Player contracts and transfers


David123
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11 hours ago, mainstand said:

Doubtful given that Mclaren is on loan at hibs anyway so could not be used in a deal unless his parent club were getting something out of it. 

He apparently wants to move back to Australia, his parent club don't want him, and O'Halloran wants to return to Scotland.

Similar deal to the Allan to Hibs/Hendry to Celtic/Murray to Dundee deal they pulled off last year.

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6 hours ago, RandomGuy said:

He apparently wants to move back to Australia, his parent club don't want him, and O'Halloran wants to return to Scotland.

Similar deal to the Allan to Hibs/Hendry to Celtic/Murray to Dundee deal they pulled off last year.

Now being posted on twitter that he has been released from his contract to allow him to return home due to being homesick. Still to be confirmed. 

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12 hours ago, RandomGuy said:

Poster in p&b, who spoke about the signings of Callachan and Swanson before they hit the mainstream, believes we'll be signing O'Halloran.

I can never understand the constant clamor from some Saints fans to get players who were once decent back to the club despite them failing elsewhere; May and O Halloran left to further their careers - (Good luck to them) and ultimately failed- they are certainly not the players they were in their heyday with us. I don't want either back at the club at the wages they would command. Both players will always have a special place in my heart and both were right to move on and that is what we need to do- Move on!

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29 minutes ago, SaintJet said:

I can never understand the constant clamor from some Saints fans to get players who were once decent back to the club despite them failing elsewhere; May and O Halloran left to further their careers - (Good luck to them) and ultimately failed- they are certainly not the players they were in their heyday with us. I don't want either back at the club at the wages they would command. Both players will always have a special place in my heart and both were right to move on and that is what we need to do- Move on!

Likewise, I find your line of thinking to be quite incomprehensible. You talk about Michael O'Halloran's 'heyday' as if he wasn't playing quality football for us a mere year ago. I really doubt he has degraded into a hopeless case in the space of twelve months. Stevie May, on the other hand, is a different kettle of fish. Given the nature of his damaging injury and subsequent performances since then, it would sadly be more accurate to suggest that he may fail to capture the form of his 'heyday'. However, given certain players' propensities to reserve their best football for when they're employed by St. Johnstone FC, one must never jump to conclusions.

In the case of MOH (and Danny Swanson before him), surely it's a sensible thing to sign players who we can be pretty sure will do a good job for us? I don't really understand any thinking to the contrary. Stefan Scougall is an example of someone who we took a gamble on. By our standards, he was on a very high wage. Ultimately, his signing was a waste of time and money. There's nothing wrong with that. You win some, you lose some. As far as Tommy Wright is concerned, his recent attacking acquisitions (Kennedy, Wright and Watt) have all surpassed expectations thus far. But when there's also an opportunity to bring in a tried and tested player of attacking quality, Tommy will quite rightly be interested. Especially when you take Drey Wright's injury into account. 

Granted, MOH's Ibrox move was a blot on his copy book. But it's no secret that a large number of their supporters took against him from day one (mainly for unedifying reasons). His performances didn't set the heather alight, but he wasn't given too many opportunities to impress and he was very much treated like an outcast during the Caixinha era. He moved as far as Australia to escape their stranglehold. It hasn't worked out for him there and he now has the opportunity to restart his career in Scotland without the constraints of Rangers and the negative influence of their prejudiced fanbase.

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33 minutes ago, The Real Saints said:

Likewise, I find your line of thinking to be quite incomprehensible. You talk about Michael O'Halloran's 'heyday' as if he wasn't playing quality football for us a mere year ago. I really doubt he has degraded into a hopeless case in the space of twelve months. Stevie May, on the other hand, is a different kettle of fish. Given the nature of his damaging injury and subsequent performances since then, it would sadly be more accurate to suggest that he may fail to capture the form of his 'heyday'. However, given certain players' propensities to reserve their best football for when they're employed by St. Johnstone FC, one must never jump to conclusions.

In the case of MOH (and Danny Swanson before him), surely it's a sensible thing to sign players who we can be pretty sure will do a good job for us? I don't really understand any thinking to the contrary. Stefan Scougall is an example of someone who we took a gamble on. By our standards, he was on a very high wage. Ultimately, his signing was a waste of time and money. There's nothing wrong with that. You win some, you lose some. As far as Tommy Wright is concerned, his recent attacking acquisitions (Kennedy, Wright and Watt) have all surpassed expectations thus far. But when there's also an opportunity to bring in a tried and tested player of attacking quality, Tommy will quite rightly be interested. Especially when you take Drey Wright's injury into account. 

