Viking Supporters Co-operative
Viking Chat => Viking Chat => Topic started by: mushRTID on June 18, 2025, 06:37:22 pm
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Gone to Stockport.
Wow.
Not Championship and not down South.
Very disappointing.
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Sideways move. Poor really.
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Bit of a kick in the teeth, and what was all that rubbish spouted about a church in London.
Footballers eh!
Hopefully he gets a good pay check to make it worth his while.
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$$$$$
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Not really.
They finished in the play offs last year.
Close to a big city.
Big budget and likely much more wages than we offered him.
We would all take it and massive luck to him, great guy.
It will be fascinating to see if last season was his true potential or just a good season, certainly improved massively Vs his previous seasons.
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To be fair he never said he wanted to move to the Championship or down south, these were just things that we assumed. Stockport have some serious money behind them and he'll be part of a team challenging for automatics, you imagine. Good move for him.
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https://youtu.be/bb6cBKE3WzQ?si=EZSXPQd8HVXN-jpJ
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If we were a championship team and signed a L2 centre half who really had 1 very good season and a few hit/miss seasons all at L2 we’d be pissed.
Stockport is a club on the up that will be challenging and if they don’t go up its a good place to get a big move from.
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This is really disappointing and clearly seems to be a result of not always being first choice in his time with us.
The only other factor could be the money but there would need to be a massive difference between what we offered.
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$$$$$
Good for him!
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Surprised by his destination although Stockport are upwardly mobile and will probs be one of the favourites for promotion. It's just football and a fact of life there's always teams prepared to pay a bit more so good luck to him. Nothing but admiration for his service and the way he conducted himself throughout.
Cards already marked for Stockport and Bolton then. Not bad benchmarks to compare really and who gets better value for money.
Edit. I wouldn't be surprised if Stockport weren't the only ones chasing Olowu's services.
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Very disappointing, thought he had more about him than that
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Love us to finish above Stockport or at least give them a good hiding at the moat
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The league one finances will have been distorted to buggery over the last couple of seasons with Brum Wrexham and Stockport, so no doubt they have offered far far more than we did.
He definitely accepted this offer well in advance of us gaining promotion - I’m not having one bit of the “injury” either. As I mentioned in the Coffee with Joe thread, the questioning was very much around when you leave.
He’s a great lad and was a very good player for us, but I always got the feeling Grant didn’t fully believe in him. He dropped him despite being in the form of his life for Tom at the back end of the season before, during the winning streak.
I imagine that would also be on Joes mind when looking at deals and clubs.
I also imagine he will have been slightly conflicted leaving knowing we will be in the same league.
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Money talks as per usual but we’ve done it to other clubs to our benefit , onwards and upwards for us we’ve lost better players in summers gone by and the grass isn’t always greener. Looking forward to Luke tearing him a new one next season
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Money talks as per usual but we’ve done it to other clubs to our benefit , onwards and upwards for us we’ve lost better players in summers gone by and the grass isn’t always greener. Looking forward to Luke tearing him a new one next season
This is how I see it. Harry Clifton had been at Grimsby for the best part of a decade when a club with better chances of promotion came along and offered him a big pay rise and I don’t remember seeing any complaints then. How is this any different?
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Money talks as per usual but we’ve done it to other clubs to our benefit , onwards and upwards for us we’ve lost better players in summers gone by and the grass isn’t always greener. Looking forward to Luke tearing him a new one next season
This is how I see it. Harry Clifton had been at Grimsby for the best part of a decade when a club with better chances of promotion came along and offered him a big pay rise and I don’t remember seeing any complaints then. How is this any different?
Clifton hadn’t just won the league
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Came on a free left on a free - that how it goes sometimes
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Best of luck to him, he was brilliant for us, but doesn’t owe us anything.
Moving to a team who will most likely challenge for the play offs winning most weeks and playing a lot now they lost 2 other CBs
Interesting that we turned a bid down in January from Stockport for him!
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Good luck to him. I’d much rather see him leave than, Molyneux, Bailey, Sterry, Maxwell and McGrath (who incidentally has always been very decent for us)
Olowu was on the whole only very good for around a season when the team was doing well. Before that he was up there with Ro Sean Williams.
