capt_oats
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Posts posted by capt_oats
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Annoyingly the Watt/Gallagher vs the **** spat has overshadowed the real Motherwell story of the day.
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37 minutes ago, dezz said:
Maybe we’re waiting until Budge’s latest proposal is binned just in case, but I thought we would have had a squad update by now.
On that note I see Tony Watt is dropping less than subtle hints on Instagram that he’s signed up.
I was wondering that myself. Robinson was saying in that interview last week that he'd spoken to players last Monday but he hadn't sat down with Burrows and the board yet to confirm the budgets which probably accounts for the delay in part.
In previous, less weird seasons it's been 21st or 22nd May the updates have been published: 2017, 2018, 2019. Burrows replied to a guy on Sunday saying the update would be announced "shortly".
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That's absolutely brutal news.
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That's the club made a pledge on the season tickets.
QuoteWe’re pledging that everyone who buys a season ticket for 2020/21 will get the full value of their purchase.
Almost 1,800 of you have already got your tickets for the campaign, far surpassing sales figures at this stage in normal years.
We understand that there is still no clarity over when football will resume for us, nor any prediction over when supporters will be able to attend matches again.
With that in mind, we will guarantee everyone who purchases, or has already purchased, a season ticket for 2020/21 will get the chance to attend 19 home league matches, whenever that is possible.
If that is not possible in 2020/21, we will offer you the chance to claim the credit value of the missing games back. This can either be used against the value of your season ticket for 2021/22, or if you don’t renew next year, you can claim the equivalent number of match tickets for games in 2021/22.
If matches are initially played behind closed doors, we pledge that you will not be adversely impacted.
For example, if five matches are played behind closed doors in 2020/21, you can choose to either have the value of those matches deducted from your season ticket cost for 2021/22, or we will give you the equivalent amount of match tickets for games in that season.
Everyone who buys a new season ticket will also be given free entry to our first UEFA Europa League match.
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Replay of the Aberdeen semi-final...
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34 minutes ago, ahemps said:
Are Sky or BT going to ask for any money back for this season being declared? I keep hearing that England need to fulfill their fixtures to avoid paying money back. Would the SPFL not be in the same position?
Sky might show good faith due to having the contract going forward but if BT are struggling then could they look for a refund?
As @craigkillie mentioned in his post on the previous page the suggestion seems to be that if it's an issue for Sky then the SPFL are looking at/have already agreed a deal to have them as headline sponsors in lieu of any monies owed.
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Declan Gallagher (10/10) - Easily our POTY add in Scotland call-ups and actual caps and it's hard to argue that his season could have been any better.
Liam Polworth (9/10) - Absolute baller. It says a lot for him that we finished 3rd* with him stepping into David Turnbull's boots for pretty much the entire season. Could do with adding some more goals but I'm not going to be too picky about that.
Jake Carroll (8/10) - Solid enough and so far seems immune to Stevie Hammell's cursed amulet. Should probably be a 7 as he's prone to rashness and has had a few red cards but gets an extra point from me simply because he's nowhere near the disaster Thistle and Cambridge fans were predicting. Hits a decent free kick too.
Casper Sloth (-/10) - Danish international, signed for Leeds. Played 44 minutes against Annan for Motherwell and that was his lot. Binned our of his 2 year deal after 6 months in the January window. Likes a haircut.
Jermaine Hylton (7/10) - There's a fair chance Hylton will come good. Ripped the Betfred groups to bits - then started to get found out once the real stuff started. Puts in a shift and has roasted full backs on the regular. Like most wingers at our level could do with a bit more consistency.
Chris Long (8/10) - Finished with double figures for the season - turned into a very good player for us, petulance aside. Would happily have him stick around. Gets an extra point as he ended up scoring some big goals for us despite Motherwell da's taking the huff when he signed after looking up his goal-scoring record on Wiki and being raging he wasn't Louis Moult.
Sherwin Seedorf (5/10) - Cartoon fast, scored arguably our goal of the season at Tynecastle. Pretty much disappeared once we hit December.
Christian Ilic (3/10) - FIFA 19 says he's a left back, FM 19 says he's a left back, he played left back in trial games for the Romanian club we picked him up from. For some reason Robinson decided he's a right winger. Picked up an injury, barely played.
