Mr November
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Posts posted by Mr November
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3 minutes ago, A Diamond For Me said:
I just love this Airdrie team. What a team. What a season. Not just punching above our weight, but landing absolute haymakers left and right.
So much fun isn’t it? Especially these away trips on a Tuesday night.
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51 minutes ago, Shodwall cat said:
Did you not bottle it in the playoffs under Murray when in decent positions whilst McCabe got the job done. His recruitment seems decent but as you say tactics etc seem to be his Achilles heel.
To an extent yeah, 20/21 was just a ridiculously tired team with loads of injuries. 21/22 was a season we really should have went up but Murray completely ran out of ideas in the final. His last Airdrie team were flat-track bullies really, hammered everyone below them but couldn’t get over the line in the big games.
It’s interesting that Murray has actually managed to do that against Dundee United twice this season (albeit against a very limited manager) but has really struggled against managers who are better tactically.
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5 minutes ago, Shodwall cat said:
Yip he managed in one season to do what Murray failed to do in 4 years at Airdrie..
Murray built the spine of that team to be fair, we wouldn’t be where we are without the groundwork he put in. McCabe has undoubtedly taken us to the next level though, literally and figuratively. Murray is very good at incrementally improving teams and making things much more professional but (while this could come back to bite me) McCabe is well ahead of him tactically.
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Just now, A Diamond For Me said:
Yeah, that was some laugh.
Davie Hutton would maybe be in with a shout. Prunts, obviously.Hutton is a good shout. Quite funny how he seems to be disliked by fans of most of his previous clubs too, which probably adds to it.
Prunty is just a hero. Important that when McCabe inevitably moves on we keep Prunty around in some form.
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9 hours ago, ShineOnYouCrazyDiamonds said:
Serious question (although maybe I’m getting carried away): who was the last player we had with the cult hero status amongst the fanbase that Todorov has at the moment?
It was more ironic given he was guff up until then but I’ll remember those three weeks where Afolabi had a song, continued to be rubbish and then turned into prime Olivier Giroud in the play-offs for a long time.
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1 hour ago, A Diamond For Me said:
Some amount of goals we've scored from corners this season.
Edit: Well, from set plays in general.
Yeah, credit to Fordyce for that, he’s produced some really interesting and effective set plays this season. Makes a huge difference, in a league when every game is so tight being a real threat from set pieces can be crucial.
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Airdrie 1-1 Morton
Dunfermline 1-1 Partick Thistle
Inverness 1-0 Arbroath
Queen’s Park 1-2 Dundee United
Raith 2-1 Ayr0 -
I’ll be sorry to see Arbroath go down. I think having a part-time team in the league is an interesting dynamic and Gayfield (and the steak and black pudding pies) will be a real miss to the league.
All of this is probably quite obvious to the fans who watch Arbroath every week but I was amazed at how gutless and ineffective they were last night. Other than a penalty and a deflected free-kick I don’t think I ever felt like Arbroath were going to score. Even in the 5-2 game recently I thought Arbroath looked quite handy in the opening 20 minutes until Charlie Reilly went off and while Airdrie ran over the top of them after that, Arbroath did keep fighting. Last nights performance was so weak though, even when they finally conceded I don’t think Arbroath ever had a minute or two spell in possession hemming Airdrie into their own half. That’s before you even start on the antics around the penalty taker.
With the right manager there’s probably still enough left in a core of Little, Gold, McKenna etc to form the basis of a competitive League One side. The concern is obviously who is going to be in charge and whether any of the old guard defect to East Fife.
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Enjoyed that tonight. I’ve missed Tannadice and East End Park as I was away so nice to finally see one of our Tuesday night away wins. The good news for everyone else is I’ll miss the next three games, hopefully we have a similarly good unbeaten run then.
I thought that was one of our most comfortable performances all season, should have scored more than two and 2-1 really wasn’t a fair reflection on the game.
McCabe got his tactics spot on. We must have had 10-15 balls across the box that just needed to fall in the right way but until Fordyce scrambled one in they never did. There seemed to be a clear gameplan to get the ball out wide, run at the Arbroath full-backs and get balls across the box and it worked really well, other than the obvious not actually scoring from them! I was a bit unsure of the set-up before the match but the back three strolled it (Ballantyne particularly impressive), Megwa and Hancock consistently pushed forward and had more cover to do so with the back three and McMaster in there. I thought McMaster was our best player, more positive than usual and he progressed our really play well. Pleased to see him bounce back from Friday night. The subs were well timed too. McGregor’s pace caused problems and Todorov was perhaps unfortunate with the offside goal but with so many balls into the box Gallagher and McGill made a lot of sense, and then Telfer and Frizzell when Arbroath changed shape and left more space in midfield.
It felt like one of those games where if we scored early on we’d go onto score three or four. Saying that, we were fortunate that Hemfrey made a good save from the penalty at 0-0. For all we played very well and battered Arbroath for a 10-15 minute spell leading up to that, if you don’t take your chances you’re only one mistake away from being in a bit of bother.
