The Ultimate Super Ayr Thread

[rb123!]

League goals for Ayr United strikers since the start of 2019-20 season (so post Shankland): Moffat - 4 Moore - 3 Cameron - 1 Drinan - 1 Anderson - 0 Wright - 0 Zanatta - 0 Shankland our best player in 20 years but we haven’t even come close to replacing him. It’s an issue.

Plus McKenzie and Doolan who scored 0 league goals

[Ayr23]

All things considered, I thought we played well today. I can't tell if people are taking the piss when saying that was horrendous today? Like it or not, we're playing against a Premiership standard team today, with a brand new manager. It was a closely fought defeat, which I think breeds optimism. We don't play Hearts again which is a bonus, and there are some teams (QoS) who have a very tough run in. I think the league will finish as it looks today.

[AyrExile]

31 minutes ago, itzdrk said:

If he isn't familiar with the squad the professional thing to do would be to leave it to Davie White for today. 

I'm sure he knows enough about the players to pick a team. He will now know a bit more after giving them instructions and seeing how the players respond.. I'm sure there is a style he will look to play and be forming an opinion into who can adapt to this 

[BukyOHare]

1 minute ago, rb123! said:

League goals for Ayr United strikers since the start of 2019-20 season (so post Shankland): Moffat - 4 Moore - 3 Cameron - 1 Drinan - 1 Anderson - 0 Wright - 0 Zanatta - 0 Shankland our best player in 20 years but we haven’t even come close to replacing him. It’s an issue.

Plus McKenzie and Doolan who scored 0 league goals

In all likelihood, we'll all be in a pine box before we see the equivalent of Shankland playing for us.

A regular 15 - 25 a season goalscorer is so difficult to get, at any level of the game. It just so happened that we had one on an upwardly mobile curve in his career, one who'd eventually go on to play competitively for his country not long after leaving us. That's crazy even typing that! 

[Guest]

6 minutes ago, BukyOHare said:

36% possession and 2 efforts on target for 90 minutes effort.

At any level of the game, that isn't very good. If you go onto the pitch feeling inferior to the opposition before a balls kicked and are content to try and keep the opposition at arms length to try and get a point, you're going generally going to get the square root of not very much for your troubles.

I get today was a free hit and all that kind of talk but we weren't going to the Nou Camp or Anfield. This is a massively stuttering Hearts team, admitted week after week on here by their own fans. We have to be putting up more of a fight and threat than what we saw today. 

We held them for 70 minutes, great. Some of that time could've been spent letting them worry about us though. 

I watched Raith last night at Inverness and for that first half hour they were superb to watch. Everything done with a purpose, a tempo and a confident manner. They've gone to an equally difficult away venue in this league and more than held their own but doing so in a controlled and cohesive fashion. 

Nobody can tell me that players like McCowan, Walsh, Smith and Moffat and two forward thinking full backs in Reading and Houston shouldn't or wouldn't be able to pass and move in a similar fashion? 

Instead of being asked to defend first and foremost at almost every opportunity. 

 

 

Not this year it's not and certainly not since Robertson left.

There really is no comparison between Hearts away or Inverness away plus I still think we played well today and actually created quite a few decent chances, not to mention a good penalty claim at the end of the first half.

[No_Problemo]

36 minutes ago, itzdrk said:

Of course he did, he took the defensive approach of Tuesday night and absolutely ripped the piss.  

I didn’t watch it, but I’ll accept you can go far too defensively than required. Ultimately the proof will be in the games going forward. I think we’ll be similarly on Tuesday night. I don’t have an issue with that as long as we look to do sknething on the counter. 
 

ETA, I can’t believe someone has just said Inverness is equally as hard an away venue as Tynecastle. 

Edited March 13, 2021 by No_Problemo

[Guest]

3 minutes ago, No_Problemo said:

I didn’t watch it, but I’ll accept you can go far too defensively than required. Ultimately the proof will be in the games going forward. I think we’ll be similarly on Tuesday night. I don’t have an issue with that as long as we look to do sknething on the counter. 

We sat back and contained them but when we won the ball back we broke quickly in numbers and caused them a fair few problems, especially in the first half. We also won quite a few corners and had 6 or 7 guys in the box which was also encouraging.

Ok, it ultimately wasn't good enough and we walked away with a 2-0 defeat but it really wasn't as bad as some are making out.

[BukyOHare]

9 minutes ago, WATTOO said:

Not this year it's not and certainly not since Robertson left.

There really is no comparison between Hearts away or Inverness away plus I still think we played well today and actually created quite a few decent chances, not to mention a good penalty claim at the end of the first half.

I disagree, Inverness away is still a difficult place for teams to go. We as a fanbase should know that surely?

My point still stands though, even as the away team Raith went up there and at no time felt inferior to their opponents. 

This isn't a Hearts squad full of hall of fame candidates either remember. 

I applaud your positivity mate, I honestly do, but we didn't play well and got exactly what we deserved. 

[Guest]

1 minute ago, BukyOHare said:

I disagree, Inverness away is still a difficult place for teams to go. We as a fanbase should know that surely?

My point still stands though, even as the away team Raith went up there and at no time felt inferior to their opponents. 

This isn't a Hearts squad full of hall of fame candidates either remember. 

