Happy Dosser

And Dundee United from 1969 onwards, when they ditched white and black for tangerine.

That's pretty much how I remember the sequence of events at Celtic Park too. Then cue the fake outrage when young Scott wouldn't play ball. Compare that with the simulation to get Kipre sent off twice and the last-minute penalty for the equaliser at FP in the league game and it was no wonder Robbo seethed at the hypocrites.

Quite so: I'm afraid that even I noticed a long time ago that Christie had a nasty habit of leaving his leg in. He is skilful but has a dark side which has been obvious to those with eyes to see. I also was disgusted when Saint Brendan branded Bowman a violent player after the LC SF in a game which had nothing to do with his team but allowed him to try to influence the referee for the final. Robinson rightly defended his player then and James Scott too from the "hypocrites" (for the simple sin of naïve exuberance in that latter case, which also involved Christie).

Hee, hee. All the better for being a moral victory.

Could I respectfully point out that steelboy predicted the score and one scorer? We are not related by the way . Troll? Just a big pussycat.....

He certainly was. John travelled on the EK supporters' bus for many years. He and Bert Gibson had so many great stories to tell the younger fans of pre-60s Scottish football and our proud place in it.

Your question is one I always employ when analysing such decisions, the best/worst example of which in recent seasons was the penalty given against Kipre in the LC final. We would never have been given that one in a million years. Conversely, had Moult been a Celtic player, the weak claim for a penalty he made in that match for being impeded in the box may well have been given by a referee like Thomson. My thoughts on VAR are also as dark as yours. Our game is in a very poor state.

Yes, pretty much the standard streetwise RC performance you'd expect: textbook stuff with a late winner to really set us back on our heels. Having said that, I thought once we had shown so much patience to get our nice goal we would go on to win. In retrospect, subbing Polworth was a mistake (Gardyne always seems to have space to play against us). Unfortunately for O'Hara he wasn't up to speed and got mugged easily for the late goal. As often happens, when we get a bigger and expectant crowd, we fluff our lines. And yet again we end up discussing a ref who seems totally unaware of the Dark Arts. From where I was sitting Carroll pulled out of the challenge and the RC player did the full Sarah Bernhardt: Robinson was raging at it. Whatever qualities Cole might have, I don't see him as a conventional striker. He's not strong enough at the moment and the ball simply doesn't stick with him. We play another team in the same mould as RC next week but maybe a counter-attacking set up will prove more successful when we are not faced with a blanket defence.

Let's forget about the Hearts game and get ready for a potentially very awkward game. I'm too old to think otherwise. If we can score early, the game may open up nicely for us but our enemy is complacency/wishful thinking. Ross County will be well schooled and I'm expecting a difficult game. 6-0 'Well Moanly jokin'!

This is far too measured and sensible a comment, even about the BBC . I'm not convinced though, wearing my C&A specs and SE lounging pyjamas, that much would have been made, in different circumstances, of Ikpeazu's challenge. After all, they are basically all the same as he breenges into every challenge and the refs don't seem to bother much. Still smiling at a memorable Tynie win.

Excellent, while waiting for Nursie to give us our medication we can reminisce about the police horse banjoing Alec Cameron outside Hampden Thought there was too much about Hearts and not enough about us in the BBC coverage and no discussion of the foul on Gallagher for their first goal. Another excellent corner from Polwarth and a teaker of a goal from Seedorf. With my usual great analysis, I told my neighbour in the POD after two games that his shooting was effing awfie. Pleased to see that young James Scott out on the wing can beat his man from a standing start and just run by him. There's a lot of talent in this team for the coaching staff to work with. An exciting but erratic season in prospect and it should be interesting to see how we deal with RC's uncompromising tactics on Saturday.

Yes, along with the preceding, "Chance of a lifetime for Pettigrew!" Then, as I recall, Willie wiped his nose all the way up his sleeve. Good old Arthur: "Up go the heads!"; "What a stramash!" and so on...….. Sorry, all. Just preparing for chuntering on in the old folk's home when my children have sold the house out from under me

Yes and I’ve just remembered a 2-3 victory at Celtic Park when Willie P and Bobby Graham did the Dens Park thing all over again. Easy to find on You Tube but I can never attach these clips properly on here.

Hard to disagree but I would add Willie P to the list. We beat Dundee 3-6 at Dens in 1975 (?) and my memory has me thinking Bobby Graham laid four on a plate for him, which he expertly despatched. Even if he scuffed the ball it would usually go in. Who could forget his winner against Sellick in the 3-2 win in the Scottish Cup when he latched on to Joe Wark's punt? 0-2 at half time, too. Happy days.....

