The Falkirk FC Thread

[Caractacus Potts]

There’s been too many shifting of the goal posts recently. I think some are doubling down on their efforts because Rennie is now an appointment made by people they know. I get the need to defend it but it doesn’t mean it was the correct decision and that we should just continue to sail the course to try prove a point regardless. If those same fans were saying Sheerin should have went games before he was sacked then I have absolutely no idea why Rennie should now continue to get more games to try prove himself. 

Let’s remember, Rennie was appointed to turn things around quickly. That’s not happened. 

Rennie also said he was happy with the squad he inherited and would only bring people in if they were better than those present. To some extent that’s true but the sum of their parts is now worse than before so how can they be that much better if a nucleus of a team get worse results. 

We’re also wasting a fortune on Griffiths and by all means attempted to sign a player that could have caused serious harm to this club. 

We need to learn from these mistakes and learn fast and that includes Rennie. His appointment is looking like a big  mistake at present and the board simply can’t afford to deny the obvious in fear of admitting their error. 

[Back Post Misses]

5 hours ago, Duncan Freemason said:

For me, only ATS is a total waste of a signing, but the one howling omission is not leaving Dowds and Jaze alone, and moving heaven and earth to bring in two proper midfielders.

McCann is a pretty decent wing back but isn’t strong defensively, Williamson looks decent going forward, but doesn’t have a defensive fibre in his body, and doesn’t have the stamina for that role. How many goals have we conceded with Williamson making half hearted challenges out wide, or trotting back watching us concede another goal.

For me, a 4-4-2 is the only way we will have any chance of being half way competent. A simpler set up with defenders who defend, and don’t go on swashbuckling runs to nowhere. Liverpool lite we ain’t.

Now that we have Dowds and Jacobs on a growing injury list, it might well be the case that the likes of Jamie Wilson is thrown to the wolves to see how he gets on.

The big thing for us is that like it or not, there is no permutation of our squad that will come up with a half way decent midfield. It’s killed us from September on, and it will kill us from here into April.

You are advocating 4-4-2 and say the Full backs can’t defend. You can’t have it both ways. It is the very reason you play 3-5-2 if the strength of those two is going forward. You could argue on Saturday all 4 goal were either McCanns or Williamsons fault or part fault at the weekend. 
That squad needs gutting. The summer is easier to move players on. You have to hope whoever is in charge can do that. 

[Back Post Misses]

5 hours ago, Shadwell Dog said:

As has been mentioned what the hell is the point of a 6 month contract if you're just going to give him the bloody job no matter how much of a mess he makes of it in that time and why are we appointing a manager whose contacts will be more overseas than in Scotland when we can't sign any bloomin players from overseas? Crazy stuff.

It's surely up to the manager to motivate and get the players playing with confidence.  Rennie like Sheerin obviously has been unable to do that to any decent extent what so ever and again why spunk money on Griffiths when you know the rest of the side is nowhere near good enough never mind bringing in players that to you're not really that keen on to be honest.  

If Rennie does hang around then God knows how they will shift tickets for next season. They might want to stay full-time but keeping him on might put the kybosh on that. Very few if any are enthused by his tenure so far and most I would say want no sign of him next season.

 

c2500 Falkirk fans bought ST’s last summer after the Armageddon of last season with Holt and Deans stinking the place out. I am not saying they will do that again in those sort of numbers but in the past it has been proven many will renew no matter what.

Edited March 15 by Back Post Misses

[Springfield]

1 hour ago, Back Post Misses said:

c2500 Falkirk fans bought ST’s last summer after the Armageddon of last season with Holt and Deans stinking the place out. I am not saying they will do that again in those sort of numbers but in the past it has been proven many will renew no matter what.

I agree and count myself as one who would be first to get the family tickets renewed as soon as the tickets were available.

Not after this year’s Armageddon, had it unless there is an absolute clear out, which I suspect isn’t going to happen. 

Good luck to the club if the plans are to go with MR and the players currently under contract. Heading straight towards the abyss for me.

I would argue the last part of your post may be different from previous years, there’s already a considerable amount of vacant seats around me since the turn of the year that STs haven’t returned. 

[MrDust]

1 hour ago, Back Post Misses said:

You are advocating 4-4-2 and say the Full backs can’t defend. You can’t have it both ways. It is the very reason you play 3-5-2 if the strength of those two is going forward. You could argue on Saturday all 4 goal were either McCanns or Williamsons fault or part fault at the weekend. 
That squad needs gutting. The summer is easier to move players on. You have to hope whoever is in charge can do that. 

