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[jagscast]

No team can afford to miss penalties. Thought he'd buried it, McGovern didn't have a clue.

 

Much as I love Erskine, he was stinking today. He's wasted out on the right. He's at his best running at defences through the middle.

 

Cairney impressed today, and Rowson was everywhere.

 

Doolan should be congratulated on a great goal. See what happens when you have a go?

 

Stewart is a concern for me...

[Gordie]

Robertson was a waste of a player today. Play him at the back or not at all. Erskine was poor, again not a lot between the teams.

[The Terminator]

That was very infuriating.

Erskine couldn't have been any worse than he was today, which is how he has been since the first game of the season.

Archibald and Kinniburgh were shambolic in the first half, and although they improved defensively in the second 45, they can't pass to save themselves. Those two create puntfests on their own.

Stewart's effort, or lack of, was disgusting. Whenever someone whipped a cross in, he was nowhere to be seen in the box. He spent his time sauntering lazily around the middle of the Falkirk half and didn't once attempt to chase or win a ball.

Fox must wonder why he signed a contract with Thistle when his colleagues make such an awful job of protecting him.

[Martin]

Terrible first half - was praying we would go in only one down.

 

Much improved 2nd half. Cariney was my MotM. Erskine was poor, again - don't know if he is in wrong position or lacking confidence but waste of a jersey today.

 

Two ok to good perfromances - no points

[Fearchar]

The second Falkirk goal came from a free header in the box, and for the whole game the two centre backs had no clue how to deal with the pace of their opponents, unless it was with an offside trap - which is a very risky strategy.

 

Kinniburgh won very few balls in the air - the one part of the game at which he is very adept. At one point Sinclair had to sweep up after him on the right.

 

There's no indication that as a captain Archie is giving this team the grit it needs, and, as a defender, every opponent he came up against outside the box was pushed. Maybe it's time for him to look for a new career.

 

The current centre backs aren't doing the business, but we have alternatives.

 

Here's a radical suggestion: put Sinclair in at left centre back and Lindsay at left back, and draft Balatoni in at right centre back so that there's enough muscle in the centre.

 

Here's a non-radical suggestion: get all strikers and midfielders practising shooting daily, including from the penalty spot. (Scott Fox could do with the practice in saving them, anyway.) Before the game started, all and sundry were practising shooting - and they were almost all off target.

 

For good measure, get one day a week where all players who favour one foot have to play using only their poorer foot - passing, shooting, dead balls and the time-honoured favourite of kicking a ball off a wall. Ensure that players who can make the grade with both feet don't have to come in that day. That should give some incentive.

 

If we have too many hard-luck stories in a row, then the message the world is giving is that existing problems are not being dealt with. They won't go away until something changes. The typical change in football is the manager, but ours is still learning and he may be willing to learn from the experience.

[thistle do nicely]

Another bad result although a better performance.

 

Defending again still suspect, could Lindsay play centre half because going on the Hamilton game he certainly knows how to defend. Rowson wasn't his usual self but by far the worst.

 

Erskine?!?! Really.....

 

The team needs more quality not quantity......we keep hearing about McCann but where is he??

 

Aaron Sinclair was again very very good and although young and still learning he's got all the raw ingredients in his locker........the boy has been THE standout so far this season.

[thistle do nicely]

The second Falkirk goal came from a free header in the box, and for the whole game the two centre backs had no clue how to deal with the pace of their opponents, unless it was with an offside trap - which is a very risky strategy.

 

Kinniburgh won very few balls in the air - the one part of the game at which he is very adept. At one point Sinclair had to sweep up after him on the right.

 

There's no indication that as a captain Archie is giving this team the grit it needs, and, as a defender, every opponent he came up against outside the box was pushed. Maybe it's time for him to look for a new career.

 

The current centre backs aren't doing the business, but we have alternatives.

 

Here's a radical suggestion: put Sinclair in at left centre back and Lindsay at left back, and draft Balatoni in at right centre back so that there's enough muscle in the centre.

