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BACK TO NORMAL AS OF MONDAY OCTOBER 18
16/09/2010 16:27:07 by SPLBanter filed in SPL Banter Blogs.
To our readers,
Unforseen circumstances have meant that the SPL Banter site has not been updated for several weeks now, as many of you will have no doubt noticed.
First of all we would like to apologize for this, secondly we would like to announce that the site will be back to full capacity and working as normal as from this coming Monday, October 18, 2010.
Stay tuned for daily news updates on all SPL clubs, results, match reports and comments.
Also, get involved yourselves by leaving your own comments on the latest news stories or start a debate yourself in the Forum.
Once again apoloies for the inconvenience.
The Editor.
Go to The SPL Page >
Jelevic deal done?
19/08/2010 15:00:24 by SPLBanter filed in Transfers.
Further to the news we brought you this morning regarding the on-off transfer of Nikica Jelevic to Rangers, Sky Sports News are now claiming that Jelevic WILL NOT play for Rapid Vienna this evening and is in fact on his way to Glasgow to tie up the loose ends on his protracted move to the Ibrox club.
It is rumoured that Jelevic has sacrificed a substantial pay-off from the Austrians by refusing to play tonight as he wanted to force the transfer through.
Sky quote Rapid representative Rudolph Edlinger as saying: "Against all expectations, Nikica Jelavic said today he no longer wanted to play for Rapid,
"That's a shock for the whole Rapid family.
"Anyone who goes through with such a decision has no place here anymore."
Go to Rangers Page >
Lenny hopes for full house
19/08/2010 14:44:00 by SPLBanter filed in News.
Celtic gaffer Neil Lennon is again calling on the club’s fans to fill Celtic Park to capacity for tonight’s crucial Europa League play-off first leg.
Speaking on the official Celtic website Lennon said: "It would be nice to get a big crowd because I thought the atmosphere against Braga was great,
"The fans were very encouraging even though we were a long way behind in the tie.
"They stuck with the team and the team changed the game around so we will be looking for a similar sort of response again."
Lennon was in bullish mood ahead of the game following Saturday’s decent victory over a stubborn Inverness side, and feels his side have the quality to see off the challenge of the Dutch over two legs.
He continued: "The intensity, the commitment and the quality of our play recently has been good,
"We’re very positive going into these two games against Utrecht.
"We’re looking to win the game and progress in the competition. European football is vital for Celtic.
"Obviously the priority is trying to get the title back from Rangers but I’ve had some great years in the last decade or so in Europe and we’d like to get in and have a shot of that.
"Getting through these two games is important for us and the rest of the season."
Team news to follow.
In other news Lennon has received some unwanted news on the injury front after it was revealed that full-back Andreas Hinkel will be out for the season after rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament.
A statement on the clubs website reads:
It is with great regret that Celtic Football Club announces that, after an accident in training, Andreas Hinkel has suffered significant injury to his right knee.
It has been confirmed after MRI scans as a rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament. Andreas will be referred for the appropriate investigation and assessment.
He will require surgery and could be out for a period of up to nine months.
Clearly this is very sad news for Andreas and he will be receiving every support from the Club.
Go to Celtic Page >
Daly wary of card happy ref
19/08/2010 13:04:29 by SPLBanter filed in News.
Terrors skipper Jon Daly has warned his team-mates to stay on the right side of Croatian referee Marijo Strahonja in tonight’s Europa League play-off match against AEK Athens at Tannadice.
Strahonja who is one of the youngest referees on UEFA’a list at 34 has gained a reputation on the continent for liberally flashing red and yellow cards during Europa League matches in recent seasons.
Daly is concerned that tackles considered the norm in the SPL, or northern European football in general, could land United’s inexperienced [in Europa League terms] players to fall foul of the tough European rules.
The big Irishman said: "The referee we've got averages five or six yellow cards in a game so we've got to be aware of that.
"If he's card happy then we can't go flying into tackles because you could easily find yourself getting a red or yellow card.
"It's going to be exciting, the crowd will get the boys up for it at one hundred miles an hour so you have to be careful.
"I'll have a chat with the boys before the game and I'm sure the manager will too because we can't afford to give any silly free-kicks away.
"From what we've seen they look dangerous from set plays so it's definitely a case of us being sensible.
