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Your "past their best" Saints XI


norwaysaint

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These days, we tend to stick with younger players, but it's not so long ago that our summer signings always contained a smattering of players who had graced top teams and were looking for a place to earn some cash before their careers were completely done, either through age, loss of form/confidence, weight gain, dodgy knees or recurring injuries.

 

I'm pretty sure we must be able to make a creaky, disappointing team out of them, just to remember how much big name new players on overblown wages could disappoint.

 

 

GK - Chris Woods

RB

CB

CB

LB - John Beresford

RW - Kanchelskis or Ripley

CM - Mark Hughes

CM - Mark Draper

LW

ST - Kerry Dixon

ST -

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Those players give me nightmares of trying to play Championship Manager 99/00 and being stuck at the Dell, with no income from matches and most of those players on long contracts and big wages with stats equivelant to non-league players. Relegation and sacking nearly every time.

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David Hirst

 

Mark Walters

 

I was thinking about Hirst, because he was still quite a star when we got him. He did score 9 goals in 30 games according to wiki, so not terrible while he was actually able to get on the pitch. Mark Walters had completely disappeared from my memory!

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I'm not saying he wasn't a great signing for Saints. But the thread asks for those that were past their best at Saints. His last England cap was in 1975 and he joined Saints in 1976 in the 2nd tier as a 31 year old, his peak was at Everton/Arsenal.

 

31 was nowhere near past it in those days. I wasn't around to watch him play but wiki says he played for another 7 years after signing for us, not really 'past it'.

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31 was nowhere near past it in those days. I wasn't around to watch him play but wiki says he played for another 7 years after signing for us, not really 'past it'.

 

The thread title is 'past their best', not 'past it'. If Ball was at his best at Saints... why wasn't he playing for England? He dropped down to the 2nd tier to play for us, players at their peak don't do that.

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I'm not denying he was a very good player for Saints, just that his best was at Everton/Arsenal.

 

The type of player we're talking about was explained in the first post, with examples. You seem to be the only person so far to not quite get the gist of it.

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The type of player we're talking about was explained in the first post, with examples. You seem to be the only person so far to not quite get the gist of it.

 

Thread title is 'Your past their best Saints XI'

 

Criteria in opening post... 'either through age or injuries'

 

Age and injuries was the reason Ball was not at his best when at Saints.

 

- Ball broke his leg in 1974

- He joined Saints in 1976

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Thread title is 'Your past their best Saints XI'

 

Criteria in opening post... 'either through age or injuries'

 

Age and injuries was the reason Ball was not at his best when at Saints.

 

- Ball broke his leg in 1974

- He joined Saints in 1976

 

You're either being obtuse or you genuinely don't get it, it's fine, there are plenty of other threads you're sure to understand better. Everybody else seems to have understood this one, but I'm sure you can manage to tell me and everyone else what the point is supposed to be.

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Charlie George.

 

Charlie George was 28 when we signed him. So arguably at his peak and we paid a lot of money for him at the time. And he did have some wonderful games for Saints, including scoring in a brilliant 3-2 won over Liverpool. His goal return of 11 goals in 44 games is fairly respectable. It is just that he didn't play enough games for us due to injury. I believe I may be one of very few to have seen him play for Arsenal, Derby, Saints and Forest.

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Maarten Stekelenburg, 2010 World Cup runner-up, former Ajax player of the year on two occasions, £11m total career cost by Roma and Fulham... Made us hope for the return of Fraser Forster (Although prior to his big decline) at 33. Fortunately, only on loan.

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Frank Worthington

 

Did you ever see him play? Even when with us he was a joy to watch and you felt he could do anything. Always entertained and put in the effort even though he was so knackered. Beautiful full pitch diagonal ball to Dennis for the cross to Wright for the header back for Danny's goal of the season was worth whatever we paid for him.

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