Scottish Premiership Game 24: Hibs (A) 31/01/18 19:45

[Well Well]

Who thinks Yodo and Steelboy are the same person?

nah just a pair of moaning pricks....they must love the dark nights

[middleeastdave]

Unfortunately it took us to go two down for us to start playing against a Hibs team who without McGinn would be very ordinary.

Have to say Kipre was immense tonight and was our man of the match by a mile.

[Yodo]

The swiftness with which some almost gleefully seize upon when things doesn't go our way can at times lead you wonder if the criticism is genuine or simply the continual manifestation of a deep-rooted dislike or lack of belief in players or management that really isn't going to change, come good times or bad. Seems there's a fair bit of the latter in evidence tonight.

 

Ultimately we've lost but from what I saw of it we weren't a million miles away at all. Nothing much in it in the first half and totally dominated the second.

 

What we didn't do was defend as we could have and were as clinical as Hibs were in front of goal.

 

Hibs dominated possession in the first half. I would expect no less them being at home but Carson was hardly faced with a barrage of efforts.

 

I have a little sympathy for the team for the first. It appeared to be something of a miss-hit shot and was partially cleared by a stumbling defender. No question about the vociferious finish though.

 

The second was poor though. Boyle was able to amble up the wing and take his pick from two or three Hibs players waiting to have an effort on goal.

 

I thought we responded pretty well after conceding the second. Arguably we could have made the positive changes more quickly than we did but whilst Hibs, of course, had no reason to chase things further, there was only one team in it thereafter.

 

Good anticipation and finish from Main and he continues to impress not only with his strike rate, but work-rate and link up play too. It was a pity he just wasn't able to snatch a point with the effort tipped over at the death.

 

An opportunity lost to pick up a point certainly, but nowhere near as bad as some of the stuff I've read earlier in thread would have you believe.

Think your missing the point Andy ,we are all Motherwell fans who post on here and when the team runs out at the start we are all hoping for a win not sitting there hoping we get beat .When we do get beat surely your entitled to your opinion, now everybody as I have seen on my short time on here doesn't want to hear that the team were rubbish but if I think they were i will say so .I also respect everybody's opinion and it would be boring if we all agreed with each other . So there nothing gleeful in saying the team were bad when they are but some posters on here need to realise at the present time we are not playing well and you won't get me to say otherwise until we start playing with a bit of flair

[CSmith]

Think your missing the point Andy ,we are all Motherwell fans who post on here and when the team runs out at the start we are all hoping for a win not sitting there hoping we get beat .When we do get beat surely your entitled to your opinion, now everybody as I have seen on my short time on here doesn't want to hear that the team were rubbish but if I think they were i will say so .I also respect everybody's opinion and it would be boring if we all agreed with each other . So there nothing gleeful in saying the team were bad when they are but some posters on here need to realise at the present time we are not playing well and you won't get me to say otherwise until we start playing with a bit of flair

The point I think is being made by some is that there appears to be posters who are negative before the game, negative when the team goes up, negative at half time and negative at the full time whistle regardless of the score line and it can definitely get bloody tiredsome

[milo]

Im watching the game on Alba and were actually competing very well.

 

Dunne couldve possibly done better at the goal but it was a pretty good strike in fairness.

 

Defending for the second however? Deary me.

 

Hibs are a typical moaning can dish it out but cannae take it mob.

[Inthebasement]

Really like robinson but that was a shambles. So negative in set up and selection we couldn't change approach even when 2-0 down, and the ref had repeatedly made it clear that tackling would not be permitted. Cadden on the bench, he's our best player?? Hibs ordinary and cynical.

[ropy]

The second seemed to catch Tait and Kipre too far up the pitch, the boy ran in unopposed.

[fergi4]

The second seemed to catch Tait and Kipre too far up the pitch, the boy ran in unopposed.

Tait was awful throughout, caught sleeping at the second goal, couldn't find a pass, really bad tonight!

 

It's a shame that it was a game too many to get starts for Ciftci and Cadden or this could have had been a very different game.

 

I thought Hibs were ordinary and Tait was their man of the match!

 

Hibs first was unstoppable but they did have a player offside in front of Carson...maybe I'm being petty.

 

Too slow to change it tonight as the back 3 had nothing to do. Rose Grimshaw and McHugh all on at same time really limits us and resulted in Campbell having to chase everything as well as supporting attacks from midfield alone.

