JohnMc
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Everything posted by JohnMc
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Aha, right, so playing for Dundee Utd is the height of his ambition. Fair enough, he's probably better off not being at Rangers then. Seriously? Was it the fantastic facilities at Auchenhowie or the salary he got since he went pro that tipped him over the edge do you think? Here's what I think, the hard-on you've got for some at the club is blinding you to the fact that this boy showed no loyalty, no patience, no willingness to fight for a place and no care for what the fans of Rangers, the people who ultimately have funded his 10 year apprenticeship, think or care.
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Well we're as good as Dundee United at bringing through youth players. I'm surprised you don't think players who spend 10 years coming through owe their club anything.
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Right, get you. That would be of no interest to the club who'd spent 10 years developing him prior then. I assumed you were on the inside on this. Goes to show you. Oh, look, I can use emoticons too. Fixed that for you. You think Telfer gave a fuck if Rangers got 2 bob for him when he was 'being approached' then?
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It's pure PR though isn't it. Cancel something that in the grand scheme of things is a drop in the ocean but will make big headlines. It's almost like they want people to know how tough they are and that they are cutting costs.
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Yes, because Dundee United are only interested in helping him develop his career! If this was only about getting first team football then why not join Falkirk who've got a very good record of player development, or Hamilton Accies or Kilmarnock or Motherwell? Hell, why not ask his agent to see if Southampton would take him on seeing as they've arguably got the best player development record in the UK? Dundee Utd approached him and turned his head, whether it was with promises of first team football, better opportunities, more money or blow-jobs from Steven Thomson every time he scored, it doesn't matter, he still chose to leave the club he purports to support, who'd invested significant resources in him to get hm to the stage he was at and who are extremely vulnerable at the moment. Here's the thing, Naismith, McGregor, McCabe, Davis, Lafferty and Ness all bluenoses and all left Rangers because they were worried their careers would suffer if they stayed at the club, they left and joined clubs who'd 'develop their careers'. They are almost universally lambasted for it, they've pariah status among a large majority of our support, despite contributing far, far more to our club than Charlie Telfer ever has. I've no real issue with Telfer leaving the club, good luck to him, but let's see it for what it is and judge everyone by the same standards.
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That's hardly comparable. Telfer is getting a pretty easy ride through all this. The club is being blamed, it's all the fault of McCoist or the coaches is the accepted narrative. Our club is a mess, but in the end Telfer chose to walk away and sign for a club that's got a serious hard-on for Rangers. Rangers players who achieved and contributed far, far more to our club have been demonised by many in our support for leaving our club in the past, yet Telfer is seen as put-upon soul trying his best to get on in the world whilst being dragged back by big bad dysfunctional Rangers. It's funny how we view some events.
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I'm not losing sight of anything, Dundee United making fanciful claims that are accepted unquestioningly by a supplicant media has nothing to do with our club.
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It's not 'nitpicking', United made a strong statement to the media regarding the fee they've to pay for Telfer as somehow hindering player development. They backed that statement up by naming a number of players they've 'developed' since 2006. Had they named Andy Gray, Richard Gough, Kevin Gallagher and Duncan Ferguson you might have a point, but they didn't. That United under Jim McLean produced some exceptional players and sides is beyond debate, but since the turn of the century their player development record is no better than most sides and poorer than some. Thomson and United are trying to claim some kind of football moral high ground that simply doesn't stand up to scrutiny. They should be called on that. Whether Telfer made the correct decision for his career is moot, time will tell. Young players leave clubs because they think it's best for them. Sometimes they are proved correct, sometimes they aren't.
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It's not about comparison, it's about challenging this narrative that Dundee Utd are some sort of run away success story. They aren't, I'd contend that Hearts, Hibs, Kilmarnock and even Hamilton have better records on rearing and nurturing young players. Of the players they mentioned in their press release only Robertson is playing at the highest level and both Celtic and Queens Park can claim some credit for that too. Most people accept our youth development leaves a lot to be desired however even our list of players is comparable to Utds.
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At some point someone is going to have to ask how Dundee Utd are managing to portray themselves as Ajax-like when it comes to youth development. In the 70s and early 80s perhaps but not more recently. They're including both Goodwillie and Conway in their list of 'home-reared' stars both of who made their first team debut's in 2006. In that time Rangers have had Allan Mcgregor, Charlie Adam, Danny Wilson, Alan Hutton, Steven Smith, Rhys McCabe, John Fleck, Ross McCormack, Andy Little, Fraser Aird and Lewis MacLoed all play for our first team. That's before you bring in players we've brought in from other clubs and improved and developed before selling on. We're not very good at developing young players either, something universally agreed.
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Craig Conway was at Ayr Utd for a good while before Dundee Utd and Andy Robertson only spent one season on Tayside. It's like us claiming credit for Naismith and Jelavic.
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It's a strange statement from Utd. You can take from it that they wouldn't have signed Telfer had they known he'd cost so much, that in turn suggests they don't value him that highly. Young players are always a gamble, I noticed the much lamented Dylan McGeough once of this parish is now ploughing his furrow at Easter Road on loan, Telfer could go on to become a great player or also might find himself losing direction in a few seasons time. But for Utd to complain so bitterly is ridiculous, I wonder if they'll get brought up on a disrepute charge.
