De_La_Vega

For the record I'm concerned by the Failsworth move dragging the stadium out of the reach of our traditional fan-base. From what I can see Royton, Shaw and Chadderton which are on that side of town give us healthy support, while I'd say the same about Lees, Grotton, Waterhead and that side of town. It does seem to me from my experience that the areas of Oldham from which we don't get support are the predominantly Asian wards, about which the club seems to try and do something, and the Failsworth / Hollinwood side of town. Moving to Failsworth could be a great way to invigorate support there, but I just hope it isn't moving the ground slightly out of reach of young fans on the other side of town. I appreciate that it is only down Broadway, but if one doesn't drive that isn't too helpful. Good site with everything we need for my money, but I don't like the location.

No, and I agree. Delph isn't worth £8million, and I highly doubt that Villa have paid that for him. If they are anywhere near that figure then they'll have add-ons for England appearances and such-like I would have thought, but my guess is that the value is much closer to the £3-5million region with a significant sum held back. The point I was making though is that we shouldn't make any assumptions of Taylor's worth based on Delph's valuation. Delph may be better than I have seen - he's only young - and Taylor is still very much a work in progress. Albeit a legendary ginger one. Also we have got to guard against exaggerated values in case Taylor is sold. If it happens then I for one will be disappointed by the owners getting stick for "lack of ambition" or "selling cheaply" should he go for less than £1million. There seems to be a gulf between the realistic appraisals of our popular players, and some fans' estimations of their value.

Agree whole-heartedly with the man who makes the point that we are over-rating Taylor, and under-rating Delph. He's going to be a Premier League player, because he has talent that has been spotted by every scout in the country - there's no use denying it, and "only Villa"? Is that a serious comment? Taylor is a legend, but principally for his attitude and love of the Blues. He had an on-off season last year, and still needs to work on his decision making and crossing. There is a lot more to come from him if he continues to work hard and improve, and I think he'll do that because he has the right attitude. £1million would be a great price for us, and more realistically I think we are looking at three-quarters of that with hopefully some juicy and achievable add-ons for the guy. Although that said Delph looked like a dirty little swine every time I saw him last year, and I wish him nothing but ill until he sorts that out. A more pertinent debate might be how the hell he is worth that and yet the tribunal system valued John Bostock at the pittance that he left Palace for... goes to show that it is all about the player's loyalty and willingness to accept his club's judgement in the search for the best price. Which might inflate Taylor's value, but not as high as £2mill.

This all seems to be getting a little political, geographical and downright economical... The answer surely has to be a 12k stadium and room for expansion which could be done in loads of ways - leaving the corners open, provision for further tiers, only fully finishing 2-sides of the ground etc. I don't see what the big deal is. The club wants to be self-sufficient rather than run off outside money, so there is no way that the club would cap the size at 12k for ever ad infinitum - it would be the most stupid move since Crewe signed Calvin Zola... A ground that size now though could nearly be filled now which surely we all appreciate would vastly improve the atmosphere rather than having huge swathes empty. Bottom-line is that this move is about so much more than the size of the stadium, and it is bollocks to refer to this as some kind of defining, "chance for greatness" moment in the club's life. The biggest tool for making the club successful should be the youth academy which is currently producing large numbers of our squad, including our best players from last year (based on the league team of the year). If we can get a ground of either size that is cheap to run, provides increased gates and is backed by local development that adds extra income streams for the club then we are onto a winner. I am far more concerned by what the finished ground will be like, and the full development plans. Give me a 12k seater which looks brilliant, is set in a complex that is attractive, impressive and makes the club money, reduce the ticket prices to encourage a new generation of fans and establish first-rate facilities for the youth teams - that I would be delighted with. Give me a 16k seater that has no soul, expensive pies and some flat-pack modular buildings thrown up around crappy astro pitches in some shoddy development on the outskirts of Manchester - I would not be happy. But that said I appreciate all the arguments for and against; I don't fancy the chances of those who want 16k though.

He is a disappointing little man, and a bit of an embarrassment to be honest. I've tried to pass on some solid good sense to him, but it just doesn't seem to stick... <sigh>

Unbelievable comment. Staggering and ridiculous.

The thrill of the chase! Not that I miss it of course... [looks stealthily over the shoulder at the missus in case she's looking].

Impossible to say - I'd imagine that the new stadium would be accompanied by some offers to try and attract people in through the doors and to sell the stadium to the people who live locally to where ever it may end up. Got to say too - bit dramatic the whole Bradford - Huddersfield thing isn't it?

She was probably looking for attention, and kept hoping you'd whisk her off her feet. Instead we wisely invested our time in Heineken. 13 hour session though - impressive work.

I wish you'd passed some of that wisdom on to me - my mouth tastes like evil. Good times!

Mate Zorrro would have kept you warm and you could have woken up in the morning with him playing the "big spoon" - and you turned it down... It was sad to see a grown man cry, but he was inconsolable.

Missed all these - Burnely fans are thieving little swines though, so maybe we shouldn't be surprised. A shame that there may have been Latics fans involved in rucking - it's just embarrassing.

Forgive me for being slow, but I think I've missed all this - stayed out in Manchester after the end and I must have left Sinclairs before there was any fun there too. Anyone care to fill me in with what went on? Where was the fighting, what was going on with the train, what happened at the pub beforehand and what is this about girls wielding shoes wth malice aforethought?

