[Archived] Savage - The Bad Apple

[joey_big_nose]

Lets not get ahead of ourselves here... Savage has not agreed to got to them yet. I think a) there could be serious problems with the level of wages he would demand he might not want to go to a club who are all but relegated.

From his point of view he would have a lot to gain by holding out for Sunderland- bigger club, more fans, more money, realistic chance of staying in the Premier.

THis could drag out a bit.

[Claytons Left Boot]

I hear his parents have just bought a bungalow in South Shields.

[1864roverite]

Joey I suggest that you read all the newswire reports about his move to Derby, he is on record as saying he fancies derby above all others due to where he lives, he has effectively ruled Sunderland out as I understand it that is why they are going for Hunt from Reading.

I think Savage has done marvellously well for Rovers and I for one am sad to see him leave. All good things come to an end and for me the money was well spent on his signing, what is certain is that he earned every penny he took from BRFC.

Got to wish hima ll the best, now the wait for his replacement is on.

See ya Sav, you will get a round of applause if and when you return.

[JAL]

Its only good business if Hughes can bring in another leader to put in the centre of the pitch.

[RevidgeBlue]

Well I'm really unhappy with the sale of Savage, we have two midfielders still on the books who aren't as good as him (Tugay and Mokoena) and two (Dunn and Reid) whose fitness is far from assured.

Hughes has huge shoes to fill for a paltry 1.5m.

Good luck to Sav, inspirational character to have in the side and around the Club. Wish we'd had him throughout his career at his peak - doubt we'd have gone down in '99 if we had.

[krislu]

How you gonna do that without a getter and giver in the middle then Krislu? Answers on a post card to Sparky please.

As for your ludicrous second point...... We need that little scottish weasel about as much as we all need a tape worm in our intestinal tract.

Axe or Ried can do the dirty work, we need someone who can pass the ball and create something for our very good strikers. As for Ferguson, he could really pass the ball well on his day (which came more often than not) and I remember him hitting Gerrard like 60m inch-perfect passes on a semi-regular basis.

I'm sure Barry would be a fans favorite if it wasn't for his childish "homesick" stuff...

[gazsimm]

Axe or Ried can do the dirty work, we need someone who can pass the ball and create something for our very good strikers. As for Ferguson, he could really pass the ball well on his day (which came more often than not) and I remember him hitting Gerrard like 60m inch-perfect passes on a semi-regular basis.

I'm sure Barry would be a fans favorite if it wasn't for his childish "homesick" stuff...

Axe is not good enough and i am sad to say Reid has become an injury nightmare for us, we need a ball winning midfielder not an attacking midfielder, we have got enough of them with Dunn, Tugay and Bentley, with Savage about to go we now don't have a good quality ball winning midfielder in our side

[Cheshireblue]

Robbie is a very effective player. Like Crouch, he doesn't look like he should be any good, but we win far more games when he is playing compared to when he is not.

We will miss him more than we think, but that said, his game depends upon energy and commitment, and as the years catch up with him, his best days are behind him.

I for one wish him luck.

I bet Bruce is seething though. Derby is a long way from north Wales!

[Fife Rover]

Good luck to Robbie and thanks for his endeavours.

A good bit of business for all parties, Rovers, level of fee generated considering age and fitness; Robbie, regular footy; Derby, experienced campaigner/leader in the middle of the park.

I had concerns about his fitness following his serious injury last season, in my opinion he did not come back the same player. A little bit slower and appeared worried whenever involved in a tackle which was the the major part of his game.

But a great team player/leader in the middle, which at present we appear short of.

Leaders from within our current squad are sadly missing and is the root cause of our current demise.

Regular players who are technically gifted (Gamst, McCarthey, Bentley, Tugay, Dunn, RSC) are not leaders in my opinion, as they are mostly interested in their own performances, yes possibly lead by example, but are not going to stick their heads up when the other team are rampaging; our experienced senior pros (Nelson, Emerton, Zurab) are all rather quiet and don't lead; youngsters/inexperienced at this level (Warnock, Derbyshire, Samba, Peter, Treacy, Rigters, Berner) can't be expected to provide leadership; disaffected players (Roberts, Mokoena) are not going to be leading from the front; and in my opinion goalkeepers despite being fantastic cannot influence and take the lead. This only leaves Reidy & Ooijer who in my opinion might possibly provide the inspiration and leadership, but too many doubts about their own fitness currently exist.