Not overly bothered he’s left, rather have McGrath
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1 decent season, injured for alot of it, and didn't miss him when he was injured.
I think Rovers offered him what he was worth, and for him to end up at Stockport tells me that alot of other clubs thought the same as Rovers.
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Joe has decided to move on I never thought it would be a Championship club but believed it would be further South. It’s whether he will be starting every game they play with a 4 and with a 3 at the back but they have lost at least one centre back. He will probably be getting more money and should have a better chance of promotion but that’s not a given. He’s made the choice.
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People going into meltdown on social media over this. I don’t see the big deal. Players come and go all the time and that’s football. He’s gone to a club that at this minute in time, offers him a better chance of championship football - I was always doubtful he’d end up at a championship club when he left us and thought it was much more likely he’d go to a top end league one club.
Don’t really have an issue with it to be honest.
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$$$$$
I don't hold it against home either.
Good for him!
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Ex player meltdown - claxon alert...
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No issue with me. Thanks but not our player anymore. We move on
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Known this for a while but wasn’t surprised when I found out. They have a bigger budget than us and will have been agreed before we were promoted.
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Everybody happy, the player gets a chunk of any transfer fee they would have paid in January as a signing on fee, as does the agent, and a bigger wage every week, and hopefully the club paying over the odds at our level don't go tits up a couple of seasons down the line.
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Money talks as per usual but we’ve done it to other clubs to our benefit , onwards and upwards for us we’ve lost better players in summers gone by and the grass isn’t always greener. Looking forward to Luke tearing him a new one next season
This is how I see it. Harry Clifton had been at Grimsby for the best part of a decade when a club with better chances of promotion came along and offered him a big pay rise and I don’t remember seeing any complaints then. How is this any different?
Clifton hadn’t just won the league
Would you turn down a pay rise worth tens thousands of pounds a year because of loyalty you felt towards your work colleagues?
A pay rise that gave you a higher chance of earning a further pay rise sooner too.
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Joe kissed are badge b*llocks..... get over yourselves..
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If they get the Olowu of last season they have got a bargain, if they get the Olowu of the previous seasons he was here they will pull their hair out.
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Money talks as per usual but we’ve done it to other clubs to our benefit , onwards and upwards for us we’ve lost better players in summers gone by and the grass isn’t always greener. Looking forward to Luke tearing him a new one next season
This is how I see it. Harry Clifton had been at Grimsby for the best part of a decade when a club with better chances of promotion came along and offered him a big pay rise and I don’t remember seeing any complaints then. How is this any different?
Clifton hadn’t just won the league
Would you turn down a pay rise worth tens thousands of pounds a year because of loyalty you felt towards your work colleagues?
A pay rise that gave you a higher chance of earning a further pay rise sooner too.
Exactly this.
Footballers come and go.
He was good for us and always gave his best but if he can get himself a good pay rise, good luck to him.
We would all do the same.
Looking at some of the comments on here there could be some fans who will boo him when he comes to the Eco to play against us.
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Money talks as per usual but we’ve done it to other clubs to our benefit , onwards and upwards for us we’ve lost better players in summers gone by and the grass isn’t always greener. Looking forward to Luke tearing him a new one next season
This is how I see it. Harry Clifton had been at Grimsby for the best part of a decade when a club with better chances of promotion came along and offered him a big pay rise and I don’t remember seeing any complaints then. How is this any different?
Clifton hadn’t just won the league
Would you turn down a pay rise worth tens thousands of pounds a year because of loyalty you felt towards your work colleagues?
A pay rise that gave you a higher chance of earning a further pay rise sooner too.
Exactly people seem to forget football is a short career. He doesn’t owe us anything. Over the years he has improved no end and also was a great guy off the pitch. Always engaged with the fans especially over the last 12 months. Wish him all the best.
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I don’t see why some are disappointed with this move.
He’d already left, probably safe in the knowledge he’s get another offer.
So what.?
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You would think that everyone who's had a bit of a whinge about this would be over it by now, Joe was "gone" before his "injury" last season.
