Kmcalpin

Maybe brought on as a second half sub to keep HB on their toes?

He's a Canadian centre back.

I have grave doubts if we'll see much more of Paul McGinn unfortunately. By the time he recovers we'll have an established pair of younger first pick centre backs. A shame.

Scott Burns reporting on X that a defender is incoming.

The cost of buying the school out would be prohibitive. The Council would be looking at our club coming good for the cost of building a replacement school, IF a suitable nearby site could be found. That wouldn't come cheap. I'm with G &F in that the case for a training centre should be examined again. His costings make sense. We'd be forking out at least £1.5-2.2m initially for this development and it would be physically distant from either Fir Park or a new stadium. Its implied also that there would be further phases all coming at a cost. My concern too is that this would be located on another organisation's land and outwith our control. Yes, it might be a charitable Trust but personalities and policies change over time, especially over 99 years. Still, it is an improvement over current arrangements. At the very least the options for stadium improvement and relocation should be assessed with the need for the training base. Now is the time to do it.

We used to have fish and chip shops in those days.

Yes, I thought he had a good game. A pleasant change from our usual standard of officiating.

Going through the UEFA guidelines, I noticed this clause: "18.05 Spectator areas must provide unobstructed lines of sight of the field of play." Now there are restricted view seats in both the Hunter and POD stands. Were these seats left unallocated on Thursday evening?

Agree 100% about Ap and Hendry. Big Thor needs to be given a run of games to fully test him. If we are going to play as we did on Thursday then a big front man is a necessity.

It was the same in the POD Joe. In the stairwell where the kiosks are located, you had fans queuing for the toilets, mingling with those queuing for the kiosks, and those coming and going down stairs to hospitality. Complete chaos as it was last season.

Now on X too. Interesting loan signing.

I thought I'd take a look at the notional capacity of the various stands, which turned out to be more difficult than I thought. Various component figures seems to have changed i.e. the Hunter Stand dues to incremental works. Anyway, here's what I found: McLean Stand 4,500 POD Stand 3,500 Hunter Stand 3,305 Cooper Stand 2,373 Total 13,678 Now I just wonder, because the wings of the POD have been cordoned off and seats not "upgraded", if the capacity allowed by the safety certificate has been cut from 3,500 due to other reasons (fire/safety/exits etc). It could, of course, just be down to cost of replacing seats. I've seen folk sit in the wings in normal league games but then again, the total capacity of the stand wasn't exceeded.

If we're talking about signings from clubs above junior level, I'd say either Ben Ellis (Bangor) or Johnny McMenemy (Celtic).

This is what I don't understand. Whilst the central seating wasn't in great condition I also understood that it was the 2 wings that required replacement as they did not meet UEFA requirements (an issue in itself). So, why was it that the central sections were replaced but the 2 wings left untouched? If they had been, there might well have been no requirement to open the McLean Stand at extra cost? Could it be that the POD's safety certificate, issued by North Lanarkshire Council, does not allow for its full capacity to be realised and the club therefore cannot fill the 2 wings? I've also emailed the club to complain.

I don't know much about him to be honest but we are short of attacking central midfielders following the loss of Nicholson, Slattery and Just. Not quite sure where Booth and Whyte will fit into our plans yet. Luca Ross has another year to run on his contract but I can see him being loaned out for part or the whole of that period. From reading comments on here and on P & B I'd assess Lowry as being in the high risk category. Either way we're short of bodies in central midfield.

Agreed. Its great to watch a young team but we do need some old heads to show them the ropes and use their experience.

Seats were horrific. Back rest is too low and flimsy. When fellow fans want in and out its a nightmare.

On last night's limited evidence we certainly need a big commanding keeper; a big commanding central defender; and a big striker - jury is still out on Thor. HB outbattled us at times and certainly aerially.

Not quite the result I hoped for (3-0), but it was adequate and acceptable given the team we fielded. Hopefully, more injured players are available next week, especially Thor. The performance was a mixed bag as you'd expect with the line up and the fact we're early in our season. Pleased to see AJ continue the possession based ethos introduced by JBA. Thats a massive plus and the fans seemed to warm to it. We put far more emphasis on crosses into the box but all too often there was no-one to get on the end of them or if there was, they didn't have the physical attributes to convert them. If we continue with this style, then a big traditional striker is a must (Thor?). We did seem toothless up front. Good to see us shooting more though and that resulted in 2 cracking goals by our Austrian contingent. Midfield was a bit iffy at times although Priestman had an outstanding game covering every blade of grass. We did lack a good attacking midfielder though - maybe one to come in? HB showed unsettling ability to break at pace and that caught us out a few times. The defence held out for a clean sheet but HB, somewhat worryingly, had a good few efforts on goal late in the game as we tired. Good to see youngsters get game time though and that will boost their confidence. Individuals? Too early to make definitive assessments but Paulsen gives me the fear, as did Callum Ward early on to be fair. A great, if showy shotstopper who pulled off 2 very good saves. However at 6-0 he's very small and looked fragile at aerial balls. His distribution was somewhat heartstopping at times and tested his defenders unnecessarily. Impressed with Moormann although Girdwood Reich had a quieter game. We do need a bigger more commanding central defender though as Premiership strikers will test them out physically. Williams looked ok. Still not sure about Ewan Wilson - he had a poorish first 45 but came onto a better game in the 2nd 45. Not an attacking back but struggled a wee bit defensively. Probably 3rd choice. I thought Priestman was immense last night and will prove to be a real asset this season. One lad who did impress me was Vogt. After comments on him post the Genk game I wasn't sure what to expect, but he looks a real player with pace to burn. Definitely one to watch, once he's fit. Good to see Mikey Booth get a start but I thought, assist aside, the game passed him by. The gametime will help him though. Luca Ross? A make or break season for him but, on last night's admittedly limited evidence, he showed nothing to impress. Cameo appearances for Whyte and Weir - a good sign from AJ.

A minor side issue in the great scheme of things I know. A family member told me tonight that the owner of the Steelworks is going to reopen Club 100 as a sports type bar. That should kybosh any talk of the club taking over the site or premises.

Oscar Priestman for me. He popped up all over the park and was Mr Perpetual Motion.

They were my 2 main conclusions from tonight.

I might disagree with you about which option to choose but you're 100% right about this. We can't afford to dither and swither much longer. I'd also hope the fans will be consulted.

I'm preparing for the game tonight as best I can with a tea of pickled herring, just to get in the mood.

Tonight should be seen as being a big game for us and not simply as being a bonus or Euro jolly as it has been in the past. We should be trying to move on as a club. Its a rare chance to raise the club's profile; bring in extra cash through prize money and gates; and sustain the momentum from last season with the support. Its a chance to move up a level and we should treat it as such.