Celtic v Motherwell 05/10/2025

[joewarkfanclub]

Thats absolutely heartbreaking.

It felt like a defeat at 2-2 but to lose it in injury time is an absolute ballbuster.

We started the second half very well and deseved to go ahead.

After that I thought we got too deep, didnt keep the ball well enough and when we needed to freshen up from the bench we didnt have sufficient quality to see it home.

Priestman and SOD are fine but Osong offers nothing beyond that it was Halliday and some young boys.

Those blaming Ward for the second goal, I get that its his mistake, but for me that ones on the manager. At 2-1 up he has to get the message out to take fewer chances at the back. I get he wants us to be brave and he will point to the Hearts game as to why we should continue to play our game, but every now and again you just need to clear your lines and allow your team mates to get back in position.

Lots to like about our play again. Nice to see Stama get 2 goals, but looks like we will be carrying a few injuries into the break. Hopefully they arent serious, because the only way our results and league position improves is by having a deeper squad that allows us to substitute players before they are absolutely out on their feet.

[MJC]

Just now, AllyMax said:

Can't be frustrating for you surely. You said 'game over' after their first goal.  

Losing like that is a lot more frustrating than losing 4-0.

Its frustrating because yet again we have been in a good position only for poor game management, poor defending and poor goalkeeping to undo it all.

[joewarkfanclub]

1 minute ago, MJC said:

Losing like that is a lot more frustrating than losing 4-0.

Its frustrating because yet again we have been in a good position only for poor game management, poor defending and poor goalkeeping to undo it all.

Do you accept now that we did have a chance in that game and had we managed the game better we would have got something?

[MJC]

Just now, joewarkfanclub said:

Do you accept now that we did have a chance in that game and had we managed the game better we would have got something?

Yes of course.

[FirParkCornerExile]

20 minutes ago, robsterwood said:

Manager needs a lesson in game management. If your 2.1 up you don't need to keep playing balls out from the back. Needs to be more defensive minded in later stages when ahead.

You can keep playing balls out from the back all game, nothing wrong with that. What you need is good judgement not to play the ball to a man inside the box if their is an opponent just about in his shorts. If there is no option / player in safe space  to play out from the back you need to go long. Doesn't need a wholesale abandonment on a style that actually creates alot of space. The reason we got alot of space in the first 60/65 mins is because we played it our from the back and got the ball into good space. 

[weeyin]

25 minutes ago, robsterwood said:

Manager needs a lesson in game management. If your 2.1 up you don't need to keep playing balls out from the back. Needs to be more defensive minded in later stages when ahead.

The manager doesn't need lessons in game management - the players do.

JBA has been quite clear that it has been one of our issues that needs work, and continues to need work.

Like every other part of the new approach, it takes time for it to become automatic.

We improved when Welsh started, but obviously did not have that advantage today. When you have guys like McGinn, Gordon and SOD together, some of the old habits are going to surface. It's one of the reasons I wanted a few new faces in there over the summer.

[robsterwood]

Only positive I can see is Ward releases a dvd of his many bloopers and we use it to raise money for charity. It will be a fairly long dvd. 🤣

[twistandshout1983]

Absolutely gutted at that defeat.  Celtic were there for the taking today , no question about that

Being 2-1 up at Parkhead was the time to shut up shop and defend like mad , shocking 2nd goal to concede

 

[texanwellfan]

2 minutes ago, FirParkCornerExile said:

You can keep playing balls out from the back all game, nothing wrong with that. What you need is good judgement not to play the ball to a man inside the box if their is an opponent just about in his shorts. If there is no option / player in safe space  to play out from the back you need to go long. Doesn't need a wholesale abandonment on a style that actually creates alot of space. The reason we got alot of space in the first 60/65 mins is because we played it our from the back and got the ball into good space. 

There’s being brave but then there’s being stupid. Hopefully Ward now has the difference implanted in his brain. It’s a shame really as he had a great game other than that one mistake. 
im gutted at the momemt but that won’t last long. Then I’ll be really looking forward to us getting back at it again with our full midfield crew up for selection. 

