***The Official Annan Athletic v Rangers Thread***

[Albertz123 598]

Absolutely.

But why are the attitudes like that? When a Manager goes through you several times and there is no reaction you've got to ask why?

I really hope it's complacency, rather than a lack of respect.

[ronniemca 479]

im sick of hearing ally sayig we didn't start well even last season was the same.do something about ffs ally before people start calling for your head.the pace we move the ball at is turgid,lets teams get behind the ball easily and ends up with high balls into the box.we have no pace through the centre and pace is the thing that kills these teams.all in all a total embarrassment

[Amac9 2,060]

Pathetic!

[RFCstuart 317]

Such a shite day.

Why don't we just play the ball on the ground, and beat them with ability and more skill. It's so plain to see that the long ball from either Alexander or Perry doesn't work and it is actually unbelievable how we just persist with it every single time we have the ball! Quite disappointing as one thing I always used to think Alexander had over Mcgregor was his distribution, now that seems it's gone completely! By playing the long ball all we're doing is bringing ourselves right down to their level and then it just becomes a guess which team gets a break and scores, if any.

We've got better football players than every other team in this league, however that doesn't mean we have stronger players or players who are better in the air. These teams we play away must love us punting the ball up for their CBs to win.

[TheBluenose1972 1,405]

Were second on points, fourth in the table.

Were doing no bad, People calling for Ally to go are morons...if we are still in fourth in the new year then it might be time to start worrying. We need to make sure we win all our home games and if we can snatch a few wins away and continue to draw away from home we should be fine.

[El Carpintero 546]

Were doing no bad, People calling for Ally to go are morons...if we are still in fourth in the new year then it might be time to start worrying. We need to make sure we win all our home games and if we can snatch a few wins away and continue to draw away from home we should be fine.

This attitude amongst our support saddens me.

[TheBluenose1972 1,405]

This attitude amongst our support saddens me.

Why we are obviously struggling big time away from home in these wee stadiums...whats wrong with wanting to be unbeaten throughout the whole season? Imo it would be some achievement.

[El Carpintero 546]

Why we are obviously struggling big time away from home in these wee stadiums...whats wrong with wanting to be unbeaten throughout the whole season? Imo it would be some achievement.

Yes but there is a reason we are struggling just now, something which can easily be fixed if we wanted. It is not about being unbeaten it is about you accepting draws to part time teams throughout the season. That is what makes me sad, the acceptance of mediocrity.

[TheBluenose1972 1,405]

Yes but there is a reason we are struggling just now, something which can easily be fixed if we wanted. It is not about being unbeaten it is about you accepting draws to part time teams throughout the season. That is what makes me sad, the acceptance of mediocrity.

If it's easily fixed if we wanted then why are we struggling?

I'd rather we won obviously but if we win the league by winning at home and occasionally winning away with draws and we go the whole season unbeaten then that is not mediocrity!

[El Carpintero 546]

If it's easily fixed if we wanted then why are we struggling?

I'd rather we won obviously but if we win the league by winning at home and occasionally winning away with draws and we go the whole season unbeaten then that is not mediocrity!

Because we are not learning from mistakes nor doing anything to change what is wrong.

[Teamgers 1,214]

Were doing no bad, People calling for Ally to go are morons...if we are still in fourth in the new year then it might be time to start worrying. We need to make sure we win all our home games and if we can snatch a few wins away and continue to draw away from home we should be fine.

We're doing no bad! are you fucking serious? It's totally unacceptable to play for Rangers and give a performance like that, it's either play for the jesrsey, or FUCK off!

[jcb 1,167]

Its not just the results away from home,its the actual performances that are concerning. The lack of a coherent game plan coupled with the age old problem of playing players out of position,add to that basic errors in passing ie-the weight of a pass-decision making in all areas of the park.

We need to impose ourselves from the kick-off, playing the ball on the ground at a high tempo allowing our superior technique & fitness to prosper would bring more consistent results and performances.

Talk of "snatching wins and draws" againgst this level of opponents is not the attitude we should be adopting,nothing wrong in showing teams respect in terms of how professionally we aproach the game, but we have appeared nervous and disjointed in each away fixture.

Massive improvement required asap.

[Chef 436]

Correct.

Thought I'd try clear it up

[El Carpintero 546]

Its not just the results away from home,its the actual performances that are concerning. The lack of a coherent game plan coupled with the age old problem of playing players out of position,add to that basic errors in passing ie-the weight of a pass-decision making in all areas of the park.

We need to impose ourselves from the kick-off, playing the ball on the ground at a high tempo allowing our superior technique & fitness to prosper would bring more consistent results and performances.

Talk of "snatching wins and draws" againgst this level of opponents is not the attitude we should be adopting,nothing wrong in showing teams respect in terms of how professionally we aproach the game, but we have appeared nervous and disjointed in each away fixture.

Massive improvement required asap.

[Reformation Bear 6,453]

The away performances are nowhere near good enough. The squad is more than capable of winning each game away from home - and of playing with authority and style. Ally knows this and the players know this. This is the squad we will have for a long time now so is time to knuckle down and get much more determined about winning away games.

