He's a big part of things but the main issue is the team i.e. keeping the ball more, having more possession, doing something proactive with it and creating more chances. I couldn't care if Shankland only scores 2 all season, as long as the team are regularly scoring and looking like scoring, which they don't now. Obviously the club benefits twice if he does because we score goals and he retains his value.

​Mellon spoke about 'picking up points' again at the week but this seems to be mjore about not losing games rather than going to win them. We start with 0 conceded, he reckons the best way to win points with this team is to keep it that way. 

​I'd like to see 2 things. One is going 4-4-2 amore often as I think we can play this well aginst bottom 6 teams. The other is to play the 3-4-3 but drop 2 of the strikers (Clark, McNulty or Shankland) and play attackers (Sporle, Chalmers or Bolton) instead who'll link with Robson and Smith out wide. Really more of a 5-4-1 but if the wide players have licence to go and press it becomes more attacking. 

​​We're hoping having more strikers on the pitch pays dividends but we've got all the guns and no ammo. 

All of this is underpinned by keeing the fcuking ball! We're terrible at it. truly awful

Get him in the phuckin box.
Get the ba inta the phuckin box.
Ghee him the ba in the phuckin box.

Get him the ball facing the net instead of hoofing the ball up to him to hold the ball up a la Jon Daly with his back to goal. Absolutely wasting him playing the way we are now.

gaz73 wrote:

Billy_Hainey wrote:

Get him in the phuckin box.
Get the ba inta the phuckin box.
Ghee him the ba in the phuckin box.

 
Exactly BH , it’s not rocket science and don’t think we need any UEFA coaching badges to agree with that

 
But if it was as easy as that... we'd be doing it.

My point was more around what system and personell do we think we should be going for?

For us to solve this drought of goals from him and the drought of chances created then it will require new blood.

4-4-2 and even 4-5-1 will see us creating much more going forward but wide men are required and again someone in the middle as we all know.

I said in another thread a week back that for the life in me I can’t understand the McNulty signing(I think he’s a decent player) as the two of them are pretty similar and a blind man could see we needed different option up with him a target man(linked with one in the papers today) and some width. That is where is limited resources should have been invested.

January will be crucial for our survival or top 6 spot in terms of recruitment which I think is vital and I appreciate it won’t be easy but the like of King, McMullan and Powers (possibly a few more) need to be moved on and replaced with a better player.

A goal and assist for the main man tonight. Hopefully more of the same to come. Mellon said on the radio "McNulty plays better through the middle and Shankland plays better with someone beside him." So he knows its clear as day just like the rest of us. Lets kick on from here. I felt sorry for Clark being left out and even Edwards to a certain extent. But we'll need the whole squad throughout the 2nd half of the season and everyone will play their part.

The answer to the thread title is simple, give him the ball in the box.