weeyin

1st of September can't come soon enough.

Like I said, it's because keepers are a different beast. If a young midfielder shows some talent for example, they will get a few minutes here and there in the first team and can easily step in and out the fringes of the squad. Keepers generally are nowhere near their peak at 18 or 19, and nobody is going to give them 10 minutes of game time as a sub every couple of weeks. So it's a weird situation made even more difficult by the elimination of reserve teams. Now when you are too old for the U20s you really struggle to get game time.

If we lose Marvin, I'm pretty sure we'll sign a left-sided replacement.

That tends not to be the way it works with keepers. They probably have a similar success to failure ratio as outfield players, but of course, there are far fewer of them.

Sadly, that rules out a return of Ruddy and Randolph, both of whom gifted a few goals during their tenure.

When Moult was fit last season, McGhee's preference was 3 up front. I see no reason he won't go with that again.

Can I be the first to say "this must be a great chance to beat them"? And add my usual comment that with our league record at Ibrox in recent seasons, they could play their U15 team and still find a way to beat us. I'll take a boring 0 - 0 at this stage.

Would be helpful if we scored some goals up the other end though. Don't usually win games in the SPFL when you score just one.

He'll get a better view from his comfy seat.

I suspect it was more a case of Moore not quite impressing enough in pre-season, or a case of Blyth becoming available unexpectedly and being seen as a better option. Timing isn't always easy in these situations.

I think guys like McManus, Lasley, McDonald etc. are pretty streetwise.

One league game into the season is far too early to judge any new signings. Arsene Wenger says it takes 6 months for any player to settle into a different league - I'm more prone to believe him.

Aye, that's what hit a nerve.

Is it not the polis that decides if a game is all ticket?

McGhee has 3 parts to his job (which he talked about when he took over). Avoid relegation. Bring through young players. Sell on players for a profit. He's doing a good job talking up Marvin - something we have been poor at in recent times. Whether he goes this window, next window or next summer, it's a good strategy. Marvin was part of the plan Les put in place to pay a small fee for players we can sell on for a larger one. The fact we could knock back 300k suggests it's working.

Griffiths scores that many goals against us, I wouldn't be surprised if he grabbed one even while suspended. Good news that he's not playing, though.

Regardless of his value, what he's worth is what someone is actually willing to pay for him. Time will tell if these are the same numbers.

I confidently predict we won't lose 7 goals this time.

Nothing any player does against Killie will ever make up for the transgressions of Derek McDicken.

Lee Clark talking about their penalty claim: "I’ve seen the footage [of the penalty incident] a couple of times over and it could be a great opportunity for a penalty. What it certainly isn’t is a foul against Souley. It’s a double whammy because we think we should have a pen and also then there’s a foul given against my striker." I know may be biased, but having watched it on Alba last night I think the ref was 100% correct. Souley fouled his man out side the box then before he fell over inside he had grabbed a handful of shirt. EDIT: Then again, he might be talking about a different incident. That's what happens when I need to get up early for work on a Sunday.

Racking my brains now. Was it Muirton Park I'm thinking of?

If memory serves me correctly, and it might not at my age, I think Rugby Park used to be the biggest (or maybe second biggest) playing surface in the league. Changing the area, mind you, smacks a little of desperation.

I predict at least one of those teams (and I include Aberdeen and Hearts in there) will be in the group stage next season. And it remains to be seen how seriously Celtic takes the next round.

The format for the league cup is OK, although it remains to be seen how long clubs take it seriously in future seasons. I can see certain teams worrying more about their glamour friendlies than games against Annan. My bigger concern is that those in charge think tinkering with the formats is the solution to the underlying malaise in our game. So rather than tackling the issues across the board, we are, to quote that intellectual heavyweight Sarah Palin, putting liptstick on a pig.

Exactly. It's like when my company bills my time to a client. If I got that money in my pocket, I'd retire. Unfortunately there are those pesky overheads like tax, insurance, heat, light, internet, phones, holidays, training etc. that also have to be paid - not to mention the time when I'm not working for a client. Would be great if turnover = profit.