Insight on League 2 leaders Dumbarton comes from journalist and supporter, Fraser Clarke.
How would you assess your club's 22/23 season so far?
I think any Dumbarton fan would’ve been delighted if you said the club would be well in a title race at this stage of the season, let alone top of the league. There’s still a feeling that there’s more to come from this Sons side, but so far they’ve been defensively impressive - and fairly clinical going forward.
Another relegation was a definite fear at the start of the season and, after a really tough five years or so following relegation from the Championship, the mood during the off season was low.
Thankfully that’s changed, crowds are on the rise again and there’s cautious optimism that something special could be achieved with Dumbarton in a title race for the first time since 2009.
Although, to their credit, Stirling Albion look formidable opponents - the game between the sides in early January could be a cracker.
Main Man: Favourite current player and why
As someone who reports on the team he supports, and who has to share a podcast studio with members of the squad every month I couldn’t possibly have favourites…
However Aron Lynas has definitely won himself a place in a lot of fans’ hearts this season. He’s played almost every minute in a, by and large, really solid defence. He works non-stop up and down the right flank, never shirks a challenge, has been superb in the air for someone who is far from being a towering defender and is just about the most vocal player on the park every single week.
I’ve seen him celebrate a few vital tackles and interceptions like goals, and winning games looks to mean more to him than anyone else. His commitment and passion is absolutely first class. It already feels like he’s been at the club for years.
What is your earliest memory supporting your club?
It would’ve been an injury time defeat to Stenhousemuir at home. I probably should’ve taken that as a warning sign. I’ve actually no idea when, precisely, it was - but that sickening feeling of losing a game in injury time hurts the same as a wee kid as it does when you’re a 25-year-old.
Explain the nickname
If you’re from Dumbarton you’re a Son (or daughter) of the Rock - courtesy of the big volcanic plug that dominates the town’s skyline, and towers over the stadium.
Almost Famous – What is your club best known for?
Winning the first two Scottish titles in 1890/91 (shared with Rangers…but our goal difference was superior) and 1891/92 would be the answer I’d like to give here. But it feels as if Sons are most famous for trying to sign Johan Cruyff in the ‘80s. You can’t go a week on Twitter without seeing that one pop up.
Greatest Gaffer: Your favourite/most loved boss watching your team
In my lifetime it’s Ian Murray, without question. He took over a side with one league win at Christmas, somehow comfortably kept them up and then - the following year - had Sons within a whisker of finishing in the playoffs for promotion to the Premiership. Something that was beyond the wildest dreams of everyone at the club.
His teams were always set up to win games, we had the old Kevin Keegan ‘you score four, we’ll score five’ approach and the club were, by some distance, the best part-time side in the country under his stewardship.
Off the park he totally professionalised things, with sports science and nutrition introduced and the club basically operating like a full-time, fully professional outfit. I’ve said it to his face a few times (to a level where he now probably finds me a bit weird) but I’ll be forever grateful for his time in charge at the Rock.
Can you tell us one interesting fact about your club which other fans may not know?
Dumbarton’s record defeat is 11-1 to Albion Rovers in 1926. But the record books don’t tell the full story. The Sons had a Scottish Cup tie on a Wednesday afternoon three days earlier against Buckie Thistle, with a 3pm kick off in the afternoon. Getting from Dumbarton to Buckie in 1926 was no easy task, and the squad had to take the train via Aberdeen and Inverness. After beating Buckie the Sons squad had another mammoth train journey back home.
The players who played against Buckie had taken unpaid time off work, so were on double shifts on the Friday, then worked Saturday morning before - you guessed it - another train journey, albeit this time only to Coatbridge. With Sons clearly knackered, the Wee Rovers ran riot. And managers nowadays think they have it tough…
Who would make your ultimate all-time 5-a-side team?
Of players I’ve watched, I’d go for something like this...
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Stephen Grindlay - A local lad who has played fives with a few of my pals. They have said they can’t get near him when he’s got the ball at his feet. The fact he would be almost unbeatable between the sticks is an added bonus.
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Andy Graham - You need someone happy to defend. And Andy Graham will be that man. A selfless leader, a guy who reads the game perfectly and who’ll stick his body on the line for the team. Deceptively skilful too - we all still remember his roulette around a striker in a game against Hamilton.
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Dimitris Froxylias - The cult hero’s cult hero. A mercurial genius who was capable of some outrageous moments of magic. I’d challenge anyone to try and take the ball off him without being humiliated.
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Sam Stanton - The most complete player I’ve seen at Dumbarton. He had no weaknesses at all; he’ll pass, shoot, cross, tackle, run all day. Exactly the sort of guy every fives team needs.
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Stephen Dobbie - Arguably the greatest lower league striker of his generation, and hugely unlucky never to have received a Scotland cap. The mere thought of the link-up between him, Froxy and Stanton will make most defences crumble.
What is your all-time favourite match?
Airdrie United 1-4 (2-6 on aggregate).
Sons played Airdrie six times that season, and each additional game felt like it had a bit of extra spice added into it. Since the demise of Clydebank, those matches were the closest thing I’d felt to a rivalry - and the two sides were really closely matched.
Sons were 2-1 up from a tense first leg, and had captain Paul Nugent suspended. So the Diamonds were possibly slight favourites for the second-leg, in Airdrie, live on the BBC.
Thankfully Craig Dargo had other ideas. He scored twice early on, with one of those being an absolutely magical finish, before Mark Gilhaney had us 3-1 up and 5-2 to the good at half-time.
That second-half was a party with a football match going on in the background as Sons celebrated promotion to the second-tier for the first time since the mid-1990s. At one stage there was even a conga going along the front of the stand! The fact that Mr Playoffs himself, Tony Wallace, scored a superb fourth goal only added to the magic of the afternoon.
What should visiting fans make sure they see/do when visiting your club/town?
It’s been shut for a wee while, but Dumbarton Castle should be reopening soon I believe - and is a cracking way to spend the morning of a matchday. It has some fascinating history (Mary, Queen of Scots stayed there you know) and the views on a good day are stunning.
After that you could take a stroll over to Levengrove Park to enjoy the views of the The Rock, Clyde (and Stadium), and see where the organs of Robert the Bruce are buried.
If that’s not enough history and culture for you, then there’s a superb exhibition in Dumbarton Library that runs until December marking 150 years of DFC that’s well worth a visit.
What makes your club special to YOU?
My great-granda who I never met is to blame for me being a Sons fan. He took my dad to games as a kid, just as my dad has taken me. For years there were three generations of us who went along to games; me and my brother, my dad and his dad and my granda from my mum’s side. It’s that sense of being part of something that links generations that feels special.
As a smaller club, you get to know everyone - and there are plenty of families like ours where three (or more) generations still come to games every weekend.
We also have the best kits in Scottish football this season. Which means you look great as a Sons fan too.
You can follow Dumbarton's progress every week in our SPFL Lower League Round Up - watch the latest edition now!
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