Football Season Guide

Partick Thistle sunk with little struggle from the Scottish Premiership as they lost to Livingston in the play-offs. Despite their lack of fight, Partick are installed as one of the favourites to win the title. Again, evidence for this is thin and having much to do with being ex-Premiership and based in Glasgow where much of Scotland’s media is based too. Surprisingly, Alan Archibald is retained as manager and has vowed to bring them straight back up. This is a bold move for him and Thistle as he will be given no time to deliver winning football. Archibald has openly admitted that morale within his squad at the end of the season was poor. Some players simply didn’t care and couldn’t wait to move on. While he’s brave to admit this, it hardly reflects well on his management skills. A total of 16 players have departed Firhill with Tomas Cerney, Abdul Osman and Steven Lawless the most notable. However, amid the fallout from last season, attacking duo, Chris Erskine and Kris Doolan have been retained. Miles Storey is also still there despite a barren spell last season. Arriving at Firhill is highly experienced and respected goalkeeper, Cammy Bell. He should give confidence to Thistle’s recast defence. Their main signing coup has been former Morton captain Tom O’Ware. O’Ware was tipped for the Scottish Premiership, but has instead chosen to remain in the Championship. He’s a commanding centre-back with an eye for goal at set pieces. Thistle are also taking a punt with striker Jack Storer. The English striker has been unsettled after several loan moves in the lower leagues and is hoping to make a name for himself in Scotland. WBA defender, Max Melbourne, has signed a loan deal too. Teams relegated into the Championship have found it notoriously difficult to come straight back up. However, there’s no clear title-favourite either so Thistle are always in with a chance. They are almost starting from scratch, but so are a lot of teams in the Championship. Their signings so far suggest they will be strong and settled in defence. A few key loan signings could set them up for a reasonable season. Bouncing straight back up seems unlikely, but the play-offs should certainly be their target.