Francesc Fabregas Posted April 23, 2023 Author Share Posted April 23, 2023 46 minutes ago, Nigel Blackwell said: Everything FF says is correct but perhaps with one exception. Has Reilly been better than “mediocre”. The last few games he has been invisible, and it was the same again yesterday. He is obviously a good player and maybe it is the tactics, but something isn’t right. Compare him to Joe Bevan yesterday? I’m sure Albion signed him at the same time as Reilly came to us. In terms of value for money it is pretty clear who got the best deal. Since the game at Dumbarton our performances have been ridiculously bad. We’ve barely threatened the opposition goalkeeper and it was the same again yesterday. Our challengers for this top 4 spot couldn’t be any more generous and still we can’t make inroads. There isn’t really any joy following this team at the moment and it isn’t a recent phenomenon. I, for one, am totally scunnered. I like Gavin Reilly and would like to retain him for next season, if some kind of deal can de done. He's got a decent touch, uses his body well and he's intelligent on the ball, causing problems for opposition defenders. He was at his best in the 2-1 defeat to East Fife, hanging on the shoulder of the last defender, looking for balls clipped over the top, and he was a constant nuisance throughout the first half (although we didn't really get players up to support him). In the second half, we couldn't get ahold of the ball and started punting it long, something that doesn't suit him, or anybody. Yesterday, on the rare moments we tried to work the ball through the middle of the park - the brief spell after our goal - we looked far brighter. I like Sean Crighton and think he has a positive influence on the team but his chronic ability on the ball is one of the reasons to move him on in the summer. I reckon he tries to play it long more than any player in the team and it's not working. On the whole, I think Reilly has done well enough but isn't being helped by the current set-up. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
true fan Posted April 23, 2023 Share Posted April 23, 2023 Going into this season two of our best players were Euan O’Reilly and Callum Yeats. We don’t seem to have got much out of them. Is Yeats injured? If so is that the only issue or was his performance being questioned? What about O’Reilly - not starting many games? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mo83 Posted April 23, 2023 Share Posted April 23, 2023 21 minutes ago, true fan said: Going into this season two of our best players were Euan O’Reilly and Callum Yeats. We don’t seem to have got much out of them. Is Yeats injured? If so is that the only issue or was his performance being questioned? What about O’Reilly - not starting many games? Must admit when you beat us(Montrose )earlier in the season a think O'Reilly scored 2 against us that day and looked a good player. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Francesc Fabregas Posted April 23, 2023 Author Share Posted April 23, 2023 37 minutes ago, true fan said: Going into this season two of our best players were Euan O’Reilly and Callum Yeats. We don’t seem to have got much out of them. Is Yeats injured? If so is that the only issue or was his performance being questioned? What about O’Reilly - not starting many games? Callum Yeats has been absent with injury for a couple of weeks now. He took part in the warm-up yesterday but wasn't part of the matchday squad. I hope he's back soon as Jordan Lowden has been an inadequate understudy. As for Euan O'Reilly, I don't think he's had the impact people hoped from him this season. There have been some terrific moments, most notably his performance against Dumbarton earlier in the month, but, like some many others, the way we're playing at the moment doesn't really suit anyone who wants to get on the ball and dribble with it. Against Albion Rovers yesterday, we were too slow to move the ball out wide to him and he was often doubled up on. I thought it was a wrong move to substitute him off. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hard Graft Posted April 23, 2023 Share Posted April 23, 2023 The performances over the last few games have been absolutely woeful to say the least. Again we are in a situation where we do not seem to know what our best team is. We are shot shy at the moment as well. Players make a run for the goal but seem reluctant to take a shot on. Our chances for qualifying for the play offs hang by a thread. We have had open goals to secure our place recently and have not been able to take any of them. Forfar are away to Stirling Albion and home to East Fife. East Fife are home to Albion Rovers and away to Forfar. Annan are home to Bonnyrigg and away to us. Unless we have 2 massive wins and Annan have 2 huge defeats they are safe in 3rd place and un-catchable by us. A lot depends on what Albion Rovers team turns up at Methil and if the Bino's have a celebration hangover against Forfar before we even consider own chances. It is going to be dog eat dog for the relegation places as well which makes it interesting for the fans. I would consider we have had another failure of a season after having high hopes and it will be interesting to see what the manager does next year as that will be his own team. This season was as good a time as any to achieve something and yet again we have came up short which with the squad we have on paper is really disappointing. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Fashioned Stramash Posted April 23, 2023 Share Posted April 23, 2023 The performances haven't been anywhere near good enough. It's similar to what was happening under Swift, in a way. Our shape and tactics don't seem to suit the players abilities. Confidence in the final third seems to have gone and it's costing us. We're at our best, as FF is getting at, at playing the ball on the deck and moving it around with a bit of pace. Players like O'Reilly and Reilly feed on that. Yeats being out injured has reduced our counter attack and movement of the ball. His work rate down that left hand side and crossing is badly needed. I don't like Yates being played put on the right either, he's better as a 10. His performances and contribution have dropped off since moving out there, I feel. I think Reilly would benefit playing off another centre forward, who could take in those long balls and play him in. My only criticism of Reilly is that he can be shot shy. Sometimes just having a go is the best option. Orr's severe lack of form has been a massive hindrance and hasn't helped anyone, especially Reilly. Our bench is so limited that we don't have any other option but to throw him on and hope he can be bothered. I like Orr when he's at it and no doubt if he moves to another league 2 team, he'll score against us. Crighton's distribution has been a negative factor for some time, it can be aimless and just puts pressure back on the team. He can co-cordinate the back line but I think we can get better. Naysmith and Bomber certainly have a busy summer ahead of them and recruitment needs to be spot on, if we're to challenge next season. Starting with a striker and goalkeeper(s). 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neilly Posted April 24, 2023 Share Posted April 24, 2023 On 23/04/2023 at 10:54, Hard Graft said: The performances over the last few games have been absolutely woeful to say the least. Again we are in a situation where we do not seem to know what our best team is. We are shot shy at the moment as well. Players make a run for the goal but seem reluctant to take a shot on. Our chances for qualifying for the play offs hang by a thread. We have had open goals to secure our place recently and have not been able to take any of them. Forfar are away to Stirling Albion and home to East Fife. East Fife are home to Albion Rovers and away to Forfar. Annan are home to Bonnyrigg and away to us. Unless we have 2 massive wins and Annan have 2 huge defeats they are safe in 3rd place and un-catchable by us. A lot depends on what Albion Rovers team turns up at Methil and if the Bino's have a celebration hangover against Forfar before we even consider own chances. It is going to be dog eat dog for the relegation places as well which makes it interesting for the fans. I would consider we have had another failure of a season after having high hopes and it will be interesting to see what the manager does next year as that will be his own team. This season was as good a time as any to achieve something and yet again we have came up short which with the squad we have on paper is really disappointing. It's past the point of permutations and even looking at the fixtures of any other team. The cold, hard facts of the matter are this squad of players don't have it in them to go and get six points from the last two games. Two points from Albion Rovers, Elgin and Bonnyrigg recently is utterly woeful. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
O'Kelly Isley III Posted April 24, 2023 Share Posted April 24, 2023 It's been interesting reading the comments here, and having seen the four matches between our clubs I'm reckoning that Stenny have indeed underachieved. Perhaps the initial euphoria over Gary Naysmith has been a tad overcooked but next season will be a better guide, and barring an uptick in our performances I expect we shall cross swords once again. I also find it fascinating that three teams who were impressive in recent wins at the Rock subsequently became dugmeat thereafter - Elgin, Rovers and yourselves. Maybe our moonscape of a pitch takes more out of players than we realise. Including us. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Fashioned Stramash Posted April 26, 2023 Share Posted April 26, 2023 (edited) Reading on the BBC rumour mill this morning, that EK management dream team of Mick Kennedy and Si Ferry want Liam Brown. I don't think he's played for QP since his 'loan' move and things don't appear to have worked out well for him. He should've just played for us, bit of a waste. Edited April 26, 2023 by Old Fashioned Stramash 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Blackwell Posted April 29, 2023 Share Posted April 29, 2023 Confirmation we will be in League 2 next season. I think if the season had continued another couple of weeks, I wouldn’t be so confident. This season has been another thing of complete misery. Naysmith might have achieved objective 1 - avoid relegation - but fcuk me the football is as turgid as it was under Swift, and to be fair any number of his predecessors. When did a Stenhousemuir team last look convincing? With the money invested in the squad this season, it is frankly a disgrace. We could end up 7th. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Francesc Fabregas Posted April 30, 2023 Author Share Posted April 30, 2023 What a garbage, underwhelming season this has been. What a wasted opportunity. What a waste of money. Even although it became clear early on this team was not going to challenge for the league title, the failure to finish in the top four is still acutely disappointing. The board really pushed the boat out at the beginning of the campaign and to have nothing to show for their outlay must be so frustrating. As I've said in a post on the previous page, Stephen Swift will shoulder a lot of the blame for how the season has ultimately played out but I don't think Gary Naysmith is beyond reproach - he took over in January when there was plenty of time to correct our course, yet he failed to do so. Yes, he took over an unbalanced and mismatched squad but his signings did not improve the overall standard and the football's as bad a spectacle recently as it has been all year. To finish the season having taken just two points against four of the worst sides in the league is remarkable. If you could handpick a run of fixtures to conclude the campaign with, you would have gleefully selected our fixtures, yet we didn't take advantage and turned in some rotten results and performances along the way. You can probably count the good moments this year on the one hand. Ross Forbes' winner against Annan Athletic has probably been the best moment I've had watching the club since the Waterford game in 