Returning players - better or worse?

[Fifespud]

2 hours ago, O_Kahn said:

 

Michael Hart was much better second time around, albeit he was only 21 when he left.

277 goals without a single goal is quite a record.

 

Did he score in braces and hatricks constantly? Some player that. 

[johnnydun]

Jocky Scott decides if he's shite or not.

5 fuckin times.

He's in cherge ok.

[Fifespud]

What about the lad that climbed down from the Sky commentators box, 2 years after he retired, to score the goal that kept his first club in the championship and possibly saved us from oblivion after a 25 point penalty?

Edited January 8 by Fifespud

[johnnydun]

1 minute ago, Fifespud said:

What about the lad that climbed down from the Sky commentators box, 2 years after he retired, to score the goal that kept his first club in the championship and possibly saved us from oblivion after a 25 point penalty?

Oh aye, the guy Hearts fans were saying was shite 5 years before that? 

Shagger loves the Derry.

[chopface]

5 hours ago, coprolite said:

I’m going to have to accept that I’m shit at this game

Hayes? McGinn?

[velo army]

Gerry Britton was good first time and came back to become one of my favourite ever Thistle players. Alan Archibald was a marauding LWB when he left and came back as a somewhat cultured CB who loved the occasional head's gone red card. Brilliant in both. Stevie Lawless was superb first time (does not include games against Rangers) and is now one of the best players in this league. I bloody love him.

We love bringing players back and there's hunners. I'd say Harkins was a shadow of his former self, but he was twice the size, so it's possible he absorbed his former self like a twin in the womb. An utter ride of a player in his first spell however.

[deadasdillinger]

On 08/01/2024 at 16:07, accies1874 said:

We brought back perhaps our two best players of the past decade in Tony Andreu and David Templeton. Aside from a couple of excellent games, including scoring the winner to send Dundee down, Andreu was shite for us in his second spell, but Templeton was still pretty great when he played - the issue was that he only managed 19 appearances across two-and-a-half seasons. We knew that that's what we were getting with him, however it just made it all the more disappointing when he gave us glimpses of what we'd been missing. 

Caveats for both of these guys, but Dougie Imrie and Mickael Antoine-Curier were just as good upon their returns as they were at the peak of their initial spell, though Imrie went on for at least a season too long and MAC chucked it, as far as I remember, in all three times at the club. Imrie deserves bonus points for contributing to Accies while playing for Morton, as his two goals in the 10-2 threw the SPFL off our scent. 

Andy Ryan is the only one who sticks out in my mind as being a markedly better player in his second spell for us. 

I don't like the idea of bringing players back as it's never the same second time around, but looking at the list of Accies returnees, we haven't really had many who had disappointing second spells with the exception of the first two I mentioned. 

Some real Photoshop wizardry here. 

[Monkey Tennis]

Our greatest player of the last half century had his testimonial last Sunday.

It's honestly difficult to choose between Dobbie's two spells.

 

First time round he arrived as an overweight striker who had plunged from Rangers to Hibs to St Johnstone to a loan at Dumbarton.

He was phenomenal for us.  When he left he was slimmer, but still probably on the hefty side for the modern footballer.  He'd been very important in our famous Cup run though and was the best player on the field in virtually every league game he played.  He was a brilliant player to watch, a great finisher with quick feet, a lovely touch and tremendous vision.  

He left for Swansea with everyone's best wishes.  Most under 60 felt that he'd been the best Queens player they'd seen.

He was gone for seven years, and got promoted from the Championship during that time with Swansea, Blackpool and Crystal Palace. 

However, he never got a run in the Premier League or got a Scotland call-up.  He was probably deemed to just lack that necessary athleticism.   

When he returned in 2016 it was from Bolton and was a complete shock.  He was 33 by then and although I was really excited, I wondered if he could be as good as before.  He was lean by this time and from the outset, was just ridiculously good again.  He scored magnificent goals and kept extending his contract, playing until he was 38.  

He achieved the incredible feat of scoring his 43rd goal of the season in the relegation play-offs.  

 

He'd have been my favourite ever Queens player had he never returned.  That he did when he could have been playing at a higher level, and that he was so bloody good again, elevated him so far above anything Queens have had in my time.

To answer the question, It's a dead heat between his spells.

[GHF-23]

1 hour ago, Monkey Tennis said:

Our greatest player of the last half century had his testimonial last Sunday.

It's honestly difficult to choose between Dobbie's two spells.

 

First time round he arrived as an overweight striker who had plunged from Rangers to Hibs to St Johnstone to a loan at Dumbarton.

He was phenomenal for us.  When he left he was slimmer, but still probably on the hefty side for the modern footballer.  He'd been very important in our famous Cup run though and was the best player on the field in virtually every league game he played.  He was a brilliant player to watch, a great finisher with quick feet, a lovely touch and tremendous vision.  

