Recruitment and Starting Line-up’s

[Big Bird]

We're on our way there now. Lack of firepower cost us last season, would like to see a target man come in to compliment the smaller forwards we have. Wouldn't be surprised if Keshi is allowed to leave. He's a bit stuck at the moment. Too slow to play as a winger and doesn't look like scoring enough to play up front. Wouldn't be surprised to see him leave. I think I'd rather keep Woolery to play on the shoulder of the last man. Could be especially dangerous off the bench.

Interested to know what Wellens sees as our formation going into the new season. We have no natural wingers apart from the unfancied McGlashan so will be interested to know if Wellens plans on bringing any in.

 

[Agombar stool]

We're on our way there now. Lack of firepower cost us last season, would like to see a target man come in to compliment the smaller forwards we have. Wouldn't be surprised if Keshi is allowed to leave. He's a bit stuck at the moment. Too slow to play as a winger and doesn't look like scoring enough to play up front. Wouldn't be surprised to see him leave. I think I'd rather keep Woolery to play on the shoulder of the last man. Could be especially dangerous off the bench.

Interested to know what Wellens sees as our formation going into the new season. We have no natural wingers apart from the unfancied McGlashan so will be interested to know if Wellens plans on bringing any in.

Keshi is a really frustrating player, he has a smattering of ability but just can't do it regularly. He can breeze past players and occasionally will smack one in from 25 yards but more often than not after beating 2 men will make a hash of a pass. He's not an out and out goalscorer and not a number 10 and as you said not a winger, so just not sure exactly where he fits into the side.

 

[Northern1]

Would love Anthony O'Connor and Eoin Doyle down here. Anthony had a successful loan spell with us a few years ago.

Id happily ride him down there on a tandem bike with him reading a book with his legs up

 

[Big Bird]

Keshi is a really frustrating player, he has a smattering of ability but just can't do it regularly. He can breeze past players and occasionally will smack one in from 25 yards but more often than not after beating 2 men will make a hash of a pass. He's not an out and out goalscorer and not a number 10 and as you said not a winger, so just not sure exactly where he fits into the side.

Yeah agreed. Always creates space by beating a man and then either delays the pass/shot and gets tackled or tries beating another man.

I like him but wouldn't surprise me if Wellens tried to offload him to create another space for a signing.

 

[LeonTheGreen]

Our squad now stands as

Goalkeepers
Mike Cooper

Defenders
Tafari Moore
Joe Riley
Scott Wottoon
Niall Canavan
Ashley Smith-Brown
Gary Sawyer

Midfielders
Antoni Sarcevic
Tom Purrington (Youth)
Adam Randell (Youth)
Conor Grant
Joel Grant

Attackers
Freddie Ladapo
Ryan Taylor
Calum Dyson
Alex Fletcher

Clearly a lot of work to do. Ideally I would like to shift Tafari Moore, Calum Dyson, and Scott Wottoon. Expect we'll sell Ladapo for 500k plus too.

 

[hellogregory]

This is our squad on its first day back for preseason today

 

[Deepcut Cobbler]

All of them?

 

[Big Bird]

This is our squad on its first day back for preseason today

Just the 15 or so needed then.

 

[Jimbo’s Reds]

Well I would think we’ve still got quite a bit of business to do, but as of now I would say our starting 11 would be something similar to this. A forward has to be priority with Collins leaving. We have the basis of a decent squad that finished the season in play off form.

Gk - Roche / Halstead
RB - Mills ( expected to sign)
CB - Lavelle
CB - Sutton / Old
LB - conlan

CM - Tutte
CM - wildig
CM - Fleming

RW - Oates
ST - Leitch-Smith
LW- new signing

 

[hellogregory]

To be fair the 2 keepers aren’t there.

 

[shoddycollins]

This is our squad on its first day back for preseason today

Isn't that just the new signings plus Mike Jones?

The one on the right is McKirdy and the one on the left is Bridge. Think the one at the back is McCarron, the tall blonde one with extremely skinny legs is Branthwaite I think and the other one with the curly hair I think is Keighran Kerr

 

[hellogregory]

Isn't that just the new signings plus Mike Jones?

