McNulty on loan to Pompey

[Cyprus Blade]

Can't be an accident that Portsmouth is by the Channel. He's gone to learn running the channels is my guess . His dad obviously thinks he can walk on water so let's see if he can.

 

[sheffielder]

One of his partners in crime is Coutts, but according to many on here he's the next Gazza so we will let that one slide.

 

[Cyprus Blade]

he's the next Gazza

they could be right.

 

[sheffielder]

they could be right.

View attachment 14302

Even that gazza moves quicker that Coutts

 

[kop_blade9]

they could be right.

View attachment 14302

Thought it was Harry Bassett at first glance

 

[Pollingtonblade]

Can we PLEASE not have a brand new thread everyone he scores a goal telling us what an awful decision it was to let him go?

Always makes me laugh that when one of our many shit players leave as soon as they score a goal for another team they are suddenly a combimnation of Messi and Pele, also shit players like Monty who was one of the worst midfielders ever is made out to be our version of Steve Gerrard.

 

[bladesmanluke]

OR Clough thought the way to get him motivated and playing to his potential was to kick him up the arse. That looks like it didn't work. Adkins has taken a different approach and that doesn't seem to have worked either (in that he's not in our team scoring the goals we expected of him).

No doubt it's all Clough's fault despite it appearing two completely different styles can't shake him out of his lethargy!
I know it's almost impossible to believe but perhaps he hasn't got the right attitude to succeed in the game.

Next week, how Adkins has saved DeGiralmo's fading career?

I'm not saying it's Clough's fault with McNulty. He seems to be beyond help

 

[jt64]

Good, think he's never really had a fair shot here, hopefully he can get minutes behind him

 

[PeteBlade]

Always makes me laugh that when one of our many shit players leave as soon as they score a goal for another team they are suddenly a combimnation of Messi and Pele, also shit players like Monty who was one of the worst midfielders ever is made out to be our version of Steve Gerrard.

Agreed, funniest lately was Higdon being a mistake after scoring 2 goals for Oldham!

 

[Pollingtonblade]

Agreed, funniest lately was Higdon being a mistake after scoring 2 goals for Oldham!

Higdon was one of the worst signings we've made down here. Clearly the board were waiting for Ched Evans to replace errr Ched Evans and hope we could just shoe horn him into the side in October. The fact we went into season 14/15 with Higdon/Mcnulty/Porter as our 'goal threats' was shocking and is no surprise none of them feature now. It is shocking transfer policies like this which have kept us down here. Even more ridiculous was a few weeks into season Clough saying he needs to get fit!

 

[The_Green_Man]

I remember Keith Edwards speaking of McNulty earlier in the season and ok we all know that you have to take Keith with a pinch of salt at times because he loves a good old moan whether it is warranted or not. On this occasion though I think he spoke a got bit of sense and pretty much hit the nail on the head regarding McNulty.

He said something along the lines of "The lad has obvious ability and you only have to look at the goals he has scored to see this. At this moment in time though his form is patchy to say the least and he isn't in the best of form.

Last season he said "The lad needs to get his confidence back up. He isn't getting the pitch time and this shows in his performances. With someone like McNulty you need to persevere and wait til he starts banging them in again, but at the minute we are at the busy end of the season and we don't have time for that. We need consistent performers who can hit the back of the net for us".

This season it is more "The problem Mcnulty has now is that we have brought in an instinctive goalscorer in Billy Sharp, now Matty Done is fit we have potentially the best strike partnership in this league. Add Conor Sammon into the equation and McNulty drops down the pecking order".

McNulty is another frustrating player! You can see the potential exists but he doesn't produce it every single week. I think the best we have seen from the lad has come in the bigger games that he had played in. He dropped down the pecking order under Clough and likewise he can't win a shirt under Adkins. The fact that a couple of managers and coaching teams have ruled over him and deemed him not a regular first teamer reassures me that we have made the right decision to send the lad out on loan.

Needless to say that I expect this move to be made permanent in January and the thought doesn't bother me!

 

[Patrick Suffaux]

what league do you think we're playing in exactly?

We need better than ok. We have too many ok players hence our league position.

 

[BushBlade]

Interesting that he's gone to Portsmouth. You'd have expected Cook to have spoken to Davies and Doyle about him. I'm assuming they said that, jumpers and lollipops aside, he's an OK lad.

