MJC_MKI Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 Our fitness or woeful lack of is a major, major concern for me. How in the name of God can we be so off the pace at this early stage in the season when we have had a supposed training trip to Portugal and Europa League matches to help get us prepared for the campaign??? And it's no use offering the excuse of it being early days and we're still rusty etc. because Inverness were streets ahead of us in terms of fitness today and they are at the same stage of their season as we are. I have to ask, just what is it we do in training all week on the days we actually train? For us to be so far behind an opponent like we were today in terms of fitness just three matches into the season is unacceptable. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DEWELL Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 Fitness has been an issue with us for a while now. Kenny Black has to take the blame he's the coach/trainer. <_> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gazs66 Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 We were awful today, poor touches, 2nd to every ball, poor service up front, lack of direction.... but... History repeating itself? Last season, we won the first game 1-0 and lost the next 2, with the 3rd game a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Inverness. Inverness were also sitting top of the league as well. And how did that end up on 11th May this year? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy_P Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 Not one of our finest afternoons it's fair to say. I hope in the fullness of time this will be one of the games that will aid the development of some of the younger guys in the squad like Ferguson and Erwin, crazy as that me sound. Their careers won't be all sweetness and light and if playing through that today helps them be better prepared to tough things out the next time we have a total and utter shitter then that'll be one of the few positives I can take from today. Can't grumble at the scoreline. Fair enough on the balance of play and dominance ICT had for most of the game. Perhaps easy to say in retrospect but was it the wisest of decisions given the wind, to take drop one of the better "footballers" in the side and some faffing about about in and around our box aside, spend the best part of the first forty five minutes lumping aimless balls into the wind? A very marginal improvement in the second half but even in that 10-15 minute spell of huffing we never really looked like scoring. I felt for the young lad Ferguson, particularly in the first half, although I think it was him who put in a magnificent block at one stage to save a near certain goal. But he had a pretty torrid afternoon of it. Positives? You're scrambling aren't you? Fraser Kerr showed some potential again, perhaps as much in three games in his favoured position as in three seasons of being shunted between right-back and right-midfield. Law seemed to be getting some stick around us in the East Stand but if he can continue this pleasing habit of working his way into the box - and become that bit more clinical when he does - he could prove a useful source of goals from midfield. And maybe it will prove to be a significant moment in that two of the senior players in Lasley and Sutton were hooked during the game? It's hardly a changing of the guard by any manner of means but perhaps its no bad thing for both to be reminded there are others in their position waiting for an opportunity. Much improvement hoped for and expected next Saturday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Welldaft Mk1 Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 To be fair ICT have a settled team full of experienced players, with the exception of Christie. We in the other hand literally had a kid playing left back who was in at the deep end and did not cope too well. Sutton and Lasley look shadows of players of last year. Ainsworth is either very good or shite and it looks as if it will be more the latter unless he gets his shit together. I am not panicking just yet, not until we get our loanees up to speed and get Hammell back. We will get better, simply because we could hardly get worse, but top 6 and a cup run is best i think we can hope for. Top 4 is a million miles away... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the traveller Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 Still look on the bright side McCall is now accepting some responsibility for the never ending debacles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fat_tony Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 Ainsworth total disgrace. Doesn't even look remotely interested. Sutton not much better. Both need dropped pronto. Agree with the opinion on Ainsworth, at times he's like an empty jersey, when he decides that he's not up for it. At least with Humphrey, when he wasn't having a good day he would still work the line and provide an option for an out-ball. I lost count of the number of times today that Reid had to go bombing past him down the right to try and get into space. Disagree about Sutton though. I don't think it's disinterest as he worked his socks off again today but had zero service. He needs some creativity around him if he's going to get chances, which is where, hopefully Ojamaa's movement will help once he's up to speed. Very poor today, and McCall hit the nail on the head on the radio when he said that it wasn't good enough. We had a dodgy start last season, narrowly beating a poor Hibs side and then being convincingly beaten by Aberdeen and then ICT (In a similar manner to today), but we started to pick up after that. All is not lost, but definite improvement is needed for next week if we want to avoid this becoming a bad habit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ya Bezzer! Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 People are talkng about our lack of fitness. Is it lack of fitness or is it because we are chasing the game from the first minute of the match to the last? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ropy Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 We seem to have no presence in midfield, might we add the new boy to a back 3 and put 5 in midfield, that 5 could be more defensive or attacking dependent on who we are playing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siebsbarmyarmy Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 People are talkng about our lack of fitness. Is it lack of fitness or is it because we are chasing the game from the first minute of the match to the last? Both.... Pro footballers should last 90mins. I know guys playing amateur who can run and chase all day and they have full time jobs.... Hell even a couple of our Over 35 team are fitter than our pro's!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fal_Dosser Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 I really do wonder if Ainsworth has an injury issue we don't know about, he's hardly turned up in any game I've seen him this season, though in fairness to him he's hardly alone. Wasn't there midweek but last Saturday and today we've been passed off the park. Was happy Erwin started but why on earth did he appear to be playing a more midfield role with Sutton apparently on his own up front: Sutton's not been shining but dear god, the majority of balls hit to him are in the air. Until we get to a stage where we pass the ball up the park, through midfield and on the deck, the way other teams seem to be instructed to play, I see nothing but a long season ahead. Winning is what we all want, but at what cost - I actually would be more encouraged getting beaten if we were showing a degree of skill and endeavor. I do accept that we're missing important players, but today's performance was absolutely woeful. Walking back to the car, god forbid, but I kept thinking of Hibs last year. On a slightly more positive note, we didn't show a lot of promise at the start of last season, and still came good, but at the moment, it seems like a lifetime ago MON RA DOSSERS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ya Bezzer! Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 We seem to have no presence in midfield, might we add the new boy to a back 3 and put 5 in midfield, that 5 could be more defensive or attacking dependent on who we are playing. This is how we lined up today ...................Twardzik........................ Reid........Kerr..............McManus......Ferguson ...................Carswell........................ ............Lasley............Law.................. Ainsworth..................................Erwin... ....................Sutton......................... We had 5 in midfield and it did not work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmacd1 Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 Today was as woeful as I've seen in a while. We've got to bear in mind though the number of kids now in our starting eleven. Hopefully when Hammell returns and Ojamma gets back to pace we should see a slight improvement. The guy from Derby can't do any harm. What worries me most and frustrates the life out me is our lack of a vocal captain/leader on the park. I'm not wanting to hammer lasley but those kids needed guidance and vocal encouragement out there and he just doesn't do it. McManus is hugely experienced yet also maintains a fairly quiet aura around him. If we are gonna have to play loads of kids then they must, in my opinion, start putting across to the kids what we need. Lastly as a player must be told now to just sit and protect the defence and leave bombing forward to others. Numerous occasions now he bombs forward chasing the game and can't get back quick enough. ICT were more than deserving of their win today. Big improvements required from our guys. Passing the ball from a to b would be a good start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siebsbarmyarmy Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 This is how we lined up today ...................Twardzik........................ Reid........Kerr..............McManus......Ferguson ...................Carswell........................ Ainsworth .................................Erwin ................Lasley .... Law ....................Sutton......................... We had 5 in midfield and it did not work. Thought it was more like this!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmacd1 Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 110 away fans today also. Not exactly doing our finances much good. Might not be the end of the world to have Rangers and either Hearts or Hibs back next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Judge Jules Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 I was stuck in work today so never seen the game but i wondering if the guys who were there can tell me was that performance today a throw back to the Malpas era ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim64 Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 Very poor all round today no spark at all,injuries don't help but we don't seem to be able to compete at the minute. Really felt for ferguson today not a great game but he was so isolated on the left hand side today it was shocking. Midfield non existent at present and totally agree about Ainsworth . Seen far worse sides over the years but not many poorer performances Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ropy Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 On a positive all of our first team squad bar Thomas now has first team experience Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motherwellseasider Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 Your are spot on dmacd1. I was shocked at the lack of support and talking the young boys got from seasoned professionals! When you look there is a real lack of talking between the team and that is a big part of supporting and coaching throughout the game. I reckon some of those boys could do well but need help. I also reckon we will get better but that's maybe my glass half full outlook!