Plenty of Nothing

Gauss

Carl Friedrich Gauss was added to the gallery of eminent Germans at Walhalla in Donaustauf in 2014. Source.

Philibert and Margaret

Boxwood carvings of Philibert of Savoy and Margaret of Austria, c. 1515. Source.

Höchstadt Alligators versus Riessersee

Höchstadt is the birthplace of naturalist Johann Baptist von Spix (1781-1826) who led an expedition into Brazil in 1817. There are no alligators in Brazil or Bavaria, apart from the hockey kind. Source.

SC Riessersee visit Höchstadt Alligators at Eisstadion Höchstadt. Riessersee are eighth, Höchstadt seventh. If this game comes off it'll be the only one of six today to avoid a Covid postponement.

The Alligators wear green, black and white, and their emblem is an alligator's eye, looking very Jurassic Park. The club was founded in 1993, the year the film came out.

Have Höchstadt Alligators ever played Crocodiles Hamburg?

Höchstadt an der Aisch is a town of about 13,000 people in the Middle Franconian region of Bavaria. The Swedes burnt it to the ground in 1633. Understandably, there are no Swedish players on the Höchstadter squad.

Riessersee and Höchstadt have met twice already this season:

2021/12/3      Riessersee 4 - 7 Höchstadt

2021/12/1      Höchstadt 1 -2 Riessersee

And they collided in the playoffs at the end of last season, Höchstadt winning three games to none.

[Today: Alligators 4 - 1 Riessersee]

Seasons of Höchstadt Alligators:

2020-21    36    19    3    0    14    138    133      +5    63     4th, Oberlida Süd

2019-20    32      3    1    1    27      67    163     -96    12   12th, Oberliga Süd

2018-19    32      9    3    4    16      93    129     -36    37     9th, Oberliga Süd

2017-18    26    21    1    0      4    152      66    +86    65     1st, Bayernliga

2016-17    32    11    2    2    17      86    121     -35    39     9th, Oberliga Süd

2015-16    26    13    2    0    11    108    101      +7    43     7th, Bayernliga

2014-15    24    16    3    1      4      91      63    +28    55    2nd, Bayernliga

2013-14    30    14    4    2    10    130      93    +37    52     7th, Bayernliga

2012-13    26    11    2    1    12      99    114     -15    38      9th, Bayernliga

2011-12    26    22    1            3    238      87  +151    45     2nd, Landesliga N-O

2010-11    30    11    3    0    16    151    138    +13    39     11th, Bayernliga

2009-10    30    15    0    1    14    135    158    -23    46     10th, Bayernliga

2008-09    30    18    0    2    10    145    107   +38    56       3rd, Bayernliga

2007-08    30    11    6          13    115    122      -7    28      11th, Bayernliga

2006-07    30    14    3          13    118    120      -2    31        8th, Bayernliga

2005-06    30    22    2            6    145      79   +66    46        1st, Bayernliga

2004-05    36      8    1    2    25      97    172    -75    28        9th, Oberliga N-O

2003-04    36      2    0    3    31      79    228  -149      9      10th, Oberliga N-O

2002-03    36      3    4    1    28    105    192    -87    18      10th, Oberliga S-O

2001-02    44    19    0    2    23    173    227    -54    59        8th, Reginalliga Süd

2000-01    14    12    1            1    134      38   +96    25        1st, Bayernliga Ost

                 14    10    2            2    100      50   +50    22        1st, Bayernliga final

1999-00    26    22    0            4    198      69  +129   44        3rd, Bayernliga

1998-99

1997-98

1996-97

1995-96

1994-95

1993-94    Bezerksliga Bayern Nord

(Sources: German Wikipedia Oberliga articles; hockeyarchives.info)

Reformation Wall Reformed

Source.

Herring Girl, Stornoway

Source.

Basho at Yamadera

Source.

John Locke

John Locke's bust at the Temple of British Worthies, on the grounds of Stowe House, Bucks. Source.

Clement Attlee

Source.

Guardian of Traffic

Cleveland's major league baseball club takes its new name from the figures on the nearby Hope Memorial Bridge. Source.

Sir James Shaw

Downtown Kilmarnock, sometime between 1848 and 1929. Sir James Shaw is the bloke on the plinth. Source.

Kilmarnock host Greenock Morton.

