LATEST NEWS 2006/07
| For previous news articles see the monthly archive at the foot of this page.
| We have also noted that a number of visitors to the site are happy to lift stories and reproduce them elsewhere - we do not mind this happening however if you do so then please have the decency to credit the source. We do not allow the copying of photographs - please do not do this as copyright exists on all images used on the site. If you wish to use an image please contact us first. |
| Shirt sponsorship winners | 31st May 2007 |
The draw was made for the 11th Shirt Sponsorship draw tonight in the Palmerston Lounge Bar with an entry of 148, winner of the draw was Aero Leather Clothing Limited of Galashiels. Both Chairman David Rae and Commercial Manager, Margaret Heuchan were delighted with another tremendous response.
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| 1st Prize | Shirt Sponsorship | Aero Leather Clothing Limited
| 2nd Prize | League Match Sponsorship | G P Electrics
| 3rd Prize | Matchday Hospitality for a party of six | H K Thorburn
| 4th Prize | Executive Club Membership | Sims Mirec
| 5th Prize | Executive Club Membership | Burdens
| 6th Prize | Admittance to 2 adults to the Boardroom/Directors Box for one home match | Meridien Residential
| 7th Prize | Autographed Team Shirt | Jas. P Wilson
| 8th Prize | Sponsor a Player for the Season | Dennis Thomson Chilled Foods
| 9th Prize | Autographed Match Ball | Driver Hire Dumfries
| 10th Prize | Match Mascot | Queens Hotel, Lockerbie
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The draw was made by manager Gordon Chisholm, assisted by his wife Lynn. It was then on to the special eleventh prize of shorts sponsorship.
11th Prize | Shorts Sponsorship | Express Bakeries
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The evening also saw another new sponsor (the rear of the shirt) the sponsorship took the form of a silent auction and this was won by ASL Lockerbie.
Will he or won't he. Queens may have to play the 'waiting game' to see if Billy Dodds is going to be the new Assistant Manager at Palmerston. Said Gordon Chisholm after tonight's Shirt Sponsorship Draw, "Events at the BBC this week means that Billy might have more options available in his media career so, naturally, he's got to think about it. However, the picture should become clearer by the beginning of next week". On the actual football front the manager added, "Things haven't changed much since last week. I've settled in now and have been talking to a lot of different people. We've several options and if players we talk to are not available then we'll just move on. "Just recently I've spoken again to Stephen Frail at Hearts regarding keeper, Jamie MacDonald, and two other young boys at Tynecastle, and I'd also like to get Jamie Adams back. I'm after a bit of quality but we've got to be realistic and accept that things don't really start moving until nearer to pre-season". Bill Goldie |
| Youth sides victorious | 29th May 2007 |
Well done to both the U13's and the U14's who came away from the Ayr International Tournament with some very impressive winners trophies. Youth coach Dave Hutton was impressed with the professionalism of the event. He was also delighted that the lads rose to the occasion and demonstrated to the many coaches and scouts watching, that the local lads that make up the Queen of the South youth sides, are up there with the best.
 Midfielder Nathan Hutton proudly shows the Under 13's winners trophy with coach Dave Hutton(right). |
| Youth sides victorious | 28th May 2007 |
Both the U13's and the U14's won their respective finals at the prestigious Ayr International Tournament today. The younger side beat Ayr Boswell 3-2 in a tight final whilst the U14's defeated Queen's Park 3-1. Well done to all of the coaches and of course to the boys who took part today.
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| Attendances rise | 28th May 2007 |
Our league attendances showed a welcome rise of 22% last season--up from 1804 to 2212. Our highest league crowd was 5481 for our first-ever Scottish League match against Gretna in August--our lowest was 1497 against Ross County in November.
Biggest crowd of all however, was the Scottish Cup quarter-final match against Hibs which drew 6182. It was the best gate at Palmerston for many a long year, just shading the final league encounter of 2001-02 which saw 6158 turn up against Morton to celebrate our promotion to Division One. This season we ended up fifth in the First Division averages. Dundee topped the list on 3880 with Clyde bottom with 1359. For all those who may be interested figures over the past 13 years read as follows: 1994-95--Total 21,594. Average 1200. Highest v Morton (1494). Lowest v Meadowbank (705). 1995-96--Total 22,557. Average 1253. Highest v Clyde (1897). Lowest v Stenhousemuir (743). 1996-97--Total 21,842. Average 1213. Highest v Ayr United (1813). Lowest v Brechin City (819). 1997-98--Total 22,751. Average 1264. Highest v Stranraer (1615). Lowest v Forfar Ath. (1011). 1998-99--Total 21,893. Average 1216. Highest v Partick Th. (1731). Lowest v Forfar Ath. (916). 1999-00--Total 20,682. Average 1149. Highest v Partick Th. (1959). Lowest v Clyde (830). 2000-01--Total 21,799. Average 1211. Highest v Partick Th. (2432). Lowest v Forfar Ath. (974). 2001-02--Total 34,048. Average 1892. Highest v Morton (6158). Lowest v Clydebank (1108). 2002-03--Total 38,796. Average 2155. Highest v Clyde (3206). Lowest v Arbroath (1108). 2003-04--Total 42,483. Average 2360. Highest v Falkirk (4075). Lowest v Brechin City (1352). 2004-05--Total 35,273. Average 1960. Highest v St Mirren (2734). Lowest v Raith Rovers (1361). 2005-06--Total 32,443. Average 1804. Highest v Stranraer (2790). Lowest v Ross County (1276). 2006-07--Total 39,806. Average 2212. Highest v Gretna (5481). Lowest v Ross County (1497). It's also interesting to note that from 1994-95 through to 2000-01 average attendances hardly varied. However, the rise started in that promotion winning season of 2001-02 when they rose to 1892 and, since then, have averaged over 2000 three times in the past five seasons. Bill Goldie |
| Historic meetings | 28th May 2007 |
Just to clarify the history of the club we have researched the minute books to provide a definitive description of the venues that can be credited with playing a part in the formation of Queen of the South.
