Oh dear. Its worse than we thought.<\/p>\n
Neil Lennon, when comparing the defeat on Saturday at the hands of Aberdeen to the one earlier in the season to Morton said;<\/p>\n
“This one is far harder because we were more or less full strength on Saturday and we were going very, very well going into it.<\/p>\n
“So, it’s a sore one.”<\/p>\n
That line up on Saturday is what he considers full strength.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“We need to look at the mentality, look at the way the game went and why it went the way it did – and make sure it doesn’t happen again,”<\/p>\n
Well, you could tell Samaras, Stokes and Forrest to either buck up or buck off, and they can do that in the reserves. You could bring in some of the players you have spent money on-or you could promote some of the youngsters who have been dominant at their level in Scotland for the last few years.<\/p>\n
That would be a start.<\/p>\n
Then you could drop this ridiculous system of four on the flanks and a man in the hole feeding one up front. It doesn’t work. It never has.<\/p>\n
You could try passing the ball forward from time to time.<\/p>\n
Right, we are sort of halfway there.<\/p>\n
“Sitting down with the players and going through the match again is not something I do normally, but maybe on this occasion I will.”<\/p>\n
Hang on, the club moans at us when the crowds are down, but they don’t even want to watch the games either ?<\/p>\n
“When your passing goes and there is a lack of communication, you get punished. And that’s exactly what happened.”<\/p>\n
No, it isn’t. We were shite. Aberdeen weren’t. They won.<\/p>\n
And the crowd, as pointed out in a couple of the replies to yesterdays diary, didn’t get behind the team like they usually do when they go a goal down. Why ?<\/p>\n
Because the team were insipid. They didn’t care. Sure, the crowd should get behind the team, but its a two way street. If the players can’t be arsed, then neither are the crowd. When Celtic went behind on Saturday, the team and crowd needed to feed off each other, and it didn’t happen. Sometimes you have to make it happen, and there was no-one of a mind to do that.<\/p>\n
Lennon concluded;<\/p>\n
It was a pivotal game for us,” he said. “We didn’t want to go out of the competition.<\/p>\n
“We didn’t work their keeper hard enough, and our decision-making and the quality of our play was poor.”<\/p>\n
Er, actually it was Lennons decision making that was poor. From picking the team to the tactics, and also for not changing it when it was quite obvious that it wasn’t working.<\/p>\n
But, it has to be remembered that the other clubs know that if they play us in a one off, then they have a chance to beat us. They love it, and they will be up for it. Thats what happened Saturday. We just have to make sure we can be up for it as well.<\/p>\n
And thats where we leave that game, because its done now, and we can’t change it. After all, we only lost a game, others have lost their club, and are about to do so again.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
But we’ll come back to that.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The press , not surprisingly, are delighted that Celtic are out. It means that even if one club does have a bigger haul of trophies than the others, it won’t be the Glasgow giants, who just a couple of years ago had, in the eyes of the press,, ruined the game by not allowing old Rangers into the SPL.<\/p>\n
Both Aberdeen and Inverness have a chance to end the season on two trophies-new club Second Rangers could win three, but thats unlikely, as they won’t be around much longer-we’ll come back to that. Hell, even Raith Rovers could do a double, which would be superb, on account of the work Turnbull Hutton has put in to make the game a little fairer than it used to be.<\/p>\n
Keith Jackson, in the record, couldn’t stop his pen from ejaculating onto the paper when he wrote;<\/p>\n
KEITH believes the outcome of this weekend’s Scottish Cup games may have considerable consequences for Neil Lennon, Ally McCoist and Derek McInnes.<\/p>\n
He spelt Jackie MacNamara wrong there, because he cannot seriously mean that Third division leaders Second Rangers are high fliers.<\/p>\n
![\"Keith](\"http:\/\/i1.dailyrecord.co.uk\/incoming\/article1486006.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s98\/Keith-Jackson-1486006.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Jackson, pictured above during his disastrous attempt in the World Nose Picking competition, is right in one sense to proclaim that the season now has a bit of life in it. To an extent, anyway. The showpiece Scottish Cup is up for grabs, and even the likes of Dumbarton, Albion Rovers and Second Rangers could be in with a shout.<\/p>\n
He explained, though it has to be said, not very well. Perhaps the excitement got to him;<\/p>\n
” WELL did you feel it? Did the earth move beneath your feet?<\/p>\n
Because what went on over the weekend was the equivalent of a knee trembler with football\u2019s oldest lady. She may have been passed around more often than any other trophy in world football. And, true, she may have seen better days.<\/p>\n
( Eh ? For fecks sake, don’t leave him alone with the trophy, and hide the tissues. )<\/p>\n
But the Scottish Cup had a glint in her eye over the weekend and her latest mischief making has just lit a fire under the remainder of the domestic campaign.<\/p>\n
( So, she’s been “glinting ” at him, and setting fire to things. I knew a lass from Barlanark like that once. )<\/p>\n
A season which was supposed to be put to bed in tan tights and belly warmers has popped a stockinged leg out from under the duvet and offered up a flash of racy suspense.<\/p>\n
( Dear god. Its like fifty shades of grey. What the feck is a “flash of racy suspense. ? Let me think-<\/p>\n
“Hello, love, I’m back early tonight, and I fancy a flash of racy suspense, so I’ll call into the co-op and get you some tan tights. \u00a0” )<\/p>\n
Suddenly the earth has shifted under three managers in particular. Because the results which were thrown up over a weekend orgy of shock and awe have completely changed the dynamics in which Neil Lennon, Derek McInnes and Ally McCoist are operating.<\/p>\n
( There he goes again. An “orgy of shock and awe ” . Perhaps he’s frustrated. Yer man Freud would have to book him in for a fortnight. )<\/p>\n
From nowhere, McInnes and McCoist have the chance to achieve historic successes.<\/p>\n
