6 players leave

Open now for discussion of all things Darlo!

Moderators: mikkyx, uncovered

User avatar
don'tbuythesun
Posts: 2397
Joined: Mon Sep 13, 2010 12:24 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by don'tbuythesun » Sun May 16, 2021 9:38 am

And despite ghost's sarcasm I don't think harping on about the situation on here (and yes everyone has a right to express their opinion) is going to change things but direct communication with Ray or DJ just might.

Old Git
Posts: 3215
Joined: Tue Nov 12, 2019 9:09 am
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by Old Git » Sun May 16, 2021 9:49 am

Darlofan97 wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 9:21 am
onewayup wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 8:59 am
Well I for one put in earlier last BTB ,but have still to put in this year ,after I have assessed my finances I will be increasing my donation definitely, others will be in the same situation I have no doubt. So a lot of people on here panicking , it's a very different year after what everyone has been through or going through, some poor souls have lost jobs so won't be in a position to donate. Time will tell. :thumbup:
You are mistaking "panicking" for, "wanting clear and engaging communication from the club".

I do not expect the whole squad and all new signings to be in place by mid-May. I do not expect information to be released before it's been signed, or for fans to be told granular and confidential information.

However, what I do expect, is for the club to effectively engage and communicate with its supporters when asking the very same supporters to achieve the highest BtB target to date. Whether this is via the club website, or via other media sources (TNE or NESN).

This isn't about the signings and departures themselves, more the level of communication surrounding player issues.
For a so called fan you don’t half winge on. Wonder what you are like about things you don’t support?

Darlofan97
Posts: 5690
Joined: Wed Sep 29, 2010 1:44 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by Darlofan97 » Sun May 16, 2021 9:53 am

don'tbuythesun wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 9:38 am
And despite ghost's sarcasm I don't think harping on about the situation on here (and yes everyone has a right to express their opinion) is going to change things but direct communication with Ray or DJ just might.
The club are aware.

Darlogramps
Posts: 6025
Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2010 10:47 am
Team Supported: Darlington

6 players leave

Post by Darlogramps » Sun May 16, 2021 10:38 am

Old Git wrote:
Darlofan97 wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 9:21 am
onewayup wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 8:59 am
Well I for one put in earlier last BTB ,but have still to put in this year ,after I have assessed my finances I will be increasing my donation definitely, others will be in the same situation I have no doubt. So a lot of people on here panicking , it's a very different year after what everyone has been through or going through, some poor souls have lost jobs so won't be in a position to donate. Time will tell. :thumbup:
You are mistaking "panicking" for, "wanting clear and engaging communication from the club".

I do not expect the whole squad and all new signings to be in place by mid-May. I do not expect information to be released before it's been signed, or for fans to be told granular and confidential information.

However, what I do expect, is for the club to effectively engage and communicate with its supporters when asking the very same supporters to achieve the highest BtB target to date. Whether this is via the club website, or via other media sources (TNE or NESN).

This isn't about the signings and departures themselves, more the level of communication surrounding player issues.
For a so called fan you don’t half winge on. Wonder what you are like about things you don’t support?
Bit out of order that. The criticism has been fairly constructive to be honest and he has a point. I’d like to think we’re at a better level than calling people “so-called fans” just because they think something could be improved. And across social media actually, plenty of fans are saying the same thing.

Our club media this season hasn’t been great. Not just the lack of information but for me it’s the way it’s been put across.

There’s been no excitement or buzz. The “reveals” are all a bit formulaic. We know there’ll be an article with the bare bones of information and an interview that doesn’t say a great deal.

Look at Blyth as an example. Their reveal on Maguire was great, and all close season so far they’ve done a lot to generate a bit of a buzz.

Ours is all a bit meh at the minute. To me it does show we’re missing the Echo’s coverage. Something more independent and less likely to toe the party line just makes the club themselves up their game a bit.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
If ever you're bored or miserable:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlZohZoadGY

darlo2001uk
Posts: 1413
Joined: Fri Jul 10, 2009 4:10 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by darlo2001uk » Sun May 16, 2021 11:16 am


Old Git
Posts: 3215
Joined: Tue Nov 12, 2019 9:09 am
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by Old Git » Sun May 16, 2021 12:44 pm

Several interesting things to come out of the interview.
Clearly Sousa has had interest in him from clubs who can offer better terms than we can and AA is trying to persuade him to stay.
McMahon to concentrate more on coaching which suggests Griffiths is likely to be first choice as Right Back.
Many potential targets still under contract but negotiations ongoing.
All in all quite an upbeat interview with AA exited at the prospect of bringing in some fresh faces for next season. Patience and faith required by the fans but certainly no need for despondency at this time. Clearly AA felt that some of last season’s players were not giving all that was required and changes in personnel were necessary.

