10 best lower league players this week

What do you know about the lower leagues? Nothing? Wow. Quick, read Shaughan McGuigan’s countdown before things get any worse.

10. Craig Gunn (Elgin City)

He may sound like the hero of a pulp detective novel, but Craig Gunn has started the season in blistering fashion, with two goals in a 3-0 win against Arbroath on Saturday, to add to the single he chalked up against Stirling Albion in the Challenge Cup. His first, after just four minutes, was typical Gunn, and whilst he was reliant on erroneous defending, that shouldn’t detract from either Gunn’s excellently drilled finish, nor the good work down the left-hand side by Sergio Alvarez. His second was a coolly taken penalty after half-an-hour, an incident which also saw Craig Wilson ordered off for clattering Kyle Macleod in the build up. In this form, Gunn looks capable of top-trumping the 16 goals he managed last term.

9. Lewis Toshney (Raith Rovers)

Considering Lewis Toshney’s injury plagued career to date, it was concerning to see him hobbling away from Central Park just over a fortnight ago on crutches after going over on his ankle. The initial prognosis was that he could be out for a couple of months, rather than weeks, and after a spell on the sidelinesa few years ago, bizarrely caused by a surgeon infecting his knee with talcum powder, it looked like the 23-year old was again to be the recipient of ill-fortune. It was a surprise therefore to see him marshalling the Raith Rovers defence on Saturday, helping to repel the combined efforts of the Livingston front-line while cajoling and mentoring his defensive partner, 18-year-old David Bates. Rovers have yet to concede a goal in three outings, and if Toshney can sustain the type of form he displayed on Saturday then Raith could be in for a better than expected campaign.

8. Blair Henderson (Berwick Rangers)

Colin Cameron may have undertaken a radical overhaul of his squad during the summer, but it was Blair Henderson, a player he brought in midway through last season, who helped to pull off the 2-1 win over Montrose. After failing to make the breakthrough at Dunfermline, Henderson had reasonably short and fruitless spells with East Fife and Annan Athletic, before 12 goals in 12 games with Bonnyrigg convinced Berwick manager Colin Cameron to take a punt on the rangy front-man in January. He managed six goals in 16 appearances last season, and has followed that up with a goal against St. Mirren in the Challenge Cup, as well as a double to seal all three points against Paul Hegarty’s Montrose. Both involved clever movement from the 21-year old, spinning away from his marker to divert a Finn Graham cross home after 12 minutes, and he repeated the feat with little under 20 minutes remaining, peeling away from his man to head a Ewan McNeil cross between Montrose goalkeeper Ross Salmon’s legs. Berwick’s form was up and down like a fiddler’s elbow last season, but they’ve made a solid start to this campaign.

7. Rab Douglas (Forfar Atheltic)

There must come a point, presumably, that Rab Douglas will eventually decide that enough’s enough. You couldn’t help but wonder if that time would have been the end of last season, as Douglas looked every one of his 826-years during the second, decisive leg of the play-off defeat to Danny Lennon’s rejuvenated Alloa team. Yet here he is, still proving an adroit custodian with a man-of-the-match performance during Forfar’s 1-0 win over Airdrieonians. He wasn’t called upon in the first-period, as a dilapidated looking Diamonds side toiled to create anything of note after falling behind to an early Chris Templeman goal. It was a different story in the second-half though, when Douglas made a trio of excellent saves, twice denying Neil Watt before Bryan Prunty also saw his goal-bound volley tipped over the bar. He may have recently turned 43, but Scottish football’s equivalent of an everlasting gobstopper continues to impress.

6. Paul McMullan (St. Mirren)

These aren’t exactly halcyon days for the Paisley Buddies, indeed, Steven Thompson’s penalty on Friday night against Rangers neatly encapsulated the last 18-months or so for St. Mirren. Tripe. However, while a lack of faith amongst punters concerning their current worth led to a flurry of bets on Rangers -1 for their league opener, the match did at least hint at some green shoots of recovery. Rangers deserved the points, no two ways about it, but the team, and McMullan in particular, impressed in fits and starts. His willingness and ability to beat not just one, but a caboodle of opponents was evident during his slaloming runs, and his perfectly weighted pass for Cameron Howieson’s goal shows he isn’t just a show pony, but has end product too.

