Thistle Do

 

Messrs Wise, Morecambe and Preview catch up with the latest Saints news

 

 

Saturday 12th October 2013

Scottish Amateur Football League Premier Division

Oban Saints AFC v Alba Thistle AFC

Glencruitten, Oban, Kick off 2pm

Referee Mr Gordon Kelso

 

 



 

Dalmilling AFC

 

Saints find themselves, somewhat unexpectedly, on league duty again this week while most of their contemporary's are on West of Scotland Cup business. Saints had been drawn at home to Dalmilling of the Ayrshire Amateur Football Association, but the Ayrshire club, currently sitting mid table in the Ayrshire Amateur Football Association Fourth Division, clearly didn't fancy the trip to Oban and declined to fulfil the fixture.

 

 

 

Saints therefore progress to the 3rd round of the West of Scotland Amateur Cup without having kicked a ball in anger. 

 

 



 

Saturday's league visitors are Alba Thistle who are making their first ever trip to Oban. The Paisley side are in their debut season in the Scottish Amateur Premier Division having enjoyed a meteoric rise to prominence in their relatively brief history.

 

Alba's recent league history:-

 

2007/08 Paisley & District Division Two Champions (Promoted)

2008/09 Paisley & District Division One Champions

2009/10 Paisley & District Division One Champions (Undefeated)

2010/11 SAFL Division Three Champions

2011/12 SAFL Premier Division Two Champions (Undefeated) (Promoted)

2012/13 SAFL Premier Division One Champions

 

A pretty impressive run of league championship victories I'm sure you'll agree. Thanks to @Official_ColinW for the information on season 2010/11 which I could find no record of!

 

In addition to their league championship wins Alba are also the current holders of the SAFL Centenary Cup which they won courtesy of a 5 - 4 penalty shoot-out victory over Saints. The shoot-out followed a 0 - 0 draw over 90 minutes at Millburn Park, Vale of Leven.

 

 

 

Despite the heroics of Daniel Cassells in the Saints goal Alba won the penalty shoot-out 5 - 4

 

 

Despite their excellent showing in previous seasons Alba have struggled to adapt to life in the top flight losing three of their opening five fixtures leaving them second from bottom of the league with six points.

 

Alba's league season so far:-

 

17th August Alba Thistle 1 - 2 St Joseph's

21st August Haldane United 5 - 2 Alba Thistle

24th August Alba Thistle 1 - 0 Thorn Athletic

31st August Alba Thistle 3 - 1 Kilbowie Union

14th September Busby 3 - 1 Alba Thistle

 

Alba have also failed in their defence of the Centenary Cup losing 4 - 2 away at Shawlands FP. They are however still in the West of Scotland cup beating Blairdardie United 4 - 1 to progress to the third round.

 

 

Another Soupreme pass from Tomato, Basil and Crème Fraiche fan Paul Kerr

 

 

Saints, meanwhile, remain unbeaten and their start of three wins and three draws puts them in second place in the SAFL Premier Division one point behind early pace setters Finnart. An interesting match is in prospect with second top scorers Saints pitting their wits against the league's second most frugal defence. The opportunity for Saints to avenge last season's Centenary Cup Final defeat will also add spice to the occasion.

 

With last weeks confident prediction of a high scoring match at Inverclyde falling well short of the mark I'll leave the forecasting to the experts from now on.

 

 

 

 

#monthesaints











Just A Boys' Game

Saturday 5th October 2013
Scottish Amateur Football League Premier Division
Inverclyde AFC v  Oban Saints AFC
Battery Park, Greenock, Kick off 2pm
Referee - Mr Gordon Hay

After last Saturday's September weekend holiday Saints head for the Tail O' The Bank to take on Inverclyde at Battery Park. Last weekend's enforced lay-off could hardly have come at a worse time for Saints as they had finally recovered from a run of three straight draws with a thumping 9 - 2 victory  at Busby. Saints will hope that the lay-off won't upset their momentum too much and they can continue their excellent run of victories in their last five visits to Inverclyde.

