0-3 Well that's us pumped out the cup, the only consolation was it's no disgrace to lose to Scotlands most successful club side.
There were definite highs and lows to James Fowler's time in charge at Queen of the South which came somewhat unceremoniously to an end on Monday night. It was, in classic football parlance, a bit of a game of two halves. His first season, thrown in at the deep end after Jim McIntyre's departure for Ross County, brought some fine displays and a play-off place. But that tricky second season syndrome saw his team stutter and their form plummet after a cracking start to the campaign. Promising beginnings Last term, it looked like the club had made the smoothest transition possible. Inheriting a strong squad, Fowler gradually put his own mark on the side and turned in a series of memorable displays. Queen of the South lost out in the play-offs in Fowler's first season A couple of tremendous wins over Rangers at Palmerston were the icing on the cake in a season which ultimately saw them lose out narrowly in a play-off to the Ibrox side. They gained plaudits for the passing style and adventurous approach which made Dumfries a tough place to visit for anyone. It looked like the club had once again worked its magic and picked up a quality manager who had originally been signed in a player-coach role. The way he adjusted so quickly to his new role was impressive. Loss of key personnel But the summer brought some harsh realities home at the Doonhamers. The team which qualified for the play-offs was slowly picked apart as a string of key young players departed for pastures new. Goalkeeper Zander Clark went back to parent club St Johnstone, Hearts snapped up Gavin Reilly, Ross County took Ian McShane, Kevin Holt left for Dundee, Hibs signed Danny Carmichael and Mark Durnan was Dundee United-bound. The spine of the side had been systematically removed and any manager would have struggled to cope. Initially, they appeared to suffer few ill effects with three wins out of three in their opening Championship fixtures. But the points dried up and so did the goals and hopes of another play-off season began to fade. Ian McShane was one of a number of players to leave the club It speaks volumes about the progress that the club has made that failure to secure a top four finish could be seen as unsatisfactory. A number of players signed in the summer struggled with injuries while others found their form was intermittent at best. There were the odd flashes of good performances, but they were far fewer than they had been in recent campaigns. Learning curve How much you blame the manager for that depends on your point of view. Some will think that anyone would have found it tough to lose so many players in the transfer window and he deserved another season. Others will argue that the replacements he brought in were not up to the job and he should carry the can. Whatever your viewpoint, he deserves recognition for taking up his position much earlier in his career than he can ever have imagined at Palmerston Park and delivering some memorable moments - particularly in that first campaign. He never made any secret of the fact that he was still learning the job in Dumfries and was entitled to make a few mistakes. That managerial education will now have to continue elsewhere, while the Doonhamers begin the search for someone to keep the club knocking on the door of Scottish football's top division.
Queen of the South have chosen Gavin Skelton as their new manager. The 35-year-old ended the season as caretaker boss, stepping up from his assistant coach role following the sacking of James Fowler. The Dumfries side finished seventh in the Championship, 20 points off the play-off places. "As a club we will strive to compete for a place in the play-offs in a very strong league," said the former Gretna and Kilmarnock midfielder. "The club have re-signed a number of players in the last few weeks and I will be looking to add a few new faces to the squad. "Having been at the club last year I know there is a good mix of experienced players alongside some exciting young players who I expect to play a big part this season. "I will be working extremely hard to ensure I produce a committed, passionate and talented team that all Queen of the South supporters will enjoy watching and most importantly be proud to support." Skelton has managerial experience with Workington, steering the club to a second place finish in the Northern Premier League in his one season in charge, having been a player-coach there in the previous campaign. He moved to Palmerston Park last summer to assist Fowler and oversaw the final two matches of the season. Queen of the South also announced that Jim Thomson is taking on a new position as football development manager.
Sat 16 July 2016 SCOTTISH LEAGUE CUPvs Queen's Park (Away) Queens Park---------sound like a bunch of poofs
Queen of the South Fixtures Share Facebook Twitter July 2016 Show last 5 matches and coverage Competition Fixture Date Kick-off Status Show Scottish League Cup - First Round Queen's ParkvQueen of Sth Sat 16 Jul 15:00 Show Scottish League Cup - First Round Queen of SthvAirdrieonians Tue 19 Jul 19:45 Show Scottish League Cup - First Round Partick ThistlevQueen of Sth Sat 23 Jul 15:00 Show Scottish League Cup - First Round Queen of SthvStenhousemuir Sat 30 Jul 15:00 August 2016 Show last 5 matches and coverage Competition Fixture Date Kick-off Status Show Scottish Championship Dundee UtdvQueen of Sth Sat 6 Aug 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvAyr Sat 13 Aug 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvFalkirk Sat 20 Aug 15:00 Show Scottish Championship DunfermlinevQueen of Sth Sat 27 Aug 15:00 September 2016 Show last 5 matches and coverage Competition Fixture Date Kick-off Status Show Scottish Championship St MirrenvQueen of Sth Sat 10 Sep 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvRaith Rovers Sat 17 Sep 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvHibernian Sat 24 Sep 15:00 October 2016 Show last 5 matches and coverage Competition Fixture Date Kick-off Status Show Scottish Championship DumbartonvQueen of Sth Sat 1 Oct 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvMorton Sat 15 Oct 15:00 Show Scottish Championship AyrvQueen of Sth Sat 22 Oct 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Raith RoversvQueen of Sth Sat 29 Oct 15:00 November 2016 Show last 5 matches and coverage Competition Fixture Date Kick-off Status Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvDundee Utd Sat 5 Nov 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvSt Mirren Sat 12 Nov 15:00 Show Scottish Championship HibernianvQueen of Sth Sat 19 Nov 15:00 December 2016 Show last 5 matches and coverage Competition Fixture Date Kick-off Status Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvDumbarton Sat 3 Dec 15:00 Show Scottish Championship FalkirkvQueen of Sth Sat 10 Dec 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvDunfermline Sat 17 Dec 15:00 Show Scottish Championship MortonvQueen of Sth Sat 24 Dec 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvAyr Sat 31 Dec 15:00 January 2017 Show last 5 matches and coverage Competition Fixture Date Kick-off Status Show Scottish Championship St MirrenvQueen of Sth Sat 7 Jan 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Dundee UtdvQueen of Sth Sat 14 Jan 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvHibernian Sat 28 Jan 15:00 February 2017 Show last 5 matches and coverage Competition Fixture Date Kick-off Status Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvMorton Sat 4 Feb 15:00 Show Scottish Championship DunfermlinevQueen of Sth Sat 18 Feb 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvRaith Rovers Sat 25 Feb 15:00 March 2017 Show last 5 matches and coverage Competition Fixture Date Kick-off Status Show Scottish Championship DumbartonvQueen of Sth Wed 1 Mar 19:45 Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvFalkirk Sat 4 Mar 15:00 Show Scottish Championship MortonvQueen of Sth Sat 11 Mar 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvSt Mirren Sat 18 Mar 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Raith RoversvQueen of Sth Sat 25 Mar 15:00 April 2017 Show last 5 matches and coverage Competition Fixture Date Kick-off Status Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvDundee Utd Sat 1 Apr 15:00 Show Scottish Championship AyrvQueen of Sth Sat 8 Apr 15:00 Show Scottish Championship HibernianvQueen of Sth Sat 15 Apr 15:00 Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvDumbarton Sat 22 Apr 15:00 Show Scottish Championship FalkirkvQueen of Sth Sat 29 Apr 15:00 May 2017 Show last 5 matches and coverage Competition Fixture Date Kick-off Status Show Scottish Championship Queen of SthvDunfermline Sat 6 May