Scarlet Pimple

Listening to so many complaints about the players and the weather conditions is interesting. I think a realistic assessment of this is simply that a change to Summer football is a no-brainer. Everybody benefits - -the players, the spectators (who pay the bills) and the club in general for a whole variety of reasons.. Players will be more relaxed leading to more effort and skill development and a lot less risk of injury. The spectators will be more ready to come out of the house and will enjoy the matches much more. These factors alone should boost income for the club. The wear and tear upon the pitch will also be less leading to less maintenance being required and at less cost to the club. Driving to and from the match will be much more pleasant and the risk of accidents will be much less. And it has proved to be successful elsewhere in the world. So, what is stopping it I wonder?

Anyway, that first penalty against us seemed a weak one?

Easy to say but not to forget. The damage done has lasting impact and could easily lead to our death knell this season. Drop him for two matches with a severe warning attached. And, in it's turn, the manager's job job might be on the chopping block as well. It's also a very bad example to our other players if he doesn't experience censure or does not get dropped and making an example of him is a very good idea. This is nice John's challenge now. What will he do? From what I have been reading for weeks, generally this is a situation that must be nipped in the bud, pronto.

I think you mean" remember", Rig, not "forget", because J R must make it very clear to the whole team that this kind of stuff as stated above will very quickly lead to only one outcome that will be very negative for the whole team. And then he must set an example by strict action to back up his points. If he is a hard taskmaster at this point we may just scrape in but otherwise it will be "nux vomica up the lum, chum" for our chances of promotion. Since we are now on the brink of being prevented from getting back up into the big league we can't afford this kind of indiscipline at all. Mulraney should be dropped for a minimum of two or even 3 games despite the cry of "Oh, we need his skill." Not at all because "we don't need his antics" which have had a deep effect on the win lose column and outweigh the past positive contributions that he has made in his first burst of enthusiasm. Now, as a regular member of the team, he is losing the place and, based on what I have read, he appears NOT to be demonstrating humility. If the other two youngsters have done well then they probably now just need encouragement. All of these bookings and so forth is very concerning because it's difficult to understand why. Is J R a bit weak , perhaps, and is too much of a Mr. Nice Guy rather than a disciplinarian. If so then he had better make it clear to the players that he's the boss and will prove it and that he will no longer tolerate lack of thought and self-control. Management is not easy but it sometimes is a choice of who is in charge?..the players or the Manager? He's got a problem though since his back up or reserves appear to be limited and that is well known to the players. So.." Read the riot act John and make it stick. Press the suspend button soon". Easier said than done? No, just lift your hand and press the button, otherwise you will not be viewed as a strong man and then...................?

Gottaluvem!

Judges, Ruth.

Romans

Re the Overseas videos issue, in my email to the top Gent I said that I WAS prepared to pay more since last season's price was indeed very reasonable. This was obvious to me from the start... being able to sit in the comfort of your home and able to get a cuppa at half time completely unimpeded, etc., was really a steal for the price. However, I had no figures to go on regarding how many overseas viewers were participating, nor the overall costs involved, so it was up to the club to assess these things and re-adjust the price accordingly. Even at double the price - ten pounds or so -- it was excellent value for money and I had told him this as well. Our Donald J. does not know how good he is at the game of commentating and I thoroughly enjoyed his personal knowledge of players' names, his opinions and delivery at every match which was not only very informative to an Overseas listener but refreshingly different. I am missing my videos and the D.J's ( ) comments. If the Chairman had suggested what he considered to be reasonable, and even put it to those who were formerly participating and had asked for feedback, then I think that would have been a more appropriate and more professional response than stating that he would investigate and would contact me in due course and then not following through. So he probably has no further interest in addressing the issue and the need. That doesn't mean to say that I will not contact him again nor preclude other fans in a similar position to myself from pursuing this with him though.

I was reading, Charles, that a small, nice-looking, well-built school. in the North (Rosshire was it?) had to be closed since there was no teacher(s) left after the incumbent quit,. Then they found a teacher and have re-opened it. Is it that bad ?

