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Falkirk 2-2 Hibernian

MacIver (45), Henderson (64) – Boyle: (Pen 30), McGrath (43) Falkirk hosted Hibernian for tonight’s Tuesday evening football fix as both teams looked to return to winning ways after defeats in their previous matches. Already eliminated from the Premier Sports Cup at the hands of holders Celtic, the hosts had a free weekend last week following their home loss to St Mirren, whilst Hibernian exited the cup last Saturday, becoming the first Premiership side to lose to Russell Martin’s Rangers. For the Bairns, Manchester United loanee Ethan Williams came in for his first start as the experienced Scott Arfield dropped to the bench in John McGlynn’s only change. In response to the defeat at Ibrox David Gray made two changes with Warren O’Hora and Dan Barlaser coming in for Grant Hanley and Dylan Levitt. Raphael Sallinger retained his place in goal ahead of Jordan Smith and was called into action early doors to deny Ross MacIver inside the area within the first minute. There would be some half chances at both ends before Hibs were awarded a penalty just before the half hour mark. A Nicky Cadden cross hit the arm of Williams inside the area. Referee Calum Scott initially waved away protests but was called over to the monitor at the next break in play and awarded the spot kick. Martin Boyle, who was denied a goal by VAR on Saturday, stepped up and converted past the diving Scott Bain to open the deadlock for his side, the goal met with a chorus of boos from the home support who felt the decision was harsh on their side.There could be no complains over the Edinburgh side’s second however, after some blocked efforts and pinball in the box the ball would fall to Jamie McGrath who would spin excellently in the area before driving his shot low into the corner to double the advantage. Falkirk would pull one back right on the stroke of the half time whistle, Ross MacIver latching onto a Williams cross to tap home. An excellent delivery right into the corridor of uncertainty, Sallinger remained rooted to his line and the Falkirk hitman had the simple task of touching it over the line. Into the second half and McGlynn’s men would remain on top. They would be rewarded for their dominance just after an hour. Liam Henderson thundering a header past Sallinger after a terrific cross from Williams from the corner. A real game of two halves, Falkirk would be closest to a winner as MacIver forced Sallinger into a stop after driving in from the left wing. But it was not to be and the points were to be shared. One gained for the Bairns after their first half showing and two dropped by the Hibees after a dismal drop off in the second 45.

September 24, 2025

St. Johnstone Remain Unbeaten at Championship Summit After Late Victory Over Dunfermline

