Team: Purdie, Holt, McQuarrie, Jardine, Banford, Warwick (McDowell), Gauld, Varcoe (Montgomery), Wight, P.Kearney, S.Kearney, Unused Subs – Walker, Kirk & Docherty

Scorers – S.Kearney 2 (1 pen), P.Kearney 1

Assists – P.Kearney 1, J.Banford 1, S.Kearney 1

Referee – I Brack

Match Report; Max took on Lochar at Jocks Loaning on a heavy park facing a stiff breeze in the opening forty five minutes. Max still not at full strength did field Paul Kearney for the first time for several months though and the big man did make a difference. The openening 10 minutes of what was a tousy match was frenetic with Max taking an early lead when a Paul Kearney pass found Sean Kearney who slotted home from 12 yards out. Lochar replied in the 27th minute. A defensive clearance landed at Mike McGauchie’s feet and he fired in a curling cross which beat keeper Purdie with the help of the strong wind. Lochar went further ahead in the 44th minute. McGauchie was allowed to cross again and he found Howie who beat his marker to head home.

The second half started at the same pace the first half ended and Lochar further extended their lead when Howie again beat his marker to head home a McGuachie corner. Max were then reduced to 10 men when keeper Purdie was red carded for dissent. Campbell added a fourth for Lochar with a diving header and it looked like it could be a rout but Max dug in and took the game to Lochar in the final quarter of the match. Paul Kearney reduced the deficit with a shot from 10 yards out and with 4 minutes remaining Sean Kearney slotted home a penalty after Johnny Banford was pushed in the box. With virtually the last kick of the ball Banford had the chance to level the scores for an unlikely comeback but his shot flashed past the post and Lochar held on for the victory.

Manager’s Report; We are still a long way from our best, the injuries don’t help but at least we put a bit of a fight up when we were 4-1 down. We need to build on this. When we are back to full strength we will be able to dominate teams but until then we need to be a bit cleverer when playing the better teams. Our discipline is a disgrace and needs to be sorted. Lochar and Uppers who had terrible records last season are streets ahead of us. We still haven’t got the message.

MOM Points

3 – Bruce McQuarrie

2 – Davie Gauld and Paul Kearney

1 - Sean Kearney, Tommy Jardine

Team: Purdie, Holt, McQuarrie, Jardine, Banford, Traynor (Warwick), Gauld, J.Smith, Varcoe (Montgomery), Kearney, Walker, Unused subs – Hughes & Kirk

Scorer – Kearney 1 (pen)

Assist – Walker

Referee – S.Grier

Match Report - Max took on Lochmaben in this Queens trust league match on a very soft Whitehills park. Both team have not played for several weeks due to the weather but it was the home side who started much the brighter and they kept Max penned into their own half for much of the first half an hour of the match. Max defended well and rode their luck a couple of times but to be fair they rarely threatened the Lochmaben goal. Halftime came with the match scoreless.

Lochmaben pressed again right from the start and never allowed Max much breathing space however the occasional attacks they did mount showed that they were far from solid at the back. The home side took the lead in the 55th minute. A low shot from 22 yards out was deflected high into his own net by defender McQuarrie. Keeper Purdie who was by far the man of the match was wrong-footed and had no chance.

Max tried to respond and the speedy Walker did cause them a few problems with his pace. In the 65th minute Walker was put through by Smith and got in front of his marker. The defender was forced into a tackle but caught the strikers legs as well as the ball and the referee awarded the spot kick, further compounding Lochmaben’s woes by sending the player off. Sean Kearney, back after a 4 month injury layoff fired home from the spot to make it level at one apiece.

Thistle surprisingly spent more of the remainder of the match defending but they did have the better of the chances as the normally prolific Lochmaben strikers accepted that it was not going to be their day. Max were reduced to 10 men themselves with 10 minutes to go when Montgomery was red carded for a bad tackle. The final score of one all was a good result considering the pressure that Max were under for most of the match.

