Next up, Friday night away to Alloa

[offshore_arab83]

I'm not totally knocking Powers by the way, he's decent but he's not fitted into the team. If Butcher was injured/suspended then yeah start him or bring him on last 20 or so to tighten up and retain possession but starting along side Harkes and Butcher is f ucking killing us. IMO its also effected Butcher and Harkes performances of late...

[JamesMcClean]

I'm not totally knocking Powers by the way, he's decent but he's not fitted into the team. If Butcher was injured/suspended then yeah start him or bring him on last 20 or so to tighten up and retain possession but starting along side Harkes and Butcher is f ucking killing us. IMO its also effected Butcher and Harkes performances of late...

Yeh totally concur with that. Powers hasn’t exactly done much wrong, but playing both him and Butcher is mental. We haven’t played with two holding midfielders all season so why are we suddenly starting now? If RN is experimenting with next season in mind, well lets get the league won first and foremost and then he can fanny away to his heart’s content.

[offshore_arab83]

If this is experimental for next season then the club are totally f ucking mental!!!

Get this season wrapped up then they can f uck about all they want, i keep saying it mate but ICT win their two games in hand and we get beat on Friday then good chance the bottle will totally crash here

[tHeArAb]

Feel like Powers is being used as a bit of a scapegoat by some. The fact of the matter is Powers came in the very game we lost Clark, the very game the messiah decided to drop Watson. The same game he starts giving Appere bit part game time. He also brings a hopeless Pawlett in. We then lose McMullan. So we now have 3 attacking players out or out of favour and our best centre half sitting on the bench. To blame this slump primarily on Powers is wrong imo. He maybe does fit into the system with Butcher, but he's certainly not the sole reason for our slump.

[offshore_arab83]

No a scape goat mate, far from it. Many feel since his arrival we've went backwards, IMO it's the fact RN has to play him in a system that doesnt work. Usual square pegs - roond holes

It's not working... 3 x CM's with nae width or drive forward is f ucking brutal. We can all see it, RN canna.

We're not just missing Clark, we're missing Stanton. Missing creativity and someone to run forward with the ball and look for a 1-2 or a forward pass. Not pass it sideways and back which Powers does far too often

[tHeArAb]

Sideways or back. That game on Friday he was always looking up, trying to find a forward pass. Nine time out of ten he'd throw it wide to Robson as he was the best available option, but his passing was quick and it was slick and he moved the ball on as soon as he got it. He did give the ball away a few times on Fri as well however. 3 times in quick succession. If he has no options, he has no options and against these small teams that play 10 behind the ball there is little in the way of option other than to put the ball out wide. Remember we've struggled against these teams earlier in the season also.
I'd definitely be up for going back to Butcher & Harkes to see what difference it makes. I do agree Butcher and Powers are too similar for this league. Next season will be different altogether. You saw how good Powers was vs Hibs.

[shedka]

Maybe at Easter Road, it didn't work with Powers at home to hibs.

[Chick A Saw]

Absolutely OA. It’s primarily Powers that’s the problem. He’s come over and basically walked into a winning team. Six games since and we have won once.


Once.

Really dont understand all the negative comment regarding Powers, especially after the other night where he was pinging the ball wide and hitting the player every time. He was also regarded as one of the best players v Hibs so i think its unfair to lay the blame at the new lad!

As has been mentioned, we have at times been without Clark, McMullan, Appere, Watson, Robson, Harkes, Connolly and Reynolds during this run, who have all been part of a wining formula, plus Stanton away.

There have been some players who have deserved the attention of the boo boys, especially over the last 4 years, but Powers aint one of them!

[TerryTheTerror]

Sideways or back. That game on Friday he was always looking up, trying to find a forward pass. Nine time out of ten he'd throw it wide to Robson as he was the best available option, but his passing was quick and it was slick and he moved the ball on as soon as he got it. He did give the ball away a few times on Fri as well however. 3 times in quick succession. If he has no options, he has no options and against these small teams that play 10 behind the ball there is little in the way of option other than to put the ball out wide. Remember we've struggled against these teams earlier in the season also.
I'd definitely be up for going back to Butcher & Harkes to see what difference it makes. I do agree Butcher and Powers are too similar for this league. Next season will be different altogether. You saw how good Powers was vs Hibs.

I agree with this. Just to add, to say we had a lack of width on Friday is just wrong. Pawlett and Robson had countless opportunities to put the ball in from wide bit were woeful in this.

Tactically, the way to beat teams that sit in like this is to get the ball wide and this is exactly what we were doing in Friday night. Quality from the wide area was just not good enough, that's what was wrong IMO.

Powers did little wrong and having him and Butcher in the middle makes us very hard to pay against.

[tHeArAb]

Maybe at Easter Road, it didn't work with Powers at home to hibs.

Because the manager decided to play with three central midfielders in a formation we haven't played all season. Even then, Powers was the best of the three in my opinion.