Topics

76

Lowland League Team / Magnificent!!! League Cup Winners 2018

« on: May 13, 2018, 08:18:53 PM »

Just back from Galashiels. What an afternoon!
1-0 behind at half time and down to 10 men. Things did not look good despite the sunshine and beautiful scenery around the ground.
Then we equalised. (Could we hold out for extra time?)
Then we took the lead. (Could we possibly win?)
Then we scored again. (I think we are going to win)
The Final Whistle. (Colts have won the League Cup!)
What a victory! A magnificent fight back.

Forza Colts!

77

Lowland League Team / Through to the Final

« on: May 06, 2018, 10:28:00 PM »

Colts 3-0 Stirling Uni

Through to the League Cup final. A convincing victory over a good side.
I hope we are heading for our first piece of silverware but even if we fail we have a lot to be proud of: Three seasons in the top six and two cup finals. We might not be as wealthy as some of our opponents but we make up for it in our style of play, determination and achievements. If we play to our best then I'm sure we can lift our first trophy.
Forza Colts!

78

Lowland League Team / Colts fighting spirit

« on: May 02, 2018, 10:11:34 PM »

On Saturday we were up against a Gala team that were physically strong and determined but we outplayed them. This evening we were three one down to Vale of Leithen but we fought back for a 4-4 draw to earn a well deserved sixth position in the league. (Special mention to Sean Brown)
Now all we need is the same fighting spirit combined with our usual organisation and creativity and we can beat the University of Stirling to reach another cup final.
Forza Colts!

79

Lowland League Team / Back to Reality

« on: April 21, 2018, 08:52:54 PM »

Colts 6-0 Vale of Leithen

I knew Wednesday evening was simply a bad dream. This afternoon we scored six goals against Vale of Leithen without conceding a goal and we go through to the next round of the cup. Just as in the movie Groundhog Day, you get more than one chance to change and improve your future.

It was a great afternoon to be a Colts supporter. Sunshine, beautiful football and plenty of goals.
I wonder how many more fans we would get if sunshine was the norm.
I look forward to our next cup game against Gala.

Forza Colts!

80

Lowland League Team / A Bad Dream

« on: April 19, 2018, 08:04:31 PM »

I had this dream that Colts were playing in a cup tie. They dominated the first half and created chance after chance. Two of the chances they converted and went into the tunnel at half-time with a two goal lead.
In the second half they created more chances but failed to score. Then my pleasant dream began to change for the worse. The opposition scored a goal, then scored a second goal and then in the last minute..........the Colts goalkeeper brought down an opponent and a penalty was awarded. The penalty was taken and beat the goalkeeper. It was all over. The Colts were out of the cup.

Thankfully, the Colts play in the Cup on Saturday and they play against the same opposition. So, my dream couldn't' have been reality.

Groundhog Day is in February, so Saturday should be a completely different day. (Fingers crossed)

81

Lowland League Team / Final home game

« on: April 07, 2018, 06:40:00 PM »

Colts 2-0 Dalbeattie

Our final home league game of the season. Not the same creativity and imagination as last week's performance but nevertheless a solid victory. It was interesting to see the Colts playing a 4-4-2 (my favourite formation) but perhaps such a formation does encourage solidity at the expense of creativity.

My son and I were discussing which teams in the Lowland League are the most entertaining and attractive to watch. We agreed that EDU, Spartans and the Colts are the top three. We also agreed that top of the list is the Colts. Admittedly we are Colts season ticket holders but that doesn't necessarily make us biased.

Looking forward to a victory in our final league game followed by success in the cup competitions.

82

Lowland League Team / Normal service resumes

« on: April 01, 2018, 02:39:12 PM »

Colts 5-2 Gretna

Great football and a great result. The game looked over within 30 minutes when Colts were three up but conceding two goals before half time changed all that.
Colts played some very attractive attacking football with plenty of creativity. Despite a lot of missed chances, five goals from four different players bodes well for the future. So many good individual performances combining to produce a very welcome victory.
Maybe we can still overtake Selkirk and Gretna. Finishing fifth would be quite an achievement this season considering the strength of so many of our opponents.

83

Lowland League Team / Referees change games

« on: February 24, 2018, 06:25:11 PM »

Colts 0-4 EK

At half-time things looked good. It was 0-0 and we were holding our own against our new town rivals, EK.
Then early in the second half Gavin Lachlan makes a challenge that the referee deemed to be a straight red.
That proved to be the game changer. As the Colts were still coming to terms with what seemed to be a harsh and unjustified red card, EK scored. For the rest of the game Colts tried to get forward and this created spaces for EK to exploit. To rub salt into our wounds the referee and linesmen failed to see a handball by an EK defender in the penalty box.

I'll tune in later to EKFC television to have a look at the incidents again but there is no doubt that the red card transformed the game. So disappointing!

