Auld Reekie to face Cambridge Rollerbillies

Tickets to the next Auld Reekie Roller Girls game just £5 when you sign up to the league’s newsletter

ARRG’s all-women roller derby team the All-Star Reserves hope to hit, whip and skate their way to victory against Cambridge Rollerbillies when they clash this Saturday.

The game will bring all the big hits and speedy skating to fans rooting for the Edinburgh girls to complete an Oxbridge double, after beating an Oxford team last month.

All Star Reserves’ captain Kiki said: “We’re so pumped for the last All Star Reserves game of the season and can’t wait to channel our amazing training into this game!”

However, the Cambridge team comes fresh from winning the Heartland Series tournament of 24 English and Welsh teams, with a stunning 184-59 score against Plymouth City Roller Girls. The Cambridge skaters have proved themselves fit, speedy and strong and are sure to bring their new skills and strategy to their game against Auld Reekie.

The All-Star Reserves hope to get loud support from the Edinburgh crowd on their home ground at Meadowbank Sports Centre in a fast and fierce demonstration of athleticism on wheels.

Supporters can also snap up merchandise and tuck into home-made cakes at the game on Saturday (28 February) from 2pm.

Tickets for Auld Reekie Roller Girls’ All Star Reserves vs Cambridge Rollerbillies are £8 on the door or £7 from the Brown Paper Tickets website. (www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1017167)

Free entry for children aged under 14 and only £5 if you sign up to the ARRG newsletter on the arrg.co.uk website.

Six Nations Rugby travel advice

Scotland play host to Wales in their first home game of this Six Nations tournament today and 67,000 spectators – a few of them Scots! – will flock to Murrayfield Stadium for the sell-out match.

The fixture is the first Six Nations home game since Edinburgh Trams passenger services began last year and the operator is putting in place arrangements to cater to the many thousands of fans who are expected to travel to and from the match by tram.

Advice for anyone planning to travel by tram can be found on the Edinburgh Trams website. Passengers are also advised to keep an eye out for updates from Edinburgh Trams’ Control team on the day via @EdinburghTrams.

To ensure pedestrian safety and to minimise traffic disruption, pedestrian diversions will be implemented around the Haymarket Station area following the match.

The City of Edinburgh Council is working closely with Police Scotland to keep road and pedestrian traffic moving smoothly before and after the game.

Councillor Lesley Hinds, Transport Convener, said: “Six Nations home games are always a very exciting fixture in Edinburgh’s events calendar and I know there will be thousands and thousands of people getting ready to make the trip to Murrayfield Stadium on Sunday. I’d encourage everyone to plan their journey carefully and take heed of travel and parking information so that they can have as enjoyable a time as possible. Good luck to Scotland!”

A number of temporary road closures and parking restrictions will be in place.

Police and stewards will be on hand to help direct members of the public from the Stadium to the city centre.

Those heading back into the city centre on foot will be diverted left off the main road up Magdala Crescent to continue back into town.

Pedestrians travelling by rail from Haymarket Station will be guided along the main road towards Haymarket and stewards will be on hand to provide further assistance and advice as they approach the Station.

Although Russell Road is currently closed for Network Rail works, pedestrians will be able to use two dedicated lanes to access and exit the Stadium.

Information about getting to and from Murrayfield Stadium by tram, bus or rail can be found on the Scottish Rugby website.

And the game itself? I’m something of an expert having played for Royal High School’s sixth XV on a number of occasions (yes, okay, twice then and that was over forty years ago, but still …) and I reckon if Scotland can get the basics right we can run the Welsh pretty close today. Cut out the elaborate, ‘fancy Dan’ nonsense, keep it simple and we’re in with a chance.

England exposed some surprising Welsh frailties last weekend and Wales are there to be beaten this afternoon – but Scotland will have to improve and avoid silly mistakes. Unforced errors and conceding daft penalties could prove suicidal, for even when the Welsh are not functioning at concert pitch they can always call on the unerring boot of Leigh Halfpenny. Be brave, Scotland, but beware …

And on another (musical) note – isn’t the Welsh National Anthem the most stirring of them all? Enjoy the game (kick off 3pm)!

