craigiemack

The second Wigan try had a couple questionable* passes too *forward

Is the next round of the south challenge cup still regional? Or is it the open draw now

Home to Huntly in the Scottish Cup. Seems like we draw them or formartine every other season. Feel like it's a tie we should get through but with how this season is going I'm not taking anything for granted. Been gifted some pretty hard ties in recent seasons, Formartine, Bonnyrigg and Tranent, so good to get a more manageable one this time. There is so much dross in it that with a bit of luck it's very achievable to get through a few rounds and give yourself a chance of a tie against a big team so here's hoping this could be our year.

Who would've thought that hiring a manager with no obvious credentials would result in the absolute mess we're in currently. Scullion saying at the fans meeting that this is a rebuilding season and its about next year after 4 games of a season is terrifying. If we get pumped out the South Challenge and Scottish this month then I hope he goes. Was looking at games to go and see but from hearing what people are saying about the dismal football that's on show I think why bother.

Losing today means it's now been 46 months since we've won a game from behind. A quite unbelievable stat

Reports in the Telegraph saying that the Netherlands are hoping to be included in the restructered t20 blast and one day cup. If this creates an extra space you'd like to think that the Saltires could be revived to compete aswell.

Went to my first Scotland match today since the ODI v England in 2007 and was a great game to be at. Some of the shots from Hairs and McMullen were quite frankly ridiculous. Equally enjoyable to watch the sheer brutality of Hairs with the class of McMullen, who if he continues this level of performance through his career is going to be one of our best ever players. The reverse scoop shot for 6 from McMullen was absolutely outrageous and worth the entry fee alone, such a shame he never got his 100 as it would of been fitting. I actually felt a bit sorry for the Italians, they were really up for it at the start and the first over and a half Scotland were a bit streaky but after the two dropped catches they never really recovered. If either of them were taken then it might've been a different game. However after having 4 dropped catches of my bowling at the weekend I don't have much sympathy haha. Should comfortably get qualification wrapped up in the coming days and have a world cup to look forward to next year.

So the start of our 8th season in the Lowland League is upon us. I've been feeling quite apathetic towards fitbaw the past few years, but with a new season ignites a spark that something special may be upon us. That spark will be distinguished come next Saturday after we pick up 1 point from our first 3 games. We never finished below 6th until last season and while our title chances are non existent I would hazard that this season we'll be a lot closer to the top than last year. Considering the resources last year it wasn't an absolute disaster, we were pretty decent against the top teams, just couldn't beat our fellow bottom half dwellers. The off field changes seem to have brought a more positive vibe around the club and with a bit of investment in the playing squad this year there's hope for a good year. It's a big test first up against Tranent, who should certainly be challenging for the title. I'm not sold on Scullions managerial credentials yet and there are some players playing at this level for the first time who will need to adapt quickly. However, Scullions signings seem have added a robustness that has been missing for a few years and gives hope that we should be able to mix it with the big boys in parts this season. A point would be a solid enough start but can see Tranent squeaking it by a goal. My prediction for us would be 7th, but can see there being a cluster of teams a bit adrift of Tranent and EK. My one aim for the year is just a decent cup run. We have had some tough draws in recent years but we haven't progressed 2 rounds in the Scottish Cup since 2010 and with the amount of dross that's in it nowadays that should be achievable.

That is one of the worst reviews I've ever seen

This is good stuff atm, keep the scoreboard ticking and enough wickets in hand for the last 10/15 and we could put a very good score on the board, especially considering they need to chase it down in 45/46 overs.

Such a soft way to get out when you're going along nicely

It was behind closed doors but we announced it got cancelled last week I think

Good start to pre season with a 1-0 win over Clydebank. My wee brother was there and said he was impressed by our performance. Made some very good signings so optimistic for a decent finish this season.

Could we not have done this 5 years ago

Absolutely brilliant work in the last 10, we just need to see off hasaranga. If we can navigate him and keep wickets in hand for the last 10/15 then this is very gettable considering how deep we bat.

Good to have you back on pie and bovril brother

A shame, the dunipace team they all came from were really good. I just feel that Sludden and Allen needed time to develop physically. Ewing has been great by all accounts but helps when youre 6'3 at 18 haha.

Great result again given the position we were in. Obviously would prefer our top order to get some runs but at least the lower order have some experience and confidence going into the big matches. UAE are out and Ireland need to beat Sri Lanka, so I'd say we're through. The next 2 games are for the points that will be carried forward, realistically we're going to need 4 wins from 5 against Oman, Sri Lanka, Windies, Zimbabwe and Netherlands/Nepal to qualify. Unlikely but as said last week a success would be making the super 6 so it's pretty much a free hit from here!