"It's not going to be like an SPL game in terms of play going up and down the park. The style of playing in Europe is totally different and that's something we'll have to adapt to."
Team news to follow.
Go to Dundee United Page >
Well threaten Cardiff with legal action
17/08/2010 16:08:38 by SPLBanter filed in News.
Motherwell have confirmed that they are considering issuing a winding up-order against Cardiff City in a bid to clear a £175,000 debt owed to them by the Championship club.
The Welsh club, who today announced the signing of Craig Bellamy on a season-long loan deal, have failed to pay monies due for the transfer of defender Paul Quinn [pictured].
Motherwell accepted an offer of around £300,000 for Quinn in July 2009 with an initial instalment being paid up front.
The SPL club’s chief executive, Leeann Dempster, who accused Cardiff of showing them a lack of respect, said: “The board now believe that Cardiff’s position is untenable given their recent activity in the transfer market.
“Given all these circumstances and with legal and moral weight behind us, Motherwell FC have no option but to pursue all possible legal routes.
“These include issuing a winding-up order, arresting assets or sending bailiffs to their ground on match day to take possession of cash.”
Well have been owed the balance of the transfer since January this year and claim that Cardiff have been unprofessional in dealing with the matter.
The signing of Bellamy today, who is presumably on a very healthy weekly wage seems to have been the straw that broke the camel’s back with a clearly angry John Boyle appearing on Sky Sports News to state the SPL club’s position.
Go to Motherwell Page >
New boy Hartley gets Dons off to a flyer
16/08/2010 15:21:23 by SPLBanter filed in News.
With Celtic currently rebuilding under new boss Neil Lennon much of the talk regarding transfers in Scottish football have been focused toward the East end of Glasgow, and understandably so.
However, it is Mark McGhee’s astute signing of the vastly experienced Paul Hartley on a free transfer from Bristol City which could turn out to be the best piece of business done in Scotland this season.
McGhee announced that Hartley would be his skipper on the very day he signed him, and the player revealed that his new manager had asked him to go out and lead his young team by example.
And that is exactly what the 33 year-old did on Saturday afternoon against Accies.
Aberdeen were [correctly] awarded three penalties during the match and the skipper took the responsibility for each and everyone, scoring a rarely seen hat-trick of spot-kicks.
Post match Hartley joked: "I can get that written on my grave now!"
He continued: "I couldn't have imagined that happening. It is not very often that you get three penalties in one game, but they were all penalties.
"It was nice to take the responsibility and score. I was pretty confident. I think young Chris [Maguire] was wanting to take the first one but, being the captain, I felt I had to take the responsibility and step up and try to get us the lead.
"This is a good start for us but we have to build on it. We know there is still a long way to go."
Treble aside Hartley was excellent for 67 minutes before McGhee rewarded him with an early bath and a standing ovation from the Pittodrie faithful, who turned out in impressive numbers despite last season’s disastrous effort.
And with Scotland capitulating meekly in Stockholm a few days before the questions were immediately being asked; can Hartley still do a job for the national team?
Hartley himself is still willing to answer the call: "I have always said I will never ever retire from international football, I will always make myself available."
He said "If I'm playing well I hope to get picked, but if I'm not then I won't be picked, it's as simple as that.
"All I can do is try to keep playing well and you never know. There are two big games coming up next month, so if I'm playing well then great."
His club manager still believes he has a future at international level. "He knows he has to perform like that every week," McGhee said.
"He will get tremendous confidence from what has happened today. The crowd and the players around him will also have tremendous confidence in him.
"If he stays healthy and we continue to improve then there is no reason why he can't work his way back into it."
Go to Aberdeen Page >
Motherwell 2 Hibernian 3
15/08/2010 16:43:06 by SPLBanter filed in Match Reports.
Motherwell 2 Hibernian 3
Last season at Fir Park these two served up that stunning and unforgettable 6-6 draw, today didn’t quite live up to that but it was another thrilling game, and another fantastic advertisement for SPL football.
It was Hibs who threatened first when Stokes used his strength to ease aside Mark Reynolds and only the outstretched leg of goalkeeper Darren Randolph prevented the striker finding the far corner with his low drive.
