IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER

Is it me or is the tide changing - we need to change things and put Foran wide and Shinnie in the hole.

Ah the resounding cry of "Caley" brings tears to ma blue eyes.

Lots of empty gudgie heads as well. We are bossing it so fat.

That was a feckin penalty not "experienced defending"

It already then reminds me of the 70's - red flares on the pitch and a feckin gudgie with a bucket as a carry bag- but I love the pagoda in the corner !!

Feck me - I can clean ma crotch but how can i feckin clean ma cache - for an idiot ?

Good feckin point. If you disagree you dont boo or deride you pay homage and derision in silence.

Aah Grasshopper- you have a lot to learn !!

ccc

Not a lot then !!!!

I evidently will always feel that Rosscoe was badly treated by the club but I was as irked that he decided to get his own back by going over the bridge. There is no feckin way that he didn't understand how that would be received. It could be compared with Ryan Giggs or Scholes going to City !! Lets face it - if he had gone anywhere else he would have continued to be idolised by many. So what the feck did he expect on his return - a feckin standing ovation - The boos only resounded becos they were made in combination with a muted silence of older fans showing grudging respect. He has really fallen in to yet another media trap and should have simply said "no comment". I also suspect that his words may have been journalistically interpreted but he has simply fuelled the feckin fires again. The name of Ross Tokely will always be legendary to me but the man has disappointed me yet again.

If this was a league game then we would undoubtedly be clear favourites. The gudgies are worried because we are buzzing and they are struggling. But this will be looked at as a one off local derby cup tie and that usually favours the home side and the bookies are more wary. To be honest we would probably have been far clearer favourites and I would be far more confident away from home at the moment.

Warren has recently been played as more of a traditional centre half. Prior to that he had been playing in more of a two joint central defenders. He played well before but he certainly looks far more impressive when he is given the more dominant role. He is not the quickest and I feel that he has struggled with pace but is supreme when he is given the role of being the chosen one in the air and plays with a sweeper. What do the sheep shagging population of South Wales fink of that.

A wee bit worried that he does tend to show his authority by stamping out poor discipline and the tackles will be pouring in. Could have been a lot,lot worse.

I suspect that Master Skywalker may be rite OR is he ? TB has been very consistent and kept faith in Roberts but Draper has been very important to us and possibly TB's first player on the team sheet. Foran is TB's chosen one fer seasons. BUT we all want to win this BUT is it worth risking Draper in such a probable blood and thunder tie and when we have Hibs and Dundee Utd coming up next in the league. Could go either way but I think that Rastamouse may be part of the Dungwall Easy Crew.

Quote from Terry after the game last night which i have to slightly disagree with. We do have "a system" which is becoming as fluid as it is becoming consistent - but that is an away from home system. If we had a system for the TCS we would be walking this feckin league. But again this is nothing new. I will provide you all with my advanced psychological and tactical observations and I await comment and/or constructive criticism with anticipation. Some of our captures may well raise their games when we travel to places like Parkhead and Pittodrie. For some of them, especially the thrill deprived Englishmen it must be a dream to play at such stadia and to pit their wits against European "legends". That could only increase their adrenaline levels and lead to improved performances. in such arenas they are also in the sptlight and some will be using ICT as a stepping stone. Unless you have the real "play for the shirt" ingrained emotion then it may be considerably more difficult to raise your game at ICT - and dont give me the "they are professionals" excuse garbage. The tepidness of the home crowd may also be a factor and some sweetie rustlers in our stands who would have Neil Lennon considering completing suicide rather than quitting. Again I will hear the "they are professionals response" but I also feel that their levels of concentration waver more at the TCS. We are definitely playing more "together" but there are lapses of individual committment. Tactically should we utilise the away mentality - can we ? - as far as I am concerned we havent attempted it - should we ? A more dangerous game at home but shurely worth a try. Give Raven, Warren and Meekings the directive to defend and get them to hold a line higher up the pitch. Raven and Shinnie have to be more aware to hold the line but also to "sweep". Let Warren take on the centre half role. That should also make the midfield gap easier to control. The only issue is the offside trap failing. Stick OTJ and either Foran/Draper in that middle ground and one holds and one looks to go forward. Play Doran and Roberts out wide - keep swopping them or do the homework and decide where thae opposition flaws are, and look to feed them as much as possible. Play Andy Shinnie high up in a "hole" and take away some defensive responsibility. Play McKay exactly how we have been doing away from home. We also need to press the ball as much as possible, especially the midfield four whilst Shinnie and McKay concentrate on pressing any defenders trying to run the ball out.

Fairly spot on davieB. We have discovered how to utilise him at long last. He simply never was a feckin target man or the lone striker who could hold the ball up or terrorise in the air. He is your old fashioned penalty box instinctive goalscorer - a bit of a blend of Craig Dargo and Dennis Wyness. But he is far more effective away from home. We are beginning to look at palying simpler balls, using width but we have also changed the positioning of McKay and the type of service provided too him. I dont know how he was utilised at Aberdire but at Killie and at Cellic he was playing on the shoulders of the last defender - shure he will get caught offside more but he will also score more. He also appears to have been relieved of his defensive duties and also appears to be told to hold the front line instead of foraging. He also has noticeably started taking up positions in the "box" when the ball goes wide, many times moving away rather than looking fer the knock in and 1:2 type of play. Then he is not getting the hoofs predominantly. Peeple are looking to use his pace over 10-15 yards and looking to hit balls in to the spaces between or over the central defenders. What he has also got better at is taking defenders wide with his movement and leaving more opportunities for the likes of Andy Shinnie to move in to. He was overshadowed whenplayed with Foran which is surprising as you would have thought that he would be the purrfect foil for the more traditional centre forward. Plus, and possibly more importantly - as with a few others, he is being played consistently and there is nothing better than scoring goals to boost the self confidence of a striker. And he aint exactly scoring crackers but he is getting in to scoring positions at the near and far posts.

Shouldnt we also looking to consistency and an improved level of performance at the TCS as well ?

A bottle of red wine should suffice at the moment.

Have we not forgotten our home form - that is still bottom six standard. To me Celtic simply are going to win the league and when they go out of the champions league they will start picking up more and more points. Our aim simply now has to be top six and a cup final (win or lose). We have also been very fortunate overall in respect of injuries and suspensions and our current squad will not contain the losses similar to what we suffered last season and what Aberdire are facing at the moment. But if we need to fantasise then we have the potential to come second or third and a place in Europe would be an utter bonus. But then again if we do end up in those heady heights - who are we going to lose in the transfer window ? As my old mucker Henry David Thoreau once whispered to me in a Pigalle bar (it was in French but I will translate) : "Johndo, You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment. Fools stand on their island of opportunities and look toward another land. There is no other land; there is no other life but this.” And then Doris Day supped her pastiche and crooned "Que Sera, Sera, Whatever will be, will be,The future's not ours, to see, Que Sera, Sera What will be, will be."

For the older readers - I am impersonating David Frost and would wish to declare "That was the week that was" and hopefully by the end of the week everybody will be saying it and remember it for feckin ever.

Same again with Draper back on the bench - good news all round.

Apparently his qoute on departure was : http://youtu.be/ryZSZVmTzzM

Riteenuffmun

Boing. Boing Jaggies, Jaggies could do with explosives as well.