Alnwick

[Mattholl]

It was one of those weird deals that didn't suit anyone really. If he'd stayed I think we'd have stayed up - just. He could then have moved on to be first choice in a lower championship/upper league 1 team. And everyone is happy. Why the crap move to be Rangers reserve keeper I don't know.

 

I doubt he was pushed out. My understanding is Rangers could only pay the fee in instalments of 10p a week or something.

 

Anyway he was a good goalie for us and good luck to the bloke. Probably badly advised.

 

really you wouldnt move from port vale with 4000 gates and low wages to Rangers to play in front of 40000 every week and be competing for european football??? an injury or loss of form to Fotheringham and hes playing. I know where i would be and its not at the vale in the instance

[glenpvfc]

Why are Forest interested then? They're another big club IMO.

 

For now it's a rumour and may be no truth in it at all. Maybe they were watching him before he left us. In my opinion he should have finished the season with us and then moved to a championship club and progressed that way, surely someone would have come in for him. Going to Rangers, he now has a chance of stagnating and being forgotten about unless he gets the time he needs to put himself in the shop window. I can't remember how long he had left on his contract but other teams may have been letting it wind down a bit to reduce the transfer fee. I find it dodgy how rangers found out about the release clause.

[Mattholl]

I'd say you have got that backwards. You cement your place in a starting 11 and play well each game and someone higher up takes notice and you move up. Nobody can see if you're any good sat on a bench. Nobody should sign a player based on which club they are at, it should be because they have watched them and think they will do well at their club. Alnwick could have gone to Barcelona and it wouldn't make a bit of difference if he was sat on the bench/reserves not playing first team football.

 

Really? You really think that??? Wow.

 

yeah what about this lad alnwick at Port Vale, hes had some good games for them and looks in decent form... shall we have a look?

 

or

 

yeah what about this lad Alnwick hes been at Newcastle Utd and played in the premier league, dropped to League 1 with port vale and has gone to rangers, shall we have a look?

 

Pedigree means far more to potential suitors than form for 6 months. To make it at Newcastle in their system and the same to be brought by Rangers means far more than 6 months in good form at a league 1 side. Again if hes gone to Barcelona to quote your example, if a team like that sees good things in his game 6 months playing well in a lower league wont mean a thing.

[glenpvfc]

I really don't know what to say if you think signing someone who sits on a bench just because he's at a bigger club is better compared to a player you can actually watch do the business. Understandable if he was already a well known name around the footballing world which Alnwick isn't. Alnwick was one of, if not the best keeper in league 1 and was ready to step up to the championship. There's no reason for any manager to be excited about signing someone who keeps a bench warm.

[Jacko51]

To be fair he signed him off the recommendation of a high ranking official at Newcastle as he did with Streete and Alnwick. 2 out of 3 ain’t bad as the song goes. I wished 2 out of every 3 players signed by Page, Bruno and Brown weren’t bad!

 

 

The high ranking official was Lee Charnley who is nothing to do with the playing side of the club. He is the business operator. Streete and Alnwick were signed as a result of Norman and Rob Page having seen them both perform very well in a 2-0 win by Newcastle Reserves at Arsenal during which Streete had scored both the goals.

 

Also, we have no idea how many of the players supposedly signed by Bruno were down to him and not the owner through his link with Mr Moussallati.

[Robbie Earle's Perm]

The high ranking official was Lee Charnley.

 

Correct.

 

 

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[Robbie Earle's Perm]

I wasn't bashing the owner, I was bashing your stupid (and tediously predictable anti-Page)point that Smurthwaite has a 66% success rate with his signings.

 

Which was correct in this case

 

 

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[mr.hobblesworth]

No it wasn't. He'd already signed Campion by the time he and Page had got Jak in.

[Jacko51]

Correct.

 

 

 

I know.

[Robbie Earle's Perm]

So we've gone from the chairman going over the manager's head to sign players (with mixed results), to the chairman simply funding them.

 

Better that way.

 

 

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[Fosse69]

I really don't know what to say if you think signing someone who sits on a bench just because he's at a bigger club is better compared to a player you can actually watch do the business. Understandable if he was already a well known name around the footballing world which Alnwick isn't. Alnwick was one of, if not the best keeper in league 1 and was ready to step up to the championship. There's no reason for any manager to be excited about signing someone who keeps a bench warm.

At 24, young as a goalkeeper, only real stable period, 67 games, with the Vale, grabbed some Prem games with Newcastle as 3rd choice, games with England youth teams, a few loan games. So standing still, or sitting, career wise at present. So needs to move on, or just take the money closer to home.

[cheshirevaliant]

I'm baffled by REP's logic here. Is REP really suggesting that all the good players were signed by Smurthwaite and all the bad players were signed by Page, with Smurthwaite's funds? Or have I missed something?

[Santa]

No you haven't missed anything.

[Robbie Earle's Perm]

I'm baffled by REP's logic here. Is REP really suggesting that all the good players were signed by Smurthwaite and all the bad players were signed by Page, with Smurthwaite's funds? Or have I missed something?

 

No that’s absolutely not what I’m suggesting at all. I was talking specifically about the three ex-players he signed as a result of his link with Newcastle. His success rate on those players was 66%.

 

I was also defending the funding of the development squad which will pay for itself hundreds of times over if / when we receive the sell on clause for Hughill.

 

It’s staggering people are running down those specific points.

 

 

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[cheshirevaliant]

No that’s absolutely not what I’m suggesting at all. I was talking specifically about the three ex-players he signed as a result of his link with Newcastle. His success rate on those players was 66%.

 

I was also defending the funding of the development squad which will pay for itself hundreds of times over if / when we receive the sell on clause for Hughill.

 

It’s staggering people are running down those specific points.

 

 

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Taken as 2 points in isolation, that is fair enough. Although it is very small isolation, given the turnover of players over Smurthwaite's tenure, many of whom he appeared to have links with, either directly or indirectly.

 

I look forward to Port Vale Football Club receiving the money from a sell on for Hugill.