Talking points from the Premiership

Dundee United look a shadow of their previous selves
"The first goal is always crucial against them, it gives them something to hang on to".  Jackie McNamara's comments were not a completely unfair generalization of St. Johnstone, but in this case it was really rather unfair.  The two-nil scoreline was harsh...on the visitors, who were very comfortable from the moment that Michael O'Halloran gave them the lead.

All of a sudden, Dundee United have hit a right slump.  Their attacking prowess has been neutered by the loss of Stuart Armstrong and Gary Mackay-Steven and the simultaneous loss of form of, it seems, all their forwards bar Nadir Ciftci.  Their defence has been fragile all season, but their calamitous play in the last two games has been all the more striking now they are struggling to outscore the opposition they no longer look the menace they were.  The decision to take struggling keeper Rado Ciernziak out of the firing line seemed sensible - it turns out he has been hampered by injury for weeks - until debutant Michal Szromnik blundered just eight minutes into his first match.  He had no chance for O'Halloran's second though, which came after he lost Ryan McGowan far too easily at the back post.  Maybe once McGowan and Paul Dixon, also recently procured, get up to full speed things will get better.  Or perhaps not.

McNamara has a few things to ponder, and not much time to ponder them.  The next game is on Tuesday night at Tannadice against Inverness; defeat there might put an end to their aspirations of third place.  And soon after that they have their triple header (League Cup final, Scottish Cup quarter final, league) against Celtic.  Whether he can quickly correct these deficiencies will decide whether this is a memorable season for his club or not. LS





Panic stations at Partick Thistle

It's not gone unnoticed by folk down Firhill way that Partick Thistle are in danger of being dragged into a relegation battle.  Saturday's loss to Ross County was their fourth on the trot in the league (fifth in all competitions), and, as well as moving the Staggies into a season-high tenth place in the table, also brought them within seven points of their opponents.

Alan Archibald's public worry that his side might "do a Hibs" was designed to focus the players' minds, but it was also an admission of increasing panic at the situation.  And there was plenty of panic on show in this match; for a start, the defending for the opening goal, which was so slapstick that it would make a circus clown blush - under minimal pressure, Frederic Frans smacked a clearance off fellow centre back Danny Seaborne and into the path of Craig Curran for a simple tap-in.

And yet Partick dominated the rest of the first half, taking advantage of having an extra man in midfield.  County were set up to attack, with two strikers supported by Rafael De Vita and Michael Gardyne, and with no holding midfielder; Ryan Stevenson got far too space to operate in, and it was Thistle's misfortune that he was off his game.

But Archibald should have stuck with his strategy.  Instead he blinked, bringing on Kris Doolan at half-time and going 4-4-2, a move that backfired.  No longer were County overrun in the middle of the pitch.  They should have been out of sight when Seaborne had a rush of blood of his own and scythed down Boyce, only for Gallacher to save a powder-puff penalty kick from Curran, and they doubled their lead when De Vita finished coolly from Gardyne's pass.  Gardyne looks reborn in the last few weeks, back to the player he was during his previous spell in Dingwall.

Partick will always have a fighting chance as long as Lyle Taylor is playing, and he headed them back into the game, but, far from cracking, County came up with a classy third goal from Marcus Fraser (helped by a complete failure of any opponents to attempt so much as a tackle as he marauded from one end of the pitch to the other).  From looking doomed a month ago, County now look best placed of the bottom three to stay up.  And from looking an outside bet for the top six a month ago, Partick now look directionless and in danger. LS 

Will Celtic regret not rotating their squad?
Back in August, Ronny Deila rotated his squad for a visit to Inverness, trying to keep his best players fresh for the Champions League game against Maribor.  It was an unqualified disaster - they lost to ICT, and then lost to the Slovenians a few days later too.

So, with a trip to Italy on Thursday, it was striking that Celtic's Norwegian boss made only four changes for the home match with an ailing Hamilton Accies side.  Perhaps it's because he feels most of his stars are better off playing every match, but given five of his starters on Sunday have now started more than 30 games already this season, maybe resting them might not have been a bad move?

More likely, Deila doesn't feel he can trust too many of his backups.  It's becoming increasingly clear who he feels he can rely on - and that doesn't include guys like Callum McGregor, Aleksandar Tonev and Stefan Scepovic - none of them even made the bench for this one.  Nor did Anthony Stokes, whose future looks precarious after his latest off-field misdemeanour.  The likes of Derk Boerrigter (as always) and Tom Rogic are injured, but one doubts they'd be anywhere near the team just now either.  Many of these players, it can be concluded, will be punted come May.

And so Celtic fielded a strong team against Hamilton, and promptly thumped them after a goalless first period.  But I'd expect at least seven of the lineup to start in the San Siro.  Less than seventy-two hours later, they only host Aberdeen on their own patch, in a top of the table clash.  Celtic fans would like to think that the Europa League tie is the biggest match of their season, but in truth it is the one that follows it that matters more; if the home side are tired, the Dons will take advantage, and then suddenly the cat will be amongst the pigeons. LS




Motherwell are lacking in every area
I’ve never edited a football highlights package, or anything for that matter, but I understand the general idea is to show the best moments of the match making sure to include the best chances for each side.  If that is indeed the case, then the YouTube highlights of this match should be terrifying viewing for Motherwell fans - they show just three attempts on goal for 'Well, none of which were within 5 feet of hitting the target.

Dundee took an early lead through Paul McGinn, and if he meant to score from there then he has earned the right to wear that Argentina shirt that Dundee were sporting.  Ian Baraclough claimed the freak goal was the only difference between the teams, but I doubt he believed it.  Dundee beared down on the Motherwell defence at will, with the home midfield providing very little protection. Had the home side had a cutting edge this could have been an even worse day for Motherwell and their goal difference.  A shaky defence, nothing in attack, and seven defeats in eight games is a good enough recipe for relegation as it is.

