[Brian of Nazareth]

Close Season – Pre Season, May –June

With a lack of players apparent, George began work on an intensive reconstruction of his squad. Scottish was the priority but he still badly needed more than anything to create a side capable of going places, and ultimately it was that latter goal which took precedence over nationality.

As a result, in came Richard Walker and Matthew Glennon of Aston Villa and Bolton .

It seemed though as if the Fort William board were latching on to the squad depth issues surrounding our squad and sadly managed to resist the 20,000 deal for Mass Sarr citing our tiny team as the reason – the irritating thing being that replacements had already been agreed and were coming as soon as their contracts expired. Sometimes George really did wonder about the intelligence of certain people. The same board who’s delight for his reign had lessened somewhat after he’d tried to sell an international.

Still, he consoled himself with the thought that with the arrivals of Leo Fortune West and co. the board might have a change of heart and realize uncommitted players do not take a club forward. On the sly though a deal was arranged, albeit for a lesser 10,000 pounds, ( nice economical thinking there from the board ) with Belgian side KFC Dessel Sport , although the deal was put on hold for a week to allow the board to come round to the senses, and to enable a few players to come in and bolster the squard permanently like Glennon and David Kerr on free transfers.

On Friday 14th though as World Cup fever began to hit the streets, with Scotland involved in a tough group against Spain, Nigeria and South Korea, Mass Sarr finally left the ranks to move to Belgium and quietly Richard Walker stepped into the ground permanently.

In the far east though the British Isles was heavily involved as both England and Wales had also qualified, Wales miraculously winning their final 4 qualifying games to go through. They faced Denmark, Canada and Germany whilst England were up against Columbia Italy and Mexico, not that George particularly cared for those two mind.

Sadly for Scotland the campaign started badly with a 3-0 loss to Nigeria, thanks largely to the 5th minute dismissal of Dominic Matteo, the pretender, whilst Spain and South Korea were tied 0-0 in the other game.

Sat back in his armchair, computer on the one hand, McEwan’s in the other and Scotland versus South Korea on the television, George was relaxing as he learnt that all the clubs had accepted friendly invites for the summer, whilst Austin Berkely had finally arrived on a free deal. He was shocked to learn that Alan Reid the Scottish youngster released by Hibs had sauffered damaged ligaments in training and would be out for 10 months, even more puzzling was that he clearly wasn’t assigned to any club at the time.

Back on the box though George was smiling as Jim Paterson [//b] and Billy Dodds scored twice early on to secure an important victory whilst Spain and Nigeria were tied 2-2 to keep Scotland in with a chance, one George was certain they’d take.

The final showdown match was highly hyped up in the press. Rivals England and Wales had qualified, Wales miraculously with just 1 win, and now the pressure was on Scotland to join them. Before the match kicked off though, George sent off a sneaky email applying for the Sweden job. Painfully though a 0-0 draw knocked Scotland out by the merest of margins, and George was off to the Whisky Store at the end of the high street for a drop of Glen Nevis.

Spending the rest of the day wondering how the heck Wales beat Uruguay and whether Ayr United would be the latest club to go bust, George welcomed Phil Cannie from Clyde and remembered to cancel Tarrant’s deal too .Hopefully the fool wouldn’t sign an extension, but then again there’s only so much you can expect from someone from England.

[Brian of Nazareth]

July began with the arrival of Danish midfielder Thomas Skovjberg from Kidderminster and George realized that at last the squad before him was actually able to sustain itself! Marc Williams was doing extra laps though in pre season for having the cheek to gloat about his country’s exploits, even if Argentina did defeat them in the quarter finals. That made George realize how important it was to get some pride back into the team.

Neil Tarrant was contacted again with another contract offer after York and Radcliffe Borough had got in contact too. George was never going to pay the compensation, but eventually the middle England side would release him and the signing could be completed.

As July continued a pre-season trip to Selkirk dawned and George had the first chance to see what his players could do, and a 2-0 defeat was the result. More defenders suddenly became the priority as aging striker Gordon Durie became fed up of watching from the sidelines and joined on a free. Tarrant though, clearly scared off by the competition at the Cameron Stadium joined Falkirk instead a club with money and talent.

The next on field challenge was another tricky tie as George experimented with a 442 and a 4132 formation, although it was clear the latter wasn’t applicable for his side as they lost 4-2, with Brian Clark and David Kerr the scorers. Unfortunately it didn’t stop the English contingent celebrating England’s 3rd placed victory over Italy at the World Cup.

Whilst Fort William lost 1-0 to Arbroath on the 20th, George found it amusing to note that Neil Tarrant had rejected Falkirks offer of a dealy on the transfer. Clearly another club eager to save a few pennies. However after the latest friendly defeat, George knew he needed central defenders and fast.

