rocket_scientist

Yes I was guilty of thinking last two seasons only. We have four to fit into two, Reynolds, Quinn, Taylor and Considine. Any time we play more than two of these four, we are putting out the wrong team or we have injuries. Taylor may indeed be reverting back to what he looked like when he first came i.e. a liability but he had been consistently good for a good few months. It's Considine I feel sorry for. He looked promising at 19/20 years of age and I always hoped that he would step into Russell's shoes one day. When he played alongside him, he was learning and developing all the time but he's been too often deployed at LB and whilst he has done well to learn that position and has certainly got better from some early horror shows, he's not naturally quick enough and is more properly built for a CB role. Reynolds worries me. I have no idea why he slipped from the excellent standards he set for himself in the 2013/14 season.

It's gone full circle madness. Sienna Miller got slated for NOT wearing one on Norton's show.

As I've said before, my best team is Ward Logan - perm 2 from 3 but Reynolds & Taylor my preferred usually - Shinnie McLean - Jack McGinn - Hayes Goodwillie Rooney

The addition of Shinnie - and I swear he is best deployed at LB - means that we have 2 from 3 in Considine, Reynolds and Taylor. Consi is maturing with age but someone who has yet to show that he's an established centre half, probably because he's never been deployed in a fixed position long enough, his versatility - plus the fact we've never had a deep enough squad - being a handicap for him. Reynolds was excellent two seasons ago but not as strong last season so these last three games are too soon to tell but he must be showing good in training to walk straight back in. Taylor has been an ever-present through the good times (24/24) and the bad (1/15) and whilst I never thought he was AFC class in the early days, has proved better than I thought capable. As stated above, the chopping and changing of the midfield and Goodwillie in, Rooney out and now vice versa suggests he doesn't know his best team. The best teams have fixed personnel in their defence. Our manager doesn't even know whether Shinnie is our LB or whether to push him up and get Considine - or even Hayes once - at LB!

When they talk about Jack being Scotland material, I shakes my head. For the same reason you said bb. Never busts a gut. Rarely loses possession but his modus operandi is to survive by not making mistakes without appreciating this: - No man who ever achieved anything didn't make mistakes.

You're right. Quinn started v. Celtic. I copied and pasted or plotted the data wrong. Will revisit when get the chance. Sorry. EDIT: I plotted it right but must have copied and pasted wrong. Which still makes it 4 combinations in the first 8 games, 3, 3, 1, 1 instead of 4, 2, 1, 1. Just thought it was a useful exercise to do but having suggested that another do it, thought it was lazy not to do it myself, and then make a pigs ear of it. Doh!

You asked me the same question five days ago and I answered it. Do you think my opinion will change after one predictable defeat at Celtic?

I'm surprised I missed you saying this. On here of course rather than in person. I would also be surprised if Taylor doesn't get dropped. He never convinced me at the start, a total bombscare but he grew into himself and became a footballer who despite his ungainliness, got a good job done. But what is the real reason, not just for his slump but the whole team? Until that is identified, established and eliminated, AFC are going nowhere. It could be Milne karma underpinning this, with a McInnes interpersonal fuck up causing the present unrest.

I don't know if Jose has lost the dressing room but it would surprise me if he had lost Terry, his captain for many years. For this reason. Terry lost his legs years ago. Mourinho's loyalty to him is blind, the biggest mistake of his career in my opinion and I would expect "jay tee" to repay that loyalty. He must know himself he's way past it as he was once an excellent centre half. The biggest contributing reason for losing the dressing room - if indeed he has and given the awful start to their season it certainly looks like it - would be his personality. He just grates after continuous exposure. Specifically, his self-belief has spilled into self-delusion which manifests itself in narcissism of such a gigantic proportion, an arrogance that is overwhelming and a complete absence of humility. All this means he's just not likeable any more and indeed for the mousey, the blousey and the unsuccessful frustrated loser, he never was. This is a classic tall poppy but one that cut himself down. When someone is special, when they taste success and achieve exceptional things, particularly when they are innovating and ploughing a lone furrow and the rewards and riches start coming, it takes strength and humility not to shove it in others faces. He is a special one but his declaration that he was at the start was as prophetic as it was foolish. The incident with the attractive physio was his karma shift, his demise thereafter inevitable. Fucking arse. Waste of talent. Lost by egocentricity.