Darlofan97
Posts: 5690
Joined: Wed Sep 29, 2010 1:44 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by Darlofan97 » Sun May 16, 2021 1:01 pm

Steven Rigg released by Dover. Originally from Keswick and I recall him playing for Penrith when we won the Northern League in 2012/2013. He is a centre-forward and had spells at Carlisle & Gateshead. Could be an option if he is returning back up north of course.

LoidLucan
Posts: 4536
Joined: Sun Jul 19, 2009 11:29 am
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by LoidLucan » Sun May 16, 2021 1:04 pm

It's clear that the exodus wasn't really about us not being able to compete for players' signatures. Sounds like there were a lot of other issues in the mix such as AA's desire to freshen things up. The central theme is "patience please" and let's see where we are when the wheeling and dealing is done. Boosting that budget will be crucial.

quakersfan
Posts: 491
Joined: Thu Dec 06, 2018 2:26 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by quakersfan » Sun May 16, 2021 3:18 pm

LoidLucan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 1:04 pm
It's clear that the exodus wasn't really about us not being able to compete for players' signatures. Sounds like there were a lot of other issues in the mix such as AA's desire to freshen things up. The central theme is "patience please" and let's see where we are when the wheeling and dealing is done. Boosting that budget will be crucial.
BTB will be crucial and playing budget key otherwise I just have a feeling AA will jump ship.

MB86DFC
Posts: 791
Joined: Sun Jan 24, 2010 6:50 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by MB86DFC » Sun May 16, 2021 3:22 pm

quakersfan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 3:18 pm
LoidLucan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 1:04 pm
It's clear that the exodus wasn't really about us not being able to compete for players' signatures. Sounds like there were a lot of other issues in the mix such as AA's desire to freshen things up. The central theme is "patience please" and let's see where we are when the wheeling and dealing is done. Boosting that budget will be crucial.
BTB will be crucial and playing budget key otherwise I just have a feeling AA will jump ship.
I didn’t get that impression at all. It seems like most players left because they couldn’t commit as much as Alun wanted (I expect this is most of those that ended up at Blyth), and one for more money (perhaps Campbell?).

Other than Campbell I don’t see any of those departing as a loss, we weren’t great last season and the league position was already looking poor, so a change was needed.

lo36789
Posts: 10929
Joined: Wed Apr 27, 2011 10:58 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by lo36789 » Sun May 16, 2021 3:48 pm

quakersfan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 3:18 pm
LoidLucan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 1:04 pm
It's clear that the exodus wasn't really about us not being able to compete for players' signatures. Sounds like there were a lot of other issues in the mix such as AA's desire to freshen things up. The central theme is "patience please" and let's see where we are when the wheeling and dealing is done. Boosting that budget will be crucial.
BTB will be crucial and playing budget key otherwise I just have a feeling AA will jump ship.
Interesting how people can see the same thing and come out with two completely different perceptions.

The video is a bit of a stopgap. It's saying words without actually saying something. You either think the video update is complete fiction and just to appease fans, in which case it has little value - or you think it is the truth that things are a bit up in the air and actually it is just confirmation that there isn't much to update on right now.

I got the impression that some of our players AA is yet to make a decision on as he wants to know if he can get better in or not. The end of May is normally the timescale for these things.

Clearly he wants to keep Sousa but Sousa wants to see who else is interested. EFL / NL sides won't be back training until the end of June (I mean the NL playoff final isn't due to be played until 24th June) so I am not sure when he would be able to try out with those clubs. We might be waiting on Sousa for quite a while this summer.

Old Git
Posts: 3215
Joined: Tue Nov 12, 2019 9:09 am
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by Old Git » Sun May 16, 2021 4:19 pm

quakersfan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 3:18 pm
LoidLucan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 1:04 pm
It's clear that the exodus wasn't really about us not being able to compete for players' signatures. Sounds like there were a lot of other issues in the mix such as AA's desire to freshen things up. The central theme is "patience please" and let's see where we are when the wheeling and dealing is done. Boosting that budget will be crucial.
BTB will be crucial and playing budget key otherwise I just have a feeling AA will jump ship.
Not sure how you have come to that conclusion from listening to the interview. I thought he seemed quite bullish about the prospect of rebuilding the squad.
Where exactly is he going to jump ship to? For me he needs to show that he is capable of putting together a team that can perform consistently and be in the top half of the League. If he were to get us promoted I could see other clubs taking notice but not at the present.

