oafc1955

Your missing the point....What is the point of taking a player on trial IF you can't afford the terms? Obvious question...Oldham.... If the player proves his worth and fancies the 12month loan what sort of money would you be asking? Stoke.....About £3000 a week. Forget it as we can't afford it!! Hardly rocket science is it! I just feel that if he doesn't sign due to money then the whole saga has been totally unesscesary!!!

It's been said before but what is the point of having a player at the club for a month and THEN NOT being able to agree terms. Surely everything should have been agreed in principle before he kicked a ball. He's played in three or four friendlies in place of our own players who needed games for match fitness. It's so bloody frustrating when this type of thing happens!!!! Anybody agree?

I suppose that's near enough but you got the score wrong!!!!!

Shez has to be loyal to Crossley as to be fair he played very well as he got fitter towards the end of last season and has done nothing wrong in pre season. He will have to play well as a drop in form or an injury will be all that Fleming needs for his chance and if it happens I would not bet against him claiming the No.1 jersey. It's just great that we now have 2 players for each position...hopefully the competition for places will get us out of this division at last!!

A lovely, lovely man who is probably my favorite England manager of recent times. Won the FA Cup and UEFA Cup with unfashionable Ipswich and were twice within a whisker of the 1st Div title being runners up in both 81 & 82. Very Knowledgeable guy from a bygone era and a true gent in every sense of the word. I hope he can keep going for a little while longer and bask in the memories of his wonderful career in Football. A fine example to us all.......Good Luck Bobby Robson!!

It's not a transfer as he's still under contract so he won't be taking any cut in wages...probably hinges on what percentage of his salary we are willing to pay! Like what's been said on here the delay is almost certainly due to work permit and admin at Stoke, however sounds like it will happen one way or another.

We're not all sat in front of the computer screen 24/7....Yawn..Yawn.......Get a life!!!

Apparently, according to the Chron we are still locked in talks with Stoke about signing Phillips for next season. The lad has said he would like to sign so what is the problem? Have they suddenly found out he's on 5k a week or something? Surely a financial agreement should have been already in place, and if we fail, then what was the point to his month on trial?

That seems sensible to me in theory, but how many teams have actually opted out of a league this year as those that haven't will be already committed to league fixtures. Just how many clubs will be available to play friendlies at the drop of a hat?

The whole point of a pre season friendly is to get players match fit and ready for the first game...there's no substitute for competitive action and I say play the starting lineup at Ashton. Injuries are part and parcel of the game and we could lose three players during the game with Millwall ...that's football and why you need a big squad and it's what we now have isn't it? This reserve thing really worries me...how are we going to keep players fit and interested if there are no games sorted? If we are going to organise friendlies surely we should have some sort of fixture list organised already. I fear a disaster with the reserves this year!

That's just something you can't avoid and if it happens it happens....we've got enough players who could play there in an emergency. The other option that nobody seems to mention is play three at the back and use wing backs...perhaps Taylor and Eardley.

I fail to see how anybody could be judged on a hastily arranged 45 minutes...the guy's obviously nowhere near match fit after missing most of last season with injuries. Hills has got loads of experience at LB and it may have been better to let him train with us and get fit before making any decision. Playing Keiran Lee might have been a better call. To be fair he wouldn't have come up against a quicker player than Omar Daley all season. I can't believe were still struggling at left back after all this time! Whoever plays at left back in the opener must get 90minutes against Ashton tomorrow, the time for experimenting is over!!!

According to BBC606 Blackburn are after Danny Simpson, a right back at Man U initially on loan......That seems more feasible than them paying 3m for Eardley. Don't think there's any chance of anywhere near that much for Eardley!!!!

Not if it's already sorted out!

I wouldn't sell for 300k and I don't think TTA will, but in reality the valuation is probably about right.....The Trotman fee was based on potential but I don't think Chris is going to improve much now and more or less what you see is what you get! I think playing him on the left for the last couple of years has helped him become 'Mr Versatile' and I think he's just a very good 1st Div player who would probably be average in the championship. Playing him at RW may even have doubled his transfer value but perhaps we'll never know now! The only good thing to come from his sale is that this ridiculous insistence of Shez playing him on the left would come to an end and we could at least make some progress with the balance of our team!!!

Better get used to Andy Liddell again folks as the Shez says " He rolled back the years with his stylish attacking plays and had a blinder"!! He was also happy with Maher,Taylor, and Phillips, which suggests a loan deal could still be on the cards. We wern't sharp enough and everybody else should be looking over their shoulders, nobody's place is safe!!!!

Jeez people moaned when we didn't have depth in the squad and now we have they're still moaning. We've now got a versatile squad with players who can cover a variety of positions and if we can get the left hand side sorted over the next couple of weeks then we'll get better and better! It was a friendly today and I've been around long enough to know that the result is of no importance whatsoever. We probably had 65% of the play against one of the 2nd division promotion favourites. Give it time...if we're still not scoring at the end of August then that's the time to worry.

Looks a pretty balanced side and with a lot of talent sat on the bench. Perhaps with an experienced left back or a fully fit Keiran Lee in for Lomax and we'll be sorted. Maybe make or break time for Phillips or it could be dependant on the outcome with the Taylor rumour. If Taylor goes it would be a straight swop with Smalley. If we can stay with a settled side it can only get better....onwards and upwards!!!

I think it would be pretty obvious if Phillips is left out tomorrow that he isn't in Shez's plans....agreed?

A steady stream of new signings have been announced over the last few weeks and with it the expectations of the fans has intensified. Most people, and rightly so, myself included, are expecting a BIG season from the team. Can you imagine however, if we have the customary poor start, the level of abuse on here, and at Boundary Park will be higher than ever before! Yes, we appear to have assembled ( on paper )a very good squad, which is without doubt the strongest since TTA took control of the club but I also think we have to be realistic. A lot of clubs in this division have been improving their squads in readiness for the new season and as such, I think it will be much harder to gain promotion than in the previous few seasons. As a club we've spent hardly anything on transfers whilst the likes of Huddersfield, Crewe, Bristol R, Colchester and even Stockport have been splashing the cash in a bid to make an impression in League One. This sure ain't going to be a cake walk, so let's hope the fans get right behind the team and more importantly show a little bit of patience!!!

Lee Hughes has a fractured toe and will miss the first game of the season!!!

No one can guarantee playing week in week out no matter how good you are......it will mean he will be in the match day 16 and not simply in the squad. We need a player like him as he is exciting to watch and even when not in the eleven can come on and change a game if we're struggling. I say sign him up!!!

Really think this has to be the year we are promoted. For Shez it's vital we have a good season and I think top six and play-offs is an absolute minimum requirement from TTA. If we fail this year then many players will be out of contract and the likes of Davies, Hughes,Smalley,Eardley will almost certainly leave the club. It will then take another rebuilding job and if TTA still have the heart for it then I don't think they will back Shez again!!! We and Shez all know this is a results based business and quite simply if we don't perform this year, coupled with the credit crunch and the income streams needed to keep challenging I fear the worst. The TTA have really gone for it this year and feel that one way or another it's quite definitely s**t or bust!!!

Seems like Shez hasn't made up his mind about this guy yet. I've not been to the freindlies so haven't seen him play but from what I've heard he's well worth a season loan. Could wages be the problem?

Not if we beat Millwall and Rochdale!!!!!!