Nar it’s some young lads, Bridge McKirdy as well as Jones. I don’t know why only they were there but Christie Elliott is still in Dubai and Hope is in Phuket. Fuck knows what’s going on.

 

[shoddycollins]

Nar it’s some young lads, Bridge McKirdy as well as Jones. I don’t know why only they were there but Christie Elliott is still in Dubai and Hope is in Phuket. Fuck knows what’s going on.

I think the ones shown are just there because they came in to have their fitness assessed, not for training.

 

[hellogregory]

I think the ones shown are just there because they came in to have their fitness assessed, not for training.

Why are some exempt from fitness assessments?

You’d think he’d want all the new lads in for them.

 

[shoddycollins]

Why are some exempt from fitness assessments?

You’d think he’d want all the new lads in for them.

Dunno, maybe Iredale and Mellish already had their fitness assessed, there was a bit of a gap between us signing those two and signing McKirdy and Bridge, and like you point out, Elliot is off getting married. Mike Jones perhaps because he was excluded from this sort of thing until he signed his contract just the other week, or just maybe because he's pushing on 100 and wanted some extra attention.

 

[Agombar stool]

Dion Conroy signs his contract extension and should be our CB next season with Baudry. Good ball playing defender and at 23 can improve. Things taking shape very nicely and early on for once!

 

[redjed]

Very happy with what we have done so far, making off a good team, with Conroy signing a new contract today, our defence looks pretty solid now , as my fellow supporters have said we do need a target man.
This is the first time since Power took over that we have a team in place before pre-season training starts, wonder of wonders!

 

[shoddycollins]

Attempt to put a starting line-up together from the players we have confirmed for next season.

__________________Collin______________________
Elliot____Mellish____Branthwaite*^___Iredale
______________Jones___Etuhu_________________
McCarron^___________________________Bridge
_____________Hope^___McKirdy______________

Bench:
Gray, Scougall, Kids

*I dont for one second believe that the 16 year old Branthwaite is being eyed up for a starting place, at least one more centre back is still a priority for us.

^Hallam Hope as well as first year pros McCarron and Branthwaite have all been linked with bids from other clubs. We might bat away a few offers but if any club really wants to sign them then I doubt we'll be able to hang on to them.

 

[hellogregory]

Attempt to put a starting line-up together from the players we have confirmed for next season.

__________________Collin______________________
Elliot____Mellish____Branthwaite*^___Iredale
______________Jones___Etuhu_________________
McCarron^___________________________Bridge
_____________Hope^___McKirdy______________

Bench:
Gray, Scougall, Kids

*I dont for one second believe that the 16 year old Branthwaite is being eyed up for a starting place, at least one more centre back is still a priority for us.

^Hallam Hope as well as first year pros McCarron and Branthwaite have all been linked with bids from other clubs. We might bat away a few offers but if any club really wants to sign them then I doubt we'll be able to hang on to them.

We won’t be playing 4-4-2 under pressley.

With the players you mention, it would more likely be this...

Collin
Elliott Branthwaite Mellish Iredale
Etuhu Jones
McCarron Scougall McKirdy
Hope​

God almighty when I see it like that, we’re going to have to have one amazing month ahead if we’re going to avoid being left for dead at the bottom. And that’s with Hope and McCarron likely leaving. What a shambles we are in, it’s sickening.

 

[shoddycollins]

We won’t be playing 4-4-2 under pressley.

With the players you mention, it would more likely be this...

Collin
Elliott Branthwaite Mellish Iredale
Etuhu Jones
McCarron Scougall McKirdy
Hope​

God almighty when I see it like that, we’re going to have to have one amazing month ahead if we’re going to avoid being left for dead at the bottom. And that’s with Hope and McCarron likely leaving. What a shambles we are in, it’s sickening.

I don't think there's really such a thing as formation beyond defence and the centre of midfield anymore. Modern attacking players are often required to be a lot more flexible and the same team can look like 4-4-2, 4-3-3, 4,2,3,1 or 4,5,1 at different phases of the same match.

 

[E10rifle]

Dion Conroy signs his contract extension and should be our CB next season with Baudry. Good ball playing defender and at 23 can improve. Things taking shape very nicely and early on for once!

