Niel Kilkenny, Jay Simpson, Mark Randall

[Mendoza]

Todays Argus has a good article with Naylor interviewing Dick Knight about the transfer window.

Knight said at the start of the season he tried to get Arsenal's Mark Randall and Jay Simpson

And at the start of the transfer window made THREE firm bids for players, one being McNulty and the other two clubs not too interested to start with

Also said we are going to try and get Kilkenny in on loan still

Cant find it online but its a good read

 

[itszamora]

Going by the events of the past few weeks, I actually believe him this time too!

 

[El Presidente]

Apparently we are still interested in Racon from Charlton too according to Naylor

 

[Jim D]

Apparently we are still interested in Racon from Charlton too according to Naylor

Racon played yesterday - seemed to be doing well according to the reports on SSN.

 

[One True BHA]

If we get in Racon I will shit my pants, he was f***ing class.

Simpson and Randall are already far above League One standard. Simpson is scoring goals on loan at West Brom.

 

[Dave the OAP]

I remember talking to Insider at Leeds and we agreed that Racon was absolute class and we would like to do everything possible to keep him.

Anyone else rememebr him at Leeds last year......one of the best performances of an albion player away from home

 

[Horton's halftime iceberg]

He broke his foot against Watford last year and has been out for over 3 months. I imagine he will be back in their first team once he is match foot. I agree class perhaps we can get him if he needs match practice or if he is not in their long term plans.

Charlton Athletic Playing Squad

 

[severnside gull]

Racon is in Charlton's first team so not much chance there I'm afraid and Kilkenney has already hinted he would rather go to Oldham who want him on loan (no house move involved and knows some of their players) so again it must be on the less than likely side.

We will struggle to get what we want but all praise for the efforts being made and I'm sure they will pay off.

 

[BensGrandad]

The attempt to get Kilkenny suggests that if they fail with a loan they will go after another target of similar strengths and quality so all will not be lost.

 

[SULLY COULDNT SHOOT]

I suppose this is the summary article: Seagulls still hope to sign Kilkenny (From The Argus)

 

[BensGrandad]

Just read the article about Jarrett I thought that he had signed until the end of the season but according to the article that is not so.

 

[S'hampton Seagull]

Just read the article about Jarrett I thought that he had signed until the end of the season but according to the article that is not so.

From the article:

"Manager Micky Adams is keen to supplement the capture for the rest of the season of former Preston midfielder Jason Jarrett"

 

[clippedgull]

the transfer window article:

Albion were busier than ever during the January transfer window, signing six players.

Jim McNulty and Craig Davies arrived on permanent deals, Seb Carole, Jason Jarrett, Chris Birchall and the on-loan Calvin Andrew for the rest of the season.

Despite the hectic activity and the significant boost to the Seagulls’ squad, Dick Knight dislikes the transfer window system and would like to see it reformed.

Here, the chairman explains why in an exclusive interview with Andy Naylor.

The transfer window system is being widely criticised. Are you pro or anti? I am not in favour of the window system at all. I think we should go back to having an open transfer period up to a deadline date in March, which is how it used to be.

How does the January window differ from the August window? The January transfer window is so much more intense than the August one, because teams are in trouble or trying to ensure promotion.

The whole thing is concentrated into a very narrow period and you get a domino effect. Clubs you are trying to get a player from are waiting on a deal for a player coming in to allow it to happen. You get a lot of tap dancing going on in the first part of January.

It should be called the last week in January window, because in reality business does not start getting done until that last week.

It underlines why it is so unworkable. It was originally brought in primarily to establish stability in the Premier League, not allowing the big clubs to snap up all the players prior to the deadline date.

What has happened is that it has created another deadline and an intense amount of competition.

How were Albion affected this time? I made firm offers for three players in the early part of this January window but I knew I wouldn’t really get a genuine reaction from the clubs in two of those cases.

One of the offers was for Jim McNulty. Two other clubs were interested in him at that stage and he wanted to see how it panned out.

That was quite unusual, to agree terms with a club early in the window. In the other two cases, the clubs weren’t going to react to them straight away because they were dependent on other players they were trying to get in so it focuses it all on the last week.