Saints recent record at Inverclyde:-

13th September 2008 Inverclyde 1 -  2 Oban Saints
5th September 2009   Inverclyde 2 - 3 Oban Saints
16th October 2010     Inverclyde 2 - 4 Oban Saints
28th April 2012         Inverclyde 3 - 4 Oban Saints
12th January 2013     Inverclyde 0 - 5 Oban Saints

Willie Gemmell opens the scoring for Saints on their last visit to Inverclyde

 

 

 

Donald Campbell makes it 4 - 0

 

 

 

 

 

Inverclyde currently sit one place below Saints occupying 5th place in the SAFL Premier Division with seven points from their five games.

 

Inverclyde's league season thus far:-

 

17th August Busby 0 - 4 Inverclyde

24th August Inverclyde 2 - 6 Finnart

31st August Castlemilk 3 - 0 Inverclyde

14th September Inverclyde 5 - 4 Kilbowie Union

21st September Inverclyde 2 - 2 Thorn Athletic

 

 

 

 

Inverclyde AFC 2011 - 12

 

 

Inverclyde's recent record in the SAFL:-

 

2006/07 Premier Division One 2nd Promoted

2007/08 Premier Division 2nd behind Champions St Pats on goal difference

2008/09 Premier Division 7th

2009/10 Premier Division 5th

2010/11 Premier Division 5th

2011/12 Premier Division 8th

2012/13 Premier Division 6th

 

 

So far this season Inverclyde have been involved in some pretty high scoring matches and with Saints having rediscovered their scoring touch an entertaining and high scoring match is in prospect.

 

 

Douglas Harvey Memorial Match

 

Last weekend wasn't a holiday for all of the Saints contingent as Skipper Marc MacCallum, Donald Campbell, Dene Cassells, Willie Gemmell and Myles MacAulay travelled to Paisley to join up with the SAFL Select for this annual fixture with Carlton YM. The match, the 7th in the series, was played at the Kibble Complex, Paisley and all five Saints players acquitted themselves admirably in a 4 - 0 victory for the league select.



 



 



Just A Boys' Game

 

 

Finally the title of this post comes from the Peter McDougall play first aired on BBC's Play For Today series in 1979. I'm sure Greenock has some delights to offer nowadays but my abiding memory is of the stark picture painted by this astounding play featuring some of the most violent scenes and strongest language the BBC has ever dared to broadcast at that time. It starred singer Frankie Miller as hard man Jake McQuillan desperate to earn the respect of his dying grandfather and former "hardest man in Greenock" played by comedian Hector Nicol. Jake's life of alcohol and violence ultimately leads to the death of his only friend Dancer played by Ken Hutchison. A young Gregor Fisher also makes an appearance. Check it out if you can, you won't be disappointed.

 

 

#monthesaints

Muddy Mildred

 

 

 

Saturday 21st. September 2013

Busby AFC v Oban Saints AFC

Overlee, Clarkston. Kick off 2pm

Referee - Mr John Gallacher

 

 

This Saturday Saints are back on the road with a tricky away fixture against Busby AFC. Saints are unbeaten in their last 6 league fixtures since back to back defeats to Castlemilk and St Joseph's at the tail end of last season which ended Saints league title aspirations. Saints will be desperate to extend this run but can expect a difficult match against their newly promoted opponents.

 

 

Busby currently sit second in the SAFL Premier Division on 10 points, however their opening fixtures have been a mixed bag of 3 wins, 1 draw and 2 defeats scoring 13 but conceding 16 goals in the process.

 

Busby's season so far:-

 

17th August Busby 0 - 4 Inverclyde

21st August Thorn Athletic 3 - 4 Busby

24th August Kilbowie Union 1 - 2 Busby

31st August Busby 4 - 4 St Joseph's

7th September Busby 0 -3 Thorn Athletic

14th September Busby 3 - 1 Alba Thistle





Busby's recent record in the SAFL:-

2006/07 Premier Division One Champions
2007/08 Premier Division 9th Relegated
2008/09 Premier Division One 5th
2009/10 Premier Division One 3rd
2010/11 Premier Division One 7th
2011/12 Premier Division One 4th
2012/13 Premier Division One 4th Promoted

In Busby's 2007/08 season in the Premier Division their encounters with Saints had a perfect symmetry with Saints winning 3 - 2 away but losing by the same score line at home.


