joewarkfanclub

The white Pony "floodlight" shirt is a belter. One of my all time favourites!

Would be great if he can start. Absolutely no question he improves us. I guess it depends on how Alfred sees the midfield going forward. Is there room for Fadinger, Hodge & Oscar in the engine room? Id like to see it given a go. Should make us more difficult to play through. I agree in that line up McGhee seems a natural replacement for Oscar. Kanga for Maswanhise later on unless he is on a hat-trick! 😍

Dont think Oscar will start. Much as I would like it. Alfred was very clear that the returnees would be phased in. Whether that refers to all of them or not, I dont know. But Id be surprised. Another 30 minutes from the bench, couple good weeks training and he might be good to go after the break.

This was my fear for Lennon going to Udinese. Too much coming and going of managers. No stability. No real chance to develop. I hope things settle down for him and it doesnt slow him down too much. But I have my doubts.

Welcome! I think the players generally arrive around 1pm for a 3pm ko. They park up the end of Fir Park St, so your best bet is to hang around outside the main entrance to the Phil O'Donnell Stand and you should meet most of them coming in there. The players are usually pretty good about stopping for autographs/selfies. If you contact the club/Well Society directly they might be able to make more specific arrangements for you.

I kinda get that Jake is our player and JKL is a loan player, so we probably want to give priority to developing Jake as there is money in it for us. However, you still need to win football matches and when you go 6 defeats on the bounce conceding goals for fun, you think he might have been given a chance. Now we have a win and a clean sheet, I suspect it might become even more difficult for him to get game time. Of course, there is always the possibility the manager see's something different in training that has caused him to stick with Jake / Moorman.

For me Jake is the only CB we have that really seems to like a tackle and he is probably the best in the air. I thought Moorman was gonna be in that mould, but he really seems to have dropped off from the start of the season. Not sure if thats just a confidence thing or not. JKL looks the most comfortable with the ball at his feet and coming out from the back. Not really seen any evidence of physicality, albeit from a smaller sample size. McGinn certainly adds experience, as would McGhee, but Im not sure either of them are that physical either. I think your previous observations about the defence getting protection from the midfield are probably on point. We didnt seem to need to be that physical last season and that was with a backline of supposed right backs at times. I think if we get the balance of the team better in midfield and get back to controlling games a little better the physical aspect of the game will be less of a issue.

Looking forward to seeing how we fare against an 11 man Dundee United and finding out if Goodwin really has become a convert to The Church of Jens. If he has, we might be able to get some joy up top. But will we be able to keep the door shut at the back? Could be an interesting game. Would shake hands on a draw right now. But back to back wins would be a pretty nice feeling going into the break.

Maybe Alfred needs to do a Jens and go without a recognised striker? Problem with that is he would have to give up going long, unless it is the ball over the top for Maswanhise to chase.

Vigurs was a talented footballer. His problem was the desire to be one. No hunger, no fight. When the going got tough, he went missing. But then, I guess thats why someone with his ability was with us in the first place and not playing at a higher level.

I thought Kanga had a decent second half. He struggled first half with the pace & physicality of the game, slipping a fair few times on a slick pitch. But he grew into the game and was one of the few constantly showing for a pass into midfield. He is young and inexperienced, but I think the raw materials are there.

Another good performance and a point next week at Tannadice, and we can go into the international break feeling good about ourselves. 3 points would be great, but no longer essential.

Pretty much the point I was trying to make. Playing Hodge alongside Priestman and Fadinger should, in theory, allow us to keep better control of the ball and hence the game. But Lowry is our most creative midfielder so you have to play him if fit. That leaves you an issue with formation as it doesnt fit a traditional 4-3-3. Bottom line is you need to get your best players playing in their best positions, so formation needs to be flexible right now. The caveat is that Im not sure Alfred is 100% sure on who his best players are yet.

I think Oscar, Fadinger and Lowry are probably our strongest midfield 3. I think the problem you then have is who plays alongside them and what formation you are going to play. Its going to be interesting to see what Alfred does going forward and who he trusts.

Thought Hodge had a pretty good game until he was subbed. His yellow card was a joke. Said and Manny very good. I voted for Oscar. I know he only got 30 minutes, but he showed in that short period what we have missed. His work rate, dynamism and calmness in possession are different class. Cant wait until he is ready to start again.