This was a must win game for us against a St Mirren team who have only 5 points and are sitting at the bottom of the league. The game sounded terrible and another defensive error and free header cost us the opening goal. I am starting to wonder what the defence practice in training as that is 4 goals in a row from back post headers. once again
We never created much and never got our 1st shot on target till the 38th minute. McArdle scored his 2nd of the season. in one of our few chances.
This just shows us the new level Mcghee has taken us too when we struggle against Falkirk in the cup and then get beat by Saint Mirren.
I think the board have to make a move now before it is too late we have a lot of tough games coming up and could find ourselves down at the bottom in the next few weeks.
Mcghee has clearly lost the team (who are now mostly his players)as they do not even look to be trying at times.
The squad is so unbalanced there is not even many changes we can make to try and turn things around. Maybe a new man can get something out of these players who showed the potential of what they can do at the beginning of the season.
I have now lost all faith in Mcghee as manager, I am sure I am not the only one.
Stand Free
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Friday, October 29, 2010
Bhoys stand between Aberdeen and cup final
The draw for the league cup semi final was made today and surprise surprise the Old Firm were kept apart.
Hopefully Aberdeen can repeat the feat of 1989 when they beat Celtic in the Semi and then Rangers in the final.
At least for once we will not be shamed in the cup by a lower league team and all credit to all concerned for getting us there. I may have been a little harsh on Mcghee and the lads the other night and they did show some fight to come back from 1-0 down and go on and win the game.
I really don't see us getting much further but stranger things have happened.
It is possible going in as underdogs will benefit us as I am sure a if we had drawn Motherwell a lot of fans would have had us in the final already, so it takes the pressure off a bit.
There was a high chance that we would have to beat at least 1 of the Old Firm to win the cup so why put off the inevitable lets just get it over with now and look forward to a final against Motherwell.
Stand Free
Hopefully Aberdeen can repeat the feat of 1989 when they beat Celtic in the Semi and then Rangers in the final.
At least for once we will not be shamed in the cup by a lower league team and all credit to all concerned for getting us there. I may have been a little harsh on Mcghee and the lads the other night and they did show some fight to come back from 1-0 down and go on and win the game.
I really don't see us getting much further but stranger things have happened.
It is possible going in as underdogs will benefit us as I am sure a if we had drawn Motherwell a lot of fans would have had us in the final already, so it takes the pressure off a bit.
There was a high chance that we would have to beat at least 1 of the Old Firm to win the cup so why put off the inevitable lets just get it over with now and look forward to a final against Motherwell.
Stand Free
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Elvis suffers late Hart(ley)break
I said after the last game against Hibs I still had concerns about our team. I also thought Falkirk would give us a much tougher game then Hibs did on Saturday.
I was not totally surprised when Falkirk took the lead as we had not really created many chances.
I was disappointed with the lack of fight our team seemed to have after Mcghee and the players had been in the press all week saying how important the game was and how it was time to pay back the fans for our support.
In the 2nd half we seemed to play better and it was good to see Hartley get a goal from open play. After we scored I thought we would keep at them but then we went back to how we had played in the 2nd half.
Then Hartley took the game by the horns like a man possessed. He was telling the other players where to position themselves and what there jobs were. It was great to see the Aberdeen captain do the captains job. Mark Kerr would have run and hide. I think Hartley is one of the best captain we have had for many years. Possibly the best since we had Mcleish.
I missed the end of the game as I was working and had decided I was not staying late to listen to the game as I had a feeling if anyone was going to score before extra time it was going to be Falkirk .
I was pleasantly surprised to come home and find we had won via a late Paul Hartley penalty.
It is also great to get one up on Pressley the Falkirk Manger who I and many other Aberdeen fans cannot stand.
I was not happy with the performance and we really need to buck up our idea's as I think most SPL teams would have beaten us tonight.
So once again Mcghee lives to fight another day.
St Mirren in Paisley is our next big must win game. It will be interesting to see how we approach this game.
But for now I am just going to enjoy the evening and enjoy the fact we are in a cup semi final.
Stand Free
I was not totally surprised when Falkirk took the lead as we had not really created many chances.
I was disappointed with the lack of fight our team seemed to have after Mcghee and the players had been in the press all week saying how important the game was and how it was time to pay back the fans for our support.
In the 2nd half we seemed to play better and it was good to see Hartley get a goal from open play. After we scored I thought we would keep at them but then we went back to how we had played in the 2nd half.
Then Hartley took the game by the horns like a man possessed. He was telling the other players where to position themselves and what there jobs were. It was great to see the Aberdeen captain do the captains job. Mark Kerr would have run and hide. I think Hartley is one of the best captain we have had for many years. Possibly the best since we had Mcleish.
