Partick 0 Saints 0 (Partick win 5-4 on penalties)
Team: Main, Irvine, Stanic, McManus, Pamela, Moon,
Weatherston, Sheerin, Stewart, Hardie, Sheerin
Subs : Cat, Peaso, Jinky, Lawrie, Jackson
With the crisis topics on the forums being dusted down I had mixed feelings about making the trip through to the Wegie for a "Diddy Cup" tie. While the health wasn't too much of a worry after becoming semi- acclimatised to the delights of the Wegie patter at Broadwood at the weekend, our recent record at Firhill (well the last game) wasn't a good one and McCall seemed (well until the weekend anyway) to have put together a decent team in between spells at the press bars for the BBC. Added to that we didn't exactly have our own troubles to seek after the defeat last Saturday uniting Saints fan to a man (and woman) in their fingernail-biting habits going into tonight's game. It's not as though we've managed to even set the heather alight in the cups this year with a penalty shootout required to dispatch Raith and even the Forfarshire Cup final saw us let Arbroath back from 3-0 down.
Well you can chalk another cup off the list of potential trophies this year as another rivetingly lacklustre display in front of goals saw us dragged into extra-time and the second penalty shootout of the season with a miss on our seventh kick handing Partick the keys to the next round and Saints fans the chance to vent their spleens - actually we couldn't even boo them off the park given the way the players practically sprinted for the tunnel once the final kick went in. No more jokes about it being the fastest some of them ran all night. We can point the fingers at the usual reasons - poor passing, lack of movement, inability to score but it's getting to the stage now where the manager has to stand up and be counted - no more excuses.
So the big question was what shape the team would take tonight with the general expectation being that the older heads in the side which seemed to be the major part of the problem being rested while God only knows what Owen was going to do to the striking partnership that had singularly failed to chalk up more than one goal all bloody season. At least Martin Hardie was back after having his erse skelped. Elsewhere in the side and there were more than a few injury worries going into the game. David Weatherston was still suffering from his ankle knock he picked up at Broadwood but Rustybitz had been given the special massage treatment. It wasn't enough to let him play but the Mullet started up front partnering Stewart. Apart from that it was the usual suspects with Hardie returning to midfield in place of Jinky and Mooner given a start on the right wing. With only a few days to go until the closure of the transfer window (now traditionally marked by the Radio Scotland pundits talking to one another between 10pm and midnight as Hearts sign up another coach load of Eastern European tourists), Saints were also in the market for some new faces. Karim Kerkar opted to feast on l'escargots for the near future instead of Aggie's soup but there was some hope of seeing a new face. Aye that'll be right - let's just hope there are some new ones before the weekend.
Saints started as they meant to go on with McManus conceding a daft freekick within the first thirty seconds. At least this time the header went wide of Main's goal but already we looked slow and second to the ball. Stanic looked sharp to clear an early corner. For Saints Weatherston had a couple of good early runs without causing any real problems mainly due to a lack of support from his midfield. Partick came closest to opening the scoring with a quick counterattack in the tenth minute which saw McManus wrong-footed in his own penalty area, Anderson mistime a tackle and a dangerous low ball played across the goal which beat Main and narrowly missed making contact with Di Giacomo's head at the far post. Our best chance was another quickly taken freekick but the Partick goalie was out to clear the danger. The slippery surface was causing us all sorts of problems although the home side seemed to be able to deal with it comfortably. The game was pretty poor fare though although for a change we seemed to be avoiding the long balls and hallelujah, Main was occasionally able to kick the ball in a straight line.
Our next chance came in the 20th minute when Stewart was fouled on the corner of the box - a novelty in itself since it signified one of the few moments during the game where the on-loan striker seemed to be interested. Sheerin's freekick into the box ended up in some head tennis before a Hardie header was ruled offside. Partick broke up the park and a dangerous Murray cross was strangely left by Ando and Main although luckily there were no Jags in attendance. Mooner, who had a decent game, created the next chance. A long ball down the left wing by Stanic found Weatherston and his cutback to Moon gave the youngster a chance to try a chip shot but the ball went wide of goal. Sheerin and Weatherston linked up next with Sheerin picking up a return cross into the box before laying it off for McInnes whose shot was deflected over the bar. The resulting corner also broke to the Saints skipper but again the ball ended up in orbit.
Rowson shot wide for Fissel (after McCurry waived away justifiable claims for a foul on Goran). Saints though still managed to look like a bunch of blokes that met in the pub an hour before kick-off, knocked back several pints and then were given the sacred shirts to wear. Little communication and the movement of some of the side (McInnes, Sheerin, Hardie and Stewart the main culprits) was absolutely shocking. On the plus side Goran looked much improved and Irvine seemed a lot more settled at right- back. The distribution from defence was still poor and any attempt to go to the patient build-up via the midfield inevitably ended up with the Saints played closed down and robbed of the ball. The lack of energy in the side was summed up in the 33rd minute with a McInnes header back towards Ando left for Main who had to sprint out to clear from a Jags player's feet. Communication seems to be something not practiced much at training these days.
Partick won a lucky freekick ten minutes from the break when the referee adjudged a perfectly good Irvine tackle on Buchanan to be a foul. The wall did it's job though and the danger was eventually cleared. Up the other end Hardie managed a run into the box but again was tackled easily (that nasty "T" word becoming some strange alien procedure to the Saints players these days). Partick got another freekick and that was again played into the box where the defence were far too slow to react and Buchanan found himself in with room to shoot but managed to do a Jinky and sclaff it over the bar. Another freekick for the home side rounded off the half with the ball in the box again and McManus making a balls-up at the byeline and Main having to look sharp to tip the resulting cross round the post. The corner was safely headed over the bar.