The first meeting was held in Dumfries Town Hall with the second being held on the 26th March 1919 in the New Bazaar Hotel, at that meeting Mr McGeorge moved that no future meetings should be held in licensed premises a proposal that was carried by a 14 to 7 majority. The club secretary then arranged the third meeting to be held in the Y.M.C.A. on the 4th April 1919. During the first year of the clubs existence meetings were held in the Wesley Halls (connected to the Baptist Church close to where the Robert the Bruce public house is nowadays), the Mens Own in Maxweltown (location unknown) and then Palmerston Park. It is also interesting to note that at the second meeting the club colours were decided as royal blue shirts with white 'knickers' and that original strips were offered and accepted from Arrol Johnson and the King's Own Scottish Borderer's side. Ian Black |
| Youth sides on form | 28th May 2007 |
Good luck to two of our youth sides today in their respective finals in the prestige Ayr International Youth Tournament. Both the Under 13's and the Under 14's feature in the finals with the host club Ayr Boswell providing the opposition for the U13's with a 10.00am kick-off at Dam Park and Queen's Park facing the U14's in their final at 1.00pm at the same venue.
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| Season Review | 26th May 2007 |
Part four of our review is published tonight and Ewan looks at October, a quiet month but one that maybe saw a crucial appointment.
Follow the link at the top of the home page or click HERE to read how events unfolded. |
| Guid Nychburris | 25th May 2007 |
The New look Dumfries Guid Nychburris magazine now on sale contains a short article on where the name "Queen of the South" and "Doonhamers" derives from plus a nice coloured advert plugging the Junior Blues.
BLW |
| Queens to appeal | 24th May 2007 |
Queens today received the official letter from the S.F.A. informing them of the £20,000 fine imposed for fielding Jamie Adams against Cowdenbeath and Hibs in the Scottish Cup after he'd been 'on the bench' for Kilmarnock v Morton in an earlier round.
But Chairman, David Rae, insisted this afternoon,"I've now seen the letter from Hampden and we're certainly going to lodge an appeal. £20,000 is an excessive amount and a substantial sum for a First Division club. And, what makes it even worse--I don't think we're entirely to blame. "Our then manager, Ian McCall, informed me personally on the week of the match that our other Kilmarnock on-loan player, Stevie Murray, was 'cup-tied' and couldn't play in the Cowdenbeath game as he'd actually played for Killie against Morton. But he also said that everyone else was available and gave exactly the same information to the official club 'Website', so I naturally assumed that he'd checked it out with the 'powers that be'. "The Cowdenbeath match took place on the 3rd of February and the fact that we'd fielded an ineligible player didn't 'come to light' until the end of April. It's unbelievable that this wasn't spotted sooner! To make matters worse, Jamie never even kicked a ball for Kilmarnock in this season's Scottish Cup so it's little wonder we feel 'hard done to'. "As long as I'm Chairman of Queen of the South Football Club I'll ensure that this will never happen again. In future 'word of mouth' is not an option--any important communications will be by E-Mail, fax and official letter". Bill Goldie |
| Biding his time | 22nd May 2007 |
Speaking to the 'Website' today, Gordon Chisholm insists he won't be rushed into signing new faces. Said the manager, "When I do sign them I want to get players who are right for Queen of the South. Let's face it, it's still May and the SPL only finished on Sunday and Celtic and Dunfermline have still the Scottish Cup Final to play. So I intend waiting to see just who's available when the lists are published.
