Davenport comments here

[Web Team - Celia Sutton 0]

Lots of new threads have come in about the Davenport signing - to avoid duplication of posts - please post here....

[Editor of Milk 0]

I have to admit I didn''t know too much about him so I googled him and found this from West Ham online dot net: Callum DavenportLeft Coventry City to join Tottenham, then within a week or so shipped out on loan to us. Not many of the fans had to much knowledge about him. He had played in the Coventry team who had recently beaten us 2-1 at Highfield road though. Made his debut in the 2-1 win up at Sheffield United back in September. A giant at the back he looked an excellent prospect and it was gutting that we weren’t about to keep him on loan for longer as he was arguably the best defender in the entire league. But Tottenham had injuries and wanted him back at the end of November. He went back, then within weeks went on loan to Southampton where he spent most of the time on the bench! Such a waste. Read the game superbly and I don’t think it is nonsense to suggest that if we had of kept him for the whole season we may have made automatic promotion.Maybe we will get him back at the club next season either on loan or permanently.Apps: League 10

[Craig Colling 0]

From what I have seen of Davenport he is an excellent defender but I think he is similiar to Shackle - for example he is big, relatively inexperienced but has lots of potential.

I think he will definately add to our fragile defence but the main thing we are missing at the moment is a leader, especially at set pieces. If he can add leadership qualities then he could be the answer to our defensive problems....
Bring on the watford!

[LinkNR9 0]

He looked a bit shaky whenever he played for Southampton, but this appeared to be a confidence thing when the Saints were playing awfully as a team.  

[Northern Canary 0]

should be a great signing. better than what we have and probably what we are looking for at the back. IF worthy has the balls to play him ahead of fleming then i will start getting really excited.

[Crazy Eddie 0]

Shackell may be young, but he does have leadership qualities, and then of course there''s Drury, so I think even without Flemming it is not Leadership that we should worry about, rather the apparent lack of it at times from Flemming when he does play.That said, as I''ve mentioned on another thread, I worry about experimenting with a new partnership for the 2 tough upcoming away fixtures

[ZLF 274]

[quote]From what I have seen of Davenport he is an excellent defender but I think he is similiar to Shackle - for example he is big, relatively inexperienced but has lots of potential. I think he will defin...[/quote]

You are spot on with everything in your post craig.

Davenport does have ability but I seem him as being identical to Shackell - superb central defencive prospects with a real future in the game, and I see shacks as an equal or better than davenport rather than inferior.  To bring him to the club and invest in his wages we will not be starting him on the bench longer term (tonight maybe but not beyond) - we have cover with doc and charlie so expensive cover is not what is needed. 

To bring him in in place of our best performing defender this season (just to make it clear that is Shacks, not flem) and to stunt Shacks development, would be an almighty kick in the b%!!$£s for him and I would be sympathetic to any transfer request he subsequently made. 

I have always said (amid my fleming criticism) that we already HAVE the ability in our squad to defend properly in this league, whichever of charlie, flem, shacks or doc plays AS LONG AS THE MANAGER GETS THEM ORGANISED WITH A LEADER.   There is no evidence that this has happened or is changing.

Shacks is showing signs of some leadership - hopefully calum will do so too, as a pair they have the potential to deliver, will they be allowed to or will their inexperience count against them.

OTBC