Dibbles old paperboy

We had a former England U19 goalkeeper on our books this season as well.

Indeed. All I have said is that it seems very strange when he appeared to be doing well and was on the first team bench under Stubbs and Kearney, playing for the reserves, being called up and winning a Scotland U19 cap that whether or not he would have 'made it' full time as a longer term career choice, to vanish mid-season without having had a bad game or cost us a few goals in a game to justify being dropped or having a turn on the bench, seems odd. Almost twenty years ago I worked alongside someone who had years earlier played in the Scottish schools team alongside Brian McClair, Paul McStay and Gary McAllister so I'm quite familiar with the reality that not everyone doing well in the different age groups within academy football or representing their country at youth level will have a successful career in the game.

I'm not the player's dad or uncle, nor a close family friend. I do find it surprising when we stand to make more on top of the £900k we already received from John McGinn (a former youth academy player) that there seems to be a feeling of no one cares why a Scotland U19 player left our academy set up mid-season.

The question is really why did we release someone who was doing well in the academy, had broken into the Scotland set up, when our No. 2 was out with a long term injury, and our No. 1 had just left to take up a coaching job at Sunderland. You'd think that in such a scenario we'd be keeping them until the end of the season?

Information on the youth academy squad was removed from the official website during the season. Previously it has still be announced when academy players go out on loan, represent Scotland (or their own country at youth international level), or if academy players are being released. When I looked a month or two ago I think our academy squad was listed as MacPherson and Erhahon!

Signed for club in the summer. One of a few academy players who made the first team bench early in the season. A few people watching academy games said he was looking better than Danny Rodgers was, and he got his first Scotland cap in the autumn and after a decent first few months, mutually consented.

In our list of loanees returning to parent clubs, players not having contracts renewed, it might have escaped people's notice we had a u19 international on our books this year who was in the first team squad and mutually consented with nothing being posted on the official site wishing them well for the future. Can anyone name the player?

I'm sure last year the difference between our prize money as Championship winners and Hamilton finishing 11th was over £500k. We look to be getting the kind of money Hamilton got last year.

Ask Alan.

How do you know? :-)

I hardly thinking missing out on top 6 or failing to win a cup 1 season after staying up via the play-offs will be judged a failure by anyone*. Last season we were knocked out the League Cup by Aberdeen 4-0, knocked out the Scottish Cup by Dundee United at home and finished 11th and were 12 points behind Livingston, I think at one point we were about 20 points behind them. Have Tommy Wright or Stephen Robinson had unimpressive seasons since St Johnstone and Motherwell (clubs better placed than us at that moment) failed to make the top 6 or win anything? * anyone = any reasonable person. LPM and Tick Tock Cat will no doubt find reasons to berate Oran's performance compared with Stubbs!

Anton has already said cheerio and thanks for the memories and lemon fanta!

Our only worry will be what happens if a first team player sends his fitness app data in late.

I don't remember anyone / one single poster in the previous 2 pages having a meltdown. Most thought he was an odd signing in the first place (given the size of our lead and the likelihood we'd be in the premiership rather than the championship).

They might wonder if Christmas has come early.

We might do well to move McManus on from the youth academy to first team coach and appoint another youth academy director.

I stayed at the same hotel in Dundee as Inverness and St Mirren a few weeks ago and was surprised by the amount of Dundee coaches also using the hotel. Wonder if Jimmy Nicholl was tapped up while Oran was away watching Dundee United v Inverness!

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/48468553

and my favourite one - Gary MacKenzie not even worth a look in pre-season - told at La Manga he would be surplus to requirements... before we'd played a preseason friendly.

Jack Ross wasn't simply offered 5x his salary by bad old Sunderland. He applied for the job. Then was interviewed. Then agreed a contract, and only when he was all set to be unveiled as Sunderland manager were St Mirren told of developments. Meanwhile he was telling the Scottish press he had a job to do at St Mirren and was looking forward to having a shot at breaking into the top 6. Folks at Alloa seemed to know before our chairman and CEO. I for one was amused to see Jack looking and sounding humble for the first time I can remember after Charlton won the play offs.

We could use the opportunity to try and interest other clubs in signing Josh Heaton... unless they do due dilligence and discover he didn't start a league game!

Elvis to keep predicting we lose every game - its worked out well over the last 3 seasons for us.

One of Tom's replies said we had been "shite all season" and shouldn't be celebrating beating DUFC on penalties. Huge disrespect for the job Oran Kearney did and for the players signed in January, but I doubt he has really followed results or performances that closely. Michael Stewart is great. A few weeks ago when he was speaking about our good form since the split I tweeted him our results since losing to DUFC in the cup in February and since then he has spoken about our momentum and only having a few defeats in 2 or 3 months.

or might have concluded that Baird was being pushed by Connolly when he pulled Sanfranco down.

Out of all the refereeing shenanigans yesterday the big question one everyone's mind on our side behind the goals in the Family Stand was what was John Beaton trying to do to Hladky during the penalty shoot out. In the run up to most United kicks he was shouting at Hladky (but silent when their keeper was facing our penalty takers) and then went eyeball to eyeball with Vaclav after their penalty miss. Couldn't see Hladky engaging in much in the way of gamesmanship (unlike our ballboys!) I'd be very interested to know if any of the live footage on BT Sport caught what was going on between Beaton and Hladky during the shoot out and would suggest that even more so than the dodgy United penalty, 2 non-red cards to United, red card to Nazon that the club should be kicking up hell with the SFA and SPFL over Beaton trying to intimidate our goalkeeper during a play off penalty shoot out.