Bain or Gordon?

Gordon gets a hard time. He's a great shot-stopper but his distribution is poor. That said, he's still one of the very best goalkeepers Celtic have ever had. Growing up, I always thought the Huns were cheats for having really good 'keepers - it seemed almost not in the spirit of the game to have someone who didn't cost you a handful of goals a season: Bonner, Muggleton, Gordon Marshall, Kerr, Gould, Douglas, Hedman etc... they were all poor to middling.

I liked David Marshall; Boruc was like a messiah; Forster became probably the best of the lot. However, none of them were expected to play as a sweeper and would have been found out if they had (Boruc's kicking and throwing was about the worst I can remember... far, far, far poorer than Gordon's).

In short, Gordon is brilliant... but Bain might be the better option.
 
Scott Bain all day long Craig Gordon has been a great servant to us but he's too indecisive in the last wee while and cost us I've nothing against him but Bain deserves his chance now I feel more comfortable with him in goal.
 
Gordon is one of the best shot-stoppers around when he's on his game. The guy has made so many massively important saves that have proven instrumental in us securing the double treble and qualifying for Europe and we sometimes tend to forget all this and focus on his fuck ups and poor distribution.

The bottom line is Gordon isn't suited to playing out from the back, it's not one of his strengths while Bain looks more comfortable and at ease with it. So unless BR is going to have a Damascene conversion in his entire footballing philosophy then Bain is the natural choice but what we gain from that change may come at a big cost. What happens when we need that reality defying miracle save at the crucial moment in a big game because from what I've seen of the two Gordon has Bain beaten hands down on that front.

On the face of it, given we play out from the back, it may look like a no-brainer going with Bain but I don't think it's as simple as that. What we'll gain by opting for Bain has to be weighed against what we'll lose by dropping Gordon.
 
Still think the jersey is Craigies, but Scottie bhoy is pushing him hard, and as Brendan is adamant about distribution from the back then the jersey might just be for shifting Scott's way.
This is what confuses me the most 50SOG, the difference in distribution between the two is huge, Gordon on his day is a brilliant shot stopper, but nappy changing stuff playing the ball out with his feet, unless we're missing something that's happening at training, I would give Bain a run, if he's good enough for the cups, he's good enough for the league, if it doesn't work out CG might return in a better frame of mind knowing he doesn't own the jersey.
 
Gordon is one of the best shot-stoppers around when he's on his game. The guy has made so many massively important saves that have proven instrumental in us securing the double treble and qualifying for Europe and we sometimes tend to forget all this and focus on his fuck ups and poor distribution.

The bottom line is Gordon isn't suited to playing out from the back, it's not one of his strengths while Bain looks more comfortable and at ease with it. So unless BR is going to have a Damascene conversion in his entire footballing philosophy then Bain is the natural choice but what we gain from that change may come at a big cost. What happens when we need that reality defying miracle save at the crucial moment in a big game because from what I've seen of the two Gordon has Bain beaten hands down on that front.

On the face of it, given we play out from the back, it may look like a no-brainer going with Bain but I don't think it's as simple as that. What we'll gain by opting for Bain has to be weighed against what we'll lose by dropping Gordon.
I'm not so sure Gordon is a better shot stopper than Bain. Bain had fuck all to do yesterday, but when he was needed at the end of the first half he pulled off an unbelievable save followed by four more in quick succession. I don't think Gordon would have been able to! For me Gordon is far too slow with his distribution,plus every time he has the ball at his feet with a player encroaching on him, I shite myself. Bain looks far more in control, plus he saves me having to change the boxers a half a dozen times during a match!
 
I'm not so sure Gordon is a better shot stopper than Bain. Bain had fuck all to do yesterday, but when he was needed at the end of the first half he pulled off an unbelievable save followed by four more in quick succession. I don't think Gordon would have been able to! For me Gordon is far too slow with his distribution,plus every time he has the ball at his feet with a player encroaching on him, I shite myself. Bain looks far more in control, plus he saves me having to change the boxers a half a dozen times during a match!

I'm happy to concede Deadner, as I did in my earlier post, that when it comes to distribution and playing it out from the back Bain is the better option but as to who's the better shot-stopper, it's Gordon all day long imo.

I'm not saying Bain isn't a good keeper or doesn't deserve a chance to make the jersey his own I'm just saying there are pros and cons to dropping Gordon and bringing in Bain and that in our rush to criticise Gordon for his weaknesses we tend to forget his strengths and just how important a part he's played in our success over the last 3 years.

Here's a wee reminder......


HH.
 
This is what confuses me the most 50SOG, the difference in distribution between the two is huge, Gordon on his day is a brilliant shot stopper, but nappy changing stuff playing the ball out with his feet, unless we're missing something that's happening at training, I would give Bain a run, if he's good enough for the cups, he's good enough for the league, if it doesn't work out CG might return in a better frame of mind knowing he doesn't own the jersey.

Agree with you there mate, I would give Scottie a run in the team, however to me it looks like Brendan still favours big Cragie, I dont dislike Cragie but I have been calling for Scott to get a run since last season.
 
Bain gets my vote all the time. Gordon just makes me feel anxious and a hop skip and a jump away from total heart failure.
 
I like Gordon, his distribution leaves a lot to be desired aye but overall he’s a great shot stopper and has done some job for us.

In saying that, Bain has impressed and having that competition should push CG on - if not, I’d be happy for him to get a bash.
 
I'm happy to concede Deadner, as I did in my earlier post, that when it comes to distribution and playing it out from the back Bain is the better option but as to who's the better shot-stopper, it's Gordon all day long imo.

I'm not saying Bain isn't a good keeper or doesn't deserve a chance to make the jersey his own I'm just saying there are pros and cons to dropping Gordon and bringing in Bain and that in our rush to criticise Gordon for his weaknesses we tend to forget his strengths and just how important a part he's played in our success over the last 3 years.

Here's a wee reminder......


HH.
What a great video and a timely reminder of how good a keeper Gordon is and the No of saves that were crucial for the double treble. I was tending to go with Bain but after seeing that video and remembering what he has done for us I would now stick with Gordon for the league and Bain for the cups
 
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