[The Earl of Chesterfield]

Towards the end of the last August transfer window it emerged we'd expressed interest in Mansfield Town winger Sam Clucas. Perhaps understandably that club's tiny band of followers squealed like toddlers who'd dropped their ice cream, blubbing that he'd never sign for us as we couldn't afford their best player and quoting ever more ridiculous valuations. However none of that prevented their manager, Paul Cox, sidelining the lad and blaming yet another humiliating defeat on our approach. There then followed a laughable period of posturing by the lowly League Two outfit in a desperate attempt to inflate Clucas's price, squirming that culminated in Cox declaring to the couple of bored old hacks reduced to covering MTFC 'Sam's staying'. Of course this prompted wild celebrations amongst their meagre fanbase, small things meaning so very, very much to supporters of such a small club living lives of almost perennial embarrassment.

But only until Sam Clucas appeared with a Chesterfield shirt a few days later amidst talk of him snubbing new deals at Field Mill the moment he'd had a chance to join a side he described as the 'Barcelona of the lower leagues'.

It then transpired that rather than forcing CFC to raise their bid it was the North Notts club who'd relented, accepting only peripheral add-ons to the original seventy grand bid. Indeed they'd had no real choice given SC's well publicised desperation to move. And at first the youngster appeared slightly overawed by the significant step-up, experiencing facilities, stadiums, crowds and football he could only dream of whilst at his former clubs. He soon settled in, though, and whilst he was no longer the best player in the squad became an integral member, putting in performances and scoring goals that easily repaid the modest investment in him.

None more so than his brace against Scunny that delivered a fourth round tie - not to mention six figure pay-day - at Derby's iPro stadium.

It now appears that his Chesterfield career peaked in making last season's L1 play offs - not too shabby an achievement for someone who started that campaign in and out of a team struggling to survive at the ass-end of L2! What's more Sam Clucas will leave the Proact having earned the appreciation of every Chesterfield supporter for his efforts: not quite a striker but who scored plenty of goals. Not quite a winger but who created ample opportunities for others. Not quite a left back but who never let us down when asked to play there. So nearly a million profit in the space of less than a year when he'd negated the peanuts paid?

A bl00dy good deal in my book, and if we have to pass on fifteen percent (as I'm told is the case), well, I see it as nothing more than charity to those far less fortunate than ourselves.

This post has been edited by MDCCCLXVI: 25 July 2015 - 01:58 PM

[calvin plummers socks]

Has he gone then?

[Itchwagon]

This from the Norwich forum as Brady seems to finally be on his way


As an update to this update, Radio Humberside Sport have tweeted that Hull have accepted a £7m bid for Brady from Norwich and that The Tigers' bid for Clucas has been accepted - sounds like everyone's happy.

Read more: http://www.norwich.v...6#ixzz3gudRwu3o

And not in squad today

This post has been edited by Itchwagon: 25 July 2015 - 02:24 PM

[Siberian Spireite]

'Facts?'

[Walton Spireite]

MDCCCLXVI, on 25 July 2015 - 01:53 PM, said:

Towards the end of the last August transfer window it emerged we'd expressed interest in Mansfield Town winger Sam Clucas. Perhaps understandably that club's tiny band of followers squealed like toddlers who'd dropped their ice cream, blubbing that he'd never sign for us as we couldn't afford their best player and quoting ever more ridiculous valuations. However none of that prevented their manager, Paul Cox, sidelining the lad and blaming yet another humiliating defeat on our approach. There then followed a laughable period of posturing by the lowly League Two outfit in a desperate attempt to inflate Clucas's price, squirming that culminated in Cox declaring to the couple of bored old hacks reduced to covering MTFC 'Sam's staying'. Of course this prompted wild celebrations amongst their meagre fanbase, small things meaning so very, very much to supporters of such a small club living lives of almost perennial embarrassment.

But only until Sam Clucas appeared with a Chesterfield shirt a few days later amidst talk of him snubbing new deals at Field Mill the moment he'd had a chance to join a side he described as the 'Barcelona of the lower leagues'.

It then transpired that rather than forcing CFC to raise their bid it was the North Notts club who'd relented, accepting only peripheral add-ons to the original seventy grand bid. Indeed they'd had no real choice given SC's well publicised desperation to move. And at first the youngster appeared slightly overawed by the significant step-up, experiencing facilities, stadiums, crowds and football he could only dream of whilst at his former clubs. He soon settled in, though, and whilst he was no longer the best player in the squad became an integral member, putting in performances and scoring goals that easily repaid the modest investment in him.

None more so than his brace against Scunny that delivered a fourth round tie - not to mention six figure pay-day - at Derby's iPro stadium.

It now appears that his Chesterfield career peaked in making last season's L1 play offs - not too shabby an achievement for someone who started that campaign in and out of a team struggling to survive at the ass-end of L2! What's more Sam Clucas will leave the Proact having earned the appreciation of every Chesterfield supporter for his efforts: not quite a striker but who scored plenty of goals. Not quite a winger but who created ample opportunities for others. Not quite a left back but who never let us down when asked to play there. So nearly a million profit in the space of less than a year when he'd negated the peanuts paid?

