The Falkirk FC Thread

[MS RR]

1 hour ago, badgerthewitness said:

Is our recruitment process at fault, or our inability to improve/motivate players once they sign?

Bit of both, our recruitment has been very poor but the players we have are still good enough to win this league. If we didn't have rotten managers the players would play more like a full-time team. 

[MSG GTF!]

23 minutes ago, ShaggerG said:

We are where we are. I've seen us a lot worse in the 50 odd years that I've supported my club, might yet see worse but I'm sure I'll see better in time. I'd hazard a guess that you've only been watching us in the relatively recent past and have been spoiled by cup finals and play offs.

If you let the constant negativity get to you it'll spiral and you'll end up as a very sad lad. We've got to look forward with confidence or we could end up as an Airdrie or Clyde and none of us want that now do we...

33 years of following my club everywhere, so not convinced that puts me in the relatively recent past bracket. Nonetheless, just because you’ve seen us a lot worse 50 odd years ago doesn’t mean we should all accept mediocrity now. Shrugging the shoulders and saying “we are where we are” is largely why we’ve been out of the top flight for eleven years and counting. Heads should roll.

[Reggie Perrin]

55 minutes ago, ShaggerG said:

We are where we are. I've seen us a lot worse in the 50 odd years that I've supported my club, might yet see worse but I'm sure I'll see better in time. I'd hazard a guess that you've only been watching us in the relatively recent past and have been spoiled by cup finals and play offs.

If you let the constant negativity get to you it'll spiral and you'll end up as a very sad lad. We've got to look forward with confidence or we could end up as an Airdrie or Clyde and none of us want that now do we...

We seem to be of a similar vintage, curious as to when we were a lot worse.

The Centenary season debacle could be argued but even when we were last at this level at the end of the 70’s I think we were a better team.

[Bainsfordbairn]

51 minutes ago, ShaggerG said:

Not entirely sure who's out of contract but I would imagine that Durnan, Telfer, Todd and Sammon will be away.

Around 2/3 of the current squad will be out of contract. 

Exceptions being Morrison, Dowds, Alston, Keena, Miller, Mutch & Sneddon.

[ShaggerG]

43 minutes ago, Reggie Perrin said:

We seem to be of a similar vintage, curious as to when we were a lot worse.

The Centenary season debacle could be argued but even when we were last at this level at the end of the 70’s I think we were a better team.

Ach, you're not wrong TBF. We are certainly at a very low ebb at the moment, no doubt about that. I get frustrated at the constant whining and negativity on here though and I've let it get to me. Ok, there's Shadwell who knows best about everything and moans continually but he's always been like that, but there are a few more who I think may be refugees from OneF and it just all gets on my tits. I think I'll probably take a wee break.

[ShaggerG]

38 minutes ago, Bainsfordbairn said:

Around 2/3 of the current squad will be out of contract. 

Exceptions being Morrison, Dowds, Alston, Keena, Miller, Mutch & Sneddon.

Cheers.

We'll need a squad and I think most of those would either get a 1st team place or could be used as back-up. I'd keep wee Connolly too. 

[roman_bairn]

Ach, you're not wrong TBF. We are certainly at a very low ebb at the moment, no doubt about that. I get frustrated at the constant whining and negativity on here though and I've let it get to me. Ok, there's Shadwell who knows best about everything and moans continually but he's always been like that, but there are a few more who I think may be refugees from OneF and it just all gets on my tits. I think I'll probably take a wee break.

Spot on.
Most of this squad would be moved on if we get promoted. M and M will too if they don’t start to impress which is fair enough. Time will tell.
Reality is we have a team of players from the lower reaches of the Championship, supplemented by players from the division we are in. That should be good enough to get us up, but any expectation of silky football with an average Championship squad playing against part time teams, or Liverpoolesque dominance of this league are totally misguided.
The main issue has been the last three performances in particular, but it was only a few weeks before we went from 4 points off the top to 6 points clear.
It’s reasonable to be concerned but we are hardly out of contention.
Just wish some posters would get a sense of realism and get behind the club rather than castigating it at every opportunity.....

[ebobsboy]

1 hour ago, Bainsfordbairn said:

Around 2/3 of the current squad will be out of contract. 

Exceptions being Morrison, Dowds, Alston, Keena, Miller, Mutch & Sneddon.

Morrison, Keena and Mutch you'd keep, G Miller is very nearly done, Alston looks like a shadow of the player he once was, Dowds just looks like a punt that isn't working  and Sneddon  hasn't had a sniff

[WestfieldBairn]

50 minutes ago, ebobsboy said:

Morrison, Keena and Mutch you'd keep, G Miller is very nearly done, Alston looks like a shadow of the player he once was, Dowds just looks like a punt that isn't working  and Sneddon  hasn't had a sniff

As much as it sounds daft, some players don’t suit the lower leagues. You think them moving down leagues that they’ll be superstars and it’s not always the case. Look at Tidser for example, he was Morton’s best player and a very capable championship player. He then moves to us and looked totally out his depth. Same is starting to happen to Alston. It wouldn’t surprise me to see him play better in the Championship should we get there. 

