Hamilton Accies

[potty trained]

O'donnell, Paton, Bannigan, Doolan all worked their arses off for every minute they were in the pitch.

 

Archie and muirhead had great first halves but resorted to long balls far too early in the second half.

 

Sinclair worked hard but his first touch can let him down sometimes.

 

Welsh, lawless and Erskine all had good first halves but faded in the second.

 

Fox was unlucky with their goal.

 

The only thing I am disappointed with is that we left the football in the dressing room at half tIme.

 

The first half is one of the best 45 minutes of football you will see and if not for cuthbert we would have been 3 up.

 

I think the legs went in the second half and they ran out of patience, or it was just a case of... Just get the ball away from me... We needed someone dropping back from midfield to take the ball off archie and muirhead. Give them it back and take it off them again to make Hamilton chase players and loose their shape. It didn't happen.

 

Unfortunately none of the subs did anything. I suppose elliott and Mcguigan were only sent on to ruffle the centre halves and win some headers and chase down loose balls.

 

Let's not get too caught up in it.... Bring on Saturday.

[Fearchar]

A bit unfortunate, but Welsh's shots bent away on the outside of the upright, and Erskine dwelt on the ball too much in the box. If these errors had been put right, Accies wouldn't have been able to come back into the game at all - their shots were rarely on target. Good display from their goalkeeper, but not enough pressure from our side. (Admittedly, a few fouls in the box would have resulted in penalties for us on another day, but the ref had convinced himself that the Accies were a young team needing to be protected from these seasoned professionals on the other side: doubtless he gets his football news from the BBC.)

 

By the time the second half came, Accies had figured out that playing football against our team wasn't doing them any favours: from that point on, it was a long ball game, with plenty of fouls on Muirhead in particular, not to mention on Fox when the ref couldn't see through the crowd in the box. I suspect that they wouldn't have tried it on if Murray had been on the park, or they would have got too much back to make it worthwhile. However, it was disappointing to see the team responding to the long-ball game by following suit, instead of imposing their own pattern of play. That's really why they lost to an inferior team. Let's hope that Jackie McNamara has figured all that out by Saturday.

[Lin1876]

Credit where it's due, Cuthbert had an absolute stunner. On another night we would have been a couple up at half time and have killed it off, we were amazing in the first half. If we had continued that performance into the second half it was surely a matter of time, but we created very little after that. Very sloppy across the park, and many players were anonymous.

 

Their goal was well taken, and you really can't put too much blame on Fox for that. Like Falkirk's goal, he was unprepared, but there was no expectation for him to be. Still, there's plenty to take from that first half, and we're more than capable of giving them a humping on Saturday.

[Watson Towers]

Hmm, bit scunnered.

 

First 20 minutes was as good as I have seen Thistle for a decade. Honestly, if we can get anywhere near that for spells in most games this year then the league is in the bag.

 

O'Donnell was really good; Paton, Doolin, Archibald - all brilliant in the first half. However, they all kinda ground to a halt as the game wore on. Not the best game for wee Stuart, and overall Squiddy, Sinky, Welsh and Lawless were a bit disappointing.

 

Considering that that wee blonde bassa hit the winner from 35 yards, it seems strange to say that Fox was blameless for the goal - but really, he was. He was positioned exactly where a goaly ought to be: the boy caught it a brammer, shit happens.

 

Hamilton actually looked pretty decent in the first half - until the usual Billy Reid niggly surly Clyde-esque stuff crept in; thereafter they were pretty poor and created hee-haw.

 

Finally, top marks for Muirhead. He has been getting a lot of praise this season. Personally, I was unconvinced, but tonight was a battle: and he was superb. Indeed, as everyone else was fading as the 2nd half dragged into extra time, he got better and better.

 

Can't wait for Saturday!

[potty trained]

Billy Reid's spotted why we went on that 6 game run:

 

“You can see why they had won six games on the bounce. They play 4-4-3, have legs all over the park and two full-backs who really bomb on."

[chunky jag]

Can't believe it's taken another manager this long to spot we've an extra man on the field! And they call themselves professionals!

[northernsoul]

Agree with potty trained, fearchar, Lin1876 and Watson Towers posts above. Not much more to add on that. I'm just pissed off by, what seemed like the click of a finger our passing style completely changed as the second half progressed and in extra time. Paton played out his skin but for me as the second half went on and in extra time we lost any sort of calmness and presence in midfield. Accies kept the ball well in the first half of extra time.

