Strikers

[rab030]

Oct 23, 2024 21:42:41 GMT 1 terriermark2 said:

Some people,

yes we are struggling with strikers at the moment but really some get too much stick.

Marshall is raw but also good and lots of potential

Healey IF he stays fit can be a massive asset

Koroma, excellent so far this season and we miss him now

Ward, best player on the pitch last night he still has a lot to offer in L1

Bojan, I do actually think he has something but I also think it’s not for us unfortunately he is not quick enough for what we need.

Freddie, there is a reason he was available on a free

I still think we will be trying to get one in during January with Bojan leaving.

We don’t have a massive issue with the players we have, we have a massive issue with keeping them fit and I am not sure if this is unlucky, bad planning buying players who are injury prone, or a bad medical team.

Completely agree - a rotation of Marshall, Healey, Ward and Koroma at L1 level should be good enough.
I accept that they appear injury prone and so Freddie as additional back up makes sense. Not seen enough of him yet to know if he has any real ability.
I personally think I'v seen enough of Bojan to realise he's at the wrong level. Impressed with his work rate but spends too much time 'crying'

[Deleted]

Oct 23, 2024 21:42:41 GMT 1 terriermark2 said:

Some people,

yes we are struggling with strikers at the moment but really some get too much stick.

Marshall is raw but also good and lots of potential

Healey IF he stays fit can be a massive asset

Koroma, excellent so far this season and we miss him now

Ward, best player on the pitch last night he still has a lot to offer in L1

Bojan, I do actually think he has something but I also think it’s not for us unfortunately he is not quick enough for what we need.

Freddie, there is a reason he was available on a free

I still think we will be trying to get one in during January with Bojan leaving.

We don’t have a massive issue with the players we have, we have a massive issue with keeping them fit and I am not sure if this is unlucky, bad planning buying players who are injury prone, or a bad medical team.

castlehillterrier…??

[crux]

Oct 24, 2024 12:58:38 GMT 1 impact said:

Oct 24, 2024 10:51:51 GMT 1 @htafc1045 said:

So both scored on the weekend when we created chances, but they can't take chances...

Give me one chance created against Wrexham that should have been put away and I'll be very surprised

Bojan's header. A decent striker at least gets it somewhere near goal.

He's scored 1 goal from one hell of a lot more chances.

The best striker in the world isn't going to score that header, not unless the defender suddenly disappears in some sort of magic trick 😗

[impact]

Oct 24, 2024 13:53:15 GMT 1 crux said:

Oct 24, 2024 12:58:38 GMT 1 impact said:

Bojan's header. A decent striker at least gets it somewhere near goal.

He's scored 1 goal from one hell of a lot more chances.

The best striker in the world isn't going to score that header, not unless the defender suddenly disappears in some sort of magic trick 😗

The one at the end of the first half he put 5 yards wide?

[crux]

Oct 24, 2024 15:43:18 GMT 1 impact said:

Oct 24, 2024 13:53:15 GMT 1 crux said:

The best striker in the world isn't going to score that header, not unless the defender suddenly disappears in some sort of magic trick 😗

The one at the end of the first half he put 5 yards wide?

I'm sure that's the one. In real time I thought it was a crap attempt, but when they showed the (admittedly very quick) replay. The defender was right with him and he'd got next to no chance of getting it much closer to the goal.

[Oblong of Dreams]

Our problem for years has been creating the chances in the first place, not the lack of someone to put them away.

[royrace]

Oct 24, 2024 9:50:00 GMT 1 deucebigalow77 said:

Joe Taylor is a done deal, £2m. I've been told this by a very reliable source after much badgering by me. First time I've ever posted such as this, and probably the last 😆. Fingers crossed they're not pulling my leg

£2M for a young lad that can't get near a struggling championship side and yet promotion is apparently very much our goal??

Doesn't really make sense does it? A bit like every bloody player Cartwright has signed. KN must have the patience of a saint.

Some in this thread saying what do you expect it's league one whilst completely forgetting we spent a fortune on two of them to fire us to safety in the championship and execute the three year plan!

