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Airdrieonians 23/24 Championship Thread♦️


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Regarding signings in the Jackie  Mac group, I think the majority of them have been / are good additions to our squad. Rhys isn't daft enough to sign players just because they come from Jackie. He will only sign the ones he thinks can add value to the squad. After all, it's his own managerial reputation on the line if it goes tits up. He's smarter than that. 

So IMO, having that link to Consilium isn't a bad thing. 

Regarding budgets, nobody outwith the club really knows how ours shapes compared to other teams in the Championship but yes, it's an easy assumption that it'll be right at the lower end.

That being said, the teams with the lowest budget don't always end up at the bottom. It's all about being shrewd and smart with the additions, building a strong squad with good team ethics and high standards.

That's where I think Rhys's strength lies. Building that unique team bond where they all work hard and play for each other and holding them accountable for maintaining the high standards he expects. We all seen it last season and I've no doubt he will approach this season in the same way. 

So whilst I appreciate it's a huge challenge ahead, it's an exciting one and I don't see us playing defensive football constantly. Attack is the best form of defence and I think Rhys will continue that approach. 

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2 hours ago, Kenny_m said:

Yeh understand but the pond we are fishing in very very small and whilst I have full confidence in the management to improve players tactics etc, the best players will normally rise to the top.

To be clear I'm not suggesting we break the bank, if our average full time wage for the established players is £500 per week perhaps we can pay 3 or 4 of them £750 to get that added little quality.

Aye or a performance win  bonus,

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56 minutes ago, Mr November said:

One of our big successes in the last few years has been signing guys who’ve done ok elsewhere at similar level clubs but have went on to become key players. I’d say Frizzell, Easton, McCabe, ATS and even Watson all broadly fit that. Guys who’ve played a decent number of games, career isn’t really going anywhere but we’ve been able to get the best out of them. I think we might need another couple of players like that because competing for quality Championship players is always going to be a struggle. 

Yeah I’d agree with much of this. We signed Frizzell from Dumbarton, Watson from East Fife, Ballantyne from Montrose etc. It might be that the players we can lure in are good players at part-time teams in League One that want to give full-time football a crack and/or move closer to the central belt. Players leaving Championship clubs all seem to be signing for teams we can’t realistically compete with like Dundee United or Raith Rovers.

The only issue with that is that you’d expect if we had our eye on any players like that we’d already have them signed up as we would be a good upgrade for them. So unless we’re waiting to see some trialists in an actual game at the weekend before offering any deals, it might be unlikely.

Still need a CB and LB for the starting 11 as a priority but we could do with adding quality all over. Both McCabe and Fordyce have told the media they believe we can continue our attacking style and compete well in the Championship. I like their optimism, but I hope it’s not misplaced. I’d agree with most that finishing 8th snd avoiding the relegation playoffs would be a decent first season back in the second tier, provided we’re able to build on that and improve over the following seasons.

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3 minutes ago, airdrieman said:

Gardyne and Garry O’Connor’s son in the same team could be good patter potential. 

There's been a lot of praise for our team togetherness and moral. Gardyne might get the wrong idea!

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I know it’s still early in the window and I’m glad we’ve kept the majority of last season’s squad, but I think we need at least 4 or 5 experienced players who can come straight in to the starting lineup or I feel even 8th place might be beyond us.  We must have the smallest budget in the Championship by a distance and when you see other teams making decent signings (even Accies splashing the cash in League 1) you start to get a bit worried.  

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I'm still sitting on the edge of my seat waiting to see who these quality signings are that Rhys promised. Hopefully some on the 1st Jul given that anyone who is out of contract will be by then?

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13 minutes ago, GoalForAirdrie said:

Really hope the next pen proves every single one of us wrong 😂🤞

Think we will be waiting a bit longer to see the pen. Most likely into the middle of next week I'd imagine.

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I'd think we may have a few trialists with 2 games at the weekend.   We have more players signed at this stage compared to last season so I can't see it being like last year's nl Cup with 12.   Maybe 2 or 3 but hopefully not again like last year with most being 17/18 year olds.

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To all the Jackie lovers.

The little cheating c#nt got John Davies sent off in a meaningless end of season game , when we played Dunfermline at East end Park, which meant that Davies was unable to play in the Scottish cup final, and denying him the opportunity of a winners medal.

So in the case of Jackie, once a c#nt, always a c#nt, even if he comes up with the next Messi. 

So I won't be joining his fan club.

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3 hours ago, Rio 2 said:

To all the Jackie lovers.

The little cheating c#nt got John Davies sent off in a meaningless end of season game , when we played Dunfermline at East end Park, which meant that Davies was unable to play in the Scottish cup final, and denying him the opportunity of a winners medal.

So in the case of Jackie, once a c#nt, always a c#nt, even if he comes up with the next Messi. 

So I won't be joining his fan club.

Let it go mate, it was nearly 30 years ago. 😜

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11 hours ago, Rio 2 said:

To all the Jackie lovers.

The little cheating c#nt got John Davies sent off in a meaningless end of season game , when we played Dunfermline at East end Park, which meant that Davies was unable to play in the Scottish cup final, and denying him the opportunity of a winners medal.

So in the case of Jackie, once a c#nt, always a c#nt, even if he comes up with the next Messi. 

So I won't be joining his fan club.

Remember that day well, I agree he is a cheating c**t who hated Airdrie back in the day when he was at Dunfermline,   John Davies another midfielder in the Telfer mode,  weirdly he was one for the boo boys as well,  good player Davies..

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1 hour ago, Passionate said:

Remember that day well, I agree he is a cheating c**t who hated Airdrie back in the day when he was at Dunfermline,   John Davies another midfielder in the Telfer mode,  weirdly he was one for the boo boys as well,  good player Davies..

Scored an unreal goal in that mental 8-1 game against Stranraer at Broadwood. That was always my abiding memory of him.

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