Player contracts and transfers

[garydavidson]

 

Not sure what you are struggling to understand here Smarmy.

Read what you quoted.

He seems to have turned from a good poster into a troll. Abernathy must have worn him down.

[The Real Saints]

Despite being told on numerous occasions that he's missing the point, Smarmy Arab continues to miss the point. And in an angrier manner each time. Really frustrating to witness.

[Tranmere Saintee]

 

Despite being told on numerous occasions that he's missing the point, Smarmy Arab continues to miss the point. And in an angrier manner each time. Really frustrating to witness.

Hence his title 'Smarmy' 

[chips]

 

 

Misleading picture, it was taken in his family's pub and was done as a bet, money made was donated to charity.

Yeah off topic I know and bugger all to do with the thread. 

As others have said, if Swanson was still showing the skills and commitment as earlier in the season I would be a bit scunnered to see him go. But hey ho off he pops, working life as a professional footballer is short compared to us working minions, so yeah needs to try and build up a decent nest egg before his playing career ends. If I could double/treble or whatever my wages and a probable reasonable signing on fee a few years before having to give up work, I wouldn't hesitate to be giving present employer my notice. 

[Abernethy Saint]

 

He seems to have turned from a good poster into a troll. Abernathy must have worn him down.

Smarmy struggles to let go of failed, outdated points of view. But he's a good lad really.

Cant get excited about Swanson going tbh. He scored some goals, we paid him, done. Can't see him succeeding in a less nurturing environment under Angry Lennon. As I said earlier - Monty can confirm - there may be some awkwardness at the end of the season when he gets our PoTY, and possibly others that are awarded on a similar points basis throughout the season. I'm sure everyone will be grown up, though. 

[Smarmy Arab]

Angry me?  Not really.....What point am I missing?  The point that it was 'the way he did it'?....I would not say it me who is missing the point.

[SaintJet]

This discussion is what drives me up the wall about this site; loads of posts and moaning about something which is done and dusted and and not even a match thread started for a big game on Saturday. Swanson is gone - lets move on and find something else to discuss.

[The Real Saints]

 

Angry me?  Not really.....What point am I missing?  The point that it was 'the way he did it'?....I would not say it me who is missing the point.

 Well, yes. Exactly. You're confusing.

[Smarmy Arab]

 

 Well, yes. Exactly. You're confusing.

Lets clear up the confusion then TRS (apologies to Jet).  My point is DS has every legal and moral right to stall a deal from Saints and then chose to sign for Hibs, any speculation that TW's plans for next season have be wrecked by DS exercising these rights are exactly that...speculation and even if true utterly irrelevant, the quality and composition of Saints squad for next season is not the responsibility of DS, his responsibility is.....................DS.  

I have been devastated by players leaving Tannadice over the years, but never once have I or would I blame the player, move on!  As I said earlier, Andreu may well be available for next season, on loan from Norwich, exactly the type of quality player Saints should be looking at as a spark of real quality......I doubt United will be able to hold him even on loan for next season.

[sleepless]

The thing is, fans - naturally enough - view these things from the perspective of being a fan. Players can't and don't. This is their career. They simply can't view these matters in the tribal way the fans do. Ghostie summed this up well on FB: we, the fans, are St Johnstone FC. Players and managers and officials are just passing through. We may love them for what they do but in the end it's the fans who will remain.

[The Real Saints]

 

Lets clear up the confusion then TRS (apologies to Jet).  My point is DS has every legal and moral right to stall a deal from Saints and then chose to sign for Hibs, any speculation that TW's plans for next season have be wrecked by DS exercising these rights are exactly that...speculation and even if true utterly irrelevant, the quality and composition of Saints squad for next season is not the responsibility of DS, his responsibility is.....................DS.  

I have been devastated by players leaving Tannadice over the years, but never once have I or would I blame the player, move on!  As I said earlier, Andreu may well be available for next season, on loan from Norwich, exactly the type of quality player Saints should be looking at as a spark of real quality......I doubt United will be able to hold him even on loan for next season.

But Saints fans aren't annoyed because Danny was simply stalling on a new deal. In isolation, that wouldn't be a problem at all.

