RiG

It was one of the most obvious points for a wee rammy. Why have all those police and police dogs at the game if you aren't going to have some of them at pinch points where fans will come together after the game?

RE: Doran and Cole as full backs that's not necessarily what they would need to do if we were to line up along those lines. You could have Polworth, Draper and / or Tansey dropping in to the centre of defence with Mckay and Tremarco going into the wide areas as and when required thus minimising the defensive duties of Doran and Cole. Like I say it's a complete stab in the dark as to how we might approach the game given who we have out.

It would be interesting to try and play three at the back but would an unfamiliar formation be the way to go with such an important game? Fon Williams Mckay Warren Tremarco Doran Polworth Tansey Draper Cole Anier Doumbouya

We're apparently trying to get Simon Murray on a PCA. https://www.thecourier.co.uk/fp/sport/football/dundee-united/356358/inverness-make-move-get-dundee-united-striker-simon-murray-pre-contract/

Probably more than likely that he is replacing Maddison who has returned to Norwich. He'll get plenty of games for Aberdeen. Would like to think that we would have made an offer but I guess Aberdeen would have been able to pay more of his wages.

Cole and Doran were our two main sources of creativity. They have to start against Partick.

Apparently an old tweet of his slagging off Aberdeen was retweeted a lot and he was getting a load of abuse for it. He's since deleted his Twitter account.

Ryan Christie is rumoured to be heading to Aberdeen on loan. http://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/757956/Celtic-Transfer-News-Aberdeen-Ryan-Christie-James-Maddison Nothing really of any substance in that piece though.

It was complete overkill at the game. All those police and they still couldn't stop a bunch of lads having a scuffle after the match.

IHE causing it in Elgin - disgraceful*. *This is an ironic post by the way before anyone tries to report him to the police!

I've said it before but Doran could well play a similar role to Andrew Shinnie for us. He has a real creative spark and a keen eye for a pass. Hopefully he gets a run of games and we'll get him back to his peak from a few seasons ago where he was an assists monster.

forresjags incoming...

Shocking display of defeatism from some ICT fans. Bring on the Celtic!

Looks like you'll need to find another way to save up for that new Massey Ferguson.

Great draw IMO.

Biggest pre match thread in a while for CTO.

Our best performance of the season came against Dundee. We were excellent from start to finish and we should have won by more than 3 - 1. In that game Polworth played behind the striker for most of the game, Draper anchored the midfield with Tansey and Vigurs was on the bench. For me that says a lot.

As I've said already we might well sign another player in that mould which could allow Draper to play further forward but I'm basing this on the guys we have to pick from right now and Draper is the best option to play as a defensive midfielder from the current squad.

It puts a more defensive midfielder back into, erm, defensive midfield instead of a midfielder who isn't great defensively. It has no central midfielders playing wide on the left or right. It has a second striker/attacking midfielder who *could* link up with Doumbouya better than the current support he gets. Could always stick Polworth in there and move Anier further forward. Of course we might sign more players to give us more creativity up front or tighten up at the back but I've gone with the players currently available but we need to be realistic. We're unlikely to see wholesale changes to this side because we don't have the budget. A couple of short term fixes is probably about as good as it can get for us and hope we can limp over the finishing line.

With additional attacking options it means that someone like Draper will not be expected to play further forward as he has done in games this season and he could go back to being part of the two in front of the defence along with Tansey. I wouldn't be too surprised to see us play something like this: Fon Williams Mckay Warren Meekings Tremarco Tansey Draper Doran Anier King Doumbouya

Some comments from United and Hibs fans on Anier from P & B:

Like others I'm sceptical about his scoring record but I'm pleased that he will at least offer us something different up front. When was the last time we had five strikers on our books?

Just the one as far as I know and she is the best her cakes can be a bit dry which is what I think Elginloon was getting at above.

And his squad number