Scottydog

That'd likely be the end of it for me too, build on the land between Redhouse and Standingstane Rd would be ideal but is currently designated for housing, mind you they've only just started building again in the town (Beatty Cres/Overton Rd) after a few years of the slowdown in house building. If that land was available it would be ideal. No chance the council haven'y 2 bawbees to rub together never mind fund a £MM stadium. I agree with almost all of this. Where we differ is I actually would invest, but only if I won the Eurolotto and even at that it'd be a new stadium and leisure complex and then it'd be left to board appointed by the trust to run it all. Beat me to it location, I wholly agree Victoria Rd would be another in town site wedged between a main Rd and a railway line, no point moving there.

Out of the frying pan........

I'd have been willing to wager that if he'd had our PotY from the previous season along side him in defence he'd have had a much better season and perhaps we wouldn't have gotten relegated.

I don't think people are being realistic here, we're Raith Rovers not Real Madrid. This is the price we (well the board tbh) are paying for last years failure. Just out of interest who do people think we should be signing? McHattie isn't Kieran Tierney but hey its the 3rd tier in Scottish football we're in FFS. I'd rather have Booth or McKeown in fact Id rather have Sean Mackie back on loan from Hibs but if it's McHattie then though not everyone pick it's not the worst thing that could happen. After all we could end up with another Ibrox starlet like McKay or Scott Roberts. Most of the squad were putrid last season but that was a downhill progression from August that saw the life drained out of the side (Locked in syndrome followed by Hughes disease), if Barry Smith can get a positive reaction from this side anything like McKinnon got from 75% of the same players then we should be home and hosed.

True but there were mitigating circumstances. For half a season we didn't have a goalkeeper worthy of the name, a situation bound to make those in front of him a tad jittery. Bene is the best centre half on the books yet he was played RB or LB for spells to allow Mvoto and Barr to do their thing. Thomson was injured for a large spell and came back less than assured. McHattie himself was carrying an injury for a lengthy spell too, that said I do share your concerns regarding his competency to do the basics and actually defend. We can only hope that as he mature he becomes a better defender in the process. Not ideal by a long chalk but perhaps better than signing someone else only to discover they are worse, thus the 1 year deal option.

I wasn't massively impressed with K McH last season either but I can see some up sides to bringing him in. Allegedly he's not overwhelmed with offers so financially he might be easy to deal with. It would mean only 1 change in the back 4 which is better than trying to bed in a whole or half a new defence. He was injured for a good bit of the season and couldn't train fully, he's had an op' so maybe he'll improve. Add the fact he's another year older and maybe more experience will make him a better defender. He has a goal or two in him. Give him another year to prove himself and if he doesn't set the heather on fire then next year it could be one of the development side's gig.

Wouldnae want them anyway, I know the baker he's dodgy as f**k

If they only decide to tell fans that there will be no hospitality next season when someone actually phones up to enquire then they're hardly likely to come right out and tell us who has offered to do what. As for the other options I know that since the seasons end there definitely was someone who was of a mind to approach the board with a view to taking over the hospitality suite. They seemed very keen to make this happen, and the fact that it hasn't happened then I'd guess they were either put off by what's going on or the board have decided their own idea (fans bar) is a better one. At the end of the day the board make all the decisions on what happens so ultimately it'll be them that decided on it. As for open and transparent I actually think that in general they are as long as you know the questions you want answers to. What they aren't good at is telling us things off the bat, one director is always telling me that he'll answer just about any questions asked I as as long as it doesn't involve salaries or contracts. Has anyone thought to email the club and ask for some clarification? I'm sure the fans representative would happily oblige.

Negotiating good deals doesn't seem to be our boards strong suit. Like I said earlier, there were other options suggested but the board felt as it couldn't sell hospitality last season in the Championship and they would have struggled this season too in Div 1 then a fans pub was the best option. People need to be coming away from spending £50-100 on a day outs hospitality and saying "wow! what a great day that was!" not just "aye it was ok I suppose" Until they are willing to let someone in with the formulae to achieve that they're justified in opening it up as a match day pub. My understanding is that during the reconstruction in the 1990's Mario kitted out all 7 catering outlets with his own equipment and that's why he has the franchise...well that and the other small matter of him always being the one who sub's RRFC when things get desperate. But there are club bars for everyone you just have to join the either 200 Club or the Jim McMillan club. Why not join (200 club £20 per season) all their profits go back to the football club, last season both of them gave RRFC 5 figure cheques. I can't speak for the Jim McMillan club as I'm not a member (they wont let me join ) but there's bugger all elitist about the 200 club, the only problem is space as they are limited to how many can fit it to the space allotted.....now if they were to be allowed to return to the Raith suit where we used to be the 200 club could increase membership and probable double its donations to the club. Finding space for a fans bar is an issue though, only the Raith suit is large enough to accommodate more than 100 fans, if every single person who is a member turns up on the same day in the 200 club they can't all get in. Since when?? Oh sarcasm eh?

I was reliably informed that in all the years that hospitality has been contracted out it has failed to generate significant income to the club. It has generated some income and it came with some benefits (loans/special deals or favours, etc) but hard cash? Not so much! After a few seasons in the Championship where they've badly struggled to sell hospitality the BoD took the decision to scrap it altogether in a lower league where they thought (probably rightly) they'd probably struggle even more. I believe there were other proposals put to them and that's not to say this is how it'll stay, but it'll be that way for at least this season. At the very least it's now an open house for fans to go and have a refreshment in the ground only yards from your seat and best of all the club makes revenue from it.... unless that is you prefer to go to the Novar, Penny, Dutchess, Styx, Spoons, Exchequer, O'Connals, Harbour Bar etc and give money to the local businessmen who have no real interest in RRFC other than getting hold their fans cash. I know it's a busy time and there's a lot going on but personally you'd have thought that someone (there's a few after all) on the board could have been delegated as a spokesman to update and inform the fans of such developments, especially given that now the fixtures are out they are now apparently receiving enquires about booking said Hospitality. You watch we will draw someone big (hopefully) in a cup game this season and good ol' Hospitality will rise from the dead for a miraculous 1 off appearance. Before anyone suggest it, just going down the doing our own hospitality route isn't currently an option. The main reason the hospitality was contracted out in the 1st place was that the kitchen facilities at SP are so knackered and antiquated that in order for them to be brought back into service it will require about £10k of improvements.

