Shire 0 Stirling Albion 2

Shire's wait for a Scottish Cup win goes on. Stirling Albion's clinical finishing combinded with some abject home defending eased the visitors into a Second Round meeting with Edinburgh City. A match against a team sitting second in the Second Division was never going to be easy. But Gordon Wylde's team still managed to make it difficult for themselves.

They could not hold their defensive discipline when it mattered most and gifted their visitors two early goals. Although Shire redeemed themselves with a hard-working second half it simply was too much of an ask to haul themselves back into the match.

As expected, Scott Livingstone was drafted into the team at right-back to cover for the cup-tied Gary McPhee and Alan Ward and Steven Dymock came in for Mark Molloy and Paul Tweedie. Otherwise, Wylde stood by the players who had won so wonderfully at Arbroath. And they were quickly in action. Marc McKenzie skinned left-back Forsyth inside the first minute but his cross could find no takers and was hacked behind for a corner kick. A minute later Derek Ure beat a ropey looking Albion offside trap and crossed for Alan Ward but the Shire man was not expecting such an easy chance and the ball bounced off his shins and wide.

Albion's best openings early were two free-kicks but Forsyth sent both high and wide. But he did better on 16 minutes, swining over a free-kick which found the unmarked Colin Cramb at the back post. His first shot was saved by Robert Tiroupolos but he swept the rebound high into the net. Shire were unsettled and, within three minutes they should have been further behind but Cramb missed an absolute sitter, blasting over the bar from inside the six yard box.

After 25 minutes it was 2-0. This time Shire failed to halt Steven Bell's progress down the right and when he shot for goal Tiroupolos saved but couldn't hold onto the ball and Dean Shields rammed the rebound home. The wheels were coming off the wagon and a poor Livingstone pass left Nathan Taggart in the clear but he rather wasted what seemed like a good opening. Shire spent he remainder of the half having to repulse a never-ending flow of Stirling Albion attacks. And Tiroupolos made one marvellous save from a Paul Hay half-volley to keep the lead to two.

Livingstone went off at the interval to be replaced by Molloy and Shire changed shape, going three at the back and pushing an extra man into midfield. That, and perhaps a gale force wind at their backs rather than in their faces, made all the difference.

For the first time Shire were taking the game to their visitors and it was Albion on the backfoot. After 58 minutes they should have had a lifeline back into the game. Derek Ure's run and cross ended with a netbound header from Ward which, somehow, Myles Hogarth in the Albion goal tipped onto the crossbar and the chance was gone. Ward was clean through on goal minutes later but his effort lacked real power and Hogarth saved. Derek Ure tried his luck from long range but found Hogarth up to the task. There were many goalmouth stramashes inside the Albion box but the ball never seemed to sit kindly for a white jersey., otherwise it may have been a different story.

Shire : Tiroupolos, Livingstone(Molloy 46), Learmonth, Thywissen, Boyle(Tweedie 73), Wild, McKenzie, Stewart, Dymock, Ward, Ure.

Stirling Albion : Hogarth, Hay, Forsyth, McNally, Roycroft(Devine 50), Aitken, Bell, Tomana, Cramb(Cashmore 78), Shields, Taggart(Malseed 78).

Referee : Dean John

Attendance : 550.

Weather Watch

Firs Park, Saturday 25th November 2006, 10:20 am : The Firs Park pitch is playable after the predicted overnight wind and rain failed to materialise. Consequently the club will NOT require a morning pitch inspection and this afternoon's re-scheduled Scottish Cup First Round tie with Stirling Albion WILL go ahead as planned with a 3:00p.m. kick-off.

Stirling Albion Preview

A decision will be taken early on Saturday morning about a pitch inspection for Shire's re-arranged Scottish Cup-tie with Stirling Albion. The Firs Park pitch has taken another battering from the rain and much will depend on overnight conditions. Shire fans are being asked to get their wellington boots and pitchforks at the ready for a spot of spiking just in case the weather makes tomorrow's game touch-and-go.

