Three league defeats in a row - time for change?

[CaleyD]

Some decent points there CH2 and glad to see you backing them with a bit of reasoning.

However, you seem to have summed up your entire reasoning for following ICT and contributing to these forums with...

the solution is simple to me and im glad i managed to listen to the second half today to hear it for myself.

So your whole reasoning for listening was in the hope that you could find something to prove yourself right and you were glad that the team had a bad day so you could come on here and gloat about it.

In all honesty bud, I'd take myself off on a bit of a soul searching mission to find out which team you really support cause it ain't ICT.  Any real fan/supporter would have  been sad/disappointed to have listened in on the game to find any fears they had being played out in reality - not, as in your case, get their jollies from it.

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

Absolutely spot on ch2. Ya can ferget about the defence - forwards will score if they get a proper chance but that is unlikely when the ball is hoofed at them with their backs to feckin goals. In Black Rankin and Wilson we have three players who can execute the killer ball and two players who can get wide and plonk in crosses. But CC persists with the old faithful in the middle of the park. Solid, hard working and 100% maybe - but not feckin SPL  :018:playmakers.

[Northern_jaggie]

i hink duncans the problem, couldnt string a pass against well. :020:

[chris123]

it has been said on other threads that CC tried to bring someone in but couldn't find a player that would improve the squad ... how many other teams in the SPL would kill for a striker that could win you a game???

Ye and weve got two, its just neither of them are fit.

I think both the midfield and attack need to take some responsibillity

Early on in the first half the commentator said (im not even going to try to spell his name):

"Plays a long ball up to Mcallister. He doesn't get there :017:

sums the game up for me

[clacher_holiday2]

Some decent points there CH2 and glad to see you backing them with a bit of reasoning.

However, you seem to have summed up your entire reasoning for following ICT and contributing to these forums with...

the solution is simple to me and im glad i managed to listen to the second half today to hear it for myself.

So your whole reasoning for listening was in the hope that you could find something to prove yourself right and you were glad that the team had a bad day so you could come on here and gloat about it.

In all honesty bud, I'd take myself off on a bit of a soul searching mission to find out which team you really support cause it ain't ICT.  Any real fan/supporter would have  been sad/disappointed to have listened in on the game to find any fears they had being played out in reality - not, as in your case, get their jollies from it.

hang about where did that come from.  i said i was glad to listen to us playing better after black came on, i never said i was glad we got beat?!  if anything its a positive message, theres a solution to the problem and it involves mixing up the midfield.  where did i gloat about how bad we were?

sounds like youve been waiting a while to throw those lines at me, which reflects poorly on your abilty to judge character and possibly puts into question your role as a moderator and definitley puts in question what right you have to challenge my support on ict/the team in the future.  not that i have to prove myself to anybody on here but i can promise you will never get the chance to use the 'clacker hates ict' line legitimatly, i have never expressed satisfaction at watching/listening to us lose and i promise you i never will

stating problems on the park is not being negative about what i want to see from us in terms of long term results, if we lose and play like you on the park then saying so isnt being a boo boy at all.  theres no soul searching required at this end im well aware of where my soul stands!

[Scotty]

Agree with several comments in this thread ...... from listening to the full game on radio yesterday, here are my comments on what Kheredine Idessane and Willie Young had to say.

Goalkeeping: Mike seemed to do pretty well - commentators gave him several  :021:

Defence: The whole defence was pretty anonymous. I dont think Dods or Munro were mentioned during the game (so therefore didnt do too much wrong either), but Tokely took a bit of stick for falling over like a sack of spuds a couple of times and the 'hoarding challenge' which Willie Young did say was fair. Only Hastings was commented on positively a few times.

Midfield: Duncan was the main man singled out - how many times was it mentioned that he ****ed up a pass !!! Rankin was also mentioned negatively (not as good as normal) and both Royston and Barry were anonymous in the coverage.

Attack: It was said that Bayne works hard but my own feeling is that he needs someone more experienced to play alongside. McAllister was gash and the commentary team wasted no time in highlighting several blown opportunities where he could and should have scored.

On the plus side, the commentary team were very positive about both Markus and Blackie when they came on as they did seem to have a huge positive effect on how we were playing.

