@pedro one of the best things of this blog is that we can post our own opinions without recourse to aggravated responses or illiterate ranting. I appreciate others posting their views and long may it continue.
I know a lot of people will disagree with my observations but it is believed that a significant amount of money was taken out of club funds for other management requirements.
What this meant of course was that targets that were originally due to be signed were taken off the radar and key players were sold to raise funds. Third and fourth choice players were signed to fill the gaps and all the recruitment team knew that the first team was lopsided imbalanced and lacked experience.
Steve Gibson has acknowledged that fact and is why Woodgate is still held in high regard by most of the MFC staff who also acknowledge it was a hopeless situation to manage.
i am not going to post conjecture or add to rumour why the funds were taken out but it could have had a catastrophic effect resulting in relegation.
There is no substitute for experience in identifying players required and I’m sure Neil Warnock in conjunction with the recruitment team will source new players who can add to the current squad. OFB
What this meant of course was that targets that were originally due to be signed were taken off the radar and key players were sold to raise funds. Third and fourth choice players were signed to fill the gaps and all the recruitment team knew that the first team was lopsided imbalanced and lacked experience.
Think I should have used a Brewery rather than a Kitchen in my previous analogy!
If that is what was going on (and I have no reason to disbelieve OFB, in fact quite the contrary) then the Golden Thread spin was ten times worse than even I thought. It doesn't change my opinion that Woodgate needs to leave the Club and prove his worth elsewhere (I doubt that in the long term he will do either) but it seriously questions the competence of the senior management team. It perhaps adds some context to Bevington's departure.
It also brings into question those that operated under that farce, I know I have walked for a lot less.
Hopefully we start this season with a clean sheet all the high earners (bar three or four) out of the door and another years experience under their belt for Tav Wing etc.
No further major funds are expected to be withdrawn and the budget is what it is.
So let’s look forward to this next season
Up the Boro
OFB
@redcarred Far better said than my post RR. Just when will somebody in MFC, ie. Mr Gibson, see the error of their ways.
On the recruitment front, I think that NW's comments in the Hartlepool Mail as detailed below explain a lot:
"We’re a little bit like that. We have good people doing good jobs in recruitment – full-time as well, and I’ve never experienced that before with so many full-time people on recruitment.
But at the end of the day, what they might think are the attributes of a defender, I might not. We had a disagreement last week. The stats showed these two players were the best in Europe at defending against one-versus-ones, but within 20 seconds of seeing each one, I said, ‘I’m sorry, but they can’t defend’.
Stats can be misleading, although they do help you to lower the numbers because, as you can imagine, every agent is trying to push their players at the moment.”
With only one player recruited so far it looks as if, despite NW's intention to put pressure on targets for decisions, he might soon be realising the realities of trying to get players to come to MFC.
There does not appear to be any progress on the Goode situation and we are now being linked with a Spurs midfielder who was on loan at QPR last season; given he is a Londoner and that QPR are also interested, then I do not rate our chances highly.
Perhaps it is a bit early but it appears to me that this transfer window has all the hallmarks of those of the past. NW may soon be changing his opinion of those in the recruitment team! 😎
More footballers living down to their reputations......
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-53693871
I’ve been thinking it over and I can’t remember many Boro stars who came from London. It feels as if there are more who came from overseas to add to the northern, provincial and country recruits. I’m aware that this is a fairly unscientific comment and I’ve probably forgotten loads of people but perhaps point of origin is more crucial than we know and even if you can convince someone from ‘the big smoke’ to move, they rarely ever reach their potential.
UTB
@selwynoz I wouldn’t mind Merson, Ince, Townsend, Dean Gordon, Luke Young, Ehiogu or Southgate in their prime right now!
I’d even take Justin Hoyte.
Fair point although quite a few of those weren’t with London clubs when they moved to Boro which is probably what I meant.
One area / country we hardly ever import from, that I can remember of late, is the Scandinavian block. Sweden, Norway, Denmark, (Braithwaite) and Finland? Although Jarkko may have something to say on the latter. 😉
@originalfatbob
another good point. It’s clearly down to the player and his preparedness to accept the lifestyle. I was originally thinking that people brought up in London and used to playing for London clubs can find it hard but, as demonstrated, there are plenty of exceptions. Anyway, I hope that Grant Hall is one of them. He certainly comes across well.
By the way, any idea why we would want an up and coming young goalkeeper. We have limited money and plenty of keepers on the books. I’d understand an experienced backup guy on a free or near-free but not paying money which we need in other areas.
any hints?
