Nairney

According to the FFP's Matthew Elder (on Twitter) apart from the players already confirmed as released, the rest of the first team have been offered new contracts...

Do we know if anyone else has been released so far?

Spot on summaries from Paco and Wardy, in my opinion!

I've been feeling a bit gloomy about next season, but it think you might be onto something with this theory... Hopefully anyway!

Agreed. Fantastic confident performance from Robinson. I didn't really think we had any weak links yesterday (including Murray who seemed to have pitched the players tactics, motivation, subs etc perfectly) so singling out any individuals would be difficult, but he was certainly a man of the match contender for me. Happy that it went to Dougie Hill. That man is a Trojan! Great gesture to give McGurn the medal, but Robinson thoroughly deserved it after the game he had. The performance the team gave was the one we knew they were capable of, but couldn't pull off, during the few 'dark' months at the start of the year. Let's keep the momentum and the confidence going! I have to admit (much like the Hibs game) prior to yesterday's game, I really wasn't looking forward to it. So to win, in the manner which we did, was super sweet! However, I really started to believe before kick off that we could win it. McCoist made a massive error of judgement, in my opinion, calling the Rangers players in so early during their pre-match warm up. You could really see the Rovers players soaking up every moment before they went back in. I can't help but think it gave them an extra edge over the Rangers players.

On the redevelopment of Starks Park, I don't think the SPL ground criteria can be entirely blamed for this. The decision to form the breakaway SPL was made in September 1997, with the league commencing in 1998. The redevelopment was prior to both of these events.

You could argue that Robinson has had a 'better' defence in front of him, as Watson has played a few games in front of him now. *sigh* I've said it before, but Murray's choice of keeper just seems to typify what's going wrong with us.

Wow, I've always preferred Laidlaw but I had no idea that's what the stats were like.... Am I right in thinking that is virtually been the same defence in front of them both (with a variable of Ellis / Donaldson), though Robinson has had Watson playing in two of his games?

The result at Dens (and the game against Morton) gave us some belief that we might be managing to turn a corner, yesterday was just back to the same old same old.

Fair point re: our initial squad depth - Murray seemed to opt for quality (at this level) over quantity. We knew we might begin to struggle once injuries / suspensions started to kick in. However, Murray has been able to bring in other players since then and, in my opinion, only Baird has had any positive impact. It's more disappointment / depression than panic I would say.

Scary Bear, I'm out of green dots - otherwise I'd give you one! Another thought about next season, assuming we avoid / survive the relegation play-offs, what sort of players will we be able to attract? Murray (and the board) assembled what should have been a top 4 finish team, but we'll struggle to tempt players of that calibre to sign (or re-sign) for us based on the results, confidence, morale, playing style etc we've displayed under Murray recently. Dunno what ourselves and others will be offering players in terms of wages and bonuses, but presumably our budget won't be able to compete with many of the other clubs... Especially as we won't have much hope of achieving a top 4 finish next season. I think Murray might have been an exciting prospect for players to sign for last summer, as he built his own squad up (rather than carrying on with McGlynn's), but I don't think that will be the case this summer - given how badly we've under-performed on his watch. So, presuming we're still in this league, next season could potentially be even worse than this one...

Gosh, what a day! Ugly ugly win, but a much needed one. Come half time I really thought Grant Murray's time was up - despite a valiant effort from our players we were just woeful. Today was the first time, in a long time, we've actually see him manage to turn a game round. In fact, without sounding over dramatic, Spence's two goals might just have turned the remainder of the season around for us... I've been critical of Murray's goalkeeping choices, but credit where it's due, Robinson had a decent game today. I also feel bad now for laughing at the wee mascot, who predicted a 2-1 win with Spence to score. Is he available next Saturday too?

Pretty much everything roverthemoon said! I would add that, personally, I find the situation particularly frustrating because (whilst McGurn is out) I would rather see Laidlaw gain match experience. Inevitably, part of that learning curve will involve making mistakes occasionally. Unfortunately, at times, that may cost us goals. But, he is a promising player - he's been learning from and training with McGurn for years. McGurn himself has praised him (in one of the post match video interviews) and sees him as a potential replacement in the future. This was how I felt when folk were calling for Laidlaw to be dropped and its still how I feel now. I would rather see Laidlaw make the odd mistake, learn from it and move forward, than watch a more experienced keeper do the same. However good Robinson has been for other teams, we've yet to see it at the Rovers. That's not to say he's not a decent player, but personally he would not have been my first choice pick over Laidlaw. I'm not party to any Robinson witch hunt, but the defence is / has been only part of the problem.

RRFC2711 - we've all probably said all we can say on the keeper issue now, you're right. It's such a sore point though because there are at least 2-3 players in the team who seem to be untouchable in terms of selection...

Personally, I don't think there's much point blaming the board. Despite having, what is probably, a shoestring budget, they've allowed Murray to build up a fairly small but decent quality squad of his choosing. The problem is in the way that this team is performing on the park. The buck, for that, stops with Grant Murray. I'm not calling for his head. Financially that probably isn't even an option. However, something needs to change to stop the rot that has set in.

Grumswall and Lang Toun Lad, I posted this in the Accies match thread, but according to one of the Rovers players (sorry I don't remember who said it or which paper I read it in) after the Hibs game, Grant Murray is supposed to be great at motivating the players in the run up to a cup game. If this is true, why is he unable to translate this to our league games? Baffling.... Almost as baffling as the team selection.... And the repetition of tactics that don't seem to work. I am baffled!

Gutted I forgot about the globe. It probably would've been my highlight from today's game... Had I seen it

I can't see Sevco beating that record, although they're clearly having a good attempt so far! I wouldn't be surprised if they have some kind of bubble bursting episode before the season is out. I've no idea what exactly, but there still seems to a constant flow of drama behind the scenes...

I've been lurking around on here for over a year, but at last I feel compelled to join in! Like Moonhound, I missed out on the (1st) Jimmy Nic era. So, John McGlynn's time in charge of the Rovers has been the greatest period of stability and (relative) success that I've witnessed first hand. It wasn't always bonny, but there were some fantastic seasons / games / moments I'll never forget! Like everyone else has said, I wish McGlynn nothing but the best of luck. I'm pleased that he's got a move to Hearts, they do seem to mean a lot to him. I just hope he doesn't end up as another casualty of their revolving door though Personally, I hope that the board continue along the same lines as Levein / McGlynn.... Rather than someone with limited experience or one of Scottish Football's usual suspects! It seems weird to be listening out for rumours, gossip and news of potential managerial candidates - its been so long since we went through the process. Anyway, I'm away back to lurking mode now - Cheerio!