outlaw69uk 123 Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 The debut of Aaron got me thinking, Thats a couple of youngsters played in the last 6 months under Smith, who, as we know, doesnt play them as a rule, but, in both cases, they are a bit special Fleck, at the end of last season, quite rightly regarded as just about the hottest youngster in Scotland, seems to have his head screwed on, and, Aaron, who after reading his opinions on his debut, again seems to have his head screwed on, he talked about how he had to adapt etc. Edu in the paper stating he was trying to adjust. Heres where I am going with this. Apart from perhaps Thomson, who I dont seem to read about in the paper, we are always having a pop at the Scottish players, such as Adam, Boyd (perhaps less at the moment), Ferguson, McGregor etc, for the monster munch thing, the drinking, the "I play for Rangers so I have made it" attitude. At the same time, we want these young lads in. Maybe, just maybe, some of the youngsters have this mindset already, and, arent applying themselves as they could? We also talk about Naismith, Lafferty, Edu etc as "one for the future" or "long term", yet, we want someone like McMillan to be played. Theres a difference there too, Lafferty and Naismith are young, yes, but, they also have experience, international experience as well. There is a big difference there too, and, as we have seen, Smith plays these lads when fit, and, when he deems they are ready. We have seen the damage to careers caused by some younger players playing before they were ready, perhaps not in talent, but, in the had. Plus, you factor in us, our tolerant patient support, and, I think there are a number of good reasons not to play too many of them at the moment. Maybe next season, when we are reigning SPL champions, it may be different, but I think, in general, there is too much pressure at the moment Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BallochBear 1,613 Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 Must be my age, but you did make some IMO valid points and I do agree with most of the post. <_< Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Youllneverwinaway 0 Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 The debut of Aaron got me thinking, Thats a couple of youngsters played in the last 6 months under Smith, who, as we know, doesnt play them as a rule, but, in both cases, they are a bit special Fleck, at the end of last season, quite rightly regarded as just about the hottest youngster in Scotland, seems to have his head screwed on, and, Aaron, who after reading his opinions on his debut, again seems to have his head screwed on, he talked about how he had to adapt etc. Edu in the paper stating he was trying to adjust. Heres where I am going with this. Apart from perhaps Thomson, who I dont seem to read about in the paper, we are always having a pop at the Scottish players, such as Adam, Boyd (perhaps less at the moment), Ferguson, McGregor etc, for the monster munch thing, the drinking, the "I play for Rangers so I have made it" attitude. At the same time, we want these young lads in. Maybe, just maybe, some of the youngsters have this mindset already, and, arent applying themselves as they could? We also talk about Naismith, Lafferty, Edu etc as "one for the future" or "long term", yet, we want someone like McMillan to be played. Theres a difference there too, Lafferty and Naismith are young, yes, but, they also have experience, international experience as well. There is a big difference there too, and, as we have seen, Smith plays these lads when fit, and, when he deems they are ready. We have seen the damage to careers caused by some younger players playing before they were ready, perhaps not in talent, but, in the had. Plus, you factor in us, our tolerant patient support, and, I think there are a number of good reasons not to play too many of them at the moment. Maybe next season, when we are reigning SPL champions, it may be different, but I think, in general, there is too much pressure at the moment Its a chicken and egg scenario for me though. I genuinely believe that if Smith had rested some of the older players and threw in Furman, Gow and to a lesser extent Fleck last season, we wouldnt have been so tired and we would have had a better chance of winning the league. Before we get too excited about Smith "playing youngsters in the last 6 months" we should remember that between them, Loy, Fleck, Furman and Aaron have played 120 minutes(competitive) under Smith, which for me is just bollocks. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poetry_In_Blue 1,043 Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 Who actually is our oldest player who get's a game regulary? Apar from Weir it's either Mendes or Ferguson I think McGregor is only about 26? Miller 28 or 29? Apart from that the rest of the players are only about 25 and under, we're not exactly an old team? Unless of course I'm totally wrong about the ages that is! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Columbo 588 Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 Who actually is our oldest player who get's a game regulary? Apar from Weir it's either Mendes or Ferguson I think McGregor is only about 26? Miller 28 or 29? Apart from that the rest of the players are only about 25 and under, we're not exactly an old team? Unless of course I'm totally wrong about the ages that is! No Your right and people forget Walter has brought a lot of young players this season. Davis, Niguez, Edu and Lafferty are all players under the age of 24. I think Walter's planning for the future But maybe he feels he can't risk them in a season where we must win the league. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
outlaw69uk 123 Posted December 9, 2008 Author Share Posted December 9, 2008 Very true, a lot of his buys are/were under 25, which isnt old by anyones standards really. I keep forgetting Davis is the age he is! I think Mendes, Ferguson, JCD and Lee are the oldest. Isnt Papac only about 26/27? Also, Youllneverwinaway, I can see the chicken and egg thing. I sometimes wonder though, we have some seriously low opinions on a lot of the older players, perhaps this tends to influence our belief that the youngsters are better than they are? As in, we are actively looking for an alternative that "must" be better, even if perhaps they are not Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralCartmanLee 313 Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 I can barely think of a young player Walter Smith should have played or has wrongly passed over. The core of this isn’t Walter Smith won’t play young players it’s Rangers don’t produce enough young players that are of first team standard and that has not just happened on Walter Smiths watch Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbm26896 995 Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 In days gone by , some of the youngsters we discuss on here would be nowhere near the 1st team unless they were ready to play , the U21 rule has promoted players to the bench that would never be near the 1st team based on their performances and ability, its a silly ruling and the quicker it is changed the better I want to see players like Fleck and Aaron in the team, but only if they are ready. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polo 1,433 Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 I can barely think of a young player Walter Smith should have played or has wrongly passed over. The core of this isn’t Walter Smith won’t play young players it’s Rangers don’t produce enough young players that are of first team standard and that has not just happened on Walter Smiths watch I want to see players like Fleck and Aaron in the team, but only if they are ready. Great points Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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