Kmcalpin

I commented on this some weeks ago. May have been the St Johnstone home defeat. He shirked several 50/50 tackles and at that point he lost my backing. In our position we need 11 triers/battlers on the pitch. TBH I was surprised Robbo picked him again. That said I wasn't there today and I'm not blaming him for today's debacle. Up until today many saw him as a potential saviour, maybe because he wasn't playing, but I suspect thats now changing.

He's ok and creative on the ball when we're the better side, but if not he disappears. He can't defend and his strengths don't compensate for his weaknesses. If he plays those around him have to cover for him. He wouldn't be in my team and I've said so in the past.

Could you elaborate please?

You could indeed. The old story of a team needing a result......

Not as such. Weeyin's figures are correct as of 31 May. However since then 40% of Cedric Kipre's fee (I think) will have gone to reducing the debt, assuming that it was paid in one installment and Les will write off a further £200k through his double you money scheme by the end of this month. So, I reckon we'll still owe these 2 gentlemen very roughly something like £320K by a week on Monday

Just watched the TV "highlights" and I don't get the Charles Dunne blame game. I would say his penalty challenge was down to lack of match fitness. For all 3 goals our defending was poor in a number of respects and stemmed from very poor off the ball work and being outmuscled when we did get close up. Celtic got in our faces we didn't get in theirs. We move on.

Calm down lads. Tonight was never going to be easy and I have no problem with the team Robbo has fielded. I doubt if our defence has played any worse than they did on Saturday but the Celtic strikers are taking their chances whilst their St Johnstone counterparts did not.

Captain Oats (On Pie & Bovril) has posted an article from the Alloa Advertiser which says that following talks between the 2 clubs, Jake Hastie is being recalled at the end of the month. No surprise then.

From Stephen Robinson's comments, several players will be replaced, if we have the cash available, but I suspect you know a good bit more than I do.

Ah right. Thats interesting. I think he first appeared in the first team last season but really only made his mark this year. FWIW I think he's a smashing footballer and has settled into first team football very well.

Its a tricky one. I think he was given a year's deal last summer? We've been down this route before and handed out 2/3 year deals to the likes of Luke Watt and Dom Thomas. Young players might have all the talent in the world but have they the temperament and attuitude to make it in the first team? Thats a tough call to make with an untried youngster. I'm glad that fans, including those who post online, are taking a more realistic view of young Turnbull's contract negotiations. I think thats a direct result of more becoming shareholders in our club; attending AGMs; and listening to the club's point of view which wasn't always widely known or publicised in the past. In years gone by an agent would stir it in one of the redtops and claim that the club was being insulting and disrespectful to players in negotiations and that would be enough to fire up some fans who would simply swallow that and have a real go at the club. Now they are realising that there's two sides to the negotiations.

So we are letting him go at a time of his choosing and not asking for a fee from his new club (ok its in his contract) and I presume paying his wages for his last month. If that is indeed the case then I don't think its unreasonable to ask him to play if selected by the manager. If however his new club is paying him this month then fair enough they are entitled to call the shots.

Very much my thinking. We're going to have 3 big games coming up within a week, and they're all ones which we're capable of taking something from. So, use squad rotation and substitutions (injuries permitting) to rest some players. The only question in my mind is will Rose be allowed to play, if fit; I sincerely hope he is. Hartley, Gorrin, Bigi, Rose, Maguire, Sammon, Bowman, ATS and Frear could all potentially come in, if only for a few minutes in some cases. Allan Campbell would be first on my list for rest.

Taken in isolation I would just about agree. 4 subs plus a goal gives us 2 minutes 30 seconds. Some time wasting and injuries (mostly simulation). However frequently in the past we've seen similar games with say 1 minute added on. I can recall one game against Accies with really blatant and excessive time wasting, way way worse than yesterday, and it appeared that no time was added for it. The SFA should issue clear guidelines for fans and clubs. One qualified referee told me that he normally added on 10 seconds per sub and 30 seconds for a goal.