 

Main and Aldred continue to look like very good captures.

[Pettywulliegrew-2]

Tait was awful throughout, caught sleeping at the second goal, couldn't find a pass, really bad tonight!

I

Hibs first was unstoppable but they did have a player offside in front of Carson...maybe I'm being petty..

Yes Hibee offside and obstructing Carson view......

[Kmcalpin]

I wasn't at the game tonight but have watched the highlights and the defending was awful at both goals. We did seem to lack pace and the midfield looked unbalanced; not being able to shield the defence nor service the strikers properly. Today was always going to be an uphill struggle to take even a solitary point and it wasn't helped by selection problems.

 

We have more important games coming up.

[fizoxy]

From the highlights the goals looked bad, with one possibly offside, main took his goal well, we had a few chances, and almost came back with a point from Easter road.

[texanwellfan]

Seems like in general the managers tactics are to try and keep it at 0-0 and then go for win. Maybe we should try to get A few goals up and then try holding on for a win?

[underboyleheating]

I watched the game ’as live’ on Alba and we allowed Martin Boyle to run the show. Until the introduction of Cadden and our goal I never thought we were going to get anything from the game. We could have even sneaked another late equaliser. Main looks like a good find and seems as if he will score a few goals for us.

[Clackscat]

The swiftness with which some almost gleefully seize upon when things doesn't go our way can at times lead you wonder if the criticism is genuine or simply the continual manifestation of a deep-rooted dislike or lack of belief in players or management that really isn't going to change, come good times or bad. Seems there's a fair bit of the latter in evidence tonight.

 

Ultimately we've lost but from what I saw of it we weren't a million miles away at all. Nothing much in it in the first half and totally dominated the second.

 

What we didn't do was defend as we could have and were as clinical as Hibs were in front of goal.

 

Hibs dominated possession in the first half. I would expect no less them being at home but Carson was hardly faced with a barrage of efforts.

 

I have a little sympathy for the team for the first. It appeared to be something of a miss-hit shot and was partially cleared by a stumbling defender. No question about the vociferious finish though.

 

The second was poor though. Boyle was able to amble up the wing and take his pick from two or three Hibs players waiting to have an effort on goal.

 

I thought we responded pretty well after conceding the second. Arguably we could have made the positive changes more quickly than we did but whilst Hibs, of course, had no reason to chase things further, there was only one team in it thereafter.

 

Good anticipation and finish from Main and he continues to impress not only with his strike rate, but work-rate and link up play too. It was a pity he just wasn't able to snatch a point with the effort tipped over at the death.

 

An opportunity lost to pick up a point certainly, but nowhere near as bad as some of the stuff I've read earlier in thread would have you believe.

Your first paragraph articulates how i feel about some of the posts on here far better than i could... well said.

 

Sent from my SM-A320FL using Tapatalk

[Clackscat]

Really like robinson but that was a shambles. So negative in set up and selection we couldn't change approach even when 2-0 down, and the ref had repeatedly made it clear that tackling would not be permitted. Cadden on the bench, he's our best player?? Hibs ordinary and cynical.

Cadden not risked on physio advice....amazing that the manager gets the blame for not playing him

 

Sent from my SM-A320FL using Tapatalk

[Jay]

Disappointed not to have nicked another late point but overall I'm pretty satisfied with last night.

 

I thought we competed with Hibs up until the goal reasonably well, it seemed to be a part of our game plan to try and hit them on quick breaks, and there were a couple of occasions where the right pass or better finish would have resulted in a goal. I dare say that might also be why Ciftci was dropped, assuming it's not fitness or injury related, as he tends to be the kind of player who slows things down rather than contributes to a quickfire counter attack.

But aye, up until Hibs scored, I was perfectly happy with the way we were playing. The goal itself was poor from Dunne. I'm a big fan of his in terms of his defending attributes and I may be being harsh if he's actually just slipped, but it looked like he decided against launching the ball the way he was facing (ie. out for a throw in) and instead attempting to twist his body in order to swipe the ball upfield. It was far too daft a risk to take and we suffered for it, as it got no further than the Hibs lad who then finished it.

The goal maybe rocked us a little but by half-time your wanting to regroup and go back out with the same sort of purpose we showed early in the first-half, so to lose a second so quickly after the break was always going to be a kick in the baws. Tait in particular was very poor for the goal, being caught ahead of Boyle and under the ball - Boyle then had a relatively easy job of getting in behind and squaring.