As July laboured towards its end two former loanees of George’s first season were back again on loan to support the defence. John Robertson of Oxford United and Craig Brittain were back available. Dunfermline then tried their luck with a 3000 pound bid for Brian Clark , the resident right back who could play at centre half too. Given that he was a rare defender on the books, George was not willing to lose him cheaply, and upped the bid to 70,000 pounds.

Unfortunately that irritated Brian Clark who soon handed in a transfer request, once Dunfermline withdrew. That was followed by the least convincing 0-0 draw seen against the mighty Gala Fairydean and Fort William had suffered a pretty appalling pre-season.

That was the pre-season over with and George was just a little on the worried side. There was a notable imbalance in players to positions.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Fort William - Saturday 3rd August 2002

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

Squad

================================================================================================

No Name Position(s) Nat Born Age Caps Gls Wages Expires Value

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Berkley, Austin AM L ENG 28.1.73 29 - - £190 25.6.05 £9K

- Brittain, Craig D C SCO 10.1.74 28 - - £0 24.8.02 £4K

- Burns, Gordon M C SCO 2.12.78 23 - - £45 12.6.04 £1K

- Cannie, Phil F RC SCO 7.7.77 25 - - £140 2.6.05 £14K

- Clark, Brian D/DM RC SCO 3.1.82 20 - - £65 28.6.03 £3K

- Duncan, Peter D L SCO 7.5.80 22 - - £150 21.6.03 £10K

- Durie, Gordon S C SCO 6.12.65 36 43 7 £275 4.6.05 £5K

- Dyer, Peter AM RL ENG 6.9.82 19 - - £65 28.6.03 £2K

- Fortune-West, Leo S C ENG 9.4.71 31 - - £300 14.6.05 £6K

- Gardiner, Ian D L SCO 9.9.83 18 - - £130 25.6.04 £2K

- Glennon, Matthew GK ENG 8.10.73 28 - - £130 22.6.06 £2K

- Hay, Chris S C SCO 28.8.74 27 - - £180 10.6.06 £26K

- Kerr, David M C SCO 6.9.74 27 - - £190 5.6.06 £7K

- MacKenzie, Chris GK ENG 14.5.72 30 - - £200 9.6.04 £5K

- Moore, Gary D R SCO 5.8.80 21 - - £60 15.6.03 £1K

- Morrison, Bruce D C SCO 8.5.74 28 - - £200 12.6.03 £4K

- Robertson, John D RC SCO 28.3.76 26 - - £120 24.11.02 £14K

- Skovbjerg, Thomas AM R DEN 25.10.74 27 - - £300 5.6.05 £10K

- Steele, Scott M L SCO 19.9.71 30 - - £90 1.6.05 £2K

- Sullivan, Martyn AM R ENG 13.11.75 26 - - £90 23.6.05 £2K

- Walker, Richard F L ENG 8.11.77 24 - - £275 28.6.06 £5K

- Williams, Marc S C WAL 1.6.73 29 - - £200 11.6.05 £5K

================================================================================================

2002/3 Transfers

================================================================================================

Date Player In From Fee

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

2.6.02 Chris Hay Free Transfer Bos

5.6.02 Leo Fortune-West Cardiff Bos

8.6.02 Matthew Glennon Bolton Bos

10.6.02 David Kerr Free Transfer Free

14.6.02 Richard Walker Aston Villa Bos

24.6.02 Austin Berkley Barnet Bos

1.7.02 Phil Cannie Clyde Bos

2.7.02 Thomas Skovbjerg Kidderminster Bos

8.7.02 Gordon Durie Free Transfer Free

25.7.02 Craig Brittain Dumbarton Loan

25.7.02 John Robertson Oxford Loan

Date Player Out To Fee

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

14.6.02 Mass Sarr Dessel £10K

================================================================================================

2002/3 Fixtures

================================================================================================

Date Opposition Ven Competition Res Attend Scorers

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

7.7.02 Selkirk A Friendly 0:2 312

13.7.02 Elgin City H Friendly 2:4 741 Clark, Kerr

20.7.02 Arbroath H Friendly 0:1 565

31.7.02 Gala Fairydean H Friendly 0:0 555

</pre>

[Terk]

yay! i was right.

or should that be

i was right.

hopefully this year can prove to be a bit better, although the pre-season results don't look entirely promising. good luck as always though

[Brian of Nazareth]

cheers I'm realising slowly how much longer this challenge is going to take

--

Season 2002-2003 Fort William

August arrived and it started with a League Cup trip to Greenock Morton of the first division. Fort William were a credit and for strong periods held firm against their opponents and in fact took the lead through Austin Berkeley , and went in at the half level at 2-2 thanks to a second equalizer from Bruce Morrison on for the typically injured Robertson . Sadly though they coulnd’t maintain the pressure in the second half and fell away a bit eventually losing 5-2, a scoreline which was unflattering of the efforts put in by the away side.

