CoveRangers1922

I'm with you on that too. Likely would keep him for one more season but if he went so be it. Exactly, 3 guilt edge chances. Could have really haunted us, and Hartley, with Annan blazing one over the bar therafter when it would have been easier to score. Transfermarkt says he's out of contract this summer. IF that's true he could have already PCA'd up the road. He and Jordan are great pals

I'm a huge fan of Mitch but the last 18 months have been well below his previous standards. He thrived with Rory in L1 in a truly outstanding patnership but since then its been downhill and the Championship was a step too far. For me, he's now struggling in L1. Barely gets a shot away. 5 in 25 league games, he'll have missed a few games granted with injury and suspension but still not great ratio. 32 in July and I'd hazard a guess his PT wage will be equal to or higher than a few of our full time guys. Is it time to let him go and join Jordan and Ryan at Peterhead? Maybe 1 more year at Balmoral in his deeper lying role linking play. I don't really see him rekindling the goal scoring form as much as I would love to see it.

Temporary stands down already

Fully agree on the recruitment and rebuild viewpoint. We seen it at his time with Falkirk and it replicated itself. He was ok adding the odd player, with good wages, to an established squad but there was always concerns over his ability to rebuild. Looking back at our summer recruitment you've got to feel that the budget was restrained, perhaps more than we all think, and that's Hartley's only saving grace for me BUT regardless it was a complete and utter mess. Signing 20; many of them were never near the quality required but he signed them regardless, some went "missing", some benched that shouldn't have been, some played that shouldn't have (McGowan), some loaned out when shouldn't have been. If Hartley, Young or one of our players doesn't know the prospective player then god help us as scouting talent isn't his strong point. Just chaos. It's not just that window, January was disastrous and the blame lies at his door for the relegation. We took in David Bangala, Gimie Toure, Tony Weston and worse still Jason Naismith and played him nearly every game. Declan Glass was his only strong recruit, first signing of his return and he starved him of any game time until the last game of the season when he lit it up against Morton. If I was Cobban/Milne I wouldn't be giving him the keys to the warchest either based off the past year. 3.5 year deal sounded outrageuous at the time, now more so. Don't think I can cope with another summer window like the one that just past.

I tend to agree. In my opinion, we need something new, fresh and something to galvanise the club going forward. Hartley's run his course with us and it all feels like a walled garden. Does feel very stale right now and you'd need to go some distance (outside the board room) to find someone who thinks we're progressing in the right direction. I know Barry Robson will be well out of our price bracket and although it ended badly at Aberdeen he'll likely resurface in English L1/L2 or worse case Scottish Championship but someone like him with an Andy Considine assistant would be a strategic move. Get the link between AFC and us set up, synergy in place for loans, get bums on seats, get meaningful media coverage. Would it help future investment having highly thought, and local, ex-Dons players in managerial roles, you'd like to think so. We need to harness that link at some point.

Assistant manager Gordon Young leaves Cove. Completely unexpected and opens up speculation as what happens next? This can't of materialised overnight. Where's Gordon off to, Motherwell coaching or found another assistant role or even a managerial gig? Who will replace him? Will Hartley continue at the helm beyond the end of the season?

Agreed with the main stand, it's nowhere near big enough and Links Park stand puts ours to shame. Balmoral was built when we were in the Highland League obviously and it's seating was cautious in hindsight. Same can be said with the new stands going in. Will undoubtedly look much better, I'm all for it , but 150 seat away stand is only built for here and now, L1.

Supposedly the temp stands will be taken down in a couple of weeks. Back to standing, which I prefer, but will be nice to have both options again. Hopefully the new stands will be ready for next season.