 

I think it's understandable that it would knock the stuffing out of us a little and it did take us a little bit of time to start pressing again - when we did, we created a handful of opportunities, Main notched up another fine finish and, on another day (ie. last Saturday) we'd maybe have gotten that bit of luck to nick a point. It's also encouraging to see that the determination and "never say die" attitude we showed early in the season seems to have returned at some level, given we would probably have gone on and lost a 3rd or 4th in December.

Never happy with a defeat but for a very difficult game against a stronger Hibs side at Easter Road, I'm content enough with the 90 minutes and will be going into the three home games with confidence.

Also, Kipre was Man of the Match for me all day long - assured and solid at the back, and potentially our best distributor of a ball on the night.

 

Can we also just take a moment to appreciate Tanner's absolutely howling attempt at a pass from the free-kick that led to Kipre having to block the ball almost on the line...

[Burn_Broomfield]

Disappointed not to take something as we created enough dangerous situations in the final third that we failed to capitalise on. The defending for both Hibs goals was absolutely honking, but in keeping with the recurring theme of this season.

 

We looked a different side when Bigi and Cadds came on.

 

Easily Tait's worst game in a Motherwell shirt last night. He looked slow, was caught out of position a lot, susceptible to balls over the top and his distribution was really poor which is rare for him. I also thought Tanner didn't have his best shift. It wasn't a game for Rose and he was anonymous.

[Andy_P]

Think your missing the point Andy ,we are all Motherwell fans who post on here and when the team runs out at the start we are all hoping for a win not sitting there hoping we get beat .When we do get beat surely your entitled to your opinion, now everybody as I have seen on my short time on here doesn't want to hear that the team were rubbish but if I think they were i will say so .I also respect everybody's opinion and it would be boring if we all agreed with each other . So there nothing gleeful in saying the team were bad when they are but some posters on here need to realise at the present time we are not playing well and you won't get me to say otherwise until we start playing with a bit of flair

 

I don’t think I am.

 

Nowhere have I said that I think folk don’t want Motherwell to win and similarly nor am I saying anyone is wrong in highlighting deficiencies, remarking upon the abilities of a player, manager or performance. Plenty articulate such views each week - myself included.

 

But I have little doubt that whenever things begin to go awry, or in some cases even the prospect of them going awry, is enough for some to try to reinforce entrenched negative opinions. When the positives fail to be acknowledged or if they are, they are done so almost grudgingly, whereas the negatives are seized upon as evidence to back up the oft stated view that A,B, or C won’t cut it, I'm left with the view that it doesn't really matter what the afflicted individual does, they are never really going to get a fair crack of the whip.

 

If I could draw your attention to a couple of posts earlier in the thread for example about how we got our goals and secured our wins/points in the games after the break. That’s the kind of post I would expect to read on an opposition forum attempting to justify a defeat. It would seem from those remarks that it’s no longer sufficient just to win. We need to win by playing well and we need to score from open play. Goals in injury time it seems don’t have the same merit as those in the regulation ninety minutes. Given that only a few days earlier the same poster was attempting to have us believe Robinson was 90 minutes away from losing his job and had already done his sums to work out how close to the play-off place we’d be after losing to Ross County, Hearts and Hibs you might think the positive results since the split might have been well received. Doesn’t really look like it does it?

 

And there’s Andy Rose. The Andy Rose who it was being slaughtered after the Hamilton cup game for offering nothing in an attacking sense yet provided the cross for the opener against Ross County (which most likely would have been headed in anyway had their centre-half not gone for it) and was involved in the equaliser on Saturday. I’ve yet to read much of an acknowledgement of the positive contributions Rose made in those instances. I have however noted the latest criticism, which didn’t take long to be aired during last night’s game.

 

All in all you’re left with the impression that anything bad that happens is fault of the manager and the players he’s playing. But anything good that happens will always be in spite of the manager and the players he’s playing.

 

So aye, by all means anyone is fully entitled to air their views on how poor you think a player, the manager, a performance or the team are. But if you routinely focusing on the negatives, appear to downplay the positives and appear reluctant to give credit when it’s due, I wouldn't be too surprised when folk grow weary of it and you’re called out to justify your stance.

