Dons Archives - Page 17 of 18

Ex-Don Franny Munro Remembered

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Aug 182011

Earlier this year, on Eddie Turnbull’s birthday – that’ll be 12 April, then – the writer of this article opined that that Dons great would live forever. He died a few weeks later and there was a genuine, deserved, widespread expression of grief from the Scottish fitba community. The Boss was 88. Of course he couldn’t be expected to live forever, but when one’s heroes or icons die, the world seems a dimmer place.
This week, Dons fans of a certain vintage, among them Voice’s David Innes are mourning the loss of Francis Munro, rarely mentioned in pub and online debates about Great Reds, yet from 1966-68 the most dynamic and explosive individual in a supremely-talented squad.

The statistics show that Francis Michael Munro played 59 games for the Dons and scored 14 goals.
In today’s multi-media analytical world, his number of assists, the yards he covered during 90 minutes, his percentage successful passing rate would all be monitored and published. Had such analysis been available in Franny’s time at Pittodrie, his value would have been far more obvious 45 years on.

But it still wouldn’t have told the full story.

When I interviewed Eddie Turnbull in 1997 for an as yet unpublished account of the Dons 1967 USA adventure as The Washington Whips, I asked The Boss about Franny in particular. Why? Because on Christmas Eve 1966, I was to witness this teenager rule the midfield in a top of the table head-to-head with Celtic, a mere five months before Jock Stein’s team lifted the European Cup.

Stein’s midfield of the time included luminaries such as Bertie Auld and Bobby Murdoch, yet it was Munro who bossed the game and, had it not been for Ronnie’s Simpson’s breathtaking save just before the end, Munro’s piledriving late goal attempt would have secured a rare victory over Celtic. He achieved instant hero status from this wide-eyed loon.

He wasn’t about blood and thunder, though. He was as graceful an athlete, despite an ongoing weight problem, as any of the more high-profile figures of the time.

During the 1997 interview, his manager told me,

“It shows how if you’re aware or alert what can happen. In the early days, before I came to Aberdeen, I was in charge of the Scotland Under-18s. And I remember Francis as a fifteen or sixteen year old, and I thought, ‘This is some player’. Of course he was a Dundee boy and he went to Dundee United, but Jerry Kerr couldn’t handle him and he started getting into the wrong company.

“He was one of the finest long passers of a ball that I ever saw in my life, that I ever had under me, that I ever played against. He would say, ‘I can’t do that’, and I would say, ‘You’re the most skilful of the lot’. That was when he first came in, he was an introvert. A lovely lad. For a big man, he was so light on his feet. He’d great vision, could see everything on the park.”

In his pen picture of Franny in a programme for a Washington Whips fixture in summer 1967, The Boss described his protégé as being “as nimble as a ballerina”.

In the States, he proved his worth, even scoring a hat trick in the largely-forgotten but supremely thrilling President’s Cup final. He followed that by becoming the first Aberdeen player to score, and the first Don to score a hat trick in a European tie, both in the 10-0 extirpation of KR Reykjavik, the Dons’ debut competitive European outing.

He wis some boy

Wolves, who had been on the receiving end of Franny’s hat trick in the USA, eventually persuaded the Dons to transfer him to Molineux in 1968. He was immediately converted into a centre half, the Wolves number 5 shirt as comfortable on his back as his Pittodrie number 4 had been. At Wolves, he won a League Cup winners’ medal in 1973-74 and became a club legend.

I hope that two Wolves fans for whom I have almost as much long-distance affection as I had for Franny – Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant and Dexys’ Kevin Rowland – idolised him as much as I did.

During my research in 1997, I spoke briefly with Franny on the phone. I hope I didn’t come across like a babbling, tongue-tied teenager. He was very polite, informative and interested in what I was doing, but was obviously in poor health, an affliction which continued until his death on 16 August 2011 aged 64, no age at all really.

That he shares his date of death with Elvis is a coincidence that I will regard as wholly indicative of the level of Franny Munro’s talent.

Sleep easy, big fella.

Hearts 3 Aberdeen 0 – Tynecastle Stadium 13/8/11

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Aug 142011

It’s only August, and it seems like it’s been a very long season already. Another game gone, and once again the story is in the score line – particularly that “Aberdeen nil” part. Philip Sim reports.

You can’t argue with the league table; the goals for column remains bare, while an extra three are added to goals against. Only the continuing haplessness of Inverness Caley Thistle separates the Dons from the foot of the table, and that’s only on goal difference.