What about the role of agents? It is feeding frenzy time for the agents, because that is the real time they could earn enough money to spread out for the whole year.

Prices are forced up and that is totally unnecessary. If there was an open transfer market, deals would be done in a logical way and squad strengthening would take place naturally during the season.

I do not pay more than I feel is right in terms of the value of the player so it doesn’t force the prices up with me. At the other end of the scale you have got Manchester City, who can pay anything for anyone.

Generally speaking, the prices paid in the January window will be higher than they would have been if they had been spread throughout the whole year.

Do other clubs share your scepticism of the window system? I can assure you so many clubs are against it. The trouble is the whole system is linked to FIFA on a global basis.

Our Football League structure, with four divisions, is so much wider than in other countries. In most other countries there is only one major league.

There is no other precedent where smaller clubs are affected by the restrictions of the transfer window. It is impractical at our lower level and even in the Championship.

How would you like to see the system reformed? The FA and Football League should be concentrating on issues like this, which are to do with the practical running of football clubs, as opposed to the theory of running football clubs.

They should be putting real pressure on UEFA to get it changed for English football.

Fine, keep the window for the Premier League. It may well work for them with Premier League clubs in other countries, in terms of bringing in foreign players, but why have it for the Football League?

What about the two players Albion paid money for, Jim McNulty and Craig Davies? I know I’ve got good value for the two players I’ve bought. In each case the selling clubs (Stockport and Oldham) had higher offers.

The reason we got them is because myself and Micky (Adams) sold the club to them.

Jim McNulty was a classic example. He had two Championship clubs (Ipswich and Nottingham Forest) and another League One club (Leeds) interested in him.

Bearing in mind the expectation of fans in delivering signings, do you break out into a cold sweat on New Year’s Eve? It’s just part of the job. I am pretty experienced at it now and I think I’m a fair negotiator.

I enjoy that job. Every transfer negotiation is different. There was no pressure to deliver a certain number of players. Micky and I both knew we needed to strengthen the squad and we both knew the particular positions we wanted to aim for.

Are you happy with what you achieved? We have satisfied a number of those requirements to bring in extra quality. I don’t know if fans realise it is easy to get a player from League Two, it isn’t easy getting somebody from the Championship or somebody we know is capable of playing in the Championship.

Premier League clubs will often loan out young players. We identified Mark Randall and Jay Simpson (Arsenal) earlier in the season and Simpson is now out on loan in the Premier League (with West Brom), so we set our targets quite high.

Knight on why the transfer window is wrong (From The Argus)

 

[The Large One]

Just read the article about Jarrett I thought that he had signed until the end of the season but according to the article that is not so.

Yes it does.

Manager Micky Adams is keen to supplement the capture for the rest of the season of former Preston midfielder Jason Jarrett.

Not...

Manager Micky Adams is keen to capture for the rest of the season of former Preston midfielder Jason Jarrett.

In other words, take out 'for the rest of the season', and you will see it makes sense.

 

[Gritt23]

Jay Simpson is far too good for this level, but it's good to think we are trying to get a player of that class.

 

[BensGrandad]

Thank you AL I mis read it and like many on here assumed what it said rather than read it properly. The emphasis is on supplement ie. add to.

 

[algie]

I wonder if Mr Bloom will give Adams a little bit extra dosh in the summer to give us a real chance of a promotion push.

 

[Peteinblack]

I wonder if Mr Bloom will give Adams a little bit extra dosh in the summer to give us a real chance of a promotion push.

I guess that depends on how much more he wins at Poker tournaments over the next few months.

 

[itszamora]

Dick Knight "I made firm offers" "I do not pay more than I feel is right"

Don't get me wrong the club have done really well in the window, but I do love Uncle Dick's habit of taking personal credit for every good thing and sharing (or delegating) the blame for anything that goes wrong.

 

[Seagull73]

Dick Knight "I made firm offers" "I do not pay more than I feel is right"

Don't get me wrong the club have done really well in the window, but I do love Uncle Dick's habit of taking personal credit for every good thing and sharing (or delegating) the blame for anything that goes wrong.

I guess I might have missed this, but where does DK dish out blame for things going wrong? He might go quiet admittedly, but blaming other people, I don't recall him ever publicly doing that?