Flower of Scotland is fans’ choice

The majority of Scotland supporters are in favour of Flower of Scotland being officially recognised as the country’s national anthem, the SFA has announced.

The Scottish FA was asked to provide football’s view by the Scottish Parliamentary Petition Committee and the decision to ask the fans was met with an overwhelming 35,000 responses in 48 hours.

Of those polled across the SFA’s Scotland Supporters Club (SSC) membership, and a social media audience in excess of 500,000, 56% were in favour of the Scottish Government officially recognising the anthem, with 44% opposed to the formalisation.

The poll was circulated to 35,000 SSC members as well as through the Scottish FA’s Official Twitter account and Scotland National Team Facebook page.

Interestingly, there was a marked difference between SSC respondents and the social media view. While 65% of the 23,000 social media responses were in favour of official recognition, 60% of the 12,606 SSC respondents were not in favour.

The Scottish FA also gave fans the opportunity to suggest alternatives to Flower of Scotland, which has proven hugely popular in the sporting arena and has been performed at Hampden Park by the likes of Amy Macdonald, Nina Nesbitt, Julie Fowlis, Donnie Munro and last year’s X Factor runner-up, Nicholas McDonald.

Caledonia, the Dougie MacLean classic, figured prominently along with Scotland the Brave as suggested alternatives but there was also significant support for the creation of a new anthem, with notable mentions, also, for the Proclaimers favourite, 500 Miles, and the United Kingdom’s National Anthem, God Save The Queen.

The feedback has now been submitted to the Parliamentary Petition Committee.

A Scottish FA spokesperson said: “The response to the committee’s enquiry has been incredible. The easy option would have been to gauge the Board’s view but the wider consultation not only demonstrates the passion and engagement of our 35,000 Supporters Club members but also highlights the power of social media.

“While the majority of responses were in favour of Flower of Scotland being officially recognised by the Scottish Government, there is also plenty food for thought in the feedback analysis.

“There is clearly an appetite among a section of supporters to give consideration to a new anthem. Scotland the Brave retains an affinity among an element of the supporters with the popularity of The Proclaimers’ crowd-pleaser endures.”

AARG! Roller girls head south for opening encounter

While it seems like half of Wales has moved up here for the rugby this weekend, a city team is heading the other way …

The Auld Reekie Roller Girls, Edinburgh’s Roller Derby team, are on their way to Wales this weekend to compete in the first leg of the UK’s first ever progression and relegation based roller derby tournament.

The tournament includes teams from Scotland, England and Wales, and Auld Reekie are delighted to have been invited into the six-team Premier Division. The team take on the first of their rivals, Middlesbrough, in Newport this weekend.

Captains Skinn’er Alive and Lilo and Stitches said: ‘We are so excited to be playing this tournament. The teams involved are playing the highest level roller derby in the UK and we are thrilled to be part of it. All six teams in the premier division are amazing, so it’ll be really exciting to see the games play out’.

This season sees a few new faces on the ARRG All Stars, and the team is looking stronger than ever. The Middlesbrough team are not to be taken lightly, however, currently ranking fifth in the UKRDA rankings.

Not only have Auld Reekie got new players, but they’ve got a new name too! This will be the first time the ‘All Stars’ have played – they were previously known as the Twisted Thistles. 2015 saw a new streamlined look for Auld Reekie, as they dropped the team names and are now known as the All Stars and the All Star Reserves.

The Reserves have already had one win this year, with a second home game to come at Meadowbank on 28 February, so the All Stars are looking to follow their lead and take home a win this weekend too.

The All Stars are confident; they’ve been working tirelessly all off-season and are looking to build on their new skills and tactics over the season to come. This being the opening weekend, it promises to prove a pretty exciting game!

If you would like to see the next leg of Champs, the All Stars will be playing at home at Meadowbank on 2 May.

visit AARG website at www.arrg.co.uk.
ARRG Facebook: www.facebook.com/auldreekierollergirls
ARRG Twitter: https://twitter.com/auldreekierg

Battling Spartans leave it late

… but the Hibs go marching on!

Ally MacKinnon is – The Equaliser!