Granted, MOH's Ibrox move was a blot on his copy book. But it's no secret that a large number of their supporters took against him from day one (mainly for unedifying reasons). His performances didn't set the heather alight, but he wasn't given too many opportunities to impress and he was very much treated like an outcast during the Caixinha era. He moved as far as Australia to escape their stranglehold. It hasn't worked out for him there and he now has the opportunity to restart his career in Scotland without the constraints of Rangers and the negative influence of their prejudiced fanbase.

This site is about opinions and yours differs from mine. MOH did us a turn when he came back and that's a fact but it's often overlooked he was in and out of games even if he did have a good ratio goals to games.  I'll be honest when I say MOH's petty behavior before he got his move soured me towards him. We have replaced him with two new fans favorites in Drey and Matt - let's move on. 

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37 minutes ago, SaintJet said:

This site is about opinions and yours differs from mine. MOH did us a turn when he came back and that's a fact but it's often overlooked he was in and out of games even if he did have a good ratio goals to games.  I'll be honest when I say MOH's petty behavior before he got his move soured me towards him. We have replaced him with two new fans favorites in Drey and Matt - let's move on. 

The O’Halloran who returned for a second spell on loan was injured or had niggles for a lot of the spell. Look at the games where he wasn’t and made an impact, namely Kilmarnock and probably Hibs at Easter Road. That’s what a fit and firing MoH can do. The only player saints have who could do what he did those days, in terms of beating 3/4 men hitting the byline and scoring is Drey Wright. Seems to me, that he’d be an ideal replacement whilst he’s injured and if he’s not back until October as has been reported, I guess a years deal for MoH providing he’s fit and not carrying an injury makes sense. 

Put it this way, I’d much rather he was in our team than have to face him. A bench containing MoH, Swanson, Alston, etc at some point is a statement and one that shows a saints squad with the ability to change a game with simply a substitution. 

For that reason alone, I’d welcome him back. However I don’t think he will return to us. 

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2 hours ago, SaintJet said:

I can never understand the constant clamor from some Saints fans to get players who were once decent back to the club despite them failing elsewhere; May and O Halloran left to further their careers - (Good luck to them) and ultimately failed- they are certainly not the players they were in their heyday with us. I don't want either back at the club at the wages they would command. Both players will always have a special place in my heart and both were right to move on and that is what we need to do- Move on!

Surely it makes sense for the manager to go in for players he's worked with before and knows he can get the best out of. O'Halloran when fit and firing on all cylinders is one of the most dangerous players available at our level and if he can play like that for us again it could make a significant difference to our finishing position in the league. I had a read of a Melbourne fans forum yesterday and from what they were saying it seems he actually looked pretty good for them in his sub appearances but wasn't being given a chance to start for some reason - speculation on there that there may have been an issue between him and the manager, rather than the homesickness that has been reported as the reason.

Either way, I want to see us trying to sign players like that - and with Drey Wright out injured, potentially into next season, it makes even more sense. I'd be really excited to see O'Halloran, Kennedy, Swanson and Watt all in the same Saints squad.

 

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1 hour ago, blueheaven said:

Either way, I want to see us trying to sign players like that - and with Drey Wright out injured, potentially into next season, it makes even more sense. I'd be really excited to see O'Halloran, Kennedy, Swanson and Watt all in the same Saints squad.

 

Not to mention if we were to loose Watt or Kennedy he also provides an option up top as well as wide, its two good squad players for the price of one...practically a bargain

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Still a fan of O'Halloran.  He was great when he came back the first time until he picked up a knock.  He went to Rangers because he was ambitious.  We hate the Old Firm for obvious reasons, but I also understand completely why a player would want to play for them.  

He was then basically left in the cold because of his name, and the sectarian bile that that club is founded on.  I can't blame him for wanting to be as far away from that as possible really.  I also can't blame him for being homesick. As far as I see, he hasn't really done anything wrong along the way, is a quality player, and an asset to any team at our level.

It's all very different to the Stevie May example, who left for better things and has regressed, possibly partly due to a nasty injury.  

