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Jack Stephens to Swindon on loan?

Lallana's Left Peg

By Lallana's Left Peg,
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Suhari

Suhari

Posted
Posted
2 in a day when Reed said we are not big 'loaners' - interesting.

 

He also said that there are some instances where a short term loan is warranted, citing instances if a player is 20 ish and not getting into the first team squad.

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sotonist

sotonist

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He also said that there are some instances where a short term loan is warranted, citing instances if a player is 20 ish and not getting into the first team squad.

 

yup... if he goes out and comes back still not in contention then he'll probably be on the way out. the U21 coach did say that him and turnbull were progressing very nicely the other day though.

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david in sweden

david in sweden

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2 in a day when Reed said we are not big 'loaners' - interesting.

 

 

No panic, with so many good prospects up and coming in the Academy, those lads (around 20 y.o.) who have completed their time and been given an extra year have something to prove - and quickly.

 

Unlike those " so-called big clubs " who loan out a dozen or more lads (did I read 23 by Chelsea)?, it's important to see if they cope with lower league games because if they can't ....there's no future for them.

 

Luke Shaw and Calum Chambers have set the standard and all those youngsters know that if they don't impress....it'll be a fond farewell by August. ( ala Reeves and Hoskins last season.)

 

Isgrove has played U21 for Wales and got a call-up for the full squad last time, but not got off the bench yet. A few goals /or/ assists for Posh in the next month will mark his card one way or another.

 

Good, young, central defenders are harder to find than left wingers and now that Stephens has a 4 year pro-contract, Saints will want to see if he'll be replacing someone like Jos / Yoshida on the bench,

or whether we go out and find a " Lovren clone " to give us depth in the sqaud and cover for eventual injuries, and keep Stephens around for another year or two and see if he can break into the squad.

 

I don't think such loan-outs goes against Reed's statement, but when the old guard finish up their contracts in the summer, there will l be lots of places in the squad to fill... and they'll all be 21 or under.

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Olallana

Olallana

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Is it a case that the U21 cant win their league with the few games left so they are ready to give some players that is close to the senior squad some league experience..??

A month or two for another team wont really change any of their shape they have from our model and way of playing..

 

just a thought..

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VectisSaint

VectisSaint

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Is it a case that the U21 cant win their league with the few games left so they are ready to give some players that is close to the senior squad some league experience..??

No, they still have a chance to win the league. They certainly have a chance of qualifying for the final stages. Currently 2 points of 4th (top 4 qualify) although have played more games. Some tough games to come but can't see these loans are because we are giving up on the competition. That said, if they do not qualify there are only 5 games remaining, which means little competition over the next couple of months.

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Olallana

Olallana

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Beckham was sent out on loan to Preston by SAF (possibly when Moyes was there) Beckham said it was the best thing that happened to him at that stage of his career.

 

As they often play to his strengths in lower leagues (lots of crosses and set pieces focus) it´s no surprise....

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Toon Saint

Toon Saint

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Played his first game for Swindon today, away at Bristol City. Ended in 0-0 but Swindon had a man sent off after about 55 mins, so they did really well to keep a clean sheet.

 

Stephens got some rave reviews by Swindon and Bristol City fans on twitter, saying we have another 'gem' on our hands, etc.

 

Dan humm‏@dannyhumm·3h

@jackstephens_18 what a future you are going to have in the game, great debut!!

 

Horse Racings Fryboy‏@FryboyRacing·2 hrs

To all my Saints fc followers you got another cracker in @jackstephens_18 imo if today anything to go by

@Official_STFC best player by mile

 

Horse Racings Fryboy‏@FryboyRacing·2 hrs

@jackstephens_18 As a non Swindon fan have to say that ur display was top notch today fella

Lost count of how many last ditch tackles/blocks

 

Early days yet but hope he can put a string of performances together for Swindown and come back and challenge for a first team place next year. Would very much like to see a decent CB come through the academy and take Jos' place in the squad in 2014/2015.

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SuperSAINT

SuperSAINT

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Played his first game for Swindon today, away at Bristol City. Ended in 0-0 but Swindon had a man sent off after about 55 mins, so they did really well to keep a clean sheet.

 

Stephens got some rave reviews by Swindon and Bristol City fans on twitter, saying we have another 'gem' on our hands, etc.

 

Dan humm‏@dannyhumm·3h

@jackstephens_18 what a future you are going to have in the game, great debut!!

