rocket_scientist

My immediate response would normally be that Kay and comedy are mutually exclusive. I really don't like the man. But for someone who likes Rich Hall to also like Peter Kay is interesting, particularly when I love one as much as I despise the other. This inevitably leads to analysis, introspection and examination. Not that this is a paradoxical dichotomy. John Lydon espouses individuality and says that no two people have ever been the same throughout history and never will be. The context was in relation to fashion trends and lamenting imitators, persons banging out formulaic "art" rather than coming from their own expression so I guess I shouldn't be surprised that 1 can like X and Y whereas 2 also likes X but hates Y. But there will be reasons for the divergence. Kay and Hall are both successful, intelligent performers. But where Hall is acerbic, honest and presents truth, Kay presents to appeal to the lowest common denominator and disguises his intelligent manipulative agenda, thereby keeping himself, his true nature in the background. He knows what people like and he gives it to them, all wrapped up in a cheeky chappie fat northern bastard persona, knowing full well that his appeal is to these "normal" people, mostly thick cunts who like their comedy simple and base. In this respect, Kay is dishonest. He uses his formula to make money and would rarely be capable of great insight. Where John Lydon and Rich Hall are unable to disguise themselves, Kay wears a mask. It is this alone that switches him off for me and the only reason I can't deal with the cunt nor anything he has to say.

How about "I will resign if we don't win the league" instead. Words are important. They reveal attitudes and mindset. Could be journalistic licence of course but what sort of fud says "sack me if". It's like he knows he fucked up but he won't jump, he'll wait to be pushed. Never liked that Norwegian prick. He doesn't fit in Scotland.

The perfect weekend. Walker Cup won by a record margin with stunning performances but when I looked at my phone on the second fairway to see 2-1, the wife and I were almost in tears of delight. I was just hoping for a draw after seeing the red card for Hayes. This could be it, the turning point, the precise moment of breakthrough. Betfred must have a Tim doing the odds. Where Ladbrokes have Celtic 1/12, they have 1/40. When most have Aberdeen at 10/1, they have us at 14/1. Bizarre. Don't usually see discrepancies this big. Well done McInnes and the players. Phenomenal win. Nice to see the Celtic keeper impersonating the late Langfield. Shocking goalkeeping staying on his line there.

There's still no excuse for the arrogant manner in which the club continues to treat it's fans, particularly the shareholders who put in their money and who had the audacity to vote against the chairman.

Have more confidence in yourself man! The reason I asked about Goodwillie is because I personally haven't got a clue what he's supposed to be doing and I'm not sure that he knows either. Yes, he's been quite reasonable at holding the ball up but without a proper tactical plan in place, and particularly without Rooney up front (played together the last twice), we weren't getting the most from his strength, skill and speed, in my view. McGinn has developed into a great provider and crosser of the ball from the right and can turn up inside the box when the play is coming down the left, being unlucky not to score last season, as stated above by others. He's a classic right half/right wing mix, with great pace and touch and consistent distribution, plus he can score given the chance. During his lean spell, I'm not sure he knew what he was supposed to be doing and there is no doubt in my mind that this led to some poor performances due to poor effort levels. Logan on the other hand is a clear RB who has an attacking tendency, someone good defensively - MOTM in the final we won for me - and fast with good feet who can add weight going forward. What I love about him is that he tries 100% of the time, every game and it will be a shame to see him go, something I reckon we can expect this season given the cover we've taken in for him from Liverpool.

What role does McInnes set out for McGinn? What role does he set out for Goodwillie?

With the proviso that many "fans" aren't qualified to know because they are unable to see. Grant and Simpson are excellent examples. You correctly identified that "professionals" in the game are "limited" so we can imagine how lacking "amateurs" are. People who haven't played the game or who haven't studied it or who simply aren't old enough to know anything fill up a lot of space in the various forums, almost all of it shite and mostly driven by a need to have their own "limited" voice heard. It's the culture we live in. Whilst I agree that the "respect your elders" that we got taught was shite - because age alone is not a guarantee that they are worthy of respect - it is fact that experience alone brings wisdom. I learn from a huge variety of sources including from kids. Many, including the young, are incapable of learning at all, having fixed maps and never having been taught to think properly, let alone critically. They are the product of declining education standards, of political agendas including political correctness. Blair's saturation of tertiary education numbers might have won him a few points on an imaginary scale of economics but it was a disaster for education, as every experienced university professor will attest, the damage having been done at school level with shocking levels of basic numeracy and literacy.

