The Ultimate Super Ayr Thread

[Richey Edwards]

Just now, North British 2 said:

My first priority would be to strengthen the central midfield area , a DCM that can break things up and win headers and an ACM who can pull the strings going forward a link things up . Easier said than none I guess . I would have went for another striker but I'm guessing Bullen sees a fit again Bryden as a decent enough replacement. I'd expect something to happen this week .

I think we need a full-back, a centre midfielder, a winger and a striker. I very much doubt that we are going to get all of these though. 

I would kill for a younger Michael Moffat, or a Craig Moore type striker to play alongside Dipo. 

[AYRSHIRE_ANGUS]

If we're hoping to attract decent players into the club then Logan's parting words in the article below won't do any harm.

 

https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/ayrshire/logan-chalmers-thanks-ayr-giving-28956993

[D'Jaffo]

If we’re looking ahead to next season then I thought the Arbroath striker Adarkwa was decent. Maybe worth a look at when we cash in on Dipo. 
 

El-Maahani was half decent as well. 

[ayrunitedfw]

4 hours ago, rb123! said:

I heard Mathie in the hub yesterday say to someone along the lines of "we had a chat with him and decided it would be best for him to go back... home sickness issues aswell etc" so presume he was talking about Young...

 

3 hours ago, Finlay21 said:

Yes he is definitely away 

Fair enough, that should give us a bit of wiggle room to get a couple in. Fullbacks and Centre Mid being the priority. Another striker to play off Dipo would be nice too. 
 

Any update on when Musonda and O’Connor are likely to be back? I’m sure it was mentioned that Musonda should be back for the Cove double header but been nothing on O’Connor

Hopefully Murdoch injury isn’t too serious as we really miss him. There is not a single centre mid I’d take in this league over him. 

[rb123!]

Just now, ayrunitedfw said:

 

Fair enough, that should give us a bit of wiggle room to get a couple in. Fullbacks and Centre Mid being the priority. Another striker to play off Dipo would be nice too. 
 

Any update on when Musonda and O’Connor are likely to be back? I’m sure it was mentioned that Musonda should be back for the Cove double header but been nothing on O’Connor

Hopefully Murdoch injury isn’t too serious as we really miss him. There is not a single centre mid I’d take in this league over him. 

O'Connor will be back next week i think, believe he was back in training this week. Musonda sounds like it has been pushed back again as Bully said in the new year press conference that he should be back for one of the cove games however the pre-Arbroath press conference he said he will be "back in training" in a couple of weeks so clearly isn't going to make either of the Cove games...

No idea about Murdoch, wasn't even mentioned before Arbroath that he was still going to be out with injury. 

[No_Problemo]

26 minutes ago, rb123! said:

O'Connor will be back next week i think, believe he was back in training this week. Musonda sounds like it has been pushed back again as Bully said in the new year press conference that he should be back for one of the cove games however the pre-Arbroath press conference he said he will be "back in training" in a couple of weeks so clearly isn't going to make either of the Cove games...

No idea about Murdoch, wasn't even mentioned before Arbroath that he was still going to be out with injury. 

We aren’t seeing Musonda again this season are we… some bout of cramp that was! 

[itzdrk]

52 minutes ago, No_Problemo said:

We aren’t seeing Musonda again this season are we… some bout of cramp that was! 

Course we will, he'll want to be fit for the international break in March 

[GaryMc93]

Club probably have 3 options available. 
1. Go all out for the title which would require 4 players in
2. Bring a couple in and target the play-offs
3. Assume we’re unlikely to be relegated so sign nobody and use the existing squad while getting a head start on planning for next season

All 3 have risk and rewards attached but could see number 2 happening with a CM and ST joining. Option 1 is unlikely since the January window is notoriously tough and not helped by the 9 sub rule these days either. Doubt option 3 would go down well but if it offered more game time to some of the younger players then the experience gained would at least give them a chance to stake a claim for next season which wouldn’t be the worst thing.

