The New Raith Rovers Thread

[CALDERON]

1 hour ago, Dalziel8 said:

That’s the rant of a bitter, jilted ex. I take it you didn’t like Mcglynn?

I'm as big a fan of Mcglynn as anyonebut don't see any issues with that post, other than the very first part- I'd say the squad was better than the 2nd half of the season showed.  That said,  he had a disaster last season and his reckless spending really harmed us going into this season.  It also can't be forgotten how big an input he had in one of the biggest scandals to ever harm the club.

That said, there is absolutely a bit of pressure and expectation on Murray going into next season, especially as this will be "his" squad.  I expect to see a reasonable improvement in the weak areas by the end of quarter 1.

Edited April 9, 2023 by CALDERON

[CALDERON]

7 hours ago, TxRover said:

I think Nolan would be an excellent re-signing. He’s basically only got a year of Senior play and is looking better all the time. It would be a terrible mistake to let him go, especially as he’s remained healthy pretty much the entire season.

That's vastly overstating how well Nolan has played.  Hes come in for alot of unfair stick, because some were absolutely desperate for "experience" and he doesn't fall into that bracket.  He's been perfectly fine, especially considering his lack of previous game time,  but no more than that - letting him go would be far from a terrible mistake.  He's a decent enough Championship centre half, but hasn't looked much more than that.

Edited April 9, 2023 by CALDERON

[stevoraith]

7 hours ago, bobbykdy said:

Start of 2022 we were top of the league or thereabouts, before the Goodwillie stuff hit the fan.

That’s exactly my point. 
That’s why we managed to finish 5th even though we were in relegation form in the second half of the season. 
This season hasn’t been a backwards step compared to that horrendous second half of last season, but looking at the seasons as a whole doesn’t tell that story. 
 

I liked McGlynn. I didn’t want him to leave, mostly because I knew he was capable of having us playing great football and doing well, and because I was fearful of who we’d bring in.
But taking a step back I can see his failings in overspending, the lack of a plan B, and potentially not managing injuries correctly. 
I’m glad we’ve now got Murray- he’s not the next Alex Ferguson but I’m happy with how he’s done this season and more than happy to give him a chance to build more of his own team with a full window to recruit. 

[Brashy's Boots]

Can we just get it out now that judgement of whatever squad IM pulls together and any resultant changes of style or tactics should be reserved until at least end of Quarter 1?

You just know the bedwetters will be sploshing about it all after the friendlies.

[CALDERON]

31 minutes ago, Brashy's Boots said:

Can we just get it out now that judgement of whatever squad IM pulls together and any resultant changes of style or tactics should be reserved until at least end of Quarter 1?

You just know the bedwetters will be sploshing about it all after the friendlies.

I would like to see us make a better fist of the league cup campaign this time.  The draws with Stirling and Dumbarton were an indication that we were really going to struggle without strikers.

[R.R.FC]

FWIW over the last 19 games of last season we were the worst team in the league. That isn’t some sort of temporary drop off, that is a sustained period of being awful. Who knows where we’d have been without Zanatta’s purple patch in the first half of last season. So if anyone has taken us backwards in the last 2 years it was McGlynn from December last season. And I say that as someone who thinks McGlynn was/is a good manager.

The point is, Murray didn’t take over a side that finished 5th in fantastic form where the expectation was for us to go one step further this season. He took over a side that ended the last half of the season as the worst in the league, then had his budget reduced, a mess off the field and then has faced a whole load of injuries so I think being safe from relegation at this stage, a Scottish Cup quarter final and Challenge Cup final is a good first season.

He’s definitely not perfect and has made mistakes, like any manager, but I just can’t understand how anyone who watched us from late December last season could possibly think we’ve gone backwards from then.

Table from last 19 games of 21/22 which I referenced at start of my post:

#	Club			W	D	L	Goals	+/-	Pts
1		Kilmarnock FC	19	11	5	3	30:16	14	38
2		Arbroath	19	9	7	3	26:15	11	34
3		Morton	19	7	6	6	21:19	2	27
4		Inverness CT	19	6	7	6	28:22	6	25
5		Hamilton Acad.	19	6	7	6	23:23	0	25
6		Ayr United	19	6	6	7	23:23	0	24
7		Partick Thistle	19	6	6	7	17:24	-7	24
8		Dunfermline A.	19	5	6	8	18:25	-7	21
9		Queen o. t. S.	19	5	4	10	20:28	-8	19
10		Raith Rovers	19	3	8	8	17:28	-11	17

Edited April 9, 2023 by R.R.FC

[Ro Sham Bo]

1 hour ago, Brashy's Boots said:

Can we just get it out now that judgement of whatever squad IM pulls together and any resultant changes of style or tactics should be reserved until at least end of Quarter 1?

You just know the bedwetters will be sploshing about it all after the friendlies.

Nah, not having that. Vaughan's testimonial match is make or break for Murray. 

[SanStarko]

1 hour ago, CALDERON said:

I would like to see us make a better fist of the league cup campaign this time.  The draws with Stirling and Dumbarton were an indication that we were really going to struggle without strikers.