The first league game of the season started away to Forfar on the tenth, a team who had looked likely to go up last season for so long until fading hear the end. The first half onslaught looked as though that failure had irritated them big time and George was praying his side could hang on. So Fort William took a half a time lead thanks to Marc Williams opening his account for the season. George, like many others were shocked. 10 minutes after the re start and it was 2-0 as Leo Fortune West grabbed a second goal! Chris MacKenzie then produced a man of the match display between the sticks as remarkably Fort William held their lead until the final whistle.

George though celebrated quietly. Such a start to the season had been noted before, and it and ended fairly dismally though. This time however he did count on the fact that more permanent squad members would help create stability in the ranks.

A Challenge Cup game away to Stenhousemuir was soon upon the team though, and frankly George couldn’t care less about this Cup. It only served to tire an already weak squad so changes were made and the team lost 2-1, albeit in extra time. Craig Brittain had given Fort William a shock lead but the home side soon leveled and secured the winning goal in the 118th minute.

At the weekend it was a home game with Peterhead and this time the lack of finishing that had affected Forfar on the opening day, cost Fort William as they suffered a 2-0 defeat, putting in a rather tired performance, carrying effects from the Challenge Cup in midweek. Still, thought George, no-one\s going to get carried away this season round.

A boost though that evening was that John Doolan , the midfielder who’d given so much last time round, agreed to join on loan once more to solidify the middle of the team, sadly though a bid for Montrose’ defender Martin Black fell through as they accepted Peterhead’s bid but not Fort Williams. George was a little peeved.

Proving that traveling was good for the soul, George was happy to pick up another 3 points from Cowdenbeath thanks to a first half injury time effort from Marc Williams . The game had been tight but it took one lapse in judgment to allow a breakthrough. The result again though posed the question as to why Fort William are better away from home?

Unfortunately though moves to replace Brittain in defense failed to come to fruition. The loanee stubbornly refused to return to the side once his month had expired, and other clubs were just as petulant with regards to allowing George to take their ‘available for loan’ players on loan. George began playing out conspiracy theories in his head for most of the following couple of days.

The bizarrely poor home form continued right until the final day of Agust as Fort William were sunk 2-1 by Albion Rovers , the suck punch arriving in the final minute. In truth they had deserved the win after creating the chances and playing the better football, but when Thomas Skjovberg had given the home team a 77th minute lead, fans could be mistaken for thinking that the luck was about to change. Sadly the lead lasted only 2 minutes and a fired up Albion soon took the 3 points right at the end.

Still George consoled himself by watching Scotland defeat Israel 2-0 in the European Qualifiers , before nicely trouncing Azerbaijan 5-0 in their own backyard.

[Brian of Nazareth]

September

Back to the Third Division though and George was pleased to see his side’s excellent away record continue as they defeated Arbroath 2-0 in a game they had thoroughly deserved. After losing the friendly, Fort William traveled to Gayfield with one thing on their minds and thanks to John Doolan and substitute Leo Fortune West they got it.

A home tie with East Stirling was next and George was content to take a draw from the game’s play. It ended their losing streak at Cameron’s and stopped journalists inquiring into the losing at home sequence. Gregor McKechnie had given the away side the lead before Leo Fortune West grabbed another timely goal to pick up a point for Fort William. It still knarled George that both of his best strikers weren’t Scottish. Chris Hay had yet to get off the score sheet.

Sadly the following week saw a return to home fortunes as Fort William produced an absolutely shocking performance to lose 4-0 to Dumbarton . The damage was done in 27 crazy first half minutes as the defense split themselves open. Bruce Morrison and Ian Gardiner were pathetic, whilst Chris MacKenzie was become infuriated with the lack of cover provided for him. It seemed Gordon Burns was the only player with any passion that day and George said raw words at the end as he made them apologise to the fans.

It didn’t help much though as the final match of September, also a home game ended in another defeat, this time 1-0 to East Fife , although Phil Cannie did have a second half goal controversially ruled out for offside. That defeat left George perplexed and somewhat looking forward to his side’s next game away to Berwick Rangers

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

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Scottish Third Division – Tuesday 30th September 2002

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================================================================================================

2002/3 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Peterhead 8 3 0 1 14 10 3 1 0 8 4 19

2nd Albion Rovers 8 3 0 1 8 5 3 1 0 6 1 19

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3rd Forfar 8 1 2 1 3 4 2 1 1 9 6 12

4th East Fife 8 2 0 1 5 4 1 1 3 2 6 10

5th Fort William 8 0 1 4 2 10 3 0 0 5 0 10

6th Arbroath 8 1 2 1 5 4 1 1 2 8 9 9

7th Dumbarton 8 0 3 1 4 7 2 0 2 11 9 9

8th Berwick 8 2 1 1 4 3 0 2 2 4 8 9

9th East Stirling 8 0 3 1 4 6 0 3 1 3 4 6

10th Cowdenbeath 8 1 0 3 2 5 0 2 2 2 4 5

</pre>

[Brian of Nazareth]

Unfortunately though as October began, the away day blues arrived with a 2-1 defeat to Berwick . Credit though must be given to the players who battled exceptionally hard. After facing a 1-0 deficit at the break, the players could have been forgiven for losing hope once Chris Mackenzie was dismissed for a professional foul. However Matthew Glennon proved a point to critics and saved the spot kick in his fiery introduction to Scottish football.