Good player for us, did his best and was a nice bloke to boot, we should all wish him well in his new venture, he doesn't owe us anything and we all move on.
Thanks for your service Joe.
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Stockport appear to be a really well run club with the kind of transfer strategy that I’d like us to aspire to. They seem to pick up lots of good players that will appreciate in value. Not a bad move for Olowu. And we move on.
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Some very bitter and frankly deluded responses on show here.
Stockport have a much better chance of promotion than us and will be offering a considerably better pay packet. Strange to think you wouldn’t make the jump if you were him.
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$$$$$
Good for him!
I agree but what does it say about our ambitions if quality players who end up at rival League clubs . Was Olowu offered a decent deal or just a typical take it or leave it one…. He could have been our next Ben Whitman with his growing reputation and commanded a decent fee !!
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$$$$$
Good for him!
I agree but what does it say about our ambitions if quality players who end up at rival League clubs . Was Olowu offered a decent deal or just a typical take it or leave it one…. He could have been our next Ben Whitman with his growing reputation and commanded a decent fee !!
Stockport are spending at an unsustainable level. We shouldn’t jump to join them in that.
The mistake we made wasn’t getting him signed up last season. We might have tried and he said no but that was the opportunity to avoid this or at least get some cash for him. This summer the ship has sailed.
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It's a job. If you get offered more you have to think about it.
Just feel a tad wierd as it's a northern team but it is what it is.
Some need to grow up
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As I said before, thanks. But no longer our player anymore. We move on as we have done when players left before.
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$$$$$
Good for him!
I agree but what does it say about our ambitions if quality players who end up at rival League clubs . Was Olowu offered a decent deal or just a typical take it or leave it one…. He could have been our next Ben Whitman with his growing reputation and commanded a decent fee !!
I’m not sure what you’re expecting with our wage structure.
We won’t be anywhere near Stockport at present. I don’t mean that in a negative way.
I’ll be very happy with mid table after looking at the business done across the league so far.
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$$$$$
Good for him!
I agree but what does it say about our ambitions if quality players who end up at rival League clubs . Was Olowu offered a decent deal or just a typical take it or leave it one…. He could have been our next Ben Whitman with his growing reputation and commanded a decent fee !!
Olowu signed up for more in 2023. Molyneux signed up for more last season as did Whiteman and Marquis when all were subject to interest. You can't force players to sign contracts even if the manager/club make offers in line with their worth to the club. Players and their agents will exercise their right to keep their options open if they think the timee right to move on. Some you win, some you lose.
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Stockport County.
You’ve gone for the money Joe, not the ambition to grow with a ‘better club’.
A ‘quick financial fix’. Let’s see where both clubs finish this season. We’ll maybe cross swords in the play offs, if we miss out on automatic promotion.
Ah well, enjoy the rest of your career.
Stockport County…jeez.
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Christ Almighty...What a load of jealous unthinking tosh.
BobG
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Good luck to him. Many on here falling into the pre season trap of assuming that the club who spends the most will p!ss promotion before a ball is kicked. McCann has made it clear he’s not here to make up the numbers but, the mentality of some posters would suggest it’s impossible because we aren’t throwing huge amounts of cash around. I think let’s just wait and see where we are at when we are finished assembling our squad. GM has also said we have players who will suit League One better than League Two so we will see. Sod Stockport and their bank balance.
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Christ Almighty...What a load of jealous unthinking tosh.
BobG
Jealous of who Bob?
Just happen to think Joe has put £ before achievements.
Let’s see how it pans out eh?
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So you don't believe pounds and career are important to individuals then?
Interesting view point.
BobG
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People forget that football is fixed term contracts because there isn't a lot of that in the 'normal' world. But DRFC offered Joe a fixed term contract 2/4 yrs ago that suited the club, not the player. It suited the player enough such that he signed. Recently they offered him a renewal that wasn't suited to the player so he didn't sign - BUT he completed his contractual obligation- he owes us nothing more.
To address a few points on here paraphrased:
"Would you turn down more money out of loyalty to colleagues" - Yes, have done multiple times and still to this day I don't take the highest paying job, its not all about money.....but that can't be applied across the board either way.
