Scottydog

Two players in 1 day and ones actually plays in a position we need a player in. edited to add, we know nothing about him but he’s a good size and the right age hopefully he can play a bit too. it’s a move in the right direction if

Some quotes and my thoughts on them. "We haven't played a single league game yet. If we go the first three games of the season without picking up a single point and Murray is still struggling to bring players in then I could understand being upset. " No we haven't but we've been held by two lower league sides that I'm sure a Raith side of the last 3 seasons would have dispatched. That we don't start the league campaign well is my main worry, but why shouldn't supporter be upset with the fact that we couldn't get out of an easy group and picked up a cash tie against Rangers? Reason enough to be annoyed in my book. "We all know, Murray included, that we're short on centre-halves, more so this week than last, but I genuinely cannot think of a single one who is available in Scotland that I'd like to see here." Yet this isn't news is it? This has been the case since he came into the job 65 days ago, true it has been exacerbated by the retirement of Berra but IM has had over 2 months to do something about it and as I type we are NOW less than 48 hours from the opening league fixture. The fact that CH's are a rare commodity in this country make it even more ludicrous that we now allowed FOUR of the 5 who played last season to slip away. Now before some knob jumps in with the apparent fav phrase of the moment "knicker wetting" Surely a better question is how can any supporter of the Rovers not be concerned? Even if Murray signs two central defenders and a striker today they will be complete strangers to their teammates up at the Balmoral Stadium. God how I wish we'd kept Musonda and McKay.

If this Aberdeen 4th choice left back is signing then I will really have no words. Prior to Spencers injury we already had a very good options in midfield to pick from, and attacking midfield options in Zanatta, Ross and Connolly yet Murray goes out and signs 2 midfielders! Where as in attack we had virtually nothing doing other than Gullan and some kids... we still don't. In defence we lost 3 central defenders and a right back, a new rightback came in but no centrebacks. To complicate matters further we then lose the only available dedicated and experienced centre back we have. What is Murray's apparent reaction to this calamity? Sign another leftback! Fair fucks we only had 2 on the books anyway. My concern like some others is that we come away with nothing from Cove or at home to Dundee and straight away we are looking up at the rest of the division going onwards. If there's a manual at Starks Park on how to make a small provincial club reasonably successful then I suggest they read it from P 1 to the conclusion not backwards!

Once was the time when this would likely have been the case but these days instant media combined with the fact that the paper has become such a complete nonentity make it just one of the reasons it’s unlikely.

Just another eventful day as a Rovers fan. Surprised? A bit. Upset? Nah It's just another blow in a year full of them. Murray binned 15 players at Airdrie last season. So far one way or another it seems we've lost 10 (11 if god forbid Mcdonald has joined Berra) of last seasons squad (Inc loanees) so maybe only another 4 or 5 to go? We've gone from a reasonably solid if unspectacular defence (2021-22) to a leaky defence (2022-23) to no defence (2023-24).

about sums this thread up.

The other isn’t Finishd but I kear he’s a bit of a meatball.

I've got my doubts on that one. Anyway on the subject of getting some bodies in, I see Jack Hamilton has gone on loan at Hartlepool, that's a blow for us as I'd heard he was a signing target.

Fair comments both. But if your short of centre backs because you let 3 go why not just sign a dedicated centre half? Also I’m not convinced yet with Easton, he looks like a player who can add the Gloss when you’re fying but can’t help dig you out of a hole when you’re under the cosh. To my mind We already have one of those, his name is Zanatta.

And McKay for that matter. in an ideal world we would punt all 3 and bring in better, but where exactly do we get better? FWIW I’d have made more of an effort and kept Frankie and probably McKay too. Tumilty was always going so finding a decent replacement was always going to be hard, jury is out on Millen and we can but hope he comes good. Midfield is a clusterfuck! Matthews didn’t get his op when he should have due to the club being a shambles without a manager. Easton might have been poty in L1 and Brown might be Peterhead’s poty but are they better than what we already have? I’m not convinced. It’s still early days and it will take a while for players to gel to Murray’s ideas, add a good signing or 3 things might not look so bad. Once the injured guys come back we could be looking good, I just hope we aren’t cast too far adrift.