 

Here's a non-radical suggestion: get all strikers and midfielders practising shooting daily, including from the penalty spot. (Scott Fox could do with the practice in saving them, anyway.) Before the game started, all and sundry were practising shooting - and they were almost all off target.

 

For good measure, get one day a week where all players who favour one foot have to play using only their poorer foot - passing, shooting, dead balls and the time-honoured favourite of kicking a ball off a wall. Ensure that players who can make the grade with both feet don't have to come in that day. That should give some incentive.

 

If we have too many hard-luck stories in a row, then the message the world is giving is that existing problems are not being dealt with. They won't go away until something changes. The typical change in football is the manager, but ours is still learning and he may be willing to learn from the experience.

 

 

 

I see where you're coming from but a) Balatoni needs to go back to Edinburgh, not right back and we need Sinclair going forward although I think he would do well at centre half.

[Jaggyman]

Falkirk started the game like demons and tore Jags apart on more than one occasion they could have and probably should have been at least 2 goals up in 25 mins. Jags kept plugging away and started to get back into the game. Doolans goal was a cracker and we were the better team after that up till half time. I was thinkin that was great we finished first half on the front foot and could have a real go at Falkirk in 2nd half. Defending for 2nd goal was a total joke free header from about 6 yards out from a corner not even 1 min into 2nd half. From there on in we pressed forward for an equaliser with Falkirk happy to hit on the break. Stewart did well to win the penalty but Doolans effort was poor. We hit the bar shortly after that but tbh we never really looked like getting level. It was one of those games that could have went either way and i thought we deserved a draw obviously im lookin at it through tinted glasses.

 

Next week is a hard game Hamilton will be on cloud 9 after todays result. Mon the jags

[alx]

That missed penalty ruined the game. I thought Rowson and Archie did a good job of roughing up the young Falkirk forwards to keep a lid on things. Falkirk were clearly the better team for maybe the first 20 minutes. After that it was fairly even. Not a disaster today, but still frustrating.

[Armand2]

What annoys me is other teams capability to pick up good free agents. Take the guy who scored for Falkirk today, Farid El Alaqui, for example; I've read about his performances and he appears to be quite a decent player although I'm not sure how he played today as I wasn't at the game. Falkirk are in no better financial fettle than us and have lost the majority of their attacking players in McManus, Flynn, Compton, Finnigan and Stewart yet are able to pick up a French journeyman who seems to be compensating for that loss. I know for a fact that Falkirk's scouting system isn't any better than ours so it must simply come down to contacts which I would have thought Jackie and Sid aren't short of. I know we had that Slovakian player in a few weeks ago who wasn't considered good enough, and perhaps we do invite a number of free agents to training, but it's just irritating that other clubs seem to get all the breaks whilst we're left with the impotent dregs.

 

To be honest, it's a bloody disgrace that we've still got very little strike-force to speak of. We've been crying out for a striker for years and still lack one worthy of the name.

 

It's going to be a long season.

[The Cup]

What annoys me is other teams capability to pick up good free agents. Take the guy who scored for Falkirk today, Farid El Alaqui, for example; I've read about his performances and he appears to be quite a decent player although I'm not sure how he played today as I wasn't at the game. Falkirk are in no better financial fettle than us and have lost the majority of their attacking players in McManus, Flynn, Compton, Finnigan and Stewart yet are able to pick up a French journeyman who seems to be compensating for that loss. I know for a fact that Falkirk's scouting system isn't any better than ours so it must simply come down to contacts which I would have thought Jackie and Sid aren't short of. I know we had that Slovakian player in a few weeks ago who wasn't considered good enough, and perhaps we do invite a number of free agents to training, but it's just irritating that other clubs seem to get all the breaks whilst we're left with the impotent dregs.

 

To be honest, it's a bloody disgrace that we've still got very little strike-force to speak of. We've been crying out for a striker for years and still lack one worthy of the name.

 

It's going to be a long season.

 

Doolan was the league's top scorer last season and we signed him from the juniors.

[PaleGreySky]

What's all this moaning about strikers about? Doolan was top scorer last season, and is obviously a class act. Stewart actually looks pretty sharp too.

