joewarkfanclub
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Posts posted by joewarkfanclub
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7 minutes ago, gaz7 said:
This is where I am also. We had as many chances as Falkirk 2nd half and looked as dangerous so all this Falkirk were better i honestly didnt see it. They scored 2 to our none and obviously that is most important part and highlights our defencive weaknesses. Our problems are when we lose ball teams attack at will. I think we are sometimes too desperate to attack when we just need to slow game down a bit especially when other team are on a bit of a roll like at start of 2nd half.
I think thats exactly the point JBA was making post match. If we slow the ball down and take the sting out of the game we maybe stop them building up a head of steam, and dont leave ourselves so open to the counter attack.
Its still early in the process, but we do need to address our rin game management.
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There also seems to be quite conflicting opinions over our striking situation.
As someone who has defended Stama quite strongly on here, I was certainly disappointed that he didnt start yesterday, especially given his goals in the last couple of games.
However, he did go off at Celtic Park with a bit of a knock, so I figured it was just a bit of a precaution ahead of the semi-final not to risk him from the start.
It was also a good chance to give Hendry some minutes now that he seems to have addressed his injury/fitness concerns.
Given our style of play, we will need both going forward.
I thought Hendry did well yesterday in the first half. Lots of energy, put himself about a bit, held the ball up well. Not sure he was absolutely done by HT, but it was certaianly no surprise when he was subbed on the hour mark.
I would tend to agree that his movement in the box wasnt as good as Stama's but its early days and that might improve.
I thought Stama was again generally fine when he came on. A little bit unlucky with the handball although, as other have said, a little more awareness of the situation might have allowed him to pass it for someone else to knock in, albeit the rule in that regard still hasnt been cleared up.
Comparing the 2, I think both are pretty similar players, and I think their work rate and hold up play are potentially more important than their goals, albeit, as strikers, that part cannot be ignored.
However, Maswanhise has already scored 8 this season, Longelo has good numbers and we have others chipping in as well, so goalscoring really hasnt been the issue (self inflicted goals and poor defending have).
Clearly it would be nice to have a lone striker who was the complete package, and we might be able to get one in January, but until then, Im reasonably happy to give Stama & Hendry the time to improve.
Re the defence, in hindsight, I think not playing Gordon yesterday was a mistake when you see what Falkirk had at their disposal, and although McGinn gives you more on the ball, there needs to be some balance in not being too soft at the back.
Big decisions for JBA next week.
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There seems to be a couple of points of view here that folk are debating, when in fact both have merit and neither are wrong.
There is no doubt that our crowds are up because of the entertaining style of football we are playing. Id probably add in the general feel good factor around the club into that as well. Our support is engaged because they feel represented and listened to.
We have had plenty managers over the years that have put winning teams on the park and the attendances didnt move. During Alexanders period of success Id suggest the crowds even went down slightly as season ticket holders couldnt motivate themselves to go every week due to how painful it was to watch at times.
So the current upturn is no coincidence. That said, there is a pretty big BUT in the equation.
The entertainment factor will probably keep folk coming along in the hope that we can strike a better balance and convert our play into points. Where it becomes a problem is if we continue to slip down the table, the players lose confidence in what they are being asked to do, and before you know it performances also drop off.
We are not there yet, and the manager isnt stupid. You can tell by his comments and reactions that he is as frustrated as we are. Hopefully he can find the right balance in the weeks ahead.
Having a fully fit squad to chose from would be a help.
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3 minutes ago, Kmcalpin said:
Just watched the highlights of today's game. I really cannot see what was wrong with Said's disallowed goal. IF it was a foul it was soft in the extreme and certainly not clear or obvious. Why did VAR get involved?
There was no foul.
He clearly gets his body between the Falkirk player and the ball. If anything, HE is the one that is fouled!
McLean just shits it when VAR intervenes....
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Hard to call this week as most only performed well for 45 minutes.
But the shining light first half was Ibrahim Said.
