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Scottish Cup Madness! · Scots With A Mic

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  Listen to the noise. Listen to the passion and hand
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  and path. Let's jump.
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  Again, let's jump again. Oh yes, great, done by the fish.
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  Chance the one for Scotland. Hello and welcome to another
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  edition of Scots with the Mic. We're here today to talk about
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  the Scottish Cup. Fantastic weekend of Scottish
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  Cup action and one of the best weekends in the football and
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  calendar in my opinion. And my name is Ian Mackintosh
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  and joining me for this one we've got James Scott.
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  James, how are you again, all? Right to get you back.
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  Good to have you back and Adam Gorgie talk.
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  Nice to have you back on the show.
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  Good. To be back on.
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  Good to be back on after Saturday as well.
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  I mean we've all this is going to be like a like a rehab
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  session for us because we've got all of our teams are out of the
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  cup, such an early stage. So we're going to try and make
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  it as fun as possible and maybe try and cheer up our cheer up.
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  Are we thinking, well, anything after the weekend?
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  But we'll make a start on the big shock I think of the
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  weekend. And that was Hebbs going out the
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  Scottish Cup to Dunfermline. I think that was one of the ties
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  that was predicted to be there was going to be an upset, it was
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  going to be there or the, you know, the potential for an
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  upset. East End Park, you know, 10,000
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  fans inside East End Park, Championship, Dunfeldon, they
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  were a bit inconsistent in Championship but they've still
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  got a good team, champion level and Hibs doing OK in the
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  Premiership and then had all the makings of a cup competition.
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  Adam, what did you make of that game?
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  I had to take it you, we all, we both, we all watched out on the
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  television. And what did you make of Hibs
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  over the course of the weekend before we talked about
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  Dunfermline? I think to be honest, I've seen
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  a bit on socials and stuff and I think a lot of them are right as
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  kind of summed up Hibs, to be honest, and the last however
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  long under David Grey this season.
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  I'd sort of call out early in the season.
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  I felt like there would be a team that would maybe
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  underperform just based on the fact that David Gray's got a lot
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  of credit in the bank in terms obviously, well what achieved as
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  a player, but then as a manager going on that that really,
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  really good run that they had in last season.
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  A but obviously there's still gaps there in terms of personnel
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  in certain areas. And then there's also still a
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  gap for me in terms of David Gray and obviously his
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  experience, which is still a improving as a manager.
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  So I think like when we look at the game itself and yeah, I
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  think personnel wise, like maybe there was that element and then
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  tactically as well, just I don't know if they went about the game
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  in the right manner, that might be combined with obviously who
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  was starting. But yeah, I just felt like they
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  missed certain players. I felt like you, Anna Boyle, at
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  least one of them could have been starting you.
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  And so she only works in flashes.
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  But again, he's been in a little bit of form.
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  He's always good for a goal and assessed and and then again
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  you're thinking about the opposition as well.
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  You know, you're dropping down a league in terms of the
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  opponents. So it should on paper be a
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  slightly easier game for him as an attacking player.
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  Then you've got Boyle with his experience again, he he wasn't
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  looked to start and yeah, it's like people like handling that
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  as well. It'd be maybe good to rotate the
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  men obviously with, you know, Scotland, the main, but equally
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  just rotate the squad. But use his experience in a game
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  like that going East End Park, he can keep things tight at the
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  back and then let them express themselves.
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  So just that, yeah, it felt like a little bit off in terms of
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  like how they were performing. I mean, the last time I seen
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  them properly was the Derby. And obviously that was a
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  complete completely different reason.
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  And how they'll perform in a Derby will always be different
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  to to any other game. But yeah, just two second or
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  third time I've seen them there in fault.
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  Like there's just something a wee bit off with them.
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  And it does seem a bit concerning from their
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  perspective. And however, obviously another
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  hand on film and you know, heya, Neil Lennon master class against
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  his old against his old fours, albeit came off whoever's body
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  part in the, you know, the second minute injury time, but
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  they started to go in somehow. So yeah, you know, that
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  perseverance, I suppose, paid off in the end.
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  And sneaking a really, really big one for them.
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  I was going to say that it's probably the scrappiest goal
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  you'll ever see. And it was I had I had that make
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  and if it was going to be, you know, a mistake or something
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  completely out of the blue or, you know, something spectacular
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  to to sell it because it was, I'm not saying it was a nothing
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  game. No really.
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  But what I'm trying to see it was a game of maybe very few
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  clear cut chances. I think Kieran Boy's chance in
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  the first half is one that he's got to try and score.
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  He's one-on-one with the goalkeeper, MMA, and he's got to
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  score when he's one-on-one keeper.
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  Yeah, I feel like him as well. I feel like when boy's not
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  playing at his best, it seems to then filter down to the rest of
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  these team mates. I feel like he does a lot of the
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  obviously he's got that about me, like the size, that bit of a
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  Talisman. He can offer a bit of
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  everything. But when he's missing the
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  chances and things aren't quite going well, it seems to like see
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  the rest of the team didn't seem to like, you know, rally round
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  or anything like that. And and it's that's becoming
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  quite a common theme as well. But I think like as as the more
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  the game went on, the more nervous Hibs came.
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  They looked and they're more like they weren't playing like
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  freefall in football. They weren't a, you know,
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  haven't done Feldman, certainly his backs to the wall stuff and
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  it was starting to play in it done Feldman's hands on you.
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  But how sort of not great an occasion it was in terms of like
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  the football side of things. It started to suit them more
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  than Hibs. And then, like you say, the
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  typical that was going to come. That seemed like it's going to
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  be something like that, something scrappy.
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  Maybe it's. No, that's not the.
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  I was going to say that's just how it goes, wasn't it?
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  I mean, we got the ties like that, the longer games that now.
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  Now when you know there's a potential opposite on the cards,
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  you do see teams like that get sort of twitchy.
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  I mean, you've been up at Aberdeen and nowhere only we're
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  losing 1 now. But you could definitely tell
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  they were conscious of something could have gone wrong there if
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  the Rovers is actually built their socks on, managed to
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  produce something. But yeah, it was there was like
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  a slackness from Habs. I think there's a couple of
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  times it's on the middle part, just straight passes or
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  miscommunications between players, you know, you know,
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  just expecting each other to take the ball and then ended up
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  at the Ferman player because he was the only one that really
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  reacted to that. And even a couple of times there
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  was a couple of crosses from I think it was Nicky Cadden, and
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  they were just almost aimless crosses at someone.
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  I think 1 landed in the stand, one went really deep and found
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  nobody. And you see when stuff like
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  that's happening, you really do, you just start to think this
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  might be done Ferman's day. You know, when you know these
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  moments that maybe won't happen once in their usual
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  run-of-the-mill Premier League fixture start to build up over
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  the course of the night, you start to think, OK, that could
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  be an upset happening here. And I think they have support
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  and players become conscious of that and it's not really helpful
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  for them managing to grab the game by the scruff of the neck
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  and go and get the goal we need. But I would I would disagree
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  with chances. I mean, don't fear I won't had a
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  couple. I mean, I don't think it should
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  have taken them until the 90th minute to to put the game to
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  bed. I mean, it pains me to say it's
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  a rave, man, but you know they more than deserve to go through
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  a film. Yeah, over the course of the
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  night match, I think if one team was going to go through, I think
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  it was going to be done. Fairman.
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  So it is, you know, that's a big upset in the terms of the
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  Scottish Cup. I just want to point you to one
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  of the articles in our Football Park team because Adam talked
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  about like Hibs falling apart in general, like because of the
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  season, Like you can see something like this happening.
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  And there's a great new writer in our Football Park team called
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  Andrew Jeffrey. And he's written a couple of
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  articles for us now. He's he's very good.
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  He's very detailed. If you've not read his latest
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  one, it's, you know, after it's Saturday, I think you need to
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  read it. It's called it's tight until
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  then why Hibernian season unravelled long before the
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  Scottish Cup accent and pretty much exactly what you're saying
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  there, Adam. It's pretty much you know, you,
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  you're spoken about what's happened over because you're
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  pretty much so I think you might have read the article because
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  it's been you pretty much said I.
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  Might I might have doubled? I might have doubled.
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  I might have dabbled, yeah, but it's a bit.
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  It's a brilliant article. Nobody's read it.
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  I would recommend having to look at over it, especially if you
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  are a house supporter. And if you you are and you agree
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  with this, then last note. And because it is something that
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  is quite a good read and it's, you know, if you are a HIB
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  supporter and you're crying over it, we do apologize.
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  But it's just one of those. But it's a great read.
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  And I think you have not had it trying to look at it and do so.
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  Yeah, we talked about Dunpel wanting it more.
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  James. They've not played since the end
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  of the year, so they've no last game was the fight Derby victory
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  over Reprovers. They've not played in two weeks
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  and it looks like they wanted it a whole lot more.
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  Do you think that was just a case of them wanting it more?
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  Do you think it was a case of Hobbs just being off that or do
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  you think it was just a mix of both that was the reason why
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  they went coordinated? I mean, games like this, you're
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  quite often see the the war team wanting it more, especially when
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  they're at home, you know, at their home ground, they've got
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  their fans behind them. It only takes one chance for
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  their supporters to sort of get behind them and get on their
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  feet and really create a better noise.
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  It's not the same as when you know, hubs master.
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  I mean, it was opportunity. They went into the box and it
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  was not a straight at the goalkeeper play easy save for
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  memes. Is it memes and the sex for the
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  part? Yeah, You know, a chance like
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  that for the unfair one would have probably had people would
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  have been disappointed, but they would have been.
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  They would have been a rallying cry from it, if you know what I
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  mean, Whereas, you know, I think there was sort of groans from
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  the Hibs end, you know, missing such an A chance that they
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  really would expect to put away. And that mean.
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  But that's just I mean, we talked about Hibs season falling
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  apart and that's just been another another example of that.
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  The Scottish Cup is lettered with results like this, not just
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  this season, but throughout the years.
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  Like you do see, I mean, Dunfermline Habs isn't quite a
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  giant killing as Brewer Rangers, Hearts, for example, but you do
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  you do see these these things happen.
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  Celtic only be Auchinleck to now, but and it sometimes it
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  just does. You know, Hibs aren't at it.
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  It takes Dunfermline will know, especially been led by Neil
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  Lennon, a guy that's very posh that Quentin always spoke about
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  the fact that no one got him up for a game more than Neil
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  Lennon. And he'll have been getting that
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  right into the players all week, you know, letting them know
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  exactly what's at stake, telling them to get a hips because the
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  haze could go down if you know, chances aren't going the right
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  way for them. The fans will.
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  Like we said, they got twitchy. They weren't right behind them
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  and then Dunfermline felt like they were getting momentum and,
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  you know, had something about them.
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  So, you know, but that's just what you expect.
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  That's really just what you expect.
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  You know, they've been numerous games.
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  That was I mean, we're going I think we could probably move on
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  to the Rovers game. Then I.
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  Yeah. But like, that's exactly why I
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  was disappointed with her game because I mean, I was up with
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  fan where it's usually on the podcast.
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  He's an Aberdeen fan and we both agreed both teams were poor.
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  It just so happened that Aberdeen been the Premier
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  League, then been poor, you know, was enough to get them
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  over the line. And what was disappointing for
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  me was that I didn't see that fight from the Rovers or, you
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  know, didn't see that the same ruthlessness and desire there
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  was, you know, moments. But that's what was the
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  difference here. That's how you win a cup game
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  and get an upset like that. You, you know, you meet them in
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  every aspect of your game. And that's not just about
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  quality. It's about just being hungry for
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  that and willing to put bodies in the line for the one.
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  Yeah, I think talking about the Rovers as well, I think, I think
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  they controlled the first half in particular very well.
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  After the goal, I think the first 10 minutes Aberdeen were
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  all over recovers and it was just, no, I was just watching it
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  and it wasn't anything like they were creating loads of clear cut
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  chances. I just see something was just
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  going to happen in the 1st 10 minutes and then the goal goes
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  in and you just think, OK, this could go one of two ways.
