#26 - 29/01/11 - Hearts 1-0 Saints - SPL


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Bad day at the office, first for a while. Time to move on.

Agreed.

I'd have taken a point before the game but the first 15 minutes saw us 'defending' like amateurs and we were up against it after that. We were dreadful. Hearts were exploiting our lack of width and Maybury just didn't cope well at all today. Del made the right decision to change things although I expected him to wait till H/T to make the subs.

Second half saw an improvement but still little fluency in our play.

Bring on Accies.

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Highlight of the day was discovering that you can get a smoke at half time down by the turnstiles.

Very disappointed today, but, hey, it happens. Agree with earlier opinion...start with team on Tuesday that we finished with today. Would love options for midfield though

That smoking is bad for us Eddie..:laugh::laugh::laugh: Nice to meet ya..

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Highlight of the day was discovering that you can get a smoke at half time down by the turnstiles.

high time they catered for smokers at mcdairmid in some way! would be one less reason for folk to avoid the place.:idea:

That smoking is bad for us Eddie..:laugh::laugh::laugh: Nice to meet ya..

thought you had stopped mr ghost? was it the jambo's sky high entry price that caused you to start again?

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high time they catered for smokers at mcdairmid in some way! would be one less reason for folk to avoid the place.:idea:

thought you had stopped mr ghost? was it the jambo's sky high entry price that caused you to start again?

Nah, I had already started again. Perhaps the stress of supporting Saints:laugh:

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First half was men vs boys. We were truly awful at times and got what our play deserved. Brave decision by Del to make a double sub at 40mins (or so, may be wrong with the timing) which was very heartening. We looked a lot better with Liam at left back and were possibly unlucky not to get a point from it. A few bad days at the office but they are not 3rd in the league by accident. Ryan Stevenson is still never a player.

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Wasn't expecting anything from the game and unfortunately I was right.

Some people are saying Del was 'brave' to change the team after 40 mins but it seemed a bit of an ego trip to me. If it worked he would be hailed a tactical genius. We were definitely better following the change, but I'm sure after 40 mins we could have held on until half time to make the switch. He basically told Jeffries what our team was going to do in the 2nd half by making the change at this point.

As for the criticism of Parkin, I'm not too sure he deserves all the flak he's getting. Hes not a target man, yet through our lack of creativity in midfield all we seem to be doing at the moment (with Wednesday an exception) is punt the ball forward in hope rather than expectation.

Everything seems to have to go through Jody, and whilst he us undoubtably our most composed player on the ball, the pass to him is not always the best option. I'd like to see the midefield freshened up, if you look at the talent Hearts have in the middle of the park you'll see why they won the game. They played the percentages, picked the right ball and expoited the channels with ease for the first half and we were lucky their finishing was so poor on the day or we could really have found ourselves on the end of a cricket score.

Pass marks to Ando, Encks, Murray and Liam (lb role).

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Wasn't expecting anything from the game and unfortunately I was right.

Some people are saying Del was 'brave' to change the team after 40 mins but it seemed a bit of an ego trip to me. If it worked he would be hailed a tactical genius. We were definitely better following the change, but I'm sure after 40 mins we could have held on until half time to make the switch. He basically told Jeffries what our team was going to do in the 2nd half by making the change at this point.

As for the criticism of Parkin, I'm not too sure he deserves all the flak he's getting. Hes not a target man, yet through our lack of creativity in midfield all we seem to be doing at the moment (with Wednesday an exception) is punt the ball forward in hope rather than expectation.

Everything seems to have to go through Jody, and whilst he us undoubtably our most composed player on the ball, the pass to him is not always the best option. I'd like to see the midefield freshened up, if you look at the talent Hearts have in the middle of the park you'll see why they won the game. They played the percentages, picked the right ball and expoited the channels with ease for the first half and we were lucky their finishing was so poor on the day or we could really have found ourselves on the end of a cricket score.

Pass marks to Ando, Encks, Murray and Liam (lb role).

I understand that by his own admission Parkin is not a target man....so, then, what is he? He is not a 'link' player, he does not offer speed for a ball through the channels, he is not a set piece specialist, he does not take the ball well to feet and hold it up......some say he will score goals 'if he gets the right ball'. Tell you waht, lets ask all the oppostion if they will allow us to play the 'right ball' into Parkin all game then shall we :roll:

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I understand that by his own admission Parkin is not a target man....so, then, what is he? He is not a 'link' player, he does not offer speed for a ball through the channels, he is not a set piece specialist, he does not take the ball well to feet and hold it up......some say he will score goals 'if he gets the right ball'. Tell you waht, lets ask all the oppostion if they will allow us to play the 'right ball' into Parkin all game then shall we :roll:

I actualy think he can have a decent first touch at times, he's not as slow as made out, Peaso's not exactly lightening

.

I don't dispute that perhaps he's not of the desired standard,but I fail to see why there always needs to be a 'target' for the fans disgruntlement both on this forum and at games.

If you remember back to Kenny Deuchar scenario 2 seasons ago, he was contantly crucified on here up till christmas, he broke his duck and then all of a sudden he was the best thing since sliced bread.

Duberry was awful yesterday but didn't hear many fans shouting out when he messed up.

Reeks of double standards and the level of criticism you get depends on whether you're a fans favourite or not.

Nobody was criticising him when he scored the equaliser at tynie on the opening day.

