DoofersDad

Ross County are neither. They are an SFL team and next season they will be an SPL team. If they and their various supporters on this forum aspire for them to be "the most successful Highland League team in history" or "the most successful team in Highland League history" then maybe they should abandon plans for improvement at their bog of a ground and apply to join the Highland League next season. I am sure they would be made most welcome.

Excellent article.

Interesting indeed. Some decent thoughts there but it appears to suggest that if Rangers went into liquidation and emerged with a new name they would automatically have a place in the SPL. I can understand other clubs supporting that in the event it happened to them, but liquidation should mean you start at the bottom of the structure and work your way up.

Congratulations are in order but it is a shame they have not had to work harder for the title. For Dundee to fail to win at home against the bottom club is very poor indeed and it has been like that all season. County's points per game ratio of 2.1 is nothing special and is 3rd out of 4 of the top teams in the four scottish divisions. Dundee's points per game ratio of just 1.6 is very low for a team in 2nd place and is worse than Motherwell's in 3rd in the premier division and the worst of all the 2nd placed teams in the Scottish divisions. Whilst acknowledging that there are twice as many teams in the English divisions, this points per game ratio would typically place you about 6th or 7th. So whilst County are top on merit, they are top of a pretty mediocre bunch of teams in the SFL this year and have never been under any pressure. It will certainly be interesting to see how they do next year and despite my grudging acknowledgment of their achievement here, I happen to think they will do pretty well.

Much will depend on who leaves and who stays and who gets brought in. I'm not going to guess that. Much will depend on how injuries impact on a team and whether the clubs can field a consistent side. But if County can keep their team largely intact and bring in 2 or 3 experienced players then they are likely to be hard to beat. Personally I don't see them going down and we will do well to finish above them Much as it pains me to say it, I can see County ending up in the top 6 next season. So whilst we have been consistently above them since we joined the Scottish League they currently pip us in having reached a Scottish Cup final and next year they could beat our best ever league position as well. Normal service will then resume after that. One more prediction. We release Proctor, he joins Munro across the bridge and has a superb season. I'll stop now before I get too depressed.

What! No Andy Barrowman! Think I'll stay at home.

I confess to being largely ignorant of the murky world of business finance but would agree up to a point. Borrowing money is a fact of life and we all do it. A mortgage for instance allows us to live in a house that we could not afford were we not to borrow money from someone else. As long as the business pays back the loan and the interest associated with it then there should be no problem. If one business is better at persuading others to loan them money and is more successful as a result, then good luck to them. That is simply good business. It gets murky when the business is less than honest with those lending the money. If those loaning the money are given incorrect information about the business which hides the level of risk then the business obtains money which it might not otherwise have got. Those loaning money have a responsibility to check the business model they are presented with and therefore it can become a grey area as to whether the lender has just been naiive or whether the business has acted fraudulently. I couldn't possibly say which is the case here other than Rangers are certainly in the murky area of business. And where I would certainly take issue with Alex and would go along with Lawrence is that most of Rangers' debt is not their failure to pay back loans, it is failure to pay taxes which they are legally obliged to pay and failure to pay a variety of other businesses money which is simply owed for services provided. There is therefore a world of difference between being in debt and not paying what you owe to others. Other football clubs may be in debt (and some by considerably more than Rangers) but if their business model offers assurances that money owed can always be paid then we should not be unduly concerned. The point here is that the powers that be should expect any football club to act within the law and to pay money owed to others with reasonable promptness. Failure to do that should result in sanctions. It is right to throw the book at Rangers but it would be wrong to throw the book at any other club just because they have what appear to be rather large debts. Finally, just a thought about a specific debt Rangers apparently have failed to pay. Reports suggest an unpaid bill of £8,000 to the Scottish Ambulance Service. Given what happened recently with Fabrice Muamba and the fantastic attention he received at the scene of his collapse, it seems quite appalling that Rangers have failed to pay them promptly. If anyone at Rangers had a shred of decency about them, they would have paid this small but important debt out of their own pocket.

He wouldn't be my first choice either but he was excellent in the 2nd half against Rangers. Whilst he does get caught from time to time, he is usually pretty solid and always gives 100%. He does a lot of quietly efficient work which goes un-noticed by many whilst the occasional slips are, unfortunately always noted and commented on. He can play in a number of positions and is a good player to have on the bench. He's a good squad player and I for one would be happy to see him stay.

If the referendum vote worked on the same rules as SPL we would need 92% to vote "yes" for independence to become a reality.

Spot on. Good first post.