 

Last night highlighted how much we missed Murray and Rowson, even though the latter is not fit. We needed another presence in there, I think the both of them have a different presence to that of Paton, even though they all sort of play in the same positions. We just needed an older head further up the pitch to try and claw back any sort of foothold on the game.

 

Their keeper made two fantastic stops but lets be honest we didn't create any clear cut chances on the deck for the strikers. Their goal, well what can you do. I hope the players are fired up for Saturday and we hump those pricks at Firhill.

 

Also, I thought the support was fantastic. It dipped off a wee bit when we couldn't get the ball back but the team deserved and still deserve that level of support by the fans last night. The really pleasing thing for me was the support after the final whistle. We showed our appreciation to the team, after their fantastic start to the season and despite being robbed of a win. Reminded me of the old days.

Edited August 29, 2012 by northernsoul

[chunky jag]

Aye that was encouraging, you honestly wouldn't have known we'd lost the game at full time, support was great.

[marco77]

We played really well in the 1st half using the full width of the pitch then in the 2nd half played long balls to Doolan. As much as i hated their no.9 he offered a physical presence up front something we do miss when our passing game doesnt come off.

[twinny]

We played really well in the 1st half using the full width of the pitch then in the 2nd half played long balls to Doolan. As much as i hated their no.9 he offered a physical presence up front something we do miss when our passing game doesnt come off.

 

Radio suggested Accies full backs were playing very high in the first half, and were reigned in in the second, giving us less space for our silky passing moves in the final third. This is when Jackie should be encouraging the players to be patient.

[Lambies Lost Doo]

Remember Jackie has only been manager a season and a bit. It takes time for his training and ideas to take hold in training and on the pitch. If the players lost the head a bit and started playing different to the current passing style in the 2nd half then I'm sure he will have them in working on it at Glasgow Green and getting sports psychologists and scientists involved as well. It's a wee set back for a broader plan.

[marco77]

Radio suggested Accies full backs were playing very high in the first half, and were reigned in in the second, giving us less space for our silky passing moves in the final third. This is when Jackie should be encouraging the players to be patient.

The crowd were alot more patient than in recent years but when a long ball is played that comes to nothing then the groaning starts. It was my first view of Muirhead and thought he was excellent. Good in the air, steady on the deck and vocal.

Edited August 29, 2012 by marco77

[Armand2]

I thought we started very slowly but once the game settled after the first 15 minutes, we were by far and away the better side. Got the feeling early on that it was just going to be one of those nights with Cuthbert making a number of good stops, particularly the two from Erskine's deflected shot and Welsh's header and it proved to be so. O'Donnell, who was excellent again, was causing a lot of problems down their left side whereas Sinclair is clearly not match fit as his willingness to get up the line was completely missing which I felt left us slightly imbalanced at times. Had we been two or three goals up at half-time, Hamilton couldn't really have had many complaints.

 

Again, we started the second half slowly but, unlike the first 45 minutes, we never improved. We allowed Hamilton to dictate the style of play and it turned into a bit of a scrapfest. Instead of being happy to retain possession, we seemed too keen to get the ball forward which resulted in long punts upfield that were dealt with relatively easily by the Hamilton defence. We had another good chance from a redirected Doolan header which was again saved well by Cuthbert.

 

The goal was a great strike from Crawford and top marks for having the vision and ability to put it where he did; however, I think it is perfectly fair to question Fox's positioning or, perhaps rather, his ability to get back into position quickly enough. That said, it shouldn't detract from what was an excellent hit.

 

I'm not too disheartened by the result or performance as we all know we can play much better than we did; it was a very even game and it took a terrific effort to win it. As it has been said, I think we missed Shug terribly in the middle of the park and I think we have a better balance to the team with Bannigan at left-back. Going by what Hamilton fans had been saying about their start to the season, their performance last night must have been their best so far. On that basis, I would be quietly confident of getting a result on Saturday because, as above, we can step it up a couple of notches and I'm not sure they can.

 

Two small concerns would be whether we have an alternative approach when our passing game fails to produce and whether we have enough depth in the squad. We lack options on the bench, in my opinion; genuine options, guys who are going to inject something into our game when we're struggling, not runners like Christie.

