Courier sports writers Neil Robertson and Eric Nicolson turn the spotlight on this week’s burning issues, including St Johnstone’s cup semi-final, Dundee’s defence and a possible Dundee United revival.
Q: Before we get the crystal ball out, what do you make of the St Johnstone semi-final ticket carry-on?
NR: If there is a way to make a complete hash of something that should be fairly simple, then Scottish football can be relied upon to find it. St Johnstone and their fans have every right to feel hard done by and it is difficult to imagine the same thing happening if Celtic or Rangers were involved. On the plus side, I am fairly sure that Saints boss Tommy Wright will be mentioning the slight in his team talk before his team plays Hibs.
EN: Ticket fiascos and our football governing bodies go hand in hand, but this is the worst one I can remember. To tell a club they would get more tickets if they need them and then change your mind is atrocious organisation. It’s been a disgraceful business and we’re still waiting on the public apology.
Q: Cummings or Stokes who is the bigger threat to Saints?
NR: Stokes opened his account for Hibs on Saturday after joining them on loan from Celtic and will be a big danger but I reckon he has played so little football this season, he will need time to get fully up to speed. In contrast, Cummings has been a constant threat throughout the campaign for Alan Stubbs’ side and has already netted 17 times so far so he should be the one to watch.
EN: Cummings for sure. The hype over Stokes has been over the top. Remember, this is a guy who couldn’t get near to the Celtic team even when they were struggling. And Saints have played against him on plenty of occasions and dealt with him perfectly well. I really like Cummings. Keep him quiet and Saints should win.
Q: Is Saints’ six-game winless run a worry or an irrelevance?
NR: I am certain that when the St Johnstone players run out of the tunnel at Tynecastle, the last thing on their minds will be recent results. The huge carrot of making it to another cup final should be the only thing occupying their thoughts.
EN: Saints’ form hasn’t been so bad that it should be a serious concern. The most encouraging aspect of the match against Celtic on Saturday was Michael O’Halloran getting back to his best and Steven MacLean scoring. They’re the two key offensive players for Saints, and both like the big occasion.
Q: Of the three injury doubts Davidson, Millar and Mackay who can Wright least afford to do without?
NR: Unfortunately this season, Wright has had to get used to being without Chris Millar because of recurring hamstring problems while Murray Davidson is also no stranger to the treatment room, so I think Dave Mackay’s leadership will be the biggest loss.
EN: Millar. His energy and screening of the back four is crucial to Saints, especially against a fast-flowing side like Hibs. I expect the other two to play anyway.
Q: Time to cut to the chase are Saints going to another final?
NR: Tommy Wright has been doing the bookies’ job for them this week installing Hibs as firm favourites, basing that on the fact they have the winning habit from the Championship. However, in the big games this season, the Easter Road side have lost out three times to promotion rivals Rangers … and we all know what Saints did to the Ibrox outfit in the third round of the League Cup so my money is on the “underdogs”.
EN: I’m not as confident as I was when the draw was made but I still think this will be a Saints win, probably after extra-time. Don’t underestimate how big a deal winning that Scottish Cup semi-against Aberdeen was for their pysche. Hibs are still a work in progress and froze a bit at Ibrox in their last big game.
Q: Do Ross County have a chance against Celtic in the other semi-final?
NR: It is a cup semi, so they will always have a chance but Celtic are in a rich vein of form and I cannot see Jim McIntyre’s side causing a big upset.
EN: Ross County are the big losers out of the long gap between quarters and semis. Celtic look good again, while County are less convincing than a couple of months ago. The pressure of getting a treble will be on Celtic but not enough to stop them going through.
Q: I’m guessing Paul Hartley won’t be asked on to the BBC any time soon (or be asked to Pat Nevin’s house for tea and biscuits). What did you make of Hartley’s rant?
NR: Talk about letting fly with both barrels! The Dundee boss certainly did not miss either Nevin or Sportscene in general. However, while Nevin has never been a manager, he played at the highest level for Chelsea and Scotland so is surely entitled to give his “expert” opinion. As for the show itself, I’m with Hartley as it can be cringeworthy at times. What is certain is that the Dundee boss was at least refreshingly frank about something he obviously felt he had to get off his chest.
EN: Everybody’s entitled to their opinion not just ex-pros and everybody’s entitled to an opinion on the opinion. So it’s all good stuff. Mind you, Hartley’s rant will have focused more eyes on Dundee’s defending. We’ll see if that turns out to be a good thing.
Q: Dundee’s defensive stats aren’t the best, though, are they?
NR: The manager himself has spoken of his frustration at the lack of clean sheets this season. However, that has been offset to a certain extent by the attacking threat Dundee possess. Hopefully, once he is fully settled in, Darren O’Dea’s experience will prove key in improving the defensive record.
EN: Dundee are a very offensive-minded team and I’m not going to criticise Hartley for that. When I’m watching them I never get the impression that they’re a poor defensive team (or poorly set-up, Pat!). Hopefully O’Dea’s experience when he settles in will be a big factor in getting the goals conceded column looking a bit more clever.
Q: The draw’s started to open up for them in the Scottish Cup, hasn’t it?
NR: I thought the Falkirk game was a potential banana skin especially considering that Dundee were dumped out of the League Cup by League One Dunfermline. However, having successfully negotiated a passage past Peter Houston’s Bairns, Dundee have given themselves a great chance of a good cup run, something the manager has made one of his priorities since the start of the season.
EN: It certainly has. I think they’re a banker to beat Dumbarton in the next round which will take them into the last eight. With Dundee’s attacking threat, it’s about time they had a good cup run. Avoid Celtic and there’s no reason they couldn’t go all the way to the final.
Q: Dundee United have their league win, at last. Turning point or false dawn?
NR: Ask me at five o’clock on Saturday. Seriously, the Kilmarnock win and the manner in which it was achieved was a welcome relief for everyone of a Tangerine persuasion but the only nagging worry is that as good as United were, Gary Locke’s side were woeful and we will probably only find out if this revival is to be a sustained one after this weekend’s game at Firhill.
EN: Couldn’t have put it better myself. We’ll be talking about a proper revival in next week’s Q&A if they win at Partick. Otherwise, I suspect pessimism will abound again.
Q: The change in formation wasn’t as big as some were suggesting would happen, but was it a significant one?
NR: I honestly think too much is made of formations but what I would say is that United defended from the front with Billy Mckay and the tireless Simon Murray setting the tone. There was a lot more fighting spirit on show compared to recent weeks and it is surely no coincidence that it all came on the back of the clear-the-air-meeting between players and management.
EN: I’d still rather see a back four. Better teams than Killie will still be able to exploit the spaces behind the two wing-backs.
Q: Do you think the United players have come to the conclusion that they’ve nothing left to lose?
NR: I am not sure about that but Saturday did show if they are going to go down, then at least they will do so fighting.
EN: Possibly. The pressure has eased because most people think they’re down. But it will be bigger if they get the gap down to about six and everybody starts expecting them to get out of trouble.