Football Season Guide

Falkirk are making a long-awaited return to the Premiership after a prolonged spell in the lower leagues that the club believe was a dark period in their history. They were on the verge of having to go part-time at one stage but persevered and have raced to successive promotions from the third tier. Now the Bairns are back with a sense of momentum following successive title runs, with manager John McGlynn trying to capitalise on this feel-good factor. Falkirk have signed sensibly. They are a side that has not changed dramatically since winning League One, and the bulk of that team has been retained for the Premiership. It seems a smart move given the margins between the bottom six in the top-flight and the Championship are slim. Instead of trying to rebuild entirely, keeping the foundations of their squad looks the right thing to do. That’s not to say quality hasn’t been added in key areas. Scott Bain appears and excellent signing in goal. He has plenty of experience at the highest level, and so too does striker Brian Graham, who at 37 was prolific in the second tier with Partick last term. He will hope to displace awkward striker Ross MacIver, who may not have the quality to succeed at this level. Another shrewd addition appears to be Lewis Neilson on loan from Hearts. Out of the picture in Edinburgh due to the sheer number of options available at Tynecastle, he should supplement the Falkirk defence nicely. Interestingly, no key players have been lost of the summer months. What will be a test for Falkirk is that their squad largely lacks top-level experience, despite many of these players being around their peak years. They do have a lot of players who have operated at a strong level in the Championship for a prolonged period, particularly in midfield where Brad Spencer and Dylan Tait will be important figures. There is little doubt that Scott Arfield is Falkirk’s star man, though. At 36, he remains energetic and a big goal threat from the midfield. They will also look to Aiden Nesbitt and Calvin Miller for creativity.