A better gauge is just to watch the games. I'm a huge advocate of the use of data and facts but stats in football is in its relative infancy. The most stupid stat is the measure of a goalkeeper by referring to clean sheets of course but the same two players can have "an assist", one was brilliant skill and the other fortuitous. One lost the ball the whole game and contributed nothing whereas the other broke up everything the opposition threw at us. Like you said, stats aren't particularly useful in football. McGinn is still our best talent because he is, not cos of stats, either goals or assists. He's also not, in the last two years delivered the full extent of what he's capable of.... apart from the opening game of this season. McInnes is often maligned about his use of subs or the lack of. Against DUFC, a game that was going nowhere, a draw written all over it, the subs changed the game. McGinn in particular was sharp and incisive and started delivering quality into the box, something we hadn't been able to do from after the first 5 or 10 minutes (a couple of good runs from Hayes). The stats won't say that McGinn had any goals or assists that day but he was instrumental in injecting pace and urgency into our team that day, a fantastic last 20 minutes.

Out, at Lytham with the wife for the Walker Cup. Hopefully catch a good part of it in the clubhouse in the snooker room. This is the time to step up and show intent. Sellick aren't that good. How much do we want it?

Now we have consensus. It was about three months or so in the season 2013/14 from my memory when he looked disinterested and wasn't producing, as the whole team weren't of course. The reasons for this are what we're speculating on. I say that it is the role of the manager to first identify this and then to fix it. We, in the pubs and attending the games, were all wanting McGinn to be dropped, to get a kick up the arse, to remind him that this level of performance and commitment was unacceptable. SAF got rid of much lesser footballers than McGinn for the same crime but it isn't fair to compare AFC of 30 years ago with the AFC today. We were a good football team then, capable of winning the league, something this squad still isn't deep enough to do. It's also not fair to compare the best manger in history with a relatively young, inexperienced and as yet un-proven one that is the present incumbent, although he's doing well and is the best we've had for decades. There is an entitlement culture within young sportsmen today. There isn't the same passion and commitment generally, not just in football. The die for the jersey mentality has become increasingly rare. McGinn the best we have but if he had, or was managed, inspired and coached to have the requisite killer mentality, he wouldn't be here. It's his number one failing in my book and the reason why he's playing for us and will never reach his full potential. Logan isn't nearly as strong or as skilled a footballer but he never fails to give his all. A good manager demands getting total effort all the time from all of the players. The best and most successful teams have this as a given.

Ok, I misunderstood. I apologise. You did acknowledge that he has suffered dips in form. Your haughty dismissal of his not suffering a lack of effort and suggesting that the vast majority of us who do think this (in the real world, as we saw with our own eyes and were discussing for months) were so stupid as to cloud our judgement based on that one incident was objectionable. Particularly when you acknowledge you don't have an alternative view and were just speculating and floundering when pushed.

Agreed. I can't remember "a couple of prolonged spells". I remember one extended period that lasted many weeks and therefore months. This was before he was hitting the woodwork last season. We are not talking about the same time period. He was miles better last season and back to close to his potential quality, which is undoubted. That it happened at all and for as long as it did is down to either the player, his manager or both. Whilst his form has been miles better for the last year and a bit than it was when - insert reason for his non-performance during season 2013/14 - he's still never hit the same heights that I believe he's capable of, as he showed three years ago when he was hungry as hell, scoring for fun and buzzing all over the pitch. Our best player, back to making good contributions to the cause and one who is overdue to do something against his beloved hoops. We've never competed with Celtic, neither head-to-head nor for the league. To do so, we need every player performing their best and a manager who puts out a well organised and well motivated unit. It may be that the Norwegian is a better manager than McInnes. It is more probable that they have better technical players all over the pitch. Christ we haven't had a competent keeper for over a decade until a couple of months ago. But the game isn't won on technical ability alone so our failing to get close to Celtic for years has other reasons. I hope it's this season that we finally break through but I reckon the bookies have got it right, again, unfortunately.

So you dismiss those of us who were there, who were watching, over many years when we say McGinn had an extended period of a dip in form (that we now agree on) as having clouded judgement based on one incident only and yet you do not offer an alternative cause for the symptom? Before you vehemently deny that he was ever not trying hard enough, you must have formed your own alternative explanation, one that is such a big secret you're not going to share it.

