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They were probably watching the game on Saturday prior to signing, and have now done a runner over the weekend

Tremarco Tremarco Tremarco Tremarco Tremarco Tremarco Tremarco Tremarco Tremarco Tremarco Tremarco

On the positive side, that was a good point and it's a clean sheet. On the other hand we were dreadful and Partick should be disappointed they didn't take all three points. We started with a different shape, 4-4-2 with Doumbaya and Anier up front and a midfield of Cole, Tansey, Draper and Polworth. I can see the logic in that line up, narrowing the midfield, try to get width from the full backs and a partnership up front with one powerful and one pacy forward. The problem was that Doumbaya simply had no idea what he was doing, a shockingly bad performance from him. He has no idea what runs to make, where to go in the pitch, how to link with Anier. It was embarrassing to be honest and, after a tactical change which put Doumbaya on his own front, Vigurs was subbed in for Doumbaya before half time. We then reshuffled to have Draper playing pushed up, Vigurs and Tansey deeper with Anier in his own up front and Polworth and Cole wider. While all this was going on, Partick were far more threatening and used the ball well - Azeez was denied by Fon Williams from a couple of yards out, a shocking miss really. Fon Williams had another couple of great saves in the first half. Clearly with all these changes we had zero fluency, I don't think we put together a decent passage of play once in the entire game. We hit long balls for Anier to chase or contest and got nothing out of it really. For most of the game we didn't look as though we knew where out players were supposed to be, we didn't have any decent outlets, we didn't look like we had any plans for attacking the opposition or getting the ball to dangerous areas. The only time we looked threatening was when we subbed on Aaron Doran, who had a couple of opportunities including one shot from the edge of the area that inched past. Its puzzling that Doran was dropped after being one of our best players last week and he will surely have played himself into contention for the Accies game. It comes back to what I said earlier in the season - it's as if we just throw players into the team without really thinking about what we want them to do. We change players in the midfield all the time, we don't have any thought about what we're wanting to do. Liam Polworth had his position moved repeatedly yesterday, right to left to right. No wonder the guy hit some misplaced passes. Larnell Cole was one of our best players recently and he was moved about and then subbed off. Mulreany came on and had a couple of successful moments against their full back but his passing and crossing is poor. He can be a valuable player but needs to smarten up and learn to play properly. Anier didn't really do much but he had little service. We hit balls up to him and he tried but looked more interested in trying to win a foul than anything else. He got away once and looked to have been fouled but nothing was given. Defensively we kept a clean sheet but we've got OFW to thanks for that, some very poor use of the ball around our own box and organisational failures were on display, especially in the first half. Apparently Gary Warren had been ill during the week which may explain that. The game in midweek is massive and it's hard to see from that performance how we can win. Hopefully it comes together but I'm saying that more in hope than expectation

Thing it's time we had a thread dedicated simply to goalie kits. There's been some classic through the years...and some horrors. The good The Bad And the ugly!

I hope you don't want the Board to give RF the dreaded vote of confidence because the media will have fun with that. I think a four year contract says it all at the moment. The Board is also being proactive in giving funds for RF to bring in more players.

Agree with much of what DD has said. I was going to post on Saturday night along the lines of the worst performance of the season, team was very flat etc but then discovered that several players were suffering from illness and some players were not a 100% fit. That may explain the display in part. We may have suffered from bad luck in previous games but that was repaid in a large part on Saturday as if Partick had a decent striker, we would have lost. We did get a much needed clean sheet but this was as much down to luck that a truly great defensive performance. Of the team, Fon Williams did have a better game but still does not command his box as he should. Raven was obviously not a 100% fit and was pretty poor until late on in the game when he surprisingly started to get forward more. Warren and McKay did okay but Warren's booking was needless although I can sympathise with his frustration with the referee. They were certainly not a solid defensive partnership however. The midfield was poor and while excuses could be made for Tansy and Draper due to injury/fitness, Cole and Polworth need to contribute much more for 90 minutes than they currently do and they both need to improve on their defensive work. Doumbouya was poor although I do have some sympathy for him as he constantly gets fouled by defenders and receives little protection from referees. Anier was a bit rusty but think he could come good for us but only if we can get another forward for him to play off. Of the substitutions, Vigurs made a difference but how Mulraney got on before Doran is mystifying. Why Doran was dropped in the first place was also a mystery. Mulraney really needs to work on his final ball as I have yet to see him deliver one of any value. Until he does, I would be tempted not to play him ahead of other players. Therein lies the problem perhaps with the team, not so much the personnel but the tactics/formations used by RF. I don't think he knows his best team/formation but now needs to decide on his best team, starting tomorrow and the formation to get the best out of that team. Chopping and changing a couple of players each week is not working and consistency of selection, barring injuries of course, is badly needed. Finally the board, I think they are very much like rabbits caught in the headlines at the moment. I think they need to be more proactive and vocal in their support of RF and if they are not because they want to ditch him if things don't go well in the next few games, this may well mean they are too late to change things. I genuinely don't have any knowledge of how they view the situation but to me Ritchie needs some help from an experienced manager at the moment. Apologies for the long post but this may well be a defining week for us this season.

