Part Time v Full Time

In this edition I will be comparing the advantages and disadvantages of full time and part time football. I'll also be touching on a subject that has always annoyed me a bit, the feeling supporters have about footballers and also player power after the sacking of Di Canio.

After my first 2 months back at part time training I have finally started feeling as sharp as I should be and training the way I have when I was full time. It is not easy turning up for training twice a week and getting to the same levels you are when you train at least 4 times a week. I have been finding it difficult to adapt to the lack of football, but keeping busy in the gym and on my bike has at least got my fitness up and I feel stronger as a result. Part time and full time both have their advantages, but it probably isn't noticeable from the outside as to what they are.

One of the big differences for me is that when you get a touch of a ball every day and get used to passing and playing with teammates it is noticeable how much better your touch gets and your understanding with teammates. When you only train twice it isn't as easy to know what your teammates are doing and where they usually run or pass into. It has definitely taken longer to get into our stride at the start of the season as you try and get your touch and learn how everyone plays.
Also the fitness aspect is something that is always talked about when full time teams play part time. I personally don't think there is a massive difference, but I think sharpness is the big difference. Training every day really sharpens up movement and gives you an extra yard of pace. I feel like I have that yard back now after 2 months training, but I'm sure without the extra work in the gym and bike I would still feel slightly sluggish.

football friends

Another huge difference is the bond between teammates and a camaraderie when you see them every day. You become best mates and talk about everything together. You laugh together every single day, push each other hard and encourage. It is a strong friendship and you would basically trust your mate with anything. When you only see each other 3 times a week for a total of 6/7 hours it is totally different. There is still the same banter, but the difference is you don't have spare time together between double sessions or in the morning where you talk every day. There is a different atmosphere, it is still a fun place the dressing room but it isn't quite the same. Luckily for me I have always been in good dressing rooms with no real problems, no 'bad eggs', and no in team fighting, so it has always been a good place.

I think the main difference with part time is the fact you do less work time wise, the muscles recover better and therefore there will be less muscular injuries. Nothing can be done about impact injuries, but if there are less strains and pulls of muscles this should help players play more games, and extend careers. Obviously some people are lucky and never get injured anyway, but I do think there is less in general from part time.

With the inevitable sacking of Paulo Di Canio hitting the headlines this week it brought up a topic that has always annoyed me, the attitude fans have towards footballers. There seems to be a general feeling that all footballers are overpaid, lazy and don't deserve all the riches they get. This feeling doesn't just come towards the top players, it is even the same in Scotland in both full time divisions. It is understandable that people think the top players are overpaid, they earn 100's of thousands of pounds a week. But at the other end of the scale is the players who play football to earn a living and keep their families housed and happy. Having worked with quite a high number of players, the percentage of 'lazy' players is so small it is almost insignificant. Occasionally you get some players who don't try hard at training but this is so uncommon. Having played football I think it is much easier to appreciate how much hard work has gone in to become the best players. The Premiership is so elite that you just couldn't get away with being lazy and get a game every week. Even 'lazy' players like Berbatov must have worked endlessly on his touch for it to become one of the best in the world. He is also extremely strong and isn't as slow as some people think. It isn't by luck players become stronger and quicker, improve their finishing, touch, passing and heading. It is through hard work and like any other job, if you don't work hard, you don't keep your job. Add on pre season to that, where players will be hammered at training for 2/3 weeks 2 to 3 times a day, and they will all push each other to their limits. It isn't easy and most supporters couldn't do it, so maybe we aren't as lazy, overpaid and under worked as some people think.

The fact that Di Canio was sacked due to player power led some fans to inevitably blame the lazy players and that he was right to work them so hard. But it showed on the pitch he was wrong, and his attitude towards his players was completely unacceptable, the way he talked about them in the press. It is no wonder they got him sacked by speaking to the board, he isn't a good manager if he isn't a team player and thinks he is better than his team. Sunderland are better off without him and it wouldn't surprise me if they went on and moved up the table from now on in.

The International break

The first break of the season comes early in September with the International break. It is a time for me to sit and struggle through a couple of Scotland games and wonder how we will ever be good enough to qualify for a tournament again. Since I don't really have a club team I support Scotland more than most players. It really bothers me how bad we currently are and it is hard to see when, or if, we will come through the other side of this lull and make it to a tournament. Not since 1998 in France have we qualified, and that turned into a glorious failure with a close defeat by Brazil and a draw with Norway followed by a spectacular 3-0 defeat to Morocco.

