Utd v Livi

Just one night to go before this game, big game for us too, chance to leapfrog Utd and get ourselves into the top six.

Dunno if our new signing's international clearance will be through yet, but would think we'd be starting with Tiffoney up front again, his pace and darting runs will cause problems to Utd defenders, looking forward to seeing how Reynolds copes with him.

Arguably United started better than us but we have managed to keep in touch with them. Shankland’s nose for a goal worries me.

Last season saw us arguably play our best game away to then newly promoted Ross, a repeat of that would be perfect but I’d take a draw here.

Yeh i think United will pose a more potent threat up front than Saints did last week.Hopefully our defence is on their toes to keep them at bay.Guess wel have to wait to see the lineup.As We're away from home at a difficult venue, i like Bertie wouldnt be adverse to a point here although 3 would be brilliant. Good luck to the lads,lets keep this going.

They seem to score early then fade away in games, Shanks is dangerous but i don't think he gets the service he needs, and isn't a Dykes type player that can feed off scraps or run from deep. They're def vulnerable at the back too, and wont like our style of play.

Think it'll be close but i see us nicking it 2-1 or 3-2.

Big JET to come on and get us the winner on his debut. http://www.deadlinenews.co.uk/2020/10/01/gary-holt-hails-jay-emmanuel-thomas-for-putting-head-above-parapet/

Emmanuel-Thomas has not played a competitive match since turning out for Thai side PTT Rayong in July 2019 and, while Holt accepts a ‘kid gloves’ approach will be needed to getting him up to speed, he revealed that ‘JET’ could be involved in some form against Dundee United this evening.

Been training with us for over a week, must be ahead of Stokes fitness wise then if he's even being considered against Utd. This could be our player equivalent to Miller/Holt, having big Jay replacing Stokes.

Holt just teasing us then, no JET on the subs bench, and same starting XI as last week.

Slight concern about the lack of hieght again.But there again i said that last week.Ach,what do i know?Mon the Lions.

Well United have started well enough 1 up in 18 minutes... let’s hope they fade like LF suggests

LF - you called it perfectly

Excellent win... away from home. Alan Forrest with the winner

Just about calmed down now.Was about to write my post saying we deserved more than a point with the way we dominated that game,them Wham. Terrific set up play in the lead up to the winner and justice was done.United were terrible and at times looked like a Championship team.The chances we missed,especially big Effe i thought would bite us on the arse.But not to be.Magnificent all over the park And got the reward their play merited.Weve now got that momentum i spoke about and hopefully we can kick on.Well done lads.

Yep, i called it right.

Didn't think we'd cut the supply off to Shankland as much as we did right enough, gave him absolutely nothing. Think Utd only had 1 shot on goal, from their free kick, and they shouldn't have even got it, Serrano was fouled a few seconds earlier. Terrific free kick though, some bend on it.

We totally dominated the game, only complaint first half was Robbo not sticking his chances away, needed to do what Forrest and Tiffs did last week and pick his spot, curling it away from the keeper and keeping it low.

2nd half we continued to dominate play, had another couple of decent chances, what a relief when we finally equalised. Some ball in from Marv, and lovely sweeping effort from BBJ to score it. Was screaming for Holt to get Sibbald, Lawson and Lars on, to go for the winner, but i think he had too many flashbacks to last season where we got hit with sucker punches in the last minute of the game to come away with feckall. Turned out bloody brilliant in the end, Poplatnik helping mug Connolly then Robbo nipping in and taking the ball, Pitts taking it into the box and i was shouting shoot, passing it to Poplatnik and i was screaming fecking hit it, over to Forrest for a tap in, GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL, looking to see if the lino had his flag up, nope def a goal, yassssss.

Marv taking it into the corner flag, being knocked over, gets back up and wins a throw in, ref blows time up and we get an away win on grass.

From bottom of the table to 6th place in the space of two games, our season has just come to life. Happy days.

That wis good. I'm a happy bunny tonight. The whole team played well. Up till tonight the jury was out for me on Jason Holt but he impressed me tonight with his play. It was good to see Poplatnik coming on and doing well too.
John Beaton is an arse of a man. He has such an air of arrogance about him. You feel he does things to spite you just because you question a decision. We won but it was no thanks to him or his equally incompetent linesman. A big raspberry to both of them.

The hungrier team won last night despite dodgy officialdom again. You sometimes feel your playing against 12 men out there.Yeh United were poor,but id like to think that was down to us not allowing them to get into their stride. The Mcrorie debate goes on.Could he have got a hand to their goal,maybe but Clark has hit a belter there.The cup games coming up will tell us if Stryjek was a one hit pony. Hopefully he does well and puts Mcrorie under pressure. Good problem for Gary to think about.As ive said fully deserved victory for the Lions and optomism his slowly returning to the camp. Enjoy your weekend boys,youve earned it.