"But one thing's for sure--we need two goalkeepers! I've spoken to Stephen Frail at Hearts about Jamie MacDonald and another two of their players. Jamie would love to stay on at Palmerston but, until things are all clarified at Tynecastle, Stephen can't give me a definite answer". And with Craig Gordon almost certain to move on to 'pastures new' it's understandable. Added Gordon, "I've also been on the phone to Jim Jeffries regarding Jamie Adams, but Jamie's totally focussed on the Under-20's World Cup in Canada at present, so we'll have to bide our time on that one as well. However, both players enjoyed their football down here and that's a compliment to our club. "We've got our official pre-season all planned with Gretna and Carlisle United at home; a match at Newcastle and, of course, the Annan Tournament. Nevertheless, I'd still like to get a couple of 'bounce' games lined up in the central belt prior to that. We share training facilities with Kilmarnock and that's a possibility, and I know 'Yogi' Hughes well from my Falkirk days so he's worth a phone call as well. Threave Rovers have also indicated they'd like to play us at Castle Douglas, but nothing definite has been arranged on any of those so far. There's one or two young boys I'd like to bring in for pre-season training, so games like that would be ideal to get a good look at them. "We won't be entering the Reserve League next season. There were only ourselves and three other clubs in it last season which meant playing each other four times which wasn't satisfactory. So, we hope to have a Under-19/Reserve side in operation which would give young lads and those not playing regularly or recovering from injury the opportunity to turn out. "I've been asked to make the draw for the 'Shirt Sponsorship' next Thursday. It gives me the chance to meet some of the fans and members of the local business community, and I feel that's important for any new manager. So, I'm really looking forward to it!" Bill Goldie |
| Mullen signs for Stranraer | 22nd May 2007 |
Striker, Michael Mullen, whose contract with Queens expired last week has opted to sign on for Stranraer--the club he was on loan to last season. We wish him all the best.
Bill Goldie |
| A hefty fine for Queens | 22nd May 2007 |
Queens have been fined £20,000 for fielding 'on-loan' Jamie Adams in the Scottish Cup as the young player had been on the bench for Kilmarnock in an earlier round against Morton.
Said Chairman, David Rae, "It's a substantial sum. We'll receive an official letter from the SFA within the next few days and we'll analyse it carefully and decide whether or not there's grounds for an appeal. Although Jamie was on the bench for Kilmarnock he never kicked a ball". Bill Goldie |
| Junior Blues | 21st May 2007 |
Our 450 Junior Blues recently got their chance to vote for their Player of the Year and the clear winner for Season 2006-07 was Stevie Murray. Stephen Dobbie was second with Sean O’Connor and Neil Scally sharing 3rd place. Our picture shows some of our Junior Blues along with kind sponsor Allan Shuttleworth of Mabie Farm Park, presenting Stevie with his award.
 Junior Blues present their award.  Autographs all round. The First Team squad took the opportunity to sign autographs and answer questions from our excited group of Junior Blues. |
Stevie also took time out to promote the Junior Blues ‘Blue & White’ magazine. This season nearly two thousand copies will have been sent out to hundreds of young Junior Blues Club members from all over Dumfries & Galloway. Nearly 100 entries have been received for the latest competition prizes and we will be announcing the winners on Wednesday June 6th.
The Supporters Trust would like to thank all those who have contributed to a successful first year for the magazine, especially Eric Moffat for all his hard work, and, all the Queens fans who have provided donations to help us finance the project.  Stevie with the 'Blue and White'. |
David Linden |
| Dumfries & Galloway Arts Festival | 21st May 2007 |
Dumfries & Galloway Arts Festival is on from Friday 25th May - Saturday 2nd June 2007
This year's programme promises to be as rich and varied as ever with something to suit all tastes. We hope that you will make the most of what is on offer and book lots of events. Make the last week in May a celebration of the Arts for you, your family and friends. Events and booking information available at http://www.dgartsfestival.org.uk/ |
| Season Review | 19th May 2007 |
Part three of our review is published tonight and Ewan looks at September, a month where not much went for us with only one point out of a possible twelve and only one home game the entire month.
Follow the link at the top of the home page or click HERE to read how events unfolded. |
| MAD site down | 17th May 2007 |
Eric from the Queens MAD site has asked us to let you know that the site is down at the moment as it undergoes some reconstruction work, don't worry though it will be back soon.
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| SEASON 2007/2008 ADMISSION PRICES | 16th May 2007 |
As the club approaches another season in the First Division, the Board of Directors have reviewed admission prices for 2007/08. It has been agreed that the only change will be for adult admission, which will be increased by £1 to £15 per game.
In line with this, season ticket prices will be increased by £10 to £230 for adults. This represents an increased saving of approximately 15% per game. Supporters purchasing season tickets before 1st July will benefit from an additional £10 discount - representing a saving of over 18% per game. The Board of Directors strive to maintain that the club offers the most competitive pricing in the division - this will remain the case next season. |
| Queen of the South Admission Prices 2007/08 Season
General Admission - League Games
Price
Comment
Adults
£15
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Senior Citizen [over 65]
£6
No change from 2006/07
Student [17 years and over]
£6
No change from 2006/07
Adult & Child Gate
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~ Adult & one child [under 17]
£17
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~ Adult & two children [under 17]
£19
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~ Adult & three children [under 17]
£21
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Under 17 years old
£3
No change from 2006/07
Less Abled Supporters
Free
No change from 2006/07
Carer
£6
No change from 2006/07. Ticket to be paid for at Club Office on Match Day with proof of position
Unemployed/Supporters on Benefits
£6
No change from 2006/07. Ticket to be paid for at Club Office on Match Day with proof of position
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Season Tickets
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Adult Season Ticket
£220
If purchased before June 30th.
