Latest news with #AlanMaybury
Daily Record
4 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Record
Experience order of the summer for Stirling boss - but skipper's future unsure
It's been just over a year since Albion boss Alan Maybury took the Forthbank hot seat - with some key names already in the door in a more settled summer. Twelve months is proving a long time in football as Stirling Albion boss Alan Maybury insists continuity is key to improve their fortunes in League Two. Almost a year to the day after the Irishman walked into the chaos of the Binos hotseat after relegation, the dismissal of Darren Young and a much-criticised recruitment process, things are calmer in 2025 as he builds up his squad for the 2025/26 season. Maybury has already managed to secure three much-praised signatures in League One's joint top goal-scorer in Ross Cunningham from Kelty Hearts, one of the Binos' bete noires in Forfar forward Russell McLean and most recently, promoted skipper Stewart Murdoch from East Fife. Speaking to the Observer this week, he reflected on the changes made over the past year or so - and his determination to get things right from the off with a more controlled squad build this time around. Maybury said: 'I was very keen on keeping as many boys as we could rather than having a big rebuild like there was last season. 'It was a big job to get things going last season, so I was conscious not to have that - the loan boys have moved on and there have been one or two more who have moved on for various reasons but it has been pretty limited. 'Looking at the squad we had last year, as much I don't really look at age in picking a team, we maybe had too many young players at times and lacked that bit of know-how to get where we want to go. 'I've been making the effort to recruit leaders and guys who have been through it at the top end of things and we're still busy in trying to add one or two more to the mix.' The new arrivals have added early enthusiasm to the Binos faithful after an up-and-down season last time around which flirted with a possible late play-off run, before ultimately petering out to a sixth place finish. But the Albion boss expressed satisfaction in his early work - and said the new arrivals were big targets identified early in the process. 'Ross was top scorer in League One and in the Team of the Year; I've actually been chasing him for over a year and it's been a bit of a long pursuit which has worked out. 'I worked with Russell [McLean] for a short period at Edinburgh and he gives us a physical option that maybe we lacked at points which can allow us to play differently at points. 'I felt when I came in last year that Stirling didn't score enough goals, we brought in Ally [Roy] which didn't quite work out, so McLean has scored a lot of goals against us, we like what he can bring and know him well. 'Stewart was the captain at East Fife and after speaking to him, he is the ultimate professional and has that leadership streak to make sure things are done right.' However, despite those new arrivals, there is still uncertainty over the future of long-time Stirling skipper Ross McGeachie. The popular defender - who has been with the Binos since the age of 13 and had his testimonial match back in 2023 - is one of the names still negotiating a new deal with Stirling as the new arrivals begin to come in through the door at Forthbank. The 31-year-old played 39 times across all competitions last season, eventually holding on a role on the right side of a callow back three as the Binos produced a late season run to the line - including helping to guide impressive loanees Leyton Grant and Scott Constable. But the Albion stalwart is still mulling over a contract offer from Stirling, with boss Alan Maybury also confirming that young defender Sam Denham is set to sign a deal to stay with the club after an injury-hit season. Elsewhere, there is also interest in bringing back Grant and full-back Jack Harkness - who both impressed on loan from Rangers last season - after their release was confirmed by the Ibrox club. Maybury said: 'There is an offer on the table for Ross, there are a couple of issues we're trying to sort out with him to get that deal over the line. 'Sam is staying on with us and will be continuing to recover from his injury - the timetable will hopefully be the start of the season for him. 'We're keeping an eye on those guys' situations after they left Rangers but ideally, I wouldn't want quite as many loan players as last year, you always prefer your own players. 'We've also got some good young ones like MacKenzie Carse, Aaron Weir, Harry Wright and Cooper Knox in the club already - we're expecting a lot from these guys. 'If someone becomes available who we think can improve things then we'll look at it, but we feel the core of what we want is in the building.'
