DoofersDad

The interesting thing in the statement from my perspective was the bit about last year's playing budget being the 3rd highest in the club's history. I had understood from what Kenny had previously said that Foran had been given the same funding as Hughes had, minus the extra Hughes received on the back of the injury crisis. If true, Graham's statement means that either Foran did not receive the same initial budget as Hughes did in his last year, or that Hughes' budget in his final year was cut from the year before. Either way, this means that S_C's point above is even more pertinent because Foran was expected to match Hughes' league position with a reduced budget.

HT 0-0 FT 2-0 ICT Bell Opp Sinclair Crowd 1954

I disagree. It would actually make it less likely that smaller teams would make the latter stages. Fort William v Celtic doesn't really do it for me. The big sides would simply put out a youth side or fringe players and it would be so artificial. Far better to have little teams playing big teams because they have earned the right by winning through in earlier rounds. They deserve and get a bit of respect and the game becomes a real occasion.

Forecast is for heavy rain for most of the day. If the pitch is playable then the conditions will not be conducive to pretty football. It would seem a shame to make changes to the side that has brought current success but we may need to play the stronger swimmers.

Interesting draw. Decent draw for us with hopes of an "upset". I'm sure we like the draw more than they do. But Hibs and Hearts meeting, a top flight Lanarkshire derby and Fraserburgh taking on The Rangers certainly catch the eye. Highland League involvement in the 5th round guaranteed with Formartine hosting Cove. Brora also quite capable of taking another league scalp at Methil.

Here's the answer.

Marley Watkins made his full international début tonight when he came on as a sub for Wales in a friendly against Panama. Well done Marley!

Failing to qualify for the World Club does not mean that he is a failure as a manager. He has done a fantastic job for Northern Ireland. They were no-hopers when he arrived and yet he took them to their first ever European finals and they were agonisingly close to qualifying for Russia. Northern Ireland are not exactly blessed with many decent players at the moment but yet he has produced a team that are hard to beat and which has, by N.Ireland standards, been one of the most successful sides ever. His record as Northern Ireland's manager is why the SFA along with big clubs like The Rangers and Sunderland are keen to get his services. When Scotland has such a fantastic record of producing great club managers, it would be a bit of a shame if Scotland appointed a non Scot. However, if O'Neill is to be the man, it will be because he wants to coach a national side rather than a club side and I think he would do a terrific job for Scotland.

I didn't think about it at the time but on reflection I do remember that I could just make out the names of the players coming on and off. It wasn't anything like as clear as the tannoy at Dingwall the previous Wednesday though.

If he hasn't found anything elsewhere, I think it demonstrates a bit of a gulf between what he (and/or his agent) thinks he's worth and what any potential club would be willing to pay. It was interesting that he played on Wednesday night as a trialist. If he had previously been offered something here and had refused to sign then why would Robbo give him game time instead of one of the youngsters? It suggests to me that he may be interested in signing him but wanted to see Nick in action in a competitive game before deciding whether to offer him anything. On Nick's performance, I wouldn't expect that Robbo will be willing to offer him anything other than a basic contract. If he does, then if Nick want's to get his career back on track, he should have the common sense to accept the offer and take the opportunity to up his game and demonstrate that he's worth more.

I was looking at the average attendances that The New Saints and Crusaders get. If the powers that be want to maximise gate receipts then they'll need to give us a home game! We may moan about the level of support we get, but we are by some margin the best supported side left in the competition.

I thought he offered little yesterday but gave the County defence a pretty torrid time on Wednesday. He strikes me as the sort of player who can make a real impact if the conditions are right. Good player to have on the bench. I'd rather keep Cooper than sign Ross.

Looks like we are getting the knack of winning ugly when we don't play so well. Key was the desire and hard work of the team. It wasn't the best we've played by a long chalk but nevertheless it was a deserved win.

Maradona was OK as well.

That's us getting gubbed by Falkirk on Saturday then. Seriously though, it's very well deserved. Congratulations to him and to the team who have clearly been working very hard themselves.

County had a fairly strong starting line up and I thought we did very well with a totally new starting XI. Star of the show has to be Aaron Doran who played most of the game and scored a goal. But his work rate was excellent and he was involved in so much of our more positive moves. Just brilliant to see him back and playing so well! should also mention Cooper who was a constant threat to the County defence. I would guess the crowd was not far off 2000 which is great for a friendly in a good cause.

Green dot from me Caleyboy. Can't say I would be too keen on us signing Ross again on this performance. Rarely wins the ball and does little with it when he does have it other than pass it to the nearest teammate. From tonight's game I'm struggling to see what he might add to the team.

If no tax will be paid on money invested in ICT, then perhaps we should be marketing the club as a suitable location for the super rich to put their money.

There's a surprise! Let's keep the momentum going.

HT 1 - 1 FT 1 - 2 ICT Polworth Opp Mullin Crowd 1174

He's 1/2 favourite with the bookies. There's some decent managers around so I just don't understand why they would want Yogi.

HT 1-1 FT 2-2 ICT. Bell Opp. Cardle Crowd. 2633

Time to rename this thread. Vigurs is not an enigma, he's our best player.

Have we ever had a game where the referee was voted better than average?

All 4 combined brilliantly to produce a wonderful team goal. But what I like most about the goal is the way the guys seemed to focus their congratulations on Mulraney. He's taken a bit of stick for having no end product but he got the assist for this and I think that is maybe his first. For his team mates to react as they did will be really important in helping Jake utilise his undoubted skills as part of a team. That might be the best goal we score all season, but if it marks the transition of Mulraney into a team player, it might also be the most important.