Hats off to the loon , he has secured the left back spot for ICT after his wilderness years and IMO he has this place on merit....who'd have thought 12 or 18 months ago that Richard Hastings would be one of the solid backline which really picks itself , ****, looking at the tictacs threads everyone has him in there and even when 3/5/2 is mooted he's invariably got a few nods for inclusion on the left.

Who was it famously once said " F**k off back to Canada"????

P.S. note to Dicky...keep yer head out of the clouds and yer feet on the ground and you'll be well remembered in years to come.

:006:

Got to agree.

I was one of his fiercest critics when he left us before and with no disrespect intended towards Golly, I would pick RH ahead of him at left back based entirely on performance over the last year and a bit. He is out of contract at the end of the season and I would hope that CC gets him tied up on a new one long before then.

Feel I've gotta gloat a bit here - when he returned to the club, mine was a solitary voice predicting great things ahead for Richard. I'm not often right, but . . . .

Perhaps I saw a bit of potential there - I was certainly impressed with his consistent solid performances in his previous spell and was glad to see that when he finally got his chance 2nd time round, he took it.

Great to see he's finally being recognized for the extremely competent player he is and lets hope he doesn't go seeking pastures new again. Who knows - maybe a Scotland call-up is just around the corner! Hmmm. . . no, that wouldn't work, would it?

:clapping04:

'****, looking at the tictacs threads everyone has him in there and even when 3/5/2 is mooted '

Thats because there's no one better than him at the club, lets face it Golly is fecked, and is hanging on for his testimonial, Hastings is average most of the time, and if we have any serious top six aspirations, LB is where we need a better player.

Hastings passing is dire most of the time, and if he ever gets near the last third of the pitch his crosses are usually 3 pointers.

Caley100 I have to say you are talking p**h

Hastings gets far too much undeserved flack because he 'dared' to leave us for better things a few years back.

He has been one of our most consistent if unrecognised performers over the last 18 months.

More often than not he bombs up the left wing time after time only to be ignored for a pass inside or backwards, yet the next oppurtunity he'll make the run again.

Of course if Golly had maintained his form Hastings would have remained on the sidelines but since he got his new 3 year deal he has been gash

He left for Champions League experience eventually. Mark Brown may well leave at the end of this season and he should get a ,assive thank you.

Denzil and Barry have both gone out and improved their pension rights.

'****, looking at the tictacs threads everyone has him in there and even when 3/5/2 is mooted '

Thats because there's no one better than him at the club, lets face it Golly is fecked, and is hanging on for his testimonial, Hastings is average most of the time, and if we have any serious top six aspirations, LB is where we need a better player.

Hastings passing is dire most of the time, and if he ever gets near the last third of the pitch his crosses are usually 3 pointers.

couldn't disagree more... Hastings has been solid for us and you can still see him improving.  If you compare him to other left backs round the country, we should be happy to have such a consistent performer.  I think his fitness levels are a major factor of his play so hopefully he'll be at the club for years to come.

Fine performance today.

Solid and strong in tackle, decent in the air, safe and simple.

Will never score as often as Tokes but will never have your balls in your stomach as often as him either.

Good honest pro.

Not exactly the most skillful player in the world, nor the sharpest knife in the drawer - but he gets up and down the left flank like a horse and never shirks a dangerous challenge. Needs to work on his crossing though, he's got quite a goofy, stiff technique when he strikes the ball, although I seem to remember back in the 3rd division he used to be our free kick specialist! How far we've come!

Well its all about opinions aint it!

'More often than not he bombs up the left wing time after time only to be ignored for a pass inside or backwards

Bombs up the wing? ha ha. he's ignored because he will give a pysh final ball or blooter the ball over the bar.

I wont say any more other than he a pretty low SPL average player, if we have a desire to get into the top 6 we need better.

Who was it famously once said " F**k off back to Canada"?

yeah . and it doesnt look like i will ever get to forget it either  :015: :015: :015:

Who was it famously once said " F**k off back to Canada"?

...yeah . and it doesnt look like i will ever get to forget it either

I thought you were speaking to me  :004:

I used to be one of the biggest critics of Hastings but am the first to hold my hands up and say that he has been a reformed player since he returned to ICT.  "Mr Consistancy" is probably the best description as he rarely seems to have a howler of a game these days.  Who gives a flyin feck if he is making lung busting runs up the wing or not, and who cares if his final cross is bad (I don't agree they are) as that is not his job, he is a left back and his job is to break down attacks on that wing - anything else he does is a bonus, especially with our left wing  and if our left wing not performing as it should be.

If Golly was fit and up to the task of playing at left back I would be calling for Hastings to be given a shot on the left wing as (from what I have seen in the past) he does a better job on the left wing when he does push forward from the left back position than our left wing players have done of late.

