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It's not really about voicing opinions, it's about those who clearly saw superstars coming through the ranks and are upset at the club for doing nothing about it. To some on here it's black & white whether some of these guys were going to make it, or not. It's a good post but you have still chucked in a couple of caveats at this stage in the development of those you've name-checked, which reinforces the point that no-one really knows at this at the moment but some will still have a go at the club for 'doing nothing about it'. As for previous suggestions that we can't compare the current crop to the likes of Dom Thomas - If I recall correctly, Thomas was the next Faddy and the chat in the stands, and on the forums, was that he was going to tear teams apart and move for megabucks. The hype around him in particular was much bigger than any of the current crop. Although that might have been that thing where the longer they don't play, the better they get.

Ok. I'll play the game although it is probably pointless. After all, some on here appear to think you cannot voice an opinion unless you are a qualified football coach. I thought Football Forums were all about fan opinion and healthy debate where opinions differed. Or maybe it's just that on this Forum it's frowned upon to dare to have an opinion which questions our Club? Anyway, here goes. From the current reserve team, and setting aside Scott and Maguire who hopefully we can agree to consider as members of the first team squad, from what I have seen I don't think anyone has yet displayed the talent/potential of Turnbull or Hastie. Adam Livingstone and Liam Brown of the more senior players and the slightly younger Jamie Semple are the players who stand out for me. But all three have have a little way to go if they are to have the impact of the youngsters who broke through this season. Following Craigen's departure and substantial changes to the squad, it's very much a rebuilding process at that level and only time will tell if we have a few more gems in our ranks. Reece McAlear was recently promoted and is highly regarded. But it's very early days in his case. Only my humble opinion of course. I have not seen much of the players below Reserve Team level but I understand there are a few that are on the radar of other Clubs. Rangers and Celtic for example. McKinstrey has already agreed to join Leeds. Fairly common for players of that age to switch Clubs and clearly senior success is even less guaranteed. Liam Brown, for instance, joined us from Queens Park, although he was a bit further advanced and had first team experience. Motherwell's success at youth level has been noted by many and our coaching and scouting staff are much respected. Talking of Rangers, does the name Murray Miller ring a bell with anyone? He left us a couple of seasons ago and is currently starring in midfield for Rangers U17 and is a Scottish Internationalist. They recently became the first British team to win The Alkass International Cup, a tournament featuring teams such as Real Madrid, Bayern, Roma , PSV and Spartak Moscow. Miller was a standout and has been earmarked as one most likely to make it all the way. We received a Development Fee of around £30k for him, which I suppose is a fair amount for someone so young. So I accept that youngsters do switch clubs, sometimes for family reasons which I understand was a factor in Miller's case. Turning to safeguarding investment in younger players, a friend who has a link to Hibs, told me that towards the end of each season they strictly assess the entire Reserve Team squad in an effort to identify players who have the ability and application to make it all the way. A select few are then offered three year contracts. Not at first team rates but at a higher rate than the basic Reserve Team wage. The agreement is that when they make their expected breakthrough to the first team, the Contract will be revisited and a wage increase negotiated. Seems a good strategy to me but perhaps a three year deal might be a step to far for some Clubs. I think Mackie who came on for Gray on Saturday and did well was one of the youngsters who came through that process. Porteous was another.

Hopefully Jake Hastie has come to realise, over the past few games, that he still has a lot to learn even at Scottish Premiership level. Recently teams have been doubling up on him and he's found it harder to make an impression.

I’m still not convinced by this arguement that he should have been offered a good, long term contract at a time when he was nowhere near the first team. You mention his level of talent yet he was far from blowing everyone out of the water at both Airdrie and Alloa. He did “ok” and showed promise but more promise than Dom Thomas did at the same stage ? I would argue no. Even Craigen admitted he was surprised at his development so for me it’s not as cut and dried as is being made out. I’m certain he would have signed a new contract if offered one a year ago but then so would just about every young player. You don’t however offer contracts because you’re sure they will be signed, you offer them if you feel it’s the right decision and the club clearly felt he had not shown enough “ at that point” to justify it. The fact he has developed so quickly and let’s be honest we’re all surprised at how quickly it’s been does not make the original decision to wait necessarily wrong.