Huckerby, Fotheringham and Doherty

[YoungCanary 0]

Out of contract this summer...any thoughts who will stay and who will go?

Hucks - looks like he is going even though we are still up, especially after Roeder''s recent comments. It''s a shame really, i''d love to have him 1 more year, just a bit of experience, while he''s still got a bit of pace left.

Fotheringham - Surely can''t go, captain and decent player in my opinion. Only dout is that would he start if we get a quality centre midfielder in which i think we need to, might be too much for him.

Doherty - been here for a while, a decent season after his dodgy one. But we know he can do it after getting player of the season the year before that, am i right? Could probaly find someone better and more trustowrthy to be fair but im not sure. Never strikes me with confidence really.

[Lincs CR 0]

Of course i would love to see all three stay at the club becuase i feel they are three of our best players in the current squad. Doc has his critics but then again has his fantastic games, fozzy being captain surely has to stay, in reality however, i think Fozzy and Doc will be the only two to get new deals :(

[Houston Canary 0]

We can dump Doherty, the sooner the better. The production out of the defense has been brutal each time he plays. Maybe sometimes we don''t get scored on too much (although in most of his time here, we HAVE been scored on a lot) but the movement of the ball out of the back up to the midfield has been consistently terrible.  It''s no wonder we don''t get very many goals when we can''t bring the ball out of our own end with any confidence.

Huckerby will be great again if he has the off season to heal properly. Heck, our POY was 38 years old, so Huckerby''s age should not be a deciding factor. He''s a spring chicken in comparison to Dublin. His production should be the factor, and it seems it is still consistently good when given the chance to start in his proper position.

[Mook 0]

[quote user="Houston Canary"]

We can dump Doherty, the sooner the better. The production out of the defense has been brutal each time he plays. Maybe sometimes we don''t get scored on too much (although in most of his time here, we HAVE been scored on a lot) but the movement of the ball out of the back up to the midfield has been consistently terrible.  It''s no wonder we don''t get very many goals when we can''t bring the ball out of our own end with any confidence.

Huckerby will be great again if he has the off season to heal properly. Heck, our POY was 38 years old, so Huckerby''s age should not be a deciding factor. He''s a spring chicken in comparison to Dublin. His production should be the factor, and it seems it is still consistently good when given the chance to start in his proper position.

[/quote]

Scored on? Defense? Back Up?

Are you waiting for him to pick the ball up and throw it to the wide receiver? Sorry for the xenophobia by the way, couldn''t help myself.

Doc ain''t bad in this league.

[YoungCanary 0]

I agree that he''s had some bad times, but he;s not that bad is he! Player of the season a few years ago. Just lacks consistency in my opinion. However i do think we should try and bring in someone a bit more solid.

[Matt Juler 161]

The Doc is very solid, gets his head on the end of things and I think he''s had another good season. He''s not paid to play fancy balls out of defence, his job is to defend and in general he''s done that well this season.

[Stone 0]

Hucks - Worth another year in my opinion, his age matters beacuse his game is built on trickery and pace the latter of which has already declined. I don''t see him starting 40+ games a season but do think he''s still quality at this level and would also be a great impact player to bring on from the bench.  

Fozzy - I like him and think he makes a real difference when he plays - just retaining possession and dictating the pace of the game. However, I also think we need a CM who will get on the ball drive forward and bag you a few goals each season and I do think he needs to add that to his game beacuse at present he doesn''t fit the bill and neither does Rusty. Still good to have in the squad and I think if he had a full pre-season he may be able to step up to that. I would definitely give him a deal.

Doc -  Does a job at this level but is very one-dimensional, never fills anyone with confidence. I would like to see a CB join us who could be that talisman and rock at the back (as Malky once was, as Taylor could be?) and form a partnership with Shacks (improving his game too!). I wouldn''t be sad to see him go but if he came cheap enough I''d keep him as a squad player. 

 

[Berkshire Canary 12]

Personally I would keep all of them, Fozzy has done a great job of late, Hucks is still a threat and I don''t feel that Doc is as bad as everyone makes out he is, he does look a little shakey a times but in my opinion he has been no worse than Shacks recently. I agree that if we could sign a solid CB to play alongside Doc or Shacks I feel they would benefit immensely.

