Mr November

Weirdly we thought the game was pretty even up until then, was surprised by the subs. Dunfermline are looking oddly rattled at the back though. I’m not sure if it was the main reason they were subbed but Frizzell and Telfer have won the ball off Dunfermline’s midfield a ridiculous number of times in their own half. Big second half ahead for both teams.

I could be wrong but I’m sure Queen of the South fans also said they never saw McCabe as a potential manager. I can’t remember ever having a player as vocal on the pitch as he was last season though. It wasn’t just shouting for the sake of it, it’s clear instructions on where to be positionally, encouragement when players try something that doesn’t quite come off. I don’t always agree with what he says in his post match interviews (you can’t always blame the forwards for not being clinical!) but he’s a very good communicator. As others have said, if we can finish in the top four then for a very young manager I think that’s a successful season. Ultimately our budget is nowhere near Falkirk and Dunfermline (and probably even smaller than Queen of the South) so to challenge for the league we need to overperform and them to underperform, and as we saw last season even that isn’t always enough. He has his issues as a manager but I’ve seen enough to know that he’s worth persisting with. Him and Fordyce are good ambassadors for the club and their families seem very settled here. While some may still be skeptical about how good a manager he is, I think it’s fair to say everyone is behind him and would love him to be a success.

I’ve only seen the draw earlier in the season and highlights from other games and I’d agree with you. Todorov is a useful outlet for that at times but particularly at home it seems like a lot of patient build-up play and getting the ball out to the wing-backs, while at times struggling to break down opposition camped in their own half? I think that’s where Saturday could be interesting. Dunfermline are clearly organised under McPake and willing to sya compact when needed. Playing a team like Airdrie who are very open and expansive no matter the score should be an interesting contrast.

Interesting to see what team we play. I suspect it’ll be the same team that started yesterday but I didn’t think Ballantyne was great and Watson would add more physicality and height at set-pieces. McGregor made a real impact when he came on and could be a good option to stretch the game and stop Edwards getting forward but I think McGill’s work-rate and tracking back will mean he starts. I thought Dunfermline edged the game earlier in the season (which feels like a long time ago now!) and from what I’ve seen of them, they seem like a team better suited to being compact and grinding out results rather than breaking teams down (based on their struggles at home and against Clyde and Peterhead). We’re generally very attacking and open, often too much so, so it should be an interesting game. We have to be confident with our home record though and if we can come close to replicating the Alloa performance we’ll have a great chance.

I still don’t think either are penalties but they’re not dives either, I think his momentum takes him down but not convinced there’s enough contact for a penalty. Two shouts worth claiming for as you’ve seen them given but I’d be disappointed if a penalty was given for that at the other end. The first one isn’t dissimilar to Watson putting his hands on Alegria in the Falkirk game, we possibly got away with that one so I suppose this might be things evening out.

That makes more sense. Prime Murrayball with six strikers on and no shape, just vibes is undoubtedly the most entertaining football I’ve ever watched on the couple (well, one main one) of occasions it really worked but very frustrating when it doesn’t. Any time I’ve looked at this thread fans have seemed pretty split on Murray, near enough from the start. He had similar with us, despite steady progress each year it took until last season for the majority to fully buy in to what he was doing. His teams tended to be stronger in the second half of the season, particularly his last couple where we went from 6th after 14 games to 2nd, 2 points off top, in the shortened 22 game season and then a ridiculous 20 game unbeaten run to finish last season. Ultimately it didn’t count for anything with the play-off defeats but if he can repeat something similar with Raith then they’ll have a great shout at grabbing that final play-off spot.

I see Raith won today after bringing on a striker for a defender, was this a rare instance of Murrayball working or just shifting players around with normal tactics?

I think this season it’s more that the goals we concede are generally very soft or dreadful mistakes. For all we’re very attacking teams very rarely cut us open and dominate games against us, it’s just most goals we concede are from leaving space just outside the box, not clearing our lines, Dean Lyness etc. He had a couple of moments today (as did everyone so no blame there) but Fordyce has looked much better since Rae came in. I know I feel a lot less concerned when the ball goes anywhere near Rae than I did with Lyness, who caused my heart rate to spike every Saturday, so the defence must feel the same way too. If he can kick on and get back to the levels he’s been at over the last few seasons then we’ll be fine defensively. ATS has his faults but is generally solid enough and today had several interceptions through good positioning.

That’s as careless as I’ve seen us for a while, the opposite to last week when everything worked until the finishing. I remember the 5-0 game being a bit like that too, Clyde not taking chances and then ultimately caving in. A better team would have been ahead well before we scored today. We won’t be as fortunate next week if we play the same way. McGregor made an impact when he came on. He’s still very raw and his final ball and decision making is inconsistent. I didn’t think either of the penalty claims were penalties but both times he could have squared the ball across earlier. Still, he looks like an excellent option and gives something different to what we have elsewhere. Who would believe that we’d be above Edinburgh after watching the games between us so far?

I like to think he’s became a keeper because of his dad just relentlessly scoring past him, like Michael Owen against that 13 year old.

Airdrieonians 3-0 Clyde Alloa Athletic 2-1 Peterhead Dunfermline Athletic 1-0 Montrose Kelty Hearts 1-1 Falkirk Queen of the South 2-1 Edinburgh

The first 15 minutes alone were ridiculous. Fordyce’s headed goal, Church clearing one off the line, Gallagher’s lob which Hogarth had to make a good save for and then Hogarth picking one up on the line at the back post. I did have the fear at that point that it could be one of those days but thankfully Gallagher did what he does best a few minutes later.

Given the jobbers that he lumbered us with, that might actually be a good thing!