[Al B]

I'd be increasingly tempted to start training Kipre into the McHugh role when Hartley is fit enough to play. He's a great centre half but he's also got tools we aren't using, whilst trying to find them in other players that don't.

[Lukemfc1]

Tait was awful throughout, caught sleeping at the second goal, couldn't find a pass, really bad tonight!

 

Don't like to single players out but Tait has been awful for some time now. Seems to get away with murder, I even seen some claiming he was one of our better performers this season.

I like him going forward, this is his main strength. In terms of defending and passing I don't think he is good enough. He is also very slow. I've lost count of the amount of times I have watched him beaten for pace and refuse to block crosses coming in. Tanner seems to have been lauded recently after he had a couple of games where he was looking like he could be a key player, I still have my doubts regarding his lack of pace. Skill and technique wise he is very good but his lack of any sort of speed seems to be a problem going forward sometimes.

 

In terms of positives Cedric Kipre seems to be back to his best, if he continues to play like this we have a real asset on our hands. Curtis Main continues to be handful, he is proving myself and a few others wrong with his goal tally thus far. Hopefully he continues to chip in.

 

At the end of the day, we can't be expected to go to Hibs and get a result but I appreciate some fans frustrations at the way we set up some times.

 

We have a good opportunity on Saturday to get another 3 points although I don't think Partick will be a walk over.

[real dosser]

Great post Andy P.

Sums up my feelings exactly.

If Main scores a hat trick every week there are some on here who would condemn him for not sharing out the goals.

[Spiderpig]

Just watched the highlights and from what I saw it looks like we were very unlucky not to get at least a point last night, especially with Mains attempt tipped over right at the end.

[Busta Nut]

I avoided the score as I was working and recorded the Alba showing to watch at midnight last night.

 

It's fucking hard doin that.

 

In the first half we seemed set on keeping it at 0-0 and maybe nicking a goal if we could. I didn't notice a shot on target until the 77th minute but I maybe wrong. Trying to come back from being behind is a difficult thing to do and we seem to have ended up in that situation too often.
I wasn't keen on the starting line up, I just don't see what Grimshaw offers. I actually think Rose & McHugh can and do offer things alhough that may not often show, I am lost as to what Grimshaw has. I don't think he's a bad player. He started at RWB then when Tait was switched he moved to the middle while Rose went to LWB,

 

I thought Kipre was great. Looked solid and a few times he took control and went a wee stroll with the ball.

Charles Dunne had a pretty good game defensively as well. We all know his distribution isn't great but I thought overall he was pretty steady.
Richard Tait had a complete nightmare. He looked like Tait from 15 months ago where he couldn't defend for shit. When I have been critical of him in the past the excuse "Full backs are more attacking than defensive these days" has been thrown back as if it is some sort of acceptance for shit defending. For the 2nd goal he was diabolical.

Curtis Main is a machine. More in the sense he seems like he'd run through a brick wall and never gives up. Paul Hanlon had his hands all over him for most of the night and what he got booked for looked laughable anaw.

 

Pity we had a few fitness issues. I think when Frear is fit I'd like us to go 4-4-2 with him and Cads playing wide. Leaves a headache of where to play Tanner but that's where the manager earns his bread.

 

 

John McGinn is a cunt anaw btw. I think he is massively overrated. I don't think he's a bad player, i just don't have the same awe for him as some do.

 

I don't think we were as close to Hibs as we should have been and it was a canter for them for about 75 mins.

 

 

Basically I sat up to 2am watching that for fuck all. Had fun tweeting my "live" watching of it though.

 

 

[Al B]

Curtis Main's problem isn't that the ref's are continually giving fouls against him, it's that 80% of them are actually stupid, niggly wee fouls that he's trying to get away with. He's an absolute unit of a boy so he'd have much more success in actually contesting every 50/50 ball, as opposed to an arm across here, a dunt in the back there...

 

Reminds me of Scott McDonald in some ways, in that his main goal was often to try and win fouls at the edge of the box as opposed to taking advantage of already actually having the ball in a good position. The amount of positions for potential on-target shots he passed up in favour of trying to win a foul that we either didn't get or put into the stand was frightening.

[ropy]

I noticed that Aldred again decided to go up front, he looked over to the bench for direction and didn't seem to get any, he didn't even go back to defend the corner. Maybe part of the game plan, maybe just a guy that wanted to win the game. I don't know, just an observation.