Two ball-playing centre backs, then? I make you one enormous, thuggish bastard short of a good League Two pairing.

 

[Big Bird]

Two ball-playing centre backs, then? I make you one enormous, thuggish bastard short of a good League Two pairing.

Tom Broadbent is our other centre half...

6'3" and ex military!

 

[F!RTHY]

Tom Broadbent is our other centre half...

View attachment 11172

6'3" and ex military!

I’d bang him out in under 30 secs!

Dosser!

 

[Moomin]

As it stands I’d go 4-3-3

G - Lewis Ward

RB - Pierce Sweeney
CB - Tom Parkes
CB - Dean Moxey
LB - Craig Woodman

CM - Nigel Atangana
CM - Jake Taylor
CM - Nicky Law

RF - Randell Williams
CF - Ryan Bowman
LF - Lee Martin

Subs - Aaron Martin, Archie Collins, Jordan Tillson, Lee Holmes, Matt Jay, Jonathan Forte

Decent team but we lack decent full backs and need a striker who’s able to give Bowman some serious competition. I’d argue we could do with another attacking midfielder too.

If we recruit well then I’d expect a play off place but then lots of teams can say the same.

 

[Simpo]

This is our squad on its first day back for preseason today

Too early.

RELEGATION /s

 

[Greenacres]

Hopefully we will have a better idea by the end of the week, I expect another two or three signings on top of the four we have already made. It seems like Doidge and Reid are on their way, if the rumour mill is to be believed, but Cooper has said that he is happy with our striking options. I expect us to sign a keeper, or at least bring one in on loan, plus possibly another defender and a midfielder. At present I'm pretty happy with how the squad is looking.

 

[SELatic]

What we need before I’d be happy with our first XI:

GK
RB Mills
CB Hamer*
CB
LB
RM
CM Missilou
CM
LM Nepo
ST
ST

As you can see, we’re well off. We have other players signed up like Iacovitti (CB/LB), Stott (CB), Sylla (CM) and Branger (RM), O’Grady (ST) but I’m not convinced any of those should be first team players. Busy summer needed!

*Hamer played RB last year but can play CB which I wouldn’t be surprised to see him do given the signing of Mills

 

[shoddycollins]

Think our back four is set for next season with Webster and Elliot providing the experience and Mellish and Iredale the youth. All four I think were signed to go into the starting lineup so that gives us:

Elliot Webster Mellish Iredale

with backup from Branthwaite, so probably we'll still be on the lookout for another backup option, especially with Branthwaite linked with a move away.

 

[F!RTHY]

Update:

GK: Richard O'Donnell

RB: Kelvin Mellor/Adam Henley
CB: Paudie O’connor
CB: Ben Richards-Everton
LB: Jackson Longridge

RW: Sean Scannell
CM: Hope Akpan
CM: Jermaine Anderson/Jake Reeves
LW: Zeli Ismail

ST: Eoin Doyle
ST: James Vaughan/Clayton Donaldson

SUBS:

GK: Sam Hornby
LB: Connor Wood
CB: Tyler French
RB: Joe Riley
CM: Danny Devine
CAM: Shay McCartan
ST: Omari Patrick

Really pleased with the further additions since the last updated. Focus now is to strengthen central midfield.

 

[shoddycollins]

Macaulay Gillesphey has signed for Brisbane Roar, the club managed by Robbie Fowler.

Thought this sort of thing was on the cards when he said he needed a different type of challenge as it was hard to see him getting anything different from what he was getting at Carlisle within the lower leagues here.

Don't know what the football's like in Oz, I can imagine it being a bit closer to the English game than the variety they play in North America, shame it didn't work out for him here, he's a good player just a bit behind where you'd expect a 23 year old to be thanks to spending so long gathering dust in Newcastle's academy. I doubt he cares, he'll be on a good salary, playing in a state of the art stadium in front of big crowds and living in a big city with glorious weather and beaches.

CORRECTION: He's still only 23, I thought it he was 25, makes his lack of experience a bit more understandable but I still think all those seasons getting no game time at Newcastle didn't help him adjust to lower league football.