The Squad List (2023/24 Edition)

[Batch]

Yes,it's official. There's an unnamed trialist thats been with us for several weeks who has not been signed. Sorry

So we are keeping them around because either
   - they will suddenly become good enough to improve us
   - the squad will become bad enough to improve us
   - we have no spare budget*
   - its a favour to the player/players dad whatever

*skint or up against wage cap.

[Jimmy HaveHave]

So we are keeping them around because either
   - they will suddenly become good enough to improve us
   - the squad will become bad enough to improve us
   - we have no spare budget*
   - its a favour to the player/players dad whatever

*skint or up against wage cap.

Why would they want to stay for so long if they haven’t been offered a contract plus surely we must be paying them something to keep them here indefinitely.

[Nemo]

Players gain a bit in terms of fitness and staying in the shop window. Egbo was here on trial for months before we got an injury an signed him and it worked out well for him.

[Jimmy HaveHave]

I guess it depends on how far they want to travel unless the club pay for a hotel and pay them expenses.

[Bob's Orange]

There has been some discussion in a number of MDTs now about the squad and what we're going to be doing in January. I thought it might be useful to open up that discussion in this thread and now we've had a chance to see the team and how Flynn wants to play, what people think will happen in January and how we can rectify it to try and ensure that our competitive budget is used in order to continue to make us be competitive.

Personally I think Kemp goes and flourishes at Franchise under an attack minded coach and I'm still undecided about Young. We certainly do have a lot of work to do at the start of 2024. The squad has to be filled out properly.

[Nemo]

If we can keep Kemp, fantastic, but I don't think it's very likely. Young I think is much more likely to stay, but whilst I'd like him to, I won't be devastated if he goes.

Squad needs - as Flynn knew before the window closed and has just had to stop asking - four more bodies - probably CB, ML, MC and a big Plan B forward. Plus replacing anyone that goes out.

Not using our final loan spot in the summer is the strangest decision of the lot. Obviously Ward was a bad loan, but you can see the logic of another left footed CB. Three out of four good loans isn't a bad hit rate.

It's going to be an interesting month - still 12 games or something until the window opens though, so need to get a fair tune out of the current squad.

[Batch]

I guess we are waiting to try and shift some out before we bring in.

other than Kemp probably going I'm unsure on anything

[Mooneyraker]

I guess we are waiting to try and shift some out before we bring in.

other than Kemp probably going I'm unsure on anything

Who is there that we can afford to shift out?!

[Bob's Orange]

I guess we are waiting to try and shift some out before we bring in.

other than Kemp probably going I'm unsure on anything

Who else do you think we might be trying to move on Batch? Surely we're at the stage where we've moved everyone on and we need to add 4-6 players in to really support what we have and make us competitive? 

[Nemo]

Who is there that we can afford to shift out?!

B Ward will go back I suspect. Other than that, not many. If we can get Minturn a Conference loan and there's a replacement in then great. But not expecting many outs, we did a genuinely good job of shifting the dead wood out in summer- we just didn't replace it with any live wood.

[Bob's Orange]

B Ward will go back I suspect. Other than that, not many. If we can get Minturn a Conference loan and there's a replacement in then great. But not expecting many outs, we did a genuinely good job of shifting the dead wood out in summer- we just didn't replace it with any live wood.

We do have Victoria Wood playing at number 9 though. (that's a joke Charlie Austin fans  )

[Mooneyraker]

I think RobertT posted a team from the Wellens season which illustrated the point and the best we can hope for is to retain Kemp (ideally sign but that's for the birds I know), Mahoney and Young on loan and add two more quality loans in the mould of REG and Anthony Grant and then sign an OOC target man. That's my vaguely realistic gold plated outcome.

We have to absolutely max out our potential in the loan department. Zero dead wood. Sorry B Ward.

[Batch]

Who else do you think we might be trying to move on Batch?

Kemp, and possibly Young and Ward.  Frees up wages
There is always a chance that on of the loaned out players may go on a perm (Aguiar, Adeloye).

There is also a chance we'll get an offer for a player. I still think Hutton, Khan and FBT have value. It would be madness to sell them , but it seems our MO.
--
We could genuinely be not bothered by the trialists still with us, and are just waiting for players to become available.

But the way things have panned out over the summer and thereafter, I have my doubts.

It could even be a wage cap thing, though that seems unlikely.

[RobertT]

We remain four players, three of whom need to be first team quality, from a proper squad that wants to compete with the top three.  No hindsight needed, it has been obvious all season and before it started, Flynn even called it out and continued to suggest players were on their way, until they weren't and we sold a player on the bus.

Two loans used on players in the same division as us tells us what we need to know about budgets.  Those two should be permanent signings, enabling loans to be used on talent we could not otherwise expect to afford.  Someone will now raise Doyle, which is fair enough - I will counter that Power was owner, so if we want to be like his time, crack on.

[Mooneyraker]

We remain four players, three of whom need to be first team quality, from a proper squad that wants to compete with the top three.  No hindsight needed, it has been obvious all season and before it started, Flynn even called it out and continued to suggest players were on their way, until they weren't and we sold a player on the bus.

Two loans used on players in the same division as us tells us what we need to know about budgets.  Those two should be permanent signings, enabling loans to be used on talent we could not otherwise expect to afford.  Someone will now raise Doyle, which is fair enough - I will counter that Power was owner, so if we want to be like his time, crack on.

Not sure how to break this....