Livingston - all the threads merged

[LIVIFOREVER]

What a season Steven Lawless is having, 6 goals so far, which is only 4 goals behind the likes of Edouard, Morelos and Defoe. Not bad for a winger.

[Cptn Hooch]

7 hours ago, LIVIFOREVER said:

What a season Steven Lawless is having, 6 goals so far, which is only 4 goals behind the likes of Edouard, Morelos and Defoe. Not bad for a winger.

He's certainly benefiting from playing further forward this season. The last wee while I thought he seemed off the boil a bit but the Killie game saw him back to his best.

[LIVIFOREVER]

1 hour ago, Cptn Hooch said:

He's certainly benefiting from playing further forward this season. The last wee while I thought he seemed off the boil a bit but the Killie game saw him back to his best.

The Killie game was like someone had switched on their turbo chargers, the whole team was back to their best pressing play and making forward runs. I was getting worried they'd all ran out of steam seeing the amount of late goals we were conceding. Hopefully they're all going to push on now and rack up some decent points tally going into the Winter break.

Four games to go, would be excellent if we remain unbeaten in Dec and get a couple more wins too.

[Cptn Hooch]

22 minutes ago, LIVIFOREVER said:

The Killie game was like someone had switched on their turbo chargers, the whole team was back to their best pressing play and making forward runs. I was getting worried they'd all ran out of steam seeing the amount of late goals we were conceding. Hopefully they're all going to push on now and rack up some decent points tally going into the Winter break.

Four games to go, would be excellent if we remain unbeaten in Dec and get a couple more wins too.

The only player that didn't look quite at his best for me was Pitts. He's been poor for his usual standards since his injury but Killie was definitely an improvement so hopefully he'll kick on with the rest of the guys now.

[andylivi1]

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Edited December 9, 2019 by andylivi1

[LIVIFOREVER]

11 hours ago, Cptn Hooch said:

The only player that didn't look quite at his best for me was Pitts. He's been poor for his usual standards since his injury but Killie was definitely an improvement so hopefully he'll kick on with the rest of the guys now.

Yeah he was out a wee while and will need time to get back to his best, every game will be closer to getting him there though. Dykes looks back to being back there though, that was more like how he was playing before the injury to his ankle, full of running chasing after the ball and his confidence and desire was back. Actually Dykes, Lawless, Souda and Sibbald all looked very good together, linking up well.

[Cptn Hooch]

23 hours ago, andylivi1 said:

New episode available now!!!

website - TalkLiviPodcast.libsyn.com 

Find all links on our social media now, or simply search TalkLivi on your preferred streaming site. 

Really enjoyed that interview with Erskine, nice to hear a player being so honest about his not so positive experiences at clubs.

[crispy]

Agree with the chat on the podcast: 

• We should have more points on the board. Aberdeen at home, Motherwell away, St J away, Hibs away, Hamilton home...
• We are still in contention for the top 6 and, provided we can maintain a reasonably healthy squad, I don't think it's unrealistic to aim for a good haul of points before Feb.
• I've been thinking it a while but for me Lawless has been our POT(half)Y. Technically he's a great footballer and he seems to be really resilient to injury (i've done it now, haven't i?) so he's doing it consistently.
• I forgot we were missing Crawford and Devlin on Saturday which shows we've some decent options for switching it up.

All in all, what a lift that win has given us and we should have no fear about the next couple months!

Also, good to hear Erskine is fit again! Seems to divide opinion but I'm a big fan and he doesn't hide.

Edited December 10, 2019 by crispy

[LIVIFOREVER]

Interesting interview by Erskine, particularly the bit about him being a goal scorer, hopefully he can regain that sort of goal scoring form at Livi because he's missed a couple of absolute sitters the last two seasons. Even Bartley is now ahead of him this season in goals. Saying that, both Dolly and Marv hadn't scored in 5 years before coming to Livi, so maybe Erskine will start banging them in with a run of games under his belt.

[GNU_Linux]

https://livingstonfc.co.uk/livingston-wfc/

Women's team being formed in partnership with Blackburn United

[LIVIFOREVER]

Didn't we have to scrap our youth teams because of project brave making it too expensive for us. Better hope the Women's teams don't get the SFA coming up with such brilliant initiatives to help their game.

[EdinburghLivi]

Priorities for January should be to get Sibbald and Lawless tied down to new contracts and, if possible, trim some of the fat from the squad.

