January Transfer Window

[rik2304]

2 minutes ago, blueheaven said:

I used to have a season ticket watching a team at that level a few years ago, and regularly saw players I felt would be worth Saints taking a look at. Among the players in the team I used to watch were Ethan Pinnock who now plays every week in the English Premier, and a midfielder who now plays in the top division in Turkey. Dipo Akinyemi was playing for that team at the time too, and often didn't get a game: there were other players considerably better than him.

I'm convinced there are plenty of gems to be found in the sixth and 7th tiers of English football. But I'd imagine the hard part is getting them to come up here, when a lot of the good ones will also have interest from other English clubs who are closer to home and offering more money.

I think there's an outdated perception of players at that level being slow, unfit, part-time cloggers, but it's changed a lot. A lot of them are ex-Premier League or professional academy players who have lost their way but are fit, athletic and very good on the ball.

 

I bet a lot of them are making good money as well.

[saintee in exile]

1 hour ago, blueheaven said:

I used to have a season ticket watching a team at that level a few years ago, and regularly saw players I felt would be worth Saints taking a look at. Among the players in the team I used to watch were Ethan Pinnock who now plays every week in the English Premier, and a midfielder who now plays in the top division in Turkey. Dipo Akinyemi was playing for that team at the time too, and often didn't get a game: there were other players considerably better than him.

I'm convinced there are plenty of gems to be found in the sixth and 7th tiers of English football. But I'd imagine the hard part is getting them to come up here, when a lot of the good ones will also have interest from other English clubs who are closer to home and offering more money.

I think there's an outdated perception of players at that level being slow, unfit, part-time cloggers, but it's changed a lot. A lot of them are ex-Premier League or professional academy players who have lost their way but are fit, athletic and very good on the ball.

 

Heard from someone who had played against him.He said he was the most difficult player he had faced for years.Very fast and deceptively strong.Surely worth a go.Lets face it we will never be able to afford a tried and tested quality striker.

[Cagey]

Assume Crawford and others not wanted by Levein can still be loaned out to lower league clubs after today.

Doesn't look like much movement in departure lounge.

[PSJ.84]

4 minutes ago, Cagey said:

Assume Crawford and others not wanted by Levein can still be loaned out to lower league clubs after today.

Yeah, bang on. End of February for the loan window closing. 

[sideline]

Gone a bit quiet on our proposed new signing as well.

[double deluxe]

1 minute ago, sideline said:

Gone a bit quiet on our proposed new signing as well.

It’s a done deal

[bankfoot saint]

Confirmed 2 1/2 year deal 

Edited February 1, 2024 by bankfoot saint

[garydavidson]

@blueheavenyou let it slip and used your real name this time 😅

[glenrothes saintee]

Welcome to Saints Adama.  A wee tune to make you feel at home.😉

 

[Cagey]

40 minutes ago, bankfoot saint said:

Confirmed 2 1/2 year deal 

Wow I hope he is good and we are not left like contracts given out by Flax/Davidson .

[tucker]

Got to take that chance if he's good good sell on won't be at saints long 

[bankfoot saint]

Aiden Smith reporting that Jay turner cooke has gone back to Newcastle 

[bankfoot saint]

https://off-the-park.co.uk/st-johnstone-adama-sidibeh-warrington-rylands
 

wee bit about the new lad 

[MySpazz]

12 hours ago, rik2304 said:

I bet a lot of them are making good money as well.

Dipo would have been on around £6/700 pw at Welling, before his move to Ayr. Training once/twice per week and match at the weekend, around 30 hours of work all told, so not a very good wage all things considered.

[MySpazz]

7 hours ago, bankfoot saint said:

https://off-the-park.co.uk/st-johnstone-adama-sidibeh-warrington-rylands
 

wee bit about the new lad 

Some footage, and if he gets a few of these gilt-edged chances - all good (but can't see most of these opportunities arising) - granted a few are well taken.

 

Edited February 2, 2024 by MySpazz

[pezza70]

Let’s just hope he gets a chance to play instead of sitting in the stand on his backside 

[rik2304]

6 hours ago, MySpazz said:

Dipo would have been on around £6/700 pw at Welling, before his move to Ayr. Training once/twice per week and match at the weekend, around 30 hours of work all told, so not a very good wage all things considered.

