Relief, ratings, retain, release and a personal bit.

[Jerseybean]

Now we know that we will definitely be playing in the Championship next season I'd be interested in others thoughts on a couple of things which very much inform what's required during the closed season.

Firstly, be interested in your player ratings for the entire season, so a score based on an individual's contribution and quality throughout their involvement in the entire campaign. As per a match rating 10 is the maximum and let's restrict it to the 22 players who have made eight or more first team appearances this season. 

Secondly, based on your overall season-long assessment and looking forward to a more successful 2017/18 season, who would you look to retain / release?

No doubt some posters will wish to take this as yet another opportunity to comment on the performance/contribution/ future of other key individuals - however, this post is about our current squad and strengthening that squad for next season.

 

                                                   Rating.      Retain.   Release.

Abraham

 

Brownhill

 

Bryan

 

Cotterill

 

Djuric

 

Fielding

 

Flint

 

Golbourne

 

Hegeler

 

Little

 

Magnusson

 

Matthews

 

O'Dowda

 

O'Neil

 

Pack

 

Paterson

 

Reid

 

Smith

 

Taylor

 

Tomlin

 

Wilbraham

 

Wright

 

Personal bit. The last few days of my life have been interesting.

On Wednesday at 10 pm I got a phone call from my sister to tell me that our dad (who took me to my first game at Ashton Gate some 56 years ago) was being blue-lighted into hospital. I consequently quickly booked a flight to Bristol and thankfully my dad, who is now 90, is making good progress in hospital. So after visiting him this afternoon I returned to my sister's to see that Brum and Blackburn have both won. 

I'd arranged to catch up with my life-long best friend (we've been friends since primary school) to watch the game together in Nailsea. 

The rest is now brilliant, brilliant history.

[GrahamC]

Think this release, retain stuff is often far too simple a way to look at it.

All of our (non loan) players are under contract for 17/18 except for Wilbs and Mark Little so these two are the only ones we can actually release. 

I expect all 4 of our loan players to move on, Tammy (sadly) because he will be on loan elsewhere next season, Giefer, Cotterill and Matthews simply because we don't want them to stay.

Of those under contract if we could get rid of O'Neil then I would and I'm still not convinced Engvall will necessarily come back.

Otherwise I would not expect many outgoings at all, I suspect LJ will try to move Golbourne on, but I doubt he will find many takers, otherwise that may well be that.

We clearly will need to bring in two new strikers and to sort the goalkeeping situation out, but if Little gets a new deal I reckon there may be far fewer incoming this summer than many expect..

 

[steveybadger]

Not got the technology to do this but pleased about your old man!

[The Dolman Pragmatist]

I assume Tomlin and Golbourne will go, and I'd get rid of Hegeler as quickly as possible.  Presumably O'Neill will also go if he is out of contract, and Littoe's future must be in doubt, though he's been a hero in the last few weeks.

What about Bobby Reid though?  I really can't decide what his future is likely to be.

[JoeAman08]

I think we need some addition by subtraction. Get rid of some higher ego players and wages to bring in just a couple high quality fresh faces. First off the loans will all go back and they won't be back here. Not much loss except for Tammy. Then there is Wilbs and Little out of contract. I'd let them both go. No room for sentiment. They've been fantastic for us but time for them to move on. Then you have to look at Golbourne, Tomlin, O'Neil, Reid and Hegeler. For me, I'd keep Hegeler and Reid. They're good bench options and can help from there. Golbourne, Tomlin and O'Neil I would try to move on. That would shed some wages as well. 

Then i would be looking to build around what we have left. Right back is a huge priority and a top class one would do us wonders. Then we need to replace Tammy somehow. After those two positions I wouldn't be too worried about anything else. We could improve on our keeper but not a priority. Just lose some faces first and keep the spirit of the team up. 

[cummins17]

I think a top class keeper is a priority for next season. Love Fielding but anytime the balls comes anywhere near him it gives me a mini heart attack. Any high class lower league keepers available? Always thought we should of got Bentley from Southend before he moved to Brentford. 

[Monkeh]

2 hours ago, cummins17 said:

I think a top class keeper is a priority for next season. Love Fielding but anytime the balls comes anywhere near him it gives me a mini heart attack. Any high class lower league keepers available? Always thought we should of got Bentley from Southend before he moved to Brentford. 

the keeper isn't the problem the defense or more to the point the fall backs are, we don't cut out crosses, the amount coming in is a disgrace and while Wright Fielding and Flint were all good last night, there were still far to many crosses coming in,

2 championship or better fall backs is the top of the list

[The Gasbuster]

10 hours ago, The Dolman Pragmatist said:

I assume Tomlin and Golbourne will go, and I'd get rid of Hegeler as quickly as possible.  Presumably O'Neill will also go if he is out of contract, and Littoe's future must be in doubt, though he's been a hero in the last few weeks.

What about Bobby Reid though?  I really can't decide what his future is likely to be.

Reid has shown this season that he is not up to Championship standard IMO. Too many wasted chances, and if he isn't scoring he offers little else.