Daily Record
14-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Record
Busy summer ahead for Stirling Albion as summer of ins and outs kicks off
The Albion manager admits his defence will require a "rebuild" over the coming weeks - with eight already contracted and others announcing their exit. The summer of ins and outs at Forthbank is well underway as the Binos remodel their squad ahead of their tilt at League Two next season. Albion's season finished with something of a whimper after a late surge for the play-off spots, but no time is being wasted by Stirling boss Alan Maybury to try and find the right combination. Unlike last summer's full rebuild. Stirling come into this off-season with some of their stars already locked up. Forwards Ryan Shanley, Dale Carrick and Cammy McKinley are joined on the list by star man Adam Brown, as well as defender Callum Crane and January arrival from Cowdenbeath, Robbie McNab. Youngsters Cooper Knox and Aaron Weir round out the list after signing deals through the season following impressive debut senior seasons. Some of those not under contract were in attendance last week to find out their future for next season and whether they will be offered deals at the club. One of those not being retained is defender Euan Deveney, who confirmed he will seek pastures new on social media. He wrote: 'Thanks @Stirling_Albion for the past six months, it has been great to return to the football pitch. 'Big thanks to the various physios, coaches and clubs who helped throughout the process. 'All the best to Stirling & everyone connected to the club. Looking forward to what's next.' Following the final-day draw with Forfar, Maybury expressed a level of satisfaction in his side's display over the season after a chaotic summer arrival - but admitted his back line would require a 'rebuild' following the departure of some of his loan stars. The Irishman said: 'Coming in over the summer, the club had been on a bit of a slide; they hadn't won a match since March I think, didn't have a shot on target in the playoffs, got relegated and nearly every player left and with the budget we had. 'The young boys we've put in will be much better for the experience they've had, I'm prepared to throw them in and hopefully we'll get the fruits of that as things go on. 'We were a month behind others in terms of preparation and looking to convince boys to sign on after what had happened so it was certainly not easy and even today, we had nine players out injured, most of whom would have been starting in that team. 'We need a little more robustness and availability, so we'll sit down and look at what we do and can the players respond to the demands I have after a season with myself? 'In the first quarter, we couldn't score a goal outside of a set piece but we managed to win some games. 'We changed things at Christmas and defensively we looked much better in the second half of the season with the change of shape. 'Change takes time and I don't think we're below where we thought we'd be. 'There will have to be a bit of a rebuild there just because we're going to lose the guys on loan.'
Daily Record
07-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Record
Stirling Albion boss reveals hope for next season after dull Forfar curtain call
The Binos rounded off their season with a goalless draw in Angus against a home side fighting the drop - with a section of the away support in fancy dress even offering a party vibe to the final game. There was to be no final stirring act to the story of Stirling Albion's League Two season as attentions already turn to moving things forward for a crack at the top spots next time around. The Binos secured a sixth-place finish in the division after the final-day 0-0 draw at Forfar, where most of the attentions was not on the visitors, but rather the nails being bitten by a home support keen to avoid a relegation play-off. In the end, it all rather petered out as both sides settled for the goalless draw, meaning they will see each other at least four times in league action in 2025/26. Stirling manager Alan Maybury brought in some of his squad members from the cold for rare starts in Angus as a reward for their efforts over the season — and expressed positivity over the club's position ahead of what is sure to be another busy summer of ins and outs. The Irishman said: 'We knew we didn't have much to play for other than pride after last week. We changed a few to give some boys a game that they merited but I thought the attitude was top class and played some good football and hit the bar as well. 'As the second half went on, they came into it and Derek [Gaston] has to make a couple of good saves and we had a few half-decent opportunities. It was difficult with the wind out there and I thought there were some strange decisions from the officials as well which was just kind of frustrating and caused a lack of flow in the game. 'We took our point and overall, we're a little disappointed in terms of where I hoped we might get to but from the starting position we had, there has been a lot of good work and foundations, especially since the recruitment around Christmas where we've looked a lot better. 'I would guess we're in the bottom three or four in terms of budget in the division and we've beaten most of the teams above us with the exception of Peterhead. 'There has been a lot of good stuff, albeit we've struggled against some of the sides lower than us, but we do have a lot of hope going into next season.' The final round of results from the weekend mean that Stirling are now sure of five opponents for next season — with Spartans, Clyde, Stranraer, Forfar and relegated Dumbarton assured to join them in League Two. The final four spots will be decided as the play-offs kick off this week, with Edinburgh City and East Fife set to face off, as well as Elgin City and ninth-placed League One finishers Annan. Meanwhile, League Two bottom dogs Bonnyrigg Rose will be hoping to preserve their status with a play-off against East Kilbride.