"Joe had one good season in 4" - No he didn't. It was clear to me throughout that Joe was a different level and to a few on here. He played for the first part in a poor team, and his form picked up as the teams did, but could always see he was something different.
"Last season injury prone" - I think he had a knock but had told GM he was off so he was dropped.
Whoever mentioned Joe and Ro-Shaun Williams in the same sentence seriously needs to get a grip. Joe is off to a team pushing for championship. RSW....anyone got news? Last story I saw was he was in Ireland nightclub with Rushford.
In my opinion Joe was a class player amd.wpuld have continued to develop, I would have done anything to keep him......Grant didn't think that way...... I trust in Grant.
When you listen to earlier interviews etc I'm convinced Stockport made an offer for Joe in January which we rejected but I think Joe told Grant he wanted to go. Soon after he got his "Injury" and we didn't see him again.....then he signs for Stockport.
I wish him well in life because he always came across as a great human being. I do not wish him success with Stockport. I hope we beat them twice and we aim for promotion while they finish below us.
Nothing against him as a person. It's a job. He honoured his fixed term contract and took the deal that suited him
There could be bigger losses, we move on.
All the best Joe
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Seemed to me that when he did the “coffee with” interview he knew he was going even some of Liams questions hinted at it.
Decent player and a great person wish him nothing but the best (apart from the 2 games against us lol)
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Honestly, we won't miss him, and I suspect stockport are overpaying him for how much he is actually worth.
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Christ Almighty...What a load of jealous unthinking tosh.
BobG
Jealous of who Bob?
Just happen to think Joe has put £ before achievements.
Let’s see how it pans out eh?
Maybe he needed the extra cash to help the church he is setting and that was his main reasons for leaving
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Wow! a few sour grapes being sucked on here.
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Joe is a good centre half but any body thinking he was going to a Championship club are making players better than what they are. He’s gone to Stockport but he’s replaced Horsfall who’s 3 years older and turned down a contract like Joe to go to Blackpool.
My main priority is where is the centre half to replace Joe we’ve signed one to replace Anderson we need one more at least. I assume he will be announced when Grant comes back off his break. Grant said it was close so let’s hope it was.
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People forget that football is fixed term contracts because there isn't a lot of that in the 'normal' world. But DRFC offered Joe a fixed term contract 2/4 yrs ago that suited the club, not the player. It suited the player enough such that he signed. Recently they offered him a renewal that wasn't suited to the player so he didn't sign - BUT he completed his contractual obligation- he owes us nothing more.
To address a few points on here paraphrased:
"Would you turn down more money out of loyalty to colleagues" - Yes, have done multiple times and still to this day I don't take the highest paying job, its not all about money.....but that can't be applied across the board either way.
"Joe had one good season in 4" - No he didn't. It was clear to me throughout that Joe was a different level and to a few on here. He played for the first part in a poor team, and his form picked up as the teams did, but could always see he was something different.
"Last season injury prone" - I think he had a knock but had told GM he was off so he was dropped.
Whoever mentioned Joe and Ro-Shaun Williams in the same sentence seriously needs to get a grip. Joe is off to a team pushing for championship. RSW....anyone got news? Last story I saw was he was in Ireland nightclub with Rushford.
In my opinion Joe was a class player amd.wpuld have continued to develop, I would have done anything to keep him......Grant didn't think that way...... I trust in Grant.
When you listen to earlier interviews etc I'm convinced Stockport made an offer for Joe in January which we rejected but I think Joe told Grant he wanted to go. Soon after he got his "Injury" and we didn't see him again.....then he signs for Stockport.
I wish him well in life because he always came across as a great human being. I do not wish him success with Stockport. I hope we beat them twice and we aim for promotion while they finish below us.
Nothing against him as a person. It's a job. He honoured his fixed term contract and took the deal that suited him
There could be bigger losses, we move on.