SAFL Select

Saints will have five players in the SAFL squad to play for the Douglas Harvey Memorial Trophy against Carlton YM. Donald Campbell, Dene Cassells, Willie Gemmell, Myles MacAulay and Marc MacCallum will join the squad for the match to be played at the Kibble Complex, Paisley. Kick off is at 2pm. Good luck to all taking part.


Football Chairman

A lot is appearing on Twitter timelines about "Football Chairman." For me there can only ever be one Football Chairman; Pork Scratchings magnate and football impresario Eric Openshaw of Warbury Warriors. Possibly the only reason for anybody to buy The Sun! In an amazing 20 years Openshaw and first team manager Nick Jarvis have presided over seven promotions and four relegations and all manner of thrills and spills along the way. I hope he is an inspiration to all you aspiring Football Chairmen out there.

 

 

 

 

#monthesaints

The Saints Are Coming

After last weekend's fixture holiday Saints return to action this Saturday with a home match against the league's other Saints, St Joseph's from Duntocher.

St Joseph's have made a similar start to the league campaign as their Oban counterparts with one win and two draws so far:-

17th August Alba Thistle 1 - 2 St Joseph's
24th August St Joseph's 3 - 3 Castlemilk
31st August Busby 4 - 4 St Joseph's

Although Saints generally hold the upper hand in matches between the two, last season St Joseph's won this fixture 1 - 0. St Joe's relish their trips to Oban and will once again provide stiff opposition for Saints.

St Joseph's recent SAFL record:-

2006/07 Premier Division One 4th
2007/08 Premier Division One 2nd (promoted)
2008/09 Premier Division Champions
2009/10 Premier Division 6th
2010/11 Premier Division 6th
2011/12 Premier Division 6th
2012/13 Premier Division 5th

Costly slip ups

Saints can attribute the dropped points from winning positions against Haldane United and Thorn Athletic to individual errors which, if eradicated, will hopefully see them get back to winning ways. However nothing should be taken away from Haldane's stirring fight back from three goals down with just ten men on the field. Any team would have been proud of that display, in fact had it been Tottenham they would have it out on DVD by now!

Similarly Thorn Athletic's solid performance at Glencruitten belied their run of four straight defeats leading up to their trip to Oban.

Saints and Thorn Athletic observe two minutes  silence for the late SAFA President Graham Harkness prior to their recent league match at 

Glencruitten 

Saturday's match with St Joseph's promises to be another keenly contested encounter with a good afternoon's entertainment guaranteed. Come along and lend your support if you can.

#monthesaints

The Friday Night Preview

SAFL Premier Division
Oban Saints AFC v Thorn Athletic
Saturday 31st August
2pm Kick Off at Glencruitten 2

Saints third league fixture of the season is a home match against Thorn Athletic from Johnstone. The referee for this fixture is Robert Doolan from Greenock. Thorn have struggled so far this season losing all four of their fixtures: 4 - 1 away at Finnart, 4 - 3 at home to Busby and 1 - 0 away to Alba Thistle in the league and 2 - 0 at home in the Centenary Cup to Port Glasgow United of Premier Division 2. Despite this recent poor run of form Thorn have never lost in Oban and always make thing difficult for Saints.

Saints only victory in six attempts against Thorn came at the end of last season at McMaster Park, Johnstone where a Keith Millar goal secured the points for Saints. The one goal winning margin also saved Thorn from relegation by just one goal at the expense of Rolls Royce EK.

A keenly contested match is in store with Thorn desperate to get some points on the board and Saints eager to prove that last week's second half performance against Haldane United was just a blip in an otherwise strong start to the season.

