A massive win last week but odds still against the Accies

There has almost been an air of expectancy over Hamilton’s position in the top-flight and even though last weekend’s triumph in Paisley kept their dreams alive, the club needs to do it again and hope results go in their favour. And that is not just for this weekend…but in all the remaining relevant fixtures.

A home game versus Hibs, who lost to St Johnstone last timer around presents the Accies with the chance to go at it again and if Hamilton fans want to have a team in the top flight, they should get themselves along to the ground. Then again, if Hamilton fans cared about having a team in the top flight, they should have bothered turning up over the course, a feat all but the hard-core have failed to do.

However, now is not the time for recriminations…it is the time for a massive performance and then see what happens.

There is every chance that St Mirren will go up North and get at least a point against Caley. Some will say this is madness after Inverness’ big win against Celtic but if anything, this just makes it all the more likely that the Saints will take something from it.

Caley put everything into the match on Wednesday and as many other teams have found, it is difficult to reach that level of performance two games in a row. Beating Celtic gave everyone at Caley a massive lift but there may well be a come down to follow and Danny Lennon should have his team fired up to take advantage from any sign of lack of commitment from the home side.

It really is still against Hamilton Accies and Saturday may be the day when their battle against the drop falls away. After the previous two seasons, it has been a shame the way that Hamilton have fallen away this season but it was always a risk with the business model of the club. Hopefully the youth system at the club can bring forth another set of youngsters which will have them back in the top flight and looking to play football as opposed to the mainly turgid fare that has been delivered this campaign.

There is no suggestion that Billy Reid will be relieved of his duties if the Accies go down but you can’t help but think the manager will be rueing not moving on when his stock was high, much like some of the players he developed.

The 1st Division is not an easy league to get out of but if they are to go down, Hamilton may find that league reconstruction gives them an easier route back…especially as the opposition to the 10 team league doesn’t look like going away.

Related posts:

1. Can anyone see Hamilton staying up? It’s not over but Accies look doomed Given that the...
2. Hamilton starting to lose ground Good wins for the Edinburgh sides It is hard to...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

It’s not over but Accies look doomed

Given that the Accies have not won in the SPL since October of last year, their fans must have been delirious at half-time with a 1-0 lead over St Mirren. Of course, given that the Accies have not won in the SPL since October of last year, it couldn’t have been much of a surprise when St Mirren came out in the second half and blew them away.

A Michael Higdon hat-trick means there is a 9 point gap between Hamilton and St Mirren and the buddies have a game in hand, so it’s not looking bright for the Lanarkshire team.

Before the split, Hamilton play Rangers at home and Hibs away. St Mirren are at home to Aberdeen and then travel to both of the Glasgow sides. These are all tricky games but St Mirren v Aberdeen looks like the one where either of these sides look most likely to pick up points so the gap could be even wider by the time the split begins.

The fact that Hamilton will welcome St Mirren after the spirit will give them hope and the Accies fans and management team will no doubt be saying this is the time to come alive and it’s not too late. However, the second half capitulation in Paisley, after going down to 10 men, was no surprise and indicative of a team who have been poor throughout the campaign.

It is easy to feel a bit of sympathy for Hamilton and Billy Reid. They brought through a lot of good players and have players progress to success down South, something which few Scottish teams can claim. The problem is though, there is still a need to put a team on the park that is capable of challenging and Hamilton have failed badly this season.

It is not quite over but it is looking increasingly likely that the Accies are heading back to the First Division and there are certainly no guarantees they will be able to bounce back in a season…

Related posts:

1. Hamilton starting to lose ground Good wins for the Edinburgh sides It is hard to...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Good wins for the Edinburgh sides

It is hard to get a good measure of the bottom half of the SPL due to the uneven nature of games that teams have played this season but even with this in mind, things are starting to look grim for Hamilton Accies. Winning their game in hand over St Mirren will push them two points behind the Buddies but on current form, Billy Reid would much rather have points on the board than the opportunity to win them.

Facing Hearts is not an easy task this season but yet again, the Accies were dismissed quite easily and with Hibs looking as though they have remembered how to win matches, it may well be that St Mirren are the only team that Hamilton will have a chance of overtaking.

These two sides don’t clash until the 2nd of April but on current form, there may not be too much of a difference in their points tally then from what there is today.

This is possibly harsh on St Mirren who once again showed battling qualities against Inverness Caley, even if they were unable to finish off their opponents. Turning around an early deficit to lead 2-1 within half an hour showed great qualities from St Mirren but chucking that lead away within three minutes is a sign of a team lacking in confidence. Caley again grabbed the lead around the hour mark only to be pegged back with 15 minutes to go.

A late winner would have meant the world to Danny Lennon and St Mirren but it wasn’t to be on another mixed day for St Mirren. Battling qualities are essential when you are near the bottom of the league and turning around deficits will breed confidence. However, continually throwing goals away is a major problem and one that St Mirren must overcome to put daylight between them and the Accies.