Manager’s Report – Excellent defensive display with a weakened team a good draw was the best we could expect. We could have stole it near the end but that would have been a bit unfair on Lochmaben who dominated most of the game. Duncan was excellent in goal and had no chance with the deflection. Holty played well as did Tommy and Sheba. All in all a good day with Terry Traynor making his debut and with Cha and Sean back after 4 month absences.

MOM Points

3 – Duncan Purdie (Just the kind of day you need your keeper have his best game of the season)

2 – Tommy Jardine (Outstanding again from Tommy) and Darren Holt (back after 8 games away, played well, hopefully his knee is ok after hurting it again)

1 – Bruce McQuarrie (Solid all day in the air), Ally Walker (worked on scraps but kept at it and won the penalty), Davie Gauld (Kept at it all day)

Team; Purdie, Cochrane, McQuarrie, Jardine, Gauld, Wight, Banford (Kirk), Wilson (Warwick), J.Smith, Carling, Paton (Walker), Unused Subs – Hughes, Docherty

Scorers : None

Assists : None

Referee : J.Thomson

Match Report : Thistle’s chances of lifting the league title took a huge dent with this loss at home to rivals Upper Annandale. The Moffat side started much the better in this match and controlled play for much of the early part of the match without troubling Purdie in Thistle’s goal. Max had their best spell of the opening 45 in the middle of the half creating the best their best two chances. Unfortunately these were scorned and the opportunity to take the lead passed by. Uppers took the lead in the 44th minute, Neil Roddick heading in at the back post after some poor defensive work.

The second half followed the same pattern as the first with Uppers in the ascendency again without troubling Purdie. With 30 minutes remaining Walker and Warwick were introduced and the change tipped the balance of play towards Thistle. However, although pressing the Moffat side Thistle failed to trouble keeper Jardine. With 5 minutes to go Thistle were reduced to 10 men when Carling had to come off with an injury having already used their three subs. 

Uppers took advantage of Max throwing caution to the wind in the last 2 minutes, scoring 2 to leave the final score at 0-3.

Manager’s Report; Not our best performance against Uppers, although our shape was ok we never got close enough in the middle of the park. Uppers punished us in the last couple of minutes to make the scoreline look worse. Only the sixth game ever that we have failed to score.

MoM Points

3 – Tommy Jardine, 2 – Neil Cochrane, 1 – James Smith

Team; Purdie, Cochrane, Warwick (Kirk), McQuarrie, Varcoe, Banford, Johnstone (Wilson), Smith, Gauld, Carling, Walker (Docherty), Unused subs - Hughes

Match Report; Max took on Terregles on a difficult pitch in this league match at the tight Terregles ground. In a match that was seriously devoid of any quality Max nearly threw a 2-0 halftime lead away but eventually came away comfortable 4-2 winners. The opening goal came in the 25th minute when ally Walker ran on to a neat Johnny Banfor pass to finish well. Max added a second in the 35th minute when Graeme Carling flicked a James Smith free kick over the keeper with a neat header. Terregles got back into the game in the 48th minute when a series of mistakes lead to a Spike Chambers tap in. Terregles drew level in the 60th minute when John Grierson ran through and neatly slotted home. Max went in front again in the 65th minute when a james Smith corner was sidefooted against the bar by Bruce McQuarrie. Graeme Carling was on hand to fire home. Jordan Docherty rounded off the scoring in the 85th minute when he was set up by Graeme Carling.

Manager's Report; Not our best display. But pitch was difficult. Take the 3 points and move on.

MOM Points

Hard to pick this week, not many highlights.

Johnny Banford 3

Ally Walker 2

James Smith 1

Team; Purdie, Cochrane, McQuarrie, Jardine, Varcoe, Banford (Walker), Wight (Lavan), J.Smith, Gauld (Docherty), Halliday, Carling, Unused Subs - Warwick, McDowell

Scorers - G.Carling 3, R.Halliday 3, J.Smith 2, B.McQuarrie 1, J.Banford 1

Assists - J.Smith 4, D.Gauld 1, J.Banford 1, R.Halliday 1, G.Carling 1, A.Varcoe 1

