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Diddy cup anyway

We can question team selection etc all day, but to me, it felt like the magnitude of the occasion really got to the players as a group. We've seen plenty of examples of how 'risk and reward football' can go either way, but if you're too scared to take any risks, the outcome is almost inevitable.

After a week of training and treatment we should be ready to go to Aberdeen. Yes we fans are hurting after that result I know the players are. I don’t expect a big travelling support for this game but I will be cheering them on from the far side of the world. COYW

And the rumour that Celik are after Saints best player(who has always been a bhoys fan) for buttons . Still to come.

I spoke to him outside at the 2018 s cup final , the 2 nil defeat. final and yes he's passionate about the club. Pity his mates have seen us loose a few big cup matches. Think he's trying to encourage them to be fans.

I don’t like it when MJC predicts a win for us, so I’m quite happy to see him predict defeat

Ba boom tish 🎵

The problem is its an uphill task and the whole event is weighted against St Mirren. From Celtic having their own end and dressing room at an apparently neutral statium. You will probably also see comments in the press from Celtic spokespersons about St Mirren's approach in the lead up, trying to put the refs under pressure. Maybe less so now Rodgers is away, but its all in the play-book. We've seen this all first hand against us.

I'm thinking along similar lines. Robinson and his squad for me are more streetwise, been kicking around long enough and more accustomed to these types of big events. I'm a huge fan of our gaffer , squad and everything we're trying to do but I do feel the occasion overwhelmed the team . Fair play to StMirren they executed their plan ruthlessly. Overall it became a non event all too quickly and I just hope we can bounce back and put some results together. It could easily become a tipping point , it's essential that we come through the next few games with wins.

You also forget even at our worst in the first half their keeper had to bring off a great save and Manwanhise fluffed an effort that should have been a goal. There is a lot of nonsense talked about St Mirren yesterday, plus they got the breaks. They basically just did their job effectively. They did nothing that we shouldn't have been able to deal with had our players turned up, there was no tactical masterclass. Virtually everyone of our player was posted missing or at best underperformed. Even as bad as we were we could have had them sweating but for a comedy of errors straight after we scored. On another day we'd take St Mirren, yesterday just wasn't our day. We forget it and move on.

Focusing on yesterday it appears that on here at least Ap Stam, our lack of a goal threat and Ward are being cited as the root cause of that performance. In fact some appear to be revelling in that reasoning. Ap Stam did not have a great game and we need improvement, but he and Ward were far from the worst players on view. Being let of lightly by most are Watt, Maswanhise, Fadinger, Longolo and McGinn who delivered far less than Stam and Ward. In fact Maswanhise, Watt and Longolo turned in performances almost as dire as they did against Livi. Except yesterday they did not have the convenient excuse of an artificial surface that seemingly affected their ability to run or pass the ball. On a Managerial comparison, Askou was completely out thought by Robinson who devised a system that negated the advantage we thought we would have given the larger playing surface. Can I suggest Robinson learned more from our earlier meeting than Askou did? Looked to me that Saints were perfectly happy to surrender space out wide knowing that we would more often than not slow the game down and eventually meekly surrender the ball. Time after time. Team selection wise, given the hype regarding the threat the Saints giants pose, I get why Askou selected Gordon. But not selecting Welsh and retaining McGinn was a huge error in my opinion. Welsh is the only Centre Back we have with the ability to pass the ball forward (through a pressing opposition) to the feet of our midfield/forwards. Driving us upfield. What we saw first half was the ball repeatedly played along the back line making it almost impossible for Said and Longolo to press forward quickly. On the right side, Katroumbis was a bit more effective offensively but sadly he received poor support from Maswanhise. I think Askou acknowledged that situation at Half Time which is why Welsh appeared. Why else bring on a Centre Back when losing 2-0? I also think Slattery should have started or at least been brought on along with Welsh. So, No, I don't believe Stam and Ward were the main reason we fell short yesterday. Far from it. Too many of our players had possibly their worst performance of the season, not assisted by team selection. I'm far from jumping ship as regards our new approach, but previous Managers were rightly slated for not having a plan B to revert to in times of need. So far I have seen nothing to suggest that Askou is any different. We have a difficult run of games coming up and we are far too predictable. Hopefully we will see some tactical changes that give opposition Managers food for thought. Surely that can be the case without moving away from our possession/passing approach. It was far too easy for Robinson and his players yesterday. Having said all that, it is astounding how one piece of refereeing incompetence can change the dynamics of a game.

Everyone bitterly disappointed but I agree, let’s not start ripping everything up and revert to hoofball kick and rush. Earlier in the season it seemed like people agreed there will be bumps in the road but sounds like any bump we hit is cause for over the top knee jerk reactions. I also wouldn’t be hoping for any major recruiting during the January window as I always think it’s very tough to get quality players mid season amd would expect the summer window to be when we can improve our squad. regarding yesterday I think it’s fair comment to say we could possibly have started with a different line up. Once we are two down as time runs out we end up leaving ourselves exposed at the back, a risk I think we had to take but St Mirren punished us for that. the players were not at their best but perhaps not as bad as made out to be in some of the posts but i do agree that we need to improve our goal scoring amd defense although if we can improve on one of those that might be enough.

I happen to agree with this but on other hand I have no issue with some people coming on a fans forum and having a vent at manager / players etc. I had rest of family with me yesterday all really up for game and it was a crushing disappointment. im sure the players will feel the pain but unlikely to be anywhere near what we all do. best way they can make it right is winning against Aberdeen and Killie and I’m sure many, if not most, will be up for the Hibs game under lights.

Agree with that mate

The macaroni and Scotch pie combo I got after their second goal. They charged and refunded my card at the same time and I only noticed today. Winner. Small victories in a day of shite.

Sounds like Rugby Park is the place for you.

2-0 defeat