Transfer News Transfer window 2020/21

[Scotchegg]

Long and Ruffels should have never been first choices. They are nothing more than squad players. People won't like that but that's the truth.

Actually, it's an opinion, and not a particularly informed one at that!

Mousinho was going to retire before last season started.

No he wasn't.

Nico Jones is a 17 year old kid.

He's 18!

 

[werthersoriginal]

Actually, it's an opinion, and not a particularly informed one at that!



No he wasn't.



He's 18!

I’m a bit surprised Jones isn’t more in the frame, he did ok for a few games the season before last. If he can’t drive give him a lift!

 

[Victor1986]

Excellent post kamal. Successful teams are built from the back - looks like we are going to be very unsuccessful this season unless Karl takes his head out of the sand.

 

[Mellowyellow]

Perhaps some posters should revert back to prior to a ball being kicked when the general consensus was that we had a decent squad and some on here were predicting minimum of a Play Off place.

At the back there was Clare-Long-Atkinson-Mous-Moore-Jones-Ruffels so 7 for 4 positions. Remember "Before a ball was kicked"

I've kept repeating that we've been unable to name a settled back 5 or actual 6 with Gorrin and how important this is and yet posters are playing the hindsight game and various solutions include getting another keeper + other names of defenders thrown into the hat. We have Sam Long who can play anywhere across the back and does a decent job but then of course some posters either don't like the guy or appreciate his value to the squad.

It is stated on here that we have 6/7 options attacking wise, Wingers Strikers etc the same as we began with at the back yet this appears to be looked at differently.

Having watched every game i maintain that we are not far away and all this talk of being shi* and in for a relegation battle is an over reaction, mistakes in matches happen some are punished others not and it's not as though we've been outplayed. We have a decent squad and one that many predicted was good enough to challenge, they haven't become bad just because of the odd error here or there.

So far this season the squad have not shown evidence of being a good squad. What fans will judge them and kr on will be results. We have huge defensive issues to deal with, that no end of positive spin can cover up, whether from some fans or kr himself. We need a commanding CB, who is going to be the glue to create a defensive unit, to support Eastwood, and we've needed one since Dickie left.

 

[IsleofWightYellow]

Perhaps some posters should revert back to prior to a ball being kicked when the general consensus was that we had a decent squad and some on here were predicting minimum of a Play Off place.

At the back there was Clare-Long-Atkinson-Mous-Moore-Jones-Ruffels so 7 for 4 positions. Remember "Before a ball was kicked"

I've kept repeating that we've been unable to name a settled back 5 or actual 6 with Gorrin and how important this is and yet posters are playing the hindsight game and various solutions include getting another keeper + other names of defenders thrown into the hat. We have Sam Long who can play anywhere across the back and does a decent job but then of course some posters either don't like the guy or appreciate his value to the squad.

It is stated on here that we have 6/7 options attacking wise, Wingers Strikers etc the same as we began with at the back yet this appears to be looked at differently.

Having watched every game i maintain that we are not far away and all this talk of being shi* and in for a relegation battle is an over reaction, mistakes in matches happen some are punished others not and it's not as though we've been outplayed. We have a decent squad and one that many predicted was good enough to challenge, they haven't become bad just because of the odd error here or there.

Right - and if we’d had two of the wingers injured, two quite badly out of form and one not developing as hoped, and yet Karl was saying ‘we don’t need wingers, we need a central defender’ while all of our defence was fit and playing ok then I’d be saying Karl, Karl, Karl, sign a winger!

If Moore and Atkinson were fit and starting every week, Mousinho was on the bench and rotating in and out of the team on cup games, Ruffels and Clare were playing 7/10 every game with Long providing yet more cover across the back line on the bench, then no-one would be asking for another defender. It’s not a squad issue as such, it’s a specific issue due to injuries and loss of form. It’s just strange that, now, right now (forget what people were saying ‘before a ball was kicked’, that’s irrelevant) Karl thinks we’re more short out wide than we are at the back.

 

[WuTang]

Actually, it's an opinion, and not a particularly informed one at that!



No he wasn't.



He's 18!

Just because you don't agree doesn't make it "not particularly informed" opinion, I and many others completely agree.