Now there may still be some players who are still trying to tune into how it works in Div 3 when every game is a cup tie for the opposition and they bust a gut for the full 90+ mins to show us what they can do. And good for them to give us a challenging game. So I'd like to see less Ally and the players talking before a game and less after as well and let the real talking be done on the pitch. By all means respect the opposition but not to the point where we don't play to the best of our ability and with the authority that should come from their skill and experience. The Bears are doing their job in supporting and its more than time for the team to settle into this and JFDI; and the manager too. This may be an adventure (as Charles and Ally sometimes call this) but its not a lark, nor is it a walk in the park. There is serious work to be done to play our way back to the top. Now lets get on with it.

[nigelx7 18]

One shocking draw away in this league even two would be bad enough but common its all the time now. We keep waiting on an improvement away from home but it doesn’t come. Highly paid Professional players, some internationals Versus Bin men, Post men, shopkeepers, barmen, men who drink in bars FFS It doesn’t take Einstein to figure out we should be hammering these teams into next week. The players should not be paid unless they beat these teams. We should be at the top of the league even if all our players had drank six pints in the bar before playing. I’ll give Ally slack because of who he is the man is a legend and I’d hate to see him hurt but any other manager would be out the door. It’s shocking and unacceptable, if this keeps on we will be lucky to get promoted. Give a lot of us the chance to play and we could do better at least we would try.

[Chef 436]

Oh oh

[BigAmo'sThighs 848]

The results are so far from the forefront if my criticism.

Movement and possession are the things that worry me. For some reason, we think the man on the ball has to make things happen and dictate play... Which is true some of the time. But, he should have the EASIEST job on the park, his job is to pick out a player and either keep possession or create a chance. And this should be made easier by everyone else. He has one job to do - pass to a blue shirt. Everyone else has the hardest job, they need to constantly move and think "where can I be that the man on the ball can hit me with a pass" and I can't see it - the guy either has a pass backwards or a hoof.

Things need changed drastically in that department

I want a new philosophy intergrated, it'll take time but it's the way football should be played

[TheBluenose1972 1,405]

The results are so far from the forefront if my criticism.

Movement and possession are the things that worry me. For some reason, we think the man on the ball has to make things happen and dictate play... Which is true some of the time. But, he should have the EASIEST job on the park, his job is to pick out a player and either keep possession or create a chance. And this should be made easier by everyone else. He has one job to do - pass to a blue shirt. Everyone else has the hardest job, they need to constantly move and think "where can I be that the man on the ball can hit me with a pass" and I can't see it - the guy either has a pass backwards or a hoof.

Things need changed drastically in that department

I want a new philosophy intergrated, it'll take time but it's the way football should be played

Weve never been a team known for our silky skills, we have always been a workman like team! And it's got us this far so why change?

[gronaldo 38]

The results are so far from the forefront if my criticism.

Movement and possession are the things that worry me. For some reason, we think the man on the ball has to make things happen and dictate play... Which is true some of the time. But, he should have the EASIEST job on the park, his job is to pick out a player and either keep possession or create a chance. And this should be made easier by everyone else. He has one job to do - pass to a blue shirt. Everyone else has the hardest job, they need to constantly move and think "where can I be that the man on the ball can hit me with a pass" and I can't see it - the guy either has a pass backwards or a hoof.

Things need changed drastically in that department

I want a new philosophy intergrated, it'll take time but it's the way football should be played

The thing about possession football is that to have it work properly you need everyone singing from the same hymn sheet and that takes a bit of time. To be honest I'm not that worried about us having a few dropped points right now, because I don't think it's credible to think we won't go on a long winning run at some point this season. All the other sides are extremely inconsistent at this level because so many results are determined by defensive mistakes, or the break of the ball.

[stevenray201 28]

The thing about possession football is that to have it work properly you need everyone singing from the same hymn sheet and that takes a bit of time. To be honest I'm not that worried about us having a few dropped points right now, because I don't think it's credible to think we won't go on a long winning run at some point this season. All the other sides are extremely inconsistent at this level because so many results are determined by defensive mistakes, or the break of the ball.

With possesion football, it's not learned overnight. Plus , there are several players on the squad that arent able to

string 3-4 passes together right now and I'm not sure if they will pick it up.

[Teamgers 1,214]

Weve never been a team known for our silky skills, we have always been a workman like team! And it's got us this far so why change?

Eh, you on the bevvy?

[BigAmo'sThighs 848]

With possesion football, it's not learned overnight. Plus , there are several players on the squad that arent able to

string 3-4 passes together right now and I'm not sure if they will pick it up.

I agree - it appears that our players can't keep the ball

Which begs the question why did our management team bring them in? Or why have we not seen a slow but steady improvement with the great facilities and coaching?

A few years ago I went on a coaching course with the navy down in England and the boy taking it took NO shit. Big massive fucker with arms bigger than my thighs and he was pretty well respected at the FA. Anyway, he told us about training techniques, and incorporating that into a training sessions. It was really basic stuff but it's still relevent and important. During the course of the session, he noticed two or three of the boys COULDN'T pass the ball, couldn't keep possession, and literally struggled with 5 yard passing and moving skills.

He took them aside and VOLLEYED abuse at them. Christ these boys got it tight!

The main point he made was "I'm a football coach and I'm here to tell you how to organise sessions and work on development, if you can't pass the ball you can fuck off"

And that has always stuck with me, we are genuinely strugging with BASIC passing an movement. And sometimes I wonder if Ally and Kenny etc think that these guys are professional footballers and shouldn't need to work on basics but rather fitness? A class is permanent type approach. Which does hold water. But it's evident we struggle in this department.