Armand2

He did applaud the Thistle fans, though - he pretty obviously glanced across to the away support before circling to clap the Hearts fans. And let's not rewrite what actually happened here - folk were on their feet abusing Stevenson before his hands came together to applaud anyone.

Well, answer me this - if Stevenson had just been subbed on Saturday, no incident, no applause for the Hearts fans, would we all be having this debate on his professionalism? Of course we wouldn't.

On what basis exactly? That he wasn't as fit as he could have been when he signed? In that case, the fact that he got himself fit and became one of better players is surely evidence of his professionalism. Using Saturday as any kind of basis to question the guy's professionalism is utterly flawed, seeing as he was no poorer than any other Thistle player on the pitch. What it ultimately comes down to is folk getting their knickers in a twist because he acknowledged the fans of a club he played for on two spells with relative success (on an individual basis, at least) and then using that to justify ludicrous slanders towards him.

What a pathetic bunch of precious revisionists you lot are. Stevenson started slowly last year, I don't think anyone including him would dispute that, but by the end of the season, he was one of our most influential players. He's missed a fair chunk of pre-season due to the injury picked up on that horrendous Hamilton pitch and is perhaps still getting up to speed. But to question his professionalism - questioning only arising because of this nothing incident on Saturday - is nonsense of the highest order.

It's the age old problem of fickleness with football fans. Stevo would have been well within his rights to ignore the away support after the nonsense spouted towards him. But he didn't and the video evidence proves that.

I'd have hoped saner heads would have prevailed this morning over Stevenson but perhaps not. Should he have kicked the ball out? I'm of the opinion that you play on until the referee stops the game. So in that respect, he was maybe ill advised to do so. But the abuse he copped for that - and for acknowledging the Hearts fans as he was subbed - was embarrassing; grown men foaming at the mouth, claiming he should never play for the club again. The same grown men who likely lapped up Higginbotham doing similar last week. I told one to sit down and behave himself but there were many more unfortunately. Some people ought to have a proper good look at themselves this morning. The chat about Stevenson "staring out the fans" is just plain moronic nonsense - he was probably just as astounded as anyone else at the abuse he was receiving. The result and performance was disappointing and frustrating but there was absolutely no need to take it out on one of our own. Stevenson remains one of our most experienced and influential players, a guy who will prove his worth over the course of the season and has done nothing not to deserve our full support.

New deal for Duggan.

For what it's worth, I acknowledged Higginbotham at the end but understand why some folk were critical. He's always been a bit of a crowd baiter but to do so after so blatantly elbowing Booth was in poor taste and he only has himself to blame if he wasn't happy with his reception at the end of the game.

Perhaps I should have also added that I think Amoo has something to offer but not convinced he's a starter. Looks like an impact player if ever I saw one.

We must be watching a different player if you think he could cover as a full-back. I suspect Amoo's best position will be sitting just behind Shaggy on the bench.

Archie sporting a nice coating of Fake Bake there.

As much as Amoo linked up well with Pogba on Sunday, I think I would have started Stevenson ahead of him. On paper, a midweek fixture against Inverness away from home is exactly the type of game not to play a mercurial winger sort like Amoo.

Miaow.

A couple of arm-chair viewer observations: Some folk are lacking a bit of perspective, going by their post-match comments. Yes, these games are a "free hit" to a large extent but the effect of shipping a cricket score on our young and very promising centre-halves could been far more damaging in the long run. I'm not suggesting that we enter the game with the sole intention of keeping the score down but it wasn't an unwise decision from the manager to try to keep it tight, frustrate Celtic and try to nick something on the counter - better teams and more experienced managers will try that this season. There seems to be a notion that had we "went for it" so to speak, we could have gotten something from the game. I didn't see it that way at all; Celtic could have, and probably should have, been out of sight at half-time and looked like they could have stepped it up when and if required. After persevering with Stevenson up front last season with little success, I would have hoped Archie would have bagged that idea. I understand why he tried to match up against the more physically imposing centre-halves but Stevenson isn't a striker. Doolan put in a tremendous shift against Hamilton and in my opinion, more than deserved a chance to test himself against the best team in the country. I was quick enough to praise Miller last week but I thought he was poor yesterday. Timid challenge on Izaguirre in the build-up to the first goal and loose possession throughout. That said, I fear he's fighting a losing battle with some fans simply because he isn't O'Donnell. Felt a bit sorry for Wilson - he was out of position and had quite a thankless task, tracking overlaps and chasing his tail. There's a good player in there though, I'm sure of it. Pogba looked lively and showed that he could cause problems for lesser defences. He linked up well with Amoo and their directness could be a good option. Should have scored right enough but hopeful that with more match sharpness, he'll bury those kind of chances. Beaton flies under the radar but is easily one of the worst referees in Scotland. I don't condone violence towards anyone but it's quite easy to see how his decisions led to some Saudi player nutting him; he comes across as a very arrogant character. I don't want to come off with some of the paranoia more accustomed to yesterday's opponents but any game I've seen him referee, I've always left feeling unfairly treated; Boyata was all over Stevenson at various points, Osman should never have been booked and he invariably awarded any debatable decisions to the opposition. Did I think it was a penalty? No. But Osman had a penalty given against him last season for a very similar incident. Our season won't be defined by games against Celtic. Plenty to be positive about ahead of what is already shaping up to be quite a big week.