[Berkshire Canary 12]

Personally I would keep all of them, Fozzy has done a great job of late, Hucks is still a threat and I don''t feel that Doc is as bad as everyone makes out he is, he does look a little shakey a times but in my opinion he has been no worse than Shacks recently. I agree that if we could sign a solid CB to play alongside Doc or Shacks I feel they would benefit immensley.

[Trent Canary 0]

Keep all three if the moneys right.

All three have been decent players this year, and if Glenn puts his transfer hat on then all three would provide great squad depth  (In the hope that Glenn buys better players to go into the starting lineup)

[Houston Canary 0]

Scored on? Defense? Back Up? - Mook\

Sorry to confuse you.  I should have added ''on'' after ''back''.  I thought it was clear, but I guess not.  From the amount of criticism he gets, the lack of interest in him from other teams, and the huge number of goals we''ve given up with him back there.  Obviously we need a good striker too. BUt they can''t do much if the ball isn''t making it out of our zone.

 

[Mook 0]

[quote user="Houston Canary"]

Scored on? Defense? Back Up? - Mook\

Sorry to confuse you.  I should have added ''on'' after ''back''.  I thought it was clear, but I guess not.  From the amount of criticism he gets, the lack of interest in him from other teams, and the huge number of goals we''ve given up with him back there.  Obviously we need a good striker too. BUt they can''t do much if the ball isn''t making it out of our zone.

 

[/quote]

To be fair, nobody has expressed an interest in Shackell, Marshall, Russell or even Huckerby (before his contract was up).

And as for conceding goals, what? Is it JUST his fault? And don''t we concede goals without him? As far as I''m concerned, the reason we ship goals is because - quite simply - we suck. We''re not very good. We need better shape, a stronger midfield, better full backs, wingers that track back and a more confident goalkeeper, and that''s just the start of it. Then we need confidence and self-belief.

To think that we change one guy and we stop conceding is a little naive in my opinion.

[Gingerpele 0]

we need all three, never mind the quality, we really need to keep as much as we''ve got, as we will have little money to spend this summer AGAIN

[Ian 1,140]

Zone?! Did you mean penalty area, or perhaps half?I''m fed up of the amount of unjustified criticism Doc gets, especially when it''s from people who apparently don''t know any valid "soccer" terminology either. Yes, he''s not a slick, cultured central defender, but he does his job okay and always gives his all. By all means, if we can find a couple of centre backs who are a) better defenders, b) more cultured, c) better going forward, d) not playing regularly in the Prem/another big league, and e) who we can afford, then I would certainly let him go.Let''s not forget that our biggest problem this season has been scoring goals. I''m aware it would be nice if Doherty could chip in with a few from set pieces, and make a few assists as well, but the majority of responsibility for this has to lie with the midfield, wide players, and strikers (obviously).Frankly, I''m not sure if you have actually watched any highlights/listened to any commentary regarding our recent matches if you think the ball isn''t making it out of our "zone", and therefore we''re not generating any chances for our strikers. I would be more flabbergasted if you think this is down to Doherty.Back on topic, I think we need to keep all three players at this stage. I believe Hucks is still irreplaceable when fit and on-form, and unless we can get superior replacements for the other two decent Championship players, along with all the other players we need, I would be seriously worried if they don''t sign...Incidentally, I seem to recall Doc was the player in our squad leading the "number of shots" stats at the start of the season! Perhaps Worthington was along the right lines when he first signed him... [;)]

[Lambo 0]

This Morning i was driving past city college and saw Hucks with his wife heading towards the school opposite the college (which i beleive his kids attend??)... perhaps to go tell the school they''re moving?

[Mister Chops 7]

[quote user="Mook"][quote user="Houston Canary"]

We can dump Doherty, the sooner the better. The production out of the defense has been brutal each time he plays. Maybe sometimes we don''t get scored on too much (although in most of his time here, we HAVE been scored on a lot) but the movement of the ball out of the back up to the midfield has been consistently terrible.  It''s no wonder we don''t get very many goals when we can''t bring the ball out of our own end with any confidence.

