So a reverse of the fixtures a couple of weekends back when we could potentially seal second spot (bigot fest dependent).  Love to see us do it on our own patch but I suspect St. Johnstone won't make it easy at all.  Play as daft as we did after the first 30 mins on Saturday and they'll ask plenty of us. I'm guessing Taylor will keep his place regardless...The only other change I'd like to see is McGinn back for Christie.

 

Out

Seven Sister walk

As above

Hopefully the pub!

2-1 Dons, McLean and Consi.

Out

Bed

Online, maybe live chat now I dinna have to work Saturdays

Off to visit a friend in hospital

5-0 to Aberdeen: Jack, McLean, Pawlett, Stockley, Taylor

 

Happy birthday Mrs. Al

 

 

 

What made you marry a woman so much older than you?

 

Maybe the cuddling

Happy birthday Mrs. Al

 

 

 

What made you marry a woman so much older than you?

 

Lol, on behalf of the missus, cheers DD.

Sevco emphatically lost to Tic today, so a win for us today will effectively wrap up 2nd due to GD. 

 

Although even a loss has the silver lining of keeping alive St Johnstone and Hearts overtaking Sevco and taking their Euro spot away.  In fact, maybe we should just let Saints win... 

Lol, on behalf of the missus, cheers DD.

 

Do the 'rules' apply in this thread?

 

shat it yet again, manager decides today is day to try the tombola

I don't know why anyone bothers going to games after the split.

 

It's embarrassing every year.

8 goals conceded in the last 4 games and we're back to tinkering again with the line up.....wtf.

Missed the game today, what did mcinnes do?

Didn't see the game but according to red tv we started with considine in the middle and Hayes at left back. Then maybe shinnie moved to left back. Driving from LA to Vegas so commentary was on and off so I'm not sure. McGinn and Christie started so not sure of the shape in midfield either.

 

I don't get it, if Reynolds is fit go back to the line up that gave us success. Today was the day we should have sealed second with a home game, still have to Play Rangers and Celtic, plus playing Hearts is usually a struggle.

Ouch, that was a sore one.

 

The tombola was out today, Considine was alongside Taylor with Hayes at LB, but Shinnie covering him when he broke forward. We started off with our usual passing game and were having some success, but not creating any real chances, then we got two bookings, Logan for a late tackle, at least I think it was LOgan and then Hayes a few minutes later, didn't think they both merited bookings, but the ref had a stinker of a game, although not the reason we lost, that was our own doing. There was an incident not long after our bookins when Christie was shoved into the St Johnstone bench going for a ball and the ref took no action against the saints player, I thought it deserved a card, but like I say he had a mare.

 

I can understand why he wanted to try Consi alongside Taylor, but you don't fuck about with the LB position, no real reason to do it and also by doing this he is eating into whatever morale Reynolds and O'Connor have left after the seasons they have had, he obviously doesn't rate them.

 

One thing that annoys is McLEan appears to play lots of the match as a striker and ROnney is left to track back, something we all know he is not great at, we all agree where the guy is at his best, but our manager does appear to have forgotten that.

 

The second half was quite a dismal half for us, we were not really at the races and the saints had our cards marked in this half, although they didn't look like scoring until Joe picked the ball up from a pass back from Jack and they score from the resulting free kick very close to the goal. A LEwis howler IMO, which no doubt Ryan will take the wrap on. The second one was a shit goal to lose, but lose it we did and I think those of us who remained knew we weren't coming back from.

 

I don't know what more I can add. St Johnstone know how to play us, we can slag them off and the type of football they play, but they are a fairly well organised unit who play to a system which suits and capable of beating anyone and have been fairly consistent on a fairly low budget, they certainly know how to play against us and did it again today. We know how they are going to play against us and is up to us to stop them getting away with it and rise above it.

 

Just disappointing and I hope it is not the usual post split collapse from us. I think a few of our players have been flogged to death due to our manager not having much faith in any of the fringe players and costing us big time now.

 

Gut wrenching watching Foster getting it right fucking up us. 

