Just to touch on football for a moment (my apologies) who would be on your retained list come the summer. For the sake of argument, assume everyone is out of contract and everyone wants to stay.


Jan Budtz
Jamie McCunnie
Ritchie Humphreys
Willie Boland
Michael Nelson
Sam Collins
Gary Liddle
Ritchie Jones
Joel Porter
Andy Monkhouse
Ben Clark
James Brown
Antony Sweeney
Alan Power
David Foley
Michael Mackay
Matty Robson
Daniel Nardiello
Arran Lee-Barrett
Jonny Rowell
Rune Lange
Martin Young
Matty Tymon
Joe Tait
Lewis Guy
Keigan Parker
Mark Cook
Liam Henderson

Wouldnt it be easier to ask for a list of those to release?

That Martin McGuiness seems effective.

4 , 7 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 30 , 34.

Willie Boland
Gary Liddle
Alan Power
David Foley
Michael Mackay
Mark Cook
Liam Henderson

I would give Liddle another chance as a defender
I can't believe he still gets a game in midfield though - he is useless in midfield

Arran Lee Barratt
Ritchie Humphreys
Willie Boland
Michael Nelson
Ritchie Jones
Joel Porter
Andy Monkhouse
Ben Clark
James Brown
Antony Sweeney
David Foley
Matty Robson
Daniel Nardiello
Matty Tymon
Keigan Parker
Mark Cook

One or two I've excluded have hardly played; if they turn out to be any good they could always be reintegrated. I'm also willing to listen to criticism of Tymon and Cook, neither of whom I have seen.

Some of those I've kept I'm only keeping as a back-up.

Get a good goalie, two proper full backs, a right winger who's as good on the right as Monky on the left, put Clark back with Nelson, get Sweeney back in midfield with a recovered Boland, and there's the makings of a decent team in there.
Add one more player for cover at centre half and that makes 5 in and 11 out.

Four quality players can transform a team; I know; I've seen it.

The problem is not all of those above are going to re-sign are they.

Get shot of...

ALB
Mackay
Henderson
Mccunnie
Guy


Sign a right back or left back and put Liddle in other full back position. Sign a pacy attacking central midfielder, a right winger and 2 good strikers plus a competent keeper and hey ho - play offs here we come.

Thats about it write the lad off after four games...



And where are you going to a get that lot for fook all?? Now I'm convinced you don't know what you're talking about...

I'm sure that the only time you see football is on your TV or Computer...

Co-incidentally I fancy Rooney and Tevez for the strikers berths... How about Henry for the midfield and maybe Ronaldinho for the right wing??

i remeber Foley getting a lot of flack on here, not good enough etc, yet he seems to be in everyones retaining list ?? (i cant comment cos i cant get to games) but if someone could enlighten me please.

I don't think Foley will be costing the club much at the moment and he's had an impact coming of the bench through the season.

OK Thanks for that!

Jan Budtz - Get rid
Jamie McCunnie - Get rid
Ritchie Humphreys - Get rid
Willie Boland - Get rid
Michael Nelson
Sam Collins
Gary Liddle (retain as a left back/right back)
Ritchie Jones
Joel Porter
Andy Monkhouse
Ben Clark
James Brown
Antony Sweeney
Alan Power
David Foley
Michael Mackay - Get rid
Matty Robson - Get rid
Daniel Nardiello
Arran Lee-Barrett - Get rid
Jonny Rowell
Rune Lange
Martin Young
Matty Tymon
Joe Tait
Lewis Guy ?? not sure yet
Keigan Parker ?? not sure yet
Mark Cook - Get rid (must be sh*t if he cant displace ALB )
Liam Henderson - Get rid

i am going to list who to get rid of. And im not including any of the loan players as they arent ours.

Budtz
collins
mackay
boland
porter (he is leaving anyway)
mccunnie

i reckon that will release a fair bit of wages and what we need to bring in is

a 1st choice GK
a left back
a right back
a young centre back (worley)
a right winger
a young version of boland
and 2 or 3 strikers (only 2 if we can keep lange)

Well Porters away, as possibly are Nelson, Liddle and Monkhouse on bosmans. McCunnie is also out of contract so cant see him being here. Budz and Barratt were also only on 2 year contracts so it doesnt leave us with much does it.

why dont the club just get on with giving contracts to Monkhouse etc when they know other clubs are going to be sniffing around when they start to approach the end of their current contract

I don't think we should get rid of the likes of Foley, Robson, Mackay and ALB. We're a small club that gets very small crowds and we can't expect to have a squad full of quality players, it's just not sustainable and we'd end up bust. We need players like those above for when we experience injuries like we have the last few months so we're not forced to throw in the youth team. They've all done well in patches but none of them have shown consistency which is why they've taken stick. I'd sooner those 4 stayed and we got rid of one of the bigger earners who has underperformed but still taken home a decent wage- ie the likes of Humphreys McCunnie, Boland, Collins etc. I'm sure the four mentioned could be suitably replaced for cheaper rather than getting rid of the low earners who would need to be replaced at a cost.

I just hope IOR have taken options out on Liddle, Nelson and Monkhouse like they did last year on Porter.