But with the Fir Park pitch looking resplendent Motherwell quickly seized the initiative with Chris Humphrey in particular causing Hibs all sorts of problems with his pace down the right flank.
It was ironic then that Well should take the lead after some fine work from Tom Hateley on the other wing. With his dad Mark watching from stands he sent a wicked low inswinger into a dangerous area, Chris Hogg was slow to react letting John Sutton get in ahead of him, and the big Englishman stuck out a foot to poke the ball past Graham Stack.
Motherwell remained on top for the majority of the first half with Stack saving well from Sutton and Hateley.
But there were warnings at the other end when Hibs did get out, Mark Reynolds scuffed a clearance into the path of Kevin McBride, but the former Well player hit his shot straight at Randolph who palmed it over the bar.
Hibs hit back with the last kick of the first half when Bamba made a nuisance of himself in the box nodding a Riordan free-kick back across the face of goal, it dropped perfectly for arch-poacher Anthony Stokes to side foot home from 3 yards.
Stokes’ strike must have thrown a spanner in to the works for Craig Brown who had probably already planned his half-time team talk.
Motherwell came out flying again and had the better of the opening exchanges but it was the Edinburgh side who almost took the lead but for a world class save by Darren Randolph to deny Stokes.
It was real end to end stuff as Motherwell went straight up the other end where the impressive Humphrey hit the inside of Stack’s post with a cross-come-shot from the right channel.
However, it was Hibs who got the breakthrough on 64 minutes after another brilliant delivery by Riordan. The former Celtic player swung the ball towards the back post and Hanlon forced it over the line, although the ball did appear to come off his arm.
Motherwell then had a penalty claim turned down when Sutton thought he was illegally barged by Chris Hogg.
With just over 15 minutes left Riordan rolled the ball into the path of Liam Miller who drilled the ball under fellow Irishman Randolph from an angle and what should have been a reasonably comfortable end to the game for them.
And it would have been but for Colin Nish’s crazy tug on the Shirt of Blackman two minutes later who was going nowhere inside the Hibs penalty area.
Referee Craig Thomson was superbly positioned to call the penalty and he was correct to do so.
Jamie Murphy stepped up and calmly rolled the ball past Stack to set up an exciting finish.
The game fizzled out though with Lasley having a last gasp effort to snatch a point blocked by substitute David Stephens.
Craig Brown will be disappointed not to have taken something from a game in which they contributed plenty, but perhaps not about the way in which his players went about their business.
He will be delighted with the acquisition of Darren Randolph who looks very capable and if he can keep Chris Humphrey [who had his problems last season] fit and happy he could be a big player for him too.
As for Hibs, they had a habit of giving teams a head start last season and coming back and look like they may do that again this season.
One very noticeable thing about Hibs from a totally neutral point of view is the seemingly telepathic understanding between Riordan and Stokes. These two will cause SPL defences a lot of problems this season, if only John Hughes had been brave enough to play the pair in the away leg in the Europa League qualifier.
Motherwell: Randolph, Saunders, Hammell, Reynolds, Craigan, Hateley (Blackman 74), Humphrey (Angelis Charalambous 84), Jennings, Lasley, Murphy, Sutton
Hibernian: Stack, Hart, Hogg, Hanlon, Bamba, De Graaf (David Wotherspoon 65), McBride, Miller, Nish (Stephens 79), Riordan, Stokes
Goals: Motherwell: Sutton [13], Murphy pen [75]; Hibernian: Stokes [45], Hanlon [64], Miller [73]
Go to Hibernian Page >
St Mirren 1 Dundee United 1
14/08/2010 22:54:50 by SPLBanter filed in Match Reports.
St Mirren 1 Dundee United 1
Danny Lennon’s new look St Mirren were one agonising minute away from pulling off a surprise opening day victory against last season’s Scottish Cup winners Dundee United at Greenhill Road.
It took a last gasp Jon Daly goal to deny The Buddies, but in all honesty it was the least United deserved for their efforts, with Paul Gallacher easily the busier of the two keepers.
Saints had earlier taken the lead in spectacular fashion on 73 minutes when new signing Sean Lynch sent a right-foot volley into the top corner from the edge of the box.
But United’s pressure eventually told when Daly side-footed home a Morgaro Gomis cross.