Guessing that Plymouth would be interested in him, and now able to offer L1 football rather than L2.

[ciderbeans]

I don't want to see too much upheaval as that is largely why we have been poor this season. They needed time to gel.

we do need new full backs and I would like us to loan or buy Alexander Trent-Arnold from Liverpool who is an awesome rb/rwb.

i would love us to keep Tammy for another year but if not, we need another 25 goal a year striker. Those are like gold dust but like Tammy, we could find another one. Armstrong from Newcastle, izzy brown, solanke, wells, assombalonga if forest go down.

left back I would like us to go for Rico Henry from Brentford or if Fulham go up, Scott malone unless they don't replace him.

it would be key to keep Flint as he could be a key part to a promotion campaign but a big offer would be hard to turn down. Should that come, I would like to see wright and maggs at cb with vyner and Moore as subs for cb/rb. The money from Flint could be used to strengthen elsewhere.

we would need someone to replace cotterill as we needed a winger and I would love us to loan or buy palmer from Chelsea. Very good rm/cm/am and would provide pace, energy and quality.

we need to move on O'Neil, Tomlin, golbourne, wilbs and little. That would free up some considerable wages and restore further revenue back to the kitty. I think however, O'Neil could take a role with our u-23's in a non playing capacity. I certainly don't feel there is a place for Tomlin moving forward. He's just not the right fit if we are to be successful.

[grifty]

22 minutes ago, ciderbeans said:

I don't want to see too much upheaval as that is largely why we have been poor this season. They needed time to gel.

we do need new full backs and I would like us to loan or buy Alexander Trent-Arnold from Liverpool who is an awesome rb/rwb.

i would love us to keep Tammy for another year but if not, we need another 25 goal a year striker. Those are like gold dust but like Tammy, we could find another one. Armstrong from Newcastle, izzy brown, solanke, wells, assombalonga if forest go down.

left back I would like us to go for Rico Henry from Brentford or if Fulham go up, Scott malone unless they don't replace him.

it would be key to keep Flint as he could be a key part to a promotion campaign but a big offer would be hard to turn down. Should that come, I would like to see wright and maggs at cb with vyner and Moore as subs for cb/rb. The money from Flint could be used to strengthen elsewhere.

we would need someone to replace cotterill as we needed a winger and I would love us to loan or buy palmer from Chelsea. Very good rm/cm/am and would provide pace, energy and quality.

we need to move on O'Neil, Tomlin, golbourne, wilbs and little. That would free up some considerable wages and restore further revenue back to the kitty. I think however, O'Neil could take a role with our u-23's in a non playing capacity. I certainly don't feel there is a place for Tomlin moving forward. He's just not the right fit if we are to be successful.

In fairness to the club, we've found two 20+ goal strikers in 2 years now!

[Jerseybean]

7 hours ago, JoeAman08 said:

I think we need some addition by subtraction. Get rid of some higher ego players and wages to bring in just a couple high quality fresh faces. First off the loans will all go back and they won't be back here. Not much loss except for Tammy. Then there is Wilbs and Little out of contract. I'd let them both go. No room for sentiment. They've been fantastic for us but time for them to move on. Then you have to look at Golbourne, Tomlin, O'Neil, Reid and Hegeler. For me, I'd keep Hegeler and Reid. They're good bench options and can help from there. Golbourne, Tomlin and O'Neil I would try to move on. That would shed some wages as well. 

Then i would be looking to build around what we have left. Right back is a huge priority and a top class one would do us wonders. Then we need to replace Tammy somehow. After those two positions I wouldn't be too worried about anything else. We could improve on our keeper but not a priority. Just lose some faces first and keep the spirit of the team up. 

Great summary. Pretty much how I see things too. Not sure Engal will feature next season.

[SecretSam]

Not too much upheaval, but agree Wilbs has done us proud, ditto Little, but should move on. Reid will leave, probably sick of splinters in his ar53. Tammy won't be back, well, not playing for us. Brighton, perhaps, on loan?

RB x2 + striker + winger. No idea who, that's someone else's job!

[1960maaan]

We need 2 strikers, and a RB. Would be good to add some real quality to bolster some promising young players.

We could keep Little as back up as he's proved reliable. With what LJ has said I think Bryan and Golbourne will cover LB and as long as Flint stays 
 we have cover in defence.

Midfield , I wonder about Hegeler and I would like to see the addition of a right winger to challenge for a spot, supposing we stick with 442. Not sure about Oneil's deal , I like him but will he be happy not starting games? Korey and Pack have done well and I like Reid. A lot depends on who we can bring in. Paterson and Brownhill have really impressed lately, unfair on Brownhill that as I think he's done well most of the season.

Up front finding and then losing a 20 goal striker each year will get harder. We have Djuric (who I like) , Taylor , Garita? None of these will fill the void left by Tammy. Engvall probably won't but who knows if we never see him get a run , McCoulsky may well get a chance but we desperately need a goalscorer. I think it speaks volumes that we have helped a newcomer to England and a kid in his first year in mens football get to 20+ for a season. Make the chances and they will score?