Two Edinburgh teams will go into Monday’s Scottish Cup quarter-final draw – just. A late, late show at Ainslie Park saw Spartans strike deep into injury time to force a replay at Berwick, while Hibs safely negotiated a potential banana-skin when they comfortably saw off Arbroath at Easter Road. Shock of the round was Rangers tame surrender to Raith Rovers at Ibrox.

Spartans fell behind to an early Berwick goal and were often second-best during a stirring encounter played in front of a full house at Ainslie Park. Just as in the last round, however, the Lowland League saved the best ’til last. Deep into stoppage time Ally MacKinnon fired home a equaliser that sent the crowd into raptures and ensured wee Spartans live to fight another day. The replay will take place on Tuesday 17 February, and it will take another never-say-die performance to see the local lads progress.

Easter Road couldn’t match Ainslie Park for drama on Saturday, although Hibs did have to come from a goal down to dispose of fourth-tier league leaders Arbroath. A well-worked move saw Kieran Stewart open the scoring for the visitors, but Hibs fans’ nerves were soothed when Djedje equalised with a sweetly struck volley just before half-time.

Hibs continued to dominate after the break, although there was a lot of huffing and puffing to little effect. The introduction of McGeogh brought a sense of purpose to Hibs’ already dominant midfield, however, and it was no surprise when the Easter Road men immediately capitalised on their superiority.

Hibs’ second had more than a touch of good fortune about it – a Cummings shot that wasn’t going to trouble the ‘keeper took a wicked deflection off defender Liam Gordon on the hour mark – and the Easter Road men quickly followed up to seal their place in the quarter finals with a Dylan McGeoch strike in 68 minutes. More workmanlike than spectacular, this was a case of ‘job done’; sterner tests await.

It will be Rangers, however, that will make all the Monday headlines – but once again it will be for all the wrong reasons.

Just when you think it really can’t get any worse for Rangers, it gets worse. This Rangers ‘team’ – I use the term loosely – simply couldn’t match an honest Raith Rovers side for determination, energy, effort or endeavour. Barely 11,000 diehard Rangers fans turned up to watch the debacle – these are dreadful times indeed for a once-great club. It’s not funny anymore – even when the coup de grace, the final indignity, is delivered by the oft-ridiculed figure of fun that is Christian Nade.

After today’s showing, the Ibrox Board might consider relocating their Extraordinary General Meeting from the London’s sumptuous Dorchester Hotel to somewhere more fitting with their current status.

Suggestions welcome …

Elsewhere, there were few surprises. Hot favourites Celtic scored early and were never in any danger against Dundee, Falkirk beat Brechin 2-1 and Inverness CT edged a narrow victory at Partick Thistle. Result of the day was Championship side Queen of the South’s 2-0 victory over Scottish Cup holders St Johnstone with second half goals by Lyle (48) and Reilly (90). On Sunday, Dundee United made short work of Stranraer. Three up at half-time, the Tangerines coasted to an easy victory.

Darts supremo Gary Anderson will help make the draw for the quarter-finals of the William Hill Scottish Cup on Monday afternoon. The current PDC World Champion will be joined by the Scottish FA First Vice-President, Alan McRae and Joe McCallum from competition sponsors William Hill. The draw takes place at 2pm and will be broadcast live on Sky Sports News. You can also follow the draw on the @ScottishFA Twitter feed.

Teams going into the hat are:

Berwick Rangers or Spartans

Celtic

Dundee United

Falkirk

Hibernian

Inverness CT

Queen of the South

Raith Rovers

Dancing in the streets of Sparta tonight?

Scottish Cup weekend again, and for many neutrals the tastiest tie of the round is the Spartans v Berwick Rangers game at Ainslie Park. Spartans go into the game as underdogs, but playing in front of a packed full house it would be absolutely no surprise to see the North Edinburgh community club progress to the quarter-finals for the first time in their history.

While it would be a notable victory, on the giant-killing scale Spartans beating Berwick Rangers would barely register a slight tremor. Their visitors, however, know all about cup upsets: Berwick featured in the greatest giant-killing story of them all.

