NELLY

I actually think our recruitment has been good in the regards to addressing the key areas we lacked in previous years e.g mainstay goalkeeper and a penalty box striker who can link play also e.g bucks. Where bollan has fallen way short is his signings in terms of squad depth. He has signed JAMES COLLINS/QUINN COULSON/BOBBY BARR all of whom play left side and we already have Harvey Swann and Ross Clarke and in 3 or 4 games this season actually plays Craig thomson there. Its puts the onus on lads like Robbie Buchanan/Kyle Miller and Kyle Hutton to play week in week out and when their form dips they dont come out the team. He should have identified a central midfielder once Morrisson was out. Mahady is not a striker who can start ahead of bucks/Renton so for now giving him 15 mins is the right thing. However heaven help us if Liam Buchanan gets injured!! Saturday is a massive game to stop the rot so to speak and a win of any kind is vital to ensuring confidence comes back in the team as once you lose 5 or 6 on the spin its really really difficult to get out of that with same personnel.. Think we have lost 4 now in a row so massive Saturday.

My thoughts are this currently. We played poorly Saturday especially the first half but grew into the game. Anyone could see the shape of the team wasnt working that first half and they created 3 very good opportunities down our left side. Bollan didnt change system when I personally thought it was needed to go to a back 4 and to be fair 2nd half we came out and did well however when we were on top in the game having our best spell by MILES Bollan made a sub and changed the system to a back 4........ wow. We were on top in the game and having our best spell as soon as we went to a back 4 we lost rythm a bit and eventually lost to a real crappy goal. Kyle Hutton is experienced and all he has to do is stay on his feet and match the run and wait for covering defenders.. These are tight games we are losing we are not being battered but the tight games are due to defensive lapses or real concentration issues. Again the team is working hard and no evidence that they dont want to play for the manager. My thought process on Bollan is we shouldnt get rid as to be honest there is no point in reality. We couldnt pay him off - a new manager still has to work with these players and there wouldnt be a massive overhaul required (we are not a club who can do an overhaul anyhow as that costs money) What we need is to turn these tight games into draws and wins. A bit of luck or a fully focused team for 90 mins. Bollan perhaps being that little more adventurous in his tactics through out the game. For the rovers lads I understand peoples point however they are not good enough to start games it really is that simple. We badly need a centre mid to help out the 2 kyles as they tire quite significantly during last periods of games. Special mention to Mullen and thomson who on saturday worked well together and done a power of work. Although im not overly happy with the thomson signing I will discuss his football only and for me he has been our POTY or at least in the top 3 alongside bucks/robbie buchanan. Thomson brings a calmness to the backline and a football intelligence football wise good signing. The one dissapointment for me is that on Saturday we brought on Bobby barr instead of a harvey swan.If you want to win games Harvey swann is the player who can play that final cross or that jinky run that tiny piece of extra quality that you need in tight games Bobby Barr doesnt. If we were 1 up Bobby Barr would be my player to bring on as he is defensively better and more rounded team player. Anyhow onto next game and heres hoping we can sneak a win we aint far away and it would worry me more if we didnt create chances or the team were not working hard enough - we are so stay positive and get behind the lads saturday. If we lose then its a real difficulty getting out of this rut and thats where Bollan needs to step up.

Whit? the guy has been our POTY last 2 seasons (as voted for by fans) 100% committed in every game and actually has a little edge and nasty side to him (you see and hear it when there was no fans) real leader. Plays through the pain barrier as well. Craig is your typical captain actually. The team can perform better results wise performance wise we are doing ok. In regards to Bollan I will keep my opinions to myself for now and judge when through first quarter of season on top of the opinions raised through his entire tenure.

Our record at Coatbridge is honking. Time to change that. The teams creating chances which is a great sign but lapses in concentration and basic defending and blocking is costing us and mainly last 3 games when overall we have actually played quite well. Scrappy 1 nil win for us on Saturday Bucks with the goal. Could turn the tide a little.

Concerning that its now 2 games in a row we have lost from winning positions at home. We put a lot into that game and commitment and workrate could defo be seen there was no shortage of that last night. Bollans refusal to put even one player on in what was a tiring and fatigued team could have been a factor in the goals we lost. We were defo mentally tired as the players lapses in concentration cost us both goals. Bollan also put harvey swann inside and played a 4-3-1-2 formation and then after going a goal up with 20 mins to go put swann back out left where he got absolute zero joy ALL game. Tactically he got it wrong and in what was a fine margins game we have to be clinical when on top (like in annan game) and go and kill teams off theres too much reluctance to score and then "keep it tight". Liam Buchanan is a god send and really is a class player for us. We are missing morrisson big time in midfield as the 2 kyles cant play every game and put that work rate in every week. There was actually some good performances last night however you seen Stranraer when they scored they were not content with a point they hounded us and worked us until they created more opportunities so well played to them. I wouldnt overly panic as we are playing good stuff at times and in the games we lose we do create chances where in the past seasons with bollans team we have been overall reall poor. Big game in our next outing in the league for sure. This saturday i would hope that Gary would unleash mahady/coulson and pollock. Give the lad collins game time as well.Its an ideal game for it think the raith rovers management team were there last night and obviously not even seeing two of their players even get 1 min of action is dissapointing if I am them.

It is a big step up. Frustrates the life out of me when i talk to certain people who follow juniors/eos and even lowland league when they come along and say he wouldnt get a game in the these leagues compared to x y or z. Trust me they would i go and watch quite a few EOS games and i could genuinely on one hand pick players a think oh he could do a job for us. Most decent players have dropped down as they will get more cash or cant be arsed with travelling long trips for games or training. Most of the standard in lowland league is rotten and yes some teams on their day will get a good result against in one off ties e.g cup games.

How many players have you signed and you still want new signings?? offtt.....

Watched this game on the stream and well done to the lads who commentate. Was decent compared to others.. No quite as good as BBTV Commentary though..... In regards to the game. Stenny were absolute bang average and I expected more from them. Cowden did ok and I have seen us play better but the overall performance from us with all things considered this week was good. Thomson has played twice now at centre half (away to alloa and away to stenny) and both games been our MOTM. He is lost at left back when we play him there. Good goal from Renton but overall I feel a bit gutted as I genuinely believe Stenny were poor and overall if our full squad is there we are a better side than them. The ref was pretty poor. Should have booked renton for sure and then should have booked left back (coll?) for a foul on renton then decides to book clarke twice for similar offences (the 2nd one especially) he was poor and didnt handle the game well and it wasnt a particularly hard game to manage. All the positives go towards Cowden for me and if Stenny fans are saying thats their best performance of the season I dread to think what they have been watching. Good spirit within this cowden side with each player knowing their role. Heard a couple of moans about Bobby Barr not showing much and to a degree I agree however he is what I would call now a defensive wide player in that he is there to to occupy people and stop opposition by helping his left back etc. This cant go unnoticed. Its fine when we take positive results but he would become a scapegoat if results dont go our way. He has lost his pace or little turn but his experience and general positioning is good. Onto the next game and heres hoping more of the squad back. No doubt we lack another centre midfielder and I think this is where the clubs next signing should lie.

Stenny fans in trying to wind up cowden fans shock.... Also no sure why there is ever any mention of history as both clubs are similar however there is no doubt Cowden are more successful than stenny overall. Let them have their "banter". Every season their fans go radio gaga over their new signings or management team. When most of them are absolute rank. Anyhow to the game on Saturday I do believe stenny will have an advantage to be honest in that our players have not trained all week due to isolation. Plus no game last weekend when we were on a good little run of games and fitness was getting up that will be knocked back now sadly. I do think the stenny front line could cause us issues but likewise I fancy renton and bucks to cause their backline some problems. Tight game and wouldnt surprise me a 1-1 draw. Thomson with stenny goal and bucks cowden goal.