If you're interested, I'll list the reasons. Hopefully you'll then realise that you've been jumping to conclusions.

[Smarmy Arab]

Go ahead TRS, I am interested, all I have seen on here is 'the way he did it', nothing else of substance...........

[ss75990]

I am confused why so many people are so angry about this. Yes he has been a good player for us this season. But when looking at the entire season I feel there are other players who have had a bigger impact. He signed for his boyhood club and is most likely getting more money. If anyone on this forum got asked to sign for saints for more money than they were earning, they would jump on it in a heartbeat. I also imagine he is one of the higher earners in our squad, so that now opens the door for a player with a bit more class than was maybe planned to come in. Thanks for the memories Danny but we will be fine when you are gone.

[Smarmy Arab]

Agree totally SS, looking forward to TRS putting this in perspective and explaining why DS has provoked this reaction from sections of the Saints fans.

[rik2304]

Any substance to the Brian Graham returning rumours?

[The Real Saints]

 

Agree totally SS, looking forward to TRS putting this in perspective and explaining why DS has provoked this reaction from sections of the Saints fans.

Bear with me. I'm out until 2pm, then I'll begin this novel when I return.

[Abernethy Saint]

A nation gripped with anticipation......

[jhq]

 

Bear with me. I'm out until 2pm, then I'll begin this novel when I return.

We really need to move on now. Swanson has gone.  As Smarmy says, part of the reason for this is because Saints didn't have him on a longer contract. 

Incidentally you should have used the word "tome".  The definition of novel is "a fictitious narrative prose".  Just saying. ...

[The Real Saints]

 

We really need to move on now. Swanson has gone.  As Smarmy says, part of the reason for this is because Saints didn't have him on a longer contract. 

Incidentally you should have used the word "tome".  The definition of novel is "a fictitious narrative prose".  Just saying. ...

Not necessarily. Let's take Truman Capote's 'In Cold Blood' as an example. It is described as a non-fiction novel. 

[jhq]

But the OED definition is as above 

[The Real Saints]

OK, let's begin by journeying back to May 2015. Coventry City's Danny Swanson was in the midst of a successful loan spell at St. Johnstone. Indeed, the player seemed to appreciate Saints as much as the club appreciated him. In a Scotsman interview, Danny was extremely candid about his life. He expressed his desire to 'repay Tommy Wright's faith' and insisted that he and his family felt extremely 'settled' in Perth. Upon his departure from the club, he stated that St. Johnstone would be his first port of call if he decided to return north.

Fast-forward to September 2015. Having failed to make his mark at Coventry, Danny was close to signing another season-long loan deal with Saints. However, at the last minute, Danny and Coventry mutually agreed that he should be released from his contract. This was undoubtedly a blow for St. Johnstone. I have no idea if Danny Swanson played a big role in his release from Coventry, but he must have had a say in it. Danny, however, stuck to his word and talked to Saints before entering into discussions with any other Scottish club. But he/his representative declined Steve Brown's offers. After the chance of a loan move had fallen apart, our modest transfer budget made things a lot more difficult in terms of a permanent offer. A matter of days later, Danny Swanson signed for Hearts. There were no real hard feelings, but maybe a modicum of bitterness with the way in which things had turned out (especially after Danny had spoken so positively about St. Johnstone in the press).

Fast-forward to January 2016. Danny was struggling to break into Hearts' starting line-up. In short, he wasn't happy in Edinburgh. At the end of the January transfer window, he was prematurely released from his Hearts contract. Shortly after that, he signed up for a second spell at Saints (on this occasion, a contract which ran until 2017).

Tommy Wright, and St. Johnstone, resurrected his career once again. He arguably enjoyed his finest form since becoming a full-time footballer. His initial loan spell had been good, but Danny was simply marvellous up until the turn of the year. 