Temporary stands behind goals to be removed ready for 2 new permanent stands to be built in their place. To me that looks a marked improvement. EDIT: Supposedly there will be approximately 360 seats in the home stand 150 seats in the away stand. Stands will be built in a way to be easily extended. Will need that option if we ever go up. The away temp stand was 875 in 22/23. https://coverangersfc.com/2024/02/27/balmoral-stadium-update/?fbclid=IwAR1VVJ3ftbgTjoH_wQVLXYFdmqaZ4_z7y0dNPEEsaFceXME78R39tswY4VI

5th to 9th separated by 3 points makes for great viewing for the neutral, nervy if you're a fan of a team involved I'd imagine. Admittedly haven't seen overly much of Caley this season, just the odd game on Friday night and highlights but I agree that whoever finishes 9th will be favourites. Accies have the best all round squad of the playoff contenders in L1, they are lumbering along right now given title hopes went up in smoke recently but if they can find form they have a high ceiling and I wouldn't be surprised to see them go up. Many question Rankin's capabilities which could be their Achilles heel. Alloa are bang in form right now, have some good attacking options in Bobby Wales, Taylor Steven and even Ally Roy who I know didn't do it in the Championship but can chip in with goals. A couple of decent options in the middle of the park with Miko, Kurtis Roberts and Stevie Hetherington, it's at the back they would need to tighten to really mount a challenge. Montrose, under Petrie, would be a difficult two legged tie. They can keep shape, be very hard to break down and do have goals in them. Very quiet window for the Gable Endies and the consensus is they are one or two short. Miller Thomson really impressed and IF he stayed or was replaced and another body added a la Terry Masson (out injured) the optimism would have been higher. Kerr Waddell long term injured is another blow for the Mighty Mo. As for us, we're bang average. Recruited very poorly in the summer, barely recruited at all in January, and have a woeful defence (again) so even if we sneak 4th we'll pose little threat to the 9th place finisher.

Glass certainly won't being coming to us for a 3rd loan spell. Hartley took him in in January last year, sat him on the bench and essentially left him to rot until the last game of the season when he looked exceptional and a true match winner. Suspect he'll go to a Championship team but if he arrived at Links Park then you would have a real top player for our level and he'd go a long way to securing 4th ahead of us.

A bit of time to reflect since Saturday's win. A welcomed 3 points but extremely far from convincing and very much an out of form team (Cove) struggling over the line. My thoughts coming away from the match were that Annan were very much improved since the last time they visited Balmoral and that the scoreline could have been reversed and we would have had little to complain about. Annan will rack up points in their remaining fixtures if they continue performing like this. I'd be slightly concerned if I were Stirling Albion and even QoS, however, saying that if they lose their next 2 (Falkirk and Queens away) then realistically only the Binos might be catchable. First half was even and apart from Scully's right footed shot being cleared off the line, we created little else apart from Rumarn's bundled effort which gave us a perhaps undeserved lead at the break. Annan, I think, had 6 corners on the opening 45 minutes, and looked like a team higher than their current position. Oscar MacIntyre at left back really stood out, got joy down the left flank and Goss was giving Reynolds and the woeful Will Gillingham, a horrid time with his physicality. Second half saw guilt edge chances for Mitch, who inexcusable missed all three of them. Gone is the deadly assassin of a striker. Still has a part to play for us but once irreplaceable, sadly not the case any longer. If he left in the summer, many would think it likely was the right decision. Annan had a couple of golden opportunities of their own too, the best coming via Josh Walker right through on goal one on one with Balint and could only blaze it over the bar. Thankfully Kerr scrambled one home in the last 10 minutes to secure us a win and keep some pressure off of Hartley who we sleeping walking with at the helm. What worries me is: 1. Lack of depth in our squad. Connell our only offensive option from the bench. 2. Lack of any width in the side, it really irks me watching everything long or through the middle and no one getting in behind from the sides. 3. Reynolds being our best centre half with Gillingham and Cameron Stewart looking even worse than the 37 year old veteran. 4. Blair and Scully being pushed wide and being largely ineffective 5. No further signings since Lawal came in and started to warm our bench over 5 weeks ago. 6. Why are Gallagher and Golding out on loan if we aren't taking others in. 7. Our side currently is a big regression from the one 2 years ago. This season hopefully is transition rather than the new normal. Pleasing to see Fyvie back. His first game back and we win, that keeps his record this season going. Played 9, won 6, drawn 3, lost 0.

