Sure it's not because Queens and Livi have been consitantly beating teams?

I'm tryna enjoy this week being top...why has this thread come around so early...not feeling confident for next week atall! If you actually get 4000 then I'm even more worried..... (Then again I felt like this before Dundee so maybe I should chill.)

I think it will be a tight 1-1 draw. Queens aren't hitting anything like top form so id take a draw (obviously hope we sneak it tho ).
On a different note, whats happenin with Scally? Seems like he's been out forever

am going for a qos win 2-0 dobbie and weatherson

gutted im missing this due to a weekends holiday. Can really see it going either way to be honest, i reckon whoever scores first will not lose the game.

Plenty of selection dilemas for chis this week. Despite all the talk about O'Connors proposed comeback, i'd be astonished if he is even near the squad. He's nowhere near fit, if he was he'd obviously come back into contention but a half-fit O'Connor won't help us out that much. Also reckon it sends out the wrong message to the likes of kean and arbuckle who both scored last week, as important to us as Sean is, he is dispensable.

I would imagine McFarlane will come back into the midfield in place of simmons to allow tosh to push forward more this week. McGowan was most peoples man of the match last weekso will be interesting to see if he keeps his place or if burnsy comes straight back in if he's fully fit? I'd imagine arbuckle will either keep his place on the left or move up front with either kean or A.N.Other playing left mid.

I'd imagine the defence will remain the same with maybe Barr coming onto the bench in place of Reid.

i'd go for:

Bell

Parrat Sives Thomson Harris

McGowan McFarlane Tosh Arbuckle

Kean Dobbie

I'd expect to see

It does and I like the guy but he's hardly been a big loss.



Isn't it funny, when we had Peter Weatherson a lot of people referred to him WeathersTon, now we have a WeathersTon and people are calling him Weatherson!

For me you've got to get Burns back in the team, with him being on the bench on Saturday I'd expect him to be fit for this weeks game. Pick one of Arbuckle, Weatherston or McGowan (thought he did alright for 10mins there on Saturday and linked up well with Harris) for the left - I think Chis will go with Arbuckle.

What is the story with Harris after he went off on Saturday? And what about McQuilken?

Harris went off holding his groin which is worrying but no idea about McQuilken.

I would play Burns on the right and Weatherston on the left with Arbuckle and Dobbie up front.

You've spotted that as well. It's driving me bloody mad.
Seriously.

For all the bad press the Official Site gets the info is usually to be found there somewhere.

From the Team News preview before the Falkirk game on 22nd September:

As brainless observations on this site go, that one has to be right up there.
Yes, more of our support might feel an allegiance to one half of the OF than Thistle's, for obvious reasons. But to suggest that our gates are at the mercy of Rangers' fixture list is utterly stupid. Some of the kids who come to watch us at a very cheap price might cheer a Rangers half time lead when it's announced and I wish they bloody didn't. But to claim that this is in any way representative of our support and that this has been "established" smacks of ignorance and prejudice.

long-term burnsy is the better option, no doubt in my mind about that. If he is genuinely 100% fit then i'd be more than happy to see him start. Incidently if harris and mcquilken are both out would mcgowan be an option at left back? or will reid or barr fill that role?? unfortunately AA doesn't seem to be in contention at all anymore.

Last time he played left back he was poor though.

well yes i was referring to your post, ive noticed you do it quite alot, you say something stupid then you backtrack to what you actually meant, you say you werent slagging him off, if someone came up to me and said i would be so embarrassed if you scored past me id hardly take it as a tongue and cheek statement, id take it as if you were slagging me off!

all im saying is settle down till after the game then say he is a poor player if he doesnt score past us, but giving his form at the moment he needs to be treated as a serious threat!

So if he doesn't score in one game then he's a poor player?

He's scored against two of the best keepers in this league, Tuffey and Robertson.

I'd agree with that.

I think the only real selection choices are Parrat or Barr at right back and who starts on the left, as you say. As harsh as it may be on Arbuckle, I think I'd start with McGowan on the left especially if O'Connor isnt fit and we need Arbuckle as the 3rd striker.

Rab Douglas is better than the both of them.

Elliot has looked good for us so far, but lets not get carried away. Will he still be in the team when Sparky gets back from injury? Will Sparky get anywhere near the team now? Could they form a good partnership?

Good dilemma to have

Parrat for me - looks a bit more reliable than Barr and will leave Sives and Thomson to do their jobs wheras Barr has been caught out a bit in his last few games trying to do a bit of everything imo.