It's generally 5-3-2 in our 3-5-2 leaving Telfer to be the defensive mid, the width and the attacking mid most weeks. As for Saturday with Mills in the DM role, it was a carbon copy of McGuffie at wing back being neither a FB or LM but with Mills the crossroads of being a CD and DM and was neither.

The shape of our team is one of the main issues in our struggles, watching McKay hoof a 40-50 yard pass out the park on repeat makes you wonder what the feck are we doing in training.

I know we have some players simply not good enough but there is a starting 11 that are more competitive than what's being delivered.

 

1 hour ago, Back Post Misses said:

c2500 Falkirk fans bought ST’s last summer after the Armageddon of last season with Holt and Deans stinking the place out. I am not saying they will do that again in those sort of numbers but in the past it has been proven many will renew no matter what.

Totally new level of lows this season, I know folk who stopped going under Sheerin and had a comeback for Rennie to give up once again.

I think we can kiss goodbye to a good lot of last season's season ticket holders, a good few will judge it on how we end this season,our next manager and players in and out more than it has ever been in my time. A good lot of our fan base generally buy no matter what but I can see a similar drop to when Pressley got a 3yr contract in the summer this time.

The numbers are dwindling now in March the business end of the season which becomes a habit for some to stay away.

[Caractacus Potts]

2 hours ago, Back Post Misses said:

You have to hope whoever is in charge can do that. 

So are you saying Rennie should be let go?

[Blame Me]

Quote

...  and by all means attempted to sign a player that could have caused serious harm to this club. 

Can anyone confirm if this was brought up last night?

As we know the FSS ran the poll and Rennie must have been the main driver at the time so would have been interesting to hear what bearing the group had and what Rennie learned from the episode.

Edited March 15 by Blame Me
Clarification

[Ecosse83]

3 hours ago, Back Post Misses said:

You are advocating 4-4-2 and say the Full backs can’t defend. You can’t have it both ways. It is the very reason you play 3-5-2 if the strength of those two is going forward. You could argue on Saturday all 4 goal were either McCanns or Williamsons fault or part fault at the weekend. 
That squad needs gutting. The summer is easier to move players on. You have to hope whoever is in charge can do that. 

You can tell your board pals to stop trotting that out now, it’s a very poor excuse for advocating the 352. We’re not that stupid! 

[Shadwell Dog]

3 hours ago, Back Post Misses said:

c2500 Falkirk fans bought ST’s last summer after the Armageddon of last season with Holt and Deans stinking the place out. I am not saying they will do that again in those sort of numbers but in the past it has been proven many will renew no matter what.

Whether it was well placed or not there was a new manager in the summer, the Rawlins had appeared  on the scene and fans were up beat.  You only have to look at the numbers actually attending games now  and the feelings of those there and online these days to know that this has most likely been the straw that broke the camel's back for a good few. Let's face it chances are things are only going to get worse between now and may.  Last Saturday was an utter shambles . Tactics were clueless and the players obviously aren't playing for Rennie. He gets the job come the Summer and season tickets are going to plummet in my opinion. There will be zero to encourage fans.

[PedroMoutinho]

Another difference last summer was that it was people’s first chance to get back to the stadium after 18 months of not being able to attend games.

I think a lot will now decide they’ve seen enough if Rennie stays on.

[Ecosse83]

11 minutes ago, PedroMoutinho said:

Another difference last summer was that it was people’s first chance to get back to the stadium after 18 months of not being able to attend games.

I think a lot will now decide they’ve seen enough if Rennie stays on.

Including me I know 4 that’s had enough if he stays 

[Springfield]

10 hours ago, Reggie Perrin said:

He spent quite a bit of time tonight (partly in response to a question from yours truly) addressing that very point.

He has a dressing room full of five a side players whose confidence is absolutely shot.

Whenever we go a goal down, which is most games, the heads go down and the lack of leadership on the park becomes obvious.

To repeat my earlier post he knows that we don’t have the battlers that we need in our position and the January window was a case of nearly but not quite when it came to getting the guys he wanted.

I’m sure that what Deans and the ex BOD announced “confidence is shot”

Don’t buy this, for Fck sake their professional football players earning decent wages  and asked to give it their all for maybe 90/180 minutes each week.

They train for four short days most working guys will never experience.

They are really lucky that an average of 4000 fans every two weeks, have stood by watching a rudderless pile of utter shite and get off relatively Scot free.

Confidence is shot ? My Fckn arse 

[Shadwell Dog]

14 minutes ago, Springfield said:

I’m sure that what Deans and the ex BOD announced “confidence is shot”

Don’t buy this, for Fck sake their professional football players earning decent wages  and asked to give it their all for maybe 90/180 minutes each week.

