Francesc Fabregas

That's why I wrote "might just be getting their act together"! We won't know how far we've progressed unless we have another go against one of the better sides in the division. I'm sceptical myself but I'm looking forward to the weekend all the same!

This has the makings of an entertaining encounter between the FK postcode's premium sides. Stirling Albion are in very good form just now and haven't lost a match since the middle of August, while Stenhousemuir might just be getting their act together under Stephen Swift, having recorded back-to-back wins over Cowdenbeath and Huntly. The last meeting between the sides on the opening game of the season was a stuffy affair, with only Martin McNiff's separating the sides, but I think this could be a bit more fun. The worry for the Warriors is we lack a real threat up top without Robert Thomson (I'm still not convinced by Tam Orr in the lone striker role) and we don't really have anyone in midfield to protect the defence - I think someone like Jack Leitch could get break forward and get in behind us and cause us bother. That said, we have attacking threats of our own in Euan O'Reilly and Adam Brown and both players can ask questions of the Binos' backline. We now have something close to a regular starting XI. Depending on who's available, I'd like to see us go with: - Tam Orr - - Euan O'Reilly - Adam Brown - Ross Forbes - - Nat Wedderburn - James Lyon - - Ross Lyon - Sean Crighton - Nicky Jamieson - Michael Miller - - Davie Wilson - I'm not 100 per cent convinced by James Lyon but I think he's streets ahead of Declan Hughes and Mikey Anderson. I'd love to take something from this match (and a win here would be a real "statement of intent" from Swift) but I am fearing the worst and expect Stirling to beat us by the odd goal.

The club have posted some injury updates on social media: Robert Thomson will be absent for between six and eight weeks with ligament damage Graeme Smith has had a setback in his recovery and won't be available until December The lesser-spotted Jon Craig is out for a further three weeks with a broken collarbone Jordan Tapping is unavailable, awaiting further assessment We had all anticipated that Thomson would be out until mid-to-late December, but that still doesn't make it any easier. A huge loss to the team.

We have been drawn against Airdrieonians at home in the Scottish Cup third round. This is one of the least interesting draws we could have asked for.

Aye, agree with the comments about Adam Brown. I like watching him play and like the way he carries himself, with his head on a swivel and his chest puffed, and he seems to have settled into his role as a shadow striker. Long may it continue. Another positive from yesterday is we seem to have a settled XI now - when everyone's fit and available, we know broadly how we'll be starting matches. This was a criticism of the manager earlier in the campaign and it's good know we've finally have a bit of consistency there.

A welcome win against a limited Huntly side and progress to the third round of the cup - fair play to all involved! We controlled most of the match, save for one or two wobbly moments towards the end of the first half, and we created a good few chances without ever looking like we'd run over the top of them. Ross Lyon was fine at left-back and took his goal well; Adam Brown did well playing off the striker; and Nat Wedderburn played some nice passes here and there. I'm still not convinced by the goalkeeper (although there was little he could have done with Huntly's goal, it was the kind of thing Ryan Marshall would have been bodied for) and I think we'll struggle up front until Robert Thomson's back in action. Tam Orr scored yesterday, poking the ball home from two yards out, but overall he wasn't aggressive enough, he didn't hold up the ball well, and there were a couple of occasions where he snatched at chances - for instance, towards the end of the game, he had the opportunity to slide in Darren Christie for a straightforward finish but hit the ball into a crowd of defenders instead. Special mention to Frazer Wright who told supporters to "fuck off" in response to someone shouting "that's not good enough" as he walked off the pitch at the interval. Maybe it's just me, but drawing with a mediocre Highland League side isn't all that great! It's not the first time Wright's mouthed off like this. I'm disappointed out match with Albion Rovers next weekend has been postponed as I think we'd have had a decent chance to push on up the table, but who do you complain to about it!

I am reliably informed that Shaughan McGuigan, who presented "Lee Connelly" to the panel under a series of falsehoods, will no longer be appearing on A View from the Terrace.

I'm surprised this hasn't been communicated by the club. We might get more details later today if they publish a preview of the Huntly match but I'm doubtful at this stage. I guess we'll find out more in the Wee Bar tomorrow! EDIT: the Huntly preview has been published on the club website and there's no indication as to how long Thomson will be out for, other than he's had a few scans and will need to be assessed by the physio. Tam Orr scored a double against Linlithgow Rose on Tuesday night, so who knows - he might do the same tomorrow!

