The Greenock Morton Thread - It's Better Than Yours

[TheGoon]

1 hour ago, Bigmouth Strikes Again said:

As long as you don't lie down to Hamilton again, that's the main thing.

Thank you.

It’s still remarkable to me it’s inconceivable to some Dundee fans that that team was capable of shipping double digits, in that situation. 

A team even did it in the same division less than a year later.

[Bigmouth Strikes Again]

6 minutes ago, TheGoon said:

It’s still remarkable to me it’s inconceivable to some Dundee fans that that team was capable of shipping double digits, in that situation. 

A team even did it in the same division less than a year later.

Been watching professional football for 50 years, never seen a double figure scoreline.

Thank you.

[Mr Toon]

12 hours ago, Bigmouth Strikes Again said:

Been watching professional football for 50 years, never seen a double figure scoreline.

Thank you.

Nor me. 1963/64 came closest when we had some very high scores, two 8s and a few 7s but never double figures. One of the 8s was, if I remember correctly against Hamilton but not sure.

[SpoonTon]

1 hour ago, Mr Toon said:

Nor me. 1963/64 came closest when we had some very high scores, two 8s and a few 7s but never double figures. One of the 8s was, if I remember correctly against Hamilton but not sure.

We beat Forfar 9-1 in the 06/07 season. I don't remember anyone accusing Forfar players of trying to fix anything - just downing tools against a team happy to score a few. 

[vikingTON]

13 hours ago, TheGoon said:

It’s still remarkable to me it’s inconceivable to some Dundee fans that that team was capable of shipping double digits, in that situation. 

It's not that remarkable given that 

a) Dundee fans are, with very few exceptions, utter simpletons, and of course

b) Dundee also contrived to lose 1-0 to that already relegated nick of a team during the run-in. 

[vikingTON]

18 hours ago, SpoonTon said:

The thing that actually particularly struck me in Imrie's interview last week was the bit about the club's choice in adopting an approach of bringing through their own players into the first team (referring here to Hynes, Strapp, King, McGrattan, Lyon, Easdale McGregor, and Garrity). Most of these players received new, in some cases multi-year, contracts during the season in a manner which no other player is offered a new deal. It didn't feel like these were Imrie's decisions (not directly, at least), and while most of these players won't be high earners I don't really buy the idea that's they're merely squad-fillers on next to nothing (they still require a full-time salary of some description). For whatever reason, this is the club's approach and these players look like they will have to be active squad members this season. 

I'm still hopeful that we'll bring in 3 or 4 others, we certainly need that, but if we don't then we've got no business remaining full-time. Bulking up a squad with local younger players just to remain full-time is a failed model - you can only do that in addition to the first team squad, not as an integral part of it. It keeps costs down in some respects, but it doesn't mean that we will have a squad which is good enough. 

I agree with both parts of this, but adding Quitongo and Gillespie from the league below (and keeping Blues who is not an academy product) do not suggest that there is an automatically higher benchmark of quality being set by the manager that the board isn't following.

Once we gave Lyon a new deal in January, Blues had to go this summer in order to upgrade that area of the team. But the club and Imrie failed to apply the correct level of ruthlessness and so here we are still lacking genuine quality in the middle of the park. 

From the outside perspective, it seems clear that we have not yet had a serious review of the first team model since the takeover. I'm sure that the board has had enough on their plate, but a big error this summer was handing out two year deals to senior players. That precludes any serious consideration of a part-time or hybrid model until 2024, and should not have been done just to get Baird or similar targets through the door.

They need to put together a separate committee of directors (possibly including outside investors) and the management to determine our best approach to the player market going forward. 

Edited July 16, 2022 by vikingTON

[DreamOakTree1]

20 hours ago, Jamie_M said:

Player kit sponsorship 'sold out'. Not 'currently sold out', just SOLD OUT. PERIOD.

No more signings, confirmed. 

 

Where does it say no more signings?

[Paisley Ton]

I have been concerned with the showings so far.

Seeing Easdale in the starting lineup gave me anxiety that somebody had read my joke posting last week.

I accept after Falkirk beat Hibs we were out of the LC.

But getting shafted by Clyde now I am worried what this season holds for us.

This after we were going with Dougies team.

[Dunning1874]

On 15/07/2022 at 11:42, Dunning1874 said:

It's hardly unlikely that some fans might react similarly to the manager claiming that the squad of 19 which has one goalkeeper, no established centre forward, two teenagers, Darren Hynes and Zander Easdale will be it when that isn't actually true. You can already see that those comments have caused panic and had people pointing fingers at MCT or demanding statements, again.

If you want evidence of this, look at replies to the club facebook or twitter in the last 20 minutes after a result which reflects terribly on Imrie regardless of the budget he's been given.

[Bigmouth Strikes Again]

8 hours ago, virginton said:

 

b) Dundee also contrived to lose 1-0 to that already relegated nick of a team during the run-in. 

I remember that, you were up half the night posting shite.

Thank you.

[Thistle4eva]

Should I just stick money on you lot going down now, seems inevitable.

[The Ghost of B A R P]

Nothing we didn’t already know. We need another four, two for the first team, two for the squad (three and one probably wishful thinking.

That’s not to say what we have shouldn’t have been able to deal with fkn Clyde.

Only straw I can clutch at is that, after the Falkirk-Hibs result, these games are being treated as part of an extended pre-season and the players are still doing heavy sessions close to matches. Lot of heavy looking legs out there yesterday.

Oh, and get the total imposter who lined up at ‘centre forward’ yesterday as far the f**k away from Morton as possible. If anything’s embarrassing the club at this point, it’s that. Beyond a joke now.

