Tweed

Celtic playing Aberdeen in the cup final is certainly a long shot.

Got to say, I'm not going to be overly gutted whatever way this one swings. If they are playing as they can they enhance our team, of that there is no doubt however we effectively have six months of friendlies until May as we are already safe from relegation, I suspect almost safe in the top six since the six in the bottom of half are shit so do I think it is worth splashing the cash if there is no prospect of a long term signing of them - to be honest, possibly not.

Willie Collum normally waits until St Mirren are 2-0 up to call them off.

I think the next few weeks are going to be critical for the season as a whole. We have: Inverness v Aberdeen Aberdeen v Motherwell Dundee Utd v Aberdeen Motherwell v St Johnstone St Johnstone v Dundee Utd Motherwell v Inverness That means all these teams are playing at least two of their direct opponents for 2nd. Although Inverness are currently 2nd, it is the New Firm who are grabbing the headlines whilst Inverness are being pretty perfunct. Our two home games at the end will tell us a lot about how we are progressing and if United can keep the level of form up over a sustained period of Saturday Thursday Sunday Wednesday Sunday we will know a lot about them too. Between now and Jan 5th won't decide the season but it could go a long way in defining objectives, I think we need to be looking for 9 points.

Speaking of the ref, just as well there was nobody standing behind him when Ross County did score, he would have had their eye out the way he pointed to the circle!

Dundee United dropped a lot of points to the weaker teams in the early weeks of the season and it is a testament to how consistent they have been in recent weeks that they have caught and overtaken us, as a team who wins every time they play a bottom six team is tough to overhaul. As I said last night, whilst they are playing so well we need to try and maintain a consistency so that we can capitalise on any collapse by them. This season is by no means a write off but it will become one if we can't get our first 11 on the pitch more often.

That may be, however I think whoever finishes 2nd will need at least 12 more points than we did last season to do that purely because last season every team in the bottom six were capable of beating everyone in the top six. This year, apart from the odd freak result, the teams in the bottom six appear to be horseshit.

Unless we suddenly turn into Brazil and come 2nd by a distance, or win the league, this season is going to be a let down due to the cup performances but as I have heard both McCall and Lasley say, there is nothing we can do to change it. Honestly I don't think we have the tools to compete with United and Aberdeen. Inverness are decent but I think are overachieving with the players they have and I wouldn't be surprised to see them dip and St Johnstone whilst playing excellently in some games are frighteningly inconsistent so I could see us finishing above them. Fourth has to be the aim, and claiming enough points so that if United or Aberdeen collapse, we can capitalise.

We might need to save the youth keeper for a big game in their league. Joking apart, if we lose 1-0 today and the youth keeper is at fault for the goal it could break him if he isn't ready for it. I don't know anything about Ross Stewart other than his name and if he is ready I'm all for playing him, but goalkeeper is the one position I wouldn't throw him in if he isn't because he could get pilloried. Which I am sure will be why there is an emergency loan rule in place for goalkeepers.

I think there are several issues that have happened this season. 1) Injuries - we have barely had an injury for years. This season we seem to have had quite a lot - Ramsden, Hammell, McFadden, Ainsworth, Angol, Hollis, Vigurs have all had time on the sidelines. Makes me wonder that having had so many years we have been injury free, has something changed? or have we just been damned unlucky this time round. 2) Lack of pace - there are only three players with any pace in our team. Ainsworth, has barely been fit; Anier whilst he has pace is a bit on the lazy side when things go pete tong and Angol has done all right but frightfully inconsistent. 3) New signings underperformed - I think it is clear that Lawson, Vigurs, McFadden have all underachieved. In turn that has put additional pressure on our defence. 4) Lack of leadership on the pitch - this one was there last year but the difference is we had a team that was so good it didn't really matter. Whilst McManus has done a fine job for the most part since he has been here, I have been a bit disappointed by this aspect of his game. 5) This one comes as a result of 1 and 3, but we have no consistency of selection meaning that there is no real understanding in areas of the team. 6) Last season our best players were in the spine of the team which meant those that those round about could play a bit. This time we have a weakness in the goal, we have inconsistency in defence (when Hutch has been missing), Carswell has tailed off a bit and whilst Sutton has been fine, he isn't in Higdon's league. A good spine gives your wingers license to play. What do we do next? Well we probably should try and get about 10 more points with what we have, guarantee our safety in this league and then have a go at embedding the kids on a staggered basis. United were bold and brought in four more or less at the same time in RObertson, Gauld, Butcher and SOuttar but that rarely works. I'd try a couple at a time and if form tails off bring in the next one. Hopefully give them experience of first team players so that we maybe can bolster our squad for next season through that method and maybe get some newbies in that will let us bolster our team This season is not going to be a disaster barring an almighty collapse but it is going to be turgid drivel, we need to try and use people to entertain us.

