Football Season Guide

Queen's Park punched above their weight last season as they threatened to reach the promotion play-offs in League One and that will be the target this time around for Gus MacPherson's side. They were a pragmatic outfit last term but cried out for cutting edge in their play, which made them prone to playing in low-scoring matches. There is little to suggest that this won't be the case this time around too. QP's amateur status means that they struggle to sign players from the traditional sides and, over the course of the summer, they have added only Thomas Orr to their team from another league club. Otherwise, they have worked to add players from local junior outfits. They have captured several experienced players from that level, including goalkeeper Michael White from Petershill and defensive midfielder David Green from Yoker. How these players fit into the demands of stepping up to play league football on a weekly basis remains to be seen but MacPherson has had success signing from these avenues in the recent past. Meanwhile, the manager will be pleased not to have lost too many important figures. Indeed, only a couple of regulars have departed over the course of the last few weeks. Ryan McGeever was one of their most important players, however, and he has joined Brechin City in the Championship, while central midfielder Jamie McKernon has also departed. While they retain a solid defensive base to work from – as is always the case with a MacPherson side – they will probably try to retain as much possession as possible. It is in the final third they may experience trouble but, going by their performances in the Betfred Cup, that should not be too much of an issue, albeit they did find themselves in one of the weaker groups. Still, they scored in all their matches, which bodes well.