onevalefan.co.uk Present Past Specials About Forum
Jump to content
onevalefan.co.uk forum

Advert


Advert


Tom pope


boslemportvale91

Recommended Posts

1 hour ago, Nofinikea said:

Its time we looked beyond Pope.  He has been a great player for us but his time is just about up.

If we are to evolve we need more mobility up front.  Rodney is getting better every time he plays so I aren't too worried about it.

Pope does give us an added defensive bonus against set pieces and his ability to hold the ball up is great.  If he would be happy to play a cameo role, where he comes on if we are trying to see out a game, get the ball up, defend set pieces etc then I would happily hand him 2 years because that option on the bench would be a genuine weapon.  However,  I would question if Pope would be happy with that and if he isn't, I dont think an unhappy Tom Pope is good for the place.

Newport have a  40 year old sub who comes on with 5 mins to go, seems to earn his keep.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Advert

2 hours ago, Rampant Zebra said:

I think his wages, as all other players, are nothing to do with us.

It's everything to do with us because if a big earner is in the latter stages of his career and getting injured more often then it becomes a millstone around the club's neck. So as fans we'd rightly be disgruntled if that were the case. 

Just because Kevin Ellison notched against us doesn't mean I want us to keep chucking contracts at Pope because other older players are still doing it. 

Pope is different from others because his career has been spent being man handled and kicked lumps out of by agricultural centre halves and he has given it back too. 

I can't advocate giving a 2 year deal to a bloke who is 36 in 7 months time, pure lunacy. 

Pope is one of my favourite of all time, my moments are both Rotherham games and the Cheltenham hat trick. The bloke has been a legend for us. Sadly all things have to end. This injury Is terrible timing particularly after he gave a good performance against Grimsby but Carol or whoever can't be sentimental they have to be realistic. 

Fantastic servant

The king is dead long live the king springs to mind. 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Question of wages and playing time though isn't it.

Pope is in our top 3 earners, and based on his comments the other night, still believes he can start regularly for a League 2 team.

He'll probably be offered reduced wages and a reduced role if he wishes to stay here. We can't go into these negotiations clouded by sentiment. Pope deserves utmost respect for his work here but the deal needs to suit the club. 

I think Pope is a useful gadget player, being very good at a specific few things - good for certain scenarios, but not every game. His deal should reflect this. I'd be happy with a 12 month deal, in which he accepts he's not going to start every week, isn't going to be captain, but will still get good minutes and will get his chances, and will be seen as an experienced head in (hopefully) a slightly younger dressing room. I think that's a fair offer, but if he can get more at Scunthorpe, then good luck to him, have him back for a testimonial-type game in the future and name a suite after him.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

20 minutes ago, TJHValiant said:

Pope is a vale legend. I admit age has caught up with him, but he is still worthy of a year’s deal from what I have seen. Still better than any other striker at the club. 
 

That’s not ideal I must admit as I’d hoped we’d find a decent replacement by now.

Which is where Tom’s top end salary comes into play.  I expect this has hindered us finding a replacement as a significant chunk of our budget already spent on the guy we need to replace.

Next year needs to be squad player salary maximum 1 year given his age / injuries.  Yes he was good against Grimsby (but struggled once Rodney went off) Man City and Cheltenham in the FA Cup, but has been gash in frequent other games over the last 2 seasons.

Personally I would move on to fresh blood in order to evolve / progress. As others have said an unhappy Pope on the sidelines  is unlikely to be good influence around the club.

To move forward you need to look out of the windscreen and not the rear view mirror

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, I do think it's important to remember that Pope has started, and been anonymous, in a fair few games in the last couple of seasons. His claims of 'I would have got 20 goals' was admirably optimistic but, in my view, wide of the mark as he's only hit that mark once. That's not a knock, as he brings much more than just goals, but his argument was not entirely accurate imo.

You can blame that on systems/support, but you can't play a player top wages/start him every week if you have to adapt the entire formation, personnel, and approach to get production from him. Your main forward should be able to play in a variety of games, surrounded by different players, in different systems. For various reasons Pope is unable to do that, which again, is no knock, but an undeniable fact of being a 35 year old target man.

Pope can be useful, in certain situations where the game conditions are favourable to his skillset (2 up top, needed to relieve pressure, cross heavy, needed for set pieces). His contract offer should reflect this, with a plan in my place to identify a replacement for him pronto.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

For me, the issue isn't particularly the offering of a contract, more him being given one of the squad places. I think the only way the latter could be justified is if we also had an U21 striker who was capable of playing in the first team.

Also, does anyone have any stats regarding Pope's effectiveness as a sub? Never felt he changed any games although happy to be proved wrong.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, darren1810 said:

It's everything to do with us because if a big earner is in the latter stages of his career and getting injured more often then it becomes a millstone around the club's neck. So as fans we'd rightly be disgruntled if that were the case. 

Just because Kevin Ellison notched against us doesn't mean I want us to keep chucking contracts at Pope because other older players are still doing it. 

Pope is different from others because his career has been spent being man handled and kicked lumps out of by agricultural centre halves and he has given it back too. 

I can't advocate giving a 2 year deal to a bloke who is 36 in 7 months time, pure lunacy. 

Pope is one of my favourite of all time, my moments are both Rotherham games and the Cheltenham hat trick. The bloke has been a legend for us. Sadly all things have to end. This injury Is terrible timing particularly after he gave a good performance against Grimsby but Carol or whoever can't be sentimental they have to be realistic. 

Fantastic servant

The king is dead long live the king springs to mind. 

 

How much do you earn then?

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Reporting Posts and other information

    Rules - This forum is moderated but the admin team don't read everything. Don't assume we'll spot rule breaking and alert us by reporting content. Logged in users can hover over the post and click the orange button. Guests can contact us here. If you don't get on with another user you can "ignore" them. Click this link, type in their username and click save. Please check with the admin team if you wish to sell/auction any items. We're happy to support good causes but check first.

    Use - This forum may not be suitable for all as it may contain words or phrases not considered appropriate for some. You are personally responsible and potentially liable for the contents of your posting and could face legal action should it contain content of a defamatory or other illegal nature. Every message posted leaves a traceable IP number. Please do not reveal any personal information about yourself or anyone else (for example: phone number, address or email address). This forum is not in any way affiliated with Port Vale FC. OVF reserve the right to edit, delete, move or close any thread for any reason. If you spot an offensive post please report it to the admin team (instructions are above).

    Adverts - This site occasionally a) has adverts and sponsored features about gambling b) accepts sponsored posts from third parties. If you require help and advice on gambling read these links: Information on protecting young people | Addiction help from gambleaware.co.uk
  • Friends of OVF

×
×
  • Create New...