NEILSTON FC (Brig O'Lea Stadium)

WEST OF SCOTLAND FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION ONE, NEILSTON 1-2 ASHFIELD, ATTENDANCE: c100

This weekend I headed north for another fix of Scottish football. On a glorious sunny afternoon in Scotland I found myself in Renfrewshire, in the village of Neilston.

Like most villages in the area, Neilston grew with the industrial revolution and the building of cotton mills but as industry died out over the decades, the village morphed into a commuter village given it's proximity to both Glasgow and Paisley.

The football club was formed in 1945, after the demise of Neilston Victoria, adopting the name Neilston Juniors Football Club (the 'Juniors' being dropped in 2020 when the club left junior football to join the newly formed West of Scotland League).

The club play at Brig O'Lea, a ground that will be celebrating it's 125th anniversary in 2024. Despite being battered by the wet weather this season the pitch was in perfect condition, the club chairman proudly telling me that it is very rare games are called off due to wet weather. In fact he said, snow is usually the reason for call offs given the club's location in the Levern Valley.

The pitch is a far cry from the supposed origins of the clubs nickname 'The Farmers Boys' which was largely due to the state of the pitch back in the day, along with the style of football adopted by the team. The term was reclaimed by the club over time and is now used most positively these days.

There is a large enclosure on one side of the pitch and the changing rooms and clubhouse on the other side. There are plans in place to upgrade the facilities at the club, which should be completed in the near future.

On the pitch, this season has been one of struggle for Neilston and the club are on the brink of relegation to Division Two of the West of Scotland League and this defeat this afternoon means they only now have a mathematical, rather than a realistic, chance of avoiding the drop.

Ashfield dominated the game from off and it was no surprise when they took the lead early on, Craig Quinn curling an effort into the top corner. Despite all the possession and numerous chances created, Ashfield couldn't add to their tally and it remained 1-0 at the break. A decent scoreline for Neilston in the circumstances.

The second Ashfield goal finally arrived around the hour mark, Bobby Barr converting from the penalty spot. Game over? Well not quite. Del McNab headed home for The Farmers Boys to half the deficit and indeed, in the last 15 minutes of the game Neilston should have come away with a point at the very least, but they squandered their opportunities for snatching that equaliser which, I was told, has been the story of Neilston's season.

A great afternoon at a more than welcoming club. I would impore anyone to put a visit to the Brig O'Lea on your "must do" list.

GLASGOW UNITED (Greenfield Park)

WEST OF SCOTLAND LEAGUE CONFERENCE B, GLASGOW UNITED 2-2 RENFREW, ATTENDANCE: 103 (h/c)

Today, for the third Saturday in succession, I headed to Scotland for my football entertainment. Destination this week was the East End of Glasgow for a visit to Greenfield Park, the home of Glasgow United née Shettleston Juniors.

The reason for the trip north is because Greenfield Park is rumoured to be on the danger list. There is talk of the club moving to a brand new state of the art facility not far away, with Greenfield Park being redeveloped for housing.

Speaking to someone at the ground they were circumspect in when this is likely to happen or indeed if these rumours are actually true. Regardless, there were to be no chances taken and it was a wise move to get here sooner rather than later. There was concern on the journey up about the weather with heavy thundery showers forecast, the electronic warning signs on the M74 motorway doing nothing to ease the worries, but upon arrival in Glasgow the ground was bathed in sunshine and the pitch was actually being watered!

Greenfield Park is what I would say is a typical old Scottish ground that simply oozes character, despite only being two sided. There is covered terracing that has been converted to seating behind one goal and a enclosure one side of the pitch. There was at one stage two enclosures but one was demolished in anticipation of rotating the pitch, which never happened.

The other two sides, one which runs alongside the railway line, are unused and overgrown. There were previously steps of terracing on both sides but this, I was told, disappeared years ago.

Greenfield Park has been home since 1933 when Shettleston Juniors moved there from their previous ground, Well Park. The club was formed in 1903 and had been known as Shettleston Juniors until a rebranding in early 2021. The name Glasgow United was chosen to appeal to the wider community and, hopefully, bring in new sponsorship and commercial benefits.  Some fans are not convinced and are disappointed that a famous name, the club where the likes of Tommy Docherty and Bobby Russell began their careers, has disappeared from the Scottish football scene.

Today's match was in the West of Scotland League Conference B, which is one of the leagues that feed into the Premier League. The full reconstruction, after the mass defection of clubs from the Junior Leagues, is yet to happen after the abandonment of the 2020/21 season.

Renfrew were the visitors this afternoon and it was a feisty affair. There were plenty of robust challenges amongst the fitba and there was much to enjoy, especially in the second half.

Josh McCulloch gave Glasgow the lead after five minutes and the home side held on to the advantage until half time. They lost 'keeper Ewan Roche to injury midway through the half and, with no replacement on the bench, left back Craig Thomsen went between the sticks.

Thomsen was beaten five minutes into the second half when Jamie Benton equalised for Renfrew. Conor Woodhouse restored home advantage after 56 minutes with a neat turn and finish before Ciaran Diver scored a second equaliser for Renfrew, his shot going in off the foot of the post.

The game was end to end but neither team could find a winner. Renfrew certainly created enough chances to win the game but Glasgow definitely merited the draw. There was a bit of handbags at the final whistle as tensions boiled over but it was the usual pushing and shoving before things calmed down.

Another great afternoon in Scotland and, if you haven't been already, then I definitely recommend a visit to Greenfield Park but don't leave it too long, just in case...