As an "armchair manager" I would say that Black needs to come back into the side and that Paatelainen has also shown enough in the short spells he has had, to be given a run-out. Its unfortunate that he is cup-tied for next weeks game as I would have had him on from the start. I would also say that Rory needs to take a step back down for now .... he showed against Celtic that he can do it, but both before and since then he has looked disinterested or incapable. Whether that means we go with McSwegan up front or maybe use Morgan / Paatelainen / Zander on the wings and shove Barry up front who knows, but I am afraid that Rory just cannot cut it at the moment and we would be as well playing 4-5-1 than 4-4-1 + Rory.

[RiG]

Wilson was commented on as having a few really good crosses in the 2nd half.

Thing is those at the game are in a far better position to say who was good or not than those who listened in on the radio (like me).

[Scotty]

Thing is those at the game are in a far better position to say who was good or not than those who listened in on the radio (like me).

Absolutely agree, there is nothing like being there - however, when the same player is mentioned in commentary half a dozen times as missing a shot or misplacing a pass, then you dont have to be Einstein to work out he his having a stinker .......

[RiG]

Also agree. Duncan sounded like he was having a poor one by his previously high standards.

As I said yesterday it seems such a shame that after a fantastic performance against Celtic we seem to have returned to playing the football that we were playing just before Christmas which was painful to watch.

[Joe DiMaggio]

I was at the game and the problems seemed pretty obvious. Up front we are lacking Bayne played well winning balls in the air but Mcallister was quite poor again. I thought Wilson played quite well but it was hard for him and he seemed to be doing all the work attacking by himslef no one else was moving forward well with the ball. That changed when Black came on and we look far more dangerous with him and Wilson creating chances. Black has got to start next week or i think we'll have no chance. Even maybe move Wilson up front with Bayne but as long as Black starts we could maybe continue with MCallister up front

[caley100]

How many games will Rory get to prove he has 'something' untill Dargo is fit? this seaon, unless we have a complete collapse this season is safe, so we should have another spell the top league.

So the scenario is we are losing Dods, lost Broon, will we lose Dargo?-probably, we could also lose Black if the right money is waved at Grassa.

Has CC the ability to bring in players of similar quality? there is a nag in me head that we cant afford to do so which is concerning, also CC claims that the youth must be given a chance, fair enough but at what point will he admit to himself that players are not good enough.

I think he has gambled that Rory will step in and use this opportunity to shine, and apart from the Celtic game he has failed miserably.

[beachcomber]

I hope someone behind the scenes is seriously twisting Dargo's arm whilst offering to line his pockets as much as we can to sign on for longer. His erm shouldn't take much twisting at the moment !!

There isn't another player in the squad who we need more.

[Stevie]

His erm shouldn't take much twisting at the moment !!

:pale: :lol03:

[davieB]

I hope someone behind the scenes is seriously twisting Dargo's arm whilst offering to line his pockets as much as we can to sign on for longer. His erm shouldn't take much twisting at the moment !!

There isn't another player in the squad who we need more.

Absolutely.

I know Dargo can't be forced to stay, but I'd hope that every single avenue is being used in persuading him to stay. Even if that means breaking our 'famous' wage structure, we can't afford NOT to have a player like Dargo.

For those who say give Rory more time.......he's had plenty.

And some people keep pointing out that Dargo took ages to get going....implying Rory will do the same. From memory, Dargo's problems at the start were simply being unable to buy a goal. He was actually playing extremely well, just not scoring.

Rory's different in that he can't score and his general play is ermmm...crap.

Other than that, like others, I agree the midfield needs re-jigging. Blackie, on his day, is head and shoulders above any of our other midfielders in the skill stakes. So why the feck is he still sat on the bench!!!

Marcus certainly sounded like he added something yesterday, so how about giving him a start(not next week obviously).

We're obviously playing poorly at the moment. I hope CC can see what the vast majority of fans can see and makes the necessary changes.

[kencar]

I'm not sure there will be any changes for the Celtic game - could be a case of CC giving everyone 'one more chance'

At least we know there will be for the Dundee United with Roy finally being taken out of the team because of suspension.