[D'Jaffo]

1 hour ago, GaryMc93 said:

Club probably have 3 options available. 
1. Go all out for the title which would require 4 players in
2. Bring a couple in and target the play-offs
3. Assume we’re unlikely to be relegated so sign nobody and use the existing squad while getting a head start on planning for next season

All 3 have risk and rewards attached but could see number 2 happening with a CM and ST joining. Option 1 is unlikely since the January window is notoriously tough and not helped by the 9 sub rule these days either. Doubt option 3 would go down well but if it offered more game time to some of the younger players then the experience gained would at least give them a chance to stake a claim for next season which wouldn’t be the worst thing.

I don’t think option 1 is actually possible for us. We could probably bring four players in but it’s unlikely they’d be of the standard we need to win the league and to afford those difference makers we’d have to spend a lot of money. Again, something that we’d not be keen on but even if we were, it wouldn’t be possible. 
 

I think the majority of fans would accept a couple of good additions in the right areas and there’s no reason why that can’t be enough to win a league provided we also get Musonda and Murdoch back and keep everyone else fit enough. 
 

My honest prediction for this season is we’ll sign 2-3 players and finish 3rd. Beat whoever finishes 4th in the playoffs and not get past the next round. It would still be a big improvement on the last couple of seasons and puts the club in a stronger position going forward to do whatever it is they want to do. Me personally, I’d be satisfied with that outcome. 

[itzdrk]

1 hour ago, GaryMc93 said:

Club probably have 3 options available. 
1. Go all out for the title which would require 4 players in
2. Bring a couple in and target the play-offs
3. Assume we’re unlikely to be relegated so sign nobody and use the existing squad while getting a head start on planning for next season

All 3 have risk and rewards attached but could see number 2 happening with a CM and ST joining. Option 1 is unlikely since the January window is notoriously tough and not helped by the 9 sub rule these days either. Doubt option 3 would go down well but if it offered more game time to some of the younger players then the experience gained would at least give them a chance to stake a claim for next season which wouldn’t be the worst thing.

Option 1 is a no go, I think folk really need to temper expectations. We were good for a while and maybe could have challenged but we are out of form and have just lost our best player.  You'd be looking at about 6 players coming in to achieve that.  

Combination of 2 & 3 much more likely.  We aren't going anywhere this season and I'd be surprised if we end up in the playoffs now the way things have worked out (so far).  Maybe one player in to replace the ones that have left but I don't think either will be directly replaced.  

[Thereisalight..]

7 hours ago, Richey Edwards said:

Literally the only reason I can think of why yesterdays game went ahead was because Arbroath had travelled all that way and were already there. That's not a good enough reason to still play in those conditions though - as the decision should have been made sooner.

A point is a point and that's not the worst outcome that could have occurred yesterday, but this was an opportunity missed to close the gap on QP with them only drawing yesterday as well.

The ref had no hesitation when it was ICT who'd travelled down a few seasons back. Yesterday was a farce and without going all "if your Auntie had balls...". I reckon on a calm day we'd have got 3 points rather than 1

Edited January 15, 2023 by Thereisalight..

[North British 2]

3 minutes ago, itzdrk said:

Option 1 is a no go, I think folk really need to temper expectations. We were good for a while and maybe could have challenged but we are out of form and have just lost our best player.  You'd be looking at about 6 players coming in to achieve that.  

Combination of 2 & 3 much more likely.  We aren't going anywhere this season and I'd be surprised if we end up in the playoffs now the way things have worked out (so far).  Maybe one player in to replace the ones that have left but I don't think either will be directly replaced

Option 1 isn't for this season maybe the one after next .Which is frustrating as the composition of the division could look a lot different by then . This season the title is there for the taking. 

Option 2 is the most lightly , however I'm thinking we'll be in the six months loans market but you never know . Thing is with this team , something feels different,  not as much va va voom as McCalls side  but they are never out a game . Our heaviest defeat is two nil . They just keep gathering points . I have a feeling we'll finish up second .

[ayrunitedfw]

2 hours ago, GaryMc93 said:

Club probably have 3 options available. 
1. Go all out for the title which would require 4 players in
2. Bring a couple in and target the play-offs
3. Assume we’re unlikely to be relegated so sign nobody and use the existing squad while getting a head start on planning for next season

All 3 have risk and rewards attached but could see number 2 happening with a CM and ST joining. Option 1 is unlikely since the January window is notoriously tough and not helped by the 9 sub rule these days either. Doubt option 3 would go down well but if it offered more game time to some of the younger players then the experience gained would at least give them a chance to stake a claim for next season which wouldn’t be the worst thing.