I can only presume Mr Head made a mistake with his omission of Rowell

I suprised myself by how few I'd dump but quite a few I've kept simply because they haven't had a decent chance to show what they can do whether that be through injury, time here or sheer bloody mindedness by managers. Obviously I've slaughters a sacred cow or two but we can't afford passengers or liabilities.

Michael Nelson
Sam Collins
Gary Liddle
Ritchie Jones
Joel Porter
Andy Monkhouse
Ben Clark
James Brown
Antony Sweeney
Alan Power
David Foley
Michael Mackay
Matty Robson
Jonny Rowell
Rune Lange
Martin Young
Matty Tymon
Joe Tait
Lewis Guy
Keigan Parker
Mark Cook
Liam Henderson

You forgot to put Ritchie Humps in your retained list!

Oh silly me. I forgot Willie Waddell and Malcolm Dawes too.

Liddle would only be kept as a full back for me.
How he keep getting picked in midfield I don't know - he does nothing at all in there

like some of our other players (Nelson) he just needs someone alongside him to compliment him. or shifting to full back

Im not allowed to point out what areas I think we need strengthening???

Christ.

To quote Pierrepoint......

"And where are you going to a get that lot for fook all?? Now I'm convinced you don't know what you're talking about..."

Ps someone else suggested we dont retain him before me but thats ok??

Nope, wrong assumption.
As I said, I can only go by what I've seen. I saw Rowell against Scunthorpe, which is a third of all the games he's played for Pools, and in that game we were completely, embarrassingly overun in midfield. In addition he gave away a stupid free kick that led to their first goal. In my books that doesn't make him a good player. That of course doesn't stop people like Chip liking shite in the team.

As for Boland, in all the games I've seen him in he's never put a foot wrong.

So who's being serious?

me n you know whay we are talking bout Tree

A number of people have written him off already, including the donny fans who have seen him play many times.

he's only on loan anyway so will automatically be released

Donny fans have written him off? Where have you made that up from? The general consensus when he signed from their fans was that he was struggling a bit with confidence and a move away could do him the world of good to regain some form. Anyone writing the lad off already is a bell end especially given that I'm guessing the majority have only seen him play 3 times and in one of them he hardly got passed the ball and very nearly scored.

Easy this:

We need a balanced squad............

Goalkeepers:

an Other
ALB

Right back:

an other
Sweeney

Left back:

an other
Humphreys
Robson

Centrebacks:
nelson
Clark
an other
Liddle

Right Mid:
an other
Brown
Sweeney

Left Mid

Monkhouse
Robson
Humphreys

Centre mid:
Jones
an other
Rowell
Sweeney
clark
Power

Strikers:

Brown
Lange?
an other
an other.

So I reckon we need 8 players.

If I havent mentioned players here then they should be released.

I have no place for:
Butz
MCcUNNIE
Collins
Boland
Foley
Mackay

It would be great to sign Parker, Nardiello, and Guy

Actually scratch that, i'm guessing the people writing him off have only seen him play twice as he missed Peterboro. I wasn't at the game but he got us the penalty with a good forward run, didn't he? He was quiet at Swindon but excellent at Colchester. On what I've seen he has done ok and there is clearly something there but if people want rid of the lad based on two performances they've seen then it's no wonder people get pissed off with this place.

but we HAVE to get rid, simply because he isn't ours to keep!!!

pissed off with this place?

Me thinks Mr Chip has missed the point.

I know but if he ends up unwanted at Donny and settles here there is a chance he could stay. However I think he has a year left on his contract and don't expect him to stay. Nardiello however...

Yes Chip, i'm on crack and that's exactly what I think. Jesus.

Ok, anyone who has ever played for us twice, should be kept on.

Well done Tree on completely missing the point as usual.

And to yourself. Not once did i "write him off"

It was the same crap with Henderson. A few of us pointed out that an inexperienced lad was not what was needed at the point when facing a relegation battle and half of the morons came out with "your wiriting him off before seeing him" etc. No we were not, we were saying a loan would be better off with someoen with experience and who knows about leage football (like Guy, Parker, Nardiello etc)

But carry on jumping to conclusions like the rest on here.

So you're not writing him off but you're happy to see him released based on what you've seen in the 180 mins so far? Right....

1) He is on loan. 2) I dare say his wages will be more than we generally pay 3) He dont like playing right wing 4) He aint a 20+ goal a season striker and as were losing Joel then id rather spend the money on someone who hoepfully could get near that. He has never been prolific.

Do I think he will solve any of our problems? No so i wouldnt try to sign him. If that means im "writing him off" then so be it.

Power was loving life in the loft last night, nice too see his dedication to the cause.

How do you know he doesn't like playing right wing? He's played there for the majority of his Donny career and is well thought of. He'd be a good right winger for us which is an area we need strengthening to allow our only ready made 20 goal a season striker to play in that position. He is flexible in when he can play and is proven at this level, I'm genuinely shocked that people are dismissing what he could potentially bring to the team

Pools haven't had a good right winger in my time of supporting them.

Strikers and centre mids are always put there, square pegs in round holes.

Where he can play rather than when he can play. I'd like to think he can play whenever we need him!

I manage it chip so it's not impossible.

There's a difference between going out and going out and getting hammered. I'm out with the lad the majority of times when I'm home and he barely drinks.