Dean Hammond

[WhiteHawk]

Did we? I haven't looked at the stats but I can't remember their keeper pulling one save off, but as I say above, I couldn't give two flying fucks either way, I was just interested and Petes' post made me think a little.

According to the stats, yes. Like you say though, I couldn't give a fuck if we had 1 shot or 30. We won.

 

[Punk Blade]

He constantly looks backwards, misplaces too many passes and the ones he does find his target usually put us under pressure near or in our own area. He also looks prone to getting sent off every time I see him.

The best thing he did today was actually clear from a corner after all his team mates did their best to keep the ball in our box. The kop seemed to give him grief for that.

Currently difficult to tell if Coutts is improving or if Hammond is just making him look good.

 

[mattbianco1]

I like him. I think he's started very poorly but is gradually improving and looking like an asset.

I, like many, question if he's worth the money. That's another story.

UTB

I had the "joy" of watching the game in Stevenage. Was on my way up home on the A1 from London. Got to 11:45 so I turned off. Wife an Kids were delighted...

I think maybe watching on TV and seeing all the replays helped show just how much he offers. He rode his luck with some of the tackles and a couple of times he shirt pulled in the area. But, we need someone to do that.
Basham next to him isn't right though. After Collins' performance today I'd play Bash and Edgar at CB

 

[finlaytheblade]

Now that would be telling

There's something I like about Hammond, if I'm honest (despite his lack of pace & agility).

I especially like the way he flings himself in front of shots. Says something about his desire & commitment.

He's getting more & more influential, game by game.

Couldn't agree more alf fans were expecting a quality footballer when he came in from premier (leics) but he has spent most of his career
In the championship with a few in our division.He's very much a destroyer and players I would think don't like playing against him,a similar
Player to robbie savage maybe not as mobile or as good but a great pro to have in your team.He has captained all three clubs he has played for so I think that tells a story about him.I did say when we signed him he needed time to get up to speed ,real competitor and will bite your
legs ,Trevor Hockey was loved by us for his never say die attitude I think hammond has a lot to offer us Adkins obviously thinks so,but we have to accept it's not silky skills but a winner! He's not got the captains armband but I wouldn't mind betting he gets it in the new year if we
Give him a contract.

 

[blade67]

Damn lies and statistics.

4 shots on target???

Get in the sea.

We had two shots from out wide that went straight at the goalie, plus the goal, so that's 3. Can't remember the 4th but I'm sure some daisy cutter will count. I don't need the stats to tell me we were poor but our effort off the ball dragged their level down. If we play like that against most other teams in this league and drop a couple of the really poor players then we will be fine.

 

[PeteBlade]

We had two shots from out wide that went straight at the goalie, plus the goal, so that's 3. Can't remember the 4th but I'm sure some daisy cutter will count. I don't need the stats to tell me we were poor but our effort off the ball dragged their level down. If we play like that against most other teams in this league and drop a couple of the really poor players then we will be fine.

Ah right, I thought that would be it.

I can't count an attempted cross that trickled through to the keeper as a shot.

 

[Hollinsend]

We had two shots from out wide that went straight at the goalie, plus the goal, so that's 3. Can't remember the 4th but I'm sure some daisy cutter will count. I don't need the stats to tell me we were poor but our effort off the ball dragged their level down. If we play like that against most other teams in this league and drop a couple of the really poor players then we will be fine.

Flynn's weak shot after that run near the end?

 

[UnitedBlade]

We had two shots from out wide that went straight at the goalie, plus the goal, so that's 3. Can't remember the 4th but I'm sure some daisy cutter will count. I don't need the stats to tell me we were poor but our effort off the ball dragged their level down. If we play like that against most other teams in this league and drop a couple of the really poor players then we will be fine.

Flynn had a weak shot straight at the keeper at the end. Shame he ran out of steam because it was a great run. Poor effort in the end though.

 

[wizadry]

Flynn's weak shot after that run near the end?

I forgot about that pass back

 

[finlaytheblade]

Ah right, I thought that would be it.

I can't count an attempted cross that trickled through to the keeper as a shot.

Flynn had a shot at the end which he didn't strike very well after a run through the middle of there defence
I thought he should have done better.

 

[Lane Ender]

Hammond was involved today a lot not pretty but he's doing what he's good at.
If you though he was going to hit 70yd balls to feet not going to happen.

 

[Coily]

Thought he did ok today and he certainly better than Basham in that position at the moment.

I like Bash, but he doesn't offer enough in central midfield on or off the ball. At centre half I'm much more convinced, he's strong and agile for that role and I'd be OK with him and Edgar there with Harris and Brayford at full back.

