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

[Brian of Nazareth]

November opened with another quick acceptance of the Danish squad to face Brazil in an upcoming friendly before a trip to Stirling saw both sides cancel each other out in a 0-0 draw and George realized Dumbarton were easily capable of competing with the sides in this league, even after only 13 games of the season. Whilst avoiding relegation might be the target this season, there was no reason to suggest that pushing for a promotion spot the following year was laughable.

Sunday 12th saw a fine performance from Dumbarton, ruined slightly by Danny Schepple’s nasty knee injury that will keep him resting for a good 2 months. The team though made up for it by defeat Montrose 3-0 after a second half onslaught. John Sharkey was again the catalyst with the first strike before a Jose Cano penalty settled nerves 5 minutes after. Towards the end, little Billy popped up to score another superb goal to add some gloss to the score line.

A short break did follow and George was climbing aboard a plane bound for sunny Brazil with his Denmark side in a friendly fixture. It would be interesting to see how his side performed against the runners up in the World Cup. As it turned out they did very, very well, taking a two-goal advantage in the first half thanks to Mads Jorgensen, and Tommy Gravesen. That lead lasted until the 90th minute, where the cheating, diving, irritating Rivaldo scored a penalty to reduce the lead and not 60 seconds later the cheating swine was at it again winning a free kick converted by Lucas to the intense fury of George on the sidelines who was unable to control himself shooting off a tirade off insults towards the referee, though seeing as the ref couldn’t understand what was being spoken, no action was taken.

George’s anger boiled over to the weekend where he couldn’t stop yelling at the officials out of spite during his side’s 1-0 loss at Queen of the South. It was by no means a bad game from Dumbarton, just not great either. It was softened by the extensions of various loans before a home draw with Raith Rovers, thanks to Billy Melvin, rounded off the month of November.

A break in all action, 20 days to be exact allowed for an extended break in Europe, one in which George would spend actually monitoring Danish players performances for the first time since taking the job. During this term he was alerted to the splendid news that Billy Melvin had won the Player of the Month Award and Derek Duncan had taken the Young Player for their fine efforts. George had to concede, Billy was turning out to be a decent signing after all, performing considerably better than his alternatives.

In between his hopping over to Europe and back, George had time to add a Scandinavian to the ranks in the form of Kilmarnock central defender Marius Stensland, the 25 year old desperate to get some footy under his belt once more after a prolonged spell on a bench so full of splinters it was like sharing a bed with a porcupine.

Of course December brought further awards and announcements, such as the those planning on retiring come the end of the season. Included this time round were 2 Dumbies, Craig Brittain who was 32 and Graeme Donald, who were both looking for a life less stressful than kicking a bladder around once a week. Of immense disappointment to George and many fans though was that John Sharkey would not be returning to the club once his loan spell expired. He’d decided to secure a permanent deal in England instead, with Burnley in the summer, perhaps finding it a little more heavy going this year.

Action eventually returned with a trip to 2nd placed Peterhead, a game that would certainly test the side and after 44 minutes of the game the game seemed to have had only one outcome. Derek Smith had handed the hosts an early lead and their dominance seemed impenetrable. They reckoned without Billy Melvin though who appeared out of nowhere to score an utterly underserved equalizer before half time. With that the game changed a little and Dumbarton decided to chance their luck in the second half and a more even contest developed though with few scoring opportunities the final score of 1-1 was about right and George was satisfied, for now.

Midweek and closing in on the Yuletide season, George was in a festive mood as both Kenny Deuchar and Marius Stenslad decided to make a permanent move to the club in the summer, Marius was currently in a 2 month loan and Kenny enjoyed a decent spell last time around with Dumbarton.

As the post boxing day fixture hosting Elgin City arrived, various players contracts were offered extensions whilst Telford approached out of favour James Cunningham with a a view to a move later in the summer. Confirmation of any of these signatures had to wait until after the game though which was thankfully a comfortable affair for Dumbarton and the happy fans, as Jerome Aliadiere and John Sharkey notched first half strikes to put the home side in the driving seat. Post festivity dinners were still in evidence in the second half as the pace dramatically worsened, but Elgin’s goal by Connor Campbell was too little too late and the gap between Dumbarton and Elgin in 9th was now 10 points.

The end of the year was proved to be not quite so enjoyable though as Derek Duncan’s form attracted the interest of other clubs. Other clubs with money who were prepared to pay for him as they swarmed like vultures waiting for a prime opportunity to buy him out right. Billy became the first to extend his stay by 2 more years, his surprising form earning him an extension whilst the others were slightly more cautious before committing themselves. The year ended with a Scottish Cup victory over Forfar courtesy of Billy once more, who scored his 10th of the season in the process. The reward was a big trip away to SPL side Hearts and George was actually looking forward to it quite a lot. Wayne Purser also signed an extension; while John Williamson decided to confirm his loyalty to the team with a permanent move agreed for the summer.

[Brian of Nazareth]

The New Year saw a poor opening result, losing 2-1 against Stranraer but it was so close to being 3 for Dumbarton. Gary Alexander had at last scored his first of the season in the 62nd minute but 2 late goals in the space of 3 minutes left the home fans wondering what exactly had happened. Elgin won away as well and the first signs of edginess became to seep through:

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

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

Scottish Second Division - Tuesday 2nd January 2007

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

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

2006/7 Table

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

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

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

1st Raith Rovers 18 4 2 3 10 8 5 3 1 16 8 32

2nd Partick Thistle 18 6 1 2 14 6 3 4 2 10 9 32

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

3rd Peterhead 20 5 4 1 13 7 3 3 4 16 18 31

4th Queen of Sth 18 4 3 1 10 7 4 3 3 8 8 30

5th Stranraer 20 3 5 2 12 8 5 0 5 17 20 29

6th Stirling 18 5 1 3 15 7 3 3 3 8 7 28

7th East Fife 19 4 3 3 15 12 2 4 3 6 7 25

8th Dumbarton 19 4 4 2 16 10 1 4 4 4 8 23

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

9th Elgin City 19 4 1 5 12 17 1 0 8 8 23 16

10th Montrose 19 1 3 5 9 14 0 3 7 3 18 9

</pre>

Only two days later though and fortunes picked up again with another 1-1 draw away from home – a familiar score line. New legs had been brought in out of necessity and George had to go with a man in front of the midfield 3 as opposed to behind, but in the end they survived. Partick took a first half lead before the “prolific†Gary Alexander scored his second in two games, with 6 minutes left to rescue a point for Dumbarton. Montrose, bottom of the table came from behind to defeat Elgin. As A bonus a side actually decided to go for Gary McDonald. Berwick Rangers the desperate side securing his summer move.

A return to winning ways and pleasing the board arrived at Montrose the following week. George decided to retain the attacking formation and it paid off as a first half effort from John Sharkey was supplemented by a second half strike from Gary Alexander who seemed to have discovered his scoring boots again. The win also lifted the side up the table again into 7th over East Fife.

The next week was the final match that John Sharkey would play at Cliftonhill for Dumbarton and by word of mouth it seemed a huge bon voyage celebration seemed to have been organized amongst the fans for the man who had single handedly won them promotion. It was fitting then that he scored the first goal in the 2-1 win to the delight of many of the fans in the stadium before Danny Schepple added a second minutes later to put the hosts in control against Stirling. Mike Sheppard scored late on to get the pulses racing but it was not enough and the final whistle saw John Sharkey applaud the fans for showing their appreciation before throwing his mud stained shirt into the crowd. The tiny drawback being he still needed a shirt for the final two games of his time here.

The next game was a trip to Hearts in the cup and seeing as defeat was inevitable George made wholesale changes to the line up, bringing back Brittain and Donald amongst others after a long spell in the cold. Even Gary McDonald found a place on substitutes bench. Mark Elliot, the youngster was awarded a spot too, and in the first half, along with Matt Glennon their heroics kept the score line level at 0-0. Dumbarton had offered nothing going forward, spending the whole tie entrenched in their own half defending with such vigor. Still the goals never arrived and Dumbarton grew bolder, threatening to cause an upset as the game wore on. A save here, a diving tackle there, Hearts could not get through! The 90 minutes were officially over as the score remained goal less. With just 1 minute of injury time to be played, a terrific result was not far off. Then Abdul Sule scored with the very last kick of the game to send many fans into tears. They hadn’t expected anything initially but the sheer drama of the occasion overwhelmed them as their side left the field, quite, quite dejected.

The final game of Sharkey’s career with Dumbarton and opening game of February was not one to cheer as the side lost 1-0 away to Raith Rovers, in a game they’d never looked like winning from the off.

John Sharkey 26 AMR 55 starts, 5 subs, 30 goals, 10 assists, 14 MoM, 7.89

[Brian of Nazareth]

frigging holiday's over

--

With the return of John Williamson and Marius Stensland to their clubs for the time being George was a little short at the back so Celtic’s out of favour man, James Alexander came until April to plug the gap for the time being and he was given a chance to impress fairly soon as Dumbarton hosted Queen of the South. However it was not a pleasant afternoon as they lost 2-0, and the fight rendered was nothing to shout about either.

The next match saw a trip to East Fife, and one of the more spectacular matches of the season with neither keeper having a particularly great game. The final score ended 3-3, with all the goals arriving in the first half. Jose Cano had given Dumbarton the lead before the hosts hit back soon after with 2 in quick succession after 20 minutes. Danny Schepple then squared events, before Gary Alexander scored a 3rd goal in the 40th minute to hand George’s men the lead again – but it lasted barely 3 minutes as a kind rebound fell to Stephen McPhee who tied the game up. The fans were certainly left entertained and George wasn’t going to complain just yet, with Elgin still a good 12 points behind. However, it would be nice to move up the table sooner rather than later.

The next match was another poor effort though as Dumbarton were beaten 1-0 at home by Partick Thistle. The team looked tired and worn and offered no attacking outlets throughout the 90 minutes, inciting a chorus of boos to ring out around the ground at the end of a dreadful game. The board too were keeping a keen eye on Dumbarton’s progress and that of their rivals.

They bizarrely perked up though when George transfer listed out of favour Jim McLeod, perhaps hopeful they could reduce the wage budget further, and perhaps they were also in celebratory mood as loan defender James Alexander picked up Young Player of the Month for February in a time when many of his colleagues were certainly not at their best.

March began with a slight improvement in form away to Stranraer as a point was gained but seeing as they had played against 10 men for 80 minutes it was disappointing for George that they hadn’t converted any of the numerous chances that had fallen their way. After that though Stranraer then went and secured the bosman signature of McLeod after he rejected Forfar’s approach.

After that midweek game though George was relieved to see a win again, hosting desperate Montrose on the Saturday. Danny Schepple scored after two minutes to bag his fifth goal of the season before Mark Dickson added a second goal 20 minutes later from the penalty spot, after Eddie Forrest had felled Schepple. The second half was a quieter affair but it did see the away side reduce the arrears as Eddie Forrest pulled one back in injury time, making some kind of amends for his earlier fault. It was not enough though, and the following day manager David Seaman lost his job.

The confidence had clearly returned as Dumbarton picked up another home win after that, leapfrogging Peterhead in the process as Billy Melvin returned to the score sheet at last in the 33rd minute, doubling a lead given to them by a player George had known quite well from Fort William. Tom van der Ham prodding into his own net after 7 minutes. Willie Nicol pulled the lead back shortly before half time but a Danny Schepple free kick late in the second half sealed the points, as Dumbarton moved into 6th, extending the gap between the relegation spots further.

In midweek Dick Advocaat was exposed in the Scottish Sun for illicit drug use, after a dirty weekend in a hotel at St. Andrews with 2 prostitutes forcing the Rangers chief to resign from his position. Well so says the Sun as they no doubt tried to make up some flimsy reason as to why the boss of a side topping the table and flying high would leave his post. Other observers preferred to believe Dick’s excuse that he needed a break from football to control a slight heart strain instead.

The following weekend saw another conflict of interests as Eddie McCluskey was left in charge of Dumbarton’s trip to Elgin City whilst George was jetting off to France for a European Qualifier with Denmark. Eddie did a fine job too as on form midfielder Danny Schepple scored the equalizer in his side’s 2-1 win over the struggling side, though it took a while for the winner to arrive – Stuart Duff not scoring until the 84th minute, but needless to say it made for a pleasing review for George who watched the highlights after returning from France.

It had been a tough game as the hosts controlled the running very well in the early periods with Zizou striking a beauty from the corner of the D in the 20th minute to set France on their way. It was an uphill challenge after that for the Danes and one they certainly struggled to cope with. Didier Cherrard’s debut goal on the hour mark secured the points for France as Denmark were momentarily demoted to third. In midweek a testing trip to toppers Greece saw another deficit, this time 1-0 thanks to former Hibs striker Savas Stavridis in the 13th minute and suddenly qualification hopes didn’t quite look so rosey, even if the two hardest away matches were behind them.

Back to more familiar surroundings and the league, George wearily traveled to Stirling, in much need of a snooze after his European exerts and he enjoyed one immensely as his side ground out a 0-0 draw to round off March and extend his teams unbeaten run, and with 5 games to go, relegation would mean the mother off catastrophic results going against him to see them down and many of the fans knew this as well and seemed quite relaxed.

[Brian of Nazareth]

April began and unsurprisingly the first fixtures on the Saturday saw Montrose officially relegated after losing whilst, Elgin won to keep their hopes alive. Dumbarton hosted East Fife, safe in the knowledge they couldn’t technically be relegated, and now it was places that mattered. Their opponents were 5 points ahead in 5th with 5 games remaining so a win would go a fair way to help over take them. Billy Melvin gave it to George with a 3rd minute goal as Dumbarton moved away from the other sides still not yet free from the drop.

The following weekend though did see Elgin officially confirmed as the second team to be demoted back to the Third Division as their failure to beat Partick and Stranraer’s point at Montrose contrived to seal the inevitable. Dumbarton had taken a point at Queen of the South in a 0-0 draw, a game with many chances and also many new faces in the line up, which kept them in with a chance of breaking the top 5. Conversely Partick’s victory saw them clinch promotion to the First Division, with Raith’s promotion merely on ice as only 1 point was needed for them to secure it, though their next fixture was – yes away to Dumbarton.

Included in the squad for that game was David Clarke on loan from Motherwell for a month, though the midfielder had already been on a loan spell the previous month – George had just completely forgotten about him. With 3 games remaining George had set a mini target of achieving 50 points by the end. They were already on 46 before the Raith game, but another blank game with neither goal breeched saw the visitors celebrate their promotion to the surprisingly warm applause of the Dumbarton fans, with George personally commending his opposite number John McVeigh on the achievement.

George also looked at the form books and noticed his side had now gone 8 games without losing, a fine achievement indeed and it could be extended to ten with 2 games remaining, though the next fixture was an away tie at Partick Thistle and George didn’t know how it would go. Would the players be in party, relaxed mood enjoying their last home game in the Second Division or would they be focused on seeing out the season? George hoped for the former, whilst noticing Fort William had broken the third division record for points gained, helped somewhat by Chris Hay’s surprising 23 goal haul. George still wondered why he never succeeded there.

[Brian of Nazareth]

Yet before that he received an emergency phone call on Wednesday wondering why he wasn’t in Belgium with the rest of the Danish squad preparing for a friendly. Ah. The burly Scot soon hopped on the next flight out and hoped there was a squad already there ready to play as this game had completely passed him by – until some man in a stupidly expensive suit informed him that this was actually a last minute fixture and apologies were proffered in the form of a 200 pound Argos voucher. How kind.

Still – onto the game itself and George elected to keep up his 4132 formation, but mixed the players involved to allow fringe players a chance to shine – and used numerous substitutes as usual. It was a policy that had caused much debate in Denmark who debated over whether it was harmful to the first team who didn’t get time to together or more beneficial to allow possible stars a chance to shine, or even whether the population actually cared over the fate of the national side.

Whatever the feeling, a superb performance left many happy. Thomas Gravesen, Jon Dahl Tomasson and Patrick Mtiliga all creating a 3-0 half time advantage before substitute Bo Hansen added a fourth beyond the hour mark. The message made, further changes were made, and Belgium hit back with two very late goals to take the shine off the result, but nevertheless George, and the Danes were pleased.

