Motherwell V Dundee Utd Sat 8 Aug 15:00

[faddythedaddy]

We should have won, we will be fine.

 

Big chalmers shat it with that chance

[Orinoco]

chalmers is a left/center back playing left midfield. Whilst, he's doing well to get into goal scoring opportunities, he seems he does not have the instinct or perhaps bravery to put the ball in the net. He's wasted good chances in Inverness, and today.

Law is our weak link in the defence, and all opposition will target him. He seems to panic on the ball, and lacks concentration. Given Johnson's playing on the right and probably tracks back more than Ainsworth this is going to be an ongoing problem.

 

Once we get Ainsworth back into the team, Johnson will be back on the left and probably get more space to play.

McDonald's lack of form/sharpness is probably down to a lack of pre season. He will get better when Ainsworth pace is introduced, as teams cant double up on Johnson, Ainsworth & McDonald.

 

Pearson's energy was missed in the middle of the park. Thats no slate on Leitch, as he is a totally different player, but we need a player in who can do the Pearson role.

Dundee Utd seem to have a hoodoo on us currently. Seems every time we play them we have key players missing, and suffer bad luck. One of these days...

[MFCL84]

All in all the performance wasn't too bad. Certainly much better than the early season matches last year. A draw would have been fair. For me the problem is that the centre of midfield does nothing in a forward sense. Everything has to go wide, and with only one wide player on the pitch it meant that Marv was going to have to be exceptional today, because United could focus on nullifying his threat. We do need an alternative to the flying wingers, and there just isn't that option right now. Pearson would have helped by giving us forward runs, but we really need someone to make that telling pass from the central area.

 

Did well defensively today. Hard luck on Laing who was excellent.

[mjw]

They were. We scored their first for them and the second one only happened as we sent the keeper up looking for an equaliser. They didnt really look like creating anything themselves

Can't agree with this, our keeper was man of the match.

[ONeils40yarder]

We looked very, very good....for the 1st 15 minutes and then died a slow death from then on. Overall, the 1st half was played at a pedestrian pace which looked like a friendly match at times.

 

I agreed with bringing Clarkson on with 20 or so to go, but to take off a central midfielder and leave Lasley (aye, the 36 year old Lasley) on his own, was complete folly. Granted, I thought Leitch struggled and fear that he could be out his depth at SPL level, but I would have taken the ineffectual Skippy off instead and kept our shape in the hope of taking at least a point but giving us a bit of fresh impetus at the same time.

 

Fletcher looked handy enough, with decent looking technical ability and movement but Skippy was playing far too deep to be any sort of partner for him...Moult on the other hand, looked sluggish but time will tell if he was worth a 3 year deal.

 

Chalmers to me looked technically very good, seldom gave the ball away and obviously has defensive qualities, but he offered nothing going forward, which meant that our only attacking threat came from Marvin who was playing on his weaker side and was no where near as effective as usual. Now, I know the reason why Thomas didn't start (his defensive abilities are questionable apparently), but I'm certain Ainsworth would have started if available and yet, he is the worlds worst for not covering his full back so what's the difference?

 

All-in-all, I reckon we'll be comfortably safe this season but there is still some serious work to be done...starting with the signing of a centre-mid next week

[Coolhandluc]

Not read all the comments, but surely playing one up front was the major failure today? As the home team, we need to dominate a game , and that's not going to happen with those tactics.

Please feel free to shoot me down as just a first impression from the first game I've seen this season

[Andy_P]

It was a pretty cruel way to lose a game, especially so late in it, but I have to be honest my disappointment passed pretty quickly and I find myself quite encouraged.

 

You compare that 2-0 defeat today for example to some of the early home defeats in the first two or three months of last season and you could probably take more positives out of today than you could against Inverness, St Johnstone, Accies and Dundee combined last year.

 

I thought we started really well. We played some good stuff at a good tempo but lost our way a bit when we didn't the early goal our domination at the time deserved. United became more confident as the half wore on came into things a lot more.

 

I thought they started the second pretty well and seemed to be getting on top culminating in the one-on-one save from Ripley. I would stop short of saying we got a wake up call but obviously almost immediately after that Mavin blew a golden opportunity of our own but we had a really good spell again after that.

 

I suppose the last fifteen is down to your own feelings on fitba. Perhaps the sensible option would have been just to stick with what we had, see if we could sneak it, take the point if it didn't come but I find it hard to be too critical of the manager for going for it at that juncture of the match with what was a very bold and attacking formation.

 

And much the same goes for the keeper going up for the corner. You can view it as being absolutely stupid or a bold attempt to rescue a point.

 

Overall though a pretty decent display from which we didn't get the point which would have been the very least we deserved. Very disappointing at the time but encouraged for what the future holds for this team. I tend to agree with the guys who were speaking in front of me heading out the ground when they said play like that and we'll win more than we'll lose over the course.