Has there been any official confirmation about how long the big man will be out for? There was no mention of Robert Thomson's injury in the weekly newsletter (and no mention of the fact he was substituted in the win over Cowdenbeath last Saturday) and there hasn't been anything on social media. Thomson's absence really feels like one step forward and one step back. I was hopeful we could kick on and begin to climb the table after beating Cowden but I don't think we'll be able to do it with Tam Orr or Ryan Tierney leading the line. Orr is badly out of form and has been roundly disappointing since he joined the club, while Tierney is nowhere near good enough to play in the SPFL. Thomson knits everything together and gives the likes of Euan O'Reilly and Adam Brown someone to bounce off up top; the other two just don't have what he does. I'm not sure playing Darren Christie through the middle is the solution - he's inconsistent and only seems to make an impact when he's coming off the bench, and that's in his natural position on the wing - and, if we're not going to use Orr or Tierney, I can envisage Ross Forbes being deployed as a "false nine", somehow. I suppose, with Huntly coming up tomorrow in the Scottish Cup, it might give us the chance to experiment, although this is the kind of match that has "upset" written all over it!

Is there any indication as to when Robert Thomson will be back in action? The club's Twitter account said we should be updated "later in the week" but I thought we might have heard by now! Let's hope it's "very, very soon" - imagine going to the second quarter of the season with Ryan Tierney as your principle striker. Ay caramba!

I'm looking through our mediocre team and the positions that we're badly needing upgraded so I can take part in this thread. I'd like to see Paddy Martin return in goal - he was largely excellent during his loan spell last season and was, by some distance, our best player in an otherwise poor campaign. He's miles better than the likes of David Wilson or Ryan Marshall. We've been through four left-backs so far this season and not one of them has been any good, so let's bring back Ruaridh Donaldson, a popular, committed player who would stroll into this team. We badly need legs in the middle of the park and either Iain Thomson or Kieran Millar would be the perfect candidate to add some bite and snarl in front of the defence (it actually baffles me we didn't bring in a player like this in the summer). If I can be greedy, I'd also like to see a vintage Colin Cramb leading the line. I still can't quite forgive him for his role in the 2005/06 season unravelling but my word, what a striker!

This is an encouraging result and one I hope we can build from, but I do worry about Robert Thomson's injury - you saw how well he played throughout the first half and what he brings to the team, and we simply do not have another forward who gives us the same athleticism and physicality. Let's hope the big man isn't out for too long!

Clear off, you awful little pig!

Good evening, this is a polite reminder that A View from the Terrace is back on the box tonight - tune into the BBC Scotland channel at 10:30pm for some "conversation that relates to Scottish football". I hope to see you there!

Isiah Whitlock Jr is 67 years old and I fancy him to be more mobile than both Ross Forbes and Declan Hughes.

I haven't seen anything from Declan Hughes to suggest he can cut it in the SPFL. He looks like a reasonable passer of the ball but he doesn't move it quickly enough, he doesn't move it forward enough, he can't tackle and he can't press. He's been hooked in the last two matches and the team have looked better after his removal. Another player to file under the "might be handy for a mid-table Lowland League side but not good enough for League 2" category.

I wish I hadn't started this thread - I'm still glowing from Scotland's result against Israel and thinking of Stenny and Cowden slogging it out has brought me right back down to earth.

I think this could well be the first six-pointer of the season as basement boys Cowdenbeath and Stenhousemuir duke it out at Central Park on Saturday. Both sides have been in dreadful form over the campaign so far, with only goal difference separating them, and both sides can perhaps feel as though they're badly underachieving at the moment. There are capable players in both squads but, for whatever reason, it just hasn't worked. Stenny were mediocre in their last match, a 1-1 draw with Forfar Athletic, and only looked capable after the introduction of Robert Thomson and Adam Brown. Why on earth Thomson isn't starting every game, I do not know, but surely he has to play ahead of the wretched Tam Orr. I also think Ross Forbes and Declan Hughes should make for someone who can run and someone who is good at football respectively. I'd also like to see a left-footed player fielded at left-back - it just makes more sense to me! How about we go with: - Euan O'Reilly - Robert Thomson - Cammy Graham - - Nat Wedderburn - Adam Brown - James Lyon - - Bernard Coll - Sean Crighton - Nicky Jamieson - Michael Miller - - Davie Wilson - There's surely no way we can continue with Orr, Forbes and Hughes after their last couple of showings! There might be some clamour for Darren Christie's addition but I've never been convinced by him as starter and think he's at his best off the bench. I'd like to think we can win this match but who knows after that awful first quarter. If we lose, I reckon the last drop of goodwill Stephen Swift and his team have will evaporate.