Rumours that Adam Reach was at Rockliffe today but I don’t have any firm evidence other than twitter chat !
OFB
@selwynoz we signed Bolo Zenden on loan from Chelsea and loads of other Chelsea players
JFH , Bolo Zenden and Geremi are not exactly Cockney Diamond Geezers....
JFH , Bolo Zenden and Geremi are not exactly Cockney Diamond Geezers....
Robert Huth couldn’t get through a weekend without a jellied eel apparently 😀
One area / country we hardly ever import from, that I can remember of late, is the Scandinavian block. Sweden, Norway, Denmark, (Braithwaite) and Finland? Although Jarkko may have something to say on the latter. 😉
You are right. We had a young lad from Sweden once but did not made the grade. Also Finnish Mikael Soisalo but he was only at the youth side and was never promoted to the first team squad. He is still only 22 and not established in the Netherlands.
But since Michel Beck and Fjortoft, there hasn't been any. I know that Boro and Gary Gill like the Nordic mentality which usually does not mean problems (Breithwaite excepting) and the players are hardworking and good at training. And they usually speak English well and should intergrate well.
Boro were interested in Joel Pohjanpalo when he was young - I discusssed about him shortly with Magga while I was visiting Rockcliffe - but nothing came out of it. The player hit a hat-trick on his debut in the Finnish Premier League at the time He was on loan at Hamburg from Bayern Leverkusen last season and scored goals for fun in the 2nd tier. But he had been injured for well over a year before that.
Yes, Boro should have done better with players coming through the Nordics. Especially so with the mentality of the area on Teessside and the Viking history. Up the Boro!
Interestingly, Joel Pohjanpalo started HJK Helsinki's first league match of the 2012 Veikkausliiga season on 15 April 2012, scoring a hat-trick within the space of three minutes (162 seconds) against IFK Mariehamn. HJK are the biggest club in Finland.
Ken, have you ever heard a debut hatrick scored on a senior level that quickly? And on a debut match? Joel is now 25 year old and playing in the Bundesliga. Still a possible signing for Boro but could cost a couple of millions, though
Up the Boro!
I say give Jarkko the Nordic scouting job.
@billy. I agree and he couldn't do any worse than the current permanent recruitment team! 😎
No pressure then Jarkko, just find us someone who can score a debut hat trick, even if its a goalkeeper!
@jarkko
Short answer is no, not on a debut. I don’t know whether you have heard of the Saint and Greavsie show that was an ITV televised show during the football season every Saturday lunch time from 1985 to 1992. Greavsie is of course Jimmy Greaves an English international who was a member of England’s 1966 winning Word Cup squad though was actually never chosen to play in any of the matches. He was also noted for sometimes ending the show with the words “Funny old game, ain’t it!” Meanwhile Saint was Ian St John a Scottish International who played most of his career for Liverpool. However he started his career with Motherwell and in a Scottish League Cup tie away to Hibernian on the 15th of August 1959 he scored a hat trick in 2 minutes 30 seconds.
That record was subsequently beaten by Bournemouth’s 84th minute substitute James Hayter who on the 24th of February 2004 scored a hat trick in 2 minutes 20 seconds against Wrexham. Bournemouth were already leading 3-0 at the time, so it might be possible that it could have been Hayter’s debut, but I can’t substantiate that.
But the quickest hat trick I can find was in a Scottish Highland League match where it is reputed that 18 year old Tommy Ross completed a hat trick for Ross County against Nairn County on the 28th of November 1964 in 90 seconds. That almost sounds unbelievable to me, but that is what I have read.
Ken, they all sound unbelievable. Thanks for the records - where did you get the info so quickly? Unbelievable.
When did a Boro player last score a hat-trick? Jelle Vossen or Scott McDonald ...
Up the Boro!
Ken, they all sound unbelievable. Thanks for the records - where did you get the info so quickly? Unbelievable.
When did a Boro player last score a hat-trick? Jelle Vossen or Scott McDonald ...
Up the Boro!
Bamford vs Leeds?
Ken, they all sound unbelievable. Thanks for the records - where did you get the info so quickly? Unbelievable.
When did a Boro player last score a hat-trick? Jelle Vossen or Scott McDonald ...
Up the Boro!
Well not from Wikipedia, although I did recall about Ian St John but not the exact details. Met him on a golfing holiday in the Algarve, but I was only a spectator and had a chat with him and Jimmy Tarbuck.
In answer to your other question neither, it was Patrick Bamford against Leeds on the 2nd of March 2018. Was that a trick question?