Bush

Raith don't have nothing to play for. It is not beyond possibility that at least two of Airdrie, Ayr and Morton could overtake them and drag them into a relegation or play off position. Agree. Six points of the playoff place I think they'll be watching their backs. Yes, Raith's proximity to the drop zone can only be a good thing with their forthcoming double-header against Dundee. Here's hoping they can do themselves, and us, a favour in those two fixtures.

It isn't "definitely our league" yet as, mathematically, several others can still win it. I agree that we are clearly the best placed and favourites for the championship, but lets not get carried away, in case we get left egg on our face. That said, it was another huge step closer today. The management and players need to keep the focus and not look any further thatn the next game - which is another difficult one against the Pars. I'm getting very tense as we get closer, hoping for the best, but still fearing the worst!!

Well done Rev, made my stomach churn and gave me a horrible sick feeling until I realised the date! Managed to hook in a couple of C*unty supporters in the office tho'! Lifted their spirits after their disappointment on Tuesday, only to bring them crashing down again moments later - brilliant!!!

Good to see the club communicating with the fanbase on this. Irrespective of the rights and wrongs of the matter, which will obviously be fully determined in due course, it's nice to see that they're communicating with us and putting their perspective /position across (which Niculae has already done through various outlets). It may be later than the fanbase would have liked, but a positive step nonetheless.

I think there is still some doubt about the game going ahead. Although the USH has been on since late morning, it is only effective down to about -6degC, and ideally needs to be on for a couple of days to lift any hard frost in the ground. Overnight forecast is for fairly low temps and, apparently, the pitch was solid this morning. I hope the game is on, but there is a real risk that it may not.

The website will be updated shortley after midnight ONCE ALL DEALS CONCERNING ICT, OR POSSIBLE DEALS CONCERNING ICT HAVE BEEN COMPLETED I look forward to reading about Imrie & any other activity!

We should definitely be trying to keep him. There is no doubt that he went through a wee sticky patch earlier in the season, but he has looked much more accomplished and self assured in recent weeks. We certainly need the cover in any case but I'd be looking to keep him based on his recent displays regardless.

Perhaps not that strange a decision. Picture this as a possible scenario:- Hastings, clearly unhappy at being on the fringes of the first team (perhaps with some justification), facilitates a move to Hamilton which only comes to light today (Hastings wasn't even at the game on Saturday, so this deal was probably done last week!). Butcher, in the aftermath of LDZ's poor performance on Saturday needs to ensure there are alternative options and Golly then signs. Doesn't seem too strange a decision if the above were true. Nothwithstanding this, it may appear that Golly is a panic signing but the proof of that particular pudding will only be in the eating! Until such time as Golly pulls on a Caley top and crosses the white line I'll reserve judgement and give my full support (as a supporter) to him. Whilst on the pitch he'll also have my full backing and I'll reserve any criticism until it is actually merited - and not before (unlike some who are prejudging on here). He was a great servant to the club and, whilst perhaps there may be some debate as to his credentials in the SPL, I'm certain he has the ability to perform admirably in the first division. I accept he hasn't played much in the last season (primarily as a result of his son's illness) but let's give the guy a chance FFS! He's not even stepped onto the training pitch for us yet and some "fans" are berating him!

Good to see that TB is still looking to improve the squad, but I do worry about how the club is financing all of this. We already have a large pool of players and we must surely need to get a few out on loan (together with at least a proportion of their wages - if not all) to keep the overall wage bill in check. If I recall correctly, 1 addition to the squad would see us at 26 registered first team players - a lot for this league (probably only beaten by Dundee?)!

According to Twitter its:- Esson Tokely, Bulvitis, Munro, Lionel Eagle, Stratford, Cox, Hayes Foran, Rooney Subs: Allison, Proctor, McBain, Suthrland, Ross

I'm not sure it's fair to say that he got them into this mess, although he certainly hasn't done enough (if anything) to reverse the very challenging position they were in. The bottom line is that Livi were already living well beyond their means (as can unfortunately be said for a lot of clubs these days) prior to his arrival and he just hasn't been able to either a] reverse this trend, or b] plough in enough cash of his own to cover it. That said, his current stance regarding the interim manager's pay-off offer is pretty ridiculous!