All the best Joe
Personally I just don’t think it’s comparable with other (normal, for want of a better word) types of work. I work for a company where although we pay OK, we’re certainly not market leaders. Where we differentiate, though, is in promoting work-life balance. There are no expectations to work beyond contracted hours. We have 8 additional Fridays off throughout the year. We promote learning & development and actively dedicate time to training. We’ve had several software engineers leave over the past couple of years for a 30-40% increase in salary. But alongside that increase there are expectations that they just strap themselves into the grind for 60+ hours a week. It’s a completely different environment and that’s why there’s a premium attached.
Football is completely different. Whether Olowu is at Rovers, Stockport, Orient or Derby the job is still the same at its core. Train several times a week and play 40-50 times a season. Expectations might be different in terms of performance levels, discipline, environment etc but ultimately he won’t really be working any more or less at any of those clubs.
And the money difference is probably very different to what most of us experience. We might have a choice where there’s a £5k, £10k or even £20k difference between 2 job and opt for the lower paid one. Olowu will be earning at the very least £100k more at Stockport. If any of us were offered that I’m sure it would be a much more difficult decision.
Ultimately a footballer is going to prioritise salary, length of contract and the chance of winning things. I think it’s really difficult to argue that Olowu’s not improved all 3 of those by moving on.
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He's probably doubled his wages
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I believe we will be playing Championship football long before Stockport.
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Some massively over the top reactions as per usual, anybody who is offered a contract on better terms and money would do the same as Joe, he did nothing wrong
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Given the chance Faulkner can be better.
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We have no grounds on which to criticise Olowu other than selfishness and self interest .His values have been shown to be both philanthropic and altruistic with all the work he did and indeed often led in our own Club’s community .
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I think we'll miss his pace at the back which gave him the ability to 'mop up' if we can replace that I think we will be fine, he clearly wasn't to best header of the ball, which will be easier to replace ! that said good luck Joe, however I do hope we make you eat humble pie, come the end of the season by finishing above your new team !
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I was a little surprised when I first heard he’d gone to Stockport.
However, above all else I wish Joe all the best for the future and thank him for his efforts during his time with us.
On top his efforts on the pitch, he did a huge amount of work in the Community, for which he rightly earned an award.
Joe obviously sees this move as a step up and I hope it works out well for him.
I also hope we beat Stockport home and away and finish above them in the League.
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I think we'll miss his pace at the back which gave him the ability to 'mop up' if we can replace that I think we will be fine, he clearly wasn't to best header of the ball, which will be easier to replace ! that said good luck Joe, however I do hope we make you eat humble pie, come the end of the season by finishing above your new team !
He made more mistakes than Tom. No big loss.
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According to Ricky Charlesworth at free press Rovers turned at least one cash offer from Stockport in January and it was rejected
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One can't blame him for seeking a bigger pay cheque, a footballers career is short lived. I do think it is our manager and our set up that made him the player he became for us and he may not find the same development supporting environment at Stockport He might not be able to perform quite as well for them as he did for DRFC.
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Given the chance Faulkner can be better.
You are an AI bot. I’ll collect my fiver.
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Overrated really, used his pace to get himself out of the trouble he got himself into.
Always had a big mistake in him.
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Gone to Stockport.
Wow.
Not Championship and not down South.
Very disappointing.
WHO ? :scarf:
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Given the chance Faulkner can be better.
this is getting a bit ridiculous now. I hope you’ve had a fiver on him being in Englands World Cup squad next year. Stick another fiver on him captaining it as well.
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Given the chance Faulkner can be better.
this is getting a bit ridiculous now. I hope you’ve had a fiver on him being in Englands World Cup squad next year. Stick another fiver on him captaining it as well.
He has to prove himself I accept that but we need a replacement now. I appreciate signing a good centre halves with league 1 and above experience is not easy but we still have not signed that quick centre half that we need. We have Pearson McGrath gained valuable experience at league 2 but we need more
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He was our best CB last season for sure. Very unlikely he goes backwards in his level of play now. He just got better and better with us. Hopefully McGrath can keep improving at the same rate so we don't miss him as much.