The strange thing is, Aberdeen actually dominated this game for much of the first half. Darren Mackie and Scott Vernon both threatened with headers, while the ever impressive Kari Arnason thumped the crossbar before drilling a shot from distance wide with Kello in the hosts’ goal scrambling.

The lack of a composed finishing touch was the crucial difference between the sides though, as Hearts seized their only two chances to somehow lead 2-0 at the interval.

Then, ten minutes into the second half, summer recruit John Sutton added his second and Hearts’ third, and killed the game. The Aberdeen defence switched off three times which allowed their opponents three shots on target, and the match was over.

For the remaining 35 minutes, nothing happened. Nothing at all. Hearts were happy enough to sit in their own half passing the ball back and forth, and Aberdeen appeared utterly unable to do anything about it. Whatever Brown did to change things up, however he shuffled the pack – including the introduction of Pawlett, Jack and Magennis – the Dons looked completely incapable of putting the ball in the net.

From the outset the visitors lacked width.

With monsters like Jonsson and Zaliukas at its heart, the home defence regard imposing target men as appetisers – and Aberdeen don’t even have one of those. Playing through the centre was highly unlikely to yield results, but with Fyvie and Milsom on the flanks and Rory McArdle at the right full-back position – all players far more comfortable in the centre – the only naturally wide player in the Dons side was Ricky Foster. By the time Pawlett was introduced at half time, the game was already lost.

The worrying thing is how short on excuses the Dons manager is running. This week saw the return of Mawene, Fyvie and Clark from injury and Ryan Jack from suspension, and for once the bench looked reasonably strong – Clark, Pawlett, Jack and Magennis representing players who could actually stand a chance of coming on and changing the game. In the end though, the effect was the same as the old bench of youngsters, in that the substitutes had no effect whatsoever.

This is not a time to just wait and hope the strikers suddenly click

Alright, so Tynecastle is a difficult place to go and pick up your first points of the season. Hearts have by far the third biggest budget in the league – no matter how unsustainable or hinged upon the whims of a madman it may be – and despite their recent poor form, were always favourites to win this game.

Aberdeen need to pick up a win and get their season started somewhere, and before they can get a win, believe it or not, they’re going to need to get at least one goal.

Craig Brown insists, publicly at least, that he’s happy with the strikers he has. Obviously there’s no point in shattering the already fragile confidence of the mis-firing front line, but this squarely where the team’s problem lies right now.

If you can’t put the ball in the net, you’re not going to win any games, no matter how strongly the rest of the team is set up. This is not a time to just wait and hope the strikers suddenly click.

Vernon and Mackie have started every game this term, and while it’s good for their confidence that the manager appears to have some faith in his chosen pairing, it’s becoming clear that he also has precious few other options. Josh Magennis has all the enthusiasm in the world, but he badly needs to work on his composure, and Michael Paton hasn’t scored a competitive goal since February 2010.

It’s a theme as repetitive as Aberdeen’s inability to score, but they really, really need to sign a striker. And next on the shopping list has to be a wide player, preferably left-footed, who can create chances as well as score some of his own…but of course, neither of these things grow on trees.

If the Dons can take anything from this match, it’s that the new away kit, on show for the first time, looks great. And…that’s about it. The next fixture, a home tie against bottom side Caley Thistle, is starting to look like a six-pointer already.

Aberdeen 0 Celtic 1 – Pittodrie Stadium 07/08/11

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Aug 082011

Three games into the SPL season, and Aberdeen are still to score. We’re not quite at the Andy Dow stage yet – the man who famously scored the Dons’ first goal of the 1999/2000 season in late September, during their seventh consecutive defeat – but it’s certainly starting to feel like it. Philip Sim reports from Pittodrie.

Despite the continuing abject lack of joy up front, this was actually quite a spirited performance from the men in red. It was a vast improvement not only on last week’s capitulation in Paisley, but also on every encounter with Celtic last season.

We have been assured repeatedly through the close season that Craig Brown was building a team which wouldn’t fall apart when faced by Celtic, who averaged more than five goals a game against the Dons last term. The cumulative score across the season was 21-1.

This should not be the case this year; while Aberdeen may have lost this match, at the very least they went down fighting.

One feature of last season which did crop up was one of Mark McGhee’s constant post-match refrains, of individual errors costing games. Had Ricky Foster not been caught in possession by Kris Commons – the very man Aberdeen captain had succeeded in subduing for the previous 73 minutes – the game seemed destined for a goalless stalemate. The Dons had looked resolute, sitting extremely deep but refusing to be broken down.

Right up to the goal you could almost physically see the confidence of the Aberdeen players grow, as they began to break out of their own half and start to compete at the other end, but they were seriously deflated by the goal.