Thereafter John Doolan equalized and many connected with Fort William thought that special away day feeling was set to continue until Craig Findlay struck with 7 minutes to go.

Another defeat, compounded by a poor Scotland home defeat to Poland left George in a terribly grumpy mood that evening as he thought not for the first time that this was going to take a bloody long time.

Midweek brought further irritation as loan bids for Stephen McPhee and Martin Black failed, whilst Scotland lost 2-1 in Italy as their qualification faltered a little.

Ahead of the home clash with Cwdenbeath George was infuriated to learn that his opponents had signed Jamie McAllister on loan for a month, as he himself had persistently attempted to get Aberdeen to allow him to leave on loan for Fort William again. The conspiracy rumours gathered apace in his mind.

It was of no surprise then to see the young left back help his new side complete an easy 2-1 victory. John Robertson bagged a late consolation but it was yet another dismal performance from Fort William.

The last game of the month also saw another defeat, away to high flying Albion Rovers courtesy of an unstoppable Ian Rankin effort. Afterwards, the slightly confused George congratulated the young striker on his string of impressive novels, leaving a look of bewilderment on the poor lad’s face.

[Brian of Nazareth]

November started out much brighter than previous months with the eventual of 2 more loan signings to boost the defense. Steven Whittaker of Hibs and Scott McLean of Falkirk eventually decided to join, and after a welcome point was secured in a 0-0 draw at home to Forfar Frazer Briggs of St.Johnstone and for the second time David Milne of Clyde arrived on loan as the squad fattened out temporarily.

Following an expected, but nevertheless poor, 3-0 defeat away to Peterhead , George kept looking and brought in Michael Stone on loan from Donacaster whilst former Hibbee and Aberdeen defender Gary Smith arrived on a free transfer.

It was becoming an all too familiar site at Cameron Stadium, hanging round the bottom of the table, a fact that was causing Austin Berkely a great deal of displeasure. George’s response was to frankly tell him he could bugger off if he wanted to or he could actually start playing some good football for a change – an exchange that soured the relationship between the two just a wee bit.

That fight was the prelude to a 1-1 home draw with Arbroath , with Steven Whittaker the man ensuring George continued to pick up the odd point here and there with a 70th minute strike.

David Dodds of St. Johnstone, Grant Richardson of Falkirk and Steve Dickinson again all arrived on loan after that match as George went into overload mode, at least ensuring he had a plentiful squad to choose from:

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Fort William - Thursday 21st November 2002

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

Squad

================================================================================================

No Name Position(s) Nat Born Age Caps Gls Wages Expires Value

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Berkley, Austin AM L ENG 28.1.73 29 - - £190 25.6.05 £9K

