JTP

Not that it matters much but Jordan Thomson should have made the list before Burt probably. Assuming it's first team related.

Used to play football with and against his auld man when we were young lads.

 

Matty jnr is very highly rated and I'm glad someone brought him to attention of the club.

For a pub quiz question only here ........

What team did he support?

He is a mates wifes' cousins' boy!,I'm already trying to squeeze some info on him:devil:

Just you carry on with the digging Ian forget the rest haha

Over the course of the full season for me, Barrie McKay has been our best player.

Granted he is a cert for young player of the year though and not many will agree with me. But I think his contribution has been absolutely terrific. In a difficult position to be consistant.

I tell you what is also severely underrated with him, his first touch. It's absolutely sublime.

You have to wonder why Whittaker was named in the squad to begin with given he hasn't played a minute of first team football in 2016.

And added to fact that he's rotten.

It's this type of constant pick that only helps hold us back.

Out with the old (the LOT of them) and in with new. Manager/staff/mentality/ideas included.

This should have been released alongside the initial "oh we are buying a new stand" when it was announced.

I was against the idea of a stand but Craig's putting a new spin on it, I can see the benefits more clearly now. As said they should have released it at the same time IMO.

I like MOH so far and I fully believe he will be a good addition to the team. I'm impressed with his dribbling ability at pace and how he keeps the ball so close to his feet and under control.

But his crossing is absolutely woeful.

Only time I've seen him find a man that I can recall is when Miller ballooned it over the bar from 3 yards, but countless times I've seen him over hitting it or crossing it out the park due to the fact he's too quick.

An area I'm hoping they are quickly working on.

I'll be taking this into consideration the next time I buy the wee fella a pair of boots, he's only 5 just now but does go to a wee class on 4G at present.

Interesting that we allow him on loan to a team with a plastic pitch given the latest ramblings around it.

I think that if you prevent them from being promoted then the motivation goes out of it for the OF players - they have nothing to play for other than pride.

 

The Spanish route is the way for me. They can still be promoted but cannot play in the same league as their senior team. Allowing promotion would give the OF players the chance to get promoted to within one league of their senior team, thus showing the management that they might be ready for that next step. All the while gaining competitive games.

Probably a fairer example Craig. Ultimately they can't play in the same league as the first team.

For me it's a no brainer, have a Rangers and celtic "reserve" side in the third division who can't be promoted. The revenue it would generate for the third division sides would be life changing to them.

Some of the U20s teams should be in the lower divisions.

And THIS is when a stand would be required at the training ground.

Wonder how much Bill was paid then .........

St Johnstone manager Tommy Wright fears he would lose HALF a team if the McDiarmid Park pitch turned plastic

 

CHAIRMAN Steve Brown admitted he might be forced to consider a plastic pitch in the future due to the state of the surface.

 

TOMMY WRIGHT fears he would lose half a team if St Johnstone installed a plastic pitch at McDiarmid Park.

 

But the Perth boss insists there is no chance of it happening in time for next season with Steven MacLean at the club.

 

Saints star striker MacLean has been told not to play on astroturf after suffering two serious injuries on synthetic surfaces.

 

Chairman Steve Brown admitted he might be forced to consider a plastic pitch in the future due to the state of the surface.

 

Rangers boss Mark Warburton recently called for a top flight ban on astro and Wright agrees it should be grass only in the Scottish Premiership.

 

And if St Johnstone are to go down the plastic route then it won’t be any time soon with MacLean having only recently signed a two year deal.

 

Captain Dave Mackay, Steven Anderson, Chris Millar and Murray Davidson would also struggle to play regularly on an artificial surface.

 

And Wright said: “The chairman has to consider it in the future but it will not be in for next season because we’ve got Steven MacLean and probably three or four other players who couldn’t play on it week in week out.

 

“In fact, the lads joked that six of them would be getting paid up if we put it down! From a sporting point of view it’s wrong that Steven Maclean is not available for certain games for us on medical advice.

 

“The chairman never said he was keen. He said he would consider it in the future and that makes him a responsible chairman. If he makes a decision to put it in I have to accept it but I can’t see it in the near future.

 

“We have players who can’t play on it, players who couldn’t play on it regularly. It has been a freakish winter with the amount of rain we have had and the water table is high. Pitches have struggled and ours isn’t the worst.”

 

Wright remains firmly in favour of grass pitches and believes clubs should get together with the SPFL and look at ways of improving the preferred surface for players.