[FirParkCornerExile]

1 minute ago, robsterwood said:

Only positive I can see is Ward releases a dvd of his many bloopers and we use it to raise money for charity. It will be a fairly long dvd. 🤣

I know it's hard for folk to see it right now and I in no way excuse his shocker but he had some outstanding saves, we could have been down and out before his fuck up. 

[FirParkCornerExile]

Just now, texanwellfan said:

There’s being brave but then there’s being stupid. Hopefully Ward now has the difference implanted in his brain. It’s a shame really as he had a great game other than that one mistake. 
im gutted at the momemt but that won’t last long. Then I’ll be really looking forward to us getting back at it again with our full midfield crew up for selection. 

Exactly it's his judgement in question at the moment not the style of play we have adopted. 

[robsterwood]

Just now, weeyin said:

The manager doesn't need lessons in game management - the players do.

JBA has been quite clear that it has been one of our issues that needs work, and continues to need work.

Like every other part of the new approach, it takes time for it to become automatic.

We improved when Welsh started, but obviously did not have that advantage today. When you have guys like McGinn, Gordon and SOD together, some of the old habits are going to surface. It's one of the reasons I wanted a few new faces in there over the summer.

I know players need to make choice of whether to play long or not. And read the game. However direction comes from manager and he has been clearly demanding it played out from the back. That system clearly did not work in game management as we have now lost 9 points from winning positions.  I also think Ward and McGin are uncomfortable with the possession based approach and struggle with it. Possibly Priestly too. 

[wellfan]

2 minutes ago, FirParkCornerExile said:

I know it's hard for folk to see it right now and I in no way excuse his shocker but he had some outstanding saves, we could have been down and out before his fuck up. 

You could argue that he’s doing the basics, making the saves you’d expect him to make, but then undoing it all with mistakes he simply shouldn’t be making. Those errors have already cost us too many points this season, and it just can’t go on.

[MJC]

2 minutes ago, FirParkCornerExile said:

I know it's hard for folk to see it right now and I in no way excuse his shocker but he had some outstanding saves, we could have been down and out before his fuck up. 

And he also had an excellent, yet almost forgotten save at Tynecastle with just about the last kick of the ball to rescue us a point that day. Granted he had cost us with the equaliser but similar to today we were done by that point and it wouldn’t have been a surprise if Hearts had won that 4-3. The goalkeeper is always going to be the most obvious target if he makes a mistake that costs a goal, but as a team we just don’t look capable of defending a lead.

[joewarkfanclub]

Im gonna defend Ward a little bit here as well. He was having a fine game right up until his mistake.

His save at the start of the first half was an absolute worldy.......

[FirParkCornerExile]

9 minutes ago, MJC said:

And he also had an excellent, yet almost forgotten save at Tynecastle with just about the last kick of the ball to rescue us a point that day. Granted he had cost us with the equaliser but similar to today we were done by that point and it wouldn’t have been a surprise if Hearts had won that 4-3. The goalkeeper is always going to be the most obvious target if he makes a mistake that costs a goal, but as a team we just don’t look capable of defending a lead.

I think we are more than capable of defending a lead. Teams have not overtured our leads because we are playing badly. They are being handed individual gifts. At this moment primarily by the goalkeeper. That in itself is an easier fix than having to rework a system because a team cant work well with it. We obviously can work well with it.

No one absolutely no one has played us off the park including Celtic. So there is more to be optimistic about even as sore as that was today. That wasn't our strongest team by some measure and all but for a couple if individual mistakes, (Keeper and Priestman) we'd have got something today. 

Sorry for Ward that he will take all the blame but Priestman will get off scot free today and he was shocking at the 3rd goal.

[grizzlyg]

There is no point ward making 6 great saves a game then one absolute howler. Yes JBA wants us to be brave but there are times when common sense should kick in. Sorry but Ox needs to be given a chance 

[joewarkfanclub]

Thought we missed Welsh a fair bit today as well. Not so much defensively. But its very noticeable that McGinn isnt as comfortable playing out to his left side. Having a left footed defender that side gives us a lot more balance.