The Dons had been chasing the game so, so hard. Osbourne and Milsom ran their hearts out in the centre of the park, always chasing and harrying, never giving their opponents a quiet moment. Arnason and Considine both looked solid and assured at centre half, and indeed while the stats will show a large number of Celtic attempts on goal, the majority of them were hopeful efforts from distance which rarely troubled Gonzalez.

Once the goal had gone in and the legs had begun to tire, another familiar problem kicked in for the home side. Squad depth.

Once again the bench was staffed entirely with inexperienced youngsters, offering little chance for Brown to change the game with a substitution. Meanwhile, almost a full bench of first-teamers was sat at the back of the main stand in Langfield, Clark, Folly, Fyvie, Jack and Mawene, and while their return can’t come quick enough, Craig Brown still needs to sign a creative attacker. Someone who can change games.

Peter Pawlett had his moments once again and is undoubtedly a huge talent

While industry was no problem for the Dons attack, with Mackie, Magennis and Pawlett running themselves into the ground, it still seems to lack a cutting edge. Scott Vernon proved himself to be a good finisher last season, but all too often here he was left in a fruitless aerial battle against Celtic’s mastodonic captain for the day, Majstorovic.

Whenever he tried to bring the ball down and hold it up, he found himself besieged by hooped jerseys, and ultimately Aberdeen had no release point.

Vernon is at his best when he’s playing facing the opposition goal, alongside an energetic, creative player who can make chances for both of them. He needs service, but it’s hard to see where that is going to come from in the current Aberdeen team. Peter Pawlett had his moments once again and is undoubtedly a huge talent, but the entire burden cannot be laid at his door – the youngster spent most of last season sidelined with injury, and can’t be expected to carry the team just yet.

Craig Brown’s most likely avenue of recruitment is to snap up loan players who don’t make the cut for English Premiership squads, but those squads won’t be decided until the end of the month. Can Aberdeen afford to write off the rest of the month without a real goal-scoring threat, trusting that the rest of the pack won’t build up an insurmountable a points tally?

The last word on the latest in what is becoming a long line of defeats actually against Celtic roughly mirrors the outlook from the opening match against St Johnstone – quite a solid, spirited performance, but disappointed not to have taken more from the game. Once again, against the context of last season’s horrors, it’s a recipe for cautious optimism.

St Mirren 1 Aberdeen 0 – Philip Sim Comments

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Aug 012011

The curse of Paisley strikes again. Saint Mirren have won just twelve games at their new stadium; a third of them have been against Aberdeen. Clearly this is not a happy hunting ground for the Dons, but it was the manner of Saturday’s defeat that was particularly disappointing. Philip Sim comments.

Last week’s stalemate with St Johnstone painted Aberdeen as a reasonably strong and well organised side which simply lacked a cutting edge in attack, and while they looked similarly toothless going forward here, the problems seemed much more deep-seated.

Josh Magennis and Scott Vernon both drew saves from Craig Sampson in the Buddies goal, but the Dons generally lacked imagination and indeed often struggled to get out of their own half.

St Mirren by contrast actually played some very good football.

They seem a much improved side this season, with Danny Lennon having recruited quality players in Paul McGowan, Gary Teale and strikers Steven Thompson and Nigel Hasselbaink. All four threatened in the first half without actually bringing a save from David Gonzalez, and while Hasselbaink scored the only goal of the game his side missed a host of chances to ram home their advantage.

Other than some flair and creativity going forward, what became painfully clear on Saturday is that Aberdeen still seriously lack squad depth. Fair enough the Dons were missing five potential starters in Fyvie, Mawene, Clark, Jack and Folly, but looking at the bench in Paisley the Dons lacked anyone who could come on and change the game. We’re only two games into the season, and already the squad seems to be down to bare bones, with unproven youngsters making up the bulk of the subs.

Injuries and suspensions are something that all teams need to be prepared to deal with, and on this weekend’s evidence Craig Brown needs to make several more signings before the Dons will be ready to really compete in the SPL.

The absence of Youl Mawene in particular was a blow against St Mirren, and while Kari Arnason filled in reasonably well, looking assured in all of his play, Brown would surely rather utilise his talents in midfield. The French defender has been dogged by injuries for most of his career, and it remains to be seen if he can last the rigours of the SPL.

If he’s missing games at this early stage of the season, how will he stand up to the new year schedule after the traditional call-offs which tends to cram six or seven games into a month?