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I think Stockport are (hopefully short term) a bigger fish than us and if I were a Stockport fan reading this I'd be paraphrasing a "likes of Stockport" post. I don't blame any player for thinking Stockport have more chance of going up than us over the next 2 years - not that it's necessarily the case of course. We could surprise a lot of people next year, but there are a lot of clubs realistically eyeing that top 6.
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Overrated really, used his pace to get himself out of the trouble he got himself into.
Always had a big mistake in him.
What big mistakes did he make last season?
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Overrated really, used his pace to get himself out of the trouble he got himself into.
Always had a big mistake in him.
What big mistakes did he make last season?
Plus, when he came back from a broken jaw, I think he was bound to be a bit tentative at times, but he overcame that with his overall game improving. I thought his main weakness was dealing with aerial balls over the top when he had to turn towards his own goal. He seemed to lose his spacial awareness, but again, he overcame that.
There's no doubt when he has to put on the afterburners, he can make quick forwards look pedestrian.
His overall reading of the game improved and when he ventures forward he's really good on the ball. He can be a Rolls Royce of a centre half if he can settle into his new surroundings.
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Are Stockpot a bigger club than us? Hmmm.
Have they got a better chance than us of promotion in the next year or two? Probably, but not by a mile. Is he probably on a couple of grand a week more signing for them? Likely. 3 years, 300k pay rise, not that hard to work out is it?
He was a good un for us, best of luck Joseph, apart from when you play us of course.
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Are Stockpot a bigger club than us? Hmmm.
Have they got a better chance than us of promotion in the next year or two? Probably, but not by a mile. Is he probably on a couple of grand a week more signing for them? Likely. 3 years, 300k pay rise, not that hard to work out is it?
He was a good un for us, best of luck Joseph, apart from when you play us of course.
That's fair. I think they're in a similar position to us when we got promoted back into the League and went up to the Championship in three?:seasons. They're started the process to expand Edgely Park and are probably in a good position to take advantage of fans drifting away from Man U and Man City, where ST holders feel they're being held to ransome rather than being welcomed at affordable prices. Their owner covered losses of £7m (£11m in total since taking over?) Which in today's scheme of things, is relatively modest, but they believe they can grow.
We might be not too far behind them but to what degree we'll probably find out soon enough.
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So that's probably Rob, Teddy, and Joe all playing against us this coming season. All good players, and all good lads.
Now let's pump all 3 of their clubs, and finish above them.
A big ask, I know, but I've got faith in GM.
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So that's probably Rob, Teddy, and Joe all playing against this coming season. All good players, and all good lads.
Now let's pump all 3 of their clubs, and finish above them.
A big ask, I know, but I've got faith in GM.
Plus Richard Wood as an opposition coach!
It goes without saying that we would want to pump Rotherham and finish above them :laugh:
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So that's probably Rob, Teddy, and Joe all playing against this coming season. All good players, and all good lads.
Now let's pump all 3 of their clubs, and finish above them.
A big ask, I know, but I've got faith in GM.
Plus Richard Wood as an opposition coach!
It goes without saying that we would want to pump Rotherham and finish above them :laugh:
I've got a tenner on with a Rotherham fan at my suppliers, he's not overly confident.
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Lot of people going into meltdown here. Absolutely losing the plot.
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How many of Joe”s in defensive headers went high rather than far? That wa his weakness for me.
A good defender but still improving for me although he always seeemed to have the ability to kick on. I don’t know how many clubs at our level would have given him the time that we did Though.
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Lot of people going into meltdown here. Absolutely losing the plot.
Not sure people are going into meltdown. For me it was the surprise element. I had expected a move to Bolton/Huddersfield or a Reading type club playing in front of 15,000+ with very high expectations. I didn’t see a move into the Championship as 1 good season in League 2 just isn’t enough.
So Stockport, okay clearly upwardly mobile, but not a big club not a big lower league name. So to me it’s just a ‘you must be kidding’ reaction.
None of us know the financial package so the only meltdown on that can only occur if we knew he moved for a similar package and none of us know nowt there.
The only gripe I would have is Rovers believed in him (when he was mistake riddled) and offered him a decent contract, improved him hugely and we only benefit for a year. More of a disappointment than meltdown.