I'd like to see Black & Rankin in central midfield with Markus out wide left and Rory being dropped for McSwegan

[caley100]

I cant see him keeping the same team for the cup game, as CC said the cup is a much bigger lure than 6th place, i think he used yesterday as last chance for the team he has been starting with this last few weeks.

The cup game will i'm sure see him making those changes, if these players cant score against a ***** Hearts and a ***** Motherwell what chance have we against Celtic.

If we go out of the cup the last few months are going to die the death.

[Johnboy]

I reckon Blackie is bound to be on from the start against Celtic -  I hope he plays a blinder and makes a real name for himself..... We all know what he's capable of and he might just be the guy that could win this one for us.

I'm sure it will still be made clear to him though, if he gets booked for something daft, he will be hauled off straight away.....

Marcus is cup-tied, Kencar....

[RiG]

The cup game will i'm sure see him making those changes, if these players cant score against a ****e Hearts and a ****e Motherwell what chance have we against Celtic.

Here is the team that played so well against Celtic.

Inverness CT: Fraser, Tokely, Dods, Munro, Hastings, Wilson, McBain, Duncan (Black 74), Rankin, Bayne, Wyness (McAllister 2), McAllister (Paatelainen 84). Subs Not Used: Ridgers, McCaffrey, Morgan, Soane.

Here is the team that played so poorly against Hearts.

Inverness CT: Fraser, Tokely, Dods, Munro, Hastings, Wilson (McSwegan 85), McBain, Duncan, Rankin (Morgan 63), Bayne, McAllister. Subs Not Used: Ridgers, McCaffrey, Black, Paatelainen, Soane.

Here is the team that played so (apparently) poorly against Motherwell.

Inverness CT: Fraser, Tokely, Dods, Munro, Hastings, Wilson, Duncan (Black 70), McBain, Rankin (Paatelainen 72), McAllister (McSwegan 75), Bayne.

So that's pretty much man for man the exact same team that played so well against Celtic yet has been so poor in the last couple of games.

[Row S]

.....and pretty much the same team that has failed to win any points out of the last nine, RiG.

Some interesting comments folks and I would subscribe to the view about playing 4-5-1 next week with Bayne as the lone striker and perhaps giving Barry a free role.  We will need the extra man in midfield to deal with Nakamura and Hartley.  Perhaps Richie Hart could do a job in that respect.  His tough tackling could help and I think Russell Duncan and Ian Black should play alongside him.  It would then be a toss up between McBain and Rankin on the left.  Rankin has certainly played better out on the left than Roy this season, but was poor in central midfield. 

As for the defence, I could venture to say bring in Caff for Tokely at right back, but Caff hasn't done too well there this season on the couple of occasions he has played there.  On the subs bench we should have the young legs in Rory and Zander to throw on in the last 20 minutes, if it's still 0-0.  No point holding out for a draw if we want our season to be meaningful beyond next week.  After all I think we are going to struggle to make the Top Six.  Here's to a semi final against Queen of the South.     

[RiG]

.....and pretty much the same team that has failed to win any points out of the last nine, RiG.

I know and that is what annoys me to be honest. Why can we turn up for Celtic but not for other games? Why do we suddenly resort to long ball football against other teams yet play Celtic off the park with some of our play?

Frustrating to say the least.

[beachcomber]

Can anyone clarify the current situation with Ritchie Hart - are we likely to see him back soon ???

[Alex MacLeod]

Its very easy to pick out one or two for blame but the fact is the whole team has been gash last few league games.

For Celtic I'd go for an all out attack with:

                                                            Fraser

                                                 Tokely Munro Hastings

                                             Wilson Black Rankin Morgan

                                                               Hart

                                                     Bayne     Sutherland

Subs Ridgers, Dods, Duncan, McBain, McAllister

If Hart isnt fit then Duncan takes his place and Soane on the bench.

[RiG]

Can anyone clarify the current situation with Ritchie Hart - are we likely to see him back soon ???

Back from injury and working up his fitness in the reserves.

[beachcomber]

Alex - brave, but it's easy to see why you're stuck out here with me in the Nort Sea s**t instead of sitting behind a mahogany desk at TCS,  :016:

RiG - thanks for that - Roll on Hart's return

[kencar]

I think Black being recalled is the far more likelier option than recalling Hart who couldn't get a game when he was fully fit and has been out for 4 months