Barr has suffered a bit from his spell at centre half.Against Falkirk he didn't really seem to know where he was playing , right back or centre back.
I suppose the good thing is that we are now all discussing a credible variety of options for various positions in the team rather than how we can plug gaps due to players unavailable.

I championed Barr at the start of the season as potentially a really good right back for us, and I stick by that. However, Parrat has looked good in the games I've seen so I dont think I'd be too bothered either way. One thing that might sway it in Barrs favour is that if Burns is fit, neither him or Parrat have any height.

i certainly wudnt opt for mcgowan at left mid ahead of arbuckle at this stage. Unless arbuckle is being moved up front, dont think he deserves to drop right out and he is a goal threat which we will need in a game like this.

Scored against him tae.

Yip Sparky might be on the bench this Sat.

. It is quite annoying like.



If he's still at Palmerston after January I'll be extremely surprised.



The last time I watched him he was p*sh. He scores 5 goals in 3 games so I should change my opinion? Doubt it.

I can only base my account on him from what I've seen. If he is anything like he was the last time I saw him then I would be embarassed for Bell as the guy was awful, HOWEVER he seems to be doing well at Livi and is obviously a much improved player so therefore I will probably be watching a different player on Saturday and he should be respected.

Since he has went to Livi he has found his form so maybe a break there is what he needs to get him back to the top level as the quality he obviously has is starting to show at Livi.




And he had the cheek to say my comment was stupid .

so you are slagging him off?? why did you say you werent slagging him off and say it was a tongue and cheek comment?

may i ask what games you have seen him play?

No. I am simply trying to say that when I saw him he was gash. Therefore my opinion on him is of a low standard. HOWEVER his scoring record at Livi seems to be showing that he can score and is showing potential and that indeed the reason for him starting to hit form is due to this loan spell at Livi. Do you understand what I mean?!



EDITED to add. I see QoS are 6/4 at Hills with Livi at 13/8. The bookies must feel the home advantage will give us the edge.

yeah but what im trying to say is that this lad is or certainly was highly rated at hearts and within the scotland international set-up so therefore no matter of his form i wouldnt of wrote him off.

aye i think queens must be fancied favorites as our home record is good. im looking forward to the game i must say.

Really looking forward to this game; it should be a cracker as I'm sure both sides will be going all out for the win. Though we still have two long-term injury concerns in Scally and Adams, I'm more concerned about the likes of Harris and O'Connor. Though it would be foolhardy to rush back O'Connor (and he can't be fully fit), it would be good to see him make an appearance from ther bench (though I doubt he will). I don't know the extent of Harris' groin problem, but if McQuilken is still out then left-back could be a problem area. Barr could deputise there. We are very well covered elsewhere in what surely must be our best squad for many a year. Chisholm has a number of options, particularly in the wide areas of midfield. If fit, I'd like Burns to start on the right and Arbuckle on the left. That would be tough on both McGowan and Weatherston, but they may feature at some point. We may line up;

Bell
Parratt Sives Thomson Harris/McQuilken/Barr
Burns MacFarlane Tosh Arbuckle
Kean Dobbie

Subs: Halliwell, Barr/Reid, Weatherston, McGowan and Simmons

* Lets hope this is the case. It will be interesting to see how QoS cope with a team attacking them for a decent period, we haven't experienced a mad bombardment at Palmerston for a while. No disresepct intended to the teams that have come.

** Not really. We have just had the most successful period in our history and Scally was injured. I like him but I don't think he is that much of a miss although it would be great to have him back.

we dont really play 'mad bombardment' football we tend to just hold onto the ball in the midfield until there is an opening although i would agree that we certainly wont be playing in a defensive mindset

Aw naw! Not a midfield battle! Well unless they clone MacFarlane within the next two days we're f*cked!

We should all be happy that at this stage of the season our teams are contesting a top of the table clash! A lot of other fans (Thistle/Dunfermline/Dundee) seem to be making the most of the "it's a poor league this season" argument. From where I sit, it appears to me that some teams are playing better football more consistently than the others. This weekend the two teams playing consistently better than the others will be playing at Palmerston.

Onto the game. I don't think QOS have lost in the league at home all season which is worrying but then we have only lost one game away and that was the first game of the season against Saints. What is interesting is that we have scored first in 5 of our 8 league games and gone on to win them all. If we score first we will win this game and if not, I will go for a draw. I would never have said this even 3 weeks ago but I see us being strong enough to take at least a pont from one of the trickiest away trips in the league.

