Players Contracts especially appearance money

[exit2]

I know it really never came to light and we really havent had a definate answer, but when I started the Rudi Skacel appearance money topic a few months ago some thought it was plausible and some slated me but I have just read JP's comments on the OS.

 

"Stern has spoken to Bristol City and we have agreed that he will join them on loan. He is one of the biggest earners at Southampton and with the clubs current financial situation means we were unable to offer him first team football and the wages that go with it"

 

Now I read this in 2 ways.

 

1. We ARE REALLY in the **** and cannot actually pay the wage bill and administration is literally around the corner.

 

2. His appearance money / bonus etc is very high? and again the club cannot justify paying it very much like what I originally heard about Rudi and why he wasnt playing.

 

I personally think it is number 2 and I bet if I email Mr Cowen I get the same answer as before about Rudi.

 

Now is this JP's decision to let him go or the board!

[ladysaint]

I heard a rumour that two players have appearance money in their contract and that was Rudi and Euell, both contracts drawn up Lee Hoos, suppose that this is feasible .

[OldNick]

Exit, sound words and I think it was the 2nd one.It is odd that Sterns departure is making such fuss, the amount of threads about his laziness and waste of space last season seem to be forgotten

[dubai_phil]

Exit, sound words and I think it was the 2nd one.It is odd that Sterns departure is making such fuss, the amount of threads about his laziness and waste of space last season seem to be forgotten

 

Lazy yes, doesn't fit the football style this season yes. Fair arguments Nick

Proven scorer at this level, top scorer last year, then without a viable alternative the fuss is valid - who IS going to score the goals....

 

 

(FWIW I don't think SJ fits into the style and I don't think he would have scored many, but the fuss is fear and it's very valid)

[OldNick]

Lazy yes, doesn't fit the football style this season yes. Fair arguments Nick

Proven scorer at this level, top scorer last year, then without a viable alternative the fuss is valid - who IS going to score the goals....

 

 

(FWIW I don't think SJ fits into the style and I don't think he would have scored many, but the fuss is fear and it's very valid)

Thanks you are correct.Iam just as disappointed as most but we have lost more important palyers than Stern over the years.

[saintwarwick]

I know it really never came to light and we really havent had a definate answer, but when I started the Rudi Skacel appearance money topic a few months ago some thought it was plausible and some slated me but I have just read JP's comments on the OS.

 

"Stern has spoken to Bristol City and we have agreed that he will join them on loan. He is one of the biggest earners at Southampton and with the clubs current financial situation means we were unable to offer him first team football and the wages that go with it"

 

Now I read this in 2 ways.

 

1. We ARE REALLY in the **** and cannot actually pay the wage bill and administration is literally around the corner.

 

2. His appearance money / bonus etc is very high? and again the club cannot justify paying it very much like what I originally heard about Rudi and why he wasnt playing.

 

I personally think it is number 2 and I bet if I email Mr Cowen I get the same answer as before about Rudi. Now is this JP's decision to let him go or the board!

 

 

I am going for number 2, I believe he is being kept out because of appearance money and bonuses including scoring.

[John D]

Thanks you are correct.Iam just as disappointed as most but we have lost more important palyers than Stern over the years.

 

You're correct. Think it is like chinese water torture - this is one drip too many!

Also I really am struggling to see who is going to get the goals for us now

[exit2]

Lazy yes, doesn't fit the football style this season yes

 

Not sure I agree about lazy but football is all about opinions. As for not fitting thstyle of play, who is from our scorers? It so obvious that this style of play although pretty isnt working.

 

Proven scorer at this level, top scorer last year, then without a viable alternative the fuss is valid - who IS going to score the goals....

 

This I agree with a club career spanning 377 games and scoring 144 goals isnt bad and averages 2.6 goals a game.

 

He has scored 19 times in 47 games for Saints which isnt bad at all.

 

 

(FWIW I don't think SJ fits into the style and I don't think he would have scored many, but the fuss is fear and it's very valid)

 

But like I said above, who out of our strikers does fit into the style of play? Me personally would rather SJ much more than DMG or the others

[Weston Saint]

If appearance money was keeping them out, and with our well publicised financial problems, why did John and Skacel not forgo such payments to get games and help the club?

 

I have it on good authority what Skacel is paid by way of appearance money and it is not going to break the bank if paid or damage his pocket much if he agreed to forgo it.

 

So there must be more to it than that.