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I'm of a similar mind as blueheaven and Shaggy Jenkins. If he's available, we can afford him and he wants to come then it makes complete sense. He's a quality player who fits into our team.

If we sign him on an 18 month deal or more, we will end up with Wright, Kennedy, Swanson, O'Halloran all signed for next season with Alston and Wotherspoon in discussions over a new deal. Outrageous options in the attacking midfield positions for a club like Saints.

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2 hours ago, SaintJet said:

This site is about opinions and yours differs from mine. MOH did us a turn when he came back and that's a fact but it's often overlooked he was in and out of games even if he did have a good ratio goals to games.  I'll be honest when I say MOH's petty behavior before he got his move soured me towards him. We have replaced him with two new fans favorites in Drey and Matt - let's move on. 

Worth mentioning that we've no idea what Wright will be like once he returns from injury. For all we know he'll have lost a yard of pace, it's harsh, but I'd rather not be relying on someone who's had a serious injury.

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1 hour ago, Kyle said:

I'm of a similar mind as blueheaven and Shaggy Jenkins. If he's available, we can afford him and he wants to come then it makes complete sense. He's a quality player who fits into our team.

If we sign him on an 18 month deal or more, we will end up with Wright, Kennedy, Swanson, O'Halloran all signed for next season with Alston and Wotherspoon in discussions over a new deal. Outrageous options in the attacking midfield positions for a club like Saints.

I agree it would be great to have a line up for midfield options like that; I am a realist though and balancing our books would seem improbable in today's market hence my original point about MOH coming back here for the salary he would command.

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9 minutes ago, SaintJet said:

I agree it would be great to have a line up for midfield options like that; I am a realist though and balancing our books would seem improbable in today's market hence my original point about MOH coming back here for the salary he would command.

He's a free agent so currently earning £0 per week. That's not to say a team wont come in and make him an offer we can't compete with, but he was happy at Saints previously, played his best football with us and is well liked around the club, a combination of things he's not really had since leaving Saints. Wright's interview on Saints tv suggests that we've got players in mind for this month and he's hoping to complete something in the 'coming days or weeks'. O'Halloran feels like the natural shout given his previous links with us and the fact he's become available. 

Scougall will almost certainly leave this month and he's almost certainly one of our top earners. Transfer that wage to O'Halloran - who we know will give us goals and assists from his previous spell with us - and I think we give ourselves an excellent chance of getting him.

 

Edit: The return of MOH will surely hasten the return of old forum favourite @Inchcolm too.

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Could you imagine though a Saints team containing a fit O'Halloran, Swanson, Kennedy and Wright! That would give any opposition the utter fear. Each one could rip a team wide open, but 4 or them!! Not sure you'd get them all in the same side, but would love to see that.

I'd give MOH a deal personally. Still young enough and like many before, realises what he has here vs chasing the money etc. Might also persuade Watt to stay. Genuinely the most talented saints team I've ever seen and could get even better.

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I would definitely take a punt on MOH. He is a good age, we know his capabilities but more importantly his character weaknesses - which certainly did not help him at Rangers and Melbourne ( where the manager is a known autocrat and bully) ie TW can extract the best from him - especially now with the style of football being played. Budget must be an issue. reckon the punt on Swanson was beyond budget so if Scougall goes it effectively puts finances back on track. Any punt on MOH would therefore like come from a reasonable projection of excess funds being generated from finishing higher than 10th in the league this season. Go for it !

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9 minutes ago, Kinnoull Kicker said:

I would definitely take a punt on MOH. He is a good age, we know his capabilities but more importantly his character weaknesses - which certainly did not help him at Rangers and Melbourne ( where the manager is a known autocrat and bully) ie TW can extract the best from him - especially now with the style of football being played. Budget must be an issue. reckon the punt on Swanson was beyond budget so if Scougall goes it effectively puts finances back on track. Any punt on MOH would therefore like come from a reasonable projection of excess funds being generated from finishing higher than 10th in the league this season. Go for it !

Agree, the Swanson money was over and above, but maybe with Scougall potentially going, Nydham away and the likelihood of a relegation reduced then a bit of a freeing up of wages could happen. 

Of course though, if we want to offer new contracts to Watt, Kerr etc, you'd assume that would be more expensive. Unfortunately, despite the great football being played, the crowds haven't responded to give more cash. 

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