 

Horse Racings Fryboy‏@FryboyRacing·2 hrs

To all my Saints fc followers you got another cracker in @jackstephens_18 imo if today anything to go by

@Official_STFC best player by mile

 

Horse Racings Fryboy‏@FryboyRacing·2 hrs

@jackstephens_18 As a non Swindon fan have to say that ur display was top notch today fella

Lost count of how many last ditch tackles/blocks

 

Early days yet but hope he can put a string of performances together for Swindown and come back and challenge for a first team place next year. Would very much like to see a decent CB come through the academy and take Jos' place in the squad in 2014/2015.

 

Great to read. Cheers for posting that lot, Toon Saint.

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Suhari

Suhari

Posted
Posted
Played his first game for Swindon today, away at Bristol City. Ended in 0-0 but Swindon had a man sent off after about 55 mins, so they did really well to keep a clean sheet.

 

Stephens got some rave reviews by Swindon and Bristol City fans on twitter, saying we have another 'gem' on our hands, etc.

 

Dan humm‏@dannyhumm·3h

@jackstephens_18 what a future you are going to have in the game, great debut!!

 

Horse Racings Fryboy‏@FryboyRacing·2 hrs

To all my Saints fc followers you got another cracker in @jackstephens_18 imo if today anything to go by

@Official_STFC best player by mile

 

Horse Racings Fryboy‏@FryboyRacing·2 hrs

@jackstephens_18 As a non Swindon fan have to say that ur display was top notch today fella

Lost count of how many last ditch tackles/blocks

 

Early days yet but hope he can put a string of performances together for Swindown and come back and challenge for a first team place next year. Would very much like to see a decent CB come through the academy and take Jos' place in the squad in 2014/2015.

 

Encouraging.

 

And I agree.....I'd love to see us produce a quality CB soon.

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SaintJackoInHurworth

SaintJackoInHurworth

Posted
Posted
No panic, with so many good prospects up and coming in the Academy, those lads (around 20 y.o.) who have completed their time and been given an extra year have something to prove - and quickly.

 

Unlike those " so-called big clubs " who loan out a dozen or more lads (did I read 23 by Chelsea)?, it's important to see if they cope with lower league games because if they can't ....there's no future for them.

 

Luke Shaw and Calum Chambers have set the standard and all those youngsters know that if they don't impress....it'll be a fond farewell by August. ( ala Reeves and Hoskins last season.)

 

Isgrove has played U21 for Wales and got a call-up for the full squad last time, but not got off the bench yet. A few goals /or/ assists for Posh in the next month will mark his card one way or another.

 

Good, young, central defenders are harder to find than left wingers and now that Stephens has a 4 year pro-contract, Saints will want to see if he'll be replacing someone like Jos / Yoshida on the bench,

or whether we go out and find a " Lovren clone " to give us depth in the sqaud and cover for eventual injuries, and keep Stephens around for another year or two and see if he can break into the squad.

 

I don't think such loan-outs goes against Reed's statement, but when the old guard finish up their contracts in the summer, there will l be lots of places in the squad to fill... and they'll all be 21 or under.

 

Played his first game for Swindon today, away at Bristol City. Ended in 0-0 but Swindon had a man sent off after about 55 mins, so they did really well to keep a clean sheet.

 

Stephens got some rave reviews by Swindon and Bristol City fans on twitter, saying we have another 'gem' on our hands, etc.

 

Dan humm‏@dannyhumm·3h

@jackstephens_18 what a future you are going to have in the game, great debut!!

 

Horse Racings Fryboy‏@FryboyRacing·2 hrs

To all my Saints fc followers you got another cracker in @jackstephens_18 imo if today anything to go by

@Official_STFC best player by mile

 

Horse Racings Fryboy‏@FryboyRacing·2 hrs

@jackstephens_18 As a non Swindon fan have to say that ur display was top notch today fella

Lost count of how many last ditch tackles/blocks

 

Early days yet but hope he can put a string of performances together for Swindown and come back and challenge for a first team place next year. Would very much like to see a decent CB come through the academy and take Jos' place in the squad in 2014/2015.

 

Two great posts there - that first post sums it up for me - and the second could well confirm what a shrewd move it is in Stephen's case. I hope that Isgrove will face similar success during his loan spell to that which Stephens has already achieved in his first game on loan. I have long since been disappointed that we have not used him this season, following his brilliant displays in pre-season.

 

My only disappointment with the move to loan out these players is that, if we are not planning to try to qualify for the Europa League, then why couldn't we have given them the chance to play for our first team? Indeed, why didn't either get to play against Sunderland in the cup? Neither was even on the bench for that match! Was there a fear that if they achieve too much too early we could be faced with other sides snooping around them before they get established in our first team?