Should it get the go ahead, the match will mean one enforced team change for Gordon Wylde. Loan signing Gary McPhee will not be allowed to play, a direct consequence of Stranraer's 4-2 cup win over Alloa last week. They do not want him cup-tied after he returns to Stair Park in December. Stephen Oates' knee injury has not sufficently recovered so it is unlikely he will be part of the squad either. Everyone else, apart, of course, from Andrew Brand, should be available for selection. After Shire's 2-1 win over Arbroath in their last outing a fortnight ago, there should not be too many changes, although the right-back position is causing some concern. Joe Boyle was tried unsuccessfully in that position at Gayfield before McGhee slotted in with the minimum of fuss. With the on-loan Stranraer man unavailable it seems that position will be a toss up between Boyle and Scott Livingstone, with Gary Wild partnering Carl Thywissen in the centre of defence.

"It's not a game that has any fears for us," boss Gordon Wylde told Zebra Diary. "Stirling Albion have the best record of any team in Britain at the moment, so we don't have to be told how difficult it will be. All we can ask of the players is that they give it one hunded per cent effort and you never know, we might have a wee chance."

Berwick Game Re-Arranged

The home Third Division match with Berwick Rangers which should have gone ahead this Saturday now has a new date. The match will be played on Tuesday 5th December with a 7:30p.m. kick-off.

The match has had to make way for the re-arranged Scottish Cup tie with Stirling Albion, which was postponed last week.

Cup Tie Postponed

The Scottish Cup first round tie against Stirling Albion for tomorrow (Saturday 18th November) has been postponed due to a waterlogged pitch. The game will now go ahead on Saturday 25th November with a 3:00p.m. kick-off.

Five days of contstant, torrential rain have left the Firs Park pitch flooded in many areas and, with the weather only likely to get worse, the decision was made to call a 3:30p.m pitch inspection on Friday afternoon. The decision to call the game off was a formality.

Boxing Day Date Change

Shire's scheduled league meeting with Elgin City at Firs Park, scheduled for Tuesday 26th December has been moved forward by the Scottish League at the request of both teams. The match will now be played on Saturday 23rd December with the usual 3:00p.m. kick-off time. This is to allow the players of both Shire and Elgin the chance to be with their families a bit more during thefestive period. It also gives fans of both teams a valid excuse to skip last-minute Christmas shopping.

Arbroath 1 Shire 2

There can’t have been many Shire fans who travelled to Gayfield with any degree of optimism. And they could hardly be blamed. Four defeats in a row and no goals into the bargain and a trip ahead to a ground where the club have a poor record. It seemed a recipe for disaster.
But Shire knew defeat could leave them bottom of the league and, in the end, it was that sense of pride which brought the Firs Parkers their most unexpected. and welcome, three points of the season. Even conceding the first goal, which in recent weeks has been their biggest downfall, proved no obstacle to gaining a most valuable victory. But perhaps a bigger factor in the win was a fantastic display by keeper Robert Tiroupolos. The goalie had been left out in the cold over the last few weeks but grabbed his chance with a string of fine saves.
Tiroupolos wasn’t the only change to the Shire line-up. New loan signing from Stranraer, Gary McPhee, came into the midfield and Gary Wild replaced the injured Stephen Oates. Stephen Adam was relegated to the bench.
If Shire expected an Arbroath onslaught from the start they were wrong. The home team was slow out of the traps and it gave Shire a vital foothold in the game. That wasn’t to say that Arbroath didn’t have the better of the chances early on but Tiroupolos was equal to it, especially a header from Dobbins which he dived full-length to push wide. The Shire keeper’s handling of the many crosses into the box was also first class.
But it would not be Shire if there wasn’t a defensive disaster somewhere along the line. It came on 31 minutes when Arbroath’s Reilly hoofed the ball into the box, the Shire defence failed to hold its line, and as a result Sellars, who should have been played offside, stroked the ball home.
Shire certainly didn’t give up and were unlucky not to equalise seven minutes later when Paul Tweedie headed goalwards from Derek Ure’s cross. Only a superb one handed save from Mark Peat kept Arbroath ahead at the half-time interval.
The second half held more potential for Shire, although Tiroupolos was again the hero to touch a Sellars shot onto the post., and made an even better stop four minutes later from a Sellars header, tipping a netbound effort over the bar.
But Shire kept passing the ball, Paul Stewart was getting more room to operate in he middle of the park and the replacement of the strike force of Tweedie and Molloy with Ward and Dymock created a goal threat that hadn’t existed up until that point. But the chances which started to come were being squandered, especially a McPhee effort which he fired well over the bar when well-placed.
There was no doubt Shire were getting back into the game and they demonstrated that by hitting a well-merited equaliser on 73 minutes. A free-kick from wide on the right was missed by the Arbroath central defence and, Dymock, lurking unmarked on the back edge of the six yard box nodded home. Arbroath put on the dangerous Barry Scott and he forced Tiroupolos into one really fine save as the Shire goal came in for a pounding for the first time in the match.
But Arbroath’s determination to get in front left the back door open. Although Shire’s 90th minute winner was a pure freak. Tiroupolos launched a long wind-assisted clearance which Robbie Raeside meant to head clear upfield. Except the ball sclaffed off his head and ballooned over Peat and into his own net. Cue celebrations.
Arbroath : Peat, McMullen, McCulloch, Raeside, Bishop, Dobbins(Smith 73), Reilly(Scott 69), Black, Brazil, Sellars, Stein/
Shire: Tiroupolos, McPhee, Learmonth, Thywisen, Wild, Boyle, McKenzie, Stewart, Tweedie(Ward 63), Molloy(Dymock 64), Ure.

