Cause for concern? Or could we be about to turn a corner?

I can't understand for the life of me ,why we need all these sports analysts at our club .
If we can see goals conceded 73, where the problem lies I don't have any hope any more.
It's not rocket science , concede 2 goals we have to outscore the other team with 3 .
Clean sheets are often the key as we have proved in the past .
Oakwell used to be a fortress ,I dare not count the goals conceded at home ,but left just after half time against Orient when we 4 down.

 

A lot has been said about the growing financial gulf between the Premiership and the rest of the EFL, but I am more concerned in our present position about the growing gulf between the Championship and Leagues One and Two. Premiership teams are able to cream off the best of young talent and then waste it, as the players never get the chance to show what they can really do in the men's game. Too many potentially outstanding players are lost to the game through this system of financial greed. That forms just one chasm between Premiership and Championship, but we have seen over recent months that investors recognise the possibilities of a good return for less financial input in backing/owning a League One team to promote into the Championship (eg Birmingham City, or Wrexham). Those League One and Two teams which are not going to be bankrolled (and why should any team be so?) are likely to have to get by with a team of potential youngsters who were not stolen by Premiership teams, or cheap options. This does not mean that it is impossible to build a good team in League One/Two without financial backing, but the odds are somewhat against it happening. I am always encouraged by the exceptions to this 'rule' - Leyton Orient did so well last season with good coaching and a clear system (albeit with several good loan players). Wycombe Wanderers show it can be done too. If we can hold on to DKD and Humphrys, whilst making a bit of cash on Phillips and bringing on Shepherd, Bland, Jalo and so on, we may not need to splash much serious cash (which we don't have). I know that it seems gloom and doom when we can't recruit as we used to, but the truth is that most League One and Two teams are in the same situation. We just need to make the best of what we already have and recruit prudently. I hope that we will.

 

We offered a different contract didn't we ?

 

To illustrate the above, I was at the gym a few months back and got chatting to a youngish lad, who I thought was a member of staff. It turned out that he was a professional footballer who found himself without a club. He was originally with West Bromwich Albion and played several games for England at U17 level. When he was loaned to Lincoln City, he scored within minutes of coming on as a substitute in a cup game and his career looked to take off big time. However, he got few opportunities on loan there and returned to WBA, then being loaned out to Cheltenham Town, where he picked up an injury. He was then released by West Brom in 2022 and was at the gym struggling to regain fitness. The last I heard of him, he was playing way down the pecking order for Weston-super-Mare Town. Too many young players just get cast off without having the chance to show what they can do, or without due care if they get injured. He showed me with pride photos on his phone in his West Brom and England kit, but you could see how he felt the system had failed him and trashed him when he got injured. This greedy system creates too many stories like this and trashes too many young lives in which the dream becomes a nightmare too quickly.

 

We’ll be top 3rd of the table and there’s nothing much else to say on the matter.

 

I'm also a professional footballer who has found myself without a club. And a professional actor who has found myself without a film. A professional lothario without a girlfriend. And a professional wrestler without a leotard.

 

I've got a leotard you can borrow

 

For me, re Humps contract, it could be for many reasons that they're doing that instead of taking the one year option.

Optimistically, maybe they're wanting to tie him down to more than a year so that we don't lose him for nothing.
Realistically, they're hoping that a 2 year contract on a reduced deal would be a better incentive than one year extension with the prospect of not getting the same money at another club at the end of the contract.
The pessimist in me says there's probably a crap buyout clause in the final year extension if it's triggered and they're worried to lose him now for next to nothing.

 

I can't see there being a "crap buyout" in there. Chances are there'll be a large financial payment due (large to us) payable to Humphreys should we trigger the year option. It would make sense, as usual triggering that option would mean that we were pleased with his performances for the Club, so it would make sense for there to be some form of bonus for the player if the Club wanted to trigger that option.

My guess is the Club don't want to pay something like that and so have offered him a different contract. Likely to be less a week, likely to be next to no sign on bonus, hence why he's not signed it.

People have posted, or reposted a post he himself has put on X or Instagram or whatever. It's of him in a Barnsley kit with the caption "can't wait for this feeling again" or something along those lines.

My guess is that he's giving the board a nudge as if to say...make me a better offer.

Could all be nonsense, but that's how I'm reading it.

 

Absolutely spot on, but that was also a sad read.Thanks for sharing this.

 

So I understand mate. Not sure if our offer overrides the extention contract as it's been speculated that our offer is on less than the extention. Would have assumed we would be in our rights to sell his extention year. Question is would ya keep him..

 

Unfortunately it has always been like that, the difference between now and the 80/90’s is less players were hoovered up by big clubs and more likely to start with more local clubs as a teenager and its higher profile now too.

 

yep there is a long time to go before our BFC transfer window opens. Usually 1st sept.

 

No, i dont think so. When i was involved in stuff like this, effectively the fact that we aren't executing the option through our own choice means that the option is rendered invalid, effectively making him a free agent, and the offer we've made to him will be on that basis. Others are free to offer a better deal if they so wish.

 

The player would only be able to be sold if contracted to the club. That could only happen if the extension were triggered.

The clear point is that the club are not wiling to extend on current terms and have therefore offered a contract of lesser value. The player now has the option of taking up that contract or walking away elsewhere as they are out of contract.

I think the club is in the worst state it has been for a long time. Losses mounting and the quality of the squad declining year on year. If Neerav’s dad says no more playing football manager the position looks bleak.

 

So the players agent will be touting him around for the highest wage, or best contract.
Over the season does he deserve the same contract ? A drop in wages I can't see him jumping thru hoops for us.
He wasn't brilliant last season apart from the odd game.

 

We don't know it's of lesser value.

We know the club have not triggered the one year extension to the current contract and we know they have offered an alternative contract but we don't know the value of of either.

I would have thought the contract we have offered is for longer than the year extension that they decided not to trigger. By offering a contract I assume they rate Humphrys as a decent player. A longer contract ties him to the club for longer and usually results in a higher resale value if another club becomes interested down the line. And if it is a longer contract, even if it is for a smaller wage each month, it will be of greater value.

I don't know, it could be a one year contract on less money, but I doubt it. We don't often offer single year contracts.