yorkshirepud

McGinty has gone from being a bombscare to being a bang average championship player. Other than that, which player has shown any sign of being coached this season? Why did they make the exact same defensive mistakes last night as they did last week? What did they do in training between those two games to shore up the defence? How did they finish 2nd in the league? Baffling. I still don't know what Bullen is trying to achieve. What's his football philosophy? Is it just just "shell it long to the big lad and hope he does something," or is there more to it? Wholesale clearout needed. Keep Musonda and Albinson. Happily get rid of the rest.

Which would be fine if it was a right hook, but it wasn't. He pushed him away with his forearm. There was no clenched fist and contact was not on the head. Guidance to refs is clenched fist is red. Contact with force to the head is red. Neither was the case. Yellow card to both and an absolute bollocking would have sufficed. Well done to Thistle and good luck in the final. Shone a very bright light on Ayr's deficiencies in both games - full backs unable to prevent crosses, no real leader to organise and motivate, a midfield that isn't up to the job and a serious lack of plan B when plan A of shelling it long to Dipo and hope he does something, isn't working- and your front three plus Lawless are a handful. You'll score plenty but a better team than Ayr, (or Ross County or Kilmarnock for that matter) might cause your defence some problems.

Colin Steven is an absolute arsehole and should be demoted to under 12 football. Then again, that's probably harsh on under 12s.

Luckily it's on Friday, so Dipo has a few more days to shake off the bug/back strain/cholera/plague. (delete as applicable)

If anyone needed any evidence that Dipo carried this team, then tonight was it. Shocking performance all round and can't think of a single player who deserved pass marks, except Albinson who was left exposed time and again by the brittle defending. Poor clearance led to the first goal and was compounded by Reading ignoring the warning he got a full 15 seconds previously about the ball being played in behind him. Just track the runner, FFS. 2nd and 3rd goals were so similar as we gave up cheap possession rather than be patient, then the midfield just disappeared, letting Thistle saunter upfield unhindered before the full backs stood off to allow a cross to the big thug who wasn't being tracked. Not one midfielder was busting a gut to get back and the central defenders were caught ball watching. Worryingly, we have seen a lot of performances like that this season but we were either bailed out by Dipo or got off lightly by opponents not taking chances. This team needs major surgery next season or we will be in trouble at the other end of the table without Dipo.

This Ayr defence simply doing as they have done all season. Awful stuff, particularly the full backs.

Oh. Shit.

I think only Dundee can catch QP now. Even if Ayr beat Dundee on Tuesday they still need to win almost all of their remaining games and hope someone else does them a favour by beating QP. Ayr's form is far too patchy for that, though I'd obviously love to be proved wrong. Dundee to beat Ayr on Tuesday to kill off any faint hopes we have, leaving us to battle out 3-5 with Partick and Morton.

Long term contracts are fine if the plan is to develop and improve the players with quality coaching. Apart from McGinty moving from bombscare to competent, have any players actually improved this season?

First 20-30 we played great football. Could have scored 2 or 3 more and had the game done and dusted. Then we just stopped playing. Midfield disappeared and we tried using the smoke screen to shell it back to front. Utterly bizarre and got what we deserved. Dreadful, dreadful performance after the 30 minute mark. Defence just stood off and let them pass it around them. The 2nd goal came from us not pressing the ball and just letting him have a go. The number of crosses into the box was unreal because we stood off their wide men. It's the same mistakes from the same culprits every week.

Definite progress from last season but I think people are rightly concerned at the serious drop in performance and form, especially at home. Real test now for Bullen to see if he can arrest the slide. From 1st to 5th in a matter of weeks.

Inverness at Ayr. Away win. Normal service. Ayr could be in the Champions League final having pumped Bayern, Real and PSG en route while ICT could be bottom of the Highland league and it would still be a nailed on away win.

Awful game. Pre-Christmas Dipo scores at least one of those two chances but Post Christmas Dipo looks exhausted, fed-up and frustrated, which is hardly surprising when you look at how we set up. We need to change the way we play or this season will just fizzle out to a 6th ir 7th place finish. When McGuire said he'd "kept himself ticking over" did anyone think to check he hadn't done it by jogging to McD's? Touch is OK but zero pace and was blowing out his arse after 5 minutes.

Especially if you worked in the NHS or care professions.....

Potential last four of Ayr, ICT and the Bigot Brothers?

Wouldn't have McCall back. It can't be denied he did a terrific job for us and put us in a place we hadn't been for years but the club has moved on and I'm not sure his skill set would fit the club anymore. Would happily take Scally though as Bullen needs help to get the best out of a talented squad. It might stop the interminable hoofball.

Loan market open until end of February. Pump Elgin, get a good draw that brings in some decent cash then get some of it spent loaning in some competent defenders.

To my fellow Ayr fans. Stop blaming the DKB ref for that defeat. It was a penalty. We were rank rotten all night, defended piss poorly at both goals and could have conceded more. We were very flat and the midfield contributed nada all night, hardly a surprise when plan A was shell it to Akinyemi early and plan B was ....??? Apart from the two Cove games we've been playing like this for months. I said on deadline day we still needed another defender and last night just underlined that. If we defend properly we don't lose that game. Our own fault, not the DKB ref.

Still think we need a defender. Houston, Reading, McAllister, Kirk, McGinty, Hewitt, Bangala and a fragile Musonda is a bit light.

Mullin and McAlear is a good start.

Terrific win last night and the best we've played in weeks, especially second half. Rather than relying on some Dipo magic, last night was much more of an all-round team effort. Hopefully the dodgy spell is over and we are returning to form again, just in time as the next 5 league games are tougher tests.

Quite happy with where we are and don't see major surgery being needed to the squad. Hewitt coming back² relieves the pressure at full back. Musonda's injury record suggests we need a back up central defender. We really only have Dempsey and Murdoch in the centre of midfield so a bit of experience in there as cover would be useful along with another striker to help Dipo or give him a rest. If we need to offload one or two to get what we need then so be it but there are a few candidates who haven't lived up to their billing or have gone backwards since August. Have faith that Bullen, Mathie and Glendinning can deliver the players we need then win the next four league games to put us back on top of the pile. Mon Ayr.

Ecrepont was apparently unwell through the week so maybe felt he wasn't fit enough to start. Should certainly have flung him on when Bangala was booked though as a half-fit Ecrepont would have been better than what came next. Could maybe switch him and Reading at Cappielow, see how he gets on in his natural position?

Defence is a huge worry as we have seriously run out of players, if we assume Musonda and Kirk are out for a while yet. I think our hand has been forced and we need at least one other central defender for January 1st to at least allow us to move McAllister across to right back. Within 3 games we could go from league leaders to out of the play-offs. We need something from the Morton game but I can't see how we get it as we have stopped creating chances while also defending like idiots. That's a pretty toxic combination.

Don't care how unfit Ecrepont is he should have replaced Bangala Immediately after the yellow card as it was clear he was going to be sent off eventually. Bangala should be released in January as he clearly isn't up to it.