It's Not Just About Money

[Slim Man]

The downward spiral or Sheffield United XI

1. Howard - reserve at championship level and considered not good enough
2. Freeman - Not good enough for Derby
3. J-Mac - Considered not good enough for Swindon and MK Dons last year
4. Collins- Not good enough for Leeds five years ago
5. Edgar - Not good enough for current team
6. Bash - Not good enough for Championship
7. Baxter - Everton talent who has slipped down to League 1
8. JCR - Journey man who has slowly slipped down from Championship
9. Sharp - Not good enough for Championship
10. Sammon - ditto
11. Woolford - Not good enough for a relegated Championship side

Correct me if I'm wrong, but our whole starting line-up last night were players who have been at a higher level and deemed not good enough. They're all on a downward trajectory. It's no wonder no one seems to have any passion on heart or is desperate to win. They all know their dreams of making it have gone and are playing just for money. Even with those out injured, there's only Done and the youngsters who don't fit into that category.

Have we ever had a team and squad like this before? A team of failures.

The above may sound harsh, but it's reality. It's not unusual for players to drop down to go back up again, but a whole team of them?

Just made a slight correction to a few...

 

[BushBlade]

Some of the youngsters might be feeling a bit hard done by. Last night's subs bench was particularly poor and we had few options to really change things up front. I'd rather see the likes of Diego and Jake Wright given a chance than Higdon on the bench every week.

Haven't seen Wright so I don't know but those who have say he's not ready yet.
I haven't seen anything from Diego since his injury that makes me think he would make any significant impact.

But I do think the first team needs shaking up a bit. If players have a bad game, you have to accept that because that's just how it is but if they look disinterested, drop them.

 

[wizadry]

Haven't seen Wright so I don't know but those who have say he's not ready yet.

Is any of the first team ready yet

 

[BushBlade]

The downward spiral or Sheffield United XI

1. Howard - reserve at championship level and considered not good enough
2. Freeman - Not good enough for Derby
3. J-Mac - Considered not good enough for the Championship
4. Collins- Not good enough for Leeds
5. Edgar - Not good enough for current team
6. Bash - Not good enough for Championship
7. Baxter - Everton talent who has slipped down to League 1
8. JCR - Journey man who has slowly slipped down from Championship
9. Sharp - Not good enough for Championship
10. Sammon - ditto
11. Woolford - ditto.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but our whole starting line-up last night were players who have been at a higher level and deemed not good enough. They're all on a downward trajectory. It's no wonder no one seems to have any passion on heart or is desperate to win. They all know their dreams of making it have gone and are playing just for money. Even with those out injured, there's only Done and the youngsters who don't fit into that category.

Have we ever had a team and squad like this before? A team of failures.

The above may sound harsh, but it's reality. It's not unusual for players to drop down to go back up again, but a whole team of them?

I wouldn't say they were all deemed not good enough and I'm sure some could have gone to the crappier clubs at the bottom of the championship but fancied a promotion campaign over a relegation battle.
However, as you say, a lot of them are on the decline, approaching the latter stages of their career.
Compare that to the side we had in Wilson's first year. With the exception of Simmo, Collins, Doyle and Creswell, the rest have gone on to play at a higher level again (and the unmentionable would have).
How many of this side will play at a higher level again? Based on current performances, none of them. Have they got any desire?
There seems to be some mythical belief that you can shortcut the need to build a club properly by signing players who were good but at the end of their careers.
Porterfield tried it with his 'dad's army', Wilson tried it in his second season with that shit he brought in with the Blackman money.
How many times are we going to do this before we realise that it rarely works?

 

[BushBlade]

Is any of the first team ready yet

Yeah. Ready for retirement.

 

[BushBlade]

What value would you put on a present-day Trevor Hockey?

£5m? He was about 28 when we signed him so a 29 year old defensive midfielder who'd just won promotion wouldn't command any more than that, even if he was moving to a big club.

 

[Revolution]

I have posted at length on this in other threads, so will just say the OP is right. Even with the selling we have done we could have gone up with a coherent transfer policy. We have not had one in a long time.

 

[super_pig]

Yeah. Ready for retirement.

it's a gradual descent into mediocrity.. of the current squad only beard, billy, done and che are good enough for the higher division

 

[grafikhaus]

it's a gradual descent into mediocrity.. of the current squad only beard, billy, done and che are good enough for the higher division

Billy???

 

[super_pig]

Billy???

yeah .. he's trying to hard atm.. he tried to win the game himself on tuesday

 

[1danewhitehouse]

Point taken. Pity Neil allowed Colchester to steamroller us out of the FA cup in 2006 though.

Whilst getting us promoted to the Prem. Think most of us would take losing to Notts County in the JPT if it mean we make top 2. Not saying I want us to lose that game by the way. I would like a League and JPT double but my point was that at the time you mention, Warnock was bringing us our greatest success of the last 20 or so years.

That’s not a dig at Adkins. I rate him and believe he’ll take us places. We gave Warnock 6-7 years oto achieve his goal. I think we can allow Adkins more than a few weeks.

 

[1danewhitehouse]

These players won't change. They simply haven't got what it takes to be part of a promotion winning side. It's more of a mentality thing for me than anything else.

Take a look at the squad, Only the following players have achieved promotions as far as I know

Billy Sharp
Martyn Woolford
Neill Collins
Matt Done
Jay McEverley
Paul Coutts
Jamal Campbell-Ryce

When you think of the size of our squad that's a very poor number of players, We lack real winners

Wasn’t Edgar promoted with Burnley?
Alcock with Peterborough?
Brayford with Burton and/or Crewe?

I don’t know the answer on those 3, just thought they might have been.

If we get Burn and Hammond in, that will be 2 more with promotions. They can’t come soon enough for me.

