Chatting to @Jarca after the game and we were saying how hard it'll be to pick a match day squad once everyone is back. Youve got the 4 new signings, mayenda, alese, Matete, evans and roberts to come back into that squad that played yesterday Hope rigg keeps his place on the bench though as he might be the brightest of all our young players
I can’t stop laughing at jewi just spinning around taking the piss in the build up to the 5th, I’d be absolutely spewing if it was the other way around
Don’t envy Mowbray, hell of a problem to have though some turnaround in mood from Thursday night too!
Watched the highlights again and they're keeper was all candy floss and toffee apples all game. His only decent save was Dacks header before the 4th goal, he certainly didn't cover himself in glory, thank goodness
We were brilliant and could have scored more. Just watched it back though and their defending and keeping was up there with the worst I’ve seen at this level. Even league one level. The Dack goal goes through like four of their defenders to reach him,
Once these new lads get up to speed it will be great for Mowbray to be able give players a break so they don't have to play every minute of every game. I think Clarke, Neil and Roberts were pretty close last season (haven't checked the stats) but to be able to give them a rest out of the squad because the competition is there will be a real positive.
You need to watch the Newcastle match mate, defence, also noticed Howe, Gordon and Pope all rat boys, are they collecting them
I thought it was a good save from Clarke low to his right after Clarke just ran straight through the heart of their defence.
It does present problems for player development and offering/showing a pathway for the academy lads though which are both fundamental for the club’s long term success. I’ve said all along that I’d like for us to have a smaller squad but I’m stuffed if I know where we trim from or who we would get rid of from it.
Been catching up on this thread and the only annoying thing after yesterday is that somebody realised that they could not have a negative dig at the team so had a go at what the fans were singing. Me for one could not find a negative from yesterday and I hope we can build on from this game and really step forward as a genuine contender this season. I know it's a long season and expectations need to be tempered but my heart is telling me we will be competitive and my head is saying we will be competitive so that's a good sign I think
After a good night's sleep, I've woken up still thinking "wow, what a performance" Then i remember Roberts and the 4 new lads didn't play or get on the bench and my thoughts turn to what we could achieve this year and the different options we have pretty much everywhere on the pitch. IF this all clicks, it could be a hell of a season
That is where the hard decisions are made. We will sell players to create space in the team, however, we should already have the replacement almost up to speed and ready to step in, hopefully. That will be part of the attraction for any player that we sign, we will make you a better footballer, we will give you the chance of first team football, and, if a decent offer comes in from a top club we will sell you, so you will get the chance of that huge contract that sets you up for life. If you work hard. We all have our favourite players but, we are going to have to get used to the fact that players will be moving on. Some supporters will find that very difficult. I think it's going to be an interesting ride.
It’s true we have a large squad at the moment but going from the last few seasons we seem to get lots of injuries. Last season our defence was down to the bare bones and our lack of strikers has been known for a while. I reckon we will be using all these players because of injuries and also resting some players, a luxury we couldn’t afford until now. Then, like when Hume got into the starting line up and was a revelation, who knows what we will find out. Maybe someone like Mayenda will surprise everyone or Jewi will start to sparkle as he showed what he can do yesterday. The future is looking good.
Talking of favourite players losing Ross Stewart before the last January window was unthinkable for some, me included. His injury turned out to be a blessing in disguise, not only did it keep him at the club but TM and the squad learned how to play without a CF. Fourth top scorers in the league last season iirc, and not doing to shabbily this one so far with proper strikers to start in a fortnight. We then end up with a good result in selling him and the club moves on. The plan is to sell and replace from within and onwards and upwards. We as fans have to get out heads round this and not have the meltdown we had on Thursday, not easy to do. We're definitely in a good spot at the minute.
I was thinking that about tbe fourth, it reminded me of some of the "defending" on view in our relegation seasons!
Just watching the highlights and it definitely wasn't a penalty by Dack. Well done by the referee, Manning clearly ignores the ball and moves his leg into Dacks path ... ... very poor, obviously didn't have the confidence to score.