Yeah I’ve been critical of Fordyce this season but that’s two games in a row where he’s strolled it and has led the defence well. More of that please! I posted on the match thread but that was just a joy to watch. I don’t hide my support of Gallagher but his overall game has improved so much this season and for me he’s undoubtedly the best striker in the league. The quick movement and link-up play between the forwards and midfield today was superb and Gallagher was key to most of that. This is probably the most frustrating Airdrie team I’ve ever seen. When we’re at our best I think we’re even better to watch than last season’s team but a team who can play that well shouldn’t have only picked up four points this month. It has felt like we’ve not been at the stadium much recently, the recent Edinburgh debacle and today are the first games there since the Peterhead/Kelty double header all the way back in November. Hopefully a few home games on the bounce will allow us to pick up some momentum and push up the table.

I’m struggling to remember ever seeing Airdrie create as many chances in a league game before. Some of the football going forward today was just sublime. It’s no exaggeration to say we genuinely could have scored double figures and at least should have scored seven or eight. The full game was just a joy to watch. That was Telfer’s best game yet. I really like him and think he’s done well so far but his form over the last couple of months has really picked up, with today being the standout. Him and Frizzell ran the show from the middle of the park. Telfer was well worth his goal and indeed could have scored more, while the quick play between Gallagher and Frizzell in the second half really deserved a goal. On Gallagher, he was just outstanding yet again. His all round game has improved so much this season, he’s really good at knowing when to drop deep and link play and he bullied the Alloa defence today. It’s a shame he never got his hat-trick, I’m not sure he’s ever scored one for us before but he certainly deserved it today. If only that audacious lob early on had went in! On Alloa, they looked second best all game. The weird front three of Sammon, MacIver and Donnelly didn’t work at all and while Scougall had some good touches as always, it left him and Robertson overrun in the middle. The defence couldn’t handle Airdrie’s speed and movement all game. I thought Andy Graham made a difference when he came on, he’s clearly not the player he was but his intelligence should make him worth starting at centre back ahead of Daniel Church anyway.

I burst out laughing at the cup game against Montrose when Rory McAllister of all people outpaced him.

He barely played for us last season as Gallagher was always first choice but I did think he struggled up front on his own in a couple of tough game at Cove and Partick Thistle. He was absolutely fine in that role against weaker teams though and to be fair to him, he didn’t exactly have much around him at Clyde and he’s done incredibly well there this season, so a decent run in a good team who create plenty of chances might allow him to kick on a bit. He certainly puts a shift in and while some Airdrie fans, myself included, were unsure how good he was last season, everyone liked him and really wanted him to do well because of his attitude and work-rate.

I actually think he’d be really well suited to one of the wider roles in a diamond, as you say he’s got the energy and physicality to get up and down the park and we’ve seen enough to know he can be a good player too. Him scoring in each of the first three games seems like a long time ago now. I think he was a victim of being overplayed at the start with the small squad and has struggled to regain his place since Telfer came in. With Frizzell back fit and Stanway looking promising he’s probably 5th/6th choice now along with McMaster but I do like him and think he’s a player worth persevering with.

Agreed, I think we’d all unanimously agree that Jamieson’s best game was when he was playing on the shoulder against Montrose, he was unstoppable that day. For whatever reason, McCabe never tried that again unfortunately. It goes back to what we were saying a few pages ago but on Saturday I’d go with something like this, assuming Ballantyne is fit, if not add ATS or big Byrd in and shuffle Watson across. I think Alloa are normally quite narrow anyway and we should have enough width with the full-backs bombing forward, knowing McCabe can drop back in to cover if needed. You’ve them got McGill or McGregor to come on to add something different if the shape isn’t working. Rae Ballantyne - Watson - Fordyce - Deveney McCabe Telfer - Frizzell - Stanway Gallagher - Smith

That’s two bits of bad news! In all seriousness, McMaster is fine, moves the ball well and keeps things tidy but I’m not sure he offers enough to go and sign him permanently. Is Olusanya the boy who hit a shot in the League Cup game at Airdrie that went so far wide it ended up with the St. Mirren right back? I’d take Jamieson over him to be fair.

I don‘t think he can play for anyone else this season since he’s already played for St. Mirren and Airdrie, so if he’s been recalled then it’s presumably to cover for Brophy going. It would be a shame for Airdrie and Jamieson if he went back to not play for five months when he’s a good fit here. For all we have plenty of forwards, half of them are unproven at this (or any?) level so losing him would be a blow.

Airdrieonians 2-1 Alloa Athletic Clyde 0-2 Dunfermline Athletic Edinburgh 1-2 Falkirk Montrose 1-0 Kelty Hearts Peterhead 1-2 Queen of the South

Sensible choice to wait until we both had a free Saturday. It does mean we have a Dunfermline double header though with a trip to East End Park the following Saturday.

McGill had a decent season at Airdrie under Murray, although it’s fair to say his form fell away after January. He scored a great goal on his debut against Motherwell (below) literally hours after signing, which is about as good a start as you can make for Airdrie. After the Rico Quitongo incident Murray started playing McGill at left back, despite ostensibly being a right footed central midfielder, where he generally did quite well and was only shown up for not being a natural defender on a few occasions. He scored a few other goals throughout the season, including a fantastic team goal featuring yer man Easton in a 3-2 win against Falkirk (also below), but he struggled a bit as the season went on and dropped out of our best eleven. He had a nightmare in the play-offs but I’d happily have had him back this season. I’m surprised he’s got a move up the way though. He never fully nailed down a regular midfield spot at Airdrie and Kelty, albeit up against strong competition. He’s definitely a decent player but a step below Easton, Spencer, Brown etc.

For the Alloa game? It’s on the 28th, unless I’m missing something we don’t have a game tomorrow.