A bl00dy good deal in my book, and if we have to pass on fifteen percent (as I'm told is the case), well, I see it as nothing more than charity to those far less fortunate than ourselves.

Brilliant summary Chris

[Ernie Ernie Ernie]

Walton Spireite, on 25 July 2015 - 04:13 PM, said:

Brilliant summary Chris

How can you agree with Chris saying it is a good deal when you've spent the past week saying we are a shambles and shouldn't sell etc

[DIFH]

Ernie Ernie Ernie, on 25 July 2015 - 06:11 PM, said:

How can you agree with Chris saying it is a good deal when you've spent the past week saying we are a shambles and shouldn't sell etc

Even an accountant has to admit defeat at times.

[FORZA AZZURRI]

£1.3M great figure to say we only paid 70k ish

[clarevoyant.]

Dema Reborn, on 25 July 2015 - 06:28 PM, said:

What facts Clucas is going no show today there the facts....

it's an excellent witty summary but there is one major fact(?) missing the "scab shafting" was engineered with considerable input from our much maligned CEO

[Walton Spireite]

Ernie Ernie Ernie, on 25 July 2015 - 06:11 PM, said:

How can you agree with Chris saying it is a good deal when you've spent the past week saying we are a shambles and shouldn't sell etc

Read my other post club in crisis point b. Eye for detail come on Ernie.

[Ernie Ernie Ernie]

Walton Spireite, on 26 July 2015 - 06:47 AM, said:

Read my other post club in crisis point b. Eye for detail come on Ernie.

The detail is you've spent what seems like an age saying the club is a selling club, we're doomed, nobody knows what they are doing then you've done a 100% u turn and marched in the opposite direction and said its a good deal. That is the only fact that matters and the one that you're making yourself look like a right tool

[lindave]

Dema Reborn, on 25 July 2015 - 06:28 PM, said:

What facts Clucas is going no show today there the facts....

He said thanks to a bloke next to me at ht, for wishing well at his new club and he had a huge smile on his face.

[Wooden Spoon]

clarevoyant. said:

1437892893[/url]' post='1132189']
it's an excellent witty summary but there is one major fact(?) missing the "scab shafting" was engineered with considerable input from our much maligned CEO

He would be much much better suited to a director of football role. He knows football inside out. He hasn't however the experience or qualifications to run a business, and this where he falls down. DA ought to take some of the day to day business off him, and leave him to run purely the football side of things.

[h again]

MDCCCLXVI, on 25 July 2015 - 01:53 PM, said:

Towards the end of the last August transfer window it emerged we'd expressed interest in Mansfield Town winger Sam Clucas. Perhaps understandably that club's tiny band of followers squealed like toddlers who'd dropped their ice cream, blubbing that he'd never sign for us as we couldn't afford their best player and quoting ever more ridiculous valuations. However none of that prevented their manager, Paul Cox, sidelining the lad and blaming yet another humiliating defeat on our approach. There then followed a laughable period of posturing by the lowly League Two outfit in a desperate attempt to inflate Clucas's price, squirming that culminated in Cox declaring to the couple of bored old hacks reduced to covering MTFC 'Sam's staying'. Of course this prompted wild celebrations amongst their meagre fanbase, small things meaning so very, very much to supporters of such a small club living lives of almost perennial embarrassment.

But only until Sam Clucas appeared with a Chesterfield shirt a few days later amidst talk of him snubbing new deals at Field Mill the moment he'd had a chance to join a side he described as the 'Barcelona of the lower leagues'.

It then transpired that rather than forcing CFC to raise their bid it was the North Notts club who'd relented, accepting only peripheral add-ons to the original seventy grand bid. Indeed they'd had no real choice given SC's well publicised desperation to move. And at first the youngster appeared slightly overawed by the significant step-up, experiencing facilities, stadiums, crowds and football he could only dream of whilst at his former clubs. He soon settled in, though, and whilst he was no longer the best player in the squad became an integral member, putting in performances and scoring goals that easily repaid the modest investment in him.

None more so than his brace against Scunny that delivered a fourth round tie - not to mention six figure pay-day - at Derby's iPro stadium.

It now appears that his Chesterfield career peaked in making last season's L1 play offs - not too shabby an achievement for someone who started that campaign in and out of a team struggling to survive at the ass-end of L2! What's more Sam Clucas will leave the Proact having earned the appreciation of every Chesterfield supporter for his efforts: not quite a striker but who scored plenty of goals. Not quite a winger but who created ample opportunities for others. Not quite a left back but who never let us down when asked to play there. So nearly a million profit in the space of less than a year when he'd negated the peanuts paid?

A bl00dy good deal in my book, and if we have to pass on fifteen percent (as I'm told is the case), well, I see it as nothing more than charity to those far less fortunate than ourselves.

