northstbuddie

Whether we are 'happy clappers' or 'misery guts' we have to face up to the reality of our non-existent defence. Even against Falkirk (which turned out to be a 'happy clap' day) we should have been at least 3 goals down before Stelios' equaliser after 20 minutes. One thing we are consistent at is shipping in goals - 3, 4 or 5 a game. On the 'glass half full' approach we can argue that once Smith, Davis and Eckersley get involved in shoring up the defence, we have a chance of challenging for promotion this season. But we are also sorely missing Kyle Magennis' drive and creativity in midfield and also Darryl Duffy might turn out to be the goalscorer we have been yearning for over the past few years. All is not lost - not yet!

There is nothing wrong with having a hopeful attitude to the season ahead but on the evidence of results and performance so far this season the likelihood is that we will be struggling once again to even reach mid table. Having said that I still hope for better.

It's just mid July but who can blame us for having a 'deja vu' feeling after the nightmare of the first half of last season (and what went before)! However, although last night's performance was disappointing, we should remind ourselves that we were missing 4 injured players who could have made a difference; it is hopeful that Harry Davis will be restored to our ranks; and we could still add a couple of players before the transfer window closes. Most of the new signings have at least shown the potential to become assets to the squad once they settle in and hopefully find a bit of belief in themselves at this level. We must have faith that JR and his team can get the squad organised for the league season ahead and repeat the minor miracle of last season.

The performance tonight was on a par with the first half of last season. I don't think I could stand a repeat of that dismal form and run of depressing results. It is difficult to be positive about anything I observed tonight other than Harry Davis entering the ground! Our defence looked fragile, our midfield disjointed and our attack powder puff.

I thought all the new boys did reasonably well this evening. We played some crisp passing movements and only slack finishing and excellent goalkeeping prevented us from scoring at least three. Buchanan looked as if he could be an asset in central defence but I am sure Sammy is wishing he could rewind the clock to 7.45pm! As others have said - yes it was only a friendly but the defence will have to tighten up before the season gets under way proper. And finally - we need a striker to finish off some of LM's inviting crosses - the height of Ross Stewart(19) could be the answer and also compliment the movement of Smith,Reilly or Hilson up front as well as their common lack of height.

Thank goodness we've stuck with winter football!

It's no longer speculation Tedious Tom. Dundee are sniffing about. Watch this space!

I hope you're right.

Was it too good to last? Derek McInnes is the bookies favourite to take over at Sunderland. If there is a vacancy at Aberdeen, what's the chance of JR doing a 'Fergie' and moving on to Pittodrie? Can St Mirren do anything to stop this from happening or should we just accept the inevitable?

Would not disagree too strongly with that but O'Brien is not yet the finished article and we need a keeper who can command his box and give those in front of him a bit more confidence.

Craig Samson and Mark Ridgers are free agents. However, as some have pointed out, we could maybe do better, but I would not have a problem if either signed on in addition to O'Brien.

FT 1-1 Fantastic

1-1 - utter disgrace!!!!!!

Big test for the Saints now

0-0 - fair HT score. Will settle for that at FT

I would not disagree that life was good under the managements of Clunie and McFarlane but I would argue that they maintained the standards set by Ferguson. Talking of Jim Clunie - it could also be argued that no one person has contributed more to the wellbeing of St Mirren in his roles as firstly player of outstanding ability (for a centre half) and then as a manager when we enjoyed one of our most successful spells in the top four in Scotland at a time when Aberdeen and Dundee United were starting to overtake the old firm. In fact, I look on his omission from full international recognition, as one of the greatest injustices in Scottish football since the second world war. Billy McNeill was a great centre half but he did not have half the skill or entertainment value of Jim Clunie. And as for the Rangers equivalent at that time ...... Just goes to prove that Scottish football was even more institutionally bigoted and prejudiced then than today. And another sad footnote - Jim Clunie (like Alec Ferguson) was another excellent and successful manager who was shown the door at Love Street. Let's hope the same does not happen to Jack Ross.

Can we afford not to offer most of the above named players contracts which might persuade them to stay at St Mirren for next season at least? Yes if they maintain current performance levels they are certs to go on to better things elsewhere - i.e. earn more money than they ever could in Paisley. However, Gordon Scott and the other directors must be aware that we now have the makings of a squad which would be favourites to win the Championship outright next season. England is full of young Scottish players whose careers have faltered because they did not move at the right time in their development. A successful St Mirren team should be filling the present stadium every week - we are now about to breech the 5,000+ figure based on current performances and if we were striving for promotion next season instead of trying to avoid relegation we should be generating enough income to fund attractive wages for the management (including Alan McManus) and the players. I was criticised by some a few months ago for mentioning Sir Alec and Jack Ross in the same sentence (although I was not at that time making a direct comparison). However, as mentioned by others, there is now a level of optimism surrounding the club which has not been seen since the Ferguson era. This time let's not miss this golden opportunity to take things forward to a new level!

That's the spirit!

Three months later Jack and the boys look like pulling it off in style. I hope GS is planning to offer Jack and James the kind of contracts they would find it difficult to refuse!

It's clear we cannot produce the level of performance that we did against Hibs and Ayr United every game but we will have to grind out results the way Dumbarton have done with so-called inferior players.

The irony of our situation is that we could not beat Dumbarton this afternoon but we could win all (or any) of our remaining games if we play to our potential. The problem is (as others have pointed out) we will have to do it without Lewis Morgan. Sorry for this duplicate again.

The irony of our situation is that we could not beat Dumbarton this afternoon but we could win all (or any) of our remaining games if we play to our potential. The problem is (as others have pointed out) we will have to do it without Lewis Morgan.

Sorry for that - poor internet connection where I am at the moment.

Maybe not a terrible result but it certainly was not one of our better performances. We will obviously need to improve on this to survive our run-in to the end of the season.

Maybe not a terrible result but it certainly was not one of our better performances. We will obviously need to improve on this to survive our run-in to the end of the season.