Huckerby will be great again if he has the off season to heal properly. Heck, our POY was 38 years old, so Huckerby''s age should not be a deciding factor. He''s a spring chicken in comparison to Dublin. His production should be the factor, and it seems it is still consistently good when given the chance to start in his proper position.

[/quote]

Scored on? Defense? Back Up?

[/quote]If you''re shooting for a zip-zip shutout, Doc''s probably as good as any in the Championship.

[Stevie Wonder 0]

With the sheer lack of numbers in the squad, we need to keep all 3.

Hucks as shown since getting a regular place that he is still the most creative player at the club.

Whilst Fozzie isn''t the best midfielder we have had you cannot escape the fact that we look a much poorer team without him.

Doc is a solid defender and if we had him, Shacks plus say Taylor and Pearce then we would have some strength in depth at centre back - I''m fed up with us always seeming to have just 2 senior centre backs at the club i.e Malky & Flem, Flem & Doc and now Doc and Shackell.

To be honest, I can see us also keeping one or two of the former youth products such as Cave-Brown, Eagle and Smart just to make up the numbers.

[The Voice of the Thorpe Area 0]

Doc is a very good defender, who gets unfairly targeted at times. Sure he makes mistakes- if he didn''t then he''d be worth £5m and playing for an Everton or Newcastle. Hopefully all 3 will get new contracts, although it does look unlikely in Hucks'' case.

 

[GJP 79]

[quote user="Houston Canary"]

Scored on? Defense? Back Up? - Mook\

Sorry to confuse you.  I should have added ''on'' after ''back''.  I thought it was clear, but I guess not.  From the amount of criticism he gets, the lack of interest in him from other teams, and the huge number of goals we''ve given up with him back there.  Obviously we need a good striker too. BUt they can''t do much if the ball isn''t making it out of our zone.

[/quote]

How would you know other teams aren''t interested? Are you his agent or something?

Gary Doherty would find it very easy to get another club at this level. Most people know he''s a good defender in our league.

[Yellowfuture 71]

We need to keep them all and as long as the price is right we will, they are all pretty good players, all have their weaknesses and limitations but at least we know what they are and we are not going to we able to afford anything considerably better.  

[Desi Rascall 0]

keep them all, although i am resigned to the fact we may lose Huckerby. I would have thought the cost of agents,signing on fees of even bosman style replacements would soon negate any potential savings in wages.

[scott 0]

All 3 must stay simple as!

 

Hucks has still got it, that extra dimension. All this rubbish about keeping him and using him as a super sub next season is hilarious. - Do some think our squd is going to be so full of quality that a fully fit and resigned Hucks would only make the bench!! - get real if hes here and fit he''ll be playing!

 

Fotheringham - After not looking the part last season, this time around he has been one of our best players. Great leader, never say die atitude, hungry for success and great link up play passing. To replace him with a like for like talent we''d have to spend £1M minimum!

 

Docherty - The perrenial scapegoat at Carrow Road which is so unfair. For 3  months after Taylor left he was outstanding. Yes he can have some stinkers and doesn''t score enough goals from corners or frree kicks but is still a better than average CB at championship level. If he was as good as what some people think he should be then he would be playing for a better club than Norwich. People raved about Pearce but at this moment in time the Doc is the better bet!

 

The only ones who should be leaving are Dublin (retiring), the loanees and the deadwood who can''t get in the 1st team squad!

[ca 1]

[quote user="Lambo"]This Morning i was driving past city college and saw Hucks with his wife heading towards the school opposite the college (which i beleive his kids attend??)... perhaps to go tell the school they''re moving?[/quote]

 

They drop them off there everyday at school, loads of people have seem them do that.

[YoungCanary 0]

Yer don''t look into things too closely!

but i do hope we keep them and bring in some quality! if we have the money to do that is another matter

[Lambo 0]

[quote user="cityangel"]

[quote user="Lambo"]This Morning i was driving past city college and saw Hucks with his wife heading towards the school opposite the college (which i beleive his kids attend??)... perhaps to go tell the school they''re moving?[/quote]

 

They drop them off there everyday at school, loads of people have seem them do that.

[/quote]

 

The kids wern''t with them and they were definatly walking to the school rather than away from it.