 

On the bright side, we made it further in this cup than we did last year...

Edited August 29, 2012 by Armand2

[northernsoul]

Forgot to mention earlier, when we reverted to a more direct approach in the second half we did not have much joy at all. This is the second time this season when Elliot has been playing we have been very direct, the last one being periods in the Queens Park game.

 

We all know Elliot's first touch is awful but his strength is his own directness and speed when chasing a through ball. We did not do this when he played last night. Hardly anything for him to chase on the deck, which was frustrating.

[lady-isobel-barnett]

I'm sure a lot of us will be saying that we missed Murray last night. Reckon we'd have played a lot more composed stuff in the 2nd half with Shuggie on the field. In a way I hope that's not the case as depending too much on one player is a weakness.

Even in defeat we had plenty of plus points last night. On the whole the first half was another excellent team effort. Once again Paton and O'Donnell were the best players on the park with this time probably O'Donnell our best player. The Muirhead/Archie partnership looking very solid.

Doolan's work rate was as usual exceptional. I just wonder if he often sacrifices the strikers' maxim of being in the right place at the right time by chasing every ball down and always being available for the first ball out of defence. Doolan must be knackered today after 120 minutes last night.

I was impressed with Accies fitness levels. Thought both Cuthbert & Alex Neil kept them in the game and the Crawford fella that scored looked good as the game went on. I wasn't surprised that if they were to get a goal he'd be the one involved.

[sigesige00]

First defeat in this season. But not so important. PTFC's only mission in this season is to get promotion. A good practice game for the next league game against the same team.

According to the game stats, the game content was not bad. Hamilton received 3 yellows, while Partick 0. Hamilton's shots on target were 3, while ours were 7. Hamilton's corners were 3, while ours were 10. We can beat them on Saturday, and continue the 100% league record. Be confident!

[Julie Ann]

First defeat in this season. But not so important. PTFC's only mission in this season is to get promotion. A good practice game for the next league game against the same team.

According to the game stats, the game content was not bad. Hamilton received 3 yellows, while Partick 0. Hamilton's shots on target were 3, while ours were 7. Hamilton's corners were 3, while ours were 10. We can beat them on Saturday, and continue the 100% league record. Be confident!

 

are you alex totten?

[MWM]

I remain to be convinced that Elliot, Craigen or McGuigan will do a job when we inevitably need them.

[chunky jag]

I think Craigen has potential, but we may not see the best of him until next season, it's the guys first season full time, and may take him some time to assert himself on the game, but he's a nice footballer, good technical ability, I just want him to have a bit more of a swagger, like Erskine/Welsh, for example, know you can beat a man, have confidence that you'll create a ton of chances. I do think there's a player there, and he'll get a high level of coaching from our management team, I'm hoping he'll develop into a good player for us. Just need to be patient.

 

I take it there are no young 17/18 yr strikers kicking about our youth set up then? The only boy involved at all outside the senior players has been Halsam, I take there's nothing else? Look at the player Bannigan looks now, would be fantastic if we could get another couple through as good as he is.

[Lin1876]

I remain to be convinced that Elliot, Craigen or McGuigan will do a job when we inevitably need them.

 

I think Craigen and McGuigan are pretty good considering they've come up from University football. You saw how Edinburgh and Glasgow were beaten by average non-league sides (St Cuthbert Wanderers and Selkirk) so the jump is obviously a big one. Both are clearly talented, but we probably won't see their best for a wee while yet.

 

Elliot is a bit different. He has come up from English non-league football, which is a lower standard than ours, but he's had more time to settle in. I think he's a different player, more physical than Doolan, and better at creating chances than taking them. He doesn't quite fit into the team as it is, but I think he could fit in if he needed to.

[Fearchar]

...Doolan's work rate was as usual exceptional. I just wonder if he often sacrifices the strikers' maxim of being in the right place at the right time by chasing every ball down and always being available for the first ball out of defence. Doolan must be knackered today after 120 minutes last night....

To be fair, although Doolan has tended to be too mobile like that in the past, more recently he has stayed closer to the threatening positions where he's of most use to the team. I think his lower workrate is reflected in his higher rate of scoring - which is what we really need from him.