- Briggs, Frazer D C SCO 15.8.84 18 - - £0 5.6.03 £10K

- Burns, Gordon M C SCO 2.12.78 23 - - £45 12.6.04 £1K

- Cannie, Phil F RC SCO 7.7.77 25 - - £140 2.6.05 £14K

- Clark, Brian D/DM RC SCO 3.1.82 20 - - £65 28.6.03 £1K

- Dickinson, Steve DM R ENG 11.9.73 29 - - £140 17.12.02 £12K

- Dodds, David D L SCO 23.8.84 18 - - £0 14.6.03 £12K

- Doolan, John DM C ENG 7.5.74 28 - - £110 16.12.02 £14K

- Duncan, Peter D L SCO 7.5.80 22 - - £150 21.6.03 £3K

- Durie, Gordon S C SCO 6.12.65 36 43 7 £275 4.6.05 £5K

- Dyer, Peter AM RL ENG 6.9.82 20 - - £65 28.6.03 £1K

- Fortune-West, Leo S C ENG 9.4.71 31 - - £300 14.6.05 £5K

- Gardiner, Ian D L SCO 9.9.83 19 - - £130 25.6.04 £1K

- Glennon, Matthew GK ENG 8.10.73 29 - - £130 22.6.06 £2K

- Hay, Chris S C SCO 28.8.74 28 - - £180 10.6.06 £22K

- Kerr, David M C SCO 6.9.74 28 - - £190 5.6.06 £7K

- MacKenzie, Chris GK ENG 14.5.72 30 - - £200 9.6.04 £3K

- McLean, Scott D LC SCO 27.10.81 21 - - £0 1.6.03 £12K

- Milne, David M C SCO 25.10.79 23 - - £100 5.12.02 £3K

- Moore, Gary D R SCO 5.8.80 22 - - £60 15.6.03 £1K

- Morrison, Bruce D C SCO 8.5.74 28 - - £200 12.6.03 £2K

- Richardson, Grant DM RC SCO 15.3.82 20 - - £0 14.6.03 £16K

- Robertson, John D RC SCO 28.3.76 26 - - £120 24.11.02 £9K

- Skovbjerg, Thomas AM R DEN 25.10.74 28 - - £300 5.6.05 £8K

- Smith, Gary D RC SCO 25.3.71 31 - - £140 25.6.04 £6K

- Steele, Scott M L SCO 19.9.71 31 - - £90 1.6.05 £1K

- Stone, Michael D C SCO 15.1.79 23 - - £75 10.3.03 £3K

- Sullivan, Martyn AM R ENG 13.11.75 27 - - £90 23.6.05 £1K

- Walker, Richard F L ENG 8.11.77 25 - - £275 28.6.06 £5K

- Whittacker, Steven D/DM C SCO 18.11.83 19 - - £0 1.6.03 £10K

- Williams, Marc S C WAL 1.6.73 29 - - £200 11.6.05 £5K

</pre>

[Brian of Nazareth]

Bruce Morrison then made sure George was right to loan players as he injured himself in the latest defeat away to East Stirling . A 1-0 result was harsh on George as his side had worked tirelessly with no gain. Leo Fortune West missing two late chances to earn a point.

A midweek game with Dumbarton followed, and another point was gained as George strove to overcome the mediocrity afflicting his side. It took a Steven Whittaker penalty to level the scores though in another uninspiring game which saw the end of November.

December began with more missed opportunities in the loan market, Jamie McAllister moving to Brechin as AGAIN Aberdeen refused to even negotiate with George any longer.

It continued with an exit in the Scottish Cup to Peterhead as another close game saw Fort William lose 2-0, chances squandered every 5 minutes. It was another game of missed chances and George didn’t mind so much when Leo Fortune West popped up in Annual Retirement Week to call it a day.

The month continued in dismal fashion as George’s men only picked up a further point before the New Year, in a 0-0 draw at home, with Matthew Glennon shining in goal. Thereafter defeats away to Cowdenbeath and East Fife followed, 2-0 and 3-0 respectively.

George was ****ed. This summer there would be a purge, the board were beginning to worry and so were the fans. Progress had been minimal and the club if anything was receding again. All foreigners would be gone by the end of the next season – and sod it if they were talented. Only Scots would have the heart and courage to pull Fort William up from the doldrums.

[Brian of Nazareth]

January eventually saw a change in fortunes to everyone’s delight. Fort William played host to Albion Rovers on the 6th and started very impressively, and finally their pressure paid off as first David Dodds and then Michael Stone gave the home side a 2-0 lead. The sigh around the pitiful crowd was audible to all.

After a wait the next match, away to Forfar saw Fort William make it two matches unbeaten, although it was stretching their limits to gain a win. Leo Fortune West had scored the opening goal after 30 minutes, but a half time leveler ensured the points were shared.

George had clearly instilled some desire to win inside the team as the unbeaten run continued with, shockingly, a victory at home to Peterhead with a brace from Leo Fortune West securing the points in the first half. Even wantaway Chris Hay impressed. The striker wanted to move to a bigger club but George had told him he should probably start scoring for his current one first before he thought about moving on to bigger clubs.

That rounded off a pleasant month on the field for George as result picked up to the delight of the board. A small gap was now emerging between themselves and East Stirling who were enduring a horrendous year, with just 13 points.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

************************************************************************************************

Scottish Third Division - Tuesday 28th January 2003

************************************************************************************************

================================================================================================

2002/3 Table

================================================================================================

Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st Peterhead 22 7 2 2 25 14 5 5 1 17 13 43

2nd Albion Rovers 22 8 2 1 18 6 5 2 4 14 12 43

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3rd East Fife 22 7 2 2 21 12 3 4 4 13 12 36

4th Forfar 22 4 5 2 17 11 3 4 4 14 15 30

5th Dumbarton 22 3 6 2 15 14 5 0 6 18 20 30

6th Cowdenbeath 22 5 2 4 9 8 2 6 3 7 10 29

7th Arbroath 22 3 4 4 12 15 4 2 5 14 17 27

8th Berwick 22 4 5 2 12 9 1 3 7 8 16 23

9th Fort William 22 2 4 5 8 14 3 2 6 8 14 21

10th East Stirling 22 1 3 7 7 17 0 7 4 7 15 13

</pre>

[Brian of Nazareth]

February began with a dent to the teams morale as they suffered a 1-0 loss away to Arbroath goal, conceding early in the second half when they were still re-organising themselves but they played well enough to deserve something from the game, and left the field with their heads up for a change.