 

[blade too long]

That's one of the pisstake players gone then. Another 13/14 or so and this club might start moving in the right direction

shows they are aware they need to ship out the space fillers
its like having a bmw dealership and trying to sell off the second hand Trabantes though

 

[Kenilworth]

I remember Keith Edwards speaking of McNulty earlier in the season and ok we all know that you have to take Keith with a pinch of salt at times because he loves a good old moan whether it is warranted or not. On this occasion though I think he spoke a got bit of sense and pretty much hit the nail on the head regarding McNulty.

He said something along the lines of "The lad has obvious ability and you only have to look at the goals he has scored to see this. At this moment in time though his form is patchy to say the least and he isn't in the best of form.

Last season he said "The lad needs to get his confidence back up. He isn't getting the pitch time and this shows in his performances. With someone like McNulty you need to persevere and wait til he starts banging them in again, but at the minute we are at the busy end of the season and we don't have time for that. We need consistent performers who can hit the back of the net for us".

This season it is more "The problem Mcnulty has now is that we have brought in an instinctive goalscorer in Billy Sharp, now Matty Done is fit we have potentially the best strike partnership in this league. Add Conor Sammon into the equation and McNulty drops down the pecking order".

McNulty is another frustrating player! You can see the potential exists but he doesn't produce it every single week. I think the best we have seen from the lad has come in the bigger games that he had played in. He dropped down the pecking order under Clough and likewise he can't win a shirt under Adkins. The fact that a couple of managers and coaching teams have ruled over him and deemed him not a regular first teamer reassures me that we have made the right decision to send the lad out on loan.

Needless to say that I expect this move to be made permanent in January and the thought doesn't bother me!

I have to say that I agree with most of what Keith Edwards says when he moans. Let's face it, if we were any good he wouldn't have to moan.
However, if you used to walk the walk - as he did - you have the right IMO to voice that opinion.
I can understand that those who never saw Keith Edwards play might find his relentless criticisms a little tiring - but if you did see him play and you knew that when he was one on one he would pop it in the back of the net for you and the rest of the lads - he was that clinical with a chance - you can't help but understand that he knows what he is talking about.

Now - he'd not be a good manager in this day and age - but when he talks about scoring goals and what is needed to get those opportunities only a fool would not take notice.

 

[Kenilworth]

Interesting that he's gone to Portsmouth. You'd have expected Cook to have spoken to Davies and Doyle about him. I'm assuming they said that, jumpers and lollipops aside, he's an OK lad.

McNuts will score goals given games and service
He wasn't a lone striker - although he did do well vs West Ham and Southampton in the League Cup in that role - he benefits from a strike partner up top with him.

He'll score you a lot more goals than Sammon would - but he is definitely behind Sharp and Done in the pecking order.
The problem I see for Done, though, is that we are not playing to his strengths now.
We bought him as a goal scorer and are now playing him in a pseudo midfield forward role. He is a typical counter attacking striker that needs grass to run into to burn off the defender and get a sight of goal. The trouble is that by the time our back four has pissed about with it across the back line there is no grass left for Done to exploit. To a certain extent, Sharp is suffering the same fate. Not a swift as Done - he is certainly better if the ball is played between the full back and the centre half for him to run onto as opposed to struggling in a battle with a big lad who is all over him and his back to goal. We need to play the ball earlier and in behind the defence but the midfielders we have are so defensive minded (Jose an exception but he is inconsistent) that they fail to recognise the opportunity and the chance has gone.

 

[Davie Blade]

Well done Adkins, I said at the start of his appointment the hardest job he will have is moving on the amount of dead wood accumulated under Clough.
This is goodbye to yet another Clough signing worth way less than what we paid for him, let alone the sheer waste of wages paid to sit on their backsides.
£125k this time pissed up the wall
£400k for Scougal
on and on he was allowed.
...........and so the clear out continues, as we struggle to repair the aftermath of that clueless arrogant unemployable muppet.

 

[Sean Thornton]

Countdown until he has a fight with a squaddie...

Talented player with a bad attitude.

Yep, those Navy boys won't be watching him show off from the other side of the bar and planning on putting it on social media ASAP. A group of big time McCharlies is just their cup of tea on a night out.

 

[Esablade]

You see players in non-league and on the parks who can score loads of goals, natural finishers...but if the rest of their game isn't up to scratch (L1) and, let's say their fitness is well below that of their contemporaries standard, then they will struggle=McNulty...