2019. Beating Dumbarton at the Rock last month was good fun. Matty Yates scored some good goals. Other than that? We've seen so many dreadful matches and miserable displays. The 1-1 draw with Bonnyrigg Rose Athletic at Ochilview in November sticks out as particularly rotten. On paper, it's looks like a decent group of players but it hasn't worked and it hasn't cohered and it's not fun to watch. Other than Nicky Jamieson, I wouldn't be keen on retaining anyone else for next season. There's probably an argument to be made for most of them but do we really want to put our trust in a squad that have let us down for two consecutive years? From the players we have signed on, I'm particularly vexed about Nat Wedderburn - on his day he's a terrific midfielder who can smash through opponents and pick out brilliant passes with his left foot, but how often has done it this season? He's slow to the point of immobile and lacks the energy or the willingness to get up and down the park. He'll be another year older, a little bit slower, a little bit more immobile, and I hope we don't suffer for it. We need a goalkeeper, a new centre-back (possibly two if Jamieson goes elsewhere), new full-backs on either side, another central midfielder, someone to play on the right of our attack and one, maybe two new strikers for the new season. It's an unenviable task for Naysmith and I'm cautious about how he fares. Other than Gavin Reilly, who initially brought a bit of spark to our attack, his recruits have not been good. Curtis Lyle is a dud and even although he has another year on his deal (!), he should not be our #1. Jordan Lowden was disappointing, Kian Spiers dropped off the face of the earth after a poor showing in Dumbarton and Jacob Blaney looked raw and uncomfortable at points before his injury. January is a difficult market, sure, but I still expected better. Nevertheless, I'll be there next term, I'll see you all in the Wee Bar before and after the games. Who knows! We might even win the bloody thing! Maybe. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
true fan Posted April 30, 2023 Share Posted April 30, 2023 No matter who we sign in the summer I will not make any comment or have any expectations for next season. Years of bitter experience have finally sunk in - many signings seem good on paper and we all get optimistic but it only leads to disappointment. The small number of posts on our thread in the past few weeks, especially before games, suggests I’m not the only one to be scunnered. See you all after 7 or 8 games into next season 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Fashioned Stramash Posted April 30, 2023 Share Posted April 30, 2023 Season has been dreadful with very few highlights. What's most disappointing is that it went pretty much the same as last season. Lessons haven't been learnt. Naysmith has a very busy pre-season ahead of him and has a lot to prove. Everything FF says, is spot on. The only thing I'd add, is that the team needs an identity, more determinatiom and keep its shape a lot better. A new captain is required. Lyle should be released, he's not came on at all and we won't compete with him as a number 1. It's easy to look back in hindsight but money was mismanaged regarding player signings. We need to look at the loan market and see what keepers are available, instead of just asking EK who they've got. We need a clear-out and need much more consistency out of O'Reilly and Yates next season. Will be glad to see the back of Forbes, despite his couple of fantastic goals for us. We just can't afford such a luxury. As I've said before, I think we should bring back our youth pathway to the first team. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elric Posted May 1, 2023 Share Posted May 1, 2023 Might not be there next season if our clubs vote for this Scottish football fans need to read this thread In June, Scotland's clubs are set to vote on arguably the biggest threat to sporting integrity that Scottish football has ever seen. (1/7) — No to B Teams (@NoToBTeams) April 28, 2023 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Francesc Fabregas Posted May 2, 2023 Author Share Posted May 2, 2023 Tam Orr will leave the club in the summer after agreeing a two-year contract with Stranraer. On his day, Tam could be a very useful player but his day has not come around much at all this season and his limitations are badly shown up when he has to do anything other than "finish without thinking". He couldn't lead the line or play with his back to goal and it blunted our attack for long periods. I wish him well on his return to Stranraer and I've no doubt he'll pop a couple past us when we meet. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Fashioned Stramash Posted May 2, 2023 Share Posted May 2, 2023 Guaranteed to score against us next season but looking forward to seeing who we'll replace him with. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neilly Posted May 2, 2023 Share Posted May 2, 2023 I wish Tam all the best could never fault his effort at any point but he's had a woeful season and we need a lot better to lead the line if we are to do anything next season. I'm sure he will do Stranraer a turn again. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Am Featha Taigh Nan Clach Posted May 2, 2023 Share Posted May 2, 2023 We didn't play to his strengths but his all round game was so poor it was often like playing with a man down. Hope he refinds form at Stranraer but glad to get him off the wagebill. Might work out well for all parties. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Blackwell Posted May 2, 2023 Share Posted May 2, 2023 Can guarantee that he will be a roaring success at Stranraer, but honestly, this is excellent news. This guy just frustrated the hell out of me. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hard Graft Posted May 3, 2023 Share Posted May 3, 2023 Was expecting more from him than he produced but then so did the majority of the squad. Good luck to him back at Stranraer. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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