George’s favourite Englishman returned for a month from Barnet , in John Doolan . He was straight into action at home to East Fife and even assisted in setting up the equalizing goal for Leo Fortune West in the 1-1 draw.

Results were generally improving and George settled for it even if Aberdeen were on his nerves. A 1-0 loss though away to Berwick again knocked the trickling momentum out of Fort William, though at least it wasn't successive defeats all the time.

John Robertson soon returned permanently, as he’d signed a pre-contract agreement with Forfar which meant George was unable to renew his contract. A loan bid was made for Paul Parkin of Hearts , and George was waiting to hear news as his side took to the field against East Stirling .

The only club worse than Fort William this year, proved why they were so bad as Leo Fortune West scored his easiest ever goal in the 4th minute to give the home side the lead. After that it continued to be one way traffic but the elusive killer second goal never arrived and maddeningly East Stirling equalized with a bolt of the blue in the 86th minute to the annoyance of everyone, the goal coming from last seasons prolific marksman Gary McDonald. Of amusing interest was the result George had always thought would be funny to hear a newscaster read out, East Fife 4, Forfar 5.

March began with an infuriating home defeat to Dumbarton . A terrible start had seen Fort William 2-0 down inside 20 minutes, before they rallied and pulled one back through Leo Fortune West , and after changes were made at half time, a second half attack brought a well deserved 77th minute equalizer from substitute Phil Cannie . However not 5 minutes after that, a Gary Smith howler let in Tom Bennett to score the winner.

It was of little consolation to George to learn that Leo’s 9th goal of the season was a club record, as it actually sounded incredibly pathetic. Paul Parkin meanwhile elected to sit out the rest of the season in the Hearts reserves rather than play regular league football with Fort William.

However the week after, the win at last arrived as Fort William finally took home the spoils their endeavours had warranted. Leo Fortune West was again the difference in a 1-0 victory over Forfar , with David Dodds also performing well, and Leo gained another record too with his 4th Man of the Match award of the season.

The run couldn’t last though and a 2-0 away defeat to Peterhead followed as Grant Richardson played himself out of the line up with another shoddy defensive performance. Leo Fortune West picked up a 5th yellow card sadly meaning an automatic 1 match suspension.

A week later another point was gained at home to Cowdenbeath as Fort William were again slightly unlucky. After falling behind early on Scott McLean leveled and Leo Fortune West struck moments after the break to give the home side the advantage. Unfortunately though another defensive error meant the game ended all square as James Allan scored with 20 minutes remaining.

In the middle of the week it was international time and George and his best friend Mark Whyte sat down to watch Scotland overcome Israel 3-2, with the away tie being played in Cyprus for political reasons. Billy Dodds again instrumental in the victory as he helped shoot them into a 3-0 lead before the Scots got all big headed and almost squandered it at the death.

The transfer window passed with no further action and Fort William headed off to league leaders Albion Rovers without 2 of their key players in John Doolan and Leo Fortune West , injured and suspended. George seemed all set to pick up another hard fought away point when with 4 minutes remaining Alex Martin scored to leave a sour taste in George’s mouth – that was unfair.

Still in the last day of the month their was at least time to secure one summer signing. Scot Michael Stone turning his loan spell into a more permanent one.

[Brian of Nazareth]

As April began, George was finally delighted to be able to send a sneaky sodoff.com greeting card to the Aberdeen board, as he agreed the permanent transfer of young Jamie McAllister after weeks of negotiations brought the wage demands low enough that Fort William could invest. That was one deal that brought relief to everyone connected to the club as he could now start planning his summer’s rebuilding plans.

On pitch fortunes didn’t match though as a 1-0 defeat to Arbroath testified. Jim Thomson had given the away side a deserved lead at that point on the half hour mark but for the rest of the game it was one way pressure from Fort William with no rewards. Thankfully East Stirling’s ineptitude kept thoughts of another bottom placed finish far from his minds, although it was almost impossible to imagine moving up to 8th. With 4 games left they were 9 points above East Stirling and 9 points below Cowdenbeath.

A trip to East Stirling duly followed, and after securing the permanent deal of Scott McLean George was feeling quite content. He was even happier when Marc Williams stroked his side into an early 6th minute lead, but again finishing proved costly and the home side leveled. A point was shared, but it did all but seal a 9th placed finish, and automatic improvement on the first two terms.

That point was followed up with a 1-0 defeat to Berwick with only Peter Dyer’s injury to show for Fort Williams efforts, and once again in the penultimate match of the season an even match saw the spoils go exclusively to East Fife as they clinically pounced either side of half time in a 2-0 win.

The end of season game away to Dumbarton in May saw the final game for a fair few Fort William players. George had decided this summer would see the purging of the squad, allowing the Scottish breed to take over and rule the roost. Unfortunatelly the players couldn’t provide a farewell gift as the succumbed 3-1 with David Kerr’s goal the only bright spot. As the players left the field they saluted the fans who had faithfully supported them through out the season.