 

[Hodgyman]

I can't help feeling that the lad has wasted a golden opportunity here. He was generally admired by most of the fans last season and could have gone on to become a really good striker. He had an obvious eye for goals already but could have learned so much more about making off the ball runs and being in the right place at the right time by studying Sharp's game. Instead of regarding Sharpe's arrival as a replacement for himself and as such demotivated himself, he should have taken it as an opportunity to learn at close hand from one of the best strikers at this level.

I wish the lad well for the good things that he did for us here and hope that his enthusiasm and common sense return to him. If he gets his act together come January we might even make a profit on him.

 

[BratislavaBlade]

We need better than ok. We have too many ok players hence our league position.

Herein lies the problem in my opinion. We are a team full of players who are average lower league standard and that's exactly where the clubs now sits. We have the position in the league we deserve based on the players in our squad. I smile sometimes when I read some of the posts where people are desperately (and understandably) hoping that our average players who show occasional flashes of skill or technique will turn the corner and dramatically improve, the truth is that it is almost certain that they won't. More than 40 years following the blades has taught me this, if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck then it probably is a duck. The same goes for our players, they are really just not good enough to get us to the higher standard we all hope for. I'm not singling out MM but he is a good example, a reasonably talented player technically who is not talented enough in his application, dedication and willingness to play a role in a team which has aspirations above the middle of the 3rd division. He is not alone, the team is full of players like him who don't have the combination of assets that a footballer needs to play at a higher level. His occasional ability to put the ball in the net is with a frequency way below that which could compensate for his lack of other talents. This is where someone like Edwards is a good comparison, his scoring ability alone was enough. If a player is exceptional in one department it can make up for failings in his other areas. I am sure that older blades can think of a few examples of our players who have managed that for us. It also works the other way and you can see a player like Kevin Keegan who was at best technically average (I'm being generous here) but with incredible willpower, drive and determination more than compensated for this shortfall and made himself European footballer of the year and England captain.

In summary if we want to play at a standard higher than division 3 we need to have players who are among the best in the league 3 to get us out of it, those who are not need to be made to leave amd replaced by ones who can and if this does not happen then we should accept this is our level. Simply put MM and most of the current squad of players are not under achievers, they are players who have simply gravitated to the level they are best suited for with the sum total of their footballing talents.

 

[Pittsburg Blade]

I have a feeling he will perform well for Pompey. They seemed to have stopped the rot and are bringing in the right players to get them out of their particular shitty league. Wish we could do the same.

 

[Pittsburg Blade]

Herein lies the problem in my opinion. We are a team full of players who are average lower league standard and that's exactly where the clubs now sits. We have the position in the league we deserve based on the players in our squad. I smile sometimes when I read some of the posts where people are desperately (and understandably) hoping that our average players who show occasional flashes of skill or technique will turn the corner and dramatically improve, the truth is that it is almost certain that they won't. More than 40 years following the blades has taught me this, if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck then it probably is a duck. The same goes for our players, they are really just not good enough to get us to the higher standard we all hope for. I'm not singling out MM but he is a good example, a reasonably talented player technically who is not talented enough in his application, dedication and willingness to play a role in a team which has aspirations above the middle of the 3rd division. He is not alone, the team is full of players like him who don't have the combination of assets that a footballer needs to play at a higher level. His occasional ability to put the ball in the net is with a frequency way below that which could compensate for his lack of other talents. This is where someone like Edwards is a good comparison, his scoring ability alone was enough. If a player is exceptional in one department it can make up for failings in his other areas. I am sure that older blades can think of a few examples of our players who have managed that for us. It also works the other way and you can see a player like Kevin Keegan who was at best technically average (I'm being generous here) but with incredible willpower, drive and determination more than compensated for this shortfall and made himself European footballer of the year and England captain.

In summary if we want to play at a standard higher than division 3 we need to have players who are among the best in the league 3 to get us out of it, those who are not need to be made to leave amd replaced by ones who can and if this does not happen then we should accept this is our level. Simply put MM and most of the current squad of players are not under achievers, they are players who have simply gravitated to the level they are best suited for with the sum total of their footballing talents.

Excellent post... and that's where management steps in to to correctly utilize all the players' strong points so that the team's total weaknesses are minimized. Adkins hasn't fully got his head round this team yet.

