Football Season Guide

Montrose enjoyed a terrific campaign last time out as they pushed for the playoffs in their first season following promotion. Stewart Petrie has kept the same core of experienced players and will hope for similar results this time around. The Mo were extremely streetwise last season and, while they did lose some games heavily – particularly against superior opposition –, they were able to grind out a lot of stuffy victories. They were not a team that was pleasing to the eye, but that was never their aim. Furthermore, as their team was full of veterans, they were not in demand from elsewhere. Indeed, the only two players to leave this summer and Jamie Redman and Michael Bolochoweckyj, who spent much of last term on the bench. A slow development process in the squad seems to be taking place, meanwhile. Kerr Waddell has arrived from Dundee while Cammy Ballantyne – one of the best right-backs in the league last season – has joined up from Dumbarton. Both add youth to the team, as does striker Blair Lyons, who joins up from Stirling Uni, where he was watched by a number of league clubs. In goal, meanwhile, Aaron Lennox arrives from Partick to provide competition for Allan Fleming. Martin Rennie is set to start the season as their leading forward but, while he amassed a good tally last season, many of these were penalties. Russell McLean hopes to show what he can do after a January arrival that was hampered by serious injury. There is decent depth going forward. In midfield, the team will still revolve around a clutch of veterans, including Patrick Cregg, Terry Masson and Paul Watson, all of whom are well into their 30s. They had plenty of legs last season but it remains to be seen if that is the case this time around. Having a plastic pitch helps as it keeps postponements and therefore fixture congestion to a minimum. Matty Allan’s return from serious injury is a boost in the defence, where 36-year-old Sean Dillion and 34-year-old Iain Campbell are both set to play important roles again. With a squad trimmed to 20 over the summer, it will be important to keep players fit.