Treble Treble, Your Face is a Mess: Scottish Fitba 2018-19

[Paul S]

On September 1st I'll be in Glasgow and want to watch a game. I have a choice of watching home games at Partick Thistle or Queens Park. From a groundhoppers point of view, what would you choose?

Any junior grounds worth considering in Glasgow on that day?

[Lang Spoon]

Firhill, Hampden would just be weird with 200 odd fans in attendance

[Stobart]

Depends how raw you like your fitba. Personally speaking, neither Thistle v Morton nor QP v Cowdenbeath would trump a visit to the juniors. Most of Glasgow's junior clubs are away from home that day, but Glasgow Perthshire (Possilpark area) in league one, and Vale of Clyde (Tollcross area) in league two are both at home.

[Stobart]

Another option is to take a 15-minute train from Glasgow Central to Barrhead. Arthurlie play there in the championship, and have a derby match that day at home to Neilston Vics.

[jdsx]

If you make to it to Firhill, let me know and I'll buy you a pint or two and you can recount any Cape Wrath tales....

[Paul S]

If you make to it to Firhill, let me know and I'll buy you a pint or two and you can recount any Cape Wrath tales....

I may have to take you up on that offer. I'll be travelling back from Campbeltown after having walked the Kintyre Way. I'm also bagging the very rare Campbeltown - Ardrossan ferry, but getting a sail-rail ticket for that service seems impossible.

[CY_Boaby]

The group stage of the League Cup has come and gone with Dundee Utd and Hamilton Accies being the two big casualties. Hearts thumped Inverness 5-0 and top their group, despite being docked 2 points for fielding an ineligible player in an earlier game. The Inverness goal difference took such a hammering they ended up losing out to Partick Thistle.

So the draw is thus:

Livingston v Motherwell
Dundee v Ayr United
Dunfermline Athletic v Heart of Midlothian
Kilmarnock v Rangers
Aberdeen v St Mirren
Partick Thistle v Celtic
Hibernian v Ross County
Queen of the South v St Johnstone

Is Firhill where it'll all start to unravel for Brendan Rodgers?

[Paul S]

Fort William started the Highland league in fine form by losing 11-1 to Brora. Frankly though, the fact that Fort William still have a side in the Highland League is a miracle, as they nearly folded earlier this year. Nobody wants to see results like this on a regular basis though, so hopefully they can get things together and avoid more defats like this.

[Duncan Gardner]

They're conceding nearly as many as the other team from Fortwilliam ;(

[Paul S]

Just seen the lowland league and Selkirk v Edusport Academy was postponed due to a shortage of players. I've never even heard of Edusport Academy!

[Southport Zeb]

Edusport Academy are some sort of sports education scheme, mostly made up of French players I think. They have a squad - it is Selkirk that are having difficulties raising a team.

[RobM]

Finally managed to crack my forgotten password enigma code type event. Usually happens because I'm a daft bastard but this time round I have something of an excuse, getting belted with a stroke back in March. Recovery's been good and I managed up to Cove when Hearts achieved the seemingly impossible and got two points for a win.

Annoyingly my current limited mobility has thwarted plans to devote a fair part of the season to the juniors, taking in what's probably the last meaningful season before they crumble in the face of the pyramid. Enjoying the East of Scotland with the Athletic though, just League Cup games so far but things do seem to be quite upbeat.

Managed to Ayr v Morton as well, three to go in the SPFL.

[Felicity, I guess so]

Welcome back RobM and all the best for your recovery. Every other Hearts fan of my acquaintance has been mentioning being top of the league..?

[Lang Spoon]

Good to have you back RobM. Do you mean the new pyramid structure in the Senior game is going to see the Stramash zone of Junior fitba disappear with clubs joining lowland league gubbins? It would be a great shame for Scotland to lose this ultraviolent anomaly.

[RobM]

Thanks guys, it's good to be back.

To address the points raised, this will be an entirely temporary situation for Hearts based on what I seen at Cove and unfortunately the pyramid will likely reduce the Juniors to something approaching amateur level.

Think the best outcome would be the adoption of the Junior leagues to the level below East of Scotland, Highland, South of Scotland below the Lowland League as part of the pyramid. They'll have to resolve the elephant in the room in the West where Auchinleck, Pollok etc. are still Junior and realistically a few West teams are probably going to enter the pyramid at a level where they'll destroy opponents, Auchinleck for one are able to challenge western SPFL clubs for players, put them against weak South of Scotland teams (largely Dumfries and Galloway) and you're in for a season of double digit scores.