St Mirren need to start winning because Hibs look as though they will start moving up the table and today’s win over Killie will provide a lot of breathing space for Colin Calderwood. Hibs are now 8 points above the Accies and even though Billy Reid’s men have 2 games in hand over Hibs, you would not bank on hem taking 6 points. It is probably too much to ask for Hibs to make the top six but they should motor away from the relegation dogfight before too long.

It’s shaping up to be a tight finish for Billy Reid and Danny Lennon.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Four matches, two wins for the Ayrshire team

The race for the European spots are still up for grabs but depending on the Scottish Cup final result, the importance of finishing fourth may be diluted somewhat. Therefore, please forgive us for focussing on the real matter of the weekend, the battle to stay in the SPL.

All eyes will be on Rugby Park for the Saturday lunchtime clash where Falkirk know they have to win away from home to be playing SPL football next season. For Kilmarnock, avoiding defeat will give the club a lifeline against a terrible financial crisis.

We’ll start our preview of the game by looking back at the times the clubs have clashed this season. Three league matches and a Scottish cup tie give us plenty to look at and at the moment, Killie have their noses in front.

The first game between these two sides came at The Falkirk Stadium way back on the 26th of September with the score finishing 0-0.

This was both clubs sixth league match of the season and by the end of it, Falkirk were on three points and still awaiting their first win. They weren’t bottom of the table though, a better goal difference saw them above newly promoted St Johnstone, both clubs having three points. Kilmarnock were in 8th place, two points better off than Falkirk.

The next clash came at Rugby Park on the 19th of December and the away team took all three points.

Some Falkirk fans may take this as a pointer for tomorrow and it shows the Bairns have what it takes to win in Kilmarnock. A 2-1 win with Carl Finnegan and Ryan Flynn netting either side of Danny Invincible’s equaliser for Killie drew the Bairns to one point behind Kilmarnock.

Flynn’s winner was flighted in direct from a corner – it would be fantastic if a goal like that tomorrow was responsible for the safety of either of these two teams.

The two clubs met again in the Active Nation Scottish Cup on Monday 18th of January where a late Pascali goal knocked the Bairns out and put Kilmarnock through to the next round. Any nervous Kilmarnock fan will be hoping that this is the Rugby Park result which has an influence on tomorrow’s game.

The latest clash between the two clubs was at Falkirk’s Stadium on Wednesday the 10th of February when a Craig Bryson second half goal separated the teams. Killie were on a roll at this point and this win saw them in 9th place, five points ahead of bottom club Falkirk.

So there you have it, four games and its one draw, a Falkirk win and two Kilmarnock wins, one of them coming in the Cup.

This means in the league it is all square after three games with Falkirk needing to get that second victory over Kilmarnock to make any change to the current situation at the bottom.

It is noticeable that after every clash with Kilmarnock, Falkirk have been at the bottom of the SPL so a neutral would say that it is possibly fair that Falkirk finish bottom. Afterall, they have been there for most of the season.

Fairness quite often has nothing to do with football though and Falkirk only need to be above Kilmarnock once in a season to make a difference. If it happens tomorrow, Kilmarnock are down and Falkirk will survive.

How do you see this one panning out?

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

A home win is a rare occurrence for Buddies

Never mind a New Year’s Resolution, could be there a New Year’s Revolution for St Mirren.

New St Mirren Park was not home sweet home in the league in 2009 for St Mirren with only a defeat of Hearts bringing all three points for the Paisley side.

St Mirren only managed 5 league wins in 2009 so getting a league win at the first attempt in 2010 will hopefully be a positive omen for the Buddies.

Even if it doesn’t, it will give them a boost for the weeks ahead. Due to games being postponed, St Mirren have a busy January with a few midweek games to take care of but this result will see them in fine fettle.

Chris Innes got the only goal of the game with a back post header and this put St Mirren five points above bottom place in the SPL. The recipe for survival is beating your rivals at the bottom and this result puts Kilmarnock in grave danger.

They are two points above Falkirk but Falkirk have played one game less.

St Mirren fans, will you avoid the drop?

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Falkirk need the points in this relegation battle

One of the major problems for SPL teams is that after they take points off either Celtic or Rangers is the ability to raise themselves for their next match against one of the lesser lights.

Perhaps the energy expended in beating one of the big two means players are unable to play at that level again or there is a psychological element which causes the team to play poorer.

Hearts have to be very wary of this arising at Falkirk because this match is just as important to them as last weeks was.

Falkirk lie 5 points behind their Tynecastle rivals so a home win will narrow that gap to 2 points.

This could see Hearts dragged into the relegation dogmire (or any other cliché) very easily.

The home side has a number of long term injury victims still unavailable which should see the team which won at Rugby Park taking to the field yet again.

Hearts have two players unavailable through suspension, Ian Black and Jose Goncalves. Suso Santana is available once again but Laszlo may decide to tinker with last weeks winning team as little as possible.

