Transfer News and Gossip Transfer Rumours Thread 2023-24

[SUFCGoals]

I think we need 4 or 5 fresh faces to drive competition for places and fill in areas with less depth. No chance Maher and co are going to sign players who they don't feel are good enough to play in the first team consistently.

 

[Tampa Blue]

On the other hand in our moment of desperate need Ralph didn’t disappear at the end of his contract but stayed. So on that basis I would expect the club to give him a new contract. Not a great message re how we value people if we didn’t.

Very fair point tbh.

Guess we don't know whether he actually had any other offers like we know Bridge had but totally take your point.

Like I said if he stays fit then he's a nailed on starter imho.

Perhaps our next signing should be Yeovil's physio who seems to be getting a tune out of Hyde and Murphy

 

[annie1954]

Totally agree with this with the proviso that Ralph is so fragile that we simply cannot rely on him.

When fit he plays pretty well and I would be really happy with him in the team.

Unfortunately he is not fit very often and imho needs replacing with someone who can play 80 to 90% of our games.

We simply can't afford wages on players sitting in the treatment room continuously.

Hopefully we will bring in some stronger players I know there will always be injuries but as you say players like Ralph will never play regularly he always in & out of the team through injury

 

[londonblue]

Forget Acquah. He did nothing at Southend. He stuck to defenders and was easily marked out of games. He couldn't leap high to beat the central defenders, and his touch was poor. He also hardly had a shot on goal. He must have improved by now, and best of luck to him, but he just doesn't suit our style. Another hard working type like Cardwell is the way to go. Someone that finds space in the box and never stops trying.

And yet he's now playing at a higher level than us, so (as you say) he must have improved...

 

[danbowen]

Is there any update on when the embargo should be cleared? I remember seeing last week that the new owners wanted it cleared asap.

 

[SUFCGoals]

Is there any update on when the embargo should be cleared? I remember seeing last week that the new owners wanted it cleared asap.

Probably once the takeover is completed

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

And yet he's now playing at a higher level than us, so (as you say) he must have improved...

Yes, obviously improved, but he's not for us.

 

[barton west]

I can think of only one occasion in the last couple of years when we have played a team that was clearly one division, or maybe even two divisions, better than us. That was Notts County, and we got slaughtered.
We have a team that is playing well, and can more than hold its own in the National League. But with the group of players we have, would we be allowed to play as well in a higher division? I doubt it.
We must look to constantly improve, which means bringing in some better players, displacing some of those we have.
Phil Brown is not a name that slides easily off the tongue, but when we were promoted from two to one, he released several players that were fans’ favourites, strengthened and restructured to prepare for a tougher challenge. I was impressed at the time, and still am.
I expect that this will happen when (if) we get out of the NL.

 

[Thundersley Blue]

Is there any update on when the embargo should be cleared? I remember seeing last week that the new owners wanted it cleared asap.

Think you will find that I think it was Kevin who said, the embargo should be lifted within 7 to 10 days of the completion. There are still monies due to HMRC amongst others, but won't be cleared until sale completed.

 

[The Dirty One]

I can think of only one occasion in the last couple of years when we have played a team that was clearly one division, or maybe even two divisions, better than us. That was Notts County, and we got slaughtered.
We have a team that is playing well, and can more than hold its own in the National League. But with the group of players we have, would we be allowed to play as well in a higher division? I doubt it.
We must look to constantly improve, which means bringing in some better players, displacing some of those we have.
Phil Brown is not a name that slides easily off the tongue, but when we were promoted from two to one, he released several players that were fans’ favourites, strengthened and restructured to prepare for a tougher challenge. I was impressed at the time, and still am.
I expect that this will happen when (if) we get out of the NL.

Yeah, like Barry Corr..... orange coloured idiot!

 

[BoyWonder2]

I stand corrected then! Hadn't realised that the whole team of scouts would have been quite so active in the face of a seemingly never ending embargo. Will activity be ramped up though given the impending takeover in a few weeks?

The footballing department have been out watching games constantly, so they’ve always been ready to strike when they’ve been allowed too.

Unfortunately, they’ve rarely been allowed to.

Across John Still & Stan Collymore, I highly doubt there is a player in the country that the Club isn’t aware about.

It’s not just been watching matches though. The footballing department carry out a lot of work behind the scenes on the players they identify. I know we don’t like the phrase, but they do a lot of “Those words are banned” on potential signings. It isn’t a coincidence that the group of players we have now are incredibly likeable, and have stuck by us. You don’t hear stories of them out causing problems, relationship issues etc etc. They do a deep down character search on players. Actually get to know them as men, not just as football players.

We’ve turned down decent players because they haven’t had the right character in the past.

They’ll speak to current and ex-coaches, current and ex-team mates, parents, wives and partners and so on, not just the player and his agent. How a proper Club does these types of things.

 

[Bromley Blue]

The footballing department have been out watching games constantly, so they’ve always been ready to strike when they’ve been allowed too.

Unfortunately, they’ve rarely been allowed to.

Across John Still & Stan Collymore, I highly doubt there is a player in the country that the Club isn’t aware about.

