Barrow's manager on players salary expectations

[Christies Child]

Listening to the Barrow manager on Radio Cumbria this afternoon, he touched on the subject of the unreal salaries that players HAD been asking earlier this close season. Now those same players who had priced themselves out of the market were now approaching him with cap in hand and significantly lowering their expectations just to get a club.

Maybe a similar scenario will act in our favour over the coming days / weeks when players realise that the prospect of no club and therefore no salary is looming large.

Without doubt there are players who will not get a full time deal. Just as there will be players who will have to accept that the days of their agents being able to dictate to clubs are diminishing rather quickly.

[shrimpnsave]

Listening to the Barrow manager on Radio Cumbria this afternoon, he touched on the subject of the unreal salaries that players HAD been asking earlier this close season. Now those same players who had priced themselves out of the market were now approaching him with cap in hand and significantly lowering their expectations just to get a club.

Maybe a similar scenario will act in our favour over the coming days / weeks when players realise that the prospect of no club and therefore no salary is looming large.

Without doubt there are players who will not get a full time deal. Just as there will be players who will have to accept that the days of their agents being able to dictate to clubs are diminishing rather quickly.

lets hope so but with no news from the club about any possible signings it aint looking rosy,keeping my fingers and legs crossed.

[Christies Child]

I prefer to think it's because the club have openly mentioned that we were after 'whoever' and lost out that they now, quite rightly, want to say nothing until the deal is signed sealed and delivered.

Frustrating, but understandable.

[Number 1]

It's a fair point, but to contradict a famous saying, the best things in life are not free, and similarly, the best players will get the best wages. The lesser players will get lesser wages.

It may be that mediocre players have been setting their sights too high, but without a doubt, the players that clubs are battling for will go to the clubs who pay the best.

There's any number of players available, but it's a battle of wits as to who holds out for longest. The clubs who refuse to pay high wages to test the resolve of a potentially unemployed player, or the player, thinking they can get a better deal elsewhere.

[Christies Child]

It's a fair point, but to contradict a famous saying, the best things in life are not free, and similarly, the best players will get the best wages. The lesser players will get lesser wages.

It may be that mediocre players have been setting their sights too high, but without a doubt, the players that clubs are battling for will go to the clubs who pay the best.

There's any number of players available, but it's a battle of wits as to who holds out for longest. The clubs who refuse to pay high wages to test the resolve of a potentially unemployed player, or the player, thinking they can get a better deal elsewhere.

Bearing in mind our geographical location which to some propective players could be an issue, which other quality strikers have signed for Northern based clubs?

There is in my opinion very few of what I call quality strikers out there who are or have been available and more importantly within our wages scale.

DC was on £60K plus at Carlisle. Let's say he's taken a pay cut at Bury. Would you honestly pay the guy over a £1K a week? I for one wouldn't......

However we continue to wait, ever hopefull that we can find that elusive striker(s) otherwise it could be a long hard winter.

[wijit]

CC has hit on something we all should be well aware of. We have the bigger problem of location. Unless you're about 70, Morecambe is not an attractive place to move to. It's sad, but we need to be able to pay better wages than we probably can in order to get the players we clearly need to progress.

[Mark S]

I disagree on both counts.

First of all I do not at all recall Morecambe FC stating that they were persuing anyone until the deal was dead.

Secondly, I honestly dont think for a professional footballer (now that we are in the Football League) that our location is a barrier. There is no stipulation that they have to live in the Town (Nandos in Manchester is still rueing us letting 'Leg end' go). We have players travelling from over an hour away and if you think about it the biggest concentration of Premiership clubs are in the Nort West. A veritable football Mecca. Coupled with the fact that we are an ambitious club about to move to a great new stadium, we should be very attractive.

What I am impressed with is that we are not willing to break the bank to make a deal at all costs. I get frustrated when one or two individuals openly crticise Sammy or the club over a perceived lack of signings and the expectations. FFS do the maths over income and expenditure.