Then again, WeKnowSFA does not try and second guess what Csaba Laszlo tries to do!

It is a massive game for both teams at the Falkirk Stadium. Can Falkirk continue their climb off the bottom of the league or will Hearts find themselves in the top six at the end of the day?

It’s tight at the bottom in the SPL.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

It is almost December and children everywhere are making their lists for Christmas, hoping that the new must-have toy or zeitgeist gift will be under the tree on Christmas morning.

Bigger kids everywhere will be making their wishlist for the January transfer window in the hope that they can secure a player or two that will make the difference to the rest of their season.

In the SPL, this is hampered for a couple of reasons.

1) There is not a lot of money going around for wages, let alone a shiny new striker.
2) Not even the motivational skills of Malcolm Tucker would be enough to lift some clubs from their slumber.

Fans of teams at the top are looking for a player or two to freshen things up but it is the clubs near the bottom that desperately need a lift.

WeKnowSFA runs a casual eye over the teams struggling at the foot of the SPL and wonders what will come to them in the next few months.

Falkirk

One swallow doesn’t make a summer and one win doesn’t make a season but the mood at Falkirk will have been raised greatly. The one great thing about their win was that they followed up the draw versus Celtic with an even better result.

Too often, the non “big two” clubs play out of their skin against the big teams, occasionally get a result and then cheat their fans the following week by having a massive dip in performance. Kudos to Falkirk for using a point against Celtic as a springboard.

Eddie May is yet to convince and Steven Pressley is likely to need treatment for Dutch Elm Disease soon so the Bairns remain thick in relegation mire but they will be breathing slightly easier for now.

Hamilton

Tricky second season syndrome was always going to be the case at New Douglas Park but the team are holding their head up high so far. The loss of James McCarthy, Richard Offiong and Brian Easton was always likely to set the club back but the form of on-loan striker Mickael Antoine-Curier has helped lift the mood.

With any young squad, inconsistency is sure to affect Hamilton and it would be a surprise if they ensure their safety with any more than a game or two to go. That said, it would be a surprise if they did succumb to the drop.

Hearts

It is probably running out of time for Vladimir Romanov to realise his promise of bringing the Champions League to Tynecastle. In all likelihood, he is far closer to bringing Tesco to Tynecastle with another reasonable manager on the brink of a Gorgie goodbye.

If Cristian Nade was worth his weight in goals he would be more akin to Cristiano Ronaldo and any club which heavily relies on the rotund striker would find goals hard to come by.

They wont go down….will they….no, they have too much (relative) quality in comparison to the rest of the bottom half of the league but it is not going to be a pleasant time in the Gorgie/Dalry region for all of the maroon persuasion.

Kilmarnock

Kevin Kyle was the difference between staying up and going down for Killie last season. Given the debt and a fear that Jim Jeffries may be off to manage the national team, Kyle may be offloaded in January to recoup cash whilst it remains possible.

Getting Alan Combe back to full fitness and offloading the hapless Mark Brown could see an upturn in the clubs fortunes although whether Combe can regain form is another matter. Stand-in Cameron Bell could be worth a shout.

Realistic candidates for the drop and could be in grave danger if Jeffries or Kyle exit.

St Johnstone

The cup runs enjoyed by the Super J’s in recent years has probably encouraged many fans to think they will beat the drop but to be fair, the gap between the top of Division 1 and the foot of the SPL is neglible.

Like Hamilton last season, St Johnstone have carried an enthusiasm and spirit into the opening quarter of the season and their Tynecastle triumph was fully deserved. Results like this will brighten up the Winter months for the fans but it is the relegation dogfights they have to win.

Hold on, a match versus Hearts is now a relegation six-pointer so things aren’t looking too bad for the Perth side. A lot may depend on how much longer the SFA allows Allan Main to get around the goal-line on his zimmer frame (St J’s are unlikely to get the Davie Weir dispensation offered to Rangers) but the promoted team should be hanging around for another crack at the big time.

St Mirren

Just the one league win at their new stadium in nearly a year’s worth of football could be the sovereign chain around their Paisley neck that finally drags down the Buddies down. It would be a shame to see one of the few top Scottish clubs not in debt dropping out of the division but there really needs to be an upturn in fortunes at their home park.

They have a manager who is unlikely to give up and on paper, their squad is easily a match for all outside the top 5 clubs in the league so its possibly becoming a psychological block that is halting the Buddies.

7 points from 7 Paisley games is not the form of a top flight team but they should just about stay above the chasing pack. It’ll be sweatier than a night out in Club 69 in Paisley but SPL safety should be retained for another year.

Although their first win of the season was obtained at the weekend, at the moment, Falkirk are still looking like the team to drop. Eddie May has them playing expansive and open football but Scottish football is more about rolled up sleeves and snottery noses. Especially at the business end of the season.

The beauty about this round-up is that within a game or two, it could be all change which means we get to come back and revise our opinion.

Although we will still be sticking it to Mad Vlad and Hearts!

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.