Lower League Raiders

[Wattie Rojas]

With Hartley keen on raiding the lower leagues for talent I wonder who he's been watching.

Austin of East fife was one name mentioned.

Any other players that he could be targeting?

Vaulks? Forrest of ayr?

[chomp my root]

With Hartley keen on raiding the lower leagues for talent I wonder who he's been watching.

Austin of East fife was one name mentioned.

Any other players that he could be targeting?

Vaulks? Forrest of ayr?

Call me Mystic Meg but I reckon Harry will be on this thread like a tramp on chips.

[valleyboy]

East Fife fan in work said he's a great player, and Dee have been watching him.

[Boba Fett]

Vaulks would be a definite for me..

How's the wee Moroccan magician doing at East End Park nowadays?

Not heard much about him. Guessing he's fizzled out?

[Derry Drummer]

Injured i thought.

[Attilio]

Call me Mystic Meg but I reckon Harry will be on this thread like a tramp on chips.

That must be some dossier that he is compiling for us.  Probably being proof read as we speak.

To be fair, over the years Wattie and Harry have usually had a handle on who has been worth looking out for from the lower divisions imo.

[Gedee]

With Hartley keen on raiding the lower leagues for talent I wonder who he's been watching.

Austin of East fife was one name mentioned.

Any other players that he could be targeting?

Vaulks? Forrest of ayr?

Wattie .... You shouldna be suggesting we ordinary mortals should ken wha PH will has his eye on.

We awe wait here on the forum, wi' bated breath, for you, Harry (& maybe a few ither experts) to tell

us wha PH is checking oot !! (And of coorse PH will no mak any move, until he's checked here first)

[harry94]

Not as on the ball as I have been in recent years but seen a few names that have a bit of worth.

Unfortunately, Falkirk have Vaulks, Sibbald and Grant (young centre back who's rated well there) all tied up until 2017 so I'd be very surprised if we managed to sign any of them (if there is interest, a Championship or League One club down south will be able to offer more than any club up here bar the Old Firm). They do have Luke Leahy who's been rated well at left back there and his contract is running out but his position is probably not much of a priority. St Mirren are a similar story with their young players being under contract.

Raith have a young midfielder Ross Callachan who has been doing well year on year steadily improving but his contract is also up in 2017. I don't think he's done much there to merit a step up yet but it'll be interesting to see if he keeps on improving. Lewis Vaughan there looks like a great technically gifted player and had also been improving but suffered an acl injury in pre-season so that's been a massive set back to him.

Queen of the South have a few prospects. Aidan Smith is a young forward who broke onto the scene last season and although starts are coming, he's not quite there yet to be a consistent performer and will probably benefit from staying there and establishing himself a bit more. Marshall is the left wing back they signed to replace Holt and despite being only 19 years old, he's done very well to step into the senior game and seems to be handling it very well and held in high regard. Brownlie in defence seems to be decent but inconsistent. Keeper in goal, Robbie Thompson, is also doing OK and is fairly young.

They also have Kyle Hutton signed up until January. A few years ago, he broke into the Rangers first team (I remember him being hailed after an early league game) and was destined for great things. When they went down, he seemed to get lost in the mess there and didn't live up to what he was destined for. He's done very well there recently and the fans all want his deal extended. I don't really know if he's got it in him to play at the top flight but I'm always drawn to the story of a player who's lost their way a bit.

In the lower leagues there are a few. Ayr have Forrest who is doing very well there and is a key part of their team at only 19. Dunfermline have Lewis Martin who is a young defender who has been learning his trade at that level for a couple of seasons now and is involved in the Scotland set up (contract expiring btw). El Bakhatoui hit a dry spell and hasn't scored since early October. Austin at East Fife has been mentioned. Willie Muir impressing in goal for Queen's Park.

There will be others out there but those come to mind. It feels like this is maybe a quieter year than last year as there were so many players who moved up the leagues in the summer and it feels like so many teams have been rebuilding. We raided with Julen, Meggatt, Holt, Loy and Mitchell. United took Durnan and Murray. Inverness took Wedderburn. Ross County took McShane. Then there were many players who moved into the second tier too.

EDIT: Luca Gasparotto is having a great season with Morton. Canadian international defender on loan from Rangers until January and his Rangers deal is up at the end of the season. Worth a look maybe.

Edited 3 December 2015 by harry94

[Reverend Lovejoy]

Denny Johnstone has been scoring regularly for Morton on loan from Birmingham City but his contract situation is complicated. 20yr old 6' 2" striker but under contract until 2017. Might be worth a look at in the summer for a loan move.

[Gedee]

Harry you really are well-informed ..... A wealth of information.

Do you actually see all these players you give us updates on? Or, as is more likely, you aproach your research in a professional manner.

If that's a trade secret, & your no' inclined to answer, that's OK. Whatever way you do it, your time & detailed posts, are aye appreciated.

However, mind and gie PH the nod first. Same message for Wattie & ithers. We dinnae want the Scabby Dabbies getting the heads-up !!

[harry94]

Harry you really are well-informed ..... A wealth of information.

Do you actually see all these players you give us updates on? Or, as is more likely, you aproach your research in a professional manner.

If that's a trade secret, & your no' inclined to answer, that's OK. Whatever way you do it, your time & detailed posts, are aye appreciated.

However, mind and gie PH the nod first. Same message for Wattie & ithers. We dinnae want the Scabby Dabbies getting the heads-up !!

I usually try and see some games in pre-season and do a lot of research before competitive action starts to get a sense of how teams are setting up for the season and what players are going to be noticeable. There are also certain players who I remember encountering when we were down a division and have been interested in ever since.

Apart from that, it's mostly just half an hour on the toilet every couple of weeks sitting on my phone and reading through teams threads on pie and bovril and getting a sense of what's going on and what supporters are thinking.

It's quite skewed though because a player like, say, Julen was at East Fife last season and although it was pretty clear that he was worth watching given his pedigree, I could hardly find anything out about him just because East Fife fans keep a pretty quiet online presence and seem on the whole mildly positive but steady about their whole club (well relatively in Scottish Football terms) so although I knew their could be something there, it was pretty quiet. Then you have a player like Meggatt who Alloa fans are pretty much touting for Champions League football while discussing how part time defender Ben Gordon is actually comfortably the best defender in Scotland and you get the opposite problem where the talk about a player is way too much.

Generally though, I just construct these posts by getting a feeling about the players past (if they have played at a high level and come down, it's generally a sign that they have something about them but issues have so far hurt them in reaching their potential) and what people are saying about how they are doing now and just try to promote who seems to show some of the signs that they can play at a higher level.

You don't really know in football. Sometimes, certain individuals just seem to accelerate their growth and handle the step up a lot better than other players who seem to be showing the same signs.

[Gedee]

Harry thank you AGAIN for another detailed response .... I guess some people have got it. And others simply do not

Think though in reading your response, you are being too modest...You do have a real talent there

Combined with your dilligence & hard work, means well presented detailed posts

I feel informed after reading your posts  (OK, nae mair sookin'up)

But keeep up the good work Harry....appreciated.