The addition of Mawene, Arnason and Osbourne was meant to bring a bit of steel to the Dons, make them a tougher unit and a hard team to break down, but while only one goal separated the sides in this tie that was mainly down to the profligacy of the St Mirren front line. They created a host of chances, and Aberdeen seemed to lack any real fighting spirit – it just looked like St Mirren wanted the three points more than they did. Craig Brown and Archie Knox will strive to make sure that kind of performance is not repeated – if anyone can be trusted to put across that message, it’s Knox – but if the Dons are looking to bounce right back, the fixture list has not been kind.

In their next four games, Aberdeen will face last season’s top three in the Old Firm and Hearts, with the only consolation being a home tie against Inverness, currently goal-less and pointless and rooted firmly to the bottom of the SPL. That perhaps represents Aberdeen’s best chance of picking up a win, but Craig Brown will need to work on some new signings and more importantly the attitude of his current crop of players before three points or even a goal will become a reality.

But it is still very early doors, and the panic button shouldn’t be pushed just yet. There is the makings of a good team at Pittodrie, and with a couple of signings in key positions – up front, out wide and at full-back, in that order – we could yet see a successful season for the Dons. Get your little black book out, Craig.

SPL Preview 2011/12

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Jul 212011

With the SPL’s big kick-off looming, what kind of shape are Aberdeen in, compared to the other top six challengers? Philip Sim takes a hard look at how next season is shaping up.

Aberdeen, Hearts, Dundee United, Hibs and Motherwell are the traditional and some might say obvious candidates to join Rangers and Celtic in the top six by next May.

Kilmarnock were a surprise inclusion last season, but have lost their manager and star player over the summer and have recruited relatively little proven quality, save perhaps Gary Harkins, who is yet to prove himself at SPL level.

Hearts have made some good signings and generally seem to have strengthened across the board, despite their ongoing off-the-field difficulties. Many of their signings are more squad players than stars, but they have retained the core of last year’s team, and if they can hang on to the likes of Rudi Skacel and Marian Kello then realistically third place is theirs to throw away.

Dundee United meanwhile has lost an entire midfield in Buaben, Gomis, Conway and Robertson, as well as defensive cover in Darren Dods. Their only quality recruitment has been Willo Flood – how much of the budget has he taken up? – and the less said about Hibs reject John Rankin the better. They have young players coming through, but they desperately need to make some signings before the window ‘slams shut’ or their top six position is far from assured.

Hibs have spent most of the summer in a weird state of limbo, with manager Colin Calderwood openly pondering a move back to Nottingham Forest. They have made two very good signings in Ivan Sproule and Garry O’Conner, both proven players who know the club well. However they have lost eleven players over the summer, including Liam Miller, Derek Riordan and Colin Nish, so their squad is pretty thin on the ground. Their traditionally excellent conveyor belt of youth talent can’t prop up the team forever, but how many quality players are going to be attracted to a club whose manager might jump ship to be an assistant in the Championship?

Motherwell is in a similar position to Dundee United in that they haven’t recruited nearly enough players. They have made one good signing in Michael Higdon, but he will act as a direct replacement for Hearts-bound John Sutton. They’re currently sitting at eight out and just two in. Retaining Steven Jennings is a plus, but it would be very difficult to claim the Steelmen have strengthened.

So now to the Dandy Dons…how does their summer match up? At first glance, the picture appears slightly gloomy – it seems like eight out and five in. Nine out really, with Jamie Langfield incapacitated for the foreseeable future. However on closer inspection, Craig Brown has paid attention to where Aberdeen were found lacking last season and has strengthened the core of the team.

This does not look like a team which will be over-run in midfield or indeed a team which will give up cricket scores at Celtic Park

The starting back four this term could be completely different to that which was bested so regularly last term. The team has two players with experience of playing full-back in Foster and Chris Clark, and two players with strength, presence and experience at centre-half in Youl Mawene and Kari Arnason.

The addition of Arnason and Osbourne will bring a bit of steel to the team, a bit of fight that was crucially missing last season.

Although this remains in the realm of speculation, this does not look like a team which will be over-run in midfield, or indeed a team which will give up cricket scores at Celtic Park. There are also a number of very adaptable players in the squad, including Clark, Osbourne, Foster and Arnason, who can play both defence and midfield, which will come in handy when the team suffers its traditional mid-season injury crisis.

The only thing the Dons are missing right now is a replacement for Sone Aluko and Chris Maguire, a bit of creativity and flair going forward. A signing needs to be made here, as the entire burden cannot be placed on youngsters like Peter Pawlett, Fraser Fyvie and Nicky Low.