The second period began a bit brighter for Saints with Hardie setting up Weatherston for a good run down the right and his cross went across the goal - no takers as usual. A minute later and another quick freekick across the box found Weatherston in the area but his volley simply went back across the goalmouth. Again though you had to ask where the other white shirts were. Partick managed a few shots but caused little danger to Main's goal and as the game wore on it seemed more and more likely that it was going to take just one goal to settle it. Defensively we looked ok but too often we were being caught on the break and the midfield were failing to close their man down (never mind trying one of these new-fangled tackling notions). The frustration was creeping into the support as well - it wasn't as bad as Broadwood but it wasn't that much better and when a long ball for Weatherston found him nudged off the ball and Stewart was too slow to react to the follow-up, the calls for a change began to mount.
As it was ten minutes into the half Mooner was sacrificed for Peaso who went up front as Weatherston dropped back to the right midfield. Three minutes after that though and we had the biggest let-off of the game. Irvine made a rare mistake and was robbed by Murray on the left who broke down and tried an angled shot that beat Main but came back of the other post. Even then the defence were too slow to react and when the rebound went in it took a smart reaction from the Saints keeper to save the day (or postpone the inevitable depending on how pessimistic you feel). Another long-range shot from Fissel went just over the bar before Owen made his second change of the night with Stewart finally making way for Jacko.
Almost immediately we began to make some headway as the additional workrate from the strikers began to pay dividends. Peaso saw an opportunistic shot held and then Jacko won the ball off their left back forcing a corner from which Ando saw a header go just wide. Peaso set up Weatherston in the 69th minute for a great run into the box but he had to settle for a corner. That was played in and Pamela was again up at the back post to head the ball into the net only to have his celebrations curtailed as the referee decided someone had been climbing in the box. A minute later another good run from Peaso (who looked a lot sharper coming off the bench) saw him twist his marker before shooting wide. Hardie was starting to come to life against his old side and in the 77th minute had a good run through the middle. But with Weatherston, Jacko and Sheerin all unmarked, the Mad Mental One went for glory with an effort that went well over the bar. Just another notch on the bedpost of frustrating moments the Saints support were starting to get pissed off about.
Both teams were going for broke now with plenty of corners conceded but no real clearcut chances as the defences were on top for both sides. We had a couple of good last-ditch tackles to prevent Partick breaks while McManus saw a freekick blocked and a couple of corners wasted. The best chance came in the 87th minute when Peaso played in Sheerin who laid the ball out left to Jacko (who had one of his best games tonight). Weatherston picked up the clearance on the other flank and sent a good ball in that Hardie just headed wide of goal when it seemed certain to go in. Even in injury time we could have won it when another Jacko run down the left ended in a low cross across the goal for Hardie at the back post but the midfielder just failed to make contact with the ball.
Extra-time was played at a slower pace as the tired legs began to tell. Sheerin had a decent shot go out for a corner which he then wasted. Ando made a couple of vital clearances in defence and then in the 96th minute, Weatherston set up Sheerin who played the ball out to Jacko and his return cross found Sheerin at the near post but his sidefooted effort was blocked on the line. Jacko had another shot saved and then Anderson forced a good save from a corner. Pamela them managed to get himself booked despite winning the ball as McCurry started to get on the tits of both sets of fans. Two minutes before the end of the first period of extra-time and Hardie sent a great cross in from the right to the back post where a shot was cleared off the line before breaking to McInnes on the edge of the box but his low drive went just wide. A minute later and Hardie set up Weatherston out wide right who sent a good low shot across the goal. Partick were making chances of their own though and a minute later a good cutback beat the Saints defence and found Buchanan but his shot went over the bar.
McCluskey came on for the last 15 minutes as the tiring Weatherston went off. Ando picked up an early knock but was able to continue and in the 108th minute a good McCluskey cross was headed on by McInnes for Sheerin at the back post and his shot was brilliantly turned round the post with any credit for the keeper's skills lost as the referee decided to blow for a goalkick. A deep pass by Jacko found Sheerin on a good run but he delayed his through ball to Hardie a second too long and Martin's eventual shot went wide. The referee was spoiling the game with continual stoppages and it seemed that no side was going to score. Partick had a couple of efforts while Peaso sent a volley well wide three minutes from time. Play finally ended with a booking for Murray for a late foul on Gary Irvine.
So to the fun and games of the spot kicks. Partick went first and scored before Hardie matched them. Buchanan scored their next one as Sheerinho scored for us. Then Murray sent an effort over the bar while a low Peaso drive put us in front. Main almost got his fingertips to the next one before a weak Jacko shot put things level again. The 5th penalties for both sides were scored with McCluskey getting ours (a lovely finish as he fell on his arse). Main saved Partick's 6th kick but Gary Irvine's weak shot was blocked. So to the seventh kick and while Partick easily scored it was left to McInnes to send his effort wide of goal and put Partick through. The Saints skipper typified the lack of spirit and fight in the side as well as he didn't stop running once the ball went wide and sprinted straight off the pitch and up the tunnel followed by his dejected teammates.
In terms of play it wasn't as bad as Saturday and on one or two rare moments we almost played football. Defensively we looked better with Stanic and Main a bit more alert and Irvine having a decent game with Ando getting my Man of the Match for some solid play. Midfield saw a decent game from Moon and while Hardie came onto a better game he was still poor for long periods as was Sheerin (fast becoming Mr Invisible) and the Tackle-free McInnes. Weatherston had a good game and both Peaso and Jacko looked okay when they came on but Stewart is a total liability and if you ask me, he'll be lucky to see out his loan spell never mind any chance of winning a longer-term deal. New faces are urgently required - at the very least the younger, hungrier players deserve their chance at the weekend - at least they didn't let the side down tonight.
And hey, at least we can concentrate on the league now.....
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