As the Boxing Day fixtures bring the final pieces of action before the now extended winter break, now is the perfect time for clubs to be reflecting on their seasons so far. With twenty games played, we are officially past the halfway stage as teams look back on the past five months and are planning on how to push on for the second half. For Livingston, it's been a fairly bumpy ride so far with the club having their fair share of high and low moments as they look to defy the odds and maintain their Premiership status for a fifth season.
Despite not being in the incredible run of form they were in this time last year, Livingston sit in a healthy position in eighth place, four points above Dundee in eleventh, and six ahead of bottom St Johnstone. With the club having the smallest budget within the top flight, the club is already exceeding on paper expectations as the Lions have been tipped as relegation candidates by pundits, fans, and the media. The majority of supporters would bite your hand off if you offered them an eighth-place finish at the end but with how the season has gone so far, there may be frustrations that they haven't been able to kick on and put pressure on the sides in the top half. On the other hand, the club can't get too ahead of themselves as they are still within touching distance of the drop, with the league table able to turn drastically in the matter of a couple of games.
Tough Start
As per every season, the Lions face a rebuilding job and none more so than in the summer of 2021. Seventeen players left the club with another fifteen arriving meaning the Lions were in desperate need of time to gel their squad together. A Covid and injury-ravaged pre-season hindered this massively with a number of key players' involvements being kept to a minimum. Livi hobbled through to the next round of the Premier Sports Cup with a bit of luck but far from convincing performances against Alloa Athletic and Raith Rovers ignited worries within the West Lothian club's fanbase.
The club wasn't helped by the fact they faced Rangers (A), Aberdeen (H) and Hibernian (A) within the first four games of the season. Losses in all three games as well as against a rejuvenated Motherwell side saw the Lions sit bottom with zero points, the only side to not have picked anything up in the opening four fixtures. The morale at the club was dampened then again with an uninspiring draw away at Dundee with Max Stryjek's heroics in goal giving Livingston their first points before pulling off yet another impressive result at home to Celtic.
Many hoped that the victory over Ange Postecoglu's side would kick start the Lions season but they faced Rangers three days later before facing high flying Hearts the following Saturday. Losses to both and more injuries meant that Livi were back at the same point a few weeks earlier. A dismal home loss to St Mirren put the feeling around the club to its lowest under Martindale, with some supporters beginning to discuss relegation as a certainty and questioning whether the manager's position was in jeopardy.
Resurgent Away Form
As pressure began to build on Martindale, the club had some positive-looking fixtures on the horizon as they faced fellow bottom-half sides St Johnstone, Ross County and St Mirren within the next five games, with each of these games being away from home. A trip to Parkhead and a home game against Dundee United were wedged in between these massive six-pointers with Livingston needing to pick up points urgently.
A shock 3-0 victory over Callum Davidson's St Johnstone was aided by comical defending but Livingston's ruthlessness upfront breathed much-needed confidence into the side. It looked like Livi were not going to build upon their second victory of the season after a shocking first half n hour performance at Ross County. Max Stryjek pulled off a penalty save at 1-0 down with Bruce Anderson and Odin Bailey scoring vital goals to send Livi into the lead at halftime. County would bounce back before Tom Parkes scored a last-minute header on his debut, the club's biggest goal of the season so far. The sheer relief drawn from getting this result out - especially when playing poorly - was evident from the celebrations and gave the club a much-needed boost after a tough start.
Livi held Dundee United to a draw as they played the second half with ten men due to Ben Williamson's red card, with the aforementioned away games against Celtic and St Mirren following shortly. The Lions continued their newfound away form by holding Postecoglu's free-scoring Celtic side to a 0-0 draw, with Max Stryjek saving a last-minute penalty to ensure a deserved point went back to West Lothian. The visiting Lions only allowed the home side to two shots on target - one being the missed penalty - despite their dominance in possession as they kept a clean sheet at Celtic Park for the third time since being promoted back to the top flight.
An away game at St Mirren saw the Lions unlucky to not take all three points as they squandered chances but continued to battle despite going a goal down. A stunner from Nicky Devlin gave the away side a deserved point as the club went five games unbeaten with heroic performances giving the fans and squad confidence to carry on. A further away victory away from home against Dundee United sees Livi have the fifth-best record in the league, only behind the two Glasgow and Edinburgh clubs.
Home Form
As encouraging it is that Livingston has been picking up a good amount of points on the road, the home form has not been as convincing. At home, Livi have picked up eight points from nine games, the second-worst home form in the league. In fairness, this is only four points less than what the club has taken on the road but the club's success has been synonymous with a strong home record. This no longer seems to be the case as the Lions only have two home victories out of nine games, drawing two and losing five.
The club has been unlucky on a few occasions, coming out of home games against Aberdeen and Hearts unlucky to not have taken a point, with goalkeeping fortunes being key in both results. The club however can lambast consistency issues for performances against St Mirren and Ross County, where they have failed to back up previous positive showings that have led to dropped points. For years many have lambasted the home side's plastic pitch as giving them an advantage but whatever issues were plaguing away sides now seem to be a thing of the past. Well except for Celtic - please don't jinx this.
The Lions do still have to host bottom sides Dundee and St Johnstone once the winter break culminates, the only two the club haven't hosted yet. A couple of strong showings in these fixtures could get Martindale's men back on the right track on home plastic whilst also possibly extending a gap between themselves and the teams at the bottom.
