big cherly

I understand the point you argue but Clarke has openly said he will remain loyal to his squad players that got him to the WC. That means (in my language) he will overlook any on-form players and press on with players that may have, (kindly) went of the boil, simply aged /slowed down or helped him in the press supporting Clarke’s ‘line’ when things go pear shaped. Ie this week! Clarke knows every game pattern and best position / strengths of all players yonks ago, so there was little to nothing learnt from Saturday’s match IMO. Of the fringe players brought in I don’t even know if any of them (rangers kid at Killie) got any game time. Again Clarke had the habit of bringing in youngsters to after one game disappear. The SFA I suggest wanted the money more than the players having a jolly at Hampden. Clarke simply has to go along with his masters (particularly as he tries to secure another term); god help us if he succeeds. just my tuppence worth. bc

Cut the cloth dramatically! Six or more players (+ Kells) will be thanked and shown the door IMO. bc

Well here I disagree CT85. I would have thought (hoped) the club is well past the days where we blindly retained a employee because of sympathetic reasons, ie long time at the club, was a buddy of the CEO, came through some tough times; to the hard headed business of providing a successful product on the park ( which is always winning football matches). The argument whether SK is a good enough manager needs to be separated into what he has achieved to date in that role, and is his potential good enough to be a success in a higher division. Let’s assess SK’s performance first the past two seasons. He was appointed manager by the new owner during the administration period, who I would expect on recommendation from C Christie (later to the club’s CEO). The driving credentials I envisage being - available, cheap & already integrated with the players and systems. A fairly large turnover in players (under CC /AS direction) brought in higher skilled individuals that strengthened significantly the player pool. The brave decision was taken to retain full time status providing valuable training advantage. Kells managed to steer (despite the penalties) the club from avoiding relegation that season. Full credit should be afforded to Kells for achieving this goal. - I put aside the performances (as more than a few were average), as it was his first stint at a manager and learning the ‘trade’ and mistakes are to be expected (and allowed for ). This season again we carried a 5 point penalty to overcome. Again a fair few (experienced and skilful) players were brought in to compliment the player pool. Kells would have have input of course but I suggest any deciding decision was CC + AS. Has the manager progressed and developed into the post. Two categories allow us (the fans) to gauge this:- 1) Results (most important) - most games won albeit Stenny (part time) have done well also on victories. 2) Performances - Up to every fan to provide their own view. For me there has been two or three exceptional performances. Quite a few average ones and a good number of quite awful performances. Criticism of Kells this season IMO has mainly been :- Changing the players far too often and not playing his strongest team. - I personally question whether Kells is fully in control of this due to any contract arrangements made by CC. Unable to determine when a substitution is required and what type of player is needed to affect the game. Too loyal to the players. Or in other words not hard or demanding enough of them. Can he separate friendship from what the match needs? In the event we achieve promotion (either as champs or the play-offs) to the championship has Kells demonstrated he has the potential and ability to deal with the pressures and stress of a higher standard of opposition with the objective of not being immediately relegated. Thought it worth putting more content to allow the discussion to be developed on making an opinion. Over to the others. bc

There was a smattering of words in the Courier and P@J, but little interest from the ‘big’ central belt papers. (Small beer). There was plenty of postings of course on CTO and the P&B as I recall Satan. Some condemning the act, others defending the pitch invasion (more of wanting to string up Gardiner). bc

I see Steve Clarke is unhappy fans booed at the end of an insipid Scottish 0-1 defeat at the hands of Japan! Suck it up Stevie boy, the standard bearer of mediocrity! bc

That reminds me, I tried to build a garage in my garden but couldn’t because of the rotten tools I had. It would have been great garage too! Glad he was sitting down too. bc

Please, save me from the Charlie Bhoy’s non involvement in what players Kells picks and plays! bc

Just woke up after a nightmare rerun of the match, only this time Billy took the penalty 😱. Thinking on it I misread Kells, it’s a master-stoke he played last night. I’m thinking he’s in above his level and doesn’t possess the all round skills to bully, shake and motivate his players (too much a buddy), grasp when a sub is needed and stand still at interviews. - As with the game against Alloa all along what he was doing was testing the strength and weakness on QoFS when we get them in the playoffs! bc

Yep, For all the criticism of Millen he had a good game IMO and put a lot of dangerous crosses into the box. Simply no striker getting onto them properly. Our penalty looked very soft, but you have to take what comes your (our) way. For me it was important we did not loose tonight. A case of we are a bit fragile just now and a defeat may have cut deep at a time when we can’t afford to feel sorry for ourselves. Draw was the right result IMO. We did not have anyone that could raise their game to control the match. Last point - Why leave Spoony to a couple of minutes to the end to bring on??? bc

