Ellis Replacement Soon..

[royalgull]

Its good we've signed a CB, however I can't help but feel disappointed/concerned that both defenders we've signed have suffered really serious injuries in the last 18months or so. It's a huge gamble to relying on someone that has played 22 games in 2 years to come in at first choice and our backup has played even less. Defensively I think we look a lot weaker than last year on paper and that was a major part of our game, the 1-0 wins.

[happytorq]

Its good we've signed a CB, however I can't help but feel disappointed/concerned that both defenders we've signed have suffered really serious injuries in the last 18months or so. It's a huge gamble to relying on someone that has played 22 games in 2 years to come in at first choice and our backup has played even less. Defensively I think we look a lot weaker than last year on paper and that was a major part of our game, the 1-0 wins.

I agree with you to a certain extent - taking on players who have been injured always carries a certain amount of risk. However, we are a club with limited budget and we need to cut our cloth accordingly. either we go for players that have been average for a long time, or we take a punt on players that we think can be great. They won't have been offered a contract without proving their fitness - at least in training or a medical - and while that does not replicate a match situation that's all you can do.

Better than this, I think, is that players who are given a chance to perform (after not doing that great elsewhere) often come through and step up. We've only given him a one-year contract for now, but you can bet your balls that if they've been great in the early part of the season, we'll be looking to sign them for long at around Christmas.