Thomas Elliot

[carpetman123]

Pope has gone its time to move on thank god!!

[stupers]

But we haven't got a new 'King' signed up yet have we?!!!!

 

Are you going to stop moaning about Pope going if we do go out and get a new striker? I doubt it.

 

A lot of strikers can get 20 goals with the right service. The really good ones do it when things aren't perfect as well. I don't think he can hit 20 goals this upcoming season. I don't think he will stay fit for 40 games and his only good seasons have been at Vale, the club he adores. I think as you say, he will find it tough to get him up for games at Bury as much as he did when he was pulling on the black and white. Top professional as he is, there's still no bigger motivator than playing for your favourite club.

 

I like Tom and wish him well, but it really is time to move on and start talking about the future, instead of the past.

[TheSage]

It's completely pointless discussing the merits or otherwise of Pope because he's no longer our player.

 

But until we sign at least 2 very good strikers I'll remain concerned about next season. It is absolutely imperative that we get goals in the team as the squad looks very poor in the attacking sense at the moment and when/if Marshall also goes....

 

I'd be happy to see someone like Tom Elliott as perhaps a second choice striker but I'm hoping fervently that we can find another couple of quality players besides him. We need them urgently.

[Santa]

With Elliott you feel his ship might have already sailed. At 24 he needs to have already started delivering on his potential.

 

If we are going to take a flyer on this sort of player, I think there are better ones out there.

[bar1]

With Elliott you feel his ship might have already sailed. At 24 he needs to have already started delivering on his potential.

 

If we are going to take a flyer on this sort of player, I think there are better ones out there.

 

Agreed mate, im not convinced with him either. There's surely better sweeties in the jar.

[Robbie Earle's Perm]

Spot on buddy but why couldn't a few others including the owner see it?

 

Have you got your season ticket for Bury Owd?

[Robbie Earle's Perm]

If he gets the right service I bet you a £1 that he will.

 

the biggest obstacle I believe will be whether moving affects his motivation?

 

I'd be staggered if he wasn't motivated on the wages he will be on! You getting your excuses in early? ;)

[Robbie Earle's Perm]

Tom Pope was much more that just a goal scorer, the reason players of his type can command the biggest pay packets is that there are not many of 'em around and when they are around clubs pay a premium for them, simple supply and demand. Vale have to compete on the wage front for a striker.

 

Various people say 'much more than a goalscorer' or words to that effect but never justify the meaning of their words.

[old sage]

No he won't. You have no proof for that at all.

No and neither have you!

[old sage]

Various people say 'much more than a goalscorer' or words to that effect but never justify the meaning of their words.

come on REP don't insult your or our intelligence. the bloke quite simply worked his socks off while he was here. He was often helping out the defence on set pieces. He chased down hundreds of 'lost causes' and often won us a throw in or corner. the bloke had the ability to hold the ball up better than any Vale player since Brooker, taking all the stick that defenders gave him and never in my memory did he ever retaliate unlike Rico who got booked and sent off on a few occasions for biting back.

[sbilli]

Pope was out with injurie a lot of the season. He never really got back to fitness. So his precense on the field was smaller than an fully fit Pope.

He will be back to his best this season. Big loss, both in the dressing room and on the pitch. Still he was on big money. Hope we can spend them well.

[Yukon]

Pope was out with injurie a lot of the season. He never really got back to fitness. So his precense on the field was smaller than an fully fit Pope.

He will be back to his best this season. Big loss, both in the dressing room and on the pitch. Still he was on big money. Hope we can spend them well.

 

There's only one direction Popey is heading and it's the same one since we got promoted. He took longer to recover for the same reason- he's getting old.

 

Does anyone actually think we should have offered him a three year deal?

[Shropshire_Valiant]

I'd have possibly pushed the boat out a tad more on wages for Pope(not necessarily what he was on before but less of a cut say) but certainly not a 3 year deal, the reason being I'm not sure his body will last that long as a pro-footballer. But fair play to him for getting that!

[stupers]

With Elliott you feel his ship might have already sailed. At 24 he needs to have already started delivering on his potential.

 

If we are going to take a flyer on this sort of player, I think there are better ones out there.

 

The fact we showed him round on Thursday, but there's been no mention of his signing suggests he has other irons in the fire as I am sure we do as well.

 

I'm happy to take a flyer on him. Sometimes you have to take a risk. We might have another Akpo on our hands, but the chances are equally likely that'll we'll get a Nathan Lowndes :D

 

I would expect us to be looking towards at least another striker with a better goal record at L2 level at the very least to sign up as 1st choice striker. I still have the feeling that we'll be playing with 1 up front next season, with wingers and a player playing behind the main striker and variations along that type of formation depending on the opposition. If that is the case, then it's even more imperative that we get the main striker signing right.

[Jinkin John Jeffers]

come on REP don't insult your or our intelligence. the bloke quite simply worked his socks off while he was here. He was often helping out the defence on set pieces. He chased down hundreds of 'lost causes' and often won us a throw in or corner. the bloke had the ability to hold the ball up better than any Vale player since Brooker, taking all the stick that defenders gave him and never in my memory did he ever retaliate unlike Rico who got booked and sent off on a few occasions for biting back.

 

Your post should have started "in the promotion season" OS. My initial thought was to offer what is a waste of a wage on Birchall to Pope as an incentive to stay but now it came out that the offer he orginally received would have meant he was the top scorer I retract that thought. Pope would have been a good part of the squad for next year but if recruitment is done correctly he can be replaced.