James Wallace

[alcoblade]

It still makes my piss itch that we gave James Wallace a 3 year deal.

And I am not talking with hindsight advantage either...his fitness levels were doubted when we signed him!

I should move on, really...

It's the 3 year deal on what turns out to be enormous wages that's the real killer. If we'd got him cheaply, then you might accept the gamble. But not us, we get him on a wage that no sane club in the country would match, ensuring we have to endure the full extent of him paid on his back at our expense.

Thank god those days seem to be over.


UTB

 

[Harry's Game]

There's always hope..

 

[Pedro Verde]

It's the 3 year deal on what turns out to be enormous wages that's the real killer. If we'd got him cheaply, then you might accept the gamble. But not us, we get him on a wage that no sane club in the country would match, ensuring we have to endure the full extent of him paid on his back at our expense.

Thank god those days seem to be over.


UTB

Thats what I dont get about the Wallace deal
I thought it would be a gamble as he had injury problems at Tranmere (Im not an expert by any means)
I thought we maybe give him a 1 or 2 year deal on small wages
The person who authorised that deal who as obviously now left the club should be sued and never allowed anywhere near contract negotiations unless he goes and works for the Pigs

 

[Chali 2na]

Thats what I dont get about the Wallace deal
I thought it would be a gamble as he had injury problems at Tranmere (Im not an expert by any means)
I thought we maybe give him a 1 or 2 year deal on small wages
The person who authorised that deal who as obviously now left the club should be sued and never allowed anywhere near contract negotiations unless he goes and works for the Pigs

In fairness there was competition for his signing despite his injury, which perhaps illustrates how great he was at Tranmere and the potential he showed.

 

[s35blade]

Some people are just not physically meant to play professional sport. Wallace is one, next year he'll be ushered out after which he'll probably end up in the conference, then he'll get injured, then he'll end up in B&Q. Feel sorry for the guy, but sometimes it's not meant to be.

 

[Bladesman]

Some people are just not physically meant to play professional sport. Wallace is one, next year he'll be ushered out after which he'll probably end up in the conference, then he'll get injured, then he'll end up in B&Q. Feel sorry for the guy, but sometimes it's not meant to be.

Agreed I see him as a part time non-league player, that is his future in the game. Unless some low budget L2 club takes a gamble on him.

 

[Chali 2na]

Some people are just not physically meant to play professional sport. Wallace is one, next year he'll be ushered out after which he'll probably end up in the conference, then he'll get injured, then he'll end up in B&Q. Feel sorry for the guy, but sometimes it's not meant to be.

Agreed I see him as a part time non-league player, that is his future in the game. Unless some low budget L2 club takes a gamble on him.

If he's been given good advice by those around him he'll have saved enough money to go get some qualifications, be that coaching/physiotherapy or a degree to do something outside of football.

 

[JohnDenver]

go get some qualifications, be that coaching/physiotherapy

He's done a three year work experience placement for that already. May as well take the exam tomorrow....

 

[8lade]

In the last 3 years he's probably earned more than most of us will in our lifetimes, he shouldn't have any problems.
Regarding his fitness he should simply take a year off doing nothing taxing to his body, maybe jogging maybe swimming, then he should come back here on a pay as you play contract, of course if anybody is daft enough to give him a full contract elsewhere carry on but I just wouldn't give up on him, since everybody thinks he's so talented.

 

[INTERUNITED]

Is it just me that's never seen owt special in this lad?? For me he's just too top heavy, and that's the reason he keeps getting injured. I honestly can't wait until he's gone.

 

[Kozzy_is_my_Dad]

I for one am glad that we passed on the option of Con or Coady, for Wallace instead.

 

[SwissBlade]

Is it just me that's never seen owt special in this lad?? For me he's just too top heavy, and that's the reason he keeps getting injured. I honestly can't wait until he's gone.

When he's played he's looked decent.... he's just not played because he's never been fit... hence why you nor the rest of us have seen anything from him

 

[PokerBlade]

Arguably our best signing since Li Tie.

