St Mirren v ICT

[Caley Stan]

I really liked the way we took the game to St. Mirren throughout, especially in the second half and enjoyed some of the football played by Doran, McKay and particularly Andy Shinnie around the box. Unfortunately, their touches rarely resulted in clear cut chances. Not sure whether we should be excited about the season ahead off the back of this or not - maybe Saints are just really poor - but at least it feels like we have a plan. OTJ and Draper in tandem performed the dual role of protecting the back 4 and pressing high up when we didn't have the ball. They're both slow, lumbering players without much of a creative spark but they looked reasonably comfortable in possession and both have great physical presence. The biggest negative today (apart from all the all the Chris Kerr/Dougie Imrie sh*t) was Ryan's performance - he looked culpable for both goals. I'm generally feeling much more positive about the season than i was at 3pm though.

[+Gringo]

I enjoyed the game but was disappointed to have not won this. As others have said, I'd have taken a draw at 3pm. It was good to see us completing a lot of our passes and the absence of the big hoof was another plus. The new boys seemed to have settled better than last season's lads so it looks good on that side of things...if they can stay injury free. I have to agree that Ryan didn't look too clever at times but he did pull off a stunning save. From where I was watching it looked like he was culpable for the late equaliser by not grabbed the ball from the corner but I'll wait to see the highlights on TV. We still lack that cutting edge in front of goal though. There were occasions where it seemed we had a shooting opportunity but we never pulled the trigger. A promising start and we need to build on this.

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

Yip I would gladly have taken a draw before the game but this morning feel that we threw away three points. However losing a late goal was the only real comparison to last season and miles away from the performance of the opening game of last season at Muvversmell. And how many others had that wee shiver of "fear" when the announcer said "five minutes of injury time" ??

ESSON :clapping: Appeared slightly unsure/uncertain at times which may be the result of playing behind a new pairing in central defence. I too thought that he could have done more with the equaliser but lets face it - the second half was not the weather for goalkeepers.

RAVEN :clapping: I really am not sure about him at rite back - I get a sense of Proctorism - but perhaps he needs to get fitter. He does nothing going forward. I suspect that his substituting was tactical and not becos he had picked up a knock.

WARREN :clapping: Effective enuff if unspectacular. As this was his first game at SPL level, a game played at some pace and a beast in Parkin to mark - then the future looks bright.

KING :clapping: As for Warren but he looked the ball player of the two.

G SHINNIE :clapping: Performance provided sufficient evidence to show why he is an Under 21 internationalist

SHANE :clapping: Actually he did OK - especially when he came inside which I suspect was a natural movement and not tactical. I feel that he has beefed up and I still can not understand Butcher's persistence in playing him wide.

DRAPER :clapping: :clapping: I will give him man of the match and as some were comparing his physique to Blobby Mann I will also award him Man of the Match. Put in a great shift and can play a feckin ball as well.

OTJ :clapping: He has evidently played at a higher standard and did well to last the 90 minutes although I would have subbed him for Morrison. As has been stated already if he keeps injury free then he will be a major asset and I put my hands up that I was wrong about the OTJ / Draper combination.

DORAN :clapping: I hope that we play to him like we used to with Hayes as he can be a match winner. Keep him wide and advanced and let othersdo the donkey work.

ANDY SHINNIE :clapping: Played deeper presumably becos of cover for Doran and the pressure applied by Midden early doors but moved forward in the second and showed that he could be a real danger in the hole.

McKAY :clapping: He worked his socks off and really deserved the goal which he stuck away with aplomb. He still isnt a lone striker but he would be wasted wide as well. He is a goalscorer and all that is missing is a strike partner. Lets hope that TB puts Andy Shinnie in that role next week.

MEEKINGS :clapping: Could have been MOM !! He must have wondered what he had done wrong to get demoted to the bench and he certainly released his frustration with a couple of crunching slide tackles, one where he must have skidded for ten feckin yards. Must be a stick on fer right back next week.

ROSS :clapping: Should have been on from the start and scored with his first touch but we were in control at that stage. He doesnt appear to impress Terry and Mo which is a shame.

POLWORTH :clapping: That was a strange decision. The lad did nothing wrong but I would have thought that taking on a more defensively minded Morrison for a fading OTJ was the tactic to use.

What a feckin great away day and the craic was excellent in the "Beer Garden" of the Alamo. Cant wait fer the innaugural Juanjo Away trip !! :lol:

[Alex MacLeod]

Ole, ole

[+bughtmaster]

Hooray ! apart from the odd comment there does appear to be a much more positive approach from our posters, Glad all those who were there enjoyed the match.

I had to put up with 'open all mics' now if there is something I cannot be positive about it is that, so much f'n drivel by a bunch of so called pundits. I heard more adult and sensible appraisals in my primary school playground days it was pathetic. now i read the broadcasting of individual matches has ceased for this season. another farce and probably, I surmise, that concentration can be put on the more important third division.

