SPFL: Skipper all set for second quarter

Posted on Friday, October 20th, 2023

It’s the beginning of second quarter of the SPFL 2 season this weekend as The Spartans welcome Dumbarton to Ainslie Park.

The sides met on the second match day of the campaign and it took a late, but sublime, strike by Jamie Dishington to share the spoils as Spartans picked up their first away points in the SPFL.

Ahead of top four clash in the capital, Captain Kevin Waugh reflected on the opening round of fixtures and had a look ahead to Saturday’s showdown with the Sons.

“Hand on heart, I think I genuinely didn’t know what to expect after gaining promotion.  I think you could watch highlights of every game and analyse them to death, but it’s not until you actually get on that pitch and go up against your opponents one to one that you start to understand what their strengths and weaknesses are as individuals and a group.

“And whilst we weren’t probably sure what to expect, I’m certain the same went for everyone else when the played us for the first time too.  That’s that all out the window now though as we’ve all played each other once, so now we have a better understanding and knowledge when going into these type of games.

“In terms of where we are in the table, we’re probably there or thereabouts in terms of our target.  Yeah, you could probably look back at games and think we should have picked up a couple of more points here and there but we have to learn from that.  We’ve been punished for things that we possibly wouldn’t have been last season in the Lowland League so that’s a learning curve for us to take on board and focus on turning those scenarios round as the season unfolds. 

“With the league being as tight as it is, these extras points can make the difference between making the play-offs, keeping out of the basement battle or even winning the league depending on what your target is.”

Waugh, who recently became the latest Spartans player to notch up a century of appearances for the club, led out the team as skipper on that historic first SPFL away trip at The Rock.

“I was actually really impressed by Dumbarton when we played against them.  I think they sort of showed us the level that we have to get to.  Don’t get me wrong, I thought during the game we rose to that level.  I know we scored late through a great goal by Dish but we were fully deserving of that point.  

“Dumbarton were up at the top end of the table last year and are there once again however we’ve already proven that we can compete against them over ninety minutes and we’re looking forward to locking horns once again come 3pm on Saturday.”

Average home attendances in the SPFL 2 this season have Spartans sitting in third place with 642 heading to Ainslie Park, a fact that hasn’t gone unnoticed by Waugh.

“As players, we’ve noticed the rise in crowds this season.  It’s probably stemmed from the play-offs last season and the catalyst behind the growth in attendances.  Obviously the young Ultras have made a vocal difference but we’ve also seen so many new faces week in, week out across Ainslie Park in their Spartans merch enjoy their football.

“The lads love playing in front of bigger crowds and rise to the occasion.  If they could turn out in their numbers once again on Saturday and get behind us, we’d be grateful for the support.”

Kick-off is 3.00pm. The Cafe Bar will be open from 1.30pm. With Storm Babet in play, please do dress accordingly and travel safely.

Save time at the turnstiles and buy your tickets in advance via Fanbase