[Cardle is Magic]

51 minutes ago, The Ghost of B A R P said:

Only straw I can clutch at is that, after the Falkirk-Hibs result, these games are being treated as part of an extended pre-season and the players are still doing heavy sessions close to matches. Lot of heavy looking legs out there yesterday.

Seems daft for clubs to treat them only as friendlies, especially with increased prize money up for grabs.

[AsimButtHitsASix]

19 minutes ago, Cardle is Magic said:

Seems daft for clubs to treat them only as friendlies, especially with increased prize money up for grabs.

Yeah but we are all but out now so we can wave goodbye to that prize money.

[The Ghost of B A R P]

1 hour ago, Cardle is Magic said:

Seems daft for clubs to treat them only as friendlies, especially with increased prize money up for grabs.

Totally agree in general, but as @AsimButtHitsASix says, that’s gone for us… again.

We’ve been consistently hopeless at getting into gear for possible additional revenues from the League Cup (with one pretty enjoyable exception).

[DreamOakTree1]

There’s something not quite right or something missing from Dougie’s statements, demeanour and/or team selections:

He signed up Blues, Jacobs, Muirhead etc. and some new signings from lower divisions.

He complained about lack of funding for players.

He played with one sub against Falkirk (to make a point?).

He blasted off to Chick Young about his situation.

He started Easdale against Clyde (to make a point?)

I feel there can only be one of two possible explanations here:

1/ Dougie has messed up and hasn’t used his funding effectively.

2/ Dougie’s been assured if he signs the above players there will be further funding to add the required two or three players of sufficient quality to make us challengers for top four. Then after he’s done so the board have said “sorry that’s it, no more signings”.

I sense that, by Dougie’s responses, it’s explanation 2, which has made him feel betrayed and feel the need to let people know his frustrations.

 

[#Gary]

46 minutes ago, DreamOakTree1 said:

He played with one sub against Falkirk (to make a point?).

He started Easdale against Clyde (to make a point?)

What points was Dougie making exactly?

He's spunked away his budget on known duds, and is lucky that some of the other known duds he offered contracts to chose to move on. Let's just say it as it is, if this was Gus' preparation he'd be getting absolutely slaughtered for same things Dougie seems to be getting a pass for.

[vikingTON]

34 minutes ago, #Gary said:

What points was Dougie making exactly?

He's spunked away his budget on known duds, and is lucky that some of the other known duds he offered contracts to chose to move on. Let's just say it as it is, if this was Gus' preparation he'd be getting absolutely slaughtered for same things Dougie seems to be getting a pass for.

I think this is closer to the mark than the 'making a point to the board' argument, though the truth probably lies in between the two. I wouldn't be as critical about the signings so far (with the exception of Baird who I've never rated highly), but the manager hasn't shown the required ruthlessness. The last few results of last season should have confirmed that several more players had to go to progress. You can't turn round and blame a lack of backing when you're handing dung like Blues a new deal - that's not an academy player policy. 

I'm not as pessimistic about our chances but it all hangs on the quality of our final couple of signings. The team will look much more credible if and presumably when we get an actual centre forward for the others to play off.

The manager and players are fully responsible for that nick of a result yesterday though. We should expect an inexperienced manager to make mistakes and we've been fortunate not to experience many of them so far. 

[port-ton]

I personally don't think the likes of giving Blues, Muirhead etc new contracts is a black mark against Imrie. 

When you're informed your budget is cut a substantial amount from the previous season and you've got multiple players already on bottom end full time wages at the club who you know what they're going to give you and have performed admirably for you already then it makes sense to keep them rather than take a risk trying to find cheap gems from places. 

Their replacements would have been straight out the Gillespie/Quitongo market that no one else at our level is competing with us in. We were in for a player earlier in the summer and fucking Stenhousmuir were offering them more money than us. 

That's just the level of finance the club is at now and we need to get used to it until there's any extra outside investment. The reality is Imrie has had to learn to accept that as well as the summer has went on. It will be interesting to see how long he's willing to accept it if we start the season poorly. 

 

 

[vikingTON]

33 minutes ago, port-ton said:

I personally don't think the likes of giving Blues, Muirhead etc new contracts is a black mark against Imrie. 

When you're informed your budget is cut a substantial amount from the previous season and you've got multiple players already on bottom end full time wages at the club who you know what they're going to give you and have performed admirably for you already then it makes sense to keep them rather than take a risk trying to find cheap gems from places. 

They weren't performing admirably at the end of last season though. They stank the place out with a string of defeats and that was the warning that the manager should have read. I think that most were hoping that Imrie was talking up the team last season for effect and would be realistic about their actual level of performance going forward - instead, he seems to have believed it himself and so we have too players reverting to their mean of dung performances. 

Quote

That's just the level of finance the club is at now and we need to get used to it until there's any extra outside investment. 

There's no evidence for that until the accounts are published. We have league prize money, we have 800 season tickets sold (much more than a decade ago - making income more predictable) and a commercial side that is more visible and professionally executed than anything under the Raes. There are certainly huge cost pressures but they're not unique to GMFC. 

We're not going to compete with clubs chucking money around and racking up huge losses (that boot's on the other foot now) but there's no inherent reason why a competitive team can't be put on the park. Not handing two year deals to the likes of Baird and Blues who do not merit them would have been a good start. It would also give us more room for manoeuvre in deciding whether the current contract model works for us - this needs to be reviewed urgently, instead of anyone at the club just mewling about resources and not trying to solve the problem.