Final comment is simply that if Refs have it in for Ian before the game even starts then we are also in trouble. I see Bobby Madden is getting stick as well for his suggested poor decisions in his most recent game. That doesn't surprise me after watching him against ICT last season on the overseas videos which no longer are being streamed. In that match I formed the impression that he was very poor indeed. I raised that issue about the overseas streaming videos some time ago with our new Chaiman who replied that he was unaware of their existence but would look into it and report back to me. Unfortunately he didn't keep his promise and so I am still in the dark about this.........?

Pity Ian is a bit too hot headed, it seems, and too back-talkative to the ref by far. Otherwise the conspiracy theory could be cited again......

What about the income earned by business--men by way of salary? If it is a good income above a certain level will they still get the basic income, she has promised , on top of that?

A replay is a winner : 1. To allow the club to win the match and progress upwards in this competition.....and..... 2. It will bring in much needed revenue for the club because there should be a good crowd after that fine performance.

A foreign language

Simple though! Nobody cares in the SFA management rooms unless you have clear -cut evidence that is contradictory to the ref's decision...... Ergo..video. Am I obsessed with this video thing? Yes , I am , because I've viewed it countless times and IT works; whereas nothing else seems to change anything and the refs just get away with it. It also protects the refs from unfair criticism and is able to do all this right there immediately. No ifs and buts, no arguments or hysterics, no conspiracy theories and close to 100% accuracy in the judgements. Or the fact (as well) that they don't want to incur the expenses of set-up or to force the clubs to pay for this. They may also claim that the length and breadth of the field precludes a realistic viewpoint but with zoom lenses et al being standard on all sports cameras now, that argument is more self-serving than anything I think. The danger as they see it may also be the fact that the bad decisions will embarrass them to admit that real change has been left for too long a length of time without resolution and it might attract too much questioning and criticism from the fans all round as to why they did not act long before now. However, surely embracing new techniques and progress trumps that card handily. Got to move and keep up mit der times. Ja? Charles -- --what do you think in response to my thinking here?

How many buses do you run . Just one?

Charlie..please ...behave yourself.!

Anywa,y I hope John praises the good things and strengths of all the lads because we all need encouragement at every stage of our life. Indeed, many believe it may be the most appreciated and valued comments that a boss can hand to an employee. We have all developed at different times and rates and, in some cases, we have been lucky that the advice given at a certain point just fitted the bill or was that spot of glue that was required to allow that last magic piece of the jigsaw puzzle to slot smoothly into place and productively remain there for all to see. Alternatively, if you never praise a player that can kill his or her spirit unless that person is very strong-minded and the lack of recognition makes him/her even more determined to carve his/her own groove and at that point he may just leave and start his own business and be much happier as he builds it up. Because an indelpendent spoirit cannot be easily quashed. Praise flair and encourage independent thought....why you might njust learn something from it oneself. IMHO, pep talks, strong direction, smiles and lots of praise are John's most effective tools for getting the players onside and wanting to strive to get better and better. Now that's real leadership.......IMHO at least.

I would never ask what John Robertson is getting because, whatever it is, we all know ( I hope) that John's heart is in the right place , he has done a wonderful job of selecting and motivating the players and if we can get into the top three we should reward him with a bonus for freshening up the squad and the atmosphere at the Caley Thistle park and allowed us to dream that the future will again be much brighter. and rewarding as well. Oh and how about a wee donation to the referees' orphans' fund as well, as soon as possible -- just so they all know our hearts are also in the right place .?

CIF73 you may not indeed be Polly But are you pretty.

That won't necessarily work since the refs who have genuinely been issuing cards that they know are unrealistic or unfair etc will never admit to anything. Fans in Scotland will never be assured of a good refereeing system with fair decisions without the introduction of a video system which can be replayed at the drop of a hat. Then refs will be very anxious to enhance their skill sets and/or do the right thing at all times. And if a decision remains contentious after the video has been seen then it should trigger an automatic re=view at that very time by an overall match commander whose final decision is absolute. What has been said here by the above posters may well be true since some of the officiating that I have seen have been bizarre with a capital "B".

I've Just joined--Holy Smokes!

Willie Collum has been well praised for his performances in Europe despite attracting much criticism in Scotland. Now that did surprise me I must admit because I was never a big fan of this gent's performances. But, when I reviewed him on the T V in European matches, his decisions did look decent...?So what does that say about other refs in the game all over the world? As for your last paragraph, Wynthank, few o f us can disagree with your insight here.