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Zimba came on for the last 30 mins, got a few touches of the ball and won a free kick but as you would expect Argentina controlled the game and Chanka didn't really get much chance to make an impact. Great to see an ICT player on that stage though, something he will never forget.

We're top of the league despite a 5 point penalty, we're unbeaten in the league in 2026, we play in the Challenge Cup final at the weekend and yet folk are questioning whether the manager should be sacked at the end of the season! It is true that we have drawn a few more games than we might have, but the fact that Stenhousemuir have closed us down is more due to Stenhousemuir's improved form than a drop in ours. Whilst we are on a 13 game unbeaten run, Stenny are on a 14 game unbeaten run and during that period have drawn one fewer than we have. We are 11 points clear of Alloa in 3rd. Given the situation the club was in when Kells took over from Disaster Dunc, what he has achieved is quite remarkable. I accept that football is a results game and you can't afford to dwell on past success when standards slip. Next season the goals for the team will either be to stay comfortably in the Championship, or to win promotion back to the Championship. If, by the middle of the season, it looks as though we are unlikely to achieve that goal, then the Board may have a decision to make, but certainly not now. If Kells deserves anything just now, it is a statue rather than the sack.

Just to add we are not long out of administration and as a club we can't afford to go down the route of employing a big name manager like we did before that didn't even work! We have to live within our means.

Chanka Zimba’s first call-up has been mentioned elsewhere, but I think it deserves a thread of its own. It’s quite an achievement to get noticed by any country when playing in Scotland’s 3 flight. The circumstances of tonight’s Argentina-Zambia match are somewhat bizarre, not least because it kicks off just a few hours after Zambia’s 1-0 defeat in Zimbabwe, where they seem to have fielded a young team, while the first team was in Buenos Aries. Argentina were supposed to be in the Middle East playing the ‘Finalissima’ v Spain and then a friendly v Qatar, both cancelled for obvious reasons. So they hastily arranged a home friendly v Guatemala. After it was announced, it had to be cancelled because Guatemala would be breaching some FIFA rule about playing friendlies in different continents during the same international window. So Argentina had to quickly find new opponents, in a week where most countries already had matches scheduled. Hence Zambia. But I’m not sure why FIFA the rule about playing in different continents doesn’t apply to Zambia - maybe it’s ok if they use completely different squads? But here we are, and we could find ourselves waking up on April Fools Day to reports that an ICT player, who has failed to score against the likes of Cove and East Fife, and happens to be suspended here, was up against Lionel Messi and the rest of the world champions. All very strange, but good luck to him!

Messi probably asked for Zimba’s shirt.

For a League 1 ICT player to get an international call-up and be on the same pitch as Messi, wow, that’s something we won’t see too often!

In my opinion he definitely should be leading us next season, regardless of whether we are in the Championship or League 1. One thing none of us are privy to is what players may have been on the bench due to carrying knocks so rightly not being risked from the start. When Liam Sole missed the games prior to his suspension we didn’t know at the time it was due to injury. There was a thread at the start of the season where we all said where we expected to finish the season. I don’t recall many saying we’d win the league, which shows how our expectations have grown over the course of the season. However, as noted above it’s what the owner thinks that will count.

Zimba should have been playing in the Lionel Nessie outfit.

Why oh why is this thread being discussed when we have a league to win? All it serves to do is to introduce negative comments at a time we don’t need them. It would be better to close it and reopen once the season is by with. Some folk just can’t see the bigger picture.

If you click on the number of votes, you see who went for which. You said 2nd.

What I took out of this game was that only one player in the Zambia starting XI's surname did not end with an A.

Yes, I agree. I only hope age hasn’t blunted his cold business clear thinking when it comes to what is in the best interests of his asset. We have suffered to much of such unstructured and unsustainable leadership in the recent past. Time will tell. Post script- He also has as an employer the responsibility to ensure any employee is not unduly placed into a post that could potentially have a detrimental effect on that individuals health. Wee Robbo comes to mind. bc

Excellent post BC. There has to be a reason why the team is chopped and changed too much. I too have heard rumours that certain players had to be played who were on loan as, otherwise the loan would be withdrawn. Personally, I don't think Kellagher would survive in the Championship but if the club insist on keeping him, he needs an experienced number 2. Had Malpas been brought in earlier to assist Foran, would we have avoided relegation?. The other issue I have with Kellagher is a lack of tactically awareness. Teams now know how we will play and he seems unable to adapt. Playing players out of position, when everyone can see it's not working doesn't help.

Ultimately it's up to Alan Savage and his is the only opinion that matters, but a good discussion point anyway. The lifespan of a manager is short these days (for us aged 50+ and what we remember from a bygone era) and clubs/fans require instant gratification. In a short space of time that usually isn't posssible, especially when you don't have money just to throw at it. Those that stick with their man can often reap the benefits, but admittedly not always. If we cast our minds back to October 2024 and that first game at Dumbarton the general feeling (if my memory remains intact) was that despite the 3-1 defeat the manner of the play was a breath of fresh air. By May relegation had been avoided (indeed without the points deduction we'd have been 2nd). This season is still in the balance but another top 2 position seems likely. As a new manager he will have plenty to learn still, and we all learn from our mistakes (or should do). Perhaps he'll decide with hindsight that the constant changes have hindered performance, perhaps he'll think that it's kept the squad as a whole fit and healthy and was the right thing. I'm sure he's continued to learn about individual players and the team. In my book, for what he's done to date, he absolutely deserves a shot at the Championship (if that's where we are). If we don't go up then perhaps it's more of an open question, but would you rather start from scratch with an unknown quantity and whether they'll fit or stick with someone who has led the club to being one of the best two clubs in the division two years running. I have a friend who is a Leeds fan and is quite prepared to admit that Daniel Farke struggles in the Premier League. But, he says if Leeds get relegated he'd definitely want him leading them next season as he has constantly been at the top of the Championship with both Leeds and Norwich. My view (at the moment) is the same with Kells - keep him in charge next season come what may.

Our record in friendlies is horrific so it was no great surprise to me that we lost to Japan and we’ll probably lose tonight as well. Clarke has got us to three major tournaments, which his predecessors failed to do over many years, and he may be the first to get us beyond the group stages: we’ll know that in a few weeks time. For me, this week is more about the squad bonding than anything else. The time for judgement is once we know how we’ve done in the World Cup itself. The problem I see going forward is who would want to take the role on anyway.

No much sentiment in football these days.

If they do get promoted, they'll have to strengthen the playing squad. If they don't get promoted, they'll have to strengthen the playing squad.

Does the Fin bloke you mention have an Shaun the sheep avatar?

Well if we don't get promoted this season we may well have a bolstered Ross County to contend with in place of Stenhousemuir! I'd be inclined to stick with Kells regardless of whether or not we gain promotion, but I think if we're in the Championship in January 2027 and staring relegation in the face, then we've got to be looking at alternatives. And as Big Cherly alluded to, he is perhaps too loyal to the players, too much of a nice guy, and needs to develop a mean streak!