84

Lowland League Team / A victory snatched from us

« on: February 17, 2018, 01:12:55 AM »

Colts 2-2 Gala

The omens were not good before the game: no O'Neill, no Sean Brown and a young goalkeeper straight into the first team. To make matters worse, Kirwan was taken off injured during the first half. However, despite the warning signs we scored the first goal and matched Gala in the first half although losing a goal soon after our first just before half time.
The second half was a different story: we improved while Gala faded. We took control, scored a second goal and looked as if we would add to our lead but........the fates were against us. In the closing minutes we lost a goal very much against the run of play. The game ended in a draw but it felt like a defeat. Perhaps Gala are our bogey team.

Big challenges ahead that could determine who will win the league. We have already taken five from six points from BSC but can we also upset two of the other major contenders: East Kilbride and the Spartans. We will have to be at our best.

85

Lowland League Team / The frustration of football

« on: January 13, 2018, 11:03:49 PM »

In an ideal world of football, the team with more possession, the better passing team and the more creative team would be rewarded with victory but in the real world of football victory depends solely on scoring more goals than your opponents. This afternoon Colts played well, they had about 70-80% possession, they manufactured some great passing moves and at times they created some good goal scoring opportunities but they lost 2-0. Admittedly the Uni of Stirling were fit and well-organised and they scored with two of the very few chances that they created.
Football can be cruel and frustrating when the better team loses but I suppose that's part of the emotional roller coaster of being a football fan unless you happen to support a team that rarely loses. It must be dull, in our present era to be a Celtic fan or even worse a Barcelona fan. So dull. Hardly worth turning up for the game.

86

Lowland League Team / Welcoming in the New Year

« on: January 06, 2018, 08:35:35 PM »

Colts 2-1 Edinburgh Uni

A good start to the New Year. The Colts played well and created numerous chances but only managed to score with two of them. As usual the team were well organised and produced some very good moves.
Despite the club's limited resources it was good to see the squad being strengthened with some loan signings.
If 2018 is good to us and we remain injury free then there is no reason that we cannot continue to win.
It is a pity that we don't attract more Cumbernauldians to support their local senior team. Colts play some very attractive football and I sense that the players enjoy playing for the club. So, all in all, a Happy New Year.

87

Lowland League Team / 2018 Year of the Colts

« on: December 30, 2017, 09:58:16 PM »

East Stirlingshire 3-0 Colts

Not one of our best performances. Their strength and pressing seemed to interfere with our passing game.
It certainly gave our new keeper ample opportunity to demonstrate his quality and he made some very impressive saves.
It is beginning to look as if the Shire, EK and the Spartans will be, as expected, difficult to keep up with. The surprise has been BSC. Maybe their rise from a mid-table team to championship challengers gives us hope for the future. And talking of the future may I wish everyone at the club all the best for 2018. I am not very familiar with the Chinese calendar but I would like to think that the coming year is the year of the Colts.
Who knows? Perhaps if we begin the New Year with a run of victories we might climb the table and then.....
Forza Colts!

88

Lowland League Team / Our biggest league victory?

« on: December 10, 2017, 12:07:01 PM »

Colts 7-0 Hawick

Looks like the training camp in Liverpool last weekend paid off. I suspect that the players might request similar training techniques in the future.
A great performance and a great result. It was good to see the goals coming from a variety of players and also good to see that despite some regulars missing, those who came into the team did a great job.
Credit to Hawick. A team that lost all their league games so far this season and yet they continued to play and look for a goal up until the final whistle. That is character.

I think I am right in saying that the 7-0 result is our highest league victory equalling our highest cup victory.

89

Lowland League Team / A game of football

« on: December 05, 2017, 05:42:02 PM »

We lost to Edu but we lost to a team that played football. Despite our defeat it was entertaining to see two teams play the beautiful game as it should be played. Both teams had spells when they were on top but there was a twenty minute period in the first half when Edu put on a show of passing perfection.
I think Colts and Edu are the two best passing teams in the league and just maybe that is the reason that the two teams are the only teams to beat BSC so far this season.
Of course, as a Colts fan I want us to win every week but more importantly, for me, I want to see entertaining football where the players play as a team, work hard, play to their strengths and enjoy playing.
Forza Colts!

90

Lowland League Team / The Corinthian Spirit

« on: November 28, 2017, 08:59:36 PM »

Colts 2-2 BSC

It was a hard contest and I do wonder whether BSC would have got back into the game if they had not scored a goal just before half-time. (Of course, we scored two quick goals just before half-time in our previous meeting one week ago) Perhaps, a draw was a fair result but certain aspects of the game were far from fair: dangerous tackles, verbal abuse, retaliation, goading, provoking and over-reaction. As a Colts fan I would like to say that we were innocent of such gamesmanship but I don't think we were.
I don't expect that we can return to the level of fair play and sportsmanship that were displayed in the past by the Corinthian football team but I do think that respect should be shown to the opposing team and to the officials. Thankfully, Colts normally concentrate on playing good football.