What have we lacked this season?

[Jaggernaut]

In a word: consistent ruthlessness (yes, I know, haha!).

McCall and Doolan both got us some great performances and results this season, but too often those were followed up by p*ss poor, pub team-levels of application and overall performance. How to explain that?

To me it suggests that much of our problem stem from players, not the managers. Attitude, motivation, grit, determination..... all lacking too often in enough players for it to make the difference between finishing top and scraping 4th. The stats show that Dundee have won the league with the lowest points per game ever in this division, yet we couldn't match them for overall grinding out of results. Yes, occasional big wins and some of the moves have been a joy to watch (at least on the small screen, in my case), but some performances were as bad as in the days of Save The Jags, and as I've written before, too many players in the squad are lacking in true flair and grit for a top-class (i.e. Premiership) team. They can occasionally raise their game (ie., get carried along) when all around them are doing so, but there are too few who can be counted on to take a game by the scruff of the neck and shake it up. (Remember Bob McCulloch back in darker days?)

So, no matter the outcome of the playoffs (the first leg tomorrow will be another middle-of-the-night rise for me followed right after by trying to stay awake at work), there needs to be a big turnover of players at the end of the season. Wherever we end up playing. Not to beat about the bush, several "passengers" need to be moved on, and in fact for me that includes a few players who in many peoples eyes appear to be "stars". Frankly, excepting the likes of Milne, Holt, Docherty (maybe), Tiffoney, Graham (just), and Lawless, I wouldn't regret seeing any of the others being thanked and released, or moving on of their own volition. I know this includes a couple of people's favourites, but there you go.

Monra Jags!

[JeanieD]

Failure to hold on to leads, failure to fight back when behind although perhaps slightly balanced by a few late, important goals in our favour which historically tended to be our downfall. 
in truth there was no standout team in the division this year who truly deserved to walk away with the division and we were no better than most of the teams.

Seven points from each team over 4 games would almost have sufficed which just shows how tight and mediocre the division was.

[lady-isobel-barnett]

For me there's been a correlation between fitness and average age. The failure to redress this is clearly down to McCall.

A goal here and there and we could even have won the league. That tho'would be papering over the cracks. We're well short of having a squad capable of survival in the Championship never mind the top tier next season.

Biggest hope that we can somehow win thru the playoffs and manage to stay afloat thru what will be a transitional period in the top flight. Otherwise next season going to be very tough going.

[Auld Jag]

For me it is how inconsistent we have been. We can look unbeatable for a number of games and then go on runs where we look like we cannot win a game. Yes we have had injuries to key players, but this happens to every team. In a way since Doolan took over we have become harder to beat as losing only 1 game in 13 shows. i hope that this is a good sign for the playoffs as others have already said last season we went into them not playing great. But when we do go ahead in games we really need to keep pushing for more goals, instead of stop playing and then start scrambling in the last 5 or 10 minutes of a game to try and get a winner.

No matter what happens over the next 2 to 6 games we are going to have a very much changed team next season if the rumours are correct, so let's hope if we are still in the Championship that it is the top end of the league we are in.

[jagfox]

We were widely inconsistent under McCall; we have been pretty consistent under Doolan as his points per game shows. 

 

[laukat]

Agree with @lady-isobel-barnett around fitness and age of the squad.

However I would more add the inability to make hard decisions, build a squad to support a plan B should plan A fail and to think creatively to develop other attacking options.

Akinola's loss of form last season was so bad that we should have let him go in the summer. I like Brownlie and in the last few months he has returned to be a decent backup central defender however his injury at the start of the season meant he was a high risk option to keep. Releasing one or both and signing a couple of fitter younger central defenders may well have prevented our horrendous run in October. Equally Cammy Smith was clearly not going to figure this season and we should have again got rid and freed up a wage for another defensive midfielder. 

Our attacking play is limited to a good plan A because we seemed to have signed 3 strikers that are all the same type and 3 wingers that are very similar. Graham, Dowds and Mullen fundamentally all want to play with their back to goal. Fitzpatrick, Lawless and Tiffoney all want to get to the byeline and stand a cross up to the back post. Only Lawless shows any variation but we don't have any wide players who can whip a ball in from the touchline to present a different option which is odd when you consider Graham and Dowds would surely thrive on that type of delivery.

McCall was so wedded to the idea of overlapping fullbacks and inverted wingers that we seem unable to try something different. I sometimes wish that we would swap Tiffoney and Lawless and tell them to swing the ball into the middle just to see if they can cross from their stonger foot or if they are just not very good at crossing the ball. Also think when we need to try 2 up front the answer was to put Tiffoney through the middle with Graham, Dowds or Mullen so you had someone who could feed off flick-ons. There are possibly options in the squad that we have not explored.

[Lenziejag]

I think that although our results have been more consistent under Doolan, we have become inconsistent during games in the last 4 or 5 - maybe that was the pressure. I am really hoping that the age of our team and the fact that it has been pretty much the same starting 11 for weeks, now won’t be a factor against a younger team tomorrow and Friday.

[Dick Dastardly]

What have we lacked this season ?

Wins.

[Barney Rubble]

2 hours ago, Dick Dastardly said:

What have we lacked this season ?

Wins.

This.

Cove (h) 2-2 from 2-0 up was scandalous.

Dundee (h) 2-3 from 2-0 up was criminal. Gary Megson was out of a job that night had we done what we should have done.

