Football Season Guide

Airdrie are coming into the new season off the back of a disappointing campaign, in which a fifth-placed finish flattered their efforts. As such, head coach Ian Murray has completed a clear out with the expectation of better. On paper, their squad is certainly stronger, but they would surely have liked to have put in a better League Cup display. They fared credibly against Championship but struggled to overcome newly promoted Clyde, while they were held to a draw against Queen’s Park. Murray will hope that it is simply a case of a new group of players taking time to gel, though supporters were critical last season of what they felt was an overly defensive attitude. Airdrie have a virtually entirely new squad this season, with one of the few exceptions being goalkeeper David Hutton, who received mixed reviews last term. Otherwise, they have picked players up from a variety of sources, building a new-look defence around Sean Crighton and Josh Kerr, who arrived from Brighton’s Under-23 squad. Airdrie have made a number of such left-field signings, including fellow defender Paul McKay from Cardiff and James Cowan from Oxford United’s U18s. While they have picked players up from unlikely sources, they have also strengthened from more traditional sources, grabbing a handful of strong League One performers last season, including veteran left-back Adam Echersley, central midfielder Nat Wedderburn and Dumbarton attacker Calum Gallagher. They may be yet to really shine going forward this season but, with Ally Roy on their books, they look to have good depth in the offensive areas, strong players in the heart of the midfield and the basis of a good defence. Perhaps one area where they may find themselves a little lacking is in the creative department, with much dependent on the talents of Dean Hawkshaw, who finished off last season strongly.