Must agree with this. I happened to meet Mike Smith in a non-football environment and didn't actually know who he was until some way through our discussions. Struck me as a very unassuming guy and I think it may well be the case that, because he is not "the public face" of the club, he is more likely to be misjudged by us than others whose roles are more readily seen (eg. Grasser).

I would agree The SFL have stated that the games currently scheduled for 14 November (world cup play off date) "may be moved to Sunday 15th November if Scotland are involved in a World Cup Play-Off match". No mention of the move being dependant on Scotland having the home leg on the Saturday, so assume it'll be a simple case that if Scotland make the play offs, the SFL ties will move to the Sunday. Nice to see a good, common sense approach being taken

How can you come out with the above after being the very one to start this thread and describe the possible signing as "SOOPERB"?

He certainly fit's into the category of "Experienced SPL Standard Striker" - something that we have been short of as a club and screaming out for as supporters. On that basis, even with the possible slight question mark over fitness already highlighted, this must be seen as a positive step if brought to fruition.

:018: :thumb04: All the best Brew. As Starchief says, I'm sure your intentions were honourable, but possibly misguided and definitely unsuccessful.

A very good post Stevie. Like you I want to give all at ICT my support & the facts that you highlight speak for themselves. Hardly the clubs darkest hour as some doom merchants would have us believe. Could this topic possibly silence the anti-brew brigade for 5 minutes?

During the closing ten minutes it looked likely that if there was to be a winning goal, then it would have been ICT's. The pinching points is just a figure of speech which, in this instance, really referred to the timing of any winning goal (ie. late in the game) rather than our overall ability being limited to "pinching points at home to Falkirk". Please don't take things out of context and mis-quote them! In terms of aiming higher, there really is no need. Do you honestly think that the management and players went into last night's game with the aim of coming away with a draw? I'm fairly certain that it was everybody's aim to try and win the game last night but unfortunately we didn't. Just because you aim high, it doesn't necessarily follow that you reach those heights. The important thing is to learn from the experience, analyse the negative aspects and change what you can, and harness and praise the positives.

And by the same token, let's all give a round of applause to Brew for having the sense to accept that he got the team selection wrong last night and for making a bold attempt to put it right at half time. The changes certainly made a difference and we could just about have pinched the three points ;) :015: I now wait ominously for the barrage of criticism that will undoubtedly follow! However, please don't label me a "Brew-Lover" because I'm not, just trying to bring some positivity to proceedings. :D

Don't know if you misheard, but you definitely misread! The point was about ICT's 200th goal in the SPL, not the 200th goal of the SPL Season. I don't know if Nakamura scored the 200th goal of the SPL season (he may well have done), but he definitely didn't score ICT's 200th goal in the SPL!!!

If I recall correctly (from Radio Scotland's Sportsound programme) Macguire's wife gave birth a day or two before and he had some time off. I suspect he'll be back in the team for the Celtic game, although I also agree that it's important for all of the younger players to get proper first team experience. It's the only way they'll improve and hopefully fulfill the potential that they've shown so far. As may have been said already, because Duff plays in defence a slight misjudgement / error can have more significant ramifications (like conceding a goal) than if he plays in midfield/attack. The "silence" is definitely down to the fact the we all accept that some mistakes are part of his learning process.

IHE Whilst I respect your opinion and acknowledge some of the points you make, you must surely see a bit of inconsistency in your arguement. How can you on one hand essentially say that "we're heading for the mire and it's Brewsters fault" and then turn round and say, and I quote, "If we do pull ourselves out of this it will be becos of the players not Brewster"? The management and players have got us where we are (wherever you think that is), and both will determine where we end up! You can't arbitarily blame Brewster solely as the cause of all poor performances and then credit the players for all good performances. As I've intimated previously, I'm not adverse to criticism of Brewster or any individual player when it is merited and when those criticising can justify it. What I can't follow is is inconsistent, unjustifiable and unbalanced criticism. Whilst I do respect what you say, I do think you've shot yourself in the foot a bit here (unless of course you can justify why Brew is solely to blame for things going wrong and has no part when they go well!).

