The Partick Thistle thread

[Pie Of The Month]

24 minutes ago, Hammer Jag said:

I see Amazing Archie’s maw wants our fans to fund another trip.

What a brass neck.

If there's folk daft enough to do it.....

Reddit have a cracking page about this kind of thing

https://www.reddit.com/r/DontFundMe

[jagfox]

Devine is suspended for our next two games. Barton and Keown can't be far behind on that front either.

I did a transfermarkt check for a replacement and the best i came up with was Harry Lennon at Chalton.  Just back from injury but played last few games.  6'4" and left footed. Unfortunately seems to be part of manager's plans due to an injury crisis. 

Motherwell have taken Tom Aldred on loan so plenty of centre halves available in the cross border loan market.

Edited January 16, 2018 by jagfox99

[Rednyella]

http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/sport/partick_thistle/15829880.Chris_Erskine_thinks_that_returning_Partick_Thistle_players_can_boost_squad_like_new_signings/

Above in ET, Squiddy pretty much saying we aren't signing players. 

I think the only way we do is if something special becomes available, gives more balance (left foot) and/or is a player that will give us some extra and go straight into team. 

Squad fit and available: 

GKs: Cerny, Scully and Sneddon

Full Backs: Penrice, Booth, Dumbuya, McGinn, Nitriansky (also plays CB)

Centre Backs: Barton, Keown, Devine

Defensive Midfield: Osman, Woods

Midfield: Bannigan, Edwards, McCarthy, Fraser 

Attacking / Wide Midfielders: Lawless, Erskine, Spittal

Forwards: Doolan, Sammon, Storey, Nesbit 

Injured List: Elliott (Due back Feb)

Really when you look at it, we've got plenty of options and competition. The above is easily good enough to get the job done climbing up the league. 

I also think, that:

1. Barton has to start as middle CB. 

2. Sammon was just coming onto a good game through December, scoring goals and we should have him and Doolan partnered together as much as possible. Storey is a nice back up with pace and skill. He could also play as a wider player and be an impact sub. 

3. Edwards fitness and athleticism is under-rated and he should be kept in midfield when fit.  He's an energizer bunny! 

4. Spittal & Lawless are now free to play in their favored positions and should be allowed to play as creatively as possible. No more wing back roles! ;-) 

5. Priority - Get Penrice and Osman signed up on new deals PRONTO! 

I'm excited to get back into the season...Mon the Jags! 

 

[cilitbang]

Experienced CB (pref left footed) + DMF specialist that isn’t injury prone and I’ll be content.

Surely Archie still has a list of CBs already since it was only 6months ago we were replacing Lindsay. 

I’d like to think the same in regards to DMF as we have been waiting  on longstanding injury problems there since promotion (Welsh missed most of our 1st season back pretty much? Then Fraser, then Bannigan). 

Basically there’s no excuse to not have 3-4 targets lined up for these positions. 

[Pie Of The Month]

Regarding point number 3 no one underrates Edwards' fitness or athleticism, it's literally the only thing he rated for. It's his lack of footballing ability that's the problem.

[Thistle4eva]

3 hours ago, Rednyella said:

http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/sport/partick_thistle/15829880.Chris_Erskine_thinks_that_returning_Partick_Thistle_players_can_boost_squad_like_new_signings/

Above in ET, Squiddy pretty much saying we aren't signing players. 

I think the only way we do is if something special becomes available, gives more balance (left foot) and/or is a player that will give us some extra and go straight into team. 

Squad fit and available: 

GKs: Cerny, Scully and Sneddon

Full Backs: Penrice, Booth, Dumbuya, McGinn, Nitriansky (also plays CB)

Centre Backs: Barton, Keown, Devine

Defensive Midfield: Osman, Woods

Midfield: Bannigan, Edwards, McCarthy, Fraser 

Attacking / Wide Midfielders: Lawless, Erskine, Spittal

Forwards: Doolan, Sammon, Storey, Nesbit 

Injured List: Elliott (Due back Feb)

Really when you look at it, we've got plenty of options and competition. The above is easily good enough to get the job done climbing up the league. 