St. Johnstone continued their unbeaten start to the league season, with wingers Kai Fotheringham and Josh McPake scoring second half goals to pick up a hard earned 2-1 victory over Dunfermline Athletic. The visitors had taken the lead two minutes before the half time whistle through forward Rory Macleod, but a determined, domineering St. Johnstone were able to cancel this out once they regained a foothold on the game. The result leaves Simo Valakari’s men top of the table, having only dropped 2 points from their opening six matches, whilst Neil Lennon’s side are still yet to win two games in the league consecutively, since his arrival late on last season. The home side nearly took the lead on the 3rd minute, when Josh McPake stole the ball from Dunfermline captain Kyle Benedictus deep in the Pars half, but his effort was saved by Mason Munn in the Dunfermline net. Benedictus’ heart was in his mouth again just four minutes later, when Saints captain Jason Holt fell inside the penalty box following a challenge from the centre back. Referee Matthew MacDermid awarded a goal kick to Dunfermline rather than a penalty, with a furious Holt protesting the decision, as well as Benedictus and his teammates, suggesting the midfielder took a dive. There is no VAR to re-referee in the Scottish Championship, remember. St. Johnstone controlled the opening quarter of an hour, but despite their dominance, did not create anything meaningful. Left midfielder Josh McPake, who has scored two in his last two, was at the centre of anything Saints were doing offensively, causing havoc when cutting onto his right foot, and created Saint Johnstone’s best chance when his curling cross from the left was met by right back Adam Forrester, but again Munn was equal to his close range effort. Dunfermline took a while to get going, but when they did, they changed the perception of the match. Their first chance of the game was made around 25 minutes in, a bobbling cross on the deck from Zak Rudden that was hastily defended by St. Johnstone, and this is what seemed to give the Dunfermline players and healthy number of travelling supporters a new lease of life. Pars’ summer signing Jefferson Caceres, who tried catching goalkeeper Toby Steward off his line from range a couple times already, played a dipping cross from the left flank on his right foot on the 43rd minute. The ball curled over everyone and bounced invitingly for young striker Rory Macleod, who fired the ball high into the left side of the goal with aplomb, marking the first league goal of the 19 year-old’s senior career, and giving his side the lead as the teams headed up the tunnel for halftime. The hosts though started the second half just as they did the first, with total control. A 50th minute corner was met the glancing head of Adama Sidibeh, forcing another great stop out of Munn, but it only went as far as Kai Fotheringham who tapped the ball into an empty net to level the scoring. But the breakthrough came for the home side in the 82nd minute. Sub James Gullan whipped a looping ball on from the touchline halfway into the Pars half, sailing over everyone and was met by that man Josh McPake, who’s first time finish completed the turnaround for the league leaders and queued the rendition of the Saint’s faithful’s version of ‘Dancing Queen’ by ABBA for the talented left winger. Dunfermline chased an equaliser and so nearly had it in the last minute of added time. Andrew Tod’s free kick crashed off the post, before a resulting rebound was tipped onto the bar for a corner, which was then met by the rising Jeremiah Chilkoa-Mullen, forcing Steward into a diving save to protect the points being shared. St. Johnstone look to continue their vein of form next week, as they travel to Airdrieonians on Tuesday, whilst Neil Lennon will face Scott Brown as Ayr United visit East End Park. JOHNSTONE: Steward 5, Foulds 5 (Boyes 2), Diabate 6, Baird 6, Forrester 6, McPake 8, Holt 7, McAlear 7, Svedberg 4 (Wanner 5), Fotheringham 7 (Gullan 6), Sidbeh 5 (Ikpeazu 2) DUNFERMLINE: Munn 7, Otoo 6, Chilokoa-Mullen 6, Benedictus 5, Fraser 5, Amade 6 (Ritchie-Hosler 2), Gilmour 5, Kearney 6, Caceres 6, Rudden 2 (Tod 4), Macleod 7(Oakley-Boothe 2)