Back though in Scotland, it was the trip to already promoted Partick that was next on the agenda. Attempting to play as full strength a side as possible, George led his team out into the stadium with the home fans in a samba mood of sorts, waving the scarves and flags, with the fans singing a compendium of incomprehensible songs – each man no doubt singing something different to the person next to him. They were happy, drunk – but happy. The game itself threatened to lose itself in the atmosphere as neither side looked particularly eager – with both sides looking to relax. However Partick did have a title to secure and once they heard Raith had gone a goal up, they put the pressure on a little – which resulted in winning a penalty shortly before half time. Mercifully the ref used common sense and only yellow carded Margy, but Noble still scored and Dumbarton’s unbeaten streak looked as though it would be threatened. However the dwindling minutes of the second half saw a late equalizer as Danny Shepple found sub Stuart Duff in space in the area, and the midfielder lashed home joyously as the honours were shared.

With many at the club content with the seasons achievements the final game of the Second Division Campaign – with the others on Saturday – Dumbarton hosted Stranraer the side who now placed 8th yet having relegation a couple of weeks back. With an eye on the future, and possibly reigning in some of these loan signings on a permanent deal, the side was very much experimental, and the nonchalant attitude of the supporters seemed to reflect that. The pressure was away, their side had gone unbeaten in a few weeks, even if plenty were draws, and though a victory would be a great way to finish the season off – it had been a good year overall.

The day before Partick had clinched the Second Division Title, whilst the blue half of Glasgow were celebrating their respective league clincher and football in general began receiving positive press. Retiring members Graeme Donald and Craig Brittain were given last farewells and the youngsters were given chances as well. It was disappointing then to lose 2-1, including an injury to left back Wayne Purser but the last minute consolation from Gary Alexander at least ensured the season ended with a cheer, if not, a win.

[Terk]

good to see this back hope you enjoyed your holiday

[Brian of Nazareth]

cheers, yeah it was amazing thanks

---

End of Season Breakdown – Dumbarton

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

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

Dumbarton - Sunday 6th May 2007

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

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

Squad

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

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

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

- Alexander, Gary S C ENG 15.8.79 27 - - £275 25.5.08 £55K

- Aliardiere, Jeremie S C FRA 30.3.83 24 - - £180 12.6.08 £40K

- Artur DM RC ESP 17.3.81 26 - - £140 28.6.08 £18K

- Barnes, Derek AM/F C SCO 20.9.77 29 - - £140 15.6.07 £0

- Brittain, Craig D C SCO 10.1.74 33 - - £130 22.6.09 £4K

- Brown, Alan M C SCO 26.6.82 24 - - £110 26.6.08 £3K

- Cano, José AM/F C ESP 29.7.79 27 - - £180 28.6.08 £35K

- Cummings, Warren D LC SCO 15.10.80 26 - - £325 5.5.08 £24K

- Cunningham, James D/M R SCO 1.12.78 28 - - £80 19.6.07 £1K

- Dickson, Mark SW C ENG 17.10.80 26 - - £100 15.6.09 £16K

- Donald, Graeme M C SCO 14.4.74 33 - - £200 28.6.07 £0

- Duff, Stuart AM RL SCO 23.1.82 25 - - £0 27.5.07 £180K

- Duncan, Derek D RC SCO 4.7.86 20 - - £0 24.5.07 £10K

- Elliott, Mark D C ENG 14.11.89 17 - - £80 15.6.10 £100K

- Emanuel D/DM R POR 6.9.81 25 - - £170 28.6.08 £50K

- Glennon, Matthew GK ENG 8.10.73 33 - - £90 28.6.07 £0

- Graham, Kevin M RC SCO 8.12.86 20 - - £160 30.4.08 £3K

- Gray, Wayne S C ENG 7.11.80 26 - - £60 19.6.09 £14K

- Kuipers, Michel GK HOL 26.6.74 32 - - £150 24.6.07 £0

- MacLeod, Jim D RC SCO 1.3.83 24 - - £120 5.6.07 £0

- Margetson, Martyn GK WAL 8.9.71 35 - - £240 7.6.09 £50K

- Martínez, Roberto M C ESP 13.7.73 33 - - £180 8.6.09 £14K

- McCabe, Kevin AM/F R SCO 14.11.82 24 - - £0 17.5.07 £2K

- McCulloch, Stephen D L SCO 3.4.81 26 - - £0 27.5.07 £95K

- McDonald, Gary F LC SCO 2.4.80 27 - - £130 4.6.07 £0

- McFadden, James M C SCO 13.8.83 23 - - £275 7.6.09 £28K

- Melvin, Billy F RC SCO 12.6.77 29 - - £200 24.6.09 £45K

- Milne, Steven D/DM C SCO 21.5.83 23 - - £240 19.6.08 £22K

- O'Donnell, Michael M R SCO 11.12.88 18 - - £190 13.6.09 £4K

- Prunty, Sean M R IRL 10.7.80 26 - - £180 6.6.08 £3K

- Purser, Wayne D L ENG 13.4.80 27 - - £140 27.6.10 £12K

- Schepple, Danny AM R WAL 27.4.81 26 - - £400 2.6.10 £65K

- Sharp, Peter D/DM RL ENG 9.4.81 26 - - £350 5.6.08 £18K

- Sheppard, Kyle D R ENG 26.8.80 26 - - £180 7.6.10 £16K

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

2006/7 Senior Club Stats

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

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

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

- Alexander, Gary 22 (10) 5 0 0 3 3 0 3 6.94

- Aliardiere, Jeremie 24 (10) 4 0 1 (1) 1 0 0 0 6.53

- Artur 18 (4) 0 0 0 3 2 0 1 7.09

- Barnes, Derek 3 (3) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.33

- Brittain, Craig 6 (1) 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 6.14

- Brown, Alan 6 (3) 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 6.56

- Cano, José 26 (5) 2 0 0 4 0 1 1 7.10

- Cummings, Warren 19 (3) 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 6.55

- Cunningham, James 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ----

- Dickson, Mark 25 (4) 2 0 1 (1) 1 3 1 0 6.93

- Donald, Graeme 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5.67

- Duff, Stuart 9 (2) 2 0 0 2 1 0 2 7.64

- Duncan, Derek 13 (2) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.53

- Elliott, Mark 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00

- Emanuel 18 (3) 0 0 0 1 6 1 1 7.05

- Glennon, Matthew 6 (1) 0 5 0 0 0 0 1 7.57

- Graham, Kevin 0 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00

- Gray, Wayne 8 (8) 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 6.31

- Kuipers, Michel 2 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 5.50

- MacLeod, Jim 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ----

- Margetson, Martyn 35 0 30 0 0 1 0 4 7.37

- Martínez, Roberto 14 (3) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.65

- McCabe, Kevin 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00

- McCulloch, Stephen 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ----

- McDonald, Gary 0 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00

- McFadden, James 17 (6) 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 6.70

- Melvin, Billy 29 (3) 12 0 0 5 4 0 5 7.25

- Milne, Steven 21 (8) 0 0 0 2 3 0 0 6.79

- O'Donnell, Michael 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5.00

- Prunty, Sean 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00

- Purser, Wayne 13 (4) 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 6.82

- Schepple, Danny 26 (8) 7 0 0 6 2 0 1 7.00

- Sharp, Peter 2 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.67

- Sheppard, Kyle 15 (3) 0 0 0 0 5 0 1 6.72

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

2006/7 Transfers

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

Date Player In From Fee

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

6.6.06 Peter Sharp Kidderminster Bos

7.6.06 John Sharkey Sheff Wed Loan

7.6.06 John Williamson Burnley Loan

10.6.06 Sean Prunty Free Transfer Free

17.6.06 Jeremie Aliardiere Free Transfer Free

25.6.06 Michel Kuipers Hayes Bos

25.6.06 Billy Melvin Darlington Bos

26.6.06 Mark Dickson Free Transfer Free

27.6.06 Wayne Purser Barnet Bos

29.6.06 Matthew Glennon Brechin Bos

3.7.06 Graeme Donald Free Transfer Free

26.8.06 Derek Duncan Dundee Utd Loan

28.9.06 Stuart Duff Dundee Utd Loan

28.9.06 Stephen McCulloch Dundee Utd Loan

6.10.06 John Sharkey Sheff Wed Loan

9.10.06 John Williamson Burnley Loan

26.11.06 Derek Duncan Dundee Utd Loan

4.12.06 Marius Stensland Kilmarnock Loan

29.1.07 Stephen McCulloch Dundee Utd Loan

29.1.07 Stuart Duff Dundee Utd Loan

9.2.07 James Alexander Celtic Loan

19.2.07 Kevin McCabe Motherwell Loan

19.3.07 David Clarke Motherwell Loan

29.4.07 Stephen McCulloch Dundee Utd Loan

Date Player Out To Fee

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

3.6.06 Stephen O'Brien Released Free

6.6.06 Sean Prunty Released Free

10.6.06 Stephen Cooke Released Free

14.6.06 Brian McGinty Released Free

15.6.06 John Hillcoat Montrose Bos

28.6.06 Graeme Donald Released Free

24.8.06 Paddy Flannery Released Free

4.9.06 Kevin Graham East Stirling Loan

6.9.06 Bernard Diomède Blackpool £30K

21.11.06 Kevin Graham East Stirling Loan

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

2006/7 Fixtures

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

Date Opposition Ven Competition Res Attend Scorers

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

4.7.06 Hamilton H Friendly 0:1 229

11.7.06 Athlone Town IRL A Friendly 1:0 167 Taylor

14.7.06 Finn Harps IRL A Friendly 1:1 1013 Donald

20.7.06 Limerick IRL A Friendly 1:4 117 Taylor

24.7.06 Dundee H Friendly 0:5 755

29.7.06 Partick Thistle A League Cup 1st Rnd 0:1 2041

6.8.06 Elgin City H Second Division 4:0 1060Ali pen, Shark,Schp,Can

8.8.06 Montrose A Challenge Cup 1st Rnd 2:0 156 Brown, McFadden

12.8.06 Peterhead A Second Division 0:2 1691

19.8.06 East Fife A Second Division 0:1 1360

22.8.06 Clyde A Challenge Cup 2nd Rnd 1:0 415 Dickson

27.8.06 Stirling H Second Division 0:0 1146

2.9.06 Montrose A Second Division 1:1 1119 Aliardiere

5.9.06 Morton H Challenge Cup Qtr Final 3:2 1209 Melvin 2, Shark

10.9.06 Queen of Sth H Second Division 1:0 1210 Aliardiere

16.9.06 Stranraer A Second Division 1:1 1731 Melvin

24.9.06 Partick Thistle H Second Division 1:3 1378 Melvin

30.9.06 Raith Rovers A Second Division 1:0 3196 Melvin

3.10.06 St. Mirren A Challenge Cup Semi Final 0:1 13396

14.10.06 Elgin City A Second Division 0:1 1079

21.10.06 Peterhead H Second Division 2:2 1093 Melvin, Gray

29.10.06 East Fife H Second Division 1:1 1087 Schepple

4.11.06 Stirling A Second Division 0:0 1939

12.11.06 Montrose H Second Division 3:0 1117Shar,Duf p,Mel

18.11.06 Queen of Sth A Second Division 0:1 1115

26.11.06 Raith Rovers H Second Division 1:1 1331 Melvin

16.12.06 Peterhead A Second Division 1:1 1854 Melvin

27.12.06 Elgin City H Second Division 2:1 1086 Ali,Shar

30.12.06 Forfar H Scottish Cup 2nd Rnd 1:0 627 Melvin

1.1.07 Stranraer H Second Division 1:2 1165 Alexande

3.1.07 Partick Thistle A Second Division 1:1 2138 Alexande

13.1.07 Montrose A Second Division 2:0 1588 Sharkey, Alexander

21.1.07 Stirling H Second Division 2:1 1174 Sharkey, Schepple

27.1.07 Hearts A Scottish Cup 3rd Rnd 0:1 11305

3.2.07 Raith Rovers A Second Division 0:1 3006

11.2.07 Queen of Sth H Second Division 0:2 1174

17.2.07 East Fife A Second Division 3:3 1277 Cano,Sche,Alex

25.2.07 Partick Thistle H Second Division 0:1 1194

3.3.07 Stranraer A Second Division 0:0 1793

10.3.07 Montrose H Second Division 2:1 1118 Schepple, Dick p

17.3.07 Peterhead H Second Division 3:1 1115 Ham og, Melv, Sche

24.3.07 Elgin City A Second Division 2:1 1069 Schepple, Duff

31.3.07 Stirling A Second Division 0:0 1913

8.4.07 East Fife H Second Division 1:0 1120 Melvin

14.4.07 Queen of Sth A Second Division 0:0 1124

22.4.07 Raith Rovers H Second Division 0:0 1255

28.4.07 Partick Thistle A Second Division 1:1 2196 Duff

6.5.07 Stranraer H Second Division 1:2 1240 Alexander

</pre>

[This message was edited by Brian of Nazareth on 30 March 2004 at 23:10.]

[Brian of Nazareth]

Round up of Tables and Awards

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

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

Scottish Premier Division - Wednesday 16th May 2007

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

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

2006/7 Table

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

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

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

1st C Rangers 38 13 5 1 42 7 11 4 4 40 20 81

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

2nd Celtic 38 16 1 2 47 15 7 5 7 37 32 75

3rd Dundee 38 12 3 4 33 19 9 4 6 24 18 70

4th Aberdeen 38 8 7 4 29 17 4 8 7 20 32 51

5th Dundee Utd 38 8 4 7 28 30 6 5 8 22 30 51

6th Hearts 38 9 3 7 28 24 6 2 11 19 27 50

7th Falkirk 38 10 6 3 26 17 3 3 13 15 32 48

8th Dunfermline 38 9 4 7 37 35 4 5 9 26 43 48

9th Airdrie 38 7 5 6 26 27 5 4 11 16 24 45

10th Kilmarnock 38 5 7 6 22 20 4 5 11 22 42 39

11th Livingston 38 8 6 6 24 20 1 5 12 13 35 38

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

12th R Hibs 38 4 5 10 27 40 3 6 10 17 34 32

</pre>

Scottish Premier Division Manager of the Year: Ebbe Skjovdahl Aberdeen

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

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

Scottish First Division - Wednesday 9th May 2007

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

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

2006/7 Table

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

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

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

1st C Motherwell 36 13 2 3 29 13 8 4 6 24 21 69

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

2nd St. Johnstone 36 13 5 0 33 13 5 8 5 22 20 67

3rd Ayr Utd 36 10 5 3 32 19 9 2 7 33 29 64

4th Inverness C. Thistle 36 13 3 2 36 20 5 5 8 24 21 62

5th Ross County 36 10 5 3 35 23 7 1 10 28 33 57

6th Queen's Park 36 7 4 7 30 29 6 6 6 27 30 49

7th St. Mirren 36 8 5 5 24 19 5 5 8 21 28 49

8th Morton 36 6 4 8 26 22 3 4 11 23 34 35

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

9th R Clyde 36 3 8 7 25 34 1 5 12 13 33 25

10th R Albion Rovers 36 4 2 12 13 32 1 3 14 9 34 20

</pre>

Scottish Division One Manager of the Year: Alan Lawrence Motherwell

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

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

Scottish Second Division - Wednesday 9th May 2007

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

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

2006/7 Table

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

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

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

1st C Partick Thistle 36 12 3 3 32 11 9 4 5 27 19 70

2nd P Raith Rovers 36 11 2 5 24 14 9 5 4 27 19 67

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

3rd East Fife 36 9 6 3 35 20 6 6 6 20 22 57

4th Queen of Sth 36 8 4 6 20 19 8 5 5 17 15 57

5th Stirling 36 9 5 4 26 14 6 4 8 19 19 54

6th Dumbarton 36 8 5 5 25 18 3 10 5 13 15 48

7th Peterhead 36 7 8 3 23 17 4 4 10 25 35 45

8th Stranraer 36 3 8 7 18 23 8 1 9 27 35 42

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

9th R Elgin City 36 6 3 9 24 32 1 4 13 15 36 28

10th R Montrose 36 5 3 10 21 29 1 4 13 7 33 25

</pre>

Scottish Division Two Manager of the Year Alan Banner Partick Thistle

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

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

Scottish Third Division - Wednesday 9th May 2007

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

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

2006/7 Table

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

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

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

1st C Fort William 36 12 3 3 39 18 13 4 1 31 12 82

2nd P Clydebank 36 8 7 3 18 14 10 4 4 32 21 65

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

3rd East Stirling 36 8 6 4 38 28 9 5 4 32 25 62

4th Stenhousemuir 36 9 4 5 25 20 6 4 8 24 29 53

5th Brechin 36 7 4 7 24 27 7 1 10 25 29 47

6th Alloa 36 8 4 6 36 34 4 4 10 17 28 44

7th Cowdenbeath 36 6 3 9 18 23 5 5 8 23 28 41

8th Forfar 36 6 3 9 26 26 5 4 9 29 38 40

9th Berwick 36 7 4 7 16 22 3 6 9 15 21 40

10th Arbroath 36 3 3 12 19 31 3 4 11 15 28 25

</pre>

Scottish Third Division Manager of the Year: Chris McLeod Fort William

[Brian of Nazareth]

Scottish Top Goal Scorer: Daniel Turner Rangers ( 21games, 25 goals

Scottish Player of the Year: Daniel Turner Rangers ( 21games, 25 goals

Scottish Young Player of the Year Pascal Metgod Rangers (41 games, 29 conceded)

Scottish Challenge Cup:

Ayr 2 St. Mirren 1 Annand 13 (1-0), O’Neill 63 (1-1), Annand 90 (2-1).

