Livingston v Motherwell 07/10/2023

[SteelmaninOZ]

The gaffer said 

 

[grizzlyg]

For saying Kettlewell has no back up plan I would say that for killie home game we started 2 up front, didn't work and he brings Paton on for Efford and we win 2-1.

Yes it's 4 defeats in a row but 2 against old firm and today probably only one we deserved to lose.

Really annoying that minute we lose a game it's suddenly we are rotten... getting relegated...manager Clueless.

Yes project Bair isn't working but he is only starting due to injuries. Lad trying his best and yes to be honest I would have him on bench and next game start Wilko and Shaw for Bair and suspended Miller.

[FirParkCornerExile]

1 hour ago, GazzyB said:

We were all encouraged by the performances vs the Old Firm, running them close and playing well in the process. Today has been shite all round but we were the better team before a shambolic sending off that changed the game.

 

One thing that is clear though is that we need to drop a midfielder in place of a striker. Bair is okay 30 yards from goal but he needs a Shaw or a Beireth in beside him. A couple of weeks off for Kettlewell to think about what changes to make. I like him a lot but I'll be really disappointed if we line up with the same starting XI vs St Johnstone.

Made the comment at he game that I'm not sure we'd have won with 11, sure any sending off changes the dynamic, we were shite all across the team. We were utterly dreadful in possession. The goals we ship are shambolic.

[Chanzeypopz]

Fact of the matter is we offer absolutely nothing upfront, Zero. Noone on our team could smack a cows arse with a banjo and sadly this game is down to who scores the most goals.

This problem is only going fo consist as the season goes on. Top 6 if we are lucky 

[wellup83]

Said I'd take a point today at a tough venue but the sending off coupled with us being generally poor in all areas saw us lose the game. A bit of perspective required in that yes we've lost 4 but 2 against the OF and 1 against a St Mirren side who are having the season of their lives. Today was the only game where I've been genuinely disappointed by our performance. The break will do us good, we've had a tough few weeks and could really do with some bodies back to give us a fresh impetus. Miller will be a huge miss in 2 weeks time but it will hopefully give Kettlewell the opportunity to go with 2 up front for a change.

 

[grizzlyg]

2 minutes ago, wellup83 said:

Said I'd take a point today at a tough venue but the sending off coupled with us being generally poor in all areas saw us lose the game. A bit of perspective required in that yes we've lost 4 but 2 against the OF and 1 against a St Mirren side who are having the season of their lives. Today was the only game where I've been genuinely disappointed by our performance. The break will do us good, we've had a tough few weeks and could really do with some bodies back to give us a fresh impetus. We'll be fine.

A sensible post.....it'll never catch on 😂😂

[FirParkCornerExile]

I'm not anywhere near panic mode, yet 😂 but I'd love to watch the training to see them practice free kicks and corners. With almost no exception every delivery is utter pish.

[grizzlyg]

9 minutes ago, FirParkCornerExile said:

I'm not anywhere near panic mode, yet 😂 but I'd love to watch the training to see them practice free kicks and corners. With almost no exception every delivery is utter pish.

I have to agree about that. The corners have been very poor this season 

[wellfan]

52 minutes ago, bobbybingo said:

So this failed plan isn't Plan A. That would have been the plan he employed pretty successfully in the first few games before injuries forced a change. A return to that wouldn't suit you if you want Bair dropped.

Kettlewell's obviously not trying to lose games and bring pressure on himself. He can see the problem, same as everyone else, so you'd think he'd give Wilkinson and/or Shaw a go from the start. I'd be slightly concerned about why he hasn't done this.

In the context of the last four games, yes, it is plan A, and it's failed. The plan A you talk about goes back to the start of the season when we had more options. My point was that a plan B (or C as you imply) should've been tried today because even a 2-year-old could see that it's not been working during the games before today. Even before the last four games, Bair wasn't scoring when deployed as the lone striker, our midfielders/defenders were, yet Kettlewell has persisted with it and we've lost four on the bounce whilst only scoring once.

To be fair to Bair, he scored in the opening game, but that was when we deployed two forwards, although one goal in eight league starts is pretty crap for a striker. Therefore, as we have limited options, it makes sense to drop Bair or deploy him alongside another forward. It's that simple, and in a perfect world, he would be nowhere near our first team. And it's all semantics whether a plan A or plan whatever is considered here, because he's not good enough no matter the plan. But maybe Kettlewell doesn't want to drop him as that would indicate that his 'project' has been an immediate failure, or is it that Wilkinson and Shaw are even shiter?! If the latter is the case, we're even more fucked than we currently are until Biereth and Obika return.

At the end of the day, Kettlewell has brought pressure on himself by signing a known dud and publicly 'hanging his hat' on that dud. He didn't have to do either.

[bobbybingo]

7 minutes ago, wellfan said:

To be fair to Bair, he scored in the opening game, but that was when we deployed two forwards, although one goal in eight league starts is pretty crap for a striker. 

One goal in 8 games is one goal down on almost every other striker in this league right now. I wouldn't have faith any of our options will do better if they're left up front on their own, so Kettlewell either reverts to what brought points previously or tries another combination of forwards.

[Kmcalpin]

3 hours ago, Great Balls of Shire said:

I always thought the boy Anderson for them was ok , without being a world beater.