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  But I think they got controlled quite quickly.
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  They didn't seem to faze them and didn't seem to, I think if
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  anything that just say, say they just rolled their sleeves up,
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  right, we're going to go for it now, you know, and they got in
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  control of the first half and particularly really well, the
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  second-half was I think a very scrappy affair.
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  I think it was just going to be a case of I think of just seeing
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  the game out for Aberdeen and even though they did have lots
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  of good clear cut chances, but they just couldn't take any of
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  them. To fair with start the game, I
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  think any Championship League One club that comes into that
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  game and it's magnitude what you're looking to do is weather
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  that initial storm. You know, you're coming up
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  against a team that's on paper vastly.
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  You know they put more quality than you absolutely for sure You
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  know they used to play in a higher level play in a certain
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  style of football you're maybe not experienced against weekend
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  week out. So you really want to just get
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  into the game and get settled and get used to the tempo of the
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  game and, you know, the all position you're up against
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  because it is different. And that was that was the
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  disappointing thing about conceding so early.
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  Because again, speaking with Aberdeen fan and speaking with
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  fan, they felt if they hadn't got that early goal, you know,
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  the they didn't really see that changing much of the pattern in
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  the game. You know, you know, they were
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  quite poor after they got that goal.
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  Like you said. I mean, maybe it goes far to say
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  we completely controlled the half, but.
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  You know we. Looked as likely to score as
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  each other. It was very scrappy at the gamfi
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  could have been sent off actually for bringing down.
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  I think it was Dylan Easton or Jack.
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  I can't, I can't remember who it was.
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  So I was at the game. So I'm trying to.
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  Remember trying to remember faces I.
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  Didn't get a replay of it at the time.
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  So but yeah, you know, there was there was moments either end and
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  it just there was just a lacking quality with either side looking
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  to finish our chances. And yeah, and it was just that
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  was just the case for the Rover. So we hadn't conceded so early.
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  We might have stood about a chance.
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  And I think at the moment I can expect that Aberdeen to really
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  take the game by the stuff and I can just go on and go to go to
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  task. But they didn't like you said.
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  And then second-half, it was sort of the balance of the game
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  as well. No one really had the better of
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  it more than the other. Aberdeen did have chances, but I
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  think, you know, just similar to the way their their league
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  season's gone. They just don't seem to be
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  making the right decisions all the time.
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  The execution's just not there and then come full time.
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  I don't really feel like either sets is either set of supporters
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  were, you know, left anything more than disappointed.
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  I mean the Rovers finds good reception to the boys for, you
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  know, the dip and the effort was there.
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  I just you know, like I said, there's just stuff over and
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  above that you need to get a one against a team like that.
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  But the Aberdeen support, I mean there was quiet as I've ever
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  heard. You know, I ground that bag and
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  get a friend said as well. You said he'd been a long time,
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  if he has ever heard it, as quiet as that aptitaudry.
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  And I kind of just felt like no one was really happy.
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  And then Aberdeen obviously in the hat for the next for the
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  next round and I'd be kind of hoping they could put on a
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  better performance than that because they've got Motherwell
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  and the way they've been playing, I don't think they'll
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  be scared of Aberdeen one but. Yeah, talking about the Rovers
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  away from home, they've not scored a goal away from home in
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  five games. So scoring goals away from home
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  starts Park They're they're doing OK.
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  They don't they don't score a barrel of the goals that we did
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  have two games in quick concession 5, two games Hamilton
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  and then we had a six dill against Ross County.
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  But then it's the goals are just starting to dry up a little bit,
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  but especially away from home, though five games without go
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  away from home. It's not a good sign at all.
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  But hopefully we can get some more bodies.
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  And this is like a personal plea.
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  I think I I always try and use this podcast as a personal plea.
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  If we can get a player, I say you're going to come in at
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  breakovers, please, please come in.
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  Hopefully we can get a body in in that department in the next
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  couple of weeks or so. Let's go to Tynecastle.
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  Adam, your we, we've been, now we've lost, we've, we collected
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  our disappointment. Now it's your turn.
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  I think it's only fair. Your turn now to talk about what
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  happened on Saturday. Falkirk progressing and penalty
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  kicks game like what we're saying.
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  It was like a nothing first half but then the second-half just
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  for me as a neutral watching the game, it was it turned into
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  quite an entertaining football match from the second-half into
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  extra time and then the penalty kicks.
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  What was your thoughts on? I was going to say the 90
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  minutes. Would it say the 120 minutes
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  plus the penalty kicks on Saturday?
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  Yeah, I think, I think the first half it was quite like KG.
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  No one was really giving too much away.
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  There wasn't like a lot happening first half.
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  second-half it started to open up a bit, I think to be honest,
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  like on the on the reflection of the two hours that we played,
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  like Falkirk deserves to win annual penalties is obviously
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  5050 and whatever. But I think I think it was more
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  a case as time went on. I mean, Even so early in the
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  second-half that it kind of combined with opening up with
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  the fact that like we were trying to put on more aggressive
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  players and other players that were taken off were actually
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  getting tired or taking knocks or coming off.
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  I think like it was starting to become evident that the two
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  games we've played when the last six or seven days before the
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  Falkirk game, majority of them had been with 10 men on the
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  pitch. You know, albeit they were
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  successful in terms of winning, it was starting to look a bit
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  leggy after like an hour and at the cup game.
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  So the fact that they managed to get it to penalties obviously is
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  an achievement in itself. But then ultimately it's
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  probably done more harm than good because you've went to a
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  lot of the penalties and and then went out.
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  So yeah, again, can't really fault like the fight and stuff
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  like that. But this seems like it's may
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  have been one fight too far. And then obviously we've had to
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  then bow again from the cop on penalties, second cop, second
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  defeat and penalties. Positives I suppose would be
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  that obviously now just all focus on the league.
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  We're still obviously a reasonably large squad which has
• 18:45
  got a decent amount of quality in it and then it's not really
• 18:50
  any disgrace. Wasn't a Falkirk team that
• 18:52
  really should have got something for Celtic during the week.
• 18:54
  They've been really well against Celtic, they've played really
• 18:56
  well all season, which is why they are where they are now.
• 18:59
  When you consider where they were when the Glen first took
• 19:02
  over. And you know what you get with
• 19:04
  Falkirk, you get people that work hard.
• 19:05
  Again, you talk about the cup games.
• 19:08
  They've got that that good mixture, I suppose in cup games
• 19:10
  where they do have that better quality and togetherness, but
• 19:13
  they also have that that sort of they're willing to be the what's
• 19:17
  the right? We're in the same this the size
• 19:19
  of the the size of the fighting the dog as opposed to that.
• 19:23
  That sums up Falkirk like McGlynn Husdam that way that it
• 19:26
  probably suits some cup games. And obviously they've been
• 19:30
  rewarded by a nice local Derby away Stenhouse Muir, which will
• 19:34
  be an interesting effect. Sure, to be honest, like we'll
• 19:37
  obviously go and astonish me shortly but yeah, well deserved
• 19:40
  for them from that mass side of things.
• 19:41
  They can't really. Obviously it's a shock in some
• 19:45
  way but in other ways it's not in the sense of how I talked
• 19:47
  about the fact that we are running on empty and the fact
• 19:50
  that Falkirk are 6 in the league themselves and on Mehta are one
• 19:53
  of the better teams in the country this season so.
• 19:56
  That's what I was going to bring up there because we've talked
• 19:58
  about Motherwell on this podcast being one of the best
• 20:02
  footballing teams in the country this moment, and if not, maybe
• 20:04
  the best football team in the moment.
• 20:06
  Can we see that Falkirk are getting there to that level of
• 20:10
  how they're playing at Motherwell or do you think, do
• 20:14
  you think when they're not, do they still think Motherwell are
• 20:18
  a little bit far ahead in terms of like entertainment and we
• 20:21
  attack the game so that they control the game?
• 20:24
  I think there's, I think they're maybe slightly different and how
• 20:27
  they play. I think they are both organised
• 20:29
  and understand what their instructions are based on their
• 20:31
  coach. But I think Mcglinn's a bit more
• 20:36
  streetwise in terms of his daily place.
• 20:38
  So obviously they do play nice football and stuff, but they
• 20:40
  have that little bit of bait about them.
• 20:42
  Whereas a Motherwell it does seem to be a lot more like they
• 20:47
  are a bit more like a Lanarkshire Barcelona.
• 20:49
  I think, like I said, good in terms of like the way they
• 20:51
  spread about and stuff. Don't don't get me wrong, I'm
• 20:53
  I'm sure like having obviously I've been at Far Park when we
• 20:57
  played them then I was obtaining, but I've more what
• 20:59
  what rings in my head more in Motherwell is just how they play
• 21:02
  the ball about. Whereas with Falkirk, you do you
• 21:05
  do see that from them, but you also see the other side to them
• 21:07
  as well, which probably naturally comes from the fact
• 21:09
  that they've like organically came through the leagues and
• 21:11
  kept all the players and stuff like that.
• 21:13
  So you need a bit of that to get to where they are.
• 21:15
  Whereas Motherwell's obviously well establishing the
• 21:18
  premiership. See, I wouldn't quite have them
• 21:20
  at Motherwell in terms of like, I mean, I have, I would say
• 21:23
  Motherwell are side Hearts. Obviously I'd say Motherwell are
• 21:26
  the best in terms like plain sight and say Hearts are more
• 21:30
  rounded as a team, but certainly the best bike in terms of like
• 21:34
  putting the ball around and how they play.
• 21:36
  I mean, we spent 10 minutes at Far Park in a second-half of me
• 21:39
  saying to my kids like we kind of get the ball from the really
• 21:42
  I cannot get the ball from and could not say that, but any
• 21:44
  other team in the whole league. So yeah, but Falkirk said that
• 21:48
  what it's true. Like they are definitely one of
• 21:49
  the best performing teams like in the country.
• 21:51
  And when you consider the amount of players that were in League
• 21:54
  One and some of them were too good to be in League 1, and I
• 21:57
  think me and James in particular know a lot of them, you know,
• 22:00
  from Marley Silver's days and, you know, lower league days.
• 22:03
  I mean, Brad Spencer, I said when he signed for Falkirk, I
• 22:06
  mean, I think if John Mcglenn wasn't the manager at Falkirk,
• 22:09
  he would not went to League 1. He, he, it was at one point, he
• 22:14
  was going to be going to Motherwell at one point and
• 22:16
  then. It was linked to us at one point
• 22:17
  as well. And I've always sort of been a
• 22:19
  better admirer of him as well, just the way he carries himself
• 22:22
  and it gives you a bit of everything.
• 22:23
  Like he's so composed. You'll have that aggressive side
• 22:26
  to him as a leader. Yeah.
• 22:29
  I mean the other guys like Calvin Mullen and stuff like
• 22:31
  that as well. Like I think again, you can just
• 22:33
  tell they've got that togetherness about them.
• 22:35
  Like Glenn Husdam is is got. I know that a club, obviously
• 22:38
  it's that proper club mentality. Like everybody has the same
• 22:41
  goal. There's no like any anyone
• 22:43
  trying to be a hero. There's no flashiness about
• 22:45
  them. Like they just have all got the
• 22:46
  same purpose and there's. No.
• 22:48
  And there's not a premiere. There's not like one star
• 22:50
  player, if that makes sense. And that's not a bad thing
• 22:53
  because if you have a big name clear and a small team, they
• 22:56
  always get the attention because we used to think of like Simon
• 23:01
  Moe when he was at Ross County, for example, he was always the
• 23:04
  star player for them. But if you take him out, you can
• 23:07
  see what happened to Ross County.
• 23:09
  Whereas Paul Kirk, there's no real one star player.
• 23:12
  And that's good. It's because you've got this
• 23:14
  collector in the building and they're working hard as a team.
• 23:17
  Somebody called, I think I remember John Baird called that
• 23:21
  when he played for John McGurk. Rover.
