TopCat

Point would have been okay if Livi and Aberdeen hadn’t both won. However they both did, so now we are in big trouble with regards to top six.
We will certainly need to beat Livi and Killie in Paisley and even then it might not be enough. 
Another bad day at the office on the road. Our away form is an absolute disgrace.

The question  of why not playing Shaughnessy  should be addressed  to the manager  at the Smisa talk show next week

How in God's name does Taylor get a start before Shaughnessy?

To the surprise of absolutely no one, Taylor sells a goal. Just took him 3 minutes this week.
Meanwhile, Joe Shaughnessy is on the bench. 
Make it make sense.

To the surprise of absolutely no one, Taylor sells a goal. Just took him 3 minutes this week.
Meanwhile, Joe Shaughnessy is on the bench. 
Make it make sense.

To the surprise of absolutely no one, Taylor sells a goal. Just took him 3 minutes this week.
Meanwhile, Joe Shaughnessy is on the bench. 
Make it make sense.

To the surprise of absolutely no one, Taylor sells a goal. Just took him 3 minutes this week.
Meanwhile, Joe Shaughnessy is on the bench. 
Make it make sense.

Very bad decision to play Taylor, he is hopeless. Think we will lose to the worst team in the league. 

It’s been calculated that Great Britain throughout its history has invaded/military conflict/control of 90% of the UN countries. 
How much of our benefits system was built on the back of slavery and oppression?
As one example Britain drained a total of nearly $45 trillion from India during the period 1765 to 1938.
That is just one country out of many throughout the world where Britain through murder, rape, slavery and theft decimated hundreds of millions of lives primarily for financial gain. 
Go visit a number of museums in this country and see examples of theft that are publicly displayed. No doubt there are many more private collections that we won’t get to see.
The world is far from perfect but possibly all of those benefits that you describe were originally built on a large percentage the wealth generated by other countries Great Britain “controlled”.
Much of Paisley’s wealth was created on the back of slavery associated with not only the cotton trade but other areas. 
British ships carried around six million Africans across the Atlantic, mostly to the Caribbean. Scots were heavily involved in the profiting from the “benefits” of the slave industry including many wealthy landowners around Renfrewshire. These landowners received a great deal in compensation from the government when the trade was ceased but the slaves received nothing. 
https://rlhf.info/renfrewshires-slave-legacy-1/
Hong Kong ultimately became British due to the “work” of two Scot’s dealing in opium leading to wars between Britain and China.
 
William Jardine and James Matheson set up a company that became hugely successful then and is still flourishing today.
Two highly (sic) successful drug dealers who became MPs.
They would both be wealthy beyond imagination. The novelist and politician Benjamin Disraeli would obliquely refer to Jardine in a book as ‘richer than Croesus, one Mr Druggy, fresh from Canton, with a million in opium in each pocket’.
James Matheson would become so rich that he would buy his own island – the Isle of Lewis. At one point, he was the second-largest landowner in Britain and spent £500,000 building a literal castle on his island as a summer home. Today, Jardine Matheson Holdings Limited, the descendent of that original trading firm, is one of the most valuable publicly traded companies in the world.
https://www.scotsman.com/arts-and-culture/scots-who-hooked-china-opium-1471413
Landowners even shipped off our own people in favour of sheep as part of the highland clearance’s.
The world is far from perfect but I’d say that our country given its repugnant history should perhaps be more a little tolerant than many others. 
 

Yeah big one this, wouldn't say it was must win, but if we don't win it just makes the Livi and Killie games must win. A win at Tannadice leaves us with some margin for error in the other two winnable games. United are the only team we have beaten on the road this season where the opponents didn't get a player sent off inside the first ten minutes. It's a ground we've had a lot of joy at recently, we've won our last three games there, including the famous 1-5. Could certainly do with another similar sized win to give the battered goal difference a bit of a boost. 
1-1

My favourite day ever following St Mirren.
Exhilarating.
Also, surreal as the return trip on the Bus from Hampden to Paisley was travelled in near silence .
All in all a fabulous and memorable occasion.

Wee interview in today's Daily Ranger ....
 