He should have had his first goal for the club and it would have been a contender for goal of the season......
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The first half today was some of the best football I've ever seen at Fir Park in 50 years of attending.
Said, Maswanhise & Longelo were unplayable at times. All abely supported by Watt, Fadinger & Just.
I thought Hendry had a very good first half and put himself about. Looked much more like the player we thought we were signing and the 60 minutes today will have done him good.
The VAR decision for Said's goal is a shocker. I felt heart sorry for the boy, as the joy he felt in getting his first goal for the club was evident for all to see.
That said, we did get into the lead quickly thereafter and should have put the game to bed by half time.
The fact we didnt is fast becoming our achilles heal and if we dont rectify it soon, the manager and players could come under real pressure.
I really hope that doesnt happen, because some of the football we are playing is magnificent and its the most entertained I have felt at Fir Park in a long time. The second half drop off however, cant continue to happen.
A lot of credit has to go to McGlynn for changing things at half time. They pressed us much higher and got some success from it, but we still contributed to our own downfall by failing to remain calm and play our game. Everything got very hectic and rushed, resulting in some very poor decisions.
Very disappointed tonight in the result. But not in despair as there is still so much to like about what we do.
The next 3 games do really feel like they might be season defining though......
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6 minutes ago, mio said:
I’m not so sure, I think the majority of Well fans I know and meet are all on the same page and are all happy with how things are going. The ones who aren’t are the few who continually post anonymously on social media and fans forums, who most of the time do it for effect. Best to try and scan over their posts, have a giggle at them and move on.
personally I’m really looking forward to the games these days and when we are stuck with an international break and watching Steve Clarke’s sides, coming back to fir park is a breath of fresh air
Falkirk are a decent side who play quite good stuff but I think we’ll have a narrow win today. 2-1
Beat me to it!
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Not sure the support are that twitchy just yet.
Home form tends to dictate the mood of the support and we haven't lost a game at Fir Park this season.
Of course that can change quickly if you lose a couple of, what are considered, more winnable games.
But you definitely get more time losing, or not winning attractively than the murderball stuff.
Anyway, less of the negative chat. Lets just win this playing sexy Jensball and build towards a historic Cup Win! 😍😍😍
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2 hours ago, wellfan said:
3-1
Id bite yer hand off for that right now!
Mon the unecessary passes!
🧡❤️🧡
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1 hour ago, Kmcalpin said:
Some merit in what you say Joe, but the SFA received many brickbats, deservedly, for not doing enough and leaving it to others. Many positive suggestions were given to them, but as always they knew best.
They absolutely aren't faultless. Particularly when some former office holders may have had a vested interest in the Ibrox plan.
As usual, the murky world of politics never favours Scotland kindly.....
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8 hours ago, Spiderpig said:
If the money had been spent on Hampden for a proper upgrade, ie bringing the west and east terraces closer to the pitch to improve the view then yes it would be worthy.
But as the SFA have been a shambles for years, too busy making sure their own interests and expense paid jaunts all over the world are sorted first nothing ever gets done.
So year after year thousands of fans are paying for a ticket at the front of the east or West stands to get a severely restricted view if at all of the game.
There WAS supposedly a deal in place to properly upgrade Hampden years ago, but the bulldozers were pulled away from the door by Thatcher in 1979 after an underhand deal was allegedly done to try and promote Ibrox as the new venue for internationals and Cup Finals.
Just one of the many reasons she was booed roundly when she presented that years Scottish Cup.
The SFA get a hard time over this but they have done what was possible with the money that they had.
The FA didnt rebuild Wembley with their own money. Private enterprise did most of the work with significant input from the government and National Lottery.
Same deal with the Millenium.
If there is any blame to be apportioned at the SFA it would be in not being politically astute enough to play the game.
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6 hours ago, grizzlyg said:
For all the plaudits we are getting we need to start getting some wins. Got a decent run coming up so need to turn the good play into points.