Referee: S. McDonald.

Arbroath Preview

Shire boss Gordon Wylde has bolstered the squad by bringing in Stranraer midfielder Gary McPhee on a one month loan deal. The 27 year old was part of Stranraer's first team squad until injury struck, and part of the rationale behind Gerry Britton's decision to send him to Firs Park was to get him match fit for a return to Second Division action. McPhee, who is described by the Shire boss as, "having a bit of devilment in him", was previously with Clyde and Forfar Athletic and will go straight into the Shire midfield at Arbroath.

Now for the bad news. Andrew Brand will not feature at Gayfield. He doesn't yet feel confident enough to make his return to action following his wrist operation and will put off a decision on his return date until next week. Stephen Oates' knee problem has also ruled him out of the match. Stephen has been carrying the injury for a number of weeks and will require a scan to find the true nature of the injury.The trialist striker who joined the club this week needs to gain more fitness before being considered. It could be another week before we see him in action. Everyone else in the squad will travel.

Brand Set For Return ?

Shire skipper, Andrew Brand, may be added to the squad for Saturday's trip to Arbroath. He returned to training two weeks ago following his wrist operation and his fitness work is progressing well. But with the club facing a slump in form he may be asked to think about a return to the fold.

"We are certainly not putting any pressure on him," coach Gordon Wylde told Zebra Diary. "Andrewc will make his comeback when he is comfortable doing so, but he is a big player for us and we are really keen to see him back in the teamas quickly as possible."

Wylde had also revealed he has brought in a trialist striker with a view to signing him. The player, who has experience of playing the the First Division, will train with the team initially. "We will talk to him and see how he feels about playing for us," he said. "He's been out of the senior game for a year but he has played at a higher level than this and I am sure if he wants to join us and gets match fit then he will score goals for us."

There is one real injury concern for the Gayfield trip. It surrounds Stephen Oates who has been carrying a knee injury for some time. He is starting to feel the effects and may not be risked for the trip to Angus.

Stenhousemuir 2 Shire 0

Defeat seems a matter of course for Shire at the moment and that was never better illustrated than in this latest reverse at Ochilview. No matter how hard they battled and kept managerless Stenhousemuir at bay there was something all too inevitable about the final outcome.