Piss poor recruitment is the constant under this regime. KN had better have a lot of money he's prepared to waste.

[richhtfc]

Oct 24, 2024 11:50:39 GMT 1 The Sheriff Strikes Back said:

Oct 24, 2024 11:07:11 GMT 1 @htafc1045 said:

To be fair to Impact, over the course of the season here are the league xG stats for the strikers...

Josh Koroma - 4 goals, 3.6 xG
Bojan Radulovic - 1 goal, 2.3 xG
Callum Marshall - 1 goal, 2.1 xG
Rhys Healey - 0 goals, 1.5 xG
Danny Ward - 0 goals, 0.7 xG
Freddie Ladapo - 0 goals, 0.2 xG

Overall, our strikers have got 6 goals between them, and 9.4 xG between them, showing that they have actually underperformed in terms of finishing,.however I would say that they are getting better

XG, probably the most meaningless stat in the history of football.

Any 'stat' that is open to a subjective view/interpretation simply isn't a stat.

Both Brighton and Brentford built their scouting systems and data analysis around XG and they seem to have done alright the last 10 years.

[goodbet]

Oct 24, 2024 18:26:26 GMT 1 richhtfc said:

Oct 24, 2024 11:50:39 GMT 1 The Sheriff Strikes Back said:

XG, probably the most meaningless stat in the history of football.

Any 'stat' that is open to a subjective view/interpretation simply isn't a stat.

Both Brighton and Brentford built their scouting systems and data analysis around XG and they seem to have done alright the last 10 years.

But we built ours around cheaper than what we had before.

[Deleted]

Oct 24, 2024 18:34:12 GMT 1 goodbet said:

Oct 24, 2024 18:26:26 GMT 1 richhtfc said:

Both Brighton and Brentford built their scouting systems and data analysis around XG and they seem to have done alright the last 10 years.

But we built ours around cheaper than what we had before.

Yeah, and? Nothing to do with what the original poster was saying.

[bells ringing :)]

Oct 24, 2024 16:06:20 GMT 1 royrace said:

Oct 24, 2024 9:50:00 GMT 1 deucebigalow77 said:

Joe Taylor is a done deal, £2m. I've been told this by a very reliable source after much badgering by me. First time I've ever posted such as this, and probably the last 😆. Fingers crossed they're not pulling my leg

£2M for a young lad that can't get near a struggling championship side and yet promotion is apparently very much our goal??

Doesn't really make sense does it? A bit like every bloody player Cartwright has signed. KN must have the patience of a saint.

Some in this thread saying what do you expect it's league one whilst completely forgetting we spent a fortune on two of them to fire us to safety in the championship and execute the three year plan!

Piss poor recruitment is the constant under this regime. KN had better have a lot of money he's prepared to waste.

Think about it like this, he could well be getting "nowhere near " due to said deal being sorted. Keeping him on the bench , yet not playing him . could be well to make it look as normal until January ...

[Sparrow]

Oct 24, 2024 16:06:20 GMT 1 royrace said:

Oct 24, 2024 9:50:00 GMT 1 deucebigalow77 said:

Joe Taylor is a done deal, £2m. I've been told this by a very reliable source after much badgering by me. First time I've ever posted such as this, and probably the last 😆. Fingers crossed they're not pulling my leg

£2M for a young lad that can't get near a struggling championship side and yet promotion is apparently very much our goal??

Doesn't really make sense does it? A bit like every bloody player Cartwright has signed. KN must have the patience of a saint.

Some in this thread saying what do you expect it's league one whilst completely forgetting we spent a fortune on two of them to fire us to safety in the championship and execute the three year plan!

Piss poor recruitment is the constant under this regime. KN had better have a lot of money he's prepared to waste.

If you don't sign someone like Joe Taylor, who do you sign?

Last season he got 11 in 25 in league 2, followed by 10 in 19 in League 1.

So for a team looking for promotion out of League 1, he's a great target.