September 19, 2025

UEFA Champions League Review: Matchday One

The UEFA Champions League returned this week, with this season being the second instalment of the still new ‘league phase’ format, replacing the group stages last campaign. No Scottish clubs are in action this year, unfortunately, but there was still plenty of British clubs in action across all three nights of football. Arsenal were the first British club to play in the UEFA’s premier competition this season, travelling to San Mames to take on Athletic Club Bilbao, who knocked Rangers out of the Europa League last season at the quarter final stage before faltering in the semis to eventual runners up Manchester United. Arsenal grabbed a 2-0 victory on the road, with substitute Gabriel Martinelli scoring after just being on the park one minute with just less than 20 minutes to go. Fellow sub Leandro Trossard made sure the points went back to North London, scoring his side’s second with three minutes to go. Hearts’ shareholder Tony Bloom’s other pet project Union Saint-Gilloise stormed to an impressive 3-1 win away to Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven. The Belgian side dominated proceeding in their first ever match in the Champions League proper, and Hearts fans will be dreaming that Tony Blooms algorithm can be replicated for the Gorgie side to enjoy some European success of their own. USG host Newcastle United next. Elsewhere on Tuesday, Azerbaijani side Qarabag pulled of a heroic comeback away to Benfica to win 3-2 after being 2-0 down. Manager Bruno Lage was sacked following this, and was replaced by returning icon Jose Mourinho, who had loosely been linked with the Rangers post as pressure continues to mount on Russell Martin. Juventus and Borussia Dortmund played out a potential match of the tournament already, as the giants drew 4-4, with all eight goals coming in the second half, and two from Juventus deep into injury time to steal a point. Former Celtic loanee Timothy Weah gave Marseille the lead at the Bernabeu, but this was cancelled out by two Kylian Mbappe penalties. Former Celtic player Matt O’Riley also starred for the French outfit. And Tottenham Hotspur got off to a winning start against Villarreal, after a gift of an own goal 4 minutes in from goalkeeper Luis Junior. Onto Wednesday’s action now, which seen Chelsea travel to Bayern Munchen and Liverpool host Atletico Madrid. The former slumped to a 3-1 defeat in Bavaria, with former Tottenham striker Harry Kane coming back to haunt Chelsea with a deadly double, after Trevor Chalobah’s own goal gave the German hosts the lead. Cole Palmer brought a goal back for Chelsea after Kane doubled their lead with a penalty, but the English forward killed any hopes of a comeback on the 63rd minute after he capitalised on a Malo Gusto mistake. Liverpool left it late to secure all three points at Anfield in their opening bout with Atletico Madrid. The Reds took an early two goal lead, with Scotland captain Andy Robertson scoring from a deflection to net his second career Champions League goal, before Egyptian winger Mo Salah put Liverpool two goals to the good just six minutes in. Goals from Marcos Llorente in first half injury time and in the 81st minute brought the scoring level, before an added time header from former Celtic centre back Virgil Van Dijk made it a memorable European night at Anfield for the Premier League holders. Pafos drew 0-0 away to Olympiacos on their Champions league debut in a Greek vs Cypriot battle, whilst Bodo Glimt who infamously knocked Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic out of the Conference League in 2022 came from two behind away to Slavia Prague to rescue a 2-2 draw. Last season’s runners up Inter Milan won 2-0 away to Ajax with goals two minutes either side of halftime by Marcus Thuram, and holders PSG kicked off their defence of their crown with a defiant 4-0 home win over Atalanta of the Serie A. Two more English sides competed on Thursday night also. Manchester City took on Napoli and Kevin De Bruyne’s return to the Etihad Stadium after leaving for Italy this summer ended abruptly after he was sacrificed following an early red card to defender Giovanni Di Lorenzo on the 21st minute. Scotland’s Billy Gilmour and Scott McTominay featured, but it was the light blues of Manchester who prevailed, thanks to second half goals from Erling Harland and Jeremy Doku. Newcastle United hosted Barcelona in their second Champions League campaign in three seasons, but fell to a 2-1 defeat, thanks to two goals from familiar face Marcus Rashford, who signed for the Spanish giants on loan this summer from Manchester United, including a screamer to make it 2-0, before Anthony Gordon netted a 90th minute consolation goal. Club Brugge won the Phillipe Clement derby, defeating another one of the former Rangers gaffer’s former clubs in Monaco 4-1. Henrik Larsson’s son Jordan scored the opener for FC København in a 2-2 draw against Bayer Leverkusen in a match which also seen former Celtic and Rangers loanees Mohamed Elyounoussi and Malik Tillman appear. Sporting Lisbon dispatched of Kairat Almaty, who defeated Celtic in the playoff qualifier to make the league phase, by 4 goals to 1. And 2022 Europa League winners Eintracht Frankfurt cruised to a 5-1 victory at home over Turkish Superlig opposition Galatasaray. The Champions League returns on the 30th September, with next week being reserved for the Europa League, where we will see Celtic travel to Crvena Zvezda on Wednesday, and Rangers play Belgian club Genk at Ibrox on Thursday.

