laukat

Its quite an interesting stat about the number of bookings Bannigan has this season. One of the deficiencies in Bannigan's game was his tackling was poor and led to too many yellows and red so perhaps he has deliberately changed his game? I do think we overplayed Bannigan this season. 35 games is quite a lot for a guy that's main strength is the amount of running he does. Both Bannigan and Docherty will be 30 next season. I believe we need to start to build the midfield around younger players. Turner and Crawford fit most of that bill bit the shape of our midfield and what we need alongside them will be dictated by the team formation we play If we are going to stick with the 4-3-3 then we require a bigger physical presence sitting in behind. However if we are going for 3-5-2 then potentially less of a need for another midfielder assuming we can sign a central defender who is capable of stepping into midfield. So if we sign a right wingback and get Mayo back then we are probably covered for midfielders should Crawford sign. If not then we could do with an Abdul Osman type.

If I recall correctly they were joint managers but neither had really done any coaching prior to us appointing them.

Pretty much as expected and hoped for. Only name missing from the list that should also be leaving is Smith but he is under contract for another season. Foster, Bell, Hendrie, McKenna and Mayo have all done a job for us and I wish them well. However Mayo is the only only one I would want back. Assume Bell and Foster will retire or go into coaching. McKenna and Hendrie shouldn't have nay difficulty getting another club at lower end championship/upper end league 1. Murray might struggle to get a fulltime offer. Tidy enough wee player but not strong enough or consistent enough.

I think Kenny Miller shows the problem in going for an experienced pro. Miller's work ethic as 40 year old playing for us what second to none and with the playing career he had you would think he would be a solid bet to be a decent manager. However he's had a short lived failed attempt at Livi and struggled badly as part of the management team at Falkirk. Its a big ask for an ex-pro to come in with no experience and hit the ground running. To my mind they have a better chance when they are on the coaching staff and get promoted from within or started at a lower level and worked their way up. To me Championship level is too high for most to jump in as they struggle with budget management, contract management, coaching and first team performance whereas at a part-time club they have time during the week to fit in other activities around limited training slots. Nowadays when a large club appoints an ex-pro its usually as first team coach rather than manager. They then either put in a director of football or chief exec to deal with player contracts, budgets etc which at least attempts to lessen the load. However for a club like Thistle and any other Championship club we can't afford a Director of football without it impacting massively on the playing budget.

Agree with @Third Lanark on Jack Hamilton. Also see value in Connolly and Fitzpatrick from QoS as they both add pace and width. If we could get Declan Glass and Logan Chalmers from Dundee United on permanent deals they would be good business and might offset the loss of Tiffoney if he is Tannadice bound. Jason Naismith has had a poor season at Killie but he looked really good in this division for Ross County. Scott Robinson at Killie might also be an option Stephen Kelly at Sevco has just finished his loan at Salford and could add energy to our midfield.

Everything is relative in life and football managers are no exception. McCall has his faults but how does he compare to his competitors? This season in the championship the only teams in front of us are ICT, Arbroath and Kilmarnock. I don't think anyone wants Dick Campbell back or seriously believes Dodds is better than McCall. Arguably McInness is a better manager but he's also out of price range. Below us in the championship there is McGlynn (now at Falkirk), Imrie, Taylor, Bullen, Hughes and Gibson. Only Imrie has shown any potential but then again he has only been in post a few months In the premiership you have McGhee, Davidson, Martindale, Robinson, Goodwin, Alexander, Mackay, McCourt and Neilson. (I'll leave out the managers of the 2 arse cheeks as they are totally unaffordable) Looking at those names which is clearly a better bet than McCall? Neilson, maybe Martindale, possibly Goodwin and then after that it looks slim pickings to me. In the leagues below us the managers with potential are Petrie, Murray, Thomson and Hartley. Hartley and Murray have been tried at a higher level and been found wanting. Petrie seems to have hit a ceiling with Montrose and Thomson has had the advantage of a big cheque book. So no obvious candidate there. Then we are onto taking someone currently out of work. Not many names there that would be definitely better and most are out of work because they have tried and failed on more than one occasion. Jack Ross is the name most clubs would fancy but can't afford and we most definetly can't afford. That leaves taking a chance on someone wanting to cut their teeth. If we were to go for a Scott Brown type then I fear we are more likely to repeat the Derek Johnstone experience than the Jackie McNamara experience. This has to be one of the worst era's for managerial talent in recent memory. There just aren't any real alternatives. As a club we really need to look at how grow our own. Brian Graham could be that guy in a couple of years but he's not ready just now and if he does become the next manager it will be in part down to McCall in the same way McNamara was ready to step up last time.