Changed mantra for me for tonight’s match. Instead of ‘Must Win’ it’s going to be ‘Mus’nt Loose’. I expect a different QoTS to the team that weakly surrendered to a 0-4 thumping by ICT last Nov. They will know we’re all a bit nervous with Stenny on our heels. May be a tight drawn out match. Looking forward to it! bc

But this is begining to look more and more of a reality if we continue to drop points. I have seen the repeated mantra ‘must win next game’ going on for a month or so now. The reality is we failed to achieve that target on a number of these matches. - Consequence, allowing Stenny the opportunity to capitalise (which, to their credit, they did) and now are in a position to challenge us directly for the automatic promotion position as champions of the league 1. (Div 3 to me). I thought after the win against Peterhead our players and manager would be able to settle down and keep focused by playing the best players in a pattern (game plan), that is most likely to get 3 points. I watch Kells post match interview and have to admit I didn’t see a confident manager. (Not panic but maybe bubbling underneath). I was also at the Coonty - Pars match for my football fix. Putting the result aside (draw was right IMO), County are beginning to get their act together under Ketts. Put simply, taking what I have seen and as things stand today I would not fancy our chances of coming out on top of a two game winner-takes-all against them. Dust down ‘must win next game’ again!! bc

That dogged and damn Stenny, what is it they have that we don’t??? bc

Maybe another kite by AS (can’t think anyone else from the club with the range of contacts), with the off chance we get some kids with potential to pop over when the US season finishes; (must admit I have no idea when that is), with the set conditions that these players get game time in real matches! On the premise we are capable of staying in the Championship that would mean potentially not having our strongest team out on the park (say against Partick). Much like the Robertson over McIntyre argument, I’m not sure this would sit well with our young ICT youth players or the fans. From a commercial viewpoint there is insufficient (or no) detail to see how this could materialise into a cost effect operation. I respect the decision to try new ventures (given the club has tried and exhausted every local or home based approach), however would any club money invested be value for money? It just needs to be ‘structured’ that any investment does not repeat past (Gardiner like) errors. If it’s (as mooted in P&B) it’s a World Cup jolly for AS, CC, Kells and Billy then fine, call it that for getting promoted. Otherwise provide more detail! Tuppence worth.

Well done lads, a welcome victory. Couldn’t make it along due to travelling but closely watched the results come in on the bbc. Peterhead’s questionable ‘goal’ aside it appears a step up in performance from the team from Saturday’s draw. I don’t think many ICT fans believe there is any other team in this division that can live with us when we (the players) ‘turn up’. We have the ability, strength and balance of experience to deal with any team. It’s the mind set or attitude IMO that seems difficult for us at times to switch on. Thankfully we seem to recover it last night for which was (for me) a straightforward dull opponent. Just relieved we appeared to take our chances and scored early and followed up with another. Well done to the players and Kells. Better weather should make the remaining games more appealing to play (and hopefully) ‘turn up’. bc

These damn boo-ers. Daring to express an opinion. How dare they. 🥶bc ZZ’s missed out deliberately.

Still on hols in the alps so interested to hear posters that attended. Was it a case we should have won? Was it a drop of in attack or just an expectation we expect the opposition to just yield to our superiority? - Did we get the timing and right subs ? Freezing bc

The SFA are to hold an independent review of the post match events I hear. Excellent, shove in 6-9 months to kill time and let the dust settle. Engage and consult with the police, both clubs, politicians and ‘experts’ on the potential economical impact on possible options to overcome the concerns. - Issue a draft report to the participation bodies for their views and contributions, then after 12 to 15 months issue the report with a 20 point action plan that the clubs can voluntarily consider for implementation. Our politicians enthusiastically endorse and support the report and insist the disgraceful behaviour experienced at this old firm game should never happen again. God, Is this what we have become. Heard and seen it before ???? bc

I understand your point hammer, but the punishment is targeted at the clubs where it hurts them most (in the pocket). It’s the only language the clubs pay attention too. Everything else is just noise. As for where these so called fans (simply delinquents with no self respect and mostly with a criminal record of the age spectrum 14-60+ IMO), they’re drag themselves into the many doss-house pubs that cater for such clientele (the owners are invariably participating veterans themselves of the hate). - So those cretans will always find a way to vent there bile. Hit and hurt the clubs that way and they, in turn vent will vent there spline on their the louts/ thugs and numpties that incite such obnoxious behaviour. They are the base level of society where their only esteem is registered in the pack mentality. They care not a jot what the authorities, media or public says and have nothing to offer except hate and revel when the opportunity arises like Sundays match. Put simply - if we do nothing to deter these individuals it will continue and to our collective embarrassment and shame. bc

