This weekend takes The Buffs on their travels to the Kirkintilloch Community Sports Complex for the first time, to face Kirkintilloch Rob Roy as Kevin Kelly’s side look to bounce back from last week’s disappointing 0-1 home defeat to Vale of Clyde FC.
Buffs fans can expect to see a modern Kirkintilloch Community Sports Complex this weekend which includes an Astro-Turf pitch as well as a covered seated section which can hold around 300 spectators.
Despite the jubilation that moving back home brought Roy fans, in the summer, the off-pitch success has failed to carry onto the park with The Roy currently in a relegation battle after only being relegated into The WOSFL First Division last season. Rob Roy currently sit in 14th place in the division, level, on 17 points, with Irvine Meadow who sit just above the drop zone after the first half of the season. The Roy have only managed 4 league wins this season with only one of those victories coming in their last 9 attempts. Even worse for The Roy, they have not won a league match at home since the second game of the season, when they edged past Blantyre Victoria 1-0. The Roy’s form has picked up slightly in recent months with John Gibson’s side picking up 5 points from their last 5, a run which has included 2–2 draws with Renfrew and Rutherglen and a 0-1 victory away to Vale of Clyde. The last time the sides met back in August, The Roy had to play 45 minutes with 10 men after Jordan Pirrie saw red and Campbell McLean scored a late winner to seal a 1-0 victory and earn The Buffs their first home win in 171 days. Defensively The Roy have performed decently this season, conceding 25, with most of their problems coming at the other end of the park, where they have only managed to net 15 goals in 16 league games so far. Top scorer, Jordan Pirrie, sits on just the 4 league goals compared to Buffs’ top scorer Bryan Boylan, who has netted double Pirrie’s amount in the league, with even Jack McMahon and Mark Lamont ahead of Pirrie in the scoring charts. Last week’s defeat caused the Buffs to fall to 5th with St Roch’s and Rutherglen Glencairn climbing above the club. Fortunately, promotion rivals Arthurlie, Petershill and Renfrew all suffered defeats which very much keeps The Buffs in the race.
Only 5 points separate the top 7 in the division, which adds even more to the idea that every match from now onwards should be treated as a cup final, with Kevin Kelly looking to ensure his side avoid losing any more ground on the sides hovering around the coveted top 3 spots