“You’ll never have to buy another drink again.”
It’s a phrase that Conor Newton still has ringing in his ears.
He hasn’t been back to Paisley since his second loan spell ended in 2014 – but one goal has set him up for life if he ever decides to return to the town.
When St Mirren fans talk about their side’s League Cup 2013 triumph, they really mean the moments the ball hit the back of the net.
Newton, who was on-loan from Newcastle United, has never been a prolific goalscorer. Even he admits he probably shouldn’t have shot from the edge of the box while the clash remained finely balanced at 2-1. “I should have taken another touch,” he laughs down the phone, “I should have taken my time... not that anyone was complaining.”
As history would have it, Newton’s snapshot, while finding himself faced with just Hearts keeper Jamie MacDonald, would find the back of the net.
The masses roared as the red-headed Englishman with a Geordie accent gave their side a 3-1 advantage, while 150 miles from home.
But still Newton maintains that in hindsight the occasion may have got the better of him.
“Watching it back I have to wonder what I was doing,” he says.
“I think the moment just took over. I’ve just looked up and seen the keeper and thought why not. If anyone else was to do that I would have been shouting and screaming at them.
“But you’re in a cup final, and sometimes you have to be greedy. Thank God it went in because I could have got all sorts of grief if it hadn’t.”
For much of the game, St Mirren, and their supporters, were on tenterhooks, finding it difficult to break down a stubborn Hearts side. Ryan Stevenson’s early goal, taking a deflection off of Newton’s old mate Paul Dummett, saw the Gorgies deflate the Geordies in the Paisley ranks.
Isma Goncalves’ strike levelled things up before Steven Thompson famously fired his hometown team into the lead shortly after the break.
But Hearts were always in pursuit of the leveller – before Newton played a deft one-two with Goncalves before thumping home.
Two goals in the lead, Saints would have been forgiven for believing the trophy was theirs. But with just under half an hour left to play, Newton is adamant that you couldn’t be any further from the truth.
“From a neutrals point of view it must have been a fascinating match to watch,” he admits, “But to play in? It was terrible from a nerves point of view,
“It was end to end and we were just so nervous.
“We came back from behind – but when Ryan Stevenson scores to get Hearts a goal back, they were piling on the pressure in the end. We were clinging on for dear life in all honesty.”
When Craig Thomson blew for full-time, it brought an end to 26-years without a major trophy for St Mirren. For a generation, it was their first glimpse of the Saints lifting some silverware when Jim Goodwin collected the League Cup before lofting it in the air in front of the black and white masses.
Being so far from home, there was a little piece of Newcastle at Hampden, with a family caught up in the occasion and becoming Buddies for the day.
So as the whistle pierced the chilly Glasgow air, Newton looked up to his family to share the moment with his nearest and dearest.
“When that final whistle goes it was just relief and elation,” he added, “You see the fans celebrating and you realise just how much it means to everyone.
“Obviously I wasn’t a St Mirren supporter, I had only really been at the club for a few months, but you got caught up in the moment.
“My family filled a bus from Newcastle, the whole Newton clan, around 30 of them where at Hampden so to be able to share those memories and have them there to see – that was special.
“It really was the romance of the cup. St Mirren fans won’t mind me saying it, but they aren’t a massive club, and no one really expected us to get as far as we did, especially when you consider we played the likes of Aberdeen and Celtic just to get there.”
The infamous parties went on in Paisley for days, with Newton’s strike sparking days of bevvying on the streets of the town as the players took in the adulation of the support at every possible opportunity.
Mobbed by fans telling him they loved him, the midfielder was more than happy to share the moment.
And although he has hardly been in the town since that day, Newton says one promise never passed him by, joking: “I was told I would never have to buy a drink in Paisley again – and one of these days I’ll have to take them all up on that offer.”
Newton’s burst on to the scene was something which he explains happened literally over night.
At the age of 21 he got the all in January asking him if he would be interested in joining up with Newcastle teammate Paul Dummett, who had been at the Buddies since the start of that season.
Having been forced to bide his time in a Magpies youth team littered with talent, he admits he jumped at the opportunity to link up with a senior side.
However, one training session with Paul McGowan and Jim Goodwin, he laughs, opened his eyes to what it would take to make an impression in Scotland.
“I was more than aware what I was getting myself into because Paul had been at St Mirren for the previous six months,” Newton explained.
“In all honesty the move was a bit unexpected because I hadn’t played much football, let alone at senior level. It was daunting because I had never really been among experienced players before apart from being used as a mannequin from time to time in Newcastle training, where you were basically invisible.
“I went up in the middle of the night and stayed with Paul at first and it was a fantastic time. I wasn’t really in the set-up at Newcastle so to be given the opportunity to test myself in Scotland was one I really looked forward to.
“I remember the training being really difficult on the first day, thinking ‘I’m really going to have to up my game here if I am going to get any sort of chance’. Going in for a challenge with McGowan on day one opened my eyes to everything it would take.”
Looking back, that St Mirren team that won the cup in 2013 was the strongest in some time. Newton admits that he was shocked to see the side relegated a couple of years after his departure back down south.
Having watched from afar as the team started to struggle, Newton highlights the talent and personalities in the squad that Danny Lennon and Tommy Craig had built over that period.
“Down south sometimes people laugh at the game in Scotland,” he added, “But I was blown away by the talent which we had in that St Mirren side. Kenny McLean, Paul McGowan and John McGinn were all unreal players.
“Gary Teale, Jim Goodwin, David van Zanten were all great, experienced pros to have around the place too. Goody obviously had a bit of a reputation but there was no one you would rather have alongside you, these guys helped me straight away.
“Looking back it was a real good group of boys. There is a lot of guys who have gone on to great things.
“All you have to do is look at Graham Carey, he is flying at Plymouth and I think he scored 20 odd goals in League Two last season. Carey is a boy who struggled to even get in the team at times at St Mirren.
“Sean Kelly got a move down south for a while, and Jason Naismith was coming through the ranks too and has gone on to have a good career.”
Newton is now turning out for English National League side Hartlepool United following stints at Rotherham United and Cambridge in recent seasons.
With a young daughter, he revealed that he was always on the hunt for a move closer to home this summer, with Hartlepool coming along at the perfect time.
However, although only four years since that day at Hampden, Newton concedes the cup final drama feels like forever ago.
But that’s not to mean he doesn’t still revel in the glory...
“I look back on the whole cup experience as the best in my career.
“I maybe didn’t appreciate as much as I should have back then, but looking back everything just fell into place at the right time.
“St Mirren will also hold a piece of my heart because of that. It was the best time of my career, and I have the fondest of memories.”