Scottish League Cup

Livingstone 2 St. Johnstone 0 J. Collins 60 (1-0), D. Johnson 70 (2-0)

Scottish Cup

Aberdeen 3 (p) Celtic 3 Drosos 34 (1-0), Jeffers 38 (1-1), Fowler 41 (1-2), Hartley 47 (2-2), Jenkins 52 (2-3), Drosos 54 (3-3). – ( Aberdeen win 7-6 on penalties )

UEFA Cup

Manchester City 2 Fiorentina 0 Sala 0.G 22 (1-0), Rees 61 (2-0)

Champions League

Roma 1 Bayern Munchen 0 Montella 89 (1-0)

[Brian of Nazareth]

Windy Down Bit

As the season began winding down, George was delighted to learn from a learned historian, Michael Winterbottom, that the club’s finish of 6th place in the league, was their highest league finish in more than 10 years. It also meant the time when George could vote for the FIFA Player of the Year, what with him being Danish boss and all. Unfortunately whilst he wanted to hand it to Martyn Margetson, the Welsh lad wasn’t on the list of nominees and so George randomly selected Lazio’s Fernando Morientes for the prize. Martyn Margetson was though selected for the divisions team of the year, and well deserved it was too after another fine performance between the sticks. George just wished he could keep him as long as he could – but he was Welsh and this was of course a major drawback.

George, personally though began to take life easier for a change. The end of may saw little attempt to seek further bolstering of the squad – that could wait until June or maybe even July. Instead – he took a little holiday, met a few charming people in the Lake District before returning to Denmark at the end of May for a European Qualifier with Estonia. Worse – he actually had to call 2 further players up for this match – a couple had retired through injury – and he hadn’t bothered to find this out. Oops. Players were delighted to hear the call – especially Mansfield’s reserve goal keeper who hadn’t played in 4 years but George proclaimed to the stunned media – “well if he hasn’t played, how do you know he’s not amazing?!â€

Before the actual game arrived though the 2006-2007 campaign ended with the official departure of many Dumbarton players. Gary McDonald moved to Berwick on a free transfer, Stranraer took Jim McLeod as well, whilst John Sharkey completed his move to Burnley – with George passionately wishing the move would break down. Graeme Donald hastened his retirement by finding work as a fisherman in Fiji whilst Craig Brittain was putting the finishing touches to his new home on the Isle of Skye with new wife, 16 –year- old Tracy, to begin life as a carpenter.

Graeme Donald 12 starts, 3 subs, 6.21

Gary McDonald 15 starts, 27 subs, 3 goals, 6.12

Jim McLeod 4 starts, 5 subs, 6.11

However there soon arrived the matter of the Denmark and with it the pressure to get Denmark’s qualification back on track – victory was essential. Not thinking greatly, the Mansfield reserve found a place on the bench – not that he’d be called upon. Well that’s what George thought. In the 10th minute, whilst defending a routine corner, Thomas Sorensen received a nasty kick on the calves and he was unable to continue. So enter the fray sub division 3 standard reserver Morton Hylegaard. Fortunately though Mads Jorgensen converted an opportunity on the half hour mark as the hosts seemed set to dominate the game. They did – but they just failed to find the back of the net – a crucial flaw, highlighted when Estonia’s second shot on goal ( the first before Tommy Sorenson left ), beat poor Morton all ends up just shy of the 65th minute mark. The home fans began to get a little nervous – as did George but after shaking the players up a little, substitute Dennis Rommedahl restored the advantage and with minutes remaining, Celtic forward Mads Jorgensen grabbed his second of the game to complete a victory that put Denmark right back in the hunt.

George was also pleased to note that Scotland had managed to renew any slight chance of qualifying by defeat the Dutch on home soil, thanks to Steven Milne, but again with games running out it appears to be too little too late and England’s healthy victory over Belarus only seemed to compound the angst felt by many north of the border. However many used that as a point to put the 2006-2007 season behind them, and look forward to the following campaign – a bit like George.

[Brian of Nazareth]

Lisbon Lions Season 2007-2008

The new season feeling began in the middle of June for George as all prospective newcomers were sought out, more players left and generally the papers were fully of juicy gossip columns about the possible fates awaiting players and clubs alike. Of course the full campaign was still a good month off but, hey that’s football for you in a passionate country like Scotland.

2007-2008 Squad Overview

Goalkeepers

Martyn Margetson 35 The Welshman enjoyed a terrific season once more at Cliftonhill as Dumbarton successfully navigated their way through the second division. A string of fine performances from the experienced stopper will make George rest easier about the hands available to him.

06/07 Record: 35 games, 30 conceded, 4 MoM, 7.37

Matthew Glennon 33 The cover player again made few appearances this year – but his attitude is second to none, and barring one poor game he has been a very reliable man – it’s a shame he’s competing with someone as competent as Martyn. Hopefully he’ll still want to stay for the whole of the coming season.

06/07 Record: 6 games, 1 sub, 5 conceded, 1 MoM, 7.55

[Brian of Nazareth]

Defenders

Warren Cummings 26,DLC This left back arrived from top flight English side Chelsea 4 seasons ago on a free transfer and he has proved to be an assured signing. In the year just gone by Warren was a semi-regular at the back, and performed reasonably well bearing in mind he had plenty of competitors for his position unlike previous seasons. Hopefully he’ll improve over the summer in order to keep a firm grasp of his spot.

06/07 Record: 19 games, 3 subs, 6.55

Kyle Sheppard 26 DR The hard working right back arrived on a bosman from Bristol City and he has proved a worthy addition. Like Warren – he’s suffered slightly from the increased quality and a bit of a jostling for position, but he came out well and George believes this guy should take the lessons learned in his stride and be a better player for it in the coming season.

06/07 Record: 15 games, 3 subs, 1 MoM, 6.72

Peter Sharp 26 D/DMLR The wing back arrived on a permanent deal after his brief loan spell with the club last season from Kidderminster. Though he was there acting as cover officially – he never really was able to get to grips with the pace and only made rare appearances. A useful player to have in emergencies but he’s never going to be player George would trust with an extended spell in the side. Contract runs out in 2008 too.

06/07 Record: 2 appearances, 1 sub 6.67

Wayne Purser 27 DL He’s another loanee turned permanent signing. Wayne arrived as a second choice left back but through out the season George recognized his abilities and he made a good few outings as Dumbarton fought relegation worries successfully. Confident on the ball and with a burst of pace to boot to, he’ll be a welcome member of the 07/08 defenseman line.

06/07 Record: 13 games, 4 subs, 1 MoM, 6.82

Emanuel 25 D/DMR The Portuguese wing back arrived midway through the 04/05 campaign and made positive impressions when he first appeared. Last year he played terrifically well in the second division and proved to be one of Dumbarton’s better full backs down the right, and his ability to play in midfield was not forgotten. A well rounded played, his attitude marks him out as a favourite with the coaches and George and it will serve him well in the future.

06/07 Record: 18 starts, 5 subs, 1 Assist, 1 MoM, 7..15

Mark Dickson 26 SW/DC The solid confident defender arrived on a free from Northampton. Initial signs were favourable and as a result he had a substantial role in the Second Division, featuring in the majority of the fixtures and never letting the side down, he was well respected by the fans and his ability to play well with whoever partners him is a big plus.

06/07 Record: 25 games, 3 subs, 2 goals, 1 assist, 6.99

John Williamson 26 DC The dependable centre half had plenty of qualities to his game as demonstrated last season where he spent near enough all his time at Dumbarton. Following the end of his loan spell George managed to persuade him to join on a free in the summer and now the centre back has the freedom to establish a partnership with Mark Dickson in the coming season.

06/07 Record: 19 starts, 1 sub. 6.95

Stephen McCulloch (loan) 26 DL Arriving from Dundee United until October, George was delighted to renew the services of the defender. He’s clearly talented but hasn’t enjoyed the rub of the green at his current club. Last season he proved to be a very useful asset at the back, and hopefully he can do that once more for Dumbarton.

06/07 Record: 12 starts, 1 sub, 7.00

Marius Stensland 25 SW/DC The brave Norwegian has arrived on a bosman transfer from Kilmarnock intent on banishing his homesick woes at a club he enjoyed performing for on loan last year. He was only here a month but in that time he showed enough talent to convince George Cameron to make him become a permanent fixture in the side. His arrival will help support the centre backs and provide competition for the others.

06/07 Record: 3 games, 6.67

Derek Duncan 26 DRC The confident defender spent a long loan spell at the club during the previous season, on loan from Dundee but because of compensation issues, George was unable to sign him permanently until he was released at the end of July, missing out on the pre-season.

06/07 Record: 13 games, 2 subs, 6.76

[Brian of Nazareth]

Just thought I'd add it here, my Juan Garcia and Mind of a Murderer stories will not be continuing for practical reasons ( i.e. I love this challenge too much to spend any time on them, and I'll not be using these computers after June either, rendering it pointless, I'll get them going again in the future though )

---

Midfielders

Alan Brown 24 MC Another former Fort William player, and one who struggled to make an impact this year, as the opposition have become tougher. He’s here for another year – but after that it’s likely he’ll leave unless he suddenly inherits a magical pair of boots.

06/07 Record: 6 games, 3 subs, 1 goal 6.45

Sean Prunty 26 MRC Irishman from Wigan. Arrived. Did nothing. His contract’s not over yet sadly. Wouldn’t know what a football was if it hit him even if he didn’t disgrace himself in the one appearance he made. If anyone bids for him he’s gone.

06/07 Record: 1 game 6.00

Kevin Graham 20 MRC This young hopeful has been around 4 years now since joining from the youth academy and has made a positive impression at the club since, but if he wants to make a mark for himself as a footballer he needs to improve a lot more, and at present is likely to continue being made available for loan.

06/07 Record: didn’t play

Michael O’Donnell 18 MR Another very young player who has impressed all and sundry at Dumbarton but the step up a league meant opportunities became limited as he strode about in the reserves. He’s got potential certainly, and hopefully he’ll recognize his chance will come if he works hard and gets on with his job quietly.

06/07 Record: 1 start, 5.00

James McFadden 23 MC The former Motherwell youngster seems to have an eye on bigger things, yet he’ll have to start picking his game up a notch if he is to have any hope of reaching those aspirations after a lucklustre year that saw him flitter between the superb and quite lethargic. Perhaps the rotation policy had a negative effect, but he needs to stand up and be counted more if he wants to become more recognized.

06/07 Record: 17 games, 6 subs, 1 goal, 1 assist, 6.70

Derek Barnes 29 AM/FR The attacker has struggled recently, and even though he was offered a 3 year contract, it’s more a way of George ensuring he has enough cover for his first choice midfielders. He’s not good enough yet he works his socks off. Will no doubt be a regular in the reserves, whilst occasionally allowing a first teamer to take a rest where necessary.

06/07 Record: 3 starts, 3 subs, 6.00

Roberto Martinez 33 MC The Spaniard had a tough time proving himself in division 2 after initially impressing. Thwarted by niggling injuries he was never at full fitness, however when he did play he was very hard working and enjoyed a few fine games in front of Artur. Hopefully he can put those problems behind him for the year ahead.

06/07 Record: 14 games, 3 subs, 2 goals, 6.65

Jose Cano 26 AM/FC Another continental player who arrived and made an impact – helping to alleviate the pressure on the forwards. In the second division he’s found life just as easy contributing significantly to the attacking element of Dumbarton’s game and creating chances for players to score from.

06/07 Record: 26 games 5 subs, 2 goals, 4 assists, 1 MoM, 7.10

Steven Milne 24 D/DMC The former Chelsea reserve joined George after being released from his contract and proved to be an excellent signing. Competing with Artur in the previous years he’s ability to play at centre half has proved most suitable at the club and he again proved why he was given a chance at Chelsea with his tenacious raw talent biting into those who dared cross his path.

06/07 Record: 21 starts, 8 subs, 2 assists, 6.89

Artur 26 DMRC The Spaniard was another astute purchase, and now in his first full season he showed why. Immense hunger for the ball, a never say die approach, smattered with a bit of creativity and you have a fan favourite. Along with Martinez they certainly knew how to entertain the crowd.

06/07 Record: 18 starts, 4 subs, 3 assists, 1 MoM 7.09

Danny Schepple 26 AMR The former Birmingham man joined on a permanent basis last season after loans the previous year and he turned out to be a very talented player. Almost always a first on the teamsheet Danny has the ability to create something out of nothing, yet frustratingly he’s also pretty successful at turning something into nothing. However – he’s easily good enough for this league and that’s what’s important.

06/07 Record: 26 games, 8 subs, 7 goals, 6 assists, 1 MoM, 7.00

[Brian of Nazareth]

Forwards

Gary Alexander 27 S The enigma continues with this forward, always flattering to deceive. His ability is without question as many of those who have witnessed him on the training ground and on match days but scoring has always been an elusive problem – and when scoring’s a key facet for any striker with ambition ( barring Emile Heskey ) - he’s bound to run into difficulties. With confidence at a low Gary was unable to even play well in parts and was subbed or benched several times this year. An improvement is called for but the only person who can change his form, is Gary Alexander.

06/07 Record: 22 starts, 10 subs, 5 goals, 4 assists, 1 MoM, 6.94

Kenny Deuchar 26 FRC Another bosman signing, arriving to boost the front line which struggled the previous season. He failed at Motherwell but after impressing during a loan spell at Dumbarton, George made sure that when the opportunity arose he wasn’t going to let it go and the big man was brought in.

Wayne Gray 27 FC Another poor year is further proof of how out of depth Wayne is at this level. His honest approach is unquestionable, but so is his overriding lack of ability. As a cover player he’s barely good enough but until his contract runs out – he’s a Dumbarton player.

06/07 Record: 8 games, 8 subs, 1 goals, 2 assists, 6.63

Billy Melvin 30 FRC George was initially cautious over the signature of this fellow but by gum did he prove to be more than value for money with some superb demonstrations of being the classic forward. He kept it simple and he was rewarded. There was a lean spell in the latter half of the year but his value did not go unn-noticed and George even had to rebuff a 45k bid from Kilmarnock for the player.

06/07 Record:29 games, 3 subs, 12 goals, 5 assists, 5 MoM, 7.25

Jerome Aliadere 24 SC The free transfer George was looking for all year did not deliver as had been expected by some. Perhaps the pressure had been too great but the young Frenchman never really appeared at ease. He did score a few goals and in patches you definitely saw glimpses of an exquisite talent hiding around in there but that was all.

06/07 Record: 24 games, 10 subs, 4 goals, 1 assist, 1 MoM, 6.73

[Brian of Nazareth]

Pre-Season Build Up

The season began with many of the squad looking forward to the season and fancying their chances of doing quite well. George though was far more cautious, as were the board. They wanted survival, George would look for a top 5 finish if possible – but ensuring they weren’t dragged into a relegation battle would be the first priority. To warm up for the campaign was a tour of England arranged to last through out July.

