New Year - New Striker

[Gullscorer]

In view of Ryan Jarvis's injury, Martin Ling is planning to sign a new striker in January, according to reports.

But (assuming we can afford more than one) is one new signing enough..??

[Richinns]

In view of Ryan Jarvis's injury, Martin Ling is planning to sign a new striker in January, according to reports.

But (assuming we can afford more than one) is one new signing enough..??

Depends if ouy injury luck changes! Not sure how far Macklin is off a return and a lot could depend on that I guess.

[royalgull]

Also depends on what we want from the season. Think looking back on the first half of it, a lot of it hasn't been very good BUT the league position again is excellent.

Midtable is a good finish for us in all honesty and if they are happy with that then 1 or 2 players in to keep us ticking along will be suffice. We need more if we want to be top 7 though.

[Richinns]

Also depends on what we want from the season. Think looking back on the first half of it, a lot of it hasn't been very good BUT the league position again is excellent.

Midtable is a good finish for us in all honesty and if they are happy with that then 1 or 2 players in to keep us ticking along will be suffice. We need more if we want to be top 7 though.

Agree - that is the judgement call that has to be made and could depend heavily on the next 2 games. Win them both then the board and Ling might be more inclined to put a bit behind a push but if we are mid-table after them then suspect the ticking over and save some budget for next year might be the approach they adopt.

[AustrianAndyGull]

Absolutely spot on Royal and i couldn't have put in any better myself.

If we take the first half of the season, in terms of performances we have generally been poor and a bit turgid to watch. I've been to 8 games, 1 home and 7 away and i've yet to see a really good, entertaining and convincing performance. Yet we lie just outside the play offs.

Like Royal says, if we are happy just ticking along and holding out hope of nicking a play off spot then one striker may be enough. Even NOT bringing anyone in may still see us sneak in there but that will take a lot of luck and some better performances and i'm not convinced we will get either judging by what i've seen this first half of the season.

If we are to be serious challengers to the top 3 and make certain of a play off berth then a couple of attacking options are essential. If Ling had done this very same thing the second half of last season we would be a league 1 club now. But that's all academic now, i just don't want him to make the same mistakes again. We have a squad capable of getting up there and staying up there but it needs a bit more help and a few more goals in order to see us over the line whether that be auto or play off. I would very much like to think that Martin knows this and he will act accordingly.

[AustrianAndyGull]

Please can i ask you not to come on and start saying, "well what about when we beat Gillingham? We were great and entertaining then and when we beat Aldershot. That was entertaining too so how can you say we haven't been good to watch and doing well?". If you were going to come on and say that then i hope you get clubbed with a wet fish.

Of course we have had games where we have done well but they are in the minority and i specifically was referring to the games i had actually attended myself and not across the board.

Just thought i'd clarify that as i know someone would have come on giving it large.

[Gullscorer]

We haven't been scoring goals and if we are to achieve anything this season we must adopt a formation which provides a more attacking style of play, and we don't currently have the players for this to be successful. Morris, Macklin and Jarvis will be out for several weeks yet, and if Rene Howe is injured over the Christmas period we would have only Billy Bodin, along with Thompson, Yeoman and possibly Macklin, who was taken off the transfer list earlier in the season but still seems to be on the fringes. These players should be, and probably will be, given their chance to claim a regular first team starting place; certainly Thompson's pace could be crucial.

But another goalscorer in the January window is essential, preferably two if the club can afford it (unlikely). It is to Martin Ling's credit that he is taking steps to fill the gap. We could yet have an exciting second half to the season..

[Modgull]

Why should a new striker in the January window mean an exciting second half to the season? The only players who will be available will be those who can't currently score and don't mind not being paid very much! After all, last season it was ......Ryan Jarvis!

[lucy6lucy]

The live sky match should give us approx 10k, so that to me is Lings xmas present and should get someone half decent now

[Gullscorer]

Why should a new striker in the January window mean an exciting second half to the season? The only players who will be available will be those who can't currently score and don't mind not being paid very much! After all, last season it was ......Ryan Jarvis!

Could be, could be exciting, because Martin Ling is taking steps to strengthen the team. It's hardly likely that he would bring somebody in to weaken the team! As always, much will depend upon injuries and suspensions, formation and tactics, and which players are available and on form. But we are still only a couple of points away from the play-offs, with as good a chance as most other teams..

[ferrarilover]

The live sky match should give us approx 10k, so that to me is Lings xmas present and should get someone half decent now

Where does the £10,000 figure come from, Lucy?

Mod, not sure how much you've seen of Jarvo, but he brings a whole bunch to the table. The move which lead to our goal at the weekend wasn't slow but it wasn't exactly lightening war either. Jarvo was the only one of our strikers who knew where to be and when to stick the ball into the goal. Danny had one option once he got that ball and a deep cross to miles beyond the far post was NOT it but it was exactly where Rene chose to go.
Jarvo is, in some ways, too smart for our midfielders. He often finds himself in the right place when the ball is anywhere but there.
Given a run of games in a proper formation, he'll do well for us.

Matt.

[Modgull]

Matt, don't get me wrong I think Jarvis is playing well now (although he will never be prolific as his record shows) but you have to agree with my point - his injection into the squad last January didn't result in any goals at all and our season eventually petered out through our inability to score goals when it mattered.

[ferrarilover]

He got the winner against (someone, can't remember who). We didn't score a lot of goals with or without Jarvo last year, and I think to point to him as not having lead to an influx of goals is extremely unfair. He also made Rene's winner against Accrington at home, so there's 4 points we wouldn't have had straight away.
What did for us last year was Nick Powell and the subsequent decision by the referee not to allow a perfectly good winner. But for that, we would have gone on to do enough for automatic promotion.

Matt.

[AustrianAndyGull]

He got the winner against Vale at Plainmoor Matt. We won 2-1 and it was my first ever game at home! :~D

[ferrarilover]

Well done Andy, I figured someone would know. I see what Mod means, he hasn't set the world alight, but given a run in the side (like so many others) I think he'll really add something that we're missing.
Still no word from Lucy about this ten grand...

Matt.