September 19, 2025

Hunt For First League Win Continues For Both Dundee and Motherwell

Dundee and Motherwell shared the points on a rainy afternoon in the ‘City of Discovery’, with goals from Tawanda Maswanhise and Luke Graham either side of half time ensuring a share of the spoils for both sides in a 1-1 draw at Dens’ Park. The result means that Dundee have drawn three and lost two in the league so far under new head coach Steven Pressley, whilst Motherwell remain undefeated after drawing all of their Premiership fixtures so far. It was a very principled performance from the Steelmen in the first half, playing a fast tempo style of play that has become synonymous with new gaffer Jens Berthel Askou, patiently playing out from the back and when an opening presented itself, they attacked with speed and exploited the gaps. As for Dundee, they probably soaked in more pressure than they would have liked to in the first period, opting to play a more direct style, with long balls unsuccessfully going over the top to frustrated lone striker Simon Murray. Ultimately, this played into the hands of Motherwell, who dominated the first half and looked to be the only side trying to score, yet regretfully they found themselves only ahead by one. Winger Tawanda Maswanhise collected the ball from a narrow position halfway inside the Dundee half, and drove to the right to get a shot on his favoured right foot, firing it passed Jon McCracken in the Dark Blues net, putting the visitors a goal to the good with just over half an hour played. The Zimbabwean’s tally now stands at 7 in all competitions. Motherwell continued with their constant threatening on the break, with Dundee outnumbered numerous times and seemingly spared by Calum Scott’s halftime whistle which killed the backlog of momentum generated by the ‘Well. The home fans made their feelings known to Pressley and his side as boos rang around Dens’ as the players headed up the tunnel. Whatever Steven Pressley said at halftime, it certainly done wonders for the hosts. Cameron Congreve, who had just come on at the break, drove down the right hand side and crossed the ball in for centre back Luke Graham to produce a powerful header beyond Calum Ward and level the scoring, not even two minutes after the restart. And they were so nearly ahead come the 50th minute. A looping ball was played into the Motherwell area, met by a diving Simon Murray, but only went as far as the side netting, with many in Dundee’s main stand believing the captain had scored. An even bigger chance for Murray went begging just five minutes later. Congreve was denied a second assist after he put the ball on a plate for his captain who was just 10 yards from goal, but he dragged his effort wide of the post as his hunt for his first goal of the league season goes on after 15 last campaign. Motherwell showed signs of their first half performance again in the closing half hour, with their biggest chance coming 13 minutes from time. Goalscorer Maswanhise could have made it a double when he was played in, but his first time effort was beaten away by McCracken. Dundee would be reduced to ten men just five minutes from time. Loanee Yan Dhanda, who signed for the season from Hearts, was given his marching orders following a high challenge on Motherwell’s Lukas Fadinger. The visitors from North Lanarkshire face a double header against Aberdeen next, travelling to Pittodrie in the cup before hosting them the week after in the league, As for Steven Pressley’s men, they will be in league action next weekend looking to pick up some points against Livingston at home. DUNDEE: McCracken 7 , C. Robertson 5, Astley 6, Wright 5, F. Robertson 6 (Jones 1), Murray 4 (Samuels 1), Yogane 6 (Hay 3), Westley 4 (Congreve 7), Dhanda 3, Graham 6, Hamilton 5 MOTHERWELL: Ward 5, Gordon 5, Stamatelopoulos 5 (Osong 4), Fadinger 6, Maswanhise 8, Watt 6, Koutroumbis 5 (O’Donnell 4), Longelo 6, Welsh 6 (Balmer 5), Charles-Cook 5 (Just 4), Said 6(Priestman 3)

September 13, 2025

Scotland Remain Unbeaten After Sweeping Aside Belarus

Scotland maintained their unbeaten start in their bid to qualify for the 2026 World Cup after a workmanlike 2-0 victory over Belarus. Despite it being an away match, Belarus are under a UEFA sanction which forbids them hosting any games, as well as playing any in front of fans. This meant that the game was held in Zalaegerszeg, Hungary, in front of a crowd of 0. Goals from Che Adams and an own goal from Belarusian defender Zakhar Volkov were all that was needed for Scotland, in what was a very convincing performance as they picked up all the points in their second qualifier of the campaign. Scotland lived up to their tags as favourites and imposed themselves in the opening quarter of an hour. It looked like Billy Gilmour may have won a penalty 15 minutes in, but the referee and VAR correctly awarded a Belarus goal kick. Just two minutes later, the Napoli midfielder chested down a cross from Ben Gannon Doak and fired a half volley goal wards from the edge of the box, but this was saved by Fedor Lapoukhov. Gilmour’s club teammate and Ballon D’Or nominee Scott McTominay came even closer just on the half hour mark, where he got onto the end of Max Johnston’s first time lobbed cross, but his stabbed effort went wide of the mark. Gilmour again nearly gave Scotland the lead with a low bullet being saved onto the post just minutes before the half time break, but from this the ball broke to John McGinn, who curled a cross in from wide right, which was met by McTominay who headed it across the six yard box for Torino forward Che Adams to slide on to as the two Serie A players linked up to put the Scots ahead just before half time. The workmanlike performance continued from Scotland as they continued to impose themselves on the game, with McTominay putting a trademark leaping header straight down the Belarus keeper’s throat eight minutes after the restart. But the two goal cushion came 25 minutes from time, with Gilmour and Adams playing a neat one-two, finalised with a Gilmour header being knocked into the Belarus net by Volkov. Che Adams could’ve had a double on the 81st minute. The striker, who scored his 10th goal for his national side tonight, opted to round the goalkeeper after a zipped ball into his feet from captain Andy Robertson, with the resulting effort cleared off the line by Pavel Zabelin. Scotland now have 4 points from their opening two matches, tonight and a resolute 0-0 draw away to Denmark, and have a great opportunity in the October international break to stamp their authority on the shaping of the group with a Hampden double header against Greece and Belarus respectively. SCOTLAND: Gunn 6, Robertson 7, McKenna 7, Souttar 6, Johnston 6 (Hickey 2), Ferguson 6, Gilmour 8 (McLean 1), McGinn 7, McTominay 7 (Miller 1), Doak 8 (Christie 2), Adams 7 (Dykes 1) BELARUS: Lapoukhov 6, Pechenin 5 (Malkevich 2), Zabelin 6, Volkov 4 (Demchenko 2), Parkhomenko 5, Karpovich 4 (Pigas 5), Ebong 5, Kalinin 6, Myakish 5 (Gromyko 3), Barkovskiy 5, Malashevich 4 (Melnichenko 4)