Its pretty obvious Aberdeen will finish 2nd.

 

Would it not make sense to play these lads who never get a proper game - Wright, Pawlett, Storey, Stockley from the start?

 

Play like that in final and be a lot of folk nae happy.

 

 

 

Quite happy for any of the fringe players to get a start, but obviously our manager doesn't have faith in them.

 

Yes we have a good team who are very good on their day, but a manager needs to keep the team fresh and this is an area I find him wanting. Maybe the fringe players aren't good enough but not enough to judge them with a 10 minute cameo and an occasional start.

What is it about St.J ? we resort playing hoofball against the hoofball specialists, they are without doubt the dirtiest team in the league & you need a strong ref unfortunately we had Alan Muir (completely out his depth).

    Terrible match,terrible crowd, terrible weather & terrible ref, god , my eyes were bleeding.

We need McGinn & Hayes fit & on form, neither were. Rooney was diabolically bad & our captain was partly responsible for both farmers goals.

God, i hate St.Johnstone.

 

What is it about St.J ? we resort playing hoofball against the hoofball specialists, they are without doubt the dirtiest team in the league & you need a strong ref unfortunately we had Alan Muir (completely out his depth).

    Terrible match,terrible crowd, terrible weather & terrible ref, god , my eyes were bleeding.

We need McGinn & Hayes fit & on form, neither were. Rooney was diabolically bad & our captain was partly responsible for both farmers goals.

God, i hate St.Johnstone.

 

Being unfair on Rooney there. He was being played wide left for chunks of today which is not his game. We should stick to playing him through the middle and let him do what he does best score goals.

 

Today's defeat is on McInnes. He got his tactics wrong and made uneccessary changes to the team and set up.

 

Really hope we do not have another post split slump.

Rooney has lost it.

 

May as well give Storey the chance to miss from a yard than have nobody playing up front.

Rooney is what he is - not much really to him as a player apart from 20 goals a season often crucial ones.

 

He seems to start regardless of form which must get to other strikers.

 

Would rather see him play off someone or someone play off him.  Also he does not put himself about enough - not a target man.

 

Also, he messed up and failed on recent big stages especially ridiculous penalty in Maribor and non existent display in LCF.

Aye, it was a horrible game. The conditions made for a lot of wayward passing and poor touches and the ref compounded it by losing control completely from the first minute.

 

In fairness to McInnes, he recognised that Saints come here in and sit in and so put a more attacking threat at fullback (Hayes then Shinnie in the second) rather than Considine. It's actually the sort of thing we've been crying out for all season and our defence wasn't affected by it. I also understood his reasoning for playing Rooney slightly wide of McLean at the start. He won quite a few headers against Foster rather than against the centre halves. It was really more of a front two also when we had the ball.

 

We had enough good chances to win that game, McLean missed a couple of good opportunities, Rooney missed a couple too. If you miss those types of chances then you risk losing. We were the better team and looking like the only team scoring and McInnes made an attacking double sub with plenty of the game left. We're correctly critical of Rooney's form but the subs were awful. Stockley especially. That's the real conundrum for me and the problem we've had all season. Stockley and Storey are just not good enough and looking to the bench we're completely limited. That has meant our first eleven looking very jaded at this point of the season. The break helped a lot and it's obvious that next season we just need to go for quality rather than quantity. We just need one or two very good subs, not eighteen Miles Storeys.

 

Anyway, Saints did their usual. Sat in, battled hard and took their chances. A deserved win.

The comments about the subs and lack of options are a massive worry for me.  McInnes's success rate in getting decent squad players is really poor and given the players we are going to lose this summer I do worry about the standard of player coming in.  Saying that if he can't replace Taylor he shouldn't really be a manager.

My other big concern is that's another season where no young players have been good enough to break through or given the chance to establish themselves.  At what stage do you accept the methods employed are not working?

They Under 20's are mid table.

 

Having said that even when the Under 20's win the league (a team that included Driver, Langfield, Shankland and Robson) very few of them got in the team.