Adult Season Ticket
£230
Purchased after June 30th.
Senior Citizen Season Ticket
£100
No change from 2006/07
Student Season Ticket
£100
No change from 2006/07
Junior Blues Membership
£18
No change from 2006/07
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Colin Rutherford |
| Ball Boys Day Out | 15th May 2007 |
As a thank you to the committment shown by the ball boys and girls who are supplied by Lochar Thistle youths AFC a trip was organised to the premiership match between Blackburn and Reading. A great day was had by all including all the volunteer coaches and helpers. The kids were a credit to Queens and Lochar and enjoyed a cracking match with six goals and a great family atmosphere to go with it all.
 All the ball-boys, volunteer coaches and helpers line up for a photo. Ross Corbett |
| Friendly at Newcastle | 15th May 2007 |
Queens today arranged another pre-season match against Northern League side, Newcastle Benfield. It will take place at Sam Smith Park, Newcastle on Saturday, 21st July.
Although a non-league side, they certainly can't be underestimated. They qualified for the F.A. Cup last season and played in the First Round and, in a friendly against Annan Athletic, won 6-0. Benfield's manager is ex-Motherwell player, Paul Baker and their Assistant Manager is none other than Paddy Atkinson, a big favourite with the Queens' faithful during his time here. Said Paddy, "We've a canny park down here and a canny Social Club as well. I'm really looking forward to meeting up the Queens' fans again and I'm sure they'll all be made most welcome". Bill Goldie |
| Three stalwarts sign extensions | 14th May 2007 |
Jim Thomson, Eric Paton and John O'Neill all signed a one year extension to their existing contracts at Palmerston this morning. Said skipper, J.T., "We've started really badly those past couple of seasons, so we're all looking to do better this time around. I'm sure the manager will get in a few quality players in to boost the squad and help us get points on the board early for a change. In my two spells here I've served nearly nine years at Palmerston so I'd like to get another year's extension next year as well which would set me up for a Testimonial Match".
Added Eric Paton, "It was important we kept this squad together as we had a terrific run of 12 games unbeaten towards the end of last season. The nucleus of the team is now in place and that's good". And John O'Neill fully agreed with his team mates and insisted. " We must get off to a better start as we left ourselves with far too much ground to make up last season. But I'm confident we can progress if this squad can stay together". Gordon Chisholm was naturally delighted to get the three stalwarts on board again and stressed, "Jim, Eric and John all played a major part in our survival last season and their experience was vital in our hour of need". Jim is our skipper and a very influential individual both on and off the park--and, in particular, the dressing room. Eric suffered from a blood disorder last season but overcame it and was back to his old self by the turn of the year. And who can ever forget his great goal from a free-kick down at Gretna. John is also vastly experienced--deadly from the penalty spot and our leading scorer last season. Added the manager, "They'll be five or six new faces coming in and I've already spoken to one or two players. But it's still a bit early as the Premier League hasn't even finished yet. Nevertheless, I'm working away quietly and taking in games, but I'm not in a position to talk just yet. We're keeping in touch with Kilmarnock and Hearts regarding the availability of Jamie Adams and Jamie MacDonald, but if the Tynecastle side should lose keeper, Craig Gordon, in the close season, who knows what might happen". On the subject of an assistant manager 'Chis' admitted, "I was at a function last night and had another chat with Billy Dodds who was also there. I'd certainly like him to come but he has other options and his media work to consider and I fully understand that's he's reluctant to jump into anything before giving it much thought". Gordon was another who was at the Airdrie v Stirling Albion play-off and was shocked that Airdrie didn't win through. "I would have put money on them to win on their own patch, but all credit to Stirling Albion who'll come up to the First Division full of optimism. I was also surprised that Dunfermline didn't take the battle to the last day of the season, but two late goals put paid to that. "However, next season is set to be an exciting one with Morton also up there, so I'm looking forward to the challenge". Bill Goldie |
| An exciting finale | 14th May 2007 |
The play-offs plus Premier League fixtures contributed to an exciting afternoon for all those punters tuned in to the radio and TV on Saturday. Chairman, David Rae, was actually up at the Airdrie v Stirling Albion play-off at New Broomfield and commented, "There were close on three and a half thousand there and that's by far the biggest league gate at Airdrie this season--about three times their normal turnout. It just goes to show what an interest those play-offs generate--but, having said that, I was glad we weren't in them.