 

Anyway, I hope that they will both be successful and that next season we will see them both competing for a first team place! :)

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The Kraken

The Kraken

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Posted

It's a good thing that Stephens is going out on loan. As a centre-back you have to be absolutely exceptional to get a starting place at 18 or 19 years old, good CBs most often tend to be a bit older than that. No rush for Stephens so if this loan goes well an extended loan, maybe at Championship level, may be a next step.

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Saint_clark

Saint_clark

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Posted
Interesting comments from their end... So will Stephens be allowed to leave completely? Or perhaps a loan next season? Or perhaps he's mistaken and Stephens has a role to play here next year?

 

http://www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/sport/11080831._/?

 

I assumed Isgrove and Stephens were being given 6 months competitive football before replacing Hooiveld and Guly in the summer.

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Lallana's Left Peg

Lallana's Left Peg

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Posted (edited)
Interesting comments from their end... So will Stephens be allowed to leave completely? Or perhaps a loan next season? Or perhaps he's mistaken and Stephens has a role to play here next year?

 

http://www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/sport/11080831._/?

 

As has been mentioned, centre-half is probably the single hardest position on the pitch to make a breakthrough in the Premier League. That said, Stephens is 20 now so we're coming up to the point where we must surely know whether or not he is going to be good enough for our first team squad. My perceived depth chart and contract expiry dates:

 

1. Dejan Lovren (24 years old, contract expires Summer 2017 when he will be 27)

2. Jose Fonte (30 years old, contract expires Summer 2015 when he will be 31)

3. Maya Yoshida (25 years old, contract expires Summer 2015 when he will be a few months short of 27)

4. Jos Hooiveld (30 years old, contract expires Summer 2015 when he will be 32)

 

Jack Stephens (20 years old, contract expires Summer 2017 when he will be 23)

Jordan Turnbull (19 years old. contract expires Summer 2016 when he will be 21)

 

So it is too early to say what the future of Turnbull or Stephens will be until we see what happens this summer with Fonte, Yoshida, and Hooiveld who will all only have a year left on their deals. We may see Stephens and Turnbull as suitable backups rather than first choice?

 

We do know that they both went to Spain in the summer in Pre-Season so they aren't too far away from Pochettino's thoughts, and we do know that Josh Debayo has recently been bumped up to a few U21 squads - and that is usually preparation for making the step up full time the following season. We also know that Jason McCarthy is a centre-half by trade and he has been playing at right-back for the U21's however he filled the gap left by Stephens in the game against Wolves on Friday. So Turnbull and Stephens making the step up doesn't cause issues for the U21's as they have natural successors.

 

Stephens and Turnbull were both brilliant in the U21 win away to Man City, if I had to guess right now they will at the very least be seen as first team squad players come Summer 2015. I think Turnbull is slightly better from what I've seen but they both look decent.

Edited by Lallana's Left Peg
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Minty

Minty

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Can't argue with any of that from our point of view... i just wonder how the Swindon manager has got the idea that there might be some kind of long-term arrangement possible for Stephens, given that he is apparently only looking at options for next season... have we given some indication of our longer-term intentions already perhaps?

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Window Cleaner

Window Cleaner

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Posted
Can't argue with any of that from our point of view... i just wonder how the Swindon manager has got the idea that there might be some kind of long-term arrangement possible for Stephens, given that he is apparently only looking at options for next season... have we given some indication of our longer-term intentions already perhaps?

 

 

Probably, we have already had all the information we need to back up that idea, these lads were not even considered good enough or ready enough to be put on the bench when we needed them, we actually chose to put players who had about a 1% chance of actually playing because of their injuries on to the bench ahead of these lads. Fonte was never ever going to play in the Cup game against Sunderland but he was on the bench anyway. If you haven't made it with Saints by the time you're 20 or 21 you probably won't make it at all, thus Moore,Stephens and Isgrove being farmed out, just need Turnbull to make up the full set.

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david in sweden

david in sweden

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I assumed Isgrove and Stephens were being given 6 months competitive football before replacing Hooiveld and Guly in the summer.[/quote

 

Perhaps not . Don't know when Guly's contract goes out?.... but Hooiveld is here until summer 2015.

 

more likely that Isgrove will fall between the cracks like Reeves and Hoskins did, whilst Stephens will have another loan-out in the Autumn.

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Window Cleaner

Window Cleaner

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Posted
I assumed Isgrove and Stephens were being given 6 months competitive football before replacing Hooiveld and Guly in the summer.[/quote

 

Perhaps not . Don't know when Guly's contract goes out?.... but Hooiveld is here until summer 2015.

