The second quarter of the League Two season for Stirling Albion kicks off this weekend, with managerless Clyde the visitors to Forthbank.
With the opening nine games of the season in the books, the Binos have enjoyed a broadly positive start to the campaign – racking up 15 points and sitting comfortably in fourth place in the early standings.
The Observer has taken a look at those opening nine games to assess some early trends of the season so far, some bright spots to offer hope – and some areas where Stirling will need to pick up as the winter months begin to kick in.
THE POSITIVES
After a tumultuous summer which saw Alan Maybury become the final manager installed into his position across the SPFL, the Stirling squad has undergone a rapid makeover, one which remains ongoing with the most recent arrival of winger James Graham.
But despite those challenges, some of those new arrivals have been quick to make an impact on the Binos squad.
Former Cove defender Josh Kerr – signed on the eve of the opening fixture at Edinburgh City – is one of just three Stirling players to have started every League Two match so far, impressing in the base of midfield as the Binos fought early injuries.
Another of those stalwarts in the side is keeper Derek Gaston, who has backed up his reputation with a strong start at Forthbank, racking up three clean sheets already as well as making the most saves with 35.
Adam Brown has also been a positive addition since his capture from Stenhousemuir, netting twice from his first six games with the club.
On a wider level, the Binos have enjoyed excellent early form on the road, boasting the division’s best away record with ten points of their 12 coming away from Forthbank.
The Albion defence has been a strength with summer arrival Erik Sula another to have made a strong start in Stirling colours, barring a sloppy red card which cost his side a point at Peterhead.
They have conceded 11 times in the opening nine games, putting them fifth in the division – but four of those came in a disappointing display at home to top dogs East Fife.
Binos boss Maybury has been quick to insist that the opening quarter was always likely to be his toughest since taking the job with the overhaul required both in the squad and behind the scenes, so a decent start points-wise hints at more to come.
THE NEGATIVES
One of the Binos’ trademarks in their season to date boils down to one word – inconsistency.
A record with five wins and four defeats hints at that on the most basic level, but following up good wins with poor displays – most notably the home losses to East Fife and Bonnyrigg Rose – reveals there is still work to be done.
Early injuries and suspensions have also made manager Maybury’s strive for consistency in performance and selection difficult, with 23 players already having made appearances to help out a stretched squad.
A lack of goals in the side is another area which will cause the Stirling manager concern, with the Binos having scored only ten times so far in this campaign.
Their top goalscorers are Brown and Sula, both of whom have found the net only twice – with the striking trio of Dale Carrick, Ally Roy and Cammy McKinley scoring only twice between them.
Finding an answer to that conundrum in front of goal is one issue, as is the home form, the two single-goal victories over Spartans and Forfar balanced by poor defeats in the other three matches in front of the Forthbank faithful.
LOOKING AHEAD
It looks to be a pivotal stage in the Binos season over the coming month or so, with the visit of surprise early strugglers Clyde followed by a pair of matches against the league’s top two which will prove a true test of the Binos’ ambitions this campaign.
Meanwhile, sandwiched in between the Clyde dust-up and those matches with East Fife and Peterhead comes a classic Scottish Cup test, with East of Scotland First Division Bo’ness Athletic heading to Forthbank eager for a shock.
It’s a month where Maybury will be hoping to get some good news on the injury and availability front to build up that much-needed consistency which will be required if they want to maintain – and better – their opening quarter of results.