What if?

[ICTPaisley]

Would it still be a great season for us if we ended up finishing 4th and Ross County either 2nd or 3rd?  Or would that be too much of a sickener for us to get over.  I doubt it will happen but it's just a WHAT IF.  After tonights result its looking a bit crazy at the top end of the table.

[caley100]

Its going to be really enjoyable to end the shadows run on saturday, their run will end soon.   the dirty Gypo scum will not be happy.

[Naelifts]

Can I remind you young man to keep it clean. Hats off to the County........fantastic run. May the best team win on Saturday

[bdu98196]

Naelifts Im sure we will.

[Kingsmills]

To be honest, if County finished above us it would take much of the shine off the season for me.

 

Hopefully, by teatime on Saturday that will be a much more remote prospect.

[Snafu]

County won't finish above us.

[ICTRoughi]

Win/draw our upcoming games and it will be irrelevant what Ross County do - Simples.

[martinskye]

I'd take 3rd/4th now (as long as that guaranteed European football) and pay the price of being ahead of us come the end of the season. That'd be a great season in my opinion. Personally all I'm too worried about now is ourselves finishing the season well and getting a nice wee holiday not where County will finish. Whatever happens they'll still be in our shadows.

Edited February 26, 2013 by martinskye

[Yngwie]

While we're talking "what ifs", who knows what impact the postponment of the New Year fixture could have on our final league position?

 

At the time, we were unbeatable, whilst County were very poor and not safe from relegation.  Now, having made some inspired signings in the January window, they are the SPL's form team, whilst our results have been patchy at best. And they've had time to turn their pitch into a sand pit that only they know how to play on.

 

But derbies very often turn out the opposite of what you expected, so maybe we'd actually have lost the original fixture if it had gone ahead but will now be fired up enough to win this one against the odds.

 

[buckett]

Just want to see Derek Adams' greeting face again!

[AJS]

If the unspeakable happens then its not even up for discussion...Butcher out 

[The Mantis]

Get the first goal. If you look at their run they have no experience of chasing the game (except in the 2-2 against hearts at home). Usually they get the first goal and shut up shop.

Also since the new year we have been robbed in 2 or 3 games while playing well. Can you say there's been even 1 game all season that Cownty have lost when they deserved to win?

Credit to them all the same. Before the break they were a very limited side. A couple of new faces in Sproule and Lawson and hey presto loads of confidence. But hey, they hate us, lets give them something to hate about.

Is anybody remembering we've got a game tomorrow?

[+DoofersDad]

I was thinking the same as the OP.  But I think I have to be philosophical here.  This time last season the team was playing very poorly and County were running away with the 1st Division.  We were fearful of how poor the side would be with some of our better players heading out the door at the end of the season and the general view was that County would probably do significantly better than us in the coming season.  Given their recent run, they are now doing better than anyone expected but they are still behind us!

 

Considering what our expectations for the season were at the start of the season, to finish 3rd or 4th would be a brilliant acheivement and we should be thrilled regardless of what our neighbours do.  If they end up ahead of us, then credit to them, even if they've not been playing such attractive football.  Yes, it will stick in the craw a wee bit just as it wrankles that they have reached a cup final and we've not, but for 2 Highland teams to be sitting so high in the league must be good for the future of the game in the North and must be to the long term benefit of ICT.   

 

So in answer to the question - yes, a great season if we are 4th and County are above us, but a brilliant season if we are 4th and they are below us.

[CaleyT]

but for 2 Highland teams to be sitting so high in the league must be good for the future of the game in the North

It would be a brilliant achievement if the players were from the Highlands, but as the large majority of these players are not, and in our case, not even Scottish, then our success can only be put down to clever acquisition and management. A good future for the game in the North can only happen if mostly players from the North are playing for these two Northern teams!

[bdu98196]

Just now we are suffering from a thin squad and having Foran out injured, the games he played in that we lost and infact all the games bar the M'well game we deserved more than the results show. County have been lucky with al players staying fit and bringing in new faces who have had an instant impact - had they got Vigurs, Brittan, Sproule injured than it would be a significantly weaker team just like us without Foran.

 

TB has to work out on Sat how to deal with that horrendous pitch - I'm confident he has a plan and starting with 3 pts tonight and a draw on Sat will do nicely keeping us in 'pole position'.

[RiG]

Lawson wasn't strictly a new face though. For some reason Adams preferred playing Fotheringham in a more advanced role. Lawson is a huge player for County and is always looking to take the ball off the CBs and trying to play it as opposed to resorting to the Munro hoof.