 

more likely that Isgrove will fall between the cracks like Reeves and Hoskins did, whilst Stephens will have another loan-out in the Autumn.

 

 

Guly's contract runs out at the end of June, unless of course it's been extended that is. I think we have seen too many young saints "stars in the making" fall by the wayside over the years to have any illusion whatsoever about the forthcoming fate of those who haven't made the grade by the age of 21 or so. The more venerable amongst us remember Les Harwood,Mark Peters and many others. You have to be bloody good to play in the PL, if you haven't shown it by the time you're 21 after 10 years or so in various academies you'll probably never make it.

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saintedwill

saintedwill

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Posted
Can't argue with any of that from our point of view... i just wonder how the Swindon manager has got the idea that there might be some kind of long-term arrangement possible for Stephens, given that he is apparently only looking at options for next season... have we given some indication of our longer-term intentions already perhaps?

 

I think Swindon will be looking to do loan deals with a few PL clubs next season. They've had three from Spurs this season and are an attractive proposition because their style of football is good (passing, good movement etc).

 

Stephens has been impressive so far. His positional sense is good, he tackles well but the thing that stands out for me is his temperament. He doesn't panic, generally looks like he has enough time to play the ball and although he has made a few mistakes (he's young and Swindon's style sometimes means that pressure is invited on to the back three), he doesn't let it affect his game.

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trousers

trousers

Posted
Posted

http://www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/sport/11121415.Stephens_credits_Cooper_for_restoring_Town___s_self_belief/?ref=var_0

 

Stephens is set to remain with Town until the end of the season, with his loan deal up on May 3 after the final match of the term against Rotherham United.

 

After four stellar performances, Swindon fans would no doubt be delighted to see him back in Wiltshire for longer next season but Southampton have sent scouts to watch Stephens’ every outing in a Robins shirt and there has been no discussions about a potential return just yet.

 

“They (Southampton) have just said they’re happy with how I’ve started and I’ve just got to keep going. There are six games left and they’ve said ‘keep going, keep playing as you are and we’ll revaluate it at the end of the season,” said the centre-back.

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S-Clarke

S-Clarke

Posted
Posted
Boy would it be nice to unearth a young gem at cb, albeit from plymouths academy. That position is almost as bad as goalkeeper for us development wise.

 

Wasn't Gallagher from Plymouth's academy as well?

 

Dare I say it....are they our feeder club? ;)

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david in sweden

david in sweden

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Looks promising, but even so there is a lot of difference between L1 ..and having to go up against Prem. strikers every week. Still I'm pleased for Jack that he's had the experience.

 

In many years as a fan, I've noticed that the most difficult positions for young player to fill are..... goalkeepers.. and central defenders.

 

In fact looking back several decades the numbers of young CB's who've had good starts and a good career can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

 

Mark Wright comes to mind, but then it takes lot of thought....if Jack is to be the new star .....let's hope this time we've found a good' un.

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spyinthesky

spyinthesky

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Looks promising, but even so there is a lot of difference between L1 ..and having to go up against Prem. strikers every week. Still I'm pleased for Jack that he's had the experience.

 

In many years as a fan, I've noticed that the most difficult positions for young player to fill are..... goalkeepers.. and central defenders.

 

In fact looking back several decades the numbers of young CB's who've had good starts and a good career can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

 

Think Gerry Gurr, Alan Blainey and Keith Granger who were the only youth team keepers that played in the top division and only a hand full of appearances amongst them

 

Central defenders the same. Paul Bennett, Reuben Agboola and Malcolm Waldron come to mind

 

Mark Wright we bought from Oxford and didn't play at youth level as far as I recollect

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Wade Garrett

Wade Garrett

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Posted
Looks promising, but even so there is a lot of difference between L1 ..and having to go up against Prem. strikers every week. Still I'm pleased for Jack that he's had the experience.

 

In many years as a fan, I've noticed that the most difficult positions for young player to fill are..... goalkeepers.. and central defenders.

 

In fact looking back several decades the numbers of young CB's who've had good starts and a good career can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

 

Think Gerry Gurr, Alan Blainey and Keith Granger who were the only youth team keepers that played in the top division and only a hand full of appearances amongst them

 

Central defenders the same. Paul Bennett, Reuben Agboola and Malcolm Waldron come to mind

 

Mark Wright we bought from Oxford and didn't play at youth level as far as I recollect

 

Mark Blake, another centre-half who came through the ranks.

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