[FirParkCornerExile]

2 minutes ago, grizzlyg said:

There is no point ward making 6 great saves a game then one absolute howler. Yes JBA wants us to be brave but there are times when common sense should kick in. Sorry but Ox needs to be given a chance 

Wards judgement has been sadly lacking in a number of games even accounting for some excellent saves. I'm not so sure OX has what the manager wants in terms of the style we play but you are correct a keeper can't keep making bad judgement calls. I've got a feeling he will stick with Ward. Remember the managers line "players need to know its OK to make a mistake".. The frequency might change that view mind you. 

[joewarkfanclub]

4 minutes ago, grizzlyg said:

There is no point ward making 6 great saves a game then one absolute howler. Yes JBA wants us to be brave but there are times when common sense should kick in. Sorry but Ox needs to be given a chance 

And what if Ox cant handle the passing out from the back stuff? Your only going to add in more of those kind of mistakes.

The manager see's both in training. He clearly thinks Ward fits the system better.

If he stops making saves and/or starts dropping the ball again, you have to have a decision to make. But at the moment we just need to accept that these things are going to happen the way we play.

The surprise is its taken this long.....

[Spiderpig]

4 minutes ago, grizzlyg said:

There is no point ward making 6 great saves a game then one absolute howler. Yes JBA wants us to be brave but there are times when common sense should kick in. Sorry but Ox needs to be given a chance 

Just seen the highlights of Celtics 2nd goal, WTF was Ward doing, he passed it straight to the Celtic player ffs, yes he makes a few good saves but hes making too many bsd errors, time for Oxborough to get a chance 

[grizzlyg]

5 minutes ago, joewarkfanclub said:

And what if Ox cant handle the passing out from the back stuff? Your only going to add in more of those kind of mistakes.

The manager see's both in training. He clearly thinks Ward fits the system better.

If he stops making saves and/or starts dropping the ball again, you have to have a decision to make. But at the moment we just need to accept that these things are going to happen the way we play.

The surprise is its taken this long.....

We won't know until he gives Ox a chance.  As I have said before we have 10 Outfield players to do the footballing part, I want my keepers collecting crosses and saving shots

[texanwellfan]

I’ll have to see it again but at the time I thought the 6 yard box was Like central station. There were far too many bodies in our face to be trying to pick out a player. 

[AllyMax]

That was an absolutely gutting defeat. Ward obviously should have lashed that one when there was no pass on, but you have to look at the positives at least, one being that we didn't go to parkhead and lie down or try to play for a draw, and we ran the team that will inevitably win the league as close as its possible to do without talking something out of the game. 

We're still in the early stages of implementing a new system. Surely to god no one is expecting that to be running like clockwork in less than a 1/4 of a season ? Implementing that kind of change in less than a season is ambitious surely.

I think we need to bear in mind that Celtic brought a player off the bench who cost them 1.3 times our annual turnover in transfer fee alone, never mind what he's probably earning. The gulf in available player quality for the clubs respective turnovers is huge. Finger pointing and laying blame for defeats under those circumstances is pointless. They are also the first team we've failed to dominate possession wise this season. 

I'm as devastated as anyone can be about losing today cause it was there for the taking, but in the grand scheme of things we've improved immensely this season and will continue to do so.

[FirParkCornerExile]

2 minutes ago, grizzlyg said:

We won't know until he gives Ox a chance.  As I have said before we have 10 Outfield players to do the footballing part, I want my keepers collecting crosses and saving shots

I would disagree in part. In the system we play we need a keeper who is comfortable playing at the back. There were numerous times today we opened up good space based on playing from the keeper across the back opening up big spaces in the midfield. What we need is a keeper whose judgement is more focused, play out from the back as part of the new system but when we have an opposition player just about inside our man's shorts the keeper does not play the ball to him. In todays fuck up the keeper wasn't even passing it to a Motherwell man, had it not gone straight to the Celtic player there wasn't a Motherwell player waiting in open space for it. It was just a complete and utter mental cluster fuck and horrendous judgement from the keeper.