Matchday Thread: ICT -V- Montrose

[IcyTea]

Worst ICT performance I can remember, it was almost laughable towards the end. Disappointed for Montrose, they deserved to go through - half their team were kids.

[RiG]

The ict away support is ten times better, albeit ten times smaller, but mainly because these people don't make the trip.

The ICT Away support is made up of the same people who were moaning at yesterdays game and don't think they can't moan just because they sing.

Makes me glad I am a north stander, don't know what these people get out of going to a football match.

The North Stand would have been just as critical of the display yesterday. You are only fooling yourself if you think otherwise.

Edited July 26, 2009 by RiG

[Guest birdog]

monthemo has it pretty much spot on.

It makes me embarrassed sometimes when there are the *rseholes in the main stand who heckle the moment a player makes a minor mistake. I felt sorry for the new boys yesterday for having to play in front of them. I would personally ban them from all of the games, they offer nothing in terms of support and even heckle the manager. Most are the older generation who believe that because they have been following the team fro the last 20 years or whatever that they have the right to get on the back of anyone who doesn't perform upto the standards of billy urquhart or alan hercher. It's ridiculous. The ict away support is ten times better, albeit ten times smaller, but mainly because these people don't make the trip.

Makes me glad I am a north stander, don't know what these people get out of going to a football match.

I have been a regular in the Bridge end/ north stand since the stadium was built and let me tell you I have heard 10 times worse coming out of there than at any time I have made a cultural visit to the Main Stand, I suppose Butcher was an @rsehole for screaming abuse at the players every time they made a mistake too? Every single shout and heckle was deserved yesterday.

[Hiro]

For everybody that has lost the plot over this one result can I bring this result from the last time we were in the first division to your attention.

Shock cup loss

I seem to recall us getting our act together after that.

[Guest birdog]

For everybody that has lost the plot over this one result can I bring this result from the last time we were in the first division to your attention.

Shock cup loss

I seem to recall us getting our act together after that.

How about a more recent scenario?

[SMEE]

I suppose the other way to look at yesterdays game is that, the only way is up! It is impossible to sink lower, performance wise, than wht we were treated to yesterday.

[RiG]

Hiro - who is that in your avatar? Looks a bit like Paolo Montero but I am not sure.

[ictchris]

I haven't seen any of the pre-season games but I have to say I am concerned that we are signing what are basically released youth team players from other clubs or lower league foreigners. Last time we won the First Division we had David Bingham, Barry Wilson and Paul Ritchie up front - all of these players were experienced at that level. Do we have anyone comparable to them now?

I hope I'm wrong but I just worry that we are taking a big gamble on these players and it isn't going to pay off.

[AJS]

I haven't seen any of the pre-season games but I have to say I am concerned that we are signing what are basically released youth team players from other clubs or lower league foreigners. Last time we won the First Division we had David Bingham, Barry Wilson and Paul Ritchie up front - all of these players were experienced at that level. Do we have anyone comparable to them now?

I hope I'm wrong but I just worry that we are taking a big gamble on these players and it isn't going to pay off.

I would be inclined to agree with you there. we should probably try to add players who are more familiar to the Division but at the end of the day in Central-Belters eyes we are in an undesiriable location and we can't really offer paticuarly good deals atm so we have to set standards.

[Hiro]

Hiro - who is that in your avatar? Looks a bit like Paolo Montero but I am not sure.

You are correct. It is the crazed hatchet man Montero.

[Kingsmills]

No need to panic on the back of one mediocre early season performance but it's increasingly obvious that we need at least one experienced forward.

[rinomac]

What really annoyed me was that the vast majority of our fans were moaning at our long ball tactics, but when our midfield played it back to the defence so we could build from the back (rather than lumping it to the forwards and losing it again) they moaned at that too.

That is probably one of the first times that team has played together, and to be honest, we have never been known to start a season very well!

[Guest birdog]

No need to panic on the back of one mediocre early season performance but it's increasingly obvious that we need at least one experienced forward.

You are right Kingsmills- no need for panic yet but it is hard to muster up optimism after last season then to be subjected to the dire display that we were yesterday. Here's hoping it was just a team which needs to get more time together and some new season nerves. The frustration is starting to wane, I (we) can start to look forward again.

[Guest birdog]

What really annoyed me was that the vast majority of our fans were moaning at our long ball tactics, but when our midfield played it back to the defence so we could build from the back (rather than lumping it to the forwards and losing it again) they moaned at that too.

That is probably one of the first times that team has played together, and to be honest, we have never been known to start a season very well!

If it bothers you that much why not try to change the mood of those around you by starting a chant? A good mood can be spread very easily. I will happily admit that I was a moaner yesterday I even screamed at the team a few times but if a chant spread around me I would have joined in without hesitation, pre match refreshments had me in that frame of mind, without a doubt. No point coming on here moaning about your fellow fans when you did nothing to help the situation.

[CaleyP]

Thank f*ck for that.

Not the most of encouraging starts, but then again, I suppose we've been playing highland leaguers all pre-season, this woulda been a step up from what some of the new boys are used to.

not really...highland league teams have been the better when facing sfl teams in pre-season this year, only ourselves and ross county have won their games, peterhead, fofar, brechin, stenny etc have all fallen to highland league teams this pre-season, so lets not make excuses, we just weren't good enough, we must improve.

[CaleyD]

We weren't good enough?

Forgive me if I was watching the wrong game, but did we not win? As far as I am concerned that's good enough, and if you can play poorly and win then it surely it only serves to suggest that we'll win more convincingly when we start playing better?

Some people are in dire need of a reality check or it's going to be a long depressing season for them...regardless of results!!!

[Georgeios]

We weren't good enough?