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Well 4 Europe Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 No getting away from it, that was fucking woeful today. Twardzik, Kerr and McManus are about the only three that would get pass marks for me. The rest for various reasons either struggled or were just plain shite. The difference between when we had the ball and ICT did was night and day. Every time they had the ball one of their players would move to create space and make an angle for each other which made for a decent passing game. Whenever we had the ball there was nothing. No pace, no movement, just statues that forced us into our usual routine of clipping pointless wee chipped balls forward towards Sutton who was surrounded. Why was he surrounded? Because Lee Erwin, who's put in two cracking displays up front so far this season, was punted out of position onto the fucking wing. Explain that one to me? Baffling. Also, when it was obvious we were struggling to retain possession, why was our best footballing central midfield option on the bench? Leitch had a great game in midweek and is much better on the ball than either Carswell and Lasley but when we were struggling to string two passes together today he sat on the bench scratching his arse. Apart from when he was brought in with a massive 6 minutes to go, unbelievable. Right sub, far too late. So it was no wonder we were forced into going long when our two central midfielders struggled to make a decent forward pass between them all game. We also had fuck all width. Ainsworth wasn't interested, Erwin isn't a winger, Vigurs wasn't fit and fuck knows where Law was supposed to be playing, he was just floating about in anonymity. Ferguson has taken some stick but I thought he was hung out to dry. Out of position on his full debut I though he done as well as could be expected defensively. Sadly the boy had no left foot and the amount of times he had the ball at his feet and nobody was looking to help the poor lad out was shocking. It was the same for Reid who actually lost the ball at one point because when he looked up there was not a single pass on and he was surrounded by ICT players who pinched it off him. Kerr had another good game and actually strode out of defence with the ball a few times and was unlucky not to get a free kick when he was brought down on the edge of the box after a marauding run forward. Erwin showed glimpses of his ability but he was wasted out wide. Sutton and Lasley both continued their worryingly poor starts to the season, even McCall has been reduced to bringing them off. Ojamaa just didn't look sharp, no surprise given his lack of game time and a decent pre-season. The Inverness defence strolled through the game as did the two boys sitting in front of the back four. Don't think the keeper will even require a shower after that one. I thought after Wednesday there were plenty of positives to take but there's little to take from today. The only comfort I can take is that we've got the same amount of points now as we did after 3 games last season and surely things can only get better... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mio Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 I was stuck in work today so never seen the game but i wondering if the guys who were there can tell me was that performance today a throw back to the Malpas era ? it was certainly up there with the Malpas era today but i'm hoping it'll be a one off, McCall is a far better manager than Malpas could ever be so i'll we'll be looking to see an improvement next week, which i'm sure there will be. Ive been to all the games so far this season and it concerns me of the real lack of ideas, we definitely miss a player like McFadden who was always capable of changing games. Even looking at set pieces its a total free for all, we had 2 good free kick opportunities in the 2nd half and twice we seen Sutton and then Lasley just balloon the ball against the wall, it just looked very amateur. In fairness to ICT, they are not a bad team, big strong and organised and decent on the ball, they were streets ahead of us today!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1991 Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 We were terrible didn't deserve anything at all, only positive was Kerr who had by far his best game in a motherwell shirt, I think some of the problem lies with playing players out of position, today we had no natural left sided player which caused us problems I felt that Thomas may have gave us more on the left I really fear for Lasley this season I hope he is just having a slow start but don't think he looks the same player but it's still too early to write him off as he has pulled us through games in the past. Today was the third similar performance at Fir Park and there seems to be a real lack of creativity in midfield Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milo Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 If we keep that up and that's exactly where we'll be next season! That's how fucking bad we look. It's not the first time McCall has played a completely unbalanced team with no success, you like to think he might have learned by now. We're probably the most incoherent shambolic team in the league right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuwell Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 Have to totally agree with these posts awfull first half and slightly less awfull 2nd half. Only plus was Kerr played ok and good to see Ojamma back. Ferguson the left back??? . Lasley's having a severe drop in form too as is Ainsworth. Really outplayed in midfield at times Caley had acres of space and ages on the ball uncontested. Worrying at times how pish we were. Got to agree with most of your post but singling out young Ferguson is a bit out of order. Considering that he'd been put into the team because of injury rather than outstanding displays in the reserves, I thought he handled things well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chummy Posted August 16, 2014 Report Share Posted August 16, 2014 110 away fans today also. Not exactly doing our finances much good. Might not be the end of the world to have Rangers and either Hearts or Hibs back next year. Fuck rangers , hibs n hearts , i would welcome back in a football sense, but that mob can fuck right off....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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