Referee - W.Vivers

Match Report - Max took on a Stewartry team at Crocketford for the first time. Stewartry have struggled this season and this was no different. Max played some decent controlled football for the whole 90 minutes and scored at regular intervals throughout matching their best ever score in the end. It took 20 minutes for the first goal to arrive a 18 yard low drilled shot from James Smith who has been on fire this season. Johnny Banford adde the second on the half hor with a scuffed shot from 6 yards out. Graeme Carling made it three a couple of minutes later with a header from a free kick. Ross Halliday scored the best goal of the season with an amazing mazy run past at least 4 players then firing low hard shot past the onrushing keeper. james Smith added his second with the best team goal of the game. Sidefooting home a superb Ross Halliday cross from 8 yards out. The half finished with Max leading by five goals to nil.

The second half was only 1 minute old when Graeme Carling made it six, the big man running on to an Alan varcoe through ball. On the hour mark Bruce McQuarrie made it seven with a header from a corner. Ross Halliday got his second, sidefooting home from 10 yards. Graeme Carling got his hattrick with a 22 yard shot and Ross Halliday scored with a rare header for his hattrick to round off the scoring.

Manager's Report - All in all a very good day at the office. We controlled the match and kept our shape well throughout. In truth we should have had more as we created a lot of decent chances. Several of the goals were of the highest quality especially Rosco's mazy run. There was no arguing except for one occasion when Tommy took a bye kick when Dunc was still off the park. Nice to see Ross Halliday grabbing a hattrick to celebrate the birth of his daughter.

MOM Points

Difficult this week as there were several good displays. James Smith gets the three points with a fine performance capped off with 2 goals and 4 assists. Ross Halliday has to get the two points with a good all round display. His first touch was superb and he could have had more goals than his hattrick if he had been a bit luckier. Four players get one point each. The three defenders, Cocky, Sheba and Tommy J all deserve it after keeping a clean sheet for the first time in a while. Varco gets the final point for a committed performance in midfield. 

Team; Purdie, Varcoe, Russell (Lavan), McQuarrie, Banford, Wight, Gauld (Johnstone), Cochrane, Walker (Paton), Carling, Unused subs – Docherty, Hughes

Scorers – G.Carling 3, J.Smith 3, C.Lavan 2, D.Gauld 1, N.Paton 1

Assists – J.Smith 3, G.Carling 2, C.Lavan 1, N.Paton 1, L.Johnstone 1, A.Walker 1

Referee – D.Erskine

Match Report – Max took on a First Base team who have been shipping a lot of goals lately on a fine autumn day. From the start Max knocked the ball about keeping possession as much as possible. In a match such as this there were loads of chances most of them scorned by Max. It was a major surprise that Dynamos took the lead on the 9th minute. A harmless looking free kick was flicked over keeper Purdie’s head into the net. It took Thistle until the 29th minute to respond with their first goal. After that it was a procession with the number of missed chances the main talking point on the sidelines. It was 3-1 at halftime. The final score was 10-2. The best goal of the game was the last which was an overhead kick by young William Jeans of First Base.

Manager’s Report -Before the match the instruction was to keep possession and work openings and apart from a few occasions where daft shots were taken the team played as per the plan. New signing Ally Walker looked lively and James Smith was immense in midfield and easily deserved the MOM award. Not easy playing poor team like First Base to happy that we got through match with only one booking and no arguing. Good to see wee Lavy back on the scoresheet.

MOM Points

3 - James Smith, 2 - S.Wight 2 & D.Gauld, 1 - C.Lavan, A.Walker, L.Johnstone

Team; Purdie, Varcoe, Russell (Lavan), McQuarrie, Banford, Wight, Gauld (Johnstone), Cochrane, Walker (Paton), Carling, Unused subs – Docherty, Hughes

Scorers – G.Carling 3, J.Smith 3, C.Lavan 2, D.Gauld 1, N.Paton 1

Assists – J.Smith 3, G.Carling 2, C.Lavan 1, N.Paton 1, L.Johnstone 1, A.Walker 1

Referee – D.Erskine

Match Report – Max took on a First Base team who have been shipping a lot of goals lately on a fine autumn day. From the start Max knocked the ball about keeping possession as much as possible. In a match such as this there were loads of chances most of them scorned by Max. It was a major surprise that Dynamos took the lead on the 9th minute. A harmless looking free kick was flicked over keeper Purdie’s head into the net. It took Thistle until the 29th minute to respond with their first goal. After that it was a procession with the number of missed chances the main talking point on the sidelines. It was 3-1 at halftime. The final score was 10-2. The best goal of the game was the last which was an overhead kick by young William Jeans of First Base.