We'd still be very short at centre midfield but I would hope that is a priority in January.

 

[Slim Man]

In a midfield 3 maybe just maybe.
Think we need an upgrade to Basham though, someone box to box who can actually get in the oppo's box.
I like Bash, I really do, but I think he doesn't have enough ball playing talent to play in midfield. I'd have him in Collins place at centre half.

Coutts is a good footballer but has no pace or influence going forward.

 

[Treeton Blade]

Is he the answer?

Yes, him and Brayford will be key in getting promotion.
2 leaders giving 100% every game.

 

[SwissBlade]

Ive not seen anything to think that Coutts and Hammond gives us creativity, although Hammond played better on Sunday he still looked very unfit and whilst he brings height, his first option is to go sideways or backwards.

Coutts and Hammond both are too similar and give us no pace, either physically or at the speed they move the ball. I personally prefer Coutts as he at least can distribute longer passes and puts a decent corner in.

Basham alongside those two just epitomises the possession without positivity philosophy which Adkins has instilled.

I'd rather see scougal/ reed alongside Hammond/ Coutts and Baxter/ Basham (for now)

We have a major issue that we don't have creative outlets on the left when Adams and Wallace/ Harris aren't playing. On Sunday we had just Brayford, Done and later on Billy and Scougal.

Personally I'd send Hammond back, if we can, but I know Adkins won't get rid

 

[Rudders]

Peeps. Big players like Hammond, Basham and Coutts are not the problem in this league. We need more of them.
Tiny, weak players: Reed/Scougall/Flynn are not big enough and just get kicked/fouled out of the game
Injured players: Wallace and Cuvelier never play consistently so disrupt the team
Lazy/ill disciplined players: Baxter don't fit in the team ethic and bring the discipline down
We should be getting rid of those 6! midfielders before we get rid of Hammond and Basham.
I do think Morsy is a good shout though.

 

[1danewhitehouse]

Depends on the question


Does he improve our team? Yes.


Is he good value for money in terms of who else we could bring in? Probably not.


Same goes for Billy if I’m being honest


But the premium paid for those 2 is for the peace of mind the manager gets having worked with them before and knowing they’re not going to be a Danny Cullip/ Geoff Horsfield/ Andy Butler type signing.


Like others have said, he brings a nastiness to our team which has been sorely lacking. We still need to address the lack of other attributes like pace, stamina, dribbling ability etc. and ideally, it would be better to get a player who combines a lot of these attributes but in the absence of that, he does at least provide an answer to one of our problems.


To those who don’t want to play Bash alongside him at the moment, I point you to the Shrewsbury game. Basham looks average to poor in our midfield but when he doesn’t play there, you notice it massively. We need his legs in midfield to get up and down the pitch and press and harry the opposition. Hammond and Coutts are painfully slow. I don’t see a scenario where we win a game without Basham in midfield at the moment even if he does lack composure on the ball at times.


Re the shots on goal, I recall Sharp having one when he came on that got a deflection and went straight down their keeper’s throat. I also remember Flynn’s at the death. Perhaps we had another half hearted one in the first half?

 

[Slug]

Yes....if we sign Sam Morsy and Conor Hourihane to play alongside him

 

[sitwell]

Ive not seen anything to think that Coutts and Hammond gives us creativity, although Hammond played better on Sunday he still looked very unfit and whilst he brings height, his first option is to go sideways or backwards.

Coutts and Hammond both are too similar and give us no pace, either physically or at the speed they move the ball. I personally prefer Coutts as he at least can distribute longer passes and puts a decent corner in.

Basham alongside those two just epitomises the possession without positivity philosophy which Adkins has instilled.

I'd rather see scougal/ reed alongside Hammond/ Coutts and Baxter/ Basham (for now)

We have a major issue that we don't have creative outlets on the left when Adams and Wallace/ Harris aren't playing. On Sunday we had just Brayford, Done and later on Billy and Scougal.

Personally I'd send Hammond back, if we can, but I know Adkins won't get rid

What makes you think Hammond looked unfit on Sunday ,I bet he covered more ground than anyone else on the pitch. Don't know how he came across on TV but I thought he had a decent game.

 

[derryblade]

Supporters will always have different opinions on players, for me he doesn't bring that much to the table other than constant niggling fouls. But the overriding problem with a permanent signing, if rumours are to be believed, is the cost for a 32 year old on Prem/Champ wages, it wouldn't fit with what KM said at the AGM. Although the wages JB, BS, probably Edgar and CS doesn't fit either but that's KM for you.

