Third Division - Mid Season Review

Rangers may not have picked up a lot of wins in the first quarter of games and struggled to find form in away games however, that was no surprise as Livingston had a similar record when they were placed in the Third Division in season 2009/10.  Once they had played all the clubs once, things settled down and they ended up winning the Third Division title in a straightforward manner and the same will happen with Ally McCoist’s side.

Like Livingston, several home grown youngsters will gather considerable experience in playing in meaningful and competitive games in the Third Division which will stand them in good stead for their later careers.

Queen’s Park came extremely close to taking a point from Rangers at Hampden on Boxing Day but no points have been dropped at home and that is now 11 wins in a row and counting.

The pursuit of creating new records regarding points earned and beating Gretna’s points' tally of 98 secured in season 2004/05 may just keep things interesting at Ibrox.

Key Player: David Templeton – The former Stenhousemuir and Heart of Midlothian player has been a revelation in the Third Division and whilst Lee McCulloch has produced the goals that have driven Rangers forward, it has been Templeton that has left fans dazzled by his quick feet.

Scored against Liverpool for Hearts at Anfield and then hit a double on his Rangers debut three days later against Elgin City and that was not too bad a way to start your season.  Will undoubtedly continue to provide moments of magic in 2013 whilst giving opposing defences nightmares.

Away form had been the biggest disappointment from the Blue Toon this season where only one game had been won until Wednesday’s 3-0 success over Elgin at Borough Briggs whereas Jim McInally’s men have won seven and are unbeaten in nine at Balmoor.

This time last year they were bottom so McInally has certainly brought an improvement in his time in charge although there is more to come from Peterhead especially up front where they have only scored 19 times.

Key Player: Rory McAllister – It feels like Rory has dropped off the radar since moving to Peterhead 18 months ago after his blistering form for Brechin City but the 25-year-old has actually netted 30 times for the Blue Toon.

However, only two goals have come in the last 13 games and if Manager Jim McInally can get him firing on all cylinders again then McAllister could be the man to blast them into the Play-Offs.

Another season of progress for Elgin City under Manager Ross Jack and they will look to finish higher than last season’s highest ever fourth placing.  The Borough Briggs side usually carry a fairly potent attacking threat with a great deal of pace in their side and they are the highest goalscorers outside of Rangers in the Third Division.

Jack and his players will be determined that if they get into the Play-Offs this season, they will go one better than last May when they fell at the first hurdle against Albion Rovers.

Key Player: Daniel Moore – Strong running left sided defender or midfielder who has been a stand-out in Elgin’s fine first half of the season.  Possesses good vision and the ability to carve open opposing defences with a clever pass aligned to the ability to shoot from distance.

Started his career at Ross County and full-time clubs must be having a look at him although he has missed two penalties with stop start runs and may want to cut that out of his game as he has the ability to strike the ball very cleanly.

Queen’s have had a strange season by their standards as they normally start slowly and then burst into life whereas this season they began with cup wins over Airdrie United and Dundee and a climb into first place in September after a 4-0 win at Elgin.

They then went on a five game run without a win before a hard fought success in a Friday night fixture against Stirling Albion got them going again.

They showed a watching TV audience how good they can be against Rangers on Boxing Day and the challenge for Head Coach Gardner Speirs and his players is to hit that level of performance every week.

As usual at Hampden, young players are beginning to emerge and Aidan Connolly is the latest exciting young talent to come through their youth ranks.  If Connolly and fellow youngster Lawrence Shankland can spark an off colour Jamie Longworth into life, Queen’s will make the Play-Offs at least.

Key Player: David Anderson – The hidden gem in the Third Division and a player who is respected by his team-mates, his club and his opponents for his hard working approach.  A genuine talent that is at the right club as he just plays football for the sake of the game.

The Spiders are far from a one man team but their results are much better when their dynamo is in midfield.

The surprise package of this season where few outside of Angus would have predicted a Play-Off challenge from the Links Park side in Manager Stuart Garden’s first season in charge.

Garden has Montrose playing well and the addition of Leighton McIntosh up front on loan from Dundee alongside Garry Wood means that opposing defences can never settle.  They are playing a good style of football with Lloyd Young and Jamie Winter scoring goals from midfield and they are in with a real shout of making the Play-Offs for the first time in five years.

They will have been extremely disappointed to start 2013 with a home defeat from Berwick Rangers.

Key Player: Jamie Winter – Montrose’s season improved when Winter got back into their team following surgery over the summer.  The 27-year-old has had a varied footballing career starting at Leeds United before heading for Aberdeen, St. Johnstone and Chesterfield.

He then popped up at Formartine in the Highland League and Broughty Athletic in the Juniors where Montrose gave him the chance to be playing at senior level again.  Scores 10 goals a season from outside of the box which is a great return from a midfielder.

