cinch Championship – Raith Rovers v Inverness CT (Saturday – 3:00pm k.o.)
It’s 6th v 8th in the cinch Championship, as Ian Murray’s Raith Rovers welcome a Caley Thistle side who have averaged just 1 point per game so far this season.
21/22 was a mixed bag of a season for Raith Rovers. Under John McGlynn the Rovers started brightly and looked to be early title challengers. However, a drop in form over a difficult winter period saw Raith narrowly miss out on the play-offs, ending in a 5th place finish. This season, a fresh start under new management has brought about a renewed sense of optimism at Stark’s Park. New boss Ian Murray has made some exciting signings. Namely, delving into League 1 (a market he knows well from his time at Airdrie) and convincing top talents such as Dylan Easton and Scott Brown to make the switch to Kirkcaldy. With just 2 wins and 6 points from the opening 5 games, Rovers will view tomorrow’s game as a chance to potentially kick-start their season against a Caley side which has lost its last 2 league games. Raith will be hoping that history won’t repeat itself though, as they haven’t managed to beat Inverness in 90 minutes in their last 28 attempts!
Billy Dodds’ first year in the dugout was an excellent one. Having guided the Caley Jags to a 3rd place cinch Championship finish, before falling short at the last hurdle in the play-offs against a defiant St. Johnstone side. Though, the Caley boss will be hoping that he and his team aren’t showing early symptoms of ‘second season syndrome’. Inverness went 3 games unbeaten at the start of the season, picking up a win and two draws. Despite this, they have since lost their two most recent Championship fixtures and currently sit in a lowly 8th place. There is plenty of time to turn things round and get it right, but after disappointing defeats to Partick Thistle and Morton, the Highlanders will need to ensure that losing does not become a habit. Caley won on their last visit to Kirkcaldy, picking up a dramatic 3-2 win in March. Billy Dodds will likely be hoping for a less nervy afternoon on Saturday.
cinch League 1 – Clyde v Alloa Athletic (Saturday – 3:00pm k.o.)
Brian Rice’s resurgent Wasps make the journey to Hamilton to take on a Clyde side who have been on the end of a couple of difficult results after a promising start to the season.
In the opening few weeks of the season, Clyde were very impressive. Picking up convincing wins over Queen of the South and Kelty Hearts, as well as a draw at home to Peterhead, it looked as if the Bully Wee had momentum on their side. But a pair of successive losses to Montrose and FC Edinburgh have seen Danny Lennon’s side drop down to 6th place. Despite this, the early signs have still been promising, with a summer of change seeing an exciting squad being assembled at Clyde. The Bully Wee have shown that they are more than capable of scoring goals, with No 10 Ross Cunningham leading the division’s scoring charts with 5. Clyde can take comfort in the fact that they defeated Saturday’s opponents Alloa 3 times last season, all by a one-goal margin. A similar result this weekend would be a welcome one for Danny Lennon’s side.
When appointed Alloa manager midway through last season, Brian Rice brought about a feeling of incremental change and evolution, rather than a major revamp and revolution. After a difficult start to the season, ‘Chipper’ stabilised the team and results improved, leading to a respectable mid-table finish, ending the season above full-time Falkirk. The summer transfer window has allowed the boss to put his own stamp on the team, bringing in reinforcements across the pitch. On-loan goalkeeper Jay Hogarth has impressed between the sticks and attacker Bradley Rodden, signed from Rossvale, has shown his goalscoring touch. 2 wins and 3 defeats in the opening 5 games is a bit of a mixed bag. But, the nature of last weekend’s 5-0 thrashing of Peterhead shows that this Wasps side is more than capable of being competitive this season. Victory on Saturday would make it back-to-back wins for the first time since the last two games of last season.
cinch League 2 – Annan Athletic v Forfar Athletic (Saturday – 3:00pm k.o.)
Ahead of the new season starting, many would have fancied Annan and Forfar to have been competing right at the top of the division. But, so far, that hasn’t been the case.
The Galabankies made history in the summer, becoming the first League 2 side to reach the 2nd round of the Premier Sports Cup since the inception of the group stage in 2016/17. They prevailed over Queen of the South, Elgin City, St. Johnstone and Ayr United to finish top of Group F. An incredible achievement in isolation, but unfortunately that early form hasn’t translated over to the league campaign, taking just 4 points from their opening 5 games. Despite losing a couple of key players over the summer Peter Murphy has recruited well and, on paper, Annan still have one of the strongest squads in the division. It feels as though the Galabankies just need to string a couple of wins together and they’ll be off to the races. Saturday’s meeting will prove a tricky test though. Annan lost 3 of the 4 league meetings with Forfar last season but prevailed over the Angus side in the play-offs. What is for certain though, is that Annan will be desperate to ensure that they don’t make it 4 games without a win on Saturday
Much like their opponents tomorrow, the Loons also have a very strong side on paper. They were also impressive last season, finishing in 2nd place only behind runaway winners Kelty Hearts. But the similarities don’t stop there, as Forfar have also picked up just 4 points thus far. It is surely only a matter of time though before Gary Irvine’s side turn things around. The Loons managed to retain many of last season’s top performers such as captain Craig Slater and attacking talents Matthew Aitken and Stefan McCluskey. Add to that, the signing of players proven at a higher level in the form of James Keatings and Ben Armour, and it seems inevitable that Forfar’s luck will begin to turn. Although, things aren’t always that simple. It will take hard work and endeavour for the Loons to start climbing up the table, with the summit already seeming so far away after 5 matches. By the looks of it, league leaders Dumbarton will take some stopping in League 2, but both Forfar and Annan will fancy themselves to start moving up the table. That lengthy climb to the top could start with a big result this weekend.
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