joewarkfanclub

Sorry just got what you did there! Nice work!

Didnt we try that against Hibs?

I agree. But until Dunne is back we look short of options. Donnelly and ATS havent looked concvincing and I dont see anyone else with the correct attributes. As per my last post going 4-4-2 or 4-5-1 arent without their own issues.

I dont agree that Bigi is anything like Rose Grimshaw and McHugh (who I would agree are all defensive minded midfielders). He has a lot more football in him and is far less defensive minded. I take your point re Frear. He would be most effective in a 4-4-2 but we would be giving away the midfield to most teams in our league which is never good. We could go 4-5-1 but then you have one less target to hit in the box unless you can get your forward running midfielders up in support. Bit of a conundrum!

Id like to see what Bigi and Gorrin would be like playing together. I think its incredibly unfair to chuck one of them into our current set up and expect them to be able to change things on their own. They need others to find space, run channels and make themselves available to take a pass. I lost count the number of times Bigi got the ball on Saturday and looked up to find nobody in front of him to pass to. Our movement off the ball was very poor and resulted in Bigi having to pass backwards, passes going astray or being dispossessed. Bowman and Tanner being fit would definitely improve this. Meantime Id like to see us set up: Carson Aldred McHugh Hartley Campbell Cadden Bigi Gorrin Tait Main Johnson If we need to chase a game we can bring Frear on for Tait or take Cadden off and put Tait back to the left. Against the better teams in the league we could drop one ball player for Rose or Grimshaw if required. I dont think we need major surgery. But a few tweaks here and there and deploying the right personnel for the tactics would help. Edited to say: I wouldnt discount playing Turnbull in such a set up but figure thats less likely to happen.

I actually thought we started quite brightly yesterday and for the first 15 - 20 minutes the intensity in our game looked back. I thought Bigi looked decent on the ball in that period and I was encouraged that it might be our day. However, we very quickly ran out of ideas after that and started shelling long diagonals from the back which at least made Hamilton have to defend. Even in the 2nd half I didnt think Hamilton looked like scoring, and although we werent great going forward we still looked the better team and more likely to score. I think for me the game changed on the Tait/Campbell substitutions. Whilst they were having quiet games by their standards you could see the loss of their influence immediately. I would have hooked Sammon for Johnson and Cadden for Frear putting Tait back across to his natural side. Sloppy free kick to give away for their goal and an absolute "Worldy" finish which you just knew was on the cards. After that we go chasing the game and they really should have finished us off with 2 breakaways. Ultimately a very disappointing day. But we werent outplayed by Hamilton. We matched their physicality (which in the past we have not) and there were some signs that Sammon and Main were developing more of an understanding (see Sportscene) albeit with a long way still to go. Not the absolute disaster of a performance this one is being painted as and a long long way from the worst Ive ever seen.

I thought Aldred had a pretty decent game. The only exception to that being when he found himself out wide right towards the end. He is never a full back let alone a wing back.....

How do you judge how a manager is doing? I would say for a manager with the 2nd lowest budget in the league to finish 7th after narrowly missing out on top 6 and getting to 2 cup finals in the same season, losing on both occasions to a Champions League level team, has to be considered a resounding success. You can certainly argue that the quality of football hasnt been that easy on the eye. But did we get that success because of the style adopted or in spite of it? I agree we have had a poor start to the season and the performances have been grim. But if you balance that against the injuries, suspensions, trying to bed in new players and get fitness up to speed, then there have been factors at play. My main concern is that Im not quite sure Robbo knows what his best 11 is now or what tactics to use to get the best out of them. There have been some strange starting selections and substitutions made considering the players we have brought in. Far too early to be even considering this topic after last season. If we get to December and things havent improved or we get isolated at the foot of the table then the board have a decision to make in advance of the January window. But at the moment we need to rally behind the team and support the players and the manager and give them every opportunity to turn this around.

I see the £1.75m for Phil being quoted. Is Marvin Johnson not our most lucrative transfer fee now?

Glad to hear that the club are looking to replace Cedric rather than just make do with the players we already have. Its a big enough wrench seeing one of your better players go, regardless of the fee and business model, but if it weakens the squad its even more so. Its impossible to say just now how good a player Liam Donnelly will turn out to be for us, but he doesnt have the physicality Cedric has. Hopefully we have another treat in store. PS Wishing Cedric all the best. It has been a privelege to see him play in claret and amber and we can all look on like proud parents as he moves onto the next level of what will hopefully become a glittering career.

