Airdrieonians F.C.

Airdrieonians

Full name	Airdrieonians Football Club
Nickname(s)	The Diamonts
Foondit	2002 (2002) (As Airdrie United FC)
Ground	Excelsior Stadium, Airdrie, North Lanrikshire
Ground Capacity	10,101
Chairman	Martin Ferguson
Manager	Ian Murray
League	Scottish Championship
2022–23	Scottish League One, 3rd o 10 (promoted)
Wabsteid	Club wabsteid
Hame colours

Airdrieonians Football Club (forbye cried The Daimants) is a profeesional fitbaw club frae the toun o Airdrie in North Lanrikshire. It is a member o the Scottish Professional Football League an is nou in Scottish League One.

History

Birth Efter the Deith o Airdrieonians

Airdrie Unitit wis formed in Mey 2002 efter the deith o Airdrieonians. Airdrieonians haed feenished seicont in the First Diveesion in the 2001/02 saison, but efter monie year o siller problems thay dee'd wi dets o mair nor £2 million. The deith o the auld Airdrie left a place in the Scots Fitbaw League (in the Third Diveesion) an local Aidrie man an Airdrieonians fan Jim Ballantyne attemptit, wi the aid o ithers, tae get intae the Leage wi a team cawed "Airdrie Unitit" that wis mair or less a re-birth o Airdrieonians. But thair application wis rejectit in favour o the Inglis UniBond team Gretna. As a last resort, Ballantyne bocht oot strugglin Diveesion Twa side Clydebank an, wi the SFL's aye-sayin, the club wis remuived tae Airdrie, the sarks wis chynged tae leuk lik thaim o Aidrieonians an the name wis chynged tae Airdrie Unitit.

First Saison (2002/03)

Airdrie Unitit's first saison stairtit wi a hame gemme agin Farfar Athleatic, whilk the Daimons won 1-0 wi a goal bi caiptain Stephen Docherty. Maugre a puir stairt tae the saison, the club endit weel, as striker Jerome Vareille led thaim tae a promotion chailenge at the end o the saison. Thay didna achieve the promotion as a late goal frae Brechin Ceety agin Hamilton Accies saw thaim tak seicont place aheid o Airdrie.

Ane o the hielichts o the saison wis dingin SPL side Kilmarnock oot o the CIS Cup awa on the penalties.

First Success (2003/04)

Airdrie Unitit's first, an sae faur anely trophy cam in the 2002/03 saison (anely the club's seicont saison) that thay wan the Seicont Diveesion in an war promotit tae the First Diveesion. Airdrie wan the trophy whan, efter a gey puir stairt tae the saison, thay lostna in the last aichteen gemmes - the last bein agin umwhile leaders Morton (wha eventually endit fowert) whan the Diamonts teuk the trophy efter a 2-0 win in front o a croud o mair nor 5,000 (still the club's record for a League gemme), tho the League haed, in fact, been wan the week afore wi a 1-0 win awa tae Alloa (wi club hero Owen Coyle scorin his 100rt Airdrie goal tae clinch the teetle).

Afore this, Airdrie Unitit haed reached the final o the Bell's Chailenge Cup, but eis beaten 2-0 bi First Diveesion Inverness Caledonian Thristle.

Mid-Table in First Diveesion (2004/05 & 2005/06)

In Airdrie Unitit's first saison in the Scots First Diveesion thay endit up 5t, a poseetion whilk wes mair nae maist o thair supporters wad hae jaloused lylkey. The club lost monie plyers in the simmer o 2005, an went intae the 2005/06 saison wi nae muckle expectation o gettin the same poseetion again - bot thay still managed tae finish a no-bad 6t. In this saison the club recordit a 7-0 win ower Dundee at hame, whilk still staunds as the club's record victorie.

Sacking o Sandy Stewart an Relegation (2006/07)

On November 13, 2006, Sandy Stewart, wes sackit frae his poseetion o manager efter ower fower year in charge o the club, due tae monie poor gemmes an the fack that club hadnae been abuin 8t a saison. He wes succeeded bi ex-Airdrieonians plyer an Airdrie Unitit coach Kenny Black fower days latter. Black hed been a coach at Leicester City in Ingland sen 2004, an this wes hi first managerial post in senior fitba (tho he hed been in charge o the fitba team at the Varsity o Edinburgh aforehaund).