Its interesting that Robbo is saying that Andy's Rose January departure has been known for some time and has been factored into our budget ie there's no cash being freed up. He wasn't even on the bench yesterday. Its likely that Jake Hastie will be returning from Alloa. Significantly though he acknowledges our lack of pace and width and has identified some targets, subject to cash being available..

First things first an unexpected but thoroughly deserved win in baltic conditions for both players and fans. In our current situation the 3 points are what matters as they help to propel us a little bit away from the relegation dogfight. It was a strange game in many ways and a mixture of the good and poor. Overall our performance was improved compared to early season form but weaknesses were still evident. We tried to play a bit more football and that was encouraging in itself. We got off to a dream start scoring 2 fairly easy goals in the first 17 minutes. Gillespie's penalty save was also crucial and despite what many are saying he saved and Saints didn't miss it. Lucky? Certainly but also good goalkeeping. It was a clear penalty. Not surprisingly these events influenced the whole course of the game and gave us a vital cushion. I thought we defended reasonably well for most of the remaining first 45. Most unlike us, we sat fairly high and the midfield chased and harried well off the ball. Very very encouraging! However a bit before half time we lapsed into long standing bad habits and sat off Saints and showed them a glass jaw. I felt a bit sorry for Grimshaw (for the entire 94 minutes) as he had no protection in front of him and at times had to fend off 2 or 3 attackers. In the second half we resorted mainly to a narrow deep 5-3-2 formation as we decided to see the game out and Saints began to bulldozer our midfield. Worryingly they began to rain in cross after cross and we conceded avoidable corners. Fortunately Gillespie proved his worth in goals and stood up well to aerial threats. It wasn't all Saints in the second 45 though and we did create a good few chances but our final ball and poor decision making nullifed that. We should have had a penalty when Johnson was pulled in the box but the referee did not give it. Fortunately, for all their endeavours Saints were pretty toothless up front, despite being given generous freedom in and around our box. It was only a matter of time before they scored though albeit it was very late on and the last few minutes were a bit uncomfortable for us freezing souls. Alan Muir was the model of inconsistentcy and brought out his card a good number of times although it wasn't a dirty game. Despite that, I don't know why the Saints defender wasn't carded for hauling down Main or Johnson (not sure which) on the halfway line when he was beaten all ends up and they had a clear route to goal. Danny Swanson also resorted to type and was fortunate not be carded for blatant simulation. In conclusion, a decent performance albeit still with weaknesses. A platform on which to build though. Happy days.

Only one candidate for me and thats Gillespie. He didn't get the protection to which he was entitled but still looked comfortable and saved the penalty.

Time wasting is very rarely taken into account. All I look for is consistency. Still, more important issues to focus on today.

Where did the 4 added on minutes come from? Mr Wright's watch?

Was that a Monday evening 2-0 defeat during Craig Brown's reign? If so, I remember it well. The game should have been called off by the Police because the car park was a death trap. A foot of ice/freezing water to wade through to get to the turnstiles. Compare that to the effoprt we go through at Fir Park these days. As if a long journey back down the A9 after a defeat wasn't bad enough, the road was icy and there was freezing fog. My worst ever car journey.

You're saying that Scottish football is garbage or rubbish (in UK english? If so, what are you comparing it with? For some years now fans' general expectations have become more and more unrealistic. When I say that I'm not referring to one teams ups and downs.

Thats my question too.

Irrespective of who we would prefer for our selections will Peter Hartley be fit? Apparently he has/had a dead leg.

Andy Rose has had limited impact this season, in part due to injury and maybe others like Bigi, Turnbull and Gorrin coming through. Perhaps too it was part of the masterplan to gradually phase him out, in the knowledge that he would only be with us until Hogmanay - who knows. At any rate the midfield dynamic is already changing and there's no-one amongst the current senior players who can replicate that role. Rose reminds me very much of a young Keith Lasley but with more athleticism, but less grit. Not in any way showy, but hovers around to cover up for other more gung ho colleagues' errors. My overall view of his time with us is that whilst he never set the heather on fire he did a passable job, most of it off the ball. Not our worst signing by any means but far from our best. Still, it gives Robbo some time and money (he must have known about Rose's move months ago) to plan for a new player in the upcoming window.