The first, involved a tiring and fraught journey to Bognor Regis. If you ever base your views on this place solely by it’s name, thereby ignoring what is has to offer you, well frankly my friend – you’re right. It’s not the most attractive of areas and whilst the locals are friendly enough, George didn’t really want to hang around there any longer than he had to. The team lost the match 2-1 as changes were made, Kenny Deuchar scoring the late consolation. However that was played in early July – a time when most players were only just beginning to return to their fitness routines – and the shock of playing caught up with most of them.

There was a 5-day break in between though which allowed the returning players plenty of time to recuperate and gain some form of physical fitness as Dumbarton swiftly moved on to AFC Barrow. This time Jose Cano won it with a first half strike as performances stepped up a notch. However it seemed the players weren’t at all bothered with the games in England, instead preferring to sip on a few of the local beverages, which may account for the poor performances in losing 1-0 at Bath City and being held 0-0 at Bromsgrove. With just the one friendly to go this season, George was just a little concerned about the apathy shown thus far. It was with some relief then that, in hosting Mansfield on the 24th, Dumbarton actually won a game, albeit because Mansfield’s Danish keeper got himself sent off after half an hour. Danny Schepple converted and that was that. A less than impressive prelude to Dumbarton’s season in division 2, though the last time there was a poor pre-season – George ended up with promotion. Could the same happen again?

[Brian of Nazareth]

2007-2008 – Pushing On

As per usual the season began for George with the League Cup on the 28th July, 4 days after the friendly with Mansfield. The side seemed quite prepared as they traveled to Queen of the South and George elected to make a few changes, handing debuts down to certain players. Again, this cup was no priority but it could perhaps become an enjoyable sideshow if they progressed far enough. Thanks to Kenny Deuchar Dumbarton progressed into the second round, where unfortunately they were drawn against Falkirk of the Premier league. The tie would be a home game, which could assist in an upset but George wasn’t holding out much hope. That news was accompanied by Jeremie Aliadiere’s injury, which would see the Frenchman, spend 10-14 days recovering from a strained calf muscle.

As August began, George finally did something he’d been mulling over in his mind for the previous couple of weeks and put Aliadiere on the transfer list. He was talented – of that there was no doubt – but he wasn’t adapting well to the conditions in Scotland, he’d bring in some much needed money and his place would be taken by a Scotsman – all highly valid factors.

With that, Cliftonhill and a sell out crowd arrived to welcome in the new campaign as Clyde came to town. Clyde have literally bobbed up and down every year between first and second divisions so this will be no easy game, although Dumbarton did defeat them on their territory in the Challenge Cup last year so George was at least a little familiar with his opponents. The game then turned out to be a very tough one for the hosts, and though they more than matched Clyde in attempts on goal, the visitors were clearly the more confident and threatening side, highlighted by Kevin Thomas’ goal on 20 minutes, the same Thomas that George had briefly managed whilst at Southport. However Dumbarton did fight back and scored their opening goal of the campaign not ten minutes after as a spell of pressure forced Gary Kerr to turn past his own keeper, but once the second half wore on it was clear Dumbarton were struggling. Legs were tiring and they couldn’t cope. It was of little surprise, that Clyde earned a late winner with less than 15 minutes remaining.

Derek Duncan then officially arrived, to aid the defense and George immediately began putting the Clyde match to the back of his minds. It was a game to learn from, not to fret over. Colin Miller and Scott Michie also arrived on free transfers to boost the forwards, as George plotted revenge in the Challenge Cup, ironically enough also against Clyde. This time though the hosts held out once more, and sadly enough it was another Kevin Thomas strike that separated the sides. Despite many enforced changes through lack of fitness, Dumbarton hustled and bustled all evening with little success, yet did enough to keep George happy at the end of the evening. Time to forget Clyde and move on.

The next game involved a trip to Peterhead, the side who’d finished marginally below Dumbarton last year, despite threatening to do a lot better before hand so again this was no easy game. Moments before, young central defender Mark Elliot was whisked away on loan to Elgin City for the entire season with much of the lads wages being kindly paid for by Elgin. This game though was much more enjoyable for George though as a Robert Martinez strike won the tie in the first half, but thankfully it was also a performance solid enough to ensure Peterhead would not sneak any late goals. The first points were in the bag, as they leapfrogged Fort William in the early stages of the league.

Midweek saw a return to defeat via the League Cup. It was Falkirk who inflicted it, but once more George was reasonably happy with what he saw. A 7th minute goal by young Neil Ball for the visitors may have led some followers to mistakenly construe that the hosts were in for a beating. Far from it though as they hit back impressively through Artur 4 minutes later and then pummeled the away goal with attack following attack, only to end in disappointment. The difference between such sides was made evident as Falkirk scored a quick goal on the counter before half time. They are a team of quality who can defend where necessary yet, when the chances come their way they take them. That knocked the momentum out of the side after that and in the latter stages only a string of superb saves from Matthew Glennon stopped the result descending into a farcical score line.

With several key players rested for that one, George brought Aliadiere off the list after a wee chat with the lad, and put him in the squad to face ye olde boys Fort William the following Saturday – the first time the two had met in this league. It saw the hosts controlling the early running of the game, and George was relieved when Billy Melvin grabbed a 1st goal of the season on 40 minutes, added to by Kenny Deuchar 5 minutes later. At half time the lead looked enough, yet Fort William responded on the hour mark through Scott McLean and the final moments were quite tense, but George’s men held out and it was a first home victory of the season as well, celebrated with a good old bottle of Bells in the tavern that night.

That night passed without notable incident, though for George it was tinged with regret given that he had confirmed his Denmark squad for the next game in a rather inebriated state and he wasn’t sure who was actually in it. The phone call from Portugal announcing their pleasure at accepting an invitation for a friendly also took George by surprise – he’d have to keep a lid on that bottle in the future.

Ending Dumbarton’s league games in August was a trip to Clydebank – a team rather familiar to George from his Fort William days. Clydebank had also struggled to make up their minds which league they wanted to play in, switching between 3 and 2, but they’d gotten off to a bad start on a return to division 2 and George was only too happy to make it worse for them. Jeremie Aliadiere was given a starting role after making his peace and doubling his efforts on the training ground, whilst Schepple was rested. Inside 10 minutes and George was celebrating as his young French forward had opened the scoring, connecting via a diving header with Billy Melvin’s cross. That goal gave Dumbarton the confidence to continue attacking. The second goal seemed inevitable, though it took until the 71st minute to arrive as the highly impressive Marius Stensland volleyed a long ball into the area hoping to create confusion. That it did and Billy was the fortunate recipient as he pushed the ball into an unguarded net to seal the points. It had been another fine start to the season, relatively speaking, and he was finding it hard to suppress his thoughts about a possible promotion campaign.

[cantonaisgod]

Great story fella, KUTGW

[Brian of Nazareth]

thanks

----

September began with another double bill of games. George flew off to Denmark, whilst Eddie took control of Dumbarton’s home clash with struggling Albion Rovers and sadly Eddie did not do a good job. Despite going a goal up through Jeremie Aliadiere’s penalty, Dumbarton did not play well – no coherent passing whatsoever and two late goals sent the fans home miffed – and wishing George would get back soon to sort out the mess.

Meanwhile in Denmark, George was up against bottom of the table Macedonia, in a game that was really a must win to ensure the Danes had a chance of automatic qualification. Thankfully it arrived through goals by Patrick Mtiliga and Mads Jorgensen and George left a happy man, of course he arrived an angry man upon learning of the Albion Rovers fixture.

His mood didn’t improve in midweek either, slumped behind a beer at the Egberth Arms, He watched Scotland defeat Israel on their territory yet still discover it was not enough to qualify for 2008. Greece and France both won fixtures as well as Denmark’s own fate rested on the final round next month. A win could see them go through automatically, yet a draw could see them fail altogether such was the closeness of the table:

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

Group 6

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

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

1st France 7 4 0 0 9 1 2 0 1 5 3 18

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

2nd Denmark 7 3 0 0 7 1 2 0 2 3 3 15

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

3rd Greece 7 4 0 0 6 1 1 0 2 2 4 15

4th Estonia 8 1 0 3 3 6 1 0 3 4 5 6

5th FYROM 7 0 0 3 1 7 0 0 4 2 11 0

</pre>

[Brian of Nazareth]

September continued to make life harder for George by robbing him of Roberto Martinez for a month. The aging midfielder was injured in a hit and run accident on the local village path. Fortunately though the driver of the car had been a septuagenarian granny traveling at 15 miles an hour so he only suffered relatively minor bruising. A 1-0 defeat at Queen of the South on the weekend further depressed the staff at Dumbarton as they sought to reverse this mini crisis.

The following weekend the respite arrived thanks to two players in particular who helped Dumbarton achieve a 2-0 victory over 2nd placed Stirling at Cliftonhill. Firstly Billy Melvin who scored 2 superb solo goals in the opening 10 minutes to give us our confidence back whilst Martyn Margetson produced a string of heroics in the latter part of the second half to keep a clean sheet and 3 more points for us.

However the inconsistency continued the following week as Dumbarton faced table topping East Fife, a side who went and spent 150k on one player in the summer, and predictably it was that player Paul Rodden who scored the winning goal in the second half. In truth it was a one way affair and further goals could have been expected against a side enjoying a fine start to the year.

With September drawing to a close and the Dane’s final qualifying game approaching, George was looking for a solid home performance against 6th placed Stranraer to settle the nerves and calm everyone down. Instead what he got was a game so full of drama, that he almost suffered a heart attack watching. His attackers had a fine day but when they play well at the same day your goal keeper decides to go missing – the game’s going to be a fun one for the neutral.

It started with 2 goals in eleven minutes, with Billy Melvin opening the scoring after 5 but sadly it was the visitors who leveled through Owen Morrison. That inspired an open ended game which saw Dumbarton just shade the games in terms of possession. But who cares about that if you don’t score? Stranraer then took a 2-1 advantage on the 35 minute mark before Dumbarton rallied immediately through Jose Cano to tie it up at the interval. Within seconds of the restart and Dumbarton had the upper hand – numerically - as their right back was dismissed for violent conduct. This lifted the crowd and Dumbarton, roared on by the fans went 3-2 up within 5 minutes thanks to a blistering strike by James McFadden , the midfielder picking his spot to perfection. It’s one way traffic from here on in – that is – until Stranraer score right out of the blue on 74 minutes – to the misery of the home fans who went all quiet at the thought of dropping 2 points. Never fear, though when you’ve got a cut-throat Spaniard in your side as with marginally 24 seconds to go in stoppage time, Jose Cano ran past 4 defenders and fired the ball low under the keeper and Cliftonhill erupted with absolute delight.

A fantastic victory then for George, who’s heart rate had shot up to the mid 500’s during that game and one that rounded off an erratic month.

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

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

Scottish Second Division - Saturday 29th September 2007

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

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

2007/8 Table

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

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

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

1st East Fife 9 1 2 1 1 1 5 0 0 10 0 20

2nd Albion Rovers 9 2 2 0 8 5 3 1 1 7 6 18

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

3rd Queen of Sth 9 3 0 1 8 2 2 1 2 6 3 16

4th Dumbarton 9 3 0 2 10 8 2 0 2 3 2 15

5th Clyde 9 1 1 3 6 7 3 0 1 7 5 13

6th Stranraer 9 3 0 1 8 8 0 3 2 8 10 12

7th Stirling 9 3 0 1 9 5 0 2 3 5 12 11

8th Peterhead 9 2 1 2 5 5 1 0 3 7 9 10

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

9th Fort William 9 0 2 3 6 10 1 1 2 4 8 6

10th Clydebank 9 0 1 4 0 10 1 1 2 4 6 5

</pre>

[This message was edited by Brian of Nazareth on 05 April 2004 at 22:15.]

[Brian of Nazareth]

October was a month in which George looked for renewed optimism, as he brought in Ian Deurden on loan once more, the forward adding a little extra, yet fate seemed set to pile the pressure on him by knackering Thomas Sorensens’ calf muscle, meaning he’ll miss the crucial home tie with France.

That tie arrived fairly quickly and it was one game that George certainly had not forgotten about – the permutations were a little worrying to say the least. France still needed a point to qualify automatically, and conceivably they could have been eliminated. Karim Zaza came in between the sticks, an experienced goal keeper with caps already to his name, but even so this was some game to suddenly have to play in. In choosing the side, experience and caps won over youthful exuberance. George needed players he could trust not to panic and there was no defensive player younger than 27 in the line up. With no out and out forward in the side, the policy of exchanging basic forwards continued, with Mads Jorgensen and Dennis Rommedahl taking the responsibility. Inside 4 minutes, Mads had scored. Jesper Gronkjaer whipped over a cross for the Celtic star to score with glee. That was the early nerves gone and for the rest of the game the team played with passion and completely outplayed their Gallic opponents. After a half time team talk where they learned Greece were still tied 0-0 in Macedonia, there was a slight relief but also a determined focus to finish the job off. The second half saw a well disciplined Denmark side superbly carry out the task. They could not score a second goal, but France could not find any way through and the game ended like that.

Fortunately, Greece drew, and Scotland and France were suddenly both on their way to Sweden for 2008. That delighted George, as he’d been aware goal difference would see France go through but thanks to the second-placed league, he’d steered his side into the major championships and earned a rapturous reception once the flight touched down in Copenhagen. Then though, he heard news that made him think. Several international managers had lost their jobs after failure to secure qualification for the championships – and one of them was Scotland. Billy Davies was no longer deemed the man suited to take Scotland on and already it seemed the rumours were in full flow. Candidates were being mentioned on the airwaves. Some wanted a strong foreigner to come in and sort the side out, like Advocaat, or O’Neill. Yet others were looking at Scotsmen with the credentials. Amongst the names to come out included George Cameron – and upon hearing that George glowed. He’d proven himself with Denmark certainly – but here was the big test – could he do it with Scotland? There was only one way to find out – so he applied. And took a huge gulp of whisky soon after. His dreams seemed a step nearer.

[Brian of Nazareth]

Back with Dumbarton, and the reality of his ability, George groaned when he discovered his next opponents were Clyde. Again! It was an away fixture and one he didn’t particularly relish but he was going to give it his all – positive performances by the club would certainly be seen in the right light by influential figures at the SFA. However it seemed as if luck was on his side as Dumbarton claimed a point in a game where they had been harried all over the park. Ian Deurden grabbed the equalizer in the 75th minute after Clyde had scored an early first half goal. A very valuable point and thankfully Martyn Margetson remembered he was a goalkeeper once more with a fine display.

Soon after, youngster Kevin Graham was farmed out to East Stirling on loan for a few months, allowing the 20 year old an opportunity to prove himself as a worthy player, whilst McCulloch’s loan contract was extended until February.

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

New Scotland Manager Announced, Fans Fury

It can be revealed exclusively in the Herald that the new Scotland Manager charged with carrying the nation into future tournaments, is the relatively young, and certainly experienced Scotsman…. Neil Sullivan.

Yes, the former Tottenham goalkeeper, who is now performing averagely at Sunderland as manager was deemed the man most worthy to take Scotland into the World Cup 2010, and has been given the full backing of the SFA. Immediate reaction from some fans it seems has not been so good, many horrified that such an individual with no International experience or even much club experience could be handed the tough, demanding role….

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

[Brian of Nazareth]

George continued to stare at the back page article glaring at him in the face. His muffin, hanging partially out the corner of his mouth, remnants of his glass of orange juice scattered around the floor, his hand still in the upright position as if it were holding a drink. The disbelief shook George quite hard, and he was very close to tears as he struggled to overcome the degree of stupidity the SFA had now displayed. Now George wasn’t going to argue that he himself would have been an obvious choice – far from it – he thought a competent experienced manager would have been brought in to sort out Scotland’s woes – but apparently not.

The misery continued at home to bottom of the table Clydebank where Martyn Margetson was sent off in 11 minutes, and although Matt Glennon did his best, Dumbarton could not recover, shot wildly when an opportunity presented itself and generally gave a performance that even a local under 13 side would be ashamed off. George was furious and fined Margy the 2 weeks wages. – which at least the Welshman accepted. However the club were now in 6th place, and a fair few points away from the leaders. George wanted so badly to get among the promotion players. The following week’s draw at newly bottom Fort William did not help. They were 5th, but now 8 points off top spot and only 5 from 10th.

