Gadgey

Obviously, geography and population play a large factor but just a glance at the league 1 and 2 average attendances for last season tells all you need to know about the gulf in club sizes between the 2 divisions. Our only saviour is the old firm for the media coverage/revenue and coefficient they bring. Due to the nature of the Scottish league structure, there is little movement between the divisions and therefore a far diminished risk with fielding a poor team. By contrast, losing the big gates of a Sunderland or Pompey visit when falling to League 2 can hurt for years, particularly when you’re being outspent by non leaguers and can no longer entice the big clubs to loan their top youth to you. There isn’t much between the bottom and top 10s of leagues 1 and 2 and I believe it would be within this glut that all non old firm SPFL sides (including the city teams) would level out. For example, this current Motherwell team would be languishing at the very bottom of league 1 and would struggle to get anywhere near the league 2 playoffs.

Unfortunately, I think this could well be the dystopian future that awaits Scottish first team football. Someone commented the other day about Bowman perhaps getting a better goal to game ratio by taking a step down to League 2. League 2 is NOT a step down. If Project Brave does what it’s supposed to, then we will see many more young Scots getting cherry picked by bigger English clubs before playing many if any first team games. The standard of football in Scotland is turgid and there is limited development potential in playing a limited style of football against the same limited teams over and over again. By contrast, any young talent with a good attitude will grow far quicker by going to a bigger club with infinitely more resources and a highly competitive environment. England also has the league structure to loan out and expose young talent to a range of different levels of opposition. And whilst we and other Scottish clubs just like us cannot baulk at £400k, we are only affirming our allotted place in the talent development food chain.

That actually made me do a LOL ...... You’ve started a little earlier than normal Dewell. Is that the same logic as turning down a bunk up wi Gal Gadot because she might have a wiffy fufu?

I haven’t been this genuinely excited about a ‘Well signing since the first return of Faddy. I just hope he’s not done and a big disappointment.

What you describe is exactly what destroyed Scottish football from the late 80s into the 90s and onwards. It’s no coincidence that Scotlands national team has been weak during this period as well. This particular problem is not isolated to Motherwell and whilst your ideology is admirable for a long term vision (there needs to be wholesale systemic change), what do you suggest is done in the short term? The here and now. How is the gap between imported journeymen and homegrown high quality professional footballers bridged? It should be on that there should be discussion because I’m pretty fuckin tired of the same old qualificationless wingeing bastards coming on here slamming a manager (it’s not been exclusive to Robinson) for failing to flood the team with kids who may or may not be ready, and then still not being content when those same kids are either not up to it or are perceived to be flogged. Utterly utterly tiresome. So I challenge any one of the roasters...... If you want that gap bridged. What solution should be put in place for Motherwell and the Scottish coaching system to transform the game? And whilst you’re at it, you want rid of this manager. Who would be the manager you’d want to implement your plan?

If Brexit means Brexit.....does Robinson out mean Robinson out?

Sooooooo....... Taking his comments into consideration, who won’t be with us on the 1st of February?

Seeing as we were so shite last night, shall we just give the point back?

Makes today’s win even more important

On current form, wherever the fuck he likes

And putting your faith in youth in such a precarious position would be an act of desperation.

To be fair, I wasn’t one of those calling for his head. His development has plateaued though, and if the boy has any ambition of making the transition from youth to adult international or carving a career at a higher level, then that is where he has greatest career opportunity.

I seem to remember a debate last season about Cadds and how the manager had been causing frustration by playing him out of position and thus stifling his potential. I remember saying at the time that in the modern game, his prospects south of the border would be better as a RWB. I think Superward nails it. My opinion hasn’t changed. That RB/RWB position for Scotland is up for grabs and the most likely opportunity for a player like Cadden to play at that or a higher domestic level. He would flourish in a relatively decent side playing 4231 for example. Whether he achieves the giddy heights anticipated by some Well fans is debatable but much of that is about objectivity.

I’m really looking forward to this and a bit disappointed there hasn’t been much made of it on here. Hibs are decent and the age gap may cause us issues. That said, there’s a lot of experience in our team and their game management will offset much of that. It hasn’t caused much hassle throughout the season. G’on the WELL !!!!

There was a time when that wasn’t wholly unrealistic if there was the desire. I’m old enough to remember the days when a huge proportion of players playing in the Scottish premier were born in Lanarkshire....particularly Bellshill maternity. As YaBezzer has said, there was a conscious decision to move away from Scottish talent and buy supposedly cultured journeymen from England and abroad. Clubs like Dunfermline have never fully recovered and we nearly died because of it.