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2 hours ago, Rhys McCabe Hype Train said:
Had a bit of worry when I saw the team like others, I guess, but McMaster & Lyall in the middle did well scooping up second balls and developing the play. The defence looked reasonably solid in a three and as much as it’s nice to know we can play that way I don’t think it should be our first choice. Feel for McGregor as it didn’t really come off for tonight, but showed some decent pace closing down.
All in all a reasonably routine performance, and with a confident CalGal who scores a hat trick it really could have been 5 or 6. Was the free kick deflected or did it just go through the keeper?
I thought it took a couple of deflections, didn’t think there was much the keeper could have done.
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14 minutes ago, lichtie23 said:
I have to walk past it to pick up my son from nursery so can give you a better idea of delays etc about 4.30pm
As @1320Lichtie says hopefully it's not too bad in the evening, probably won't be a particularly huge away crowd. Sounds like it won't be much fun for you guys for the foreseeable though!
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3 minutes ago, lichtie23 said:
Just as you are going under the railway bridge before Gayfield. New cycle lane that will take 77 weeks to complete. It’s going to cause havoc
Ah ok, cheers!
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Does anyone know where these roadworks are and how bad they are?
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22 minutes ago, David Fernández said:
Had a quick look at the consilium list on transfermarkt and noticed that Gabby McGill has changed agencies to 'CAA Base'. Wonder if this will be his last season in a diamond.
It's been a big step up for him and his injuries haven't helped but felt that McGill and Todorov were forming an great partnership up front together.
His goal at Hamilton was probably the most important goal Airdrie have scored in the last decade and at points last season in league 1 he was unplayable.
Maybe I'm reading too much into things but I'd be sorry to see him go as he's been here the past 3 seasons and seems like a really likeable guy.
Recruitment will be interesting next season, agree that Aiken will probably be back here next season, Chris Mochrie is a shoe-in to sign for us and perhaps Ben Wilson?
Yeah I think the forward areas will see the most change this summer, which while there’s other factors to it is hard to argue with given the number of goals scored this season. Todorov will likely stay unless someone comes in with a much better offer but I could see McGill moving back down to England and I’ve already said that I feel Gallagher will be away in the summer. Would be sad to see the latter two go, as you say McGill popped up with a moment that we’ll all remember for a long time (as well as quite a few other important goals) and is incredibly likeable.
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23 minutes ago, Kenny_m said:
Another match preview and for tomorrow night we'll be without Rae, McStravick & once again, Murray Aiken. It's looking very much like his season is over and appears that he's had a set back with his recovery which is extremely disappointing and lost season for the boy.
Perhaps we can get him back next season as he'll be way down the pecking order with Hibs especially with their recent investment.
Yeah I reckon Aiken will be back next season. He seemed very well suited to the team earlier in the season and as you say, certainly won’t be going back to Hibs to be part of the first team squad, so another loan spell makes a lot of sense. Of the Hibs loanees I think Megwa will be back in their first team squad, Aiken will stay for another season here and O’Connor will end up at a team like Stirling Albion.
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1 minute ago, David Fernández said:
Agree with the comments above, I think one more win will be enough to see us survive in the league this season, I know the Championship is completely bonkers, but I think having a 10 point gap over Inverness with them only having 5 games left should be more than enough (hopefully get a win on Tuesday night).
Reaching the promotion play offs would be great, but I'm honestly not too fussed if we don't either, our budget will also be significantly bigger than last season considering we were working with pretty much a league 1 budget.
If you offered me survival in the championship, a decent cup run and winning a trophy at the start of the season I'd have bitten your hand off for that.
The financial aspect of finishing 4th would help with that too, obviously extra gate money but it would also provide enough extra prize money to potentially cover a decent player for next season. I won’t be devastated if we miss out though, a rare summer of relaxing and having a laugh at other teams play-off antics sounds quite nice after the stress of the last few years.
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31 minutes ago, moses1924 said:
Not the worst results today in terms of staying up, Inverness only have 5 left and we're seven ahead so a win on Tuesday should be enough. 4th looking less likely with a tough run of fixtures after Arbroath but with Dunfermline and Morton to play it's in our own hands.
With the keeper i think we could have ended up with worse but we miss Rae not just for his goalkeeping but also his distribution. For next season we need a backup keeper so that there is someone to step in that knows the way we play and is familiar with the players around him.
Yeah a big couple of weeks ahead. As you say, we’re almost there anyway but one more win and that’s probably enough for guaranteed safety given how many teams are involved. Big few weeks ahead, some tough games as you say, especially with quite a few players injured or just returning from injury.
We definitely need a backup keeper next season but I’m honestly not that fussed if they can play out from the back or not. You’re signing someone who ideally won’t play much and in all honesty isn’t going to be a particularly amazing keeper, so if they’re good building out from the back yet are the second choice keeper at Airdrie then I’d be a bit concerned about their other flaws. If we can find someone who fits that role though then that would be ideal!