On a cold January afternoon in 1967, 13,365 packed into Berwick’s Shielfield Park to watch a mighty Rangers team, packed with internationals, hammer the ‘wee Rangers’. That was the expectation, but nobody told the Berwick men!

Rangers pummelled away at their hosts from kick-off and forced ten corners in the opening half hour. A goal seemed inevitable, but when it came it shook Scottish football to it’s foundations – in the 32nd minute Sammy Reid hammered the ball past Rangers keeper Norrie Martin to put the minnows ahead!

Rangers battered away at Big Jock Wallace in the Berwick goal – yes, that big Jock Wallace – but they couldn’t break the defiant borderers down. The story goes that, with the game well into injury time and the Ibrox club facing cup exit, Rangers skipper and club legend John Greig had a word with referee Eddie Thomson and asked for another couple of minutes – but was told: “I’ve already given you four!” Berwick Rangers held on to create the greatest shock in Scottish Cup history.

The result was announced on TV and radio in the sombre tones usually reserved for royal funerals and rail disasters. I was a wee laddie at the time, but I remember it like yesterday. What I can’t recall is whether the announcers wore black ties – but I suppose back in those days it was all black and white anyway!

We won’t get shocks of that magnitude this weekend – not if Hibs were humbled by Arbroath, Stranraer stun Dundee United or wee Spartans shock Berwick.

But will there be dancing in the streets of Sparta tonight? I really do think there will be – take your partners!

Scottish Cup Fifth Round ties:

Today:

Dundee v Celtic 12:30pm

Falkirk v Brechin 3pm

Hibernian v Arbroath 3pm

Partick Thistle v Inverness CT 3pm

Queen of South v St Johnstone 3pm

Spartans FC v Berwick 3pm

Tomorrow:

Stranraer v Dundee United 12.30pm

Rangers v Raith Rovers 3pm

Weather’s no match for local Army Cadets!

Nearly one hundred Army Cadets aged 12-18 years shrugged off freezing temperatures during a recent training weekend in the Pentland Hills, their first camp of 2015.

The weekend saw cadets based at Granton Square overcome snow, ice and sub-zero temperatures to put into practice the skills taught at their local Detachment.

Cadets took part in navigation training, first aid and fieldcraft. During the fieldcraft phase, cadets learned how to build improvised shelters and secure a ‘temporary home’ known as a Harbour Area.

Senior Cadets under the supervision of the Adult Volunteers grasped the opportunity to demonstrate to the younger Cadets how preparedness, teamwork and self-discipline can determine your success and survival, whatever the weather.

Major John Tonner, Officer Commanding of the weekend said: “I am extremely impressed with the abilities demonstrated by the Cadets and their maturity in applying themselves in the adverse conditions brought by the cold weather.

“It is a very unique opportunity for individuals to witness how valuable skills provided within our Youth Organisation can steer young people to go further in their chosen path in life”.

The ability to adapt quickly was demonstrated by all of the Cadets resulting in many new qualifications gained and successful testing to allow Cadets to progress onto the next stage of their Cadet careers with 17 Cadets gaining new First Aid qualifications and five Adult Volunteers receiving their First Aid at Work qualification.

17 Platoon is part of Lothian & Borders Army Cadet Force and have training nights every Monday and Wednesday evenings between 7 – 9pm. They welcome cadets between 12 and 18 years of age and encourage parents to get involved too.

You can find out more about the Cadet’s sporting and adventure training activities by visiting their Detachment at the Army Reserve Centre at Granton Square, online at www.lbcadets.co.uk or by calling 01506 856 698.

Spartans: be the twelfth man!

Local club The Spartans play Berwick Rangers this Saturday (7 February) at Ainslie Park in the fifth round of the Scottish Cup. If we win we will make history as the first non-league team to play in the quarter-finals of the Scottish Cup for 55 years!

This Cross-Border clash sees the Lowland League title holders take on their third SPFL opponents on the Road to Hampden. We have already beaten Clyde and Morton and in both games the bumper home support has made all the difference.

Can you be the twelfth man on 7 February? We are making a big plea for everyone in the North Edinburgh community to come along and back their local team as we aim to make history!