I take the point that he can't get in the Luton team. But at 21 (22 in 3 weeks), he is the profile of striker that at this stage we should be looking to sign.

You would hope that we sign him or similar in January and then if we go up, 2 more in the summer.

You're right that we did spend a fortune - for us - on Bojan & Healey - last January. Both were punts that up to date haven't worked out. Lots of January signings for lots of clubs are punts and very often clubs overspend on them and take risks on them, because they are trying to win a promotion or survive a relegation.

We have to hope that now that we've ramped up the number of First Team Scouts & Analysts and brought others into the recruitment department, with a number coming in over the summer, that the recruitment will be better overall than it has been.

[Henry Mcgee]

Oct 24, 2024 16:06:20 GMT 1 royrace said:

Oct 24, 2024 9:50:00 GMT 1 deucebigalow77 said:

Joe Taylor is a done deal, £2m. I've been told this by a very reliable source after much badgering by me. First time I've ever posted such as this, and probably the last 😆. Fingers crossed they're not pulling my leg

£2M for a young lad that can't get near a struggling championship side and yet promotion is apparently very much our goal??

Doesn't really make sense does it? A bit like every bloody player Cartwright has signed. KN must have the patience of a saint.

Some in this thread saying what do you expect it's league one whilst completely forgetting we spent a fortune on two of them to fire us to safety in the championship and execute the three year plan!

Piss poor recruitment is the constant under this regime. KN had better have a lot of money he's prepared to waste.

£2m does sound a little pricey but he's behind Adebayo, Morris and Chong at Luton - that's their Premier League strikeforce last season so no disgrace in not getting many minutes.  

[runner76]

2 million a snip if he fires in the goals that get us automatic promotion……

[royrace]

Oct 25, 2024 10:23:10 GMT 1 Henry Mcgee said:

Oct 24, 2024 16:06:20 GMT 1 royrace said:

£2M for a young lad that can't get near a struggling championship side and yet promotion is apparently very much our goal??

Doesn't really make sense does it? A bit like every bloody player Cartwright has signed. KN must have the patience of a saint.

Some in this thread saying what do you expect it's league one whilst completely forgetting we spent a fortune on two of them to fire us to safety in the championship and execute the three year plan!

Piss poor recruitment is the constant under this regime. KN had better have a lot of money he's prepared to waste.

£2m does sound a little pricey but he's behind Adebayo, Morris and Chong at Luton - that's their Premier League strikeforce last season so no disgrace in not getting many minutes.  

Aye, seems a long time since our fans were singing about Luton Town away

We're now desperate to sign one of their reserves! I've no idea how good he is but it seems expensive and the fact they don't fancy him is a red flag imo. Someone said they might be saving him for us and that's why he's not playing which sounds highly unlikely, only town would risk their championship survival for a potential couple of mil!

Anyway let's hope it's a Jordan Rhodes from Ipswich scenario and not another Bojan or Healey (who I like but injuries).

[jp]

If he was starting regularly for Luton he wouldn’t be signing for Town, or anyone else.

[Solihull Terrier]

Oct 24, 2024 18:26:26 GMT 1 richhtfc said:

Oct 24, 2024 11:50:39 GMT 1 The Sheriff Strikes Back said:

XG, probably the most meaningless stat in the history of football.

Any 'stat' that is open to a subjective view/interpretation simply isn't a stat.

Both Brighton and Brentford built their scouting systems and data analysis around XG and they seem to have done alright the last 10 years.

You often see this said, but no one names all the poor and mediocre sides that were built off the back of data analysis. It's very much the case that most clubs in the top 2 divisions have a focus on this not just Brighton and Brentford. What sets those two apart is making good decisions when armed with that info. They are also both in a position where they have needed to take gambles and that's how both owners made their name outside of football, coincidence?

[richhtfc]

Oct 25, 2024 11:09:36 GMT 1 Solihull Terrier said:

Oct 24, 2024 18:26:26 GMT 1 richhtfc said:

Both Brighton and Brentford built their scouting systems and data analysis around XG and they seem to have done alright the last 10 years.