( \u00a0Well, thats true. McCoist will become the first manager to lead two clubs into administration, and possibly liquidation. Does he just do it around Valentines Day so he can have an excuse for not buying his missus a card ? )<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Yesterday\u2019s quarter-final draw not only kept Aberdeen and Rangers apart but also left both heavy odds-on to make the last four.<\/p>\n
( It also kept Dundee Utd and Second Rangers apart, and St. Johnstone and Second Rangers apart, and any other team which would have fancied a shot at the overpaid and overrated plodders from Division 3, and surprisingly left them with a home tie against Albion Rovers, who hail from the Republic of Coatbridge, soon to become an independent enclave in the new Republic of Scotland. With the common rule amongst catholics in Scotland being that you never want to be in front of a sherriff with two surnames , this is a football club with two last names, so you can guess where my allegiances lie for this game. If it actually takes place, that is.)<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
( More later on that. )<\/p>\n
” Now destiny is calling them on like some sort of silvery temptress. ”<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
He continues;<\/p>\n
And then there is McCoist, who will be hoping these rising pressure levels inside Pittodrie seriously unnerve McInnes and his group, while confronting a few harsh truths of his own.<\/p>\n
( ah, he’s going to break the story-you know , the one when they go bust )<\/p>\n
He too has taken every opportunity to shield his players from expectation but there can be no hiding place now.<\/p>\n
( Such as the expectation that they are getting paid this month, presumably )<\/p>\n
” This Rangers squad is the second most expensively assembled in the country and, with Celtic out of the way, it seems perfectly reasonable to assume that McCoist and his men should be able to take advantage of this unexpected twist of fate. ”<\/p>\n
( No, it doesn’t. )<\/p>\n
For the first time in nearly three years, the game has become the story again at Ibrox rather than the backdrop to the unrelenting circus off the park. Now that may not last long. In fact, with money running out, the current regime could be only a matter of days away from its next big crisis.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
” But for 48 hours or so over the weekend, Rangers were all about the football again. And that might just be the old lady\u2019s greatest trick of all. ”<\/p>\n
I thought he was going to tell us then, but the greatest trick of all is how the press cannot see this great big train called The Rangers International football club is hurtling towards the buffers again.<\/p>\n
Graham Wallace, the CEO at time of writing, wants out. He has a few pals in the high risk banking world, you know, a sort of corporate Wonga.com, and he’s been filling in the forms and providing proof of income, but he cannot get a loan. His pals down there paid him the courtesy of listening to him, but can’t help him this time. So they are sinking, and the lifeboat isn’t coming.<\/p>\n
So we hear from our regular drunk guy, anyway, who has got himself a job selling a popular magazine down that way.<\/p>\n
Anyhoo, our man reckons-and we’ve heard it from a couple of other places as well, that Wallace has learnt that he’s going to be the fall guy when it all goes tits again this week, and he has no intention of hanging around for that.<\/p>\n
Then theres the Ibrox investor who has been told he might as well write off his investment. And its a company that is a major investor . This particular investor speaks to the Ibrox board daily, and knows what is going on-or should we say going down.<\/p>\n
Because that is whats happening. They’re going down.<\/p>\n
Anyone on twitter ? Follow a guy called Bartholomew J Boots. He’s quite good.<\/p>\n
Jacksons article is just typical of what will be in the press this week, until that lot goes under , that is.<\/p>\n
And its a shame, because he was right, it will be an interesting and even exciting end to the season on the field. But instead of praising the almost defunct Second Rangers, how about a mention for the clubs who have decided to live within their means, who have cut or eradicated bank debt, and kept their most promising players ?<\/p>\n
Several clubs in Scotland have been saved or boosted by what their fans have done to help, outwith going to the games, and theres only one who sat back and allowed their club to die. now that their new club is going the same way, largely due to their own stupidity and inactivity , isn’t it time we just forgot about them ?<\/p>\n
After all, they would have forgotten about anyone else.<\/p>\n
![\"Embedded](\"https:\/\/pbs.twimg.com\/media\/BgGaaYVIgAAvthW.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
I was speaking to a fan of New Rangers yesterday, he was rather upset. apparently he \u00a0had slept with his third cousin.<\/p>\n
” Stop counting them, then. ” I advised.<\/p>\n
Jim Brogan was the man yesterday, a much \u00a0underated player from the seventies.<\/p>\n
Someone else who was underated as a player. Who’s this chap ?<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Oh dear. Its worse than we thought. Neil Lennon, when comparing the defeat on Saturday at the hands of Aberdeen to the one earlier in…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":4572,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/etims.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/lennon-thoughtful.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2J7If-1bJ","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/etims.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4571"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/etims.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/etims.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etims.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etims.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4571"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/etims.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4571\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4573,"href":"https:\/\/etims.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4571\/revisions\/4573"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etims.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4572"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/etims.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4571"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etims.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4571"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etims.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4571"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}