They were when we came up into L2 for that season as I used to stand next to Harry Milne's Dad and he took their dog. Unfortunately they don't allow it now sadly

Should be a very capable signing. Interested to see how he gets on with the Binos

I've liked what I've seen highlights wise from Annan over the last few weeks. 3 wins in their last 5, only 2 defeats (by the Wasps) in their last 7. The latter game at Recs was supposedly very even and the Galabankies were unfortunate to come away empty handed so this will be far from plain sailing. Annan carry a real threat with Goss, Luissint is mobile and capable, Ndiweni has some pedigree. Not many will play against Chelsea in the EPL and then play in Scottish League 1 in the same season. Looking forward to seeing him in action. Really impressed with Aidan Smith. Need to stop him feeding Goss. Only 1 clean sheet in 15 league games is their achilles heel and rivals our woes at the back to some extent. Must admit after an ardous 2 months I'm looking forward to Saturday and watching a Cove player with true class, clearly that's our midfield maestro Fraser Fyvie. I can't see Hartley starting Connell as he won't drop Mitch and Rumarn is still undroppable even though it's 1 in 7 for him. Only possible way in for him is if Scully isn't available after picking up a knock and going off last weekend. Might then get a shot wide left. Fyvie returns, scores, and we start to put some wins on the board. Anything other than a win and there undoubtedly will be animosity, boos and unrest towards Hartley at FT.

Burrell this season is definitely a stand out and looks like he can make the step up to the Championship although i think he'll head back down south. I'd be amazed if he hasn't PCA'd already. His pace, touch and finish has bagged him 18 league goals in 24 games and 21 in all competitions. That's in a side that has struggled at times and has little supply from the wide areas. He would benefit having a Brian Graham/George Oakley/Dipo Akinyemi type alongside him as he's not the most physical. We're getting home crowds of around 500-550 this season but that includes corporate. Definitely dipped since we were last in L1, had far better quality players and were flying. Frustrating see the numbers drop off but the club aren't exactly busting a gut to do everything they can to increase the matchday experience either. Needs a shake up to get the momentum back.

Thanks, appreciate that. 2023 especially was an extremely tough time to be a Cove fan. Going back to your ex (manager) rarely ever works out and so we proved in dramatic fashion. A few poundings received and down on the last day of the season by goal difference in the dense fog. Never felt more deflated in a ground. I really hope we can make it back to the Championship and make a fist of it rather than the feeble attempt we brought last season. I'm almost certain it won't happen under Hartley who has proved with a "restrained" budget, and rightly so, he's less than capable of recruiting quality players and equally as poor as getting the most of out them. We need a change, it feels stagnate. Will still need some cash being injected to get back up as our "fan base" will take time to increase. Anyway, I've enjoyed watching the Friday night Championship games and going to a few in person when I couldn't get to the likes of Annan/QoS away

I believe he must be still part time given he started a new job in September as a safety advisor (noticed a post from his employer on LinkedIn). Only way he could be full time is if he has a very flexible work schedule, hard to see how that would be achievable. He's no longer attached to AFC as a coach after recently getting his A license.

Convincing win for the Wasps after what sounded like a first half which we edged without putting the ball in the net. Second half belonged to the home side who punished our defensive frailties which have been all to evident the last 2 months. Wasps are flying now. Definitely got some momentum for a couple of tricky fixtures upcoming. We drop out the playoff spots and need to start the chase. Plenty of time to do that but some degree of solidarity must return to the backline to get back to winning ways.