"About half the chairmen and managers in the First Division were in attendance, but Airdrie chairman, Jim Ballantyne and his fellow directors must have been 'gutted' to lose out 5-4 on aggregate having led 2-0 in the first leg at Forthbank. When you drop down to the Second Division it's a hard league to get out off. Look how long Morton took to get back up again and the last time we were down there I think it was about 13 years before we managed promotion. So, it's a place we don't want to go! "The other new side joining us in Division One next season will be Dunfermline. At one time on Saturday they led 1-0 up at Inverness while Motherwell and St Mirren were drawing with each other. The Pars were' within a whisker' of avoiding relegation but conceded two late goals and when St Mirren grabbed a late winner at Fir Park they were doomed. "It's a long time since we last met Dunfermline in the league. It's one of the few Scottish grounds I've never visited so I'm looking forward to it". Bill Goldie |
| Well done Annan | 12th May 2007 |
Congratulations to Annan Athletic who clinched the East of Scotland Premier League Championship this afternoon with a convincing 3-0 victory over Preston Athletic. A big contingent of QOS fans made the trip to Galabank to cheer their near neighbours on and, in their opinion, ex-Queens' man big Stuart Hill was 'Man of the Match'. Their on-loan striker from Queens, Lewis Sloan, netted the decisive second goal shortly after coming on midway through the second half with a cracking strike from fully 35 yards. The other scorers being former Carlisle United midfielder Michael Jack, direct from a free kick just before half-time, and Grant Parker in the 83rd minute as he latched onto a long through ball to knock it past the Preston 'keeper.
All in all quite a season for Harry Cairney's Galabank side who can add the league trophy to the Scottish Qualifying Cup that they won earlier in the season - also beating Preston Athletic that day. Bill Goldie |
| Season Review | 12th May 2007 |
Part two of our review is published tonight when Ewan looks at the very busy month of August, a month where we were so close but so far in our cup games.
Follow the link at the top of the home page or click HERE to read how events unfolded. |
| Gretna in pre-season | 10th May 2007 |
Another pre-season friendly was confirmed by manager Gordon Chisholm this morning--Queens will meet Gretna at Palmerston on Wednesday, 25th July. Kick-off 7.30 pm
Bill Goldie |
| Shirt Draw | 10th May 2007 |
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| Pre-season matches | 8th May 2007 |
Queens have again agreed to take part in the annual Annan Tournament prior to the new season commencing. We are, of course, the holders of the Brewer's Cup having lifted the trophy last year and will face the same opposition this time around--Stranraer, Ayr United and the host club Annan Athletic. Games will be played on Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th of July.
On Saturday, 28th July, we meet Carlisle United in a friendly at Palmerston which should be an entertaining encounter. Some bad news however! Skipper, Jim Thomson, Stevie Tosh and John O'Neill are all due suspensions and all three will miss the two opening games of the new season. Bill Goldie |
| Hissy Fit | 7th May 2007 |
Our young goalkeeper Ross Hyslop was rushed to hospital in the early hours of last Thursday morning with suspected meningitis, after spending the day in ward 15 the tests thankfully showed no sign of the strain and Ross was diagnosed with acute pharyngitis. He was released from hospital on Friday and has missed 2 of his O grades, after sitting 3 during the week.
Ross has been signed off for the rest of the youth season which finishes on 27th May, his dad Gordon says Ross and his mum would like to thank everybody at Palmerston and all the well wishers who called to leave their support for Ross.  Ross in better health - Photo from Angus McDougal |
| Our new man at the helm | 7th May 2007 |
Gordon Chisholm was officially unveiled as the new manager of Queen of the South at a press conference this morning. Introducing and welcoming our 'new man at the helm' Chairman, David Rae confessed, "Gordon was always top of my list--Number One--and I'm really pleased that he has agreed to join us and has signed a two year contract".
Thanking the chairman for his kind remarks our new manager admitted, "It came as quite a surprise when the chairman phoned me and asked to meet to discuss the managerial vacancy at Palmerston. When he offered me the job I was delighted and considered it a great compliment as Queens have always been such a well respected club in Scottish football.  David Rae welcomes Gordon Chisholm to the managers hotseat - Photograph from Drew Geddes - Solway Press Services, Dalbeattie "I'd a brief spell as manager at Dundee United and once I got the taste of it I developed an appetite for more of the same. I always fancied the chance to be 'my own man' and make my own decisions, so it's all down to me now. We'll be out there scouting for talent and I've already identified players to approach. With the season just ended there's a lot of them out there just now but I want the best for Queen of the South. I've a few ideas of my own and I want to put a team on the park that are consistent and set the club off in the right direction. "I'm extremely fortunate to be inheriting a squad of players who I know very well and have a lot of respect for. We already have a nucleus of nine players under contract; Jim Thomson, Eric Paton and John O'Neill have all agreed terms and will be signing this week and I've still to 'run the rule' over young Michael Mullen when his loan spell at Stranraer is over. "We're currently in talks with Jim Jeffries at Kilmarnock regading the two 'on loan' players we had from Rugby Park and I'd love to get keeper, Jamie MacDonald, back again from Hearts. But we'll just have to wait and see. "Ideally I'd like to have a first team squad of 20, to allow for injuries and suspensions, and that would mean bringing in four or five new faces--but I must ensure I get the right quality of player. 