SENTINELCELTS

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Anyway, the subject of five subs is very interesting to me. Its here, and once a rule change is onboard its hard to jettison if liked and established. This one is supposedly for the compressed season to help with injuries which I get, but I wonder if thats the game turned to a 16 man game plan now, and forevermore?

As fans we should be happy. We should !
There’s more players to witness in the flesh for a start, something that is nice for the match goer especially, the armchair manager gets more ammo to rate or slate, although the playing bonuses might increase a bit across the board. Still we are no longer restricted to the usual two switches and one on bench for safety, now we face exciting waters no matter how the game sits.

If the job is done the gaffer has a real good opportunity to showcase the fringe players, maybe even blood some of that talented youth we have stockpiled. To good an opportunity to be missed as why jade the senior players in a compressed season, plus lets satisfy the ambitions of the hungry in the dressing room by giving them the minutes the crave, but we werent in a position to indulge before. The path to the first team just became a lot easier, which we should benefit from.

If drawing a game, or indeed losing it, to be in the position to switch half the outfield players is unprecedented its goes without saying but its also the ultimate exciting roll of the dice?
Why would an opposition manager for instance, having seen what he considers his first choice team concede a few to the Champions, not throw on four or five young players for the experience. There’s you as a fan thinking that’s her done and dusted yet all of a sudden you’re looking at the cream of their youth setup, possible future Celts, thinking crikey this is different.
And then if we counter it with our own kids, a game of two halves? Certainly more for the viewer and the matchday fan when allowed back.

Sir Bobby Robson, God Bless his Soul, gentleman that he was had a great trick with the subs down in Tynecastle. If he didnt like what he was seeing he threatened at half time to make wholesale changes if it was the same after ten minutes from the restart. His triple substitutions on 60 minutes were the talk of the Toon man, got the crowd completely up for the game, got the opposition manager freaked out into making a few switches, and generally gave the game a different dynamic.
Of course there was also the danger factor, but the unwritten rule was if Ive used all my sub stay on if alive!

Nows thats with three subs, five at once would be one hell of a play.
It deserves its own name and will no doubt get one, but it will be fun to see, who and when utilises it. No doubt we will see a sub subbed soon also.
And if ten subs at once happen, the game may well turn out to be a different one than you sat down to watch, but thats almost another half time sized period?
An age getting them on the field, and an age of injury time.
Never mind away to the toilet, sure jump in the car and you’ll be at the stadium in a seat by the time they have all high fived and been announced.
Well you know what I mean but this one has the potential to frustrate and delight in equal measure Im thinking.

The above by Mahe.
sentinelcelts@gmail.com