 

[William Henry Foulkes]

What makes you think Hammond looked unfit on Sunday ,I bet he covered more ground than anyone else on the pitch. Don't know how he came across on TV but I thought he had a decent game.

Agreed.

I think we might be seeing what he can bring:

very high workrate allied with a good positional sense meaning the opposition have to play.round someone to get through to the defence, in the meantime, we can recover, and reorganise - this ties in with other players' assessment of his worth as he can make them look better defensively

he also won a number of good challenges in midfield, and retained possession

there are.also occasional very good passes

and occasional very bad ones - I bet he never plays even a simple pass with the outside of his foot if he stays here till May

Does all of this add up to what we're spending on him? Not yet, but the direction of travel is right.

It also depends on what the plans are for the positions around him. Is he the foundation on which we plan to build?

Allied with a pacey attack-minded player we could have a good combination.

 

[Darthblade]

It's forgetting the money that has led us to the worst spell in the club's history.

We have to stop forgetting the money and come up with a structured plan. .

UTB

If we can somehow manage to offload 10 of the other useless, underperforming buggers then we can afford him for a while .......

That was probably his most influential match for us. For the first time in four and a half years we played like a 1st division side ........ I didn't like it but we won !!

Its the only way to escape unless we manage to offload about 20 players and bring in ten, which will not be easy because nobody will want the ones we want to offload !!

UTB & FTP

 

[SwissBlade]

What makes you think Hammond looked unfit on Sunday ,I bet he covered more ground than anyone else on the pitch. Don't know how he came across on TV but I thought he had a decent game.

I thought he was slow to react a lot and put in a few last ditch tackles, but it seemed because he was late, kind of like Terry used to look a hero as he threw his body in as a last ditch attempt.

I was at the game but have since watched the second half the other day whilst looking for Collins' comedy moment

 

[Lane Ender]

You can't expect to sign a player like Hammond and all or problems will go away it won't happen he's starting to get what this division is all about and he's doing the job Adkins brought him in for.
Adkins/ Mcabe must realise we need creativity and energy a Morsy type player alongside him.

 

[BerksBlade]

The way the game panned out suited Hammond down to the ground. The referee let him get away with repeated niggly fouls, so he kept making them!
But should we be shelling out big money for a 30-something destructive midfielder? Surely there are younger, cheaper options out there?
As Lane Ender says, we need creativity and energy, and that's where we should be splashing the majority of our cash. Playing Hammond, Coutts & Basham together gives us very little creativity from midfield. Coady was prepared to get forward and offer a goal threat - we've not really replaced that.

 

[CarlMcBlade]

Is he the answer?

 

[MobileBlade]

The way the game panned out suited Hammond down to the ground. The referee let him get away with repeated niggly fouls, so he kept making them!
But should we be shelling out big money for a 30-something destructive midfielder? Surely there are younger, cheaper options out there?
As Lane Ender says, we need creativity and energy, and that's where we should be splashing the majority of our cash. Playing Hammond, Coutts & Basham together gives us very little creativity from midfield. Coady was prepared to get forward and offer a goal threat - we've not really replaced that.

To have a destructive midfielder you need a box to boxer alongside. But if you have a box to boxer then you need a destructive midfielder alongside. Expect a box to boxer to come in, Hammond to stay, another centre half and at least one wide player if not 2. Ones who are out will stay out and others will follow.

However, watch the derision and meltdown if the first one to sign is a wide player.....

 

[Caseh]

The way the game panned out suited Hammond down to the ground. The referee let him get away with repeated niggly fouls, so he kept making them!
But should we be shelling out big money for a 30-something destructive midfielder? Surely there are younger, cheaper options out there?
As Lane Ender says, we need creativity and energy, and that's where we should be splashing the majority of our cash. Playing Hammond, Coutts & Basham together gives us very little creativity from midfield. Coady was prepared to get forward and offer a goal threat - we've not really replaced that.

There is no doubt that there will be, but if we get a Sam Morsy etc next to Hammond then the biggest thing he would be bringing is his experience and all around cleverness, which isn't something we will get from a younger cheaper version.

 

[Hunkerby]

Hammond is here for his work rate, professionalism and leadership qualities.
Some attributes that have been severely lacking in the last few seasons.
If you don't like it you need to get over it because he is here to stay.

 

[Gin&Juice]

Hammond is here for his work rate, professionalism and leadership qualities.
Some attributes that have been severely lacking in the last few seasons.
If you don't like it you need to get over it because he is here to stay.

Bang on. I mean these are qualities we need for sure. I think you ask any United fan who they'd rather have to display this experience. Hammond or McCunterly then I think you would be hard pressed to find anyone who prefers the latter