Christy Manzinga (3/10) - Played in the PSG youths with Cedric Kipré who recommended him to us. Scored an overhead kick in a friendly against Gretna that got our socials #numbers. Scored against St Johnstone and looked like he might be fun. Sent off 10 mins after being subbed on at 1-1 against St Johnstone for a hilarious dive...and after that his tea was oot.
Ross MacIver (6/10) - Signed for the reserves, scored a worldie of an equaliser shortly after being subbed on at 1-0 down making his debut against his former club up in Dingwall. Used in games when we were short up front with Long injured, Cole back at Wigan and us counting the cool £1m for James Scott.
Bevis Mugabi (5/10) - Drafted in after Charlie Dunne picked up another long term injury. Started off well and put in some decent performances but was part of the absolute shitshow of a defence in the 4-4 cup game against St Mirren. Subbed off at H/T. Might actually be OK if he can get his confidence back. An absolute unit and has a great name.
Tony Watt (7/10) - Arrived having not kicked a ball in over a month and a half. Was starting to find his form when the shutdown happened. Scored 2 goals in 3 starts. He's absolutely welcome back.
Harry Robinson (-/10) - Signed on a short term deal 'til the end of the season for the Reserves. Son of Stephen.
Devante Cole (7/10) - Didn't score many but between him and Scott they made our front 3 work. 100% noticed his importance to the team when his loan ended and he went back to Wigan. Would have given him an 8 overall but for that sensational open goal miss against St. Johnstone.
Mark O'Hara (7/10) - By December you'd genuinely have forgotten we'd signed him. After the winter break he appeared and started monstering midfields. Watching him go full maniac cop, chucking bodies around the midfield is an absolute treat.
Mikael Ndjoli (3/10) - Barely played. Arrived, picked up an injury and then fitba' stopped.
Rolando Aarons (6/10) - Last minute signing after Scott left for Hull. Really only started to find his fitness and form when the shutdown happened - which is annoying.
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Robinson's made some comments about where we are in the press today. Seem like we'll be stripping back the first team squad from the 23 first team players on the books just now to 15-16 with 7 or 8 being promoted from the Reserves/Academy.
Quote“I believe we have six or seven younger boys who are maybe a year away from establishing themselves. Some surprise you, some come quicker, but we have offered contracts to six or seven boys around 18-19 years of age who will be the back-up to the squad.
“I think a lot of clubs will have to run with smaller squads made up of younger players. We have always done that.
“The boys will be the back-up to the 15-16 first-team players that we will be able to run with.”
We had a ton of players out of contract anyway but has still left us with a decent core and I think there are plenty Motherwell fans who'd be keen to see a bit more of folk like Jamie Semple and Dean Cornelius.
Contracted: Carson, Carroll, Grimshaw, Mugabi, Gallagher, Campbell, Turnbull, Polworth, Donnelly, Seedorf, Hylton, Devine, Semple, Cornelius, MacIver
Out of contract/loans expiring: Ferguson, Gillespie, Tait, Hartley, Dunne, Livingstone, Maguire, O'Hara, Watt, Long, Manzinga, Ilic, Aarons, Ndjoli
Of the 14 out of contract/loan ending 6 would be considered regular first team starters (Gillespie, Hartley, O'Hara, Watt, Long, Aarons). Tait's been used as back-up/cover for Grimshaw and Carroll. Dunne's missed virtually the entire season through injury. Ferguson's been on a season loan to Linfield and Livingstone was loaned out to Morton then Clyde.
I'd imagine we might offer deals to a couple of those whose contracts expire but we haven't officially updated the squad list yet although Robinson's confirmed Manzinga's away and Rohan Ferguson apparently said his goodbyes via his socials.
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Noticed there are a couple of quotes from Robinson in McGarry's article that weren't in the PLZ one.
Quote“It’s not a nice part of the job, but, unfortunately, a reality.
“At the moment, it’s still being digested by some of them and there’s a couple I haven’t been able to get a hold of yet, so it’s only fair that [their identity] stays with me at the moment.
“As the weeks develop, you’ll see the squad list. A lot of boys who were out of contract weren’t getting renewed or we couldn’t agree.