 

Artificial heat lamps are common in England to cultivate the grass but cost clubs up to £30,000 and the Saints gaffer one possibility is for Scottish sides to split the cost.

 

He said: “Look at the pitches in England. They used to be shocking but now they are very good because of huge investment. I know some clubs have lamps to help the grass grow over the winter and maybe we should be working together and sharing costs.

 

“Should the SPFL be giving clubs money? No, but I think collectively the duty is with the clubs. I don’t know if funding is available but clubs should work together.

 

“I don’t know what lights costs but why can’t Dundee, Dundee United and us share lights? There must be ways we can work together to cut costs and improve the pitches.

 

“Grass won’t go away. The majority of teams want to play on grass and the majority of players would probably prefer to play on a poor grass pitch than an astro.

 

“I genuinely believe that in the top league we shouldn’t have plastic pitches. I’m still in the grass camp but if if you were to put a plastic pitch down then it has to be of the highest quality and also preferably has to be only used on a matchday or first team training.”

 

Wright won’t be signing Julien Faubert after the former Real Madrid and West Ham man left Perth yesterday after receiving other offers from abroad.

 

But he did add to his squad yesterday as Bulgarian defender Plamen Krachunov, 27, agreed a deal until the end of the season after impressing on trial.

 

Krachunov said: “Saints have qualified for Europe in the last four seasons and I will do what I can to help them qualify again.”

 

Saints head to Firhill tonight after ending a nine-game winless run with a 2-1 victory against Motherwell at the weekend. And Wright said: “The dressing room was buzzing on Saturday but you can’t take anything for granted in this league.

 

“It’s good to get the win - it puts us back in the top six and keeps us in touch with Ross County - and if we can get something from this game we can put real pressure on the teams above us. A draw would actually take us fourth on goal difference so the win came at the right time.”

 

Read more at http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/st-johnstone-manager-tommy-wright-7420108#SOUw2syATvrJj8kG.99

I'll expect this to be a back page headline then, Wright wants artificial banned too ..................

I meet socially with one of the guys who has been investigating and working on this case. While not giving away any secrets to me or anyone else it's fair to say they have every confidence that this one is wrapped up tightly. <snip>

Let's hope so. I still have my doubts we will see any sort of justice however.

Is it not the case that McKay and Wilson skipped the U20's because they were good enough to go straight into the first team squad whereas none of the current crop are.

Therefore what happens at U20's is irrelevant as they were good enough to make the grade.

I'm not saying the U20's is productive I'm just arguing as to how the article is angled.

Haha!

 

Seriously though, the lad must have some confidence to play some of the passes he does - especially the medium length balls out wide over the top of opposition players' heads. Best thing is, he's bloody accurate with them and that's really useful for when teams press us high up the park.

Agreed.

Even from day 1 when it put us in trouble at times, the crowd were getting impatient but we all know it's how we play, straight from the manager and a huge part of our analysis in terms of possession stuff etc.

He's very much improved, as have our back 4 also as a unit. Still work to be done but progress all the same.

Maybe finally an interview where they don't mention plastic pitches ..........

A couple of points I have:

- The RFFF are saying to contact them if you have alternative ideas stating name, address and Rangers number. I don't have a Rangers number as I'm not a ST holder but I DID contribute to the RFFF so do I not get a say?

- It appears to me that the decision has been made so any ideas are a waste of time as far as I'm concerned.

- And Parking at MP is pretty poor as it stands, have they addressed this issue if they want another 200+ turning up? It isn't exactly sitting alongside a bus stop/train station.

I think he's very good. Yes, perhaps he could be more commanding at times but generally his shot-stopping is excellent and there's no doubt the quality of his distribution is key to the way we play.

Goalie sticking up for Goalie shocker eh ........

I do agree though :-)

Bit of a shambles now to be honest ........

The sooner these are out of the way, the better.

Yip agreed, squeeze them all in and don't touch grass for over a week. Then back to normality.

Speaking of pitches, starting on Saturday, we'll play 3 games in 8 days on artificial pitches.

I would say that's a benefit to us.

For me, whilst I realise it would never happen. I'd ban anyone who's ever sat on ANY sort of fans board before. I realise this may lose potential good candidates but for me it's the only way we could start fresh with no underhand behaviour.

I'd also then be weary of the new candidate who is mates with the guy who's been banned from applying etc ......

As said I know it would never work but it's just getting ridiculous now.

Kiernan tweeted after the game (or day after) that he was ok and it wasn't serious so I'm sure he will be available.

If any doubts I'd rest him on Saturday and go with Ball/Wilson at CB.