Craig Brown has publicly made a flair striker his priority, and if he secures this – probably through a loan from England – then Aberdeen will be in excellent shape to take the fight to the other top six challengers for those precious European qualification spots.

Aberdeen 0 St Johnstone 0 – Pittodrie Stadium 23/6/11

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Jul 212011

The simple fact of the scoreline goes a long way to summing up this match. Aberdeen will perhaps feel themselves a little unlucky not to have capitalised more on their strong performance in the first half in particular, despite finishing the game with ten men. Philip Sim writes.

Over what must have been one of the shortest close seasons in memory, Craig Brown set out to strengthen the core of his team and build a reliable defence, and on first impressions he has done a good job of this.

New signing Youl Mawene brings an air of composure to the centre of defence, perhaps too much so on the several occasions when he had the Red Army’s hearts in their throats by choosing to skin a striker rather than hoof the ball clear.

The Dons marked their first home game of the season with a defensively assured performance which ultimately lacked any cutting edge in the final third. Indeed, if anything they seemed even more in control after Ryan Jack’s dismissal on 65 minutes, and debutant goalkeeper David Gonzalez spent much of the game a spectator.

Isaac Osbourne looks another solid addition who will bring some steel to the midfield, and he showed his adaptability when filling in at right-back in the chaos following Jack’s sending off. Kari Arnason made a similarly strong impression when he made a belated début as a substitute for Peter Pawlett, demonstrating his determination by winning a game of head-tennis with himself as if the Saints midfield wasn’t there.

St Johnstone contributed to the scoreline in no small way by setting up with an extremely defensive style; Derek McInnes has built a team which is undoubtedly hard to beat, but which offers very little going forward. The Pittodrie faithful will be hoping that Craig Brown adds to his front line with some creative attackers quickly before the Dons find themselves in a similar position.

Fraser Fyvie was one of the few bright sparks forging forward for the home side.

His second half cross which came back off the post after evading the perennially hapless Peter Enckelman was the closest the Dons came to scoring. Darren Mackie and Josh Magennis both threatened on bursts forward without seriously troubling the ageing Finn, who spent most of the game flapping badly at crosses made unpredictable by the swirling winds.

One of the biggest disappointments of the day was the performance of referee Steve Conroy. It’s often said that when a match is officiated well, you don’t even notice the referee’s presence.

The fundamental complaint with officials in recent years has been consistency

It was not so with Mr Conroy; he embarked on a series of increasingly pedantic calls which were technically to the letter of the law, but which threatened to smother what life the gale force winds hadn’t already choked out of the match.

For 90 minutes, his whistle barely left his lips. Repeatedly he called back free-kicks so that the ball could be moved back two feet to the exact blade of grass where the original foul was committed. While he probably judged the big calls of the game correctly, he endeared himself to neither set of supporters, and did little to justify the inexplicable pay rise that referees secured over the summer.

The fundamental complaint with officials in recent years has been consistency; while it’s technically correct that Fyvie’s first half lunge which caught man and ball merited a yellow card, Saints defender Steven Anderson will be wondering himself how he avoided a caution or even a talking to for several extremely similar challenges.

There are many positives for Aberdeen to take from the season opener, though.

For one, they are clearly going to be a more difficult team to break down and score against this season; nobody actually knows yet how good David Gonzalez might be. Ricky Foster had an excellent game on his return to Pittodrie after a year on loan at Rangers, and indeed looked every inch the captain, while Darren Mackie showed no ill effects of last season’s long injury lay-off, running his heart out for the full 90 minutes.

It is worth remembering at the end of the day that Aberdeen collected zero points from both visits of St Johnstone to Pittodrie last season, so Saturday’s result and performance have to go down as a sign of progress.

Craig Brown will know better than anyone how badly his side need a cutting edge up front and a bit of creativity in the final third, and this is something which needs to be addressed as soon as possible, but in the manager’s own words the picture is one of “cautious optimism.”

Loirston Loch At Easter – A Photo Essay

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Jun 102011

By Suzanne Kelly.

Aberdeen Voice’s photographer and IT technical master (otherwise known as Rob) and I paid a visit this past Easter Sunday to Loirston Loch.

It was a quiet afternoon; there were only a few anglers and a handful of walkers. Most people were probably at home with families for the Easter Holiday, and Rob and I took full advantage of the lack of people to explore the area.

It was too early in the season for many flowers to be out, but we saw some very delicate wildflowers, some bluebells about to blossom, and some primrose.

There were several swans on the loch, which was still but for the occasional movement of those fishing. You could easily forget that Union Square was up the road.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t forget that a giant stadium will forever ruin this tranquillity.