User avatar
D_F_C
Posts: 2054
Joined: Sat Mar 27, 2010 8:43 am
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by D_F_C » Sun May 16, 2021 4:22 pm

I didn't get any impression of AA wanting to leave, not sure where that "feeling" has come from. I think a few people had seen 14 players sign for Blyth and expected us to do the same. I do however think that some of the criticism was arguably correct, but it seems that there's plenty of coverage on social media and here rather than sending it to the correct channels to make suggestions (I'm not saying everyone here).

I'm very intrigued about who we are interested in. I believe he mentioned waiting for the National League to finish, and I wonder if that means we are awaiting Poolie's released list. I'd certainly be interested in a few.

The only thing the video didn't confirm is regarding the other out of contract players, such as Storey, Holness, Laing etc. As someone has mentioned, maybe we are holding off. I'd want to keep Storey but there seemed a couple of issues last year (certainly early on in the season)

User avatar
don'tbuythesun
Posts: 2397
Joined: Mon Sep 13, 2010 12:24 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by don'tbuythesun » Sun May 16, 2021 4:27 pm

"The club are aware"
Can you confirm how you know this and share their response, please?

Ghost_Of_1883
Posts: 1572
Joined: Thu Sep 20, 2018 9:33 am
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by Ghost_Of_1883 » Sun May 16, 2021 4:57 pm

He's obviously contacted them.

User avatar
don'tbuythesun
Posts: 2397
Joined: Mon Sep 13, 2010 12:24 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by don'tbuythesun » Sun May 16, 2021 5:04 pm

Thanks for that. It's not obvious and the response would be helpful to know.

Darlogramps
Posts: 6025
Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2010 10:47 am
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by Darlogramps » Sun May 16, 2021 5:22 pm

It is obvious, unless you’re hard of thinking or being deliberately obtuse.
If ever you're bored or miserable:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlZohZoadGY

User avatar
don'tbuythesun
Posts: 2397
Joined: Mon Sep 13, 2010 12:24 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by don'tbuythesun » Sun May 16, 2021 5:36 pm

I'm not being obtuse I'm asking a serious question trying to find out what the response was. If it's not forthcoming I'll email myself.

quakersfan
Posts: 491
Joined: Thu Dec 06, 2018 2:26 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by quakersfan » Sun May 16, 2021 6:13 pm

lo36789 wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 3:48 pm
quakersfan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 3:18 pm
LoidLucan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 1:04 pm
It's clear that the exodus wasn't really about us not being able to compete for players' signatures. Sounds like there were a lot of other issues in the mix such as AA's desire to freshen things up. The central theme is "patience please" and let's see where we are when the wheeling and dealing is done. Boosting that budget will be crucial.
BTB will be crucial and playing budget key otherwise I just have a feeling AA will jump ship.
Interesting how people can see the same thing and come out with two completely different perceptions.

The video is a bit of a stopgap. It's saying words without actually saying something. You either think the video update is complete fiction and just to appease fans, in which case it has little value - or you think it is the truth that things are a bit up in the air and actually it is just confirmation that there isn't much to update on right now.

I got the impression that some of our players AA is yet to make a decision on as he wants to know if he can get better in or not. The end of May is normally the timescale for these things.

Clearly he wants to keep Sousa but Sousa wants to see who else is interested. EFL / NL sides won't be back training until the end of June (I mean the NL playoff final isn't due to be played until 24th June) so I am not sure when he would be able to try out with those clubs. We might be waiting on Sousa for quite a while this summer.
I hadn’t seen it before posting after latest AA video, just a feeling thats all - apart from one or two players most managers and players go where the money is despite what they say about loving the club who they are employed by at the time.

lo36789
Posts: 10929
Joined: Wed Apr 27, 2011 10:58 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by lo36789 » Sun May 16, 2021 6:46 pm

quakersfan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 6:13 pm
I hadn’t seen it before posting after latest AA video, just a feeling thats all - apart from one or two players most managers and players go where the money is despite what they say about loving the club who they are employed by at the time.
Well yeh, think we all know if a better offer came in for AA he would take it.

