Renegade

I remember a few seasons ago in Brewster's second spell, a few posters started calling for Tokely to be moved to right wing. This carried on for a couple of weeks until ICT had an away tie against Killie where lo and behold, Tokely started at right wing. He then started in that position again the next week against Aberdeen. I always maintained that it was too big of a switch to just be a coincidence!

Esson Cox* Tokely Golobart Gillet A.Shinnie Tansey Davis Tade McKay Hayes Subs - Tuffey, Ross, G.Shinnie, Sutherland, Proctor, Chippendale, Foran * - If Meekings is fit, he keeps his place at right back. Apparently Cox can also play there so he would be his would-be replacement. Attack attack attack!

I see one poster on here has gone on another "Butcher Out" rampage this week on ICT Fans Facebook page, despite almost certainly not being at the game. No prizes for guessing who!

Robbed, utterly robbed. Is it just me or do ICT always seem to concede after Tade has been taken off? That was the wrong decision IMO. A far better performance this week and deserved at least a draw. Far better performances all round really, but while Foran was a bit better this, I still don't see how he seems to get 90 minutes. I would've taken him off instead of Tade myself. The defence was a heck of a lot better this week and the team seem to be far better without Proctor and Ross. Only way is up really, but I'm a lot more optimistic this week than I was last.

HT - ICT 1-1 MFC FT - ICT 1-2 MFC ICT 1st scorer - Sutherland MFC 1st scorer - Higdon Attendance - 3,718

Baffling

He hasn't scored into double figures since leaving ICT (9 goals in 104 games since leaving Saint Mirren). Hardly the goal scorer ICT are looking for any more.

I think the bottom line here is still that there is no real goalscorer anywhere in the squad. Now, here is where in my opinion a mistake was made - last January a Russian team (Tom Tomsk?) bid ?100,000 for Rooney which was knocked back. I don't believe had Rooney gone ICT would've been relegated and still could well have finished in 7th place. I also don't believe knocking back that bid warranted what Rooney did for the team in the second half of last season. Had ICT taken the ?100,000, then chances are, though not a certainty, that it would of been far easier in replacing him for this season. That was a big mistake.

He was Man of the Match this week in The Sunday Post!* * - This is no joke. I am serious.

The usual 4-3-3 for me - Esson Tokely Golobart Meekings G.Shinnie Davis Tansey Cox Tade McKay Sutherland Subs - Tuffey, Ross, Proctor, Gillet, A.Shinnie, Hayes, Foran Attack attack attack!

So Esson has a great game yesterday making good save after good save and now you want to drop him!

Lets do first things first, that was awful - really really terrible. How ICT escaped with a draw from that is one of the great mysteries of life as the Pars could have won that by three or four goals - and no-one could say they didn't deserve it. Lets first talk about the manager - I believe when the players and fans look towards the dugout they need to believe in who's there and it certainly doesn't look like they do, I know I certainly don't. It was evident from the beginning that they didn't seem up for it, as the feeling permeated the stadium that something was a-miss. Tactically, it was awful. Long hoof, after long hoof, after long hoof. Dismal dismal style there - no ideas, no nothing. What was the deal with that formation? It was just bizarre. When has Nick Ross ever been a winger? He was rubbish today. Proctor was appalling as well. How anyone, particularly an ex-England centre-half can say that Munro wouldn't have been as good there as Proctor was today is astonishing! They must have an IQ that struggles to reach 15! And Tansey.......I have no idea what he was supposed to be doing today and evidently neither did he. Butcher seems to have good rid of good team players who really wanted to be here in Munro and Duncan and has replaced them with medicore nobodies, some of whom won't even be here come 2012 and it certainly showed - far too many passengers. Butcher needs to stop picking his favourites every time as well - Foran, Proctor and Ross are not undroppable. And then we have Foran. He was utterly utterly abysmal. Just all round useless. Apart from his cross for the goal, his touch was poor, his tackling was poor, his passing was dreadful and zero leadership from the captain whatsoever. Only Tade, Esson, Davis and maybe at times Andrew Shinnie really seemed to have some idea at what the were doing out there. Tokely of course was as usual his steady self. And what's the deal with these stupid short corners. Every single time it was silly short corner after another silly short corner. Did it work? Of course not. I'm now scared that it really could be Armageddon 2012 for ICT. Say what you like about luck, officials and all the rest but you get what you deserve in the end. And if the unthinkable is possible if things don't change - and change fast.