September 8, 2025

Steve Clarke Names His Squad As Scotland Kick Off Their World Cup Qualifying Campaign

With another qualification campaign around the corner, Steve Clarke has named his squad for the first set of World Cup qualifiers against Denmark and Belarus. The goalkeeping department was a major issue in June’s friendlies against Iceland and Lichtenstein. Steve Clarke however, has a full roster available this time round. Angus Gunn, Zander Clark and Liam Kelly the chosen three after returning from injuries. It does remain to be seen who will take the number one shirt with Gunn and Kelly back-ups at their respective clubs meanwhile, Zander Clark has endured a difficult few weeks between the sticks at club level. Aaron Hickey returns to the squad for the first time since 2023 when he played in a 2-0 defeat away to Spain. Andy Robertson, John Souttar, Grant Hanley and Scott McKenna remain ever present in the defensive selections. There’s also a place for Max Johnston who has went from strength to strength since switching Motherwell for Austria. He’s just made a move to the English Championship with Derby County. Balon D’Or nominee Scott McTominay who is the go to man for the big occasions has been called up in midfield alongside John McGinn, Billy Gilmour, Lewis Ferguson, and Ryan Christie. Fresh from a move to Italian side Udinese Lennon Miller also retains his place after an impressive first showing in a Scotland jersey in June. Ben Gannon Doak has returned from injury and makes the squad his electric pace and ability to take players on will be much welcome boost for the tartan army faithful. The youngster impressed on loan at Middlesbrough last season i and will be looking to take his impressive form in pre-season from club to country. Lyndon Dykes is another returnee from injury who has made the squad. He will be looking to reignite his partnership with Torino forward Che Adams. George Hirst who picked up his first Scotland goal against Lichenstein returns to the squad for the qualifiers. However, the most notable inclusion is that of Hibernian striker Kieron Bowie. The 22 year old has made a fast start to the season with 3 goals in 7 appearances including a goal of the season contender against Partizan Belgrade . It marks his first inclusion in the senior squad. He will be hoping for a chance to stake his claim for a jersey. He last scored in a Scotland jersey back in 2023 for the under-21 side. Scotland take on Denmark on the 5th September before travelling to take on Belarus 3 days later. Squad Goalkeepers: Angus Gunn, Zander Clark, Liam Kelly Defenders: Grant Hanley, Jack Hendry, Aaron Hickey, Dom Hyam, Max Johnston, Scott McKenna, Anthony Ralston Andy Robertson, John Souttar, Kieran Tierney Midfielders: Ryan Christie, Lewis Ferguson, Ben Gannon Doak, Billy Gilmour, John McGinn, Kenny McLean, Scott McTominay, Lennon Miller Forwards: Ché Adams, Kieron Bowie, Lyndon Dykes, George Hirst 💬 Have Your Say What do you think? Let us know in the comments or on social media @SNNsports.

