The Falkirk FC Thread

[Marshmallo]

Folk acting like us and Partick are the Old Firm. Give it a bye eh.

Edited July 29, 2020 by Marshmallo

[Shadwell Dog]

36 minutes ago, Ranaldo Bairn said:

Shads had the post declaring we had been shafted written out weeks ago.

He just tweaked to suit before posting.

I actually posted one either yesterday or the day before you must've missed it.

[Shadwell Dog]

29 minutes ago, Diamonds are Forever said:

 

Yip. The fixtures were never going to be even this season so it's slightly tedious after the summer we've had to continue to have fans/clubs playing the victim over the slightest of things, particularly when it's an unavoidable issue when you have 27 games.

Of the teams (hopefully!) going for promotion we have the worst fixtures. I really couldn't care less. Home/away advantage counts for next to nothing at this level anyway, and will count for even less when fans aren't allowed to attend. It's good just to have fixtures to look forward to.

You cant get them perfect but  14 home games and 4 of them at home to last seasons second and third is taking the piss if you ask me. Its not just the onfield advantage either.  If crowds are allowed back an extra home game to us will make more cash than any other fixture in this league.

[Ranaldo Bairn]

12 minutes ago, Diamonds are Forever said:

 

Yip. The fixtures were never going to be even this season so it's slightly tedious after the summer we've had to continue to have fans/clubs playing the victim over the slightest of things, particularly when it's an unavoidable issue when you have 27 games.

Of the teams (hopefully!) going for promotion we have the worst fixtures. I really couldn't care less. Home/away advantage counts for next to nothing at this level anyway, and will count for even less when fans aren't allowed to attend. It's good just to have fixtures to look forward to.

Before I go on, I'd like to say how much I loathe the phrase "at this level". People chuck it in everywhere, and it's generally pointless and wrong: similar things affect teams at all levels in many cases. It's as bland as "It is what it is". Nothing personal DAF, just a bugbear of mine.

Anyway, before getting bored, I looked over the stats from the last 9 years to see what the story was. Here are the results from the Falkirk jury:

Games played in tier 3 since 2011/12: 1579

Home wins in that time: 703 (44.52%)

Draws in that time: 332 (21.03%)

Away wins in that time: 544 (34.45%)

I'd say the chances of winning a home match being a third more likely than those of winning an away match make it significant. And I'd say that applies "at all levels". However I emphatically do not think we've been shafted.

[WestfieldBairn]

Very tough game to start with at Montrose considering how close each game was last year, we somehow managed to take maximum points. First game was that Sammon goal that their keeper chucked off his head, second game we blow a two goal lead and had to win in stoppage time and thirdly we beat them 1-0 after being down to 10 men for 30 minutes and them missing a penalty. Hopefully our luck continues against them. Two away games against Partick and our bogey team Clyde could be decisive. 

[Guest Ecosse83]

52 minutes ago, Diamonds are Forever said:

 

We have 13 home games, and are away to Partick and Falkirk twice. If you have been shafted then what does that make us?

Severely shafted!

[Diamonds are Forever]

2 minutes ago, Shadwell Dog said:

You cant get them perfect but  14 home games and 4 of them at home to last seasons second and third is taking the piss if you ask me. Its not just the onfield advantage either.  If crowds are allowed back an extra home game to us will make more cash than any other fixture in this league.

 

I agree that financially this is an issue, I just made a similar comment in the Airdrie thread. Losing out on 2 home games against Falkirk and Thistle is huge for us financially. Back of cigarette packet arithmetic suggest we'll lose around £25-30k from those games being away and not at home (potentially far more if they were towards the end of the season with bigger away support). That's the equivalent of salaries of 2 or 3 good players at this level. In a playing sense I'd rather play away, our away record has been better than home in recent years anyway.

Anyway, the point is that this was unavoidable this season, some clubs have got luckier than others but as long as the fixtures were randomly allocated then no-one has any real grounds for complaint. The fixture compilers would have tied themselves in knots if they had to take into account the playing and financial implications of every club's fixtures. I think we have to just accept they aren't totally fair and get on with it.

[Sarcastic Bairn]

Two away games at Thistle is great if fans are allowed to attend. Lager lager lager

Whereas they go quinoa, quinoa, quinoa!

[Ranaldo Bairn]

1 minute ago, Sarcastic Bairn said:

Whereas they go quinoa, quinoa, quinoa!

If they go to the Gaelic school they could bemoan too much cous-cous as "Cus cous-cous"

[Bairnardo]

f**k this attitude of anyone being shafted we were always gonna get two away days against some teams, no excuses just a build a team capable of winning this league and go for it.

Yeah. Partick arent going to steamroller everyone every week. I sincerely doubt they are anywhere near good enough for that, and they have yet to find out who the prima Donna, CBA types are in their theoretically strong team.