I missed the end of the game as I was working and had decided I was not staying late to listen to the game as I had a feeling if anyone was going to score before extra time it was going to be Falkirk .
I was pleasantly surprised to come home and find we had won via a late Paul Hartley penalty.
It is also great to get one up on Pressley the Falkirk Manger who I and many other Aberdeen fans cannot stand.
I was not happy with the performance and we really need to buck up our idea's as I think most SPL teams would have beaten us tonight.
So once again Mcghee lives to fight another day.
St Mirren in Paisley is our next big must win game. It will be interesting to see how we approach this game.
But for now I am just going to enjoy the evening and enjoy the fact we are in a cup semi final.
Stand Free
Saturday, October 23, 2010
A good win but still worrying signs.
After the last few weeks and 1 point out of 18 it was great to see Aberdeen take advantage of a Hibs team low on confidence.
It looked like Mcghee listened to the fans and play Chris Maguire in his natural position where he had scored for Scotland U21 in the last couple of games and he rewarded us with the 1st goal.
While the attacks were fast and at times deadly the defence still looked very shaky.
Colin Nish was getting too much free space in the box and it was only a matter of time before one of his free headers went in. The Hibs 2nd goal was another free header so some work needs done at the back (as if we didn't knew it already).
I am not making the same mistake as I did after the Hamilton and Saint Johnstone games and getting over excited but this was a much deserved and much needed 3 points and if we can keep a good running going over the next few weeks then maybe I will be convinced.
Hibs have been as bad as us this season and have looked low on confidence but I was always wary of the new manager syndrome that clubs get and with us being up against them for Colin Calderwoods 1st game in charge I was not expecting this victory.
But for now I am still in the unconvinced about Mcghee camp, he still has a lot of work to do to win me over.
Now onto the league cup quarter final against Falkirk on Tuesday. A must win game.
Hopefully this time next week we will have a semi final to look forward to.
Stand Free
It looked like Mcghee listened to the fans and play Chris Maguire in his natural position where he had scored for Scotland U21 in the last couple of games and he rewarded us with the 1st goal.
While the attacks were fast and at times deadly the defence still looked very shaky.
Colin Nish was getting too much free space in the box and it was only a matter of time before one of his free headers went in. The Hibs 2nd goal was another free header so some work needs done at the back (as if we didn't knew it already).
I am not making the same mistake as I did after the Hamilton and Saint Johnstone games and getting over excited but this was a much deserved and much needed 3 points and if we can keep a good running going over the next few weeks then maybe I will be convinced.
Hibs have been as bad as us this season and have looked low on confidence but I was always wary of the new manager syndrome that clubs get and with us being up against them for Colin Calderwoods 1st game in charge I was not expecting this victory.
But for now I am still in the unconvinced about Mcghee camp, he still has a lot of work to do to win me over.
Now onto the league cup quarter final against Falkirk on Tuesday. A must win game.
Hopefully this time next week we will have a semi final to look forward to.
Stand Free
Monday, October 18, 2010
Strachan your destiny is calling.
The most asked question on Aberdeen message boards at this time is If we get rid of Mcghee who do we get?
No available manger really springs to mind and you have to wonder if Aberdeen could afford compensation to another club.
Today I came home from work to see the headline Strachan resigns from Boro post. It got me wondering will this influence or speed up any decision the Aberdeen board might be pondering about Mark Mcghee's future.
The move to Boro just has not worked out for Strachan who has had a fairly successful managerial career. He did well at Celtic even though for some reason the Celtic fans were glad to see the back of him after he won 2 out of 3 SPL titles.
In the back of my mind though is that we have had 2 Gothenburg greats as manager now and both turned out to be a disaster (Although Willie Miller started off well).
It might be worth the gamble considering there would be no compensation fee for Strachan.
What do you think? Would Strachan be a good choice? If not who would you like to see in the dugout at Pittodrie should Mcghee be shown the door?
Stand Free
No available manger really springs to mind and you have to wonder if Aberdeen could afford compensation to another club.
Today I came home from work to see the headline Strachan resigns from Boro post. It got me wondering will this influence or speed up any decision the Aberdeen board might be pondering about Mark Mcghee's future.
The move to Boro just has not worked out for Strachan who has had a fairly successful managerial career. He did well at Celtic even though for some reason the Celtic fans were glad to see the back of him after he won 2 out of 3 SPL titles.
In the back of my mind though is that we have had 2 Gothenburg greats as manager now and both turned out to be a disaster (Although Willie Miller started off well).
It might be worth the gamble considering there would be no compensation fee for Strachan.
