wellfan

Our current form is about 1 point per game, so it's not looking too rosy right now.

Aye. Great minds, etc.

In an ideal world, we'd have these 3800 members paying at least £10 per month by direct debit, which is the most popular category according to the WS website. Basic maths shows that these numbers would generate almost £500K annually. However, this is not the case, as many members do not contribute monthly by direct debit, others contribute less or more per month, some contribute sporadically, and some do not contribute at all anymore. I'm sure there are other permutations/reasons; however, it would be a masterstroke if the WS could produce an initiative to get every current member to uplift to a monthly direct debit of at least £10. It takes minutes to do. If that happened, those already on a tenner may wish to uplift to a score, and so on. It sounds simple, but it probably isn't, or is it?

I'm looking across the whole season now, given the winless run was halted. Therefore, it's worth noting that with 11 games remaining, we'd need to win 7 to equal our lowest games won tally (12) from the previous 5 seasons. Furthermore, and less depressing, our current tally of 11 draws is the most we've achieved in each of the past 10+ seasons, which is helping us in terms of our current league position. However, the current stats are still poor in terms of victories, but I hope we can turn it around starting tonight, and that is why I think tonight is massive in terms of setting the tone for the months ahead.

5 wins in 27 isn't too pretty either. It equates to an 18.52 win % for the league season so far.

Ewan Wilson returning should ensure we never see Blaney at LWB ever again.

I park in the car park immediately west of the M&S in the shopping centre. It's a 10-minute walk north, crossing Almondvale Boulevard, passing through the Xcite Leisure Centre car park, then crossing the wee footbridge over the water to the stadium's southwest corner.

Thanks for your attention.

Not really. A casual assumption was made by a fan, which was unlikely to be based on objective fact or specialist knowledge of our injury mitigation methods, and I jokingly described it as being an admirably optimistic assumption. Nothing more.

Admirable optimism.

Fifteen players are or have been out injured for a month or more this season alone. There is only so long that this can be classed as bad luck alone.

I don't disagree with the random aspect. However, given the amount we've had, and the negative financial and performance implications of these, it may be worth bringing in a specialist to assess things.

What the fuck are we doing to the players during training and feeding them before games?! The amount of injuries we have experienced is ridiculous.

Give it a rest, pal; you don't have to read and engage with my posts. However, if you do, perhaps consider offering comments on the topic or constructive debate. The 'yawn' chat is tiresome.

For me, it's a must-win. I say this because, as much as I am a Kettlewell critic, a loss to Livingston could see the tide finally turn on him en masse. And, as we can't/won't sack him, the fans turning against the manager (and possibly the team) could see us enter a death spiral to see out the season. Furthermore, if we can't beat Livingston at this stage, it would suggest we probably don't have what it takes to win the fight to finish 10th or better anyway, so a positive result is a must for both points and confidence levels.

Much like corkage, I think we would be justified in charging them a breakage supplement or a scum tax until it stops happening. They, and other fans who engage in antisocial behaviour regularly, are an utter disgrace and are dangerous. For these reasons, I and many others never go to Rangers or Celtic games anymore. These scumbags don't just cause unrest at football matches; they need to be removed from society in one way or another.

Luca Ross should be getting more exposure to the first team than Obika or Shaw at this stage, particularly as I foresee him being promoted to the first team next season because we need to develop our youth and not rely on duds and crocks, so now is the time to drip-feed him into games. I note that Ferrie has been getting some game time, but Ross has shown more than him during his limited opportunities, although Ross is more of a wide attacker than a centre forward. Ross is also contracted until May 2025 and Ferrie until May 2024, so the latter may be released.

And that buck stops with the manager, who's now been here for over a year and has had two transfer windows. Shite players and poor tactics don't pick themselves.

I didn't say Butcher cost us the game. Read my post again.

You're absolutely right, but it's a nailed-on certainty that Kettlewell will offer him a new contract, as I'm convinced he chooses not to acknowledge the things caused by his poor decision-making. For example, in his post-match interview, he stated that the defence was unsettled because he had to replace injured/knackered players, which is fair enough. However, he doesn't acknowledge that he unnecessarily unsettled the entire defence by trying to accommodate Butcher when it should've been a straight swap for Casey, allowing the remaining players to continue doing what they had been doing quite well. Some accountability and evidence that he is learning from his mistakes wouldn't go amiss here. Even the usually jolly bunch on P&B appear to blame today's capitulation on the manager, which speaks volumes. How many more defeats, poor in-game management, and questionable signings will it take before the fans turn on him en masse? The man who brought Butcher on and unnecessarily rejigged the entire back three to accommodate him cost us the game. A lot more happened following that substitution, but many people on the forums acknowledge it was a turning point in the game.

Montgomery would’ve been a good option for Gent, but he's injured, unfortunately, or Buyabu…oh wait. On the right, Elliot would've been a good option, but we’ve signed a player who isn't match fit. Brilliant. And another centre half should have been a January window priority. Instead, we got Shaw. The manager and fans can blame the weak bench options for today, but the manager has had two transfer windows to address things.

I'm sure Saint Brenda will give the MOTM to Stuart the Invincible.

Read my post above. Mugabi was doing fine in the centre of the back three, as was McGinn at the right of the back three. But, to accommodate Butcher, who has been poor for a while now, both had to switch, which unsettled the defence. Blaney should've been on at that point to keep it settled, be he shit or not. The rot set in with that defensive change anyway, so the rest is ultimately inconsequential.

As I said during the game and in a post above, Butcher should not have replaced Casey. It completely fucked the defence, and it was downhill from there with the other subs.

I thought they were generally good today, but changes were made that killed their ability to continue doing what they had been doing well. We need to play our own attacking game. Switching the defence up that much, isolating Bair, and sitting off them was a recipe for disaster. The majority of them gave their all. In the end, however, they were hamstrung by the decisions of the manager and shite subs.