[starchief]

but for 2 Highland teams to be sitting so high in the league must be good for the future of the game in the North

It would be a brilliant achievement if the players were from the Highlands, but as the large majority of these players are not, and in our case, not even Scottish, then our success can only be put down to clever acquisition and management. A good future for the game in the North can only happen if mostly players from the North are playing for these two Northern teams!

And who do you suggest?  If we played mostly Highlanders, we would be competing with Elgin, not for a place in Europe.

[CaleyT]

 

And who do you suggest?  If we played mostly Highlanders, we would be competing with Elgin, not for a place in Europe.

 

 

 

 

[Snafu]

but for 2 Highland teams to be sitting so high in the league must be good for the future of the game in the North

It would be a brilliant achievement if the players were from the Highlands, but as the large majority of these players are not, and in our case, not even Scottish, then our success can only be put down to clever acquisition and management. A good future for the game in the North can only happen if mostly players from the North are playing for these two Northern teams!

 

If they're good enough they will get their chance, but right now there isn't enough footballers from this area that are good enough to make up a complete squad of players able to compete at that level and as far as I remember there never has been and likely there never will.

 

Anyway with this part of the country has a growing population with a good mix of people not just from all over Scotland but from all parts of the globe. I don't see why this can't be reflected in the football teams. We are living in the 21st Century with a much improved transport system cough cough where folks can move around much easier than in the past. Football players move up here for employment, same as any other line of work.

 

What would be ideal would be more focus on getting youngsters involved in playing football up here in the Highlands to keep a conveyer belt of talented future players coming through to play at the highest level in this country regardless of whether they are Highlanders or not.

[RiG]

We should go down the route that Ross County are going. After all, they're doing something different to us and playing local lads.

[bdu98196]

Looking at last nights team sheet against Aberdeen, I only see 2 local (although there are a few I'm not sure of TBH), but dont see County as being a team full of Highland developed youngsters. We have just as many young local lads getting chances.

 

• 25 Brown - no
• 04 Munro - yes
• 05 Boyd -?
• 18 Ikonomou - no
• 22 Kovacevic - no
• 08 Lawson - ?
• 10 Brittain - no
• 11 Vigurs - yes
• 12 Quinn - no
• 16 Sproule - no
• 17 Morrow - no

[Snafu]

Looking at last nights team sheet against Aberdeen, I only see 2 local (although there are a few I'm not sure of TBH), but dont see County as being a team full of Highland developed youngsters. We have just as many young local lads getting chances.

 

• 25 Brown - no
• 04 Munro - yes
• 05 Boyd -?
• 18 Ikonomou - no
• 22 Kovacevic - no
• 08 Lawson - ?
• 10 Brittain - no
• 11 Vigurs - yes
• 12 Quinn - no
• 16 Sproule - no
• 17 Morrow - no

 

Isn't Vigurs from the Aberdeen area (Stonehaven) and more of a product of the Aberdeen youth system, he broke through into first team football as a teenager with Elgin City before signing for us. Scott Boyd is from the central belt and Paul Lawson was at Celtic, I also remember Lawson playing for St. Johnstone.

Edited February 27, 2013 by Snafu

[Govan Jaggie]

Win win I guess. We finish above them and a good solid top 6 spot great. They finish 2nd but we still get 3rd or 4th and Europe, fine as I have a bet with Red Card that would pay out!

I want us to focus o our games tbh. If we are behind them but don't lose all season to them, I will be happy with that.

[FoolPhysio]

Actually, I am secretly pleased with the result last night, for a couple of reasons.

One - when we beat them twice between now and the split, we will have re-established a minimum of 6 points between ourselves.

Two - the look on Kenny Shields face just now must be a picture, with two Highland teams taking the 2nd and 3rd place spots at the erse end of the league and not just the opening 2 games!

But I agree that it would take a bit of the shine off our season if we ended up in our best ever league position only to find the gypos are above us in their very first foray into the top division. Won't happen though, so not to worry.

Cue a re-post of the Downfall video . . .

Edited February 27, 2013 by FoolPhysio

[Sneckboy]

Looking at last nights team sheet against Aberdeen, I only see 2 local (although there are a few I'm not sure of TBH), but dont see County as being a team full of Highland developed youngsters. We have just as many young local lads getting chances.

 

• 25 Brown - no
• 04 Munro - yes
• 05 Boyd -?
• 18 Ikonomou - no
• 22 Kovacevic - no
• 08 Lawson - ?
• 10 Brittain - no
• 11 Vigurs - yes
• 12 Quinn - no
• 16 Sproule - no
• 17 Morrow - no

 

Ironically, the Dundee United team we face tonight will have more Highland talent in it than County's team!! Gary Mackay-Steven is from Thurso and had a brief trial here, and our former youth player, Stuart Armstrong, is from Inverness!