[Brian of Nazareth]

November began with another 0-0 tie, this time against Peterhead, more dominant displays but none of the arseholes could score as George’s stress factor went into overdrive. Sparkling midfielder Jose Cano departed the field injured and would miss much of November in the process to the utter dismay of the fans. Gary Alexander then started moaning about lack of opportunities before George bluntly and publically criticized the man for being inept.

After a short breather to compose himself, George returned to Dumbarton focusing on the attacking element of his side’s game as they traveled to Stranraer. A goal from Danny Schepple just after the half hour mark proved enough as a welcome win arrived. Danny had not had the nest of seasons so far, but that goal was well timed, and it kept the visitors in touch at the top.

A trip to Portugal seemed a perfect excuse to enjoy a break for George as Denmark engaged in a friendly, no-one really cared much for and as such fringe players started, including that Mansfield bloke, who funnily enough now wanted to move up a notch in the club standings despite not having made an appearance for his current employers. Denmark lost 2-1 but George didn’t mind, kids had played and he’d enjoyed a little bit of the Algarve, which was still surprisingly refreshing in November.

The return to Scotland coincided with a league fixture at home with Queen of the South. Home form had been the big detractor from any success Dumbarton may have yearned for and the 0-0 draw in this fixture highlighted once more the problems they were having, as George continued to negotiate with Peterhead over the price for Gary Alexander. This on the same day Peterhead destroyed Fort William 7-0. The matter was still not revolved as Albion Rovers, in second spot were held to a goalless draw by Dumbarton the following week. Clearly draws were not a problem at Dumbarton, it was that little extra once again that was failing them. Gary Alexander decided against moving – just now, but with his contract expiring in the summer, George welcomed him back into the fold, to see if he could recapture a goal scoring instinct of sorts.

[Brian of Nazareth]

December kicked off in much better spirits with a well deserved home victory against promotion hopefuls East Fife. The game was a nailbiting affair for the most part, with both sides having periods where goals seemed the inevitable conclusion to such dominance but fortunately it was Dumbarton who came out on top – as Danny Schepple scored a 25 yard free kick in the 84th minute to hand George the 3 points, and the fans certainly made their appreciation known at the final whistle.

Due to the cup there would be a 2 week break in league fixtures, so George had plenty of time to prepare for the clash with 2nd placed Stirling, who were 5 points ahead of Dumbarton. Defeat in that game was something, that could not be contemplated if hopes were to be maintained of challenging the top 2 sides. In between though, Gary Alexander inevitably confirmed his departure by agreeing to join Inverness the following summer. If he’s worth a place in their side – George hoped he’d prove it here first.

With the arrival of the cup match, George riskily decided to abandon many of the regulars and allow others a chance to play in the side. One beneficiary of this policy was Colin Miller , who scored after 2 minutes to hand Dumbarton the lead, but sadly the weakness in the squad was all too apparent and Stranraer managed to run in 4 goals before half time as the hosts were suitably humbled. Still if that’s all the goals Stranraer score against Dumbarton this season, George won’t complain.

As the league trip to Stirling approached, Roberto Martinez announced this was to be his final year as a professional footballer, before he moved on to the coaching scene, and Kevin Graham was moved back to East Stirling on loan again, this time with the hope he might actually play some games.

With regards to the match itself – in short it was a disaster. Margy was still narked off at being blamed for the cup debacle, and none of the players seemed in the slightest bit interested in winning. All 3 goals for the hosts were scored within 25 minutes of the kick off, and in the second, Derek Duncan and Jose Cano both managed to injure themselves, to the point where they’d be out until the middle of January. An absolute stinker of a game, whichever way you looked at it, and George was frustrated again. Promotion was looking increasingly unlikely the longer this campaign went on.

[HD]

still going strong, good effort

[Brian of Nazareth]

cheers, and it's thoroughly enjoyable to play too

--

Huddersfield Town aren’t the club that immediately come to mind involving serious business in the transfer market, but on Wednesday George was quite shocked to see the club had bid 100,000 pounds for young defender Mark Elliot, who was currently on loan elsewhere. It was acdepted immediately. George needed money, Mark was English, and probably wouldn’t have established himself for 2 or 3 years so it really was a good deal as far as George could see. He also learnt that East Fife had lost their manager to first division St. Mirren, but though the temptation was there – he didn’t take it up. Success would come with Dumbarton – even if it took a heck of a lot longer.

Contract extensions then took priority as the club sought to keep many of the players at the club, whilst George actively continued his Scottish-unless-they’re-bloody-good policy of searching for new players. A short rest came on Christmas Day, with Mark Elliot returning south of the border officially, whilst George celebrated the day with his sister Heather. It was also a time in which George noted he was pushing towards the 40 mark – and in the midst of his passion for football had completely forgotten to get a life. It had been 16 years now since he’d had sex, nevermind had a real friendship with anyone outside of sport.

Those thoughts got slammed to the back of his mind on Boxing Day with a fantastically entertaining 4-3 victory over nemesis side Clyde who’d taken a little dip in form themselves over recent months. After 3 minutes, the sinking feeling arrived as Thomas put the visitors ahead. However, this Dumbarton side were made of sterner stuff as Roberto Martinez leveled almost instantly. Thereafter, an attack minded host side slaughtered the away goal with successive attacks that pierced holes, exploited mistakes and generally outpaced the defense. It was infuriating then – to see Clyde score a second after the half hour mark as Dumbarton fell behind. Thankfully Kenny Deuchar scored 2 superb goals on the half time whistle to change the direction of the game, one aided by Marius Stensland and the other was capitalizing on a woeful goal kick which fell straight at his feet. Immediately after the interval Billy Melvin latched onto a Deuchar through ball to send the fans into overdrive, as they threatened to run away with the game, but a Mitchell goal just as swiftly after brought the game back as a contest. No further goals arrived, but the pace was electric, every blade of grass covered several times over as both sides showed a capacity for attempting different avenues. It was George though who left the happier of the managers.

That was followed up with a tricky tie at Peterhead, made trickier by conceding inside 14 seconds – the fastest in the league that season, but after a bollocking at half time the team actually played football in the second half and a James McFadden strike ensured the points were shared, and Dumbarton kept up the unbeaten run as 2007 officially ended and merriment ( and wanton violence ) was enjoyed across the country as the new year was seen in once more with Auld Lang Sine ringing in the ears.

[Brian of Nazareth]

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

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

Scottish Second Division - Monday 31st December 2007

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

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

2007/8 Table

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

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

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

1st Albion Rovers 20 6 3 1 23 13 5 2 3 11 11 38

2nd Stirling 20 9 0 1 25 8 2 4 4 13 20 37

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

3rd East Fife 20 4 5 1 16 11 6 1 3 16 10 36

4th Queen of Sth 20 6 1 4 18 11 4 2 3 13 9 33

5th Dumbarton 20 5 2 3 15 13 3 4 3 6 7 30

6th Peterhead 19 4 4 2 13 7 2 2 5 17 14 24

7th Stranraer 19 6 0 3 16 12 0 4 6 14 24 22

8th Clyde 20 2 3 5 11 14 4 0 6 14 18 21

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

9th Clydebank 20 1 1 7 5 16 4 2 5 16 20 18

10th Fort William 20 1 3 6 15 27 3 1 6 12 24 16

</pre>

[Brian of Nazareth]

The New Year, allowed for a short break from action on the pitch, but off it, it was all hands on deck as George tried persuade the likes of Stephen McCullock and Stuart Duff to join permanently in the summer, whilst also going out for new players. In on loan were Englishmen, Jon O’Brien, a midfielder from Torquay, and Ben Woods an attacker from Barnet. A further cash injection from the board, coupled with the sale of Mark Elliot, meant for the first time in his Dumbarton career, funds were actually made available for transfer. Okay – 14,000 wasn’t going to buy much but it was always nice to hear.

2008, and January at least began in positive fashion on the park at Cliftonhill with a 2-0 victory over seriously struggling Fort William, the goals coming from Emanuel , who also injured himself later on, and the inspirational Billy Melvin who proved to be a star on the pitch.

The good form continued away to Clydebank the following week, as aided by the dismissal of their goalkeeper Alex Rae, Dumbarton rolled to a convincing 4-1 victory. Loan signing Ben Woods scored the opening goal after 12 minutes before Rae’s red card. The penalty was duly converted by centre back Mark Dickson and Dumbarton were on their way to victory. Billy Melvin added another before half time, and though the home side pulled one back in the second half as Dumbarton relaxed, Jose Cano celebrated his return from injury with a stunning pile driver late on, and it was 3 very valuable points that kept the side in touch.

Arising from that result though was rival side Peterhead, a team with money, bidding for Ben Woods, who’s value was approximately 6 times what was in the Dumbarton bank, which annoyed George to say the least. Then a cunning plan arose as he let it slip to a journalist they were planning a 95k bid for the player. The trick worked and Barnet rejected Peterhead’s offer, eagerly awaiting an improved offer from elsewhere – and they’ll be waiting a bloody long time until George ever had that amount of money to spend.

[Brian of Nazareth]

February

With another break for cup fixtures, the next league game wasn’t until 2nd February and it was certainly a crucial one – as Dumbarton hosted Albion Rovers. Rovers, aside from being rivals, were top of the table, with a 6 point lead to Dumbarton in 5th. Defeat at this stage would be a bit of a body blow, so George elected to stick with the same team as before with the only exception being Aliadiere coming in for John Devine.

A good start was called for to ensure nerves didn’t affect the side too much – which is why Stuart Campbell’s 2nd minute goal was met with a great deal of anger on the home bench, which turned to frustration when Ben Woods was forced off injured after 11 minutes. For some reason though – that seemed to make the Dumbarton players change their attitude just like that. Billy Melvin grabbed a goal just before the interval and then Jon O’Brien turned scorer converting a McFadden centre on 54 minutes, and then 10 minutes later Jeremie Aliadiere generously played in Steve Milne for the third and ultimately decisive goal. It kept the fans happy for certain – and when the final whistle went, George let out an involuntary “Hooray!â€

The fall out from that game was a tightening at the top. The victory meant Dumbarton were now 4th and 12 points ahead of 6th. The top 3 sides were also all on 42 points, 3 points ahead – which meant George could definitely consider a challenge viable this year – with a little luck and maybe a bit more manpower.

The fixture list though clearly had no intentions of making it an easy ride as they immediately faced an away tie to one of the leading teams, at East Fife the following week. Approaching the tie full of confidence, aware that attack was the best policy, George sent the side out in an almost 433 style, recklessly abandoning the wings, and it was a move that some fans feared would turn out disastrously after 5 minutes as East Fife seemed to enjoy the extra width, but as Dumbarton grew in confidence and defended with earnest early on, the momentum seemed as though it would change. Surviving until the break at 0-0, George ordered more of the same, but the intensity got the better of Billy Melvin who had to be replaced within minutes of the restart, to be replaced by Kenny Deuchar . However, like the previous game, it only served to benefit Dumbarton who immediately scored through the irrepressible Jon O’Brien and suddenly the hosts were unnerved. A threatening period around the 70 minute mark, was wonderfully quelled by Jeremie Aliadiere who stroked home from 12 yards in the 78th minute to secure the 3 points, and send George and the boys home in high spirits.

Afterwards, George immediately set to work on bring the loan signings, who’d only been on one month contracts, in for a longer spell at the club, especially Jon, who’d really made an impression on the fans to say the least. Internationally though George, had sink a few pints English style, when he discovered his group for the Championships in Sweden Germany, Romania and Poland were the sides to contend with – and it would certainly prove to be a testing group to qualify from as the Danish FA alluded to do as they merely expressed a hope of getting through to the last 8, not an ultimatum. Even so, progress as far as possible was the target – anything to improve his international profile – in his one mad plot to rid Scotland of that muppet Sullivan.

With wins such as these, it’s always important to make sure the job’s repeated against the clubs which are struggling. Like Stranraer. This was the first meeting since the poor cup defeat, and George was determined to make amends. Aided by the return of the mercurial Jon O’Brien, he sent the team out in confidence, but 45 minutes later, sweat was poring down his forehead, and his fist smashed through the dressing room door. Kevin Hamilton had given the visitors a well deserved half time lead and unless the hosts sorted themselves out, they were on course to drop 3 very valuable points. John Devine replaced Kenny Deuchar and the complexion of the game fortunately changed. Jose Cano , eventually tieing the match up at 1- a piece shortly before the hour mark and you could actually feel a sigh of relief reverberate around the ground and not long after, Jon O’Brien further endeared himself to the home crowd with a quite spectacular 40 yard free kick, that just beat Mark Robertson’s left hand and it was 2-1 and Stranraer dropped off the pace as their heads dropped. Steven Milne completed the damage with 10 minutes to go and suddenly life really was feeling good at Cliftonhill. The winning run was now up to 5 and even the press had positive words to say about their chances of promotion this year.

The final game of February was another key game as Dumbarton traveled to Queen of the South – a team they were level on points with, but marginally behind on goal difference. John Devine started in place of Kenny Deuchar as the teams walked out onto the pitch, aware of the importance of a game like this. After 4 minutes the boisterous Jon O’Brien received a yellow card for a rough tackle and George began to wonder if the lad had the temperament to last. 20 minutes later and the Torquay reject scored, causing George to offer assistant Eddie the biggest bear hug ever. It was just a pity O’Brien had a contract until 2011, effectively ruling out a permanent bid. However 5 minutes later the scores were level as Anthony Ross broke free of Marius Stensland to mute the away hoard, as the game now really became a close contest. Neither side was willing to make any foolish risks in the second half as defeat, would mean handing the opponent an edge in the race. However as the game seemed destined to end a draw – a goal was scored in the 87th minute. O’Brien found Aliadiere down the left in space. The Frenchman chipped a cross over, and Danny Schepple knocked the ball wide to John Devine on the right. The forward checked back and sent in a low cross where Aliadiere met it with perfection and it was 2-1!!

[Brian of Nazareth]

March ( 1)

It took George the rest of the weekend to calm down from this victory as the table now placed Dumbarton in second spot, a point behind Albion Rovers, and, like many connected with the club, he was on could nine. Any time he entered a local, fans queued up to buy him a drink – and he got very, very happy in the process. When the club announced the latest victory had broken the club’s winning streak, George couldn’t help but glow with a little pride.

As the month looked to end on a high, there was news in the transfer market. As Peterhead looked to buy as many players as possible, they bid once more for loan signing Ben Woods, this time George actually made a bid in excess of Peterhead’s before withdrawing. Not to be out done though, the rich team went and bid 30k for Dumbarton’s out of favour forward Scott Michie who had really not impressed since arriving in the summer, and at 28 there was no point holding on to him so the bid was accepted with glee, and sealed on the eve of March.

The opening day, began with George opening a letter in the mail and learning he’d been awarded Manager of the Month for February – and the letter took pride of place on the mantelshelf, the eloquent words of praise, carefully handwritten out by the judging panel. He wasn’t alone either though as Jon O’Brien received a similar reward for Player of the Month. Now George just didn’t hope the mythical curse struck as they hosted 5th placed Stirling.

Artur was the only change, replacing the off key Steven Milne, who seemed to have eaten a rather dodgy banana for breakfast. This bad luck did not last long fortunately though as the genius that was Jon O’Brien struck in the second minute, as the confidence that was now brimming through out this side dealt fairly comfortably with the threat on offer. Until half time that is – as soon after Andy Scott was handed a goal on a plate, via a mistimed challenge from Emanuel, and the scores were level. Fired into action, George and the fans yelled at the players to respond – and in style they did. With the game entering it’s final quarter, Danny Schepple picked up a loose ball in the center of the area, ran 20 yards, evaded a challenge, moved the ball into the path of his right foot and unleashed a thunderbolt into the bottom corner to restore the lead – and moments later Kenny Deuchar arrived from the bench in place of O’Brien – to head home a 3rd goal – to hand George 3 magical points.

As journalists began to pay a little more attention to George’s recent success, the club’s bank balance also picked up and George now had 18,000 pounds at his fingertips – it was bliss. To not be struggling, anymore and enjoy such fine performances as well as results was a joy to behold. Results had favoured Dumbarton, and they now lay 5 points ahead of third placed East Fife. The dream – had gathered quite a bit of substance in recent weeks.

