Lobey_Dosser

I take back the point that Scott isn’t ready for Championship football. First time I’ve watched a game for a while and the standard is comical.

For whatever reason, Robinson seems to be obsessed with forwards that can play across the front 3. Really disappointing that we’ve failed to acquire a number 9. Having said that, strikers appear to be on short supply at all levels when you consider the top English teams that have been scrambling about this week. Regarding Rolando, approximately 60 appearances at the age of 24 and seemingly injury prone. Doubt he was near the top of our list.

Outwith our control to an extent but we are approaching a tipping point where fan enthusiasm for youth development will diminish if we continue to lose our top products after limited or no first team appearances. Regarding James Scott, I like him a lot and was looking forward to watching him develop into a goalscoring Motherwell number 9 over the next 6-12 months. The offer from Hull may prove too good for club and player to turn down but I fear a move at this point will be detrimental to his development. Despite his genuine talent, I don’t think he is ready for Championship football. In the interest of the boy and the national team, hopefully he is good enough to adapt quickly and avoid a Erwin/Hastie scenario.

Other then Dundee in the Ciftci season, it feels like a while since we last had a 3pm cup away day. Think we’ll take well in excess of 2,000 if we get the allocation.

Maybe go with a back three today? Boyle appears to be in a rich vein of form and has caused us issues in the past. Wouldn’t fancy him running at Hartley.

Outstanding result, I really didn’t fancy us tonight so credit to Robinson and the players. I reckon we are 6/7 wins away from finishing 4th at worst. Hopefully we can tick one off this Saturday.

Gallagher. Campbell and Long all very good. Motm has to go Long though, his movement is excellent and that 2nd goal was an excellent bit of technique to get the ball out his feet. Shame he didn’t net a 4th at the end. Tait unfortunately showing no sign of finding his legs again. It’s been a really tough 12-18 months for him.

Watching Sportscene last night, our former youth prospect Kieran McGachie was quite prominent in the Bonnyrigg highlights, wearing the number 9. Lee Erwin meanwhile fluffed a number of chances for Ross County at Somerset Park. However his general play was pretty decent, showing glimpses of his Motherwell form. I wonder if he’ll ever get another chance at Fir Park...

I’m sure we were heavily linked with Jordan White the summer we ended up with Jacob Blythe. Jordan went on to Wrexham instead and soon after encountered some serious health issues soon after. From the odd time I’ve seen Inverness on the tv, he does look a handful but possibly not as refined as you’d like for a 27 year old striker.

If a reasonably fit and well Griffiths is available for loan, surely he’d be Hibs bound? I’d love him at Motherwell but I’d be amazed if this was a genuine option.

Randolph Hateley Aldred Hutchinson Hammell Ainsworth Turnbull Lasley Law Higdon Moult

Today was an opportunity to test Rangers on the back of a tiring week but we never got near them. Our creative players, Polworth and Hylton, offered little while Mugabi was far too naive for my liking. Will be interesting to see if we return to picking up the points against the lesser teams. My hunch is that we need to freshen up the shape and/or personnel in the midfield. Long and Gillespie the plus points for today.

Solid debut from Gallagher, he looked far more comfortable than McKenna. If Declan can keep his form and fitness, he’ll be in with a shout of starting come March.

Should it be finalised, O’Neill to Stoke is a bit of a shocker for me. They are such a grim club. What an opportunity for Robinson though if his country come calling.

After a shaky start, Celtic were very impressive tonight. Dominated large spells of the 2nd half. Hopefully they are a tad jaded and complacent come Sunday. When did we last go 4 years without beating them?

One of the few drawbacks since moving to a more expansive style of play in Jan has been our naivety against the better teams. Hopefully we’ve learned a few lessons and go to Ibrox with a more robust approach. I’d sacrifice one of our front three for a runner in midfield. Tynecastle aside, Rangers have been excellent from what I’ve seen recently and obviously have strength in depth, which unfortunately reduces the chances of a Porto hangover. I suspect we’ll be doing well to keep this respectable.

I’d echo much of what’s been said, we were a joy to watch for most of the first half before St Mirren picked up their game and put the pressure on. Polworth and Campbell are just lovely to watch, hopefully their partnership can continue to prosper for some considerable time. Completing the midfield, I was very impressed by Maguire. Yes he gave the ball away and failed to track his runner on occasion but the way he carries himself and lets the ball move across his body suggests he could be a proper talent. Another positive was the goal for Long, I’m not sure why he lost his place to Cole but I think he oozes quality. Steven Naismith was very complimentary of him on the radio this week, suggesting Everton had high hopes for him. Plenty goals to come hopefully. 16 points from 8 games. We are heading into the international break in great shape.

Polworth always caught the eye at Inverness but I didn’t envisage him developing into a playmaker with us so quickly. Him and Campbell together are a joy to watch and the motm award could go to either today while Hartley also make a significant contribution. Polworth just edges it for me though.

Injuries are playing their part but our defensive options are horrible. Gallagher is probably best staying out the firing line for now.

Ideal response to last week’s disappointment. Ticking along nicely.

Decent enough game to watch in fine weather but it did feel like a preseason game. Plenty of tidy football but no real drive, energy or will to win. Great move to get us 1-0 but the tide inevitably turned as soon as Graham entered the pitch, he must love playing against us. The substitutions were questionable but I wouldn’t lie too much blame at Robinson’s door today. The team are naturally naive at times and it will take time to learn our lessons. However, we appear to be heading in a positive direction and it’s good to see so many fans turn up. Having thrown away the points today, hopefully we head to Perth ultra determined to win.

Just watching the highlights we looked absolutely electric, a fine turnaround from the cup loss. Looked like a great day out for those that made the trip. Delighted to see Declan find the net, he’s bulleted a number of such opportunities inches over the bar. Robinson touting him for a Scotland call-up.

With Sloth an unknown and no youngsters currently knocking on the door, I felt we lacked a little depth in midfield. Bringing in a player of O’Hara’s calibre and versatility is therefore a very welcome addition. I’m also content we haven’t brought in a striker. Unless a quality player like Lafferty could be enticed, we are best to go with what we have. Long is settling in well, Scott has immense potential and Cole started to look the part on Sat. Given that we should comfortably avoid relegation, there is no need to invest in reinforcements.

Welcome 3 points yesterday to settle the early season nerves. Watching the highlights that’s another good goal from Long. In the last three games there have been snippets of play to suggest he has something to offer. Thought it made sense to play only 1 of Seedorf/Hylton. It’s too much of a risk to play both while they develop their fitness and awareness. Outwith the top two, there appears to be a real drop off in quality this season. Interested to see how he compare to Hibs next week.

The media team have rightly received great credit in recent years but fan engagement doesn’t appear to be at the centre of the current model. I appreciate I’ll be in the minority but I’ve enjoyed watching the coverage of the u20s since Erwin and Moore were banging them in. Highlights supplemented with interviews from JJ and Craigan offered an insight into the progress of likely prospects waiting to come through. Such was the engagement, it prompted me to head along to the odd game if it fell on a day off. Erwin, Moore, Cadden, Thomas, Campbell and Turnbull were much talked about before breaking into the 1st team. Now beyond Semple (primarily due to the hype at u16 level) and possibly Cornelius through word of mouth, I’m very much in the dark about who’s next in line to make an impression in the first team. The greatest insight on youth development this year was courtesy of the mfc podcast interview with Mo Ross.