You often see this said, but no one names all the poor and mediocre sides that were built off the back of data analysis. It's very much the case that most clubs in the top 2 divisions have a focus on this not just Brighton and Brentford. What sets those two apart is making good decisions when armed with that info. They are also both in a position where they have needed to take gambles and that's how both owners made their name outside of football, coincidence?

I think what makes them different is that they pioneered a certain model, using similar systems of mathematical data analysis borrowed from sports betting. They were ahead of the game and have two very competitive owners. I’m reading “Smart Money: The Fall and Rise of Brentford FC” about it at the moment.

[Tinpot]

Whilst I accept that we are going to need strikers if we are going to compete in the championship - part of our issue is that we're playing in Lg1.

Without naming anyone currently at Birmingham City (because they are a massive outlier), which strikers in this division do any of us rate? Which ones could we realistically have signed in the summer?

Strikers that have shown themselves to be good enough at the level above are already playing there.

I would like to see a striker here in January but who? PL loans can be great, but they can be shite too. Mipo Odubeko, anyone?

[duncfost01]

Oct 23, 2024 21:42:41 GMT 1 terriermark2 said:

Some people,

yes we are struggling with strikers at the moment but really some get too much stick.

Marshall is raw but also good and lots of potential

Healey IF he stays fit can be a massive asset

Koroma, excellent so far this season and we miss him now

Ward, best player on the pitch last night he still has a lot to offer in L1

Bojan, I do actually think he has something but I also think it’s not for us unfortunately he is not quick enough for what we need.

Freddie, there is a reason he was available on a free

I still think we will be trying to get one in during January with Bojan leaving.

We don’t have a massive issue with the players we have, we have a massive issue with keeping them fit and I am not sure if this is unlucky, bad planning buying players who are injury prone, or a bad medical team.

Tell me one of our strikers that would be a threat in the championship? None.

The signing of ladapo is up there with George Donis and diakhaby.

[Terriersmad]

Oct 25, 2024 17:18:33 GMT 1 duncfost01 said:

Oct 23, 2024 21:42:41 GMT 1 terriermark2 said:

Some people,

yes we are struggling with strikers at the moment but really some get too much stick.

Marshall is raw but also good and lots of potential

Healey IF he stays fit can be a massive asset

Koroma, excellent so far this season and we miss him now

Ward, best player on the pitch last night he still has a lot to offer in L1

Bojan, I do actually think he has something but I also think it’s not for us unfortunately he is not quick enough for what we need.

Freddie, there is a reason he was available on a free

I still think we will be trying to get one in during January with Bojan leaving.

We don’t have a massive issue with the players we have, we have a massive issue with keeping them fit and I am not sure if this is unlucky, bad planning buying players who are injury prone, or a bad medical team.

Tell me one of our strikers that would be a threat in the championship? None.

The signing of ladapo is up there with George Donis and diakhaby.

Don't be daft. Do wish people would give players a fair crack before writing them off and resorting to that kind of statement.

[ldotm]

Oct 25, 2024 10:23:10 GMT 1 Henry Mcgee said:

Oct 24, 2024 16:06:20 GMT 1 royrace said:

£2M for a young lad that can't get near a struggling championship side and yet promotion is apparently very much our goal??

Doesn't really make sense does it? A bit like every bloody player Cartwright has signed. KN must have the patience of a saint.

Some in this thread saying what do you expect it's league one whilst completely forgetting we spent a fortune on two of them to fire us to safety in the championship and execute the three year plan!

Piss poor recruitment is the constant under this regime. KN had better have a lot of money he's prepared to waste.

£2m does sound a little pricey but he's behind Adebayo, Morris and Chong at Luton - that's their Premier League strikeforce last season so no disgrace in not getting many minutes.  

Don’t come in with logic, it doesn’t work for most town fans!

[Tinpot]

Oct 25, 2024 17:18:33 GMT 1 duncfost01 said:

Oct 23, 2024 21:42:41 GMT 1 terriermark2 said:

Some people,

yes we are struggling with strikers at the moment but really some get too much stick.