[bjorn]

Come on Dumbarton

Great story BoN, I'm enjoying it

[Brian of Nazareth]

cheers Bjorn, nice to have you following

---

March (2)

The follow up was a return to Fort William – a team so low on confidence and leaking goals like there’s no tomorrow so this was an easy victory by all accounts. Perhaps feeling a little overconfident George made several changes to the line up allowing his stars to take a little rest. Once John Williamson and Danny Schepple created a 2 goal lead inside 5 minutes, the changes seemed perfectly justified. That’s when it fell apart as Dumbarton completely relaxed, assuming they could just turn up for the 3 points. 2 goals in the final minute of the half from Chris Hay, shocked Dumbarton as they suddenly realized this was no rollover, and despite Billy Melvin restoring the lead moments after the interval the complacency still wouldn’t shift and Scott McLean scored late to end the winning streak.

It’s probably a measure of how well the side have done recently, that a draw incited such frustration but it was a lesson from which George learned. Don’t drop the first teamers. Fortunately though other sides had only drawn too, so the damage was quite minimal in terms of their promotion chances and with a home clash against 9th placed Clydebank there was a great chance to return to winning ways.

The build up had seen many Scot’s celebrating Aberdeen’s UEFA Cup mauling of Inter Milan 5-1 in a quarter final match, especially so after the bragging from boss Hector Cuper, about how they already were looking at possible opponents for the final, after they disposed of Aberdeen. Nothing quite like a bit of well deserved karma to keep people smiling.

Against Clydebank, a few regulars returned to the side, including Martyn Margetson, as Dumbarton looked to maintain their place in the top 2. After 6 minutes though Raphael Jaquin sent the home side’s net bulging, and some fears of an end of season collapse crept into the conscience of a few doubters. However, you don’t go on long streaks without learning how to fight and this is exactly what the home side did as a return to gritty play helped turn around the direction of the game. Firstly Billy Melvin notched his tenth of the season, before Danny Schepple continued his fine run to make it 2-1 before the break. With the tide turned, two more goals, both penalties courtesy of Mark Dickson added a fine gloss finish to the end result – and now Dumbarton topped the table – and seemingly cruising to Division 1 – a position no-one had predicted the previous summer.

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

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

Scottish Second Division - Sunday 16th March 2008

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

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

2007/8 Table

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

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

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

1st Dumbarton 29 10 2 3 30 17 6 5 3 17 12 55

2nd Albion Rovers 29 7 6 1 29 18 8 2 5 22 19 53

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

3rd Queen of Sth 29 7 2 6 23 16 7 2 5 20 12 46

4th East Fife 29 5 6 3 19 16 7 3 5 20 15 45

5th Stirling 29 10 1 3 27 11 3 4 8 18 30 44

6th Stranraer 29 9 0 5 23 22 2 5 8 22 30 38

7th Clyde 29 4 4 7 19 22 6 1 7 19 21 35

8th Peterhead 29 6 4 5 19 14 2 6 6 26 24 34

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

9th Clydebank 29 4 2 8 14 25 5 2 8 23 30 31

10th Fort William 29 2 4 9 23 42 4 1 9 16 33 23

</pre>

[Brian of Nazareth]

March (3)

With 7 games remaining, smiles were in abundance wherever George went, the fixture at Clyde suddenly didn’t seem so daunting – given the troubles encountered at the beginning of the campaign. Players were in form, staying injury and suspension free and confidence was unstoppable. John Devine replaced Kenny Deuchar in the starting line up and bagged the second goal, after Jose Cano had given Dumbarton the lead, and now the gap to third spot was 12 points – with 6 games remaining – they were so close.

After the match – George hopped on a flight to Denmark where the national side were hosting Norway in a friendly. Another experimental side unluckily lost as Norway scored with their only shot of the game, whilst the Danish forwards missed several golden chances to equalize, however whilst George was given a slight warning from the FA – they were still pretty grateful for qualifying for the Championships after all. The following day also saw a very interesting set of World Cup Qualifying fixtures released – with the Danes taking on Estonia, Iceland, Slovenia and Sweden and whilst there were no “small†teams to speak of, there were no giants either which made George appreciate the rub of the green he was experiencing at the moment. Even Scotland didn’t have the hardest of tasks, though a clash with England would no doubt provoke a large degree of rivalry once more. Belgium, Belarus, and Liechtenstein the other sides in that group.

As the transfer window passed with no major activity, Dumbarton hosted money bags Peterhead, who for all their expenses only lay 7th in the league, with some work still to do to avoid a relegation fight and once Jeremie Aliadiere scored in the 5th minute, incidentally his 5th goal of the season – it looked as though George had the last laugh. But you know what they say about returning players scoring? Scott Michie tied the game up after half an hour and that’s how it stayed for the duration of the game. Fortunately though, all other opponents failed to capitalize on the advantage and the lead over Albion Rovers in second at least, was extended to 3 points.

[Brian of Nazareth]

April/May (1)

As the sun began to actually bring with it some warmth, there was, as the cliché goes, an extra step in the players moods in the closing moments of the season. The away game at Stranraer could conceivably see promotion clinched if they were to win it and games went there way. George though, was trying his damndest to ignore these thoughts. He didn’t want to relax until it was finished – the old “Don’t count your chickens..†firmly on his mind.

The game itself was again one for the neutral as it set pulses racing and both sets of fans experienced magical highs and lows within the space of 90 minutes. It was the home side who were to experience the highs first though – Chris Pearson scored after 9 minutes, and then that lead was doubled 15 minutes later as Martyn Margetson committed a professional foul on the forward who converted the penalty – and at 2-0 down with an underperforming Matthew Glennon in goal, with another 60 minutes of the game to go, George could not foresee his side’s unbeaten run lasting beyond today. Perhaps the tide had turned. When Graham Weir then added a 3rd shortly before half time the game looked dead. Stranraer supporters were singing renditions of “you’re gonna win f**k all!†and our fans meekly turned their attention to any bit of reading material they could find, or the radio to discover how opponents were getting on elsewhere.

However in the second half – the inexplicable happened, and George was as shocked as he was delighted. Glennon was pulling off top saves, and Billy Melvin pulled one back shortly after one of these saves – and not 10 minutes later, Billy poked home another scrambled effort and it was 3-2 and very much game on! Stranraer appeared now to be the side a man short as they were out chased and out fought by a very determined Dumbarton side. With 15 minutes remaining, John Williamson swung over a deep corner, that evaded almost everybody except James McFadden who’d run round the back, and the midfielder half volley an immaculate strike into the roof of the net, inciting jubilation amongst the away fans, and George himself. It was a quite, quite, stunning come back – and at that point, George really did believe his side would be playing in Division 1 the following year.

Elsewhere, results hadn’t been so kind, but the gap to 3rd was still a good 10 points, although Albion Rover’s 5-4 victory over Dumbarton closed the gap to second to 1 point. It was a result that simultaneously saw Fort William relegated – to no one’s surprise – you can’t concede 83 goals and expect to get away with it. For Dumbarton, there was another record to accept, for their long unbeaten run which had now stretched to 14 games, including 4 draws and 10 victories.

After confirming another pointless friendly squad for Denmark, George returned to Cliftonhill, where 4th placed Queen of the South came to visit. A victory here, would confirm promotion and the partying could begin, which is why the ground was full with fans hoping to be able to crack open the beer bottles with relish in the evening. Billy Melvin opened up the scoring with his 13th of the season, before Warren Cummings doubled the lead on 36, by way of a rather fortuitous penalty, not that George planned on complaining. The half time team talk was a difficult one to control, many of the players were finding it hard to resist smiles as they saw their reward, tantalizing just ahead of them – and focusing was the key. So Christopher Russell’s goal on the hour mark, drew a few harsh words from the touchline as fans suddenly quelled their enthusiasm for just a moment. However, they were not to be denied, and as the final whistle blew – euphoria and pandemonium exploded onto the pitch as promotion was sealed. A little voice, in George’s head, funnily enough, named Rod Davies, went crazy, yelling HOORAY and GODDAMMIT YEEES! Which confused George to no-end.

[Brian of Nazareth]

April/May (2)

With celebrations out of the way with regards to winning promotion – George now looked to winning the title and picking up some silverware for the first time in his career. They were 3 points ahead of Albion Rovers, with a +7 better goal difference, with 3 games remaining. On Saturday 19th Dumbarton traveled to Albion in one of the most important games of the season with regards to the title. A point would see Albion promoted, but they were looking for better fortune.

Dumbarton lined up with their strongest team, Martyn was back from suspension and the midfield of Cano, Schepple and O’Brien were looking to overpower their opponents. It was Schepple who drew first blood, latching on to an Emanuel through ball to fire home. The lead lasted 5 minutes though as Andrew Morris squared the game up as it all became quite tense. Soon after Billy Melvin scored one of the sweetest goals you are ever likely to see, as he ran a full 40 yards from his own half, performing a little Cruyff turn, flicked the ball up onto his knee, before firing with such venom into the net, that many thought it had actually gone through. Again this lead was cut short before half time by Barry Graham though as events were all square. In the second half, Devine, Martinez and Steven Milne all came on to try and find a winning goal, but it was not to be and the game ended a draw – the home fans still happy enough that now they had secured their own promotion, and this would be an acquaintance to be enjoyed the following year.

In the midst of all this joy at club level, George still had international duties to perform and a trip to Belgium beckoned for a friendly, that no-one gave a rats ass about – hell even the Danish press had kept quiet in the build up to this game. An uninspiring first half came to life after the interval as Sven van de Broeck scored. Once Jimmy Nielsen, was dismissed later on it was game over and the result ended up 3-0. A few fans were upset, but by and large many saw it as a chance for new guys to get a run out and impress – which they didn’t.

It was the Scottish Second Division that still held George’s interest though as he looked to end on a high at Cliftonhill. They hosted East Fife in the penultimate game, and should a victory be coupled with Albion Rovers failing to defeat Peterhead, the title was theirs. Despite having already achieved the main goal, George sent out a full strength eleven to secure the much needed 3 points. It seemed a few tried too hard and within 30 minutes all 3 subs had been used, with Artur, Aliadiere and Jose Cano all injured. As the game struggled to find any form of rhythm, the fans suddenly began cheering, as those with radios knew Peterhead had taken the lead against Albion – hell the title was Dumbarton’s even if it just stayed like that. The second half, saw a repeat performance, with little chances created – until the 82nd minute. Billy Melvin took a throw in, and he picked Roberto Martinez , in his last home appearance for Dumbarton, tearing down the wing. Everyone waited for him to be challenged, checked, tackled but it never happened and the Spaniard kept coming. Eventually the goalkeeper went to meet up, but mistimed the run – as he watched a cross sail pass his flagging arms onto the head of Danny Schepple who controlled the ball into the net, before pulling off, arms raised in the air to celebrate with Roberto – and the rest of the team – who formed probably the largest “pile-on†of the season. A sweet way indeed to collect the trophy and move into another league. The fans cheered, the bench cheered and the players cried. To quote a half-decent manager: “Football eh? Bloody Hell!â€

[Brian of Nazareth]

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

Hysteria as Dumbarton win the League

Paul Norman

The scenes at Cliftonhill were a joy to treasure yesterday afternoon, as in bright warm sunshine, George Cameron’s men defeated East Fife by a solitary Danny Schepple goal, to secure the Division 2 Title, the last time they’d won this trophy was in 1995.

All season long, Dumbarton were tagged by some as “nearly there’sâ€, by many of the local press – and I must include myself in that category – but George Cameron, proved all his doubters wrong by completing his second promotion in 4 years with Dumbarton – a club that seemed to have become lost in the wilderness, that is division 3.

After a period of time with Fort William, where he had simply been unable to elevate the highland side off the bottom of the league, and when he himself was doubting his ability, the patriotic Scotsman had to make a move to England to resurrect his career with English Conference side, Southport. Not willing to stay there any longer than he had to, when the chance came to move back home arrived, he snapped it up.

Fans of Dumbarton may have been entitled to question whether this manager had the credentials to take the club forward, given his relative youth and lack of success up until that point. However, George was a man who thrived in bargain basement dealings, and after a solid first season in charge, promotion followed the next year, as the man who once claimed he’d get Scottish football back on track, began to endear himself to the fans.

The debut season in the Second Division was a successful one in many ways. Relegation was avoided, finishing a comfortable mid table and George could see the potential to do well thereafter.

It was also a year in which the unknown manager took an astonishing step into the limelight by accepting the job of managing Denmark – and against all the criticism he came out on top in this battle as well – steering the Danes into the European Championships which are now just a matter of weeks away.

If that didn’t boost his profile, then this year may well do so. After a shaky start, Dumbarton have enjoyed a superb run of form since December, going unbeaten in the league, and playing entertaining football as well.

Yesterday saw one of the key players in the side’s success, Danny Schepple, deservedly grab the winning goal, though a large chunk of credit must be awarded to Roberto Martinez – the retiring Spaniard who fully relished the occasion – tore down the left flank before drawing the keeper out of position, allowing Schepple the chance to head into an unguarded net.

Of course, there were a few negatives – in that 3 of the seasons regulars all departed injured, Jose Cano, Jeremie Aliadiere, and Artur all out of action for a fair amount of time, but even so it won’t have detracted from what was truly a special occasion.

Oh and Clyde got relegated.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

[Brian of Nazareth]

For George, usually reading praise made him cringe, but just this once he was going to let it go and enjoy it. The end of April had been made better by the fact german midfielder Thomas Hitzlesperger had agreed to join in the summer as he realized now – that there would a greater field of players to attract in the summer.

The final day trip to Stirling proved to be more than George could have asked for. Players like Michael O’Donnell and Matt Glennon were given starts along with John Devine and Colin Miller , as George looked to enjoy the last day, relaxing. The first half saw Devine score the opening goal, and given the display offered by the two teams in the first half – that looked as though that would be it – wrong!

After bringing on second half subs, like Roberto Martinez for his final farewell – the direction of the game changed as Dumbarton ran riot over their hosts. Kenny Deuchar scored with a bullet header in the 70th minute, to deflate Stirling, before Kevin Graham on as a sub struck beautifully with 10 minutes remaining reminding his boss he was still talented, before poetically the fourth and final goal in the 90th minute arrived following a Jon O’Brien corner. Only half cleared, the ball was bobbling loose 14 yards out before the left boot of Martinez struck it home as the Spaniard ended the match with the last kick of the game. There was certainly one or tears welling up in the eyes of Roberto as he left the field, saluting the away fans in the process.

After taking a little break, the club wound down for the summer, and George began to focus on Denmark for a change, though not before seeing Aberdeen crash in the final of the UEFA Cup 2-1 to Fulham, Barcelona resoundly defeat Manchester United in the Champions League Final, Celtic break Ayr’s fans hearts with a late winner in the Scottish Cup, and rebuffing bids for Jose Cano – of around 60k. Dumbarton may be poor but they weren’t going to lose some of their better, albeit foreign players – at least not just yet.

Awards in Scotland took place, and George pretended once again to enjoy wearing a black tie dress, but on this occasion it was well worth it as he was announced Scottish Second Division Manager of the Year, and the congratulations received by fellow colleagues was a memory George would enjoy. He stayed to applaud, the stars on the pitch, like Ranger’s Daniel Turner – who seems to have become a regular fixture on the podium in recent years, as he won Player of the Year, whilst Elgin City striker Jonathan Mitchell took home the Top Goal scorer gong after an incredible 40 goals in 34 games. When the teams of the divisions were announced, George was also very placed to note 4 of the Second Division were from Dumbarton, though given they won the league it shouldn’t have surprised him as much as it did.