They train for four short days most working guys will never experience.

They are really lucky that an average of 4000 fans every two weeks, have stood by watching a rudderless pile of utter shite and get off relatively Scot free.

Confidence is shot ? My Fckn arse 

What is our real average attendance lately though? Would be interesting to know how many have stopped bothering to turn up even though they've paid for their season.

[Bairney The Dinosaur]

Rennie has, to this point, undoubtedly failed but I don't know if I'm quite ready to completely write him off as a diddy.

[Dawson Park Boy]

1 hour ago, Caractacus Potts said:

So are you saying Rennie should be let go?

Absolutely no knowledge, but by looking at Rennie  in his post match interviews I wouldn’t be surprised if he voluntarily packed it in and hotfooted it back to North America.

The man has aged considerably since his arrival.

[FFC1965]

My last game was the draw v Peterhead - I was actually amazed that we got a crowd of 3,187 (exclude Killie and that would likely be a record attendance for the majority of Championship teams - all other than PTFC & DAFC probably? - and it was a foul night.    

As I wont be able to attend any of the remaining three home games it means I'll have attended 6 out the 18 home games over this season (I know there were a handful where attendance was limited) which must be the lowest % in any season that I've had a ST. 

Given the dross that's been served up again this season and with with something of a financial squeeze coming for everybody over the next few months I fear for ST sales, though I say that every season and 2,000+ people surprise me every season.   I'll probably base my decision on the new manager.  I want to club to show ambition, then I'll do my bit.  For too many years its been the other way round. 

I'll definitely not renew if its Rennie.  

On the playing side, Rennie was recruited as an improver of underperforming squads.  He's also been able to bring in/back over half a team.  He has not been a success by any objective measure and the club should count its lucky stars that his contract is only until the season end.  He has had less of an impact on a struggling squad than McKinnon did (once able to recruit in January 2019) and McKinnon was in the Championship not L1.   

Whoever is appointed as replacement should be given the time it takes so that the entire squad has been recruited or re-signed by them.  According to transfermarkt that means to the end of the 23/24 season. 

Unless paid to leave (and we sure as hell cant send them all packing with a fat cheque) we have the following for next season 

Watson, McGuffie, Hetherington, Williamson, Wilson, Holt, Ross, Morrison, McCann & McKay (the final three are contracted to the end of the 23/24 season).

Who to bring in as manager?  I'd have Murray at Airdrie top of my list but its looking increasingly like that would be a step backwards for him and Id not be surprised if he takes Airdrie up via the playoffs.  Hughes would probably be available if DAFC get relegated but I'm not keen.  I'd have McGlynn if he wants away from Raith after the Goodwillie shitshow but I can see him staying and try to get RRFC up (I'm assuming they will finish 5th or wont get to the playoff final . 

However given that a new manager would inherit a massively underperforming squad on lengthy contracts it does just look like a job that many would avoid.  Given the situation the club is in Id actually not be surprised if McKinnon returned or the club gambled on somebody from L2 (Naysmith / Young) or Crawford from EFFC.  We'll be shopping at the Barras and not Waitrose thats for sure.     

  

 

[Baino]

 

On 12/03/2022 at 17:26, Arch Stanton said:

He runs like a wean chasing a balloon.

Griffiths will no doubt be close behind then.

[Springfield]

1 hour ago, Shadwell Dog said:

What is our real average attendance lately though? Would be interesting to know how many have stopped bothering to turn up even though they've paid for their season.

I’d hazard a guess the actual people attending last weeks game may have been around the 2650 including  the away Fans. 
As with the widening gaps across the two stands, many have decided enough is enough.

The season finished a few weeks ago for many.

The three remaining home games might see some of the lowest ever gates recoded at the stadium. 

[Back Post Misses]

3 hours ago, Caractacus Potts said:

So are you saying Rennie should be let go?

I am not saying anything other than who ever the manager is have to move most of the players on. 

[Back Post Misses]

2 hours ago, Shadwell Dog said:

Whether it was well placed or not there was a new manager in the summer, the Rawlins had appeared  on the scene and fans were up beat.  You only have to look at the numbers actually attending games now  and the feelings of those there and online these days to know that this has most likely been the straw that broke the camel's back for a good few. Let's face it chances are things are only going to get worse between now and may.  Last Saturday was an utter shambles . Tactics were clueless and the players obviously aren't playing for Rennie. He gets the job come the Summer and season tickets are going to plummet in my opinion. There will be zero to encourage fans.

You are missing my point. I am certain there will be a hit. However there will be many who will sign up come what may. Last season I was surprised at how many, as were the Board at the time, renewed. IMO it won’t fall quite as far as most predict.