I'm relatively pleased with our business so far, The experience of Watt, Pyper and Ronald is something that we've been missing for a few years. Ewing, Brown, Coutts and Hodge have now all had a season or two of first team football and hopefully they'll continue to develop. Thompson and McGill from Stirling Uni are potentially very good signings based on the success of the uni in the past couple of years. I'm a bit more reserved about the players from the Swifts but obviously Scullion knows them and feels that they can make the step up. They all have years of experience being adult football despite being young which is a major plus, our recent signing policy of youth team cast offs has been successful in parts but obviously some players need more time to adapt than others. We've lost Dean Watson to Bonnyrigg, pleased that hes got a decent move. A player capable of some ridiculous stuff when hes on his game. Ross Connolly has moved on too, I'm hearing to albion rovers, which is disappointing. He's arguably the best Shire goalkeeper I've seen, his clean record in 20/21 and 21/22 is something I never thought i'd ever see from a historically leaky club. In the games I seen this year he wasn't at his best but wouldn't say a bad word about him. Connor Greene moves on again and I think that'll probably be the last of him in a Shire shirt, its very rare at this level that you get a player you can build an affinity with over the years due to the yearly upheaval of players but almost 10 years service over two stints is some going. A solid player and always gave 110%, one of our record appearance holders and so many great memories of him over the years. A few players still weighing up options, I am disappointed that we havent offered Dave McKay a contract. We paid a fee for him in September and he suffered a nasty injury in his first game, I felt like he deserved a chance - similarly I feel like Marc Sludden, Marc Allan and Kai Wilson deserved another year to develop considering their ages and the quality they've shown in the EofS leagues. The new board have made a lot of strides in changing how the club operates. I'm not happy with the way they have treated some of the volunteers that have worked exceptionally hard for the club over the years but I want to praise them for their slashing of season ticket prices and the work they've done with local schools. Even if 10 school children started coming along to games that would make a huge difference to the sustainability of the club in the long run. Not really posted on here much recently due to every thread being took over by the same word salad merchants shouting into the abyss about conference league, b teams, the pyramid blah blah blah. But hopefully with pre season games only a couple of weeks away we can begin to look forward to a better season than last and start to move up the table again.

I think I was thinking of wheal actually, he's injured the now I know, but if he was fit he'd be on t20 blast duty aswell. Sole picked up a few wickets in the opener but all of our pace bowlers are as likely to be hit around at 8/9 an over as they are to pick up a 3/40. What's the story with sharif? He's in the squad but not played yet. Watt I imagine is playing for Derbyshire at the weekend then flying out. I have no faith we'll qualify, if we make it to the super 6 that would I suppose be a success, depressing saying that given how well we were doing 2017-2019. The t20 qualifying should be easier, but the Italians are looking at recruiting a lot of players through the grandfather rule, including Wayne Madsen who's been one of the best players in the blast so far, so they may end up being a decent squad. I don't want to play Ireland in the last game needing a victory to guarantee going through.

Scotland serving up another shocker in the WCQ warm ups. All gearing up for another qualifying disaster. 35 runs in 8 innings combined by Berrington, Leask, Munsey and Greaves. We were always going to miss MacLeod and Coetzer and our reliance on them is only heightened by our refusal to blood any young players effectively over the past 10 years. The situation with the English counties is also a bit of a joke. Jones, Davey and Currie would've made a difference to our current squad but understandable why they need to be with their counties. The Netherlands are similarly getting shafted by it. Ireland in our first game is probably our biggest game, lose that and we'll be back here before the end of June.

Agree with what you say here ekok. I went to dalbeattie twice and found it one of the more enjoyable LL away days. Nice town, good pubs and a good set up at Islecroft. Feel a bit sorry for the Star, they've had some good squads and great players over the years but have just always found it difficult to keep hold of them. I don't think we won down at Dalbeattie until our 4th season in the league, they were a bit of a bogey team for us. I think they'll do well in the SofS but will only ever find their way back to the LL if they are the only licensed champions, which is very unlikely.

How many has Richard 'Ricky' Miller played for? ETA: according to tranfermarkt, Shire, Gala, 'Broomhill', Berwick, EK and Tranent. Although Shire in League 2, Broomhill when they were a past existence and Tranent in EofS. But he has also played for Vale of Leithen, Selkirk, Whitehill and Preston. What a player, what a man!

Andy Shirra will be appointed caretaker, will oversee a backs against the wall 1-0 win over Caley Braves then be appointed permanent manager. There is no other outcome.

Was never a huge fan of Del as manager but obviously he’s a club legend and has put an incredible amount of time and effort into the club to keep us going so for that fair play. Ure was manager for some of my favourite ever days as a Shire fan, namely.. Huntly 1-4 Shire, Scottish Cup Civil Service 3-4 Shire, two last min goals Shire 5-1 Lithgae Rose, SCC annihilation Spartans 1-2 Shire, LL Cup Semi Final Dalbeattie 1-3 Shire, a personal favourite Shire 2-1 Berwick, Offords Challenge Cup securing goal. So for those days and the memories he gave me, thank you Derek and good luck in the future The club must now get a new manager in place. The problems at the club run much deeper than the manager but getting an exciting product on the park is the only way we can entice people back. All I ask is that we employ someone that has no connection to the Shire, if we do, which I am 99.9% sure we will I honestly just give up. The full club has a losers mentality, accepting mediocrity is the shires core value. We need someone to come in and completely change the mindset of the club. If we don’t then it’ll just be the same of excuses and players getting away with murder.