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Eve of another league season and after a few years of having a pretty settled squad we go into this one with a number of new faces and questions. I thought Barry Ferguson was a pretty surprising appointment. Certain concerns I had not entirely eased by his signings and the rather unbalanced nature of the squad at this stage. There is a slight worry that it all looks a bit scattergun.

However, it is ridiculously early days and he needs and deserves time to shape his own team. He has made bold calls and for all the negativity about the League Cup, taking 4 points from Livi and Raith was impressive. Hopefully he can get a steady enough start in the league over the next few weeks and start to address the forward area, which would appear to be the biggest issue at the moment. And also address keeping all the defenders he has happy. 

It's going to be interesting anyway. All the best to the team and also to the fans making the trip north tomorrow. 

Edited by Waspie
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I think this season may be a bit like Jim Goodwin's first  , slow start then eventually get further up the table ( I  Hope ) .

 

this place is going to be interesting in the next few months for sure ( ☠️) .

 

as Waspie said , good luck and  a safe journey for the lucky  50  .

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Still think after a fairly disappointing league cup group stage on the whole there is plenty to be positive about. Taggart looking as good as we've seen him and finally back in his natural position, Scougall finally looking fully fit, got decent depth in defensive areas and have looked fairly solid defensively in the group games. Need to take a bit more care going forward, and hopefully Trouten and Cawley will be back soon to help with that. Still need another 1/2 strikers/attackers to give us a few more options but I'm sure the manager is working on that.

Still struggling to wrap my head around the Parry situation, obviously something has happened behind the scenes but Hutton had a good game on Saturday and should hopefully do a job for us. First 3 games are big for us though, Peterhead (A), East Fife (H) and Clyde (A). Should be looking for at least 7/9 if we're going to be going for promotion, so should have a clearer idea of how we'll get on after these games.

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For many I’m sure today’s result isn’t much of a surprise. A big part of any manager’s success or failure is down to recruitment and it’s fairly obvious that the vast majority of signings are simply not good enough  . I also don’t understand why O Donnell didn’t start today as I thought he played well whilst on the pitch last week. I was expecting Barry to use his contacts to bring in a few loan signings to add some quality but bizarrely that’s not been the case. The goal keeper’s position is also strange, yeh Parry has made a few errors but in my opinion he’s still better than Hutton & McDowell. It’s early days but worrying signs. 

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58 minutes ago, Jagwasp said:

For many I’m sure today’s result isn’t much of a surprise. A big part of any manager’s success or failure is down to recruitment and it’s fairly obvious that the vast majority of signings are simply not good enough  . I also don’t understand why O Donnell didn’t start today as I thought he played well whilst on the pitch last week. I was expecting Barry to use his contacts to bring in a few loan signings to add some quality but bizarrely that’s not been the case. The goal keeper’s position is also strange, yeh Parry has made a few errors but in my opinion he’s still better than Hutton & McDowell. It’s early days but worrying signs. 

I was expecting Barry to use his contacts to bring in a few loan signings to add some quality but bizarrely that’s not been the case."

Perhaps other managers don't rate him or trust him with youth! He clearly doesn't trust our home grown talent. As for Parry........no idea, I personally think he made a few errors but the other 2 are no better. Buckle up folks for a stormy ride. 

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Interesting to read the manager's comments there that Parry is apparently still in contention. That's good news as a fit and focused Neil Parry is the best option we have. I'm not sure what to make of his comment though that he will change the keeper again next week when he has already used all 3 already. Again slight worry here that this is a man who doesn't have a clear vision of what he is trying to achieve. He's certainly had bad luck so far with injuries and that has clearly disrupted things. Hopefully as things settle he can try and find a settled team. 

Edited by Waspie
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10 hours ago, LeodhasXD said:

I think that needs reworded as "I finally have a comment from the manager to add to the website".

Silence for weeks and then finally an update on injuries and missing players after a match.

As for the goalkeeper comment, I'll believe that when I see it. Why would we need 3 experienced keepers in a small squad with around half a dozen centre halves and basically zero goalscoring forwards? 

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22 minutes ago, Tamhain said:

I think that needs reworded as "I finally have a comment from the manager to add to the website".

Silence for weeks and then finally an update on injuries and missing players after a match.

As for the goalkeeper comment, I'll believe that when I see it. Why would we need 3 experienced keepers in a small squad with around half a dozen centre halves and basically zero goalscoring forwards? 

https://www.alloaathletic.co.uk/2021/07/11/cowdenbeath-programme/ - Manager's comment

https://www.alloaathletic.co.uk/2021/07/15/livingston-programme/ - Manager's comment

https://www.alloaadvertiser.com/sport/19452510.ferguson-remains-grounded-alloa-claim-spfl-scalp/ - Manager's comment

What you've had is a single week without manager's comments. And it's ostensibly; are you happy getting beat Barry? No I'm not. We need to change something. Hardly riveting press.

Edited by LeodhasXD
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3 hours ago, TxRover said:

So Mendy got dropped right into the deep end after exiting his isolation, eh? I was assuming he was the third or fourth CB, injury or suspension sissies?

Scott Taggart who played RB at Starks was unavailable. I wasn't there but it would appear Howie was moved from CB to RB and Mendy into the middle next to Graham. The other CB we have, Durnan, hasn't played yet due to injury. 

Going by the highlights Mendy appeared to lose his man for both Peterhead goals, but can't be too harsh on a new signing thrown straight into the team. I would say he is 4th choice CB but then again, why would you go to France to bring in a 4th choice CB so perhaps Ferguson has other ideas. 

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16 minutes ago, Waspie said:

Scott Taggart who played RB at Starks was unavailable. I wasn't there but it would appear Howie was moved from CB to RB and Mendy into the middle next to Graham. The other CB we have, Durnan, hasn't played yet due to injury. 

Going by the highlights Mendy appeared to lose his man for both Peterhead goals, but can't be too harsh on a new signing thrown straight into the team. I would say he is 4th choice CB but then again, why would you go to France to bring in a 4th choice CB so perhaps Ferguson has other ideas. 

Oaft......god save big Andy Graham.

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