I had a wee search as I'm sure the story appeared in the Record or Sun but no luck. January 2009, ICT bottom of the table, more detached than this time iirc. Hamilton take the lead and the ICT fans wave their shoes in the air singing "shoes off, if you hate Brewster" to the tune of "Go West". Brewster was sacked on the Monday and ICT, despite a famous victory at Ibrox pulling us briefly off the bottom, were relegated under Terry Butcher.

There's a potential complication for any ins and outs in that the for the final 9 or so hours of deadline day our players and management will be away at Hamilton! "Driver, stop the bus at Broxden" "What is it boss, do you need a piss?" "No, I need a central defender and a creative attacker!"

I like it.

CJT STILL HAVE A FEW SEATS AVAILABLE ON THEIR BUS . IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO JOIN US ON THIS MOMENTOUS NIGHT PLEASE CALL or TEXT ...07951309504 .

If we don't eliminate that gap some time we will be going down. We have a decent record on artificial surfaces. Without throwing caution to the wind, we need to be going for the win.

Hats (or shoes!) off to all ICT fans who can make it to this. Let's hope the Hamilton fans boycott this one and take away some of the home advantage. RF needs to really identify who's properly fit for this one. If Drapes and/or Tansey aren't 100%, don't play them (I think Draper's said previously that artificial pitches don't agree with him anyway). I don't say that lightly, particularly in Draper's case, but he was nowhere near fit on Saturday and early returns from injury generally result in further setbacks. Once he has his fit and healthy team list, then decide the formation that is going to suit the players available. Where there are choices, go with form players in their best positions. For me, Doran is coming into form, so should play, perhaps behind the striker. Raven looked a bit rusty, but quite solid on Saturday, so we have a right back and Mackay did well in the centre, so the back four is good. The real problem remains up front with Doumbouya, Boden and Anier taking it in turns to fail to impress. Assuming everybody is fit, I think our personnel suit a 4-2-3-1 better than a 4-4-2, but that should remain an oprion if we use fully fit players in midfield (unlike Saturday, when it was full of crocked players!) I'd go with: Fon Williams Raven Mackay Warren Tremarco Tansey Vigurs/Polworth Cole Doran King Anier subs: Polworth, Mulraney, Doumbouya, Esson, Ebbe + U20 defender + Esson Another option would be to have Tansey as only holding midfielder and put Polworth or Vigurs alongside Doran in CAM. Neither Polly nor Vigurs are natural holding midfielders and Crawford has to be marked out of the game. RF needs to really get this one right and apply some logic. No square pegs in round holes. No room for error.

Hard to believe he was the only viable option I am sure at the time we were quite an attractive proposition coming off our most successful period. To me it was the easiest option for the board to make and the cheapest. If things go from bad to worse for us they need to carry the can and really need to answer some big questions like , How come they thought appointing a former player on a 4 year deal who has no managerial experience be a good move.

The positive from yesterday was the point and clean sheet. There were few defensive mishaps we got away with but maybe that's the break we've been missing. I get RF targeting top six if we aim too low and miss we'll be in the mire. We are needing some ugly wins on the board but it's not too late to get them.

I agree 100% with these views. I also hope I'm wrong but, with no win since October, it's difficult to see how RF can turn this around. Recent performances haven't given any hope from what I have read. Lets see what he can do this coming Tuesday down in Hamilton. Let us see his motivational skills in raising the spirits of a lack lustre team, let us see his attacking style of play, let us see how we can make more than two or three passes without giving the ball away, let us see another clean sheet and let us see goals going in at the right end. Somehow, I think my eyes will be closed and I won't see any of this

For those who aren't willing/able to get down to Glasgow for the earlier kick-off......watch it from the comfort of the stadium for just £7, includes Pie & a Pint. http://ictfc.com/news/club-news/1869-celtic-v-ictfc-scottish-cup-live-at-tcs

I think it's actually a four year contract. It was a poor performance and that was a worrying post match interview but, as I said earlier in the thread, I think it was a decent point and we still have an opportunity to get off the bottom on Tuesday. I think that Foran still has a very great deal to learn but still has the potential to be a good manager for us. Don't forget that he had us playing successful and entertaining football in the League Cup group stage albeit against lower league opponents and was Manager of the Month after a successful league spell in September although that does seem a very long time ago now. Where I think we did cut corners, probably for financial reasons, is in appointing Brian Rice as assistant manager. An inexperienced manager needs a wiley and experienced number two. I didn't think that Rice was a good appointment when he first came, I didn't think it was a good idea to retain him when Yogi left and I'm even less convinced that he is the right man for the job now.