How much responsibility should our DOF

[The Surveyor]

Fans can see which players we’ve signed. They can’t see which players we’ve tried to sign, or nearly signed, what offers were made to players and what demands were made.

Clearly we’ve failed to sign a goal scoring attack (ignoring Andrews) is it down poor identification of players, poor transfer strategy or an insufficient budget? Without knowing answers to the above questions I’ll refrain from pointing any fingers.


Who’s sought to deny fans the ability to voice an opinion?

Perhaps deny on reflection was the wrong choice of word. But following your logic there would appear to be little point in fans conducting a meaningful social media discussion as the parties would not be privy to all the facts. If that was indeed the case then fans forums such as this would become a rather sterile environment. Hopefully I've misunderstood you.

 

[nibbles]

Perhaps deny on reflection was the wrong choice of word. But following your logic there would appear to be little point in fans conducting a meaningful social media discussion as the parties would not be privy to all the facts. If that was indeed the case then fans forums such as this would become a rather sterile environment. Hopefully I've misunderstood you.

Rather than ‘deny’ I think the correct word is ‘dismiss’.

I’m happy to state that I dismiss most of what I see written about the respective competencies of Clemence and particularly KJ and Hess as ‘pointless conjecture’.

This season has turned into a murder mystery - who killed Prof. Motion?

With little insight into the daily goings on at the club, supporters are piecing together the clues (and red herrings) from Chapter 1 of the book. Thankfully those with any power have nearly finished the book and have a lot more clues to go on.

I’m sure we all do something pointless in our lives. Some of us play Tetris, others watch Midsomer Murders and the really strange folk buy too much into their personal hypotheses as to why Gillingham Football Club did not achieve promotion in 2024.

 

[Gills77]

Could there be any possibility of us losing the three stooges (and I lump Scally in with Hess and Jackett) and replacing them with Steve Bruce. Former Gill, not in work, has lots of contacts in the game, is close to SC and RS and is probably past it as a manager but could act as a great mentor for SC and can’t do any worse in the transfer market than the three stooges and the owners and managers have done in the last two transfer windows.

Not in work..... doesn't need to work....

 

[Trashbat]

Not in work..... doesn't need to work....

A little bit of money has sent some of our support base in to la-la-land.

Saw someone on Twitter suggest that Bradley Dack is a realistic target for Gillingham even though he is reportedly on £18k per week.

Someone else saying that a roof on the Town End was on his wish list when we can even fill 3 sides of the ground and when we (along with Swindon and Wimbledon) will be the only teams in L2 in the South of England.

Others have been calling for Bruce as DoF. Mad on too many levels.

 

[LSB2]

I think the acquisition of Andrews proves that the DOF does something. Getting a player in January for the 24/25 season was a great piece of work. It’s been a bonus that we’ve got to see a little of what he can do this season. He’ll be on fire next season!

 

[GillsBluenose]

I think the acquisition of Andrews proves that the DOF does something. Getting a player in January for the 24/25 season was a great piece of work. It’s been a bonus that we’ve got to see a little of what he can do this season. He’ll be on fire next season!

I hope you are right but he has plenty to prove considering Birmingham, a club possibly dropping in to League One, never gave him a first team appearance and so he has so far played for Harrogate, Rochdale, Donny, Accy and us.

A lot of expectations that he is the answer but he will certainly need help.

 

[Gills77]

I think the acquisition of Andrews proves that the DOF does something. Getting a player in January for the 24/25 season was a great piece of work. It’s been a bonus that we’ve got to see a little of what he can do this season. He’ll be on fire next season!

Was this only required because he didn't get a striker for the 23/24 season?

 

[LSB2]

Was this only required because he didn't get a striker for the 23/24 season?

Or the 22/23 season too lol

 

[Brexiteer]

I think the acquisition of Andrews proves that the DOF does something. Getting a player in January for the 24/25 season was a great piece of work. It’s been a bonus that we’ve got to see a little of what he can do this season. He’ll be on fire next season!

If he's not injured

 

[Mark_GRS]

If he's not injured

Being on fire does sound like it might rule him out for a few games.

 

[LancsGordoRoad]

I hope you are right but he has plenty to prove considering Birmingham, a club possibly dropping in to League One, never gave him a first team appearance and so he has so far played for Harrogate, Rochdale, Donny, Accy and us.