[exit2]

I am just as disappointed as most but we have lost more important players than Stern over the years.

 

Nick the problem with your statement above is, that over the years we have had a squad that could at least step up to the mark with some dignity. At present we havent and I dont feel our current strikers of BWP, Lallana (doesnt really play a striker role), Pekhart, White, Paterson, Robertson can do the business.

[Window Cleaner]

I know it really never came to light and we really havent had a definate answer, but when I started the Rudi Skacel appearance money topic a few months ago some thought it was plausible and some slated me but I have just read JP's comments on the OS.

 

"Stern has spoken to Bristol City and we have agreed that he will join them on loan. He is one of the biggest earners at Southampton and with the clubs current financial situation means we were unable to offer him first team football and the wages that go with it"

 

Now I read this in 2 ways.

 

1. We ARE REALLY in the **** and cannot actually pay the wage bill and administration is literally around the corner.

 

2. His appearance money / bonus etc is very high? and again the club cannot justify paying it very much like what I originally heard about Rudi and why he wasnt playing.

 

I personally think it is number 2 and I bet if I email Mr Cowen I get the same answer as before about Rudi.

 

Now is this JP's decision to let him go or the board!

 

 

I think Jan said "guarantee him first team football", could be wrong.

Perhaps Stern was asking for guarantees that he would be in the first team squad every week from here to.... and we couldn't go with that.

Perhaps it's an international football thing again, WC in AfS only being 2 years away.

[um pahars]

I know it really never came to light and we really havent had a definate answer, but when I started the Rudi Skacel appearance money topic a few months ago some thought it was plausible and some slated me but I have just read JP's comments on the OS.

 

"Stern has spoken to Bristol City and we have agreed that he will join them on loan. He is one of the biggest earners at Southampton and with the clubs current financial situation means we were unable to offer him first team football and the wages that go with it"

 

Now I read this in 2 ways.

 

1. We ARE REALLY in the **** and cannot actually pay the wage bill and administration is literally around the corner.

 

2. His appearance money / bonus etc is very high? and again the club cannot justify paying it very much like what I originally heard about Rudi and why he wasnt playing.

 

I personally think it is number 2 and I bet if I email Mr Cowen I get the same answer as before about Rudi.

 

Now is this JP's decision to let him go or the board!

 

I'm glad you picked up on this as I too thought it was a bit weird!!!!!

 

I wasn't sure if Jan had not explained himself very well (not being fluent and precise in English) or whether he was insinuating we couldn't afford to play Stern.

 

As for him being lazy and a waste of space last season, then what planet are some people on????

 

His goals helped save our sorry ar55ses last season.

 

And whilst we may have lost better quality players in previous season, given our current predicament of only scoring 11 goals (21st worst in the division) and the fact that we are in dire need of a striker makes his loss particularly acute.

[Window Cleaner]

I'm glad you picked up on this as I too thought it was a bit weird!!!!!

 

I wasn't sure if Jan had not explained himself very well (not being fluent and precise in English) or whether he was insinuating we couldn't afford to play Stern.

 

As for him being lazy and a waste of space last season, then what planet are some people on????

 

His goals helped save our sorry ar55ses last season.

 

And whilst we may have lost better quality players in previous season, given our current predicament of only scoring 11 goals (21st worst in the division) and the fact that we are in dire need of a striker makes his loss particularly acute.

 

See above: Offer and Guarantee do not mean the same thing, doesn't matter how proficient you are in English, it's different

 

Sorry to see him go myself, I thought he saved us last season as well.

[exit2]

I think Jan said "guarantee him first team football", could be wrong.

Perhaps Stern was asking for guarantees that he would be in the first team squad every week from here to.... and we couldn't go with that.

Perhaps it's an international football thing again, WC in AfS only being 2 years away.

 

See above: Offer and Guarantee do not mean the same thing, doesn't matter how proficient you are in English, it's different

 

I took his statement straight off the OS, so Im hoping it is correct. But offer or guarantee still doesnt mae any difference

 

He is one of the biggest earners at Southampton and with the clubs current financial situation means we were unable to OFFER him first team football and the wages that go with it.

 

He is one of the biggest earners at Southampton and with the clubs current financial situation means we were unable to GUARANTEE him first team football and the wages that go with it.