I also think, that:

1. Barton has to start as middle CB. 

2. Sammon was just coming onto a good game through December, scoring goals and we should have him and Doolan partnered together as much as possible. Storey is a nice back up with pace and skill. He could also play as a wider player and be an impact sub. 

3. Edwards fitness and athleticism is under-rated and he should be kept in midfield when fit.  He's an energizer bunny! 

4. Spittal & Lawless are now free to play in their favored positions and should be allowed to play as creatively as possible. No more wing back roles! ;-) 

5. Priority - Get Penrice and Osman signed up on new deals PRONTO! 

I'm excited to get back into the season...Mon the Jags! 

 

Problem with Barton is he also wasn’t great in a back 4 and Keown are too similar to play together. Centre half’s a must

[Nightmare]

If we expect to get to the end of this season with only Keown, Devine and Barton as our centre backs, when we mainly play a system with three centre backs, then we're fucking idiots and deserve the relegation that will most likely follow.

[Fuctifano]

Definitely need a 4th centre half.  I'd still like to see us sign another attacking midfielder, someone with pace, only Storey of all our attacking options has that -Sammon has a decent top speed but takes him about 20 yards to get going, see his goal vs RC.

Edwards has games where his energy is useful, mainly ones where we don't see a lot of the ball, but I'd rather our attacking midfielders could create or score.

[AitchisonJag]

Regarding point number 3 no one underrates Edwards' fitness or athleticism, it's literally the only thing he rated for. It's his lack of footballing ability that's the problem.

In my opinion, Edwards has improved as a footballer this season. His passing has got slowly better and I think his decision making has improved. However, because he’s been playing as one of two rather than three, he’s not had a chance to show it.
One of the reasons that I feel we were so good against Motherwell in the first half is because Woods cane into the team allowing Ryan to push up a bit more. As such he got his goal and made the run which gave Sammon the space to score from. Obviously, he’s had some stinkers this season but so has the entire team and I hope he gets to play more in that three now we have Abdul back.

Anyway, Archie has some really big decisions to make about his best XI all of a sudden. He’ll have to pick five players out of: Woods, Osman, Edwards, McCarthy, Spittal, Erskine, Lawless, Sammon, Doolan and Storey.

I reckon we should be going with Sammon and Doolan up top with Spittal, Edwards, Woods and Osman as the starting midfield though it’s harsh to leave McCarthy out after doing a great job against the top two teams in the league and then putting in a top sub performance in a crucial match.

Also, considering how we’ve relied heavily on attacking full backs and wing backs since Archie has been in charge you would imagine that a fit Dumbuya would come straight back into the team which I think would be a bit tough on McGinn who I reckon has been one of our better players, or less regularly dreadful.

[Nightmare]

44 minutes ago, AitchisonJag said:

I reckon we should be going with Sammon and Doolan up top with Spittal, Edwards, Woods and Osman as the starting midfield though it’s harsh to leave McCarthy out after doing a great job against the top two teams in the league and then putting in a top sub performance in a crucial match.

What formation would that be? You can probably count on one hand the number of times Archie has gone with a 4-4-2 since he took over. Only one of them is a wide player as well, so I really don't know how that lineup would work.

Assuming we persist with the 3-5-2 (assuming we will, seeing as it's clearly a better fit for us), I'd think it'll be Spittal/Lawless, Woods and Osman in midfield against the weaker teams in the league, with Edwards in for Spittal/Lawless in the tougher games. 

[AitchisonJag]

What formation would that be? You can probably count on one hand the number of times Archie has gone with a 4-4-2 since he took over. Only one of them is a wide player as well, so I really don't know how that lineup would work.
Assuming we persist with the 3-5-2 (assuming we will, seeing as it's clearly a better fit for us), I'd think it'll be Spittal/Lawless, Woods and Osman in midfield against the weaker teams in the league, with Edwards in for Spittal/Lawless in the tougher games. 