 

I think it is thoroughly unfair and detrimental to the development of players that they do not get a game regularly.  Ross, Wright are clearly eager and want a game but cannot get a proper crack at things.

 

Funnily enough Wright got a game v Daugava Riga who were more or less an amateur pub team.

 

The only way young players like Wright, Ross can get a game is if they go on loan to Alloa or get 3 minutes in a dead game.

 

Under 20's have been a quasi Peterhead/Deveronvale reserves feeder club for years.

 

McInnes clearly sticks with players even when they are off form e.g. Rooney, McGinn. WORSE he chooses instead to give nonsensical signings waste of money singings e.g. Jeremy Monakana, Josh Parker a game at the expense of young talent that the club have invested in personally and professionally.

 

This cant be right?

 

Its a bad approach, can't be healthy for young lads.  And if truth be told unfair especially when team won games by a mile and the players could be bedded in more to the club.

 

McInnes uses daft subs - stockley for last 5 mins?

 

Its obvious the final team v Celtic needs something different.  And if they do not do something different on the 27th May we will lose.

 

 

Absolutely this ^^^^^^^^

 

 

I remember that move between Ross and Wright on the right wing against whom?? I cant remember but it sublime and deserved of them playing the next game together or at least, far more game time (which hasnt happened yet)

 

It IS a disgrace!

Just caught up on the highlights there.

 

How on earth can McInnes claim the referee was wrong to award that free-kick for a back pass?? It was as clear as it was deliberate. Maybe he's trying to deflect away from what appeared to be a lacklustre performance.

 

McLean has missed 2 absolute sitters, and ultimately, it would appear a draw would have been a fairer reflection, but it wasn't a draw, and it's 2 home defeats in a row where we've conceded a total of 5 without reply.

 

And being realistic here, we have to go to Tynecastle, a game I believe we should win, but whether or not we do is another thing, before hosting the vicTims. We could be going to Ibrox with only 3 points separating us, depending

on how they fair in their upcoming 2 fixtures, away to Partick & home to Hearts. Completely unacceptable and indefensible should we lose 2nd place, however unlikely it may be as things stand right now.

 

We absolutely need to sign a no-nonsense centre half, who doesn't flap regularly, possibly even 2. It's a must. And I may as well put it out there, Zander Diamond appears to be on his way back to Scotland  Imagine he was signed as Taylor's replacement     

Thought the same about the back pass.

 

Terrible excuse for Jacks brain far moment.

He could easily have played it out for a corner. Why aren't we gettin on Jacks back?

 

Some terrible refereeing too though with not booking St Johnstone players.

 

I honestly think he was paid off...they were so blatantly against us.

 

 

I've said it before but we miss a player like Maddison.

 

Direct and makes space by taking on players (and beating them).

 

We desperately need a striker, a centre mid and a central attacking midfielder who has a decent shot on goal.

 

How many times do Hayes and McLean Sky the ball over the bar instead of blasting it low and putting pressure on the goalkeeper. Rooney in waiting?

 

And if Zander was resigned, I would  :(stop supporting AFC .

 

 

"I honestly think the referee was paid off.......he was so blatantly against us".

 

Any football forum, any Saturday evening the length and breadth of the UK and probably globally there are fans of a football team who lost saying the same thing.

 

The referee was 'all against us'.

 

Change record bud.

Having watched the Red TV highlights, i'm not sure how we didn't win that one.  McLean really needs to work on his finishing, the diving header wasn't the right option imo, and even if it was, he really should have got it on target.  The same with his second effort.  The team look jaded and DM has to take the blame for that one.  It is his squad, he has now got the team he wanted and has filled the team with players that he has signed.  No excuses.  we shouldn't be so powderpuff.  Big, big few weeks for him. Our post split form under him has been nigh on pathetic. 19/63 points is it? Not acceptable imo.

 

I've seen some blame jack for both goals, I'm not sure I actually completely blame him.  I think these are both down to Lewis, especially the first one.