Should have clarified. They will have other profession's as well as the football wage. Which are often well paid.

[tucker]

Think a few will be loaned out yet.

[blueheaven]

I'm quite excited by this signing. If you look at our available options, we're never going to go out and sign someone who's scoring 20+ goals at our level or equivalent. So if we go for other Premiership strikers we're stuck with the guys who we know only get three or four goals a season if they're very lucky (guys like Zak Rudden). Or we take a chance on someone from abroad but end up with someone like Theo Bair, who wasn't even scoring goals in the Norwegian lower leagues before he came to us.

This is someone who is actually banging in goals and playing with confidence, albeit at a much lower level. I hope we give him his chance to play quickly, and we're not going to handle him the way Callum Davidson would have: i.e. leave him sitting on the bench for months, getting rusty and losing confidence, while we coach his good bits out of him and try to make him play the same way every other failed striker has played here, spending all game chugging around hopelessly in our own half of the pitch. Just let him get out on the pitch and do his thing and let's see what he can do.

[SaintJet]

29 minutes ago, blueheaven said:

I'm quite excited by this signing. If you look at our available options, we're never going to go out and sign someone who's scoring 20+ goals at our level or equivalent. So if we go for other Premiership strikers we're stuck with the guys who we know only get three or four goals a season if they're very lucky (guys like Zak Rudden). Or we take a chance on someone from abroad but end up with someone like Theo Bair, who wasn't even scoring goals in the Norwegian lower leagues before he came to us.

This is someone who is actually banging in goals and playing with confidence, albeit at a much lower level. I hope we give him his chance to play quickly, and we're not going to handle him the way Callum Davidson would have: i.e. leave him sitting on the bench for months, getting rusty and losing confidence, while we coach his good bits out of him and try to make him play the same way every other failed striker has played here, spending all game chugging around hopelessly in our own half of the pitch. Just let him get out on the pitch and do his thing and let's see what he can do.

I agree with most of your points and I hope he gets a chance to make a quick impact but the first thing he'll have to come to terms with is the speed of our game compared down in England. I can see a few cameo introductions to see how he fairs but it has a good feel about it and there is very little downside.

[henryhallsdanceband]

15 hours ago, glenrothes saintee said:

Welcome to Saints Adama.  A wee tune to make you feel at home.😉

 

Aye…was thinking that…though signing Starbuck or a Number Six would have been just the ticket.  Anyway…I’m cool we have Adama.  See how he gets on, at least he knows what he’s been brought in to do and he knows how to do it.

Edited February 2, 2024 by henryhallsdanceband

[Cagey]

1 hour ago, tucker said:

Think a few will be loaned out yet.

Even that won't help the budget which has grown rather than shrink during the window.

Even if we do get a few out on loan it won't make a dent in wage bill. I think we have brought in more than have gone out but have lost count.

[SlickDT]

Squad is far too big.... Need a good few moved out on loan asap or there will be more harmful losses.

[PSJ.84]

34 minutes ago, Cagey said:

Even that won't help the budget which has grown rather than shrink during the window.

Even if we do get a few out on loan it won't make a dent in wage bill. I think we have brought in more than have gone out but have lost count.

In

Kerr Smith (loan)
David Keltjens
Luke Robinson (loan)
Benjamin Kimpioka
Conor Smith
Adama Sidibeh

Out

Callum Booth (loan)
Luke Jephcott
Dara Costelloe
Jay Turner-Cooke

[blueheaven]

35 minutes ago, SlickDT said:

Squad is far too big.... Need a good few moved out on loan asap or there will be more harmful losses.

I'm assuming from this that Levein has been told he can bring in players in this window in order to improve us and keep us up, as long as he cuts numbers significantly over the summer. I think that would probably make sense, as it'll be a lot easier to ditch players once the summer comes along and they're actually out of contract. We have quite a lot of players coming to the ends of their deals and I can easily see Levein wanting to cut the majority of them so that he can fully make the team his own.