Kmcalpin

Of course not but he's bound to have had a significant say in selecting him in a position to which he has proved unsuited in the past.

Good post Andy and I think that sums things up well. We do know that the club is trying to extend the deals for Ojamaa and O'Brien. Apart from that Ian Baraclough did suggest in a recent interview that there was some scope to make one or two personnel changes albeit through wheeling and dealing. One or two fringe players going out on loan or a loan player or two coming in.

Ordinarily yes, but not in this case I would suggest. I don't know how much Ian Baraclough knew about the squad before he signed on the dotted line but I would guess not that much. On starting he may have gleaned information directly from the players themselves and perhaps the physio he may have had access to Stuart McCall's files. I don't know. However, its almost certain that he would have relied very heavily on Kenny Black's advice. How much would he know about Luke Watt or David Ferguson for example? Now the team doesn't seem to be playing much differently from when SM was in charge. Unless the players themselves have heavily influenced tactics and team line ups by their comments then I would suggest KB was the source of much of this information and advice. IB has only had a few games in charge but by now he's bound to be forming his own opinions surely. I would doubt very much if his own thinking is identical to Kenny Black's given their different backgrounds etc. So up until now I would expect Kenny Black to have had a much more comprehensive input into team selection and tactics than he would normally do as a No 2. That will change. Its very possible that IB will conclude that more or less sticking to the normal "Fir Park" way of doing things hasn't worked this season and its time to change things a bit.

Yes our injury list is horrendous and options limited. There were still various options and changes that could have been made after New Douglas Park? Dom Thomas to start? Josh Law to right back? Lee Erwin to start in place of Sutton if we insist on playing one man up front? Ojamaa and Ainsworth up front and play the classic Hearts game? Still I'm pleased that we now seem to blooding more youth and that is a positive sign.

Good points Alan. I was more than a bit surprised that we made so few changes in the aftermath of the New Years Day game. After watching us for say 3/4/5 games its now time for him to be own man and take his own decisions. I agree that he has been left with a poor and very unbalanced squad and we need to bite, kick, scratch and claw our way to safety - any way we can. Teams like Aberdeen and St Johnstone may not be the best to watch but they are big, fit, well organised and streetwise and for the most part dependable. If we can secure 10th position in May I'll be relieved and Ian Baraclogh can have a clear out and start rebuilding.

I'm curious about comments that we should drop Stephen McManus. Now I'll agree readily that he's not playing well. No argument there. However who would we replace him with? There are some who don't like O'Brien, and many who don't like Kerr (personally I think his time is up after one mistake too many). Who does that leave? What about Adam Cummins? Maybe Craig Reid? Simon Ramsden, when fit? John Sutton perhaps? The untried Morgyn Neill? Any views?

We were in the Main Stand and heard nothing whatsoever untoward. There was some jeering of Willie Collum for the penalty decision, and David Goodwillie, for his dive, but neither was abusive or undeserved.

Is that surprising? That will not change much until Kenny Black's influence is diminished.

Scottish football is simply reflecting Scottish culture. Change that and the footballing culture will change too.

I made my mind up last weekend...I'm going. Team line up will have no bearing whatsoever on whether I go or not.

I'll respect confidences. I simply posted that to completely refute the comment that "Do you seriously think any motherwell player would be out "partying" the night before a game???.....seriously??? Christ on a bike....get a grip."

I have no idea whatsoever about the current squad but it has happened on at least one occasion in the past decade we'll say (the player and his manager are no longer at the club). Officially the player in question picked up a "late injury". The term "Injury" can euphemistically cover a whole host of situations.

Ian Baraclough is in a tricky position here. He is more capable than you or I of assessing his squad and will know full well players' shortcomings. I don't doubt they will have been told behind closed doors in a manner which will be appropriate to each one. He will also know about any underlying factors about which we know nothing, except unsubstantiated rumours. He has to get the very best out of the squad he has at his disposal between now and May. I for one was impressed with Chris Cadden and certainly Dom Thomas to such an extent I feared the latter would end with a broken leg if he continued to play as he did. So yes there were positives, although not many. The squad is very short on confidence and if the Boss goes public to slag them off then they simply will not recover. He has to be a good man manager.