Dundee were pretty much pushing against an open door on Saturday but still went about their business efficiently enough and their attacking play was pleasant enough for their fans to feel good about a top six push. Motherwell fans can only hope that Saturday was rock bottom because the only way can be up from that performance. IM

Does Locke hold the key to a Kilmarnock revival?

Caley Thistle's error-prone and luckless performance against Kilmarnock perfectly showcased why they will likely fall short in their bold quest to finish second in the Premiership.  The Dons boast the second best defensive record in the league and can rely on a back line that seldoms make mistakes that will cost them valuable points.  Inverness also boast a good defensive record but at times this season have been their own worst enemy with mistakes at crucial moments. 

Whilst the game was high on entertainment for the neutral, home fans saw their side take the lead three times only to be pegged back on each occasion. With each Kilmarnock goal there was a groan of frustration as the rub of the green went the visitors' way; a fortunate deflection set up Eccleston for Killie's first equaliser, while their second came when Slater's wonderful free kick went in via the post and then Ryan Esson's leg. 

The third was less bad luck and down to strange set piece defending. John Hughes likes to keep two or three players up when defending corners; the downside is that it can leave more space in the box as there are less bodies to win the ball.  ICT had been struggling to clear their lines from set pieces most of the day and Kilmarnock took advantage when Tope Obadeyi smashed in a loose ball.

Of course, in the interests of fairness, it should be pointed out that ICT had their own good fortune; Nick Ross didn't know much about his goal, and from some angles it looks like Danny Williams' strike took a nick off David Syme as it flew past Samson. But Inverness need to cut out the errors,close out games more effectively and hope a wee bit more luck goes their way if they are to secure third spot as a minimum.  

As for Killie, it's fair to say that Gary Locke is putting forward a reasonable case to be given the role of manager on a longer term basis.   The Kilmarnock side that took to the field on Saturday looked a world away from the one that succumbed to Inverness in January despite having a man advantage. Whereas that Killie side looked lethargic and deflated, Saturday's lineup bustled with energy and worked incredibly hard to close down ICT, seldom allowing them the likes of Greg Tansey, so often their fulcrum, time to settle. 

Each time Inverness scored, Kilmarnock rallied. Were they lucky?  I say that you make your own luck and, for all their hard work and endeavour, Kilmarnock certainly deserved something from the game. This potential turnaround in performances and results might just come in time to give them a chance of breaking into the top six. If they manage that, expect Locke to be in charge at Rugby Park for a little while longer. AS

Goodwin hams it up in Aberdeen
The Reds go steamin' on...with St Mirren struggling, Aberdeen goals were coming.  First Adam Rooney poked in from an Andrew Considine cut-back, then he fired home from close range following a Kenny McLean assist and some nice build up play, before Niall McGinn swung in a corner and Mark Reynolds converted with a header at the back post.  So, on to Celtic Park.

Despite another victory for the Dons, the player that most folk were talking about after the match was St Mirren's pantomime villain, Jim Goodwin.  I say 'panto' villain; some of Goodwin's past acts have been genuinely villainous, not least his violent conduct - the uppercut to the stomach of Steven Jennings, the arm in the face of Stuart Armstrong, the elbow in the head of Aidan Connolly - have made him Scottish Fitba's Public Enemy No.1 (joint, of course, with Lee McCulloch).  To his credit, though, Jim has pointed out that in the last 10 weeks he hadn't been booked - an improvement in on-field discipline that he has bizarrely credited to his decision to grow his hair back.

Last week the Buddies played New York City in the American club's first ever match, but that did not stop the Silver Fox stealing the show as he nutmegged Spanish star David Villa.  

This week, though, it was Goodwin's turn to get shown up after he found himself on the receiving end of some showboating from Shay Logan.  It didn't make the embedded SPFL highlights, but if you check the BBC Alba extended highlights on iPlayer around the 32 minute mark you'll see Shay turn Jim inside out - and round and round - before laying the ball back to Willo Flood, much to Goodwin's chagrin. (That phase of play eventually comes to an end when Shay Logan is fouled by John McGinn after getting beat by having the ball chipped over his head.)  Goodwin's own embarrassment was compounded when, with 10 minutes to go, an attempted shot actually managed to completely clear the top of the Merkland Stand.  This prompted the final denouement from the Dons fans: a chant of "There's Only One Jim Goodwin!"  

Later, following a stoppage in play, Goodwin came to collect the ball (not the one he'd already hoofed out of the stadium - that one landed in my garden...) from the touchline, shaped to smash a shot into the home support in the South Stand, before pulling out at the last minute and flashing a knowingly wicked-looking grin.  This was met with a wonderful mixture of response from the Dons fans, everything from comedy booing and jeering to sporting applause and cheering.

For me, it's those intimate moments between players and fans that often make it worth spending twenty quid to go and watch the fitba' live.  Every club has its own players that the opposition love to hate, and regardless of which emotions you feel towards them, everyone thoroughly enjoy rooting for/against them - and either way, that's entertainment. MI

Martin Ingram (MI) is our Aberdeen Correspondent.  Legend has it that he is the tallest man in the Red Army.  He writes regularly for Aberdeen fanzine The Red Final..

Iain Meredith (IM) is technically a Rangers fan, but these days he tends to support them ironically.  He only agreed to help with this blog because now he can tell his wife that he's "only watching the game to help a friend out".

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.

Andrew Sutherland (AS) occasionally writes for When Saturday Comes.  He would never miss an ICT match unless he was offered a date with the lead singer of CHVRCHES...who he would then take to said ICT match.