A lot of expectations that he is the answer but he will certainly need help.

Agreed. Brad and Shannon`s re-structuring at the senior management level of their company may be seen as realisation that all has not been well and that, as Brad has alluded recently, there have been failures, particularly in relation to recruitment of attacking players/goal scorers. There`s little doubt, AFAIC, that Andrews will be joined in the off-season by at least two first choice forwards/strikers for whom we`ll probably pay substantial sums.

 

[ARFUR CONNELL]

Agreed. Brad and Shannon`s re-structuring at the senior management level of their company may be seen as realisation that all has not been well and that, as Brad has alluded recently, there have been failures, particularly in relation to recruitment of attacking players/goal scorers. There`s little doubt, AFAIC, that Andrews will be joined in the off-season by at least two first choice forwards/strikers for whom we`ll probably pay substantial sums.

I do hope your thoughts are correct Lancs, as I bought my season ticket some time ago!

 

[Lark]

Fans can see which players we’ve signed. They can’t see which players we’ve tried to sign, or nearly signed, what offers were made to players and what demands were made.

Clearly we’ve failed to sign a goal scoring attack (ignoring Andrews) is it down poor identification of players, poor transfer strategy or an insufficient budget? Without knowing answers to the above questions I’ll refrain from pointing any fingers.


Who’s sought to deny fans the ability to voice an opinion?

These are key points for me, there’s one guy on Twitter who keeps going on about sacking the whole recruitment department at the club, based on us not signing one or more free scoring strikers.

But we don’t know whether the Galinson’s said to Kenny and Hess in January that we need to cut the playing budget, if you want new players in you need to get some high earners (Nichols and Bonne) out. Andrews was obviously a pre/planned signing, we got a fee in for Nichols so we could afford a fee on Andrews, and the reasons for signing him were stated at the fans forum.

But both Hurtado and Walker seemed to be last minute transfers, who knows if we were searching for someone to do us a favour on wages etc (eg Kenny’s contacts at Watford for Hurtado), it could be that it was either those 2 or nobody by the end of the window, based on finances / who was willing to actually sign etc. Lots of questions.

If the rumours over the HMRC skeletons that have surfaced are true, perhaps some savings had to be made elsewhere?
All speculation, but that’s part of the point of these forums, as everyone already knows the facts that are publicly aired.

 

[OneSirKeefy]

These are key points for me, there’s one guy on Twitter who keeps going on about sacking the whole recruitment department at the club, based on us not signing one or more free scoring strikers.

But we don’t know whether the Galinson’s said to Kenny and Hess in January that we need to cut the playing budget, if you want new players in you need to get some high earners (Nichols and Bonne) out. Andrews was obviously a pre/planned signing, we got a fee in for Nichols so we could afford a fee on Andrews, and the reasons for signing him were stated at the fans forum.

But both Hurtado and Walker seemed to be last minute transfers, who knows if we were searching for someone to do us a favour on wages etc (eg Kenny’s contacts at Watford for Hurtado), it could be that it was either those 2 or nobody by the end of the window, based on finances / who was willing to actually sign etc. Lots of questions.

If the rumours over the HMRC skeletons that have surfaced are true, perhaps some savings had to be made elsewhere?
All speculation, but that’s part of the point of these forums, as everyone already knows the facts that are publicly aired.

It was very strongly rumoured by the various “in the know” gills sources of such things, that we went very hard to sign JCH right up to deadline day in January.

If that rumour had truth, then I think that’s a big reason why Nichols and Bonne were moved on (or allowed to move on) to free up wage space.

I personally think chasing JCH ( and Alfie May) was a pointless exercise that was doomed to failure from the start. But it does show the intent to get in good strikers is there.

Hopefully in the summer we target and get more than 1 “very good” strikers. Not pursue 1 “impossible” target and fail.

 

[nibbles]

I personally think chasing JCH ( and Alfie May) was a pointless exercise that was doomed to failure from the start. But it does show the intent to get in good strikers is there.

Hopefully in the summer we target and get more than 1 “very good” strikers. Not pursue 1 “impossible” target and fail.

It’s far too easy when something doesn’t happen to say it was ‘never going to happen’.