[Brian of Nazareth]

Some End of Season Stats

( I’m not going to do awards this time round with Euro2008 taking up my attention )

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

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

Dumbarton - Friday 9th May 2008

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

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

Squad

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

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

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

Alexander, Gary S C ENG 15.8.79 28 - - £275 25.5.08 £2K

Aliardiere, Jeremie S C FRA 30.3.83 25 - - £180 12.6.08 £16K

Artur DM RC ESP 17.3.81 27 - - £180 28.6.11 £24K

Barnes, Derek AM/F C SCO 20.9.77 30 - - £200 10.6.10 £5K

Brown, Alan M C SCO 26.6.82 25 - - £110 26.6.08 £0

Cano, José AM/F C ESP 29.7.79 28 - - £180 28.6.11 £45K

Cummings, Warren D LC SCO 15.10.80 27 - - £275 6.6.10 £26K

Deuchar, Kenny F RC SCO 6.8.80 27 - - £200 15.6.10 £30K

Devine, John S C SCO 14.7.84 23 - - £180 7.6.10 £40K

Dickson, Mark SW C ENG 17.10.80 27 - - £100 15.6.09 £10K

Duncan, Derek D RC SCO 4.7.86 21 - - £180 28.6.10 £24K

Emanuel D/DM R POR 6.9.81 26 - - £180 28.6.10 £70K

Glennon, Matthew GK ENG 8.10.73 34 - - £180 13.6.08 £4K

Graham, Kevin M RC SCO 8.12.86 21 - - £180 23.6.10 £5K

Gray, Wayne S C ENG 7.11.80 27 - - £60 19.6.09 £5K

Margetson, Martyn GK WAL 8.9.71 36 - - £240 7.6.09 £30K

Martínez, Roberto M C ESP 13.7.73 34 - - £180 8.6.09 £4K

McFadden, James M C SCO 13.8.83 24 - - £275 7.6.09 £28K

Melvin, Billy F RC SCO 12.6.77 30 - - £200 24.6.09 £250K

Miller, Colin S C SCO 11.10.83 24 - - £180 2.7.09 £30K

Milne, Steven D/DM C SCO 21.5.83 24 - - £240 20.6.09 £22K

O'Donnell, Michael M R SCO 11.12.88 19 - - £190 13.6.09 £3K

Prunty, Sean M R IRL 10.7.80 27 - - £180 6.6.08 £1K

Purser, Wayne D L ENG 13.4.80 28 - - £140 27.6.10 £9K

Schepple, Danny AM R WAL 27.4.81 27 - - £400 2.6.10 £75K

Sharp, Peter D/DM RL ENG 9.4.81 27 - - £350 5.6.08 £1K

Sheppard, Kyle D R ENG 26.8.80 27 - - £180 7.6.10 £10K

Stensland, Marius SW/D C NOR 23.9.81 26 - - £375 18.6.10 £60K

Williamson, John D C ENG 4.2.81 27 - - £300 27.6.10 £14K

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

2007/8 Senior Club Stats

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

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

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

- Alexander, Gary 1 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 7.50

- Aliardiere, Jeremie 16 (12) 5 0 1 (1) 3 1 0 3 7.11

- Artur 19 (5) 1 0 0 2 2 0 0 6.92

- Barnes, Derek 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ----

- Brown, Alan 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00

- Cano, José 27 5 0 0 4 1 0 2 7.41

- Cummings, Warren 17 (3) 1 0 1 (1) 0 5 0 0 6.60

- Deuchar, Kenny 20 (11) 6 0 0 3 2 0 2 6.74

- Devine, John 7 (5) 3 0 0 2 1 0 1 7.25

- Dickson, Mark 14 (3) 3 0 3 (3) 1 3 0 0 6.59

- Duncan, Derek 7 (7) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.29

- Emanuel 24 1 0 0 1 5 0 0 6.67

- Glennon, Matthew 7 (2) 0 13 0 0 0 0 1 6.89

- Graham, Kevin 0 (1) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.00

- Gray, Wayne 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ----

- Margetson, Martyn 33 0 30 0 0 0 2 2 7.06

- Martínez, Roberto 15 (4) 3 0 0 3 1 0 0 6.84

- McFadden, James 18 (14) 3 0 0 1 1 0 0 7.03

- Melvin, Billy 29 (1) 14 0 0 6 3 0 7 7.70

- Miller, Colin 6 (1) 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 6.29

- Milne, Steven 22 (8) 2 0 0 0 2 0 0 6.67

- O'Donnell, Michael 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.00

- Prunty, Sean 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ----

- Purser, Wayne 6 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 6.33

- Schepple, Danny 32 (2) 7 0 0 3 1 0 5 7.32

- Sharp, Peter 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ----

- Sheppard, Kyle 15 (1) 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 6.56

- Stensland, Marius 34 (1) 0 0 0 2 5 0 1 6.71

- Williamson, John 27 (3) 1 0 0 3 2 0 1 6.83

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

2007/8 Transfers

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

Date Player In From Fee

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

13.6.07 John Devine Free Transfer Free

15.6.07 Stephen McCulloch Dundee Utd Loan

16.6.07 Marius Stensland Kilmarnock Bos

16.6.07 Kenny Deuchar Motherwell Bos

17.6.07 Matthew Glennon Free Transfer Free

26.6.07 Peter Hetherston Free Transfer Free

27.6.07 John Williamson Burnley Bos

5.8.07 Derek Duncan Free Transfer Free

7.8.07 Colin Miller Free Transfer Free

7.8.07 Scott Michie Free Transfer Free

3.10.07 Ian Duerden Chesterfield Loan

15.10.07 Stephen McCulloch Dundee Utd Loan

10.11.07 Karl Murray Wigan Loan

11.1.08 Jon O'Brien Torquay Loan

11.1.08 Ben Woods Barnet Loan

10.2.08 Jon O'Brien Torquay Loan

12.2.08 Ben Woods Barnet Loan

Date Player Out To Fee

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

4.6.07 Gary McDonald Berwick Bos

5.6.07 Jim MacLeod Stranraer Bos

6.6.07 Graeme Donald Released Free

13.6.07 Matthew Glennon Released Free

18.6.07 Michel Kuipers Released Free

19.6.07 James Cunningham Telford Bos

11.8.07 Mark Elliott Elgin City Loan

14.10.07 Kevin Graham East Stirling Loan

14.12.07 Kevin Graham East Stirling Loan

26.12.07 Mark Elliott Huddersfield £100K

1.3.08 Scott Michie Peterhead £30K

</pre>

[Brian of Nazareth]

Tables

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

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

Scottish Premier Division - Wednesday 14th May 2008

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

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

2007/8 Table

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

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

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

1st C Celtic 38 15 3 1 51 9 7 10 2 31 19 79

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

2nd Rangers 38 13 5 1 35 11 8 7 4 35 30 75

3rd Aberdeen 38 14 1 5 30 15 8 6 4 24 19 73

4th Dundee 38 10 6 4 36 17 4 6 8 20 29 54

5th Hearts 38 6 6 6 29 29 6 5 9 23 27 47

6th Falkirk 38 8 6 4 29 27 3 6 11 17 33 45

7th Airdrie 38 10 3 5 22 13 4 6 10 14 27 51

8th Kilmarnock 38 6 5 9 23 24 8 3 7 23 20 50

9th Motherwell 38 8 8 4 34 26 1 4 13 14 33 39

10th Dundee Utd 38 5 5 8 22 30 6 1 13 25 37 39

11th Dunfermline 38 6 4 8 36 37 4 4 12 31 59 38

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

12th R Livingston 38 4 8 8 25 35 4 2 12 16 39 34

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

Scottish First Division - Wednesday 14th May 2008

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

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

2007/8 Table

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

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

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

1st C Inverness C. Thistle 36 13 5 0 36 11 10 6 2 32 14 80

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

2nd Hibs 36 7 9 2 26 19 6 8 4 28 21 56

3rd St. Johnstone 36 9 6 3 25 16 3 9 6 14 17 51

4th Morton 36 9 8 1 36 24 2 8 8 20 36 49

5th St. Mirren 36 8 6 4 29 20 4 4 10 18 28 46

6th Ross County 36 8 6 4 28 27 4 3 11 28 43 45

7th Ayr Utd 36 6 4 8 28 33 5 7 6 24 29 44

8th Raith Rovers 36 6 7 5 23 18 3 7 8 16 26 41

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

9th R Queen's Park 36 8 4 6 34 27 2 3 13 27 44 37

10th R Partick Thistle 36 5 6 7 26 26 1 6 11 14 33 30

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

Scottish Second Division - Wednesday 14th May 2008

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

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

2007/8 Table

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

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

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

1st C Dumbarton 36 12 3 3 34 19 8 7 3 28 17 70

2nd P Albion Rovers 36 9 8 1 38 25 8 3 7 23 23 62

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

3rd Queen of Sth 36 9 3 6 28 19 8 3 7 27 18 57

4th East Fife 36 7 7 4 25 21 8 4 6 22 17 56

5th Stirling 36 13 1 4 34 17 4 4 10 23 37 56

6th Peterhead 36 9 4 5 28 16 4 7 7 33 29 50

7th Stranraer 36 10 2 6 31 28 2 5 11 23 35 43

8th Clydebank 36 7 3 8 21 27 5 3 10 26 39 42

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

9th R Clyde 36 4 4 10 20 29 6 3 9 22 26 37

10th R Fort William 36 2 5 11 26 49 5 1 12 23 44 27

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

Scottish Third Division - Wednesday 14th May 2008

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

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

2007/8 Table

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

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

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

1st C Elgin City 36 12 3 3 36 17 9 3 6 49 39 69

2nd P Montrose 36 12 2 4 42 29 8 2 8 31 30 64

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

3rd East Stirling 36 11 2 5 38 27 8 4 6 29 23 63

4th Forfar 36 7 6 5 30 29 7 5 6 27 30 53

5th Stenhousemuir 36 9 4 5 32 25 5 4 9 18 28 50

6th Alloa 36 5 7 6 26 24 8 2 8 25 26 48

7th Brechin 36 12 2 4 33 22 2 3 13 15 34 47

8th Berwick 36 8 4 6 26 27 2 5 11 20 34 39

9th Arbroath 36 8 4 6 27 25 3 1 14 15 39 38

10th Cowdenbeath 36 7 0 11 28 29 3 5 10 25 35 35

</pre>

[Brian of Nazareth]

European Championships Section

The Squad

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

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

Denmark - Sunday 1st June 2008

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

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

Squad

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

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

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

- Bisgaard, Morten DM RC DEN 25.6.74 33 50 7 £5.75K 18.12.08 £400K

- Foldgast, Peter AM/F C DEN 3.12.79 28 - - £1.2K 17.6.12 £2.1M

- Gravesen, Thomas DM C DEN 11.3.76 32 60 3 £46.5K 20.6.09 £3.7M

- Jensen, Daniel AM/F C DEN 25.6.79 28 4 - £12K 19.1.12 £2M

- Jensen, John D RLC DEN 4.1.77 31 2 - £1.1K 1.6.11 £775K

- Jørgensen, Mads AM/F RLC DEN 10.2.79 29 22 8 £19K 4.6.12 £4.3M

- Jørgensen, Martin AM RLC DEN 6.10.75 32 78 21 £60K 11.6.09 £6M

- Larsen, Jacob F. F C DEN 17.9.80 27 2 - £1K 26.6.08 £1.3M

- Laursen, Martin D C DEN 26.7.77 30 25 1 £7.75K 9.6.10 £3.1M

- Laursen, Ulrik D L DEN 23.8.80 27 40 - £15K 14.6.12 £1.6M

- Løvenkrands, Peter AM/F LC DEN 29.1.80 28 33 4 £9.5K 21.6.09 £5.5M

- Madsen, Kim D RC DEN 13.2.78 30 19 - £16.25K 27.6.12 £2.6M

- Møller, René D/M L DEN 6.6.75 32 14 - £2.1K 27.6.09 £350K

- Mortensen, Jesper GK DEN 20.10.73 34 1 - £4.3K 9.6.09 £600K

- Mtiliga, Patrick AM/F L DEN 28.1.81 27 10 2 £1.7K 18.6.11 £2.3M

- Petersen, Morten D C DEN 27.5.78 30 24 - £1.1K 4.6.11 £1M

- Rommedahl, Dennis AM/F R DEN 22.7.78 29 10 1 £12.25K 3.6.11 £1.7M

- Sørensen, Thomas GK DEN 12.6.76 31 50 - £15.5K 20.6.12 £1.6M

- Svensson, Bo D C DEN 4.8.79 28 36 1 £7.75K 16.6.09 £3.7M

- Tomasson, Jon Dahl AM/F C DEN 29.8.76 31 71 19 £14.5K 17.6.10 £2.4M

- Vinzents, Ulrich D/DM RC DEN 4.11.76 31 6 - £1.9K 5.6.09 £550K

- Zaza, Karim GK DEN 9.1.75 33 4 - £14K 4.12.11 £1.8M

</pre>

[Brian of Nazareth]

The tournament itself kicked off with the Czech Republic losing 2-1 to Yugoslavia. Holland defeated the Ukraine 3-1 and pleasingly England were buggered 2-0 by Russia in the build up to the Dane’s first game of the competition against Romania. Now Romania had qualified from their group with Holland at the expense of Scotland – which meant there was a little extra incentive to defeat the bąstards on the pleasantly warm afternoon.

Daniel Jensen was not a player George had seen at all since his accession to the Denmark job, mostly as George never really changed the squad around – but when it came to deciding for the Euro 2008 games. Daniel, who’d had a good year with Columbus was considered worthy enough of a place in the squad – and also the pitch and what a way to reward that decision. He scored 2 goals inside 4 minutes, assisted by Thomas Gravesen of Arsenal on both occasions before setting up Tommy G to score a third moments after half time. Of course a 3-0 lead meant Romania were throwing everything at Denmark now to recover some pride but the foruth and final goal saw Jensen walk away with the match ball ( and several hugs ) after converting captain Martin Jorgensen’s through ball. A great victory, and enough to convince George his team could do upset the odds if they qualified to the knock out stage.

Italy defeated Finland before Ireland were held by Sweden. Poland and Germany played out a scoreless draw, with France and Turkey exchanging goals in yet another draw. Holland defeated Italy, and Ireland drew with Yugoslavia as the Championships failed to see any drama, or any moments to remember in the early rounds. With Sweden comprehensively defeating the Czech Republic, and Germany, also in George’s group beating Romania 2-1 – George wondered if Denmark were ever going to play, but they did so eventually, shortly after England flukily beat France by a solitary Beckford penalty.

Poland were the opponents, and George made few changes to the line up as he went out with optimistic hopes of winning this one comfortably. Maciej Zurawski scored after 4 minutes though as the Poles completely dominated the first half, forcing a perturbed Scot into making a few changes. Gravesen and Laursen came on for their underperforming counterparts whilst an emphasis on attack like hell was the new order. After 10 minutes disaster struck through the dismissal of Ulrich Vincents , the wing back given his marching orders for striking Piotr Bazler with an elbow. Throwing everything into the final few moments, Denmark were all over the Poles defense but simply could not find a way through, and eventually lost the game – meaning Denmark’s hopes of progression hinged on a meeting with Germany in the final round.

In other groups on their last day, Ireland and Sweden progressed at the expense of the Czech Republic and Yugoslavia in group 1, Holland and Italy went through in group 2, with Finland and Ukraine catching an early flight home in that one. Stefano Fiore – mentioned as, one of the more talented players in this tournament. Russia and England enjoyed victories which saw them into the next round with France and Turkey, turning their attention to the World Cup qualifiers – and their managers began to consider future jobs.

[Brian of Nazareth]

Then of course it was the turn of Denmark.

Anything less than a win would see them go home early, so George really tried to fire up his troops ahead of the game, though a couple of players were just too tired, their club season catching up with them – so a little alteration, meant the team lined up like this:

-------- D. Jensen---------------J.F.Laursen------------

^ ^

-----Martin Jorgensen—P. Mtiliga------- D. Rommedahl------------

-----------------Gravesen---------------

U. Laursen --- M. Laursen --- B. Svensson --- K. Madsen----

----------------------T. Sorensen ------------------------

The game, was one which took a while to get going, what with the tightness of the group. Germany could be eliminated in this game too, should Poland just manage a draw against Romania so the pressure was on, and when Thomas Gravesen fired home a goal in the 17th minute, the game really did explode into action, and George found himself regularly wiping his brow, with relief when a German attack broke down and bemusement when his own men failed to take advantage of a chance. It stayed 1-0 at half time, and with it being a draw in the other game, Denmark and Poland were progressing at this stage.