So next season looks like the following teams will be in it ICT, Arbroath or St Johnstone - You would assume whichever 2 of these are in the league next season will be at least looking for another top 4 finish. This season feels like the peak for Arbroath and it could be difficult to pick themselves up for next season. Always an outside possibility that Dunfermline take Campbell back to get them out of league 1. ICT are always competitive but may have to replace key players such as Broadfoot and MacKay. St Johnstone are again always competitive but if they go down they will probably have a serious clearout. Dundee - At this point they look like a basket case. They have relied on McGowan and Adam but its surely time to find new blood. McGhee looks like a bit of a joke figure. So big job ahead and getting a decent manager in will be a must but I can't see someone like Jack Ross wanting to bet his reputation on turning that ship around. Us - We have a core group that's played together now for nearly 2 seasons so we don't so much need a clearout but a decent number of additions. You would hope that with decent recruitment we can continue our upwards progression. It will be difficult to get automatic promotion as Dundee could outspend us and ICT may think next season is the season to bet the house on but you would hope for a 2nd or 3rd place finish to have a fighting chance in the playoffs. Raith - They look like a club on the slide. They are a few bad results away from a crisis and I could see them battling relegation. Hamilton - I think they are in for another season around mid-table. Not got the funds to get the players needed for a title push and their current crop of youngsters aren't in the same league as past crops. Morton - If they keep Imrie, if they give him a budget then they may be the dark horse and challenging for a playoff spot. However it being Morton I expect Imrie to get a better offer and Morton to have another season trying to avoid the drop. Ayr - I think they are heading for a season of being mid-table. Not good enough for the playoffs but not in serious relegation danger. Cove - Don't think they will be relegated but I would imagine they will spend most of the season around the bottom of the league. They may get off to a decent start and get some surprise results but a good season will be 8th spot. Airdrie or Queens Park - difficult to see how either team will be not be battling relegation. So in theory 3 teams battling out relegation (Raith, Cove, Airdrie or Queens) 2 in midtable (Hamilton, Ayr) and 5 with designs on the playoffs and title (Dundee, Us and 2 from Arbroath, ICT and St Johnstone).

If Tiffoney is away to Dundee United I wouldn't mind getting Declan Glass and Logan Chalmers in return. We need youth, pace and creativity on our team. Those 2 tick a lot of those boxes

We look like a really tired team and have done since February. The core of the team (Sneddon, Brownlie, Mayo, Akinola, Holt, Bannigan, Docherty, Turner, Crawford, Tiffoney and Graham) is ok but they have all been overplayed because we don't have anyone else capable of sharing the burden. Don't think we can go into next season with Docherty, Bannigan and Graham as automatic first picks. We need to start to build a midfield around Crawford and Turner. I notice McCall thinks he has 13/14 players capable of winning the league but I count 10. Assuming Mayo returns thats 11 and Milne plus Dowds make 13. There's a few players that need to be thanked for their efforts and moved on such as Bell, Foster and Hendrie. Hendrie only by virtue of us signing a younger replacement There are a few players that haven't been good enough and should be first out the door. I don't know how Jakubiak has played most of his career in the premier league. He is definitely not a striker and flatters to deceive in every game. Alegria got worse with every game and tonight was hopeless. Murray still looks like a wee boy trying to play a mans game. McKenna runs like a Giraffe being chased by lions. Smith seems to have the pace of a pensioner with covid.

I thought Turner looked a better play in open play when he had Mayo playing as defensive midfielder. I think he needs to know that there is someone behind him. Conversely our midfield looked its best when Crawford, Bannigan and Docherty were interchanging positions as it made it very difficult for the opposition to mark. Sena needs to figure out what position he wants to play. For me he's not good enough on the ball to be a midfielder. However he has all the attributes to be a decent centre half but just needs coached on when to challenge for the ball and when to drop off. If he could get a season playing alongside an experienced pro at league 1 level I think he could make it a championship level centre half. As a midfielder he's probably at best mid-table league 1.