You’re right, that wouldn’t work. Doolan and Sammon has potential as a partnership so we’d have to drop one of the four midfielders but I don’t know who that would be. Woods has been very good and if he could get through ninety minutes I’d be starting him. Osman must start when fit so it’s between Edwards and Spittal. Spittal is much more creative but Edwards deserves a run at number ten after so long in sitting midfield. These are the decisions that Archie gets paid to make I suppose.

[Sting777]

I think we are well covered everywhere, except central defence, that's if the long term crocks are fully fit and ready to hit the ground running and that is a big if. It's a pity about Turnbull as the defence was beginning to look pretty solid again, especially at Firhill. Be happy if our only business in this window is a half decent centre back though there is always the possibility that Penrice might get a run at centre back, at least until Danny is over his suspension.

Edited January 17, 2018 by Sting777

[Mulder & Ryan Scully]

If we continue 3-5-2 with a fully fit squad which lets face it we have to in order for barton to steady an awful back line, then there is no way players like lawless, Erskine & Spitall fit in.

If anything you would be looking at most one from the three to play or something mental like Erskine up front.

[jagfox]

Erskine has often played as the support man to the centre forward in a 3-5-2.

Irrespective of players coming back I'd like to see a central defender and a central midfielder added to the squad. Don't mind if their loans particularly. 

[AitchisonJag]

Centre half is the most obvious spot and I reckon Archie will bring in a loan player.
In midfield, I think we’ll only sign someone if Banzo has another setback.

[Thistle4eva]

I reckon Penrice will be used in midfield if we are struggling. If we don’t sign anyone and One or two of our recovering players has a setback we are pretty fucked. A experienced central defender and maybe a winger that can get to the byline and put a ball in the box would be great. Can’t remember the last time we had an out and out winger. Having Penrice back is great can play anywhere on the left side, really hope Archie doesn’t try and turn him into a centre half. Reading his reviews from his time at Livingston he seems too creative to play cb.

Edited January 17, 2018 by Thistle4eva

[Fuctifano]

1 minute ago, Thistle4eva said:

I reckon Penrice will be used in midfield if we are struggling. If we don’t sign anyone and One or two of our recovering players has a setback we are pretty fucked. A experienced central defender and maybe a winger that can get to the byline and put a ball in the box would be great. Can’t remember the last time we had an out and out winger. Having Penrice back is great can play anywhere on the left side, really hope Archie doesn’t try and turn him into a centre half. Reading his reviews from his time at Livingston he seems too creative to play cb.

It was last season, Amoo. I'm not going to pretend he was good, but we haven't got a player like him who can go past players on the outside for pace and get crosses in the box in the current squad. 

[Mediocre Pundit]

When we have two fit attacking fullbacks we don’t really need wingers - Booth / Penrice and Dumbuya overlapping Lawless / Erskine / Spittal will be plenty.

 

Need cover in left central defence and unless confident that Osman / Bannigan are going to be fully fit then we need more centre mid cover too.

 

[Rednyella]

Above I have him on injured list [emoji856] Archie says returning next month some time.
What about him?

[Thistle4eva]

1 hour ago, Mediocre Pundit said:

When we have two fit attacking fullbacks we don’t really need wingers - Booth / Penrice and Dumbuya overlapping Lawless / Erskine / Spittal will be plenty.

 

Need cover in left central defence and unless confident that Osman / Bannigan are going to be fully fit then we need more centre mid cover too.

 

Spitttal, Erskine and Lawless are all more playmakers than wingers.  Booth at left back fair enough he can get up and down the pitch all game and thats why hes been so badly missed but we cant rely on Dumbuya. Guys not played in around a year. A natural right winger would be great because if dumbuya isnt up to scratch then mcginn wont be much of of an attacking outlet.