Stirling Albion look for break in the weather

Dec 23 2009 by Donald Morton, Stirling Observer Wednesday

STIRLING Albion will hope the weather relents in time for their Boxing Day trip to Brechin after Saturday’s home match with Stenhousemuir fell victim to the freezing conditions.

All five Irn-Bru Division Two games were postponed so Albion celebrate Christmas two points behind leaders Cowdenbeath, whose meeting with Alloa this weekend should beat the big freeze given the plastic pitch at Recreation Park.

Allan Moore’s men had hoped to get back to winning ways against Stenhousemuir, having been held to a 2-2 draw at home to Dumbarton last midweek, but the game is unlikely to be rescheduled for any time soon.

Scottish League rules state that postponed games are normally played in the second midweek following the call-off but that does not apply between the run-up to Christmas and the final weekend in February, making Tuesday, March 2 a likely date.

First-footers

Stirling now face three consecutive away fixtures. Brechin are first up, followed by a January 2 visit to Alloa. The Scottish Cup fourth-round meeting with Albion Rovers is the following weekend meaning, Peterhead will be Albion’s first-footers on January 16.

Should the weather improve, the Binos will go to Glebe Park – the scene of their last ever Christmas Day fixture back in 1971-72 – on Boxing Day boasting the best away record in the country.

Stirling’s home form has been a cause for concern of late but on the road no side across the four divisions can match their tally of six victories, albeit the last two against East Fife and Arbroath have come courtesy of last-minute winners.

This weekend marks the halfway stage in the Second Division campaign and Stirling will be broadly happy with their progress so far, with only three defeats in 17 games.

Two of them have been by a single goal to Alloa and Albion were worthy of a draw on both occasions. The other setback was 3-2 at Peterhead when Stirling dominated the second half but passed up chance after chance in a game they should have won.

Scoring goals is unlikely to be a problem but Albion must address their defensive deficiencies if they are to flourish. No shut-outs since September is a disappointing statistic – ironically they claimed three clean sheets in a row at the start of the campaign but that always looked atypical of what we have come to expect in recent times.

It’s been a thrilling season to date but only one of the nine league victories has been by more than a single goal and that 3-0 triumph over East Fife came after Paul Nugent had been dismissed for the Methil men.

That said, Albion have played some splendid football and in Martin Grehan, David McKenna, Michael Mullen and on-loan Ayr hitman Bryan Prunty possess a wealth of attacking options.

The recent recruit of on-loan Dundee defender Craig McKeown has allowed Moore to return to a 4-4-2 formation that frees up winger David O’Brien to cause maximum damage and Dumbarton were fortunate to escape with a draw after a battering last week.

That home form needs to improve – there is no doubt that Albion are at their best when teams come out against them and leave gaps.

Unbeaten

Brechin started the season as strong title favourites and are unbeaten at home but their poor away form – including a 1-0 reverse at Forthbank in August – means Jim Duffy’s men are in fourth spot, six points worse off than the Binos.

Danny Lennon’s team were only promoted because of Livingston’s belated demotion and they started slowly but their relentless run has seen them notch up an incredible eight wins and two draws since losing 2-1 to Stirling at Central Park in September.

That is championship form and the Blue Brazil have a strong unit that looks capable of going the distance.

A huge game looms between the leading pair at Central Park on January 30 but of more immediate concern is the Boxing Day clash at Brechin when a repeat of the 2-1 victory secured at the popular Angus venue in January would be a perfect post-Christmas tonic.