The TV cameras will be along, “Pulse of the Place” our local Samba band will provide the pre match entertainment and hundreds of local youngsters will be bringing a real family atmosphere. It promises to be a magical afternoon.

Our Ainslie Park arena holds 3500 people, with 500 seats in our covered stand. Kick-off is at 3pm so please come down early if you want a seat.

Admission is £12 for adults, £8 for concessions and Under 12 s are free (pay at gate) – continuing our commitment to offer affordable football for all. With a bumper crowd expected, we have entrances open on both Pilton Drive and Pilton Avenue.

You can keep up to date with the pre-match news, previews and interviews on our hat-trick of social media sources:

website: www.spartansfc.com,

twitter: @spartansfc and Facebook: Spartans FC

The Spartans Football Club

| Live together, Play together, Win together

An Open Goal? Fans involvement in football clubs

Working group makes final recommendations

A group set up to look at how to get fans and communities more involved with the running of Scottish football clubs has published its final report.

The Working Group for Supporter Involvement in Football Clubs was set up by the Scottish Government in April 2014. Its remit was to identify, consider and recommend ways to increase and improve supporter involvement in Scottish football clubs

The group was chaired by Stephen Morrow, Senior Lecturer in Sport Finance at the University of Stirling. It comprised of representatives from the Scottish Football Association (Scottish FA), Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), Supporters Direct Scotland and sportscotland.

The recommendations include:

• Development of an annual Supporter Involvement Award
• All clubs should give consideration of the best ways that supporters can get involved in how they are run
• Training and guidance should be given to supporters’ representatives
• That the Scottish FA consider as a matter of priority how best supporters can be represented in its formal governance structures
• Clubs to make various key pieces of information available, including names of all board members, their involvement in the club and the reason for their appointment, details of the number of board meetings held and the number of directors attending
• All SPFL clubs to declare the identity of their beneficial owner
• That best practice guidelines be developed for community clubs
• To explore the establishment of a Business, Community and Football Enterprise unit to provide legal and financial support to supporters and club owners

Development and implementation of these recommendations will be overseen by the working group and taken forward by the clubs, governing bodies and relevant associated organisations

Jamie Hepburn, Minister for Sport, Health Improvement, and Mental Health said: “Supporters should be at the heart of their football clubs, but too often they have felt marginalised and excluded. We established this working group because we wanted to find ways of making supporter involvement easier, and of strengthening the relationship between clubs and the communities they represent.

“The group has come up with some interesting recommendations and it is now dependent on everyone involved, including the Scottish Government, to make these work.

“These are challenging times for Scotland’s football clubs. The Scottish Government agrees with the working group that a legislative approach to addressing many of these issues is simply too prescriptive and not desirable or necessary at this stage.

“I thank and congratulate all those involved for taking part in this working group, and for taking the important issue of supporter involvement seriously. By working together to implement these recommendations I am confident both fans and clubs can bring about real improvements in how they engage and operate at all levels. ”

Stewart Regan, Scottish FA Chief Executive, said: “The Scottish FA acknowledges the need for greater supporter involvement in the national game. It is also supportive of the need to enhance fan engagement, not just in-stadia but expanding our digital provision. We have been pleased with the commitment shown by our colleagues in the working group and look forward to working together to implement the recommendations contained in the report.”

Neil Doncaster, SPFL Chief Executive, said: “Supporters are the lifeblood of the game in Scotland. We welcome initiatives that are designed to increase fans’ engagement with their clubs.”

Andrew Jenkin, Acting Head of Supporters Direct Scotland, said: “Supporters Direct Scotland were pleased to be an active member of this Working Group. We believe supporters are integral to the game of football and should continue to be further involved in the decision making with the group offering us the opportunity to shape future recommendations.

“The report rightly states that community ownership of clubs can come in many forms and brings a number of benefits to clubs, supporters and local communities. In Scotland there are various models and examples of fans joining together and offering new solutions in the future ownership of their clubs, from fully owned debt free Clyde, to the Foundation of Hearts”.

Stephen Morrow, who chaired the working group, said: “It is clear that Scottish football is in a period of transition. For example, after a period of great instability it is exciting to see one of our biggest clubs, Hearts, embarking on a journey towards supporter ownership. At the same time, another of our major clubs, Hibernian, is actively considering radical changes to its ownership and governance; proposals which are particularly interesting given that they are not emerging in response to financial crisis.

