PREDICTED LEAGUE FINISH: Tenth
LAST SEASON: 8th, 46pts
NOTABLE INS: David Amoo (Carlisle United), Callum Booth (Hibernian, loan made permanent), Tomas Cerny (Hibernian), Gary Miller (St. Johnstone)
NOTABLE OUTS: James Craigen (Raith Rovers), Scott Fox (Ross County), Kallum Higginbotham (Kilmarnock), Dale Keenan (Stranraer), Ben Richards-Everton (Dunfermline Athletic), Stephen O'Donnell (Luton Town), Lyle Taylor (Scunthorpe United, end of loan), Conrad Balatoni, Jonathan Black, Ryan Finnie
LAST SEASON'S BEST XI (departed players crossed out): Fox,
Remarkably, Partick Thistle failed to win back-to-back league games in the whole of the 2013/14 season, and for most of 2014/15. That's not because they were hopeless, but because they were hopeless at the worst possible times. Last season they thumped Caley Thistle in Inverness and gubbed Accies and Ross County at home, but contrived to lose twice to St. Mirren.
The only thing consistent about them was their inconsistency. which meant that even as late as the spring they still weren't entirely safe from relegation despite being vastly superior to the sides below them. And then something clicked; they won six out of nine games (including three against top six opposition), played some damn good football, and finished eighth in the league but with the fourth best goal difference in the league.
Alan Archibald must have thought he'd finally cracked it; now he could concentrate on looking up the table rather than down it. And then he lost nearly half of his best eleven.
So it's cheerio to goalkeeper Scott Fox, right-back Stephen O'Donnell, central defender Conrad Balatoni, attacking midfielder Kallum Higginbotham and striker Lyle Taylor. Gallingly, Fox and Higginbotham have signed for bottom six rivals. The former made a big song and dance about needing to play at a higher level to improve his chances of a future Scotland callup...and then signed for Ross County. Meanwhile, Higginbotham signed for Kilmarnock only a few months after criticizing their artificial pitch and proudly announcing that there was no way he would ever join a club who played on such a surface. I wonder what changed his mind?
Taylor may be back for a third loan spell later in the year if/when his latest club, AFC Wimbledon, give up on him. Whilst Kris Doolan is a clever little forward who works hard and is good for a few goals, Taylor's power, strength and aerial ability make the Jags a far different proposition. And whilst Archibald would love his team to play tiki-taka, the quality of playing surfaces (including their own) ultimately requires them to be more direct. Without the big Montserrat international, they are simply not as dangerous. As it stands, the only way they will scare opposing defences on a regular basis is if they play Kingsley, the infamous new mascot, up front.
The loss of O'Donnell and Balatoni will probably hurt them most. Balatoni had just come off the best season of his career, and has chosen to try his luck in England. O'Donnell is hugely underrated; on his day he was one of the best right-backs in the league and was a menace whenever allowed to overlap on the flank. In Gary Miller, Archibald has signed a direct replacement of very similar style but who just isn't quite as talented. Frederic Frans and Danny Seaborne might be a good enough duo to compensate for Balatoni's departure, but there's very little cover beyond raw youngsters.
With Fox having left, the goalkeeper position is also in a state of flux. Whilst he was never as good as that one international callup suggested, the alternatives are not reassuring. Tomas Cerny has spent the last 6 months on Hibs' bench and Paul Gallacher is probably at a point where he should be concentrating more on coaching, so it'll be interesting to see if Academy product Ryan Scully, fresh from two seasons on loan at Dunfermline, gets given his chance.
On the bright(ish) side, Callum Booth has been signed permanently after proving himself to be the only competent left-back at the club last season (they must have used about half a dozen players in that position) - but he's a player who couldn't break into the Hibs team in the last few years.
Even without Higginbotham they do still have talent in midfield. Stuart Bannigan and Gary Fraser are still relatively young, but neither excelled last season. Bannigan has enough experience now that Partick are entitled to look for him to take responsibility in the middle of the pitch. Importantly, they kept hold of the titanic Abdul Osman, who didn't lose a physical battle all season. Steven Lawless should provide plenty of flair as long as he keeps out of the bookies'. Given the relative paucity of signings so far, they will need ex-Liverpool trainee David Amoo to hit the ground running.
Are things really as grim as I make it sound? Well, almost any team in this league suffers badly when they lose two or three first choice players. Partick have lost five, and it's not absolutely clear that they've been replaced. Rather than aiming for mid-table, the priority once again has to be to avoid the drop. And unless reinforcements are on the way, my prediction might prove over-generous.
THE SQUAD (players born after 1 January 1994 in italics)
Goalkeepers: Tomas Cerny, Paul Gallacher, Ryan Scully
Defenders: Callum Booth, Frederic Frans, Jack Hendry, Liam Lindsay, Gary Miller, Danny Seaborne
Midfielders: Stuart Bannigan, Gary Fraser, Steven Lawless, Declan McDaid, Abdul Osman, Ryan Stevenson, Sean Welsh, David Wilson
Forwards: David Amoo, Kris Doolan, Christie Elliott, Jordan Leyden, Neil McLaughlin
THE BEST XI?
Lawrie Spence (LS) has ranted and spouted his ill-informed opinions on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
@Nareystoepoker has a very "you'll never win anything with kids" feel to it ........ #partickthistle
— Davy Mains (@davymains) July 30, 2015
@Nareystoepoker hard to respond on here but Elliott will play rb not Miller. Hendry is one of the best prospects in Scotland at cb 1/2
— Davy Mains (@davymains) July 30, 2015
@Nareystoepoker 2/2 Lawless is better than Higgy and Welsh will be like a new signing Look back at the 2-2 v DUFC.. we do need a striker tho
— Davy Mains (@davymains) July 30, 2015
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