Cyclops van Gogh 1867

Now that the dust is beginning to settle on that hugely disappointing result I'd like to offer some thoughts. I am still optimistic about the future for our squad and team this season.... allow me to explain..... We have been improving. We went into that game undefeated in four league games and but for a very dubious penalty it would have been five. Based on the season so far, the title looks highly likely to be going to Tannadice and at this point Raith Rovers look like they'll probably be next. After that, I'd say everyone looks capable of beating any of the others on their day. On Saturday, against a decent team that will quite likely finish second in the league this season we created 18 attempts on goal, 9 of which were on target. We have scored four goals against them in two games. Those stats alone do not suggest to me a team that is heading for a relegation dog- fight. I'm not saying that everything in the garden is rosey, but we are trying to play a championship league campaign while simultaneously hot-housing a group of promising youngsters. There will be two other play-off places up for grabs and with the addition of Stuart McKinstry and the return of Grant Savoury still to come, I see no reason why we can't be challenging for one of those. So, to summarise, I think we need to ditch the Private Frazer ' We're doomed' vibes (apologies to anyone too young to know what that' s about!) For me, the only things we are lacking at the moment are momentum and a bit more confidence. Both of those will be rectified when we win a game or two. IMHO we are getting very close to achieving this. 'mon the Spiders!

To be fair. From a seat high up in the South Stand It was obvious that Alex Bannon was really struggling with that injury, but it might not have been so clear watching from a standing position in the technical area at pitch level through a sea of bodies.

Agreed, but in RV's defence, Alex needs to be able to signal that he's crocked. If unable to signal, the first time the ball is out of play he should drop to the ground and wait for treatment. Ruari had a 'mare and I'm sure he knows it. He still has a decent scoring record this season and given the fact that he's barely had any service in recent weeks it's his only ropey performance in terms of chances missed. I'm confident he'll bounce back

Given the 'silent routine ' from the club on this one I'm thinking (hoping) it's all just been ' paper talk ' If it is, as the journalists claim, a done deal, then I suppose there's always the chance that MB has committed to some sort of pre-contract agreement with Ajax and that he's not going anywhere anytime soon. It's been a hell of a ride so far. For what it's worth, l really hope he stays on and that his visionary 'process' succeeds. 'mon the Spiders!

There's no denying the fact that recent performances haven't been anywhere near what this squad are capable of. It was clear from the first three (and most of four)league fixtures that we can be a force to be reckoned with in this league and the subsequent run of losses has been hard to watch. Looking at things from a 'glass half full' perspective, if (and I know it's a big if) we can recapture some of that early form tonight, we could well be sitting only five points off the top of the league with roughly 3/4 of the season still to play. I reckon McKinstry will prove to be an excellent signing and the last thing we need is for the guy to pick up an injury by playing him before he's ready. It's always darkest before the dawn. ' mon the Spiders!

Is that Cantonese style or Sashwan?

Aye right...if we are gonnae score four against this mob I'm a Dutchman......................Hey!.....wacht een minuut!!!

Like I always say sometimes, mixed metaphors are where it's at. Score more goals-let fewer goals in. It's not rocket surgery!

There's no denying the fact that we are on the crest of a slump at the moment. Still, I don't feel that there's any chance that 'The Iceman Cometh' clutching a fistfull of p45's. Another couple of league fixtures and we will have reached the point that RV referred to when he said ' let's get the first round of fixtures out of the way and we'll see where we are ' (paraphrasing, but that was the jist of it). The guy is still on a very steep learning curve and I reckon it's only fair to allow him the time to resolve the issues we currently face. A win of any description on Saturday would go a long way to help but it would be even better if we could shore up the defence a bit. Here's hoping!

Arbroath 2 ICT 2 Ayr Utd 0 Raith Rovers 1 Dundee Utd 3 Queen's Park 3 Morton 1 Airdrieonians 1 Patrick Thistle 3 Dunfermline 1

I remember it well. A terracing like the North Face of the Eiger and Ian the Alky practising for the shot putt at the Moscow Olympics!

I'm no expert but is this move not going to seriously f**k up his homing pigeons? Seems like a poor doo to me..... sorry

I had been feeling a bit more optimistic again after the Bala game but Friday night was an absolute shocker. That felt like the football equivalent of boxing's 'leading with your chin'. If that uber-high defensive line is meant to be part of the 'secret sauce', the only way that could possibly work is if we can be so phenomenal at going forward and clinical in front of goal that we will always out-score the opposition, regardless of how many we concede. That would admittedly be great to watch but seems unlikely at this point. I believe when RV first arrived he said something along the lines of ' let's get the first round of league fixtures out of the way and we'll see where we are ' . I understand that he hasn't had the benefit of watching the best of our performances from the last few seasons and maybe wants to mix things up a bit to help him decide about the squad's strengths and weaknesses. That round of 'free hits' (if that's what he was asking for) will soon be over. Personally, I still think we have a strong squad and the guys on the fringes of the first team Bannon, McLeish, Reid could well provide some of the answers. I also reckon Louis Longridge has been excellent covering at RB so far. Saturday's game is going to be a tough test but surely we must be learning some lessons on this roller coaster of a season?

Not 100% certain, but I seem to remember at the time, half of the £2.5 million donation was being provided by Sir Tom Hunter.

Just the one ear drum!

Onwards and upwards!

Ayr Utd. 1 v 1 Patrick Thistle Arbroath 2 v 2 Airdrie Dundee Utd. 2 v 1 Morton Queen's Park 2 v 1 Dunfermline Raith Rovers 2 v 2 Inverness CT

Hats off to you jagfox, that's some pretty damn impressive predicting! Difficult enough to get all five results but add on three correct scores - that's Nostradamus material!

Oh no it isn't !!

Arbroath 1 v 1 Ayr Utd Dundee Utd 3 v 1 Airdrie Morton 1 v 1 Patrick Thistle Inverness CT 2 v 2 Dunfermline Raith Rovers 1 v 2 Queen's Park

Was looking forward to getting a new home shirt for this season for the first time in a long while and felt completely underwhelmed by what we have been stuck with. This is the kind of thing that's important to the support and could easily have been worked around with a bit of dialogue between the interested parties. That said, I do like the away top so I've opted for that instead. When I first heard that we were teaming up with Adidas I thought I might have been tempted to buy one of each if I'd really liked what was on offer. I really hope that the club takes this kind of feedback on board and doesn't ignore our collective feelings re messing with the ' Glorious Hoops' in future.

Airdrie 0 ICT 1 Ayr Utd 0 Dundee Utd 2 Dunfermline 1 Raith 1 Morton 1 Arbroath 1 Patrick Thistle 1 Queen's Park 2

Both very different teams to the ones that finished last season, potential to be a cracking game. Tough one to call but we are definitely starting to gather a bit of momentum. Bring it on!

Long may it continue!

There ain't no sanity clause!