Loony Joons: Floody nightmare as promotion push gets stuck in the mud

Apr 24 2012

Inside the wacky world of Junior football with Glaswegian hack and Johnstone Burgh goalkeeper Fraser Wilson

SATURDAY'S clash with league leaders Carluke Rovers possibly involved the most bizarre ending I have ever encountered in 24 years of playing football.

To set the scene; we were leading the crucial promotion encounter 3-0 after 72 minutes and the weatherman was throwing rain, hail and anything else he could get his hands on at us, turning the park into something like a paddy field.

Check this to get an idea of the conditions.

So when the referee suddenly picked the ball up in the centre of the pitch like a stroppy schoolboy and called for our backroom staff to bring him a big brush I should have known it wasn't his barnet causing him concern.

This match was getting abandoned with us leading the league leaders 3-0. But a huge question mark hung over Keanie Park as we wondered what would happen next.

Incredibly nobody in the ground - players, officials, fans or even the ref himself - was actually clear on what the outcome of the match should be. As there were only 18 minutes left we were adamant we had done enough to claim the three points.

The site of a squad of drenched footballers huddling around a supporter's iPhone as he desperately searched for an online rule book must have been priceless.

Then we thought we had the answer as the fan with the plan announced what we all wanted to hear - 70 minutes must be played for a result to stand.

Cue relief and back-slapping at what we thought was an excellent result in the bag.

That joy lasted approximately 10 seconds before we realised the dosy punter had 'googled' the information from the site of the Jakarta Football Associaton.

Referee David Ingram soon put us straight with confirmation - from the SFA this time - that the match would have to be replayed. Talk about taking the wind out our sails.

As always the episode has caused much consternation and commotion on the online fans' forums and it's sure left a sour taste in our mouths.

Given the effort we had put in to build-up such a solid lead against the side topping the table only to be told to start again from scratch, the frustration must be understandable to most football people.

Maybe a fairer outcome would have been to play the last 18 minutes at a later date with us beginning 3-0 up. It may sound ridiculous but there is a precedent - in Spain at least, check here.

In the end it's just the latest twist in what has developed into an epic race for this season's second division title with no less than six sides still in with a chance of promotion going into the last couple of weeks.

Things are a bit more cut and dried in division one though as Glasgow Perthshire put the championship to bed with a 2-0 win at Cambuslang on Saturday.

Billy Adams' side have enjoyed a stunning season, losing just one of their 23 games so far and winning 19, as they charged full steam ahead of the rest of the pack.

To think this club stood on the brink of extinction five years ago is almost unbelieveable and Adams - without whom Shire would almost certainly have gone to the wall - deserves massive credit for turning their fortunes around.

I sincerely hope the crowds begin to filter back to Keppoch Park and support the Possil men as they venture for the first time into the Superleague next season.

Match of the day: Pollok v Auchinleck Talbot, Stagecoach Premier League, Newlandsfield Park, 2pm.

Team of the week: Glasgow Perthshire. Couldn't be anyone else after the Shire became the first junior side in the west region to wrap up the title with a 2-0 win at Cambuslang.