St Mirren: Gallacher, Van Zanten, Potter, McGregor, Travner, Murray, Thomson, Robb (Love 80), Lynch, Wardlaw (Mair 61), McGowan
Dundee Utd: Pernis, Dillon, Dixon, Dods, Kenneth, Conway (Cadamarteri 81), Robertson (Myrie-Williams 74), Buaben, Gomis, Daly, Goodwillie
Goals: St Mirren: Lynch [73]; Dundee United: Daly [89]
Go to St Mirren Page >
Hearts 1 St Johnstone 1
14/08/2010 22:05:37 by SPLBanter filed in Match Reports.
Hearts 1 St Johnstone 1
Sam Parkin scored a goal on his debut to give 10 man St Johnstone a hard fought away point on the opening day of the season at Tynecastle.
Hearts, the better side for most of the match, looked to be going in to the break a goal up when Calum Elliot headed in Lee Wallace's near post cross on the stoke of half-time.
But Saints hit back less than a minute later trough Parkin’s excellent header from twelve yards.
Hearts new strike pair of Kevin Kyle and Stephen Elliot were given a standing ovation when they made their first appearances as 65th-minute substitutes but neither could find the net as the second half failed to reach the heights of the first.
The visitors held on at the end despite being reduced to ten men in the 74th minute when Steven Anderson was dismissed for a rash tackle on Suso Santana.
Post match Derek McInnes was critical of Anderson saying: "The sending-off changed everything, I need to see it again but it was a stupid challenge, I'm not going to defend it; it was a really stupid challenge from Steven Anderson. It's something he'll have to learn from because it put his team-mates right up against it and they answered it.
"He should be down about it. He's not a kid anymore, he needs to be better than that in getting involved in that tackle. The boy was not going anywhere. We've got a lot of trust and faith in him and he was playing well but he made the referee make a decision and he has to learn from it.''
Hearts gaffer Jim Jefferies was reasonably satisfied given his lengthy injury and suspension list, but felt the sending off didn’t help his side either.
He said: "I think we were the team that looked like we could win the game. And I've seen it a thousand times when someone gets sent off, they sit in. They knocked it up front looking to stem the flow.
"For me, with the number of players we've had out, there were lots of positives. I felt we were the most dominant side out there. That's credit to the boys that came in and did well.''
Hearts: Kello, Wallace, Barr, J. Thomson, C.Thomson, Zaliukas, Palazuelos, Suso Santana (Novikovas 79), Black, Templeton (Elliott 66), Elliot (Kyle 66)
St Johnstone: Enckelman, MacKay (Rutkiewicz 54), Grainger (Taylor 21), Duberry, Anderson, Morris, Millar, Craig, Davidson, Parkin, Haber (Samuel 72)
Goals: Hearts: Elliot [45]; St Johnstone: Parkin [45]
Go to St Johnstone Page >
Hearts 1 St Johnstone 1
14/08/2010 22:03:55 by SPLBanter filed in Match Reports.
Hearts 1 St Johnstone 1
Sam Parkin scored a goal on his debut to give 10 man St Johnstone a hard fought away point on the opening day of the season at Tynecastle.
Hearts, the better side for most of the match, looked to be going in to the break a goal up when Calum Elliot headed in Lee Wallace's near post cross on the stoke of half-time.
But Saints hit back less than a minute later trough Parkin’s excellent header from twelve yards.
Hearts new strike pair of Kevin Kyle and Stephen Elliot were given a standing ovation when they made their first appearances as 65th-minute substitutes but neither could find the net as the second half failed to reach the heights of the first.
The visitors held on at the end despite being reduced to ten men in the 74th minute when Steven Anderson was dismissed for a rash tackle on Suso Santana.
Post match Derek McInnes was critical of Anderson saying: "The sending-off changed everything, I need to see it again but it was a stupid challenge, I'm not going to defend it; it was a really stupid challenge from Steven Anderson. It's something he'll have to learn from because it put his team-mates right up against it and they answered it.
"He should be down about it. He's not a kid anymore, he needs to be better than that in getting involved in that tackle. The boy was not going anywhere. We've got a lot of trust and faith in him and he was playing well but he made the referee make a decision and he has to learn from it.''
Hearts gaffer Jim Jefferies was reasonably satisfied given his lengthy injury and suspension list, but felt the sending off didn’t help his side either.