What was needed more than anything was cool heads now, and bearing in mind his fiery past, George regretted continuing with his goal scoring saviour long into the second half. On 73 minutes, the midfielder viciously chopped down Jens Jeremies and was ordered off, but not without launching an explicit verbal attack on the official. With 17 minutes plus stoppage time remaining, George remained as calm as he could. He brought on Morten Bisgaard , who moved into Gravesen’s role, and withdrew Jacob Laursen from the front line as he sought keep this lead. The clock ran down, and still they were leading. Daniel Jensen then had a prime chance to secure the points with 5 minutes to go as he collected a ball in space from substitute Mads Jorgensen , on for the captain Martin Jorgensen , but nerves got the better of him and he ballooned the ball over. Germany then countered as Marko Strubb and Sebastien Diesler, looked to find a way through – their desperation clear to all, as they came full pelt at Sorensen’s goal. A 1-2 saw Diesler enter the area with just the goalkeeper to beat, but his shot was parried behind for a corner.

The match timeclock, agonizingly displayed a read out of 91:46, in a game with 2 minutes overtime. The Germans had a corner. Jeremies, placed it on the spot. The ref blew his whistle. The midfielder ran up, arched his back, brought a right foot into contact with the underside of the ball, and lifted and inswinger, right into the path of Kai Michalke, the 32 year old forward. He was 6 yards out – he couldn’t miss. :-(

He did.

The final whistle blew moments after and George ran to congratulate his team members, not least man of the match Ulrich Laursen who’d played superbly well at left back, repelling attacks and starting Danish counters as well. The quarter finals beckoned, and Germany were out.

[Brian of Nazareth]

The draw was made the following morning and George was pleased – this was a chance. It was Denmark versus England – no motivational worries amongst the coach anyway. In the other quarter finals, Holland and Ireland enjoyed a close contest, but it was the Dutch who prevailed, eventually winning a penalty shoot out, as the Irish bemoaned their luck – though if you will miss 4 penalties, you can’t be surprised to lose.

Next up though was the big clash against the English. The press were following this one with interest in Scotland, England and Denmark, as many speculated on the result. The majority, sadly favoured the heathens but George intended to prove them wrong – without the suspended Thomas Gravesen.

-------- D. Jensen---------------J.F.Laursen------------

^ ^

-----Martin Jorgensen—P. Mtiliga------- Mads. Jorgensen------------

----------------------------M. Bisgaard------------------------------------

U. Laursen --- M. Laursen --- B. Svensson --- K. Madsen----

----------------------T. Sorensen ------------------------

However, after 2 minutes, Alan Wilkinson, the impressive Chelsea striker had given the English the lead, and over the course of the next 43 minutes, it was clear England were the better team. The Danes were fading, as the campaign proved to be too much as two goals in 3 minutes from Gifton Noel Williams, before the break, provided a mountain to climb – and it was one, which George could not inspire his men to climb. They were knackered, and being outclassed – but he refused to let them be outfought and they came back stronger in the second half, and had two stone-wall penalties denied – before the game petered out towards the end.

A limp finish, then which saw George disconsolately return, but the DFA were still highly pleased with his performance and there were to be no recriminations – the next challenge being to qualify for the World Cup Finals. He noted with barely a passing interest, that Russia and Italy advanced in the other quarters, over Poland and Sweden, before Italy defeated Russia, whilst a jammy England scored in the last minute against Holland to force a penalty shoot out which they won – a game that cost Guus Hiddink his job as the Holland coach. The only small consolation was Italy beating England in the final – funnily enough on penalties.

[Brian of Nazareth]

Lisbon Lions Season 2008-2009

Dumbarton’s Summer and Squad Preview

Whilst George’s main attention was with Denmark in the summer, strengthening for the First Division was also a must, and that included not losing good players. To this end, Eddie was satisfied with George’s decision to reject a 250,000 pound offer for Jose Cano. Many thought it was a silly decision – one that would backfire in the long run – but Cano was happy – and he was a star player – and if Inverness of the SPL were willing to pay that much for a 28 year old – he must be worth hanging onto.

Aliadiere and Glennon both signed extensions to their contracts, and even Alan Brown was offered a new deal, despite his complete lack of contribution the previous year. Billy Melvin, was voted Fans Player of the Year as Dumbarton held their own mini awards ceremony, whilst there had unsurprisingly been record attendances over the course of the season.

Hitzlesperger and Dodds arrived from their bosman moves to help improve the chances of Dumbarton surviving the drop. The board, only asked for the utmost effort to be put into fighting relegation, regardless of whether they were successful or not – and George was very determined to stay up. Roberto Martinez also left to return to Spain after a fairly successful stay at the club where passion and pride epitomized his style – a good man, sadly missed.

Roberto Martinez 34, 41 starts, 10 subs, 5 goals, 6 assists, 1 MoM, 7.01

Thereafter, George spent the end of June and much of July bringing in several new players – and it was enjoyable for him to actually be able to spend 65k on one person – and George hoped to god it would be worth it. Many loan signings arrived too – though of course none were paid for.

[Brian of Nazareth]

2008-2009 Squad Overview

Goalkeepers

Martyn Margetson 36 The Welshman enjoyed a terrific season once more at Cliftonhill as Dumbarton successfully navigated their way to promotion, and though he had a brief spat with the manager, he returned to the side, and proved to be one of the most valuable players in maintaining the winning streak.

07/08 Record: 33 games, 30 conceded, 3 MoM, 7.06

Matthew Glennon 34 The cover player again made few appearances this year – but his attitude is second to none, but his lack of ability makes any long run in the side questionable at best – and with the jump up another league, George will be looking for a goalkeeper along the way.

07/08 Record: 7 games, 2 sub, 13 conceded, 6.55

[Brian of Nazareth]

Defenders

Warren Cummings 27,DLC A useful player, Warren definitely improved this year, appreciating the extended run in the latter stages as his tough tackling, helped the team to promotion. Approaching his prime, the increased challenge will hopefully bring out the best in Warren.

07/08 Record: 17 games, 3 subs, 1 goal 6.70

Kyle Sheppard 27 DR The hard working right back struggled to establish himself as a regular, and when he did have the chance he didn’t grab it. Still, there’s enough about him

07/08 Record: 15 games, 1 sub, 6.62

Wayne Purser 28 DL Whilst injuries kept Wayne out of the reckoning at times, he never let the side down when he did appear, and the competition for places inevitably saw Wayne suffer, but he should figure this season.

07/08 Record: 7 games, 6.90

Emanuel 26 D/DMR The Portuguese star was a hit with the crowd again last season as he made the right back slot almost his own – and with his ability to attack, he often contributed from midfield as well. The heightened challenge will be one this guy should appreciate.

07/08 Record: 24 starts, 1 goa1 Assist, 1 MoM, 6.75

Mark Dickson 27 SW/DC Mark had a decent year, without being spectacular, though his goals were appreciated. He plays better with Marius Stensland and this could work in his favour in the future.

07/08 Record: 14 games, 3 subs, 3 goals, 1 assist, 6.59

John Williamson 27 DC The dependable centre half enjoyed a fine season, rarely being moved, as he played much of the season, ably supporting whoever he partnered and protecting Martyn. More of the same please.

07/08 Record: 17 starts, 3 subs, 1 goal 6.83

Marius Stensland 2 SW/DC The brave Norwegian has arrived on a bosman transfer from Kilmarnock intent on banishing his homesick woes at a club he enjoyed performing for on loan last year. He was only here a month but in that time he showed enough talent to convince George Cameron to make him become a permanent fixture in the side. His arrival will help support the centre backs and provide competition for the others.

07/08 Record: 3 games, 6.67

Derek Duncan 27 DRC Derek had a tough time of it last year, though he was never really a bad player, there are just better options in the squad. Hopefully he’ll continue to play with a smile.

07/08 Record: 7 games, 7 subs, 6.29

David Dodds 23 DL One of George’s big money signings – 30k from Morton, David is a left back who played all of the previous year with Morton so knows what’s coming. George was delighted to confirm this deal – which really began to show how the team’s developed in recent years

Loan Signings

Sean Purcell 25, SW/DC ( Wigan )

Craig Oliver 23 D/MR ( Kilmarnock )

Thomas Craig 23 D/DMC (Rotherham)

Scott Shanks 22 DLC ( Bristol City )

[Brian of Nazareth]

Midfielders

Alan Brown 25 MC A misfit, with no discernible talent, however his love for the reserves shone through and he’ll back there next season.

07/08 Record: 1 game, 6.00

Kevin Graham 21 MRC This young hopeful is getting to the point where he needs to sharpen his ideas up if he’s to break into the side – with a step up in divisions, this season will either see him break through or say goodbye.

07/08 Record: didn’t play, loan spell at East Stirling

Michael O’Donnell 19 MR Another very young player, who needs to improve – though he does have time on his side. Hard working, but not especially talented – might be worth getting rid of, for the kids sake.

07/08 Record: 1 start, 7.00

James McFadden 24 MC The kid came on quite substantially the previous year as he added different facets to his game, which made for more opportunities on the pitch. He was used as sub quite a lot but it all worked well and he was an important part of the promotion.

07/08 Record: 18 games, 14 subs, 3 goal, 1 assist, 7.03

Derek Barnes 30AM/FR No idea why this guy is still here, he may be 30 but he has little experience and his talent his such that he’ll fighting for a place in the reserves.

07/08 Record: never played

Thomas Hitzlesperger 26 D/ML The young German import was a welcome arrival for George, who threw an olive branch to the young midfielder. Known for a stinging left shot, he’ll hopefully turn out to be quite the bargain as George looks for survival.

Jose Cano 27 AM/FC A much sought after player, George was worried he might be forced to lose him in the summer, but thankfully he’s here to start the new season, and it’s no doubt his form will reflect how well Dumbarton do in their quest to survive.

07/08 Record: 27 games 5 goals, 4 assists, 2 MoM, 7.41

Steven Milne 25 D/DMC Whilst Steven had an ok season in Division 2, it was clear to many that that was where he was most comfortable playing. Division 1 could be a little too taxing for Steve, but he does have determination.

07/08 Record: 22 starts, 8 subs, 2 goals, 6.68

Artur 27 DMRC The holding player had a relatively good year, and he’ll be looking to build on that, avoiding injuries where possible as a higher challenge awaits.

07/08 Record: 19 starts, 5 subs, 1 goal 2 assists, 1 MoM 6.92

Danny Schepple 27 AMR A star player last year in Dumbarton’s long unbeaten streak in the league, and his talent shone through – hopefully he’ll be able to sustain that this year as he begins to enter the prime of his career.

07/08 Record: 32 games, 2 subs, 7 goals, 3 assists, 5 MoM, 7.32

Ian Gray 24 DMC Arriving on a free from Motherwell – Ian is a more talented version of Steven Milne. With experience in the SPL and this league, George will be glad to have someone in a key position who knows what to expect.

Kieran McAnespie 26 AML George’s big cash signing of the summer arrived for 65k pounds and George loved to spend that money. Kieran was out of favour at Preston – yet also highly rated, and will hopefully increase the quality of the midfield to cope with added demands.

Loan Signings

Jim McLean, 24 ML ( Inverness )

Grant O’Neill 22 AMR ( Q.P.R )

Thomas Craig 23 D/DMC (Rotherham)

Scott Shanks 22 DLC ( Bristol City )

[Brian of Nazareth]

Forwards

Kenny Deuchar 27 FRC Not a great season by Kenny’s standards, though he did have spells where his contribution ensured the club picked up a few extra points – however they were few and far between. He has talent, but it needs to be harnessed more if he is to be of any worth in the first division.

07/08 Record: 20 games, 11 subs, 6 goals, 3 assists, 2 MoM 6.74

Wayne Gray 28 FC not good enough by far for the second division, never played, on the transfer list, bye bye Wayne

07/08 Record: never played

Billy Melvin 31 FRC Billy is a firm fan favourite after his exploits in the previous 2 seasons. His talent is such that some SPL clubs came sniffing over June, to be met with a frosty response. As the season dawns, George hopes this guy can continue to put the balls in the back of the net.

07/08 Record: 29 games, 1 sub, 14 goals, 6 assists, 7 MoM, 7.70

Jerome Aliadere 25 SC The Frenchman is beginning to miss many of his Gallic ways now and George wil have to consider the future of this player – being French makes it already limited, but there’s no point an unhappy player taking the club’s precious money – and considering his lack of goals – his departure may come even sooner.

07/08 Record:16 games, 12 subs, 5 goals, 3 assists, 3 MoM, 7.11

John Devine 24 SC John suffered from having to compete for places, at a time when his talent was unknown – however when he did play he did well, and he’s likely to be given more opportunities this year.

07/08 Record:7 games, 5 subs, 3 goals, 1 assist, 7.25

Colin Miller, 24 SC Surprisingly Colin is aplayer who’s attitude suggests he’s waiting for bigger and better things, however when it comes to performing he has a long way to go – he made little impact on the second division – so unless there’s a vast improvement this year – Colin may be on his way out sooner, rather than later.

07/08 Record: 6 games, 1 sub, 1 goal, 1 assist, 6.29

Loan Signings

Andrew Cameron 26 FRL ( Kilmarnock )

Denny Lynch 20 SC ( Dundee United )

[Brian of Nazareth]

Pre-Season Games

With much of the squad assembled, George and Dumbarton began their preparations at Cliftonhill, hosting Alloa, the first of 4 sides to visit. It was a chance for George to examine new signings and the value of loaned players, and it proved to be fairly successful as the 3-1 score line reflected. Andrew Cameron with 2 goals, whilst other players all gave an early glimpse of what they were capable of.

That fixture was followed up with the visit of Third Lanark, where the 3-1 score line was repeated. McAnespie, Cano and Sean Purcell with the goals for home side as George learned a little bit more about who was good enough and who was looking for an early exit. Kevin Graham soon departed once more to East Stirling, where perhaps this time he might be able to play long enough to develop his raw talent.

When the Civil Service came into town a few days after, George ordered the players picked to prove themselves worthy of a place in the line up, but few really shone. 2 goals from James McFadden were enough to secure victory, but George was fairly disappointed with the response from some of the players who had not been in his immediate thoughts before hand, and probably wouldn’t be near them at all now, though Kyle Sheppard did show a keen desire not to be demoted to the reserves this season, which was a mini plus point.

With 10 days before the first competitive match of the season, Dumbarton faced a sterner test as English Second Division side Gillingham traveled north, in a game where a complete mix allowed players to either impress, or simply just get a run out to pick up fitness. Loan signing Thomas Craig scored in the 1-1 draw and that was all the preparation available, barring traigning matches before the big kick off, and George was hoping that an unbeaten pre-season would result in a poor season.

[Brian of Nazareth]

August (1)

George, entered the home cup clash with third Division Forfar, with a sense of nervous anticipation. He’d never managed in the First Division before, and though he’d been impressed with the added quality brought to the squad over the summer, he had no way of knowing how they’d perform. Against Forfar though, there were no problems as 3 goals in 20 minutes sealed the tie. Loan signing Jim McLean grabbed the first, before two from Kenny Deuchar had the fans celebrating early and a tie hosting second division Queens Park awaited.

Though it might not have been all too necessary, George then brought in Gerry Creaney, a 27 year old striker struggling at Blackburn. He’d proved himself a few years ago at Ayr, but moving to England had been a step too far. He’d be with the club until December, providing George with a useful bit of firepower. Surprising many fans, George then went and added another permanent centre back to the squad, an experienced Englishman by the name of Scott Jones. For all his articles in papers encouraging the growth of Scottish football, George wasn’t exactly acting as a role model.

The season proper, or the league, kicked off with a trip to Raith Rovers, a side who had spent most of their previous few years in this league, except 2 in the second division, and George was pleased to find that he had a few selection posers to make, but eventually he must have made the right choice, as after an even first half, Danny Schepple broke the deadlock with a drive from 12 yards, and thereafter Dumbarton actually proved to be the better team, passing confidently, and though an injury to Gerry Creaney annoyed George somewhat, the final whistle ensured he was a very happy man, starting life, with an away victory and a clean sheet in the process.

After that, George failed to suppress an ironic laugh when he realized their midweek game in the Challenge Cup was against Clyde, and memories returned from the previous year, where some had thought Clyde were in for a promotion. Instead they were relegated to the third, and Dumbarton went up – how things change. On the pitch, Dumbarton completely dominated and a pair from Andrew Cameron plus a second half effort from John Dick made for a comfortable victory, and set up a meeting with Forfar, the team they’d disposed of in the league cup, in the next round.