SPL Starting XI: Week 18

By: Ian Rose | December 24th, 2007

I’m trying out a new column here at the Scotland Offside, picking a starting XI from the SPL’s matches each week. This week will only include the weekend, with the Boxing Day fixtures included in next week’s eleven. A few disclaimers first. This is based on what I considered to be the best individual performances of the week, based on both my own observations and those of fans and writers that I know and trust. The weekly eleven will always be a relatively common formation (4-4-2, 4-3-3 or 4-5-1) and places are given regardless of which side of the pitch a player fields. If the three best defenders on the week were left backs, so be it. Anyway, here are my picks for the SPL Starting XI for week 18.

GK: Fraser
DF: Murphy, Hogg, Byrne, Innes
MF: Cregg, Naismith, Gibson
FW: Higdon, Deuchar, Miller

Michael Fraser, Keeper (Inverness CT)
Fraser may have let in two goals away to Hearts, but one was a penalty, and among his eleven saves were some absolutely brilliant ones. Caley Thistle’s five-game streak would never have happened without some amazing work from Fraser, who has kept three clean sheets in that time.

David Murphy, Defender (Hibernian)
Left back Murphy not only had the lone goal for Hibs in their draw with Celtic, but also held up well against an onslaught of Celtic forwards, particularly in the second half. There are few things harder than defending a lead at Celtic Park, and even though one goal eventually leaked in, it was still a great performance both by Murphy individually and by the Hibs defense as a unit.

Chris Hogg, Defender (Hibernian)
Speaking of the Hibs defense, vice-captain Hogg was a rock in the center. He had several great plays, but his best was a magnificent diving stop on Steven McManus, who otherwise looked very good to score early in the second half.

Richie Byrne, Defender (Aberdeen)
The Irish left back did everything you could want from a defender on Sunday, pressuring the ball, delivering great crosses and generally making life extremely difficult for the Rangers attack. His cross, admittedly mishandled by Allan McGregor, set up Lee Miller’s goal, but it was more his marking work that earned him this spot.

Chris Innes, Defender (Gretna)
You just knew that Gretna would be on here after their second win of the season, against the same team. Remember, best of the week, not the season. Innes moved over from United in 2005, and seemed quite comfortable handling his old mates. With the ball in his half most of the match, and with United shooting like mad to get back in the match, Innes and the other Gretna defenders held strong, letting Gretna take three hugely valuable points and gain on eleventh-placed St. Mirren.

Patrick Cregg, Midfielder (Falkirk)
Cregg is the second Irishman on the eleven this week, along with Richie Byrne. He has had glimpses of brilliance in the past, even getting picked up by Arsenal and appearing in a few league cup matches before heading up to Scotland. On Saturday, his passing and runs through the midfield reminded one of a few other Arsenal names that have risen to slightly higher prominence. He also had one assist in the match.

Steven Naismith, Midfielder (Rangers)
The lone representative of the sluggish Old Firm this week. Some will accuse me of OF-hating, and there might be something to that, but this week in particular, there was little coming out of either Glasgow club to rave about. Naismith was the driving force for Rangers all game long, putting in a few excellent crosses, most of which were either mishandled or left to be picked up by the quick Aberdeen backline. He was doing his part, though, which is more that can be said of a lot of the Rangers side.

Willie Gibson, Midfielder (Kilmarnock)
It’s hard to imagine anything too impressive going on at a meeting between Killie and St. Mirren these days. Both sides are languishing at the bottom, just hoping Gretna stays just slightly more awful than either of them. Still, Gibson’s play has been a rare bright spot for Killie, and he continued on good form on Saturday, putting balls in to a frustratingly useless Killie front line that seemed ill equipped to do much with them. If Willie really is moving on to the Championship, as has been rumored, he’ll be missed at Killie, who are sorely short on healthy legs these days.

Kenny Deuchar, Striker (Gretna)
Here’s a rarity in modern football. Deuchar is a professional striker who also happens to be a doctor. Deuchar, who continues to work one day every week in hospital, was in more a hurting than healing mood when it came to Saturday’s match with United. “The Good Doctor”, as some call him, hit one of Gretna’s goals and assisted the other, almost single-handedly taking down the Tangerines.

Lee Miller, Striker (Aberdeen)
“Goals” has been an appropriate nickname for Miller the past few weeks. The 6′2″ Scot has seven this year, scoring against Kilmarnock and Hibs in December. His equalizing header right before halftime against 10-man Rangers was as important as any he has scored all year.

Michael Higdon, Striker (Falkirk)
Before this weekend, only Scott McDonald had managed a multi-goal match against Motherwell this season. Mark McGhee’s stingy ‘Well had allowed eight goals in eight matches at home. Falkirk managed three, two of them coming from the accurate foot of Higdon, giving him six on the season and his second brace of the year.