Despite sum sines o a late rallie, Black didnae inspire the Daimons tae onie grate extent, an thay endit up 9t in the league, leavin thame in the Scots League Play Aff poseetion. Thay wad need tae win the Play Aff tae stai in the First Diveesion.

Thay got aff tae a guid start, dingin Brechin City wi an aggregate score o 6-1. Bot in the finil thay wer puir, castin awa a 2-0 lead in the lest five meenits o the first leg agin Stirling Albion an lost the hame gemme 3-2, sicweys gien Airdrie Unitit thair first relegation in thair gey short history.

Club Information

Grund

Airdrie Unitit play thair hame gemmes at New Bruimfield Pairk in Airdrie, as the fans caa it, tho it is offeeshally kent as "Exelsior Stadium." The noo deid Airdrieonians' auld pairk (Briumfield, tho in the lang syne thay hed plyed at Mavisbank) wes sauld tae supermerket chyne Safeway (sen then takken ower bi WM Morrison), wha wer gien permission tae big a new store on the site. It is generally jaloused that is wes this transaction whilk startit the siller proablems o Airdrieonians, as thair auld groond wes demolished sum yeirs afore the new ane wes gien persmisson tae be bigged. The yeirs awa frae Airdrie (in whilk the club groond-shared at Braidwood Stadium, Cummernaud, wi Cylde FC) resultit in the siller frae the sellin o Bruimfield, whilk wes tae be uised tae pey fer the biggin o the new groond, wes wastit. The yeirs awa an the cost o biggin a pairk wi a capacitie o mair nor 10,000 (despite croods bein less nor twa thoosan) dindnae help the club. The buird's reasonin ahint biggin a grund o sic hie capacitie wecs that the Scots Premier League (SPL) demandit that clubs hae a stadium wi at least 10,000 seats tae get intae thair league. The requiremint is noo onlie 6,000 - whilk mey hae been enough tae sauf Airdrieonian's frae the financial burded o biggin sic a muckle new groond.

New Bruimfield is the heichest grund abuin sea-level in Sctoland.

Serks

Airdrie Unitit hae takken on Airdrieonians' plyin colours: a white serk wi a reid daimon - frae whilk thay tak thair nickname "The Daimons." The serk is sponsorit bi Airdire Regeneration Partnership an Diadora mak the kits.

Matchday Programme

The Airdrie Unitit programme is caad "Daimons Ar For Aye". It is editit bi John O'Brien an photographs cum frae offeeshial club photographer Robert Dalzell. Its leuk an layoot is the wark o Frank Toucher an it is printit bi Walker & Connell Ltd.

The normal programme hes a leet o the twa teams' plyers, the offishals fer the day, a wee mention o the team mascot (uisually a local wean) an a message o thanks tae the sponsers. Thare is an aa a message frae club chairman Jim Ballantyne, an a wee update on club news. Normally thare ar "Daimon Tales" - a section o stories o Airdrie Unitit (an mair aften nor no, Airdrieonians' an aw) ar telt. "Past an Praisint" is a selection o match reports providit bi editor John O'Brien while "The Daimons Log" leuks at the day tae day gangs on at the club. Anithir airticle "Daimons Ar For Aye" leuks at the historie o Airdrie Unitit an, o course, Airdrieonians. This airticle is writtin doon bi Brian Bollen, wha hes haed a beuk publishit on the historie o Aidrieonians. Efter this cums a wee note on commercial maitters at the club frae Les Jones an a leuk at the current fitba warld in relation tae Airdrie Unitit bi Jim Milton. As weil as aw this thare is, as is common wi maist fitba programmes, a note on statistics o the saison, a wee airticle frae the manager Kenny Black, a piece on the awa side, an interview wi an Airdrie plyer, photographs frae the lest gemme an a youth team segment. Advertisments are thare throughoot an the editer is an aa responsible for anithir twa pieces anent the club.

Sangs

As wi ilka club, Airdrie Unitit hae monie sangs at the fans ar fond o. The twa that ar plyed on the tannoy afor an efter the hame gemmes ar "Ainlie the Lainlie" bi Roy Orbison an the auld standard "Cannae Help Fallin."

As weil as thir sangs, the fans an aa hae monie chants anent the clud, plyers an mair aften nor no, flyttings agin the ithir team an thair fans.