August 31, 2025

Partick Thistle Avoid Scare to Defeat Raith Rovers

Partick Thistle halted a Raith Rovers comeback as they defeated a side that came back from two goals down 3-2 at the Wyre Stadium at Firhill. This result inflicts Raith with their first league defeat of the campaign, with Thistle now unbeaten since their opening day 5-1 thrashing to St. Johnstone and find themselves level on points with today’s travelling side. The hosts raced in front with a blistering performance in the opening quarter of an hour of the game, with journeyman talisman Tony Watt giving the Jags the lead in the 7th minute of the game, when he slid onto the end of a low cross courtesy of Thistle academy graduate Aidan Fitzpatrick who’s work down the left wing made it all happen. Fitzpatrick would score one of his own just six minutes later, cutting onto his right foot with the use of a couple of stopovers, and putting his laces through the ball to bury it passed Josh Rae in the away goal. Thistle remained on top of the visitors up until the 20th minute which is when the momentum began to shift in favour of the Kirkcaldy side, when Partick Thistle captain Lee Ashcroft brought down Raith forward Paul McMullan inside the box and was booked for his troubles. Dylan Easton took the spot kick, and sent goalkeeper Josh Clarke the wrong way as he tucked the ball into the bottom left corner the goal. Raith found inspiration from this avenue back into the match and really began to take the game to Mark Wilson’s side, eventually finding an equaliser after being two behind so early on in the 36th minute. McMullan chased an aerial long ball and chested it down to put himself through one on one with Clarke. He took it round the Thistle goalkeeper but the angle was unkind to him, leaving him with no option but to square it back across for midfielder Ross Matthews to hammer home and level the scoring. Many of the Thistle faithful had their hearts in their mouths on the 65th minute when Raith striker Lewis Vaughan went down inside the box, with many fearing the home side had conceded another penalty. Alas, the referee brandished his yellow card to Vaughan for simulation. Thistle reclaimed their lead 16 minutes from time, as both of their wingers combined to give them the advantage. Aidan Fitzpatrick again with some stunning play down that left flank to beat his man, before his left footed cross zipped across the box for Logan Chalmers to run onto the end of at the back post to smash it goal wards to net his 5th goal of the season in all competitions. There was a couple of late scares of an equaliser for Raith in the dying minutes of the game. Jack Hamilton had a chance to level the scoring around 10 minutes from time, but couldn’t sort his feet out and the ball hit his leg and sailed over the bar from close distance. Merely just a couple minute after this, a cross from wide right nearly floated into Josh Clarke’s goal, but his palm to divert it only led to another chance for Paul McMullan, with the attacker seeing his effort cannon off of the crossbar. Raith piled on further pressure, with the ball falling to Jordan Doherty in acres of space in the final minute of regulation time, but his half volley hit the side netting and Raith’s hopes of a point on the road evaporated. Partick Thistle: Clarke 5, Reading 6, Ashcroft 5, Chalmers 8 (Lawless 3), Crawford 6 (Turner 4), O’Reilly 6, Fitzpatrick 9 , McPherson 6, Stanway, Watt 8 (Samuel 4), Lets’osa 7 (McBeth 2) Raith Rovers: Rae 5, Hanlon 5, Fordyce 5, Matthews 6 , Mullin 6 (Vaughan 3), McMullan 8, Brown 6 (Hamilton 3), Byrne 5, Doherty 7, Easton 7 (Chin 3), Stevenson 5

August 30, 2025

Scottish Teams Find Out Their Fate In European Draws

Rangers, Celtic and Aberdeen today all found out their opponents for the league phases of the Europa League and the Europa Conference League. Rangers and Celtic were in pots 1 and 2 of the Europa League draw respectively, whilst Aberdeen found themselves in pot 4 of the Conference League draw following their drop down to the competition last night. The pot 1 part of the draw arguably could not have provided Rangers and Celtic with tougher opponents, with both sides hosting Italian giants AS Roma who are the highest ranked side in the competition as per coefficient. Rangers also have to travel to Portugal to take on 2011 winners FC Porto, the second highest ranked side, whilst Celtic travel to De Kuip to take on Eredivisie giants Feyenoord, who they defeated under Arne Slot in 2023 to end a ten-year Champions League hoodoo. In pot 2, both sides have also been pitted against the 2011 runner ups, Portuguese outfit SC Braga, another side that will be flying in to Glasgow on two separate occasions. Celtic’s away tie from this pot sees them travel to Serbia as they were drawn away to the intimidating atmosphere of the Rajko Mitic Stadium, home of Crvena Zvezda, and Rangers also make the journey to Eastern Europe, as they will play Ferencvaros of Hungary’s capital, Budapest. Pot 3 again sees one side fare up against both of the Glasgow giants in Sturm Graz, however unlike AS Roma and SC Braga, they will only need to make their way to the East End of Glasgow rather than the Southside as well, as they have been drawn away to Celtic and at home to Rangers. Rangers’ home tie of this pot sees them host Ludogerets of Bulgaria, who have won their own top flight 14 times on the trot, whilst Danish side FC Midtjylland host another green and white Scottish club, after they knocked Hibernian out late in extra time in the qualifiers to help themselves reach this stage of the competition. In pot 4, Rangers host Belgian side Genk and travel north to face Brann of Norway, who last faced Scottish opposition last season in the form of St. Mirren in Conference League qualifying. Celtic’s draw was concluded with a visit from Dutch side FC Utrecht, where infamous former Hoops goalkeeper Vasilias Barkas currently plies his trade, and they will also make the journey to Northern Italy to take on FC Bologna, captained by Scotland international Lewis Ferguson. As for Ferguson’s former side, Aberdeen, their 6 Conference League opponents were discovered following the Europa League draw. The Dons host Ukrainian side, and European regulars Shakhtar Donetsk from pot 1, and will also see visits from Ligue 1 opposition Strasbourg and Armenian side Noah, who travelled to the UK last season to play Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the last term’s Conference League, losing 8-0 to the eventual competition winners. There are some enjoyable away days on the cards for the Red Army, as they make the trip to the capital of Czechia to play Sparta Prague. They can also look forward to the slightly warmer climates of Greece’s capital Athens when their side play AEK, and another trip slightly more East to Cyprus, as they face AEK Larnaca, who dumped out a Legia Warsaw side that narrowly beat Hibs last night to deny Scotland having four Scottish sides in European group phase competition.

