First match up and we thought a reasonable chance for 3 points. Then after the kick off time realised we hadn't put in a team line. But our task was made easier as our opponents put in an illegal line up - just noticed MON has no midfield players - strange but everyone has their own way of playing. Computer didn't like it, we gained 11 shots and 7 goals to give us a great GD as and when we lose out in some of the other group matches.

Thanks to Peter @ Airdrieonians for the trade which gives him some welcome TPs in return for stiffenning up my midield. 

Today we started our SESL Cup route, whuich usually finishes at the last 32 stage. The expectation was the 3 x 1st division sides would beat the other 3 clubs and then they would sort out the finishing 1,2,3 whilst we others would play for the 4th qualifying place.

That was blown out of the water this afternoon after Dunfermline Athletic won an end to end game v Arbroath, and will really fancy their chances of ending 4th. Arbroath will come back on Saturday to play us. We at least will still be in the mix after moving nicely to a 1-0 win v Queens Park. We closed the game afetr we scored and tried to rest a couple of lads. The win gave us a spare TP and 25k (MVP) so a good midweek for a change.

This weekend is a double header v Arbroath and St Johnstone, who lost out 5-4 to Stranraer in a shootout, so not expecting much change from these 2 teams both smarting from losses. Onwards and upwards.

The SESL group stages begin today and EDI face a tough opening game versus Division 1 outfit ALB. I am not expecting too much from this game as it looks like it it potentially the hardest game for EDI in the group.

The manager reports that DF Tony Gale decided to hang up his boots this week after a long and loyal career that was spent entirely at EDI. We at EDI would like to take this opportunity to thank Tony for his loyal service to the club and wish him well for the future.

Well, 6 more points are 6 more points ...

#26: DEE vs HEA 1-0

Dundee FC proudly present: the art of winning ugly. Hearts arrived with a six‑man backline, apparently auditioning for a medieval fortress reenactment. They produced exactly zero shots, which is quite an achievement if you think about it — perfect consistency! We, meanwhile, spent 77 minutes politely knocking on their door until Nicky Riley finally slipped the key under the mat. One goal, three points, and another clean sheet for our collection. The Jam Tarts can boast about hitting the bar once, but we’ll happily keep the scoreboard. Top of the table, still marching, still stingy at the back. Irony of the day: Hearts defended all night, only to lose to the one man they couldn’t mark.

#27: DEV vs DEE 1-3

Dundee marched into Deveronvale like benevolent executioners, politely gifting the hosts a lesson in futility. Javier Artero, apparently allergic to mercy, struck twice before halftime, while Josh Meekings added a header just to prove defenders can score too. By the break it was 3–0, and the Blues switched to cruise control. Vale eventually clawed back a consolation through Gab Riella, but it felt more like charity than comeback. Final whistle: 3–1. Man of the Match? Artero, naturally. Dundee’s takeaway: why settle for dominance when you can sprinkle irony — winning comfortably while pretending it was a fair fight.

We feared that two tough away games this weekend was going to bring some challenging results and send us into the SESL cup on a bit of a downer. We were as shocked as anyone to continue the great run of form against two very strong sides, both with beast keepers and strong managers. 

Our nerves were calmed just one minute into the game against Raith, as The Wall and Jon linked well to push us into an early lead. It was 2-0 by HT and 3-0 by the final whistle in a game that looked comfortable. But in truth was anything but. RR 200+OFF was a constant threat and beating Andy Goram in net was never easy. Briliant result. 

STJ next up and it was a similar feel. Away, 36GK and not a weak player in the lineup. But thankfully it took only 12 minutes to break the deadlock and after 17 minutes Bear had made it 2. 3-0 at Full time finished a very solid weekend and allows us to go into the SESL cup games on a high. 

Little is Injured (2 broken eyelashes) and the squad is tired throughout. A little rotation perhaps through the cup games and hopefully we can progress and continue with the league form. 

We always knew our ageing squad would be hit hard in Mid Season losses and it shows. We dont have the resources of some, so what we have is pretty much what we've got to work with through to season end. 

