A spine

[Linx]

This might seem a bit premature and even irrelevant in our current situation but I’ve been thinking of the spine of the team. Or lack of it.

Back in 2006-2008, when TP almost surprisingly took us to promotion, he had developed in those two years the spine of a team that won promotion and kept us in the top flight: Simonsen, Shawcross, Wilkinson, Whelan, Fuller, Lawrence. There were some who we thought might be part of it but fell by the wayside, like Cort and Dickinson, and even Lawrence didn’t really make the grade, thanks to his dog. But the point is, that I cannot at any time in the last six years, think of one player who would be regarded as the spine of anything. Anyone promising enough, like Souttar and Collins, has been sold on to re-invest in mediocre replacements.

We still don’t have a contracted, reliable goalkeeper, the personnel and the structure of the defence and the midfield are chopped and changed every two or so games, and we don’t have a reliable (any?) striker. Some of this reflects the constant change at managerial level, but ultimately we are a long way away from consolidation even, never mind a promotion push in the next season or two. Some of the players heralded as the beginning of a spine, like Laurent and Baker, have been droppped regularly or been injured, and we seem to change the captain as regularly as the kit man washes the shirts.

So do we have anything resembling a spine, or anything that promises to develop into one? Because if we haven’t, we can expect more seasons like this one.

[Gary Hackett]

Spot on.

We have no spine whatsoever which is the main problem we've had for several years.

[stokecitytalke]

It would help if some of the players had a spine.

[jokker]

Mar 12, 2024 17:46:28 GMT Linx said:

This might seem a bit premature and even irrelevant in our current situation but I’ve been thinking of the spine of the team. Or lack of it.

Back in 2006-2008, when TP almost surprisingly took us to promotion, he had developed in those two years the spine of a team that won promotion and kept us in the top flight: Simonsen, Shawcross, Wilkinson, Whelan, Fuller, Lawrence. There were some who we thought might be part of it but fell by the wayside, like Cort and Dickinson, and even Lawrence didn’t really make the grade, thanks to his dog. But the point is, that I cannot at any time in the last six years, think of one player who would be regarded as the spine of anything. Anyone promising enough, like Souttar and Collins, has been sold on to re-invest in mediocre replacements.

We still don’t have a contracted, reliable goalkeeper, the personnel and the structure of the defence and the midfield are chopped and changed every two or so games, and we don’t have a reliable (any?) striker. Some of this reflects the constant change at managerial level, but ultimately we are a long way away from consolidation even, never mind a promotion push in the next season or two. Some of the players heralded as the beginning of a spine, like Laurent and Baker, have been droppped regularly or been injured, and we seem to change the captain as regularly as the kit man washes the shirts.

So do we have anything resembling a spine, or anything that promises to develop into one? Because if we haven’t, we can expect more seasons like this one.

When you allow as many players as we did to leave in the summer and bring in as many as we have with virtually no one with leadership qualities (Burger is still finding his feet in this regard), you can't expect a spine to suddenly appear from nowhere in less than 12 months. It'll take time, and as we haven't had stability in the manager's office, it's too soon to say whether the current incumbent is going to be able to build what his receent predecessors failed to do. You call out some legendary names that made up that Pulis spine, but even they did not come to a virtually empty building; they had Griffith among others to take their cue from. And if you go further back to Waddo's spine those players had been allowed to grow together within the youth structure and had Banks, Dobing, and Eastham to set the standards. But for now there's nothing remotely resembling that.

[theonlooker]

I can see Burger and Bae being part of a spine.

[redandwhitetundra]

Worth bearing in mind too that Pulis recruited as much on mindset and character as skill and ability.

[CBUFAWKIPWH]

Pulis was in a situation where he had a body without a spine so put a spine in the body. Every manager since relegation (apart from Neil this summer) were either removing a spine that was no longer fit for purpose or installing a make do spine while disposing of the body and the make do spine. We now have body and a few vertebrae so might actually be in a position to build a spine.

