BobbyBiscuit

But that's the problem. They shouldn't be able to do what they like. How many pro footballers in the top leagues in Spain and Italy and France have that attitude? Very, very little. Do you think Ferguson would tolerate his players doing it on Friday/Saturday ahead of the CL Final and more to the point, do you think his players would want to do that? JC tolerates this pish and we all know it, and there's another point... are they doing the business on a Saturday? Doesn't look like it to me.

What team in the SPL is it you play for again, Dave? My point earlier about this and how the buck stops with Calderwood is because he has tolerated it and actively encouraged it in the past. If players know they can get away with it they'll continue to do it. If they know it's not tolerated they'd be extremely stupid (i appreciate the irony in that) to do so in their own backyard. JC is clearly from the Big Ron school of management ...

No answer to my question then....?

One of the guys supposedly involved is from Aberdeen. Is that a one off case or does it boil down to where he's from? I'd hate to think what you'd have said if Sone and Vidal were involved...

Not at all, I fully expect that sort of shite from you.

What difference does that make to your "and being mostly weegie neds..." line?

Absolutely fantastic generalisation on the hat from our very own Mizer. Go Mizer!

This is deplorable behaviour, no two ways about it, but ultimately the buck stops with the manager for allowing these nights out in the first place. I don't want to be seen as simply jumping on the JMG bandwagon, but the simple fact is if this sort of unprofessional behaviour wasn't tolerated by the manager this wouldn't happen. Football has moved on from the "team that drinks together, wins together" pish from yesteryear, it may be an idea if our club moved with the times on this one.

He's not having a great time of it it, is he?

how would that work, then?

It's the gay nickname for it.

EFF EFF ESS :hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :hammer:

typical really!! Cue Shakhtar scoring in the first five mins of extra time...

Yeah, but it's not going to happen.

It's not happening

Good game, good game. I've got Draw ht, Shakhtar ft. Also got 3-2 to either side, so preferrably 3-2 to Shakhtar in the 90mins and everyone's a winner. Well, mainly me, but you catch my drift...

UEFA Cup Final tonight, Shakhtar Donetsk v Werder Bremen. Anyone watching it? Who you going for? I reckon Shakhtar by the odd goal.

the fact the whole standard is declining doesn't mean we should meekly accept it for our club and then pay out a good lump sum of money for the pleasure (sic) of doing so, TF. It's a big commitment to make particularly if you're not enjoying it. Some people can blindly support them regardless of cost, time consumed etc, others can't. I had a season ticket from the Jocky Scott/Alex Smith years through to JC's first season. People said to me "how can you chuck it after a season of improvement after you've watched us under Paterson/Alex Miller etc?" Just because it's the team you love doesn't mean there's not a threshold. I simply couldn't justify paying a lot of money every week to do something that had stopped becoming enjoyable. When you no longer look forward to it, when the idea of it no longer excites you, it's time to stop.

It was definitely a penalty though...

There may be rather bigger issues to be settled in the SPL at the weekend, but what happens with us on Sunday could have huge knock-on effects for next season and beyond. Below, I'm really just playing devil's advocate and would like to know how you folks see how the possible consequences panning out. Scenario 1 We win, United lose and we get a place in the qualifiers for the Europa League (that is what it's called, yeah?). Pros: This could be huge for the club with the new format of the tournament coming in, the potential for a lot more money should we get into the group stages. It may also mean the possibility of Severin and Mair staying and potentially improved contract offers for the likes of Kerr, McDonald and Aluko later in the year. The possibility of a couple of new signings coming in. The feel good factor it brings to the club as a whole, it generates excitement amongst the fans outwith the banality of the domestic campaign. It could really spur our young team on to better things in the domestic game, and could give them invaluable experience which will only serve them well in the future. The early start to the season could see us finally get off to a flying start in the league, which would be a most welcomed change. At this point, I do want to say that I am loathe to using the term "Cons" as there shouldn't really be a downside to qualifying for Europe, but well, ye know... Cons: We fall at the first hurdle and ultimately fail to get into the group stages. The bad feeling amongst the support towards the management team could hit an all time low, at a time when many folk may not have renewed their season tickets. The financial implications and increased apathy could be a disaster for the club. Do we speculate to accumulate? Money spent on players - whether these are new players or current players on new deals - may be gambled before our Europa future is decided. Do we sign players to get us through to the group stages or wait to see how we get on first? It's a potential Catch 22 situation. The shortcomings of the management team and the strain on a small and young squad of an early start to the season could mean a rather dull and frustrating domestic league which in turn could lead to more disharmony amongst the support and all the problems that brings with it. Scenario 2 We do not qualify for Europe. Pros: In my mind, there really aren't that many pros to this as this is one of the main goals we have at the start of the season. However, to a large number of our support, it may see the change in management they crave. Perhaps a change in management will boost the club. It may mean more through the gates if the management does change. Cons: The obvious one is the financial side of things. Not just us losing out on the possibility of a large cash injection, but the fact that two of our biggest rivals (Hearts and United) may scoop a lot of cash instead could mean they have more to spend on players which we simply don't have. This may not be a problem initially, but it would mean qualification for Europe in season 2010/11 may become a necessity if it isn't to become an issue. Continuing apathy, bad feeling and poor relations between the club and it's fanbase. Negative press/media coverage which in turn could effect numbers through gates as well as potential sponsorship/advertising revenues. No Europe and the board decide to stick with the management team. Again, apathy etc would only continue. There is a possibility we finish 6th. That would be a bit of a morale buster too. I'm sure there are far more and please feel free to add to them/debate the ones I've mentioned and I'm aware that some of the above will be intertwined with each other. Sunday is of huge consequence to us, outwith our hands to an extent but if we keep our end of the bargain then we're in with a chance. Come on ye Reds!

Snooping around? Cracker. Say it to JC's face? Didn't you know no-one says anything negative to JC's face? I also said peanuts a week, not a month. They were basically arguing over £50 a week. Again, just read the words that are on the screen in front of you. EDIT: by all means, you do not have to believe any of this and I can understand your point about a player wanting to stay quibbling over such a small amount of money, but this was more down to receiving parity with his peers, which happens in all sorts of jobs and is in no way exclusive to professional footballers.

That much is true. I wouldn't pish on either of them if my life depended on it. Cunts of the highest order bar none.

Indeed. I was wearing a Dons tracksuit at the time, too!!! My old man had a few words with both of them though, I think just to say thanks for turning up... and the nice thing was that my dad thanked them again and Billy Davies said "Too many fenians here big man" to my dad, whose first names are Bernard Michael Patrick, guess where he's from, eh? Billy Reid and Billy Davies are spastics. Bigotted spastics at that. I hope they fuck off out the game as soon as possible. They epitomise everything that's wrong with scottish football.

Aye, and the other two gave me an award while calling me a fenian bastard

Good. Gus MacPherson can fuck off and do one. Tit of the highest order. (see also: Davies, Billy; Reid, Billy)