This league is utter shite and is there for the taking but I doubt we will do option 1.

Like you say option 3 would really not be popular with fans.

I reckon we’ll add maybe 3 players and if they are of the right quality then there is no reason why we can’t win the league or at least be very confident going into the playoffs. 
 

ETA: We’ve been pretty meh for a good few weeks now. Probably since the Raith game and could do with a few bodies to freshing things up. 

Edited January 15, 2023 by ayrunitedfw

[ayrunitedfw]

3 hours ago, No_Problemo said:

We aren’t seeing Musonda again this season are we… some bout of cramp that was! 

Starting to realise why Raith hunted him. A very good player when fit but very injury prone. 

[No_Problemo]

35 minutes ago, ayrunitedfw said:

Starting to realise why Raith hunted him. A very good player when fit but very injury prone. 

Absolutely - unfortunate as he has everything as a centre half. You are always going to be biased, but I’ve not seen any better this season. If we can somehow get him fit for the Cove league game it’ll make a huge difference for the run in. 

[GaryMc93]

1 hour ago, D'Jaffo said:

My honest prediction for this season is we’ll sign 2-3 players and finish 3rd. Beat whoever finishes 4th in the playoffs and not get past the next round. It would still be a big improvement on the last couple of seasons and puts the club in a stronger position going forward to do whatever it is they want to do. Me personally, I’d be satisfied with that outcome. 

 

1 hour ago, itzdrk said:

Option 1 is a no go, I think folk really need to temper expectations. We were good for a while and maybe could have challenged but we are out of form and have just lost our best player.  You'd be looking at about 6 players coming in to achieve that.

Yeah after the last couple of seasons I'd have taken 6th-7th at the start of the season and safety secured early. Our start means most  people would now be disappointed with that but even 4th would represent a very successful season given how tight the league will be to the end.

30 minutes ago, ayrunitedfw said:

ETA: We’ve been pretty meh for a good few weeks now. Probably since the Raith game and could do with a few bodies to freshing things up. 

Excluding Raith, performance wise it probably goes further back to the Hamilton game but this team at least  has some character. Agree we need something new although hard to know what that is exactly will be due to the recent change of shape and our injury list having ever moving return dates.

[rb123!]

2 hours ago, Thereisalight.. said:

The ref had no hesitation when it was ICT who'd travelled down a few seasons back. Yesterday was a farce and without going all "if your Auntie had balls...". I reckon on a calm day we'd have got 3 points rather than 1

The ref that night was Craig Thomson who was at the time the most experienced ref in Scotland which maybe shows the difference

[Lochwood]

Game was a farce couldn’t understand why the game was in doubt for the wind until I got into the ground, the abuse for Mcginty is unwarranted, the big man has held things together and deserves more credit than abuse. The boy Obrien  best centre back in the league for them was the same as most launching the ball all the time, don’t think supporters appreciated how hard that was for the players on Saturday

I hope we get a couple in this week for the cup game, need to remember we have no Mullin  not allowed to play the Villa boy, and Chalmers , so significantly weakened up front we will need some sort of threat if we are to progress.

[Trogdor]

23 minutes ago, rb123! said:

The ref that night was Craig Thomson who was at the time the most experienced ref in Scotland which maybe shows the difference

That and John Robertson got off the team bus looked at the skies and shook his head at Craig Thomson. I think Saturday was worse than that Friday night tbh.

That Friday night is a sliding doors moment for me. It killed our forward momentum following our pummelling of Dundee United away in 2018-19. 

[rb123!]

17 minutes ago, Lochwood said:

Game was a farce couldn’t understand why the game was in doubt for the wind until I got into the ground, the abuse for Mcginty is unwarranted, the big man has held things together and deserves more credit than abuse. The boy Obrien  best centre back in the league for them was the same as most launching the ball all the time, don’t think supporters appreciated how hard that was for the players on Saturday

I hope we get a couple in this week for the cup game, need to remember we have no Mullin  not allowed to play the Villa boy, and Chalmers , so significantly weakened up front we will need some sort of threat if we are to progress.

Ffs never thought about him not being allowed to play in the cup...