Mousinho wasn't planning to fully retire but he was only going to be registered as a backup and move into management, so his point still stands.

He's just turned 18 and may as well be a 17 year old who isn't ready, it makes no difference in the end and again his point still stands.

 

[Scotchegg]

Just because you don't agree doesn't make it "not particularly informed" opinion, I and many others completely agree.

Mousinho wasn't planning to fully retire but he was only going to be registered as a backup and move into management, so his point still stands.

He's just turned 18 and may as well be a 17 year old who isn't ready, it makes no difference in the end and again his point still stands.

Both players have been playing in the first team, with neither letting the team down prior to this season where no one has come out of it well. So saying that Ruffels and Long are squad players at best, is uninformed.

Mous wasn't planning on retiring, it was Robinson who talked about a move into coaching. Mous carried on playing and performed well.

Nico Jones turned 18 in February!!

So, the opinions are valid but the facts as presented are false!

 

[tonyw]

“It’s evident we do need another wide player... Equally, you look at that back line and you do need something in there... But if you just go for a centre back, it doesn’t half leave you short in the left back area and the wide area.”

Karl, Karl, Karl.

You currently have fit Dan Agyei, Joel Cooper, Mide Shodipo, Mark Sykes, James Henry and Anthony Forde who can all do a reasonable job out wide. Six players. For two positions.

You aren’t short in the wide area. Please don’t make this the hill that you die on. Just sign a centre back and play Cooper and Agyei on the wings. They both seem quite good and play pretty well

Lots of love,

A frustrated fan

Great letter - but you missed Rob Hall. It's actually seven players for two spots!

 

[WuTang]

Both players have been playing in the first team, with neither letting the team down prior to this season where no one has come out of it well. So saying that Ruffels and Long are squad players at best, is uninformed.

Mous wasn't planning on retiring, it was Robinson who talked about a move into coaching. Mous carried on playing and performed well.

Nico Jones turned 18 in February!!

So, the opinions are valid but the facts as presented are false!

That essentially describes them as squad players. Ruffels has been first choice left back so has not been a "squad" player, but the quality of the players has been described as "squad players at best", so unfortunately you just misread or misinterpreted the original post.

Okay, so you agree he has moved into coaching and although he wasn't planning on fully retiring before the season began he is certainly halfway there and therefore should be nowhere near the first team if recruitment was sufficient.

It was an excellent post and your "facts" do not change or impact anything that was said, so it just read like meaningless arrogant drivel of a reply to a great post.

 

[Oxford1996]

Ashley Williams or Adrian Marriapa seem like the 2 if we was gonna go for a CB on a deal till the end of the season.

 

[WuTang]

Ashley Williams or Adrian Marriapa seem like the 2 if we was gonna go for a CB on a deal till the end of the season.

Both played plenty of times last season at higher levels, I think it would be great signing if we got one of these, they would need to take a big hit on wages but I'm sure they'd rather be playing by this stage, and options must be pretty dry after the registration has passed.

 

[Followtheox1]

I never thought before the start of the season that "Clare-Long-Atkinson-Mous-Moore-Jones-Ruffels" is a good defence. In fact I said in the Summer that if we go into this season with Eastwood, Ruffels and Long as starting players then we will be in trouble.

Long and Ruffels should have never been first choices. They are nothing more than squad players. People won't like that but that's the truth. They are good squad players but nothing more. Management would even agree hence we have signed multiple Right Backs in the past few years. Unfortunately Cadden was the only one that really worked out but now he's rotting away in the MLS.

Atikison before this season had never kicked a ball in the Football League. It's a big ask for him to jump from the conference to a league one team that is expected to fight for promotion. Mousinho was going to retire before last season started. He is now mainly apart of the management team and is struggling with injures. There were times last season where he looked off it, and his only appearance this season he got dragged about. It was very clear that a 34 year old John Mousinho this season should have been no where near the starting lineup, and only be used to play games such as the Checktrade ones.

Nico Jones is a 17 year old kid. I think it was quite obvious that he was never going be in the first team picture. The issue with the defence isn't a new one. It has been here for nearly a couple years now. The management should have seen this coming. It was very obvious in the Summer that we needed to replace Dickie with another CB who would partner Moore. That would be our main partnership. We would then have Atikinson as the third CB. He would still be developing in training, would play the cup games and push the other 2 for a starting spot. Mousinho would then be the 4th CB who would cover for any injuries etc.