Anyhow We have made a very satisfactory start and that is good.

( still lost my smileys! how do i get them back ? )

[SMEE]

I will happily take one point from any away game all season long. by all accounts....the team played well...which is great. BUT....they did that at times last season in patches too. So, was this just the continuation of that form...or is it a whole new approach by the management. Hopefully its the latter and this approach will be a feature of our game this season. And then....if we finnish 10th or 11th, at least we can say we didi it in style....which is a HUGE plus for me :)

[Alex MacLeod]

SMEE this was like a whole knew game. We didn't just play well in patches. We played well for the whole game. We kept the ball on the ground. We made very good passes and we controlled for most of the game. The only blip was the one that led to the equaliser. If this team can stay injury free and give the same performances as today we will be knowhere near the relegation zone. If our first competitive game of the season is anything to go by then we have some great games ahead.

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

I would certainly stress that the "style" of play is a very welcome management change and is far more entertaining. Even at this very early stage there appears to be a feel of that togetherness factor and that a real TerryandMoAway support yesterday. And the majority of the newbies appear to be decent buys and will add experience to the squad. Still not overly impressed by the tactics although it will beinteresting to see the plan at home. The only real concern is TB's dogged persistence with certain players in certan positions but I expect Meekins and Ross to start next week which would scatter that theory.

[SMEE]

SMEE this was like a whole knew game. We didn't just play well in patches. We played well for the whole game. We kept the ball on the ground. We made very good passes and we controlled for most of the game. The only blip was the one that led to the equaliser. If this team can stay injury free and give the same performances as today we will be knowhere near the relegation zone. If our first competitive game of the season is anything to go by then we have some great games ahead.

Well....maybe this is the new approach. By all accounts, ICT played good stuff against Coventry, and took it thro to yesterdays game. So i for one hope its a new direction for ICT. I am a realist. As i have sed before...we are now a small fish in a big pond, and as long as we can finnish 11th or higher, i will be satisfied. I will be over the moon if we can acheive it by playing attractive football, coz at the end of the day...my NO 1 reason to go to watch footie, is to be entertained :) (bare in mind...my fave ICT game of all time....was a defeat for us )

[+bughtmaster]

I would certainly stress that the "style" of play is a very welcome management change and is far more entertaining. Even at this very early stage there appears to be a feel of that togetherness factor and that a real TerryandMoAway support yesterday. And the majority of the newbies appear to be decent buys and will add experience to the squad. Still not overly impressed by the tactics although it will beinteresting to see the plan at home. The only real concern is TB's dogged persistence with certain players in certan positions but I expect Meekins and Ross to start next week which would scatter that theory.

Can we have everything all ay once??............... Patience laddie patience!!!!!

[alternative maryhill]

they did that at times last season in patches too. So, was this just the continuation of that form...or is it a whole new approach by the management. Hopefully its the latter and this approach will be a feature of our game this season. And then....if we finnish 10th or 11th, at least we can say we didi it in style....which is a HUGE plus for me :)

I would certainly stress that the "style" of play is a very welcome management change and is far more entertaining.

IHE's assessment is bang on, you'll be pleased to hear, SMEE. Yesterday's approach was almost unrecognisable from most of last season's performances. Yesterday, I don't recall a single one of those speculative balls over the top that Mackay could do nothing with last season: the stress was entirely on retaining possession, building patiently from the back and allowing Doran, Shinnie and Sutherland to try to take players on and open up the defence, and even though we were still behind on almost 70 minutes, there was no sense of us panicking and starting to throw balls forward: players and management alike kept faith with the system they had started with and eventually it paid off. Sutherland worked hard and did manage to beat his man on several occasions, but I think he was tending to do this from such deep positions that he didn't create much threat; Andrew Shinnie had an excellent second half and was our most composed and creative player; but the performance that I found most encouraging was Aaron Doran's. On the previous occasions I had seen him he had a tendency to stay on the touchline and hide rather than getting involved, but yesterday he was coming inside and taking on his man at every opportunity. He could be a really important and effective player for us this season if he continues to do this. Mackay worked his socks off as usual and his goal was a just reward, but with this system we could ideally do with a striker who is adept at taking the ball at the edge of the box and carving out opportunities - either a Dargo or a Wyness in his heyday would have fitted into this team really well. The biggest thing lacking from yesterday's performance was the creation of more clear cut chances in front of goal.

Ross Draper was the pick of the new boys for me: he protected the defence really well, was solid in his tackling and interceptions and moved the ball on in a simple and effective manner. It was difficult to assess the qualities of the new centre back pairing of Warren and King as they didn't have a great deal to do, but first impressions were that they were solid, held position well and fitted effectively into the new system by looking to use the ball to build attacks rather than simply hooking it away. Raven also looked solid enough, although as IHE has pointed out, Meekings had a greater impact with his tacking when he came on, probably becuase St Mirren at that stage were trying to get back into the game and threatening our defence more.