• 23:24
  He said it was like a well oiled machine and I think he's done
• 23:28
  that from what he did it Rover. He's doing it bulk Greek as
• 23:31
  well, albeit in a much higher league as well, which is good to
• 23:34
  see. I still have a big mile of John
• 23:36
  McGlynn. I was to think of a weakness in
• 23:38
  their game that stops them being elevated a bit more as they do
• 23:41
  lack a wee bit attacking quality, like, you know, for
• 23:44
  they lack like a proper, you know, like if you put like
• 23:47
  again, like Shankland boy Maz when he say or whoever, like if
• 23:50
  they were all, if one of them was playing for Falkirk, like
• 23:53
  that would elevate them massively.
• 23:54
  So I guess the same way like Carty take away Shanklin for
• 23:56
  hearts from as when he say, I don't know, maybe the hearts got
• 23:59
  maybe a bit more depth forcing forward.
• 24:01
  There is, but like still, like it's, it's still a fact that
• 24:03
  you've got a goal scorer there. It makes all the difference.
• 24:05
  I think Falkirk are there's six in the league.
• 24:08
  They know, but that you know, it's 23 goals, 22 games, you
• 24:11
  know, so -5 for goal difference, even though they're in the top
• 24:13
  6. So but you can see where the the
• 24:16
  weakness is. But again, it's that
• 24:17
  organization, that defensive resilience, which is how Mcglenn
• 24:20
  still manages to get, you know, like one, no ones, 2 no ones,
• 24:23
  they shot people out as well. And what they did is close and
• 24:26
  they get a draw. So that that's the difference
• 24:28
  maker for them is is how resolute they are.
• 24:30
  And yeah. Yeah.
• 24:32
  Yeah, very good oil, Willow Machine I think who I think Tall
• 24:35
  could be receiving. And let's move on to
• 24:39
  Stenhousemuir. We'll go quickly to them.
• 24:41
  I think for me, I think I've said this to you James in one of
• 24:45
  our group chats that I didn't see.
• 24:47
  I've seen the shock happening. I've seen Stenhouse mere
• 24:51
  defeating more and I think it's scoreline that stand out more. 4
• 24:55
  nil. A couple of them were those were
• 24:58
  set pieces. But at the same time they all
• 24:59
  count. They all, you know, they all, as
• 25:03
  long as it goes to the back of the net, they don't care how the
• 25:05
  goals are scored. Four nil against a team that's,
• 25:09
  you know, in another higher league.
• 25:11
  That just shows how good a job Gary Naismith and his coaching
• 25:15
  staff are doing at Stainhouse Mirror.
• 25:17
  Yeah, I mean, like you said, top League One fighting against a
• 25:21
  team sort of not pulling up trees in the championship.
• 25:27
  It's not it's not completely unforeseeable that stainhouse
• 25:31
  mirror going to cause an upset there and get through, but the
• 25:34
  four now aspect of it's incredible.
• 25:36
  I mean the way they chop themselves and I just like it as
• 25:39
  a just a testament to the work they're doing right now.
• 25:40
  I'm interested to see how they get on the next round,
• 25:44
  especially given it's a it's a Derby.
• 25:47
  You didn't maybe thought that playing a team that was 2
• 25:50
  leagues above them might have been a step too far, especially
• 25:53
  at that stage in the competition, but you never know.
• 25:56
  Stan X Mirror, I don't think they've got an awful record ends
• 25:59
  Falkirk. They've definitely beat them a
• 26:02
  few times when they were maybe misquoting here, but when
• 26:06
  Falkirk were down in the League One.
• 26:08
  Long time long. Time ago, but yeah.
• 26:10
  Think if I remember correctly, the last time they played in the
• 26:13
  cup, certainly in the Scottish Cup, I think a Stenhouse mere
• 26:16
  won by four goals to two if I remember that correctly.
• 26:20
  So they've definitely got a a good record against Falkirk in
• 26:25
  cup competitions. So they're interested to see
• 26:27
  what he's what what's going to happen in that tie.
• 26:30
  We'll come to the draw in a minute.
• 26:32
  Just want to quickly finish about Steinhausenmuir,
• 26:35
  particularly about Guyanese in particular.
• 26:38
  This is a guy who has managed in the championship, he's managed
• 26:41
  to Queen of the South Albia. That was I think it was about
• 26:45
  5-6 years ago. He's done that.
• 26:47
  So he's gone back to League 2. You know, he's learnt his trade
• 26:51
  there. He's doing such a good job at
• 26:53
  Steinsmuir. Are you surprised James, that no
• 26:55
  one in the Championship? Because we we think about some
• 26:57
  of the teams that have lost managers.
• 26:59
  So Ray Throwers have lost their manager and Martin have done it
• 27:03
  recently as well. Air Dronians for a while.
• 27:06
  Are you surprised? Yeah, Ross County as well and
• 27:08
  didn't think about them twice as well.
• 27:11
  Are you surprised, James, that Gary Smith has not been, not
• 27:16
  necessarily not left to ask me to go to another job, but do you
• 27:19
  even think he's been in the radar for certain clubs in the
• 27:22
  Championship? I mean, I mean, I to be fair,
• 27:24
  I'm probably guilty of that as well because the Rovers didn't
• 27:27
  replace her manager too long ago.
• 27:29
  Obviously go do get him right now.
• 27:31
  Went and got him from Morton. But you know, there's not
• 27:35
  exactly a wealth of options out there right now.
• 27:36
  I'd say in Scottish football for managers, our level.
• 27:39
  I mean, we were kind of thinking where do we go now as a club
• 27:42
  when we were you sort of looking about our options and nice my
• 27:46
  force and someone it was on my radar at all.
• 27:50
  I don't know if it's because it's Stenhouse Mirror and you
• 27:51
  don't associate them with, you know, typically been up the top
• 27:55
  of the league and all that's maybe an even further reason for
• 27:58
  you to, you know, consider why they're there and obviously the
• 28:00
  fact that the manager is doing a good job with them.
• 28:02
  But yeah, I mean, they look like they could be on the cards to
• 28:07
  what? And they'll say I'm hoping if
• 28:09
  they can get automatic promotion, they could somehow
• 28:12
  get it for the playoffs. And it's just going to you don't
• 28:17
  when I see stories like this happening.
• 28:18
  Obviously Stenhouse meal haven't been up this end of the the
• 28:22
  League One doing things like this knocking on the door a
• 28:24
  championship in my lifetime. So, you know, I'd I'd prefer to
• 28:29
  actually see him stay there and see what he can achieve because
• 28:32
  it is. I don't know.
• 28:33
  I don't like it when teams have smaller budgets.
• 28:36
  Just you know, once they get a sniff of success, all of a
• 28:39
  sudden people are trying to pull them apart for their best
• 28:42
  pieces. So.
• 28:44
  But no good on them. Yeah, what?
• 28:47
  Said see, see, see just a random fault, right.
• 28:49
  What what is the general like as a like a general consensus for
• 28:53
  Gary Naismith as a manager in the world leagues Like you know
• 28:55
  how like John McLennan has obviously a lot of respect in
• 28:57
  terms like what he's been before he went up.
• 29:00
  There's got. I know Ganis before obviously
• 29:01
  been the same like as John Mclenn given what he done, but
• 29:03
  like, you know what I'm getting at like is, is he one of the
• 29:07
  managers people look at in the lower leads and go he's really
• 29:09
  good, He's everything he's done so far has.
• 29:11
  Been, I think, I think just for my benefit, I really like what
• 29:16
  he's doing at Stan asmere. I think the only thing that
• 29:19
  might be like like what's the word to?
• 29:24
  I can see it like a because Queen of the South.
• 29:27
  He did a decent job, but towards the end it just started fading a
• 29:31
  little bit. You know, they weren't really,
• 29:34
  they should have been there what they were, you know, gotta
• 29:36
  remember that Stephen Dobie team, I think he scored forty
• 29:38
  goals in one season and he was Gary Naismith was the manager at
• 29:42
  the time and but they were not doing anywhere near what they
• 29:46
  should have been doing. So I think just that, just that
• 29:49
  record, that being himself towards the end is probably
• 29:51
  what's hindering them from like getting a job in the
• 29:54
  championship. But I certainly think he's doing
• 29:55
  a great job and he did a great job at East Fife where he
• 29:59
  started his career off, You know, he won the, I think if I
• 30:01
  remember correctly, he won the League Two title and then a few
• 30:05
  months later he became the queen of itself manager.
• 30:07
  So that's how quick he became like involved in full time
• 30:10
  football. It'll be interesting because
• 30:12
  obviously he had sort of a couple of mediocre spells with
• 30:15
  like Edinburgh City and Lisa Queen as yes, it does well as
• 30:18
  finish me and then whatever the next move is, say it was like a
• 30:22
  Championship club and then again does well.
• 30:24
  I mean, he's got terms obviously playing career, like he's got
• 30:28
  top level, like top level Scotland, top level England.
• 30:32
  So like there's no doubt like from experience on the pitch,
• 30:35
  like he knows everything, but it's more about if he can just
• 30:40
  make that gradual progress. You do wonder, like could you
• 30:43
  see him like in the top flight in Scotland at some point and
• 30:46
  tell you that probably just an interesting 1.
• 30:48
  He seems to be doing AI think you're right, James.
• 30:50
  It's what you'd more be want to see him continuous tennis
• 30:52
  really. Who can he take them?
• 30:54
  Where can he take them? Like can you take them as far as
• 30:56
  he can and then like go somewhere else is what I'm
• 30:58
  trying to say. More like that.
• 31:00
  Instead it let you see maybe starting well and then Peter and
• 31:03
  off or or whatever. But I'm like you, yes, finish
• 31:05
  me. You're getting up to
• 31:06
  championships. Like couldn't even tell you if
• 31:09
  like when or how close they've been to there and when it last
• 31:12
  was. So yeah, I suppose just
• 31:15
  hopefully continues the good work there.
• 31:16
  Exactly. I think he needs to stay there
• 31:18
  for a little while longer just for my benefit, just so I can
• 31:21
  see. I like seeing good managers do
• 31:24
  good jobs at clubs. And I do like Stenhousemuir as a
• 31:26
  football club. You know, if it's I've been able
• 31:29
  to do a few times, you always get treated well.
• 31:31
  It will go be from like the start and things and you don't
• 31:33
  really get that from like certain clubs, you know, in
• 31:35
  certain places. So yeah, just so it's good to
• 31:38
  see Stenhousemuir for me like in this position and hopefully
• 31:43
  maybe one day they'll be in the Championship team alongside the
• 31:47
  guns with you know, what we've got in the Championship at the
• 31:49
  moment. But that's for another day.
• 31:51
  So hopes but they've got a good draw in the news, man.
• 31:54
  We'll come to the draw in just one SEC.
• 31:55
  We'll just go and talk about aquatic Talbot.
• 31:58
  The dream is over. But then But what a cup to that
• 32:02
  was though. I mean, that's the stuff of
• 32:03
  fairy tales and and like the West of Scotland giants coming
• 32:10
  against D Giants and Scottish football.
• 32:12
  Adam, imagine you watch some of the game or all the game.
• 32:17
  They could be proud of how they performed over 90 minutes
• 32:20
  against Celtic, can't they? Definitely I've got first hand
• 32:24
  experience with Auckland like Talbot or like in a cup guys and
• 32:28
  there doesn't matter the levels that you go down the arcade of
• 32:32
  them. So it's superstars in their own
• 32:34
  right in terms of like what they've achieved at their level.
• 32:37
  So like, I know obviously start golfing and quality and you
• 32:41
  know, money or whatever that is. But I think based I think
• 32:45
  everyone knows based on the team said that we're going to put out
• 32:47
  and based on the squad that Celtic have at the moment, there
• 32:50
  wasn't there wasn't going to be any Harmons getting dished out
• 32:52
  talking like and they wouldn't let it happen anyway, certainly
• 32:56
  without putting up a fight. And I think they actually
• 32:58
  performed really well to be honest.