What do you think? Would Strachan be a good choice? If not who would you like to see in the dugout at Pittodrie should Mcghee be shown the door?
Stand Free
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Aberdeen show no Heart
It was my hope with the international break that we would get some of our injured players back and get some kind of good form going. Hearts have not exactly been setting the heather on fire this season either so this was a chance to get 3 points at home.
We did get Aluko and Hartley back Velicka made his long awaited debut.
In reality it sounded a really poor game with very few clear cut chances form either team. And a draw probably would have been a fair result. I thought Hearts were really dirty at time and Kevin Kyle was lucky to see the end of the game.
Aberdeen really created nothing and with 1 point out of a possible 18 and now Hibs who just fired their manager climbing above us Mcghee must be starting to worry.
I have said it before and I will say it again I really believe Mchgee is out of his depth.
What I really did not understand was when we were 1-0 down with 8 minutes left, we had Micheal Paton on the bench who looked good and brought some life to the team last time out until he was wrongly sent off.
We even went to the hassle of getting his red card wiped off the record so he would be available for this game and we bring on an untried 16yo. No disrespect to the kid who I have read has been playing well for the U19 team, but was this really the right moment to give him a run out in the 1st team.?
I think time is really running out for Mcghee and defeat next week against Hibs maybe the final straw for some.
I would be surprised to see Mcghee in the dugout come 2011 unless things improve dramatically.
What are your thoughts on Mcghee? How long would you give him?
We did get Aluko and Hartley back Velicka made his long awaited debut.
In reality it sounded a really poor game with very few clear cut chances form either team. And a draw probably would have been a fair result. I thought Hearts were really dirty at time and Kevin Kyle was lucky to see the end of the game.
Aberdeen really created nothing and with 1 point out of a possible 18 and now Hibs who just fired their manager climbing above us Mcghee must be starting to worry.
I have said it before and I will say it again I really believe Mchgee is out of his depth.
What I really did not understand was when we were 1-0 down with 8 minutes left, we had Micheal Paton on the bench who looked good and brought some life to the team last time out until he was wrongly sent off.
We even went to the hassle of getting his red card wiped off the record so he would be available for this game and we bring on an untried 16yo. No disrespect to the kid who I have read has been playing well for the U19 team, but was this really the right moment to give him a run out in the 1st team.?
I think time is really running out for Mcghee and defeat next week against Hibs maybe the final straw for some.
I would be surprised to see Mcghee in the dugout come 2011 unless things improve dramatically.
What are your thoughts on Mcghee? How long would you give him?
Friday, October 15, 2010
TV or not TV
So Rangers goal keeper Allan McGregor has been banned for 1 game for kicking out at Aberdeen's Chris Maguire in the recent game between the two at Pittodrie.
Of course the Huns are crying about TV evidence getting used because they are on TV along with their ugly sisters Celtic more than the rest of the SPL teams.
Would you be crying Walter if it was the other way round? I think you are just pissed that your player did a stupid thing and got caught. You are willing to take more money than the rest of us from the TV companies but then complain about over exposure. Maybe you should concentrate on disciplining your own players instead of blaming the camera man cause they got caught.
In the other case involving Aberdeen it was great to see some common sense with Michael Paton's red card being wiped out after once again the TV camera's clearly showed a tangle of legs and Michael trying to break free to continue on playing rather than a stamp on the ICT players leg. For once I think the SFA got both decisions correct. Long may it continue.
Stand Free
Of course the Huns are crying about TV evidence getting used because they are on TV along with their ugly sisters Celtic more than the rest of the SPL teams.
Would you be crying Walter if it was the other way round? I think you are just pissed that your player did a stupid thing and got caught. You are willing to take more money than the rest of us from the TV companies but then complain about over exposure. Maybe you should concentrate on disciplining your own players instead of blaming the camera man cause they got caught.
In the other case involving Aberdeen it was great to see some common sense with Michael Paton's red card being wiped out after once again the TV camera's clearly showed a tangle of legs and Michael trying to break free to continue on playing rather than a stamp on the ICT players leg. For once I think the SFA got both decisions correct. Long may it continue.
Stand Free
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Scotland feel the (S)pain of defeat
What a difference 4 days makes. Scotland went from playing with no strikers to at least having a go at Spain.
I only saw the 2nd half but I liked what I saw. This reminded me of the Scotland I used to love watching years ago, who would just go and battle for every ball. We may have been playing the current European and World champions but we gave them as good as we got, even at 2-0 down we fought for every ball and battled back to 2-2. We played with passion and heart which is what Scotland is all about. We don't have the skill of Spain but we have the fight to go out and say we don't care who you are you want 3 points you have to go through us. This was a characteristic that had sadly been missing from the Scottish mentality for the last couple of years.