HT - ICT 1-1 Pars FT - ICT 2-1 Pars ICT 1st scorer - Piermayr Pars 1st scorer - Kirk Attendance - 3,714

I mentioned a while ago but I'll mention it again, there's a guy called Steve Black that has become available. He's regarded as one of, if not the best fitness coach/sports physiologist in the world and it is true that his records for injuries sustained in football are excellent. He's worked with Newcastle, Sunderland, the Welsh Rugby Team amongst others and Johnny Wilkinson claims that he is the maestro of his career. His record speaks for itself and ICT signing him to the backroom staff could mean that the team on the pitch could be far better than a new player there would be.

While the crux of what you say is true, could they not be doing things in training that are going to make them more susceptible to injuries? It's certainly possible. Also, in regards to the players views on training under Butcher, while nothing has come yet so far from those at ICT, there have been issues at other clubs. Supposedly the training at Brentford was terrible and at Sydney the players used to meet in secret in the afternoons to go over training again; so much was their disgust at the training implemented by Butcher during his time there. It would be foolish discount this side of things just yet.

I had a look to see what Lionel was up to a little while ago. Looks like he's just dropped off the face of the Earth to be honest!

What about Alan Morgan? I know his contract just wasn't renewed so he technically didn't leave out of choice, but his career plummeted after leaving ICT (even more so if you count that he used to be at Blackburn). Edit - I see he's playing East Lothian Juniors football now at Mussellburgh United. I didn't realise that he's still only 27.

Brewster got it at Dundee United and brought it back with him!

I see time and again people mentioning the injury list and while of course there are some injuries that cannot be avoided and just happen, surely someone has to question what the players are doing in the Terry Butcher/Maurice Malpas training schedules. I find it quite hard to believe that all these injuries just occurred "by chance" and I would think that perhaps there is perhaps something the players are doing here that could lead to potentially more injuries. I'm no training expert, but I have heard from people who were involved in the training a few years ago say that it IS the training that has caused so many injuries. People slated Brewster either right or wrongly for his training methods, so why don't the same rules apply for Butcher? I certainly don't remember Brewster having as many injuries as this in a one-er when he was on the go in either of his two spells.

Did that American striker Eddie Johnson who was at Fulham ever find a club? Always thought he looked like he had potential. Edit - Just checked, he doesn't. Was supposed going to go to Chivas USA but contract negotiations broke down. Don't know what his wages would be like, but he could be a good signing I reckon.

I quite like them, but I've heard that Ian Brown isn't as great live as he is on record.

With ICT having such a poor defensive record these days, would a back five with attacking wing backs work? Tokely-Hogg-Golobart-Gillet-G.Shinnie Something like that? With Tokely given more freedom to attack, which is probably his best asset and allows Shinnie to use his pace to bomb down the left.

Esson Piermayr Tokely Golobart G.Shinnie Tade Tansey Davis Chippendale Sutherland McKay Subs - Tuffey, Ross, Proctor/Cox, A.Shinnie, Hayes, Gillet, Foran

I'm sick of these people that come on and say words to the effect of "Munro's gone. Get over it". Sorry, but I won't get over it until the team gets over it. Munro is being missed - BIG STYLE. People will say it was the wrong move to get of him, they're right but it wasn't just wrong, it was downright stupid. We'll be lucky if can find someone who can filling the void, but one thing's for sure, Proctor ain't the answer!

HT - St Johnstone 1-1 ICT FT - St Johnstone 1-2 ICT St Johnstone 1st scorer - Sheridan ICT 1st scorer - Davis Attendance - 3,412 Richie Foran