[Meister Jag]

Gutted and not the worst Thistle performance I've seen. Erskine had a howler (and I'm a fan, Robertson should have been sub'd (looked f***** in 2nd) and Stewart finding his way (Though not a great pairing with Doolan - bad what are the options?). Cairney was v good IMO.

 

Season not quite over but we must be looking at mid-table before January. If the last two games highlight the standard of the league then we're not far short. But lose a player, do we have a Strickland Banks?

 

Good Thistle support today - long may that continue.

[1 John Lambie]

What annoys me is other teams capability to pick up good free agents. Take the guy who scored for Falkirk today, Farid El Alaqui, for example; I've read about his performances and he appears to be quite a decent player although I'm not sure how he played today as I wasn't at the game. Falkirk are in no better financial fettle than us and have lost the majority of their attacking players in McManus, Flynn, Compton, Finnigan and Stewart yet are able to pick up a French journeyman who seems to be compensating for that loss. I know for a fact that Falkirk's scouting system isn't any better than ours so it must simply come down to contacts which I would have thought Jackie and Sid aren't short of. I know we had that Slovakian player in a few weeks ago who wasn't considered good enough, and perhaps we do invite a number of free agents to training, but it's just irritating that other clubs seem to get all the breaks whilst we're left with the impotent dregs.

 

To be honest, it's a bloody disgrace that we've still got very little strike-force to speak of. We've been crying out for a striker for years and still lack one worthy of the name.

 

It's going to be a long season.

 

He didn't look great, is this a case of, he's foreign so must be better than Scottish guys?

[sandbank boy]

Will everyone get a grip. It's only the middle of August

[twinny]

Will everyone get a grip. It's only the middle of August

 

This

[MWM]

Just remember lads that Falkirk team was full of schoolboys and minus a couple of their more experienced players. That performance was a ******* disgrace and the tactics and lack of options on the bench, Jackie and the board have a lot to answer for.

 

We are crying out for another forward player since Stewart and Grehan are rank rotten.

[Chewsday]

Our unbeaten run starts next week.

[brick_top]

Will everyone get a grip. It's only the middle of August

 

 

I 3rd this.

[lady-isobel-barnett]

Robertson was a waste of a player today. Play him at the back or not at all. Erskine was poor, again not a lot between the teams.

I thought as the game went on Robertson was passable but even at that got to agree with above.

Again as the game went on Stewart looked more the player most of us thought he could be.

A draw might have been a fair result today but we could so easily have been three down in eight minutes.

[Yellow & Redneck]

I really don't care if its the middle of August, but I'm pushing the panic button. Four consecutive losses is four consecutive losses, irrespective of if they come in August or November for that matter.

 

We were a disgrace today. I hope Archibald is dropped for the next few games. Our major problem is the almost religious views that Archibald, Paton and Rowson are held in. They ALWAYS start if they are fit, and this is a major problem. Managers seem to think that there will be a huge outcry from the Jags fans if Archibald is dropped. However I'd welcome this, he isn't a good captain, he refused to high-five Siclair after Doolan's goal because of some tiff earlier in the day, which is not how a captain should behave and he can't read a high ball. Actually none of our defenders can read the high ball, they let it bounce and risk a 50/50 header with an oncoming attacker. Balatoni did not deserve to be dropped today, and I personally would have him starting in front of bomb scare Kinniburgh or Archibald, who is well passed his sell by date!

 

A prime example of our defence was the first goal. Falkirk player rounds Fox, empty goal! He dodges Kinniburgh's tackle, stumbles not once, not twice, but three bloody times, yet he STILL HAS TIME to tee the ball to another attacker, who STILL HAS TIME to get his head up, pick out a spot and score. Where was Archibald? Non existent!

 

Tommy Stewart looks like to be one of the laziest player that I have ever seen. How many time did Sinclair break up the left today only to have Stewart 20ft behind him jogging along! He has no positional awareness whatsoever, and is one of the major reason that we can't link passes in the final third. As far as I'm concerned Fraser has done nothing wrong in the games I have seen him, and he should be Doolan's strike partner.