'Weiro' and Murray Henderson have left and so too have Andrew Barrowman and Barry John Corr, but I wish them well for the future. "Stevie Morrison has agreed to stay on as First Team coach and I'm happy with that, but I'm still in the process of appointing an Assistant Manager. It's already been well documented that I've had a chat with Billy Dodds, but it's gone no further than 'talking' at present, so there's nothing concrete yet. "The last two seasons have seen Queens start very poorly and they were left with a 'mountain to climb'. I know from personal experience how hard it was last season and it took a late run of 12 games unbeaten to survive, but it did prove the quality was there. But, obviously, we'll be doing our utmost to start better when we kick-off in July. "I think the standard in the First Division will be higher than ever this coming season. Morton are coming up and, depending on the play-offs, either Airdrie or Stirling Albion will be joining them. And, at the other end of the table it looks like either Dunfermline or St Mirren will drop down. We had the most competive league in Scotland last season and I'm sure it will be even harder this time around". On the Queen of the South fans our new boss stressed, "I was at Palmerston with Dundee United for a Scottish cup-tie two years ago and I was surprised at the turnout. Even last season, when we weren't doing too well, they got behind us and those who travel to away games are absolutely fantastic. The noise they make is suberb and I only hope I can give you something more to cheer about". 'Chis' as he is affectionally know in football, has had an illustrious playing career turning out for Sunderland, Hibs, Dundee and Partick Thistle and captained all four of those clubs. He has known our outgoing manager, Ian McCall, for many years and said, "I knew Ian as a player at Partick; I worked with him at Clydebank, Airdrie, Dundee United and of course Falkirk, when we won the First Division Championship. "It was Ian who brought me to Palmerston back in October and I'm indebted to him for that. I contacted him when I was first offered the manager's job at Dumfries and he said, 'go for it' and wished me 'all the best'.  Chis shows his colours - Photograph from Drew Geddes - Solway Press Services, Dalbeattie Believe it or not, despite being so long in the game, 'Chis' has only once played at Palmerston Park. He recalls, "It was a Skol cup-tie away back in 1990. We drew 2-2 after extra-time but lost out in a penalty shoot-out". In the Queens' team then were Alan Davidson (in goal), Kevin Hetherington, Andy Thomson, Jimmy Robertson and manager, Frank McGarvey was sub. Bill Goldie |
| New Manager | 6th May 2007 |
Gordon Chisholm is set to be named as the new Queen of the South manager at a 10.30 am Press Conference to be held at Palmerston tomorrow. Our former assistant manager takes over from Ian McCall who vacated the manager's chair a week ago.
Ironically, Gordon also succeeded him as manager at Dundee United towards the end of season 2004-05 after Ian McCall was sacked by Tannadice chairman, Eddie Thomson. During an illustrious playing career 'Chis' turned out for Hibs, Dundee and Sunderland and captained all three sides. Queens' fans, out in force to assist with the Car Boot Sale this morning, were all in favour of the appointment and backed the Board's choice. Said Alan Ritchie, "Gordon Chisholm knows all the players, he has all the top coaching qualifications and is well respected within football circles. I think he is the right man to keep us up in the First Division. Jim Swan agreed and was adamant, stating, "An excellent appointment! Yet again Davie Rae has 'come up trumps' with his choice". Stuart Rae added, "The players all know 'Chis' and respect him. It will keep the continuity going and I feel that's very important in football" while Terry Cullen summed it up in one short sentence, "You just have to look at how results have improved since he 'came on board' in October to know he's the right man for the job". Bill Goldie 
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| Car Boot Sale | 6th May 2007 |
Despite the weather today's Car Boot Sale was again a massive success with a total of 107 cars and vans turning up and over £1000 was raised. The next one will be on Sunday, 3rd June.
Bill Goldie |
| Season Review | 5th May 2007 |
For the 6th consecutive season we are delighted to bring you our comprehensive season review from our 'Away Day' match reporter Ewan Lithgow. Once again the season has been full of incident and controversy - so follow our serialised account of the events as they unfold over the next twelve weeks.
Follow the link at the top of the home page or click HERE to read the events of last pre-season. |
| Car Boot Sale | 5th May 2007 |
The second Queens supporters action group car boot sale takes place this Sunday 6th May from 9:00am until 1:00pm in the main car park at Palmerston there is over 90 cars and vans booked in already anyone who can help please phone Ross 01387 267376.
Ross Corbett |
| From the Chairman | 4th May 2007 |
Much has been written over the past week or so regarding the structure of the club for season 2007-08. To try and prevent further speculation, the board would like to confirm that the club will not be going back to training two nights a week. Similar arrangements to last season will continue with training sessions being held in both Dumfries and Glasgow.
As regards the managerial vacancy, the board has been delighted with the quality of applications received. We have identified the man we would like to appoint and hope to tie up negotiations over the weekend. A formal announcement should hopefully be made around the middle of next week. The new manager will be able to bring in new players to complement the players retained from last season's squad. While the Scottish First Division will be more competitive than ever, we feel there is already sufficient quality within the present squad for us to compete strongly this coming season. We thank you for your continued support and look forward to welcoming you all back to Palmerston ar the start of the 2007-08 season. David Rae |
| Club News | 4th May 2007 |
Our captain, Jim Thomson, is set to sign a one year extension to his existing contract next week which, when completed, will be good news for all Queens' fans.
