Soulsonic5791

I hadn't read the previous page with John's comments re Bob and Carl. But the editorial stance taken by PQ over McLaughlin conjured up images of that era. As has been mentioned previously, the BBC are failing the licence payer by the standards of their charter. On one hand it is petty, small-minded, parochial nonsense. But on the other, it shines a light on the political machinations that occur in opaque areas of UK government. And let's not kid on that the BBC is anything other than an adjunct of it.

All of which begs the question 26th, who has McLaughlin's back and how high up does it go? I mean, it's hardly a case of Ben Bradlee backing Woodstein is it?

Standards. It's what it's all about Ser.

I'm running out of score notes Buster! Joking apart, thanks for the kind words. They mean a lot!

Cheers Frankie. I knew I'd made a faux pas as I was saying it at the time but forgot to mention it as well. Possibly sidetracked a little by the technical glitches. I see someone has pointed it out on You Tube too. Merciless soanso.

How embarrassing - my arithmetic! Apologies guys, I was in a bit of a rush the other night after getting back late from the game. Don't know what I was thinking...dearie me. I promise my next outing in a Gersnet jersey will be a better one.

Leaving aside SNP bias, surely the club should be developing our own property. The existing area for the 'Fan Zone' wouldn't take too much capital expenditure to be made more suitable and user friendly would it? Presumably the only drawback would be its capacity issues?

Yeah, I was about to mention that we totally underestimated NK Maribor during that tie coupled with the fact that we looked seriously deflated after exiting the CL to Malmo. Seem to recall Davie Weir looking every bit his age during the game at Ibrox.

Hopefully that is the bare minimum Craig. There is speculation linking us with Mark Beevers from Bolton. Surely a back-up squad addition but if it is accurate, the Warburton undertones that people have been moaning about, may be more well founded than some are willing to give them credit for.

Fair enough mate. Whilst I'm reasonably satisfied with the business we've done thus far, I reckon we are still light. I honestly think (and I caveat this with 'the window is far from shut') that if we head into the first half of the season with a playing squad pretty much as it currently stands, then the euphoric sense of expectation back in mid May will have to be drastically revised by large sections of the support. Stevie and his team may be very, very good at what they do but they are not miracle workers. I'm not expecting miracles nor 55 this time around, but if any subsequent signings are of a similar quality to what we've seen up until now (Coulibaly and Sidiq aside as we haven't seen them yet) then thousands, who are hoping for a miracle, are going to be sorely disappointed in my view. I obviously hope I am very wrong and that everyone can excel and deliver over and above most fans expectations this season.

Do you not wish for more signings which are proven Craig? Liverpool youth players are all well and good if they come off, but we can't really rely on them can we? Remember guys like Lee Martin?

As you say BJ. I wonder what quid pro quo favour it is that Ann has called in?

It's the only language these people understand mate but if you'd prefer I could always mistime my tackle on him by a minute or so. I wouldn't want to be accused of ungentlemanly conduct. Having said that, I could adopt the Souness stealth GBH approach - that might be more fun.

I'd scythe the bassa down with a Hurlock-esque assault Buster!

And they decry the dissenters who accuse them of 'corruption' eh Coop? The Boys In Maroon even had eight grand of their ten grand fine deferred until sometime next year! It'd be laughable if it wasn't so serious.

Pretty much the best we could've hoped for. Osijek will be no pushovers though, so the old cliché applies. The painful lack of internationals in our squad is now coming in to sharp focus. The only silver lining for me, is that our more settled opponents, current and potential, are at the start of their seasons too and are every bit as vulnerable to an upset and exit as we are (glass half full here). That said, the lack of movement in the transfer market is beginning to concern me slightly.

So Hertz get a slap on the wrist for fielding an ineligible player - a new precedent set?

A happy coincidence that Lawwell won't have to vote on whether the SFA pursue us through CAS over Licencegate? A happy coincidence that he and McCluskey can circle the wagons to protect the vulnerable Shifty?

Not in my estimation. Ahh...the old chestnut of a passing affinity with the Harry Wraggs - who would've thought it. Cowards. What could Murray have done other than grease a few palms?

All the best with that. Murdo Fraser, Jackson Carlaw, Brian Donaghue, Ian Davidson (if he's still in parliament) - not exactly an inspiring list. And by that, I mean politicians who command respect across the political spectrum. As you know only too well 26th, no one from the SNP will speak up on our behalf.

The National??? Leaving the politics to one side Darthter, the quality of the writing - do you rate it?

Would concur with that Bill. Windass didn't deserve to ve subbed before Jamie Murphy for me. Morelos - that excuse for a header in the first half - he needs competition for his place, badly. Stevie's pm interviewis an accurate summation. Other than the chance near the end, personally speaking, I thought it was a glorified training exercise.

I must confess, I did initially think 'if Huddersfield let him go he'll never make it with us'. Is it unfair to say that he flatters to decieve or is it wholly deserved? Regardless, I'm pretty sure that he'll be sold if he hits form and ups his consistency levels or if he nosedives and is deemed surplus to requirements. And as much as I don't take to him personally, I hope he does the business and confounds his critics. At the end of the day, the club will benefit.

I would agree with that. I'm not expecting 55 anytime soon. A cup would be realistic though imho. I was meaning that we can't let standards slip. Warburton tried to dilute expectations and he was given short shrift from the support. Although you could argue that he never really 'got it' despite having Weir as a sounding board. As I mentioned, it's a difficult balancing act. But the moment you start settling for mediocrity that's when it'll start to become the norm. The last two seasons have given us an insight into this (financial constraints aside). Leaving all that aside though, onwards and upwards.

Fair shout Buster. It was noticeable the other night how much Stevie turned to Mick Beale. I can only hope that the message is getting through. You (possibly) sound confident. I'm more cautiously optimistic though. I think it'll be tight and edgy. I'll happily be proved wrong though!