A back four that has not ever been picked by the manager. Why haven't you expressed this opinion before? Taylor has been an ever-present.

The thing I "don't get" is why you attacked me with insulting rhetoric, totally unprovoked? Not that I give a fuck. But don't turn it round and seek to close the door to the ugly room that you furnished. Don't run away like a little girl. If anyone doesn't "get where you're coming from" then either we're all stupid or you're incapable of expressing yourself. Don't give up. Try again. Use simple words. What the fuck are you gibbering about?

Everyone knows that small data samples can throw up certain blips and irrationalities where bigger data samples don't. It's quite obvious that 24/24 was freaky good. But even if for 10 games it was 66.7% v. 33.3% for the next 10 games, questions would be asked. This is not just a mathematical, results crash. It's a performance crash that is totally unacceptable for its inexplicability.

You either understand that 24/24 = 100% before Easter Road v. 1/15 = 6.7% since means something, or you don't. SOMETHING HAS CHANGED. Wakey fucking wakey. Not distraught? What planet do you inhabit? The one that celebrates a top 6 trophy and the runner up gong? What is the fucking point.

In my opinion, our best defence is one of the two played against Motherwell. Straight pick between Reynolds and Considine to partner Taylor. If any of these three go off the boil, drop them for the other two. Have to play Logan and Shinnie at the back.

Here's the starting defence this season. No obvious explanation before and after Easter Road. Shinnie has played every game but not in the back four for 4 of the last 6 and Reynolds is back of course. Didn't realise Quinn had played so little but nothing here to implicate McInnes so it must be something else, although I can't understand why we wouldn't play Shinnie at LB all the time. That's the starting defence of course. Consi came off halfway through the first half yesterday and Logan replaced Reynolds at HT at Ross County. Edit: Actually, 4 different combinations in the first 8 games. 1. 4 x the same for 4 consecutive games. 2. Same for DUFC and Hearts 3. Quinn for Consi v. Killie 4. McLaughlin for Logan v. Hamilton. In the last 5 games, 5 different starting defences.

I'm not sure that we share the same observations, both about where we are right now and where we can go. But we beat Celtic too. When we were unbeaten and top of the league, we beat everyone. Easter Road started the rot. The period before and after was chalk and cheese. I don't understand the "no discussion to be had" line. If you agree with the FACT that pre and post Easter Road is significant then surely the ONLY discussion is why? Pretty sure none of us know for sure yet but that will come out in due course, whether or not McInnes survives it. I agree that poor form won't last for ever. I'm not happy with where we are. I want to know, or more importantly, I want the manager to know what's gone wrong these last two months. Given these continuous results on the pitch, I'm not sure he knows, which would make him unfit for purpose if that was the case. When others say we bottled it, they, like me, are wondering what the fuck happened for our results before and after Easter Road to have been so different. In fact, you can't get more polar opposite. Well, you could get 100% points before and 0% points after I suppose had Motherwell not taken a late draw. There was nothing strange about losing at Parkhead. We're used to it, unfortunately. Now I'm a little confused. I agree that it's within our grasp to get the better of Celtic. I think we proved early season that we can be well organised, disciplined, play with passion and enthusiasm and get results against, lets face it, teams in a weak league and I don't rate Celtic highly. I can't understand how you can possibly be happy with where we are and I think you're failing to recognise the turning point that was Easter Road, surprisingly as not just the results but the performances have so obviously been massively contrasting before and after. I don't agree that he deserves "huge praise". Good managers adapt and are consistent in getting performances, if not results. Something BIG has gone wrong for too long now and he's looking lost in being able to turn it around. It can't possibly continue to be this bad obviously but it will without direct interventions by him. This is a test of his management abilities and he is failing right now. We will agree to disagree re Logan in the final. I would be interested to hear others views but I thought Logan was clearly the MOTM in the final. I have always considered Logan as good enough for AFC quality and the fact he was so excellent in the final proves to me that he is a big game player. It's only been during this alarming slump that I've seen him lose the plot with his team-mates and display bad attitude but right up until now, bar the odd not-as-goos-as-usual performance which everybody has, I have loved watching his consistency.