It’s not a definitive no. It varies considerably depending upon level of investment and your measure of success. Some clubs have a great success rate but as WishyWell has indicated, it is a cut throat business and players are often the victim of it. It is important to emphasise that a large proportion of the EFL Championship roster and almost all players in League 1 down are primarily English born. My English team Charlton for example have a conveyor belt of young talent. Their Academy is partially fan funded and has 6 players and the manager of the current first team squad on its graduation list. It’s given the greedy bastard owner his greatest income through the sale of the likes of Ademola Lookman and Ezri Konsa. They do however have far more failures to succeed than successes. On a wider scale, the growth of the independent Academies are providing an interesting and unprecedented dynamic. The draw of the privately run academy is the opportunity of playing the big clubs and their measure of success is how many they can get picked up by professional clubs. This takes much of the recruiting burden from many of the pro clubs. A new cycle is in place. Parental desire for their son to be the next Messi and pay for their early retirement makes them willing to pay large monthly sums for their kid to get extra training and opportunity to get spotted at showcase events. These showcase events allow the Academies to act as types of agents and the clubs don’t have to do much more than host an event. My boy was picked up by Charlton at one of their Community Trust half term grass roots activities. This is heavily funded by fan base membership subscriptions and “holiday club” parental fees. The community trust works wonders for the club PR and allows opportunity for talent spotting. 3 of the team I coach (one of which a girl) now train weekly at Charlton because of it. Many smaller English clubs do or outsource something similar. The England DNA at least in theory seeks to address some of what WishyWell describes and focusses not only on the development of a players physical and technical/tactical skills but also puts a young players social and psychological capabilities as a priority. It has been in place for 4 years now and their youth international success is an early indicator that it is working. In many respects, it’s Southgate’s commitment to this that has got him to where he is. I guess time will tell. I have seen none of what “project brave” aims to achieve or the principles behind it.

I don’t have the skills for a nodding head emoji but would do one if I could. So, the million dollar question, what is the solution? Are you involved in the ‘industry’ WishyWell or have been close to it? I can familiarise with some of what you have said in that when I was a boy, I spent 3 years with Motherwell boys club and was let go at the age of 14. Each year, we would have trials to be re-signed to our Y or S forms and tellingly, there was nobody from my group at the time who progressed to becoming a professional player. Fast forward many years and my son began playing at a much younger age than I ever started at. He’s 7 now, has been playing since he was 3, plays for his club team (which I coach) and also for an academy side. We live in Kent and he regularly plays against top professional academy sides or in talent spotting tournaments ran by the professional club academies. By contrast, I didn’t have access to play football until I was playing U9s. The level of talent, footballing mentality and tactical nouse that I’ve witnessed from kids so young has been a real eye opener and light years ahead of anything that I was “coached” as a kid. I’m a FA level 2 qualified coach and the England DNA seems to me as a very positive step in the right direction. Does the SFA have something similar?

A really thought provoking post. Surely what you describe is a cultural problem for all of Scottish football and not in isolation to MFC?

Yes....I should’ve remembered him

LOL I knew someone was gonnae say that. I guess it proves he’s human. Mind you, he cottoned on quick, signing Jules in June and loaning him out for the season in the August. Jules was one of something like 11 Shrewsbury free signings to replace the 13 or so dead wood (including Jim O’Brien) he sold or released. Add a few key loans and you have a team that went from hot tips for relegation to almost season long league leaders.

To be honest mate, I think you’re looking to make a point that just isn’t there to be made. Let’s take your criticism and run with it. You say that management have failed in looking to the long term by failing to give this very good young squad much of a chance in the first team due to external buys from elsewhere. How many ‘Well youth academy players in say the past 10 years (?) who were stifled by 1st team recruitment and selection and have then gone on to prove that the club were wrong? My memory isn’t the best but I honestly can’t think of one.

I don’t think there would ever be any likelihood of us attracting Lambert. I would take the man he replaced though. Ipswich may not have worked for Paul Hurst but he has a decent record in the English lower leagues and did a tremendous job last season with a Shrewsbury squad that isn’t dissimilar to ours.

For the first time in a long time, there’s some reasoned argument for why perhaps there should be a change of manager. Reasoned argument that Yodo has failed to convey in his prolonged and consistent (I’ll give you that) attack of Robinson. So what do you do Yodo when others are coming round (all be it a bit more rationally) to potential agreement with you? Seek to belittle and goad other users. Obviously, grammar and punctuation are not your strong point. Aren't you a clever boy or girl?

To be fair, no one outside of the club does but as you say, to appoint a club legend with no managerial experience from within would be a gamble and given our present circumstances, a naive gamble at that.

It’s not very often that I agree with Ya Bezzer but I’m now in full agreement that Robinson has been sussed by his contemporaries and by his intransigence, he has run his own course. The only discussion at board level should now be who is the best person we can afford to come and get us out of this mess, when is the best time to make the change and how much can we afford to give him to spend in January. As much as I like Las, he is not the answer and anyone who suggests he is, is allowing nostalgia to fuel naivety. Any comparisons to McLean and whether Robbo would play Cooper are invalid as quite simply, we would never be able to attract or afford players like Cooper, Russell or even Craig Paterson for that matter in the current market. All is not lost but I fear that with the current playing staff dynamic, there’s a danger it could be.