As soon as I saw the name Failsworth a small part of me cried, but actually this development sounds like a good idea to me. There're excellent transport links (and it is closer to my house), the land sounds like it is available with a minimum of fuss from the wankers who bleat about keeping Clayton playing fields pristine. 12,000 is a decent size for what we need I think - I'd rather see a well built small ground than some cavernous and empty construction built on the assumption that all the ex-fans will flock back to swell the gates. Besides which the less land the stadium uses, the more space there are for further developments on the site that would generate revenue. The guys who run the club aren't millionaires for nothing either, and I'm certain they'll build something with at least one eye on possible future capacity. As for what ground I want, I'd like to see one with a good "carbon footprint" - i.e. utilising all the modern techniques available to make these places more efficient and cheaper to run, while also being environmentally friendly. It'd be nice to get one that looks good too, and not just like every identikit stadium that is built at the moment. Metrolink access would be a great addition for match day traffic, and I'd like to see a quality old-style match day pub built into one of the stands. That means no food, just ale and good atmosphere prior to the game. Oh, and statues depicting the great Paul Murray and the mighty Stefan Stam should be erected outside the entrance to awe and inspire future generations.

I cannot believe that there is anyone on this site who would actually suggest that Holdsworth could be better than Eardley... and in the same breath they would suggest that this is a good enough price. Should be academic because this can't be true - it is too ridiculous for words. Oh, and glad that Parker hasn't been announced because he's asswash.

Keigan Parker is gash. How the hell can an entire message board not see that? The bloke is a diabolically poor finisher, runs down blind alleys and played for Blackpool. Don't just think that saying "I have faith in DP" is a defence against toss appointments - Gregan shouldn't be at the club and neither should this gobby little swine. I'm not convinced about Abbott either come to think of it... What great squad building this is, when we now have 5 centre-forwards and about 5 centre-mids yet only the Greganator (past it) and Hazell (never had it but I still love the guy) in defence. Parker was crap at Blackpool hence they binned him off upon winning promotion, he was crap at Huddersfield hence when they strengthened they got rid and he is still crap.

Replace Eardley with Lomax? Utter tripe.

I think we have enough strikers numbers-wise, but I think we are one short quality-wise. Wolfenden will go mid-season I think, and it is down to Alessandra to go out on loan to prove he wants it enough... Once we have that space in the squad then I'd like to see either a youngster with pace brought in on loan from a Premier League club, or possibly a left-field choice like Carl Cort (mentioned below). If we could find a player like that who still wanted it enough then it could be a great signing. They'd need to be rotated for fitness, which allows everyone a game (I want to see O'Grady given a chance, Brooke could do with a few and even move Smalley up top to give Lee a run on the right), and they could add real higher level quality when they play. Alessandra and Smalley need to prove a lot this year though... Not impressed by attitudes last year.

On what grounds would Taylor be worth "a hell of a lot more"? Take a look at the guy with an impartial eye, and you'll see a young winger with a bit of pace but who isn't a speed-merchant, who can put in dangerous deliveries but does it too infrequently, who scored a few goals last year but up until then had been starved for goals and finally you should recognise that for the last half of last year he was poor. Whatever the reason, his performances were not great. Taylor has a great advantage that his dribbling and pace with the ball is excellent, but he is a long way from the finished article and the only reason he'd be worth more would be that attackers attract high values. Eardley is unbelievably under-rated by some of the posters on this thread. Where the hell are we going to find a comparable player for 250k? The guy is "only a Welsh international"? He can't exactly play for Brazil when he's from Llandudno... Seriously people - get a grip. Eardley is the most complete young player I have seen us produce, and he will go on to bigger and better things. His appearances, caps and ability would be sold by no club for less than half a million, and if we even consider that - reflecting that Wrexham get 20% apparently - we should be looking at a sell-on clause on top and appearance related add-ons. The lad made the team of the year, and yet some people think Lomax is an adequate replacement? Staggering...

Kelvin Lomax is not a good right-back. He is a trying child who should be in League 2.

I'd love to see him do well, because I've never doubted his attitude or desire the way I do with Alessandra at times (who should be playing for his career this year for my money). I just cannot see him being effective because he is too small, and not quick enough to overcome that. The only way I can see him getting to our level is if he drops to League 2 and gets a good run of games under his belt. He isn't good enough to get them at League 1, but if he can drop down and do a Tierney - learn his game and come back up - then he may make it. Can't see him doing it with us though, but I'd like to be proved wrong.

Unfairly treated by Sheridan, but hitherto doesn't really look like a goal threat. In much the same boat as Alessandra in that respect, although I like O'Grady because he always looks to be putting it in. Needs to be given a chance and I really hope he takes it, but I am not expecting him to score lots to be honest.

Sounds like a promising signing, but I think if we are signing one in the middle then we should be looking to let one go too. We now have Stephens, Lee and Whitaker not playing... For my money we should look to move Whitaker out, and go with two from Lee, Furman and Worthington, with Stephens pitching in a couple of appearances and in case of injury we use Eardley / Taylor / Purdie as back-ups. We look a little heavy on players there, but light up at centre-half. One more CB please!

Lambert is quality - just the sort of signing that you need at this level, because he knows the league in addition to being good. Don't know about walking it, but they are looking very impressive right now. Good signings, a manager who I think will go a long way and they have some god momentum from the back end of last season.

Well the final part of the post was only half serious, although now that the mighty Staminator's qualities are being called into question I feel that this has stepped up a notch (to quote the mighty Ron Burgundy). With the hope of avoiding a duel, I'll merely throw it out there and say that the Stam was class. I'll admit that part of that was down to his being an immense, studly, adonis of a man with a sensational barnet, but he was also a ball-playing legend.