Interesting post. Enjoyed reading it. Thank you. Couple of points... Defence is our biggest problem, you say and Logan is not a big game player. Defence was our biggest positive for the start of the season. Look how few goals we lost. It was an incredibly good record. Now look at the facts and plot the data. If the personnel deployed were mostly the same in the games that we were winning and were not losing goals, and the personnel since have been changed, would it not be wise to wonder why the manager changed a winning back four? I've not done the exercise personally but this alone might be revealing. Irrespective of the personnel deployed in defence then and now, the Logan question is key. He was the stand out MOTM in the final, a game of otherwise very shit quality. He was the only over-achiever that day, although Clangfool excelled himself by saving a penalty, shockingly, which almost made up for the schoolboy error of spilling a simple cross in the second half. Logan defended brilliantly that day and continuously made crucial tackles to prevent ICT getting in behind. His timing was consistently excellent all day. So I think he can very much be a big game player. But something has gone wrong in the last couple of months and the full effects of the malaise can be seen in Logan. Ok we know about his baby and understandably he wants to be near him but in my experience, having kids has a positive effect on ones life, not a negative one and his form has dipped alarmingly, perhaps since he intervened in preventing Jack from assaulting McInnes. Not only is not sticking with Shinnie at Left Back utterly stupid management, sticking with Reynolds is blind loyalty to a player who clearly isn't match fit yet and without a settled back five, it's never going to happen. The constant changes are counterproductive, the personnel decisions have been wrong and more worryingly, their motivation and performances have dropped alarmingly. This is ALL down to management - isn't everything - and McInnes has fucked up big time.

As I said yesterday, only a fucking idiot considers a generalism to be absolute. And as you know, because it had been noted and expressed by another and admitted by me, this thread was a reaction to your completely unprovoked ad hominem attacks so don't take the huff and be a sulky wank. Living the American Dream huh? The US will be a third world country by the end of the decade. Real incomes have been declining steadily and alarmingly. The reported growths in jobs and the economy is proven spin, it's become a police state and it has the stupidest population on the planet. That last one is another generalism for you to chew over and greet about.

Caravan Palace on Jools tonight. Just wow. See you all at the gig on 11th December.

The man with the inadvertently self inflicted cheese wire injuries on his hands didn't baffle the police. They knew he did it. They just couldn't trace him. Perhaps the chip shop owners description wasn't very good. Or that of his staff. If he was absent. Perhaps at the casino that night. Or the lodge.

How many of you wear one at this time of year? I don't personally. Never will.

It would indeed be baffling, how shit like this happens every day, every week, every year but for its frequency. Repetitive behaviour by its very repetition suggests that the baffledom factor can be overcome. The fact that it happened in Cults this time rather than inner city London is certainly surprising. But it's no great act of God or otherwise freak circumstance. There are explanations for every single happening. Personally I don't give a fuck about this one any more. Initial shock and a slight numbness has been replaced by apathy. A whack job with a knife. It might happen again in 50 years.

Haha. Not yet. That's a midweek in November. Booked those two restaurants on consecutive nights.

Thank you very much. Have a great weekend yourself. It was a lovely thought, wasn't it, and a rather whopping ISD which is guaranteed. Only an idiot sees the literal in the impossible, or the holistic within a generalism. I really wouldn't be down if we get fucked at Parkhead, not because I won't be there to see it, but because I don't expect anything. If on the other hand we win, I will be absolutely delighted.

Apart from worshiping at the temple of misfortune, praying that the thick oil and gas fuckers get made redundant and then once their redundancy money runs out get found out by never earning a third as much ever again, thereby having to sell their houses at a loss, pull their kids out of private education, downgrading their cars and lifestyles etc., losing their wife and applying for jobs in the police and/or as teachers, I will be in a lovely part of the world enjoying the fabulous forecast weather with fabulous enthusiastic people. None of whom have ever, nor will ever work in O & G.