I don't see anything wrong with linking Real Madrid to our fortunes. Real Madrid are the team of the Spanish Royalty and we have already established that both Gerry Britton is the King of Spain and King Juan Carlos is a Jags fan. Now if we could just formalise a feeder club arrangement so their best players get the opportunity to test themselves at Firhill..

I thought the way Dodds celebrated the goals with the fans during the game was a bit OTT. At best its the winner in a tie that gives you the chance to them try and get past Arbroath and then probably St Johnstone but he was celebrating it like they just secured their place in the premiership. That sort of behaviour has a habit of coming back to haunt you.

We should be chapping Sevco's door to ask them about Mayo. I would keep Crawford. Apart from that I think the rest can go. Foster is the best of the rest but he's of an age that its hard to justify an extension. Hendrie has been ok and will do a job at championship level for someone but with Holt and Milne as leftback options its hard to see where he fits, McKenna has tried and again will probably do a job for someone at this level but if we want to progress we need players who are more natural fullbacks.

The Rudden deal looks stranger every time you look at it. To have loaned him to Dundee rather than transferred him is strange. I've seen comments that this is because we get a training fee and deny Sevco a cut of the transfer fee but that seems strange. I despise Sevco but why would Sevco do similar business with us again (i.e. Mayo) if we are going to undermine the spirit of any deal agreed? Getting Jakubiak as his replacement didn't look right. Don't believe he was who McCall wanted as his style is not what we needed . I don't think McCall is the sort of manager who doesn't have 2 or 3 options lined up so when Irwin fell through I find it hard to believe that Jukubiak became the sole focus of McCall's attention. Don't think Dundee would have extended Jakubiak's contract if he hadn't been a make weight in the Rudden deal but why allow that to happen? Surely if we wanted Jakubiak it made better sense to take him on loan to the end of the season without him being extended. That way his Dundee contract would have expired at the end of this season and if he was any good we could have signed him without a transfer fee. If he wasn't someone we wanted we would have lost nothing. If the Jakubiak extension was someway of preserving Dundee's ability to enforce a transfer fee or allow both players to return to their parent clubs why didn't we insist Rudden signed a matching 1 year extension with us? Why was our negotiating hand so weak? We had what Dundee wanted not the other way about. Yes, Rudden could have been annoyed if we had veto'd a transfer but it wouldn't have been in his interest to down tools. Another few months scoring goals for us and being our of contract in the summer would have increased what he could have got as a wage as no transfer fee would be due.

I get you point and I think you're 'actual line-up' is a very decent representation of the problem in playing McKenna i.e. he will naturally sit in line with the other central defenders because he is a natural central defender. Foster would tend to be a bit higher closing the gap to Crawford. That can leave a gap in behind Foster but he does tend to have the pace, positional sense and experience to deal with the danger. I can see the sense in keeping Hendrie over Akinola and arguably its not a huge difference in playing Hendrie at leftback over Holt. On balance I would be tempted to put Holt back in at left back so we retain height for defending and attacking set pieces but I wouldn't argue if Hendrie started and Holt played alongside Mayo. The lack of threat of the right flank has been an issue all season. McAllister was the big hope there but its just not happened. Crawford was trying to stay slightly wider last night but he is a natural central mid. Unfortunately Turner has the same positional instinct. Murray is perhaps the only other wide option but we would need to sacrifice Jakubiak to play Murray as Murray is just not strong enough in midfield. If we really need to chase the game I think we may need to sacrifice a midfielder and put him on but we couldn't start like that. There is a more radical option that I would have liked to see us try earlier in the season. We could move to 3-5-2 and move Tiffoney to striker and let him run at Broadfoot so we line up like the following Sneddon Akinola-Mayo-Holt Foster-Crawford-Docherty-Bannigan-Hendrie Graham-Tiffoney To my mind it gets our best 11 on the park and deals with lack of a right sided winger. It also means you have better options on the bench to change formation. Most of the subs we make are like for like (Crawford for Turner, Smith for Jakubiak) or minor tactical changes (Moving from 4-3-3 to 4-3-1-2). However unless McCall has been secretly working on that formation on the training ground I don't think he will consume enough brave pills between now and Friday to do that.