Exactly so. It's not just that we couldn't do what France did after their slide in the 80s/early 90s. We couldn't even emulate Iceland. All we get is hypocritical hand-wringing from the footballing authorities and media who are in complete thrall to The Ugly Sisters, the baleful influence on all aspects of our game. Never mind, it'll soon be time for another pointless think tank presided over by Henry McLeish. He played for East Fife, don't ya know?

We're stuck with The Uglies for ever, weeyin, imo. The SFA will never grow the pair necessary to confront sectarianism and criminal intimidation. It only consigned Sevco to the fourth tier because the country's supporters told their clubs they weren't having any cosy deals made by clubs' directors to limit the sanctions upon The Hens.

Agree but Rangers' dreadful behaviour in Manchester at the UEFA cup final probably killed any lingering chance of that. The English aren't stupid. The other lot can be pretty unpleasant too, as I discovered a few years ago when I got stuck in the middle of The Green Brigade coming out of Airbles station. Their intimidating military marching and abuse directed non-stop at the police (without any action) was not pleasant to behold. Then they tried to demolish the toilets and seating in the big stand. Do they have shares in Armitage Shanks or summat? My interpretation of Strict Liability for the Ugly Sisters (and any other offending club, obviously) would be loss of three points (or more, depending on the seriousness of the offence) for sectarian singing or rioting, not just fining them or making them play games behind closed doors. Loss of points would be the only thing to make the clubs police their own support. This will not happen in a million years, hence the dire state of our game. I hate going to FP when the OF come calling.

Yes, and The Hens TV had the nerve to call it a "stirring fightback" too. At least they got the "fight" bit right. They are a club beneath contempt and I wish there was a way they could play in England, the spiritual home of so many of their support.

A final thought: it seems that UEFA can fine Sevco fans for singing sectarian songs but the SFA lacks the will. Some things never change.

If you wish to replace your misery with anger, watch the 1978 3-5 Motherwell-Hens match on YouTube, when they rioted to stop the match with us leading 2-0 and zilch was done about it, IIRC. I tried posting the clip on here recently but failed miserably.

One of the worst nights in my 'Well-supporting life. A few minutes before the notorious "penalty", Willie Pettigrew was chopped down by Captain Courageous John Greig in the box at the Rangers' end with the score at 2-0 to us, right in front of Gordon. He saw nothing then, yet gave a penalty while about 40 yards away against Rennie as tubster Derek Johnstone (aka U-99 fell) over on the edge of the penalty box. We crumbled after that, perhaps sensing the stacked deck we were playing against. Ian Archer in The Glasgow Herald (when it was a newspaper) later gave a withering account of the refereeing standards of Gordon and his linesmen. At least the Gordon-led Scottish threesome who cheated Levski Sofia against AC Milan were caught and punished. And then came the huge hail-storm after full time just to finish off a terrible night..... Bitter, moi? I try not to be but the old memory cells just won't let it go

I'm presuming at least one winger will be dispensed with for a "batten down the hatches and hope to sneak a goal" shitfest strategy on a crap surface. Without a Moult, it's difficult to see where the goals will come from, apart from a set piece (cue easy 0-3 victory, knowing us?). It would seem harsh to drop Gillespie but his giving away of that crazy penalty (and his defence of Griffiths' spot-kick) shows he's shaky at the moment, so Robbo has a big decision to make there. It will be very interesting to see how the players respond to the public gralloching they got from their manager. Another feeble, disjointed performance would set some alarm bells ringing (especially on here), so this is a big, big game for us.

Yes, looks likely. Andy Weir, our normal No. 11, was in hospital with meningitis at the time, I believe. Bobby Roberts scored in the replay, when we won 2-5. Sadly and strangely, no film coverage survives *conspiracy theories start here* .

Yes, he seems to go out of his way to make negative comments about MFC and to play to the worst instincts of Sellick fans. And I doubt he would have developed into the player he became if he hadn't played alongside David Cooper: he could bomb up the left wing and know that DC could almost always find him with a pass.

Even if we had won last night, I wasn't looking forward to Accies and their pitch but after that nightmare performance it's hard to see where the bottle necessary to get any points there will come from. I wonder if Robinson's "real men" jibe will rebound on him, too? It's not just the new players who don't look fit, either. I thought Tait (what's happened to him?) and Campbell looked sluggish and Gillespie's confidence and judgment also seem to have taken a knock. Seedorf looks ineffectual and weedy (same for Cole) but even he was better than Hylton, who looks the part physically but doesn't even track back. Mind you giving them the ball when they are almost stationary and double-marked isn't likely to end successfully. Seems no-one is capable of placing a pass inside the full back, apart from Polworth, who reminds me of Vigurs but without the nasty side to his play. Blood and snotters attitude needed for next Saturday but it's hard to see where it's going to come from.