All about opinions, I suppose. Can't say I recall him being caught on the ball as often as you've described, though. Given the player he is replacing, it is very easy to simply look at what he offered offensively; I would agree that his distribution was patchy at times (although with Hamilton sitting high up the pitch and only Doolan up front, he had little option at times but to punt it long) and I alluded to the fact that he's not as comfortable in possession as O'Donnell. But defensively, I thought he was excellent given that he had little protection from Amoo and then had to marshall McDaid. The fact that Hamilton regularly had to turn back down the line or play inside rather than get to the byline was evidence of Miller's effectiveness.

Given the circumstances, it was a great point and one that could prove valuable at the end of the season. If you look at our defensive adequacy when Archie took over to how we performed as a unit yesterday, I think it is a great credit to his and Paterson's coaching skills. I'll need to see it again but I thought Frans' first booking was a definite yellow. Nade was going nowhere but into the corner, all Frans had to do was hold him up until we had men behind the ball. I've heard some say it was soft but at the time, I had no complaints. For his second booking, after going to ground so soon before, he was very silly to give the referee the option to issue another caution. We can all argue the validity of each booking but what is out with questioning in my opinion is Frans' rashness which has been evident since he signed; he goes to ground far too easily, far too often. He might have just cost himself a jersey because when fit, you would imagine Seaborne will come straight back in, and both Lindsay and Hendry are certainly no inferior to Frans. That leads nicely onto the young centre halves - get extensions in front of them ASAP because both have very bright futures. Hendry has came in under the radar to a certain extent and many would have considered him behind Lindsay who is a player we've taken our time to nurture; but he's proven in pre-season and again yesterday that he is absolutely capable of playing at this level and is no less of a prospect than Lindsay. He's quick - quicker than any of the other centre halves - and is comfortable on the ball; he was under pressure in the channel in the second half yet waltzed past a couple of Hamilton players to play his way out. He also defends the far post very well and is always capable of getting a knick on the ball to clear it away. Lindsay is a hulking presence and nullified any threat Hamilton posed from set-pieces. For one so young, he's accomplished in all the areas that a centre-half needs to be. Two very exciting prospects. Elsewhere, I thought Miller was excellent. He doesn't offer anywhere near as much as O'Donnell from an attacking perspective but is a considerably better defender. He kept Amoo and McDaid in check as best as he could and blocked off the right side very well. He helped keep Hendry and Lindsay in line too and was close to being my Man of the Match for doing a job that probably went unnoticed by many. As impressive as our defenders were - and I include Booth in that, who did a good job on the left side - Cerny has won us the point with two fantastic saves; the first from a one-on-one after someone ran inside McDaid and of course, the tip over the bar that looked like it was heading for the top corner. Fantastic to see Welsh back and he was excellent during his time on the pitch. In quite a frantic first half, he was one of the few players to put his foot on the ball and try to play; on one occasion, in quite a congested midfield, he shimmied past a couple of players then pinged a blind side pass out to Booth which was one of the few moments of quality from us. If he can stay fit, he'll be a tremendous addition. That said, Welsh's reintroduction (and Lawless' absence) shunted Bannigan into an ineffectual wide left position which doesn't suit his game. We missed his ball retention in the middle at times especially as Osman was back to his mid-season form of last year. For me, I'd rather see a sitting duo of Bannigan and Osman with Welsh playing in the more advanced role that Stevenson started in. Stevo would play on the right in place of Amoo who is an impact player from the bench if ever I saw one. Final word to my Man of the Match. He won't get the credit he deserves from some fans who think he lacks pace, strength, super-human goalscoring ability, [enter whatever criticism is most popular amongst the numbskulls this week] but Kris Doolan sacrificed himself for the team yesterday and put in a a tireless and thankless shift up front. He is one of the most tactically aware strikers I've seen play for Thistle and always knows when to go and when not to. As much as we wouldn't have won a point without Cerny's interventions and the performance of our defence, we would have went home empty-handed if it wasn't for Doolan's work up top. Great team performance.