Read carefully. I said that there's no difference between being demotivated, having one's nose out of joint or not trying hard enough. You're getting confused. Being out of form is the symptom, one that you didn't even acknowledge at first. On the contrary, you said that he was never guilty of not trying hard enough and said that anyone who thought this was so thick as to cloud their judgement because of one incident at Parkhead. What causes the symptom is what we've moved on to. In my experience, the biggest contributor to a loss in form - not just football - is a lack of, or a dip in confidence. A lack of confidence is a completely different cause than not trying hard enough. Before you "give up arguing", it's best to crystallise and understand what the argument is. Perhaps your confusion stems from your prejudice, a word that involves you making pre-judgements, for example: - Not only are you so incredibly pompous to tell us we've got clouded judgement if we don't accept your view that McGinn has never suffered from a lack of effort, without even acknowledging that he had a major dip in form, without having the courtesy to tell us why he did (which of course you couldn't because you didn't acknowledge it), you're so superior, insightful and enlightened that you can speak on behalf of everyone. I'm not having a go at anyone else here. You spoke shite, I pulled you up on it and you blame me? Weirdo.

I've said he's our best footballer. I'm not angry about when he was playing poorly. As frustrated as the rest of us, yes but not angry about McGinn. The boy said that McGinn was never guilty of not putting in. He didn't even acknowledge that he had a dip in form at all originally. Rather, he denied that he was ever not trying hard enough and incredibly insultingly, said that any of us who thought that McGinn ever hasn't produced enough effort was clouding their judgement because of that goal at Parkhead. I don't know how you interpret plain words but that came across as pompous, snidey, kiard and know-it-all to me. It's easy to throw out general insults on the internet. Mine isn't a general insult, it's a specific observation on a specific post. His subsequent more than proves his nature.

It doesn't matter whether it was a lack of effort, demotivation, nose out of joint cos he wasn't playing where he wanted to be or whatever other spurious excuse you contrive. It is fact that he was shite for an extended period, an unacceptable one, one that you didn't even acknowledge. Rather, you tried to argue that he was never guilty of a lack of effort and even more stupidly, tried to invent excuses for his "apologetic" and equally unacceptable behaviour. There's a ton of pressure on McGinn - and McInnes - for him to start producing when it really matters as he's never done so before. Our team has never been close to winning the league. And that's the whole point. SAF had high profile players in Archibald and Strachan. Infinitely superior footballers to McGinn of course but deemed totally unacceptable for AFC. McGinn is probably our best footballer but is playing for us on 3rd division wages for a reason. You can come up with all the excuses you want but I suspect you're not actually that experienced in this game or otherwise know fuck all about anything. But I've made mistakes before and will do again but in this, your retractions and deflections paint a pretty defined pattern.

That's a complete lie. Friendship isn't what smart cunts like you covet. You remind me of an Aberdeen fan who I haven't seen for more than half my life. He grew up in Airyhall or Criaigiebuckler or Countesswells or some equally shit middle class environ. He was tall and generally regarded as good looking but some of us knew his "golden boy" external projection masked a deep sadness, beyond the obvious that there was nothing of substance within, him being middle class in everything. He moved to Edinburgh in the early 80's and quite proud of that he was too. Our "capital" isn't fit to be described as such following the referendum. Not that it was fit for purpose before. Irvine Welsh is a great Scotsman and the best thing to have come out of there. The lawyers and the politicians that pollute our second city are a disgrace to humanity, let alone Scotland. Pompous know it all cunts. Maybe there's something in the air you cunts breathe down there.

I'm sure you've found in life that arseholes exist. Your profound instinct informs you so. But those who lack love or compassion stand out for that very failing. It can't be helped. Damaged goods.

It must be tough being you. You should be kinder to us less fortunate and less enlightened.

What was it down to then?

If you were there, how did you interpret Clangers berating of McGinn? He had been shite for weeks. His team-mates saw it. We all saw it. Where were you? Sitting on Internet boards being a smart arse sad fuck?

Your whole tone and the condescension within disgusts. Incapable of discussing. Incapable of disagreeing. It's ok to have different opinions. It's not ok to be a total arse fuck up.

What a shame. Could you not have been more original? You accuse me of the same indictment that you yourself was charged with. Let's not forget the beef. You said McGinn was NOT guilty of a lack of effort. You said some people were so stupid their judgement was clouded by his disgraceful conduct at Parkhead. Facts are facts. You were totally wrong about McGinn's doldrums period. You were presenting like you knew best. Arse behaviour.

Everyone is blind or stupid on that panel/commentators. The first goal came off his team-mate's shin, not the defender.

Was going to post exactly the same re Mulgrew. The cunt should've been binned exactly 12 months ago after Dortmund. He's the stand-out sore in this performance. Brown can do a defensive job in front of the back four but he's another that has got to be history after this campaign. The fact Strachan kept on playing Kenny Miller long past his sell-by date suggests that it's a weakness of the wee red man, some fucked up sense of loyalty. What a difference not having the cancerous Naismith on the pitch. That cunt started hiding in the first minute in Tblisi.