Lions roar at last
AN AMATEUR football team branded the worst in Scotland have won for the first time.
We told last summer how Laurieston Lions shipped an astonishing 70 goals in 48 hours as they made their debut in pre-season friendlies.
Since then they’ve lost all 18 league and cup games, conceding 127 more.
But on Saturday the Lions finally notched a result, beating Stirling-based Forth Thistle 4-3, sparking celebrations.
Sponsor Eoghann McAlpine, landlord of the town’s Laurie’s Bar, said: “It’s a fantastic achievement.
“You can’t turn things round overnight and the hard work from the coaches and players has been exceptional.
“Slowly but surely, over the weeks and months, you could see it coming together.
“People are now doing the simple things well, keeping the ball instead of just running round a pitch.”
Manager Grant Pollock missed the game due to work commitments but he said: “We’ve changed a lot of personnel which is hard to do midway through a season.
“But there’s still one lad who’s been there all the way through from the pre-season friendlies.”
Laurieston’s first game last August, a friendly against Pennies FC – also from Falkirk – ended in a 37-0 demolition.
The ref even blew up 10 minutes early to put the Lions out of their misery.
Two days later, Laurieston took on Maddiston – and lost 33-0. Before Saturday, they’d lost all 15 matches in the fourth division of the Stirling and District Amateur League and were 11 points adrift of Forth Thistle.
And they’ve been knocked out of three cups at the first hurdle as well. A man, 43, has died after collapsing during a weekly 5km run in Nottingham. Paramedics tried to revive him but he was pronounced dead in hospital.