“We have made offers to players currently at the club, including six of the younger players who are at the lower end of our budget,” he said. “These are people we think will develop in the next year and are the basis of our football club.
“There are boys who have been first team players for me in the last six months and we are just trying to get a figure to put on the contract. We want them to stay but we are not able to put figures in front of them until we know the budget situation.
“We are hoping to have a little bit more clarity on that in a week to 10 days.
“We are in a decent position. Can we strengthen our squad? Can we re-sign players who have done very well? There is a limit we can go to and we have Plan A, B, C, D and E for it."
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7 minutes ago, thisGRAEME said:
Declan was on What the Falk btw, which is a very decent listen;
Also one with Lasley from the other week;
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1 hour ago, crazylegsjoe_mfc said:
Interesting that the article states we will be running with a squad of 15/16 first team players with 8/9 boys who are 18/19 backing them up. I'm hoping that MacIver is included in the 8/9 backing up which would separate @capt_oats list into 11 first team players and 4 of the backups.
By those numbers quoted, we should expect another four or five first team players. I'd have liked to sign O'Hara in an ideal world but I'd rather use our limited budget on a centre half and some wingers/forwards.
Normally, if Robinson has made an error with a player, he's pretty good at rectifying it and getting them out the door, even if they're under contract. I might have expected that this summer with Mugabi and Seedorf, had things been normal, but we probably have to resign ourselves to the fact they'll be part of the squad next season.
That's McGarry filed a piece for The Herald that covers the same stuff.
Curious to know who the "six younger players who are at the lower end of our budget" we've offered deals to are. Semple, Cornelius, Devine and MacIver are all contracted.
Fwiw, it's probably a good thing we're reining in on the "gambles" tbh. Kipré and Ally Gorrin are obvious examples where it's worked out for us but Plummer, Petravicius, Mbulu, Ilic and Manzinga are all folk we've had in on trial and taken a punt on but ended up nowhere near the first team.
I know we're not out there paying "life-changing" money but focusing on what we've got in the building for a bit probably isn't the worst idea generally speaking.
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13 minutes ago, RandomGuy. said:
We seem to be just rebuilding the 19/20 squad at the moment, so looks the route we'll be going down.
How are Motherwell looking in terms of numbers just now?
Feel sorry (I dont) for teams like County who are filled with dross and usually just spunk a wad of money every transfer window to improve, they wont be able to do that this Summer so will be forced through a season with dross.
Here you go...
16 hours ago, capt_oats said:here's who we've got under contract:
GK - Carson
DF - Carroll, Grimshaw, Mugabi, Gallagher, Devine
MF - Campbell, Turnbull, Polworth, Donnelly, Semple, Cornelius
FW - Seedorf, Hylton, MacIverTotal - 15 (inc 4 current reserves)
Pre-contracts we've been linked with: Rickie Lamie (Livingston) and Jordan White (ICT)
Loan made permanent: Mark O'HaraOut of contract/loans expiring:
17 hours ago, Casagolda said:Who do we reckon is getting kept on for next season then?
By my reckoning-
Mark Gillespie
Rohan Ferguson
Richard Tait
Charles Dunne
Peter Hartley
Adam Livingstone
Barry Maguire
Chris Long
Tony Watt
Christy Manzinga
Christian IlicAre all out of contract and the following loans will expire-
Mark O’Hara
Mikael Ndjoli(mind we signed him?)
Rolando AaronsGillespie's been linked with Newcastle though whether their new oppressive regime ownership changes that who knows. Going by the interview with him in the Record there's been Championship clubs interested too.
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13 minutes ago, crazylegsjoe_mfc said:
Rohan Ferguson has posted a "top club, wish them all the best for the future" message on twitter, so I reckon he must've been one of the ones Robbo wasn't taking the chance on.
He's in a weird position I suppose, he's always been "one for the future" but he'd be going from first choice who's playing week in, week out with Linfield (who last I checked were top of the league) to sitting on the bench behind Carson. He's been first pick at Airdrie and now Linfield.
You'd think at his age he might fancy getting regular games as he's proven he's capable, if not at Premiership level. We're also sitting with 3 x first team 'keepers and 3 x Reserves (though 4 of those 6 are out of contract - Ferguson, Gillespie, Morrison and Hemfrey).