 

[Bartleby]

Thats what I dont get about the Wallace deal
I thought it would be a gamble as he had injury problems at Tranmere (Im not an expert by any means)
I thought we maybe give him a 1 or 2 year deal on small wages
The person who authorised that deal who as obviously now left the club should be sued and never allowed anywhere near contract negotiations unless he goes and works for the Pigs

It's not there now I don't think, but last year I dug out the video on the youtube site of the interview with Clough just after signing him and he was asked if he was concerned about Wallace's poor fitness history (he hadn't strung 3 consecutive appearances together in 3 years). He just said no, he's passed the medical and that was it. Don't think he's had 3 appearances since he signed for us either.

It doesn't make me angry any more though now, I'm starting to get closure on our previous mismanagements with the way it's going this season. UTB!

 

[elgoog44]

take it glass man is still out injured, no closer to sniffing the first team jock strap, let alone getting a game?

 

[LoughboroBlade]

take it glass man is still out injured, no closer to sniffing the first team jock strap, let alone getting a game?

An apparition of James Wallace apparently appeared last night on the Bramall Lane pitch – displaying some encouragingly tidy skills on the ball, before disappearing again into the abyss. Legend has it he has appeared each of the last two years...

 

[Roygbiv]

It's bad that reporters don't even bother asking if he's fit anymore

 

[elgoog44]

It's bad that reporters don't even bother asking if he's fit anymore

I guess they assume, like us that he is injured Again!

I wonder if this is the last season he will "Play" as cant see them queing for his services and he is no longer contrcated at the end of the year which is great for the club, but maybe not Mr Wallace as the free money drys up.

 

[Bladeinleeds]

I guess they assume, like us that he is injured Again!

I wonder if this is the last season he will "Play" as cant see them queing for his services and he is no longer contrcated at the end of the year which is great for the club, but maybe not Mr Wallace as the free money drys up.

Feel for the lad really. It's ended up a huge waste of money for us but james must be gutted that he's been let down by his body time and again.

Must take some getting over not being able to do the thing you've trained for since you were a kid. He's not thrown his career away in the way that ched / Baxter did there were no indisgressions or bad behaviour or lack of effort he's just unfortunate.

Hope he comes through it and earns a pay as you play or takes his coaching badges or something

 

[Weasel]

Im indifferent to the lad to be honest. I dont wish him ill, nor do i really care much about his future career, whether that be in football or something else. Many of us have to make difficult decisions at various times in our lives and have to move on or change direction.

Hes not cheated the club nor has he misbehaved, whilst he did what anyone else would do when offered a golden contract from past foolhardy sufc money men. That said he has basically done nothing for a long time and been paid handsomely for doing diddly squat, earning more money in that time that most of us will in a lifetime. So no sympathy from me.

It is a situation where both parties lost out and it is a shame but thats life. Ultimately the lad might not be able to play football for a living but that in itself is not the end of the world. He's lived a very privileged working life so far and hasnt had to graft like most of us do day in day out for so little in monetary terms, so far in his life. My body let me down too when i was only 18 as it decided not to be good enough to win me a contract on 15k a week. I got over it and im sure JW will too. Come the summer of next year hes off the payroll and from SUFCs perspective thats the only thing to be concerned about.

 

[itsinyerblood]

I know this goes against the grain where many posters are concerned, but I doubt Wallace actually enjoys being sidelined by his injuries, and would much prefer to do the thing he thought he was destined to do. It's clear that cynicism has played it's part where commenting on Wallace is concerned, as if Wallace himself has engineered his own injuries. Complete nonsense of course, but it strikes a chord with those posters who view Wallace as a self-serving 'victim'. I doubt anyone is more desperate to play again than Wallace, but it seems he's bound to see out his contract with United, and beyond that, well I hope he's given enough thought to the next chapter in his life, whether it's inside football or involved elsewhere. The question of sympathy, or even empathy, is something that I feel has no place in evaluating Wallace's time at SUFC, although I think it would take a particularly cold heart not to have some understanding of the peaks and troughs that Wallace will have gone through.

I think the question of hindsight is where the confusion lies. No doubt, with each passing week and day, with the apparent hope that recovery seemed on the horizon, Wallace will have imagined he could once again enter into regaining his fitness then fight for a place in United's first team squad. It seems that many of the comments I've read have taken no account of this, assuming that Wallace had anticipated the worst and been happy to sit back while knowing he had little or no chance of ever playing again. Personally I doubt it, but for those of a cynical disposition I guess it wraps this unpleasant episode up nicely and is explained by the all to obvious reasoning that there was something underhand at play.

