Scottish League Division 3
	Stenhousemuir	2
	McBride, Paton (og)
	Queen's Park	1
	Weatherston
Saturday, September 9, 2006

YOUR scribe has to confess he wasn't in the best frame of mind as we set off for Stenny today.
Despite having his old chums Homer and Johnboy back from their hols, and despite the glorious sunshine that bathed Glasgow, there was a big dark cloud on Gulliver's horizon.
The prospect of a plastic pitch didn't fill me with enthusiasm, no matter how state of the art it purported to be.
And while I would never criticise any official (especially before the game started) there were some in the Queen's ranks who were none too happy at Mr Hardie being the man in the middle and returning to the scene of that game in that season and that result.
Then there was our run of form. Take away the euphoria of the cup triumphs and our league form has been patchy to say the least.
We've managed just four goals in five outings and our two wins seem a long time ago.
On a happier note, our last visit to Stenny did produce that late, late Canning winner, but sadly today's late drama meant we were the ones going home with a sick feeling in the pit of the stomach.
The line-up was much as expected, with Dunn starting in place of Ronald the only change from Berwick.
But unlike that game, we made by far the brighter start.
There was only one minute on the clock when Weatherston skinned Murie and headed for the box. His final ball wasn't up to the earlier play, and that was certainly not the last occasion we would say that.
That was the start of a procession of half chances, none of which produced the desired result as far as Queen's were concerned.
Robert Dunn had a couple of efforts, the second coming after Weatherston was tugged back right on the edge of the box. Homer suggested the striker should have Dunn better; I would have to agree.
Dunlop then sent in an inviting ball for Dunn, but the wee man's header was always too high to trouble McCulloch.
Cairns had been a spectator for more of the first half-hour, but he could and should have been picking the ball out of the net as his first meaningful action.
Templeton broke down the right and sent over a delightful ball. Somehow Baird managed to scoop it over the top.
The let off spurred Queen's back onto the attack and just before the break we applied some concerted pressure. A flurry of corners gave Steve Canning a half chance and then Mick Dunlop gave Dunn as shooting opportunity. Neither could make the most of the chance.
Half-Time 0-0
The second period was much the same as the first at the start. Weatherston continued to cause the home defence problems; Cairns remained unemployed ... and a home victory became ever more predictable for those who have seen this type of game before.
The pain seemed a long way away, however, when we finally made the most of one of our chances.
A quick free kick back in our own half saw Trouten gain possession and play a delightfully-weighted ball through for Weatherston to run onto. He did, easily outpacing the home defence and this time slotting home with some ease.
The hardest time to concentrate, according to the experts, is when you've just scored and Queen's did their best to illustrate that point by going to sleep and allowing Templeton clear on the right. We woke up just in time to scramble the danger clear.
The good thing about Queen's being ahead is that it forces teams to come on to us and gives us space to hit them on the break.
The bad thing about Queen's is that we seem incapable of killing a game off at the moment ...and that proved our undoing today.
But all was right with the world when Frankie Carroll came on from the bench to replace Dunn, hopefully signalling the end of an injury and illness nightmare for the wee striker.
His first few touches suggested a partnership with Weatherston might prove profitable.
Twice within a minute we could have tied the game up. First on 69, Frankie played his strike partner in. The final ball from David was, however, was well short of expectations. Seconds later another ball from Carroll had Weatherston's eyes lighting up with delight. This time, however, a magnificent last-ditch tackle from Tyrrell denied the striker a second goal.
Dunlop then headed just wide as we continued to dominate.
With 18 minutes to go, Reilly was forced to limp off, being replaced by Jonny Whelan.
Whether the surface contributed or not we don't know at this stage, but the change didn't work in our favour.
Templeton on the right and particularly McLaughlin on the left had looked a wee threat all afternoon. Templeton created another great opportunity for Baird, who again put it over the top when it seemed easier to score.
Just when it looked as if we were heading home with three points, the roof fell in with a vengeance. Submarine, sorry substitute, McBride had only been on the field a few moments when we decided to back off and let him try his luck from distance.
He did; his luck was in ... and so was the ball - in the back of our net.
That was bad, it became really awful seconds later when a posse of players went for the ball in our box and it cannoned off somebody and looped over Cairns.
The announcer suggested McBride scored; it looked from my viewpoint as if our own Paul Paton got the last touch. Frankly, I don't give a damn. It ended up in the back of our net and we were 2-1 down in a game where our keeper hadn't made a save.
Incredibly, that's the way it finished. Somehow, we managed to come home with nothing when we should have had three points in the bag before the interval.
But than again, why should we be surprised? I've seen Queen's throw away points more often than I've been to the bar in the social club ... and that's going some.
Ever the optimist, I've got to say we did play some nice stuff, and did create a barrowload of half chances.
Putting the realist's head on for a bit, we haven't won for far too long, and need to get some points and goals in the bag if we're not going to be playing catch-up in the latter stages of the season.
Surely we'll get it right long before that becomes a reality?