Am I looking at the wrong leagues? Accies are only on 7 points no? QotS 8pts +4gd, A win or a draw and a penalty shoot out win would see us through by my reckoning.

Quite galling really, if we'd been good enough to beat either of Dumbarton or Stirling we'd be there too. Even a penalty win over Stirling would have been enough to see us through with a draw at Pittodrie.

I'm sure of that's the case it would be all over the press abd club website. I call your bluff Definitely this, I spoke to the owner about a month or so ago, at that point he was saying that we should have news of his departure soon. With that in mind I'm sure the club will issue something when/if it ever happens. In the ideal world Sim, Sinton, Morgan & McDonald would be issuing a joint statement saying that they've personally paid up his contract and he's away.

If I'm honest I feel less than enthusiastic at present, not just about the coming season but the club in general. I definitely feel that in the course of this year a bit of the passion has gone, which for a Rovers fan who's gone H&A since 1977 is a bit of a strange feeling. Hopefully Murray will get it right and get the right people in but for me the wheels came off the bus last season and simply changing the coach driver isn't going to solve the issue. Yes there were changes need after last season but the ones that have been implemented haven't shown signs of being the right ones....at least not yet! Matthews, Stanton, Spencer and even Arnott are very good players, but are Brown and Easton vast improvements to what was/is arguably our strongest area of the team? Is Ian Murray an improvement on John McGlynn? As I said the wheels definitely came off and I fear in the process we also careered off the road, I'm hopeful if not massively confident those running the club know what they are doing to get us going again. I'm struggling for optimism, so perhaps a decent signing or 2 would help.

In years gone by McGlynn was starting to deal in players earlier and earlier (Keatings, Tumilty, Lang and Zanatta) but that was never going to be an option for us this season. Strangely though no other teams got any early deals done either. It's been a strange close season.

Yeah, sign Foster and get in Broadfoot and Toderov too. In fact while we're at it we may as well wheel out Goodwillie too! It's been a poor poor start to things in many ways, hopefully it can only get better.

A relatively comfortable 32 deg at 5pm in Bratislava last night at teatime. Its a mere 28 just now, quite pleasant.

You shouldn't have any problems. I watched the Peterhead game on Wednesday in the Highlander bar in Vienna. Planning to do the same today but farther along the Danube.

They cobbled that up nicely

I see Airdrie are also looking for a new Physio. Announce our latest signing...

Of course booing a friendly is a tad OTT, but when you support the Rovers you have to be used to that kind of behaviour, it's really nothing new, you can take the dour Fifer out of Fife but you'll never take the dour out of (some) Fifers. All the same there were more Rovers fans leaving the ground yesterday shaking their heads than smiling that was for sure, and it's not hard to see why. Murray has made promises and though there's no indications as yet hopefully the signs will appear soon that his methods are the right ones, otherwise we are in for a long hard season. What concerns me is the players he's brought in and most importantly hasn't (yet), last season we conceded too many goals yet despite 4 departures the only new defender through the door so far is Ross Millen (who's performances thus far haven't filled me with hope). Instead without even seeing us play Murray has brought in 2 new guys to compete in what most would probably agree is our strongest department. Are Brown and Easton better than what we have in Stanton, Arnott, Spencer and Matthews? I don't think so, in fact so far they don't look as good, I only hope they settle in and improve massively. I fully understand that adapting to a new coach's style will take a while, but I'm still concerned that the level of quality in the team has if anything dropped a notch.

Ok still a friendly same as QotS was but where is the "high press and quick attacking football" cos' I'm yet to see it. As I say very early days but with age comes experience and tbh I'm concerned.

Watching the highlights of the QotS game, Berra is the main culprit for their winner but Dick is culpable too, he's on his heels not expecting a pass and then manages to get back only to get done by the attacker. Poor defending all round. FWIW I think theirs was a justifiable penalty but our looks like it hits McKay in the face.

Help ma Bob, you'd think they'd have learned from experience.

Aye that'll teach them!