Players who remain on existing contracts are: Andy Aitken, Paul Burns, Stephen Dobbie, Jim Lauchlan, Jamie McQuilken, Sean O'Connor, Scott Robertson, Neil Scally and Stevie Tosh. Others are still in the process of negotiations. Graham Weir has been allowed to go at his own request and Murray Henderson has also requested to leave. Being an architect, Murray has found it increasingly difficult to get time off to meet the level of training sessions required for First Division football. Bill Goldie |
| A sneak preview | 3rd May 2007 |
This year we have decided to adopt a unique strip design csutom designed specifically for Queen of the South. We have turned to Surridge Sport to provide this new design for us and the results look sure to see us as one of the smartest turned out sides in the first division next season. We have incorporated all of our traditional colours in the home strip with blue, white and yellow, whilst our away strip will be yellow with blue trim. And as an exclusive to all our website visitors we have decided to reveal it here on our official website first.
Home strip 
Away strip 
John Paterson |
| Queens lose to Spiders | 2nd May 2007 |
Queens went down 3-1 to Queen's Park in the last home Reserve match of the season tonight.
The visitors took the lead on the stroke of half time and two more goals in the second half put them three up before Sean O'Connor netted a consolation in the final minute. News on Andy Aitken who was injured in Monday night's game against Gretna--he has strained ligaments in his shoulder. Bill Goldie |
| Scally tops the polls | 2nd May 2007 |
Neil Scally has also topped the 'Player of the Season' voting for the Queen of the South Fan Club, whilst Jamie MacDonald won the 'Young Player of the Season' and Jim Thomson the 'Goal of the Season' for his spectacular overhead kick against Livingston.
So for Neil it is a clean sweep with every award that we have been told about going to the hard working midfield general. Well done Neil.  |
| Website superstars | 1st May 2006 |
At the end of the season the many voluntary contributors to the Queen's Official Website get to take a bit of a break. It takes a lot of commitment from the fans who bring this site to you to make sure that the content we publish gives you the quickest and best coverage of Queens available through any media. The main contributors to thank are:
|
 Bill Goldie  Ewan Lithgow  Ian Black  David Gow |
Bill Goldie
Bill is a well known face around Palmerston having been programme editor for many years and now Press Officer. Bill provides the website with all of the latest information from Palmerston as soon as it happens and ensures that we can get the news to you before anyone else. The match preview, the team news and the post match reaction from the manager and players is brought to you within minutes of matches ending home or away comes courtesy of Bill. You will also be the first to hear of signing news and any other happenings at Palmerston thanks to the hard work of Bill. Ewan Lithgow Ewan has a number or roles at Palmerston, finding time to fit in duties in the Club Shop and the Office on matchdays with looking after the club accounts whilst also giving us the away match reports and his now eagerly awaited season review (starting this Saturday evening) to give us our Queens fix during the summer months. Without fail and very often before 5.00pm we can guarantee that a fully detailed away match report is on the official website beating every other media by hours. Ian Black Most people will know Ian Black, the Club Historian and Museum Curator. Ian is the font of all knowledge on Queens and provides the website with the answers to all of the questions posed by fans regarding the history of the club. It's sometime amusing to see the number of Grandad's who used to play for Queen's that don't appear anywhere in the club records - it must be our name! The many hours spent searching the records for fans who have relatives that played for the Queens in years gone by seldom receives any thanks from those enquiring but is certainly appreciated by all of the Queens fans who then read the responses via the Questions and Answers page. David Gow David does a superb job of bringing video action from the games that covers not only the goals but also captures the atmosphere of the fans on the terraces. This season we have added the clips directly into the match reports so that you can always find them when searching the archives. We would like to offer our thanks to all of those mentioned above plus everyone else at Palmerston, particularly Eric Moffat in the office, programme editor Bruce Wright for keeping us up to date with emerging stories, Ian Raffel who looks after and updates the 'Results Grid' and also to local photographer Angus McDougal who often provides images for us to use when we can't be there to record them ourselves. Without the assistance and co-operation of all of those involved the website would not be what we believe it to be and that is one of the most informative in the league. If you think that you too could contribute to the website in any way, whether it be in design, or by producing content then please email us at webmaster@qosfc.com. Please keep on visiting during the close season as we will be the first to bring you all of the news for next season - our tenth as the Official Queens website - on friendly fixtures, league and cup draws and new player signings. Thanks for visiting this year. |
| Reserves go down | 30th April 2007 |
A strong Gretna side beat Queens 2-0 at Palmerston tonight in the Reserve League. The visitors took the lead five minutes before the interval and scored their second mid-way through the second half.
Following a collision with the keeper Andy Aitken suffered what could be a fractured a collar bone and was being checked out at hospital to determine the severity of the injury. Bill Goldie |
| Player of the Season | 30th April 2007 |
The top three in the man of the match voting from the season curtain closer at Palmerston on Saturday were; first place Sean O'Connor, second Neil Scally with Jamie MacDonald third.
