match thread (image) [FT] Hamilton 3 - 5 Rangers (Murphy 10; Windass 19, 34, 72; Morelos 27)

[stewarty 1,876]

... had baws she'd be yer da!   So the saying goes. 

 

Football fans love to speculate on alternative outcomes.  How many times have we all said:

 

"If we win the next 'x' number of games and our rival drop points here and there, we'll be only 'y' points behind with a game in hand."

 

Or:

 

"If player 'a' hadn't got sent off, we wouldn't have lost that game and we would be just 'b' points further ahead so only need to win 'c' more games to win the title."

 

Its a little bit of fun and it plays on the emotional heart strings as fans, but often it just sets ourselves up for a fall based on unrealistic expectations.  More often than not, the results you get are a product of the quality and consistency of your team.

 

Take our current situation.  Had our home form in particular been better this season and if we hadn't lost to the likes of Hibs, Hamilton and Dundee, we could have been, say,  5 or 6 points better off and within touching distance of Celtic who are trying to balance their European and domestic commitments whilst managing a squad depleted with various injuries.  It would be game on as we move into the final third of the season.

 

But we are where we are.  Improving on out league position relative to last year is still the main aim, along with a real tilt at the Scottish Cup.   Any talk of challenging Celtic this season seems fanciful, but the psychology of the chase can play a part in changing that.  Yes we are behind Aberdeen and Celtic right now, but there is growing sense of confidence in the squad, the management structure and the promise of further financial strengthening off the pitch.  

The next 3 games you would imagine are therefore critical.  Hamilton away, Hearts at home and then St Johnstone away all before the end of the month and ahead of the next Old Firm game.   Nine points are therefore vital in order to put some pressure on our nearest rivals.   We also need to see those same rivals dropping some points.

Aberdeen particularly have three tricky ties coming up.  Hibs away at the weekend, followed by Celtic at home and then Motherwell away.   

Celtic have St Johnstone on Sunday, Aberdeen away following their trip to Russia to complete the return leg against Zenit,  and then Dundee at home.   Crucially though, that will be a run of four games in eleven days for the injury hit Celtic.

 

So, in true speculative style, I'm predicting that my maw may well get the sex change she's been promised.  The next two weeks promise to be make or break for our season.   If we are to stand any chance of putting in a league title challenge it really is now or never.   If we can rattle in a big win at the weekend, I'll happily get the bandwagon started.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Gonzo79 13,555]

Sadly, I wouldn't bet on us getting 9 points from those games.  Finishing 3rd again would be a huge disappointment, particularly after our three victories against the sheep.

[stewarty 1,876]

Just now, Gonzo79 said:

Sadly, I wouldn't bet on us getting 9 points from those games.  Finishing 3rd again would be a huge disappointment, particularly after our three victories against the sheep.

Come on Gonzo, where's the ridiculous over-confidence and hubris that we bears are famous for?

[Frankie 8,136]

The Hibs defeat aside I think we've done pretty well by and large since the awful week before Christmas where we lost to St Johnstone and Killie.

 

Our form is still inconsistent but the results have been good and I think most bears will also be happy with our transfer work last month.

 

You're right to say the next few weeks are key though - another three league wins will set us up nicely for the Old Firm game and hopefully have us at least level on points with Aberdeen.  Better performances would be even more agreeable but it's certainly a case of results first.

 

There certainly can be no more excuses given the options we have.  OK, we might not have the manager we all want overseeing the team but the players we have all are capable of doing the business.

[Gonzo79 13,555]

14 minutes ago, stewarty said:

Come on Gonzo, where's the ridiculous over-confidence and hubris that we bears are famous for?

The demotion and endless disappointments and humiliations since have knocked that out of me, I'm afraid.

[stewarty 1,876]

3 minutes ago, Frankie said:

The Hibs defeat aside I think we've done pretty well by and large since the awful week before Christmas where we lost to St Johnstone and Killie.

 

Our form is still inconsistent but the results have been good and I think most bears will also be happy with our transfer work last month.

 

You're right to say the next few weeks are key though - another three league wins will set us up nicely for the Old Firm game and hopefully have us at least level on points with Aberdeen.  Better performances would be even more agreeable but it's certainly a case of results first.

 

There certainly can be no more excuses given the options we have.  OK, we might not have the manager we all want overseeing the team but the players we have all are capable of doing the business.

Oh stop it, Captain Sensible.  

 

If we give Hamilton a proper scudding on Sunday then I'm on the bevvy till 55.

[stewarty 1,876]

2 minutes ago, Gonzo79 said:

The demotion and endless disappointments and humiliations since have knocked that out of me, I'm afraid.

FFS Gonzo, I'm trying to get us excited here.   

[Gonzo79 13,555]

13 minutes ago, stewarty said:

FFS Gonzo, I'm trying to get us excited here.   

Apologies.  

 

I'll get excited when we beat the scum...until then, I'll remain pessimistic.

[Gaffer 1,665]

44 minutes ago, Gonzo79 said:

Apologies.  

 

I'll get excited when we beat the scum...until then, I'll remain pessimistic.

I'm the optimistic one but I also agree with Gonzo.  Celtic are the benchmark.  We've shown that we are catching them and that is cause for optimism in itself, but to really get excited we have to show we can beat them.  I think we're still a season away from that at the moment.

 

what does excite me though is that we are building a really solid squad that should be able to compete with the best of the rest in the SPL now.  The days of us having to sign 8/9 new players and then get them to gel should be over.  It's more of a case of adding a few players to strengthen the first team.  That's cause for celebration in my eyes because it's night and day to where we were over the past few years.

 

So, you can see I'm optimistic about the future, but not yet as excited as I'd like to be.  If we beat them in our next game though I might just let myself get quite excited.

[Frankie 8,136]

Exactly what Gaffer said...