In February, things turned a bit sour when Danny - whose deal was due to run out in the summer - publicly moaned about his contract situation in the local papers. It was an unnecessary and unprofessional decision to discuss these matters in the public domain. To a few Saints supporters, it seemed to be more of a transparent attempt to advertise his imminent availability to other clubs. He described the situation as a 'nightmare', reiterating that he and his family were extemely settled. He rather arrogantly stated that 'the clock' was 'ticking' for St. Johnstone as he had 'other options'. Following a month or two of abject performances, he didn't receive much sympathy from St. Johnstone supporters. He blamed the contract negotiations (or lack of contract negotiations) for his dip in form. A week later, our chairman spoke in the press and totally refuted everything which Danny had said. He had received a couple of more than acceptable offers, but he had been non-compliant. He didn't have an agent, which added an extra obstacle to any discussions.

At the start of April, Danny kicked one of his team-mates in the head during an on-field scuffle. He and Richard Foster were both fairly punished by the club. Tommy Wright could have made a decision to let Danny's contract run out and leave him sitting in the stands. But yet again, he graciously gave him an opportunity to redeem himself.

Shortly after that incident, Tommy began to speak publicly about the chances of Danny Swanson signing a new contract at the club. He seemed increasingly confident. Towards the beginning of last week, Tommy said that he expected Danny to sign a new deal before the week was out. Would Tommy have said something like this if Danny hadn't given a serious indication that he would renew his contract? I don't think so. Two days later, it emerged that Danny had signed a pre-contract with Hibs. ''We'll move on and I'm better keeping my thoughts to myself'', said Tommy. ''That's the only comment I really want to make.''

Was he angry at the chairman? Was he angry at Danny? Possibly a bit of both. It does appear that Danny has shown flashes of dishonesty and classlessness during his time at St. Johnstone. If he had simply said to Tommy, ''I can't commit to a new deal until I know if Hibs, the team I support, are getting promoted.'' He clearly didn't say that though. Indeed, he has now cited family reasons for his move to Hibernian (the same family who were extremely settled and happy in the local-ish area).

In addition to this, his recent Instagram posts have undoubtedly irked a few St. Johnstone supporters. The official Saints account made a post in reference to the free supporters' buses which have been funded by the wages which Danny Swanson and Richard Foster had been fined. Just as it would have been more sensible to stay quiet about his contract situation in February, it would have been equally sensible to stay quiet in this instance. But he felt the need to respond. 'You're welcome', he posted. Whether it was intended to be humorous or not, it was arguably a stupid comment to make. We're welcome for what? We should be thankful that you potentially cost us three points by getting into a fight with a team-mate? A couple of days ago, whilst still employed to St. Johnstone, he posts, '**** the Hearts' on his Instagram beside a wee green love heart.

He's a talented footballer, there is no doubt about it. But he hasn't conducted himself in a professional manner recently and some supporters are justifiably irritated by that. Contrast it to Liam Craig who signed a pre-contract with Hibs, immediately shut up about it and went on to play a major role in Saints' European qualification. As it stands, I'd be surprised if Danny Swanson plays another game for St. Johnstone.*

 

*These are all my thoughts. I'm not saying that I speak on behalf of any Saints supporter. But these are my reasons for feeling a little put-down after recent events.

 

 

[Smarmy Arab]

Thanks for that, well argued TRS, and I understand how some fans might feel let down.  The social media stuff certainly leaves a bitter taste.  That said, Danny Swanson weighed up his options, and engineered a move that suited him, which he is entitled to do, legally and morally. I dare say TW will have felt initial disappointment with the outcome, such disappointments are part and parcel of football management, beyond that I suspect Tommy has given the matter little thought ......after all, it is only 18 months since he used Dundee United's interest to squeeze another 50000 a year + signing on fee + extra years on his contract out of Saints, having opined on many occasions that he is 'settled here' and enjoyed the best period in his management career etc.......a recent memory that no doubt colours Mr Brown's interpretation of events.........that is the way it rolls! 

[Abernethy Saint]

Damn. Was going to rip the piss out of Randoom, but his novella makes a lot of sense. 

[The Real Saints]

 

Damn. Was going to rip the piss out of Randoom, but his novella makes a lot of sense. 

Probably because I'm not Randoom. 

[RandomGuy]

 

Probably because I'm not Randoom. 

I'm surprised you're so adverse to any comparisons with me..