You build a team from the back. When theres question marks over your Goalie, left back, centre back and right back you're not going to get very far.

Sorry, I think you are wrong about Ruffles. Long, yes, has some clear deficiencies as a L1 defender although I do think he has the ability to get better. I certainly think of him as more of a useful squad player at present rather than someone who should be a first choice defender although some would say he would do a better job at RB than Claire.

Ruffles, on the other hand, was our first choice left back last season when we got to the playoffs. I think he has proven himself as a solid L1 left back who I think was our most used outfield player last year. This season he has been injured, probably thrown back in too soon due to our lack of defenders and has been a bit ropey since back but far from our worst defender this season. I've got no issues with him being first choice left back.

 

[Essexyellows]

Have we signed a defender yet?*





*asking for a friend.

Cheers.

 

[Thecurraghofkildare]

Great letter - but you missed Rob Hall. It's actually seven players for two spots!

And Marcus McGuane who did a decent enough job on the left side versus Milton Keynes Dons plus Clare could be an option on the right with his pace - so that's 8 or even possibly 9 to play who could play the two wide positions!!

Whereas we currently have only 4 fit defenders, two of whom are out of form (Moore and Ruffels), certainly compared to the standards they set last season, while Clare is a defensive accident waiting to happen.

 

[tonyw]

Whereas we currently have only 4 fit defenders, two of whom are out of form (Moore and Ruffels), certainly compared to the standards they set last season, while Clare is a defensive accident waiting to happen.

And the 4th is really a RB playing out of position at Centre Half!

 

[westyorkshireexile]

And Marcus McGuane who did a decent enough job on the left side versus Milton Keynes Dons plus Clare could be an option on the right with his pace - so that's 8 or even possibly 9 to play who could play the two wide positions!!

Whereas we currently have only 4 fit defenders, two of whom are out of form (Moore and Ruffels), certainly compared to the standards they set last season, while Clare is a defensive accident waiting to happen.

I think that has already happened.

 

[Oxfordpete]

Have we signed that left winger who can be deployed as a CB yet ?

 

[m]

Have we signed that left winger who can be deployed as a CB yet ?

Yep, he'll be replacing Eastwood in goal tomorrow afternoon.

 

[Oufcrealist]

Ashley Williams or Adrian Marriapa seem like the 2 if we was gonna go for a CB on a deal till the end of the season.

Ryan Shotton would be a good signing. If we get this one signing right I think we could turn things around.

 

[Yellows1]

I never thought before the start of the season that "Clare-Long-Atkinson-Mous-Moore-Jones-Ruffels" is a good defence. In fact I said in the Summer that if we go into this season with Eastwood, Ruffels and Long as starting players then we will be in trouble.

Long and Ruffels should have never been first choices. They are nothing more than squad players. People won't like that but that's the truth. They are good squad players but nothing more. Management would even agree hence we have signed multiple Right Backs in the past few years. Unfortunately Cadden was the only one that really worked out but now he's rotting away in the MLS.

Atikison before this season had never kicked a ball in the Football League. It's a big ask for him to jump from the conference to a league one team that is expected to fight for promotion. Mousinho was going to retire before last season started. He is now mainly apart of the management team and is struggling with injures. There were times last season where he looked off it, and his only appearance this season he got dragged about. It was very clear that a 34 year old John Mousinho this season should have been no where near the starting lineup, and only be used to play games such as the Checktrade ones.

Nico Jones is a 17 year old kid. I think it was quite obvious that he was never going be in the first team picture. The issue with the defence isn't a new one. It has been here for nearly a couple years now. The management should have seen this coming. It was very obvious in the Summer that we needed to replace Dickie with another CB who would partner Moore. That would be our main partnership. We would then have Atikinson as the third CB. He would still be developing in training, would play the cup games and push the other 2 for a starting spot. Mousinho would then be the 4th CB who would cover for any injuries etc.

You build a team from the back. When theres question marks over your Goalie, left back, centre back and right back you're not going to get very far.

Brilliant summary, very well written and 100% bang on.