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Robinson's updated on the playing budget side of things in an interview with Scott Mullen on the BBC.
SpoilerMotherwell manager Stephen Robinson admits his playing budget has already been impacted because of the financial pressures caused by coronavirus.
Robinson said the Fir Park club could no longer "gamble" on players after revealing some have already been told their deals would not be renewed.
"It's the hardest bit of football," Robinson said of squad cuts.
"Everyone is going to have to tighten their purse strings... we aren't in a position to take gambles."
Robinson guided Motherwell, the only fan-owned club in the Premiership, to third place in the table.
And he revealed that he has already made some tough decisions regarding his squad for next season.
"Some are probably dictated by finance at the moment. Everyone is going to have to tighten their purse strings. So boys who we were maybe going to give another year to to see how they progress we weren't able to. We just had to get to the base squad we are committed to.
"Difficult conversations but I think it was only fair to them to do it as quickly as possible to give them a heads up on their livelihoods and careers, as up until then there was still a remote chance we may have come back to play the season out.
"We aren't in a position to take gambles. We take a couple each year."
A high turnover of players is nothing new at Fir Park. Thirteen first-team members left last summer, with Robinson retaining a core for this season's campaign.
While some were told they would not be staying on Monday, new contracts have been offered to several first-team players, with clarity expected by the end of the week.
However, Robinson admits terms offered to some may change as the club adapts to financial constraints.
"Boys we have offered contracts to we are still hoping to fulfil them. It may be at a lower rate of pay," he said.
"I haven't got the budget yet as all this only happened yesterday. But it's going to make an impact, make no mistake. Every club in the country will be exactly the same, not just us.
"We are in a decent position in terms of where we finished and European football, but there will be a big impact on budget and the club, staff and Scottish football as a whole.
"We have boys contracted. We will try to fulfil the contracts to the younger boys we have offered contracts to, as that is who the club is going to be built around.
"This will become clearer this week when Jim [McMahon, chairman], Alan [Burrows, chief executive] and the board sit down on Zoom and thrash out what we are able to give. There will be a worst-case scenario which is right now when we don't know when crowds are coming in, the next when it starts opening up a little bit and possibly back to normally."
Monday's announcement that the league season had been called meant Motherwell had secured European football for the first time in six years.
And Robinson added: "It's fantastic for the whole football club, the players should be very proud. Ultimately, I thought we would have finished third over the calendar year anyway.
"I think we thoroughly deserved it, some of the football we've played has been excellent and some of the young players have really stood up."
No huge surprises there...I'd think "boys who we were maybe going to give another year to to see how they progress we weren't able to. We just had to get to the base squad we are committed to." probably makes things a bit clearer.
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6 minutes ago, well fan for life said:
My personal highlight:
Please. Tell me more about this "Big Red Button".
Also, how did we treat them?
Was it this?
or this?
I'm keen to know...
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10 hours ago, Casagolda said:
Who do we reckon is getting kept on for next season then?
By my reckoning-
Mark Gillespie
Rohan Ferguson
Richard Tait
Charles Dunne
Peter Hartley
Adam Livingstone
Barry Maguire
Chris Long
Tony Watt
Christy Manzinga
Christian IlicAre all out of contract and the following loans will expire-
Mark O’Hara
Mikael Ndjoli(mind we signed him?)
Rolando AaronsGillespie and Long have been the standouts this season of those out of contract. Gillespie is obviously on his way out though and I heard Long was keen to head back down South as well. I’d be stunned if any of Ilic, Manzinga or Livingstone are offered anything. After that, I’d say it gets slightly trickier though.
With Lamie meant to be coming in, it surely spells the end for at least one of Tait, Dunne or Hartley. I like Watt and he’s certainly looked decent in his limited game time so far but is he worth pushing the boat out to keep? And with a plethora of midfield options already under contract, plus the supposed permanent signing of O’Hara on the horizon, is it really worth giving Maguire another contract?
To spin your list round here's who we've got under contract:
GK - Carson
DF - Carroll, Grimshaw, Mugabi, Gallagher, Devine
MF - Campbell, Turnbull, Polworth, Donnelly, Semple, Cornelius
FW - Seedorf, Hylton, MacIverTotal - 15 (inc 4 current reserves)
Based on Robinson's previous seasons we've largely been looking at running with a first team squad of around 22-25 bodies.