I didn’t buy the game but watched the highlights on Sportscene. Absolutely decked myself laughing at Mellon talking about us being dangerous from set pieces & how they knew that but didn’t compete well enough to counteract it.... after we had comprehensively wiped the floor with them in open play, consistently ripping them apart only for their keeper to save or us to somehow miss the chance created.

Even in the highlights some of our play was a joy to watch & Shelley Kerr summed it up by saying we are wrongly labelled a long ball team. And the highlights proved her point.

Tremendous goals, all 3 of them. BBJ finished off his one like a seasoned striker rather than a CB and the winner was like watching the promotion game up there, winning it back in their half & making them pay by scoring. The weight on Pops pass to Forrest was perfect & Forrest was composed enough to not lash at it but knock it calmly in.

Clark took his free kick superbly.... but, as someone (Troy I think) mentioned above the goal opens up the keeper debate again. Why is McCrorie so close to his right hand post? Yes the wall is covering the rest of the goal but if his starting position is two steps to his left then he probably saves the shot. He absolutely invited Clark to have a go in exactly the way Clark did. Instead, he concedes a goal on United’s only shot on target. Thankfully, it didn’t impact on the result.

Doubt he thought Clark could bend the ball around the wall like that, think folk are just looking to blame McCrorie for every goal now, it was hit low as well, had it been a foot off the ground McCrorie would've got to it.

Anyway, i blame the ref, and the lino, Serrano was fouled and ignored, Forrest ran onto a ball and flagged wrongly offside when he was clean through, we took a quick free kick and were clean through on goal and the diddy ref pulled us back because HE WASN'T READY, it isn't meant to be all about him, you're allowed to take quick free kicks to catch opponents out, as long as you put the ball down where it's meant to be and it isn't moving, there were several other fouls on our players we should've had too but didn't get. And another couple of offside decisions i'd contest. Ironically we may have been offside for our 2nd goal, complete inept officiating.

Rant over, now the good stuff, after watching the match again on the highlights, we really could've had at least 5 against them, and it wouldn't have flattered us, Robbo x 2, Efe, Devlin, Devlin's ball across the box that Connolly nearly turned into his own net, Forrest wrongly flagged offside i'd have put money on him scoring, there may have been more, even scoring 3 of those and it would've been deserved. Oh and Tiffs shot from a tight angle, had he fired that across the box we had 3 players waiting to pounce on it, think he took the wrong option there.

A few passes in the final third away from ripping them open too, just not quite coming off, if we keep improving every week we aren't far away from giving someone an absolute scudding. And that's without our new signing JET, whatever he brings to the team will be a bonus. Forrest looking like a brilliant signing too, currently scored a goal more than his big bro playing for Celtic, on course to get more than Lawless and i don't even think we've hit top gear yet.

I will agree with you on the inept referee & that their free kick should never have happened as Serrano was fouled... but McCrorie was nowhere near saving it regardless of the height. His starting position was wrong, simple as that, two steps to his left & he would have had a chance to save it & regardless of what he expected Clark to do he should have positioned himself correctly.

Ive tried to give Mcrorie the benefit of the doubt Bertie. But had he been in the correct position i reckon he might have got a hand to that.He wasnt but thank god it didnt cost us in the end.

Exactly my point Troy.

You two are looking at it after the event, knowing exactly where the ball went though. He had the wall set up so he didn't have to be over to his left, you have to credit the Utd boy for the bend he got on the ball.

Wasn't like DJ used to do leaving over three quarters of his goal open inviting the shot, then getting nowhere near it when the boy stuck it exactly where he had invited him, the wall was there to prevent it, and pure skill beat the wall.

I'm one of the first to criticize him for not even moving an arm when the ball goes past him, but you have to be fair too, you're both as bad as those pundits shifting defenders about on the screen saying they should've covered this and that when you know exactly where the ball is going post match analysis.

Ive already said L/F.,it was a good strike from Clark and your right.The bend of the ball caught him out.Just thought that in real time one yard would have made a difference. Only my opinion of course and not neccsesery Berties.

Yeah I posted after seeing the highlights... I couldn’t post before seeing the highlights but when I saw the wall & his starting position I knew right away it was going in (Okay I knew that form the twitter feed ) but I also knew where, what I didn’t anticipate was it going round the wall rather than over it but if Clark had gone over the wall with as much accuracy as he went round it McCrorie still wasn’t getting anywhere near it. His starting position was wrong & I could see that before the kick was taken, it was wrong enough for me to think “He’s too far to his right, no wonder Clark scores here”.

Yes I know the wall is to protect one side of the goal but when players execute their free kicks as well as Clark did the keeper still has to be positioned well enough to make a save. So he has to be more central & ready to spring either way as well as being ready for a cross.

Reminded me of the great save Stryjek made against a free kick taken by Rangers. One thing I'd say is that Serrano would have been off the pitch after getting treatment for the foul seconds before United got their free kick. So potentially one less in the wall. There was just so much wrong with the decision making by the referee in those minutes. That's why a winning goal in the final minute was so sweet.