RichardBuddie

This is the list of the senior clubs of a 26-year old player we recently signed. It doesn't even cover his youth teams: it's just the teams he played for since the age of 19.

 
That's far too many clubs for my personal taste. He must be shite. 

Bit harsh that, I thought the boy did ok for us, yes some mistakes, but he is a young boy that was thrown into a really pressurised situation from the off and I'm sure he'll be all the better for that 4 months he had with us!!

Never said anything derogatory regarding Billy.
He is a good goalkeeper.
And he will be eventually a great goalkeeper.
Next Season I would have him understudy to Graeme Smith.
So back down Gents.
And DON'T PANIC !!!!!

Easy Shull, I like most of the stuff you post here, but I have to defend Billy, he has came in to a losing team facing relegation and yes he's made mistakes but also played very well, I personally want Billy signed up as no1 next season.

Firstly I'm sad to lose a player of genuine quality and one that excites me as a fan when watching the team.
The award of a free kick anywhere within 25 yards of goal created a wee buzz of anticipation around the Saints fans home or away and I will definitely miss that.
From a club perspective though it's good to see these players getting a move to what is after all a very big league. Although it's the 2nd tier in England the money going around in that division is mind boggling. I'd be sure the Championship would be in the top 5 richest leagues in European football.
It says a lot about the work that David Longwell, and now Allan McManus and his team have done/are doing at Ralston that  we've had two graduates go to that league in the last 6 months.
McLean and McGinn have also went on to receive international honours since graduating from the academy and Jason Naismith is plying his trade in the top flight too.
It sends a message to existing players in the academy that if they are good enough and work hard enough they will get a chance, and if they get in the first team they can earn a move on to bigger clubs who can offer bigger rewards.
Secondly it says to prospective players and their parents that this is a club who can provide that platform. It has to be a great incentive for young players to join us over other clubs.
Thirdly we don't stand in the players way of moving on. Again this is important. We promised McLean he'd get his move if he signed a new contract and we promised Mallan in January that he'd get his move in the summer if Barnsley came back in.
So, all good.
The issue then is are we getting value from the players?
In McGinn's case the 33% sell-on clause could yet yield us a 7 figure bounty on top of the £100K we sold him for in the first place. The previous board were lambasted for the decision to sell him to Hibs for that amount but if he does leave Hibs for say £3m which is not unreasonable to expect, then it will bring us in far more than we could ever have sold him for.
McLean has a 10% sell on clause as part of his deal. Not quite in the same ball park as McGinn but still with a very good chance of getting a decent move South.
McAllister and Mallan are now down there playing in a league where clubs regularly buy and sell in terms of millions of pounds. Barnsley themselves sold John Stones to Everton for £3m and then coined in another £7m when Everton sold him to Man City.
They are just further up the food chain that we are.
It's always a gamble but I think both those lads have a real chance and if they do go on to become 1st team regulars then the easter egg could yet pay out handsomely on both.
I can't disclose what was in the Barnsley offer email they mistakenly sent me but suffice to say there were a number of components and incentives on the deal over and above just a plain up front fee and a sell on clause.
 

Several people on here over the years have been slagging off the youth academy at St Mirren but they haven't done too badly for the club recently.
 
We must have made £750k from the sale of Kenny McLean, John McGinn, Kyle McCallister and Stevie Mallan.
 
Plus we have Baird, Morgan and McGennis playing regularly and contributing to the first team with more coming through the ranks.
 
Well done to all the coaches and staff behind the scenes at the youth academy. Keep up the good work!
 
 

Bit harsh that, I thought the boy did ok for us, yes some mistakes, but he is a young boy that was thrown into a really pressurised situation from the off and I'm sure he'll be all the better for that 4 months he had with us!!

Possibly correct but as i pointed out in previous post . Young keeper coming in to a new team with disruption to his defence shortly after his arrival, still compares favourably 

Bit harsh that, I thought the boy did ok for us, yes some mistakes, but he is a young boy that was thrown into a really pressurised situation from the off and I'm sure he'll be all the better for that 4 months he had with us!!

Pretty harsh. A good talented young keeper that did very well for us and played a big part in our survival. At the very least he has done enough to deserve better than this type of comment.

Ooooohhhhhh.... Football was so exciting last season I thought we already had the Horne!

Now it is official.

Welcome on board. Enjoy the ride.

If we can get Davis that would be great as I thought he was brilliant for us, I feel we would have been safe with games to spare but for that unfortunate injury.

Me, along with at least 2 mates and my brother are getting season tickets this year for the first time in about 7 8 years. Been picking and choosing my games and went to much more this season. 
This is the first time I've wanted to go every week in a long time and I couldn't wait til the next game towards the end of this season. Watching a team who actually give a f**k makes you care so much more. 