I have no doubt Ward will start tomorrow but I wonder if defence will trust him as much to give him the ball, will also be nervousness from crowd every time he has ball plus I am sure Falkirk will try and exploit this.
Though let Falkirk worry about us and hopefully we can get a fine victory
COYW
The defence have had another 2 weeks training with Ward to repair any confidence issues. I expect they will have his back. Its what good team mates do!
🧡❤️🧡
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There are very few teams in Scotland that will be able to press us as high as Celtic did and get away with it.
Thats pretty much why teams like Aberdeen, St Mirren and Hearts (second half) have backed off a bit.
I hope Falkirk do go high. We have the better players, so we will play around them.
If they sit off us, it could be a longer afternoon.
Fingers crossed we can remain error free this week as we really need to start putting some points on the board!
Has all the makings of an entertaining game!
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7 hours ago, twistandshout1983 said:
Tam Cowan on BBC Scotland just now talking about the ticket fiasco , Hampden app etc
I Must admit even in this day in age someone should be able to walk up to the ticket office and purchase a paper ticket
The whole online thing is one thing , but there are people in this country who have never been online in their life , and might not be able to rely on someone getting them a ticket , so decide against going
I understand why there is a push for it commercially.
But there should always be an option to to pay cash and get a physical ticket.
Not just at the fitba either.
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15 minutes ago, mio said:
I think for the majority of people it’s fine, if I were just going myself or with my kid, great no problem, it’s the modern way of things. We just download and app and accept it is what it is.
my issue is with older people and I know many who are completely lost in the modern world and rely heavily on others. Football and going to football is the only enjoyment in their life usually and they are being made feel like sh1t and made feel like they can’t go to games such as this. Part of their life was nipping up to the ticket office and getting a ticket… easy. Now they go up and no fault to the staff there, they are being punted to find someone elsewhere who can help them out.
It’s a shame and for us as a community club I think we are alienating a dedicated fan base of oldies who we should be supporting.
Oh I definitely agree with that.
There is undoubtedly "social engineering" ongoing to get every facet of our life online and electronically controlled.
Some of it is good and can make a lot of things easier. Others, it could be suggested, could be used for more nefarious purposes.
Regardless, the way the older generation are being left to "like it or lump it" doesnt sit well.......
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Hopefully a few players back after the international break. Even if they dont feature from the start it will be nice to have more cover from the bench.
Having Slattery, Just, Sparrow and Hendry able to come on to freshen things up would be a huge boost.
With Welsh available again and surely straight back into the side, it also gives us McGinn, SoD, Priestman, Balmer, Halliday as cover. Thats a really strong bench, and where we probably hoped we would be after the window "slammed shut" 😉
Falkirk are likely to play attacking and open so it should be a really entertaining game and might work to our advantage.
A high scoring Motherwell win for me.
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16 minutes ago, witchfindergeneral said:
give us your prediction then?
Leave him be!
Thats as close to MJC tipping a Motherwell win as any of us should be comfortable with!
No need to respond MJC!
I prefer ifs, buts and maybes!
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The system IS pretty straight forward. Albeit the instructions are far from clear.
I go to Scotland games, so Im fairly comfortable with the Hampden App, which does actually work quite well.
Season ticket holders can buy for themselves and as many others as they like.
All they need to do is download the Hampden App and link it to the same email your season ticket is linked to.
During the week of the game all the tickets will be sent to your app. You can then scan in all your group before entering yourself.
If you want to distribute the tickets, get each member of your group to download the Hampden App and link an email. You can then send them the ticket via the app.
If you are buying for other season ticket holders, you get the opportunity to provide their details when buying the tickets.
If they also have the Hampden App, I presume the ticket will go straight to their app during the week of the game, although Im not 100% on that as Ive never done it before. If not you can still distribute as above.
It is a bit of a faff on first use, but once you understand it, it really is pretty simple.
I do get why people are getting annoyed though. It is a lot of change to get used to.
Also, never had an issue with the QR code at the gate. Unlike the paper copies which preceded the app, which were a nightmare to scan.