As it stands, under normal circumstances we're short of a back-up GK, back-up LB/RB, 2 x CB (1 left sided starter), 2 x wide forwards (starters) and 3 centre forwards. (IMO) - so that's roughly 10 in (or extended).
We've been linked with Jordan White on a pre-contract and going by the MFC Podcast Watt did along with others he's done on the Scottish Fitba' Podding circuit he (genuinely) seems up for sticking around - it's been kind of reflected in his socials as well. Not to read to much into that but if he's willing to extend and do us a turn then absolutely sign him up.
If the story about us having the O'Hara deal agreed in principle plays out then that's 7 centre mids for 3 spots (including Semple & Cornelius). Unless we're planning on moving anyone on we seem well covered (and the market in England is likely to be a complete shitshow anyway).
Given the 'circumstances' at the moment I guess we're into the unknown in terms of recruitment eg: will it be more difficult to convince players to move up the road? Are we going to be focusing more on 'local' players? Watt, O'Hara, Lamie and White are all from the area (relatively speaking) and ultimately how much will the unpleasantness f**k with our budget?
Going back to the start of the 'lockdown' Robinson did that interview with Craigan on BT and suggested we'd been looking at trying to bring in a couple of players we had on loan last year. It'd be interesting to know if there's been any change on that - I noticed Devante Cole congratulating us on the 3rd place (his deal with Doncaster is up at the end of the season AFAIK).
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44 minutes ago, thisGRAEME said:
Assuming this was the case: I think we'd be in. Scotland currently sitting at 14th in the club co-efficient, so if it went straight to group stage then surely we'd be in?!
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9 minutes ago, Green Day said:
I disagree.
They have signed a contract with the SPFL which - while a drop in the ocean compared to their other broadcast deals - will nevertheless have a significant penalty fee if they dont deliver, so I think they might well think twice.
The other thing is most broadcasters are still going to need content going forward. BT still has the rights to most European football AFAIK.
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I didn't listen to Sportsound but are they getting the taskforce back together or just letting Budge go rogue and reconfigure the entire league structure on her own?
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1 minute ago, Coventry Saint said:
Clubs being offered 'reconstruction talks' if they vote to end the season? Sounds familiar.
Surely nobody will fall for that a second time, will they?!
Successful business woman and pretty good multi-tasker Ann Budge definitely wouldn't.
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1 hour ago, Green Day said:
(1) He backed the "explosive Rangers dossier" which demonstrated "bullying and coercion by the SPFL" - this has been shown to be nonsensical and the prime stooge in this - Scott Gardiner - to be a fantasist who has no back up to his claims, or credibility among the Championship clubs he claimed were witness to the bullying.
(2) He claims that the result of the EGM ballot - which went againt Rangers, Hearts etc - is actually an endorsement to go ahead with an inquiry.
Thats two examples which dont actually need my ego, but which I just wasted my time typing as no doubt you will say I am wrong.
Along with the "Are you telling me that successful business woman Ann Budge doesn't know the difference between a loan and an advance?" shout his reverse ferret from "Loans, advances...call them what you want", "Ann Budge says the SPFL could have loaned the clubs the money as an alternative" to "no one was asking for 42 clubs to be loaned money anyway" in the space of about 20 mins live on air was a lewk as well.
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56 minutes ago, Jacksgranda said:
What time was Dave Cormack told the Dons' vote didn't matter?
17 minutes ago, Green Day said:Cant remember the specific time, but Doncaster was asked this exact question by Richard G on Sportsound.
He said that - as he was calling DC back on the other matter that Aberdeen had been speaking to the SPFL on - the subject (not unnaturally) came up, and Doncaster confirmed that the required numbers in the Premiership had already been reached so Aberdeens vote was basically irrelevant from then on in.
He was very open about it, I suspect this was one of the "smoking gun" questions that Tom English had banked on and it turned out to be a big pile of nothing.
It was 4:40 pm apparently
Quote"He was then asked if he'd been intending to vote no before the phone call arrived at 4.40pm."
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League Reconstruction 20/21 season
in Scottish Premiership General Chatter
Posted