Retained list

[robf]

I think that's my thoughts too stupers.

 

I suspect O'Connor will go but the club will go through the motions of offering a deal.

 

If we do lose O'Connor, Neal and McGivern that's probably three of the bigger wages off the books which will help with the reduced budget.

[stupers]

I think that's my thoughts too stupers.

 

I suspect O'Connor will go but the club will go through the motions of offering a deal.

 

If we do lose O'Connor, Neal and McGivern that's probably three of the bigger wages off the books which will help with the reduced budget.

 

I had a think about O'Connor's situation on the way home yesterday. I don't think it's as clear cut as people think. He's a good player and would play a part in this team. I don't think he's going to get many teams that offer him the same package as we do (Not just money, but I believe he trains local to him at least one day a week). There's not a huge amount of teams that he could find more local to him either that are at League One level, that would be interested.

 

I suspect it'll come down to three things:

Money

Location

Whether he's willing to drop down a level or not

[NellyTheValiant]

Not a knee jerk reaction to yesterday's match but there was no bite or passion so there's 14 we could loose... Page has a BIG job on to sort our lot out for August, he's got to be ruthless...

 

did we manage to pick a man of the match?

 

Yes Foley got it and probably deserved, he was the only one trying for at least half the game. Not as effective when we went 4-4-2 and he went out wide. Best of a bad bunch.

[tisdeano]

duffy and yates will both be offered new deals, whether they accept is a different matter

[stupers]

I would keep Duffy, but I'd hope that we'd bring in another centre-half and hope Streete or Smith could put Duffy on the bench opening day. With that in mind, the deal we offer him would have to be based on that.

 

As for Yates, I would prefer we didn't offer him one although he's been a great servant to the club. He's 32 and I'd imagine he wants to go and play games somewhere so any offer will be rejected. Again I suspect any offer to Yates would be dependant on him being a backup, in this case he would be well down the pecking order and the salary would be based on that.

[RayWalkers40yarder]

right now im struggling to count the number of players id keep from the current out of contracts for next season.....its probably as many fingers as I have on one hand

[NellyTheValiant]

right now im struggling to count the number of players id keep from the current out of contracts for next season.....its probably as many fingers as I have on one hand

 

Just as well you're not a Crewe fan, it could be anything from 6 to 26!

[Ben]

I would keep Duffy, but I'd hope that we'd bring in another centre-half and hope Streete or Smith could put Duffy on the bench opening day. With that in mind, the deal we offer him would have to be based on that.

 

As for Yates, I would prefer we didn't offer him one although he's been a great servant to the club. He's 32 and I'd imagine he wants to go and play games somewhere so any offer will be rejected. Again I suspect any offer to Yates would be dependant on him being a backup, in this case he would be well down the pecking order and the salary would be based on that.

 

Streete will have to improve to have any chance at the moment way off the pace.

[PV1973]

Agreed, Streete gives off an air of thinking hes better than this standard to me.

[Heatwave]

Some may be good enough as squad players but they are not definitely top Division 1 players. For Vale to be serious challengers the manager has to see that the above would in now way cut it in the Championship.

 

I think we'd struggle to pay the Championship wages needed to get Championship players.

[werstayinup]

No matter what the retained list is i know for a fact that the usual suspects will on waiting to rip into Page again,they must be sat there now salivating at the thought.

 

Just to add that Page has said he is close to a deal with Dodds

[werstayinup]

duffy and yates will both be offered new deals, whether they accept is a different matter

 

People moan but for me and the wage he is on an offer to Yates is a sensible thing to do as he is back up for right and left back and i know this wont be popular but i would sooner see McGivern stay than Duffy

[Row L]

i think that page does to seem to be the "evolution not revolution" type and so we will see fewer leave than some would like (unless they reject the reduced terms of course).

 

One thing that will be interesting and Rob seems to have got right last season is in his recruitment. He also seems to want to move on players earlier this year that we were able to last year and get a settled squad before they l get loads of offers and turn us down, or get an inflated sense of their own importance and demand more money. I seem to remember saying somewhere that an earlier decision on and from players was more fair on them and the club so that everyone was fixed up and knew what their future was.

 

He made some good acquisitions last year and if he can do it again this close season, I think that we will be OK.

[stupers]

Streete will have to improve to have any chance at the moment way off the pace.

 

Didn't look good yesterday. He's been good since coming back in to the team at the start of April in my opinion

[robf]

One thing that will be interesting and Rob seems to have got right last season is in his recruitment. He also seems to want to move on players earlier this year that we were able to last year and get a settled squad before they l get loads of offers and turn us down, or get an inflated sense of their own importance and demand more money. I seem to remember saying somewhere that an earlier decision on and from players was more fair on them and the club so that everyone was fixed up and knew what their future was.

 

I agree with that. One thing I've always wondered is why the club doesn't act in the current season with players that it obviously wants to keep. For instance, Alnwick was given a two and half year contract after a promising start yet the club didn't do the same with Leitch-Smith or Andoh both of whom I would imagine the club wants to keep.

 

Is it because of the rules? Perhaps financially you have to be able to prove you have the funds to match the contract's financial commitment or perhaps we could do it with Alnwick because he was technically a free agent wheras Andoh and AJ had contracts till the end of the season?

 

For me, I would always be a fan of getting your best players signed up ASAP even if that's mid-season - if you wait till the summer there is always the danger that other clubs will show an interest and heads will be turned.