Overall, it was a satisfactory result and a more than satisfactory performance. I've found our style of football over the past season and a half pretty depressing to sit through: like SMEE, I go to football primarily in the hope of seeing an attractive style of play, and if we end up near the bottom of the league but having played in this style all season, I will be more than happy.

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

I would certainly stress that the "style" of play is a very welcome management change and is far more entertaining. Even at this very early stage there appears to be a feel of that togetherness factor and that a real TerryandMoAway support yesterday. And the majority of the newbies appear to be decent buys and will add experience to the squad. Still not overly impressed by the tactics although it will beinteresting to see the plan at home. The only real concern is TB's dogged persistence with certain players in certan positions but I expect Meekins and Ross to start next week which would scatter that theory.

Can we have everything all ay once??............... Patience laddie patience!!!!!

I'm a feckin perfectionist mun - that must also be my most positive smileymometer in feckin yonks.

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

Feck me I cant even criticise Butchers post match comments:

Edited August 5, 2012 by IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER

[+bughtmaster]

Feck me IHE your coming round to positive thinking. Are you maturing?............... yes you are!

wish I had a smiley

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

Just stating it as I see it and I have always strived to take the positives out of the negatives. Constructive criticism if supported by a rationale is the name of the game. Here is a feckin smiley fer ya.

[+bughtmaster]

Looks pretty generous but not for me ta IHE

[Renegade]

Just seen the highlights there, how big a defender is Warren? I've tried to find out myself, but there doesn't seem to be much information about him around.

Also, Butcher looked livid at the end there, but what was he wearing?! If there's one thing I don't like, it's managers in shorts!

[bishbashbosh]

just watched the highlights. looked quite good but yet again we cant see out a game when in a winning position.

thought i was was watching kenny gillet again but it was shinnie who tried to hoof ball up field in last minute and had a fresh air swipe. st mirren get possesion, cross ball to score, 2-2. esson did not look to clever either, but the ball should have been hoofed to saftey buy shinnie

oh dear.

tel why cant we shut the game down when leading with minutes to go.

after we scored to go 2-1 up highlights showed it was all st mirren to the end

the bench had youngsters with zero spl experience except morrison. meekings and ross already on

• 31 Scott Mathieson
  
• 14 Meekings
  
• 11 Ross
  
• 19 Morrison
  
• 20 Laing
  
• 21 Polworth
  
• 16 Oswell
  

could we not bring on a midfield player to try and stiffle st mirren instead of a young boy getting his first taste of spl in the heat of the battle.

just a thought but as i was not at game should probably not comment. sorry

[bauhaus]

Typical. Folk complain we dont have enough of the local yoof coming into the team. And when one does get a few minutes, we go why the feck did he do that. This is how they get experience, and did he do any wrong, dont think so. Hearts appeared to do ok with two 17 year olds, and its what we have been asking for. Polly is an international at each of his age groups and is our youngest ever yoof to appear in the first team.

[Renegade]

Typical. Folk complain we dont have enough of the local yoof coming into the team. And when one does get a few minutes, we go why the feck did he do that.

Because tactically that was the wrong decision. When seeing a game out you'd think putting someone on who could hold up the ball (Oswell) would've been the better option as it would've reduced the chances of Saints running down the other end and equalising......which of course is exactly what happened and then almost doing the same again and scoring a winner. Of course, there's a time for blooding the youth, but that was the wrong time to do it.

Edited August 6, 2012 by Renegade

[Renegade]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sssJsllTlU4&feature=player_embedded#!

Here's the Draper red card incident.

[old caley girl]

thanks Rene was just about to post this myself. Still doesnt look too clear what happened tbh although there is a lot of fuss elsewhere re this clip. Draper was down for ages so if he was acting he did a really good job. Hope there was contact as I cant condone getting a fellow pro sent off for nothing.

[+Tree]

could we not bring on a midfield player to try and stiffle st mirren instead of a young boy getting his first taste of spl in the heat of the battle.

just a thought but as i was not at game should probably not comment. sorry

Polworth already has SPL experience (albeit about 2 minutes)

[Alex MacLeod]

From what I can see in the clip Draper was holding onto the ball. The St Mirren player tried to punch it out of Drapers hand. The ball goes up and catches the lad under the chin. Notice also the player doesn't protest. The ball hitting Drapers face could be construed as accidental but the other guy did throw a punch and thats what the ref saw.

[starchief]

Because tactically that was the wrong decision. When seeing a game out you'd think putting someone on who could hold up the ball (Oswell) would've been the better option as it would've reduced the chances of Saints running down the other end and equalising......which of course is exactly what happened and then almost doing the same again and scoring a winner. Of course, there's a time for blooding the youth, but that was the wrong time to do it.

I'm not so sure it was. Oswell is a striker. Putting on a midfielder is a better way of defending a position than a striker. You could argue for someone more experienced but that's really only Morrison, who's not that much more experienced. I don't think there's much in it (plus, who knows what Polworth has been like in training).