2019-20 Rebuild

[Neilwell86]

Hamilton Academical have signed Southend United centre-half Markus Fjortoft after the 26-year-old Norwegian agreed a one-year contract, but Accies are likely to lose out to Scottish Premiership neighbours Motherwell for the signature of Inverness Caledonian Thistle midfielder Liam Polworth. (Daily Express, print edition)

[Winning by Name]

36 minutes ago, supermarv said:

I thought he’s been pretty poor for the last few! He can turn it on when he wants but if he wasn’t so young and didn’t all love him then we’d be a lot more critical of him.

Yes but he is so young and that is why he is a much better player and asset than many are describing. Why do you want him to go? He is of a much higher quality than we could buy.

[Kmcalpin]

12 hours ago, stuwell said:

 The guys have signed extensions to stay here and play first team football. If we punt them then I hope it is after discussing it with the player and he is in total agreement with the move. I’d hate to see them getting punted to a team that then sticks them in their U23 set up, reserves or even on the bench and watch them festering. 

In short, they have stuck by us and I hope we as a club stick by them and don’t punt them against their wishes. 

Its more likely that we'll receive bids that are in line with their contract clauses and their agents' valuations rather than the club's probably higher valuations.

[Toxteth O'Grady]

Also from today's BBC Gossip:

Rangers are closing in on the signing of forward Greg Stewart, who is on loan to Aberdeen from Birmingham City, and are eyeing deals for Hearts centre-half John Souttar and Motherwell winger Jake Hastie. (The Herald)

Rangers, who recently pulled out of talks to sign Motherwell winger Jake Hastie because they felt he was dragging his heels, are to resume talks with the 20-year-old who is also is also interesting Atlanta United, Derby County, Hull City, Middlesbrough, Millwall and Portsmouth. (Daily Star)

[Guest]

1 hour ago, supermarv said:

I thought he’s been pretty poor for the last few! He can turn it on when he wants but if he wasn’t so young and didn’t all love him then we’d be a lot more critical of him.

So if we didn't like him so much, we wouldn't like him?

Okay.

[supermarv]

2 hours ago, Winning by Name said:

Yes but he is so young and that is why he is a much better player and asset than many are describing. Why do you want him to go? He is of a much higher quality than we could buy.

I have no doubt he is a very good player especially his breakthrough season but ever since that season he hasn’t hit the expected heights. Good player but overrated by us, we all still see him as a youngster but now he’s 21 and getting on a bit- 23 this summer.

1 hour ago, thisGRAEME said:

So if we didn't like him so much, we wouldn't like him?

Okay.

I didn’t exactly explain myself clearly. If he was just an ordinary solid player we had like he has been then we’d be more critical. However he came through the youth and is a local lad and we as fans are pretty biased towards him due to that. As said before very good player at times but pretty overrated.

[Yorkyred]

Cadden is always going to split opinion to a degree. I would actually  agree that he’s not had the best of seasons and at one point felt he needed a move in order to develop. However at the time I put that partly down to Robinson who had him out of position and playing a style of football that he was not suited to. I feel that young players coming through the academy will always get an easier time and you see that at Motherwell, someone like Frear has always taken more stick even though for long periods Cadden was no better. 

[Andy_P]

1 hour ago, Yorkyred said:

Cadden is always going to split opinion to a degree. I would actually  agree that he’s not had the best of seasons and at one point felt he needed a move in order to develop. However at the time I put that partly down to Robinson who had him out of position and playing a style of football that he was not suited to. I feel that young players coming through the academy will always get an easier time and you see that at Motherwell, someone like Frear has always taken more stick even though for long periods Cadden was no better. 

Shaun Fagan and Marc Fitzpatrick to name but two may tend to disagree!  But I do accept your point that generally speaking there is an extra keenness to see a home grown talent come through and do well.

[Busta Nut]

On ‎4‎/‎10‎/‎2019 at 1:47 PM, Andy_P said:

Totally Scottish Football Show

Is that any good?

[Yorkyred]

4 hours ago, Andy_P said:

Shaun Fagan and Marc Fitzpatrick to name but two may tend to disagree!  But I do accept your point that generally speaking there is an extra keenness to see a home grown talent come through and do well.

Which to be fair is totally understandable and if i’m being honest they get more leeway from me although I tend to be a “happy clapper” in general, can’t help myself.

[Yorkyred]

So that’s anything signing in the bag

[Neilwell86]

Liam polworth confirmed !!

[Big Stall]

2 minutes ago, Neilwell86 said:

Liam polworth confirmed !!

Would that be a covering the bases signing for when Turnbull inevitably moves on be it the summer or next year some time?

[DEWELL]

Happy with our 2 new signings and i like the fact that Robinson saying he's hoping to get the recruiting business done early. As i've posted before give the out of contracts a cut off date to sign up again.

[Kmcalpin]

33 minutes ago, Big Stall said:

Would that be a covering the bases signing for when Turnbull inevitably moves on be it the summer or next year some time?

Thats my immediate thoughts too. 

[Yorkyred]

They look like two very solid signings and feedback is positive. Next season though is looking like more about  who we retain, than who we lose.

[Andy_P]

5 hours ago, Busta Nut said:

Is that any good?

I quite like it.