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17 minutes ago, Diamonds are Forever said:
I'll never be convinced that Watson is a centre back. I really like him at right back and I thought his best games this season were playing there when Megwa wasn't with us. But at centre back he is always going to make too many stupid errors. I was just saying that after Sunday when his needless lunge tackle led to the goal, and then tonight another poor decision costs us again. His mistakes seem to stem from him trying things beyond his ability level, or at least overcomplicating things, like trying to head back to the goalie rather than clear your lines, or lunging in out wide rather than stay on your feet, or passing from the back and giving it away (although in fairness that is manager led). This makes it more frustrating because he has the physical attributes to be a good defender (and has had good games there), but he's been with us long enough now to know that these semi-regular mistakes probably are always going to be there. Like I say at right back I like him and based on Megwa's performance tonight I'd have Watson out there over him, although we then don't have enough centre backs.
O'Connor took his goal nicely so fair play to him for that. However his general play is so far off the standard required. Unless he has 30 yards of space to run into he cannot do anything. He gets shrugged out the way and his touch is awful when played into feet. I know we have fitness issues up front but I'm concerned if he is playing the next few weeks. Frizz shifted between being anonymous and being dreadful, and the rest weren't much better. The team have had plenty praise recently and rightly so, but losing 4/4 to that Ayr team deserves a bit of criticism. They average a point per game against everyone bar us which is relegation form, so to lose every game really is dreadful.
Very disappointing night but a good chance on Tuesday to win and keep/put is in a strong position going into the last few games.
I do generally agree. I never fancied Watson at centre back last season either and I do think he’s made fewer mistakes there this season, though a lot of that is probably down to the team being a lot more structured defensively. Agree on Megwa too, I’d have Ballantyne back in on Tuesday night.
I thought I’d be kind to O’Connor as I usually moan about him when he plays but yeah, other than the goal he wasn’t in the game at all. He very much needs a loan spell in League Two next season. McGill or McGregor being fit enough to start on Tuesday night would be a huge boost.
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Agree with the comments above. I expected a bit of a bump back down to earth tonight and we certainly got that. I thought Ayr edged the first half, though we had the slightly better chances and O’Connor took his really well.
That start to the second half was abysmal though. Watson has had a great season and has barely put a foot wrong since the last game against Ayr but really poor defending for the first. I thought we looked quite panicky after that and never recovered once the second went in. The subs were odd too, I thought he might have been going full Murrayball but until we changed to a back three near the end it just seemed to be bringing attackers on yet keeping the same tactics which weren’t working. I assume McCabe had an eye on the busy schedule coming up but not sure the subs actually helped much at all. Still, good opportunity to bounce back on Tuesday night, though we’ll need to play better than we did tonight.
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Watching Anton Dowds against us must be what East Fife fans felt like every time Calum Gallagher played against them.
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31 minutes ago, moses1924 said:
McStravick and McCabe both missing tonight, team looks a bit bare bones with OConnor starting, would be happy with a draw and get some players back for Tuesday.
Big opportunity for O’Connor. He did very little last week other than winning the penalty but hopefully that’s given him a confidence boost.
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1 minute ago, Diamonds are Forever said:
Would have been interesting had we gone up that season. Would Murray still have moved on? Would Easton? And would the club still have turned to McCabe if Murray had left?
I'd say yes and yes to the first two, not sure about the last one.
I think Murray and possibly Easton would have stuck around for another year in that scenario. Winning promotion potentially leads to a job with a bigger jump shortly down the line rather than what was a middling Championship team. I think the bulk of that team would have stayed together and finished lower mid table the following season. Enough about them to be competitive but I think they’d lack the organisation that the current team has, as well as Easton being less effective at a higher level in that team.
Think it’s probably fair to say it’s all worked out for the best for everyone involved.
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Two years ago today we were all absolutely gutted when Fraser Fyvie scored that last minute equaliser for Cove in the 1-1 draw. That’s probably the worst I’ve felt after a game and I really thought we’d missed a big opportunity that season. Funny how things work out.
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2 minutes ago, moses1924 said:
Thought the new keeper did pretty well, one cracking save and everything else handled pretty safely, wonder if we'll sign him up as back up for Rae next season? I liked the Todorov / McStravick combination up front, wouldn't mind seeing that again. Wasn't too sure about Todorov start fo the season but would keep him now, with another striker brought in to play alongside.
Agreed on both. We definitely need a backup keeper next season and while it’s still early days, someone like Hemfrey fits the role fine based on what we’ve seen so far.
It took me a while to warm to Todorov but that’s entirely because he was really unsuited to playing up front on his own with our style of play from the first half of the season. As you say though, he’s been a real threat since he’s had someone up beside him. Him and McStravick have looked really good together in the last couple of games, would be keen to see more of that on Friday night if McStravick is fit.
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Rovers v Airdrie - Tuesday 09/04
in Scottish Championship General Chatter
Posted
Obviously you still need to score them but almost all of those Dowds goals have came from really poor defending at set-pieces or (generally Watson) overplaying and literally gifting him the ball in front of goal. That’s something we don’t seem to do against Raith for whatever reason, simply being organised, keeping things simple at the back and knowing how to defend against the plethora of attackers has been very effective.
We’ve improved at it recently but the big thing with this Airdrie team is that they often struggle when they concede first, with the reverse if we get the first goal. Obviously Raith did manage to do that in the 1-1 draw but every other time Airdrie have got the first goal and have been pretty comfortable in most of those games too.