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4 minutes ago, Kmcalpin said:
Why can't we do the same? There won't be shortage of tickets.
An unnecessarily complicated set of instructions. Unlike the St Mirren site, our doesn't seem to mention the location of our allocated sections, unless I've missed this.
These sort of instructions put folk off going to football.
Allocated sections were in a previous communication, but they should have highlighted them again.
We are basically in the East Stand starting in Section F1 round to G7.
We also have sections in the north stand and south stand.
Not sure if you can pick your seat or if they will just be allocated randomly.
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21 minutes ago, FirParkCornerExile said:
Everyone is going round in circles on this one. It was a keeper fuck up plain and simple. He joins Stevie Woods in the worst fuck ups against the OF from a winning position. Games done and lost, we can't change it.
Ive not argued that it wasnt a f#ck up. I would have preferred he put his laces through it.
My argument (I prefer debate) is that its not solely on Ward.
We have a manager instructing him to play that way. No surprise that he did as instructed.
I also have sympathy with those saying we should give Ox a chance. Perfectly reasonable stance to take.
My question is, why hasnt the manager done so? He see's the same things as us. But he also see's Ox in training every day and has decided to stick with Ward. Why?
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1 hour ago, wellfan said:
Ward’s pass didn’t go astray. There was no forward option to a Motherwell player and he played it straight to a Celtic player. That was poor judgement, not a by-product of the style of play, which doesn’t preclude making a sensible clearance when no options are available.
Im not sure I agree with that.
If you look at the still, there is a clear pass to Watt, that if it comes off allows him to turn taking 5 Celtic players out the game and giving us a great opportunity to attack.
Ward makes a rickets of it, and you could argue the pass is too risky. But the manager has stated clearly numerous times that he wants us to take risks and thats what he likes.
I was happy to criticise Ward over the handling errors, as these are basic goalkeeping skills, but this isnt the same, and totally ignores the lack of options the manager has to deal with this without ripping up what we do. If fhe thought Ox was the answer he would have been in after the Killie game.
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10 minutes ago, Kmcalpin said:
Calum Ward's error rate is now unsustainable. Yes, keepers do make mistakes, but there comes a point when it really becomes unacceptable, and thats where we are now. The Ox is now due his chance again. If he proves unreliable then we have to move for a new keeper in the January sales. Goalkeeping errors are now costing us big time.
If Ox isnt up to it, its a long time until January if you've burned the only alternative.
Im not saying Im happy with the mistakes he has made, but I was more upset about the handling errors in the Hearts and Killie games than today.
Not that it makes any difference what any of us think as JBA is going to back him and thats all that counts.
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10 minutes ago, robsterwood said:
Dundee let Carson go to Ross county. He was good with his feet and hands. I'm thinking they didn't want him to go to rival club.
He also cant train due to injuries.
He just looks after himself and turns up on matchdays.
All fine as ling as he is playing well.
Can just imagine this place if he made a mistake!
"What we doing signing a guy who cant train! We shouldnt be a retirement home for former players!"
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1 minute ago, grizzlyg said:
For me , hearts game he spills a shot.....killie game ...spills a simple catch....today.....bonkers pass to opposition.
His errors aren't just down to new style. Nice lad and doing his best but imo how many more games is he going to cost us before JBA needs to be ruthless
Firstly, Id seperate the previous handling errors from this one as they are not the same type of mistake.
🙄🙄🙄
Livingston v Motherwell 25/10/2025
in Club Chat
Posted
We simply have to win this one.
With the semi final only a week away we need a wee lift in the run up to it.
Not so worried about the pitch this time as its been totally relaid and seems to be playing much better than the previous incarnation.
Livvy play it on the deck now so will have it well watered if required.
That said, I wouldnt be risking anyone with any little niggles, so dont expect to see Slattery, unless its a 15 minute cameo from the bench. The home game against United should be fine for getting him some minutes before Hampden.