Berwick Rangers are another of the great unpredictables in the Third Division as they can take points off Rangers and Elgin City but also lose six goals to Stirling Albion.  Manager Ian Little talks about the need to be able to trust his players so a couple of recent results will have disappointed him although Wednesday’s 3-1 win at Montrose was a terrific start to the New Year.

The Shielfield Park side have only won two games in a row once this season and they will need to improve on that if they want to reach the Play-Offs.

In Darren Lavery, they have one of the most improved strikers in the Third Division and he needs to keep finding the net and hope that the Black and Gold defence can stiffen up and keep teams out.

Key Player: Lee Currie – The former Hibernian kid is the creative talent in The Borderers’ engine room and he is also one of the best dead ball takers in the SFL.  Whilst Berwick overall have been inconsistent, Currie has delivered to a high standard and if Manager Little can get the players around him to raise their game, they could have a fine end to the season.

Annan Athletic lost long serving Manager Harry Cairney in December after he resigned due to away from football commitments and their search for a new boss is on-going just now.  Cairney’s departure marks the end of a chapter in the club’s recent history as he was the boss that led them into The Scottish Football League and helped Annan stabilise as a SFL club.

A new artificial surface was laid during the summer so it is certainly a time of change at Galabank.

Only one win in eight made for a sluggish start however, wins in games 9 and 10 put Annan in a Play-Off place before a run of five defeats was ended when Interim Manager, Euan Brydson, guided a 10 man side to a 2-2 draw away against East Stirlingshire.

Elgin City were then defeated in the club's final match of 2012 before the live TV game on 2nd January with Rangers ended 3-1 in favour of the Ibrox side.

A new Manager and the addition of the goal threat from David Hopkirk may just spark a Play-Off challenge from Annan.

Key Player: David Hopkirk – Scored five times in three games as a loan player from Queen of the South as Annan enjoyed an autumnal run towards the Play-Offs.  Now back at the club on a permanent basis, Hopkirk’s drive and goalscoring ability from midfield will be a great asset to whoever is appointed as the new Manager at Galabank.

Jim Duffy is one of the most respected coaches in Scotland and he is doing his best to take Clyde forward with very limited resources.  Players see Duffy as a Manager that can educate and bring the best out of them however, the club only have the finances to attract young untried players as well as a small number of slightly more experienced players.

The mix has seen the Bully Wee play better football this season and also seen them manage to pick up wins in games where they have been struggling in which in recent seasons they would have lost.

A Play-Off place is an outside bet but they cannot afford a seven game run without a win that was seen in the autumn and 2013 got off to a disappointing start with a poor display in the 4-1 defeat from Queen’s Park

Key Player: Sean Fitzharris -  The 21-year-old former Celtic and Morton winger has gradually been introduced to Clyde by Manager Jim Duffy and he is undoubtedly a talent.  An old fashioned player who can go past defenders and get into good attacking positions and also excite fans.

Clyde need Fitzharris to play well in every game between now and the end of the season and help them grab a few more wins that will lift them away from the 32 and 35 point mark that they have finished on in recent seasons.

The Shire have undoubtedly improved this season under Head Coach John Coughlin and they are widely recognised as one of the best passing sides in the Third Division.  However, they will not chase a Play-Off place until they are clinical enough in front of goal or strong enough in defence.

Coughlin and his backroom staff will keep working hard with the players at his disposal as well as looking to identify new ones until they get it right and whilst he enjoys the plaudits of improvement, he wants the points on board that confirm it.

Key Player: Kevin Turner – A real find by Coughlin and the Shire captain is an inspiration to his team-mates due to the effort he puts in.  He is not only hard working as he is strong, skilful with an eye for goal and he will give his all to try and help his side move up the table.

An eventful first half of the season for Stirling that started with a 5-1 win over Annan Athletic and included a win over Rangers when Player/Manager Greig McDonald was getting married with a fair smattering of defeats along the way as well.

At their lowest point, McDonald earned respect for coming out to face the press after he himself had given away an injury time penalty that handed Queen’s Park a 2-1 win.  He knew he had erred as a player and he knew he was under pressure as a Manager but he was big enough to come out and hold his hands up.

Stirling have a decent squad however, two relegations in two seasons with very few games won looks to have had an impact and McDonald deserves time to try and turn that around.

Recent wins over Berwick Rangers and Peterhead have given them a platform to move off the bottom and if the players show the same fortitude as their Manager, it can happen.

Key Player: Jordan White – Scored seven goals during a loan spell from Falkirk and Manager Greig McDonald will be looking for a similar return now that he has signed permanently.  The tall frontman has impressed McDonald with his commitment and attitude he showed during the loan spell and Stirling will need more of the same if they are to get off bottom spot.