Brechin City

The Irn-Bru Cup will become a complete British and Irish affair after Uefa gave the SPFL approval
to include two teams from England’s Vanarama National League in next season’s knockout competition.

Hearts will be up against Tynecastle legend John Robertson in next season’s Betfred Cup after the draw for the group stage paired them with Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

The first end-of-season managerial change has happened quickly, Morton and Jim Duffy parting company in the wake of Saturday’s 3-0 home defeat by Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

A hat-trick by Stephen Dobbie helped Queens end the season on a high and send Brechin back to League 2 without a win.

It illustrates just how stultifying Jerry Kerr found life upstairs at Dundee United that he jumped at the chance to resume his managerial career at lowly Forfar Athletic in 1974.

Brechin are hoping to win over fans with the offer of a free drink following a nightmare season in the Scottish Championship.

For so long in a remarkable season, David Hopkin stuck to his mantra that Livingston’s sole goal was to avoid relegation this season. Now, finally, with second place in the Championship secured with two games to go, he is allowing promotion to enter his thoughts.

Scott McDonald, the inspired substitute, moved Dundee United to within touching distance of the play-offs as he put plucky Brechin City to the sword at Glebe Park last night.

Dunfermline consolidated their position in the Ladbrokes Championship play-offs with a routine 4-0 victory over relegated Brechin City.

Almost there. St Mirren need just a point from their Tuesday night meeting with Dundee Utd at Tannadice to confirm their promotion as Championship title winners. For long stages yesterday it looked as though their old rivals Morton were going to allow the starting gun to be fired on their celebrations as they fought gamely to deny Livingston a victory that keeps the outcome of who is crowned champions still at least mathematically in doubt.

Brechin City wanted the ground to swallow them up after going two goals and two men down in the first half at Falkirk.

There was a compelling case here for the visitors to be playing in a different division next season, but the same could not be said for the hosts. Brechin, without a win in 29 fixtures, had their relegation confirmed after their 25th defeat and their failings were once again all too evident.

A Nicky Clark hat-trick sent Dunfermline to within a point of fourth place and rekindled their play-off hopes as Brechin slipped ever closer to their inevitable relegation.

Dumbarton earned their second win of the week over doomed Brechin to give themselves a boost ahead of Saturday’s Challenge Cup final.

Playing under the threat of relegation as recently as the turn of the year, victory lifted Falkirk to within seven points of an unlikely shot at promotion and just two short of rivals Dunfermline.

St Mirren made alarmingly heavy weather of seeing off the challenge of a rock-bottom Brechin who will go into March without registering a league win. Dominating possession wasn’t the issue for the Paisley men, however a lack of creativity and a genuine cutting edge were major issues, with on-loan Lewis Morgan, as he has been since joining Celtic, a peripheral figure for Saints who despite not being tested, did not really look like a team with an 11-point cushion at the top.

A stoppage time strike from Alex Jakubiak gave rejuvenated Falkirk a dramatic victory and denied battling Brechin only their fifth point of the season.

Stephen Dobbie, the Championship’s most prolific striker, hit a hat-trick as Queens maintained their play-off push while consigning Brechin to their 18th defeat of the campaign.

Celtic produced what Brendan Rodgers called “a professional performance” to blitz Brechin City and breeze into the fifth round of the Scottish Cup. The fact Moussa Dembele did not contribute to that on an afternoon in which Rodgers fielded his strongest available side the Irishman intimated afterwards was no mere coincidence.