Team of the Week

GK – Ross Laidlaw (Ross County)
A huge result for the Staggies on Saturday, as they triumphed in West Lothian for the first time in a decade. They defeated Livingston 1-0 at the Tony Mac on a weekend when the other teams around them also picked up points. Laidlaw commanded his box well and made some crucial saves en route to a priceless clean sheet.

DEF – Sean Crighton (Stenhousemuir)
The Warriors have enjoyed quite the resurgence after a difficult start to their league campaign. While Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Annan at Ochilview will potentially be looked back at as a missed opportunity, Crighton put in a captain’s performance. He scored twice to give Stenny what looked like a 2-1 comeback victory before Tommy Goss’ 90th-minute equaliser for the away side.

DEF – Liam Fontaine (FC Edinburgh)
The SPFL’s surprise package in 2022, FC Edinburgh continued their hot streak at the top of the L1 table by defeating fellow divisional new boys Kelty Hearts 2-0 at Meadowbank. Experienced defender Fontaine has been fantastic in recent weeks and once again led the back line expertly, keeping a clean sheet in the process.

DEF – Kyle Banner (Stirling Albion)
OK, we’ve taken something of a liberty here as Kyle Banner has now settled into a central midfield role but he came through the ranks at Forthbank as a defender. Dale Carrick, Kai Fotheringham, Jack Leitch and Robert Thomson are among the many Stirling players who could have made this line-up but we’ve gone for Banner. The 23-year-old scored twice in the 6-0 thrashing of L2 leaders Dumbarton as the Binos put on a sensational show to cut the gap at the top to two points.

MID – Aidan Nesbitt (Falkirk)
John McGlynn’s Bairns look like they may have finally found their rhythm in League 1. Saturday’s 4-0 win at Balmoor showed Falkirk’s best qualities as they dominated proceedings from start to finish. Nesbitt shone in the midfield, notching two assists to take his seasonal total to seven – he seems to be flourishing in this possession-based Bairns line-up.

MID – Grant Gillespie (Greenock Morton)
We could have picked just about anyone in a Morton shirt after Saturday’s display. They ran Hamilton Accies ragged at Cappielow, scoring five goals without reply in a game which they dominated from the first whistle to the last. Darragh O’Connor and Robbie Muirhead just missed out on TOTW places, but we’ve gone for Gillespie who scored one, assisted another and bossed the midfield throughout.

MID – Craig Sibbald (Dundee United)
Enjoyable afternoons at Tannadice have been few and far between in recent times for the Terrors, but a thrashing of Aberdeen was just what the doctor ordered. United picked up three huge points and did it in style, beating the Dons 4-0 in front of 11,000 fans on Saturday evening. While the goalscorers grabbed the headlines, Sibbald was marvellous in midfield. His tenacity, energy and classy ball play saw him put in a stand-out performance for the home side.

MID – Ryan Schiavone (East Fife)
The Fifers seem to love travelling to Forfar. They picked up their fifth consecutive Station Park victory on Saturday, running out as 3-1 winners and moving up to fourth in the table. Schiavone grabbed the headlines for the Methil men. Playing off the left, he scored a pair of right-footed goals to send East Fife on their way to an away victory.

FWD – Antonio Colak (Rangers)
The cinch Premiership’s leading marksman was back at it again on Saturday. Rangers’ Croatian No 9 scored a double for the third Premiership matchday on the bounce as the Light Blues put St Mirren to the sword at Ibrox. His second of the afternoon was particularly special, turning Declan Gallagher inside out with a fine touch before curling the ball into the bottom corner with the outside of his boot. Delightful!

FWD – Dipo Akinyemi (Ayr United)
This weekend’s Star Man comes from Somerset Park and, unsurprisingly, it’s Ayr United’s star striker Dipo Akinyemi. The Honest Men’s new No 9 bagged a sumptuous hat-trick as Ayr picked up one of the weekend’s most eye-catching results, defeating fellow Championship high-flyers Queens Park 5-0 to jump up to second place. Akinyemi is the division’s top scorer with 10, double the amount of nearest challengers Robbie Muirhead and Simon Murray. A shoo-in for the top scorer accolade?

FWD – Tommy Goss (Annan Athletic)
Tommy Goss! Tommy Goss! Tommy Goss! The Galabankies’ main man took his L2 tally for the season to eight goals, notching a double at Ochilview on Saturday. Goss opened the scoring after 11 minutes with a fine left-footed finish. A late double from Stenny skipper Sean Crighton looked to have won the game for the Warriors, but Goss curled one home from the edge of the area in the 90th minute to nick a hard-fought point for his side, who played an hour with 10 men.