Marshall is raw but also good and lots of potential

Healey IF he stays fit can be a massive asset

Koroma, excellent so far this season and we miss him now

Ward, best player on the pitch last night he still has a lot to offer in L1

Bojan, I do actually think he has something but I also think it’s not for us unfortunately he is not quick enough for what we need.

Freddie, there is a reason he was available on a free

I still think we will be trying to get one in during January with Bojan leaving.

We don’t have a massive issue with the players we have, we have a massive issue with keeping them fit and I am not sure if this is unlucky, bad planning buying players who are injury prone, or a bad medical team.

Tell me one of our strikers that would be a threat in the championship? None.

Agreed. Koroma on a good day is good enough for that level but he's horribly inconsistent. Healey is scarcely ever fit, Ward will have gone in the summer, Marshall will be back at West Ham, Ladapo was probably the best realistic option from the free agent market but never going to do it in the championship, an Bojan would probably be better suited to a less physically demanding League. Hatratt and Hudlin would have to be tearing it up in Lg2, but they're not. Time to thank them for their efforts and move them on.

Oct 25, 2024 17:18:33 GMT 1 duncfost01 said:

The signing of ladapo is up there with George Donis and diakhaby.

It really isn't.

[duncfost01]

Oct 26, 2024 22:39:27 GMT 1 Tinpot said:

Oct 25, 2024 17:18:33 GMT 1 duncfost01 said:

Tell me one of our strikers that would be a threat in the championship? None.

Agreed. Koroma on a good day is good enough for that level but he's horribly inconsistent. Healey is scarcely ever fit, Ward will have gone in the summer, Marshall will be back at West Ham, Ladapo was probably the best realistic option from the free agent market but never going to do it in the championship, an Bojan would probably be better suited to a less physically demanding League. Hatratt and Hudlin would have to be tearing it up in Lg2, but they're not. Time to thank them for their efforts and move them on.

Oct 25, 2024 17:18:33 GMT 1 duncfost01 said:

The signing of ladapo is up there with George Donis and diakhaby.

It really isn't.

Watching him yesterday he looked a little lost. He is trying but clearly any match sharpness is lacking. I guess he needs games but is he going to get them ? Start him against Tamworth ?

Ward and Marshall both did well yesterday. They didn’t get much service, but wards goal looked onside to me. Which was a beautifully crafted move.

[wildhogg]

Going to be an interesting next window if signing a striker is still our focus. Even if Taylor isn't getting in at struggling Luton, I'd still like him based upon his exploits last season at this level and in the league below before that. Whilst we're well-stocked up-front, we're still missing a natural goalscorer.

I wonder if we'll be looking abroad? Some decent pickings in The Netherlands, for example. If we're challenging for a Champ return at Christmas then we'll have some pull.

[Million Dollar Babies]

Marshall looks like a poorer version of Novak to me. Can run around all day but that's about it. Hard to see how he has a career any higher than league one but maybe as he fills out a bit he might become a bit more useful.

Whoever we sign in January must have some pace. Cadamarteri would have been a better signing than Marshall and would have loved to come here but we obviously used the logic that a player signed on at a Premier League club must be better than one signed on at a Championship club.

[Tinpot]

Oct 27, 2024 7:22:42 GMT 1 duncfost01 said:

Watching him yesterday he looked a little lost. He is trying but clearly any match sharpness is lacking. I guess he needs games but is he going to get them ? Start him against Tamworth ?

Ward and Marshall both did well yesterday. They didn’t get much service, but wards goal looked onside to me. Which was a beautifully crafted move.

Yeah, within reason I'd be looking at the side for Tamworth being chosen according to who needs games getting picked, and who needs protecting a bit - i.e. if they have a niggle - left out than picking the strongest possible side.

As for Ladapo, I advocated signing him the moment the window closed without is getting anyone over the line. That's not because I think (or even thought then!) that he's a world beater but because he was the best option realistically available to us on the free agent list.

