Ouch

That was a sore one. For about the first time this season in the league we totally dominated a game. It really felt as if it was just a matter of time before we would finally take one of our chances (in fact having a shot at goal would have been a good start - the number of times we worked ourselves into an excellent shooting position only to choose the wrong option i.e. passing it to an Albion defender was ridiculous) What I didn’t expect was that one of the hopeful punts up the park by Albion would actually result in a goal. I suppose it is just an indication of the way things are going at the moment that that is exactly what happened. Okay, this week’s Rovers were only slightly better than last week’s version, but nevertheless the signs were encouraging. We had a goalie who came for cross balls and caught them, we had a defence that looked solid (most of the time), a midfield who could pass the ball (provided it was nowhere near the opposition goal) and a strike force who, well, did their best. Coughlin’s teams at Berwick were all capable of passing the ball well, coupled with its fair share of players who could “tackle” and it looks like he is trying the same here. We have the players, but it is so obvious that they have no confidence whatsoever. Nobody is brave enough to shoot, despite in many cases having a clear path to goal. But, despite the positives to be taken from the game, we have now played two teams who are as bad as we are likely to face all season (surely) and we have lost them both! We really need to start winning, but once we do, I feel a lot more confident about our prospects than I did a few weeks, even one week, ago. As for the team itself: Brown - looked decent goalie. He didn’t have (m)any saves to make but took cross balls well and generally looked like he knew what he was doing. McEwan - he played in the manner he had done at the start of the season. Fully committed in the tackle and prepared to get up and down the wing. Why has he not been playing like that for the last 2 or 3 months? Dillon - hmmm, injured early on but I’m not convinced he is a left back. One of the players I think who is really suffering from a lack of confidence. Lennon - excellent. Very fast, even though he was injured, and composed on the ball. We have an excellent surface, it is about time we had some players who can play on it? Gilbride - for a centre half he is not the strongest in the challenge. I suspect that once McCulloch returns he can expect to be ousted. Not sure we would extend his loan beyond January. Lyle - just pass the ball, Willie. Menzies - thought he was poor yesterday, but given the crap we have had to endure so far this season he is one player who I think has at least given his all to the cause. Hampshire - another major disappointment for me. He was quite ineffective as a lone striker, and even managed to get outshone by Ross Hamilton when he came on. I just expected so much from this guy and he has been such a let down. Dempster - was he playing yesterday? He is not a midfielder. The game just passed him by. However, he is another player who seems to be really struggling at the moment. Hopefully he can get back amongst the goals sometime soon. I wonder if he fits into Coughlin’s long term plans? Tyrell - I thought he was excellent yesterday, relatively. He always give his best, and there is no doubt that it is not because of him that we are in this pickle. His passing as ever lets him down, but if we could get someone into the middle of the park with a bit of creativity, it would make such a huge difference. Speaking of creativity… McLaughlin - what a disappointment. Yesterday he was awful. The chief culprit when it came to misplaced passes and an inability to shoot when presented with a clear chance. Like Hampshire, he is one of the players who should be able to deliver so much more to the team than he does. As for the subs, Ross Hamilton actually played quite well, in between tripping over the odd blade of “grass”, or his own feet, or if he got close enough to it, the ball. Missed a cracking chance in the first half. I thought Murdoch was excellent in the 5 minutes or so he was on the park. Surely he has done enough to get a start next week. He is actually quite spring heeled. And Andy Thomson was the other sub. So all in all, I’m not as despondent as I was this time last week. Bring on The Shire. Ha.