 

[finlaytheblade]

I know this goes against the grain where many posters are concerned, but I doubt Wallace actually enjoys being sidelined by his injuries, and would much prefer to do the thing he thought he was destined to do. It's clear that cynicism has played it's part where commenting on Wallace is concerned, as if Wallace himself has engineered his own injuries. Complete nonsense of course, but it strikes a chord with those posters who view Wallace as a self-serving 'victim'. I doubt anyone is more desperate to play again than Wallace, but it seems he's bound to see out his contract with United, and beyond that, well I hope he's given enough thought to the next chapter in his life, whether it's inside football or involved elsewhere. The question of sympathy, or even empathy, is something that I feel has no place in evaluating Wallace's time at SUFC, although I think it would take a particularly cold heart not to have some understanding of the peaks and troughs that Wallace will have gone through.

I think the question of hindsight is where the confusion lies. No doubt, with each passing week and day, with the apparent hope that recovery seemed on the horizon, Wallace will have imagined he could once again enter into regaining his fitness then fight for a place in United's first team squad. It seems that many of the comments I've read have taken no account of this, assuming that Wallace had anticipated the worst and been happy to sit back while knowing he had little or no chance of ever playing again. Personally I doubt it, but for those of a cynical disposition I guess it wraps this unpleasant episode up nicely and is explained by the all to obvious reasoning that there was something underhand at play.

I don't think he's finished 24 stoll has time to get his career going again.may not be with us but some club will give him the opportunity

 

[Revolution]

I know this goes against the grain where many posters are concerned, but I doubt Wallace actually enjoys being sidelined by his injuries, and would much prefer to do the thing he thought he was destined to do. It's clear that cynicism has played it's part where commenting on Wallace is concerned, as if Wallace himself has engineered his own injuries. Complete nonsense of course, but it strikes a chord with those posters who view Wallace as a self-serving 'victim'. I doubt anyone is more desperate to play again than Wallace, but it seems he's bound to see out his contract with United, and beyond that, well I hope he's given enough thought to the next chapter in his life, whether it's inside football or involved elsewhere. The question of sympathy, or even empathy, is something that I feel has no place in evaluating Wallace's time at SUFC, although I think it would take a particularly cold heart not to have some understanding of the peaks and troughs that Wallace will have gone through.

I think the question of hindsight is where the confusion lies. No doubt, with each passing week and day, with the apparent hope that recovery seemed on the horizon, Wallace will have imagined he could once again enter into regaining his fitness then fight for a place in United's first team squad. It seems that many of the comments I've read have taken no account of this, assuming that Wallace had anticipated the worst and been happy to sit back while knowing he had little or no chance of ever playing again. Personally I doubt it, but for those of a cynical disposition I guess it wraps this unpleasant episode up nicely and is explained by the all to obvious reasoning that there was something underhand at play.

I don't view Wallace as a self serving victim.

I view Clough and Brannigan as morons for giving a 3 year deal on enormous wages (for league one level) to a player who had been frequently injured his entire career and had a career high of 19 games. It was negligence.

It is possible that Wallace will leave United having been paid over a million pounds to feature in 14 league games, at least half of which were appearances of 20 minutes or less.

That's what makes me angry about this situation. Wallace's feelings or motivations are irrelevant to me at this point.

 

[itsinyerblood]

I don't view Wallace as a self serving victim.

I view Clough and Brannigan as morons for giving a 3 year deal on enormous wages (for league one level) to a player who had been frequently injured his entire career and had a career high of 19 games. It was negligence.

It is possible that Wallace will leave United having been paid over a million pounds to feature in 14 league games, at least half of which were appearances of 20 minutes or less.

That's what makes me angry about this situation. Wallace's feelings or motivations are irrelevant to me at this point.