A boost for Alloa and a blow for Cove. It will have been a full 3 months out for Fraser after what looked like a little knock but was clearly more than that. Only played 8 competitive games for us in whole of 2023. "The Alloa game might have come too early for Fraser Fyvie, who has now resumed full training, but assuming he suffers no reaction, the midfielder should be available for the meeting with Annan next week." https://coverangersfc.com/2024/02/16/massive-ninety-minutes-ahead-at-alloa/

A successful 10 days for the Wasps, which sees them rack up 3 straight wins and rightfully leapfrog us into 3rd place ahead of Saturday's game at the Recs Big Andy's side are hitting form with only 1 loss in the last 9 league games, a much stronger quarter which has revitalised their season. With Bobby Wales rejoining and with 6 in his last 7 there must be a degree of optimism going into the business end of the campaign. There's plenty of games left and the likes of Montrose, Kelty, QoS will certainly have us in their sights. For Cove, our results have been almost the polar opposite. Since Taggs injury time winner at Balmoral we've picked up only a solitary win (against Edinburgh City) in our last 7 league games to go with 3 draws and 3 defeats. As mentioned on the Wasps Nest podcast, this could be the return of Fyvie after 3 months out. Desperately need him back to change our fortunes and get us playing something resembling football rather than lobbing aimless balls up to and around Rumarn. With Fyvie P8 W5 D3 L0 - 18 points (4 clean sheets) Without Fyvie P15 W4 D4 L7 - 16 points (1 clean sheet) * Since I've quoted the above Fyvie will likely play and we'll still lose but thought I'd stick it in. Predicted Lineup below. The two changes I envisage from the cup game with Killie are Shiels returning at LB and hopefully we see Fraser. Kerr and Darge to drop to the bench. Likely will be narrow 4-4-2 for us with full backs being encouraged to play higher when we're in possession and Sena retreating for cover. Suman supposedly could be a doubt after getting a bad knock at the weekend, however, Balint Demus would be equally as good so wouldn't weaken us. Many Cove fans would like to see Balint get a run of games, one of our own and all. Result is a tough one to call. Bookies make Alloa slight favourites which going by form and home advantage is spot on. Without Fyvie, it's hard to see us getting anything more than a point although in fairness there has been an improvement in our last 3 games. With Fyvie we might have a chance for something more positive. After this one Alloa have Hamilton (A) and Montrose (A) so two tougher fixtures. Cove play Annan (H) and EC (A)

Can we have Gal back please? Delighted to see him get a goal yesterday and by all accounts looking a strong additiin for you.

I can't see anything other than a convincing home win. We've conceded 2 or more in 7 out of our last 8 league games and haven't kept a cleansheet in 10 in all competitions. Premiership opposition will exploit our defensive weaknesses and we'll offer very little going forward with the current tactic of lobbing long balls somewhere close to Rumarn. As much as we desperately need Fyvie back from a 3 month injury it's likely a week too soon. We're sadly nowhere close to the side that took Hibs into extra time at Easter Road in the Scottish Cup 2 years back and ultimately are just a very average L1 side as it stands. Pains me to say that and don't like sounding negative. We're very much in transition in our first year as a hybrid club. O2.5 Killie and/or HT/FT are bankers for me.

Hopefully Golding starts to find the net with more regularity with you. A winner tonight would be perfect. Due an away win and far more likely to get it with the new additions and elevated confidence within the side. Vigurs last played for us in the league cup in July at Glebe and hasn't trained with us or been at a game since. Wasn’t in the team photo, however, no official communication from the club which is really poor. He's clearly been told he's surplus and he's not willing to negotiate his release. Out of contract in the summer. Was never the fittest so who knows what shape he's in now!

We shouldn't have let Gal go out on loan. Hes got something about him; energy and ability both ends of the pitch and we're lacking that. Think Gal alongside Fyvie would have been a good partnership in L1. Golding as well deserved more time. We've got far worse players on our bench than him. His high press and work-rate alongside Rumarn was never seen unfortunately and never likely will be. Dayshonne will leave us in the summer so there's a chance he could sign with you if he doesn't go back down south. Glad these two are helping you rise the table. Been quite a turn around under Hale so far, keep it up lads.