Keeper.... hhhmmm. FF is dependable enough and when Giefer goes we have Lucic as cover (anyone know how the loan went?) We could do with an imposing keeper who will dominate his area , that may then give Lucic time to develop and see if he has it in him to be a No1.

Management review, GET RID ! That ain't gonna happen so get ready for another ride next year.

[kiwicolin]

12 hours ago, Jerseybean said:

Now we know that we will definitely be playing in the Championship next season I'd be interested in others thoughts on a couple of things which very much inform what's required during the closed season.

Firstly, be interested in your player ratings for the entire season, so a score based on an individual's contribution and quality throughout their involvement in the entire campaign. As per a match rating 10 is the maximum and let's restrict it to the 22 players who have made eight or more first team appearances this season. 

Secondly, based on your overall season-long assessment and looking forward to a more successful 2017/18 season, who would you look to retain / release?

No doubt some posters will wish to take this as yet another opportunity to comment on the performance/contribution/ future of other key individuals - however, this post is about our current squad and strengthening that squad for next season.

 

                                                   Rating.      Retain.   Release.

Abraham

 

Brownhill

 

Bryan

 

Cotterill

 

Djuric

 

Fielding

 

Flint

 

Golbourne

 

Hegeler

 

Little

 

Magnusson

 

Matthews

 

O'Dowda

 

O'Neil

 

Pack

 

Paterson

 

Reid

 

Smith

 

Taylor

 

Tomlin

 

Wilbraham

 

Wright

 

Personal bit. The last few days of my life have been interesting.

On Wednesday at 10 pm I got a phone call from my sister to tell me that our dad (who took me to my first game at Ashton Gate some 56 years ago) was being blue-lighted into hospital. I consequently quickly booked a flight to Bristol and thankfully my dad, who is now 90, is making good progress in hospital. So after visiting him this afternoon I returned to my sister's to see that Brum and Blackburn have both won. 

I'd arranged to catch up with my life-long best friend (we've been friends since primary school) to watch the game together in Nailsea. 

The rest is now brilliant, brilliant history.

Depends what contract they are on .

[Talk Of The Town]

1 hour ago, grifty said:

In fairness to the club, we've found two 20+ goal strikers in 2 years now!

3 seasons now. Wilbs in the 3rd div 

[mattjtsmith]

12 hours ago, Jerseybean said:

Now we know that we will definitely be playing in the Championship next season I'd be interested in others thoughts on a couple of things which very much inform what's required during the closed season.

Firstly, be interested in your player ratings for the entire season, so a score based on an individual's contribution and quality throughout their involvement in the entire campaign. As per a match rating 10 is the maximum and let's restrict it to the 22 players who have made eight or more first team appearances this season. 

Secondly, based on your overall season-long assessment and looking forward to a more successful 2017/18 season, who would you look to retain / release?

No doubt some posters will wish to take this as yet another opportunity to comment on the performance/contribution/ future of other key individuals - however, this post is about our current squad and strengthening that squad for next season.

 

                                                   Rating.      Retain.   Release.

Abraham - 10, If any way possible, retain

 

Brownhill - Will be a key player next year. 8 Retain. 

 

Bryan - Proving LJ right on his LAB potential, starting to get noticed. 8 Retain

 

Cotterill - 6 Release. Did a job, but we need better to progress. 

 

Djuric - 6 Retain (injury meant no real chance yet) 

 

Fielding - 6/7 Inconsistent but much better as it went on. Need another GK. Retain

 

Flint - 8 Retain (spirit is as important as contribution)

 

Golbourne - 4 fizzled. Ok backup. Retain. 

 

Hegeler - who? But seriously.. his reputation means retain, obviously something there. Retain

Little - 5 Much better at end, but awful in parts. Need a more reliable RB. Release

Magnusson - 6 decent start. Growth there. Retain

Matthews - 2. Bye. 

O'Dowda - 8 Great season for the young lad. Very promising. Retain

O'Neil - 5 Release. Need for him has faded and injured too often. Must be on hefty wages. 

Pack - Constantly shows his importance. 8

Paterson - 9 Love the bloke. Big reason that we turned around. Retain

Reid - 7 Very hot and cold. Potentially integral. Retain

 

Smith - 7. Good lad, generally reliable and showed his flexibility this season. 

Taylor - 7. If he can refind his shooting boots he'll be unbelievable. Sure he will. Retain

Tomlin - 4 A poor season. Our championship answer to JET. Loved, has a special touch, but just doesn't do 90 minutes of fight. Can't decide retain/release...

Wilbraham - 8. Whilst not a key player, his presence has been key at times, incredible professional and hope he stays in some manner. Retain. 

Wright- 7 A shoddy start but has got better and better. Retain

 

[SedRA]

14 minutes ago, Bobby Bollax said:

3 seasons now. Wilbs in the 3rd div 

4 seasons in fact, Baldock got 24 in 2013/14