[Brian of Nazareth]

Season 2002-2003 Statistics / Tables / Stuff

The Lowdown in full before the pre-season massacre of the foreigners.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">

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Fort William - Wednesday 7th May 2003

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Squad

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No Name Position(s) Nat Born Age Caps Gls Wages Expires Value

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- Berkley, Austin AM L ENG 28.1.73 30 - - £190 25.6.05 £5K

- Briggs, Frazer D C SCO 15.8.84 18 - - £0 5.6.03 £18K

- Burns, Gordon M C SCO 2.12.78 24 - - £45 12.6.04 £1K

- Cannie, Phil F RC SCO 7.7.77 25 - - £140 2.6.05 £12K

- Clark, Brian D/DM RC SCO 3.1.82 21 - - £170 28.6.05 £3K

- Dodds, David D L SCO 23.8.84 18 - - £0 14.6.03 £18K

- Doolan, John DM C ENG 7.5.74 29 - - £170 11.5.03 £10K

- Duncan, Peter D L SCO 7.5.80 23 - - £150 21.6.03 £1K

- Durie, Gordon S C SCO 6.12.65 37 43 7 £275 4.6.05 £2K

- Dyer, Peter AM RL ENG 6.9.82 20 - - £150 6.6.05 £2K

- Fortune-West, Leo S C ENG 9.4.71 32 - - £300 14.6.05 £4K

- Gardiner, Ian D L SCO 9.9.83 19 - - £130 25.6.04 £1K

- Glennon, Matthew GK ENG 8.10.73 29 - - £130 22.6.06 £1K

- Hay, Chris S C SCO 28.8.74 28 - - £180 10.6.06 £20K

- Kerr, David M C SCO 6.9.74 28 - - £190 5.6.06 £7K

- MacKenzie, Chris GK ENG 14.5.72 30 - - £200 9.6.04 £4K

- McLean, Scott D LC SCO 27.10.81 21 - - £0 1.6.03 £2K

- Moore, Gary D R SCO 5.8.80 22 - - £60 15.6.03 £0

- Morrison, Bruce D C SCO 8.5.74 28 - - £200 12.6.03 £3K

- Richardson, Grant DM RC SCO 15.3.82 21 - - £0 14.6.03 £5K

- Skovbjerg, Thomas AM R DEN 25.10.74 28 - - £300 5.6.05 £9K

- Smith, Gary D RC SCO 25.3.71 32 - - £140 25.6.04 £4K

- Steele, Scott M L SCO 19.9.71 31 - - £90 1.6.05 £1K

- Sullivan, Martyn AM R ENG 13.11.75 27 - - £90 23.6.05 £1K

- Walker, Richard F L ENG 8.11.77 25 - - £275 28.6.06 £5K

- Whittacker, Steven D/DM C SCO 18.11.83 19 - - £0 1.6.03 £18K

- Williams, Marc S C WAL 1.6.73 29 - - £200 11.6.05 £5K

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2002/3 Senior Club Stats

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No Name Apps Gls Con Pens Asts Yel Red MoM Av R

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- Berkley, Austin 15 (1) 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 5.75

- Briggs, Frazer 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00

- Burns, Gordon 11 (3) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.21

- Cannie, Phil 9 (8) 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 6.59

- Clark, Brian 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5.91

- Dodds, David 20 1 0 0 2 0 0 1 6.65

- Doolan, John 7 (2) 0 0 0 3 1 0 1 6.78

- Duncan, Peter 17 (1) 0 0 0 0 3 0 1 6.72

- Durie, Gordon 12 (3) 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 6.07

- Dyer, Peter 1 (3) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.25

- Fortune-West, Leo 31 (4) 11 0 0 2 6 0 4 7.03

- Gardiner, Ian 3 (3) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5.83

- Glennon, Matthew 9 (1) 0 17 0 0 0 0 1 6.50

- Hay, Chris 10 (19) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.31

- Kerr, David 23 (6) 1 0 0 3 2 0 0 6.41

- MacKenzie, Chris 30 0 40 0 1 0 1 2 7.00

- McLean, Scott 18 (2) 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 6.40

- Moore, Gary 5 (2) 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 6.29

- Morrison, Bruce 25 (1) 1 0 0 0 4 0 0 5.92

- Richardson, Grant 17 (3) 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 5.95

- Skovbjerg, Thomas 21 (3) 1 0 0 3 0 0 1 6.58

- Smith, Gary 12 (4) 0 0 0 0 4 0 1 6.63

- Steele, Scott 12 (2) 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 5.93

- Sullivan, Martyn 13 (6) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.11