Pretty much agree. I think he'll need about 21/2 - 3 years though. In 18 months time he'll probably have "his" team pretty much in place but they may need time to gel. In the meantime he'll have to use players he would not have signed himself. As far as young players are concerned, he'll have to bring on players other managers brought in, but our record for those signed in the past decade is not great. With one possible exception those breaking into the first team just now don't seem to be anything special although it can be hard to tell at that stage.

We've had no left side cover for weeks now. Even Stevie Hammell plays well inside. Opponents frequently have the freedom of our left flank. In effect Ojamaa's being asked to do the work of 3 players.

Ticket update from the Official Site: Motherwell fans should note the following ticket information ahead of Thursday’s Lanarkshire Derby with Hamilton at New Douglas Park. As of close of business on Tuesday, Motherwell have sold approximately 1,100 tickets from a 2,200 allocation in the Spice of Life North Stand, behind the goal. Tickets are on sale (prices listed below) up until 1pm on Wednesday 31st December 2014. What is left, if any, will be returned to New Douglas Park and sold on the day of the match at the turnstiles. Visiting supporters who buy on the day, and tickets will be sold on a first-come-first-served basis, should enter via Turnstiles 7, 8 or 9 at the North Stand. ‘Well fans who have already pre-purchased tickets (or do so before 1pm on Wednesday) should enter via turnstiles 10, 11 or 12 at the North Stand. There will be no overspill facility in the temporary stand, as was the case in the League Cup match back in September, as Accies are utilising this area for community ticketing initiatives.

We might have limited scope for manoevre, as Ian Baraclough hinted. Hopefully Ojamaa will extend his stay. Our priority must be central midfield where the root cause of problems have lain this year. We badly need a mobile defensive player and someone creative with pace. However a small budget will dictate if we can achieve this or not. No doubt there's the possibility of moving a player or two out on loan to supplement the war chest if only modestly.

Car sharing?

Any unsold tickets for the end stand will be available on the day at NDP. Many folk will simply turn up at 3.00 pm.

In short yes. I think the tent will be used for any overspill from their Main Stand - not for us. However loads of free tickets have been given away and additional seats have been allocated for their season ticket holder initiative. In theory the ground will be nearly full but in reality there will be loads of spare seats BUT not for Well fans. You could have a situation whereby there are loads of empty seats in the Main Stand and tent but the Spice of Life Stand is full and some of our fans can't get in. If anyone knows an Accies season ticket holder.....

Recently we've had Tommy Wright saying that he wouldn't risk playing Faddy at Kilmarnock and Alan Johnston saying that Eremenko's injury was caused or, at best worsened, by the artificial pitch there. Also a month or two back Alex Neil at Hamilton said that some of his squad's injuries had been caused by the artificial surface. These surfaces should be outlawed at top level until they're advanced enough not to cause injuries. Almost invariably at clubs the Directors are all in favour of them for financial reasons whilst footballing staff dislike them intensely.

Most support have sections of fans like this. Its always been part and parcel of the game. I don't mind it providing that no OTT foul language or abuse is involved. Banter is, and always has been, part and parcel of the game. As far as Higginbotham is concerned he did upset our support at Firhill; so there is some history there. If you were at Paisley you'll have noticed that O'Brien and Law in particular came in for constant barracking. Dundee United fans are notorious in the game for constant moaning and hassling opposition players. A few years ago at Tannadice I recall Don Goodman almost colliding with an advertising hoarding and then laughing as he did a wee dance in front of the United fans. He was expecting some reciprocal reaction but instead was met with foul mouthed dogs abuse. Our support is no different to any other.

A bit harsh. After his knock O'Brien was thoroughly examined by the team doctor both on and off the park and deemed fit to continue. I'm no medical expert but it was obvious that the player was being checked for concussion.

Partick are having a decent run I wouldn't argue about that. However they are in 9th position for a reason.