Given Ward and Healey's long term fitness issues, JK's inconsistency, Bojan's lack of physical strength and Marshall being a kid we needed a striker as a priority. I still think we were right to sign him even though I'd be looking to move him on in summer 2025 (especially if we're promoted!).

[iangreaves]

Oct 27, 2024 9:20:11 GMT 1 Million Dollar Babies said:

Marshall looks like a poorer version of Novak to me. Can run around all day but that's about it. Hard to see how he has a career any higher than league one but maybe as he fills out a bit he might become a bit more useful.

Whoever we sign in January must have some pace. Cadamarteri would have been a better signing than Marshall and would have loved to come here but we obviously used the logic that a player signed on at a Premier League club must be better than one signed on at a Championship club.

Realised how slow he is yesterday when he was put clean through in the second half with a lovely ball but defender caught him despite giving him a head start.

[Terriersmad]

Oct 27, 2024 9:26:01 GMT 1 Tinpot said:

Oct 27, 2024 7:22:42 GMT 1 duncfost01 said:

Watching him yesterday he looked a little lost. He is trying but clearly any match sharpness is lacking. I guess he needs games but is he going to get them ? Start him against Tamworth ?

Ward and Marshall both did well yesterday. They didn’t get much service, but wards goal looked onside to me. Which was a beautifully crafted move.

Yeah, within reason I'd be looking at the side for Tamworth being chosen according to who needs games getting picked, and who needs protecting a bit - i.e. if they have a niggle - left out than picking the strongest possible side.

As for Ladapo, I advocated signing him the moment the window closed without is getting anyone over the line. That's not because I think (or even thought then!) that he's a world beater but because he was the best option realistically available to us on the free agent list.

Given Ward and Healey's long term fitness issues, JK's inconsistency, Bojan's lack of physical strength and Marshall being a kid we needed a striker as a priority. I still think we were right to sign him even though I'd be looking to move him on in summer 2025 (especially if we're promoted!).

Strongest side with the considerations you mention, for me. We should be looking for a bit of continuity and form.

I also agree with you on Ladapo. We knew he wasn’t a world-beater. His all-round game is poor, but his record as a finisher is very good. But we desperately need some pace to get in behind. Perhaps worth giving Phillips that chance when he returns from the US - he is quick, and those chances Marshall had to get away yesterday may not go begging. If between November and the window it’s decided he isn’t good enough, then time to dip into the market.

[Tinpot]

Oct 27, 2024 9:55:39 GMT 1 Terriersmad said:

Oct 27, 2024 9:26:01 GMT 1 Tinpot said:

Yeah, within reason I'd be looking at the side for Tamworth being chosen according to who needs games getting picked, and who needs protecting a bit - i.e. if they have a niggle - left out than picking the strongest possible side.

As for Ladapo, I advocated signing him the moment the window closed without is getting anyone over the line. That's not because I think (or even thought then!) that he's a world beater but because he was the best option realistically available to us on the free agent list.

Given Ward and Healey's long term fitness issues, JK's inconsistency, Bojan's lack of physical strength and Marshall being a kid we needed a striker as a priority. I still think we were right to sign him even though I'd be looking to move him on in summer 2025 (especially if we're promoted!).

Strongest side with the considerations you mention, for me. We should be looking for a bit of continuity and form.

I also agree with you on Ladapo. We knew he wasn’t a world-beater. His all-round game is poor, but his record as a finisher is very good. But we desperately need some pace to get in behind. Perhaps worth giving Phillips that chance when he returns from the US - he is quick, and those chances Marshall had to get away yesterday may not go begging. If between November and the window it’s decided he isn’t good enough, then time to dip into the market.

I'm not sure what the rules are wrt Phillips playing for us before January but even if we can't - Duff, Paterson & Co will presumably see enough in training to know whether he'd be up to the job. Must admit, at nearly 25 years old & (to my mind at least) behind Kian Harratt (struggling for game time at Fleetwood) in the pecking order I'd written KP off, but whilst he's still at the club the door has to remain open & maybe MD, MP & Co can get something out of him that others couldn't.