Forgive me if I was watching the wrong game, but did we not win? As far as I am concerned that's good enough, and if you can play poorly and win then it surely it only serves to suggest that we'll win more convincingly when we start playing better?

Some people are in dire need of a reality check or it's going to be a long depressing season for them...regardless of results!!!

roger that!

[YaBoy]

We weren't good enough?

Forgive me if I was watching the wrong game, but did we not win? As far as I am concerned that's good enough, and if you can play poorly and win then it surely it only serves to suggest that we'll win more convincingly when we start playing better?

Some people are in dire need of a reality check or it's going to be a long depressing season for them...regardless of results!!!

So you think being taken to penalties by a part-time 3rd division side is acceptable? With a team who most of the players have SPL experience?

I think someone else needs the reality check.

[Georgeios]

We weren't good enough?

Forgive me if I was watching the wrong game, but did we not win? As far as I am concerned that's good enough, and if you can play poorly and win then it surely it only serves to suggest that we'll win more convincingly when we start playing better?

Some people are in dire need of a reality check or it's going to be a long depressing season for them...regardless of results!!!

So you think being taken to penalties by a part-time 3rd division side is acceptable? With a team who most of the players have SPL experience?

I think someone else needs the reality check.

also bearing in mind that some of the players we had out were not at there best, and who's faults that, also thinking about it we didnt have some of our key players out,,, DI and RE, also look at the level we were playing in.. leaving some of the lads out to risk further injury would be stupid, lets all wait for the first league game to start laying blame!!

[Guest birdog]

We weren't good enough?

Forgive me if I was watching the wrong game, but did we not win? As far as I am concerned that's good enough, and if you can play poorly and win then it surely it only serves to suggest that we'll win more convincingly when we start playing better?

Some people are in dire need of a reality check or it's going to be a long depressing season for them...regardless of results!!!

So you think being taken to penalties by a part-time 3rd division side is acceptable? With a team who most of the players have SPL experience?

I think someone else needs the reality check.

I think CaleyD is spot on, we are in the next round so we were good enough to achieve the desired result. The performance was p!ss poor but at the end of the day good enough-just.

[CaleyD]

So you think being taken to penalties by a part-time 3rd division side is acceptable? With a team who most of the players have SPL experience?

I think someone else needs the reality check.

It's a lot more acceptable than having lost....and the way some people are going on you would think we had.

A lot of people seem to be hanging the rest of the season on this one game...I'm not saying it was a fantastic performance, but as in any season we'll have days when things don't go to plan but we still pull off a result and we'll have days where we play outstanding football and take nothing from a match....such is the nature of the game.

We have people claiming "we won't do this and we won't do that" on the back of one match, and a match where we were missing a number of (what could be considered) key players. If we were well into the season and injuries etc had forced us to field that team and we got a result then we'd be delighted and we'd be noising up opposition fans with claims that even our reserves were beating them.....that for me is the reality of the situation.

What chance do we have if, after one game, the fans are already panicking, spreading doom and gloom and talking about relegation? I'm not saying we should be smothering the players/team with false praise, but I don't think we should be slinging up any nooses and herding them to the gallows.

[Hiro]

After a short pre-season it seems that this was almost being viewed as another pre-season game. Although the wrong attitude you could see why this is the case and it will be the same with Tuesday and next Saturday. In my view (and possibly TB) the season starts on 8th August and thats what we are building up for. These games against Anna and Montrose are not important in the context of this seasons aims...

And anyway - We won!!

[Huisdean]

So you think being taken to penalties by a part-time 3rd division side is acceptable? With a team who most of the players have SPL experience?

I think someone else needs the reality check.

It's a lot more acceptable than having lost....and the way some people are going on you would think we had.

A lot of people seem to be hanging the rest of the season on this one game...I'm not saying it was a fantastic performance, but as in any season we'll have days when things don't go to plan but we still pull off a result and we'll have days where we play outstanding football and take nothing from a match....such is the nature of the game.

We have people claiming "we won't do this and we won't do that" on the back of one match, and a match where we were missing a number of (what could be considered) key players. If we were well into the season and injuries etc had forced us to field that team and we got a result then we'd be delighted and we'd be noising up opposition fans with claims that even our reserves were beating them.....that for me is the reality of the situation.

What chance do we have if, after one game, the fans are already panicking, spreading doom and gloom and talking about relegation? I'm not saying we should be smothering the players/team with false praise, but I don't think we should be slinging up any nooses and herding them to the gallows.

Totally agree Caley D. I have replied to similar threads like this before where some contributors on this site really seem to be from another planet. This was the first competitive game of the season but in reality was still a pre season game. The same goes for Annan next week with the real season starting on 8 August. A 1-1 result against Falkirk would have kept us up last season and if we had got that playing as we did today, some of these so called supporters would still be moaning as it was only a 1-1 draw. Give some of the new guys a chance to settle in before jumping to conclusions about how good they are. If some of the contributors on here want to continue to endlessly moan, then all I can say is find another team to support as I honestly don't know how some can seriously call themselves supporters of ICT. Rant over.

[YaBoy]

Infact, I change my opinion on the game completely.

If someone had offered me a scrape through on penalties against Montrose, I would have bitten their hand off. I deem that a great result for ICT.

Think I had better agree with the moderator, just incase.

[Hiro]

Infact, I change my opinion on the game completely.

If someone had offered me a scrape through on penalties against Montrose, I would have bitten their hand off. I deem that a great result for ICT.

Think I had better agree with the moderator, just incase.

I don't think anyone is saying that the performance was anything other than sh!te and that only getting through on penalties was a particularly good result. However, the point is that it was our first competitive game of the season with a team that had 4 players making debuts and another couple that had not had much of pre season due to injuries. There is no need to push the panic button based on that game. Remember that 2 first division sides were turfed out by lower division teams and a handful of others also only scraped through....