August 29, 2025

Dons crash, burn and drop into Conference League in Bucharest

FCSB 3 Aberdeen 0 (FCSB win 5-2 on aggregate) Aberdeen have been consigned to UEFA Europa Conference League football this season as they went down to Romanian side FCSB in the Europa League Playoff round. The Dons return to group phase football for the first time since 2023, where they also found themselves in European football’s third tier competition, in a campaign which produces memorable wins over Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt but ultimately no qualification for the latter stages. Jimmy Thelin’s side did well to keep the tie alive last week at Pittodrie, having gone down 2-0 in the second half of the first leg, yet they would get no better opportunity to go ahead for the first time in the tie in the opening minutes of the game, when striker Ester Sokler, who scored a 90th minute equaliser last week, trickled a rebounded effort into the hands of goalkeeper Stefan Tarnovanu who gracefully collected the ball into his hands from six yards out. Aberdeen more than went toe to toe with the Romanian hosts for large parts of the first half, with Ante Palaversa firing a half volley over the bar and summer recruit Adil Aouchiche looking threatening down the left hand side at one stage, yet in equal measure they also got out of jail with Dimitar Mitov rushing to clear a Nicky Devlin backpass, and FCSB failing to make Graeme Shinnie pay after the Dons captain was lackadaisical in possession. With just five minutes to go until half time and Aberdeen looking to go into the break with the tie still level, disaster struck in the most frustrating and cruelest of fashions. David Miculescu was sent through and beat the already booked Alexander Jensen to the through ball, falling to the ground and the ball hitting the arm of the Dane. The referee waved play on, but VAR intervened and perhaps unfairly, the referee pointed to the spot and gave Jensen his marching orders, before Darius Olaru tucked away the penalty to give the hosts the lead. With the man advantage, the second half was all FCSB and they quickly made their dominance count. Adrian Sut picked up the ball from outside the area, and he ferociously struck the ball to fire it passed the Bulgarian in the Aberdeen net to double his side’s advantage who looked to be in a rush to make the UEFA Europa League. Just on the hour mark, Aberdeen fans would have been forgiven if they started to watch the game from behind their couches, when Olaru netted his second of the evening with big thanks to a deflection. Fans across Scotland’s minds at this stage would have been fearing the worst for Aberdeen, given what happened to Rangers in their away tie last night, but the Reds stood firm to keep the scoreline at a minimum. It was degree of inevitability that the Dons would end up in the Conference League and so it proved to be in the end, with FCSB taking the win overall. FCSB: Tarnovanu 6, Cretu 7, Ngezana 7, Popescu 7 (Miculescu 3), Radunovic 6, Lixandru 6, Șut 8 (Chriches 2), Miculescu 6, Olaru 9 (Alhassan 5), Tanase 7 (Politic 3), Birligea 6 (Albec 2) Aberdeen: Mitov 4, Devlin 5, Milne 5, Knoester 4, Jensen 2, Palaversa 6 (Yengi 3), Aouchiche 6, Shinnie 5, Keskinen 6 (Milanovic 3), Polvara 5 (Nilsen 4), Sokler 4 (Clarkson 5)