I really enjoy the Totally Football Show. I think James Richardson is terrific and the guests are always really insightful and well informed (folk like James Horncastle, Julien Laurens and Michael Cox) so when it was revealed they were doing a Scottish version I thought brilliant. 

I then became a little scpetical when it became clear the presenters were three Scots staying in London and wondered if we were going to get the Ian Crocker style of presenting i.e. designed for an English audience ("he's just scored the winner in the Cup Final.....which Birmingham City fans will remember all too well" kind of thing). But my fears were misplaced and it's become a good listen each week with some good guests that vary from players to podcasters to bloggers who all add a different dimension.

I suppose it depends what you like. It's more polished than The Terrace but has much less dressing room humour like Keep the Ball on the Ground.  

[scoojy]

I’m actually a wee bit disappointed Laura Brannan has had to leave the podcast to take up post at MFC cos she was always good for a bit of inside info and was always positive and on our side when it came to fighting our corner.

[Busta Nut]

32 minutes ago, Andy_P said:

I then became a little scpetical when it became clear the presenters were three Scots staying in London

Aye that's why I never bothered to be honest.

I stopped listening to the Totally Football Show as it got a bit too english fitba for me. I hoped it would be more like the European football show they did on BT

[Andy_P]

3 minutes ago, Busta Nut said:

Aye that's why I never bothered to be honest.

I stopped listening to the Totally Football Show as it got a bit too english fitba for me. I hoped it would be more like the European football show they did on BT

Could maybe try On the Continent for the European stuff. I listen to that too and enjoy that.  Main show is on a Wednesday and they have the Mailbag that goes out on a Saturday.  Both usually feature James Horncastle and Andy Brassell. 

Speaking of Brassell he's started a pod called At the Match which is a really good listen too.  He pitches up at a game across Europe and a good bit of is simply recordings of the crowd to give you a feel for the atmosphere with interviews with supporters or people knowledgeable on the clubs featured.  A couple recently included Sporting v Benfica and Bayern Munich v Dortmund. 

[Dezz]

9 hours ago, Andy_P said:

Could maybe try On the Continent for the European stuff. I listen to that too and enjoy that.  Main show is on a Wednesday and they have the Mailbag that goes out on a Saturday.  Both usually feature James Horncastle and Andy Brassell. 

Speaking of Brassell he's started a pod called At the Match which is a really good listen too.  He pitches up at a game across Europe and a good bit of is simply recordings of the crowd to give you a feel for the atmosphere with interviews with supporters or people knowledgeable on the clubs featured.  A couple recently included Sporting v Benfica and Bayern Munich v Dortmund. 

On the Continent is fantastic. The depth of knowledge that James Horncastle and Andy Brassell have is frightening, and they’re both excellent at putting it across in a really enjoyable way, it’s not dry at all. Jonathan Wilson is on this weeks show, who I don’t like as much, seems a bit of a weirdo. 

I’ve given At The Match a couple of go’s now and just can’t get into it. Not sure what it is. To be fair it’s only the first two episodes I listened to so maybe it’s improved. 

[superward]

Alan Burrows giving some quotes re the Hastie situation. No real new news persay. But I'd never considered, maybe stupidly, that we cant actually take the contract offer off the table (I.e. give a deadline to push a decision) or we will lose the compo.

 https://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/sport/17581344.motherwell-chief-defends-decision-not-to-offer-long-term-contract-to-rangers-target/

[Kmcalpin]

2 hours ago, superward said:

Alan Burrows giving some quotes re the Hastie situation. No real new news persay. But I'd never considered, maybe stupidly, that we cant actually take the contract offer off the table (I.e. give a deadline to push a decision) or we will lose the compo.

 https://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/sport/17581344.motherwell-chief-defends-decision-not-to-offer-long-term-contract-to-rangers-target/

Pretty much sums up a lot of previous discussion on here but like yourself didn't know the details.  The club's general policy on this is pretty good but there will always be one or two it gets wrong.  We were caught out with Hastie but few, if any, predicted his early impact on his return from loan.  We all know he's had his head turned hence his apparent U turn on what he said publicly earlier.  It wasn't wise to come out and say what he did.  He's been made a very good offer, by our standards and its now up to him.  He's quite entitled to move on but we can't wait on him forever though.     

[Neilwell86]

saying what he said so publicly was very naive, which is to be expected from someone so young with probably next to no media training. Imagine he came out with that line to appease a rangers support, god help him. 

[Yorkyred]

47 minutes ago, Kmcalpin said:

Pretty much sums up a lot of previous discussion on here but like yourself didn't know the details.  The club's general policy on this is pretty good but there will always be one or two it gets wrong.  We were caught out with Hastie but few, if any, predicted his early impact on his return from loan.  We all know he's had his head turned hence his apparent U turn on what he said publicly earlier.  It wasn't wise to come out and say what he did.  He's been made a very good offer, by our standards and its now up to him.  He's quite entitled to move on but we can't wait on him forever though.     

I think what’s never really been accepted with Hastie is that he probably was the general acception in that he looked nothing special only a few months ago, Craigen pointed this out and showed genuine surprise at how he had upped his game so quickly and I think that caught everyone out. The club are clearly trying to find a balance with contract lengths that will maximise revenue moving forward and they are never going to get it right every time, no one does. As pointed out many young players don’t make the step up and they have to take into account someone reaching 22 and getting the contract just right to allow for compensation.