Matty Rippon about to slot home from the spot in the 3 - 3 draw with Haldane United

Thorn Athletic's record in their 5 seasons in the SAFL is as follows:-

2008 - 09 Premier Division Two Champions (Promoted)
2009 - 10 Premier Division One Champions (Promoted)
2010 - 11 Premier Division 3rd
2011 - 12 Premier Division 3rd
2012 - 13 Premier Division 8th

#monthesaints

On The Road Again

On the road again

 

 

Saints take to the road on Saturday for their first away match of the season at newly promoted Haldane United. Kick off at Inler Park, Balloch is at 2pm wit referee Gordon Hay in charge.

 

Haldane have made an impressive start to their first season in the top flight drawing 3 - 3 away at Castlemilk last Saturday and defeating fellow new boys, and last seasons Premier Division One champions, Alba Thistle 5 - 2 in midweek.

 

Saints have met Haldane on only one previous occasion which was in last season's Jimmy Marshall Trophy semi-final. Second half goals from Dene Cassells and Donald Campbell secured victory for Saints in a tight match at the neutral venue of McKenna Park, Glasgow home of St Anthony's Junior Football Club.

 

 

 

Donald Campbell secures victory for Saints

 

 

 

 

 

Haldane United's record in their 5 seasons in the SAFL is as follows:-

 

2008 - 09 Division 2 Champions (Promoted)

2009 - 10 Division 1A Undefeated Champions (Promoted)



2010 - 11 Premier Division Two 2nd on goal difference (Promoted)

2011 - 12 Premier Division One 3rd

2012 - 13 Premier Division One 2nd (Promoted)

 

Haldane United are a pretty impressive side as their league record shows. This will be a stiff test for Saints who will have to be at the top of their game if they are to take anything from this match.

 

#monthesaints



 





Saints Open In Style

Saturday 17th August 2013 SAFL Premier Division

Oban Saints AFC 4 - 0 Kilbowie Union

After months of careful planning Saints unveiled their much anticipated stadium upgrade at last Saturday's first home match of the new season.

 

 

 

The all new substitutes bench

 

 

The innovative three seat design allows the introduction of a game of musical chairs into the substitutes warm-up routine. Other planned improvements include the introduction of covered dug-outs which sponsors D & K Lafferty Contractors are actively working on.

 

 

 



 

 

 

How the new dug-outs may look.

 

 



 

Saints starting line up for the match was:-

 

Graham Douglas, Dene Cassells, Alex Craik, Marc MacCallum (Captain), Willie Gemmell, Paul Kerr, Donald Campbell, Brian MacKay, Craig MacEwan, Matty Rippon and Allan MacKay.

 

First to try out the fantastic new bench were Sonin Kurishita and new signings Daniel Cameron, Lewis Cameron and Colin Carswell.

 

 

Saints opened in blistering style taking the lead in the first minute when Allan MacKay got on the end of a Paul Kerr cross to score his first goal for Saints since returning from injury at the end of last season. Saints were playing some excellent football which newly promoted Kilbowie Union were unable to cope with. Saints doubled their lead after twelve minutes when Donald Campbell finished off a slick passing move involving Brian and Allan MacKay with a well struck shot past the Kilbowie 'keeper. A feature of Saints play was the strong running from midfield of Brian MacKay which Kilbowie struggled to come to terms with throughout the match.

 

 

Saints continued to dominate the first half with quick and accurate passing and it was only a matter of time when more goals would come. On forty minutes Saints centre forward Allan MacKay received the ball in the Kilbowie box, with his back to goal Allan expertly turned his marker and dispatched an unstoppable left foot shot past the despairing dive of the hard worked Kilbowie 'keeper. Straight from the re-start Saints regained possession and another strong run at the heart of the Kilbowie defence from Brian MacKay ended with the Saints midfielder being upended in the penalty box. Matty Rippon took the resulting penalty kick and finished emphatically from the spot to give Saints an unassailable 4 - 0 half time lead.

 

 

Half-time team talk.

 

 

Saints Manager Iain Jackson took full advantage of the healthy first half lead to give all four substitutes a good run out in the second half. Kilbowie gave a far better account of themselves in the second half and came close to scoring on two occasions form corner kicks. Saints, although not at their best, remained reasonably comfortable in the second half and the game finished with no further scoring.