The Sign At Loirston Explaining Why A Football Stadium Should Not Be Built There.

One of the first sights that met our eyes was the now-famous welcome sign.

The sign was erected by the City Council and tells Loirston’s visitors why the land should not be built on.
I was almost surprised the Council had not removed it. (I had written a letter that was printed in the Scotsman, when I first heard the area was earmarked for Aberdeen Football Club’s new home; this was in May 2009).

Detail Of The Sign At Loirston Explaining Why A Football Stadium Should Not Be Built There.

It is still inconceivable that anyone could possibly consider destroying this nature sanctuary.

Supposedly Loirston is in an SAC. Plunking a 21,000-seat stadium down, which will ‘glow red in the dark’ with 1400 parking spaces will fragment the greenbelt. Building a giant structure in the fields near the loch will take valuable hunting, living and breeding area away from the wildlife. This is being euphemistically billed by stadium supporters as ‘creating a wildlife corridor.’

Rob spotted a Heron overhead; it was majestic. On my previous visit I saw a buzzard in flight. Will these and other creatures return when there are football crowds next door?

Loirston Gets Its Trees And The Trees Get Protectors - Makes Me Wonder...

We noted the use of tree guards – an option apparently not suitable for the planned tree plantation up the road at Tullos Hill.

Rob and I looked around the perimeter of the area and near the Lochinch Farm Interpretation Centre. The City is great at making sweeping statements about biodiversity and reducing CO2 emissions – how precisely this squares with the planned stadium is another matter.

I recalled the public hearing on the Stadium plan; Nigg Community Council was an objector, and had been left out of relevant consultations.

The Tullos Hill deer cull has likewise not properly consulted with Torry Community Council, and like the Loirston Loch situation – the public’s opinion seems to have no weight whatsoever with our elected officials.

Burn Running Through Loirston Surrounded By A Host Of plants

It’s likely Stewart Milne and the proponents of the stadium feel that the stadium is a done deal. They will find that this is certainly not the case.

Planning permission has been granted, and the Scottish Parliament did not call in the plan. This is not the same as having the stadium built.
There are several communities and community councils opposing the stadium.

If you can find the time, do go visit Loirston. If after your visit you have feelings one way or another about building the stadium, its offices and parking, etc. in the area, please do tell your elected representative. It’s not too late to do something.

More from me on Loirston in the near future.

The REAL SPL – Where All Clubs Are Equal

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Apr 292011

By Fred Wilkinson with thanks to The REAL SPL.

For my sins, I am football fan and a diehard Dandy, but for many reasons, not withstanding the demands of my role in producing Aberdeen Voice, I am unable to attend games as often as I would like.

Instead, I indulge in animated, all too often loud, heated conversation with the radio, and very occasionally the telly, sure in my mind at the time that all on the park and on the touchline can hear me, and would do well to listen.

Often in desperate attempts to influence the fortunes of my once all conquering home team, I find myself deliberately facing the general direction of the match venue.

So from my position close to the radio, Pittodrie is the pasta cupboard, Easter Road is a chimney viewed from the window, and Ibrox is the pots and pans shelf… you get the gist. Ineffective, bizarre and utterly futile certainly, but at least I demonstrate huge commitment and effort; very much like Darren Mackie – minus the red boots and the lucrative contract.

I miss out on the sharing of views, the wisecracks and the banter I have come to expect from being there in person as a good game progresses. But all is not lost, there is enough room next to the radio for a laptop logged on to the Aberdeen-Mad fans forum where a range of views and arguments are exchanged before, during, after and in between games. From informed to infuriating, well measured to well mad, bouquets and brickbats, outrageous on occasion but always entertaining and often unbelievably hilarious. I am hooked.

Many fans fear that the Old Firm are slowly but surely strangling the game in Scotland

It was on said forum that I came across a newly formed campaign group who go by the name ‘The REAL SPL’. I found their philosophy rather refreshing, and their ambitions worthy of comment and a degree of respect.

I was compelled to find out more from their freshly constructed website.

The REAL SPL plan to run and publish a virtual league in parallel with the SPL from seasons 2011/12 onwards. They will allocate points on the same basis as the SPL for games played but no points will be awarded when a team plays one of the Old Firm.

The team with the most points will then be declared Champions of The REAL SPL and there are plans to purchase a REAL trophy to be awarded to the winners.

It appears this initiative is an attempt to bring back the interest and excitement to fans who have become disillusioned with the SPL mainly as the result of the Old Firm’s disproportionate influence on all aspects of the Scottish game. Aspects ranging from league construction, financial distribution to television contracts, and particularly of late and more importantly, the public image of Scottish Football as a whole. This extends to their influence with the football authorities, commercial rights and revenue generation.