 

Another annoying thing that has been repeated all season is Paton's wasteful punts up the field. They are a sure way to lose possession and never bloody work, yet Jackie seems content to let him continue the trait. I play as a goalkeeper for a local Sunday League side, and I hope tomorrow I come up against someone like Paton. His crosses are so weak, floated and with a lack of spin that I could simply catch them all day. Maybe I'm wrong, but aren't powerful, driven crosses better seems the slightest nick sends them anywhere? You can't generate a powerful header with a floated cross.

 

C'mon Jags for next week! Jackie, you keep saying that these players have so much built up frustration and are eager to beat someone...I've seen more testosterone at a funeral, you're players don't look eager in the slightest!

[Third Lanark]

What's all this moaning about strikers about? Doolan was top scorer last season, and is obviously a class act. Stewart actually looks pretty sharp too.

Doolan always gives 100%, I think like Buchanan other teams realise they need to put on 2 or 3 defenders to shut him out. A guy at the Dundee game said to me that Stewart reminded him of Stephen McConalogue I said dont be ridiculous, now I think he may have a point. Made an effort when he need a contract and happens to be good friends with the Manager, not that dissimilar to Stephen

Edited August 13, 2011 by Third Lanark

[northernsoul]

We were lucky the ref allowed Falkirk's first goal after Kinniburgh's plain stupid decision to dive and punch the ball away from goal. He could have easily given Falkirk the penalty and sent off Kinniburgh which would have ****** the game plan with barely ten minutes gone.

 

Doolan's goal - superb.

 

Doolan's penalty - inexcusable for a Striker not to hit the target from a penalty.

 

Overall - garbage.

[Semi Nurainen]

 

too many hard-luck stories in a row,

 

Yep.

[Third Lanark]

I really don't care if its the middle of August, but I'm pushing the panic button. Four consecutive losses is four consecutive losses, irrespective of if they come in August or November for that matter.

 

We were a disgrace today. I hope Archibald is dropped for the next few games. Our major problem is the almost religious views that Archibald, Paton and Rowson are held in. They ALWAYS start if they are fit, and this is a major problem. Managers seem to think that there will be a huge outcry from the Jags fans if Archibald is dropped. However I'd welcome this, he isn't a good captain, he refused to high-five Siclair after Doolan's goal because of some tiff earlier in the day, which is not how a captain should behave and he can't read a high ball. Actually none of our defenders can read the high ball, they let it bounce and risk a 50/50 header with an oncoming attacker. Balatoni did not deserve to be dropped today, and I personally would have him starting in front of bomb scare Kinniburgh or Archibald, who is well passed his sell by date!

 

A prime example of our defence was the first goal. Falkirk player rounds Fox, empty goal! He dodges Kinniburgh's tackle, stumbles not once, not twice, but three bloody times, yet he STILL HAS TIME to tee the ball to another attacker, who STILL HAS TIME to get his head up, pick out a spot and score. Where was Archibald? Non existent!

 

Tommy Stewart looks like to be one of the laziest player that I have ever seen. How many time did Sinclair break up the left today only to have Stewart 20ft behind him jogging along! He has no positional awareness whatsoever, and is one of the major reason that we can't link passes in the final third. As far as I'm concerned Fraser has done nothing wrong in the games I have seen him, and he should be Doolan's strike partner.

 

Another annoying thing that has been repeated all season is Paton's wasteful punts up the field. They are a sure way to lose possession and never bloody work, yet Jackie seems content to let him continue the trait. I play as a goalkeeper for a local Sunday League side, and I hope tomorrow I come up against someone like Paton. His crosses are so weak, floated and with a lack of spin that I could simply catch them all day. Maybe I'm wrong, but aren't powerful, driven crosses better seems the slightest nick sends them anywhere? You can't generate a powerful header with a floated cross.

 

C'mon Jags for next week! Jackie, you keep saying that these players have so much built up frustration and are eager to beat someone...I've seen more testosterone at a funeral, you're players don't look eager in the slightest!

Well said particularly the Archie reference. Sometimes a captain should be motivating the team considerably more on the pitch than he is sometimes seen to be doing.