'Who gives a flyin feck if he is making lung busting runs up the wing or not, and who cares if his final cross is bad (I don't agree they are) as that is not his job, he is a left back '

'I would be calling for Hastings to be given a shot on the left wing as (from what I have seen in the past) he does a better job on the left wing when he does push forward '

Make yer mind up.... :016:

Our left midfield/attack has been poor since Golly lost form, this is fact. 

Dicky is an OK player, very average and gives his all, but in MY opinion we need a better Left back.

Make my mind up about what?

His current position is Left Back, he should therefore not be judged on how he performs when he pushes forward as, at the end of the day, that is the job of the winger.

I disagree that he is woeful when he does push forward and believe that he could do a job on the left wing, you just can't expect him to be doing the job of 2 players when his main priority is being a left back, if we want to see him making more moves forward and making consistant crosses in to the box then he should be played on the left wing before judging him on his perfromance there.

To criticise the guy for what he does when he gets forward when he is playing as left back is like criticising Dargo for being a chit defender.  Judge him on the job he is there to do and save the criticism for those who aren't performing their own role and relying on someone else to do their job on the pitch.  Credit should be given to Hastings for getting forward and at least having a go whilst the left wing are off wandering elsewhere or standing with their finger up their erse.  Better Hastings in there trying than nobody at all, regardless of how you think he performs when he is doing so.

He's developed into a mature reliable full back. ICT don't have many full internationals on the books nd we should strve to hold onto him.

'I disagree that he is woeful when he does push forward and believe that he could do a job on the left wing, you just can't expect him to be doing the job of 2 players when his main priority is being a left back,'

Rossco does this from right back...and scores goals..when did Dicky score last?

Hastings has been our most consistent player this year.

Solid in defence.

Capable of a telling pass.

Gives us an extra attacking option.

And this would be improved if we finally played someone on the left wing one of these weeks.

Hastings can link superbly with Morgan on the left - much as Tokely can link with Wilson.

As Bonzo has just touched on, Rossco is better supported on the right when he makes a move forward.  Given the smae support/link-up on the left I am confident Hastings would prove more effective when going forward, as it is at the moment when he does go forward he is almost always on his own.

As for Rossco's goals, they more often than not come from set pieces or scrambles in the box which he manages to tuck away, something which is as much down to his height and build which give him a certain edge in these situations.

I think some people still hold some kind of grudge against the guy for the manner in which he departed previously and just aren't willing/able to admit he is many times the player now that he was back then.  Not only has his performance on the park improved, but his whole attitude seems to have changed for the better.

As for the argument about needing a better left back, IMO, their are other positions which are in far more desperate need of strengthening and Left Back would come way down my list of priorities.

'Hastings has been our most consistent player this year.

Solid in defence.

Capable of a telling pass.

Gives us an extra attacking option.'

EH?

i'll give you one out of the four...no more.

Unfortunately there are those who just don't like Richard Hastings and they will, consequently, refuse to be swayed by the evidence of their own eyes.

It's not just Hastings they don't like.....

Didn't Hastings play for Inverness Caledonian before he played for ICT? He's the only one left, a living legend. You'd expect him to be a fan favourite! Perhaps his detractors are just jealous of his good looks.  :004:

He played for Caledonian Thistle before ICT,  not for Caledonian.

Denzil is a living legend with ICT, you'd expect him to be a bigger fan favorite by being the clubs top scorer ever!... whats your log in name caller?

He's not a world beater, his name is never mentioned over here when it comes to Canadian 'soccer' and the international team, and he is not the best left back in the SPL. BUT he is the best left back we have at the club at the moment and should be an automatic choice for the starting spot unless/until his performances drop. I agree with those that say he gives us an attacking option on the left and also with the reasons why this is not as effective as the tokely/wilson partnership on the right flank. Would like to see Hastings/Morgan or why not give Hastings/Zander a go ... he's left sided and by all accounts very exciting to watch ?

Given that RH takes the field in an ICT shirt, the ICT supporters should do just that and support the guy. I used to get really p***** off at the treatment some dished out to Paul Ritchie and I think RH falls into a similar category (along with the likes of Russell Duncan) where they dont do too much wrong but cant do right for doing wrong in some supporters eyes, whilst other players can wander about with a finger up their erse and be seen as messiahs !!!

As I said earlier in the thread, I was one of the most vocal and scathing in my verbal attacks on him when he left the club the first time round, but time has moved on, the true story may not be quite what we were told at the time, he has come back to the club (a brave move) and hasnt done anything to merit the flak he is getting. C'mon, the guy had the sense to come back to ICT - lets forgive him !!!

I'll have a pint of whatever Bonzo's on !!...............Dicky couldnae pass water and his crossing is on a par with Boric  :004: :001:

I'm in the real "Dicky" camp on this one, 100 is 100% correct  :023: