DrewDon

Just saw this posted on Twitter. Great stuff.

You can't blame the United players for this. They are bored shitless going to work for the Dutchman every day.

You would think someone being paid as handsomely as Keown no doubt is for his insight would make even a rudimentary effort to know the basic rules.

I certainly think the argument about the point of contact is a fair one. It probably doesn't help that we are using a Smart Price version of VAR here. There have been numerous incidents this season alone involving handballs where I have thought that the point of contact being assessed was, at best, dubious. I think McLean has probably settled on the point in Bair's action where his arm is out at around the same height as his head, and perhaps judged that the arm is also outstretched as an action against Milne rather than just as part of the 'natural' jumping motion. I suppose it is a bit like Mackenzie's the other night in that it is part of a jumping motion, but Mackenzie had also extended it to challenge a Dundee player, so it is judged as an 'unnatural' position for the jump. In all honesty, reading this back as I type it, I think I am doing an absolutely terrible job of trying to explain what I think the officials are thinking, but there you go. Shinnie's is much closer to his body at the point of contact, sort of in the position that Bair's other arm is in when he's challenging for the ball. I think they have to be viewed as separate incidents, and there has to be recognition that the context is different too. I don't think we should be saying that just because one dubious decision is given, we then have to give what would be (in my opinion) a much more obviously wrong one. I do completely get the frustrations, though. I don't think many, if any, matchgoing fans are happy with the situation at the moment, myself amongst them. There was definitely a more concerted effort to move through the thirds, especially through Barron, who I thought was probably the best player on the park. Mackenzie seemed to have a slightly deeper starting position too, at least compared to Devlin and then Milne on the right side, which gave us more passing options (and probably also simplified things for Hoilett). We did still go direct at times, but weren't having too much joy with first contacts because we didn't have Phillips or Polvara to occupy defenders from Miovski; we were much more competitive with second balls, though, and all of Barron, Shinnie, Clarkson and McGrath did a good job in that regard. Roos was good - he probably would have been disappointed to be beaten by any of the shots he saved, but still made a few decent stops and didn't do anything wrong. It was Gartenmann's best game since around November time, I thought, and that was probably the best in possession I have seen from that combination of central midfielders. We were still a bit shaky under high and cross balls (or at least I felt that way at the game), and sometimes a bit ragged when Motherwell counter-attacked on us. This was likely at least somewhat a consequence of taking more risks in possession, both in use of the ball and shape, than we did under Warnock and probably Robson too. It wasn't a great performance, and on another day Motherwell would take a point without any complaints, but it was an improvement on much of what we have seen recently and can hopefully be a tentative step in the right direction.

They are different incidents, though. Bair’s one is more like Mackenzie’s in midweek than Shinnie’s here - probably technically correct by the state of the laws given the extension of his arm at the (apparent) point of contact (like Mackenzie’s), but not something that any matchgoing football fan should want to be penalised. Shinnie is in a natural position and the movement appears to be making his body smaller, if anything. Much more like the Goldson one against us in Warnock’s first game - not a penalty under the laws, and should never be a penalty. I hate myself for typing out this post. The VAR mob have won, they have got me right where they want me.

There is movement from Shinnie's arm, but it is in a natural position - he certainly isn't making his body 'unnaturally bigger' - and if anything that movement is in the process of making his body smaller and within the silhouette. Bair's arm is further away from his body in his incident. I can understand, especially if they think that arm is being used against Milne rather than as part of a jumping motion, why they have decided to rule it out. I would rather the laws (and/or the implementation of them) were more relaxed than that, though. I certainly wouldn't have been feeling a huge sense of grievance if VAR hadn't intervened on it, put it like that. As I said earlier, I don't think anybody behind the goal was expecting anything until Collum was sent to the monitor.

Looking back at the handballs on Sportscene now. Bair one is soft, no doubt - difficult to be 100% sure about the actual point of contact (at least from the angles they showed), and it is obviously not deliberate. I suppose McLean and Collum have judged that Bair makes his body unnaturally bigger, and that the position of the arm when the contact is too wide to be justified by the jump, and I suppose I can understand that but don't have to like it (except when it helps my team, obviously). Probably a technically correct decision but the sort I would rather not see given. Shinnie one should never, ever be a penalty. He's not making his body unnaturally bigger, if anything his arm seems to be moving closer into his body when the contact is made - and he has very little time to react from Mackenzie's touch. It is probably a 'seen them given' one just because our implementation of the handball laws in Scotland has occasionally been a bit odd, but it is the right decision not to give it. Happy to accept, on balance, that Steven McLean probably doesn't "hate" us.

I hear that you can barely move on the streets of Beijing for locals discussing Connor Barron's contract situation.

If we are a laughing stock around the world for being ninth place in the Scottish Premiership then surely that, if anything, is testament to our famousness.

Second half was a nervous watch, especially when Motherwell had set pieces or the opportunity to get a high ball into the box, but delighted and relieved to get three points on the board. A clear lack of height and presence in the team that Motherwell understandably sought to exploit, but Gartenmann and MacDonald stood up fairly well in most cases. I haven’t seen either of the VAR incidents back, but had no inkling that there was a handball at the goal until it was announced that it was being checked. Shinnie’s at the end looked like a typical nothing incident that might go against us, but difficult to tell from behind the opposite goal. I wouldn’t say it was a great performance, but hopefully grinding out a 1-0 away at a difficult venue (although every ground is difficult for us this season) can act as some sort of platform. Gartenmann’s best game in a long time. Barron and Shinnie both excellent. Nice to see Clarkson getting a goal.

I went to the 4-2 game at Fir Park in November and it still ranks as one of our most complete performances of the season. Leven was on the coaching staff that day, although he was in the 3-3 game too, so I wonder if he will look back at that and try some similar things tomorrow in terms of personnel and structure. We were in a (sort of) 5-4-1 that day and were really effective at getting bodies forward to support Miovski. There will be the temptation to make sweeping changes after such an anaemic performance at Dundee, but it's not like we have great strength in depth. I do worry a bit about Hoilett starting three games in a week, so I suppose Duk could be a possibility from the start - he has scored three in two against Motherwell despite having a disappointing season, and he didn't start either game, but that is likely just coincidence rather than anything particular about Motherwell's set-up. Shinnie was excellent against St Mirren and then Kilmarnock, but he did struggle against Dundee, which is maybe the quick turnaround catching up with him a bit. We would likely be worse without him, though, and we don't really have anybody to fill his role if he were to be rested. I would be tempted to stick with Barron, Shinnie and Phillips, with McGrath getting as central as possible and either Duk or Hoilett hopefully providing some width. The defence is rubbish, but the other options aren't good either, so I'd imagine it will be unchanged barring any injuries or suchlike. I expect Motherwell to win, but hopefully the win earlier in the season and the comeback at Pittodrie will give the players encouragement that they can have some joy against this team.

FLIPFLOPS?!

I'll say it, even if nobody else will:

Ticket purchased, for my sins.

Cormack was quoted on the official statement on Saturday saying that the process was at an "advanced stage". Maybe I am naïve, but I would usually take that to mean that you have identified a preferred candidate and have at least begun negotiations, rather than having not yet commenced interviews.

Maybe we will end up appointing Tony Docherty on Sunday after our 3-0 defeat at Fir Park the day before, just because he is the acceptable candidate who can literally get to Cormack Park the quickest.

Barney Walsh. I can just about stomach your average 'nepo baby' when they are actually good at what they do, but this guy permanently has the look of someone who is convinced that his card is about to get declined at the checkout. Sadly detracts from an otherwise excellent Gladiators reboot.

I am increasingly convinced that, despite the talk on Saturday about being 'far down the line' and all that, we didn't have a shortlist before this week.

Just thinking about how shambolic 2024 has been so far, both on and off the pitch. We waited until the very last day of January to sack Robson. We then appointed a caretaker, with every intention of keeping him until the end of the season, but he ended up walking out after 33 days. We are then caught on the hop and are currently in the process of rapidly speeding up the recruitment process for a new manager, who we will end up appointing before the arrival of a new technical director or director of football, which could well render a fair amount of the BPTC review null and void. How can you get so much wrong in such a short amount of time?

But seriously, the play-off will be on the season ticket, right?

You know things have gone wrong when it's the middle of March and you literally punch the air when you hear that Hibs have taken the lead away to Ross County.

The players just aren't playing for Leven. He's lost the dressing room.

I thought under Warnock there was at least some signs that we were beginning to put together some actual patterns of play and the structure of the team was gradually improving, even if we weren't always getting results, but this is a 'back to square one' performance if there ever was one.

Banter. No, it's not banter. It's not banter, not now.