Whatever turns you on

Great blog. Great also hearing of the good progress and Chris's determination to get himself back playing. Hopefully he will be able to provide the solidity at the back next year that we have been lacking this year.

Dictionary

That probably says more about Scottish football than it does about Terry Butcher.

Unless of course we pump each of them! That's what I like to hear

I hope you don't mean that Luke. Your support and enthusiasm for the club are a breath of fresh air on this site and I'm sure most folk on this site agree with much of what you say. We could do with a lot more like you. There are some on here who for reasons best known to themselves are only happy when they are moaning and can't seem to say a good word about the club. Don't despair. Just ignore them. They may not ever agree with you but you will be winning the argument to the large number of folk who read the forum but who rarely contribute to it. As long as you say your piece it doesn't matter who has the last word - it's what you say that matters, not how many times you say it. This forum needs a range of views and that includes criticism when criticism is due. But criticism should be objective and constructive and when it is there can be a sensible exchange of views. I have been very critical of Butcher in a post above and you are just the sort of person I would welcome coming back with comments to defend him if you think I have been unfair.

A possibility of Aberdeen, Hibs and Dunfermline at home! That should offer plenty of scope for unremitting negativity on this forum

Silly analogy - your Auntie will never have balls and will never be your Uncle, but if we could only improve a little bit in one or two areas then we could be comfortably mid table or even a little above. Sutherland seems to get worse every time I see him and he obviously gets frustrated. That is because he is being played out of position and makes errors in doing a role he shouldn't be doing. It doesn't help the players confidence to constantly criticise them when the problem is that the manager is playing them out of position. When Sutherland first came into the team he looked keen and full of promise. He now looks frustrated and anxious and it's a waste of his considerable talent.

The difference between success and failure is a thin line. This forum is awash with negativity at the moment as a result of 2 very disappointing defeats but things could have been very different. After a stirring win at Aberdeen we were very poor against St Johnstone but could easily have won: we had the better chances, we hit the bar and 2 penalty incidents went the wrong way. We played much better against Hibs, again having more chances but simply failing to take them. We could and should have won that but were unlucky to be up against a side who managed to take their chances when they came. We could easily have been reflecting on 9 points in 9 days and the talk would have been about whether we could equal our highest ever finish for the 2nd season in a row. And to some extent, I think this sums up our season. We have not had the rub of the green. Penalty decisions have gone against us, red card decisions have gone against us and there are certainly far more times we drew or lost games we should have won than the other way round. Our well documented injury problems have obviously not helped the cause. What I am saying here is that we nearly have a very good side and if the luck had been with us over the season as much as it has been against us then we would be in the top six. No, it is not just the last 2 games fortune has not been on our side, it is the whole season. But before I am pounced on for being a happy clapper (if only some others would clap their team a bit more often) I have to say that to some extent, you make your own luck. Losing games you should have won is not just down to luck, it is about the other team scoring more goals than you. There has been some poor defending and undoubtedly injuries have not helped here. The defence more than any other part of the team needs to work as a unit and that needs consistency of team selection. But even when players are available, Butcher switches things around just because someone makes an error one week. He seems to have no faith in any line up and then slates them when things go wrong. It's hardly going to help the players to be composed in their role at the back. Butcher must take responsibility for that. And whilst on the subject of defenders, there can be little doubt that we are a poorer side without Munro and Butcher must take responsibility for him not being here. But it is not the defence that is the real problem, it is the attack. To some extent (but not much) I have sympathy with Butcher here. Everyone says that being an effective striker is a confidence thing (look at Torres and Carroll in England!) and that you need to let your strikers have a decent run in the side and the goals will come. Butcher has done that with Tade and MacKay but unfortunately the goals have not come. But in fairness to the players, part of that is simply the wrong tactics. Tade is too wide and long balls are hoofed up to Mackay - poor lad doesn;t have a chance. What Mackay needs is balls on the deck and he so nearly scored a good goal on Sunday when Hayes played him in with a cracking through ball. More service like that and I am sure MacKay will score. If Tade is playing he needs to be the target with Mackay playing off him. And I don't for the life of me understand why Butcher plays Sutherland the way he does. I think he could play the Rooney role well. He's often got a good first touch, he can hold the ball up and he can turn and shoot well. Play him as the target with MacKay playing off him and we'll do better. Bring Tade on as an impact sub to terrorise tiring defences and he'll always keep a couple of defenders busy when the opposition is trying to chase the game. And what of Winnall? Who knows? He just isn't given the chance which seems extraordinary given the lack of goals in recent weeks. We may not have the greatest strikers in the league but Butcher is certainly not making the best use of them. I don't think there is much wrong with the midfield and I think the number of chances we have created over the season bears witness to that. But again we seem to get change for change's sake and are never quite sure what the team is going to be. The players need consistency to avoid there being too much pressure on them and so that they can gel. By the way, I think there is too much criticism on here of Tansey. Whilst he has been hugely disappointing with his free kicks, he plays some pretty inteligent balls and a lot of the chances we create involve him in the build up. He's not the best we've ever had, but we've had worse. So whilst as I say, we are nearly a good team, we've still got a little way to go. Yes we have not enjoyed the best of luck, but for me, the biggest reason is down to the manager. I think he has done well to bring in the quality of player he has, given the financial constraints he is working under (a point people tend to forget), but he is not making the best use of the players once he gets them. His team selections are irratic, his tactics can be naiive and his substitutions can be baffling. I don't get the sense that team spirit is particularly good and that is hardly surprising given the lack of consistency around selection and the extent to which players are asked to play out of position and are then publicly castigated when it doesn't work. He also seems to be stubborn and can't see when he is wrong - and one suspects he does not tolerate the players suggesting he might be wrong once in a while. There is no doubt that Butcher is a charismatic figure and I am sure he is a great asset to the club in terms of profile, but in terms of his managerial credentials there are huge question marks. Given my criticism of him here, it is almost surprising that we are not struggling below Dunfermline at the foot of the table. But the fact that we could still end up comfortably in mid table indicates that there are several things he gets right. For me the jury is still out. As far as this season is concerned, I think we should write it off as one to forget but I think the Board should be concerned and should be sitting down with Butcher and Malpas to discuss certain issues. This season was meant to be the start of a new approach but it is fair to say that it has been derailed to some extent by factors outwith his control. It is highly unlikely that we will be as unlucky next season as we have been this. I expect us to do better next season and I will reserve my judgement on whether Butcher is the man for the job until this time next season.