He left for Swansea with everyone's best wishes.  Most under 60 felt that he'd been the best Queens player they'd seen.

He was gone for seven years, and got promoted from the Championship during that time with Swansea, Blackpool and Crystal Palace. 

However, he never got a run in the Premier League or got a Scotland call-up.  He was probably deemed to just lack that necessary athleticism.   

When he returned in 2016 it was from Bolton and was a complete shock.  He was 33 by then and although I was really excited, I wondered if he could be as good as before.  He was lean by this time and from the outset, was just ridiculously good again.  He scored magnificent goals and kept extending his contract, playing until he was 38.  

He achieved the incredible feat of scoring his 43rd goal of the season in the relegation play-offs.  

 

He'd have been my favourite ever Queens player had he never returned.  That he did when he could have been playing at a higher level, and that he was so bloody good again, elevated him so far above anything Queens have had in my time.

To answer the question, It's a dead heat between his spells.

But what about Danny Carmichael?

[Monkey Tennis]

2 minutes ago, GHF-23 said:

But what about Danny Carmichael?

I know you're kidding, but Injury meant his second spell couldn't match the first.  

A pity.

[MazzyStar]

3 minutes ago, GHF-23 said:

But what about Danny Carmichael?

The best 5 foot 7 player to ever grace the game. 

[bishoptonbuddie]

We've had a few over the last couple of decades.

Stephen McGinn is the obvious one and played a massive part in our resurgence back to the top flight. Although I was never his biggest fan either time around, his influence and impact on the side that managed to the stay in the Championship is undoubted. For that alone, I would rank his second spell better than the first.

My personal favourite is Rory Loy, who had two loan spells. Did pretty much nothing as an 18-year-old from Rangers under Gus MacPherson considering he wasn't really given a chance. He was drafted back in by Jack Ross, again in the January of the Championship survival season, and ultimately scored a number of crucial goals including the one that kept us up Easter Road on the final day. It is sad that he never signed that summer, I reckon he would have been as good as Gavin Reilly was. Instead he went to Falkirk and was pretty mich out of the game in 18 months.

Lawrence Shankland had two loan spells and was fantastic in the first and woeful in the second. Fair play to him making the career he has because it looked like he was completely shot by the time he was binned back to Aberdeen.

Paul McGinn was never given a chance by Danny Lennon. He went away and carved himself a decent career before coming back. He was ever dependable and rarely made a mistake before Goodwin, in his infinite wisdom decided that he wasn't any use and sent him to Hibs.

Kyle McAllister's an interesting one. He was fantastic the first time around and really earned his move to Derby County but we all knew fitness would be his downfall. The sky really seemed to be the limit for him at one point but by the time he came back, he had lost his pace and struggled. It's a real shame but he seems to be a favourite at Forest Green Rovers at the moment, Scary to think he is still only 24.

Craig Samson. Never really rated him first time, looked better the second time but we were playing in the Championship. Sour taste by the way he left the club to go to Sunderland to be honest, cause he really left us in the sh*t.

John Sutton. His first spell was significantly better but can't overlook the fact his goals were a massive factor in keeping us in the Championship second time around. Could have, and probably should have, scored at Tannadice to get us promoted. Would have been a fitting end but it wasn't to be.

Lee Hodson was decent both times round, but probably better in the Kearney season, having been on loan from Rangers and then Gillingham. I'm not counting Lewis Morgan, considering it was basically the same season anyway. Harry Davis came back as well, but both spells really morph because it was just like he was out injured anyway.

It's a shame that Kirk Broadfoot ever came back.

Going further back, Conor Newton had two loan spells and was better in the first. David van Zanten was a better player in his first spell but won the League Cup second time around. Not old enough to remember Kevin McGowne's first spell at the club but did us a good turn to get us up in 2006. Martin Baker came back, again couldn't say much about his first spell, but he was second was fleeting during a dark time for us. Chris Innes was good in his second spell and I'd assume it was better than his first. Marc McAusland's second spell was better, as was Graham Carey's.

My brain's melted now but I imagine there are few more I've missed. That actually seems like quite a lot considering that's only really from the last 10/15 years.

[Wee jeemie]

Can’t remember a single Dee coming back better than before he left , and I go back as far as Iain Phillip in 72/73 not nearly the player he was before going to palace , Jocky back from Aberdeen nowhere as good , Tommy Coyne past it when he came back more up to date Kane Hemmings , might be because McPake was running the team but nowhere near as Successful as his first stint 

[Monkey Tennis]

52 minutes ago, Wee jeemie said:

Can’t remember a single Dee coming back better than before he left , and I go back as far as Iain Phillip in 72/73 not nearly the player he was before going to palace , Jocky back from Aberdeen nowhere as good , Tommy Coyne past it when he came back more up to date Kane Hemmings , might be because McPake was running the team but nowhere near as Successful as his first stint 

Tommy Coyne can't have made much impact second time, because I genuinely can't remember it.  I'm guessing it came after Motherwell?