I applaud your positivity mate, I honestly do, but we didn't play well and got exactly what we deserved. 

This is possibly the poorest Inverness side that I can remember since they came up through the leagues and even we nearly won (and should have won) up there earlier in the season.

#LINESMENSSHINYNAPPER

[Trogdor]

1 hour ago, callum-ayr said:

I thought we played some no bad stuff in spells . We’re not going to Hearts and dominate and dictate play with this squad, no matter how bad they may be perceived to be. I thought we defended well for most of it. The glaring thing, as it has been all season, is the lack of anything up front. Moffat a cult hero, but he’s finished as a first team starter IMO, doesn’t look like beating a man. 

[HMIP]

Just now, BukyOHare said:

I disagree, Inverness away is still a difficult place for teams to go. We as a fanbase should know that surely?

My point still stands though, even as the away team Raith went up there and at no time felt inferior to their opponents. 

This isn't a Hearts squad full of hall of fame candidates either remember. 

I applaud your positivity mate, I honestly do, but we didn't play well and got exactly what we deserved. 

Feels like we’re lowering the bar as far as possible to try and find some crumbs of comfort.  Expected to lose today, but really hoped to see a bit of spark from the players anxious to impress their new manager.  Walsh and Smith in particular were anonymous.  Criticising Moffat seems a bit pointless as no one , the player included I imagine, thinks he is up to playing through the middle by himself anymore.  Genuinely baffled by people who thought we played well.  We basically offered nothing as an attacking force against a very average Hearts team.  Just felt it was a case of seeing how long we could hold out before conceding a goal.  

Definitely need an extra body up front.  Wright looked decent against Alloa but was blowing out his proverbial by half time, so I don’t think we can put all our faith in him, as he may well break down again if he is as far short of fitness as he appeared in the 2 games he played.

[Trogdor]

I don't know if it's the penny finally dropping (I didn't watch today so can't speak to the manner of the performance) but we are in a relegation battle. We have a limited squad, with no focal point in attack and 8th would be tolerable. It might even get really shitfesty, but if that's what it's gonna take to stay up so be it.

FWIW - Writing off the new manager when he's been in post for 2 days is tinpot and championing Davie White as some poundland Mourinho is just bizarre. Stay calm and have faith in the new manager. 

[Hursty]

38 minutes ago, BukyOHare said:

We got what we deserved today. Imagine if a team came to Somerset and played that way against us? 

 

They would probably head up the road with a 1-0 win with their keeper being relatively untroubled 

[Ayr23]

Come on people. We look like a totally different team compared to when Kerr was in charge. We edged the first half imo. Yes Hearts had some clean cut chances, but we also had some great chances, and had a few nice moves.

If Kerr was in charge today I think we'd have got absolutely pumped. Yes we scored a few on Boxing Day, but ultimately we got pumped.

Zanatta should have buried his chance, but he's not match sharp. We had about 8 corners and unfortunately didn't do anything with them, again something to work on.

Tuesday onwards is what to judge Hopkin and our team by.

If we finish 8th we should all be delighted after what we've seen this year, let's be honest.

[North British]

Surely Livingston can do us a favour and loan us a couple of there guys . They have forwards a plenty and the owe us after giving them Forrest and to a lesser extent Crawford .

[Jeff Venom]

Genuinely tempted to say we should just chuck big Roscoe up top [emoji23]
But, I shan't.

[Trogdor]

Just now, Jeff Venom said:

Genuinely tempted to say we should just chuck big Roscoe up top
But, I shan't.

Please no... I'm getting flashbacks to Stevie Bell getting chucked up front against a junior mob. 

[HMIP]

7 minutes ago, Ayr23 said:

Come on people. We look like a totally different team compared to when Kerr was in charge. We edged the first half imo. Yes Hearts had some clean cut chances, but we also had some great chances, and had a few nice moves.

If Kerr was in charge today I think we'd have got absolutely pumped. Yes we scored a few on Boxing Day, but ultimately we got pumped.

Zanatta should have buried his chance, but he's not match sharp. We had about 8 corners and unfortunately didn't do anything with them, again something to work on.

Tuesday onwards is what to judge Hopkin and our team by.

If we finish 8th we should all be delighted after what we've seen this year, let's be honest.

We played exactly the way we have all season.  Some pretty passing miles from the opposition goal, but not a single serious shot on target.  We never looked like scoring.  Today finally buried any sense that we are an under performing team that just needs a boot up the backside, a wee lift or a bit more tactical sense from the dugout.  Hopefully Hopkin accepts that quick and can make use of the loan market.

[ayrunitedfw]

3 hours ago, itzdrk said:

Alarm bells are ringing on Hopkin from the off, that's no way to approach a football match with the squad we have.  If he allows us to meekly surrender against Dundee on Tuesday then I'll not even bother getting on board.  

Initial assessment: worse than what we had including a guy who is not a football manager. 

For a normally sensible and reasonable poster you’ve lost the head here next this is coming from the biggest panic merchant on this forum 

[Trogdor]

6 minutes ago, ayrunitedfw said:

For a normally sensible and reasonable poster you’ve lost the head here next this is coming from the biggest panic merchant on this forum 

I'm assuming Mrs Itzdrk was running around the living room celebrating like Hearts won the league and its tilted him.