There has been ill informed opinion on both sides. Barnsley are one of the few clubs in our division who try to live within their means and are building a reputation for unearthing talent from the lower divisions, improving them and selling for a profit. We too have been criticised by our fans in the past for letting that talent go too cheaply. Having said that, we benefited massively from a sell on clause for Stones (ex Academy) and may do so in the future with Holgate (ex Academy) as well. Mawson (ex Brentford) was also sold for £5M in the August transfer window. The controversial sales of Hourihane (ex Plymouth), Winnall (ex Scunthorpe) and Bree (ex-Academy) in January is perceived to have thrown away a good chance of getting into the play offs. The majority of our fans are excited by the potential signing of Stevie Mallan and are hopeful he is a Marley Watkins, rather than a Kane Hemmings, in terms of making the transition. We are constantly belittled by Sheffield Wednesday and Leeds fans. Don't let our minority of numpties make you think we are the same. 

There's a poster going by the name of Conan Troutman on that Barnsley forum who seems to be dipping in here to read our comments. He reckons he's touched a nerve up here with his comments about our football. Well, hopefully if he dips back in, he can enlighten us on how much Scottish Championship football he's witnessed, maybe give us his insight into the merits of Falkirk, Morton, Dundee United, Hibernian... maybe tell us how John Baird, John McGinn, Willo Flood or John Sutton compare to the no-doubt stellar superstars strutting their stuff in the Conference (a league surely only trumped by La Liga for glamour).
Come on mate, go on, tell us all about our own league.
Our opinion on Barnsley (generally speaking) is that it will be a step up in quality for Stevie Mallan, a mid-table English Championship club playing to crowds three or four times bigger than us, and paying Mallan a lot higher wage, is clearly a bigger arena in which to play. We are happy to recognise Barnsley as a place where Mallan can earn a wedge and more importantly progress his career playing in a higher standard league.
That'll be because we actually know a wee bit about what the fcuk goes on outwith our own wee fcuking world of 'Conference standard' football.

Can't blame the boy for wanting to move on and progress his career and to make a bit more cash too. He has been immense the last four months and I really agree with previous poster as without his performances we'd likely be in a different league next season. Very best of luck young man!!

They can delude themselves about how good the lower English leagues are all they want.
The fact is we will never know.
Enough players have failed to adapt when switching in both directions that it's not clear which leagues are truly better.
And if Barnsley are only able to attain their level by racking up huge debt and becoming totally reliant on the teat of TV money rather than bringing their own talent through then that is their problem not ours.
The fact of the matter is, we are a sustainable club operating within our means and we have become f**king awesome at bringing through our own players. Long may that continue. I would rather have that than watch a broken and corrupt football league system any day.

Can't blame the boy for wanting to move on and progress his career and to make a bit more cash too. He has been immense the last four months and I really agree with previous poster as without his performances we'd likely be in a different league next season. Very best of luck young man!!

Indeed. 
Okay sad to lose him but you can't hold the boy back and we were obviously very, very close to losing him in January.
If that had happened then we'd be looking at a smaller fee and, in my opinion, League 1 football. 7 goals, 7 assists in his last 8 for us. Who else could have provided that? Not to mention the amount of joy he's brought us the last few months.
We well and truly dodged a bullet with that deal falling through.

Players and agents hold the aces. If a few relatively high-profile English clubs all wanted Mallan, then no doubt, in a bidding war the club who wanted him the most would pay more than 200k.
Where's a bidding war for Mallan? Has there been serious talk of (let's say) Barnsley, Leeds, Sheffield United and Nottingham Forest all eyeing Mallan up? Nope.
I refuse to blame anyone at the club if Mallan goes to Barnsley for 200k. I am convinced GLS and Sir Fitzy are gutted, but how can they force a suitor to pay 500k in this modern world, and in this particular case? You have to hope they have secured a good sell-on clause, then we need Mallan to become a star and the likes of Swansea or West Brom come sniffing with a bid in excess of 2.5 million...
Best wishes to Mallan, and also best wishes to Jack Ross, Sir Fitzy and GLS as they juggle their balls... oooohhh errr missus!

Don't see why Jack shouldn't get a call-up to the Gibraltar squad - if he becomes a rock in our defence.

Future international for who?  Does his maw come from Gibraltar?

As it says in the title.
Good solid signing.
http://www.stmirren.com/news/club/all-news/878-adam-eckersley-agrees-two-year-deal

Okay, so who will 'fess up to Googling the names? Go on....no-one will snigger, honest.
 

If there are ANY of you who only want to celebrate when we physically win a league or Cup then with all the respect in the world, you are supporting the wrong club.
There are two clubs just a few miles away in Glasgow where you might find better luck.
The idea that Jack has not achieved anything is simply laughable. I can't take that seriously. It is beyond disrespectful after what he has done for us in the last few months.
It is a hard fact that for a club like ours we will from time to time make the wrong call on a manager or squad and face potentially disastrous consequences. Saturday was a success and we should be celebrating it IMO. Unashamedly.