[LIVIFOREVER]

Yeah it's no coincidence how many goals we've scored in our last 3 games and having Lawless-Souda-Pittman back playing together, and Sibbald in midfield behind them making precision passes up to them. Lawson has been outstanding since going into the RB position too.

[Afro]

Priorities for January should be to get Sibbald and Lawless tied down to new contracts and, if possible, trim some of the fat from the squad.

Agreed. Those two signed up off the back of the extended contracts for Dykes and Lawson since the summer would be decent business.

In terms of departures - Stobbs (officially) back to Sheffield Wednesday, Tiffoney out on loan, one of Odoffin/McMillan out?

Would quite like to see another out and out striker signed as Robinson and Erskine are good attacking options, but neither in the same category as Dykes.

[ATLIS]

Just a thought for when Devlin is fit again, but why not play Lawson on the wing? Can clearly beat a man, has a scary amount of pace, he's good with the ball at his feet. Only question mark is his deliveries possibly? Could have Lawson-Dykes-Lawless as a front through potentially

[ATLIS]

Start of the decade (season 09-10) we enter into administration, then we are demoted to the Third Division where we romp the league by 15 points with Andy Halliday as top scorer whilst Marc McNulty is kept out the team by Armand Oné, Robbie Winters and Raffa De Vita, with De Vita contracted to us still. 

Chairman Gordon McDougall then apologised to the other clubs in the division saying that It wasn’t our choice to have players on First Division wages in the Third Division and it was distinctly unfair that a full-time club was thrust upon the others clubs in the division. We had to apologise for being a big fish  

In the same season we thump Clyde 7-1 in the Scottish Cup where current club captain Alan Lithgow scores Clyde's 1 in front of 690 fans. While Keaghan Jacobs scores our first, both currently are in our first team. 

10-11 season we then sign Iain Russell who scores 22 in the league as we go on to record back to back promotions, winning the league with 5 to spare and an average home attendance of 1.3k. This season we first see Stefan Scougall whilst Tony Bullock replaces Roddy McKenzie as first team keeper.

In the 11-12 season back to back title winning manager Gary Bollan is replaced by John Hughes whilst Marc McNulty has his breakthrough with 16 goals in all competitions as we finish 5th and record a challenge cup semi-final. Controversial keeper Andy McNeil takes over from Bullock and eternal Livi fans favourite Rory Boulding signs for the club for the first time scoring 13 goals in 32. Mark Fotheringham also signs for the first of his two spells. 

12-13 Hughes fucks off to Hartlepool for some reason and we bounce managers about including Richie Burke and Gareth Evans. Despite this we finish 4th under Burke with Mark Burchill signing on as Assistant Manager/Player. This team was an overhaul from the previous season now including Jesus Garcia Tena and Tony Andreu with Danny Mullen and Scougall featuring frequently as first team regulars. The options we had up front were pretty ridiculous this season, Danny Mullen, Iain Russell, Marc McNulty and Burchill (who made zero appearances) whilst we persisted with Jordan fucking Morton. David Luongo also just never appears? Worth noting we had Callum Booth on loan for this season too.

13-14 Burke resigns and John McGlynn takes over and we finish in 6th. At this point we've settle into being mid table Championship fodder, just surviving. McNulty however finishes the season with 17 goals to his name, Hamilton poach Jesus and Andreu off us who help them to win the first Premiership playoff to relegate Hibs, Andreu scoring a 93rd minute eqaualiser.

14-15, now things get real. We're faced with a Championship with Hearts, Rangers and Hibs. To top it off we're given a 5 point deduction just for the fun of it. Hearts pump Cowdenbeath 10-0 as they go on to romp the league. McGlynn is replaced by Mark Burchill as manager whilst also signing on as a player. We survive on the last day of the season thanks to goal difference. In amongst all this madness is our 'Great Escape', the signing of Scott Pittman and a trophy to boot, beating an Alloa team with Micheal Chopra up front, 4-0 in the final of the Petrofrac Training Cup. You'd be forgiven for thinking this would be as good as it would get for Livi this entire decade  