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GazLad, until he got injured which was two seasons ago at 17/18 yrs old Faulkner was considered and was playing better and being picked to play in front of Joe Olowu, who has improved tremendously with experience and is now on last seasons form when fit a very good player, and I hope goes on to even better things.
Faulkner has every thing in his locker Joe has and in the air is superior, he just needs games whether here or elsewhere, has backed himself to prove it by signing for his boyhood club with better financial offers to play elsewhere put in front of him and clubs willing to pay the transfer fee.
He has the confidence in his ability to take the challenge up and consider his home life away from football at the present rather than chasing the money.
If he doesn't play here this season he will play elsewhere, but those already here or coming from another club need to be aware that this lad will be giving everything to make one of those shirts his own given the chance.
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That should be every player’s attitude..
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So that's probably Rob, Teddy, and Joe all playing against us this coming season. All good players, and all good lads.
Now let's pump all 3 of their clubs, and finish above them.
A big ask, I know, but I've got faith in GM.
That’s a bit childish Scawsby.
And I 100% agree with you
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How many of Joe”s in defensive headers went high rather than far? That wa his weakness for me.
A good defender but still improving for me although he always seeemed to have the ability to kick on. I don’t know how many clubs at our level would have given him the time that we did Though.
Good point Dave.
I remember shaking my head at some of Joe’s headers!
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When we were ok but not brilliant in the first three quarters of last season he was outstanding, as important to us as the Walsall centre forward was to them, and covered a lot of others mistakes with his pace getting over left side as well as central and right side.
I think we saw him as a must for the rest of the season to get promotion and turned down decent offers in January hoping he would complete the season.
I never for one moment thought he would play many matches to the end of the season after January and that situation with agents involved and money on the table that would still be there at the end of June and the club could be cut out of any share. and said so at the matches to friends.
It needs to be a lesson learned, the club again losing out financially, yes most of the lads are great lads but when it comes to big money the agents are the people running the show and have their ear, and sometimes its best to take what's on offer or your going to end up the patsy.
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Once again though hindsight is a wonderful thing. Imagine the comments on here if we had accepted a bid then? The board would have been slated mercilessly and accused of a lack of ambition.
The club could only offer a contract at what they thought Joe was worth and if he didn’t want to stay, that’s it.
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A big loss for us imo, and instrumental in us being near the top. Strong, athletic and can at least handle opposition strikers.
We could probably do with at least 1 more centre half, if not 2, to play alongside Pearson, giving us the proven experience we will need in league 1.
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Good luck to him, There are 4 or 5 players ahead of him that had we’d lost would have been a lot more damaging. We will replace pretty easily.
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“ We will replace pretty easily.”
To date, we havn’t, so I wouldn’t describe it in such a way. We may well replace him but, so far, it appears to be far from easy.
Obviously, GM not back in the office today or I’m pretty sure we would have heard something. There were a few things left ‘hanging’ before he left on his break so either we’re waiting for GM to return or the deals that were mentioned have fallen through!
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Or maybe, just maybe, things are going on behind the scenes..
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Imo any half decent CB would've done well in our side last season. We won the league and there wasn't many games where we wasn't attacking for big parts of the game. Now I'm not saying Joe is a bad player as he isn't and is of loved to keep him to see if he could kick on with us and got a big move next summer to the championship. Now he's got to hit the ground running in a new system and side or he will not play every week. Here he was guaranteed a place,he knew the system and had formed a excellent partnership with McGrath who is the better player imo. Hopefully this new lad is just as good and in Pearson we have a real warrior who will be a upgrade on Wood and Tom. Id like to say we are stronger at CB now than last season.
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As stated earlier…easily replaced
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Very broad brush look at things.
Last season, Olowu played in 31 league games, in which we conceded 35 goals
He missed 15 games, in which we conceded 15 goals.
Caveats a-plenty, but this does chime a bit with my feeling last season that for all that Olowu (and McGrath) looked excellent, we were no worse a defensive unit without him.
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We clearly would have rather kept him than lost him. That’s unarguable. What is an irritant though is him leaving for free and us not getting a penny for him. Such is life though.