He is going to have to do a lot better with us before he will get interest from elsewhere mind.

quakersfan
Posts: 491
Joined: Thu Dec 06, 2018 2:26 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by quakersfan » Sun May 16, 2021 6:58 pm

lo36789 wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 6:46 pm
quakersfan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 6:13 pm
I hadn’t seen it before posting after latest AA video, just a feeling thats all - apart from one or two players most managers and players go where the money is despite what they say about loving the club who they are employed by at the time.
Well yeh, think we all know if a better offer came in for AA he would take it.

He is going to have to do a lot better with us before he will get interest from elsewhere mind.
Yes your spot on tBh difficult to really know how last season would have worked out to be fair with Covid effecting everything, I do think this coming season however AA will be under the spotlights on results etc.

Darlofan97
Posts: 5690
Joined: Wed Sep 29, 2010 1:44 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by Darlofan97 » Sun May 16, 2021 8:22 pm

D_F_C wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 4:22 pm
I didn't get any impression of AA wanting to leave, not sure where that "feeling" has come from. I think a few people had seen 14 players sign for Blyth and expected us to do the same. I do however think that some of the criticism was arguably correct, but it seems that there's plenty of coverage on social media and here rather than sending it to the correct channels to make suggestions (I'm not saying everyone here).

I'm very intrigued about who we are interested in. I believe he mentioned waiting for the National League to finish, and I wonder if that means we are awaiting Poolie's released list. I'd certainly be interested in a few.

The only thing the video didn't confirm is regarding the other out of contract players, such as Storey, Holness, Laing etc. As someone has mentioned, maybe we are holding off. I'd want to keep Storey but there seemed a couple of issues last year (certainly early on in the season)
I’d like to see Storey retained. I think he is good, but needs a dominating centre-half alongside him.

Laing obviously sustained a serious ACL/MCL injury in December. Taking into account operation waiting times, I don’t think he will be back until around March 2022. I’d be surprised if he is retained on a contract but do expect he will continue his rehabilitation with us through to his return.

lo36789
Posts: 10929
Joined: Wed Apr 27, 2011 10:58 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by lo36789 » Mon May 17, 2021 7:29 am

quakersfan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 6:58 pm
Yes your spot on tBh difficult to really know how last season would have worked out to be fair with Covid effecting everything, I do think this coming season however AA will be under the spotlights on results etc.
I think that comes with the territory of being a football manager. Your results are what define your success ultimately.

Last season was a little underwhelming, but also the circumstances weren't brilliant it was a terribly interrupted season. I think a reasonably target for us is top 10, and hope to sneak into the playoffs if our form is good at the end of the season.

I don't really see where AA would look to move on to right now, we have a decent budget, at a decent level and ambition to progress. South Shields is the only team really below us that could probably promise the earth and to be in the running for a job above us I think he has to break into those playoff places with us first.

My opinion
Posts: 765
Joined: Thu Sep 18, 2014 12:13 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by My opinion » Mon May 17, 2021 8:29 am

lo36789 wrote:
Mon May 17, 2021 7:29 am
quakersfan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 6:58 pm


Last season was a little underwhelming, but also the circumstances weren't brilliant it was a terribly interrupted season. I think a reasonably target for us is top 10, and hope to sneak into the playoffs if our form is good at the end of the season.
I don't understand how you can say that a top 10 finish is a reasonable target yet say that last season was underwhelming.
Had we played the same number of games last season as other clubs had done we would easily made the top 10. And in addition we also had a good run in both the FA cup and the league...
It sounds to me like you are expecting the same in the league as we had last season.

I am hoping we kick on in all competitions, particularly the league. We just need to be more consistent.

Darlogramps
Posts: 6025
Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2010 10:47 am
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by Darlogramps » Mon May 17, 2021 8:39 am

My opinion wrote:
lo36789 wrote:
Mon May 17, 2021 7:29 am
quakersfan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 6:58 pm


Last season was a little underwhelming, but also the circumstances weren't brilliant it was a terribly interrupted season. I think a reasonably target for us is top 10, and hope to sneak into the playoffs if our form is good at the end of the season.
I don't understand how you can say that a top 10 finish is a reasonable target yet say that last season was underwhelming.
Had we played the same number of games last season as other clubs had done we would easily made the top 10. And in addition we also had a good run in both the FA cup and the league...
It sounds to me like you are expecting the same in the league as we had last season.

