Football Season Guide

Alloa were relegated from the Championship last season and have had a strange League Cup campaign, losing against poor Brechin and Cowdenbeath sides but overcoming Premiership Livingston 2-1 thanks to a couple of late goals. Indeed, these surprise losses continued an alarming trend of dreadful failures on the road – they only won two away matches in all competitions last season. There have been big changes at the club over the summer, with Barry Ferguson taking over as manager. Although he enjoyed success at Kelty, there are serious doubts over his abilities in such a role, with a lack of tactical intelligence a problem, though his high-profile name has allowed him to sign strong players in the past. Over the course of the summer, Alloa have not signed particularly impressively. Conor Sammon is the highest-profile arrival at the club, joining from Falkirk along with Mark Durnan. Neither has impressed particularly in the last two seasons in League One, with Sammon especially flattering to deceive when it was hoped he would be a star performer. Other arrivals have typically come from weaker League One clubs, with left-sided defender Daniel Church joining from Dumbarton, Clyde duo Craig Howie and Mark Lamont signing up, and attackers Ben Armour and Steven Boyd joining up from Peterhead. None of these players are likely to be decisive but should be decent squad fillers. In terms of what Alloa already have, there are some solid building blocks, almost all of whom are vastly experienced – well into their 30s. Neil Parry and Craig McDowall are two good goalkeepers, Scott Taggart should be one of the best right-backs in the league, while in attack Kevin Cawley and Alan Trouten have been fine attackers for many years. Stefan Scougall should also bring a great deal of quality to the side.