Great victory for the side and a clean sheet which is a positive. Nice to get some lads minutes as well. Biggest concern moving forward is if one or two key injuries or suspensions we could be struggling as the depth in terms of quality I dont feel is there its almost impossible to keep everyone fit and available for the season but have young hungry players in the squad who can always step in and do a job. Another centre mid for me and would complete the squad. Heaven help us if Bucks or even Rents gets injured.

Why would it be treated as a training game by rotating maybe 3 or 4 players. One of whom scored on saturday and one or two others who need games to get their fitness up and prove they are worthy of a starting position e.g im thinking maybe swann or clarke to oust barr/thomson. This game is important for the team to maintain momentum but as a squad you have to give some players games and see if they are up to it this is for me the ideal game. Its a tough away game against decent opposition. Players dont treat any game as a training game and neither will management however it could be a game to try something different in terms of the shape or tweak some free kicks/corner routines etc.. We will have a strong enough team even with 3-4 changes to win this game and maintain a positive result from Saturday.

No full strength team for me. Hard game yes but now is the time for Gary to blood a couple of youngsters and give boys like Barr/Bucks a midweek off. Loads of more important games to come. For me start the following. GILL - RIGHT BACK Mullen/left back Ross Clarke/centre half Todd-Pollock midfield of Robbie Buchanan with Kyle Hutton - swann on left or right with Coulson left or right Mahady up top with Renton or bucks one of the 2. Give mins during game to lennon watson/new lad collins. badly needing a centre midfielder to cover for loss of morrison just now. Hutton and miller playing 90 mins every game wont work. Interesting that gary signed coulson and collins both of whom are left sided players and defo left footed. With Swann and Ross Clarke we have plenty left sided players and Bobby Barr plays there also.

I understand Kelty big favourites and quite rightly so with their starting x1. However to say Cowden are onto a hiding is a bit of a slap in the face to the players we have. This team can perform well on any given day and the same level of performance and defensive concentration that we showed against Alloa can stand us in good stead. We are too fragile defensively currently in my opinion to be able to win this game but going into it saying we may lose 3 or 4 nil is not the attitude I would take. Kelty are good but they aint that good to foresee these kind of results. I think Gary will go with pretty much same team that started away to Livi at weekend however Craig thomson back in for clarke at left back. He will be defensive minded with his wide players e.g bobby barr and robbie who offer better protection than other players in those positions. Then if Kris Renton can do as he has been doing him and bucks will create 2 or 3 chances. Its taking one thats the problem. If cowden were to win it would be 1-0 only for me. I just cant not see Kelty scoring though. Tight 2-1 win for the home side but im confident Cowden will be in the game all the way. mone the cowden

WHIT..... If you dont finish bottom you will be happy... WHIT.... If kelty dont finish in top 2 id be raging.

Barr wasnt injured just away for this fixture i believe.

Great result and team performance last night. Renton and bucks offering a good parternship already. Bucks still looks very fit for his age and will score goals and last nights finish was fantastic. Hutton was a standout by a mile especially 2nd half his composure and willingness to get on the ball and make things happen was a treat to watch. Thomson did well at centre back and Cammy Gill had another good game. The shape of the team and performance was actually quite similar to the raith game but we created 3 chances really and took 1 and managed to keep a clean sheet. Squad is still light but with Craig Barr and Morrisson back hopefully soon ideally get another body in defensively. Jacob glass although on bench last night is going away soon to USA. The young lad mahady is as raw as they come and reminds me of lewis coult in his stature and running style and general play from what I saw. His willingness to work his socks off pressing hard and working between centre halfs was great to see from a young kid he clearly has a good attitude. Looks fairly quick as well which is good. I wouldnt be adverse to another striker coming in but perhaps greedy and dont think we would go down that route and potentially a centre mid or centre half on loan is our next signing.