It’s not just been watching matches though. The footballing department carry out a lot of work behind the scenes on the players they identify. I know we don’t like the phrase, but they do a lot of “Those words are banned” on potential signings. It isn’t a coincidence that the group of players we have now are incredibly likeable, and have stuck by us. You don’t hear stories of them out causing problems, relationship issues etc etc. They do a deep down character search on players. Actually get to know them as men, not just as football players.

We’ve turned down decent players because they haven’t had the right character in the past.

They’ll speak to current and ex-coaches, current and ex-team mates, parents, wives and partners and so on, not just the player and his agent. How a proper Club does these types of things.

Would love to hear a player’s wife slate her husband and inadvertently talk him out of a move to the Thames Estuary Galacticos!

 

[londonblue]

Yes, obviously improved, but he's not for us.

Indeed. He wouldn't want to take a step backwards. I'd forgotten he'd moved on from Maidenhead.

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

I can think of only one occasion in the last couple of years when we have played a team that was clearly one division, or maybe even two divisions, better than us. That was Notts County, and we got slaughtered.

I’ve been raving about Notts County since we played them away at the start of the Maher era. I thought last season they looked even better, like a top half L1 team playing in the NL, so being outclassed by them was no disgrace. It’s no surprise to see them top of L2. As impressive as they were it’s worth noting we still went toe to toe with them at Roots Hall.

I’d add Chesterfield to the list of teams who thoroughly outclassed us if we go back to Phil Brown’s last game in charge (subsequent games have been closer but they’ve looked the better side) and Stockport away - although that was hard to judge as our squad had a covid outbreak and was very low energy. Stockport were of course promoted and I see are currently second in L2. They were very ordinary when they visited Roots Hall early in the season but went on an incredible second half run - would have been interesting to see them at the Hall during that. I’d expect Chesterfield to finish top half of L2 next season.

Reckon there will be a fair few opponents who’d rank us as being a class above.

 

[overseas shrimper]

Would love to hear a player’s wife slate her husband and inadvertently talk him out of a move to the Thames Estuary Galacticos!

Maybe they want to ask how they feel about the move themselves. If they aren't happy with it, it could eventually cause problems for the player.

 

[Bromley Blue]

Maybe they want to ask how they feel about the move themselves. If they aren't happy with it, it could eventually cause problems for the player.

Yeah that’s a good point. My reply was pretty tongue in cheek anyway.

 

[overseas shrimper]

Yeah that’s a good point. My reply was pretty tongue in cheek anyway.

I was sure it was tongue in cheek, but thought I'd mention that possibility.

 

[barton west]

I’ve been raving about Notts County since we played them away at the start of the Maher era. I thought last season they looked even better, like a top half L1 team playing in the NL, so being outclassed by them was no disgrace. It’s no surprise to see them top of L2. As impressive as they were it’s worth noting we still went toe to toe with them at Roots Hall.

I’d add Chesterfield to the list of teams who thoroughly outclassed us if we go back to Phil Brown’s last game in charge (subsequent games have been closer but they’ve looked the better side) and Stockport away - although that was hard to judge as our squad had a covid outbreak and was very low energy. Stockport were of course promoted and I see are currently second in L2. They were very ordinary when they visited Roots Hall early in the season but went on an incredible second half run - would have been interesting to see them at the Hall during that. I’d expect Chesterfield to finish top half of L2 next season.

Reckon there will be a fair few opponents who’d rank us as being a class above.

I had Stockport and Chesterfield in mind when I wrote post 2128. Yes they were better than us, but not a division or two better at the time.
In recruiting, it seems to me there are two ways to go about it:
1.Will this player we’re looking at do a job for us in getting us out of this league?
2. Or would this player be comfortable in playing at a higher level? In our case league 2.
I would not attempt to second guess our excellent coaching team, but I suggest that the white board would look somewhat different depending on which of the two questions you ask.
Perhaps it depends on budget. We don’t know yet what the new owners are saying to Kev and co, but if they are ambitious and are able to fund those ambitions, question 2 is the one we should be asking.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

The footballing department have been out watching games constantly, so they’ve always been ready to strike when they’ve been allowed too.

Unfortunately, they’ve rarely been allowed to.

Across John Still & Stan Collymore, I highly doubt there is a player in the country that the Club isn’t aware about.

It’s not just been watching matches though. The footballing department carry out a lot of work behind the scenes on the players they identify. I know we don’t like the phrase, but they do a lot of “Those words are banned” on potential signings. It isn’t a coincidence that the group of players we have now are incredibly likeable, and have stuck by us. You don’t hear stories of them out causing problems, relationship issues etc etc. They do a deep down character search on players. Actually get to know them as men, not just as football players.

We’ve turned down decent players because they haven’t had the right character in the past.

They’ll speak to current and ex-coaches, current and ex-team mates, parents, wives and partners and so on, not just the player and his agent. How a proper Club does these types of things.

Long may it continue this way! Hopefully with the same football department for some years to come. They won’t get every decision right but the approach is excellent and their record so far is too. With the rat gone, the coming few years should hopefully be a great time to be a Shrimper.

 

[CanveyCastle]

Hopefully without Rat (wealth of debt) Martin at the helm any prospective players won't be put off by the thought of not being paid.