 

This was an excellent performance from Saints which hopefully bodes well for the season ahead. The only down side being a needless booking for dissent for new Captain Marc MacCallum.

 

#monthesaints

 

 

 

 

 

 





 



First Game Back Preview

It's Saints - v - Kilbowie Union, Mr Preview.

 

 

Saints open their Scottish Amateur Football League Premier Division campaign on Saturday with a home match against newly promoted Kilbowie Union. Kick off at Glencruitten 2 is at 1pm with referee John Gallacher in charge.

 

Tomorrow's visitors Kilbowie Union were in Oban as recently as last Saturday where they enjoyed a 3 - 1 friendly victory over West of Scotland Amateur Football League Premier Division side Oban Athletic. The result flattered Kilbowie with all 3 of their goals being attributable to individual Athletic errors and had their strikers taken their chances in front of goal Athletic would most probably have won the match.

 

Kilbowie Union find themselves in the SAFL top flight mainly due to Postal United and Aikenhead Thistle leaving the SAFL. Kilbowie's third place finish in last season's Premier Division One behind Champions Alba Thistle and runners up Haldane United would not have been enough to secure promotion without the departure of Postal and Aikenhead. The Kilbowie boys will be desperate to take advantage of this slice of good fortune and make up for a previous disappointing showing in the Premier Division.

 

Kilbowie's only previous experience of the SAFL top flight came in season 2011 - 2012 when they were relegated after finishing second bottom of the league with 10 points from 18 matches. During that season Saints recorded a 7 - 1 home win and a 5 - 1 away win over tomorrow's visitors.

 

Kilbowie Union's record in their 5 years in the SAFL is as follows:-

 

2008 - 09 Premier Division Two 7th

2009 - 10 Premier Division Two 2nd (Promoted)

2010 - 11 Premier Division One 4th (Promoted)

2011 - 12 Premier Division 9th (Relegated)

2012 - 13 Premier Division One 3rd (Promoted) 

 

With a successful pre-season under their belts Saints will be looking to hit the ground running in what promises to be another tight league campaign.

 

The weather looks reasonably favourable for tomorrow's match so come along and support the boys if you can.

 

#monthesaints



Pre-Season Part Two

Part Two of the review of Saints pre-season.

Saturday 3rd August 2013

Oban Saints 2 - 1 Greenock High School Former Pupils

Greenock High School Former Pupils

 

 

 

Old rivals Greenock HSFP, formerly of the SAFL but now plying their trade in the Central Scottish Amateur Football League Premier Division, returned to Oban to provide another tough pre-season work-out for Saints. The small group of spectators were well entertained as the teams provided an excellent spectacle of passing football on a good Glencruitten playing surface.

 

An evenly balanced first third was just shaded by Saints who created the best of the chances. After hitting the post midway through the second third Brain MacKay finally gave Saints the lead to which their build up play had entitled them with a strong run through the centre of the Greenock defence before calmly slotting the ball past the helpless 'keeper.

 

Saints extended their lead early in the final third with a fine turn and shot into the top corner from Donald Campbell. Despite losing a goal shortly after the re-start Saints remained in control and saw out the remainder of the match comfortably for a well deserved victory over quality opposition.

 

 

Saturday 10th August 2013

 

Oban Saints 3 - 0 Lochgilphead Red Star

 

 



 

 

Lochgilphead Red Star Coronation Cup Winners 2012

 

 



 

Saints completed their pre-season programme with a comfortable 3 - 0 victory over Argyll rivals Lochgilphead Red Star. Saints started strongly against their SAFL Premier Division Two opponents and deservedly went ahead on twenty minutes when Craig MacEwan took advantage of some clever build up play by Allan MacKay to chip the ball over the on-rushing Red Star 'keeper.

 

After taking the lead Saints took the foot off the gas a little and let Red Star back into the match. Red Star were paying some neat football at this time but failed to trouble Saints goalkeeper Graham Douglas.

 

Saints quickly regained the initiative after the half time break and dominated proceedings throughout the second half. A thumping long range shot from Donald Campbell and a neat Matty Rippon finish rounding off an excellent driving run from Donald Campbell were enough to seal another comfortable victory for Saints.