Unlucky!

I said this yesterday - we haven't had the opportunity to meet with Stephen Swift, have a chat with him and find out about his ideas for his side. I think it would go a long way to clear up some of the anxieties and misconceptions around him and would probably be a decent bit of PR on his part. I don't think he's visited supporters in the Wee Bar after games (something that Brown Ferguson, Colin McMenamin and Davie Irons would do) and even just popping in for five minutes would help his cause. I would agree with your point here about "weak dominance". We certainly didn't see anything like it in the first half and in the second, we saw a lot of the ball without doing anything worthwhile with in (until Robert Thomson came on, at least - we created a decent number of chances while he was on the pitch). In his post-match interview, Sean Crighton also mentioned the fact we've signed so many players and how long it's taken to gel. This is something the manager himself alluded to in his pre-match interview on the club website. I don't know why this line is suddenly been trotted out - including pre-season games, we've played more than 20 matches since the summer and the fact that we still haven't found a settled starting XI, a satisfactory system, and a way of getting a tune out of Ross Forbes and Tam Orr is worrying.

I'd agree with all of this. It was a frustrating afternoon - Forfar Athletic, like Cowdenbeath, like Elgin City, were there for the taking but we couldn't turn our dominance into three points and it feels like another missed opportunity. Doubtless, Stephen Swift will be content and tell us this results proves we're a good side and we're heading in the right direction but I think we would have won the match if we started Robert Thomson and Adam Brown. I simply cannot fathom why the team isn't built around the big forward - he's gives us a threat through the middle and from out wide, he's physical and athletic, and he's always a nuisance for defenders. Instead, we toiled and only looked good after we made changes on the hour mark. I think it's in everyone's best interests if Tam Orr is dropped for the time being. He played poorly again today, failing to hold up the ball and bring his team-mates into the game, and he's offering us nothing at the moment. You can talk about the apparent lack of support and the scraps he's sometimes having to work from but Thomson did more in his first five minutes on the pitch (beating a man out wide and setting up Brown for a presentable chance) than Orr's done in the last three games. It's time for a change. I'd also drop Declan Hughes (a greetin'-faced nyaff who does very little in the middle of the park) and Ross Forbes (slow to the point where it looks as though he's participating in walking football). I'd also like to see a naturally left-footed player deployed at left-back because Ross Lyon always looked to come onto his right foot and was easy to defend against. Forfar weren't amazing - other than their goal, which took a huge deflection on its way into the net, David Wilson (who is, at best, a second-choice goalkeeper, I'm sorry to say) had little to do - so it's hard to tell how well we played. The defence won a lot of their headers, Nat Wedderburn showed some nice touches, and Euan O'Reilly was the best player on the park for two consecutive matches. He was direct and aggressive and one of the few players who looked as though he could make something happen. There was a great moment in the second half when he shuffled the ball from one foot to the other and dumped Ross Meechan on his arse and motored down the left. He was involved in a lot of our best moments and I'm sure he forced the corner that led to the equaliser; I'm pleased he's over his illness and can continue to star for the team. It was a positive conclusion to the match but it's been a dreadful first quarter and the manager will have to take responsibility. The failure to settle on his best XI, chopping and changing his team every week, persisting with Ryan Marshall and Tam Orr and dropping Robert Thomson are all mistakes which I hope are corrected going forward. It's hard to tell whether or not the supporters are sticking by him - there were a lot of negative things shouted at him as he left the pitch at the interval - but the Cowdenbeath match in a fortnight's time will be the ideal barometer. I have my doubts but a win and a positive performance would go a long way.

Good afternoon all! This is a polite reminder that season four of A View from the Terrace begins tonight at 10:30pm on the BBC Scotland channel. It's going to be more of the same - a bunch of D-list chumps who have never kicked a ball in their lives talking about Scottish football - but a little bit different too. I hope you're able to to tune in tonight or at a later time on the BBC iPlayer.

We have played the pair of them in midfield together, and you won't be surprised to learn the combination doesn't work. Nat Wedderburn has been alright and can pick a nice pass here and there, but he does take several months to bring the ball under control. Ross Forbes, meanwhile, has been tried out in numerous positions with little success and we probably look a bit better when he's not in the team.

You really seem to have a dislike of Bernard Coll. I wasn't expecting much from him but, to be fair to him, he's been okay. Not spectacular, but nowhere near as bad as you and your mates have made out.