Falkirk's unbeaten run finally came to an end last weekend after a nine match unbeaten run. The first game away at bottom club Clydebank went to plan ending in a three one victory thanks to two McTominay goals and a Durie goal. Then we played fourth placed Airdrieonians FC at home. We lost two nil mainly due to the diamonds keeper  Broto who won the man of the match award and having Ferguson sent off on 70 minutes. We do though remain top by one point from Greenock Morton heading towards the season's half way stage. Hopefully we can start another great run of results and win promotion. 

We started the weekend with an away game at James Montrose, a free flowing early ball attack team ,they opted as we thought for a 4-2-4 early ball as we went for a 4-2-4 longball, both sides started with caution and they opened the scoring on 22 minutes when Sterling deflected home a shot 1-0,31 minutes and Cerny fired home 2-0,half time came and subs on ,they started the 2nd half the quicker and Soutrar slipped through and slotted home on 48 minutes 3-0,we managed to pull one back on 51 minutes when Hale fired home 3-1 ,55 minutes and they cut us wide open on a quick break and McCausland fired home 4-1,67 minutes and they were down to 10 men as Cerny saw red as he brought down Hale in the box,he got up and duly drilled home his spot kick 4-2,but we were outplayed and outshot 10 to 3,well played James.

Next we travelled to Roy's Stirling, a side we have always struggled against, they opted for a 4-5-1 ball control as we went for a 4-2-4 normal, they started the quicker and opened the scoring on 17 minutes when Macbeth fired home 1-0,we slowly played ourselves back into the game and levelled things up on 26 minutes when Hale fired home 1-1,half time came and subs on and on 47 minutes Queen drilled home 2-1 and Macbeth fired home his 2nd on 81 minutes to seal the game 3-1 as we were outplayed and outshot 13 to 5,well played Roy

So another pointless weekend and we drop to 11th.

The latest league session saw EDI play KIL at home and the game ended in a  1-1 draw. The second match saw EDI travel to EF and the manager was delighted to return home with all three points after the 0-2 victory that gave EDI four points from the session and moves the team back up to 6th position in the Division 2 table. 

Saturday evening came and went along with many player SLs across SESL as MSA did its thing and surely set plenty of managers teeth gnashing and heads shaking. At least its the same for everyone but as usual, it is hoped in EDI that with the team having the youngest average aged roster in the entire league we may avoid  too much damage.

Next up is a break from the league campaign and the group stages of the SESL Cup. EDI find themselves in Group B alongside fellow Division 2 QOS,  Division 3 teams in FAL, INV and STI. The group is completed by Division 1 outfit ALB. Fair to say that it is not the toughest looking group on paper but still sure to be competitive as pretty much all six of the teams mentioned will be seeking a Cup run of some sorts considering their current league situations and there are unlikely to be any gimme's at this point.

Halfway House now and we sit 8th. This after an afternoon where a 43rd minute strike from Boyle was enough to take all 3 points from St Mirren, and then a backs to the wall performance for long spells got us a welcome point at 3rd placed Kilmarnock. 

The Killie game we started well despite being lowwer in OFF and DEF stats and just after the half hour Bowie gave us the lead. We kept it till hald time but Killie were never far away and equalised on 66 minutes with a shot Slater in our goal never got near. We held on and are happy enough with 4 points and a move up to 8th.

Now the double whammy of MSA followed by the 5 games in the group SESL Cup matches. We face 3 x 1st division sides and 2 x 3rd division teams. We should get to 4th place and at least 1 playoff match - we will see!! :-)

A mixed weekend last time out. Although we possibly deserved to beat East Fife it was a crazy start to the game with us totally dominating the first few minutes. 5 shots and 2-0 up after just 11 minutes andmit wasn't long after that we were 3-0 up. We went 4-0 up before East Fife pulled a couple back. It felt like a captain's bonus lost.

I knew the second game against Dundee United would be a tight one and it proved. The difference was their keeper saving everything and ours playing rubbish again letting one in.

