Russell Martin has signed a new contract until 2019

[lake district canary 4,531]

[quote user="Rich T The Biscuit"]That was 2 years ago LDC and he''s been awful since!

Being in the team of the Year 2 years ago doesn''t mean a thing now does it?![/quote]I just don''t get it.  I''ve seen all the goals against us this season and Martin is to blame for hardly any of them.  Pinto, Olsson, Klose, Bassong, Bennett - I can think of examples where they were all found wanting on more than one occasion.  I''ve seen nearly every other player on our team directly responsible for causing at least one goal against us each, from Brady to Wes, to Jacob to Howson to Dorrans - through bad mistakes. Nearly every one of them. You might be able to point to something Martin has done, but not any worse than any others - and what made me more mad than anything watching some of the goals against was how the midfielders were standing around waiting rather than being pro-active in helping the defence.  The anti-Martin stuff is mystifying. Sure he needs to do better - but in a positive set up with players around him functioning well within a team, I see no reason why he should not recapture the form he showed two years ago. You don''t just "lose your ability" - it will still be there, it just needs to be allowed to come to the fore again.  He has been kept on - and that is a sure sign that his ability and experience is recognised by those in the know....it''s a shame other people write our players off so easily.  He can be criticised as with any other player and I''ve criticised him on occasions, but the writing him off doesn''t make any sense.

[Ray 111]

RTTB,

In your opinion he''s been awful but not in the opinion of those that really matter, the managers. Of course he makes mistakes, as do they all, however imo not as many as others.

I really do not get why some supporters need to be so dismissive of the guy, when a succession of managers are not, in fact quite the opposite. I can only assume it is because the managers'' understanding of football and what he brings (on and off the pitch) is massively different to those who berate him.

Do the supporters that give him a hard time believe they know better than the managers? I guess they do, in which case why are they on here and not managing professional football clubs.

[Feedthewolf 4,844]

Looking forward to seeing him continue to represent us for next season and beyond. A reliable pro who knows the club well and genuinely cares about NCFC. Let''s see how he is deployed under Farke''s very different style of football before we write him off - personally I''d have him as a rotation player rather than a guaranteed starter, but he has performed well in a back three (both games against Man City in the 15/16 season IIRC?) and will make a decent contribution this season I reckon.

[Rich T The Biscuit 562]

I haven''t berated anyone, what I have questioned and rightly so is what he has done to deserve a new contract.

LDC used the example that he was in the team of the years ago, in any other walk of life if you''d have been performing 2 years ago and not since do you think you''d be getting a pat on the back and an extension of your contract, of course not.

In my opinion we have seen the best of him, I don''t think he warrants a new contract based on the last 2 seasons and neither should anyone else if you look at the facts.

As for LDC saying he''s seen every goal and he''s never to blame, get to more games LDC, goals are not always as a result of the last action, goals can come from earlier mistakes that were unnecessary, else the gk would always be at fault for letting the ball in for every goal!

[Rich T The Biscuit 562]

I get it now, we''re in a time warp where he was in the Champs team of the year and played well in a back 3 in 2015/16, I take it all back, he is officially Benjamin Button and will be getting better and the last 2 years have been a blip 🤦‍♂️

[king canary 7,562]

Our defence hasn''t been particularly good since the first season under Hughton. Martin was for a while a very good right back but he''s never been more than an average centre back at best.

The fact he''s still our first choice is more an indication of how bad we''ve been at signing defenders than any suggestion of his ability.

[lake district canary 4,531]

[quote user="Rich T The Biscuit"] goals are not always as a result of the last action, goals can come from earlier mistakes that were unnecessary, else the gk would always be at fault for letting the ball in for every goal![/quote]Ah, I see, you take the play of the game back to the person you think should be resonsible, not the player who is actually responsible, like the terrible back pass or mistake from a midfielder, or the failure to pick up a runner that leads directly to pressure in the defence, no you take it back past that to where Martin was involved in some way before that.  I get it now.

[Ray 111]

RTTB,

I didn''t say you had berated him, I believe I used the phrase ''some supporters. Furthermore, LDC said " Martin is to blame for hardly any of them" so by definition he was to blame for some of them, not as you say LDC said "He''s never to blame" you then went on to give LDC a piece of unwarranted and unfounded advice.

RTTB, your misreading of what others have written doesn''t, imo, add to your argument and once again, it is your opinion he has not been performing as well as he did two years ago, although as he is getting older and is now over 30 your opinion that we may have seen the best of him may be true, but this doesn''t mean he isn''t good enough for where we are now.

You also added "neither should anyone else", well RTTB I do think he warrants a new contract, and could, although don''t, take offense to being preached to in such a manner.

[Rich T The Biscuit 562]

And there in lies the problem!

If a centre half plays a short ball to the full back who then loses it because it was a crap ball and the attacker goes through and scores the goal, by your reckoning and what you saw on the highlights show means the full back is to blame, well I guess he was the last one to touch it!? Provided the keeper doesn''t get a hand on it of course at which point it''s the keepers fault.

Genius 🤦‍♂️

Anyway, my point still stands, in my opinion giving a player a new contract that for the last 2 years hasn''t deserved it it either crazy or stupid, or in some views a brilliant idea.

Hope none of you lot own your own business as I''m fairly certain you''d have also got rid of Martin as well as Turner, Bassong and Bennett if you did.

[The Judge 0]

Glad to see my post yesterday clearly wound so many of you up.

Interesting that despite the fact I have been a season ticket holder for more than 30 years I''m clearly a binner in disguise and the fact that I have just got back from my job in London I''m a brain dead loser who clearer does well to talk let alone type a post the my not conform to those clearly with nothing better to do than type post after post through out the day.

Appreciate the tone of my post was inflammatory to some of you who are clearly blinkered to what is happening to our club and I don''t apologise for the fact that I absolutely do think this is the wrong thing for the profession of our club. Call me naive but in any walk of life you could constantly look to improve and be the best you can whether that be as a person, a business or a football club.

The club is massively selling us short at the moment and it is clear under the current ownership that they neither have the wealth or more concerningly in my view the desire to be successful and giving Martin another 2 year contract just reinforces that point.

[hogesar 9,611]

Just popped in to say good posts Ray.

And LDC, we''ve found something we agree on!!

[lake district canary 4,531]

[quote user="hogesar"]Just popped in to say good posts Ray.

And LDC, we''ve found something we agree on!![/quote]

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