Dumbarton 1 Airdrieonians 5
There are moments when nature tells the story. Dumbarton FC stands between the Rock and a hard place.
The setting is stunning. The ground sits in the lee of the town’s signature mound and looks across an expanse of water. The site is thus desirable. Its beauty has over the years attracted those who want to build houses and there have been plans to move the club elsewhere.
Now the issue is survival. Dumbarton are in administration, face a relegation battle and are likely to face a points deduction and restrictions on signing players next season. The Scottish Cup on Saturday offered the chance of progress and a lucrative tie in the fifth round. They were gubbed 5-1.
The laconic but ultimately defiant words of That’s Life was the serenade from the loudspeakers at full-time.
This determination is reflected in the words and actions of the Sons Supporters Trust. Two of its stalwarts sit in a room off the reception at the stadium. David Brownlee and David Carson attended the agm of the trust last week and were briefed by administrators, Quantuma.
Both feared administration was coming. Both welcomed it. Both had concerns about the ownership of Cognitive Capital that took over in 2021.
The League One club’s stadium is in the shadow of Dumbarton Rock
Fans cheer on the Sons during their Scottish Cup defeat to Airdrieonians
David Carson and David Brownlee of the Sons Supporter Trust
Alongside the administration process, there is a police investigation. The bottom lines, however, are no mystery. ‘We owe £312,000,’ says Brownlee, 73, a retired civil servant and chair of the trust. ‘As of last week we had taken in £103,000 in crowdfunding from what I call the Dumbarton diaspora and other football fans.’
The lights have been kept on. Indeed, the administrators have told the trust that there have been about 20 expressions of interest. But Brownlee warns: ‘We cannot do a rinse and repeat. There is an obvious attraction here for house builders because of the setting. We have to look closely at who wants to come in.’
Carson emphasises the need for due diligence of potential owners in Scottish football though points that a move to do so in England is already meeting obstacles.
Both men have been tried by the experience of administration. ‘It has been vexing and caused sleepless nights for us,’ concedes Brownlee.
This reaction is no surprise. ‘I suppose Dumbarton is in my blood,’ says Carson, who was one of the co-founders of the trust in 2001. ‘I grew up within walking distance of Boghead and my grandfather took me to a game three days after my fourth birthday. We beat East Fife 3-2. I will be 69 soon. I can be precise about the game because my grandfather recorded it in a diary.’
Brownlee is a Son of the Rock too though his football life took him into refereeing and he was a linesman in the 1987 Scottish Cup final when St Mirren defeated Dundee United 1-0.
After retiring as an official, he returned to watching the Sons and he produces facts and vignettes from past matches with an affecting fluidity. ‘This is the toughest time in the club’s 152-year history,’ he concedes. ‘But we have hope. It is vexing. But we feel as a trust we have acquitted ourselves well. We are trying to assure a stable future.
‘This location is iconic. It is a wonderful image when photographed from the air. But it has been a magnet for people who want to build houses. We are seeking to ensure the future of a football club.’
The Dumbarton players are battling away in the face of administration
There was no respite on pitch for Dumbarton as Airdrieonians hammered them 5-1
Brownlee says the trust is also exploring the option of Scottish government funding for a programme of community development. There is a distinct atmosphere of industry emanating from the trust. ‘I have never been busier,’ admits Brownlee.
Their motivation is simple. Carson explains it best. ‘There are two things in life you can never change,’ he says. ‘First, your football allegiance and, second, your lottery numbers. You can change your job, your car, your home and even nowadays your gender. But you can’t change those.’
There is poignancy, poetry and politics in the stadium. The game is preceded by applause for Denis Law, the Scotland great, and for Kenny Wison, the Dumbarton hero, who both died last week.
‘He scored 84 goals for us in 89 games for us,’ says Brownlee of Wilson who signed for the club in 1970 and played for two seasons before going to England. ‘He was utterly remarkable for us and we had a great team then.’
The poetry comes in the shape of Stephen Watt, who was the official bard for the club for seven years until quitting last year after becoming a father.
‘I could not commit to every single home game,’ he says. ‘But I had written 100 poems about Dumbarton so maybe my creativity was becoming a bit drained.’
His life as a Dumbarton supporter started in 1988, when he was eight. ‘There was a thing called the World Championship Cup. It celebrated the centenary of English cup holders West Brom playing the Scottish Cup holders, Renton. Dumbarton stood in for Renton and we won it. So we are undefeated world champions. That was my first match.’
MSP Jackie Baillie is one of the local politicians fighting to save the club
He has stayed true to the club. ‘It keeps luring you back at different stages in your life,’ he says. ‘In my teens, you were trying to find things to do with pals and we locked on to Dumbarton games. We even went to reserve games. It tailed away a bit in my twenties but I moved back to Dumbarton in my thirties and became a regular.
‘You build friendships with people at the ground. You build relationships with the raffle ticket sellers, the programme sellers, the guys on the turnstiles. They are the diehards, the lifeblood and that magnetises you to the club. They help you see the club is special.’
He is gently optimistic about the future. ‘We hope administration can free us from the past,’ he says. ‘There is a lot of goodwill being sought and it has been given in abundance. I would love to see the stadium build a stand on the other side. The Rock is behind us at the moment and it would be great to have that view.’
The politicians gathered in conclave with the trust. Douglas McAllister, MP for West Dunbartonshire, Jackie Baillie, local MSP, and Neil Bibby, MSP and Scottish Labour spokesman on sport, were all keen to express support after the meeting.
‘It is important for us to come along and meet everyone involved at the club,’ says McAllister. ‘I have met previously with the administrators. It is about showing support.
‘It is getting towards the end of the season and the fans have done such a magnificent job to ensure we get there. I am hopeful and I am very encouraged, though there is a lot to sort out in the background. There is lot of interest in the club but it is about getting the right interest, getting football-minded people.’
Baillie is similarly positive: ‘As a long-term supporter, I love this club. They are fantastic on and off the pitch and I am very clear that they should have a bright future. The administrators have a job to do and I am delighted that the ownership is no longer with the previous owners.’
She adds: ‘I can call out what is happening publicly and that is important. With the right set of owners, we can have a brilliant future.’
Bibby backs that vision shared by his fellow Labour politicians. ‘We want to do whatever we can to ensure a positive outcome for the club. This club should be an important part of the community for many years to come. Football is a hugely important part of Scottish society.’
It was telling that Stevie Farrell, the club manager, spoke to administrators immediately after the match. It was an unnecessary reminder that the club faces battles on and off the pitch.
However, there are good people there with good intentions at the club. They could be the rock that forms the foundation for a stable Dumbarton.