[Aspers]

What's a decent wage in the UK now. (Mini Ramblings coming up)
My first wage in 1978 was as a junior corps de ballet member with the National Ballet company of Ireland 29 quid a week. My flat was 3 quid a week, but the touring allowance was 15 quid a day, we spent more than 7 months a year on tour.
(On a long tour we used to give notice on our flats, except 1, then store all our stuff in the 1 flat and split the rent.) 10 people into 5 quid was 50p each per week.
When I freelanced I worked for 150 quid a day or performance.
When I was in Phantom I was earning about 600 quid per week 1988-1990.
A lot of money I know.
Spent most of it on Women and alcohol, the rest I just flittered away.
Best paying job was 1 summer I was filming 7 deadly sins for Granada, Love and Marriage for Yorkshire TV and guesting with London City Ballet on Saturdays. Living at home with mum and dad, driving to Manchester or Leeds for filming having to go to London for Sat performances, stay in my flat Sat evening and drive back to Morecambe on the Sunday earning over 2000 quid a week for 3 months.
Oh to be single and rich, it was brilliant.
I'd bloody love that now.

[Abbo]

There's a famous old saying, you get what you pay for !!!!!!!! pay mediocre wages and thats the kind of player you get, mediocre. How many people that post on hear saying we shouldnt be paying over the odds for a centre forward would have the balls to say "i was wrong" at the end of the season when were relegated and face going to the new ground playing none league football.

[Heysham_Shrimp]

I disagree on both counts.

First of all I do not at all recall Morecambe FC stating that they were persuing anyone until the deal was dead.

Secondly, I honestly dont think for a professional footballer (now that we are in the Football League) that our location is a barrier. There is no stipulation that they have to live in the Town (Nandos in Manchester is still rueing us letting 'Leg end' go). We have players travelling from over an hour away and if you think about it the biggest concentration of Premiership clubs are in the Nort West. A veritable football Mecca. Coupled with the fact that we are an ambitious club about to move to a great new stadium, we should be very attractive.

What I am impressed with is that we are not willing to break the bank to make a deal at all costs. I get frustrated when one or two individuals openly crticise Sammy or the club over a perceived lack of signings and the expectations. FFS do the maths over income and expenditure.

Spot on.

we have always been able to attract players from the Merseyside/Manchester area. We used to have a full back called Graham Jones who travelled from the Bradford area to play for us in the NPL.

Where we do miss out is on the Charlie Macdonalds of this world who will not re-locate from the South.

[Keith]

There's a famous old saying, you get what you pay for !!!!!!!! pay mediocre wages and thats the kind of player you get, mediocre. How many people that post on hear saying we shouldnt be paying over the odds for a centre forward would have the balls to say "i was wrong" at the end of the season when were relegated and face going to the new ground playing none league football.

I wonder how many Darlington fans are wishing they had lived within their means rather than pay over the odds and money they didn't have? If/when they actually go out of business, I'd think 100% would. Wonder if Leeds fans are happy with the way their club has been run in the past? I'm delighted that we are run by a group of decent business men who are not gambling everything for short term gain. If we miss out sometimes because they are being sensible, I'll live with that and continue to back their decisions.

If at the end of the season we are relegated because we couldn't afford to stay in the league, I'd rather that than finish mid-table and heading into administration.

Besides, we could have paid over the odds for a mediocre player a few months ago, instead we may sign a good player for the same money this week?

[Abbo]

Fair comment Keith, i think im just getting frustrated at the lack of signings

[Dazzer]

Was it Sammy, or it might have been Mark, who said recently they were aiming to have a smaller but more versatile squad this coming season?
Well we won't be alone in that, I'm sure that the current climate will dictate that the majority of clubs will be looking to trim their squads for next season.
That obviously means there are going to be same number of players, now looking for fewer places.
That should obviously work in our favour when it comes to the quality of any replacements, the problem is that at the moment as is pointed out at the start of the thread they are not as yet reducing their wage demands. But as the close season wears on that will happen. Sammy and the board know that and will be willing to be patient. We might just have to accept that it might actually be the start of the season before any players come on board.

[The Red Knight]

There's a famous old saying, you get what you pay for !!!!!!!! pay mediocre wages and thats the kind of player you get, mediocre. How many people that post on hear saying we shouldnt be paying over the odds for a centre forward would have the balls to say "i was wrong" at the end of the season when were relegated and face going to the new ground playing none league football.

I'd be delighted with a squad of mediocre League Two players. As a club we are easily in the bottom third of the league in terms of size so if we can attract middle tier quality players to come and play for us then we will be punching above our weight.