Also, the two goals apart, he was pish against Dumbarton too.

Encouraged to hear that Archie is on the lookout for another attacking option in addition to a striker. I thought that we may have pursued another full-back but that was before it became evident that Christie would be considered adequate cover for Miller. In the friendlies that I've attended, the main concern was the lack of a link between midfield and attack especially when Lawless isn't playing so it's good news that we're still looking to add in that area.

Michael is the host for hospitality which may still prevent him from returning as permanent announcer. Agree that Lance was also good. No offence to the guy who was doing the announcing last year; but if I was giving him career advice, public speaking would be way down the list.

Another positive from last night - Michael Max's return as tannoy announcer. Hopefully it's a permanent return as he's the only man for the job.

It was interesting listening to Paul Dickov this week who mentioned that agents offering their players at the start of the window for X amount in wages are now returning and saying that they'll accept slightly less. That's the way it is and it only becomes increasingly so as the season nears. I don't doubt Archie has a list of guys who he is interested in but it's most likely a case of playing a waiting game to see if their wage demands fall.

Thought we played some very tidy stuff in the first half - the reunited trio of Bannigan, Welsh and Lawless all linked up nicely at various points. The fact Hendry is about a yard quicker than any of our other centre halves gives him a real chance of challenging for a starting place. That said, it's one thing playing the way he has in friendlies and doing the same once the real stuff starts. Without tempting fate, the big tests lie ahead and it'll be interesting to see how he reacts to his first mistake but I think anyone who has watched him in the last two games will be encouraged by his apparent potential. Quite like the look of Cerny. It's a breath of fresh air to actually hear our keeper shouting instructions to the defence. Kicking looked decent and he dealt with everything that came his way comfortably. I don't have many concerns about our back seven, if you like; but if we're without Lawless which we will be next Saturday, I fear that we'll lack a creative spark going forward. It's also a big ask to expect Lawless to deliver this consistently throughout the whole season. Amoo was anonymous last night and I doubt it's going to be the last time anyone says that this season. Little can be read into pre-season performances, of course, but he doesn't look anywhere near up to speed yet. Guys need to be very fit to play in our team, in our style - arguably, fitter than they perhaps needed to be at previous clubs, e.g. Stevenson last year - and I wonder whether Amoo is going to find himself in a similar situation. On pre-season form, I'd say two of the four attacking positions are likely to be taken by Welsh and Stevenson - and Dools will be in by default, considering he's currently our only senior striker. On that basis, presuming no new arrivals, I'd say we're likely to line-up against Hamilton with: Cerny, Miller, Booth, Frans, Seaborne, Osman, Bannigan, Amoo, Stevenson, Welsh, Doolan.

It hasn't just been his time with us that Welsh has been troubled; many Hibs fans maintain that he would have the breakthrough there, had it not been for a list of injuries as long as your arm. Think his spell with Stirling Albion was cut short because of injury too. I'd say it's absolutely fair to say he has been injury prone but hopefully that's behind him now.

We just have...

True but I see that Archie himself has now revised that figure down to three. Despite Archie explicitly saying that we're looking for quality rather than quantity, and that not all of the players who have left will be replaced, we've still got folk using the number of arrivals as some kind of predictive barometer for the season's prospects - and if we don't get the four or five that people seem to maintain that we need, the doom merchants will be out in force, blaming the board for not releasing (imaginary) funds or Archie for wasting time with trials. This isn't directed at you TAT by the way. There just seems to be a number of folk who appear to be living on another planet who see the relatively lavish spending of some of our rivals and expect us to do likewise. I'll be as delighted as the next Thistle fan if we can bring more experienced players in; but if we can't, we can't. For the first time in my Thistle supporting "career", we're on the verge of self sufficiency. I'll take that every time rather than adopting County's scattergun recruitment of journeymen every season.