Marley Watkins on trial

[dembethewarrior]

TBH I am just glad I've got a footie team to support.
Like every team in the league, we are skint, relying on wealthy owners who have had a rough time during the pandemic.
I think we will be ok this year, as many are worse off, but its difficult to see us challenging the teams just down from the Prem, who have their parachute payments.

I think we will be OK, and I welcome any youngsters that play whatever the reasoning, but the narrative coming out of the club, in my opinion anyway, seemed to suggest that there would be a focus on youth etc, and I found that to be like a politicians lie tbh, selling it as something they had planned to do, when let's be honest it's been forced on them. Mick is here cos he can work with a small budget, and the small budget is why we will see youth, not because the club all of a sudden decided that was our new direction. Plenty on here seemed to fall for it getting excited about it.

[Cleve van Leef]

Can't say I'm too excited about this one!

https://www.footballinsider247.com/s...-bristol-city/

Poor sod might get 4 years.

[dembethewarrior]

I don't doubt cost reduction in both fees and wages is a major factor in the way the club is going, but I don't share your cynicism that it is the only reason for bringing more u23 players into the first team squad and match-day team.

The excitement about the current generation of youth players has been reported for 2-3 years, and some of them have finally matured into potential first team members. First Harris and then McCarthy have shown a willingness to give them a chance. Not consistently I grant you, and the expansion of the bench to deal with Covid pressures has made it easier to include younger players on a match-day, but I think the break through of Bagan, Harris, Sang, Brown and Colwill is down to their ability as much as their price tag. The same is probably true of the next 4-5 to come off the conveyor belt: Evans, Patten, Bowen, Davies or whoever finally makes it.

All clubs would prefer to grow their own talent rather than rely just on buying it in (need to do both). Unless you think the lads now making the step up are not good enough (and all of them will have to learn on the job) then it is something we should celebrate. It is a strength for the club not a weakness.

Its all about opinions bruv

[dembethewarrior]

For whatever reason the focus will be on youth and i for one will be happy uf we can get three or four in and around the starting eleven if it means managing our debt not increasing it and operating within our means.

I'm happy to see youth get a chance, I'm also happy if we can be more sustainable, my point was that it has only really come about because we have a decreased budget due to parachute payments and other reasons.

That's not me slating it or being negative, it's just seeing it for what it is. I don't think it's a bad thing, I'm just not fooled by the clubs spin on it.

[Former Labour leader]

Was Watkins the trialist who played 2nd half?

The 'boss' has confirmed on the match thread that the trialist was Marley Watkins.
Unfortunately he came on in the 2nd half, playing in a weaker team. He did very little that I could see.