• 33:01
  And they stopped Celtic getting a shot on target for like the
• 33:03
  first 35 minutes or something like that.
• 33:06
  So Celtic weren't causing them any great amount of problems.
• 33:09
  First half just turned to a little bit second-half.
• 33:12
  But I've made a few changes. But again, it wasn't like back
• 33:16
  to the wall stuff for me like it was I've seen Celtic teams in
• 33:19
  the past like batter teams that have that are that are of a
• 33:23
  higher standard than than open lick and the cup ties.
• 33:26
  You know, if it's like say a League One team or whatever.
• 33:28
  But yeah, no disgrace stalking like 2 nil late on could easily
• 33:33
  be just one nil. Yeah, could have been anything
• 33:36
  based on that such a low score line.
• 33:38
  And I think if anything, it just probably what we'll talk about
• 33:41
  later on in terms like the draw, who Celtics got next and then,
• 33:44
  you know, transfers and whatever else we talk about.
• 33:46
  But I think it just again, just reeks of how poor the
• 33:50
  recruitment as it's Celtic and the severe lack of depth they've
• 33:53
  got. I mean, they should be able to
• 33:54
  put a second string string that should put maybe like 4 or 5
• 33:57
  past Doc and like, but they made that look very difficult.
• 33:59
  But again, the thing that kind of art may we bit watching the
• 34:03
  game was I was actually a bit frustrated.
• 34:05
  That was like Kelly. Yeah, I was going.
• 34:07
  To say that like I hate, like there's a magic of the coppice
• 34:10
  to go somewhere like Auchen Lake, like, well, that's the IT
• 34:13
  gives it one, it gives them the advantage.
• 34:15
  But again, local communities support and stuff.
• 34:18
  How great is it to for them to see somebody like Celtic turn
• 34:20
  up, you know, and they are and they are sort of many are, you
• 34:24
  know, that they've got and like put it, put it to them in their
• 34:26
  own backyard, But you couldn't even do that.
• 34:28
  Again. They go to Kelly on the on the
• 34:30
  on the Fiji wide open stadium and stuff like that.
• 34:32
  Like, I don't know, I just feel like sometimes it takes away
• 34:35
  the, you know, the the chance they are upset they didn't have
• 34:39
  one. And of course the scoring was
• 34:41
  was close, but feel it takes away an element of that, maybe
• 34:44
  even hostility of having to go ilk and like in that small set
• 34:47
  and then not have a big support there.
• 34:49
  And the North tightness of it and the, you know, the the
• 34:52
  muddying around and sort of the lower league like way of playing
• 34:55
  and and haven't handled that. It kind of disappeared me, but
• 34:58
  because it was a Premier League ground.
• 35:00
  Yeah, because I think you got to think.
• 35:01
  About as well like Celtic play at Rugby Park usually on average
• 35:05
  twice a season. You know I mean it's a place or
• 35:08
  used to going. It's not quite the same as
• 35:10
  rocking up this be small ground in the east of Scotland.
• 35:14
  There's barely hot war. I'm I'm sure they've got hot
• 35:16
  war. I mean I'm involving in places
• 35:17
  where you have to run the top for a while for the hot water
• 35:21
  comes through. You know it's I'm sure it's not
• 35:23
  a glamorous little changing room they've got maybe as maybe
• 35:25
  dinner with the service. But exactly what you mean, you
• 35:28
  know, the rustic nature of that does actually it just it sets a
• 35:33
  mood and it does give or can like something and they just I
• 35:38
  feel sorry for them. They said it was totally out
• 35:39
  there, just their control decision, didn't they?
• 35:42
  Yeah. And I think I think they did not
• 35:44
  mean complete a bit in the sense about the fact that they've
• 35:46
  played Scotch Cup ties obviously or collect plenty of times in
• 35:49
  the past. And it's just because it.
• 35:50
  Was played, you know that you played, you played Hearts and
• 35:53
  you know, a couple of times. It's just like, again, it's sort
• 35:56
  of bending the rules just because it's a certain team and
• 35:58
  and or whatever the reasoning. That probably is the reasoning,
• 36:00
  but like, so, yeah, I just think it takes away that that that
• 36:04
  certain magic element of the cup.
• 36:07
  Me see all the time down South. Don't you like you see, you see
• 36:09
  like nationally teams or whatever as you know, and teams
• 36:13
  that haven't to go there and like you see no got any hot
• 36:16
  water. It's like the old school
• 36:17
  changing rooms and you're tight and close to fans and stuff like
• 36:20
  that. Like that.
• 36:23
  Part of the beauty of like the chance of an upset and a cup,
• 36:26
  but it's like they were trying to take that part away.
• 36:28
  Do you not remember last season, the Navy Cup?
• 36:30
  I don't know if you've seen it. So Tamworth were playing yeah.
• 36:35
  And and they had to get I think government and saying they had
• 36:38
  to hire like the the. Porter Cabins.
• 36:44
  But they also had to get like Porter cabins for the dressing
• 36:46
  room because it wasn't big enough for Tottenham.
• 36:48
  So you because you see, think about how many like staff and
• 36:51
  players and you know, you know, medical people or in Tottenham.
• 36:56
  So they don't have any room for all these because it had to get
• 36:58
  for cabins and it's just we things like that.
• 37:01
  I think it just spoils like. That's the prime example that
• 37:04
  you're making like that is pretty much a like for like.
• 37:06
  So, again, fought them on a massive club, massive fan base.
• 37:09
  But again, just so happens they drew a team that doesn't have
• 37:12
  the fancy facilities, the massive stadium.
• 37:14
  So that's what you have to deal with partly, like the cop, like
• 37:16
  that's the magic of it. Like that is what gives the
• 37:19
  chance of unpredictability. Yeah.
• 37:21
  As well I mean. Take that element away from them
• 37:23
  by Punez like you say, James are ground we are Celtic are more
• 37:27
  familiar with that grim than Oakland live card if we're there
• 37:29
  every season. Exactly, and as well the reason
• 37:31
  giving them is like safety concerns or something.
• 37:33
  I just, I just don't understand. Yeah, well, no.
• 37:37
  No, you know, whether it's Celtic or a United coming or
• 37:40
  whoever, if it's going to be a sellout, you know the club, they
• 37:43
  sell the tickets, attackers, you know, people take the tickets,
• 37:46
  attack it, sell out and those people show up to the game.
• 37:49
  I don't I don't understand where the safe, the aspect of that
• 37:51
  comes in, I mean. And if they're thinking like
• 37:54
  overcrowded, it's not like there's going to be thousands of
• 37:56
  people turning up. That's where you say, OK, that'd
• 37:58
  be, that'd be the odd person. They can, but they're going to
• 38:00
  be thousands of people rocking up to try and watch the game.
• 38:04
  But then it seems like laziness, like if they call the police on
• 38:07
  that, like, you know, that's like often like a host and
• 38:11
  something that's their job to ensure like it's done in the
• 38:14
  right way. And then there's appropriate
• 38:15
  security outside the ground. You know, like I said, people
• 38:18
  talking overcrowding, that's like, you know, the capacity of
• 38:21
  the ground you sell attack. It's based on that shouldn't be
• 38:23
  any issues. Like I just, I don't know, I
• 38:26
  feel, I do feel bad because it's one.
• 38:28
  Of the the general consensus says they dodged the dodged the
• 38:31
  upset and Martin O'Neill does Martin O'Neill things again and
• 38:34
  just, you know, gets the one. However, he gets the one
• 38:37
  regardless say what person he puts out the roles on.
• 38:40
  Exactly. Yeah, One thing I was just going
• 38:42
  to bring up actually just in regards to like cup upsets.
• 38:46
  So last week in England in the FA Cup, Macclesfield became the
• 38:52
  the biggest upset ever in the FA Cup, the knocked out Crystal
• 38:55
  Palace. So it was the Premier League
• 38:58
  team and the FA Cup holders and I think there was a gap of like
• 39:02
  a. 111. 111 places, yeah. And I'm just thinking, do you
• 39:07
  think, like, did you wonder, you think that that comes into the
• 39:10
  mind of like Celtic players like a cup upset like that and they
• 39:13
  think, oh shit, this could happen to us going away.
• 39:17
  Oh, we'll say it's not not like in this like the same ground.
• 39:20
  Like if you watched the Magathield Stadium, you know,
• 39:23
  the Max the ground, it's such a tame little one.
• 39:24
  And obviously it would have been if it was at Orkin Lake, you
• 39:28
  know, actually there, it probably probably would have had
• 39:31
  the same there's. But do you think that any, like
• 39:34
  do you think if they were watching that and they think
• 39:36
  shit, this could happen to us or do you think that it's just
• 39:39
  that's down in their competition?
• 39:41
  Mapping to focus mapping you would be that the Celtic squad
• 39:46
  right now would be nervous about it because of the pressure that
• 39:50
  under and they obviously clearly see they're needing players in
• 39:53
  general anyway. So there's a chance that could
• 39:55
  happen that, you know, that way it starts to keep at the main
• 39:56
  set of they recognise that they're struggling anyway in
• 39:58
  general. So there's a chance that could
• 40:00
  happen. And again, probably the same way
• 40:02
  like say, I know the personnel has not massively changed.
• 40:05
  It was changed recently, but in the Rangers team under Russell
• 40:09
  Martin again, if they got that kind of tie earlier on the
• 40:11
  season when they were feeling the way they were feeling.
• 40:14
  Possibly, but I think generally speaking, like I suppose the gap
• 40:18
  in Scotland, the gaps or the gaps, it doesn't matter.
• 40:21
  You're right. Yeah, but Celtic, any of such a
• 40:23
  stranglehold here, it is really different.
• 40:25
  So like I think like most of the certain Rangers teams I can
• 40:28
  think of in days gone by probably wouldn't they be faced
• 40:31
  by like the chance of an upset? Like, I don't think, I don't
• 40:33
  think they would. Yeah.
• 40:34
  But I feel like the fragility of the current and recent teams, I
• 40:39
  definitely felt they would have been feeling it at some point,
• 40:41
  especially like again, if they've been like what it was
• 40:43
  with Dunfeldman and Hibbs. No, it says Celtic company
• 40:46
  scored first half. The longer it went on nil, nil,
• 40:49
  they would start panicking a little bit.
• 40:51
  You feel that the same thing could happen again and like
• 40:56
  another upset or another let down from their side of things.
• 40:59
  But. Yeah.
• 41:00
  Generally if you want, if you want my concept as a harsh fan,
• 41:04
  I would definitely say we always feel it definitely like the most
• 41:08
  teams have seen us playing for God.
• 41:10
  That was a struggle and it's like we can't handle that
• 41:14
  pressure off like you know you want to play harsh fans and
• 41:18
  whatever else, what a preacher. But the whole were bit like the
• 41:20
  best team. It's a dual from.
• 41:22
  But then we'll see when it comes to the scenario of all your
• 41:25
  playing whoever as Spartans or whoever it was at the time away
• 41:28
  from home and stuff. You can see the nerves like 5
• 41:30
  minutes in, yeah. And you're thinking, well, if
• 41:33
  you want to preach about being that big A-Team, then you have
• 41:35
  to show it and you have to. The quality needs to shine
• 41:38
  through and you need to use your experience.
• 41:39
  But definitely the nerves will start to kick in with most teams
• 41:41
  I would imagine. I've had that experience when
• 41:44
  you go to late because we keep getting drawn against Lynn
• 41:46
  Lithico Rules in the cup and it's always away from home as
• 41:50
  well. We never seem to get at home
• 41:51
  time. We've had three away games at
• 41:53
  Lynn Lithico Rules in the last 10 years and it's a great set up
• 41:57
  there and stuff. But every time we go there, I
• 41:59
  always think where where we could be out of this too.
• 42:02
  You know, the worst, the worst happens and we always seem we
• 42:06
  always won all the we we lost in the pre season against them the
• 42:12
  summer, but every competitive game we've beaten them.