[dosser1886]

Really enjoyed the game today, two decent teams playing a good brand of attacking football. Poor result but a lot more enjoyable that what was on offer last season.

[fergi4]

The best team lost today. Andy mentions, can look at the final 15mins / subs as where we didn't get the payoff.Couple of 1 on 1s cancelled each other out, and while Law got a threatening pass that Chalmers hit over, Utd converted there chance setup by their fullback.

 

Never felt threatened by Utd and still believe that over the season we are better than them.

 

The ref and old boy with a drum (in the East stand) spoiled my enjoyment. Dundee Utd players taunting our fans at first goal was a bit naughty.

 

Some good performances today from Ripley, Lasley and Laing. Most others had there moments, and does look like very good morale and camaraderie in our team. Pearson and Ainsworth were missed at points, although Leitch and Chalmers were steady enough cover and will no doubt be relied upon more often as able backups.

 

Not many easy games in this league, and next 2 games (Hearts / Dons) will give us a decent measure of what the season has in store.

 

AB mentioned pre-match potential signing(s) next week; I'm hoping for some creativity from central mid.

 

#SIWY

[ONeils40yarder]

Haha...I overheard an old couple on the way out of the East talking about folk complaining about their drum

[maxywell]

From midfield forward we were good at times without finding the net but defensively both teams were all over the place especially in the second half.If we defend like that every game then we'll lose more than we win because we won't create as many chances against more solid back fours.It made for a decent game though and there were contenders for save of the season and miss of the season.

[sinjy]

I was quite encouraged by todays performance. Thought the defence looked more solid and Laing had an excellent game. The weak link in the defence is Law. I'm not a great Lasley fan but he put himself about and made some great tackles but we need a creative spark in midfield. Leitch did OK but like Lasley he is not going to unlock a defence. I also thought Skippy was very poor. Is his lack of a preseason telling?

I thought Fletcher showed some nice touches early on but when he faded from the game after 25 minutes so did we. They had obviously picked out Marvin as a threat and doubled up on him although he became more of a threat in the second half. But until we take our chances we are going to leave ourselves open to the type of defeat we had today.

I thought Madden was terrible. Their first goal came from a very soft free kick. As for the second I was convinced it was offside. With no goalie there was only one defender when the United player played the first forward pass. Maybe the receiving player was in his own half or behind the ball when it was played but if not he is offside. If the officials missed this then it is very worrying if they do not know the rules.

Onward and upward and lets hope we can burst Hearts bubble on Wednesday. Sportsound having orgasms about them on my way home from the game.

[Tweed]

Overall I thought we did a good job minus the final ball and and the shooting boots. I thought we were just about edging it when he brought Clarkson on for Leitch. We did this far too early. Even if it had worked and we scored after 75 minutes, we would then have been hanging on for 15 minutes with about 103 strikers on the pitch. As it was we surrendered the midfield and we never saw any of Thomas, McDonald, Johnson, Moult again. Not sure why he did it but I think he was maybe worried about Leitch getting a second yellow as leaving us with ten men in this game would have been annoying, losing another central midfielder for Wednesday would have been really bad.

 

Couple of real moments of class though, Ripley's save in the first half and Law's ball to Chalmers were both delicious. Think we certainly could have won, should not have lost but it is August and it is the time in the season for taking a risk and I find it hard to be too critical of Baraclough for doing so.

[Bop]

This season is always going to be about consolidating our position and building for the future, i'm really not that arsed about the final result despite it being difficult to take.

 

Those who complained about the old boy with the wee drum need to give themselves a shake, I hope i'm turning up to games at that age with the same enthusiasm as him. Man of the match in my opinion.

[ONeils40yarder]

Yip...felt a bit sorry for the auld fella as his mrs tried to work out what they had done wrong

[Muzz]

The second goal was definitely offside.

[capt_oats]

As far as the result goes, it was obviously a boot in the baws. We were worth at least a draw. Performance-wise it was pretty encouraging. Defensively we looked relatively well drilled. Laing looks like he's stepped up a level from where he was last season, he seems to be growing into the ball playing centre half role. There's the potential for a solid foundation there with him, McManus and Ripley.

 

Going forward it looked like we're still finding our feet a bit and to reiterate what everyone else has said, we can't really expect to win games if we don't take chances. The fact that we seemed to be playing with some composure was pleasing though. It'd be nice if we could add some genuine creativity in the middle of the park though as I still have a gnawing concern that our reliance on the pace of the wide players leaves us a wee bit one-dimensional.

 

Either way it's been a while since I've walked away from a 2-0 defeat feeling reasonably encouraged.

[Goggles & Flippers]

First 15-20 we were looking really good, in fact in the whole first half there was what one save for our keeper (was the acrobatic effort a save or missed high?). From 25-40 Marvin looked .... well .... Ainsworth-esque if that makes sense, lacking concentration and drive. Still when he goes forward he excites the East Stand the same way Humphrey did, except he has a final ball and can shoot on target (not much evidence today though).

