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hibIBZ
06-07-2017, 05:44 PM
Watching the st Johnstone game. 1-0 to Trakai with only a few minutes to play. Saints look terrible, either that or nowhere near match fit for the start of the season

penihibs
06-07-2017, 05:48 PM
Watching the st Johnstone game. 1-0 to Trakai with only a few minutes to play. Saints look terrible, either that or nowhere near match fit for the start of the season

Same here so far behind the other team.
Watching on kodi / Sportsdevil channel
First row sports.eu, says the Hibs games on at 7.45 ??

CMurdoch
06-07-2017, 05:52 PM
Typical Scottish team. Had the ball for most of the game but failed to score despite having an extra man for 30 minutes.
Lost the match last week to be fair.
Bummer.

Souter96Mac
06-07-2017, 05:52 PM
To be fair, they've hardly had time to prepare, and losing Swanson will be a big blow for them. I can't see us firing on all cylinders tonight against
the Pars.

OsloHibs
06-07-2017, 06:19 PM
Can't say I'm suprised at this. Lots of the smaller nations are moving forward with their football... whilst other countries are going backwards.

G B Young
07-07-2017, 09:51 AM
Highly amusing as Sevco's humiliation in Luxembourg was, it marked a fresh low for Scottish clubs in Europe. With St Johnstone also out at the very first hurdle it makes me wonder how much benefit there is to the Scottish game in seeing our clubs put to the sword like this.

Granted, the qualifying for these tournaments comes at a time when our teams are a long way from full fitness but the pattern has been the same for a good number of years now. Rather than attempting to play competitive European football in June, might it be better to limit the European places available to Scottish clubs to just one or two? If budget allowed, others could simply arrange pre-season friendlies against European opposition of a standard where a competitive game is likely - which would also give fans the chance to enjoy a few days abroad following their team? One of my favourite foreign jaunts with Hibs came when we travelled to face Essen in a friendly to mark 50 years since our pioneering European Cup campaign.

I'm aware that Hibs turned in a very creditable showing against Brondby last year, but the Malmo massacre is still painfully fresh in my mind and let's face it, no Scottish club is currently likely to make any serious inroads into European competition. You could argue that we can't just give up trying and that things can only get better, but if you look at the national team's 20-year (soon to be 22) year absence from even qualifying for major tournaments the painful truth is that the overall quality of the Scottish game is woefully sub-standard.

Sylar
07-07-2017, 09:58 AM
For every St Johnstone or Rangers getting dumped in the first round of qualifying, you get a season ala Aberdeen in 2007-08, or even Hearts in 2004-05, whereby the teams make the group stages and it's an exciting adventure for club and fans alike (aside from the actual sweetener of added income).

You limit Scotland's places to 2, and once Rangers get back up to full steam (assuming they don't implode entirely), and you're going to have the same representation every year. And can you imagine how many howls of derision we'd hear if we win the Scottish Cup or finish 3rd more than once and don't get the European reward?

Every Scottish team is capable of performing well and getting past the qualifying rounds, just like every Scottish club is capable of getting humiliated at the first hurdle. I'd like to see us keep the current number of places, because there's a good chance we'll benefit from one of them in the not-too-distant future.

Andy74
07-07-2017, 10:04 AM
Can't say I'm suprised at this. Lots of the smaller nations are moving forward with their football... whilst other countries are going backwards.

I think if the games were played at comparable points in the season it would be clearer whether or not this is the case.

It's not just fitness and sharpness, it is also about being able to get players in to replace those that inevitably go. It's not an equal playing field at all.

G B Young
07-07-2017, 10:08 AM
For every St Johnstone or Rangers getting dumped in the first round of qualifying, you get a season ala Aberdeen in 2007-08, or even Hearts in 2004-05, whereby the teams make the group stages and it's an exciting adventure for club and fans alike (aside from the actual sweetener of added income).

You limit Scotland's places to 2, and once Rangers get back up to full steam (assuming they don't implode entirely), and you're going to have the same representation every year. And can you imagine how many howls of derision we'd hear if we win the Scottish Cup or finish 3rd more than once and don't get the European reward?

Every Scottish team is capable of performing well and getting past the qualifying rounds, just like every Scottish club is capable of getting humiliated at the first hurdle. I'd like to see us keep the current number of places, because there's a good chance we'll benefit from one of them in the not-too-distant future.

Those Aberdeen and Hearts seasons were a decade or more ago and both clubs, Aberdeen in particular, have suffered far more European embarrassments than they have successes since then.

I just fear that we have come to accept an exceptionally low standard when it comes to our game and by doing so are taken aback by just how badly shown up our clubs so often are on a European stage.

Jim44
07-07-2017, 10:34 AM
To be fair, they've hardly had time to prepare, and losing Swanson will be a big blow for them. I can't see us firing on all cylinders tonight against
the Pars.

Maybe not on all cylinders, but not a bad showing for a start to our build up.

where'stheslope
07-07-2017, 10:59 AM
Could the real reason for early failure be as most of the teams in the qualifying rounds have already started their season, and Scottish Clubs are just back for preseason training.

It always sounds like sour grapes, after a defeat moaning about it, but in reality these teams have an edge to their game that we simply don't have at this time of the season.

The only way round it would be to resurrect the old league cup with sections playing meaningful games early so teams get competitive practice before these qualifying games!!!

Mr White
07-07-2017, 11:02 AM
Could the real reason for early failure be as most of the teams in the qualifying rounds have already started their season, and Scottish Clubs are just back for preseason training.

It always sounds like sour grapes, after a defeat moaning about it, but in reality these teams have an edge to their game that we simply don't have at this time of the season.

The only way round it would be to resurrect the old league cup with sections playing meaningful games early so teams get competitive practice before these qualifying games!!!
If we're going to revolutionise the league cup like that we should really think about a shakeup of the top league too. Maybe something like a top 6/bottom 6 split at the end?

:greengrin

where'stheslope
07-07-2017, 11:04 AM
If we're going to revolutionise the league cup like that we should really think about a shakeup of the top league too. Maybe something like a top 6/bottom 6 split at the end?

:greengrin

That will be a big help at the start of the season? EH!!!

Mr White
07-07-2017, 11:14 AM
That will be a big help at the start of the season? EH!!!

Apologies, it was in reference to the fact that the league cup sections have been back for more than a year and start next week. I agree bringing them even further forward could benefit our teams in the early europa qualifiers only they don't have to take part in that stage of the league cup!