Striker Issues
Livingston spent a lot of last season trying to find a replacement for Lyndon Dykes with a number of different options being used. With Jay Emmanuel-Thomas and Scott Robinson both departing, the position was freed up yet again with it looking likely that the incoming Bruce Anderson would be taking over. The former Aberdeen man has had a solid campaign so far, scoring seven goals and assisting three times in all competitions.
However, Anderson hasn't fully cemented himself as a starter for Livingston just yet for a number of reasons. One of these has been fitness, with Anderson struggling with injuries and illness, notably having a diabetic fit at Easter Road. As well as this, Anderson has often struggled within the Livingston team due to the team's playing style and the service he's been offered. Anderson is much more of a penalty box forward rather than someone who shall hold the ball up and allow his teammates, something the Lions have been used to having for the past five seasons. With this, there has been occasions where Anderson has really struggled up top on his own for Livingston, with the service he's received not being ideal for his qualities.
This has led to Andrew Shinnie, not a natural forward, being used as a number nine due to his match intelligence. Shinnie was used in this role in the home game against Celtic where his experience and intelligence allowed him to operate as the centre forward very effectively, scoring the winning goal in the process. Although Shinnie isn't a natural striker, he is a much better-suited option for a forward who will link the play, with his technical abilities as a usual number ten allowing him to pick up good positions and retain the ball. With Livingston opting for a forward three using any of Alan Forrest, Odin Bailey, James Penrice or Christian Montano as wingers on either side, Shinnie has been opted for as a better foil for these players to mixed results. Shinnie's impact in this position has been very hit or miss, with certain games showing its effectiveness - Celtic and Hibs home - whilst others fall very flat - Hearts away and St Mirren home.
Jack Hamilton looked set to have a bigger role this campaign following an impressive loan spell at Arbroath last season, with Martindale hoping to integrate him into the first team. Hamilton as a natural forward would provide that foil but in his youth, is not quite ready to make the step up, with a January loan looking most likely for him. Joel Nouble looks set to return from Arbroath after amn incredible first half to the season, with the Championship sitting at the top of the Championship with Nouble a mainstay in the team. Four goals and four assists within many more commanding performances has saw the Englishman be described as the best striker in the league, dominating defences with his stature and dazzling crowds with his ability on the ball. Nouble returning from loan could be massive for Livi as they look to get some consistency in their forward line, with Nouble appearing to be more of what Martindale would prefer in a striker. The return of Nouble could even be the best thing for Anderson, with a potential big man, little man partnership on the horizon which could finally bring the best out of the former Aberdeen man.
Absences
As previously mentioned, Livi's pre-season was hampered due to a number of injuries and illnesses. Frustratingly for Livi, this has continued with it being a rarity that the club have a full squad available. The usually ever-present Scott Pittman has had a difficult five months, only making four league starts this season with only a further four appearances off the bench. Craig Sibbald and Odin Bailey are two other players who have impressed when they have featured but have had their momentum cut short due to absences.
These are only a few of many examples of players who have had stop start seasons which has left Livingston with holes in their matchday squads. Assistant manager Marvin Bartley has had to be named as a substitute on a number of occasions whilst bodies have been put on the bench who have had no chance of actually playing. Now every team has had their issues but Livingston will feel very unlucky that they haven't had a full squad to choose from which will undoubtedly affect performances and consistency. If the Lions can get a full eleven and bench healthy for the remainder of the campaign and maintain familiarity on a matchday, they will surely be confident of retaining their league status. This, of course, is not a guarantee but the Lions surely can't have much worse luck than what they already have.
Top Performers So Far
Despite Livingston having a torrid time with their squad's fitness, there have still been a few standout players who have performed admirably under the league's radar. Max Stryjek has enjoyed a strong season as the number one goalkeeper with David Martindale praising the Polish keeper's change in lifestyle off the park. The goalkeeper can be raw at times and has had a few costly errors but they have been outweighed by the number of heroic performances he has produced. Stryjek has played a massive role in a number of the points Livingston have picked up, most notably both games against Celtic this season. The keeper has committed to the club showing he has settled and will only continue to improve the more he plays and the more he takes care of himself away from the game. The keeper has won the club's Player of the Month award for July, August, September and October, keeping eight clean sheets so far this season.
My biggest concern for Livingston this season was that our backline was not strong enough with a lot of key players departing and not many reinforcements coming in. One of those who remained at the club was Jack Fitzwater, a centre back who found himself in and out of the squad a lot last season and still had to win many over. However, the Englishman has stepped up a level this season as a leader in the backline and deserves great credit for his mature season so far. Alongside Ayo Obileye, who has also had a solid campaign, the duo have built a solid partnership that has eased the thoughts within the Livi support. The club could still do with another backup but for the moment the duo are showing that they are a more than capable enough centre back partnership in the top flight.
For Livingston's Player of the Year so far though, it can only be Jason Holt. Playing every single league minute at the heart of the midfield, Holt has really shone this year with his abundance of energy and desire to get on the ball. It took a while for some sections of the Livi support to fully appreciate how Holt keeps the side ticking over but it would be extremely obvious to spot his absence now. Holt never goes hiding and exemplifies that attitude and desire we've come to know from a Livingston player these past five years. His attitude is perfect for our club as he never shirks responsibility and is always vocal and on the move. The club lost a lot of leaders on the park in the summer but Holt has more than stepped up and is really showing his qualities this season. The former Rangers man is building a good relationship with Stephane Omeonga with the duo's energy being valuable to Martindale's demands, with the pair also showcasing composure on the ball in tight situations. Holt appears to have settled now at the Tony Macaroni Arena and Livi are getting the rewards from it, with the midfielder being that player consistently producing solid performances each week.
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