I understand Alfie May would have signed but for a timely change in Charlton’s situation meaning they could step in.

 

[OneSirKeefy]

It’s far too easy when something doesn’t happen to say it was ‘never going to happen’.

I understand Alfie May would have signed but for a timely change in Charlton’s situation meaning they could step in.

True, agree maybe with that one. But it does seem from the start Alfie would have been a very, very long shot to drop to L2. It does also appear, that we had no other irons in the fire. No alternatives if Alfie didn’t sign, which happened as soon as there was an interested party from the league above. So it was Alfie May or bust.

JCH however (I believe) was and is a complete non-starter. He has turned down (twice) big offers to remain at Peterboro where he is a star, scores for fun and much loved. And that’s big LEAGUE 1 offers. I wonder how much money he’d want to drop to a mid-range L2 side? Especially if, as suspected, there are numerous high L1 and low Champ teams will be vying for his signature.

I just hope we target a few top quality but realistic players rather than 1 star.

 

[GillsBluenose]

It was very strongly rumoured by the various “in the know” gills sources of such things, that we went very hard to sign JCH right up to deadline day in January.

If that rumour had truth, then I think that’s a big reason why Nichols and Bonne were moved on (or allowed to move on) to free up wage space.

I wonder whether we were given much encouragement, though.

Macanthony puts players on the transfer list and in the shop window once they are in the last year of their contract, if they have turned down a new one.

If Clarke-Harris had turned one down, shirley he was looking to leave on a free this summer, and he will now do that, getting a last big pay day at nearly 30 rather than the money going to Posh.

Additionally in January, you would have seen a player who should interest clubs further up the pyramid due to his goal scoring exploits along with Macanthony still trying to get top dollar.

Can't see a scenario in January where a move to us would have appealed to JCH, let alone his agent.

 

[nibbles]

True, agree maybe with that one. But it does seem from the start Alfie would have been a very, very long shot to drop to L2. It does also appear, that we had no other irons in the fire. No alternatives if Alfie didn’t sign, which happened as soon as there was an interested party from the league above. So it was Alfie May or bust.

I’ve never liked the suggestion that we ‘put all our eggs in the Alfie May basket’. Again very easy to say given the disappointing incomings up front (though very many supporters lauded the Bonne signing as the final piece of the jigsaw at the time).

Not something I’d be happy to state without knowing which other strikers we targeted, which we approached, made offers to/for and what demands were made in response (the timing of all of the above is also key).

It’s plausible (most conspiracy theories are based around an initial plausibility) that we focussed solely on May but I think that’s very unlikely. Harris spoke about more than one target signing for a League One side at the fans forum.

‘As soon as there was interested party from the division above’ is false.

There was plenty of interest in L1 for May prior to Charlton. What made us favourites was geography being in our favour against the other sides.

When Charlton eventually came in they were even better geographically (and obvs in everything else too) so our trump card was trumped.

And regarding JCH I’m not convinced we were especially interested, particularly given Brad’s comments at the time about that kind of signing not being the right fit for the football club.

 

[TGPL]

But both Hurtado and Walker seemed to be last minute transfers, who knows if we were searching for someone to do us a favour on wages etc (eg Kenny’s contacts at Watford for Hurtado), it could be that it was either those 2 or nobody by the end of the window, based on finances / who was willing to actually sign etc. Lots of questions.

It came out from Watford's side that Hurtado was offered to League One clubs on the 30th Jan and no club took the bite so he was then circled to League Two clubs. KJ & SC pretty much admitted that at the fans forum they didn't know loads about him but from the videos they'd seen and heard from Watford he was worth a punt. Very much was a last minute signing with him.

 

[Lark]

It came out from Watford's side that Hurtado was offered to League One clubs on the 30th Jan and no club took the bite so he was then circled to League Two clubs. KJ & SC pretty much admitted that at the fans forum they didn't know loads about him but from the videos they'd seen and heard from Watford he was worth a punt. Very much was a last minute signing with him.

I believe Kenny was invited to a Watford game shortly before Hurtado signed. May have been their cup match that he came on in.

As for JCH, I can’t see that he was ever a realistic signing, he’s turned down contract extension offers at Peterborough as he knows this summer he can get a nice big signing on fee and higher wages elsewhere as a free agent.