[Houston Canary 0]

To be fair, nobody has expressed an interest in Shackell, Marshall, Russell or even Huckerby (before his contract was up). - Mook

 

Are you insane, Mook, dishonest, or just incredibly forgetful?  Nobody has expressed and interest in Huckerby????  Why would you even bother wasting the time typing that?  Every year, someone is coming after him, and every year, he tells ''em, "Thanks, but no thanks, I like Norwich."  Are you familiar with a Scottish outfit called Celtic United?

I don''t think Doherty is the only crap player we have on defense, but this topic is about him, Foz and Huckerby.  I have decried our defense for several seasons, although only for a few months here since I was not a member.

 Too many of you lord over Doherty because he ''tries hard'' and is gritty.  He is deemed untouchable by so many, but to those more open minded, he is somewhat of a liability in terms of smarts and distribution quality. 

[GJP 79]

[quote user="Houston Canary"]

 Too many of you lord over Doherty because he ''tries hard'' and is gritty.  He is deemed untouchable by so many, but to those more open minded, he is somewhat of a liability in terms of smarts and distribution quality. 

[/quote]

It''s not that he''s untouchable it''s just that I think people tend to realise he''s a good defender at this level. For me the real weakness in his game is his speed on the turn, that''s when he looks sluggish. But he reads the game pretty well, rarely found of position, good tackler, good in the air and it''s very rare you see anyone go past him with pace (he shifts a bit quicker than people realise). He''s not exactly Cesc Fabregas with his distribution but for the most part his distribution is sensible even if sometimes his diagonal ball across the pitch doesn''t land on a penny.

 

[Mook 0]

[quote user="Houston Canary"]

To be fair, nobody has expressed an interest in Shackell, Marshall, Russell or even Huckerby (before his contract was up). - Mook

 

Are you insane, Mook, dishonest, or just incredibly forgetful?  Nobody has expressed and interest in Huckerby????  Why would you even bother wasting the time typing that?  Every year, someone is coming after him, and every year, he tells ''em, "Thanks, but no thanks, I like Norwich."  Are you familiar with a Scottish outfit called Celtic United?

I don''t think Doherty is the only crap player we have on defense, but this topic is about him, Foz and Huckerby.  I have decried our defense for several seasons, although only for a few months here since I was not a member.

 Too many of you lord over Doherty because he ''tries hard'' and is gritty.  He is deemed untouchable by so many, but to those more open minded, he is somewhat of a liability in terms of smarts and distribution quality. 

[/quote]

If you can find me a better quality CB than Doc at a fair price in the Championship then I''d snap him up immediately. But I''d still keep Doc as backup anyway, because he keeps his head down, is a great squad member and does a job at our level. His distribution is poor, but his defending is good. Shackell''s distribution is poor, and at the moment his defending is poor too.

As for Huckerby, come on. There''s never been any serious interest in him, nothing more than paper talk ie. Strachan/Huckerby at Coventry, Strachan/Huckerby at Celtic.

In fact, didn''t Strachan public take the mickey out of Hucks by saying he was "uncoachable" and wouldn''t bother defending? Hardly the talk of a manager who was desperately interested.

[Houston Canary 0]

How would you know other teams aren''t interested? Are you his agent or something? - GJP

I would know this because I read the Pinkun.  When was the last time there was anything in the Pinkun about Doherty just maybe being sought by someone else? When was the last time any of it turned out to be accurate?  If he was considered to be ''all that'' by other teams, we''d hear at least SOMETHING about interest from other clubs.  And the Pinkun would be right there to cover it.  (I now dare the site operator to not put my message up!)

As for Mr. Chops, when it comes down to the last game of the season and we need a 0-0 draw, then we can bring Doherty in off the bench.  I just don''t see a lot of demand for 0-0 games, standing-wise or entertainment-wise.

[Mister Chops 7]

[quote user="Houston Canary"]

As for Mr. Chops, when it comes down to the last game of the season and we need a 0-0 draw, then we can bring Doherty in off the bench.  I just don''t see a lot of demand for 0-0 games, standing-wise or entertainment-wise.

[/quote]Oh.  Is that what a zip-zip shutout means?