When your defence continues to give away the daftest of goals and the forwards go through ninety minutes without having at least one worthwhile chance to score you tend to be in trouble and Shire are in serious bother at the moment. Elgin City's 1-1 draw at league leaders East Fife has cut the gap between the Firs Parkers and the league's bottom team to three points. A defeat for Shire at Arbroath next week and an Elgin win over Albion Rovers would see Gordon Wylde's team slump to the foot of the table.

Injuries and other issues limited the changes Wylde could make to the starting line-up but out went Joe Boyle and Scot Livingstone in a straight swap for Mark Molloy and Gary Wild. And, at least in the opening stages, it seemed to make a difference. Paul Stewart was getting plenty of the ball and the signs were encouraging, Paul Tweedie hit a cracking shot past Willie McCulloch after just nine minutes but he was corrently judged to be offside. At the other end only a goalline clearance from Wild stopped Kevin McLeish the home team the lead after Anton Nugent has unwisely come racing out of goal.

But if the first few minutes gave the impression that the rest of the game would be a cracker we were wrong. Midfield medocrity ensused although Shire by no means looked out of things and a goalless first half, with, in truth, very few chances at either end, was just about right.

Shire might have had ambitions to go on and win the game from there but they were undone just seconds after the re-start. John Baird was given far too much room after receiving a free-kick , he shot and although Nugent did well to save, he could do nothing to stop David Templeton firing home the rebound. The game was as good as over at that oint because Shire never looked capable of even getting a shot on target, never mind scoring a goal.

And they made things a lot worse for themselves on 63 minutes. A John Paul McBride free-kick from wide on the left looked routine enough, but no Shire player matched the late run of McLeish into the box and he was allowed a free header past Nugent to make it 2-0.

The visitors might have dragged themselves back into the game on 70 minutes. A Marc McKenzie free-kicked was fired goalwards by Tweedie and although home Keeper Willie McCulloch saved, the ball fell to Gary Wild, who should have burst the net. Instead he blazed the ball miles over the bar.

Stenhousemuir : McCulloch, Menzies, Dillon, Henderson, Cowan, Connell, McLeish, McBride, Hutchison, Templeton(Diack 84), Baird(McLuaghlin 58).

Shire : Nugent, Wild, Learmonth, Thywissen, Oates(Livingstone 85), Molloy(Boyle 66), McKenzie, Stewart, Adam, Tweedie, Ure(Dymock 83).

Referee : A. Boyd

Attendance : 563.

Stenhousemuir Preview

The team enters one of its most important games of the season with another player shortage. Just as the visit to Elgin was blighted by injuries and illness, Shire will be severely depleted for the trip to Ochilview tomorrow. Andrew Brand has returned to training but is nowhere near match fit. Andy Smith is unlikely to appear either, and Alan Ward, Steven Dymock and Steven Blair have not recovered from their injuries and will not be considered.

Manager Gordon Wylde is promising to abandon the long ball approach adopted rather unsuccessfully for the East Fife game. His game plan will be influenced by the Warriors' plastic pitch. Wylde is a fan of the surface and believes it will suit the instincts of his better players.

One major factor will be how Stenhousemuir react to the midweek resignation of manager Des McKeown. They will have McKeown's assistant, Paul Smith, in charge for the game and he is promising to adopt his own approach. One thing that still hurt them is Shire's 5-0 win over the Warriors at Firs Park in August. They want revenge.

Midweek Update

Shire could be forced to draft in at least one trialist for the visit to Stenhousemuir. The squad has been depleted further following the 4-0 defeat against East Fife last weekend, with Alan Ward already ruled out of the trip to Ochilview and Steven Dymock very doubtful.

Ward sustained a nasty leg knock in a collision with East Fife's keeper, John Dodds, which forced his substitution by Dymock after 34 minutes. The blond striker was himself forced to retire after sustaining a knee injury, which was first thought to have been a medial ligament strain, although that is still unconfirmed.

Both Ward and Dymock will be added to an injury list that already includes Steven Blair, who has a hamstring injury and won't make Stenhousemuir either. Added to that it is also unlikely that Andy Smith will make an appearance, taking the squad down to fifteen, which includes two goalkeepers.Extra help could be called for.