Manager’s Report -Before the match the instruction was to keep possession and work openings and apart from a few occasions where daft shots were taken the team played as per the plan. New signing Ally Walker looked lively and James Smith was immense in midfield and easily deserved the MOM award. Not easy playing poor team like First Base to happy that we got through match with only one booking and no arguing. Good to see wee Lavy back on the scoresheet.

MOM Points

3 - James Smith, 2 - S.Wight 2 & D.Gauld, 1 - C.Lavan, A.Walker, L.Johnstone

Team; Purdie, Holt, McQuarrie, Jardine, Banford, Gauld, J.Smith (Cochrane), Varcoe (Johnstone), Wight (Learmont), Halliday, Carling, Unused subs – Russell, Docherty

Scorer – R.Halliday 1

Assist - G.Carling 1

Referee – Unknown

Match Report; This away match at Kilbirnie against strong opposition was always going to be difficult and so it proved to be. The Ayrshire side had several players who have previously played at a higher level and it showed throughout the match but especially in the early stages of this match. The home side looked much sharper and it took Thistle some time get up with the play. Kilbirnie went one up in the 2nd minute, profiting from a defensive mistake. They then went further ahead in the 20th minute with an 8 yard header coming from a fine cross from the right. Max gradually got into the game as Kilbirnie’s energy and zip dropped off a little. Thistle carved out several great chances in the last third of the half and should really have come in at halftime with at least one goal to their name.

The second half started with Max pressing the home side and again Thistle carved outs some good chances. The deficit was reduced in the 65th minute with a goal from Ross Halliday who sidefooted home a Graeme carling pass. This came after a goal mouth scramble where a Kilbirnie defender handled the ball twice in quick succession on the line, only the fact that Thistle scored in the second phase of the move prevented the referee from reducing them to 10 men. Max continued to press and although they had the pressure they failed to carve out any more decent chances. Kilbirnie killed the tie off in the 75th minute with an excellent header from a corner. Max rang the changes and all three subs were used. Kilbirnie added 2 more in the dying minutes as Max pushed extra men forward in an attempt to pull one back.

Manager’s Report; Another bad day at the office for Max. Kilbirnie were a good side who trained twice a week and who had several ex junior players in their ranks and it showed. We did get on top of them in the second half and on another day might have caused them a bit more trouble. Certainly if we had taken one of the several chances that came our way at the end of the first half things might have been different. Good to see Sweaty in a Max shirt again. We need to stop the arguing among ourselves.

Team: Purdie, Holt, Russell (Warwick), Jardine, Banford, Lavan (Docherty), Varcoe, Wight, J.Smith, Halliday, Carling, Unused subs – Penny, Cochrane, Kirk

Scorers : G.Carling 2, J.Banford 1

Assists : R.Halliday 2, J.Smith 1

Referee : J.Thomson

Match Report: Max took on the YM on a windy day at the Kingholm is this Queens Trust league match. Thistle looked the brighter of the two teams in the first half and despite shooting into a stiff breeze they controlled the play creating some decent chances along the way. They went ahead in the 6th minute with Johnny Banford prodding home from less than a yard out after some excellent work by Ross Halliday. The YM levelled four minutes later the goal coming from a dangerous inswinging corner. Max defender Darren Holt the unlucky player to head into his own net at the back post. Max regained the lead in the 18th minute when Graeme Carling scored with a neat flick of a header from a superb Ross Halliday cross. Max had several decent chances to increase their lead but failed to capitalise.