It’s wrong to say only one ‘side’ is to blame here. Thats an excuse IMO to allow the same behaviour to exist through some sort of absurd ‘qualification’. I abhor the rangers ‘we are the people’ and its non subtle message as a wish to cling to some natural imaginary superiority. It’s as inaccurate, groundless and ignorant of reality as you come across. Let’s be honest here the Green Brigade are just as twisted as there counterparts and hide behind a false cloak of desired delusional respectability with there ‘causes’! Absolute tripe - call it out for what it simply is, ie recruiting, feeding and maintaining the intimidation and hate. The Celtic fans invaded # the field at the conclusion of the shoot out. - no ifs or buts, totally unacceptable - simple!!! I’ll go further here as I believe it’s appropriate, if one of the clubs had a fan base of mostly non white or none Christian ethnicity some of our politicians would be exasperating the whole murky situation. I’m so angry and want to shake our people to stop just shrugging there shoulders when they say this loutish behaviour flares up but asks for action to stop it, yet does He Haw. WE are the problem here in finding a solution, not the nethanderhal neds. We have it in our hands. We only need to stop sitting on them. Resigned to more of the same. bc # - I stand corrected Yngwie. I’m on holiday and only seen incident on French TV. I have read the bbc report on the invasion and it states the Rangers Fans started the field invasion. Fine the club £ 1M and relegate them. That will get the attention of the yank owners. They will either sort it out or sell up and ship out. Either will get the massage home.

An absolute cancer and stain on our society, country and reputation as a people that are friendly and helpful. The damage being done to this image is only magnified by the access to it across the world through social media. I recall watching on TV the 1980 cup final where these two polar opposites of people’s culture, history and experiences meet in a Scottish Cup final. Speechless was my only explanation! This has manifested into a bitterness and enmity that has been nurtured by either tribe and permitted to exist cheek by jowl for the better part of the last century and this one. You could forgiven to think or believe it’s in the interest of both these two ‘clubs’ to maintain the status quo as it feeds of and makes buckets of money from the hate. I was hoping it would slowly but steadily declined as the dinosaurs died off. But through next generation or pack mentality it has be allowed to flourish. Unfortunately as long as WE as a people allow our politicians to turn a blind eye to this poison, our children and grandchildren can look to experience similar renditions. Wish I could be more positive.😔 bc

Understand your point cC but I don’t consider this a do or die game. There is 30 points still up for grabs and we have the players (I think - hope) can get the bulk of them. If it sends the message some fans (out with the happy clappy), to the players and manager as a wake-up call that they underperformed in the last two league games then that gets my support! Stenny, Alloa and QoTS will take points of each other I suspect so that helps along the way. They also make the run-in more Interesting and exiting IMO. bc

This is an interesting tie. Wipe away the penalty points deducted Hamilton would be ‘in-there’ fighting for a play off place I reckon. It may just a little more difficult (let’s hope so), for Stenny to carve out three points by just turning up, (time will tell). If Stenny do claim full points it turns the focus onto our players and manager for the weekend match with Montrose. bc

Pies won the day😃. Sounds like a decent support travelled again to support the team. Hope the message registers with the players the level of fan backing they get far exceeds any other club in this division. Plastic pitches are a ‘leveller’ as OCG says but they are here to stay and we will face them (and better organised ) teams in the championship, so don’t use that as an excuse. On any given measure (or statistics as quite a few like), ICT should have comfortably dealt with and dispatched Kelty. Stenny have stubbornly but steadily managed to keep a door open on challenging for the top spot, (So credit to them for doing this). We have the players and ability in the next couple of matches to maintain our points advantage. Let’s see our management and players deliver. bc

I really enjoyed the match as it was uncertain for the full 90 + minutes who would come out on top. At the end of the day we’re still top of the league with a clear 5 points and in pole position to be there come the end of the season. This has been achieved by winning most of our games. The question remains however was the preparation, team selection, game plan/strategy and execution the right one for this opponent. Given things weren’t working to plan was the substitutions and timing of them the right decisions? Ultimately it is the players that cross the line. They alone can influence and deliver the result. I agree with bbb neither goalkeeper was really tested. Both defences were dominant (out with the goals conceded). The attacks (throw in the midfield in part) were less effective. Something to work on for the remaining matches. Let’s get into the Championship. Right now IMO that is /should be our sole objective. bc

We’ll be able to see on the highlights. Happy to be corrected, but it looked like Alfie B made a mess of it IMO. bc NB Tepid to cold bovril in Bar 94. Could resole my boots with the pie base.