It's funny how when there is just the slightest nudge in the box, an accidental contact with an elbow or a face to face confrontation when foreheads gently touch, players collapse to the ground as though poleaxed. but when there are real fisticuffs as at Bradford and Toronto, they all some how manage to stay firmly on their feet.

It was interesting seeing the highlights on the BBC website (if you can bear). To me I can't see Tade did anything to warrant a penalty being awarded. You dont see the whole of the Tansey incident but that certainly looks more of a penalty than the one that was given. Claude's strike was great technique and unlucky not to find the target. We didn't get the rub of the green but then we didn't deserve it either.

Prices will go up if you wait because the cheap tickets will have gone. A while ago I was looking at train prices to Leominster in Herefordshire. The return price was horendous. Two singles were cheaper but what was the cheapest option I could find was to get a single from Inverness to Glasgow, then a single from Glasgow to Crewe and then another single from Crewe to Leominster. Some of the pricing is just unreal. Bus is usually a cheaper option.

He might even get a game.

Well, chum from Brum, if you've been offerred the job I guess you'll have turned it down after that performance. You will understand why we would like Adam Rooney back.

That was bad. The two things for me were the lack of quality on show and the lack of tactical nous from the manager. Tudur-Jones may do well in the future and I thought he started pretty well. Perhaps he's not match fit but he completely faded out of the game after the first 20 minutes. There was simply no invention, no cutting edge and no composure in front of goal. And whilst the team battled well to get possession, when they had the ball they seemed unable to do anything with it. The passing was absolutely dire but then there was so little movement off the ball to give options. This was summed up for me by the number of times Tuffey collected the ball looking to release it quickly but there was never anyone wide and free to collect it and he ended up with the long punt to our 5' 7" target man. And that brings me to the tactics. Why oh why does Terry continue with a tactic which doesn't work and which has never looked like working. MacKay has his good points but for me he needs a big striker alongside. Sutherland is not a winger and is far more effective up front. So as the goals are simply not coming, Terry must know it is time to try something different. St Johnstone pressed high and crowded the midfield and Terry had no answer to it. Substitutions too little too late. Nick Ross looked more likely to create chances than anyone else but didn't really have time to create an impact. The high point was clearlyTokely's inspirational performance. I can't remember seeing a game when one player has been so much better than anyone else in the team. It was therefore very disappointing that his performance did not seem to lift the others. It was almost a case of "let's give the ball away so we can admire some more of Roscoe's defending!" Despite all this gloom, the strange thing is that we actually had the better chances and with finishing of even division 2 standard we would have won the game.