Ayr United v Livingston - 19/10/24

[ayrunitedfw]

Think we’ll lose this one. Haven’t been playing well in recent weeks and still a good few injury doubts. McMann being back fully fit would be massive but I can’t see him being chucked straight back in

2-0 Livi, Muirhead and Kelly. 

[Shibuya]

Haven't been this excited for an Ayr v Livi fixture since the days of Isaac English and Stevie Kerrigan!

[diegomarahenry]

Mixed feelings about this one. 
 

We have been playing well under Brown, a lot of injuries have changed the way we play and some of the fringe players that have came in have struggled to make an impact, Strangely, the majority of the injuries have been in defence and it has probably been our best area in recent weeks. We have looked well organised, hunt in packs to win the ball back and try to outpace and out-muscle teams. 

The Falkirk game however was worrying. Brown discovered Lee Bullens mad team selection tombola and gave it a whirl. 
 

We have a team(when fit) that can compete with anyone in the league but seem to shoot ourself in the foot continually, going goals down and having to battle back, an infatuation with playing Musonda and McKenzie anywhere but their natural positions and pissing about with formation changes. 
 

Livi are mimicking Dundee United by being boring, consistent and not creating any headlines. Competent but not flashy. 
 

2-2 with Livi leading at half time
 

[Richey Edwards]

1 hour ago, diegomarahenry said:

We have a team(when fit) that can compete with anyone in the league but seem to shoot ourself in the foot continually, going goals down and having to battle back, an infatuation with playing Musonda and McKenzie anywhere but their natural positions and pissing about with formation changes. 
 

Mark McKenzie is the modern day Alan Smith. He could pop up anywhere.

 

[railwayend]

1 hour ago, diegomarahenry said:

We have been playing well under Brown, a lot of injuries have changed the way we play and some of the fringe players that have came in have struggled to make an impact, Strangely, the majority of the injuries have been in defence and it has probably been our best area in recent weeks. We have looked well organised, hunt in packs to win the ball back and try to outpace and out-muscle teams. 

The Falkirk game however was worrying. Brown discovered Lee Bullens mad team selection tombola and gave it a whirl. 
 

We have a team(when fit) that can compete with anyone in the league but seem to shoot ourself in the foot continually, going goals down and having to battle back, an infatuation with playing Musonda and McKenzie anywhere but their natural positions and pissing about with formation changes. 
 

Livi are mimicking Dundee United by being boring, consistent and not creating any headlines. Competent but not flashy. 

We are far from perfect and we like most teams lack a prolific goal scorer . There is also all the etc etc’s . 
However our home record is impressive and that is factual not opinion . Livingston will bring something very different to anyone we have played this far . Their first eleven is impressive, their manager knows what he is doing and they are my pick for the title . Having said that if we are on it from the start then maybe we can get that big win . Interesting times and a stark difference to the relegation battle last season . Enjoy it fellas, road bumps and all. 

[ATLIS]

Honestly the Championship is great, most fans here are reasonable and talk a good level of sense  The Premiership can get full of nonsense and then you need to suffer the absolute shite that comes from Rangers and Celtic a few times a season. It's refreshing to be looking forward to going into a game where both teams have genuine title aspirations and aren't just arguing about it.

Even Falkirk fans were far more decent than I remember them being, the only slight rubbish came after the game. 

On the game though, really interested to see how we line up, I don't imagine Danny Wilson comes straight into the team. I'd like to see a front three of Muirhead/May/Sole but Martindale seems to have a thing for Smith lately while Sole gets up to fitness. We'll more than likely spend the first half trying to let Ayr punch themselves out and have a go in the second half as we've been doing all season so far. No doubt a boring first half then a second half where we start to ramp up the pressure, as always an early goal either way will make this game interesting. 

I'd said this before the Falkirk game but an away point here isn't the end of the world as long as we can take a win at home. We're still unbeaten and we look very solid at the back which is a huge contrast from last season where we were absolutely woeful. We've got real strength in depth in the squad and you could argue there's 3 or 4 guys sitting on the bench who are far too good not to be starting at this level, but that seems to be what's pulling us away from teams in the second half - being able to utilise a strong bench and squad in general. I'll also be interested to see if Tete is back for this game as he could be another great option off the left instead of Muirhead or a late sub.

[shizzlemanizzle]

6 hours ago, ATLIS said:

Honestly the Championship is great, most fans here are reasonable and talk a good level of sense  The Premiership can get full of nonsense and then you need to suffer the absolute shite that comes from Rangers and Celtic a few times a season. It's refreshing to be looking forward to going into a game where both teams have genuine title aspirations and aren't just arguing about it.

Even Falkirk fans were far more decent than I remember them being, the only slight rubbish came after the game. 

On the game though, really interested to see how we line up, I don't imagine Danny Wilson comes straight into the team. I'd like to see a front three of Muirhead/May/Sole but Martindale seems to have a thing for Smith lately while Sole gets up to fitness. We'll more than likely spend the first half trying to let Ayr punch themselves out and have a go in the second half as we've been doing all season so far. No doubt a boring first half then a second half where we start to ramp up the pressure, as always an early goal either way will make this game interesting. 

I'd said this before the Falkirk game but an away point here isn't the end of the world as long as we can take a win at home. We're still unbeaten and we look very solid at the back which is a huge contrast from last season where we were absolutely woeful. We've got real strength in depth in the squad and you could argue there's 3 or 4 guys sitting on the bench who are far too good not to be starting at this level, but that seems to be what's pulling us away from teams in the second half - being able to utilise a strong bench and squad in general. I'll also be interested to see if Tete is back for this game as he could be another great option off the left instead of Muirhead or a late sub.

Shut yer face ya pure jobby. Pretty decent post though. I absolutely want Ayr to get promoted but there are elements I would not enjoy. 2 in particular.

[Cptn Hooch]

10 hours ago, ATLIS said:

Honestly the Championship is great, most fans here are reasonable and talk a good level of sense  The Premiership can get full of nonsense and then you need to suffer the absolute shite that comes from Rangers and Celtic a few times a season. It's refreshing to be looking forward to going into a game where both teams have genuine title aspirations and aren't just arguing about it.
 

Can we win the league and refuse promotion?