If the ref had done his job properly he wouldn't have been half as effective.  

[Kmcalpin]

3 hours ago, pretzel said:

I hope it's not true but BBC mentioned that Don Robertson had tech troubles in the first half hence why Miller red wasn't looked at by VAR

Really? Ref needed all the help he could get today. A totally incompetent performance from start to finish. He was never in control of the game and credit to Martindale, he sussed that out early doors. 

[Kmcalpin]

2 hours ago, wellfan said:

Agreed. Wilkinson hasn't shown anything to suggest he is any better/worse than Bair

Apart from a fantastic long-range lob, he was the only player to have a shot on target today and that was as a late sub. 

[wellsince75]

That’s the first time I’ve been with SK.

A 5-4-1 formation against a team who hardly scored was odd . It was calling out for 2 up front .

more maddening is it was clear we needed to change early on , energy was poor and livi were winning all the battles .

should have changed shape long before the sending off .

Generally the mgt have been excellent at intro game mgt but today he kept blind faith that the team would spark into action 

 

 

[robsterwood]

Poor  1 goal in 4. 4 lost matches. Pretty dismal.  

[robsterwood]

Why do we still play defensive counter attacking football against living? Understand against old firm but surely have a go at this mob. Less budget than us.

[Ya Bezzer!]

Blame the sash. 🤣

 

[robsterwood]

2 hours ago, Chanzeypopz said:

Fact of the matter is we offer absolutely nothing upfront, Zero. Noone on our team could smack a cows arse with a banjo and sadly this game is down to who scores the most goals.

This problem is only going fo consist as the season goes on. Top 6 if we are lucky 

Most of your assessments pretty fair. I look forward to your balanced comments unlike some. Great to have balanced assessment.

[Kmcalpin]

I have the same concerns as many on here about Bair, but he was pretty blameless today. He was stuck up front on his own, sometimes being marked by 3 defenders. He won his fair share of challenges but more often than not there was no midfielder anywhere in sight to support him.  Soul destroying for him.

[Spit_It_Out]

13 minutes ago, Kmcalpin said:

I have the same concerns as many on here about Bair, but he was pretty blameless today. He was stuck up front on his own, sometimes being marked by 3 defenders. He won his fair share of challenges but more often than not there was no midfielder anywhere in sight to support him.  Soul destroying for him.

Maybe cause the midfield are running on empty cause they are having to put in an extra shift week in week out?Nah this was on SK today got it wrong today not playing the two up front just like he got it wrong last week with the subs.

 

[Kmcalpin]

A bad day at the office today but it could have been worse, although not much. Only positive is that we didn’t pick up any bad injuries; at least none that we know about.

Many around me took exception to Livingston’s tactics but while I get that, I can’t blame today’s opponents. The referee was never in control and a streetwise Livingston took full advantage. A substandard and inconsistent display – possibly the poorest ref I’ve seen this season. Anyway, enough of that. Livingston fully deserved their win and would have triumphed even without penalties or red cards.

Our formation has been well and truly sussed out by rivals and I did worry about this after the Celtic game.  Despite packing midfield we were second best from the off and hardly touched the ball in the first 20 minutes or so. No fight and no composure on the ball. The formation was wrong and SK must take responsibility for that.  Spencer looked totally out of sorts at wing back today and the annoying Mackay had a field day (I'm not picking on him). Wing backs are becoming our achilles heel and we are losing games from those positions. To be fair they receive no cover or support from a narrow midfield. I've commented about Bair elsewhere but he had a thankless and soul destroying  task today.

The team look jaded, off the pace and tired today. By contrast Livingston worked harder, were more committed and were better organised. And, yes they were far more streetwise and physical. SK is now under the microscope and we'll see how he reacts. 

 

[Kmcalpin]

9 minutes ago, Spit_It_Out said:

Maybe cause the midfield are running on empty cause they are having to put in an extra shift week in week out?Nah this was on SK today got it wrong today not playing the two up front just like he got it wrong last week with the subs.

 

Maybe. You could have a point. Irrespective of the reason though they were unable to support Bair. Yes, SK got it wrong today.

[wellfan]

Bair is crap on his own up front, but it’s not his fault that Kettlewell keeps picking him to start up front alone. Today’s loss was entirely on the manager, and it’s not come out of the blue. I and others said that his over reliance on our midfield four to support a dud striker will see them tire, become jaded and easily sussed, and then turn in a performance like today. Kettlewell simply needs to change it up for the St Johnstone game. If he doesn’t, this forum will be a delight. 

[MFCL84]

It has all been said. A very poor performance from many of the team today. I won't single them out, but I have half a team in mind that were far below the standard required today.

I agree with many posts on here that continuing to play a fairly defensive setup is not the way to go against the likes of Livingston. It was clear from very early in the match that we weren't going to score unless things were changed, and they weren't. 

It is bad enough losing today, but what really annoys me is our inability to make simple passes. Every second pass (44% accuracy) was misplaced today. For a professional football team, that pass completion stat is ridiculously low. No football was played, everything was lumped long and high. A dreadful performance all round on a horrible day.

[Kmcalpin]

27 minutes ago, MFCL84 said:

No football was played, everything was lumped long and high.

That doesn"t concern me at all. I have no problem whatsoever with playing that way as long as we have the players and set up to do that but we didn't.