Post match I thought we were still top of the division but Elgin's win hadn't been announced sonitvwas disappointing a few hours later to find we'd dropped to second.

A good last three weeks here at Hampden with a lot of positive developments. We had a double home weekend for sessions 15 and 16 and wanted to make the most of it. First off was a Ross County team that will definitely continue to be in the thick of the promotion battle this season and we needed a good win. We got that with a 3-0 victory that garnered us a captain’s bonus for Julian Alaphillipe. The next game was a strange contest against Aberdeen where we had the better defense and offense by at least 35 but were outshot 2-1 and had to settle for a 1-1 draw. Really thought if it were going to be a four point weekend it would have been the other way around with the win here and the draw in the other game.

The next weekend was a typical home and away weekend with an away game against table topping Falkirk where we decided to save some energy and park the bus. That ended in a 2-0 defeat and we rolled out of there to a home game against Clydebank where we strolled to a 4-0 victory on the back of 18(!) shots.

Last weekend looked like a very tough session playing AI away and Brechin City at home, the 3rd and 4th teams in the table coming into the weekend. But with the shutout at home we decided to go for the sponsorship bonus here and stalled away at Airdrie. A little lucky that AI had significant time from some single digit SL players and our backup goalie Zunino was able to stop 3 shots. The 0-0 draw wasn’t just a point though it was 2/3 of the way to the sponsorship. We went into the game against Brechin with a strong team and faced off against their longball and early cross tactics but managed to get one goal through Campenaerts and hold off their offense to get the three points in a 1-0 victory and secure the sponsorship objective for this season so a great weekend.

In the personnel front we’ve been happy to welcome veteran players Barrie McKay on the wing and Brandon Rivera up front. In addition, shortly after arriving we’ve discovered that Rivera is in the best shape of his career (in the form of a 10SL boost) and ready to lead the offense for QP the rest of the season.

(In the only negative development this week while searching the archive for our last post we just now noticed that we had not followed the POTS rules at the beginning of the season and chose a GK and then missed David message thus missing out…*facepalm*)

We started the weekend with an away game at Sergei's high flying Brechin city, a really classy looking side after being remodeled by the new manager,they opted for a 5-2-3 longball as we went for a 5-3-2 stall hoping to pinch a cheeky point, game on and 1st half was all about defences as both stood firm, 2nd half subs on and things got better for us on 55 minutes as Foster saw red and Brechin city down to 10 men,this was our chance,but we were unable to break down the stubborn defence and on 81 minutes they broke the deadlock when Bosman fired home 1-0,we were outplayed for periods and outshot 4 to 0 and come away pointless, well played Sergei,quality side you have built there.

Next we were at home to Tyron's East Stirling, a side we have always found hard to play against ,and even get a result,we opted for a 5-3-2 normal as they went for a 4-2-4 longball, we started slowly and were punished on 8 minutes when Butler slotted home 0-1,23 minutes and they hit us on the break again as Gyokores fired home 0-2,we slowly played ourselves back into the game and pulled one back on 31 minutes when Grieves headed home 1-2,half time soon came and subs on,we pushed on but could not find another way through the stubborn defence even though we outshot them 6 to 2,well played Tyron. 

So a pointless weekend and we sit 6th.

Yet another truly frustrating session saw EDI lose both games in what can only be described as pathetic circumstances but the overall result was that EDI dropped from 4th position in the Division 2 table... all the way down to 9th place.

Elsewhere in the club...EDI chose to move MF Liam Brady to DF in the hope that it would bolster the teams defences and with the addition of the newly acquired experienced MF George Burke via the auction...the balance of the teams roster may assist the manager with 'Rotation' and the tactical side of the game...

Having said that...if the SESL game tactical formula continues to throw out totally nonesensical results that throw the statistical numbers into total pointlessness....WHO would know ??

'RANDOM' is one thing.....Totally unpredictable is something completely different.

Let's skip the midweek cup disaster.
Straight to the weekend - much more enjoyable ...