Brew's future is always, like any manager, dependant on results and the players busting a gut for him (and for themselves for that matter). I understand your comment about losing faith in his favourites, but he has been criticised by members of this forum for doing that and relying too much on the youngsters. It just goes to demonstrate that opinion can vary among the supporters who all want the same thing - success - so there will almost always be a proportion of the fanbase that disagree with something Brew does! I don't see why last night was a repreive (I'm not aware that Brew's job was partcularly under threat prior to the game) although there is no doubt that the result was a relief for all staff and supporters alike. The forthcoming games are certainly a challenge, but I don't see why he's on a sticky wicket, anymore than he normally is! A run of bad results will always increase pressure, but lets not add to the burden by piling the pressure on before it's even got to the point of being due. The bottom line is that we're through to the QF's of the CIS Cup and we're mid-table in the league. I'm sure we'd all have taken that before the season started. If (and some will think when) we lose the next 4/5 games and end up 11th/12th and out of the CIS Cup, then start cranking the pressure up - I just can't see what possible benefit can be gained from putting the players and manager under undue pressure before the predicament merits it.

I wasn't at the game and am interested in the opinions of those that were. Given that the players were pretty poor for the first hour and Brewster then made changes which improved the performance (and subsequently attained the win), I really can't understand why some fans are calling for Brew's head!! I think most fans would agree that the basis of the squad is about as good as we can get (given finances, geographical constraints, etc, etc) so what is the beef with Brewster? The starting line up was reasonable and pretty much as expected, it wasn't working, Brew changed it and we eventually got the result! Hardly a sacking offence is it!? I don't wish to defend Brew blindly, but I do think that some fans have completely unreasonable expectations of what this club is actually capable of. And before anyone says "beating Morton in normal time" - I accept that, but...... the quality of players that we have will lead to inconsistency of performance at times. The important things is how the manager, and the players, react to that. Ultimately, the response last night was what was required!

I'm not a regular poster to this site (but am a regular viewer), and it seems to me that Brewster will never be able to do anything right in the eyes of some on here. I've recently read various opinions from a number of fans on this site which include:- We've lost the game and it's Brewster's fault (albeit that there have been some basic defensive errors) We've won the game, but not played well, and it's Brewster's fault (not the players though?) He should give the youngsters a chance He should stick with experience The defence are making too many errors and he should now go with Munro & Duff He goes with Munro and Duff and we concede a poor goal against Morton McAllister's playing well in the reserves and should be given a chance in the first team McAllister's not cut out for the SPL and should be farmed out / offloaded We use too many young players without experience We should give youth a chance and get them some experience He should give younger players a chance against lower league opposition in the cup He should put out the strongest side to beat lower league opposition in the cup As Greavsie said "it's a funny old game", and the above conflicting opinions come from all of us "armchair experts" who think we know where it's going wrong - but we can't all be right. Brewster will be judged, in time, on how he's performed - and that should be on results first, and style of play/performances second! I understand why fans are irate about the performance against Morton last night. On paper we should be much better than them, should beat them in normal time (even with some youth playing). However, Hibs on paper are a better side than us and they found it very tough against Morton - this was always a potential banana skin of a fixture. The bottom line is we're in the QF's and showed character & resilience last night to get there. If we're going to blame Brewster for the performance, surely he should then get credit for ensuring that the fight and attitude where there to force home the victory (even if it wasn't pretty)? Let's get things in perspective:- Whilst disappointed with the manner of the victory last night, we're through to the QF's. Although home performance in the SPL haven't been great, we're sitting mid-table which, on balance, is probably where we generally belong (albeit with the odd flutter a bit higher). Whilst we'll possibly/probably lose talent to bigger clubs, the youth set-up seems strong and we've some good young players coming through. Football supporters can be emotional and fickle beings, but calling for Brewster to be sacked after a (poor performing) victory, seems to be taking things a bit far