• 42:14
  But you know, it's just the thought of actually going to
• 42:16
  like a small ground, like a like a tablet, like corrosor.
• 42:21
  You just see it and you know, it's just like the tiny little
• 42:23
  stand as well. You know, you see things like
• 42:25
  that and you see the over overcrowding inside, like
• 42:28
  underneath the like shade stands and you know, the old, you know,
• 42:32
  hot stands and stuff. Jesus go to God.
• 42:36
  I just don't fancy it. It's when you walk in and you
• 42:38
  see how much of their home support showed up more than
• 42:41
  probably was the usual support. Like you really get you really
• 42:44
  get a feeling that everyone in the town is showed up for that.
• 42:47
  And it's because they think something might happen, like,
• 42:49
  oh, we could see something here. And you're thinking, well, you
• 42:52
  know, like, you know, and they're always like they're like
• 42:54
  you said, they're right on the terrace.
• 42:55
  It's, you know, players are taking Thrones and they've got
• 42:58
  guys hanging over their shoulders nearly.
• 42:59
  I mean these are like the sort of images are so on the mess
• 43:03
  with like these cup ties. Yeah.
• 43:06
  You've like, I think that the Tottenham one we just spoke
• 43:09
  about earlier, like I'm pretty sure there's a few photos from
• 43:11
  that where like guys are taking Thrones and it's like one of the
• 43:14
  world's most famous players. Just next step, a bunch of like
• 43:17
  guys on the, you know, spending their time at the football at
• 43:21
  the weekend. They're just plumbers and, you
• 43:22
  know, regular, regular supporters.
• 43:27
  And yeah, I know, I know exactly what you mean, Adam, because you
• 43:30
  walk in and you go, they feel and it's the same way we walk
• 43:33
  in. Like, you know, when we're with
• 43:34
  Aberdeen, our fans are were saying more than theirs and you
• 43:37
  know, their their home support thing.
• 43:39
  No, they don't mess up this. They must think there's
• 43:40
  something, you know, there's something going here and that's
• 43:42
  it. That, that's just that is just
• 43:44
  the beauty of the cup. Yeah, exactly.
• 43:47
  And just one of those stems and let's quickly move on to the
• 43:50
  draw and we'll just quickly see if we've got the same opinion
• 43:53
  here. Just quickly go over the ties,
• 43:56
  Airdrie Owens versus Saint Mirren, Celtic versus Dundee,
• 44:00
  Dundee Knight versus the Spartans.
• 44:01
  The Spartans are the last team left standing in the Scottish
• 44:05
  Cup. People would have thought that
• 44:06
  before the ball was kicked on on Friday.
• 44:10
  We're going into the weekend ties and Dunfermline now taking
• 44:13
  on Kelty. So that's a local Derby.
• 44:14
  Elgin be part of Thistle. I know loads of Thistle
• 44:17
  supporters who are loving that, that growing up there.
• 44:20
  I think that's a bucket list stadium for them because they've
• 44:22
  not played today or I think ever that I might have seen Rangers.
• 44:28
  Rangers have got either Strandra or Queens Park and we're
• 44:31
  recording this on Tuesday night. Right now Queens Park are ahead
• 44:35
  and the we mean ahead. Then it's a repeat of last
• 44:40
  season's game I rocked where Queens Park, not Rangers out the
• 44:45
  Scottish Cup, but it's a whole different type of Queens Park
• 44:48
  team now, Stenhousemuir versus Falkirk, local rivalry.
• 44:52
  But I think the big one for me as a neutral is looking at
• 44:56
  Aberdeen Motherwell tie and it's the same tie as in the
• 45:00
  quarterfinal, the League Cup as well.
• 45:03
  And Adam, do you have, is there any ties in there that you it
• 45:06
  stands out to you or is that the one that standard that was for
• 45:09
  you? Yeah, Aberdeen, Motherwell is
• 45:14
  always a big tie. Don't I don't have any doubts
• 45:19
  about the outcome of the tie, but I think, I think it's like,
• 45:22
  I definitely think Motherwell won.
• 45:24
  Like I don't have any. I've seen Aberdeen enough times
• 45:26
  and watched Motherwell for three hours straight to know that
• 45:29
  Motherwell are definitely the better team at the moment.
• 45:30
  I mean, I know Aberdeen have been making signings recently.
• 45:33
  Obviously if they start to bed and then my mind could obviously
• 45:36
  get swayed a bit. They look like they've made two
• 45:37
  or three decent signings so far, but obviously still got the
• 45:41
  manager situation that we've got and certainly Motherwell's in a
• 45:45
  better place currently. So if it was based on currently,
• 45:47
  I would I might be straight to Motherville and but that would
• 45:50
  be 1 And I think the other one is as definitely standard Smith
• 45:52
  Falkirk as well. And then Dalfelm and Kelly
• 45:56
  Hearts like I suppose, again, they're not obviously direct
• 45:59
  rivals as such. I know you guys and and and the
• 46:02
  part also the rivals, but like still that better locality,
• 46:05
  right? Like them filming and.
• 46:06
  Yeah, I'd imagine the world. Yeah.
• 46:10
  That'll be the only team left that's called Hearts that'll be
• 46:12
  supporting and then the Edinburgh team will be sporting
• 46:15
  will be spot. And so I've got obviously got 2
• 46:17
  ties still to keep an eye on. Yeah.
• 46:20
  So I would say Aberdeen, Motherwell, you're right.
• 46:22
  And then Steny Falkirk feel like that could be a good one.
• 46:25
  Like I feel like it could be a good game.
• 46:26
  Steny, Falkirk. James, do you have any, do you,
• 46:30
  can you predict an upset anywhere in this in this round
• 46:34
  right now? If we were to pick an upset
• 46:37
  right now, do you have a tie that stand out for you the most
• 46:40
  or do you think that it's all bankers for the play with the
• 46:43
  teams? Yeah, I mean, it's a bit the way
• 46:47
  the draws, the way the draws come out.
• 46:51
  I think a lot of the weird teams will have been hoping they
• 46:53
  managed to get pepped against, get pepped against each other,
• 46:57
  which is not how it's worked out.
• 46:58
  I mean, obviously Dundee United, Spartans, I think that's just
• 47:02
  way too much, you know, a difference in quality there for
• 47:06
  anything to happen. But I mean, you never know.
• 47:09
  I think Jane, I'm not saying this as a rave man, but the one
• 47:12
  that's most likely is probably Dunfermline, Kelly Hart.
• 47:16
  So I'm just saying that because it is.
• 47:18
  I mean, Kelly will certainly be viewing that as a local Derby
• 47:22
  and all. Like Dunfermline sort of feel
• 47:23
  fork and reefer. There.
• 47:24
  Yeah, that's, I feel the same, James.
• 47:25
  I feel like they'll be right up for that.
• 47:27
  Kelly that is the nearest team. Like that's a part maybe right
• 47:30
  up for that hidden beef. And like, maybe I don't like,
• 47:32
  look, Eli Albert, I think like that is, you know, and I think
• 47:37
  Ted Sir, as well, you know, excellent fellow man.
• 47:39
  He's just a manager, yeah. He's up at Kelly, so they will
• 47:42
  very much be up for that. You know, we're getting framed
• 47:45
  through that local Derby element and, you know, it is Eastern
• 47:48
  Park, but you never know. But yeah, that's that's the only
• 47:53
  one that I feel was realistic. I mean, Falkirk, Staney, there's
• 47:56
  a chance, but Falkirk are just point so well, right now, I
• 47:59
  think of it being any other time, you know, maybe even last
• 48:02
  season, you know, when the Falkirk are like top of the
• 48:05
  league sometimes when you know, teams are high flying like that,
• 48:08
  that they, you know, a team like standings almost able to knock
• 48:11
  them down a peg. But you know, Falkirk are so
• 48:14
  strong in the Premier League right now, they're not, you
• 48:16
  know, they're not up challenging for the title.
• 48:18
  What you know, they're doing good things and then, you know,
• 48:22
  partake Elgon. I think that'll just be Elkin.
• 48:24
  Well, to do anything there if they can.
• 48:26
  But you'd expect that to be just a Partick.
• 48:28
  A Partick when really it's just a yeah.
• 48:31
  And then but you never know. I mean, Queens Park, you said
• 48:34
  it's not the same team as last year and it's definitely not the
• 48:35
  same Rangers team. But yeah, they were going to
• 48:38
  Ibrox thinking, you know, we did it last year.
• 48:41
  You never know. As you know as well, we keep
• 48:44
  talking this magic of the cup. Crazy things can happen.
• 48:48
  I know Dundee probably won't be happy with getting Celtic but
• 48:53
  there's another team they've already beat this season so you
• 48:56
  never know. That kind of be considered a
• 48:58
  shock then kind of done deal. I mean, you know, we could, we
• 49:03
  could, we can take the back of it all we like, but have got
• 49:05
  Martin and never like like. Martin, I'll see them through no
• 49:09
  problem. Yeah, I.
• 49:10
  Mean that's how we're getting framed from a Dundee angle.
• 49:12
  You know, they've they've got the result getting Celtic this
• 49:14
  season. But I mean, Celtic are very much
• 49:18
  hoping this isn't the same Celtic team that faces, you
• 49:21
  know, maybe in personal wise, yeah, but mentality wise, you
• 49:24
  know. If you had to pick a winner of
• 49:26
  the whole thing, now who use each second?
• 49:28
  I said Motherwell to begin with. You know what is is looking at
• 49:33
  the last year. I mean, Rangers are playing
• 49:36
  really good football right now. I mean, I think for me it's
• 49:39
  maybe between Rangers, Motherwell, just, you know,
• 49:41
  Celtic, Celtic are sort of an ongoing case in terms of where
• 49:45
  Martin O'Neill can get them to, who they can recruit in this
• 49:47
  window. And, you know, and, you know, if
• 49:49
  you can sort of get the same tune out of them that you was
• 49:52
  getting and it's, you know, the previous interim period they had
• 49:55
  before Christmas. So But yeah, I think I'd agree
• 49:58
  with you there. Motherwell definitely,
• 50:00
  definitely should fancy themselves.
• 50:02
  But I mean, Rangers I hate, like, I don't hate saying that
• 50:06
  Rangers are playing good football right now, so.
• 50:08
  I'd I'd be Rangers as well, probably just, I'd just be on
• 50:11
  Rangers only because they've improved a lot on the rule and
• 50:14
  because they've got a favourable draw.
• 50:16
  I think, like I know I'm saying, but I do fancy mother would be
• 50:19
  Aberdeen, don't get me wrong, but Aberdeen have got obviously
• 50:22
  a way better chance to beat Motherwell than.
• 50:24
  Spark. Cover beating Rangers,
• 50:25
  especially given what I touched on about Aberdeen potentially
• 50:29
  improving with the signings they're going to get and then
• 50:31
  obviously whoever comes in management wise.
• 50:35
  So that is that Padanas gonna say Motherwell and then they get
• 50:37
  put out. But like a Rangers canny like it
• 50:42
  pains, messy it. But can I see past them though
• 50:44
  to be honest? Yeah, they're playing class and
• 50:46
  I mean, we feel also one thing. I know we're just pulling it to
• 50:48
  move on to covering the game at the weekend, which is the
• 50:51
  tabletop clash between Hearts and Celtic.
• 50:54
  But is there a small part the item that's happy, not happy?
• 50:58
  But like if you could take any positive from been out of the
• 51:01
  cup, is it that Hearts can now 100% focus on this final run in
• 51:07
  to win the title potentially? Yeah, pretty much like I think
• 51:13
  and it actually helped as well League Cup wise.
• 51:15
  So we got fairly good start, don't want to go to the cops,
• 51:18
  but going out the League Cup and then we know Europe effectively
• 51:21
  well that could start in the league and that no other things
• 51:24
  to focus on until January because there wasn't a Scottish
• 51:26
  Cup game till January at the whole rest of the year last
• 51:30
  year. Sorry, we're just the leak and
• 51:32
  the same scenarios now. Again, we're only at the end of
• 51:34
  January and we've only got the leak to focus on between the and
• 51:36
  May and we've got the sizes squad we've got and the depth
• 51:40
  that we've got. I know it's going to get tested
• 51:42
  now because of no gut injuries. So it'll be interesting to see.