 

To be fair, the League Cup just showed how decimated and unbalanced the squad was at that point.  We went into both of those games with one actual CB on the pitch, one natural CM (as the other one was having to play CB), 3 wingers (4 if you count Easton) and a bench which was just the kids.  We thumped Peterhead, but their squad was in even worse shape than ours. 

Can't see the squad being in as bad shape as that next season.

[Rhys McCabe Hype Train]

Murray looks like a broken man in his interviews. What have you clowns done to him.

[Raithfan2711]

29 minutes ago, Rhys McCabe Hype Train said:

Murray looks like a broken man in his interviews. What have you clowns done to him.

Given him one of the lowest budgets in the league with fans who expect us to be getting to the playoffs. He has got plenty to improve on as a manager (mainly absolutely ruining a team’s shape in acts of desperation with a 1/3 of a game to go) but genuinely feel sorry for him. Behind the scenes , it seems like our club has been all over the place, here is hoping the suggested investment and Boardroom additions helps fix that.
 

I feel Ian has not been given even a decent chance to achieve what he wants since he came in, yet still has kept us safe in the league with two cup runs. I wonder what could have been without major injuries, no cover in key positions and the funds to secure even one competent fully fit centre forward, but instead the season has just fizzled out. Unfortunately I’d expect another defeat on Tuesday.

[Ro Sham Bo]

I see Kai Fotheringham is now starting games for Dundee United. No wonder they're bottom of the table. 

[HoBNob]

19 hours ago, RRFC_Liam said:

I’d keep Lang but have someone experienced next to him 

I'd imagine if you knew Berra was going to leave you'd have put more effort into keeping Benedictus. 

 

It's now looking pretty likely we'll be coming up, looking forward to the Fife Derbys next year, they'll be good occasions. 

[Specky Ginger]

13 minutes ago, Grant228 said:

I'd imagine if you knew Berra was going to leave you'd have put more effort into keeping Benedictus. 

 

 

Apparently we offered him a one year deal, but The Pars offered him a two year deal on similar money.

You can't blame the guy for moving. He's got a young family to look after.

[baillieinleeds]

It would be nice to find out who these “new owners” are. Murray needs reassurances as to what he can and can’t do for next season. This will be a total test of his metal imo. Next season will be tougher than this one. We have to be ahead of the game now. It’s make or break. The long term injury prone really need to move on. I hate thinking like that as when they’re on their game they make things happen. 

[baillieinleeds]

1 hour ago, Grant228 said:

I'd imagine if you knew Berra was going to leave you'd have put more effort into keeping Benedictus. 

 

It's now looking pretty likely we'll be coming up, looking forward to the Fife Derbys next year, they'll be good occasions. 

Sanity at last, I can’t wait for the derbies. 

[baillieinleeds]

3 hours ago, Rhys McCabe Hype Train said:

Murray looks like a broken man in his interviews. What have you clowns done to him.

He’s maybe realised he’s waaaay above his station……only kidding, we gave him the worst budget in the league, not much he could’ve done about it tbf. The money on offer got what we deserved. Not the managers fault, the last administration was an absolute clusterfuck. I used to love McGlynn, but he can f**k the f**k off. 

[roverthemoon]

Overall the season has been above average I’d say. Terrible League Cup, Good Scottish Cup and Challenge Cup runs and inconsistent in the league - but more than good enough to stay away from being relegated. The problem is that it feels worse because of the way it’s crashed and burned the last few weeks. If you rewind a few weeks we were going into a Scottish Cup quarter final, had a Challenge Cup final to look forward to and still had hopes of pushing for a play off. Off the field was there was even hope of new investment and finally getting rid of Sim. That’s pretty much all evaporated and it’s obviously going to feel deflating. I kind of just want the season done and have next to no enthusiasm for the remaining games. 

The bottom line though is we’re still in the Championship, have the core of a decent squad to build on and Murray has shown enough already to suggest he’s capable of building on it. With the derby back it’s 4 good games for fans and more cash for the club. Finances will be tight, but when are they not with Rovers? Give us all a summer off and most of us will be back believing. 

[Jilted John]

19 minutes ago, baillieinleeds said:

He’s maybe realised he’s waaaay above his station……only kidding, we gave him the worst budget in the league, not much he could’ve done about it tbf. The money on offer got what we deserved. Not the managers fault, the last administration was an absolute clusterfuck. I used to love McGlynn, but he can f**k the f**k off. 

There’s no way we have the lowest budget in the league. Also John Mcgylnn will have done more for the club and than Murray ever will and deserves more respect than a foolish comment like that. A budget is set by the board, not a manager. If the previous administration was given funds to spend then what’s he supposed to do? Say no can you just save it for next season to give my successor?

[HoBNob]

9 minutes ago, Jilted John said:

There’s no way we have the lowest budget in the league. Also John Mcgylnn will have done more for the club and than Murray ever will and deserves more respect than a foolish comment like that. A budget is set by the board, not a manager. If the previous administration was given funds to spend then what’s he supposed to do? Say no can you just save it for next season to give my successor?

Not sign a rapist is a very good start IMO. 

[Raith Against The Machine]

Aye, McGlynn certainly could've made better use of the funds available to him (to say the least), but the club hierarchy can't put that on him entirely. He wasn't signing the cheques.