Summary of the game from Cowden perspective is this. Raith deserved the win. Better team of course however Cowdens shape and fitness was pretty good. Cowden are a hard team to beat but we lack pace in final 3rd to really counter attack teams like raith who have marjority of possession. If I was a raith fan I would be looking at that performance as a glorified pre season friendly however no doubt you guys will need better quality to get to where you need too in the championship. Berra was excellent but will come up against quicker sharper players so no real kudos for being excellent against cowden. Zanatta is a decent outlet for you but needs to do more in his one v one situations. Spencer is a great player and lewis vaughn looks sharp. Was the cowden stream any good for anyone who watched?

He was brechins best player against us in 2 games I saw. all about opinions.

Bobby Barr very good signing. Will provide an attacking threat. Can play off both wings or even through middle. Decent delivery and will be our main outlet I feel for creating chances for bucks/renton. Another signing I feel for up top with pace (young lad on loan most likely) is what we now require.

Good run out for the lads Saturday. Its all about sharpness and fitness. Results come secondary (albeit you dont want to lose games) I remember under someone could have even been liam fox our pre season was unbelievable beating decent teams and we all seen how that ended up. Pre season is not a reality of where results will lie. The squad is thin for sure and my understanding is 1 player will be joined and signed up before the weekend and its an attacking player who I believe would be a good signing for us. In my opinion our squad is able to mount a strong push for 3rd or 4th but I reckon as it stands 5th or 6th is the reality. Its tight between a lot of teams in this division. We have a core group of experienced players now who have played a lot of games for this club or a lot of games in scottish football. This is a good thing. We now just need to add some legs/pace into the team. Who can flourish beside the experience of a liam buchanan/mango/kyle hutton. btw kyle hutton was superb on Saturday. young lad ross pollock looks ok and able deputy at full back or centre half. Ross Clarke got minutes and this is like a new signing for us.. Lets get behind the team. Please remember that first couple of games against Raith etc in the premier cup is almost like glorified friendlies. To win them would be great but shape/fitness and tactics is what these games will be about also.

I think the best option is to keep the head down play hard and ignore all negativity that will come his way (and has come his way for years) Im actually confused as to where the lad will play as he is a right back?? says can play left and midfield which is good to have players like this however his natural position is right back where mullen plays. Looking at squad. Defo a centre half and striker to come + goalkeeper. an attacking midfield/winger which I believe could be coming soon......

He came off the offenders list in 2016. The facts are he done his crimes when he was 17 or 18 - got 5 or 6 years im sure on offenders list + fine. He has not been charged or been prosecuted of any similar crime since thus you have to feel rehabilitation has happened. My personal view point is the signing makes me uncomfortable. I cant be a hypocrite I said back when City and Kelty signed him it was a wrong move for any local community club. Our fanbase is so small that any signing that can be percieved as negative thus alienating particular fans to say they wont purchase tickets/attend games or buy merchandise is a real blow to the club. This club needs all the fans and money it can get thus a signing like this aint gonna go down well thats a fact. The lad is a very very good player and its a good signing. The club has clearly backed the manager however will have to accept that some backlash will always be expected. Overall part of me says like big al time to move on and people change however as a parent it makes me uncomfortable and a complete hypocrite to support the signing.

id imagine a couple of trialists in training just now and Bollan will be having a look at a couple for this weekends game and next. We require another GK for sure. Defo a wide player and another centre back. Another striker also as only 2 on the books.

Any friendlies on tomorrow for lowland league or east of scotland league in west lothian area?

Really disappointed that Jacob Glass is moving on. I thought he was our best prospect for a long time. I thought Gary didnt use him enough last season. Granted It appears he may have a move to USA which is great for him so even if we did offer a deal looks like he has a change of direction anyhow. The sub gk mac whyte showed promise also and I would have liked to see him given another game or two to see if he would be worthwhile keeping on as a young gk but Gary didnt play him. Jay sandison played 45 mins and was never seen again. Poor signing. With players confirmed away - we now need another gk as only have 1. We need a centre half as Pyper and Glass and Finnie all away. Likely need a left sided player. Right sided player/Centre midfielder and another striker. So signings for sure will be made and it will be interesting to see who gary brings in