weeyin

Casey and Blaney in defence - what could possibly go wrong. All we're missing is Bevis.

Not your jokes.

Although it's also nice to beat a Jim Goodwin team.

Well, according to the rule, if we don't agree in advance then the OF can ask the Board for a decision. It could be that is the Board's default number, but there is nothing in the rule that requires that or any other specific figure.

I was curious as to what the current rules say about minimum numbers and was suprised to see it laid out this way in SPFL Rule I27 So basically, there isn't a specific minimum number or percentage and if we came up with a reasonable safety related excuse could probably cut the allocation they have now. I'm not a fan of banning away supporters in general, but wouldn't object if we eliminated or reduced the OF numbers.

Maybe throwing it away is the modern equivalent of tearing up the old paper ones - it just doesn't have the same dramatic effect. "Yir rubbish Motherwell. See? I'm taking my season ticket out my wallet and I'm dropping it on the ground!!"

The big issues we have playing one up top are: - our lack of support for the man up top (obviously) - we lose our high press on keeper and defenders giving them time to reset and choose their next line of attack

The binary mood swings of the modern football fan continue to deliver.

At least we got through the game largely unscathed for the next one. Liam Gordon: ...hold my beer Take your pick...

Hitting the woodwork twice feels like it's already "not our day"

As SK said, you can "have a go" at different points in the game, but if try that for 90 minutes they have players that will destroy you given too much space. Given we've drawn twice and lost narrowly to very late goals in others, SK will undoubtedly be sticking to the same tactics on Sunday.

A reminder to all our US based fans watching the game on MFC TV (or Paramount+ if you subscribe). The UK puts their clocks back tonight, a week before we do. So the game kicks off for us at 11am Eastern.

Park the bus, sneak a 0 - 0, and bask in the endless praise from the Celtic fans and the Scottish media about an incredibly professional and tactically astute performance.

Spaghetti Carb O’Nara must be Irish, no?

I noticed he had started at the weekend, but I missed the game. Glad he is finding some form.

Hoping for a slew of "You only try against Celtic" posts on social media after this game.

Zach Robinson back tae haunt us. Take your pick...

Classic steelboy, slagging off a new player on his 2nd start a couple of days after he travelled half way around the globe. Reminds me of when he was slagging of Higdon for being fat and useless. Robinson, on the other hand, has less of an excuse. And none of that excuses the debacle that was our defence at the goal.

Video, but not commentary today. Not too disappointed with that. Bought a ciabatta loaf when I was out this morning, so settling down to watch the game with a mug of coffee and a bacon ciabutty.

For all the issues I have with VAR and despite the fact the I want it punted, and despite the problems I have with the ridiculous handball rules, I still think the Casey call was correct.

The real question is which ex-Well player will they sign to replace him.

I'd hope it's not beyond the capabilities of the Society to pull a list of the names of members who have contributed financially over the past few years.

If that was true, then resting tired players during a 2 week international break might help. However, it doesn't take a Beautiful Mind to see the pattern of how many players we've injured during international breaks, winter breaks and pre-season these past few years to see it's an issue. Also, playing 8 games over 13 weeks at the start of season should be quite manageable even for a 34 year old. However, if players like McGinn and Miller are at risk, then we should be rotating them sooner, not crocking them in training sessions.

No doubt we'll be conducting our 718th detailed review into why we injure so many of our players during an international break.

We certainly had the worst defence in the league, but I'd say the comedy defending antics of Butcher, Blaney, Casey and Mugabi (to name a few) were more responsible for that. Difficult to compare when we were giving up free shots and headers half a dozen times per game. Likewise when Gordon passed the ball to St Mirren and SOD gave away the ball against Hibs, Ox conceded 2 goals. I wouldn't blame him for conceding either one, but that's what Kelly was up against for an entire season. It has a knock-on effect. Defenders are poor, the keeper loses confidence and makes mistakes. The keeper makes mistakes and the defenders lose even more confidence - and so it goes on. That's why I was a proponent of ditching all the central defenders and the keeper in the summer and rebuilding from scratch.