Damn. I was about to out you as American Soccer Guy!

Good discussion as always guys but mine cut out before the end. Technical fault?

League - 6th League Cup - 1/4 final Scottish Cup - Semi Final POTY - Connor Sammon YPOTY - Alan Campbell Wishes - Not to lose Carson and Kipre in the same window. Get close to 7 figure sum for both and Maguire/Turnbull to break into the squad. If we could play a wee bit more football on the deck that would be nice!

I agree the abuse he gets during some games is ridiculous and not conducive to producing your best football. My original comments above werent intended to come across that way. More to question his selection as MoM on this occasion. Although to be fair there was very little competition.

Massive difference between giving him abuse and being frustrated by him because you can see he has the ability to do so much more. Especially against lower league opposition.

I get all that and Im definitely not one of the boo boys who were on his back from day 1. Im desperate for him to succeed and I get that playing wing back requires a bit more discipline from him so as not to expose our defence. I honestly dont think I expect too much from him. But there were times against Stranraer and again yesterday where HE was the one not taking up good positions or making the right angles to accept possession when there were acres of space in front of him. Ive also lost count of the number of times where he gets the ball in a one on one and delays so long he ends up double marked. Ironically though, there were times on Saturday when he had found his groove and he was in great positions and his team mates chose not to play him in! Given the lack of creativity in our team we need him to succeed. So hoping the manager can find the midfield formula that will help him to thrive.

Frear had a decent last 20 minutes but he was poor for the first 70. His delivery in the first half was poor and his reluctance to take his man on when he is 1 v 1 is very frustrating. Thought it was telling that when he finally went past his man for the first time in the second half there was an audible cheer from our support. He thereafter went on to have a very good end to the game. Incredibly frustrating player to watch when you eventually get a glimpse of what he is capable of.

Hoping Campbell being out will mean one of Gorrin/Turnbull/Bigi will get the nod. Keeping possession of the ball would make things a little easier on our defence. Injuries at the back may force the managers hand. Otherwise its going to be Grimshaw Rose and Cadden with long balls to Main and Sammon all afternoon.

Gorrin. Showed more composure and control of the ball than anyone else on show.

Pretty poor performance today. There were plenty mitigating factors (wind, pitch, early injury to McHugh). Its clear a lot of our players are struggling for fitness, particularly Hartley. But the only way they will get fitter is playing games (Remember Hartley hasnt played for 7 months). However, we really need to find a formula to try and maximise the performance levels from the squad. Once again today, our tactics were one dimensional and far too predictable against a team that were more than comfortable defending with the ball in front of them. All we had first half were long balls to Main and Sammon who play too far apart to support one another and balls out to Frear who either has no confidence at all or is being told not to risk leaving space in behind him. Second half was a bit better. Gorrin looks comfortable on the ball and dictated the play better. This seemed to give Frear a bit more space and time on the ball, although the number of times we chose to punt long when he was in acres of space down the left was frustrating. Good finishes from Johnson and Sammon for their goals. Good to get the job done but it wasnt pretty and still much work to be done if we are gonna get the best out of this squad and have another successful season.

3 hours ago, numpty said: It does, but of course any kind of abuser is often perfectly charming to and around the people he or she isn't abusing, so other people saying "he's not a bully cos I never seen him do it" doesn't in itself make it any more or less likely that it happened. Thats why I qualified my comment with my last sentence. Nobody knows the truth of what happened other than those involved. The victim got to say his part, so far Robbo has chosen, correctly, not to respond in public. Just thought it was interesting to get another perspective from someone who has some knowledge of the circumstances.

Certainly gives a different perspective to the matter. Laws experience of our manager appears to be more in line with our own, than that of original tweets. Of course who is to say which version of events is correct. I suspect the truth may lie somewhere in between.

Grimshaw. He may not have as much ability as others but his attitude is always spot on and he is always available for the ball.

Given the managers fixation on the number of crosses we get into the box it doesnt seem unreasonable to sign a player that can head the ball. Whether that brings any more goals than last season or is more entertaining remains to be seen. An underwhelming signing at first viewing. Will just need to wait and see what Robbo can get out of him.

Gary McAllister English league title at Leeds. UEFA Cup at Liverpool. Paul Lambert Champions League Winner at Dortmund