 

Losing Fletcher up front certainly contributed to our decline, he was big and strong and when he drops the shoulder he has a burst of pace that took him past his marker 4 times or so. Jack Leitch could do with a few more games to get up to speed so not going to be too critical.

 

Can't help but feel it would be an entirely different game if Pearo was on from the start. Bit surprised of the tactical ineffectiveness of the subs, once they came on it was pretty much even and we lost our superiority, was expecting a bit more from Baraclough. I understand Moult has been brought in as the primary striker but Fletcher is the one on form at present.

 

Chalmers impressed, As did the keeper, Law didn't, as did Skippy but I'm sure he doesn't appreciate being played where he is when he must know how effective he is further up the park.

 

Next week we've got Lionel back and let's be honest, only Pearo short of a full squad. Could be doing with a few players hitting form and taking our chances. We could have had 4 last week and got 1.

 

Never a 2-0 loss.

[mjw]

 

 

Those who complained about the old boy with the wee drum need to give themselves a shake, I hope i'm turning up to games at that age with the same enthusiasm as him. Man of the match in my opinion.

This.

We all wondered what was going on when he turned up but there's some pretty minded bullies out there.

[underboyleheating]

I was quite encouraged by our performance at various stages throughout the game, however, not capitalising when we were on top has cost us. Without doubt, we deserved to take something out of the game, however, the record books will only show that we lost the game 0-2. On a side note, Ripley was fortunate not to get a second yellow when he pulled the shirt of the United player on the lead up to their second goal.

[Donaldo87]

I thought the Dundee Utd subs made an impact whereas ours (apart from flashes from Dom) did not. So that's a bit disappointing.

 

As said McDonald was far too deep.

[milo]

McDonald playing far too deep thus isolating Fletcher to the teams detriment is a a re-occurring observation it would appear?

 

McDonald once again being poor is another reoccurring comment. Which is surprising as well as worrying. Naw? Could this be a lack of preseason? Not enjoying the deeper role? (We aren't either!)

[Kmcalpin]

A draw would have been a fair result but our lack of cutting edge cost us in the end. Pearson and Ainsworth were always going to be a big miss in that respect and so it proved. Skippy was left to do too much in midfield with Leitch offering minimal impact. This left Fletcher isolated and Marvin trying to do too much on his own.

 

A close run thing but United probably just deserved to shade it. We had our chances but failed to take them. What they lacked in flair and skill they more than compensated for in terms of physical presence, solidity and competitiveness. They were also very streetwise as you would expect from a United side. They'll comfortably finish above us but we're a better team than we were last season and will finish above 11th place and thats all we can ask.

 

Impressed by Ripley but even he was dwarfed by the United keeper. When United took the field it was immediately obvious that high balls would be a waste of time. For me and others nearby Law looked out of his depth, and it seems like a mistake to have awarded him a 2 year deal. He looked uncomfortable all game and United soon cottoned on to his weakness. Luke Watt must surely now stake his claim.

 

As you say Pearson and Ainsworth were always going to be massive losses and Skippy looked completely out of place playing so deep leaving Fletcher so isolated. The game largely passed Leitch by and whilst Lasley wasn't bad on the ball he was posted missing all too often off it. United were granted much too much space on the edge of our box. Our problem was always going to be competing in central midfield and feeding Johnson, Fletcher and MacDonald decent ammunition and so it proved. Thomas tried just too hard and justified Ian Baraclough's decision to keep him on the bench as opposed to awarding him a starting slot.

 

I was concerned a week or two ago that we hadn't improved our central midfield or defence and early indications are that that is the case. Right back is an achilles heel for us unless Luke Watt can step up and we desperately require 2 central midfielders. Joe Chalmers looks useful and hopefully will take over from Stevie Hammell in the not too distant future but he is no left midfielder.

 

As others have said the referee was very poor but you must hand it to United as they played him well.

[Kmcalpin]

McDonald playing far too deep thus isolating Fletcher to the teams detriment is a a re-occurring observation it would appear?

 

McDonald once again being poor is another reoccurring comment. Which is surprising as well as worrying. Naw? Could this be a lack of preseason? Not enjoying the deeper role? (We aren't either!)

Don't blame MacDonald for this. He's simply not suited to playing in that role. This was my big fear pre match that he'd be asked to play deeper to compensate, in part, for the loss of Pearson.

[capt_oats]

On the subject of right back even if Watt isn't available I wonder if there's the opportunity for Kennedy to step in? It's been mentioned he's capable of playing there. Obviously I realise we're only 2 games into the season so it's a bit early to start writing off/dropping players etc but it was notable that Law seemed to be identified as a weak link.