[Wee jeemie]

1 hour ago, Monkey Tennis said:

Tommy Coyne can't have made much impact second time, because I genuinely can't remember it.  I'm guessing it came after Motherwell?

Yes after Motherwell 

[PauloPerth]

Michael O’Halloran - became one of the stand out attacking non-OF players in the league when with us in 2015 before signing for rangers for £1/2m, re-joined on loan for a few months in 2017-18 ish and tore it up to start with then picked up a few knocks and ended up back at rangers then Australia. Signed back with us for a third spell and apart from occasional glimpses it didn’t work out. First spell great, second spell very good, third spell no.

Stevie May - a club legend in 2014, a phenomenon. I didn’t want us to re-sign him after Aberdeen as it could never be the same. Scored only 2 league goals less in one season with us first time around than he has in the 4 seasons combined second spell.

Danny Swanson - outstanding the first two spells, third was nowhere near the same.

Callum Davidson - Young hard tackling left back that came through our youth programme and remains to this day our record transfer fee received at £1.9m. Came back at the end of his career and still did a good job for us. But first spell the standout. Then got into coaching and I lost track of his career thereafter..

Liam Craig - great the first time, inspirational double winner second time. Both spells a big success.

There are many more; Lee Croft for one, but other Saints fans can discuss them..

[Darren]

On 08/01/2024 at 16:07, VincentGuerin said:

First time around:

Second time around:

More influential the second time round, his performance in the 5-2 win over St Mirren was glorious. I didn't think it would be possible for him to even come close to his first spell. What a guy.

[Fifespud]

On 12/01/2024 at 20:54, Monkey Tennis said:

Our greatest player of the last half century had his testimonial last Sunday.

It's honestly difficult to choose between Dobbie's two spells.

 

First time round he arrived as an overweight striker who had plunged from Rangers to Hibs to St Johnstone to a loan at Dumbarton.

He was phenomenal for us.  When he left he was slimmer, but still probably on the hefty side for the modern footballer.  He'd been very important in our famous Cup run though and was the best player on the field in virtually every league game he played.  He was a brilliant player to watch, a great finisher with quick feet, a lovely touch and tremendous vision.  

He left for Swansea with everyone's best wishes.  Most under 60 felt that he'd been the best Queens player they'd seen.

He was gone for seven years, and got promoted from the Championship during that time with Swansea, Blackpool and Crystal Palace. 

However, he never got a run in the Premier League or got a Scotland call-up.  He was probably deemed to just lack that necessary athleticism.   

When he returned in 2016 it was from Bolton and was a complete shock.  He was 33 by then and although I was really excited, I wondered if he could be as good as before.  He was lean by this time and from the outset, was just ridiculously good again.  He scored magnificent goals and kept extending his contract, playing until he was 38.  

He achieved the incredible feat of scoring his 43rd goal of the season in the relegation play-offs.  

 

He'd have been my favourite ever Queens player had he never returned.  That he did when he could have been playing at a higher level, and that he was so bloody good again, elevated him so far above anything Queens have had in my time.

To answer the question, It's a dead heat between his spells.

On your visits to Dens I felt it was an honour to see him perform. Must have been amazing to see him week after week. Great player. 

[crazylegsjoe_mfc]

On 13/01/2024 at 11:54, Monkey Tennis said:

Tommy Coyne can't have made much impact second time, because I genuinely can't remember it.  I'm guessing it came after Motherwell?

He was my first childhood hero, even if I only caught him in his twilight at Motherwell. I was a devastated 8 year old when we let him go, but the fact he scored 15 for us one season and 0 for you the next probably tells me that in terms of his legacy it was probably the right time to go.

In talk of Motherwell, Dundee and returning players, I remember being bemused about us taking David Clarkson on trial at pre season, even taking him to Portugal, before choosing to not sign him. Was it his first 8 games for Dundee he scored in? Including the first goal in a win against us. We then signed him the following summer, after the goals had dried up, rather pointlessly as we signed another four strikers after him and never played him.

[lubo_blaha]

A Dons returning XI. Looks like a Craig Brown team with the centre mids on the wing and the age most of them would’ve been when they came back. Hart and Derek Young probably the only two to be better second time around.

Leighton

Hart Anderson Taylor Hayes

Young Arnason Shinnie Clark

McGinn Booth