Agree we have missed Ethan. Hopefully he can put in a good shift against Dundee Utd and Livingston to help our top 6 bid. 

Most fouls committed in #cinchPrem this season so far: Keanu Baccus - 58 Curtis Main - 55 Joe Newell - 49 Callum Slattery - 4   Ylber Ramadani - 45     Found that stat interesting, the most fouls out of any player in the league, just pipping his team mate. He hasn'tt even played every minute or anything, he's missed several games, impressive. I knew we were hammer throwers but having the top two in that table is almost admirable. 

Most fouls committed in #cinchPrem this season so far: Keanu Baccus - 58 Curtis Main - 55 Joe Newell - 49 Callum Slattery - 4   Ylber Ramadani - 45     Found that stat interesting, the most fouls out of any player in the league, just pipping his team mate. He hasn'tt even played every minute or anything, he's missed several games, impressive. I knew we were hammer throwers but having the top two in that table is almost admirable. 

Most fouls committed in #cinchPrem this season so far: Keanu Baccus - 58 Curtis Main - 55 Joe Newell - 49 Callum Slattery - 4   Ylber Ramadani - 45     Found that stat interesting, the most fouls out of any player in the league, just pipping his team mate. He hasn'tt even played every minute or anything, he's missed several games, impressive. I knew we were hammer throwers but having the top two in that table is almost admirable. 

Most fouls committed in #cinchPrem this season so far: Keanu Baccus - 58 Curtis Main - 55 Joe Newell - 49 Callum Slattery - 4   Ylber Ramadani - 45     Found that stat interesting, the most fouls out of any player in the league, just pipping his team mate. He hasn'tt even played every minute or anything, he's missed several games, impressive. I knew we were hammer throwers but having the top two in that table is almost admirable. 

I had a shocker. 😂😂 didn’t realise until 12 that the games the following week. 😂 

I think Taylor will start instead of Joe, sadly. He is terrible. 
The game isn’t tomorrow and as Watt is on loan he can’t play against his parent club. 
Apart from that great post 😉

Really ?    I was at that game and I don’t remember that 🤷‍♂️
im afraid you and I are going to have to disagree on what qualifies as outplaying the opposition.
 

I’ll leave the name calling to you, it’s what you do best. I’ll reiterate that Carson signing an extension is good news. He’s a solid player at this level. 

Jay’s a proven performer at top flight level and a Scotland U21 internationalist. He regularly provided goals and assists for us in the Scottish Premiership - two of our best goals for us last season were scored by him - Dundee Utd away and Dundee Utd at home and he got four assists, including a superb cross for the vital winner at Dens under Robinson. 
However, he’s a winger, not a defender. Sadly our hammer throwing style doesn’t allow for tricky wee wingers who can beat a man, get a ball in and score a goal. That’s not a slight against Henderson at all, there’s no attacking wingers in the world who would fit in our system.
Pity! 

A championship defence who we haven’t managed to score against in 190 Minutes of football this season . We’ve only managed 3 shots on target against them .
Jay is direct, quick and can put over a decent cross. I’d have him back but wonder if the manager simply doesn’t rate him .? 

Eamonn Brophy is not the only Saints player having a successful loan period in the highlands at the moment. Young Jay Henderson starts and stars in ICT’s cup quarter final win against Kilmarnock and he will now go with them to the Scottish Cup semi final. Ayr or Falkirk is a potential Hampden opponent for Caley, could we have a St Mirren player in a Scottish Cup final for the first time since 1987?
What a fantastic young player he is. Hopefully see more of him in a Saints strip soon. If we can’t use him, other top flight clubs will. 

Eamonn Brophy is not the only Saints player having a successful loan period in the highlands at the moment. Young Jay Henderson starts and stars in ICT’s cup quarter final win against Kilmarnock and he will now go with them to the Scottish Cup semi final. Ayr or Falkirk is a potential Hampden opponent for Caley, could we have a St Mirren player in a Scottish Cup final for the first time since 1987?
What a fantastic young player he is. Hopefully see more of him in a Saints strip soon. If we can’t use him, other top flight clubs will.