He said: "I think we were the team that looked like we could win the game. And I've seen it a thousand times when someone gets sent off, they sit in. They knocked it up front looking to stem the flow.
"For me, with the number of players we've had out, there were lots of positives. I felt we were the most dominant side out there. That's credit to the boys that came in and did well.''
Hearts: Kello, Wallace, Barr, J. Thomson, C.Thomson, Zaliukas, Palazuelos, Suso Santana (Novikovas 79), Black, Templeton (Elliott 66), Elliot (Kyle 66)
St Johnstone: Enckelman, MacKay (Rutkiewicz 54), Grainger (Taylor 21), Duberry, Anderson, Morris, Millar, Craig, Davidson, Parkin, Haber (Samuel 72)
Goals: Hearts: Elliot [45]; St Johnstone: Parkin [45]
Go to Hearts Page >
Rangers 2 Kilmarnock 1
14/08/2010 21:06:20 by SPLBanter filed in Match Reports.
Rangers 2 Kilmarnock 1
The day started great for Rangers with the unfurling of the championship flag by Chairman Alistair Johnston amongst hearty celebration from the Ibrox faithful.
In addition was the introduction of their first new player in two years, James Beattie, and the promise of one or two more to follow.
Then just after the quarter hour mark Rangers had more to celebrate when Kenny Miller somehow bundled the ball home after a James Fowler had blocked a Kirk Broadfoot effort on the line.
Rangers had started the game well and when Millers effort went in you could have forgiven the home fans for believing they were in for a straightforward afternoon, especially given Killie are many a pundit’s favourites for the drop.
However, Mixu Paatelainen’s side with several new faces in it hadn’t read the script and settled in making life difficult for their hosts.
Toward the end of the first half Killie enjoyed decent spells of possession in the Rangers half and Danny Invincible and James Fowler both went close to equalising.
Rangers saw things out until half time and started the second period on top, with Beattie squandering a decent chance for a debut goal after Frazer Wright’s slip had let him in.
Rangers, however, did add to their lead on 57 minutes when their best player on the day Steven Naismith drove home an angled shot from Miller’s lofted pass.
Killie though responded immediately when Sasa Papac was correctly penalised for a push on Dayton in the penalty box.
Jamie Hamill stepped up a calmly stroked the ball past McGregor from 12 yards.
Kyle Lafferty almost eased the Rangers’ nerves with a free-kick which whistled past the upright, but it was Killie who finished the stronger as they looked for an equaliser, so much so that Walter Smith left his seat in the directors box for one in the dugout.
James Beattie was withdrawn after 80 minutes to mass applause from the majority inside Ibrox. As debuts go it was ok, nothing more. In his defence he only arrived in Glasgow yesterday and hasn’t even trained with his new teammates yet. More will be expected of him in the coming weeks and months.
Rangers just about deserved to see the game out based on the chances they created, but Killie kept them honest for 90 minutes and made them work for their 3 points.
Rangers: McGregor, Weir, Broadfoot, Papac, Whittaker, Bougherra, Edu, Miller, Lafferty, Naismith, Beattie (Hutton 80)
Kilmarnock: Bell, Fowler, Wright, Gordon, Bryson, Hamill, Invincibile (Sammon 83), Silva (Hay 58), Kelly, Dayton, Pascali
Goals: Rangers: Miller [16], Naismith [57]; Kilmarnock: Hamill pen [60]
Go to Kilmarnock Page >
Aberdeen 4 Hamilton 0
14/08/2010 19:47:32 by SPLBanter filed in Match Reports.
Aberdeen 4 Hamilton 0
A rarely seen hat-trick of penalties by new skipper Paul Hartley on his SPL debut for the club, and a bundled effort from Zander Diamond were more than enough for a rampant Aberdeen to see off visitors Hamilton on the opening day of the season.
Sone Aluko who looked refreshed and back to his very best was a thorn in Hamilton’s side from the get go and it was the Nigerian’s trickery that won both first half penalties which Hartley converted with aplomb.
The first was awarded on 18 minutes when Aluko was hauled down by Simon Mensing, the second shortly before half-time when he was too good for Jack Ross forcing the full back to halt his progress with an illegal tug on the jersey.