 

[1danewhitehouse]

The lad is a natural finisher as others have said but his all round game hasn’t improved in the 18 months he’s been here. The move will probably do him good. Regular game time in a side at the top end of their division. He also has a couple of familiar faces there to help him settle in.


I can see why Cook went for him with him scoring in both games v Chezzy last season and the one at the lane being especially impressive.


But gone are the days when simply putting away chances is enough for a striker to justify his worth. In the modern games, strikers also have to be athletes and team players. They’ve got to be able to make things happen for themselves. McNulty didn’t have enough of that for this level. Maybe he will in L2. Lyle Taylor and DCL seem to be doing OK at that level and would probably struggle to make an impact for us at present. Hopefully that will change for DCL as he develops.


Funnily enough, watching Lyle Taylor for us, I said he looked a bit like Ched did for us in the Championship. Almost a good player but everything was a split second too slow. I said at the time if he played in league 2 he might tear it up. Same could be true of McNulty.


PS. Did you know that Lyle Taylor is an international?

 

[dannycorker]

I like McNulty and think he's got potential, the squad needs trimming though so see this as good news. Hope he does well there, looking at his Twitter it looks like he thinks he's there for the season not just until Jan!

 

[United Aren't Back.]

Can't be that depressing, he's always out in town from what we're lead to believe. Maybe that's all he's bothered about, drinking with his mates. It's not a bad life when you think about it, train a few days per week, don't play, get drunk with mates Saturday nights and "earn" a big wage.

For doing fuck all.

 

[Jehovah]

Seeing him smiling, laughing and dancing on carver street at 230am after we have just lost to bottom off the league sealed it for me. Good riddance.

 

[William Henry Foulkes]

Not surprised or disappointed.

Yes he has notched a few but........His touch is poor, his awareness is no good, no work rate and no pace.

Yes he is a good finisher but with that being his only attribute a team has to change the way they play when he is on the pitch, he is not good enough to warrant Adkins building the other 9 outfield round him.

Good summary. His finishing was often very good but given other weaknesses in his game it wasn't good enough.

He did try to be more involved in the game but he wasn't up to it - the ball just bounced off him and back to the opposition.

Scored Goal of the Season for me last season - away at Rochdale...or was it Notts County.

 

[crucialkneeligaman]

I have a feeling he will perform well for Pompey. They seemed to have stopped the rot and are bringing in the right players to get them out of their particular shitty league. Wish we could do the same.

Pompey aren't blitzing the league like I thought they would Pittsburg but, they have made some decent signings. I expect them to be back in the Championship before us though.

 

[Patrick Suffaux]

Herein lies the problem in my opinion. We are a team full of players who are average lower league standard and that's exactly where the clubs now sits. We have the position in the league we deserve based on the players in our squad. I smile sometimes when I read some of the posts where people are desperately (and understandably) hoping that our average players who show occasional flashes of skill or technique will turn the corner and dramatically improve, the truth is that it is almost certain that they won't. More than 40 years following the blades has taught me this, if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck then it probably is a duck. The same goes for our players, they are really just not good enough to get us to the higher standard we all hope for. I'm not singling out MM but he is a good example, a reasonably talented player technically who is not talented enough in his application, dedication and willingness to play a role in a team which has aspirations above the middle of the 3rd division. He is not alone, the team is full of players like him who don't have the combination of assets that a footballer needs to play at a higher level. His occasional ability to put the ball in the net is with a frequency way below that which could compensate for his lack of other talents. This is where someone like Edwards is a good comparison, his scoring ability alone was enough. If a player is exceptional in one department it can make up for failings in his other areas. I am sure that older blades can think of a few examples of our players who have managed that for us. It also works the other way and you can see a player like Kevin Keegan who was at best technically average (I'm being generous here) but with incredible willpower, drive and determination more than compensated for this shortfall and made himself European footballer of the year and England captain.

In summary if we want to play at a standard higher than division 3 we need to have players who are among the best in the league 3 to get us out of it, those who are not need to be made to leave amd replaced by ones who can and if this does not happen then we should accept this is our level. Simply put MM and most of the current squad of players are not under achievers, they are players who have simply gravitated to the level they are best suited for with the sum total of their footballing talents.

Shut down the forum. That post makes all other debate and exchange of views pointless.

Superbly articulate and absolute bang on accurate. Well done Sir.