As an aside, how on earth did Yassin Mouatakil get one?

Reading this, how the hell did they get this game sanctioned? http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/14903625

I went to watch Clyde v Peterhead this afternoon in what was a decent game. However, the number of Clyde fans saying Duffy isn't good enough, these players aren't trying yadda yadda was frightening. This is a team that until today hadn't lost a game since 28th September! Football fans are fickle wherever you go but there seems to be a win at all costs mentality developing within our fans and there seems to be a willingness not to go because we are having a blip.

Thought Vigurs did a decent job on Brown. Sutton did all right with the best he had, bit daft to give away a foul by being in a headlock but. Carswell won a lot of headers at set plays. Actually thought a few of our lads did all right, played to their level just that with five defenders, two defensive midfielders was so negative we had not attacking spark and they were too good for us to try and defend as much as we did. Over the piece, I'm voting Vigurs.

I understand people are frustrated we have gone backwards this season but over the previous two we have been incredibly lucky with injuries. This year we have had four or five out just about every week. Bad news is that Motherwell can't cope with that and every game will be a struggle as long as that remains the same. Yes, McCall could have played his hand differently, yes, we are as slow as a Jim Paterson trot throughout the whole team and yes it has been dreadful to watch but we all knew when we signed up to be 'Well fans there would be hard times and this season is going to be one of them.

I thought there was a poisonous atmosphere about the town from the moment I got off the train at 5 to 6 and what happened in the ground and surrounding area didn't change that. I heard of some disgusting bullying of random passengers on a train out the city as well as what I've read on here. I have a feeling this may be the one and only time Celtic are permitted to participate in Friday Night Football. As for the game, our guys gave everything but there was zero pace in that team which meant we could not relieve the pressure for long enough and eventually it told as we ran around chasing the ball and eventually Celtic got in behind and scored the goals they needed. No matter what else happens in January we need a couple of players with a bit of pace who can relieve pressure from ourselves. Dispiriting watching that turgid shite but tonight it is just a resigned shit happens compared to the anger that was there on Saturday. Big big game next weekend.

Got to say this game is becoming more and more expensive with every passing hour. We have lost the chance to participate in Round 5 due to a display lacking in confidence and belief which considering who we were playing is ridiculous. We are going to have to pay the Accies money we can't afford to repair their ground. After that we are going to have to pay an SFA fine for fan behaviour, that we can't afford. The draw we would have got would have been a gimme (well should have been) so a chance to get a quarter final with a couple of very winnable options remaining and the cash options that would bring. We are going to lose gate money for the game with Celtic as walk up punters are talking of not going and this apathy is only going to spread unless something remarkable happens. We are going to find half season tickets harder to shift as it looks like being a middle of the table dirge from this point on. Saturday is potentially going to be one of the costliest days in our club's history as well as the most embarrassing and as fans some of it is our fault.

I was just chatting to someone about the game and told him I'd missed the first eight minutes due to the queue outside. He said 'that was unlucky you missed our forward pass'. Says it all really.