 

either way you read it it says the same thing we cannot afford to pay him or his bonus

[Window Cleaner]

I took his statement straight off the OS, so Im hoping it is correct. But offer or guarantee still doesnt mae any difference

 

 

 

 

 

either way you read it it says the same thing we cannot afford to pay him or his bonus

 

Maybe, I'm not so sure(I mean I agree we can afford to pay non-performers)

If I asked you to guarantee me first team football because I wanted to be sure that my salary would not far below a certain level ,I would be asking too much,you might refuse. but not because you didn't want to pay me.Not saying he did,but I can see it happening. Stern might have been talking to Bristol for a while and asked for a guarantee that he'd get picked every week.

It's academic, it's semantics, he's gone, we don't have to pay him for a while

but we can't count on his goals either.

[rocknrollman no2]

I wonder where we would be if Stern had not played in the last game of last season?

For the life of me i cant understand the reason we ship out our proven goalscorers and replace them with......Mc Goldrick who couldnt run past Stephen Hawkins without losing the ball!

Of course i know about the money situation,but without winning games,it wont matter when we are relegated anyway.

The players are leaving,the fans are leaving,please when are Lowe and Wilde leaving????

[um pahars]

As others have pointed out:

 

a) this is about false economies, and

 

b) there are/were alternatives.

 

We went with the "revolutionary coaching set up" and dabbled with an experiment that has yet to pay off. There was a choice to stick with someone who looked as though they were turning it around or go with someone who knew close to faecuk all about this league.

 

We then spent a sum of money on 8/9/10 signings, and even if some were frees and some were young, it was still money that could have been spent elsewhere.

 

Of course some of the options we may want to pursue aren't available because of our current financial predicament, but let's not also pretend that everything was a fait accompli. We have made many decisions about how and where the money should be spent and/or saved, and from where I'm sitting right now they don't look to be the best decisions I have ever seen.

[NickG]

As others have pointed out:

 

a) this is about false economies, and quite possibly but without figures hard to know how much this is forced or just what Lowe deems to be good idea -guess somewhere in the middle?

 

b) there are/were alternatives.not meant in argumentative way -but what alternatives do you mean?

 

We went with the "revolutionary coaching set up" and dabbled with an experiment that has yet to pay off. There was a choice to stick with someone who looked as though they were turning it around or go with someone who knew close to faecuk all about this league.don't think manager is the problem at the moment -yes if he gets us relegated, but at moment we are out of relegation and improving slightly, NP would not have had us at top with this budget IMHO

 

We then spent a sum of money on 8/9/10 signings, and even if some were frees and some were young, it was still money that could have been spent elsewhere.quite possibly true, guess likes of Schneiderlin are on pitence compared to John, would not be surprised if Chelsea fund Cork for his development

 

Of course some of the options we may want to pursue aren't available because of our current financial predicament, but let's not also pretend that everything was a fait accompli. We have made many decisions about how and where the money should be spent and/or saved, and from where I'm sitting right now they don't look to be the best decisions I have ever seen.

 

I think there were probably better ways of solving this but is really hard with half the facts

[hypochondriac]

If we can't afford sj's performance fee then why did we play him in a meaningless cup tie?

[um pahars]

I think there were probably better ways of solving this but is really hard with half the facts

 

The alternative was to augment the good youngsters we already had (Lallana et al ) with some experienced players (either retaining the existing ones or getting a couple in on a free e.g. Darren Moore types) instead of adopting a sort of scatter gun approach and getting in Holmes and Lewis Hamilton, Pekhart and Robertson etc etc etc.

 

We obviously had some leeway given the fact we bought 9 odd players in, and I whilst I would have offloaded many of the players we did offload, I would have been more careful and considered about who I brought in and who I retained.

 

Then of course there was the alternative of retaining Pearson and building on his good work.

 

Then of course there was the alternative of getting in someone without the baggage of Lowe as CEO and/or Chairman, and also someone without the baggage of Wilde.

 

There were most definitely many roads that are blocked off to us at the moment due to our financial status, but let's not be naive to think that there haven't been decisions made where we could have gone for an alternative.

[um pahars]

If we can't afford sj's performance fee then why did we play him in a meaningless cup tie?

 

Different performance fees for Championship and League Cup games??????

[eelpie]

Not sure I agree about lazy but football is all about opinions. As for not fitting thstyle of play, who is from our scorers? It so obvious that this style of play although pretty isnt working.

 

 

This I agree with a club career spanning 377 games and scoring 144 goals isnt bad and averages 2.6 goals a game.

 

He has scored 19 times in 47 games for Saints which isnt bad at all.

