qpfc

What a feeling yesterday was. I’ve quite rightly been critical of this side for large parts of the season, most notably for their lack of fight and determination but you couldn’t fault anyone to a man. We had to suffer in the first half and it felt as though Dunfermline had an extra man in midfield constantly. Thankfully they were totally powderpuff in front of goal and we were able to stabilise more in the 2nd half. Im not going to be naive and deny that the red card was instrumental on this result. Looking back at the highlights, Murray does seem to make the most of it but it’s silly for a guy of Ambrose’ experience to be so clumsy and give the ref a decision to make. The game did highlight how effective a fit Simon Murray can be. Yes he’s awkward and not the most graceful on the ball but his sheer enthusiasm and determination to be a pest on the pitch is such an underrated quality particularly at this level. He occupies defenders and won the game for us. Delighted for him The quality of the game was still incredibly low for the vast majority and I’d imagine Airdrie won’t be anywhere near as toothless but I’ll worry about Thursday when it comes. I’ll give man of the match to Tommy Robson who produced yet another terrific display. Defensively he’s came on leaps and bounds and he’s became more composed going forward. Special mention to Ferrie who made an incredible save 1st half alongside another immediately after scoring(shock). Dunfermline were decent in spells but you can tell how little character there is in some of those players. I actually thought Dorrans was running the game in midfield 1st half but when you’ve got players looking totally disinterested like Polworth, alongside Dorrans lack of mobility. It was only going to end badly Also give Charlie Fox a 5 year contract please. An absolute Rolls Royce at the back

Would absolutely take that. Was shocked he had no involvement over the 2 legs. He fell out with Hughes or just not been performing ?

Is he any good ?

In terms of quality there was no step up, it was a dire spectacle all round. We’re normally guilty of overplaying it but last night we seemed to just blooter the ball anywhere. The most redeeming factor from a qp perspective was a step up in desire, organisation and application. Something we’ve been utterly chronic for throughout large parts of the season. Last night was certainly a big contrast from the previous 3 weeks, where the players looked like they couldn’t wait for the season to be over

Aye fair play to Robson, he’s proved me wrong. He’s always been handy going forward but equally and more importantly he’s now became very reliable defensively. More than happy to see him retained next season

Absolutely eye bleeding stuff but like what’s been mentioned above, all I wanted was the tie to still be in the balance come Saturday. We really missed connell’s unpredictability in the midfield and there was never a point where I thought we were genuinely going to score Cant say the lineup inspired me with much hope. Not only was it extremely cautious, If mchugh is going to be the lone striker, you’ve got to have players around him with a bit more mobility. Longridge quite simply does not offer that and that’s why Quitongo needs to start. Brown had a stinker aswell unfortunately, although surprisingly it looked like Davidson and Lyon were the more advanced midfielders However, I’ll take solace that Dunfermline looked equally as awful and come Saturday, it’s essentially a one off cup final. We never took any sort advantage on how dodgy Ambrose looked and a part of me slightly feels tonight was a missed opportunity to really get an advantage. You just never know though, we might just sneak it. Here’s hoping

I’ve not a clue what Dunfermline are like this season and they may well comfortably brush us aside but there’s been countless times over the years where I’ve seen people saying that championship jobbers will standout against league 1 opposition. League 1 is obviously a lower standard and you’d hope they’d play better but this qp team have been made up of championship duds who you’d initially think would be fine for league 1 and this season has proved they’re still a load of jobby. The playoffs would be boring if the gulf between the 9th placed championship team was huge compared to the league 1 play off sides. You may look at Morton dismantling Airdrie last season but you’ve also had Brechin make their way up via the play offs. The team that wins the play offs generally are the ones that can cope with pressure best

I agree as long as there’s a balance though with developing younger players and achieving on field success. Preferably I’d rather just get into the championship and stabilise from there but that might just be me I would imagine in the long term the club will be in a very strong position regarding the infrastructure but i found it quite wild that Dempster was basically admitting that aiming for the playoffs was quite an ambitious target purely because we’re a newly professional club. I don’t think the wages dished out for some of our players will suggest mid table is a roaring success

Hilariously even when we scored the penalty in the 90th minute against East Fife, we somehow almost managed to bottle it. There must be a genuine mental block within the squad cause they’ll surely know and the opposition will know how ridiculously jittery we become

Regarding the chef, I’d imagine it’s the principal more than anything. We have resources at our disposal that most other clubs in the league don’t have the privilege of utilising. There will be part time players who will work gruelling shifts outside of football, with the likelihood that they’re eating no more than a pot noodle and a couple bags of crisps. Whereas the chef will be providing meals that should aid in sustained performance on the pitch. Over a 36 game period, these are the minuscule details that should differentiate us to maybe a Montrose. By no means does having better resources guarantee success but by sure means we should of made a much better fist of it this season. That’s just the reality I don’t personally think the players actively go on to the pitch not bothered to go and put a performance. A lot of my frustration comes from the continuous inability to hold on to leads when the going gets tough. We’ve crumbled at almost every situation that involves the players being resilient and resolute, which for a group of fairly experienced pros is extremely infuriating. It’s entirely predictable how every game goes and it’s natural that myself and other fans begin to show a form of resentment towards the players as they’re clearly talented enough to do so much more Come the close season, we really need to rip the plaster off and bin about 90% of this squad. Start fresh with Coyle and beuker having the summer to implement their ideas regarding the recruitment side of things. Im sure it’ll be a lot more fun next season and I fully expect a title charge if we remain in league 1

Think the subs played a part. If the game had any meaning, I doubt we’d of seen Robson or at a push Mchugh subbed for Doyle at left back and Murray. Hoping Doyle isn’t anywhere near the starting XI on Wednesday. I like Davidson at right back Also to add, Conor Mcbride could comfortably be the worst loan I’ve ever seen at QP. The guy is so far out his depth it’s incredible. It’s quite astounding that he’s on the books at Blackburn

Fairly guff overall other than a wee spell after we scored. More concerned with the amount of injuries picked up. Lyon, Quitongo and Connell all looked to have picked up injuries it seems? Was really pleased to see Quitongo make his first start of the season and no surprises that he made an impact. Scored a terrific header which was unfortunately ruled offside also. Hopefully taken off as precaution as he would start straight away on Wednesday for me. Don’t know if anyone else noticed Quitongo pointing up towards to area where beuker was sitting after he scored, where it looked like he was insinuating that he should of been playing more. Thought that was quite amusing

Yeah it’s been a shambles on the pitch this season. Too many overpaid players picking and choosing what games they’re bothered to turn up to and they’ve became a fairly unlikeable bunch. Making the playoffs doesn’t feel particularly earned From the outside, you’d think Dunfermline should win but once the play offs kick off, everyone has the same opportunity. The odd game when we’re bothered, we certainly look capable. Guys up top like mchugh and Murray you’re hoping really show their quality with a noteworthy performance but I’m not pinning my hopes on them doing so tbh Some fairly recognisable names in the Dunfermline side with Ambrose, lawless and dorrans. Assuming these guys legs have gone or they’ve just turned generally rotten ?

Agreed. The ability of the squad isn’t the primary issue, it’s the embarrassing levels of motivation we’ve produced on several occasions throughout the season that’s made reaching the play offs feel somewhat flat. We’ve proved against Cove, against the best team in the league that we’re more than capable of competing in these games when we’re up for it and if the players can’t motivate themselves for Dunfermline and potentially beyond that, then nothing will. Ive always had this belief that if we made the playoffs, we might somehow scrape through them. This is based on hope rather than any expectation but other than the previous two matches, the excessive amount of draws we’ve achieved might come in our favour weirdly. We don’t lose many games and if we do they’ve mainly been by one goal margins. If we keep ourselves in the tie, we could scrape by via extra time or penalties? Either way, I’m not particularly confident but it’s exciting nonetheless. We’ve as much chance as any other team once the playoffs arrive. The amount of times we seen a Gardner speirs qp side comfortably finished 2nd or 3rd and bottled it in the play offs was incredible. Here’s hoping Airdrie do likewise

Wouldn’t mind seeing a few of the younger players that have been playing in the Glasgow cup recently. A fair few seem to have a lot of potential to break into the 1st team in the near future They’d at least show more effort than the previous 2 games combined

I still fully believe that Muir deserved to be dropped at the time. I really liked the look of Ferrie originally and started off well but unfortunately he’s proved to be calamitous in aerial scenarios and it’s pretty conclusive he isn’t good enough now. If Muir was to be backup next season, I’m fine with that but ideally I’d be pursuing an entire new set of keepers. Ideally someone of decent height for once

I think there’s been enough talent within the squad to at least attempt a change of formation, personnel and systems throughout the season. We’ve been embarrassing this season but there’s been some very stubborn and wild tactical decisions made across the campaign. We’ve been horribly insistent with the idea of playing two defensive/deep lying midfielders which I think has contributed massively to our downfall on the pitch. First half of the season, we often had a Thompson/Gillepsie pairing which unsurprisingly struggled to break down stuffy opposition. This was followed up with brown becoming a defensive mid to accommodate for guff like Connell, Longstaff and Mcbride. Stick Brown between midfield and strikers for cove and airdrie and he’d be a superstar. Terribly misused. He’s our most talented player by some distance Far too many poor decisions regarding lineups have been costly. Ellis’s bizzare refusal to play Fox for 2 months essentially cost him the trust of a large number of fans and arguably the club hierarchy based on his sacking. And now we’re attempting to play every single wide combination that isn’t Quitongo. Longstaff, Mcbride, darcy and a horribly off form longridge aren’t near the ability of Quitongo. It really is infuriating to have a player that can stretch defences, especially for a team that are screaming out for that type of player. They’re must be something in the background regarding Quitongo that we don’t know about I’m not judging Coyle on anything until next season with his own squad and style implemented. He’s been left with a disinterested, ego-inflated squad of dross and crocks who have really let themselves and the fans far too many times. I’d like to think he wouldn’t of took the job if he hadn’t got assurances that he can make some top signings in the summer. He’s probably a wealthy enough guy who could have continued to live it up in India. His priority here will be fairly imminent promotion and on field success. I also don’t think we’d have anywhere near a Brechin situation if we somehow got promotion however. We’ve got far superior resources and there’s likely many very capable players who’d be more than happy to play in the championship if the money is right.

I’m finding it very difficult to get excited for the play offs which is really depressing. The squad are incredibly unlikeable and I think half of them have chucked it. I’m just looking forward to seeing the big list of players that are released come the end of the season when we’re routinely dispatched in the playoffs If I’m not mistaken, that’s 27 points dropped from winning positions across the whole season which is absolutely embarrassing. Bin the lot of these frauds

As a QP fan, if that’s true, i’d be extremely surprised that another full time side are willing to offer Murray a contract, even if Falkirk are a shambles. He’s probably going to be on a fairly hefty wage with no guarantees he plays a full season injury free whilst not being exactly prolific. He’ll score goals at this level still but if that’s the replacement for Dowds, it’s certainly no upgrade. Would of really liked Dowds at QP. Thought he was really impressive the last fixture against each other. Can certainly shift for a big guy

Just watched the game against Clyde and I must say that was a really enjoyable watch. Clyde were absolutely hideous throughout but we looked really promising all over the pitch. First proper look at Williamson tonight and he looks like he has a proper striker’s instinct. He’s quick, a pest for defenders and most importantly he knows where the goal is. Really looking forward to seeing him next season Man of the match was comfortably Jai Quitongo. He tore the defence to shreds on numerous occasions, getting 2 assists in the process. If Coyle and potter aren’t convinced with him after tonight then he’ll never get a chance. Get him started on Saturday please

I don’t think you’ll have too much struggle playing QP in the playoffs if you end up in them. There’s names in our team that championship teams wouldn’t mind having 3/4 years back like Murray, Mchugh, Quitongo, longridge, Kilday and Doyle but we’ve been largely poor overall. We’re tidy enough and can turn out decent results against the better teams but that’s massively outweighed by how spineless the team are. We’ve dropped 26 points from winning positions across the season Any sort of physicality in your side and we’ll struggle

I get that end of season games tend to not have the same intensity which is natural but it’s the body of work across the season that adds to the frustration of today. The players pick and choose when they’re up for games. We were right up for it against cove and then the following 2 weeks have been woeful We’re in the playoffs but if it weren’t for a catastrophic and embarrassing Falkirk, a lot more scrutiny would placed over this squad. Even an unremarkable Falkirk side would have reached the play offs over us. I don’t think the ability of the squad has been the primary issue, it’s just a pretty hopeless and frail mentality across a large number of players that you wouldn’t see in the cove or airdrie team

Exactly why most of this team should be binned at the end of the season irrespective of what division we end up in. Didn’t watch it but by all accounts the team didn’t try a leg all game. Their capability to simply not be bothered in numerous games has happened once too often this season. Again not starting Quitongo ? Instead we play Ronan Darcy who has looked absolutely woeful in his loan spell minus a pearler against Alloa Only pleasing aspect was Murray being back on the scoresheet again

It’s a shame with Murray. Clearly capable of being a great asset in this league but he’s just too injury prone. Only came back a couple games ago after missing the last 4 months with another knee injury (think he hadn’t played since being subbed early away at Montrose in December). He did make a difference when he came on Saturday with his usual hassling and energy. Really Hoping he gets a couple starts alongside a couple goals going into the play offs. A reasonably fit murray could give us the slight possibility of achieving something this season.

That was painful to watch. Both teams stunk the place out with a severe lack of quality and more worryingly a massive drop off in intensity from the previous week. I was really hoping we’d continue the type of performance against Cove were we hassled and got in the players faces, but we got served up with the polar opposite. It was generally an extremely boring watch and today again reinforced the issue we have with breaking down teams happy to sit in. Performances all over the place were poor, particularly Longridge and Mcbride. There isn’t a single justification as to why Connor Mcbride starts today and going forward. He quite literally offers nothing. He can’t score, isn’t quick, doesn’t carry the ball and his link up play is absent. For as bad as Longstaff has been, I’d still have him over Mcbride. The obvious replacement would be Quitongo but it’s becoming apparent as the weeks go on that he isn’t favoured, which is a massive shame. Its 3 points at the end of the day and I’m now buzzing for the playoffs but I’m going into these games with hope rather than any expectation. I hope they obviously prove me wrong and achieve promotion but there can’t be a performance anywhere like today’s or else we’ll be finished by the 1st leg against what looks Dunfermline or Ayr