According to the LET he signed a contract through to June 2021.

Yes entirely possible (you must have been a fan of the late John Oaksey on Channel 4 Racing to be keen on that phrase) is a way of describing it. The evidence is in the club's transfer record.

Not sure of the date he said that but Tosin and Cunningham did come; is it really necessary to use an aggressive phrase like bare faced lies.

Agreed but as I have pointed out it seems pretty likely that the manager - whether it be Tony Mowbray or anyone else - is operating according to a club transfer policy that does not permit him to spend any significant sums on defenders; hence players in other positions are converted.

According to the club's website Damian Johnson is First Team Technical Coach and Head of Player Development. Many on here want him as manager.

Mate, if you think you are being stalked you should see what I get on here. I was up early to put the bins out - back to bed very shortly. Only a few games that have been enjoyable in the last 9 years by the sound of things; you can get less than that for murder these days.

Which manager do you think has served up football worth £28 ?

Didn't they lose to Stoke at home 5-2 last time ?

Yes, I agree

The managers like Paul Lambert who can expect to get another decent job will do as you suggest - the problem is that we are left not being able to get anyone who is not so well enough regarded in the game.

I think you have misread what I said. I have not for one second suggested that there is something wrong with a man crying. What I would say is that we sympathise - whilst not all men who cry will commit suicide but I would surmise that most men who commit suicide will have been crying. I don't want to take this on any further because myself and the poster with whom I initially disagreed have agreed that this is now closed.

I think Brereton's name will have been put to him after the owners and their representatives came up with the idea and asked him for his opinion. I agree he probably then did something along the lines of what you say and ok'd it having been told there was no alternative signing lined up.

Not a massive liar , no. But I think anyone working here as a manager for long will find themselves in the position of having to say things they don't believe. The one exception was Lambert who walked.

I disagree. If he had little input in to a signing made by the owners on the advice of their representatives he was never going to come out and be anything other than positive if he wanted to keep his job. Instead what he did was never to pick him for the team.

Steve Kean didn't have much going for him but I suspect he had little input regarding transfers. Wasn't Jordan Rhodes bought by football expert Shebby Singh ? Also there is a story that when Jordan Slew turned up for his first day at training Kean greeted him with the words "Well, who are you then ?" I agree with you that strong managers can stand up to owners trying to foist players on to them which I'm afraid is why our owners do not and probably will not employ any of them. You have posted optimistically about the likes of Hughton, Hughes and Pulis replacing Mowbray; in my opinion men like that will stand up to the owners and get a P45 for their troubles just like all the other employees who tried to do the right thing for the club.

I agree with you so let's consider this closed.

Everyone here can look at your original post to see if your words were twisted. I'm pleased to see that you have expressed the views you have in your first paragraph. The exception is your reference to Brereton being a "millionaire" which follows on from a previous reference you have made to him having an attractive partner. I just don't see the relevance of these statements. Either we care about our fellow human beings or we don't; there is not a lower threshold of care for those with money and a beautiful girlfriend.

I think he's taking one for the team by saying he made the signing. He can hardly come out in public and say that it wasn't down to him and the player was effectively foisted on him. Generally I'm afraid that over the last 9 years the nature of the club's transfer dealings have pointed strongly to the conclusion that the manager whoever it is has to accept a significant degree of interference from external sources.

1. I agree with you that it is a good thing that the player cares about how things are going. I think that the overwhelming percentage of professional footballers do care and that the non trying accusations that are levelled against some of them are unjustified. 2. The discussion about crying which developed on this thread came after one poster made a statement that he thought it was pathetic for an adult man to cry. On a day when football was trying to highlight mental health issues and a few days after 39 year old Chris Barker committed suicide some of us thought that was inappropriate. 3 Doesn't Mowbray's handling of the player point to the signing being a decision made by someone else ? If he hasn't rated him how can he play him ?

My point was that the ratio of spending transfer fees is overwhelmingly skewered towards attackers rather than defenders which points to a deliberate policy laid down to all our managers by the owners. Nothing to do with a PR act for anyone but an indicator that managing this club is just that bit harder than some people imagine.

Thanks. Sad to say that one can't rule such a theory out of hand. If true,this sort of thing does of course point to how difficult it would be to recruit a manager with a high standing in the game - the likes of Hughton and Warnock would simply refuse to go along with something like this.

I must have missed it. What was the conspiracy theory ?

I saw Marriott play on Friday night where he scored his first goal in 18 games with what looked like a mishit. The half time interval was spent with the TV showing the extraordinary number of good chances that he had missed prior to that.

Scott Dann arrived before we were relegated whereas I specifically referred to what has happened since then. How are you in a position to know what the loan fee is for Tosin ? Duffy is the most expensive defender at approx £450k since we were relegated. We did of course make a substantial profit on his sale.

I was giving it the local flavour.