Cup upsets happen every season and if we had peppered their goal and their goalie had made save after save and they broke up the park and scored then disappointing as it may be you accept it. However, to barely create a chance in 90 minutes against a League 2 team is disgraceful. Been watching Motherwell for 23 years and I have to say I think yesterday is the worst I have ever seen. Good luck to Albion Rovers. I wasted enough time watching yesterday, I'm not wasting any more time posting about it.

Can't make it on Saturday as it is my one in eight working but if we have Hutchinson, Hammell and Ramsden back the defence should be sorted a bit from last time out. Anier looked like he needed an injection of belief in the United game and his two goals tonight hopefully did that. If we get the pacier players in the midfield on their game and Lasley and Carswell can break it down we could be all right on Saturday. Add in Kilmarnock don't have the same number of weapons as United I can see us getting a result. Should be a game where winning is the most important thing. After the doing last time, and Celtic next time in the league we can't hit a run of many losses on the spin.

That is a point but their best player the night we played them was Flood who went off injured. His replacement then got sent off. Not in anyway the same game or circumstance. I suspect had Flood not been at Fir Park that night we'd have scored several as well because he won every second ball. The red card in our game was before McInnes had had ot make any changes so he was able to reshape his team to meet the situation.

United hurt as from the wings, and only from the right wing in the first half. I think it was Ciftci who won the knock down against Kerr for the first but I was pretty sure Kerr was fouled. Other than that he, McManus and Cummins were all OK. Angol had a torrid time at left back and I think moving Carswell to right back was to try and move some of the pressure over there. Sutton was excellent again. Lived off scraps and was willing to come back and help - there was one stage he was even at left back as our left winger had left Angol short. People moan about Angol's performance but the winger in front of him in the first half offered him no protection at all as he seemed more intent in supporting Lasley and Carswell in the centre. Sorry bud, but when their wingers are as good as they are, you need to help your full back. For me it is between Sutton, Kerr and McManus and I think the blame for that debacle lies between the full backs and the midfield. Over the piece I think Kerr just about takes it.

I'd actually just finished saying, is that Vigurs, I'd forgotten he was still on when the announcement came. To be fair, he was so anonymous he was one of the few that didn't give the ball away as often. ;-)

Terrible performance from start to finish, I'm not even sure what tactic we were trying to play with. Melvinbragg used the phrase at the game about wingers being all sugar or all shite. Sadly today ours were shite and the United ones were sugar. We knew we were going to struggle with our defence the way it was today so it was our job today to try and prevent United from putting too much pressure on them. We failed miserably in that front and you have to wonder what the hell our midfield were doing. Lasley and Carswell both simultaneously had their worst game of the season; Vigurs is still struggling to get involved but didn't do much wrong on the ball and Ainsworth had one of these days everything went against him. Also when you are struggling there is an expectation that your strikers would drop back and try and get involved in the game. Sutton did, Anier didn't and contributed close to nothing. All that said, I thought we were very unlucky to be 2-0 down. We had started OK, no more or no less. The foul by Cummins that led to the first goal was soft at best and the United player who won the knockdown blatantly pushed Kerr which prevented him challenging him. Neilson should have done better but I think we should have had a foul. Second goal, Angol was tripped before his mazy backward run and should have either taken a fall and we'd have got the foul or kicked it to hell. Again, though I think it was a foul and shouldn't have stood. They then had one disallowed which looked onside and we just looked a dejected sorry lot. Second half we should have come out and pressed them hard to try and get back into it. That lasted about 10 seconds but once an apology of a tackle was ridden we were back to the same abject nonsense as before half time. Goal 3 was a disgrace too. Carswell injured himself preventing a goal but we couldn't get someone on quick enough and they passed round the hole and into the net. Playing a man down for a few seconds was unforgivable and whilst I don't want to greet at a kid, but why didn't he have a shirt on so he was ready? That time cost us a goal and completely sealed the deal. The point of Carswell saving the goal and getting injured was precisely what? After that it was a time passing mission. No idea where our defenders were when Robertson scored at the end. Moore did OK when he came on but all in that was one of the sorriest lacklustre displays I have ever seen and having three defenders out does not excuse it.

By a mile his best game for us today.