Many fans fear that the Old Firm are slowly but surely strangling the game in Scotland, and if action is not taken there will be even more severe repercussions in years to come.

To reflect on my own ‘virtual game’ in the setting of my kitchen as described above, could this idea not be viewed as equally ‘Ineffective, bizarre and utterly futile’? – Apparently not.

Already, the idea has captured the collective imagination of followers to the point that many fans are pledging to stay away from old firm games, but rather than rob the game of money, will attend more games involving other teams or ensure the money they save will go to their club in other ways: ways in which the old firm cannot lay claim to a share.

“The number of fans going to games in Scotland is falling year on year. There are many reasons for this but we believe that an uncompetitive league is one of the most important.”

Few would argue that the Scottish game, as with my beloved, yet sadly underachieving Dandies could do with a ‘leggie up’, but one worries that an idea, however well meaning and potentially beneficial cannot inspire change without a significant level of public support. So I ask, what are the indications that a significant level of public support exists?

“We ran a poll for two days, when we started the site, to find out whether people agreed with our aims. In this time, we had over 1,200 people complete the poll with a 95% approval rating for The Real SPL”

The site itself recorded an impressive 115,000 hits in its first two days in operation – An excellent start indeed, and it is only a start.

I believe the REAL SPL may have more far reaching ambitions. Perhaps to become more than simply a virtual league and a snub to the old firm, and possibly develop a strong platform for REAL football fans to air their views on how our game should evolve. Perhaps to initiate campaigns for specific changes free of the selfish business interests of the ‘Big Two’.

“The fans want a competitive, exciting and ambitious league and we have come to the conclusion that it’s time for a change. We are excited by the challenge of bringing interest in football back to the fans who may not have attended a game in a while.”

You can offer your support for The REAL SPL by visiting their website, or contributing to discussions on Aberdeen-Mad. You may also wish to join their group page on Facebook.

“One of the things we are looking to do is get more Facebook fans than the SPL. They have around 13,500 and we have 500… Its a tall order I know but it will demonstrate the backing that we have for a more competitive league”

Trouble In Tannadice – Dons Top Six Hopes Fade

Aberdeen City, Articles, Featured, Opinion, Sport Comments Off

Mar 082011

‘Where to start?’ asks Dons fan Stefan Barr as he takes stock of Aberdeen v’s Dundee United at Tannadice – a ‘make or break’ game regarding the Dons’ chances of a top six finish.

Three things that happen every time we visit Tannadice are:

1. The concession of soft goals.
2. United always seem to get 2 v 1 on our full backs especially in the first half.
3. Their midfield hunt in packs.

We were pretty meek in that first half with United keeper Pernis only having one save that I can remember. Aluko was nowhere and Young, whilst he tries his best, just isn’t up to the required standard. Young for me is a decent squad player – a substitute – but due to wage controls, cut backs and injuries, he’s become a bigger and more regular piece of the jigsaw.

Zander Diamond’s inclusion on the back of four clean sheets was no surprise having heard Brown describe him as an ‘established player’ at the weekend.
For the first 20 minutes he seemed fairly solid except on one occasion when Goodwillie evaded him to flash a header wide.
From our only attack of note in the first half he sustained a head gash resulting in him going off for treatment. He returned for a few minutes, but the referee didn’t seem satisfied that the bleeding had stopped and off he went again this time not to return.

The first goal was poorly conceded, and highlighted our achilles heel – set pieces. Jamie ‘Stay at home’ Langfield never relieves his defence by coming for crossballs.

Being a man light didn’t help but it does not excuse our defending for the first goal, nor the push on Hartley referee Brian Winter failed to spot . Had Diamond not gone off injured, would we have still suffered the same fate? Probably yes! But he would certainly have fared better than McArdle who replaced him.

I was surprised Vujadinovic didn’t come on instead as he turned in a decent performance v St Johnstone. McArdle masquerading as the white Jerel Ifil was abysmal. His distribution of the ball, being caught out of position, losing the flight of the ball, playing us into trouble and his short pass backs all contributed to a dismal showing.

Magennis changed the dynamic of our approach in the second half and started to win his duels with the United centre backs

The second goal was also poorly conceded with McNamee heading back into the midfield area. He might have expected some help from the 5 man midfield to mop up, however Hartley was nowhere to be seen after an encouraging opening 5 minutes. Instead, Conway latched onto the loose ball, put the laces through it, and although it moved, Langfield crumbled.

