Hassell close to Reds deal BARNSLEY say they have had "encouraging talks" with defender Bobby Hassell and are hopeful he will sign a new contract next week. Hassell will take the weekend to consider a revised offer from the Reds and it seems likely that he will commit himself to the club's Championship campaign. "We met Bobby yesterday and while details must remain private, he has gone away to think over our offer and I feel it looks encouraging," said club spokesman Don Rowing. "We expect to hear from Bobby early next week." He said there had been contact from goalkeeper Nick Colgan, one of four out-of-contract players who have until today to reply to the offers made to them by the club. A meeting is likely to be set up in the next few days. The others the club are waiting to hear from are Antony Kay, Neil Austin and Chris Shuker. Meanwhile, season ticket sales are up on the corresponding period last year. Existing season-ticket-holders have until June 30 to claim their normal seat. Any unclaimed after this date will then be put on general sale. Barnsley have fixed up pre-season friendlies with two Premiership clubs. They will play Middlesbrough, under new manager Gareth Southgate, on Tuesday July 25 and Paul Jewell's Wigan Athletic on Tuesday August 1, both at Oakwell. The other pre-season games will be away at Boston Utd on July 19, Bradford PA on July 22 and Halifax on July 29. n Meanwhile, Owls winger Chris Brunt today said Sheffield Wednesday should follow the Blades' route to the Premiership. The key lesson is that promotion didn't happen over night at Bramall Lane... and it won't at Hillsborough either. "We saw what types of player Sheffield United had," he said. "They've been building for the last five or six years. It shows that we've got a lot of time to settle down." COPYRIGHT BARNSLEY STAR Paolo
That would be brilliant news. I am a fan of Bobby but I know Tyrone won't be pleased lol We now need Colgan, Kay and Austin to re-sign and that's those worries over.
So we've offered him more money? Would not be a massive loss imho as I can't see him playing and centre half next season and often at full back he gets caught out of position and offers very little going forward.
Ritchie is back from holiday now isn't he?, maybe he has had something to do with it. Maybe he sees Hassell as atruly big player for the Championship. maybe it's a bit like bargaining when you go to Thailand ie lowest price but have an upper limit. Over there it's highest first and then you come down to what you both agree on which is somewhere in the middle !
Mebbe... but I'm sure wecould replace him with a better full back that would give better defensive cover in a positional sense (ie centre halves not drawn out wide to cover) and more of an attacking threat, although to be fair, Hassell can be **** hot from corners
when ever he played at full back he always left shuker in the lurch having to deal with the opposing full back and winger down that side as hassell ahd always fooked off into the middle
I agree, he always looked good playing as a centre back and I think that that is where he is the happiest.
he came 2nd in our player of the year awards, and helped us get promoted by playing alot of games. yet look at all the slating he is getting.
dreamboy same as shuke rm8 he scored goals and got a decent number of assists but ppl are still happy to see the back of him
I can't understand why some people don't like him for God's sake. When he bruised his ribs against Bournemouth and was out a few weeks we missed him badly. He will improve even further I think.
Has anyone thought of having Hassell as a sweeper behind the 2 centre backs? A similar formation to that which got us into the premiership i think; plenty of attacking options, but solid at the back. To me, Hassell seems to read the game better than any of the other CBs. What do people think?
One of Hassells major srengths is his ability to read the gamea nd read the developing play especially when he is playing a more central role. The number of interceptions he makes in a game is excellent. Again when he is in the centre he seems to be quite commanding in the air, he wins most headers and does well to clear the ball. He always has his best games in the centre and really shines in that position. I would be very disapointed if we didn't sign him. I would also be diapointed if Shukes didn't sign. Okay, he hasn't showed the same form this season but I do believe he is what makes our midfield good. Pace and good and counter attacking. I think if we start to take the pace out of our side then our midfield will look very ordinary. I believe that a midfield including shukes, Devaney and Howard is very attack minded and will cause problems for many Championship sides. Pace always causes problems for any side and we have that currently in midfield. It is one of our main strengths as a team. If Shukes was to leave and we didn't find a similar replacement I think a lot would rest on Devaney's shoulders. They're my opinions anyway! Paolo
Good, maybe if the others have the sense to contact the club then maybe we can get things resolved. Ritchie did say he may be able to get a bit more from the Chairman.
RE: totaltyketastic's post is 100% correct I really don't understand your dislike for Hassell. Personally I think he's better at centre back than full back since he reads the game exceptionally well but he's also strong at full back. Let's face it we hardly struggled down our right flank last season so he can't be that much of a weak link.
RE: totaltyketastic's post is 100% correct I don’t dislike that lad at all having met him is a great lad who's heart is the right place, unfortunately as a footballer he is not up to the standard, his deviancies are well pointed out in totaltyketastic's posts.