• 51:46
  When we talk about depth, McKenna says it's got the
• 51:48
  quality there. Do we actually have it there?
• 51:51
  Because a lot of these guys have been sitting waiting in the
• 51:53
  wings, but equally that's their opportunity to to show that
• 51:56
  they've you know, that they deserve to be there and then
• 51:58
  that they obviously deserve a spot on the team.
• 52:00
  But it's definitely a massive help me not being in the cup
• 52:03
  because you've not got that that distraction and but equally
• 52:07
  frustrating it because like you just want to get you guys will
• 52:09
  be the same. You just want to get as far as
• 52:11
  you can. Try and get your hand then.
• 52:12
  You're never happy. Like you said, it's it is.
• 52:14
  You've always got. The pizza, but you're right in
• 52:16
  terms of league priority in terms of if I was just talking
• 52:18
  about the league you're buying on the money like it gives us
• 52:20
  sole focus on that and like and it gives you that sort of even
• 52:23
  like it's even little things like best week.
• 52:26
  Obviously we've got the game Comer, but to talk about the
• 52:28
  Celtics playing midweek again and stuff like fuddle that kind
• 52:31
  of as well people playing midweek and cup games and extra
• 52:33
  games and we didn't have any of that.
• 52:36
  So yeah, it gives me that that really hope even though we've
• 52:40
  got the injuries that is just our only focus.
• 52:42
  So that might be enough to help support us to continue the run.
• 52:45
  Hopefully get that coming Let's. Let's talk about Sunday because
• 52:50
  I think it is going to be the game of the season so far and
• 52:53
  certainly in the Premiership anyway.
• 52:56
  How are you feeling about it Adam?
• 52:57
  Are you nervous about it? 6 points in front?
• 52:59
  We don't know about how many games we've got left.
• 53:02
  It's about 16 games to go. 16, yeah.
• 53:05
  Yeah, how how you, how you Obviously it's Tuesday now,
• 53:09
  still a while to go, but how, how you feeling about Sunday?
• 53:13
  Like I'm not not as obviously confident as it would be if we
• 53:18
  had Devlin, Beningamine, Shanklin playing because they
• 53:21
  are three core players that have got us to where we are.
• 53:25
  But like I said, there'll be a bit shuffling about, especially
• 53:28
  in that central midfield area where Celtic are especially
• 53:30
  strong in that central midfield area.
• 53:32
  So that'll be a challenge. But I mean, I Celtics got a
• 53:38
  decent opportunity now that they've got O'Neill and we're
• 53:40
  having to face O'Neill on how he plays mixed with the fact that
• 53:43
  we are depleted a little bit gives them the best chance they
• 53:45
  may be had. When you look at the other two
• 53:47
  games that we played against them, I thought like both games
• 53:49
  we deserved that and we were the better team.
• 53:52
  But I think we can still be the better team and get a one on
• 53:55
  Sunday. Yeah, I do.
• 53:56
  And I'm confident that we'll win.
• 53:58
  Yum. But there's still a chance that
• 54:01
  Martin O'Neill does martineal things.
• 54:02
  I hate being and I hate being so cliche about it.
• 54:05
  But he just it's just that experience.
• 54:07
  See, like he's just got that knowledge and it says man
• 54:08
  management. Like he gets the best out of
• 54:10
  people, I think. His character as well his
• 54:13
  character as. Well, it carries an order, mate.
• 54:14
  It carries an order that like you just put a wee bit like
• 54:17
  McKenna, I suppose, like you just believe what he's saying
• 54:19
  and you and then it makes you perform better.
• 54:21
  And then yet that can maybe that we better luck or someone
• 54:24
  changes the game and all of a sudden they're a Celtic team
• 54:27
  with confidence. Even with the personnel they've
• 54:29
  got is still better than the one that's been shot the bits in
• 54:31
  terms of the under Nancy and things.
• 54:33
  So and they've still got quality there, right.
• 54:35
  They've still got the you know, they've still got McGregor who's
• 54:37
  at the heart of everything. They've still got Tierney
• 54:41
  scales. They've got experienced players
• 54:43
  in the team. I think again, their their main
• 54:45
  problem is Denny have that firepower that you're used to
• 54:48
  them having and they've got wonders that are a bit hot and
• 54:50
  cold to Denny huff like a central striker yet, which is
• 54:54
  crazy. And I think the thing that we
• 54:57
  have that they don't have, which is I've never really said as a
• 55:00
  kid or an adult as we've got that we have been able to bully
• 55:04
  them. We've got that physicality and
• 55:07
  I'm there's been chats and I've been on some sort of a couple of
• 55:11
  other podcasts and YouTube things and stuff and they've
• 55:14
  been talking about like what system information we're going
• 55:16
  to play. And I think regardless, I think
• 55:19
  you'll find there's will be a lot of people that are 6 foot or
• 55:21
  more that will be playing. And come Sunday, I think he
• 55:24
  might go with four centre backs as a back 4.
• 55:28
  So I think like it'll be like Steinwender, Halket, Finley and
• 55:31
  Mccart, because there's a chance that Harvey mum could be in
• 55:34
  central midfield because that's what we've done in the cup game
• 55:36
  because that's where we're lacking.
• 55:37
  And he also offers that sort of fate and Gale that you need.
• 55:42
  I mean, the Shankland ones about Shankland.
• 55:44
  Devlin's like massively like, yeah, Devlin's everywhere.
• 55:48
  The last time we were at 10 Castle, he really, really got on
• 55:50
  McGregor's nerves. He got in his head quite
• 55:52
  quickly, which isn't the easiest thing to do, to be honest.
• 55:55
  No, not. And then it's just about and
• 55:58
  it's about like taking McGregor out the game because it's so
• 56:02
  obvious. Something Celtic as well.
• 56:03
  Like they play everything through McGregor or they play
• 56:06
  Tierney down the left and Tierney tries to cut back like
• 56:08
  the show of us and what they do. But the guys are obviously top
• 56:10
  players. So they're always finding the
• 56:11
  holes in the space and people at Devlin can can have the energy
• 56:15
  and that the like I say that the sort of aggression and getting
• 56:17
  on the nerves to prevent it and and arc them a little bit.
• 56:21
  So that yeah, that's that's going to be a real pain.
• 56:24
  I'm not playing but I think Kabodia will just replace Shank
• 56:27
  on top front and Kabodia is like your typical.
• 56:30
  Have you seen AFCON yet? Did you watch any?
• 56:32
  Yeah. Watch some of that.
• 56:33
  Yeah, yeah. So Kibori is like again, like
• 56:35
  your typical AFCON player, like he just brings chaos.
• 56:38
  Like like it's like he's playing in sliders, but he's got like
• 56:42
  that power and peace and strength and he's just going to
• 56:45
  be like a pain in the pain in the butt for the Celtic
• 56:47
  defender. So I'm hoping that's what he
• 56:48
  brings. And then I think they'll just
• 56:51
  try and start us off like push and press, like try and be
• 56:53
  physical and get in their face. And like you see, hopefully once
• 56:56
  you get the first school way that then the the crowd and
• 56:59
  stuff that will start to be a big factor.
• 57:01
  But it's it's no way could be anything like it's not the first
• 57:06
  one. He was been attained cast.
• 57:07
  So you'll know what to expect and you'll prepare the players
• 57:09
  correctly for it. And they still have experienced
• 57:12
  players in the team. So like they will Celtic will be
• 57:15
  it'll be a tough game, but we'll see what happens as well.
• 57:18
  I think it's one of them. We just didn't want to lose it.
• 57:20
  Like if you can get through this game, not lose, you know, you're
• 57:23
  at least six points, go to Celtic still and then obviously
• 57:29
  a some other week where you can maybe get devil and Shantlet
• 57:31
  back another both 68 weeks. But you know what I mean?
• 57:33
  Like another big game where you don't put Celtic until post
• 57:36
  split. So like a yeah, but they still
• 57:40
  be PR big loss like they must Celtic Rangers on hubs.
• 57:43
  Yeah, so a lot so a lot of big games as well to miss out on
• 57:47
  business I. Mean these are the one even the
• 57:49
  one after Celtic. I waited on DNA.
• 57:50
  It's that's the one I've been as well.
• 57:51
  Like so, but then you can't have it both ways.
• 57:55
  Like talk about like, well, every game's pressure, but like
• 57:57
  if you want to be at the top, but yes, you have to just deal
• 57:59
  with. So like you have to just if
• 58:00
  that's what you want your team to achieve, whichever they
• 58:02
  should, then you just have to expect that that's what comes
• 58:05
  with. But we'll see what happens.
• 58:07
  I think it will be a really good game and thank goodness that
• 58:11
  beating a lotion on the middle and so beating his own bottom
• 58:15
  should have tried his best and we'll see what comes with it.
• 58:19
  You guys be tuning into that or he's been?
• 58:21
  I'll I'll watch, I'll watch that, I'll watch that.
• 58:23
  I'm covering it for the for the page.
• 58:25
  So well. Well, I'll be on top of that.
• 58:28
  I'll go to James to talk about this game in particular because
• 58:32
  I want to know about I want to get an opinion from from a
• 58:37
  neutral perspective, James, just because obviously I haven't been
• 58:41
  a big heart supporter and I think you'll know loads of heart
• 58:44
  supporters as well, James, that keep saying to me in particular,
• 58:48
  we're not favourites to win this title.
• 58:49
  We're not favourites. And Adam, I don't know if you
• 58:51
  think you're the favourites or not, but you know, I know loads
• 58:55
  of heart supporters at work in particular who say.
• 58:57
  Let's put it on record. I also think we're not
• 58:59
  favourites. Right.
• 59:00
  OK, so so we know loads of heart supporters here James that have
• 59:05
  seen they're not favourites to win this league.
• 59:07
  They're not favourites that it's you know, Celtic Rangers are the
• 59:11
  favourites to win this league. If Hearts win on Sunday, are
• 59:15
  they the favourites to win this league?
• 59:17
  Games I. Mean there is.
• 59:21
  There's still a long way to go, isn't there?
• 59:24
  No, I don't. I'm not saying.
• 59:25
  Yeah, Yeah. And there's, you know, you know,
• 59:29
  I want. It's very tight at the top of
• 59:31
  the table. And you shouldn't conflate not
• 59:34
  seeing Hearts our favorites is because you think any other team
• 59:38
  is an overbearing favorite. No, I mean, if I was to say
• 59:42
  Hearts are the favorites, it'd be because I'm, you know,
• 59:45
  fractionally maybe think they have a better chance than others
• 59:48
  is really tight and open on Saturday goal.
• 59:52
  Saturday will go a long way because like, you know, we
• 59:56
  already talked about how Martin O'Neill just seems to get things
• 59:58
  done. He's not been in charge when
• 1:00:01
  Hearts have played Celtic so far.
• 1:00:02
  It was Rogers and then it was nonsense.
• 1:00:04
  So. You know, they'll be part of
• 1:00:06
  Hearts are going right. OK.
• 1:00:07
  This is the first Test against the aside that you know is that,
• 1:00:11
  you know, the Celtic support are more comfortable with the guy
• 1:00:14
  who's in charge now. I'm sure they're like maybe not
• 1:00:17
  as much Rogers, but you know, things weren't going great back
• 1:00:20
  then. Enemy for them I think was it
• 1:00:22
  was in the aftermath of that game he left, wasn't it?
• 1:00:25
  I'm just, I'm thinking that James as well.
• 1:00:26
  So we've played Celtic 3 * 3 different managers.
• 1:00:29
  That must be a record. Yeah, that's not.
• 1:00:32
  And that's, you know, and like say like it's first time I
• 1:00:36
  played well, I've been well, he's been at the helm.