On both occasions referee Dougie McDonald was absolutely correct.
Aberdeen continued the second period where they left off and were 3-0 up within six minutes of the restart when Diamond fired home a Hartley corner after a goalmouth scramble.
Aberdeen and Hartley weren’t quite finished yet though and the former Hearts and Celtic midfielder was given the chance complete his unusual treble when Jack Ross for the second time conceded a spot kick, this time for a trip on Maguire.
Hartley duly converted before being subbed alongside the equally impressive Aluko to a standing ovation.
Dons gaffer Mark McGhee was delighted with his skipper’s contribution saying: said: "Paul's performance and leadership out there was invaluable.
"Having the luck to get three penalties and a hat-trick on his debut is the stuff that legends are made of. It was brilliant for us all to be part of that today.''
Accies boss Billy Reid had no problem with the penalties and was philosophical in defeat.
He said: "I thought the first two were stonewall penalties, the third one I would need to see again. I have no complaints at all and I thought the referee handled the situation well.
"It is a strange game as you can sometimes only concede a couple of penalties in a season, so to concede three in one game is quite incredible.
"All credit to Paul Hartley for scoring all three but you can't expect to defend like that and win the game. It was strange because I thought we played decent football at times and were the better team for the first 15 minutes but it was Aberdeen's day. Days like this happen in football and you just have to take your medicine.''
Aberdeen: Howard, McArdle, Diamond, Ifil, Considine, Pawlett, Folly, Hartley (Young 67), Aluko (Mackie 67), Pawlett (Fyvie 54), Maguire, Magennis
Hamilton: Cerny, Ross, Mensing, Canning, Skelton, Imrie, McDonald (Routledge 67), Buchanan (Kirkpatrick 55), Wilkie (Thomas 41), Flavio Paixao, Marco Paixao. Subs: Murdoch, Graham, McAlister, Thomas, Kirkpatrick, Routledge, Gillespie.
Goals: Aberdeen; Hartley pens [19, 40, 65], Diamond [51]
Go to Hamilton Page >
Inverness CT 0 Celtic 1
14/08/2010 16:17:12 by SPLBanter filed in Match Reports.
Inverness CT 0 Celtic 1
To coin an old cliché this was the stereotypical 'game of two halves'.
Caley at home on their return to the SPL after a year in exile came flying out of the blocks and had a nervy looking Celtic on the back foot for the best part of the first half.
But although the Highlanders had the majority of the possession in the opening period they missed a real punch in the final third being restricted mainly to half chances.
Celtic came onto a game in the latter part of the first half and had the best two chances, with Maloney rattling Ryan Esson’s cross bar with only the keeper to beat, and Samaras striking the upright with a header from a Charlie Mulgrew corner.
The second half was a different story as whatever Neil Lennon said during the break appeared to sink in.
Celtic lifted the tempo, took the game by the scruff, and ten minutes in the game was lit up by a brilliant individual dribble and finish by Paddy McCourt who up until that point had been largely anonymous.
It would also prove to be his last contribution as he was bizarrely injured in a clash with teammate Shaun Maloney as he turned to celebrate.
Celtic should have been out of sight but missed several good chances in front of goal and forced Esson into a couple of really decent saves.
The lively James Forrest, on for McCourt, came closest when he crashed a shot off the cross bar from distance.
In truth the margin of the victory probably didn’t reflect Celtic’s dominance in the second half.
Inverness CT: Esson, Tokely, Munro, Gillet, McCann, Cox, Duncan, Hayes (Sutherland 86), Ross (Blumanshtein 61) (Proctor 78), Odhiambo, Rooney
Celtic: Zaluska, Hooiveld, Cha Du-Ri, Mulgrew, Loovens, Brown, Ledley, McCourt (Forrest 62), Samaras, Fortune (Juarez 89), Maloney
Goals: Celtic; McCourt [56]
Go to Inverness CT Page >
Scotland team to play Sweden
11/08/2010 15:53:25 by SPLBanter filed in News.
Kick-off 19:00 [live on ESPN]
Scotland team to play Sweden [4-5-1]: McGregor, Broadfoot, Kenneth, Berra, Wallace, Robson, D Fletcher[c], Thomson, Adam, McFadden, S Fletcher.
Go to National Page >