August 28, 2025

Livingston put the pressure on Falkirk with a dominant win over Ayr United

Venue: Home of The Set Fare Arena Date: 18/4/2025 Time: 19:45 A strong performance from Livingston saw them stroll passed Ayr United, and apply pressure to league leaders Falkirk in the race for promotion. Three first-half goals pretty much cemented Livingstons’ win and guaranteed them at least second place. With just one win in five, Ayr United looked to be on the hunt for three big points in this race for second. Three points would take them just two points behind Livingston with just two games to go. However, a win away at Livingston will be hard to come by as they are undefeated here in their last five. In what was a frantic start, Livingston opened the scoring just six minutes in. A Stephen Kelly strike from the edge of the box took a deflection when headed goalbound, leaving Harry Stone no chance at saving it. The goal did not settle the game; in fact, it had the opposite effect. Ayr continued to battle, and Livingston struggled to keep hold of the ball, providing half-chances at both ends of the park. It was once again Livingston providing the attacking threat. After some good link-up play between Cristian Montano and Robbie Muirhead played the ball was played through to Kelly, who once again had an effort at goal. This time, the shot was saved by Stone. 30 minutes had passed, and the game was yet to settle down, with neither team managing to take control or create consistent chances. Livingston continued to have the better attacking threat since they scored. However, they were yet to double their lead. However, in the 31st minute, Livingston were awarded a penalty after Stone clattered into Montano. After a slight delay, Muirhead put his penalty down the centre of the goal, watching on as Stone dived to his right. Just before the half-time whistle, Kelly added another to his account. After a long throw into the area, the ball bobbled out to the edge of the box, and Kelly was the man to meet it with a thunderous half-volley into the bottom right corner. An impressive start for the Lions saw them grow in confidence as the half went on. Livingston went into half-time three goals to the good, looking likely to secure second in their race for promotion. A triple substitution for Ayr saw Jamie Murphy, Cole McKinnon, and Patrick Reading make way for Jake Hastie, Dylan Watret and Lenny Agbaire in an attempt to salvage something in the second half for the away team. 60 minutes had passed, and Ayr started to grow into the match a little. They created a couple of half-chances and dominated most of the ball. However, they were yet to find the net. Livingstons’ first chance of the half came in the 64th minute, after a Daniel Finlayson cross was poorly cleared, Scott Pittman managed to get on the end of it. However, the shot was blocked. Ryan McGowan received a yellow card in the 69th minute after a clumsy tackle on McAllister just inside his half. A massive chance came Livingstons’ way in the 71st minute, after Kellys’ perfect corner to the back post was met by Finlayson. However, he sent his volley well wide of the post in a chance that was harder to miss. In the 80th minute, Livingston added another to their tally. A great team goal saw Montano tap the ball in at the back post. A great performance from the Lions was made even better as they strolled past Ayr to add the fourth goal of the game. As if four goals weren’t enough, Reece McAlear added a fifth for Livingston. The ball dropped to him on the edge of the box in the 91st minute, and he caught a volley as sweet as you like, rifling it into the bottom corner. The full-time whistle couldn’t have come quick enough for Ayr United as they were played off the park by Livingston. Lineups: Livingston: J.Prior, R.McGowan, S.Pittman(R.MaCalear), S.Kelly, R.Fraser, J.Brandon(D.Finlayson), L.Smith(A.Shinnie), R.Muirhead(T.Yengi), M.Tait, C.Montano(S.May), D.Wilson Subs: J.Hamilton, M.Clarke, R.McAlear, T.Yengi, S.May, D.Finlayson, M.Ubochioma, M.Nottingham, A.Shinnie Manager: D.Martindale Ayr United: H.Stone, N.McAllister, P.Reading(D.Watret), G.Oakley, C.McLennan(M.Rus), G.Stranger, J.Murphy(L.Agbaire), J.Henderson, M.McKenzie, S.McMann, C.McKinnon(J.Hastie) Subs: R.Mutch, F.Musonda, J.Hastie, M.Rus, L.Agbaire, D.Watret Manager: S.Brown Referee: Steven McLean Attendance: 1,606 Managers comments: Martindale: “First half was really, really good, I felt, and then we managed the second half. We had a lot of chances with the game, I think the surface was really quick tonight, which really helped us with a couple of the goals” Brown: “We bottled finishing second place, I take full responsibility… that’s on me. We’ve got to get that mentality into the lads… how to win games, when you come away from home, you’ve got to be horrible.”

April 19, 2025