The YM changed things around a bit for the second half and put Max under a pressure. They equalised in the 48th minute from a corner, this time the swirling wind played a part deceiving keeper Duncan Purdie. Steven McDill the player on hand to fire home from close range. The YM went in front for the first time in the 50th minute, Craig Broadfoot volleying home from a poor defensive header. Max were back on level terms five minute later, Carling was again the man on target heading home a James Smith corner.

Thistle looked dodgy at the back and were pressed back by the YM attack and really failed to put any pressure on the YM rearguard at all. Max did create chances but these were squandered and the YM held on to grab a well deserved point.

Manager’s Report : Our defensive frailties are hurting us. Although we missed lots of chances we did score three which should be enough to win any game. This really was a game of two halves. We dominated the first and played some really good football going forward with several players looking superb, especially Johnny Banford, Ross Halliday and James Smith. The second half was completely different and it was the defensive midfield play of Alan Varcoe that prevented an embarrassing defeat. We are better than this and we all know it. The YM will be encouraged by their display and if they play like they did in the first half in future games they will cause a few upsets.

MOM Points

3 - Alan Varcoe

2 - Ross Halliday, Graeme Carling

1 - Johnny Banford, Craig Lavan

Team; Purdie, Holt, Russell, Jardine, Varcoe, (McDowell), Banford, Halliday, J.Smith, Gauld, Carling (Docherty), Paton (Lavan), Unused subs – Penny, Kirk

Scorers – G.Carling 1, N.Paton 1

Assists – G.Carling 1, R.Halliday 1

Referee – D.Laurie

Match Report; Max took on local rivals Lochar Thistle in this important league match at Troqueer on a lovely sunny September day. Max who have had a lot of injury and suspension problems in recent weeks were happy to see star defender Tommy Jardine pass a fitness test, also striker Nicky Paton was available after his recent move to Glasgow.

The match started at 100 miles an hour and rarely let up for the full 90 minutes. Recent matches between the two teams have followed a bit of a pattern and although Lochar have revamped their team this season this game was much the same as the previous 10. As usual Lochar played some decent midfield stuff and Max worked hard and were a bit more physical with Max creating slightly more clear cut chances.

Max got the perfect start going in front within a minute. Nicky Paton scoring from 7 yards out after Graeme Carling had neatly laid the ball off. The match was fast and furious in the early stages and it didn’t take Lochar long to equalise. There was a bit of good fortune involved though. The ball was knocked in from wide on the right and looked to be going wide at the near post and was left by the defender after a shout from the keeper. The ball had different ideas and bounced on the line and to the dismay of the Max defence unbelievably bounced back into play falling to Mike McGauchie at the back post for an easy header from 3 yards out.

The play was end to end and both sides had a decent penalty claim from before the half time whistle.

The second half saw Max slightly shade it on chances created. Nicky Paton blasted over with only the keeper to beat and James Smith fired a curing shot just past the far post.

Big striker Graeme Carling who was carrying at least 2 knocks picked up during the game showed great character and got to the front post ahead of his marker to knock in a great pass from Ross Halliday from 1 yard out on the hour mark. Max though they had went 3-1 a few minutes later with a carbon copy of the second goal. The ref disallowed it for offside much to the amazement of both sides.

Max scorned another couple of half chances before Lochar pushed an extra man up front and had a decent spell in the last 10 minutes without creating any clear cut openings. They did get the equaliser from a corner when veteran defender Norman Russell headed into his own net.

Manager’s Report. A sold display from everyone involved. Lochar huffed and puffed and didn’t really have too many chances. We probably will look back at Davie Laurie’s decision to rule the third goal out with a bit of what could have been at the end of the season but we will soldier on. Certainly we were more like our old selves after last week’s uncharacteristic sloppy display. Noddy played well in a pressure match at centre half. Geordie was excellent and didn’t want to come off despite carrying a couple of bad knocks and then had the ball in the net twice when he looked ready to be subbed. Tommy and Jamesey played to above average and everyone else played really well.

MOM Points

Graeme Carling 3

Tommy Jardine/James Smith/Norman Russell 2

No 1s