If the fixture list is going to be the difference then we may aswell just give up now. If we cant use last seasons experience to sign the correct players to compliment what we already have, and get players up for the task in hand then we fully deserve to stay for a third season.

[MrDust]

Aren't the fixtures completed via computer with some restrictions in place(Dundee clubs not home same day/first old firm game last round of top league fixtures).

Anyone wetting their knickers over two games at Partick surely are the kinda folk who wear masks driving their own cars.

It's not the best obviously but with a 27 game league something was always gonna hit us and everyone, I'm more concerned with Clyde away twice being our bogey team of last season.

 

[Diamonds are Forever]

15 minutes ago, Ranaldo Bairn said:

Before I go on, I'd like to say how much I loathe the phrase "at this level". People chuck it in everywhere, and it's generally pointless and wrong: similar things affect teams at all levels in many cases. It's as bland as "It is what it is". Nothing personal DAF, just a bugbear of mine.

Anyway, before getting bored, I looked over the stats from the last 9 years to see what the story was. Here are the results from the Falkirk jury:

Games played in tier 3 since 2011/12: 1579

Home wins in that time: 703 (44.52%)

Draws in that time: 332 (21.03%)

Away wins in that time: 544 (34.45%)

I'd say the chances of winning a home match being a third more likely than those of winning an away match make it significant. And I'd say that applies "at all levels". However I emphatically do not think we've been shafted.

 

I don't really agree with the point about 'at this level'. There is undoubtedly a difference between a team visiting Anfield or Celtic Park on a European night, and New Broomfield in front of 700 fans. There are numerous varying factors but 'at this level' in recent years the majority of teams have been playing on identical plastic pitches, in front of 500 odd fans with no atmosphere. There is no distinct reason why the home team should have an advantage on that situation. I don't agree that that is the same as higher up the leagues where there are different factors affecting home advantage. I may be wrong, and accept there is still a slight advantage, but would be interesting to see a comparison with the stats in higher leagues. I accept it can sound like a throwaway phrase, but I mean it in relation to the specific factors mentioned above (identical pitches, hardly any home support) which to me remove a lot of the home advantage that exists in higher leagues.

Airdrie's home record in recent years has been poorer than away. I accept that is not representative of an entire league, but in terms of our own fixtures it means I'm not fussed at all about playing away from home.

 

Edited July 29, 2020 by Diamonds are Forever

[Bairnardo]

Just seen Bobby Linn coming out the stadium [emoji102]

[Newbornbairn]

1 minute ago, Bairnardo said:

Just seen Bobby Linn coming out the stadium

buying his 50/50 tickets

[Mon_Eh_Bairns2018]

Just seen Bobby Linn coming out the stadium [emoji102]

Unless we are willing to pay money for a 34 year old, this is easy fake news considering he has a 2 year contract at Arbroath.

[HopeStreetWalker]

1 hour ago, FFC 1876 said:

Never mind the fixtures can we announce some players this afternoon i'm chomping at the bit over here. A centre back that can deal with Goodwillie would be preferrable as otherwise that's us 9 points down before the season starts...

What about that Johnson guy we sold to Brentford that got freed ?

[Bairnardo]

8 minutes ago, Mon_Eh_Bairns2018 said:

 

 

Unless we are willing to pay money for a 34 year old, this is easy fake news considering he has a 2 year contract at Arbroath.

 

 

Just a wee blast from the past from last summer's craic to alleviate the boredum

[FFC 1876]

6 minutes ago, HopeStreetWalker said:

What about that Johnson guy we sold to Brentford that got freed ?

Jonny Mitchell you're on about.

[Shadwell Dog]

22 minutes ago, FFC 1876 said:

Jonny Mitchell you're on about.

Always looked a decent prospect to me and felt he would've been a far better option than some of hartleys dross. Another one that moved down south too early though.

[AGPar]

Running scared of 2 away games at Partick ffs. Just close the doors. I must have imagined our abysmal, atrocious, despicable, shit-the-bed record in so-called big home games for years and years and years and years. We'd have a much better chance of promotion with 27 aways. No doubt the usual suspects will be along shortly with their "no easy games, tight little away ground, community club, wind whipping off the North Sea on a cold Tuesday night" garbage. Excuses are about the only thing we are not lacking in these days. Would give anything for a tenth of the confidence and swagger that a Jefferies or McCall had their Falkirk teams playing with (and that was at least a tier higher and, in the case of JJ, two). Instead, reduced to playing shit-scared, safety first, a point-is-more-than acceptable dross against the likes of Clyde under both the current management and the previous one. If we're not committed to going full throttle to rip this appalling league up from day one, then it's GTF time again, for both players and management. No margin for yet another one of our speciality slow starts. See where we are after the first nine games and make decisions from there. Not interested in any more excuses.