QP (h) 0-4. They were dead and buried if Aero scores the penalty, and instead within 5 minutes of that miss our season was infested with dry rot.

Those were the three that stand out for me.

Edited May 8, 2023 by Barney Rubble

[Garscube Road End 2]

5 minutes ago, Barney Rubble said:

This.

Cove (h) 2-2 from 2-0 up was scandalous.

Dundee (h) 2-3 from 2-0 up was criminal. Gary Megson was out of a job that night had we done what we should have done.

QP (h) 0-4. They were dead and buried if Aero scores the penalty, and instead within 5 minutes of that miss our season was infested with dry rot.

Those were the three that stand out for me.

The two shocking back to back home defeats by the two bottom clubs were a disgrace. 

[Barney Rubble]

2 minutes ago, Garscube Road End 2 said:

The two shocking back to back home defeats by the two bottom clubs were a disgrace. 

Agreed wholeheartedly GRE - but unlike the three I mentioned we were never in a position to win either of those in terms of having the lead or the opportunity to lead.

In addition, the game that preceded those two was the home cup tie v Dunfermline where we were saved by a Dunfermline miss in extra time that appeared geometrically impossible, and Kyle Benedictus securing the otherwise unwon crossbar challenge during the penalty shoot out.

[Jimmy McD]

Doolan goes on about the fans backing making an impact on the players, but in my opinion it has the opposite , every time we have a big support the players always let us down, when I saw the size of the crowed on Friday night I new we were not going to come out on top, ..This is something that has always bothered me over the years...........

[erty13]

5 hours ago, laukat said:

Agree with @lady-isobel-barnett around fitness and age of the squad.

However I would more add the inability to make hard decisions, build a squad to support a plan B should plan A fail and to think creatively to develop other attacking options.

Akinola's loss of form last season was so bad that we should have let him go in the summer. I like Brownlie and in the last few months he has returned to be a decent backup central defender however his injury at the start of the season meant he was a high risk option to keep. Releasing one or both and signing a couple of fitter younger central defenders may well have prevented our horrendous run in October. Equally Cammy Smith was clearly not going to figure this season and we should have again got rid and freed up a wage for another defensive midfielder. 

Our attacking play is limited to a good plan A because we seemed to have signed 3 strikers that are all the same type and 3 wingers that are very similar. Graham, Dowds and Mullen fundamentally all want to play with their back to goal. Fitzpatrick, Lawless and Tiffoney all want to get to the byeline and stand a cross up to the back post. Only Lawless shows any variation but we don't have any wide players who can whip a ball in from the touchline to present a different option which is odd when you consider Graham and Dowds would surely thrive on that type of delivery.

McCall was so wedded to the idea of overlapping fullbacks and inverted wingers that we seem unable to try something different. I sometimes wish that we would swap Tiffoney and Lawless and tell them to swing the ball into the middle just to see if they can cross from their stonger foot or if they are just not very good at crossing the ball. Also think when we need to try 2 up front the answer was to put Tiffoney through the middle with Graham, Dowds or Mullen so you had someone who could feed off flick-ons. There are possibly options in the squad that we have not explored.

I agree, I think the front three formation does not work. Every team knows we push the ball wide to cross it in to Graham.  I think Graham is struggling with pace and fitness, and needs support of another striker. In the second half of the rovers game, there was no attacking runs in to space, or any press on the defence that put the under pressure. Unless we score from a good build up, we are too predictable.  Since January Graham has scored 5 in the last 16 games. 

[Woodstock Jag]

We had a very poor second quarter, and we conceded too often in the first two thirds of the season.

The most remarkable figures in Doolan's tenure so far has been the defensive record. Goals scored is roughly steady across the season, but the defence has been very strong in the last third of the season. The last two league games stick out like a sore thumb by comparison!

[Dick Dastardly]

4 hours ago, Woodstock Jag said:

We had a very poor second quarter, and we conceded too often in the first two thirds of the season.

The most remarkable figures in Doolan's tenure so far has been the defensive record. Goals scored is roughly steady across the season, but the defence has been very strong in the last third of the season. The last two league games stick out like a sore thumb by comparison!

I assume that you mean the Hamilton and Raith games and have forgotten about the Arbroath 2-0 in between.  or did you miss out an "away" between two and league.

[Lenziejag]

8 hours ago, Jimmy McD said:

Doolan goes on about the fans backing making an impact on the players, but in my opinion it has the opposite , every time we have a big support the players always let us down, when I saw the size of the crowed on Friday night I new we were not going to come out on top, ..This is something that has always bothered me over the years...........

We had big crowds for our last 3 home games and while we didn’t get the result we wanted against Ayr, we did all right against QP and Arbroath.

[jaggymct]

Whilst we have been very inconsistent this season i think the injuries to McAvoy and Milne were the final straw had either one of those not been injured i think we would have have scraped top spot.

As mentioned above there are a pile of games esp against cove etc that can be identified as reasons we have fallen short but we were one injury time save off second place despite all of this.

just got to hope they are up to the job for the playoff games and we are in with a chance..

 

Edited May 9, 2023 by jaggymct

[Lambies Lost Doo]

For me

1. Bad run of injuries that has been discussed.

2. Another striker on a level with Graham to challenge and come off bench.

3. That special player like Chris Erskine who can make something out of nothing.