So as this entire post boils down to the fact that we got a potential, and now factual, million pound footballer very much on the cheap, due to some extremely hard bargaining and holding of nerve by the club management, wouldn't a word of praise for that much-maligned outfit be in order?

And I'm not decrying Clucas in any way, but to my mind Jimmy Ryan was worth twice that to us, and the management should have moved every mountain in the way of him staying.

[valemadness]

h again, on 26 July 2015 - 11:54 AM, said:

So as this entire post boils down to the fact that we got a potential, and now factual, million pound footballer very much on the cheap, due to some extremely hard bargaining and holding of nerve by the club management, wouldn't a word of praise for that much-maligned outfit be in order?

And I'm not decrying Clucas in any way, but to my mind Jimmy Ryan was worth twice that to us, and the management should have moved every mountain in the way of him staying.

He was offered the same money as Fleetwood offered, he didn't want to stay away from home during the week, unless we'd paid him 10k a week he wasn't staying here

[Wooden Spoon]

valemadness said:

1437911881[/url]' post='1132284']
He was offered the same money as Fleetwood offered, he didn't want to stay away from home during the week, unless we'd paid him 10k a week he wasn't staying here

Good point, but when did the court jester let fact get in the way of his insane rambling?

[Mr Mercury]

h again, on 26 July 2015 - 11:54 AM, said:

So as this entire post boils down to the fact that we got a potential, and now factual, million pound footballer very much on the cheap, due to some extremely hard bargaining and holding of nerve by the club management, wouldn't a word of praise for that much-maligned outfit be in order?

And I'm not decrying Clucas in any way, but to my mind Jimmy Ryan was worth twice that to us, and the management should have moved every mountain in the way of him staying.

I'm not so sure it's hard bargaining or nerve holding from the club, although fair play, it's a cracking price.
Take Doyle for instance, for whatever the reason only Cardiff wanted him in January, hence panicking and letting him go for around £850,000 when many of us would have liked double that. I'm certain that the club would have let Clucas go for a similar fee BUT we had two teams both with PL parachute payments being banked, and Hull also with a further £7m pocketed a few hours earlier, chasing him. Hull, due to the Norwich fee suddenly thought sod this, and blew us all away with what is far more than both us fans and even DA or CT even expected. Now that's probably good news for the playing side of things because it should give DS the chance the genuinely squad strengthen and for us to play hard ball with Preston over a fee for Darikwa, but like I said above if only PNE are really after him that in itself will hold the fee down.
So yes pats on the back all round for what we've got for Sam but it's just as much down to the circumstance of the financial clout of the two clubs wanting him as it is to CT being a master negotiator.

[h again]

valemadness, on 26 July 2015 - 11:58 AM, said:

He was offered the same money as Fleetwood offered, he didn't want to stay away from home during the week, unless we'd paid him 10k a week he wasn't staying here

Yes, I appreciate that, and it might be the case that there was nothing that could be done, but JR is much too good a player to be wasting his talents in Fleetwood. I'd just like to think that the club moved heaven and earth to keep him here, I suppose.
The offer of a house over here and re-location of his family for instance, might have made a difference. Difficult situation, but water under the bridge now.
I hope we don't miss the wee lad too much, but with all due respect to Sam Morsy, JR was the most vital piece of the jigsaw, and he'll certainly be missed to some extent - especially by our defenders, I guess.

[h again]

Mr Mercury, on 26 July 2015 - 12:09 PM, said:

I'm not so sure it's hard bargaining or nerve holding from the club, although fair play, it's a cracking price.
Take Doyle for instance, for whatever the reason only Cardiff wanted him in January, hence panicking and letting him go for around £850,000 when many of us would have liked double that. I'm certain that the club would have let Clucas go for a similar fee BUT we had two teams both with PL parachute payments being banked, and Hull also with a further £7m pocketed a few hours earlier, chasing him. Hull, due to the Norwich fee suddenly thought sod this, and blew us all away with what is far more than both us fans and even DA or CT even expected. Now that's probably good news for the playing side of things because it should give DS the chance the genuinely squad strengthen and for us to play hard ball with Preston over a fee for Darikwa, but like I said above if only PNE are really after him that in itself will hold the fee down.
So yes pats on the back all round for what we've got for Sam but it's just as much down to the circumstance of the financial clout of the two clubs wanting him as it is to CT being a master negotiator.

Irrelevant. Chris's point is that Mansfield were pushing for a lot more for a player with obvious potential, but were held to a fee that represented a steal. Good negotiating.
The fact that Clucas fetched a few more thousand because two clubs were after him is neither here nor there - the point is that we'd have got a major amount of money from anyone, after signing him on the cheap.
It won't do Mansfield any harm either if the 15% is correct, which might irritate everybody else but I'm pleased for them because I want as many local rivals as we can get. It's all money in the bank at the end of the day, and if the alternative is Millwall I'll take Mansfailed any day.