 

 

But like I said above, who out of our strikers does fit into the style of play? Me personally would rather SJ much more than DMG or the others

 

 

Quite.

If a player with a career average of 2.4 goals per game (and 19 goals in 47 games for Saints) doesn't fit into our style of play, then clearly our style of play is failing. Our style should be adapted to suit our match-winners, not ship them out. His goals would have saved our season this time - again. Without him and his goals we will definitely be relegated in May.

 

You stupid boy Lowe! Why don't you just go to Pompey and play with your toys there!

[St Marco]

Lazy yes, doesn't fit the football style this season yes. Fair arguments Nick

Proven scorer at this level, top scorer last year, then without a viable alternative the fuss is valid - who IS going to score the goals....

 

 

(FWIW I don't think SJ fits into the style and I don't think he would have scored many, but the fuss is fear and it's very valid)

 

Exactly and the fact people are trying to run damage control by saying people were moaning last season is a joke. Stern like Rasiak before him was our top striker and has had to be farmed out due to financial reasons. If our club really are at the stage where we can't afford to pay most likely 1k-3k max for a player then that sends the message again to all other clubs that we must sell. This in turn makes me believe those rumours that Davis will be forced out in the transfer window along with Lalanna then Surman in the summer. If we are at that stage then we are worse off then we have ever been and the prophecy Hoos and Crouch gave about getting investment or go into admin becomes true. We are now counting on DMG,Peckhart and Robertson to get our goals. I seriously cannot see them scoring anywhere near the amount of goals we will need to survive.

[lordswoodsaints]

i know for sure that rudi and rasiak are on vast amounts of appearnace money.

[Nellie]

This I agree with a club career spanning 377 games and scoring 144 goals isnt bad and averages 2.6 goals a game.

 

He has scored 19 times in 47 games for Saints which isnt bad at all.

 

Quite.

If a player with a career average of 2.4 goals per game (and 19 goals in 47 games for Saints)

I agree with the sentiments from both posters, 19 goals in 47 games for us (when we've been utter tosh) is pretty bloody good and I'd always try to find space for him. However, I'd like to point out he's scored a goal every 2.6 games, not two and a half goals a game or clearly he'd be playing for somebody far, far better than us.

[saintwarwick]

Exactly and the fact people are trying to run damage control by saying people were moaning last season is a joke. Stern like Rasiak before him was our top striker and has had to be farmed out due to financial reasons. If our club really are at the stage where we can't afford to pay most likely 1k-3k max for a player then that sends the message again to all other clubs that we must sell. This in turn makes me believe those rumours that Davis will be forced out in the transfer window along with Lalanna then Surman in the summer. If we are at that stage then we are worse off then we have ever been and the prophecy Hoos and Crouch gave about getting investment or go into admin becomes true. We are now counting on DMG,Peckhart and Robertson to get our goals. I seriously cannot see them scoring anywhere near the amount of goals we will need to survive.

 

I'm sure Stern John is on a lot more than that + bonuses. Can't see too many goals being scored by the likes of McGoldrick, Robertson and Perkart and John was an important player for us imo.

[St Marco]

I'm sure Stern John is on a lot more than that + bonuses. Can't see too many goals being scored by the likes of McGoldrick, Robertson and Perkart and John was an important player for us imo.

 

No i mean for his appearence fee as in his appearence fee couldnt be above 3k as i remember i think it was Figo saying he donated his appearences fees to charity and that was if i recall 3k. So my point was if it is his bonus' fees we cannot pay then we must be in big big trouble. As my boss just said to me (working late) the question is can we afford not to pay for the goals he would score? John in the Sheff Utd game did well i thought considering we could not push forward much. He held the ball up and let others get forward. I cant see anyone else in our side able to do that. So Johns goals were important but his link up play was far more important i think.

[eurosaint]

As others have pointed out:

 

a) this is about false economies, and

 

b) there are/were alternatives.

 

We went with the "revolutionary coaching set up" and dabbled with an experiment that has yet to pay off. There was a choice to stick with someone who looked as though they were turning it around or go with someone who knew close to faecuk all about this league.

 

We then spent a sum of money on 8/9/10 signings, and even if some were frees and some were young, it was still money that could have been spent elsewhere.

 

Of course some of the options we may want to pursue aren't available because of our current financial predicament, but let's not also pretend that everything was a fait accompli. We have made many decisions about how and where the money should be spent and/or saved, and from where I'm sitting right now they don't look to be the best decisions I have ever seen.

