Two wins since the start of the season in the Premiership, binned unceremoniously in the League Cup by eventual semi-finalists Greenock Morton and four consecutive losses before a last gasp equaliser by magical Louis Moult in the Hogmanay Lanarkshire Derby? It isn’t a huge surprise to anyone that there is some unrest in the New Douglas Park stands.
Since their arrival back in the top flight in 2008, Accies have flitted between exuberance and ennui on an almost weekly basis. A thrilling return saw them come back from a goal down to demolish Dundee United 3-1 as Jameses McArthur and McCarthy announced themselves in the top flight on a crackling Monday night in Hamilton. A team built on their teenage talents, allied with the steel and guile of Alex Neil and the pace of Richard Offiong and Brian Easton provided great entertainment on occasion, and secured a place in the top flight for a second year.
A difficult second season saw them rally later in the year towards safety, before a final third year in the top flight proved a season too far. Shorn of the youth which had been such a part of their team, coupled with recurring injuries to the talismanic Alex Neil, Accies dropped out of the league. With Neil installed as manager in 2012, he set about dragging Accies back to the top flight past a flailing Hibs as the playoffs returned to Scottish football. After a ripsnorting start to their Premiership return, Neil was picked off by Norwich in January, which saw the dawn of Canning.
While a logical appointment for Hamilton, having recruited from within for Neil, Martin Canning’s start in the job was inauspicious, to say the least. While Neil left (along with Tony Andreu), Accies sat in 3rd place in the Premiership, following a hard-fought 1-0 victory in Perth. Equal on points with Celtic, and four behind leaders Aberdeen, Hamilton were in rarefied company, with fans applying for passports ahead of a potential first ever European tie. Fourteen attempts later, Martin Canning won his first game as manager, defeating a disintegrating Motherwell 2-0 in Hamilton. In total, Accies added 14 points to the 39 achieved under Neil in the first half of the season. While comfortably safe, the drop off in form was a cause for concern.
Fast forward to the present day, and the natives are becoming steadily more restless. Accies fan group ‘We Are Hamilton’ have announced a boycott, citing various areas of discontent. While it seems unlikely that the club are “hell bent on relegation”, as WAA put it, are their causes for concern valid?
“We, as a club, have no viable full-backs and we do not have the proven strikers that would ensure our survival and push for a top-six place.
“While realising that Martin Canning is not fully responsible for our signing policy, he seems unable to get the best out of the players that we have and has one of our best midfielders played out of position all season.”
It is true that Accies appear to have forgotten to sign, or play, any full-backs. This was also true last season to a great extent, as Ziggy Gordon played on the left of a back three as opposed to his natural position at full-back, and with Darren Lyon consistently being hung out to dry at full-back it is easy to see their concerns.
Goals have never come particularly easily for Accies, with Andreu their top scorer in any one season since returning to the Premiership on 12, a stat which is even more remarkable given he left midway through that campaign. Aside from this, their centre-forwards have hit six (Offiong, along with McCarthy, 08/09), seven (Curier in 09/10, outscored by the clinical Simon Mensing on 8), four (Curier in 10/11), 12 (the aforementioned Andreu in 14/15) and eight (Carlton Morris in 15/16). Seeing as Ali Crawford sits on seven, and D’Acol four this season, this is broadly similar to their previous seasons.
“In our opinion there have been poor decisions and we are incapable of turning performances into wins, due to poor game management and poor substitutions; added to that we display, apparently, a complete lack of ability to rouse the players, as evidenced over the last half a dozen games.
There is a collection of evidence that can make a compelling case for this. While Canning is not necessarily at fault for the lack of depth in the squad, it is clear that Accies have an issue in seeing out games. Having won two games all season, they have dropped points on numerous occasions. Hamilton failed to win despite being ahead in games against Rangers (1-1), Kilmarnock (1-2), Dundee (1-1), Hearts (3-1 & 3-3), St Johnstone (1-1), Inverness (1-1 & 1-1), Partick Thistle (1-1) and Motherwell (1-1). This is exacerbated by the fact that in all of these games (except their draw against Dundee), it came in the second half of games, often late on. This extends back to the opening day of the season, where an energetic effort against Rangers was blotted by a Martyn Waghorn goal. If Accies had held on in even half of these games, they would be a top six side.
Finally, WAA highlight: “We have signed several goalkeepers unnecessarily, and sanctioned moves for players such as Oumar Diaby, Richard Roy, Christopher Mandiangu, Kemy Agustien and Nico Sumsky, who barely played.”
No argument here, these players were all absolute Joel Thomases.
It is difficult to rail too hard against Canning, as the limitations in budget at Accies are clear. The clubs inability to bring in (or keep, in the case of Lennard Sowah) any full-backs is an enormous oversight. To pass through another transfer window without resolving this would be gross negligence by the club. Canning is trying to continue the club’s youth development while fighting for survival but, at the moment, he’s rooting around in the loft trying to find a couple of pawns and a rook.
Written by Graeme Thewliss