Blair juniors bust out of mediocrity

Jun 10 2008

THE season is over for the Big County teams although there are one or two cup competitions still being played.

It would be fair to say it has been quite a mediocre season in general.

Blairgowrie are the only team to emerge from the season’s machinations with a major honour as they won the North League Championship and move up to play in the Premier League in the coming season.

Blair also made it to the semi-final of the Currie Cup but lost out to Tayport.

The Port went on to win the cup last Saturday when they beat Forfar West End 3–1 in the final.

Blair also had a fairly good run in the Scottish.

Manager Billy Mackay said: “Blairgowrie are delighted to have won the North League Championship and are very much looking forward to playing in the premier league.”

Kinnoull after challenging for the premier league championship slipped out of contention and finished in a mid table position.

Their home form let them down as they probably had the best away record of the teams concerned.

“They only lost one of their 11 away games which was quite an achievement in a competition of the premier leagues calibre.

That poor home form was also their achilles heal in some cup ties, including a first round Scottish tie which saw them held to a draw at Tulloch Park by West Calder.

The replay also ended all square but the Lothian’s side went on to win the penalty shoot out.

Kinnoull qualified for the semi-final of the League Cup but lost by the odd goal to super league side Hill o’ Beath at Keirs Park which was a real bogey venue for them as they made two further trips there on cup business and lost both times.

Jeanfield Swifts, Scone Thistle, Bankfoot and Luncarty all play in the central league and unfortunately only the Swifts finished in the top half of the table.

Swifts had a very poor start to their league campaign and were virtually out of the championship race by mid season.

Swifts picked up after this poor start and went on to string a good run of results together but it was too late to mount a challenge for the championship and they finished fifth in the table.

Swifts had a good away win in the first round of the Scottish Cup when they beat Arbroath SC away from home.

In the second round they held the north region super league side Sunnybank to a draw at their Riverside ground but went on to lose the replay.

Swifts didn’t make it to the semi finals of any of the regions cup competitions.

Scone Thistle had, its fair to say, a disappointing league campaign and finished in the lower half of the table. Squad problems throughout their season was certainly a factor in them finishing in what was undoubtedly a disappointing placing in the league table.

Thistle went out of the Scottish Cup in the first round away from home to strong going west of Scotland super league side Clydebank.

Thistle’s best cup performance in the regional cups was in the Kingdom Kegs Cup.

They bucked the odds when they ousted Ballingry Rovers by 3–0 on their own ground in the quarter finals and then came very near to making it to the final.

Thistle were playing at home to St Andrews.

They came very close to upsetting the forecasts once again as St Andrews had been cast very much in the role of favourites to make the final.

They did so but it was only after making it by dint of a penalty shoot out that was required to settle the tie which was a real blow for Thistle who had played so well and looked like rounding off what had been a disappointing season by making it to a final.

Bankfoot had major squad problems at the start of the season mainly due to injuries and they got off to a very poor start to their league campaign and they were on the back foot for quite a spell.

Their results in the inward half of the season were improved but they didn’t stop them from finishing in the third bottom position in the table.

Their cup campaign results were pretty much in the same vein although it has to be said they had some pretty tough ties in the process.

In the Scottish they lost their first round tie to West of Scotland side Carluke Rovers then in two of the regional cups they had to face up to super league opponents Oakley and Hill o’ Beath and they lost narrowly on both occasions.

Luncarty were a real enigma who would have expected them to finish in the second from the bottom of the table but that’s what happened.

They just couldn’t get their act together in most games and paid the penalty.

They too had a lengthy injury list that deprived them of key players time and again.

The Bleachers main claim to fame this season was that they twice bucked the odds at the expense of Ballingry Rovers who went on to win the championship.

The Bleachers beat them in a cup tie and then went on to draw with them in a league match which the Bleachers were only 30 seconds away from winning and had they done so it would have resulted in Ballingry’s only league defeat of the season.

Unfortunately they couldn’t produce this form in most of their other games, hence the reason their season finished so poorly.

Coupar Angus got off to a promising start in the north league but a drastic form slump in the second half of the season saw them tumble down to the third bottom spot in the league table.

Coupar also failed to impress in the cup competitions.

The Scottish Junior AGM takes place on Saturday, June 21, at Glenrothes.

This is followed by the East Region AGM on Tuesday, June 24.

The Redwood Leisure Cup final between Lochee United and Forfar West End on Saturday at Glenesk Park, Dundee, the kick off 2.30pm.