The only thing that annoys me is wondering what might have been had we gone out and played with the same spirit against the Czech Republic instead of playing for a draw.
So we lost 3-2 in a game that we were expected to lose, and lose badly. This is the sort of performance I had been hoping to see when Levein took over as manager. Hopefully he will forget his negative approach and play like this in more game. If he does then it will only be a matter of time before Scotland again make an appearance at a major finals.
Stand Free
I only saw the 2nd half but I liked what I saw. This reminded me of the Scotland I used to love watching years ago, who would just go and battle for every ball. We may have been playing the current European and World champions but we gave them as good as we got, even at 2-0 down we fought for every ball and battled back to 2-2. We played with passion and heart which is what Scotland is all about. We don't have the skill of Spain but we have the fight to go out and say we don't care who you are you want 3 points you have to go through us. This was a characteristic that had sadly been missing from the Scottish mentality for the last couple of years.
The only thing that annoys me is wondering what might have been had we gone out and played with the same spirit against the Czech Republic instead of playing for a draw.
So we lost 3-2 in a game that we were expected to lose, and lose badly. This is the sort of performance I had been hoping to see when Levein took over as manager. Hopefully he will forget his negative approach and play like this in more game. If he does then it will only be a matter of time before Scotland again make an appearance at a major finals.
Stand Free
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Tatics like this will have fans Levein in droves
I was pleased with the appointment of Craig Levein as Scotland Manager and had high hopes. But since qualifying started it has been a major disappointment. 2 games we had to win against the so called weak teams in the groups resulted in a draw and a last gasp win. Our next game against the Czech Republic was one I thought we could take points from. The Czech's are not as good as they once were and I saw them beat the USA before the world cup and the defence looked like it could leak goals. So it puzzled me when I saw Levein had played with no out and out striker. As a dual citizen of Britain and USA I have got to see how a team should play. The USA played some exciting games in the world cup, knowing the defence was weak they tried to win games and came back from 2-0 down and winning 1-0 with a last gasp goal. I would like to see Scotland take the same approach.
Lets see what happens against Spain on Tuesday.
Stand Free
Lets see what happens against Spain on Tuesday.
Stand Free
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Deja Vu
Is it only 8 weeks ago I was praising Aberdeen Football Club and Mark Mcghee for a great start to the season and saying how my confidence in Mcghee as a manager was growing?
Today we went to Inverness looking for a much needed 3 points and a confidence boost.
I was not happy to see yet another change in goals with Mark Howard returning. Nothing against Howard but the defence is bad enough as it is without having to play in front of a different goalkeeper every other week.
The defence again today was shambles and cost us both goals.
I said the last few weeks I was sitting on the fence but I am getting Deja Vu with this season quickly turning into a repeat of last season. We are now 7th and only 3 points off the bottom of the league.
I said last season Mcghee looked out of his depth and was ready to admit I may have been wrong at the start of the season but now I stand by my original judgement.
I was told last season by Mcghee Supporters give him time wait till he gets his own players in. Well he has been given time and his own players are here. OK we have injuries, but it was ICT we played today and we were never really in the game, Even before the red card to Paton which Red TV said was harsh.
Off the park he swaps Foster a versatile player who can play full back or midfield for an injured striker for a year loan and leaves us with no full backs. Then we get a full back in and he continues to play center backs in the full back position, when everyone can see it is not working.
So Mr Mcghee thanks for your services, I still respect you as a player and am sorry it has not worked out but your time is up.
Stand Free
Today we went to Inverness looking for a much needed 3 points and a confidence boost.
I was not happy to see yet another change in goals with Mark Howard returning. Nothing against Howard but the defence is bad enough as it is without having to play in front of a different goalkeeper every other week.
The defence again today was shambles and cost us both goals.
I said the last few weeks I was sitting on the fence but I am getting Deja Vu with this season quickly turning into a repeat of last season. We are now 7th and only 3 points off the bottom of the league.
I said last season Mcghee looked out of his depth and was ready to admit I may have been wrong at the start of the season but now I stand by my original judgement.
I was told last season by Mcghee Supporters give him time wait till he gets his own players in. Well he has been given time and his own players are here. OK we have injuries, but it was ICT we played today and we were never really in the game, Even before the red card to Paton which Red TV said was harsh.
Off the park he swaps Foster a versatile player who can play full back or midfield for an injured striker for a year loan and leaves us with no full backs. Then we get a full back in and he continues to play center backs in the full back position, when everyone can see it is not working.
So Mr Mcghee thanks for your services, I still respect you as a player and am sorry it has not worked out but your time is up.
Stand Free
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