Simon Church (signs - confirmed)

[mervyn]

My word ,aren't some of our supporters easily pleased.The guy chose Scunthorpe over us and had all but signed for the Polish side hence we are third choice.I am completely underwhelmed and cannot believe that this is the best Adams could find. We have been looking for a decent striker for most of last season and this season yet we sign another forward incapable of scoring goals.When will he learn!

:banghead:

 

[ArgyleAndy]

Can you blame the guy for preferring top flight football in a European league for a team that finished 4th last season and are now being managed by a Welshman?

 

[oldage]

Pedigree? Done nothing much recently and hasn' t exactly had clubs falling over themselves to sign him.Time will tell but Iwas hoping that when Adams said he had a list of potential signings he would start at the top.

 

[PlymOdi]

My word ,aren't some of our supporters easily pleased.The guy chose Scunthorpe over us and had all but signed for the Polish side hence we are third choice.I am completely underwhelmed and cannot believe that this is the best Adams could find. We have been looking for a decent striker for most of last season and this season yet we sign another forward incapable of scoring goals.When will he learn!

Since you're so in the know about his choices, why didn't he sign in Poland?

 

[oldage]

I think the papers said that the Polish side had failed to agree terms.

 

[Tugboat]

Currently not overly excited and slight metallic taste in my mouth after the initial, and arguably the second rejection but as always the team comes before an individual.

Hopefully not another Goodwillie

 

[esmer]

I know 20 goal a season strikers don’t tend to be knocking around, but surely we can do better than this? His record is abysmal.

I’ll be open minded, but I’m not convinced on first impression that this is a worthwhile signing.

Also for the comments re: his international record, a Welsh friend on mine told me in 2012 Simon Church was the worst player ever to represent Wales. He messaged me this morning saying “hahahahahahahahahahaha Argyle signed Simon Church”. So having 38 caps isn’t always as great as it may look on paper!!

Off course your friend knows more about football than Chris Coleman. I think he is a good signing and will provide excellent competition for Taylor.

Sharing an opinion from someone who has watched him far more than most of us on here I would imagine. Whole point of an opinion forum.

Sure, but you're writing the guy off based on one persons opinion. The manager who I would guess knows far more about football than your friend gave Church thirty eight caps.

 

[Pilgrim Joe]

I think the papers said that the Polish side had failed to agree terms.

So like the Alexis situation and City/Utd. - does that make Argyle the Man Utd of the 3rd division

 

[merchant seaman]

My word ,aren't some of our supporters easily pleased.The guy chose Scunthorpe over us and had all but signed for the Polish side hence we are third choice.I am completely underwhelmed and cannot believe that this is the best Adams could find. We have been looking for a decent striker for most of last season and this season yet we sign another forward incapable of scoring goals.When will he learn!

Since you're so in the know about his choices, why didn't he sign in Poland?

I seem to remember reading somewhere that Gdańsk are “very forgetful” in paying wages to players.

 

[yashin]

I seem to remember Doncaster supporters saying Taylor Sinclair was rubbish he certainly has proved them wrong let's wait and see how he performs.

 

[Pilgrim78]

I can remember Simon was a wonderful player for Reading back in our championship days. I believe I can remember him scoring at home park?

 

[oldage]

I'm not saying he's rubbish I'm saying I cannot believe we have waited 19 days to hear that we have signed Church.There must be better players available surely? Church might have been wonderful for Reading but how long ago.Like is often said "we are all entitled to our opinions" and I just hope he proves me wrong.

 

[Clem]

Could be that Mr Adams see s Church as a replacement for Toums or even Lamairas, I think we should see him play before making comments, some players play better at some clubs more than others. I was all for Adams out but he has changed the system for whatever reason and we are now worth watching so have changed my mind about him as long as he dont return to his old defensive system .If he does Ill be on his back again. :shifty:

 

[X Isle]

My word ,aren't some of our supporters easily pleased.The guy chose Scunthorpe over us and had all but signed for the Polish side hence we are third choice.I am completely underwhelmed and cannot believe that this is the best Adams could find. We have been looking for a decent striker for most of last season and this season yet we sign another forward incapable of scoring goals.When will he learn!

I could just repeat an earlier post I made, but he's not signed to score goals. We are top of the form table with a rarely-scoring forward in Ryan Taylor, who is the focal point of the attack and makes us play better.

Church is cut from the same cloth (no pun intended) and is a round peg for a round hole.