After watching the Belgium game on Friday it is obvious how far away we are. We have no world class players, and if we are honest, we don't really have any top class players. There has to be a reason for this somewhere deep in the Scottish football system. There is no way that there is no talented young players, but where do they all go. It is noticeable that there isn't as many young people playing football in the streets and parks every day around Scotland like they did 10-15 years ago. But there is much more organised football for young players and many football camps held throughout school holidays. But I think that is the problem, there are no coaches in schools. School is where you spent most of your time as a kid, but at P.E you get taught nothing basically. The teachers aren't coaches and therefore you never progress at all at school, so you are only learning skills for football 2 or 3 times a week if you are lucky, under the age of 15. In other countries across Europe young players are receiving many more hours of coaching from top coaches and this make a huge difference to their technical ability.

Defour scores opener for Belgium

Another noticeable difference between Belgium and Scotland on Friday was the fitness levels and strength of the players. Every Belgium player looks like an athlete, they are all strong, quick and fit. Meanwhile we have players who look slow and get bullied. Obviously in relation to Scottish League football most of the players are good enough, but when it comes to stepping up to Premiership or international football it becomes difficult for them to compete. It can only come down to personal commitment and determination to get to the same levels as the top players. I personally think it is the Scottish footballer culture that has a big influence on this. Nights out, gambling and not enough training are all factors that stop players moving to the next level.


Something I really don't understand about Scotland managers that keep coming in, and eventually leaving with no tournaments reached, is that they all seem to want to play the exact same formation, the same way, with the same players. Nothing ever changes in the way we play (except once with the famous 4-6-0) with the team constantly setting up in a 4-5-1 formation. I know this is the modern formation of choice throughout Europe, but the way Scotland play it with 3 flat holding midfielders and 2 wide midfielders (not wingers) is far too defensive and leaves whoever is upfront on their own totally isolated. The top teams all play it with out and out wingers plus a playmaker in the number 10 role.

Hanley looking like he might have made another mistake

Take Belgium as an example since they beat us so comfortably on Friday. They had Benteke up top, then De Bruyne and Chadli playing as wingers with Defour (the goalscorer) in behind getting into the box whenever possible and linking play. We had Griffiths up front all on his own with Snodgrass and Forrest playing wide in midfield. A central defender played centre midfield beside Brown and Maloney which is so defensive. Maloney tried to get forward but likes getting on the ball so kept dropping deep. As for the defense, which is a huge weakness of Scotland and has been for years, Strachan continues to play Grant Hanley, who must be the worst Scottish defender in the squad, if not that's ever been in it!

It would be nice to see a change in formation just to see if something different helps. I'm not saying 2 upfront, but definitely one off a striker would be nice to see, and a slightly more attacking outlook. We have goalscorers in Steven Fletcher and Jordan Rhodes, we need to utilise them and create chances for them. But most importantly we need defenders who know how to defend, not constantly get caught out position and barge around like a rugby player with no brain. Mulgrew is Celtics best defender when he plays central defense, so we should play him there, it makes perfect sense.

One day it would be nice to see a Scotland team playing the way they used to when they had top class performers like Lambert and McAllister. Until we start nurturing our talent properly though, and progressing them consistently through their youth and into their careers then it could be a long long time before we get 'lucky' and bring through a group of players capable of qualifying. With the under 21's losing 6-0 and 4-0 to England and Netherlands respectively in their last 2 games, the future doesn't look bright! Nevertheless, we live in hope, I was born Scottish and I'll support them whatever the weather.

We have another game on Tuesday against Macedonia on Tuesday and here is what team I'd start with based on the current squad:

 Marshall

Hutton   Martin  Mulgrew  Whittaker

Brown  McArthur

Anya  Dorrans   Maloney

 Fletcher

It might not win, but it looks more attacking I think, and hopefully stronger at the back with Mulgrew. Hopefully we can get a win and get off the bottom of the group. It would be embarrassing to finish bottom and would seriously affect future campaigns with the pot seeding.