Daily Record
25-04-2025
- Sport
- Daily Record
Familiar face set for Forthbank return as Stirling Albion take on home finale
Stirling's final home match of the season is set to bring a familiar face back to the Forthbank technical areas ... but the Binos know the task in hand to take their play off hopes to League Two's curtain call. Their bruising 2-0 defeat to East Fife at Bayview last week - coupled with a bad set of results elsewhere - means they sit sixth in the table and five points behind Elgin City with just six left to play for. The task therefore is simple - win their last two matches and hope results elsewhere offer a chance of a remarkable recovery. It all begins with the last game at Forthbank for the 2024/25 campaign - and the visit of Binos' League Two title-winning boss Darren Young and his Clyde side to Stirling. The 46-year-old guided the Binos to glory in the 2022/23 season, but failed to keep them up in League One during the following campaign - sparking his sacking from the Albion board and the eventual appointment of Alan Maybury to the Stirling hotseat for this season. On paper, it feels like a positive match-up for Stirling, with the Bully Wee struggling with squad availability in recent matches and in something of a 'no man's land' having already secured their League Two survival a couple of weeks ago. They were beaten comfortably at Spartans last time out courtesy of second-half goals from Cammy Russell and Jamie Dishington, but revenge could well be on the mind for Young, who came out on top in his first meeting as Clyde boss with his former employers this season. That post-New Year dust-up saw the Bully Wee run out 2-0 winners in Hamilton - but also coincided with a poor run of form around the festive period for Stirling. If Albion are able to do the business, then they will look to Stranraer to produce an unlikely result and avoid defeat up in Moray, as well as hoping Bonnyrigg can keep up their survival ambitions by giving fifth-placed Spartans a bloody nose. Despite last week's defeat firmly stacking the deck against his charges, Stirling gaffer Maybury insisted they would be up for the fight until it was mathematically impossible. He said: 'Things just haven't gone our way today but there's an opportunity next week that if we can win that game, then we're still in it. 'We've chopped it down from nine points at the start of this quarter to two points, albeit we've lost some ground today but I still think if we can reach that important points total then we have a shot.'
Daily Record
23-04-2025
- Sport
- Daily Record
Stirling boss urges side to fight for playoff lives despite East Fife defeat
Stirling Albion's playoff chances were blown off course on the banks of the North Sea ... but the Binos boss insists his side are still in the fight heading into their final home match of the season. Albion went into the match sensing an opportunity to propel themselves firmly into the reckoning for the top four heading to an up-and-down East Fife outfit, while their play-off rivals faced tricky encounters of their own. But the young Stirling side was given a reality check of the standards at the top of the division as Nathan Austin wreaked havoc once again with two goals inside the opening half-hour after some lack lustre defending from the visitors. The 2-0 defeat, coupled with a big win for Elgin against Peterhead, means Stirling now sit five points behind the Moray side in the playoff fight with two matches remaining. Two wins to finish their season - starting with the home match against Clyde on Saturday - are now a necessity and the Binos must also hope other results go their way. The Binos fans were left unhappy with some of boss Alan Maybury's decisions through the game, but the Binos gaffer believes there was much to take from his side's performance, particularly in the second 45. The Irishman said: 'In the first half, we played alright but made a couple of bad decisions and the wind didn't help in terms of kicking into that and the ball is coming back to us. 'They're a big, physical side so we knew it was a day we needed to play a little more and the team picked reflected that. 'I thought we were better in the second half and Shanley had a couple of chances and worked their goalkeeper a few times, that half was more like what we want to be, playing forward quicker and creating some opportunities. Another factor pointed out by the Stirling boss was the relative disparity of experience and senior appearances between the sides, with that know-how proving crucial on a blustery afternoon. 'We've got a young side out there with teenagers in midfield and at the back, I think their youngest player is about 25 so that bit of experience and that direct style is difficult to stand up to', Maybury continued. 'For the younger ones to step up and cope with that in the second half was a positive, things just haven't gone our way today but there's an opportunity next week that if we can win that game, then we're still in it. 'We've chopped it down from nine points at the start of this quarter to two points, albeit we've lost some ground today but I still think if we can reach that important points total then we have a shot.'