 

[1danewhitehouse]

The downward spiral or Sheffield United XI

1. Howard - reserve at championship level and considered not good enough
2. Freeman - Not good enough for Derby
3. J-Mac - Considered not good enough for the Championship
4. Collins- Not good enough for Leeds
5. Edgar - Not good enough for current team
6. Bash - Not good enough for Championship
7. Baxter - Everton talent who has slipped down to League 1
8. JCR - Journey man who has slowly slipped down from Championship
9. Sharp - Not good enough for Championship
10. Sammon - ditto
11. Woolford - ditto.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but our whole starting line-up last night were players who have been at a higher level and deemed not good enough. They're all on a downward trajectory. It's no wonder no one seems to have any passion on heart or is desperate to win. They all know their dreams of making it have gone and are playing just for money. Even with those out injured, there's only Done and the youngsters who don't fit into that category.

Have we ever had a team and squad like this before? A team of failures.

The above may sound harsh, but it's reality. It's not unusual for players to drop down to go back up again, but a whole team of them?

Freeman is still quite young and despite not making the grade at Derby, has served apprenticeships with Notts and Mansfield so I don’t think he’s really on a downward trajectory.

Brayford was very much good enough for Derby and only left for a crack at the Prem which he was not quite good enough for.

Done is a remodelled player different to the one deemed not good enough for the dingles.

Adams is a prospect very much on an upward trajectory.

McNulty and Scougall have come from Scottish championship so I would say an upwards move to League 1.

Edgar, Sharp and Sammon were OK squad players in the championship but have dropped to be first team regulars.

I agree there are decent cases to be made for McEveley, Collins, Howard and Woolford being not good enough or on the slide. Hopefully, before too long, only Howard will remain a first team player out of those (can’t see a new keeper coming in) with Collins, McEveley and Woolford being no more than squad players as Burn, Harris/Brayford, Adams/Done replace them.

I would also hope Hammond comes in to replace Baxter who I’ve run out of patience with. Especially in this system. Let him go back to somewhere like Oldham as a “10” where he might be good enough to sacrifice a striker.

 

[1danewhitehouse]

What do you reckon we are going to do if we go up this season, and it's a huge if 'btw', when we have very few players who could compete at Championship level? I know what my answer is and it's not bring in wholesale changes because we won't be able to.
.

I think a lot of our squad are out of contract in the summer (Howard, Harris, McEveley, Alcock, Collins, McFadzean, Flo, Wallace, Kennedy, Baxter, Scougall, Flynn, JCR, Higdon and I’m not sure who else- maybe Long, McNulty, K. Wallace etc) as well as Sammon and Edgar being on loan so if we do make it up, there will be loads of room for manoeuvre to build a squad retaining the likes of Adams, Sharp, Done, Brayford, Freeman, Basham and I suppose we’ll be stuck with Coutts and Woolford as well. We then have room to add to the squad (whilst maybe keeping the likes of Flynn and Harris plus the kids as squad players).

 

[metalblade]

Who's this Hammond and Burn that people keep putting in the line up ? I can't find them in our squad list.

 

[GRUMPY BLADE]

I think a lot of our squad are out of contract in the summer (Howard, Harris, McEveley, Alcock, Collins, McFadzean, Flo, Wallace, Kennedy, Baxter, Scougall, Flynn, JCR, Higdon and I’m not sure who else- maybe Long, McNulty, K. Wallace etc) as well as Sammon and Edgar being on loan so if we do make it up, there will be loads of room for manoeuvre to build a squad retaining the likes of Adams, Sharp, Done, Brayford, Freeman, Basham and I suppose we’ll be stuck with Coutts and Woolford as well. We then have room to add to the squad (whilst maybe keeping the likes of Flynn and Harris plus the kids as squad players).

When you look at the list of players out of contract it's even more important to get up.

We'd have to build a new team next season, it would be one of the worst things that would have happened to the club if it's a third division team we build and not a second division team.

Adkins is under more pressure than Clough ever was.

 

[robbiez666]

Surprise surprise, League 1 team signs players that aren't good enough for the league above... If they were currently good enough, they wouldn't have signed for us, would they? Also I'd say Sharp is good enough for the Championship, and Freeman has been arguably our best/most consistent player since we signed him.

Freeman is still quite young and despite not making the grade at Derby, has served apprenticeships with Notts and Mansfield so I don’t think he’s really on a downward trajectory.

Brayford was very much good enough for Derby and only left for a crack at the Prem which he was not quite good enough for.

Done is a remodelled player different to the one deemed not good enough for the dingles.

Adams is a prospect very much on an upward trajectory.

McNulty and Scougall have come from Scottish championship so I would say an upwards move to League 1.

Edgar, Sharp and Sammon were OK squad players in the championship but have dropped to be first team regulars.

I agree there are decent cases to be made for McEveley, Collins, Howard and Woolford being not good enough or on the slide. Hopefully, before too long, only Howard will remain a first team player out of those (can’t see a new keeper coming in) with Collins, McEveley and Woolford being no more than squad players as Burn, Harris/Brayford, Adams/Done replace them.

I would also hope Hammond comes in to replace Baxter who I’ve run out of patience with. Especially in this system. Let him go back to somewhere like Oldham as a “10” where he might be good enough to sacrifice a striker.

The point isn't about ability. The point is that we've got a squad of players who have mainly probably reached the highest point in their career before joining us. Instead of having players who are destined to play at a higher level we've got loads on the downward trajectory. It must effect morale and motivation. Many players drop down to move back up again, but it's very unusual to have a full first team of them.

 

[robbiez666]

I'm 100% behind Adkins, but if I'm talking about players on the slide there's a very small nagging worry about the manager too. Bladeacoaster? I'm sure people have been sectioned for less!