 

 

Saints scorers in pre-season (including D & K Cup)

 

 

Donald Campbell 4

Brian MacKay 3

Willie Gemmell 1

Paul Kerr 1

Sonin Kurishita 1

Craig MacEwan 1

Ross Maitland 1

Matty Rippon 1

 

 

 

 

Donald Campbell

Saints top scorer in pre-season

 

 

 

With a successful pre-season under their belts Saints return to league action on Saturday 17th August with a home match against Kilbowie Union. Preview to follow if time permits.

 

#monthesaints

 

 



 

 

 

 

 

Pre-Season Part One

The new season is just a few days away so here's part one of the round-up of Saints pre-season fixtures:-


Saturday 20th July 2013

Oban Saints AFC 4 - 0 Westerlands AFC

Another satisfied customer for Brian Cassells!

On a day better suited to knotted handkerchiefs and ice cream cones than football Saints and Westerlands served up an entertaining friendly match for the small crowd who had braved the un-Oban-like weather conditions.

Injuries and holidays limited Manager Iain Jackson's selection options to a squad of sixteen but also ensured that everyone received plenty game time. As is often the case in pre-season friendlies the 90 minutes were divided into thirds rather than halves. Continuing the good form shown in the D & K Cup Saints were quickly into their stride against their Caledonian League Premier Division opponents. Well taken goals from Donald Campbell and Brian MacKay had Saints 2 - 0 up inside 20 minutes. More was to follow on 23 minutes when an excellent passing move involving Donald Campbell and Brian MacKay released Ross Maitland in the box who tucked away a neat finish past the Westerlands 'keeper.

Saints went further ahead early in the second third when Paul Kerr curled a shot from the edge of the box into the postage stamp corner. The intense heat was now starting to take it's toll on the players and the pace of the game dropped considerably allowing Westerland to come back into the match. Westerlands finished the second third strongly forcing two excellent saves from Saints 'keeper Graham Douglas. Graham has been in excellent form since taking over from the injured Daniel Cassells at the end of last season and Saints are extremely fortunate to be able to call on his services.

The final third was played without further scoring and with little incident until the closing minutes. Westerlands appealed for a penalty for what appeared to be a perfectly clean tackle in the box by Saints central defender Marc MacCallum. Referee John Scott who had handled the match well correctly dismissed the Westerland appeals. Perhaps harbouring a sense of injustice at the dismissed penalty claim, and taking exception to a badly timed tackle by Colin Carswell, Westerlands defender Liam MacIntyre aimed at a kick at the recent Saints recruit which threatened to bring tempers to the boil. Referee Scott quickly defused the situation and brought the game to a halt without taking action against either player.

This was a stiff test for Saints against formidable opponents. Westerlands are a quality side reaching the semi finals of Scottish Amateur Cup last season and finishing second in the Caledonian League Premier Division by one point to champions Giffnock North.

Credit is also due to referee John Scott who not only handled this game excellently but did so immediately after officiating at Oban Athletic's 4 - 1 victory over Westerlands second XI. When asked what had kept him going all afternoon John admitted to consuming two bananas between the two fixtures but refused to comment on the rumoured four pints of lager in the Rugby Club.


Wednesday 24th July 2013

Saints lost the services of Club Captain and Scottish Amateur Football League Hall of Fame inductee Keith Millar when he left the club to join Highland League club Fort William.

Keith Millar

Keith's replacement as Club Captain is Marc MacCallum. Marc was arguably Saints best player last season and his appointment as Captain is well deserved.

New Club Captain Marc MacCallum

 

 

 

Saturday 27th July 2013

Oban Saints 1 - 1 Milton AFC

A Sonin Kurishita header from a Donald Campbell free kick earned Saints a draw against Milton of the Caledonian League Premier Division. Saints had the chance to win the match when Allan MacKay won a penalty after being brought down in the box. Allan took the kick himself but unfortunately his effort was well saved by the Milton goal keeper.

Sonin Kurishita

Part Two will follow soon.

#monthesaints