• 1:00:38
  So that's that. I guess that brings a new
• 1:00:42
  element to the test. You know, if I I don't know who
• 1:00:49
  I'd say the favors, but right now I'd say I think Rangers have
• 1:00:54
  a better chance than Celtic. And I don't know where I put
• 1:00:59
  Hearts in and around that, but one thing I will say is like
• 1:01:04
  hearts have got to a point in the season where the top of the
• 1:01:06
  table and it's January. Like I'd be I might not be seen
• 1:01:10
  I'm favorite or if I was, you know, if I was a hearts fan, but
• 1:01:14
  I'd be I've been enjoying it. You know, you got enjoy it.
• 1:01:16
  You know, you act like you're the favorites.
• 1:01:18
  Enjoy being at the top of the table, these things, I'm sure,
• 1:01:21
  but it's sort of Tony Bloom era just getting off that start.
• 1:01:23
  Hearts will open seasons like this, you know, become far more
• 1:01:27
  common going into the future. But it's not been something
• 1:01:29
  Scottish football team for a while.
• 1:01:31
  And I'd love to thank hearts fans are enjoying us.
• 1:01:33
  They're going into their work, they're going into the schools
• 1:01:35
  and they're telling them it's not their favorites, you know,
• 1:01:37
  winding up their old farm colleagues and classmates and
• 1:01:40
  whoever, you know, stacking it to them and say, you know, we're
• 1:01:43
  favorites fest and you know, back them all the way.
• 1:01:45
  So I might not if hearts were on Saturday, then my favorites.
• 1:01:48
  There we go, Saturday, Saturday, Sunday, Sunday.
• 1:01:51
  Something I think I think like there's two obviously kind of
• 1:01:55
  speak for all hearts fans. I'm sure they'll shoot me down
• 1:01:57
  if I say it wrong, but like the two main factors.
• 1:02:00
  I can think as to why certainly I would and I feel like a lot of
• 1:02:03
  other people wouldn't have got us as favourites.
• 1:02:05
  It's and one of them will disappear at the end of the
• 1:02:07
  month as the transfer window, right, just because they have
• 1:02:11
  the the financial gap to be able to just bring in not anybody.
• 1:02:16
  But you know, I mean a better standard you could argue of
• 1:02:18
  player based on, again, whatever the valuation of that player is
• 1:02:22
  and all based on Jamestown. That doesn't necessarily mean
• 1:02:25
  that they're better based on their market value, because
• 1:02:27
  that's the point of Jamestown buying people that are good than
• 1:02:30
  whatever leaked that in at a lower price to then maybe upsell
• 1:02:33
  later on. But you take my point and then
• 1:02:36
  the second one, which is probably a bigger one in the
• 1:02:38
  mines and like you're touching on James, you're like, you know,
• 1:02:40
  giving it to them. You know, like we are the best
• 1:02:42
  and we're totally you've been 100 days at the top, blah, blah,
• 1:02:44
  blah, right. But I think that the thing
• 1:02:46
  that's Arkin Harsh runs a little bit and preventing someone from
• 1:02:49
  seeing it is because it's just the reputation of the country.
• 1:02:52
  Like it's just not what it's still just not the norm.
• 1:02:55
  So it doesn't even it's baffling that we're set 100 days at the
• 1:02:59
  top and still a lot of us are going now.
• 1:03:01
  We're no favourites now. We can't see that yet, but like
• 1:03:04
  Celtic Rangers, if they were top and six points clear would be
• 1:03:06
  saying I were definitely favourites.
• 1:03:08
  So it's just because they're still and again, what's been
• 1:03:11
  predominantly Celtic, but it has study wise, both of them are the
• 1:03:13
  title winners, right. So like it's just what
• 1:03:16
  reputationally them and the rest of the countries used to.
• 1:03:20
  So therefore everybody's just like now we're just waiting for
• 1:03:22
  hearts to fall. There's no you've seen it on on
• 1:03:25
  XA lot like when we were topping September, like they'll know
• 1:03:27
  last till November. They'll know last the end of the
• 1:03:29
  year. They'll know last till March.
• 1:03:31
  They keep moving the goal posts till what's checking me.
• 1:03:34
  So they're convinced that like. And always everyone can say
• 1:03:37
  that, you know, there is this expectation at some point at
• 1:03:40
  Celtic, which suddenly it was clacking and get that together.
• 1:03:43
  And and once they did, this whole sort of debate would be
• 1:03:46
  put to bed. You know, it would, you know,
• 1:03:48
  it'd be it'd be all said and done.
• 1:03:50
  Celtic would just go in there, went in streak and that would,
• 1:03:53
  you know, close the whole conversation.
• 1:03:55
  That's not happened. And I I do agree what you say
• 1:03:59
  about the reputation because it just kind of gets in green then.
• 1:04:03
  Yeah. And it's almost like cash your
• 1:04:06
  mind back to Leicester City went in the title.
• 1:04:08
  It was a while before people really were willing to accept
• 1:04:11
  that they are going to go all the way.
• 1:04:13
  And it almost happened in like it was almost like a watershed
• 1:04:15
  moment. I was, you know, as soon as it,
• 1:04:18
  as soon as people start to believe that, you know, it was
• 1:04:21
  suddenly unbelievable. They wouldn't win it.
• 1:04:25
  I don't know if you remember what I was like about then, but
• 1:04:27
  you know. Here's another one.
• 1:04:28
  Here's another one for you, right, another question that's
• 1:04:31
  it's hard to came down to now we depend on how you spin it, But
• 1:04:34
  if Hearts win the league, what's the bigger achievement?
• 1:04:36
  Hearts win an or Leicester. I'd say I'd say Hearts 100.
• 1:04:40
  Percent, I'd say, I'd say Hearts as well because I think because
• 1:04:44
  Leicester still spend like lots and lots of money where you
• 1:04:48
  know, you know, I know it's not a lot of good bits like sort of
• 1:04:52
  Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool's
• 1:04:55
  among that, but there's still you can.
• 1:04:57
  Still have the ability to spend millions.
• 1:04:59
  Exactly. Yes, Well, I know, but in this
• 1:05:01
  country we there's only two teams that have the ability to
• 1:05:04
  spend millions if they want to spend.
• 1:05:06
  Millions obviously. Look at Rangers accounts.
• 1:05:08
  There's technically only one, but yeah.
• 1:05:11
  I know, no, we're not going to get talks about we're not a
• 1:05:13
  finance podcast, so we're not going to talk about fine.
• 1:05:16
  But certainly my, my, my view, I think carts would be the bigger
• 1:05:21
  achievement. And I think being somebody who
• 1:05:23
  likes you always say it's evolved in Scottish people.
• 1:05:25
  I want to see big stories here and I don't want to see big
• 1:05:29
  achievements here because we were talking on another podcast
• 1:05:34
  a couple weeks ago about when you think about what's currently
• 1:05:37
  happening in Scottish football, you consider that Hearts of
• 1:05:40
  women, you know, Hearts are, you know, leading the title race.
• 1:05:44
  St. Mirren are the League Cup
• 1:05:46
  holders, Celtic are the Premiership holders, Aberdeen
• 1:05:50
  are the Scottish Cup holders. That's four no different teams
• 1:05:53
  altogether currently having successful spells and the one,
• 1:05:57
  So I think just to be involved in Scottish football at this
• 1:05:59
  moment, team, it's brilliant and hopefully there's another big
• 1:06:02
  story to come. From my perspective.
• 1:06:04
  I want Hearts to win it because I would like to see somebody a
• 1:06:07
  bit different. I was going to say though, we
• 1:06:09
  have like about here, like what you're saying Leicester, like
• 1:06:12
  we've seen Blackburn when, when the, I don't know if it was the
• 1:06:14
  Premier League at the time, but we have seen stuff like that and
• 1:06:17
  before and the variety of winners of the Premier League
• 1:06:19
  over the last 20 plus years. You know, there's been lots, but
• 1:06:24
  the domination is Scottish football has been like an iron
• 1:06:28
  grip for women's. Last time it was Aberdeen and a
• 1:06:31
  was that the. Last or a four years or so,
• 1:06:33
  yeah. Exactly.
• 1:06:34
  So, you know, you're you're as it goes against the culture that
• 1:06:38
  has been imposed on the nation, you know, you know, guys in the
• 1:06:42
  Premier League, so eyeing up that third place box, you know,
• 1:06:45
  setting them for starting up for grabs.
• 1:06:48
  And even the hearts have made changes as I heard folks in
• 1:06:52
  different podcasts that they didn't really think this was a
• 1:06:54
  Tony Bloom yet team yet, which I would disagree with because, you
• 1:06:59
  know, there's a handful of signings have made, you know,
• 1:07:02
  have proved to be brilliant signings.
• 1:07:03
  And I don't think they would have made if it wasn't, you
• 1:07:05
  know, for those Jamestown analytics that you keep
• 1:07:08
  referring to, Adam. But, you know, at the same time,
• 1:07:11
  even though they've got this at the disposal, they're still not
• 1:07:14
  forced to be reckoned with in the Scottish football.
• 1:07:16
  They have gone with a manager who has been in around the
• 1:07:19
  league for years. And it wasn't necessarily a case
• 1:07:21
  that they were just going to hit the ground running, something
• 1:07:24
  going to do well. So, you know, what Hearts are
• 1:07:26
  doing this season is massive. It's, you know, and it continues
• 1:07:29
  to be a massive achievement even even if they didn't win it.
• 1:07:32
  It's to push Celtic and Rangers as far they've created the
• 1:07:35
  conversation in itself as an achievement.
• 1:07:37
  And, you know, like I hope and it helps fans.
• 1:07:42
  Well, this will give you some way to say, but I really I'm
• 1:07:45
  what this could do for the country to completely change the
• 1:07:49
  Nat of of the league and, you know, create a little bit of
• 1:07:54
  conversation, you know, other countries looking angry and
• 1:07:57
  what's going on now, you know, TV like this stuff.
• 1:08:00
  It could be great for the country.
• 1:08:02
  Yeah. It's massive financially in that
• 1:08:04
  sense and it's massive financially as well in the sense
• 1:08:06
  of the coefficient, because obviously this is the last
• 1:08:08
  season that like the League One that'll be in the Champions
• 1:08:11
  League playoff round and then the 2nd and 4th will be
• 1:08:15
  Conference League pretty much. So like whoever wins that league
• 1:08:19
  title, it's the last time for however, however long until we
• 1:08:22
  sort the European standard that we've we've set ourselves.
• 1:08:25
  And obviously Rangers, Celtic carry that torch for us
• 1:08:28
  supremely. Didn't get me wrong.
• 1:08:29
  But like that I'm just meaning in terms of like why it's so
• 1:08:32
  important still for Celtic, Rangers not only just to win the
• 1:08:34
  title, but also what comes with that in terms of monetary value
• 1:08:37
  as well. They still, as much as they're
• 1:08:39
  bigger financially, they still do rely on heavily the fact they
• 1:08:41
  get to Europe and make money from Europe and obviously they
• 1:08:44
  want to progress in Europe equal again.
• 1:08:46
  That's why Thursday they're in Bologna.
• 1:08:47
  That's still going to be a massive game for Celtic to try
• 1:08:50
  and win that game. But in three days later they've
• 1:08:51
  got to come to tank castle and we've had the week off in terms
• 1:08:54
  of like games. So there's all the factors as
• 1:08:57
  well. But I think it's even the
• 1:08:58
  foresight, like if you look at Hearts in terms of recruitment
• 1:09:01
  that they seem to just be a lot more switched on and all Rangers
• 1:09:04
  have had a flurry recently. But like, especially if you
• 1:09:07
  compare it to Celtic, the Celtics nearly took a year to
• 1:09:10
  try and replace Kyogo and then Hearts have also replaced in
• 1:09:13
  numerous areas as they're, you know, ramping up with analytics
• 1:09:15
  and whatever. But like, even if you look at
• 1:09:17
  now the summer, like Hearts of what are they like got Josh
• 1:09:19
  Mcpeak on like a pre contract that the the the Rogers Mattel
• 1:09:23
  guy on a pre contract. And now obviously they've
• 1:09:25
  they've got they've ramped that up now just because of what's
• 1:09:27
  happened and got him this month. You'll be here by this month.