- Walker, Richard 2 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5.67

- Whittacker, Steven 16 (2) 2 0 1 (1) 0 1 0 0 6.22

- Williams, Marc 20 (6) 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.42

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2002/3 Transfers

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Date Player In From Fee

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2.6.02 Chris Hay Free Transfer Bos

5.6.02 Leo Fortune-West Cardiff Bos

8.6.02 Matthew Glennon Bolton Bos

10.6.02 David Kerr Free Transfer Free

14.6.02 Richard Walker Aston Villa Bos

24.6.02 Austin Berkley Barnet Bos

1.7.02 Phil Cannie Clyde Bos

2.7.02 Thomas Skovbjerg Kidderminster Bos

8.7.02 Gordon Durie Free Transfer Free

25.7.02 Craig Brittain Dumbarton Loan

25.7.02 John Robertson Oxford Loan

17.8.02 John Doolan Barnet Loan

2.11.02 Steven Whittacker Hibs Loan

2.11.02 Scott McLean Falkirk Loan

6.11.02 David Milne Clydebank Loan

6.11.02 Frazer Briggs St. Johnstone Loan

6.11.02 Gary Smith Free Transfer Free

11.11.02 Michael Stone Doncaster Loan

15.11.02 Grant Richardson Falkirk Loan

15.11.02 David Dodds St. Johnstone Loan

18.11.02 Steve Dickinson Southport Loan

26.11.02 John Robertson Oxford Loan

28.11.02 David White Cowdenbeath Loan

13.2.03 John Doolan Barnet Loan

12.3.03 Michael Stone Doncaster Loan

Date Player Out To Fee

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14.6.02 Mass Sarr Dessel £10K

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2002/3 Fixtures

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Date Opposition Ven Competition Res Attend Scorers

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7.7.02 Selkirk A Friendly 0:2 312

13.7.02 Elgin City H Friendly 2:4 741 Clark, Kerr

20.7.02 Arbroath H Friendly 0:1 565

31.7.02 Gala Fairydean H Friendly 0:0 555

3.8.02 Morton A League Cup 1st Rnd 2:5 1370 Berkley, Morrison

10.8.02 Forfar A Third Division 2:0 1951 Williams, Fortune-West

13.8.02 Stenhousemuir A Challenge Cup 1st Rnd 1:2 572 Brittain

17.8.02 Peterhead H Third Division 0:2 1213

24.8.02 Cowdenbeath A Third Division 1:0 569 Williams

31.8.02 Albion Rovers H Third Division 1:2 1201 Skovbjerg

7.9.02 Arbroath A Third Division 2:0 517 Doolan, Fortune-West

14.9.02 East Stirling H Third Division 1:1 1195 Fortune-West

21.9.02 Dumbarton H Third Division 0:4 1510

28.9.02 East Fife H Third Division 0:1 1617

5.10.02 Berwick A Third Division 1:2 563 Doolan

19.10.02 Cowdenbeath H Third Division 1:2 1573 Robertson

26.10.02 Albion Rovers A Third Division 0:1 1103

2.11.02 Forfar H Third Division 0:0 1253

9.11.02 Peterhead A Third Division 0:3 1239

16.11.02 Arbroath H Third Division 1:1 1093 Whittacker

23.11.02 East Stirling A Third Division 0:1 715

30.11.02 Dumbarton A Third Division 1:1 831 Whittacker 3 (1 pen)

7.12.02 Peterhead A Scottish Cup 1st Rnd 0:2 1558

21.12.02 Berwick H Third Division 0:0 1516

28.12.02 Cowdenbeath A Third Division 0:2 578

1.1.03 East Fife A Third Division 0:3 786

6.1.03 Albion Rovers H Third Division 2:1 1209 Dodds, Stone

18.1.03 Forfar A Third Division 1:1 1902 Fortune-West

25.1.03 Peterhead H Third Division 2:0 1214 Fortune-West 2

8.2.03 Arbroath A Third Division 0:1 1440

15.2.03 East Fife H Third Division 1:1 1628 Fortune-West

22.2.03 Berwick A Third Division 0:1 566

1.3.03 East Stirling H Third Division 1:1 1160 Fortune-West

5.3.03 Dumbarton H Third Division 2:3 1537 Fortune-West, Cannie

8.3.03 Forfar H Third Division 1:0 1249 Fortune-West

15.3.03 Peterhead A Third Division 0:2 1141

22.3.03 Cowdenbeath H Third Division 2:2 1554 S.McLean, Fortune-West

29.3.03 Albion Rovers A Third Division 0:1 816

5.4.03 Arbroath H Third Division 0:1 1089

12.4.03 East Stirling A Third Division 1:1 712 Williams

19.4.03 Berwick H Third Division 0:1 1487

26.4.03 East Fife A Third Division 0:2 770

3.5.03 Dumbarton A Third Division 1:3 872 Kerr

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Fans Player of the Year – Leo Fortune West