#23: DEE vs STJ 3-1

We strutted onto the pitch like kings, only to spend 45 minutes blasting shots straight at their keeper — as if we were rehearsing his highlight reel. Finally, Konrad remembered the point of football and scored. Second half? Pure theatre: Meekings and Caulker made it 3–0, Burns decided red cards are fashionable, and suddenly we were playing with ten men. St. Johnstone even sneaked one in, just to keep it interesting. Final whistle: 3–1. We call it dominance; they call it damage limitation. Either way, the league table still bows to Dundee.

#24: RAN vs DEE 0-2

Rangers’ grand plan was simple: defend deep, pass sideways, and hope Dundee got bored. Spoiler: we didn’t. Dias gifted us the opener, Artero obliged, and suddenly Rangers were chasing shadows. Butland spent the evening auditioning for “Most Heroic Goalkeeper in a Losing Cause”, diving everywhere while his teammates perfected the art of not shooting. Konrad’s late strike sealed the inevitable, leaving Rangers to claim they “kept it respectable.” Final score: 0–2. They call it resilience; we call it Dundee dominance. The only thing Rangers won was a quiet night for our keeper.

Falkirk made it eight league victories in a row last weekend before drawing their ninth match. The Bairns started last weekend with a home match against Queens Park. The game didn't start too well for Falkirk with Gundogan getting sent off after 31 minutes. It did improve though and on 39 minutes when Gilmour scoring the opener. Falkirk then sealed the points on 49 minutes when Ferguson scored the second for a two nil Falkirk win. The second game was another home match against Aberdeen. It started badly again with Gilmour getting sent off after just 10 minutes. At halftime it was goalless. Falkirk went ahead on 58 minutes after Durie scored. The Bairns couldn't hold on for the win and conceded on 72 minutes when the Dons had their only chance. We do remain top but our discipline issues are a real concern. 

Not a good weekend as we slip into a relegation playoff spot.  We knew it was going to be difficult with 2 away games. At Elgin we faced a side resting some lads for their upcoming Cup Final. We hit them with 4 on target shots but keeper Kelly kept them out, winning his side a point in a 0-0 draw and a personal MOM award. 2 points we should have claimed as we kept the home attack at bay the whole 90 minutes.

Then we went further north to Nairn, under new ownership with Lee. NAI have been having bad results but they have a pretty good team and they showed it, as we were thrown aside 3-0. It should have been closer but again their keeper was stopping everything we threw at him. Nairn will move up the table whilst we will hover around the safety zone (7-10) until all the trainees are fully trained.

Got a home game v St Mirren and then the return fixture away to Kilmarnock next Saturday before the SESL Cup ties kick in. :-)

It was an entertaining weekend for the Fifers’ fans as both Saturday matches ended 4-0.  The fans would, of course, have preferred that both had been 4-0 wins, but we did at least win our home match against Saint Mirren.  We took control of the match early on with goals in the 9th and 17th minutes.  Our visitors didn’t create many chances at all, and so the result never looked in doubt.  Two further goals towards the end of the match sealed the victory for us.  There was a hat-trick for last season’s POTS, Michael McKenna (pictured) and Kieran Miller was the other scorer.

Then came the 4-0 thrashing by Kilmarnock.  In fact the game wasn’t as one-sided as the scoreline suggests – the shot count was only 7-6 in Kilmarnock’s favour (and unusually, all 13 shots in the match were on-target). But Matty Rollo had a bad day at the office and the Killie were clinical in front of goal.  Ho hum, on we go….

These results leave us lurking in mid-table.  There’s still a long way to go and we are hopeful of at least a top six finish to meet our sponsors’ requirements.

A bad weekend.

MInute 1 against Kilmanock and I had hopes for an easy three points. KIL were stalling with their apprentice keeper and although we were to stall for 18 minutes I knew we'd get a shot or three against him once changing to early cross. And we got two shots, one from Fuller who was on fire last season. And both were saved. We managed four shots in the second half but by then the apprentice had gone off. Still, four shots from SL 34, 29, 26 and 26 is an 84% chance of a goal, 98.7% counting the first half shots so we feel unlucky. But it meant an MVP worth 125k once the TP as sold.