• 1:09:30
  But the point I'm trying to make is if Celtic even do sign
• 1:09:33
  whoever they sign this month, they're still no fought beyond
• 1:09:36
  this month. They felt like, what are they
• 1:09:37
  going to do in the summer? What they're going to do was
• 1:09:39
  that hearts are already built foundations, like it's like a
• 1:09:42
  few months ahead. It seems that really in reality
• 1:09:45
  should be ahead of them anyway, like because they should have
• 1:09:47
  the, the sort of the, the facilities and the funds to sort
• 1:09:51
  of squash whatever as we're doing.
• 1:09:53
  Maybe the gap should close because we're obviously in terms
• 1:09:55
  of what we've got. But again, they're still
• 1:09:58
  dwarfing us in terms of like their own finances and their own
• 1:10:01
  what should be better recruitment and and whatever
• 1:10:03
  else in terms of whatever they pay their staff to do what
• 1:10:07
  they're doing is what I'm trying to say.
• 1:10:08
  We shouldn't be out of their head that one do with them.
• 1:10:11
  It just seems bizarre and I think they've maybe took for
• 1:10:13
  granted their own stations a little bit and not recognised
• 1:10:16
  like the how how the people at Hearts have got in there, how
• 1:10:19
  they operate and how quickly it all starts to just fit into
• 1:10:21
  place. But you're right James, I can't.
• 1:10:24
  It's came came too soon because obviously, don't get me wrong,
• 1:10:27
  like I need to enjoy it, I want to enjoy it.
• 1:10:29
  But it's more like understanding that hopefully as like you say,
• 1:10:32
  like seasons to come, you know, maybe we finished second one
• 1:10:35
  year, then maybe we do want another 2-3 years then and then
• 1:10:38
  we finished fourth second. So we're just always in the
• 1:10:40
  mixer. So we become nearer them than
• 1:10:42
  the neither the the rest of the teams in the premiership and
• 1:10:45
  like say if it causing that gap. And so it's exciting times.
• 1:10:49
  I will try and stay wasn't ever enjoy it as long as I can, but I
• 1:10:53
  will keep coming on the podcast. Like I said, even if we get bend
• 1:10:56
  that we come to lose games, maybe that for big games I'll be
• 1:11:01
  on no matter what. I appreciate the support for you
• 1:11:03
  guys, try our best. You'll try, you'll try your
• 1:11:06
  best. You have to quick score
• 1:11:08
  prediction for Sunday. Just a very quick one before we
• 1:11:11
  move on to Scotland before we wrap up.
• 1:11:13
  Do you go first? 21 hearts when you go. 21 go on.
• 1:11:20
  21 hearts. I said one Oh so so I'll I'll
• 1:11:24
  cool 10 because I like sitting on the fence and but yeah, good
• 1:11:30
  to good to have a great discussion there about that game
• 1:11:32
  and took on by our hearts and I think well this is not a story
• 1:11:36
  that's going to go away anytime soon, even if it is a defeat by
• 1:11:39
  hearts. I think it's going to be there
• 1:11:41
  for rest of the season, if not maybe going into next season as
• 1:11:45
  well. So let's just keep an eye on
• 1:11:47
  what's going on there. We'll very quickly go and speak
• 1:11:50
  about Scotland. Two home friendlies.
• 1:11:53
  Boots, it was two home friendlies that we predicted it
• 1:11:55
  was going to happen. Japan and Curacao.
• 1:11:57
  I hope they're pronouncing that right.
• 1:11:59
  So I do apologize for pronouncing that wrong.
• 1:12:02
  James happy with those two teams coming to Hamden.
• 1:12:04
  Yeah, I mean it's great. Obviously Curacao is a World Cup
• 1:12:08
  send off match from Hamden before we have an away friendly
• 1:12:13
  probably over the pond somewhere.
• 1:12:15
  I think Florida's what's been mentioned for a game against
• 1:12:17
  Peru, so I know that'll be good. That'll be good.
• 1:12:19
  Saturday afternoon, 5:00 PM So 5:00 PM One PM, 1:00 PM Five.
• 1:12:25
  PMI think for the Japan game that same for the curious. 1:00
• 1:12:28
  PM. So not as much time to get the
• 1:12:30
  beers in, but I'm sure we'll get a couple.
• 1:12:32
  Oh, actually, there will be things.
• 1:12:33
  Get the beers. And that's what they've just
• 1:12:34
  announced, isn't it? Trial, trial, trial trailer.
• 1:12:38
  Hamden Yeah, that was a nice. Segue.
• 1:12:41
  You know what actually didn't? No, I haven't meant that I've
• 1:12:44
  been really good. You know, it's just maybe I
• 1:12:47
  don't know, maybe there's there's someone working hard at
• 1:12:49
  that back of my brain to make this, make this a good
• 1:12:52
  production. But no, not as good.
• 1:12:54
  I mean, Chris, how you can draw parallels with them to Haiti.
• 1:12:58
  So we'll get to match up against.
• 1:13:00
  I mean, Clark talked about playing against different
• 1:13:02
  countries, different players, different playing styles.
• 1:13:05
  So, you know, they'll definitely provide that.
• 1:13:07
  And it's an excellent experience the boys will get just before we
• 1:13:10
  go and play against he because that were the first game.
• 1:13:13
  And then Japan as well. Obviously we're not playing
• 1:13:16
  anyone from the Asian Confederation at the World Cup,
• 1:13:19
  but I mean, Japan are a really good side.
• 1:13:22
  They are routinely at World Cups, usually perform quite
• 1:13:26
  well. They have good players.
• 1:13:28
  So yeah, that'll be, that'll be a good test.
• 1:13:31
  I feel like Scotland, we've played quite a lot of families
• 1:13:33
  recently and I'll play some very high caliber opposition.
• 1:13:37
  It's going to be nice to play someone that is a good team.
• 1:13:41
  But I don't feel as like, you know, of our league and, you
• 1:13:43
  know, in summer space, then you know, they're they're they're at
• 1:13:47
  least I'd like to think closer to our level.
• 1:13:49
  And it'll be interesting to see us play them because I don't
• 1:13:52
  don't think we've played. We've not played them since the
• 1:13:54
  kidding Cup. We won that bad.
• 1:13:55
  I think we've played them in 2009, if I remember correctly,
• 1:13:58
  if I read that right. Yeah, we've played them in
• 1:14:01
  Tokyo, I think, or somewhere. George, George Burley and George
• 1:14:07
  Burley. Played that's to me, but I
• 1:14:09
  surprised that did not. Realize that.
• 1:14:11
  I'm sure, I'm sure my brain has recapped that from somewhere.
• 1:14:15
  You were saying about the beer, I'm saying about Japan.
• 1:14:17
  So I'm sure I've got that. I'm sure I've got that right.
• 1:14:21
  We've definitely played them twice, but we've never played
• 1:14:24
  curious before. So that's certainly it's good to
• 1:14:27
  have different teams as well. You were saying about playing
• 1:14:31
  somebody from Asia. It's good to have different.
• 1:14:34
  We're not playing like let's say we're not playing at France,
• 1:14:37
  we're not playing at Germany, we're not playing in England,
• 1:14:38
  we're not playing at Spain. We're playing somebody could
• 1:14:41
  completely different. So I like, I like the way that
• 1:14:45
  they're going around these friendly matches in.
• 1:14:47
  Particular, do you think that that the two friendlies are
• 1:14:52
  handpicked in a way for like what we'll be facing in a in a
• 1:14:56
  way like either like stale of play or, or like the type of
• 1:15:00
  teams that they normally face for how they play themselves and
• 1:15:03
  stuff like that? You think that's a factor?
• 1:15:04
  There, I think that I think he the the curious game for Haiti
• 1:15:08
  definitely is Japan game. I think it's just a case of
• 1:15:11
  getting somebody completely random because they don't want
• 1:15:15
  to play anymore European teams as much as possible.
• 1:15:17
  That's my opinion. A game.
• 1:15:20
  Maxwell interview Maxwell gave an interview that I tuned into
• 1:15:24
  and he said that the Japan game was one that was organised
• 1:15:27
  before the draw was made. I'm sure.
• 1:15:29
  OK, I mean that a good team. But he did say, you know, I
• 1:15:33
  think we're looking at Ivy course potentially for a game
• 1:15:35
  down in Liverpool after a Ripley Japan And then again, 2 is 1/4
• 1:15:40
  team for the three with the final friendly before the World
• 1:15:43
  Cup. So yeah, and he did say he's
• 1:15:45
  like Luke, he's like Clark comes to us.
• 1:15:47
  Well, last we see he says these are the sort of teams who want
• 1:15:50
  to play. You know, I think I don't think
• 1:15:52
  it's just a case of, you know, who's in that confederation.
• 1:15:55
  I think there has been a little bit of thought towards playing a
• 1:15:58
  team. They think we'll give them the
• 1:16:01
  experience they need against, you know, the the three teams
• 1:16:04
  we're going to be up against the World Cup.
• 1:16:06
  And he said, and then it's our job to this goal and basically
• 1:16:08
  try and organise that and make it work.
• 1:16:10
  So I that's what they've done. And yeah, it'll be good to see
• 1:16:14
  because that, you know, like like you said, and it'd be as
• 1:16:17
  well. We're well versed against UAE
• 1:16:19
  fun nation teams. We've all seen these sorts of
• 1:16:22
  factures. It's a rare, rare chance in the
• 1:16:25
  past when we've got. I'm trying to remember last time
• 1:16:27
  I saw this player team that was non UEFA I think we called.
• 1:16:31
  With Mexico and. Peru, your bad Nigeria.
• 1:16:34
  Yeah, yeah, Nigeria it. Was Peru, wasn't it?
• 1:16:36
  No. Yeah, we played Peru think and
• 1:16:38
  yeah, Mexico as well to right together.
• 1:16:41
  Yeah. I mean, I'm trying to think.
• 1:16:42
  Played the United States a couple of times as well in
• 1:16:44
  recent years as well. Canada to Canada and Qatar,
• 1:16:48
  yeah, but like, you know, it doesn't come around all too
• 1:16:50
  often. I mean that's I mean, if it is
• 1:16:53
  the Mexico game, that was back when McLeish was in charge.
• 1:16:56
  So we're going back to at least about 2018 there.
• 1:16:58
  I'm sure. So, yeah, it's nice.
• 1:17:00
  It's nice as a fan to guess, to see these different play against
• 1:17:03
  these different teams and, you know, watch the boys.
• 1:17:06
  But back, back from the Hamden against, you know, some of the
• 1:17:10
  best teams in the world that aren't, aren't from Europe.
• 1:17:14
  Well, thank you man. So you guys, I think we've
• 1:17:16
  talked enough for today and we'll be wrapping up there.
• 1:17:19
  Thank you very much indeed for being on James and thank you
• 1:17:22
  actually would be an item. Great company as usual.
• 1:17:25
  We like to get as many opinions on as possible for what's going
• 1:17:29
  to happen in terms of around 5:00.
• 1:17:33
  So if you've got a favorite, a favorite tie, do let us know.
• 1:17:36
  We'll see what we can talk about Friday.
• 1:17:38
  It's podcasts as well. So as always, I would like to
• 1:17:43
  ask if we can like subscribe, follow wherever you get your
• 1:17:46
  podcasts. Scott's with a mic and don't
• 1:17:48
  forget to follow us on Twitter on X.
• 1:17:51
  And don't forget you get to follow our Instagram pages for
• 1:17:54
  Park Scotland and follow our main pages as well.
• 1:17:57
  That's it for us. We'll see you again next time, I
• 1:17:59
  hope. Until then, take care.
• 1:18:01
  Goodbye.