[Stainrod]

3 hours ago, CC52 FFC said:

As much as it sounds daft, some players don’t suit the lower leagues. You think them moving down leagues that they’ll be superstars and it’s not always the case. Look at Tidser for example, he was Morton’s best player and a very capable championship player. He then moves to us and looked totally out his depth. Same is starting to happen to Alston. It wouldn’t surprise me to see him play better in the Championship should we get there. 

I just want to get back to watching football again on a Saturday . Let’s face it it would be great to be in the premiership and we will achieve that one day I’m sure . In the interim we just need to enjoy playing whoever irrespective of how shore we are . Yes we have our problems and they have been well documented on here but like Roman Bairn said we are all pissed  of with the negative stuff—  let’s just get back to playing  fitba  and supporting the team . 

[Guest]

Is our recruitment process at fault, or our inability to improve/motivate players once they sign?

Recruitment is the key thing always. Ours has been awful since the January window where Baird and Kerr signed.

[Guest]

Our longest time ever in our history out of the top flight.

We still sadly have two major shareholders with big influence and they have been pulling the strings since we got relegated in 2010. Won’t change massively IMO until that strangle hold is broken

[MSG GTF!]

35 minutes ago, Back Post Misses said:

Our longest time ever in our history out of the top flight.

We still sadly have two major shareholders with big influence and they have been pulling the strings since we got relegated in 2010. Won’t change massively IMO until that strangle hold is broken

This^^^

[BountyBairn]

5 minutes ago, AGPar said:

You keep saying this. Who was crying out for it? On whose behalf are you speaking? In the current economic climate, and whilst we are troughing about in League One and paying out two managerial salaries, I certainly wasn't. A competent manager with a reasonable eye for recruitment should be more than enough to get us out of this league. Time will tell how this shakes out but there's a real danger that we have created a too many chiefs type scenario. 

And whilst those major shareholders who have overseen a lost decade remain very much on the scene, I won't be sharing your view that this is somehow the start of a new era. That will be only be the case when they bugger off, which they clearly have no intention of ever doing. 

So you’re going to never have any kind of positive outlook until their shareholding has changed? 
 

Sounds grim pal, but up to you and all that. Enjoy being miserable for a few years for you yet till they die off (or will you hold this view against their children too if they were to inherit the shares?)

Edited February 9, 2021 by BountyBairn

[latapythelegend]

15 hours ago, Back Post Misses said:

 

 

 

Would you rather we brought in more unknowns during a pandemic? January is hard enough in normal times to bring in quality. With very little youth/reserve football going on it not easy bringing in loans from Premiership teams with no guarantee of matches going ahead. 

Really not sure what else you expect the club to do right now. Especially when what was predicted as the worst case scenario at the start of the season now appears to be the expected reality (no crowds all season = minimal income).

[Gaz]

Clearly if everyone had spent the last decade being a bit cheerier we'd still be in the SPL.

[Believe The Hype]

3 hours ago, Back Post Misses said:

 

Recruitment is the key thing always. Ours has been awful since the January window where Baird and Kerr signed.

 

Whilst I agree you have to look at Andy Irving, hearts now scrambling around to offer him a new deal and yet was very mediocre with us. Possibly the case that players just can't be fucked performing for us once here. 

[Marshmallo]

Tidser was not "out of his depth" at all with us. He had more assists than any other player in our team and while he wasn't a complete stick out like I'd have expected he still had a lot to offer us and would be a nailed on starter in our team this season if he was still here.

Irving was a kid chucked into the worst collection of players I've ever seen and was being asked to be the main creative driving force surrounded by plodding muck in a team battling relegation in a poisonous atmosphere having never really played top level football. He wasn't great by any stretch but he had no chance of succeeding.

[MSG GTF!]

2 hours ago, BountyBairn said:

So you’re going to never have any kind of positive outlook until their shareholding has changed? 
 

Sounds grim pal, but up to you and all that. Enjoy being miserable for a few years for you yet till they die off (or will you hold this view against their children too if they were to inherit the shares?)

If only more fans shared his outlook then perhaps these shareholders wouldn’t still be stinking the place out to this day.

Unfortunately our fan base is made up of too many soft lads who are happy to open wide and have their gubs p!shed in.

[Shadwell Dog]

13 hours ago, roman_bairn said:

Spot on.
Most of this squad would be moved on if we get promoted. M and M will too if they don’t start to impress which is fair enough. Time will tell.
Reality is we have a team of players from the lower reaches of the Championship, supplemented by players from the division we are in. That should be good enough to get us up, but any expectation of silky football with an average Championship squad playing against part time teams, or Liverpoolesque dominance of this league are totally misguided.
The main issue has been the last three performances in particular, but it was only a few weeks before we went from 4 points off the top to 6 points clear.
It’s reasonable to be concerned but we are hardly out of contention.
Just wish some posters would get a sense of realism and get behind the club rather than castigating it at every opportunity.....

So why can't we attract better players like other sides have managed to do with less resources at this level. Clubs like Dunfermline and queen's etc have managed to play good football and win this league at a canter. In some cases it was that easy the fans actually got bored seeing their side knock in a barrowload every week.  Fat chance of that ever happening to us. No reason why with the right management set up and recruitment strategy we shouldn't be able to win and win well at this level. Christ even last season we at least managed to play some good football on the occasion and pummel the dross.