We all know that 2nd half performances have been our strong point this season but when you dive in to the stats its even more stark the contrast between the 2 halfs.

We have scored 7 first half goals, 24 second half.

Of the 6 games we scored in the first half we have only won 1 of them and that was the Hibs game at Easter Road where we won with 2 injury time goals. So it was still a game we had finish well to take the points.

Games we scored in FH

W1 D3 L2

remarkably we have a better points ratio in games we dont score in the first half.

W9 D4 L4


Therefore the stats tell us bizzarily we are better off not scoring in the first half. Keeping it tight then bursting in to life, especially late in the game seems to work for us. This may partly be down to design but it begs the question why cant we put in good performances early on in games? The ideal surely would be to put in strong performances across the whole match but would this change the psychology of the game and diminsh the impact of our strong finishes? if we remember back to the the first 2 games of the season Dundee and Ross County we took the lead in both and failed to secure a win which caused a bit of anxiety particularly in the support. The rest of the season has been largely the other way round. Its almost as if JG decided we needed a different game management.

At the moment its good enjoying the ride knowing we can always come back in games and it must also be in the minds of the oppostion. I cant remember though a time when there was such a contrast in a United 1st half team and a 2nd half one.