TorquayFans.com | Torquay United Fans Forum

Billy Bodin has yet to agree to the new deal which Swindon have offered him. He has an excellent chance to be a first team regular there, subject of course to Di Canio's whims, and this is doubtless what he would want. But if he feels that things may not work out for him at Swindon, or if he gets to be in and out of their first team, he may have second thoughts.

What then? Certainly he would be guaranteed a place in the Gulls team. If next season is as good for us as the past two seasons have been, he may be prepared to drop down a division to play for Martin Ling.

I doubt we could afford Di Canio's price tag for Billy, but to bring him in as a loan signing, for all or part of next season, would be a shrewd move. Certainly if Crewe beat Cheltenham in the play-off final to win promotion, di Canio would not want him to go back there to a rival team.

So I wonder what are the chances of Bodin playing for the Gulls next season...

Bodin is out of contract, if Crewe are promoted and the paper/twitter rumour about Powel going for £4 mill is correct, their is nothing stoping Crewe from signing him if they wish, and if Bodin wish's to stay their.

That said of course I would love to see Bodin back here, can't see it though.

Gullscorer wrote:
So I wonder, what are the chances of Bodin playing for the Gulls next season...

Norfolk Enchance. :devil:

None, he's signed a new contract at Swindon, apparantly.

He wants his head reading.

Matt.

So it's possible, if not perhaps likely, but possible, that he could come here on loan from Swindon at some stage next season, depending on how things work out for him there...

Lets face it, he isn't going to be a first team regular at Swindon. He cannot even get in Crewe's first team. he will be loaned out to someone next season, but I have my doubts it will be us.

diamondgirl wrote:None, he's signed a new contract at Swindon, apparantly.

No he hasn't..... according to this piece in the Swindon Advertiser:

http://www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/spor ... _decision/

.... and reading between the lines, I would say that if he is true to his word i.e. he wants to play first team football next season ... then he is unlikely to sign a new deal with them as I highly doubt that PDC has him in mind for his 1st team next season in L1 when he barely featured for them in L2 last season and was loaned out twice!!!

So, still a chance for us perhaps? Provided Lingy can get the boards backing to pay a fee (using the money we got for Kee and Robbo perhaps?) I would like to think we are in with a chance given his close relationship with "Uncle Martin"!

I would imagine that, if he chooses not to sign a new deal with them, there will be competition for his signature although not sure that Crewe would pursue their interest as he seemed to fall out of favour with them towards the end of the campaign and never featured at Wembley.

I imagine it is unlikely that we would sign him. As he is under 24 and has been offered a contract by Swindon they will be due a fee to be set by tribunal.
It could be something we can afford or it could be way out of our league....

If he hasn't actually SIGNED the contract, does that mean that he is out of contract, even if Swindon offer him one......if you see what I mean.
In other words, would potential "buyers" have to "Buy" his contract or would they only have to pay a fee as he is under 24?

diamondgirl wrote:If he hasn't actually SIGNED the contract, does that mean that he is out of contract, even if Swindon offer him one......if you see what I mean.
In other words, would potential "buyers" have to "Buy" his contract or would they only have to pay a fee as he is under 24?

Yes, he is out of contract.

Regardless of whether or not Swindon, or more accurately Paulo Di Canio, wanted to keep the player or not they were always going to offer him a contract as if they failed to do so he would have become a free agent and walked away for nothing. Now that they have formally offered him a new (improved) contract they have preserved their entitlement to a transfer fee should he choose not to take that up. Any fee paid will either have to be agreed between the selling club (Swindon) and the buying club(?) but if they cannot agree a fee (likely?) then it will need to be set by a tribunal panel.

Be better off letting this go to tribunal. Loaned out twice, hardly a regular either at Crewe (effectively L1 while he was there) or Swindon (same), clearly not wanted by PDC but he will value Bodin at some astronomical sum (£200,000 perhaps). Tribunal likely to set his worth at £35,000-£50,000. Question is, could we afford to pay even that for him? I guess the answer lies in who departs. If Eunan goes, we probably can, same with Bobby or maybe even Ellis. If not (I'd rather keep those three and sack Bodin) then I doubt we can either afford him or if we'd really have a place for him.

Matt.

I guess we could afford Bodin if he came as part of a deal for O'Kane. However, as much as I rate Bodin, I'd rather keep Eunan.

Suspect Bodin would sign tomorrow but I don't think we are in the position financially to take the chance on the tribunal. Never know though - may be the playoff fund has been given to Lingy for this!

Too big a risk for the club to let it go to a tribunal. We can guess at what they would ask for, but there is simply no way of knowing. They might deem Swindon has a huge part of his development, and therefore ask for a huge sum. Let's not forget he effectively played for 3 promotion chasing sides this season, he's not exactly the bottom of the barrell at League Two.

However, I have to say that I don't rate Bodin quite as highly as others on here seem to. I think it's a case of 'absence makes the heart grow fonder'. People forget he did go missing in spells, sometimes even whole games, although a fancy turn makes people forget that. Don't get me wrong, I would take him back, no questions asked, but we need to be reasonable. As others have said, if it means getting rid of Bobby, Eunan or Ellis then thanks, but no thanks.