Stephen McLaughlin, Will Atkinson, Michael Kightly

[Banksy]

Stephen McLaughlin and Will Atkinson - They are vital to our promotion push. I can see us getting there when McLaughlin returns with hopefully the same impact and goals he showed prior to his injury. Always rated Kightly at this level. A return with Gary Hooper would be good (next year) - could get a good couple of years out of them who, unfortunately, were both written off by Steve Tilson before their true potential had emerged !

 

[Angell Delight]

Stephen McLaughlin and Will Atkinson - They are vital to our promotion push. I can see us getting there when McLaughlin returns with hopefully the same impact and goals he showed prior to his injury. Always rated Kightly at this level. A return with Gary Hooper would be good (next year) - could get a good couple of years out of them who, unfortunately, were both written off by Steve Tilson before their true potential had emerged !

Hooper? The guy's on around £25k a week at Wednesday! :unsure: #NoChance

 

[Thundersley Blue]

Think you are being a little unfair on Tilly. For whatever reason Hooper could not produce the level of performance at Southend that he managed at Hereford or Scunthorpe especially. Tilly did Kightley a big favour in allowing him to leave. Kightly was injury prone plus he had one Mark Gower in his way. Both are injury prone now so can't see what purpose would be served in having them back and in any case I would imagine their wages would prove a stumbling block.

 

[Dubai]

Hooper was pony and Knightly needed to play regular **** football

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

I was expecting some sort of punchline.

 

[Rattus Norvegicus]

I can't repeat the story about Kightly again. He was never going to progress and it was just luck that the situation was sorted. Okay - some might say "luck" is wrong but it is easy with hindsight.

As for Hooper - I remember seeing him play in the 3-1 defeat of Leeds in the League Cup and thought we had turned a corner ........ only to find (once again) that we hadn't.




Hash tag: Someyouwinsomeyoulose

 

[Angell Delight]

I can't repeat the story about Kightly again. He was never going to progress and it was just luck that the situation was sorted. Okay - some might say "luck" is wrong but it is easy with hindsight.

As for Hooper - I remember seeing him play in the 3-1 defeat of Leeds in the League Cup and thought we had turned a corner ........ only to find (once again) that we hadn't.




Hash tag: Someyouwinsomeyoulose

Wasn't it something about Kightly not eating breakfast at Southend? :smiles:

 

[Rattus Norvegicus]

Wasn't it something about Kightly not eating breakfast at Southend? :smiles:

Exactly - not eating before a match and then finding he didn't have the energy to compete. Some might say "what a doughnut" .....................:dim:

 

[IloveShrimp]

Hooper was played out of position by Tilson. Fans where I sat at the time were all shocked that Tilson got rid of Kightley.

 

[Firestorm]

There were stories of Hoopers Dad being a right pain, demanding his son play and pestering the manager (both here and at Grays before he joined us) , no coincidence that he excelled when playing away from this area (Hereford on loan, Scunny, Celtic)

 

[Brett Angle]

There were stories of Hoopers Dad being a right pain, demanding his son play and pestering the manager (both here and at Grays before he joined us) , no coincidence that he excelled when playing away from this area (Hereford on loan, Scunny, Celtic)

I heard that too at the time from a source very close to the club.

Look if someone is daft enough to pay him £25k a week then good luck to him and his Dad. Frankly every time I saw him play for Southend and Norwich he looked distinctly average. He wouldn't get on the subs bench here at the moment anyway!

 

[Brett Angle]

Hooper was played out of position by Tilson. Fans where I sat at the time were all shocked that Tilson got rid of Kightley.

i wasn't. At the time he was released he looked lightweight and pretty powder puff. Saying that when a move to Man Utd was mooted I started to question my judgement a bit!

I think Tilly was guilty of a few things that ultimately cost him his career (and us relegation back to L2) however releasing Kightly wasn't one of them. There wouldn't have been too many fans at the time, if they are being honest, that were surprised he was let go.

 

[Mick]

I think Tilly was guilty of a few things that ultimately cost him his career (and us relegation back to L2)

...... like not being able to retain and motivate players who were not being paid. Shame on him.

 

[WESTY_SUFC]

...... like not being able to retain and motivate players who were not being paid. Shame on him.

And yet when backed lead a relegation threatened league 2 side to the championship...how people forget.

 

[Feathers]

Kightly was just one of those things. Players develop at different times and you cannot keep hold of every youth player just in case.

Hooper never really shone at Southend however I felt at the time, and still do, we were premature in selling him. He had a successful spell at Hereford proving he knew how to score yet we immediately sold him without giving a chance to build on that.

 

[AndyT]

There were stories of Hoopers Dad being a right pain, demanding his son play and pestering the manager

He wasn't like that when he was in Sesame Street! :omg:

 

[Brett Angle]

...... like not being able to retain and motivate players who were not being paid. Shame on him.

No, long before then. Anyway the fact he has never worked in the Football League since (despite 2 successive promotions including L1 title) tells you something (or should). However I repeat I AGREED with him at the time around Kightly and I think people who are saying they didn't are looking back with the benefit of hindsight.

 

[Brett Angle]

And yet when backed lead a relegation threatened league 2 side to the championship...how people forget.

No one will forget. Question I'd leave you with though is why hasn't another Chairman with similar ambitions in L1 or L2 hired him to do a similar job since?

 

[rigsby]

No one will forget. Question I'd leave you with though is why hasn't another Chairman with similar ambitions in L1 or L2 hired him to do a similar job since?

He has had another job at Lincoln, he took them out of L2 :winking:

 

[WESTY_SUFC]

No one will forget. Question I'd leave you with though is why hasn't another Chairman with similar ambitions in L1 or L2 hired him to do a similar job since?

It's a question not I or many could answer for but have a good idea that he wouldn't be that great at interview's.