The correct ball for me is exploit the wings and cross the ball into the penalty area instead of punting long through the middle of the park where chances are that even if Parkin was to win it, most likely it would drop to a Hearts defender.

Don't claim to be an expert but thanks for your views at least its more thoughtful than the Parkin is p**h mob.

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I actualy think he can have a decent first touch at times, he's not as slow as made out, Peaso's not exactly lightening

.

I don't dispute that perhaps he's not of the desired standard,but I fail to see why there always needs to be a 'target' for the fans disgruntlement both on this forum and at games.

If you remember back to Kenny Deuchar scenario 2 seasons ago, he was contantly crucified on here up till christmas, he broke his duck and then all of a sudden he was the best thing since sliced bread.

Duberry was awful yesterday but didn't hear many fans shouting out when he messed up.

Reeks of double standards and the level of criticism you get depends on whether you're a fans favourite or not.

Nobody was criticising him when he scored the equaliser at tynie on the opening day.

The correct ball for me is exploit the wings and cross the ball into the penalty area instead of punting long through the middle of the park where chances are that even if Parkin was to win it, most likely it would drop to a Hearts defender.

Don't claim to be an expert but thanks for your views at least its more thoughtful than the Parkin is p**h mob.

Duberry has put in many a good shift for us. Sadly, the same is not true of Sam and therefore the two are not comparable.

Sam's goal on day 1 was great, but what he has done, or failed to do, since then has left him open to criticism. Some would say that Deuchar brought far more to the team than Sam ever will, and that his all round game was far more effective than Sam's.

Personally, i think Sam on a two year deal has been Derek's biggest mistake.

Agree about the service though. We must have the most negative and uncreative midfield in the league, with very little drive. Wish Jody would stop looking for the clever, cute wee ball and just do more of what he is clearly capable of. He shouldn't be giving possession away as often as he does. Chris has loads of energy and is a likeable wee guy, but with little end product. Liam is a shadow of himself from last year. Cleveland looks lightweight but can shine at times. Muzz is gonna hurt someone, maybe even himself, but he has played well over the piece.

However, we are St Johnstone not Barcelona. We're in a good position in a crap league and nation, still in no danger and might yet challenge for the top six. That's all good, even if its not pretty.

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Not at the game - only watched it on internet..

I was really disappointed with our set pieces again. The delivery into the box is very poor and it wasn't until the last corner (or was it free kick) that we actually put in a good quality cross that resulted in the keeper struggling.

I know none of our players are Messi quality but surely this is something that could be worked? I am pretty sure Dave Mackay used to take some of Livi's set pieces so maybe he should be given a go as he couldn't be any worse.

Maybury was hung out to dry (again), if the game against Celtic showed us one thing, it is that he is not a left back.

Not Parkin's biggest fan but do feel he is getting a raw deal, as due to him not being as mobile as Deuchar, unless he gets decent service he is always going to struggle to convince people.

Oh and that looked like May trying a sneaky wee dive again when he was tackled and won a corner - cut it out!!

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Duberry has put in many a good shift for us. Sadly, the same is not true of Sam and therefore the two are not comparable.

However, we are St Johnstone not Barcelona. We're in a good position in a crap league and nation, still in no danger and might yet challenge for the top six. That's all good, even if its not pretty.

You're missing my point, I'm comparing the fans reactions rather than the player's performance. I take your point but not sure Duberry would get the same stick if he was on a poor run of form.

Maybe it is good that we've potentially consolidated our position in the league for this season, but as you say it certainly ain't pretty. I thoroughly enjoyed Wednesday's game,even if it had ended in a draw but the same cannot be said for yesterday. I agree we're not Barcelona and maybe my expectations are too high, but I like to see an entertaining game which was certainly the case last season.

Agree with your views on Jody, pretty much spot on.

Edited by Markinch Saint
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IMHO the reason people are getting on Parkins case is that he never gets more than an inch off the ground, seldom even tries to actually win the ball and is so easily pushed arround for a big guy, at leat Vinnie used to make you laugh when he jamp 4 inches and shrank 6 inches at the same time!!

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Big thanks to Ancientsaint for picking my tickets up. We were never in this game and just did not turn up. We were thrashed 1-0!!! Enkelman saved us from a bigger defeat and I think he was the only one who gets pass marks. Stevie May did a lot of running and looks a prospect. Too may passes went astray and Doobs was at fault time and time again unless he had double vision following his head clash.

Did anyone see the dialogue, at the start of the second half, between Del and Jody as I thought the latter looked a tad confused and it showed in his performance.

Roll on our next trip north for it could be no worse.

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I suspect that I'm going to get stick for this but, anyway.

I've just watched Saints v Hearts and here's what I think I saw:

Duberry. A great player unless he has to make a pass longer than two yards. 'Waste of space.

Jody Morris. Long past his sell-by date, but a great player who owns his midfield.

Stevie May. A good young player who has more guts than a canal horse.

Cleveland Taylor. Nice young player who will be better when he learns that he doesn't have to go down whenever an opposing player is within ten yards of him.

I don't think that Saints deserved to lose that game. They have proven scorers like Jacko, Peaso, Parkin and Samuel (another waste of space), who just don't seem to score. WTF?

I don't know if it's a matter of tactics, the shortcomings of the manager or the phase of the moon, but that display was dire.

My solution? Forget about it, too many bones have whitened on that quest. I will just continue to shout for the Boys, scream my lungs oot and be forever a Saintee.

Smudge

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