Lobey_Dosser

It was mentioned on Radio Scotland weeks ago that Motherwell hasn’t been in discussions with the JRG on a pilot game for this weekend. Don’t know if that was down to us being hesitant due to cost. Will be interesting to see how things pan out over the next few months as the transmission rate increases. I do think socially distanced crowds should be returning but it’ll become more difficult for Government to approve if we start to see significant increases in hospitalisations. I tend to keep an eye on horse racing and the jist seems to be that courses will be running at 25-40% capacity a year from now unless there has been a significant breakthrough (vaccine or digital passport linked to daily saliva testing for all).

Regardless of any possible change in Scottish or rUK guidelines, I think UEFA stated from the outset that there will be no crowds at any champions league, Europa league or international games during August/September to ensure fairness across Europe. Hopefully that rule is relaxed in time for the Israel playoff...

Some have been drawing parallels with our 2014/15 season. We managed to get a 1-1 at Parkhead around the same stage.

Thanks for clarifying. That is most welcome news. I’m sure we were earning closer to £70/80k per round 10 year ago.

Mugabi is the most improved player so far this season but it was good to see Christopher Long smiling tonight. He looks to be finding his fitness and benefited from having a strike partner. Motm for me.

Is that definitely how it work? I was thinking there was a base figure of 220k followed by 20k increments up until you dropped out the qualifiers.

Yeah, too young to see McAllister at Motherwell but followed him from his Leeds days onwards. Like Melvin, Turnbull reminds my very much of McAllister. A joy to watch.

With Lennon and McGregor openly talking about Turnbull in the media, you’d expect this to be signed and sealed in the next day or so. Good luck to him, he’s head and shoulders above anyone Motherwell have produced in my lifetime, McFadden included. And credit to him for signing a contract extension on two occasions to ensure we are financially rewarded for his development. His style of play with fit well at Celtic and all going well, he’ll win a few medals and move to a bigger league in a couple of years, netting Motherwell another few million (assuming sell-on clause). I look forward to seeing him in a Scotland jersey.

Just caught up with Robinson’s post match interview with the BBC. His concluding comment to Jane Lewis, regarding finding someone to instil desire in his forwards, would suggest to me that he is contemplating his future. Not the ideal prep for a European game.

It’s a shame Robinson didn’t get one of the many jobs he’s been linked with. He’s put his heart and soul into the club but it seems apparent that the spark has gone. I’m coming to the conclusion that Robinson is a good manager in need of a new challenge while we have a relatively good squad in need of a new voice.

There is a number of overrated players in the squad but I’d say the 4 you mention in addition to two internationals, Gallagher and, O’Donnell, two proven performers, Long & Polworth and in time Lang, should be winning games comfortably. Obviously we have issues at the top end of the park but we should be capable of beating most of the teams we’ve played so far this season. Everything has just went a little flat unfortunately since the turn of the year. Robinson has put his heart and soul into managing Motherwell but the end of the road feels close.

Credit to Accies, they hung in with a team of kids and smelt blood the longer the game went. Robinson has a habit of bullishly stating he won’t alter his style of play. That’s an issue in itself. Despite the talent at our disposal we are incredibly predictable and the possession football is pointless if you have no end product.

If the front 3 doesn’t click soon, we surely have to consider perming 2 from Lang, Long, White and Watt with Turnbull in behind? The likes of Long and Lang could peel to the left while O’Donnell will provide the width from the right. That would leave a midfield 3 of Campbell, O’Hara and either Polworth or Grimshaw depending on the opposition.

Well that was the first enjoyable Motherwell performance for a while with the pieces of the jigsaw gradually coming together. As has been said, O’Donnell was excellent after 6 months off and had a huge impact on the team. Lamie meanwhile made a good recovery from Wednesday with a really solid performance. Gallagher also had his best game of the season while Mugabi continues to improve. In midfield, I just love to see Campbell and Turnbull on song alongside eachother. Hopefully they can put a few teams to the sword before one or both move on by October. Completing the midfield, O’Hara returned to form tonight, providing a good foil for the other two. The front three is where the concern lies. To date, we’ve offered no cutting edge and within our plethora of attacking options, it’s difficult to know who our leading contributors are going to be. White is raw for a player his age while Lang will need to prove he has an end product once he’s up to speed. For now though, I’d stick with the same front three as the subs offered little. Hopefully we can bang in a few goals soon and the confidence grows.

Our defence needs to be on it or we could be in for a long night. Hibs are one of few teams to play with two proper strikers and Boyle’s pace from wide tends to give us issues. However, with two in central midfield there is an opportunity for us to dominate if Turnbull and O’Hara can match Campbell’s effort. Will be interesting to see how the players respond to Robinson’s scathing assessment on Wed. Loss of form and confidence is acceptable. Loss of commitment and desire far less so, particularly at a time when the club and many fans are going to great lengths to keep the show on the road.

Very welcome signing. Given how determined O’Donnell is to represent Scotland, the return of international games prior to the start of the new English season has played into our hands here. Wonder if Grimshaw may get a stint in midfield now.

Robinson going in hard on the players early doors, ‘We are playing with 7 men...’ Campbell, Mugabi and White name-checked for their positive contributions.

Two well taken goals but there wasn’t much else to get excited about. We look to be lacking in confidence, not helped by a shaky defence. I said before he signed that Jordan White would never be easy on the eye but he could prove effective, I think that will be the case in time when his hold up play improves. How he got 90 mins tonight though with Watt on the bench is beyond me. Not for the first time this season, a baffling call from Robinson. Difficult to see us getting anything at Easter Road.

By and large, Hartley had a very good impact last season. IIRC, he really settled the team down when he first got a chance. As for Tait, I don’t really get the love, he’s looked done for a while and Grimshaw, who merits some of the recent criticism, comfortably kept him out the team. I’m not really sure what to make of our start to the season. I put Monday down to poor team selection but we didn’t see much of a reaction yesterday. Hopefully it’s just a case of getting up to speed but if so that’s frustrating as the opening fixtures were favourable. Personally, I’m a tad surprised we haven’t switched formation this season. Our 433 has been sussed out for a while and when we don’t have any natural fullbacks for now, it’s difficult to see it prosper. Also, the two ‘wingers’ are key to this formation and for over a year now, we’ve yet to be convinced who we can rely upon - the contribution of Hastie to date is concerning, he looks absolutely miles off it. Hopefully Campbell, Turnbull and Gallagher can take the team by the scruff of the neck and get us playing at a higher tempo with more purpose this week.

Yesterday was my first time using the service. Picture quality was good and I’d imagine the sound issue will be ironed out going forward. Just out of interest, who is our commentator? Also, I understand the need to count every penny but I thought our media team would have been all over some pre/post match chat. Even just 15 mins either side would offer a far more engaging experience.

Seedorf for his impact. McGinley thankfully came onto a game 2nd half.

Poor performance, really poor actually. Not surprising though, the unusual pre-season wasn’t ideal for forging a best 11 from such a big squad. Hopefully we can look more purposeful and sharper come Saturday. I struggle to see how we fit Turnbull and Polworth into the same team though. Biggest question of the night is around Campbell’s 90 mins on the bench...

Agreed, it may be perceived as an upside by the board though.

With the transfer window opened until Oct and little English football during Aug/Sep, this is the perfect opportunity for Scottish premiership players to showcase their talent. There is no need for players or clubs to rush into anything.

Pleased to have Hastie back, a welcome addition to our wide options. Long replacement aside, that must be us just about done with incomings. Im slightly surprised but impressed with our ability to bolster the squad in the current climate, particularly when any potential for crowds to return earlier than anticipated appears to have been knocked on the head.