A lot of respect for Livi but I wouldn't get carried away. I have been watching QoS for well over a decade now (not much but considering my age it's not bad) and this is the only team I have faith in about coming back from being behind. Dundee lead against us at Palmy and they ended up getting a royal pumping, 1-0 is nothing now I don't think. Sorry to drag it up but we came back from 2-0 down against Rangers (fair enough we never won but we still hauled it back) so I'm pretty sure we could do it against Livi. No disrespect intended.

Onto the game. I don't think QOS have lost in the league at home all season which is worrying but then we have only lost one game away and that was the first game of the season against Saints. What is interesting is that we have scored first in 5 of our 8 league games and gone on to win them all. If we score first we will win this game and if not, I will go for a draw. I would never have said this even 3 weeks ago but I see us being strong enough to take at least a point from one of the trickiest away trips in the league.
[/quote]


Lavvy are not a real football club and like Cumbernauld and Clyde, the people of these sort of towns cannot ever get round to supporting outsiders.

This Saturday Queens will give Lavvy a right good thumping and this will see them start to slip down the league table to their final resting place of 5th at the end of the season

Queens to win 4-1

Actually we haven't lost at home in the league in this calendar year. Our last league defeat at Palmerston was in early December 2007 to Thistle.

Morton did win in the Challenge Cup a few weeks ago though.

None taken and I am trying really hard not to get carried away.



Twit.



It is an awesome record but I take solace from our away record this season. I guess if anyone is going to challenge that record, we are currently best equipped to do so. Looking very much forward to the game.

f**k off ya twat.

Somebody on the Lions board said McPake got injured in training, if true this is a set back, we struggle with high balls over the top or onto our defence without him, Innes esp lacks pace and is prone to errors. Still fancy a Livi win but could've done without this going onto our hardest game yet.

Apologies to livi fans for some queens fans obvious lack of respect.I am hoping for a great game.Livi wont sit in at palmerston like most others.

I think we're in for a cracking game- hope Dumfries turns out in force for it

If thats the case, I think that will actually benefit us. Unless livvy are so good that they just blow us away, of course!

Agreed,if beaten I would rather get done over by a team like them than a stifling side.Their approach is good for the game of football.

Anxiously anticipating the result on Saturday. I think it will take more than just one goal to seperate the teams. Both are capable of coming back from being a goal down. I think we have what it takes to beat Queens, but if we don't then it won't come as a huge shock. I predict 2-0 for Livingston- Elliot and MacParland with the goals.

I am hoping for a Queens win so we are only potentially 4 points off the top going in to the 2Q of the season.

This is gonna be a tough game for Livi. Remember we are playing againest a side who were in europe longer than Rangers this season

A draw would be good enough for us, a win would be magic. If we do lose this game it won't be the end of the world because I don't feel Qos can stay top for long sadly if they were to beat us - its the Dundees and Particks we will have to worry about and we have beaten them easily enough already. But one thing is for sure Queen of the South will be far from an easy game, a great test for this new era.

really looking forward to this one. Hopefully a big crowd and a cracking atmosphere along the lines of when we beat ICT a few seasons ago to top the league. Looking forward to seeing Livi as they are obviously playing well with a lot of confidence but at home we are more than a match for anyone. I think we will really need to be at our best to get a result but if the players can't get themselves motivated for games like this then they never will. Genuinely believe that the chance to go top in front of a good size crowd will bring out our best performance of the season (it will take that to win) and hopefully at quarter to five Palmy will be jumping.

I`m interested to know why you think that is the case. Is it that you think they are "bigger" teams than us or do you genuinely think they are better than us? I doubt if either is in a financially more secure postion than us and we have already beaten both this season. That`s not to say they won`t finish higher than us, they may well do but we have as good a chance as anybody and better than some of mounting a serious challenge this season. Not a dig at you or Livi I`m just genuinely interested in your logic for the above opinion.

I normally stick to the 3rd Division chat and General Nonsense, but I did like the report in yesterday's Herald that the Livingston striker, Leigh something-or-other, with this season's tally of 7 goals in 6 games could return from injury against QOS this Saturday.

The QOS fans shouldn't be too worried though - the laddie apparantly injured himself.......running for a bus!

If we do go top then the other teams will be more determined to beat us, can we cope with the extra pressure?

McPake is out. Foot injury. We're fecked.

3-1 Queens.