15-16 season starts off with 1 win in 10, 4 points from 30. The likes of Spas Georgiev, Hugo Faria, Jordyn Sheerin, Darren Cole, Gary Glen and Moses Duckrell are all part of this absolutely demoralising side. The few shining lights amongst this are Liam Buchanan, Danny Mullen, Scott Pittman, Jackson Longridge and Myles Hippolyte. We also sign Craig Halkett in this period. While the likes of Keaghan and Kyle Jacobs are allowed to leave, Callum Fordyce and Jason Talbot also leave the club after lengthy spells. We land ourselves in the playoff semi finals, only this time it's the relegation one and we're up against Stranraer who pump us 5-2 in the first leg. Any Livi fan would surely put this down as their lowest point of the decade. We miraculously overturn the result and find ourselves into extra time after a 89th minute Danny Mullen goal and a 95th minute Craig Halkett goal that ties up the score line on aggregate. We then absolutely capitulate and concede twice in ET to see us relegated for the first time since being demoted to the bottom tier in 2009-10. Fans absolutely call for David Hopkin's head who replaced Mark Burchill after Christmas. Fans then get even more livid after it's announced that Hopkin will take us into the 16-17 League 1 campaign.

16-17 the club announce that they will remain as a full time club to try and bounce back up at the first time of asking. One Airdrie fan famously predicts Livi will finish no higher than 5th this season. A lot of the previous dross is cleared out the club and we sign a few players with the likes of Shaun Byrne, Josh Mullin, Nicky Cadden, Alan Lithgow and Sean Crighton. Declan Gallagher also signs on following his release from prison. We comfortably win the league by 19 points, taking top spot in week 11 and never surrendering it from there. We also exit the League Cup at the quarter finals following a few dubious decisions at the hands of Hibs with Todorov filling in at CB. Liam Buchanan scores 22 goals in his final season with us cementing himself as a true star of this decade with 41 goals in 91 appearances and a cup win to his name. Keaghan Jacobs also signs on in the latter half of the season with De Vita also returning to the club. Fans eat humble pie as Hopkin delivers a dominant and strong Livi side.

17-18. The season of the decade, one that we will struggle to ever emulate. Livi enter the season losing their top scorer, Buchanan. We enter with many predicting us as relegation fodder. We are followed in promotion by Brechin who go up through the playoffs and then go on to record an entire season without a win. A January transfer window sees long term Lion Danny Mullen leave for St Mirren whilst Livi secure Ryan Hardie on a 6 month loan with Falkirk's Lee Miller also coming in to form a lethal striking partnership. Livi's decent early season form is consolidated with a very strong second half to the season which sees us then go on to finish 2nd and book a playoff semi-final place against Dundee United who see off Dunfermline. Livi's game of the decade ensues in the first leg with the Lions running out 3-2 winners away at Tannadice. The reverse leg throws up a 1-1 draw to set up a playoff final place against either Partick Thistle or Ross County as it comes down to the last game of the season in the Premiership. Ross County finish bottom and Livi learn their opponents, Partick Thistle. A first leg win of 2-1 sees Livingston 90 minutes away from their first time back in the top flight of Scottish football since 2006. A Keaghan Jacobs goal and a Neil Alexander penalty save ensures the club win promotion and will have played in every professional league in Scotland within the decade. 

18-19 sees David Hopkin refuse a new contract and leave the club despite back to back promotions (a feat only equalled recently by Gary Bollan), and Kenny Miller signs on as player-manager. Livi also implement an artificial surface to replace the grass pitch and the club play their home League Cup games at Linlithgow Rose's ground. Miller is relieved of his duties a few months into the job and is replaced by Gary Holt who oversees Livi beating Rangers at home, Hearts 5-0 at home which prompts Craig Levein to compare the side to PSG. The club also recorded a 0-0 draw against champions Celtic. Despite a poor second half of the season Livi survive comfortably finishing in 9th place in their first season back in the top flight. 

19-20 Livi sit in the top 6 at Christmas despite starting the decade at the bottom tier of Scottish football. 


Was fun writing this up, feel free to add other memories along the way but what a fucking decade Livi. So many lows but way more highs than we could've predicted.

[EdinburghLivi]

A few inaccuracies (Mullin signed in January 2016 and One left in the Summer of 2009) but that's an excellent summary. Fantastic rollercoaster ride over the past decade. 4 promotions and 1 relegation along with beating (I think) every team in the SPFL aside from Aberdeen and Cove Rangers.

2013/14 is also notable for @Ayia Napa Daz coming up with 'The Amber Machine'. Poetry.

[LiviLion]

Tony Bullock signing up to the Livi Lions forum to argue with fans was proper banter years stuff. 

[LogieLivi]

Another inaccuracy is that Liam Buchanan won a cup with us. He didnt. Unless you mean a league trophy. He was in the Alloa side we pumped 4-0.

[football maniac]

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