Pyramid organisation leaves a lot to be desired. We've been lucky in the east where the East of Scotland senior league was in place and thus far administration/fixture planning has been excellent and many, including all the big guns, have jumped. There's no senior set up in the West and that's a problem that likely will be answered next season (think the pyramid organisers were mildly surprised by the rapid movement in the east).

Few anomalies in the Dundee area as well, Tayport in particular are capable of development but haven't a easy route into the pyramid available, also the case in Aberdeen where Banks of Dee are maybe capable of a step up from the North Juniors. The answer might be North Juniors feeding into the Highland League but this doesn't really help the Tayside teams.

Also been the case that in the east the teams moving from Junior football have largely went through existing senior EoS teams like a dose of salts. EoS league have been imaginative in dealing with this by setting up three conferences, places next season (new Premier, First Division etc.) being dependent on placings this season. Wouldn't massively surprise anybody if the Premier next season was wholly made up of ex Junior teams.

Season of huge change coming, be nice , in my view, if the Scottish Junior Cup was retained and opened up to all non league teams as a nod towards the junior game. No national trophy like the FA Vase/Trophy in England. Old romantic me though.

[RobM]

Sorry if that's not particulary clear, thoughts can get a bit muddled and I'm having to type left handed. Good for me but it's a lot of work.

[RobM]

Edusport Academy are some sort of sports education scheme, mostly made up of French players I think. They have a squad - it is Selkirk that are having difficulties raising a team.

Selkirk's sugar daddy has withdrawn funding, a drop through the new divisions awaits.

[RobM]

On September 1st I'll be in Glasgow and want to watch a game. I have a choice of watching home games at Partick Thistle or Queens Park. From a groundhoppers point of view, what would you choose?

Any junior grounds worth considering in Glasgow on that day?

Cambuslang's a decent ground and fairly strong visitors in Glenafton that day, not too far out of the city and easily reached by train from Central (low-level).

Arthurlie's a good shout, easy train journey to Barhill.

Kilsyth and Johstone Burgh are at home as well, if grounds are your thing they're both excellent Junior grounds. Kilsyth v Cumbernauld that day, also a wee bit of a derby. Train to Bishopbriggs and bus from there, easy train to Johnstone.

Also worth checking the week before you're there. Junior fixtures can be a bit erratic but I'd expect them to be OK outwith the winter months.

Kilsyth would be my choice and definitely Firhill if you're going senior.

[RobM]

Pretty much all you'd need to know Paul, excellent website detailing the clubs and grounds.

http://nonleaguescotland.org.uk/

[beak]

Pretty much all you'd need to know Paul, excellent website detailing the clubs and grounds.

http://nonleaguescotland.org.uk/

Hermes is a brilliant name for a football club, made better by my learning that they were named after a typewriter.

[RobM]

So close to playing at Unicorn Park as well.

[RobM]

Scotland looks like being a Champions League free zone this year, hard to get upset about it really.

Celtic fans in irony free mode make the point of displaying their umbrage at the big boys wanting the lions share of the riches available as if the protracted bollocks about SPL TV and the duff Setanta deal didn't happen.

[CY_Boaby]

Welcome back, Rob, good to hear from you again and that your recovery's going well.

Bad day for the blessed Brendan - he's not too chuffed at Celtic's failure to sign John McGinn from Hibs; he's opted instead to sign for Aston Villa. I'm delighted regardless, as St Mirren get a third of the transfer fee although haven't a clue exactly how much that is as it's all "undisclosed fee" nonsense.

Let's blow the lot on Lawrence Shankland, and then watch him revert back to his St Mirren loan form from 2 years ago, when he was overweight and quite useless.

[KingsburySaint]

I like an overweight striker as much as the next man, in fact I positively love 2 of them. However, this needs to be teamed with talent and hard work. I don't think I've seen Shankland display the later. His half half-decent season for us, Callum Gallagher did all the running. Fair play if he's now got his act together.

As for John McGinn, excellent news. Hopefully it's Premiership parachute silly money. The best player we have produced in 20 years (since an eventually overweight striker with blonde hair).

And all the best to Rob in his recovery.

[RobM]

Thanks very much guys. All going well so far.