1. Ryan McCord (Arbroath)
With 25 minutes remaining on Saturday, Arbroath were staring into a Berwick shaped abyss. With Forfar in the process of dropping points against Stirling Albion, it looked like the Red Lichties were about to miss out on the chance to close the gap, but actually fall even further behind due to their 1-0 deficit to the Wee Rangers. That was until Ryan McCord got hold of the game and bent proceedings to his will, scoring two fine goals in the space of ten minutes before being heavily involved in the game-killing third. As for Gavin Malin’s last-minute fourth, well, that’s one that Berwick keeper Sean Brennan won’t want to see again. The 4-1 win lifted Dick Campbell’s men to within five points of Arbroath at the top of the table, while Berwick remain Cowdenbeath’s closest catchables at the arse end of the division.
2. Simon Murray (Dundee United)
Simon Murray may not be everyone’s cup of tea but his double salvo against Queen of the South in a barn storming 3-3 draw made it 11 goals in all competitions this term, meaning he’s now averaging a goal every 157 minutes. Whether that’s enough to satisfy a certain hirsute Terrace contributor, however, is anyone’s guess. Whilst Ray McKinnon’s men did well to battle back from 3-1 down, they really should have been down-and-out before the Terrors late comeback, with the 3-1 scoreline barely covering Queens dominance. Doonhamers boss Gary Naysmith may have been the more disappointed manager of the two after the result, but he can at least take more heart from the performance, something which can’t be said for McKinnon as he watched his side slide further away from Hibs.
3. Lewis Vaughan (Dumbarton)
Chick Young was up to his usual high standards on Saturday, admitting that he’d no idea what Dumbarton’s stadium was called (he’d literally walked through a door which had the name in giant letters overhead) while spending ages describing the raised corner flag as a ‘hillock’ and like a ‘ski-slope.’ The irony is, he knew more words to describe a small raised piece of land than he did Dumbarton’s players names. Describing the Sons as ‘stuffy,’ he went on to say Hibs were worthy winners, something which even the most myopic of Hibees must have shook their head at. Their 1-0 win moved them six points clear of Dundee United, but this was a victory which was dug-out rather than beautifully crafted, with Andy Stirling and especially on-loan Lewis Vaughan taking the game to Neil Lennon’s league leaders. Fingers crossed Chick gets to visit a stadium he knows the name of next weekend.
4. Kallum Higginbothan (Dunfermline Athletic)
The Pars may view a home draw with St Mirren as two points dropped, but it was still enough to take them up in the world, with Allan Johnston’s team now sitting fifth, six points outside the playoff places. After a stuttering start to the campaign, Kallum with a K Higginbotham has been a revelation in recent weeks, and his performance would surely have helped Athletic snaffle up all three points had Moffat not somehow contrived to miss an open goal from his assist in the second half. For the Buddies this was a welcome respite from defeat, but with another game gone and still no closer to the teams above, Jack Ross’ new additions need to gel quick-smart.
5. Brian Cameron (Elgin City)
It appeared to be a case of how many at the half-time interval at Borough Briggs on Saturday, with Elgin City 3-0 to good on Annan Athletic. However, the match was probably a metaphor for their season, which has seen the team win 11 and draw eight times, with results swinging wildly from excellent to excrement. On Saturday, they almost ended up with only their second draw of the campaign, as the wheels came off spectacularly in the second period, with Annan closing the gap to 3-2 before the referee blew for time. Before then, Brian Cameron made the difference, scoring the first and setting up Elgin’s second, as they moved nine clear of their fourth place visitors. They’ve probably given themselves too much to do, but if they can take advantage of a reasonably kind looking run of fixtures, then their encounter with the leading Loons next month could be a real ho-down.
6. Greg Fleming (Ayr United)
Cowdenbeath goalkeeper, David McGurn may be the current holder of the nickname ‘the Witch’ but perhaps he should consider passing the mantle over to Greg Fleming. His stop from John Baird’s penalty on Saturday means he’s now repelled 13 of the last 16 he’s faced, which is a quite fantastical figure. On the flip side, admittedly, he’s probably conceded from 13 of the last 16 corners he’s faced, but then then no-one’s perfect. This 1-1 draw with Falkirk did Ayr United more good than it did the Bairns, as it moved them a point closer to Dumbarton and retained the seven point gap on St Mirren. Although, with Morton and Hibernian next up, it may go down as a missed opportunity against a Falkirk team who once again struggled to demonstrate they’ll bother the other play-off candidates come the season’s end.
7. Gary Oliver (Morton)
After a grumpy online moan about the fans from Raith CEO Eric Drysdale last week, it was the turn of another Raith director to do something similar on Saturday evening, although this time the ire was directed at Gary Locke. Crime fiction writer and Hawaiian shirt enthusiast Val McDermid took to Twitter.com to vent some steam about the current winless streak, and although we suspect her words don’t necessarily mean change afoot in the Raith dug-out, we do think Locke and Darren Jackson may be victims in her next novel. On the park, Raith were slipshod and shot-shy once more as Morton ran out comfortable 2-0 winners, with Gary Oliver pulling strings and doing things alongside a much more svelte looking Lawrence Shankland. We suspect he’s received a Lean In Fifteen book for his Christmas.
8. Kieran Miller (Stenhousemuir)
Brown Ferguson’s Warriors are off the bottom of the table for just the second time since the beginning of October, and based on the evidence of this one sided 1-0 win over Stranraer, it may be a while before they slip back again. The result may make this game sound reasonably close but, make no bones about it, Stranraer were never at the races in this one. Kieran Miller produced one of his finest 90 minutes in a maroon jersey, both as a conduit between defence and the forward line, and mopping up the meagre attacking moves offered up by the Blues. Stenhousemuir’s inconsistency has been a huge issue this term – they’ve yet to string together two successive victories this season – but they can now tentatively start to look up. For Stranraer, this was the final straw for Brian Reid, who exited stage left on Monday evening. His replacement won’t be inheriting a bad squad, but they will be assuming control of one which is utterly devoid of confidence.
9. Scott Stewart (Airdrieonians)
Both Airdrie and East Fife probably felt hard-done-by with this 2-2 draw. Mark Wilson’s hosts were the better side over the piece, but the fact their equaliser arrived so late in the day would have stuck in the craw of the visiting fans. Despite the late goal, the draw was the first time the Fifers have dropped any points since November, and they remain on the shirt-tails of the sides in the play-off spots above them. For Airdrie, in a new 3-5-2 formation, with Scott Stewart impressing in a wing-back position, this was a step in the right direction, but it’s now just one win in six league games for the dodgy Diamonds. Wilson will be hoping that a switch to a back three can alleviate the defensive ills that have plagued their campaign, but on the evidence of this fixture it certainly won’t be an immediate cure.
10. William Robertson (Stirling Albion)
Stirling Albion are probably the bell-weather for how odd League Two currently is. Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Forfar lifted them above Edinburgh City and into sixth in the table, moving them to within three points of the playoff places. However, in a division where the word tight barely does justice, they’re also only three points clear of Cowdenbeath at the foot of the table. The Binos season may be pock marked with poor results but this was a fine one against the league leaders, who saw their lead at the top cut to five, with Albion defensive midfielder William Robertson enjoying one of his best days of the season so far. It’s just one defeat in five now for Dave McKay’s side, although whether they can keep that run going after the expected departure of Dylan Nguene Bikey remains to be seen.
Written by Shaughan McGuigan