The full scores have been added to the match report and the Player of the Season league table has now been finalised along with the scoring spreadsheet. Thanks for voting. Despite it being a close run thing in the end, as Sean O'Connor crept up by securing five out of the last seven Man of the Match awards, it was long term leader Neil Scally who took the Queen of the South Official Website Player of the Season award. A remarkably consistent season in his first term at Queens and thoroughly deserved recognition for the midfielder who has picked up every Player of the Season award going. Well done Neil. |
| DIADORA AND THE SFL STRIKE A DEAL | 30th April 2007 |
Diadora the famous Italian sportswear manufacturer are proud to announce that they have agreed a two year deal with The Scottish Football League to become their Official Ball Supplier starting from next season. The new deal will see Diadora supply a specifically designed football to all the SFL clubs from the 2007/2008 season.
The new SFL match ball will be based on Diadora's FIFA approved GAMMA RETE PRO ball which is at the very cutting edge of ball design and technology and will be used by Teams across the globe. The 8 panel ball design delivers an increased surface area and reduced stitching that cuts air friction giving the ball a faster truer flight. The new ball and replica versions will be available from all good sports retailers for the start of the season. Peter Terry, Managing Director Diadora UK commented, " We are delighted with this new deal and are very much looking forward to working with The Scottish Football League and member clubs. The new GAMMA ball is a fantastic design and one that we are sure the SFL clubs will enjoy playing with across the next two seasons." Peter Donald, Secretary of The Scottish Football League, said: "We are extremely happy to enter into an agreement which will see Diadora become the Official Ball Supplier to The Scottish Football League during the next two seasons. I am sure that players will enjoy the new GAMMA ball and that the SFL and its member clubs will develop a close working relationship with Diadora which will prove to be mutually beneficial." |
| Reserve fixtures | 29th April 2007 |
Queens have two more Reserve fixtures at Palmerston this coming week. Tomorrow night (Monday) they play hosts to Gretna and on Wednesday evening they meet Queen's Park. Both games kick-off at 7.30 pm.
Bill Goldie |
| Neil tops the polls | 28th April 2007 |
 Ross Corbett, Neil Scally, Jim Thomson, Jamie MacDonald and Jim McCormick - Photo from Angus McDougal Despite the defeat by Airdrie and the departure of manager, Ian McCall, members of the Doonhamers' Travel Club gathered in great numbers at the Masonic Hall for their annual prizegiving last night. President Ross Corbett and John Caskie acted as M.C.s and both Ross and Chairman David Rae gave rousing speeches to rally the fans in what has been a real 'roller coaster' season. When it came to the awards Neil Scally was top man collecting three trophies including the 'Player of the Year'. Keeper, Jamie MacDonald lifted the 'Young Player of the Year' and skipper, Jim Thomson the 'Goal of the Season' for his spectacular overhead kick winner at Livingston. An unexpected visitor was Alex Nesovic who was in town and popped in to say 'hello'. Neil Scally was totally overwhelmed and said, "That's nine awards I've picked up over the past couple of weeks. For my first season at Queen of the South I'm absolutely amazed and I can't thank all those Queens' fans who voted for me enough". |
Player of the Year:-
1st - Neil Scally 2nd - Jim Thomson 3rd - Sean O'Connor Young Player of the Year:- 1st - Jamie MacDonald 2nd - Jamie Adams 3rd - Sean O'Connor and Willie Gibson Junior members Player of the Year:- 1st - Neil Scally 2nd - Jim Thomson 3rd - Sean O'Connor  Top award winners in action today |
Goal of the Season (Iain Corbett Memorial Shield):-
1st - Jim Thomson (versus Livingston) 2nd - John O'Neill (versus Hibernian) 3rd - Sean O'Connor (versus Dundee - Scottish Cup) Away Day Player of the Year (Langley Muir Memorial Trophy):- 1st - Neil Scally 2nd - Jim Thomson and Willie Gibson 3rd - Paul Burns and Stephen Dobbie |
| Match reaction | 28th April 2007 |
Queens season ended on a low this afternoon when a lackluster performance saw them go down 3-0 to an Airdrie United side who were fighting for their lives. It was our first league defeat at home since mid-January and to be fair we were never at the races. Gretna tied up their SPL place with an injury time goal at Dingwall despite a 4-3 victory for St Johnstone at Hamilton which wasn't enough for the Perth side. And for Ross County it meant second division football next term.
After his final game in charge Ian McCall said, "It was always going to be hard for us today but Airdrie United were worthy winners so good luck to them in the play-off's. Our only real scoring chance was a Stephen Dobbie shot in the opening minute which hit the post but the main issue is Queen of the South will still be playing first division football next season. It was a very emotional day for myself and all the lads but I think we should be judged for what we've achieved in the latter half of the season and not on today's match". Sponsors Man of the Match - Jim Thomson. Crowd - 3012, travelling support 959. Bill Goldie |
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