5. Iain Russell (Queen of the South)

Speaking of Queen of the South, it was interesting to see Iain Russell restored to a central striking position beside Derek Lyle on Saturday. Signed in 2013 from Livingston, there was general surprise and a spot of rancour about Jim McIntyre’s predilection for playing a man who was predominantly a striker, wide on the left, but he made the position his own and still plundered an excellent goal return from the wide areas. The arrival of Ryan Conroy in the summer left some to wonder if Russell’s time was up, but with Gavin Reilly swanning off to play with Hearts, it may mean that Russell can revert back to his original berth. Both his goals, and especially the first were made slightly easier after some calamitous defending from Estonian international, Mikk Reintam, but Russell already looks like he’s revelling in his reversion to a forward.

4. Jordan Marshall (Queen of the South)

It’s been a difficult summer down Dumfries way. Not only has it rained a lot, but Queens have lost more central characters than an average series of The Walking Dead. For some, expectations levels were so low that it was felt June’s Status Quo gig may be the most exciting thing to hit Palmerston Park for some time. How James Fowler goes about replacing the core of a squad that did so well last season is still a quandary that might not be readily solved, but based on Saturday’s performance, 18-year-old left-back Jordan Marshall may be a decent, if somewhat raw, replacement for Kevin Holt. Marshall was signed up from Carlisle and his willingness to attack from a left-wing-back position led to Queens second and third goals in an impressive first half performance against Alloa, where they were 3-0 up before half-time. It’s early days, but perhaps talk of Queens travails this season (predominantly from myself) were a little premature.

3. Willie Gibson (Dumbarton)

As was pointed out by The Dumbarton Terrace’s excellent and emotive match report on Saturday’s 2-1 win over Hibernian, it shows just how much work has been put in by Dumbarton boss Steve Aitken over the summer that only one player in the starting XI, Andy Graham, began the opening fixture of the 2014/15 season. The Ian Murray era may be finished, but on first impressions, Aitken’s time in charge could be even more special. It’s difficult to remember when a part-time team in this country managed to assemble such a talented squad, and while any number of players could have been plucked from the absorbing performance from the weekend, it was Gibson’s which deserves the loudest shouts of appraisal. His free-kick delivery after just three minutes allowed Gregor Buchanan to glance home the opener, but his goal, again from a set-piece, ten minutes into the second-half, proved even more decisive. The nomadic Gibson may have represented eight different clubs in just four years, but perhaps Dumbarton, under Aitken’s guidance, will be a more permanent and productive home.

2. Faissal El Bakhtaoui (Dunfermline Athletic)

Oh how we laughed at Dunfermline last season. Jefferies Jobbers would eventually make way for Potter’s Planks, as the Pars eventually slumped to a seventh placed finish. It looks like the laughter could be over, however, as Dunfermline, and El Bakhtaoui in particular, seem to be thriving under the guidance of Allan Johnston. The Moroccan forward didn’t enjoy the best of times at East End Park last season – although lets face it, nor did anyone else – but with six goals in three appearances, El Bakhtaoui is already just one short of the seven he scored last time round. His double against Brechin helped to ease Athletic to an ominous looking 6-1 win at Brechin, and he also turned provider to set up Joe Cardle for their third. Admittedly, he was helped in no small measure by a Brechin defensive showing that was equal parts ineptitude and incompetence, with a large dash of hilarity. It’s early days, but Dunfermline, despite being in League One, have an air of a decent Championship team about them.

1. Lee Wallace (Rangers)

There seems to be something brewing down Ibrox way, and it isn’t just manifesting itself in hats made out of empty Warburtons pokes and intoxicated interlopers. The team, encouraged by the new man at the helm, look leaner and sharper, although very much still a work in progress. Initial impressions suggest they’re keen on making use of their talent in wide areas, with both full-backs pushing on, and while James Tavernier has caught the eye on the right, it was his colleague on the opposite side of the field on Friday evening who looked head-and-shoulders above everyone against St. Mirren. Wallace’s two goals means he’s already just one goal shy of his league total from the whole of last term, and perhaps more so than Tavernier, he was still able to fulfil his defensive duties astutely, whilst still marauding forward.

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