 

The talk at the time was of balance between 'young guns' and 'old heads' !

Given that we had a number of young ones at the club already, surely the sensible option was to sign up a few oldies ?

Subsequent signings of Gasmi, Pulis, Smith, Robertson etc.. really do make you wonder whether this balance was ever seriously considered at all !!

[saintjinksie]

Exit, sound words and I think it was the 2nd one.It is odd that Sterns departure is making such fuss, the amount of threads about his laziness and waste of space last season seem to be forgotten

 

top scorer and the player who kept us up, what a c*nt that man is :roll:

[saintwarwick]

No i mean for his appearence fee as in his appearence fee couldnt be above 3k as i remember i think it was Figo saying he donated his appearences fees to charity and that was if i recall 3k. So my point was if it is his bonus' fees we cannot pay then we must be in big big trouble. As my boss just said to me (working late) the question is can we afford not to pay for the goals he would score? John in the Sheff Utd game did well i thought considering we could not push forward much. He held the ball up and let others get forward. I cant see anyone else in our side able to do that. So Johns goals were important but his link up play was far more important i think.

 

His appearance fee will be on top of his weekly wage which is rumoured to £10k+ He may also be on a goal bonus fee, however I think it's madness to let him go. Still if Barclays are still looking at more savings due to lower crowds then I suppose our hands are tied. Not much left to loan out now then it's down to Surman and Lallana......

[John B]

top scorer and the player who kept us up, what a c*nt that man is :roll:

 

The trouble is you dont know the exact situation with regard to Stern John and his wages so it is very difficult to pass a reasonable comment.

[dubai_phil]

Exactly and the fact people are trying to run damage control by saying people were moaning last season is a joke. Stern like Rasiak before him was our top striker and has had to be farmed out due to financial reasons. If our club really are at the stage where we can't afford to pay most likely 1k-3k max for a player then that sends the message again to all other clubs that we must sell. This in turn makes me believe those rumours that Davis will be forced out in the transfer window along with Lalanna then Surman in the summer. If we are at that stage then we are worse off then we have ever been and the prophecy Hoos and Crouch gave about getting investment or go into admin becomes true. We are now counting on DMG,Peckhart and Robertson to get our goals. I seriously cannot see them scoring anywhere near the amount of goals we will need to survive.

 

What is (and will be) very heart breaking is that investment actually could have been quite close.

 

And then the world changed in reality when the Yanks let Lehman Bros go.

 

I know it doesn't fit all the views held, but the guys behind the scenes actually have been trying incredibly hard to find the right deal.

[AndyNorthernSaints]

Exit, sound words and I think it was the 2nd one.It is odd that Sterns departure is making such fuss, the amount of threads about his laziness and waste of space last season seem to be forgotten

Laziness and waste of space last season???????????????????????????????

What planet are you on??????

 

John showed on tuesday in a rare appearance this season how to hold up the ball and keep possession something that no other striker at the club has shown he is capable of doing this season.

[ALWAYS_SFC]

Exit, sound words and I think it was the 2nd one.It is odd that Sterns departure is making such fuss, the amount of threads about his laziness and waste of space last season seem to be forgotten

 

Don`t remember to many of them but now we have another

candidate for that in McGoldrick...

 

You really are something else, no matter what the club do, you try to find some way to justify

virtually all of their obviously stupid decisions....a true Lowe luvvie.

[saintjinksie]

The trouble is you dont know the exact situation with regard to Stern John and his wages so it is very difficult to pass a reasonable comment.

 

my point is why would people slag off the one player that kept us up?

[dubai_phil]

Just to re-iterate my point.

 

SJ was/is "lazy". So was Rasiak, and of course in the same vein was Le Tiss all the way back to Ted MacDougall. Many a time I have heard those lines on here or in the stands at matches, but of course, they all scored goals. Omerod (and to an extent Kevin Davies) was a bundle of energy, a real team player and.....

 

In a conventional system, the laziness is not real, their strength is all about an extra inch of space or milli-second of speed of thought in or around the penalty area. It is about getting into the right position so that the 9 remaining outfield players have a fulcrum to play around. I am sure that whatever they call the Opta stats will show they cover huge distances during a game, but the fact is that the so called laziness and that instant burst is what made them the goalscorers they were.

 

In our CURRENT pass and move world, that becomes a problem, they become "almost" one dimensional" they need to score goals but they need to be Brett Omerod and "interchangable". John & Rasiak don't have that as a strength.

