MelvinBragg

Like I said, just a niggling feeling. Perhaps because, like you, when it looks like there's reasons to be optimistic, that's when I expect Motherwell to boot me in the nether regions...

I wasn't a huge fan of Chris Long, but nor did I think he was dreadful. An ok signing.. Balance of the squad looks slightly off to me. Three players that cam play left back, only one right back. A vast array of midfielders (particularly if Semple and Cornelius are considered part of squad) but very few options on the wing. Vast majority of the first eleven that took us to third place are still there but have a niggling feeling we might struggle this season...

I would guess that Fox won't be earning as much as Gillespie but don't know if the difference will be that significant. We've already brought in two defenders this summer and I'm guessing that whatever we're paying O'Hara will be costing more than the proportion of his wages we covered while he was on loan. How much we've saved by not having Manzinga and Ilic on the wage bill, I don't know but again I don't imagine it'll be a massive amount. If we're going to persevere with 433 with two wingers, then four centre forwards seems excessive. Lang may well be able to play on the wing but Long is a centre forward, nothing else. The same has to be said of White and Watt. Long or Lang, not both. Have never seen Lang play but didn't really rate Long so not fussed. Let's not waste a wage on a fourth striker though. .

Look on the bright side. If we were to get through to the third qualifying round and were drawn away to some Eastern European or Turkish side, absence of a hostile crowd might not do us any harm...

As much as I'd love Turnbull to sign for Newcastle or a decent English Championship side, I fear this story is a forerunner to a 'Turnbull chooses Celtic over move to England' story. If he leaves, I'd far rather it was to an English or foreign side but I suspect I'll be disappointed...

Never mind all this Hastie chat, is Allan Campbell going to Huddersfield..?

Any administrator at Wigan wouldn't be doing their job if they let assets go on the cheap and £1m for a young player with 2 years experience in the English Championship is cheap...

No way Robinson has agreed to that..

Not a massive fan of taking players on loan from teams in the same league and given the way that his move was perceived by fans, I can't see a move for Hastie being universally popular. Having said that, you could see taking Hastie on loan as mugging Rangers to an extent. They pay us a fee for a player and we still end up with the player. Just a thought...

Pretty sure Long is away but the change of number might be more to do with Dunne staying on as he was number 18, I think. Probably gave White his pick of the numbers that were left...

Seemed to realise the error of his ways quite quickly. Although given Fletcher scored on his debut then got injured the following week, I often wonder what might have been for Fletcher and Moult but for that injury...

Barraclough also signed Louis Moult...

I had the same thought myself but while it's relatively easy for us to half our capacity, it will be an issue for other clubs. Imagine Celtic or Rangers telling half their season ticket holders that they've got a seat for St Mirren at home but the guy next to them has the Old Firm game. If schools are back full time, I can see it being a case of full capacity in stadiums but you'll be asked to wear a mask...

If they've been told, then what's the secret? Assuming Cornelius, Robinson, Hussain/Devine and a couple of others...

I don't disagree. I expected us to possibly replace Hartley, O'Hara or Tait with cheaper options wage wise but wasn't expecting masses of movement. Who are the players from the reserves you expect to see stepping up?

I'd say our squad is still pretty small. Two recognised wingers, two strikers, three centre halfs, two full backs and five midfielders by my count. Not huge... Carson Grimshaw Carroll Gallagher Mugabi Lamie Campbell Donnelly Turnbull Polworth Maguire Seedorf Hylton Watt McIver Hardly a huge squad...

Kind of expecting only three or four signings this summer and three of those to be Lamie, White and O'Hara. Maybe a winger on loan...

Assuming you're comparing him to Dunne. Apparently he's not the quickest so comparison falls down a bit there. Less of a gamble than the likes of Mugabi given he's played in the league before...

Listening to Livingston fans talk about him, they generally feel he's a better centre back than left back...

What level of club are we talking about?

I don't know if it was yourself that posted it but I did see a suggestion on here recently that Allan Campbell would be sold. I like Campbell, a lot. But for me, his main attributes are his attitude, work rate and energy. Surely there are loads of players in academies down south that have that? Just don't see us getting a fee that would justify us selling or a club that he'd want to move to being interested in him...

In his first season, Dunne played 45 games in all competitions (impressive given his red card issues). Last season he played 26. Would say it's only this season that he's been unavailable for most of it. If Hartley's going, I'd be inclined to keep Dunne. Assuming it's financially viable...

I watched the game at Ibrox on the big screen in Jack Daniels. Strangely I remember being calm until we scored. Then it felt as if we had something to lose. Which is ridiculous because we clearly had loads to lose if we were relegated. I also remember me and Frazzle saying right after full time that night that we'd give a kidney for the first goal on the Sunday...

As a football fan, particularly a fan of a relatively small club, the joy in football is to be found in moments, or single games. This was to avoid relegation, sure. But does that mean I celebrated the moment any less? Nope. If anything, it's more important than a semi final win. It truly is a case of how your club will look going forward? Have a look at Dunfermline, Partick Thistle or Raith Rovers for evidence of that. I also agree that Barraclough was a big factor. Coming with no knowledge of Scottish football (remember his tongue in cheek comments about aiming to win the league) meant he seemed to go into the game without the preconceived notions of how this should go . Definitely didn't pay any heed to the 'back where we belong' chat from the Rangers minded side of the media. Van Der Gaag vs Dunfermline, Moult vs Accoes, the 2-1 vs Falkirk. Moments of relief, but also moments of joy. We don't get millions of those as Motherwell fans. It's alright to look back on them and smile...

Frankly more alarmed that it turns out Danny Swanson is 33...