Football Season Guide

In what has been a tumultuous year, East Fife have done well to retain the majority of their squad over the course of the summer and will be one of the teams that begins the new season with a squad close to the one that finished the previous one in March. Each of the last two campaigns have seen Darren Young’s side start very promisingly only to fade badly in the second half of the season, which is an eventuality that they will be aiming to avoid this time around. Of the players they have lost over the summer, only Anton Dowds was a regular factor in the starting XI. Picked up from university football, over the two years he was at the club, he excelled and earned a move to full-time Falkirk. Thomas Collins is hoping to follow a similar path of success after arriving from BSC Glasgow, while Jack Hamilton has joined up on loan from Livingston. Undoubtedly the greatest acquisition of the summer, though, was Danny Swanson, who will provide creativity and class in the midfield. He is seen as a player who will be playing below his level. East Fife have retained a solid squad, from veteran Kevin Smith in attack along with Ryan Wallace, to Aaron Dunsmore and Danny Denholm occupying the flanks, not to mention Scott Agnew and Ross Davidson. The scramble for places in the midfield will be a very real one. There is less depth at the back, but there is no want for quality. It is an area that they may need to reinforce at some stage, however. Meanwhile, Brett Long and Jordan Hart in goal are not the best in the league and are of a similar standard. This could be East Fife’s greatest weakness.