In fairness to Taylor, he has 1 goal in every 3 games this season which averages out at 16 for the season. Church is averaging roughly 3 goals per calendar year since he left Reading in 2013.

AAAAAaaaand out come the finger counters, the binary soothesayers of all things striker :roll:

Thank you for the benefit of your astonishing wisdom into how to ratio goals to games and goals to time.

Unfortunately your calculations do not, and NEVER have, factored in even the slightest difference in how the many and varied different roles of the modern forward player work.

The obtuse obsession with telling us the goals/games and goals/time stats also neglects to reflect the fact that to most of us percentages and ratios were fully absorbed and understood in middle school maths lessons, maybe even late primary school level.

We ALL know how they work. Where most of us evolved since primary school was to understand the wider context, that A+B doesn't automatically equal C... "he's only scored A in B so he must be (a) C"

No, no no, no, NO :facepalm:

Replace the word Reading for Argyle and change the year and that last statement could be Mickey Evans. He too didn't score much thereafter and, like Church, had been out injured a lot. He was chuffing excellent in the role he was used, he still didn't score that much but those who played off him did.

Since those days and the pitched battles we all had with the total chump who continually referred to him as a "donkey" whilst Trigger notched up two Championship medals, I have been on constant watch for this completely binary focus on percentages. They tell us nothing about a striker, you need to appreciate what role he does for the team.

Please stop it, just stop it.

 

[Nobby]

My word ,aren't some of our supporters easily pleased.The guy chose Scunthorpe over us and had all but signed for the Polish side hence we are third choice.I am completely underwhelmed and cannot believe that this is the best Adams could find. We have been looking for a decent striker for most of last season and this season yet we sign another forward incapable of scoring goals.When will he learn!

I could just repeat an earlier post I made, but he's not signed to score goals. We are top of the form table with a rarely-scoring forward in Ryan Taylor, who is the focal point of the attack and makes us play better.

Church is cut from the same cloth (no pun intended) and is a round peg for a round hole.

In fairness to Taylor, he has 1 goal in every 3 games this season which averages out at 16 for the season. Church is averaging roughly 3 goals per calendar year since he left Reading in 2013.

AAAAAaaaand out come the finger counters, the binary soothesayers of all things striker :roll:

Thank you for the benefit of your astonishing wisdom into how to ratio goals to games and goals to time.

Unfortunately your calculations do not, and NEVER have, factored in even the slightest difference in how the many and varied different roles of the modern forward player work.

The obtuse obsession with telling us the goals/games and goals/time stats also neglects to reflect the fact that to most of us percentages and ratios were fully absorbed and understood in middle school maths lessons, maybe even late primary school level.

We ALL know how they work. Where most of us evolved since primary school was to understand the wider context, that A+B doesn't automatically equal C... "he's only scored A in B so he must be (a) C"

No, no no, no, NO :facepalm:

Replace the word Reading for Argyle and change the year and that last statement could be Mickey Evans. He too didn't score much thereafter and, like Church, had been out injured a lot. He was chuffing excellent in the role he was used, he still didn't score that much but those who played off him did.

Since those days and the pitched battles we all had with the total chump who continually referred to him as a "donkey" whilst Trigger notched up two Championship medals, I have been on constant watch for this completely binary focus on percentages. They tell us nothing about a striker, you need to appreciate what role he does for the team.

Please stop it, just stop it.

Oh come on now, the only time people talk about how a certain strikers game isn’t just about scoring goals it’s usually because he’s got a bad goal scoring record.

Taylor visibly makes the team better, but he’s also good enough to get 10+ goals a season, which for a target man in League One is a decent, but not fantastic return. He’s extremely effective at what he does and I rate him very highly.

Despite the above post by Esmer, I haven’t written Church off, I’ve said his record is abysmal (it is) and questioned whether we can do better (we should be able to). I’ve also shared someone’s opinion who has watched him far more than myself.

If we’re gonna point fingers at me for stating facts, then I’ll happily point fingers for drawing comparisons with Evans. Evans was a pain in the arse, lump of a forward who was a nuisance for defences and had a knack of scoring goals around the box. He scored roughly 1 in 5, just for the sake of numbers. Something that Church does not come close to, other than in his one spell at Reading.

So despite my “primary school” approach... A strikers primary role in the team has always been and will always be to score goals. Does the modern striker have to bring more to the table? Absolutely, but scoring goals is still a vital requirement. What use is a back up striker if he can’t come on and bag you the winning goal? Moreover, if you list the best strikers Argyle have had over the years, I bet they all have a surprising thing in common... goals, goals, goals.