 

Now I have LONG advocated that a manager SHOULD pick his system and style to suit the players at his disposal. At the MOMENT this is not working because we have gaps in the team in "specialist" positions - especially on the wings.

 

Now the problem is that the system has been designed for a LONG TERM STRATEGY, play the same way from U-14 upwards. That is actually a good idea as it means less chopping and changing when managerial/coaching staff leave/get fired. (A perennial football problem).

 

BUT right now we have not got the right players for the system available. SJ is a great CCC forward, but not in a 4-2-3-1 formation. If we were to revert to 4-4-2 or even 4-4-1-1 then I think he would have scored goals for us, in the muddle we have at the moment, I don't think he would score goals, don't think he would add to the system actually working AND we cannot afford him.

 

Many have said it is about balance this season. IMHO not just in the team but also off it. I am sure that in the summer Barclays liked the ideas of "long term sustainable development". The problem is that the world Barclays operate in, and especially the fan numbers changed and we have an inflexible playing system that is in need of a few expedient tweaks.

 

So, glad to see him go as

1) we can't afford him and it buys us some more time financially

2) he doesn't fit into the system

 

REALLY angry he has gone as

1) we need his goals

2) we should adjust the system to play to his strengths

 

HTH

[ericofarabia]

As touched on before .. where are the goals going to come from?

 

We now have 3 Interbational Centre forwards shipped out on loan Rasiak, Saga and SJ, plus Dyer who IMHO should have been sold/sacked.

 

Now we have McGoldrick he seems not to be a team player, doesn't have the experience to make telling runs or yet to develope the goal poachers knack above reserve team level leading the line, a Sheff U reserve, a Millwall reserve, a few kids of our own who have have barely played at reserve level let alone 1st team and a promising Czech youth International on loan who we don't use and oh yes of course BWP :cool:

 

It really is a vicious circle, we can't afford to pay our experienced players, but we are losing revenue hand over foot as fans won't pay top dollar to watch reserve / youth team players get humiliated at home by the likes of Watford and Blackpool :mad:

 

I don't think I've ever approached match days with such a lack of enthusiasm or hope. I am just going through the motions and it hurts. Last week I couldn't even generate enough motivation to crack open a 2nd beer, by half time I didn't even feel like drowning my sorrows.:-?

 

This is a serious situation by I just can't be arsed any more (of course I'll be listening to the commentary with beer in hand, but if/when the inevitable tonking starts I'll just shrug as it hasn't come a s any real surprise. Now that is sad.

[suewhistle]

Nice analysis Dubai: the only thing I have a problem with is adapting our style to his. Firstly he's no LeTiss (where I'd say yes!) and when he's away through injury/internationals we'd have no one to take his place. The pattern we are trying to develop is not based on individual players - just as well really as any decent ones are going to be shipped out as soon as they show promise..:-(

[Matt SFC]

Even more worrying times ahead it seems, not that we have no proven strikers in our side. (Ignoring reserve games of course). But was John really going to offer that much this season. Lets say he's on 10k a week basic, that's over 500k a year we are saving, and some people have suggested he is on more. We seem to have plenty of midfielders, good keeper, but asolutely nothing in defence or up front.

[dubai_phil]

Nice analysis Dubai: the only thing I have a problem with is adapting our style to his. Firstly he's no LeTiss (where I'd say yes!) and when he's away through injury/internationals we'd have no one to take his place. The pattern we are trying to develop is not based on individual players - just as well really as any decent ones are going to be shipped out as soon as they show promise..:-(

 

I actually agree Sue. I'm really torn between what we need "at this moment" and "building a sustainable future"

Obviously survival is the key to a future, and the squad lacks the wingers to make the DMG type player work in the centre, so I worry that we don't have the players to fit the style at the moment (Holmes is a big miss IMHO).

So the decision for me is expediency or planning.

I've built a successful career on planning, but I was lucky that I also had creativity to change things within the plan when circumstances changed. I THINK that just at the moment we need some of that creativity with our plan at SMS, don't undo the whole thing just a few short term tweaks so that we have the chance to survive....

 

SJ didn't fit the system or the cost base, he's gone.

I think it would have been easier to tweak the system than the cost base so he would still have to be gone.

BUT his going is not QUITE as black and white as being made out, there are some shades of grey in there when looked at from the system side...

 

 

(But then is the system the right one.....hmm)