Wee thickie quoting him own post for attention? Or is he just up early and been for his daily shot of Methadone?

As it once was yes but you're definitely showing your age there, we've not had too many people of that ability for some time. In fact a year or so ago at a RR Down south night for the team of 77-78 Billy Brown remarked upon much about the same, "People talk about a decent 1st touch on a player? In my day it was a prerequisite to get a game in the juniors never mind with the seniors"

Of course not but it helps immensely as it quite literally goes with the territory. There are few exceptions to the rule currently Celtic and Scotlands Keiran Tierney who is naturally left footed but is also an outstanding right-back, but then again he's valued in the £M's and even at that is a better Leftback than right-back. There's nobody we're looking at capable of using their weaker foot for anything other than standing on it. The main requirement for a full back when not defending is to get forward and get a decent ball over, if he's not confident of doing that then he will cut inside and use his stronger foot, we watched Joe Cardle do this for an entire season it was boringly predictable. We also spent the majority of one season watching two left footed central defenders (Hill & Ellis) looking decidedly uncomfortable (More so strangely I thought than we ever have with 2 right footed centre halves) it's all about the balance of the team. Once or twice last season we had our team captain and nominated right-back Jason Thomson playing in the Left-back role, it was neither effective nor pretty. Sadly we don't pay fortunes for international class defenders who are equally adept with either foot so It's really quite simple at our level, if you bring in a player to play on the left hand side of the park, then you've a far better chance of them keeping the ball in play if they are NOT right footed

Looks doubtful to me, unless we are able to offer him a lucrative contract to give up his day job. Anyway isn't he right footed? It's a LB we are in desperate need of.

No big signings for the Pars but they do sign a defender that almost single handedly got Rovers relegated and an attacker that singularly failed to impress. Hmm unless the rest of the team become overnight sensations, then I think they'll struggle.

Could be throwing him to the wolves (probably would be) or it could be the making of him, maybe he is another Kieran Tierney, we live in hope.

just out of interest what was Lewis's return for you?

Will run all day.

I doubt we'll see Danny Handling any time soon. I'm sure if a former player does return then it'll be Lennox, but if we were to also get a former player from Hibs for next season we could do worse than bring back Sean Mackie. If he was to do as well at left back as Calum Booth did with us I'd be well chuffed. Despite my preferences against loan players I wonder if Dundee have have a young LB or winger (but not Wighton please) who could do a turn for us.

Each to their own, my recollection is he was the only one that dared to have a pop against Ayr, and he took the game to Hibs when he came on at SP only for Hughes to sub the LB and put JC back in defence. as for talk of doing the opposite of what he was told, 1st anyones heard of that.

Ok so depends how you want to look the term "at all costs" but I'd certainly have made every effort to retain him as he had more about him than either Thorsen, Osei or even Court in that Dev' side.

Personally I can only go on what I saw of Joel on the park, he looked a class above in any of the dev' games I saw and scored in the only start I saw him play for the 1st XI and looked like trouble for most defences when he came on. I'd have kept him at all costs.

What fool said that? I was sorry to see him go, it was another (continued) display of managerial incompetence that allowed this potential to slip from us. FWIW he is exactly the player we need at present a talented midfielder/wide man who can play at LB if required.

I don't necessarily agree with it but I think it'll be dictated by funds and that alone. Cuthbert, Lennox (or similar), Brian Thomson, Newman@LB, Valentine (Cover can come from Matthews, Davo Murray or even Bobby Barr at a push) Bene, Murray, Davo, McKay, McDonald Callachan, Matthews, Robertson, Berry (also cover from Davo if needed) Barr, Vaughan, Stevenson Buchanan, Spence, Court, Nothing wrong with your arithmetic Rents I make that 13 outfield players too with the numbers augmented with Dev squad players like Berry, Stevenson, Valetine, McDonald and McKay. It's a threadbare existence and one that won't stand up to extreme scrutiny especially if we loose two guys from any one position. Another left sided player who can play as a wingback and an attacking midfielder would be a real boon but will we have the money to do it? I'm unsure about loan signings though as the problem with them is you have to play them.....even if sometimes they aren't as good as what you aleady have.

Total keeper stats Cuthbert starts 25, sub bench 6, (total availability 31 games). Brennan Starts 9, subs bench 19 (including 2 appearances) (total availability 28 games) Lennox starts 3, Subs bench 16 (inc 2 appearances), (total availability 19 games) Penksa starts 10, 0 subs appearances. But we all can make anything out of statistics that you want Brennan was available for only 3 less games than Cuthbert, there were also a few games where Cuthbert was in goal and we had both Lennox and Brennan available on the bench. Lennox was available for selection only 12 times less than Cuthbert despite the fact that he missed half the season from mid Jan onwards due to receiving two fractures as a result of a collision with an over exuberant Dundee Utd youngster, personally I can't see that this is a sign of being injury prone but out of interest if those injuries had happened in a car crash would you have said the same thing? Callachan broke his arm last season falling over at a picnic and was our for 6 weeks, he also missed the last 2 months this season (since Falkirk away) again with a fracture, he must be injury prone too.