It’s surely the end of the road for Langfield as he’s had **** up after **** up after **** up.
Sure, people will point to strong recent performances. However you just can’t legislate for the errors he continues to make. We should look to sign someone like Enckelman – a solid reliable keeper.

I can’t recall Paul ‘the second coming of Christ’ Hartley having a good game this year. He’s caught flat footed more often than not and as a
consequence Milsom is doing the work of two. I don’t think Hartley is the answer. His legs are gone and he’s been shown up against the better teams of late.

McNamee and Smith had difficult games. They don’t seem keen on taking their opponent on and driving for the byline.

( H.T. Dundee united 2 – Aberdeen 0 )

Josh Magennis changed the dynamic of our approach in the second half and started to win his duels with the United centre backs – unlike Vernon.
After the goal (credit to Vernon Crespo and Magennis) we had them on the rack for 5 minutes.

Milsom had a great drive saved well by Pernis and Considine headed over from a corner, but then we conceded what looked to me to be another poor goal.

Take nothing away from Swanson’s strike, but it looked like two players got sucked in from a throw in, and with so much ease, United threaded a ball in behind our defence.

After losing the third goal we just seemed to huff and puff our way to full time with Magennis threatening again, but Pernis made a smart save at his front post. Sometimes you have to hold your hands up and say we were beaten by a better team, and United are by far a better team than we are at the moment.

( F.T. Dundee united 3 – Aberdeen 1 )

Craig Brown has a lot of work to do in the summer but there are some positive signs. Milsom’s a find, and players will be returning from injury.

Anyway tonight was another case of Deja Vu at that ‘coup o’ a grun’.

Roll on Saturday
Heeds up and COYR!

Former Dons Dig Deep To Preserve Club Heritage

Aberdeen City, Articles, Community, Featured, Information, Sport, Sport Comments Off

Mar 042011

Wary of getting too optimistic following too many recent kicks in the teeth, in spite of tangible improvements, Dons fans are still coming out of rehab from the barrel-scraping lows of 2010’s onfield results. Some are on to solids now in the form of a lightly-boiled egg, but many are still just capable of sitting upright and sooking a little clear soup through a straw. A few hard core stoics have gone back to full-strength half time pie consumption, the wee soldiers. David Innes sounds an uncharacteristically optimistic note.

Despite the trauma Dons fans have been through and the current murmurings of discontent over the almost rubber-stamped move to Loirston, there is still a lot of love out there for the Reds.

Despite what the detractors and backbiters say, and sometimes it seems that the Grey Toon has more than its fair share of those ready to glory in the club’s problems, AFC is still a massive part of the North East community and remains, in spite of all the gloom, a cultural and sporting focal point and beacon for thousands.

The AFC Heritage Trust exists to preserve the history of the club and its links with communities in the city and hinterland and we’ve publicised it before https://aberdeenvoice.com/2010/06/down-pittodrie-way/#more-122 .

A measure of the importance with which the Trust’s work is regarded is the impressive £740 collected from fans’ donations at extremely short notice at last week’s home fixture with Hearts. It was heartening to have Dons fans drop change into a bucket once they realised the common cause for which hard cash was being solicited. Many took the opportunity to take the publicity leaflets offered by collectors to find out more about the Trust, its work and its aspirations. You can do so here http://www.afcheritage.org

Of course, a large part of the club’s community are those fortunate enough to have pulled the sacred Red or, formerly, the blessed Black and Gold over their heads before going out to do battle on behalf of the North East in over a century of mostly proud history. The club’s Former Players Association is thriving. Many members who did not spend their entire careers at Pittodrie, or who are only tiny bit part players in Aberdeen’s history, retain huge affection for the club and describe their time at Pittodrie as being among the best times of their lives.

The FPs realise the importance of the work being done by the Heritage Trust and to help the Trust’s efforts, donated a thousand pounds to Trust funds at half time in last week’s game.

The Trust’s treasurer, Bob Bain, was delighted to accept the cheque from FP representatives and Dons stalwarts of yesteryear, Bobby Wishart, of the 1954-55 League-winning side and Jimmy Wilson from the mid-60s who was the first player I ever saw place a penalty kick into a corner of the net, having fooled the Motherwell goalkeeper into diving in the wrong direction.

That was on 3 December 1966, it happened at the King Street End, it was a day of typical Aberdeen driving sleet and we won 2-1. Instant recall, but yet I can forget where I left the car in the airport car park after two days away. That’s the impact the Dons have on many of us, and if you are also thus afflicted, the Trust would be glad to have you aboard.

Thanks to the FPs, the collectors and the fans who donated.

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