I recall Steve Tilson saying at the end of last season that this task is among the hardest he has experienced in football, as he had experienced the heartache of being released by Ronnie Whelan himself. But that did not stop him making some tough decisions, including those relating to Mark Warren, in terms of the terms offered, and David McSweeney.
It seems obvious that he will release those players who have made little or no contribution to the season. If they played very little or not at all in League Two, then they could hardly be expected to set League One alight. Hence, the departure of Jimmy Corbett, Michael Kightly, and presumably, in time, Michael Husbands and Stuart Williams unless they have already gone [I might have missed that] and, with apologies to the Tes appreciation society, Mr Bramble.
Of the players out of contract, that leaves Darryl, Che, Jay, Nicky and Lawrie.
Darryl's offer seems to be firmly on the table, according to the Echo, so little speculation there. Hopefully, no 'will he, won't he' saga this year. Either decide early Darryl, or let us get on with the task of finding a decent replacement. I hope that Tilly and Brush are firm about this.
Che has done enough to earn a contract for next season, in my opinion, and it was good to see him exorcise his Millennium Stadium demons, even getting the chance to clear one off the line at a crucial time. However, we seem to agree that Nicky Nic is not a left back, so on the principle that Tilly and Brush want two players vying for each position, does that still leave the door open for a glorious return for Chris Powell? I mentioned this in a previous post, and I agree that it is more likely that he could return, dependent on money, now that West Ham have gone back up to the top division. He has had his double bubble this weekend, but he would be a class act on the left of defence, if he returned. A 'Chris Powell is an international' song is rather more convincing than the one celebrating Tes, I think. There has been enough negative stuff about Matt Lockwood [even from Orient fans] to suggest that he is not the answer at left back. The mention of Micky Bell sounds interesting though. I seem to recall he is fairly deadly at free kicks, or maybe that is only against us. Anyone know how much he played last season?
Nicky can play a role in left midfield, and he had some good games, but perhaps this is the one player where the management will be ruthless. We shall see. Gower and Nicky have been the two alternatives on the left. Gower is there for another season, and let's hope that he is up to full fitness next campaign. So do we stick with the young Nicky Nic, and believe that the potential which is there will grow? He is still young and learning, and with a good Arsenal pedigree. On Saturday, he was lively, and putting some decent balls into the box, cutting out the keeper, but none of our players were gambling on that. He also delivers a decent corner, but the only players who ever get on the end of these are defenders. Nicky may look better next season with a tall target man to read or gamble on the crosses. So he may well be worth keeping. He certainly enlivened the midfield against Nothampton in the second game, and won the penalty. He also delivered the corner for the all important first goal on Saturday, so he has earnt a place in Blues folklore at least.
Jay Smith. Interesting. On the basis of my first argument, he would have to go. But he was excellent last season, and a goal scoring midfielder, which is what we have missed this season, to a certain extent. Where does he play though? If Maher [pronounced marher, evidently, not mayer, according to his ex-teacher who I met in the carpark at Cardiff] and Bentley are assured starters in midfield, suspensions permitting, then there is no spot for Jay. It would be a big mistake to play him out wide, as he looked very out of place there last season, when he was fitted in there on his return. We also have Guttridge and Pettefer to fit into the mix, so midfield looks well served. I would say it is worth offering Jay a short-term deal, dependent on games played, so he can prove his fitness and hopefully his worth to the team. I would love to see him contributing regularly. If he is fit, and playing like we know he can, that would be like a new signing, compared with the season just ended.
And finally, I would sign Dudfield again. His introduction, added to instructions to Eastwood at halftime to drop deeper, and Freddy's change of boots at the start of extra time, were crucial. But I suspect that if we got a tall target man, Dudfield and Gray would be the third and fourth pick up front.
So that would leave us with the following eighteen players:
GK - Darryl and Bart
RB - Lewis Hunt and Duncan 'Superstriker' Jupp - actually, I was surprised that no-one criticised him for being so far up the pitch when we were defending a slender 1-0 lead, but I am glad he was - superb finish.
LB - Super Cheese Wilson
CBs - Adam Barrett, Spinner, and Andy Edwards [although he has played few games, people seem to think he is on a two year deal], although Lewis could cover here if needed.
CM - Jay, Kevin Maher, Mark Bentley, and Guttridge
RM - Petts
LM - Nicky Nic and Gower
Strikers - Freddy, Lawrie and Wayne Gray
Tilson has said that they are looking for three or four players to improve the team. I think those should be another centre back, as cover, or possibly starting, if young and quick, against teams with a fast front line; a left back, as a starter [Chris Powell or Micky Bell?] or possibly as cover; a big target man as a starter so that we do have an alterrnative plan for up front - all too often this season, towards the end particularly, we were reliant on a moment of Freddy magic, and in some games, it was crying out for an alternative - so the Grant Holt rumours could be just what we need; and finally, a right winger as starter - I would love to see a guy who takes men on, and crosses it in for the big target man [see earlier]. Take your pick of the two Martins [Devaney or Bullock], although the latter has apparently been injured a fair bit and lives a long way away.
But what do I know? I am glad it is not my job. I don't even play Championship Manager, or whatever it is called. Incidentally, my son plays a lot of Fifa 2004, and his current Southend United team are pretty hot. Mind you, he has managed to sign Thierry Henry, Ruud van Nistelroy and Ronaldinho, and a couple of players he has created with uncannily similar names to himself. He beats the computer almost every time, and amazingly, he has retained Drewe, who regularly scores.... Art, not really reflecting life there....
Jonathan
