Very worrying in my view. Trying to read between the lines there may or may not be problems in the dressing room re morale & I think we may be struggling recruitment wise. Thoughts??
Why should we think there may be problems in the dressing room ? No doubt about it we are short on numbers with Warne saying he has only 13 or 14 senior pros on the books. Mattock not able to start the game (or take any part) is a bigger problem. Warne states he hasn't signed Ferguson to play left back. Well, i have been a massive fan of Mattock over the years but surely his time as a first choice left back is over. His injury problems are a major worry and have been all year. If Ferguson wasn't signed as first choice left back then we need to get another one in.
Sadlier not in the starting line up indicates to me he is still not impressing enough to start a game which is a worry. It looks like Miller and Ogbene are showing well and could be the wide players who create the chances for us. Barlaser not starting might be nothing but he did indicate in the close season he wanted championship football. Not heard any championship club showing an interest so let us hope he knuckles down and gives the performances we know he can and then championship clubs might show an interest and pay a decent price for him if we choose to sell him.
The post match interview from Warne was not worrying imo. He said he expected this game of all the pre season games would show us at our leggiest (is that a word). He also said we needed new signings and that our performance wasn't an unbelievable one. It was a pre season game where we kept a clean sheet but it sounds like we struggled a bit to create and lacked fluidity. The likes of Wiles, Lindsay, Sadlier and Barlaser have to show up in the middle of the park and will find it much harder now they have lost the man (Crooks) who put in the most miles week after week and was the man who hurt sides in the final third. i think we could be facing a tough season if recruitment of new players isn't forthcoming and they don't improve what we already have. Still early days but i think it is imperative we give Warne and co some new ammo.
Maybe Warne has finally realised he wont be getting reasonable recruitment support from the chairman who i would imagine. is not in football club ownership to lose money. Potential recruits will not be attracted by the wages offered by Rotherham. I think one or too more of our better disillusioned players will leave before the season starts and Warne might well seek pastures new.
We have had fantastic pre-season results/performances in past seasons and been dreadful when the real action started, and vice versa. I never read much into it. It sounds to me like Warne is frustrated at the hoops you have to jump through in transfer windows and this strange one in particular, and I dont blame him. It's a horrible market and it must be a nightmare to work in, getting gazumped when you think someone might be coming in and losing existing players that you might be building a team around. I imagine managers let out a big sigh of relief when it closes and they can focus on playing football with a known group of players. We seem to be willing to reinvest at least some of the Crooks money, which isnt a bad place to be relative to most in league one.
Also footballers and their agents tend to live in a bubble away from the real world, every year they see more of their fellow professionals leave the game, but they continue with a selfish focus (I don't blame them for this, I would do it too), however because there will be more players that don't get contracts or don't get what they want this season (financials outside premier league is not good), I think if we are patient and there is a commitment to bring in new players we will get them but it will be late, or out of contract players and yes loans. As long as we have a long list of players for each position I am sure we will get some in. I don't expect us to start the season great to be honest, one thing we have to fix is the awful home form
-- Edited by derbymiller on Monday 26th of July 2021 12:09:23 PM
Very worrying in my view. Trying to read between the lines there may or may not be problems in the dressing room re morale & I think we may be struggling recruitment wise. Thoughts??
Yeah I'm with you on this Brad, just watched it and he's not a happy bunny... don't know how many times he said we need new players in, and not the first time he's said players didn't look up for it.
I can forgive players for not being totally motivated by friendlies, but much more worrying he seems very low related to incomings...
I've been criticised several times on here saying Mattock is made of eggshells.. I would have paid him off at the end of the last L1 season.
Hope we get better news on transfers in before the weekend...