[teanstoke]

You can’t have loan players in spine positions.

[collo68]

Mar 12, 2024 17:46:28 GMT Linx said:

This might seem a bit premature and even irrelevant in our current situation but I’ve been thinking of the spine of the team. Or lack of it.

Back in 2006-2008, when TP almost surprisingly took us to promotion, he had developed in those two years the spine of a team that won promotion and kept us in the top flight: Simonsen, Shawcross, Wilkinson, Whelan, Fuller, Lawrence. There were some who we thought might be part of it but fell by the wayside, like Cort and Dickinson, and even Lawrence didn’t really make the grade, thanks to his dog. But the point is, that I cannot at any time in the last six years, think of one player who would be regarded as the spine of anything. Anyone promising enough, like Souttar and Collins, has been sold on to re-invest in mediocre replacements.

We still don’t have a contracted, reliable goalkeeper, the personnel and the structure of the defence and the midfield are chopped and changed every two or so games, and we don’t have a reliable (any?) striker. Some of this reflects the constant change at managerial level, but ultimately we are a long way away from consolidation even, never mind a promotion push in the next season or two. Some of the players heralded as the beginning of a spine, like Laurent and Baker, have been droppped regularly or been injured, and we seem to change the captain as regularly as the kit man washes the shirts.

So do we have anything resembling a spine, or anything that promises to develop into one? Because if we haven’t, we can expect more seasons like this one.

With the players leaving in the summer we will need a new spine anyway apart from maybe midfield but defo Goalkeeper, centre back and a forward

[smallthorner]

Good goalkeeper

Dominant non nonsense centre half

Centre midfielder who leads and inspires.

Leader of the line.

How many can we get for next term.

[owdestokie2]

Mar 12, 2024 17:46:28 GMT Linx said:

This might seem a bit premature and even irrelevant in our current situation but I’ve been thinking of the spine of the team. Or lack of it.

Back in 2006-2008, when TP almost surprisingly took us to promotion, he had developed in those two years the spine of a team that won promotion and kept us in the top flight: Simonsen, Shawcross, Wilkinson, Whelan, Fuller, Lawrence. There were some who we thought might be part of it but fell by the wayside, like Cort and Dickinson, and even Lawrence didn’t really make the grade, thanks to his dog. But the point is, that I cannot at any time in the last six years, think of one player who would be regarded as the spine of anything. Anyone promising enough, like Souttar and Collins, has been sold on to re-invest in mediocre replacements.

We still don’t have a contracted, reliable goalkeeper, the personnel and the structure of the defence and the midfield are chopped and changed every two or so games, and we don’t have a reliable (any?) striker. Some of this reflects the constant change at managerial level, but ultimately we are a long way away from consolidation even, never mind a promotion push in the next season or two. Some of the players heralded as the beginning of a spine, like Laurent and Baker, have been droppped regularly or been injured, and we seem to change the captain as regularly as the kit man washes the shirts.

So do we have anything resembling a spine, or anything that promises to develop into one? Because if we haven’t, we can expect more seasons like this one.

I’ll keep banging this drum.  

Football Fashions Come and Go,  Football Basics Never Change.

It’s been pure ongoing incompetence that hasn’t developed a strong central spine throughout the squad.  

A strong tall tree is a prime example; roots, trunk and branches. 

Let’s go for quality over quantity in the summer, giving room for a similar approach in January. 

[jokker]

Mar 12, 2024 18:19:37 GMT theonlooker said:

I can see Burger and Bae being part of a spine.

If they stay long enough for that to happen. Already if Bae has Olympic success, he'd be likely to be moving on.

[coomerson]

Persons at his best would have been a decent part of the spine… let’s hope he wakes up, realises he needs to up his fitness and attitude by about 100% and comes back useful next season. Otherwise it’s another wasted squad position for the next 3 seasons.