The second game against Forfar was perhaps lucky in that our 45% lineup wasn't punished. Or maybe we were unlucky in that our SL 7 keeper could only make 1 save - which might have saved us 120k. It helped that Willy stalled on 82 minutes but this looks like it's just a "if we're winning" stall rather than a scoreline.

So only a single point and we stay top as Elgin lost one of their games.

After the exciting 3-2 of the first leg, the action moved over to Fir Park for the back half of the tie. DEE would be without their star winger, but with still plenty of firepower to make this a very even match.

The sides lined up with an unusual pairing of MOT going for 'L' tactics with 4-2-4 and DEE going for the 3-5-2 'B'. DEE marked all three of MOT's FWs and left themselves with no SL from their DFs, but this inspired move really hurt the odds of MOT getting a shot from their big FWs. With only a 8.6% to 7.2% shot chance advantage, this would be an uphill battle for MOT to overturn the deficit. The marking paid off quickly, with MOT's first shot falling to MF Al Bondigas and easily saved from the SL39 GK. Just a minute later, at the 5 min mark, Dundee extended their lead in the tie through star utility man Nicky Riley. Playing 'a', it was alway gonna be him. MOT now needed two goals to level the aggregate score, a real mountain against a SL39 GK. Budinauckas and Gadzhalov settled into the match, both doing a good job of saving a shot that came their way. At the 30 minute mark, DEE looked to slow the match down by moving to 'O' and limiting shots (moved MOT down by 0.9% in their shot chance, but moving DEE all the way down to 2.3% chance). The marking continued to pay off, as MOT's next shot fell to their worst DF and completely missed the target. An offside followed, but it was on the stroke of halftime that the home side finally made their breakthrough. Despite the tough marking, Ray Wylie Hubbard was able to carve out a chance and level the scores: 1-1 at the break, and 4-3 in the overall tie.

Halftime changes really juiced up this matchup: surprisingly, SL36 FW Billy Bland was removed, but experience was favored for the second half, with Jerry Jeff Walker coming on to provide some width. The attacking half of MOT's squad was moved to 'a', and early cross tactics were chosen. The aggression helped fight off some of the marking, and all of a sudden shot chance %s were 15.6% - 3.1% in Motherwell's favor.  The second goal for the home side seemed inevitable! Guy Clark tried his luck with his first shot of the game, but it was saved by the big DEE keeper. But, he would not be deterred - in the 57th minute he got his second chance and made no mistake this time. 2-1 to the Well, and 33 minutes left for either side to find a decisive goal. Motherwell were currently through on away goals, but they surely could not waste their on-field advantage to go further ahead. DEE moved back to ball control, and the shot %s were now 15.3% to 7.2%. Interestingly, despite that it was DEE that would have the majority of the shots on target from here on, but both goalkeepers put on quite a display. No more goals in this one, though either side had real chances at the end. Motherwell progress on away goals, and DEE are knocked out of a cup for the first time since season 57.

The stars of the show here were Motherwell's big home bonus, the suspension to DEE's star WG, and a good showing from the MOT goalkeeper. The tactics change at the half certainly boosted our odds, but we didn't see the well fully take advantage of the increased shot %. Could have easily given away a penalty and lost the game, so we will take our luck on that, despite the odds being against that. Overall, the tie felt extremely even, though the luck certainly went Motherwell's way in the end. We will look forward to the final ahead, and wish the best of luck to DEE going forward - what a tough opponent you are, Eduard. Well played.

A split weekend with a win and a loss. A tight but deserved 2-1 win at Airdrieonians was followed by a 4-0 thumping at home to Brechin City - didn't see that coming. We follow that bad score line with 2 away fixtures this weekend but we have gone off the boil recently so a further drop down the division seems likely. 

The new staff purchase idea looks good to us and we have selected our old forward Larrivey to suddenly become our 2nd best forward - we have 4 who can score - but possibly we might try to move him on for a Defender -0 anybody want a FW age 5/26??