Coming into today's games, Stranraer, Clyde and Kilmarnock can still earn 9 points, Morton 8, and East Kilbride 7. Do Morton still have a path to Round Two? Yes. If they take 3 points from Killie today and 3 points from Clyde on Saturday, while Killie beat Stranraer, then they will finish top of the group.

Getting drawn together in this League Cup group means that Morton and Killie will meet five times this season, Covid permitting. The record is six matches (four league and two cup) in 1992-93.

Morton's captain Kyle Jacobs played for Kilmarnock in 2013-14. Robbie Muirhead was with Killie from 2013 to 2015. Killie's Stephen McGinn played 8 games for Morton earlier this year, and Jason Naismith played 4 for Morton in 2012.

Judging by their Wikipedia pages Kilmarnock have twice as many players under contract as Morton have.

In the 2016-17 League Cup Kilmarnock were the top seed in Morton's group. Morton came to Rugby Park and beat them 0 - 2, with goals by Oliver and Quitongo. Morton went on to beat Hamilton and Dundee United before losing to Aberdeen in the semi-finals.

[Kilmarnock 1 - 1 Morton. Young McGregor scores for Morton. Killie wins on PK. Lithgow, Oliver and Ugwu scored in the shootout.]

The other match:

East Kilbride [2 - 2] Clyde [Clyde win on PK.]

Stranraer are off.

Group G standings after these games:

Stranraer         3    2    0    0    1    4    1   +3    6

East Kilbride    4    1    0    2    1    5    3   +2    5

Clyde               3    1    1    0    1    4    4     0    5

Kilmarnock      3    1    1    0    1    3    5    -2    5

Morton             3    0    1    1    1    1    4    -3    3

Elsewhere:

FC Edmonton [1 - 0] HFX Wanderers (tomorrow)

The Kickoff has highlighted a new problem for Canadian soccer -- summer temperatures. The season is already crammed into six or seven months because Canadian winter is too cold for soccer. But with daytime temperatures averaging 30 degrees as they have done through much of The Kickoff, when the games have been forced into the evenings, it looks like in parts of the country summer is too hot for soccer.

Beith Juniors [5 - 0] Largs Thistle (tomorrow)

Blooming [2 - 0] The Strongest (tomorrow)

UEFA Champions League 2QR first leg:

Celtic [1 - 1] Midtjylland

Olympic Women's Soccer, group stage:

Great Britain [2 - 0] Chile (July 21)

Japan [1 - 1] Canada (July 21)

[Scorers: Christine Sinclair (Canada), Mana Iwabuchi (Japan).]

Developments:

Serie A is banning green jerseys because they're hard to distinguish from the pitch on TV. It would never happen in Scotland.

Which clubs are in 2021-22 League One, and when did they know for sure?

April 17        Alloa Athletic

April 20        Queen's Park

April 23        East Fife

April 29        Peterhead

May 4          Falkirk

May 6          Clyde

May 11        Cove Rangers

May 11        Montrose

May 20        Dumbarton

May 21        Airdrieonians

When did they last join the division and was it from above or below?

2021    Alloa (above)

2021    Queen's Park (below)

2020    Cove Rangers (below)

2019    Falkirk (above)

2019    Peterhead (below)

2019    Clyde (below)

2018    Dumbarton (above)

2018    Montrose (below)

2016    East Fife (below)

2013    Airdrieonians (above)

In which divisions have the 2021-22 League One clubs played since 1994?

Falkirk                AABBBB      BBBBBAAAAA     BBBBBBBBBC     CC

Clyde                CCCCCC     BBBBBBBBBC     DDDDDDDDDC    CC

Alloa                  DDDDCC    BCBCCCCCCC    CDCBBBCCBB     BC

Dumbarton         CBCDDD    DDCCCCDDDC    CCBBBBBBCC    CC

Airdrieonians                               CCBBBCBB    CCBCCCCCCC    CC

East Fife            CCBCCD    DDDCDDDDCC    CCCCDDCCCC    CC

Peterhead         HHHHHH    DDDDDCCCCC    CDDDCCCDDC    CC

Queen's Park    DDDDDD    CDDDDDDCCD    DDDDDDCCDD    DC

Montrose           DCDDDD    DDDDDDDDDD    DDDDDDDDCC    CC

Cove Rangers   HHHHHH    HHHHHHHHHH    HHHHHHHHHD    CC

(A = tier I; B = tier II; C = tier III; D = tier IV; H = Highland League)