The sacking of David Robertson was just the latest chapter in a season Peterhead wish was consigned to the history books.
Each week seems to be an exercise in endurance for those devoted supporters who follow the club. They know ultimately they may end up with nothing but their connection to Peterhead compels them to sit through the latest 90 minutes.
Thirty-odd fans made the journey down to Falkirk, to see Peterhead sit in and try protect their goal for as long as humanly possible.
The clock was a shade over 58 minutes when their resistance was finally broken. The roof caved in after that and the Bairns ended up rattling in five.
🚀 A another angle of a belter from Craig McGuffie to bless your Monday afternoon!
👀 Fully Story of the Matchday coming soon…
📹 @LukeMMedia_ pic.twitter.com/BNELNevhey
— Falkirk FC (@FalkirkFC) March 6, 2023
The 7-0 thumping at the hands of Airdrieonians at the weekend brought about the end of Robertson’s tenure, 113 days after he was unveiled.
His appointment did not have a resuscitative effect, instead delivering a continuation of what had gone before. With the manner of some of the defeats, you can make a strong case for saying it got worse.
You can have a degree of sympathy for the players. Some have been parachuted in from around the UK, pitched in accommodation in Dundee and tasked with salvaging Peterhead’s season with little or no prior experience of Scottish football.
Others, like the Brown brothers, have experienced the ups and downs of life at Balmoor. Ryan Strachan – in his second spell at Peterhead – and Stuart McKenzie both left a winning environment at Cove to get more regular game-time here.
Avalanche of new players at the heart of the issue
The nub of the Blue Toon’s problems comes down to recruitment. With the exodus of players last summer running into double-digits, including club stalwarts like Simon Ferry, Scott Brown and Gary Fraser, an overhaul was imminent.
But first Jim McInally and then Robertson have found there is no quick fix. Peterhead have signed a mind-boggling 35 players over the course of this season; they have used 43 players in total.
How can you get any consistency when you are dealing with preposterous numbers like that? Both managers were desperate to unearth a winning formula and while some of it was done out of necessity, it is clear some players have not been up to the level required.
When Robertson was hired at the end of November, it was clear the club wanted a shift to being more local. For years McInally had thumbed through his extensive contacts book to recruit players from all over Scotland and make Peterhead a competitive outfit.
It had worked. The club had won titles and progressed in cup competitions. But there was always an element of the support which wanted a stronger north-east connection.
That is fine in principle but the talent pool has to be there. There are quality Highland League players who could handle the step up into the SPFL. But they have to fit a certain criteria: likely in their late-teens or early-20s, perhaps released from an academy, or with minimal job-related ties.
Those in their mid-to-late 20s, at the top end of the Highland League talent bracket, have likely chosen that route because it fits their life circumstances. Why travel to Dumfries on a Saturday when you could be playing Deveronvale and make it home for dinner?
The better players are likely on longer-term deals too and Peterhead have not always had the resources to entice them away.
It may be that some of Peterhead’s recruits in the summer – another tranche of new signings is likely given the short-term deals offered in January – may come from the Highland League. But they won’t come en masse.
End of the season cannot come soon enough
All that is before you mention they have only scored 13 league goals. Conor O’Keefe – their top scorer with three – bagged his last goal in September and has been out injured since November.
The only reason they have hope dangled in front of them is that Clyde are also having a very poor season. At the moment, it is a fight between who goes down automatically and who gets a glimmer of a reprieve in the play-offs.
Robertson said previously Peterhead cannot just look to pick up points against Clyde and no one else. But between the two sides, they have only won five games out of a combined 57. Two of those victories have been in games between the two, so it looks more likely that the winner of the last head-to-head match-up will take the play-off spot.
There is certainly no shortage of affection and care for the club behind the scenes, however this season has brutally highlighted how a chain of events can snowball and knock you on your backside.
Peterhead are a team which probably needs the end of the season to come. Allow them to reset, get their recruitment under control in a timely fashion, and attack next season with renewed vigour.
At this stage, it may well be League Two they are looking at. But even if they somehow manage to stay in League One, they will still need to find an identity of what they want to be.
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