I am hoping we kick on in all competitions, particularly the league. We just need to be more consistent.
I agree with that. We only played a quarter of our league games in an incredibly unusual season so no one can make any real judgement on how our league campaign was.

And if people are unhappy with the handful of league games we played, they can’t ignore the successful FA Cup and Trophy campaigns we had.

It’s only fair to see the squad that gets put together first before making any snap judgements on our targets for next season.
If ever you're bored or miserable:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlZohZoadGY

My opinion
Posts: 765
Joined: Thu Sep 18, 2014 12:13 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by My opinion » Mon May 17, 2021 8:51 am

My opinion wrote:
Mon May 17, 2021 8:29 am
lo36789 wrote:
Mon May 17, 2021 7:29 am
quakersfan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 6:58 pm


Last season was a little underwhelming, but also the circumstances weren't brilliant it was a terribly interrupted season. I think a reasonably target for us is top 10, and hope to sneak into the playoffs if our form is good at the end of the season.
I don't understand how you can say that a top 10 finish is a reasonable target yet say that last season was underwhelming.
Had we played the same number of games last season as other clubs had done we would easily made the top 10. And in addition we also had a good run in both the FA cup and the league...
It sounds to me like you are expecting the same in the league as we had last season.

I am hoping we kick on in all competitions, particularly the league. We just need to be more consistent.
Sorry quakersfan.
This post was for lo36789 who put the comment onto your post.
My editing skills are not what they used to be.
It's an age thing I think.

lo36789
Posts: 10929
Joined: Wed Apr 27, 2011 10:58 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by lo36789 » Mon May 17, 2021 9:17 am

I think it was just a general feeling over the way the league was panning out. Did the league excite anybody last season, really?

I did highlight the unique circumstances. At times we looked a little disjointed and due to those circumstances I don't think we ever got into a rhythm.

Regardless of the number of games played we spent the entire season marginally above the 'relegation' zone. Whilst if we had won our games in hand we would have been top 10, on a PPG basis I think we would have still been comfortably bottom half unless I am missing something?

We lost over 50% of our league games that certainly generates a strong feeling of "meh" about the league season, especially when compared with the cup competitions.

Old Git
Posts: 3215
Joined: Tue Nov 12, 2019 9:09 am
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by Old Git » Mon May 17, 2021 9:50 am

My opinion wrote:
Mon May 17, 2021 8:29 am
lo36789 wrote:
Mon May 17, 2021 7:29 am
quakersfan wrote:
Sun May 16, 2021 6:58 pm


Last season was a little underwhelming, but also the circumstances weren't brilliant it was a terribly interrupted season. I think a reasonably target for us is top 10, and hope to sneak into the playoffs if our form is good at the end of the season.
I don't understand how you can say that a top 10 finish is a reasonable target yet say that last season was underwhelming.
Had we played the same number of games last season as other clubs had done we would easily made the top 10. And in addition we also had a good run in both the FA cup and the league...
It sounds to me like you are expecting the same in the league as we had last season.

I am hoping we kick on in all competitions, particularly the league. We just need to be more consistent.
How can anyone say we would easily have made the top 10 on our league form last season?
Our record was 4 wins 1 draw and 6 defeats returning 13 points from 11 games played. Over a 42 game season that would be a total of around 50 points which is lower mid table at best.
Of course our form may have improved but that is purely speculation.

User avatar
loan_star
Posts: 7105
Joined: Thu Jul 16, 2009 9:01 am
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by loan_star » Mon May 17, 2021 11:48 am

lo36789 wrote:
Mon May 17, 2021 9:17 am
Did the league excite anybody last season, really?
Nothing excited me last season, even the cup runs. Watching football on telly is rarely exciting as attending a match can be.

lo36789
Posts: 10929
Joined: Wed Apr 27, 2011 10:58 pm
Team Supported: Darlington

Re: 6 players leave

Post by lo36789 » Mon May 17, 2021 11:54 am

loan_star wrote:
Mon May 17, 2021 11:48 am
lo36789 wrote:
Mon May 17, 2021 9:17 am
Did the league excite anybody last season, really?
Nothing excited me last season, even the cup runs. Watching football on telly is rarely exciting as attending a match can be.
Fair. I am used to relying on highlights over seeing 'us' live and have been able to see a fair bit of football this season despite everything.

Post Reply