I agree, the pre-contract evaluation of Wallace's physical condition, as well as the likelihood of future problems, may well have been poor to say the least. With the benefit of hindsight I suppose we'd all know exactly what should have been done at the time Wallace was signed. Of course there were other people involved in Wallace's signing, weren't doctors part of his evaluation to be fit and able? So the finger of blame goes way beyond Messrs Clough and Brannigan in terms of who ok'd Wallace as fit to go.

I find speaking from a position of hindsight not particularly helpful unless you're able to explain in precise terms why negligence happened in the first place.

 

[Revolution]

I agree, the pre-contract evaluation of Wallace's physical condition, as well as the likelihood of future problems, may well have been poor to say the least. With the benefit of hindsight I suppose we'd all know exactly what should have been done at the time Wallace was signed. Of course there were other people involved in Wallace's signing, weren't doctors part of his evaluation to be fit and able? So the finger of blame goes way beyond Messrs Clough and Brannigan in terms of who ok'd Wallace as fit to go.

I find speaking from a position of hindsight not particularly helpful unless you're able to explain in precise terms why negligence happened in the first place.

This isn't hindsight. The list of injury prone players who suddenly stop being injury prone is very short.

There have been studies done on this, and clubs of United's size should have access to that information and not done a 3 year deal for a player with that injury record as a matter of policy.

And Clough has form for this. Coutts was another player signed after serious injuries, was plainly not up to it (only 2 seasons later has he started to justify his wages), and missed a lengthy spell with an injury early the following year. Steve Davies was the same (though we got lucky as his next serious injury came after his loan spell).

It was a bad deal when it was signed. And I've always thought that's why there was confusion over the length of the deal - the club didn't want to be embarrassed about the mistake they'd made, given Wallace got injured almost immediately.

 

[sheffielder]

I don't view Wallace as a self serving victim.

I view Clough and Brannigan as morons for giving a 3 year deal on enormous wages (for league one level) to a player who had been frequently injured his entire career and had a career high of 19 games. It was negligence.

It is possible that Wallace will leave United having been paid over a million pounds to feature in 14 league games, at least half of which were appearances of 20 minutes or less.

That's what makes me angry about this situation. Wallace's feelings or motivations are irrelevant to me at this point.

To be fair, he probably didn't get large wages after others took their cut..

 

[itsinyerblood]

This isn't hindsight. The list of injury prone players who suddenly stop being injury prone is very short.

There have been studies done on this, and clubs of United's size should have access to that information and not done a 3 year deal for a player with that injury record as a matter of policy.

And Clough has form for this. Coutts was another player signed after serious injuries, was plainly not up to it (only 2 seasons later has he started to justify his wages), and missed a lengthy spell with an injury early the following year. Steve Davies was the same (though we got lucky as his next serious injury came after his loan spell).

It was a bad deal when it was signed. And I've always thought that's why there was confusion over the length of the deal - the club didn't want to be embarrassed about the mistake they'd made, given Wallace got injured almost immediately.

Think I covered most of this in my first paragraph.

 

[bladesmanluke]

Just wait until he comes back in time for the play off final and bags an injury time winner off the bench and gets a 3 year extension

 

[Davie Blade]

Just wait until he comes back in time for the play off final and bags an injury time winner off the bench and gets a 3 year extension

That would make him 35 then

 

[Yewsman]

I don't view Wallace as a self serving victim.

I view Clough and Brannigan as morons for giving a 3 year deal on enormous wages (for league one level) to a player who had been frequently injured his entire career and had a career high of 19 games. It was negligence.

It is possible that Wallace will leave United having been paid over a million pounds to feature in 14 league games, at least half of which were appearances of 20 minutes or less.

That's what makes me angry about this situation. Wallace's feelings or motivations are irrelevant to me at this point.

This hits the nail on the head. Complete negligence/lunacy/incompetence by Clough/Brannigan to spend the club's money like this. This has been the problem over the reign of Clough and then Adkins signing the wrong players (and I include Brayford in this) for big fees/wages. Not surprising the board have now said enough is enough and rightly so. At least Clough brought some money in with the two Cup runs; plus Coutts and Freeman have come good but I bet they are on very high wages by L1 standards. He also signed Che who we cashed in on but Adkins....!!! Sanity has now prevailed. We are spending less and the results (so far anyway) are vastly better.