“One of the areas the Working Group focused on was how to reduce barriers to supporter ownership in circumstances where there is demand for this ownership structure. But it is important to stress that our group did not take the view that there was an ideal ownership model for Scottish football clubs.

“Our emphasis was on how best to encourage broader involvement of supporters, irrespective of the particular ownership structure adopted by a club and I am very grateful to the members of the Working Group for working so constructively to come up with proposals which have the potential to greatly enhance supporter involvement and supporter accountability in practice.”

The full report can be found at:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/ArtsCultureSport/Sport/football/WorkingGroupSupporterInvolvment

Edinburgh’s budget: what future for Meadowbank?

Can city afford to meet funding shortfall of over £11.3 million?

Councillors will be asked to consider the future of Meadowbank Sports Centre and Stadium as part of the city council’s budget considerations if proposals to be presented to next week’s Corporate Policy and Strategy Committee are agreed.

As Meadowbank heads towards its fiftieth birthday, a report on potential costs and scoping for a replacement venue that would be “fit for the 21st Century” will be presented to the Committee on 20 January. Members will be asked to refer the proposals for a new venue for a decision as part of the Council’s budget considerations on 12 February.

Funding options and architectural design concepts for replacing Meadowbank, which was originally built for Edinburgh’s 1970 Commonwealth Games, have been developed with input from relevant governing bodies of sport. The plans would see the existing site transformed into a brand new sports centre that would serve the sporting needs of the local community as well as the city and east of Scotland with facilities for physical activity, health and wellbeing.

The funding proposals estimate the overall cost of building a new Meadowbank facility as £43m. It is envisaged that this will be achieved through funding from SportScotland of between £5m to £7m; revenue savings to the Council from closing the facilities during construction; prudential borrowing based on forecasts for net income and through the sale of surplus land at Meadowbank. This would leave funding required to be identified by the Council of between £11.3m and £19.8m.

Should funding be agreed by Council on 12 February, a new Meadowbank would include:

An outdoor athletics track with seating for 500
An indoor 60m six lane athletics track with jumps area
An outdoor throws area
A 3G synthetic sports pitch or grass pitch in the centre of the outdoor athletics track for football, rugby and other pitch sports
An additional outdoor 3G synthetic sports pitch
An eight badminton court sports hall with 500 permanent seats plus bleachers (the same size as the current Meadowbank Hall 1)
A four badminton court sports hall with 500 permanent seats(the same size as the current Meadowbank Hall 2)
A gymnastics hall, gym, studios, changing facilities, café, meeting rooms.

If these current plans are agreed, and funding is secured, the new Meadowbank could be ready by 2018. If the decision is taken not to proceed, however, options for a planned withdrawal of service at Meadowbank over the next five years will be identified.

Councillor Richard Lewis, Culture and Sport Convener for the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “For almost 50 years now, Meadowbank has nurtured sporting participation at all levels – from those taking part for recreational and health benefits to those training for success and medals on a Scottish and international stage. It feels right that after Scotland’s successful Commonwealth Games 2014, we kick off 2015 by considering the future of the country’s very first Games venue.

“The feasibility study requested by the Council in February 2014 has now been completed and before progressing further, a decision from Council is required as to whether it can meet the £11.3m to £19.8m funding shortfall currently projected.

“Over half a million users visit Meadowbank every year and it is a much-loved city sports facility, but we will need to consider how we can source funding for a project of this scale given the financial pressures the Council faces.

“If agreed by the Corporate Policy and Strategy Committee, the future of Meadowbank will form part of the Council’s budget considerations for the next financial year.”

June Peebles, Interim Chief Executive of Edinburgh Leisure, said: “Meadowbank is part of Edinburgh’s sporting heritage and continues to attract thousands of customers, participating in a wide range of physical activities, through its doors every week.

“Edinburgh Leisure is therefore delighted to be working with the Council on this exciting project which could create a new Meadowbank for the city, creating an inspiring and welcoming venue that supports even more people to get active, stay active and achieve more.”