In conclusion an inspirational leader with technical ability and confidence is required in the middle of the park, for our current team.

Quite a well reasoned argument re the captaincy Boz. My choice (when fit) would be Ooijer who has captained Holland for some time and does have a very good game reading ability,as well as good technical ability and a commanding presence. His only fault I feel is a lack of pace, but he compensates well for this by his ability to anticipate.

[joey_big_nose]

Joey I suggest that you read all the newswire reports about his move to Derby, he is on record as saying he fancies derby above all others due to where he lives, he has effectively ruled Sunderland out as I understand it that is why they are going for Hunt from Reading.

I think Savage has done marvellously well for Rovers and I for one am sad to see him leave. All good things come to an end and for me the money was well spent on his signing, what is certain is that he earned every penny he took from BRFC.

Got to wish hima ll the best, now the wait for his replacement is on.

See ya Sav, you will get a round of applause if and when you return.

Fair enough, didn't see those quotes from Sav and Jewell. Good on Sav for taking on a real challenge!

[Mr. E]

Well selling our only half-decent CM means we must have some serious transfers lined up at that area. (I hope)

[dillo_dillo]

SAv leaving us... I'm really sad...Oh No....

I'm overwhelmed with sadness *crying*

[Scotty]

It's interesting that Savage is getting such fulsome praise from everyone. I've been a big admirer of him in the past, and have frequently defended him on here against some posters who don't like him, but I have to say I'm not sorry to see him go now.

As others have said, he's not been the same player since his broken leg and the decision to drop him from the team was fully justified based on his performances this season. But instead of vowing to prove the manager wrong and work hard in training to get his place back, it would seem that Savage has thrown a huge hissy-fit and is, at least partly, responsible for some of the unrest behind the scenes at Rovers. So much so that the manager has thought it best to sell him rather than keep him as a squad player.

Compare this to say Lucas Neill, who simply played his contract out, informed the club well in advance that that was his intention, and was sold early simply so that the club could make a few quid out of him. Yet Neill is roundly booed whenever he returns to Ewood and subjected to all sorts of abuse. Funny old game.

[krislu]

Compare this to say Lucas Neill, who simply played his contract out, informed the club well in advance that that was his intention, and was sold early simply so that the club could make a few quid out of him. Yet Neill is roundly booed whenever he returns to Ewood and subjected to all sorts of abuse. Funny old game.

Isn't it always like this with every player, I mean it depends on the circumstances? If the club decides to get rid then the player will be given a cheer when returning to his old home stadium. But if the player wants to leave the club then expect the fans to boo him next time they see him play..

[Exiled_Rover]

Compare this to say Lucas Neill, who simply played his contract out, informed the club well in advance that that was his intention, and was sold early simply so that the club could make a few quid out of him. Yet Neill is roundly booed whenever he returns to Ewood and subjected to all sorts of abuse. Funny old game.

He gets booed because he lied about his intentions. Had he gone to Liverpool, an undeniably bigger club, then he wouldn't get half the reaction he does now. It's the fact he went to WHam, who were a good shout for relegation, for £40k (or whatever) more a week and then proclaimed it was to further his career at a larger club.

[Rover Down Under]

I think this sale is best for both parties. Robbo can battle in a team avoiding relegation better than in a team like ours looking to be in the top ten. He was always better than Championship but not quite top ten Premier League standards. One of the most commited, heartful and inspring midfielders since Super Atko, I will miss you and will cheer you when your name is announced against us unlike the sadly fickle fans we seem to have attracted of late.

Best of luck mate.

[bluebruce]

Well I'm really unhappy with the sale of Savage, we have two midfielders still on the books who aren't as good as him (Tugay

Tugay isn't as good as Savage? I can't agree. He's merely older, with old legs to go with it. And more skill in his knees than Savage has ever had on his whole body (I mean that literally, having seen him doing keep-ups at home against Newcastle last season)

[rebelmswar]

Tugay isn't as good as Savage? I can't agree. He's merely older, with old legs to go with it. And more skill in his knees than Savage has ever had on his whole body (I mean that literally, having seen him doing keep-ups at home against Newcastle last season)

I think Tugays confidence in passing makes him slightly better, but Sav's workrate was far better.

[bluebruce]

I think Tugays confidence in passing makes him slightly better, but Sav's workrate was far better.

Lol, I don't think it's confidence that makes him a great passer, it's sheer class. And not just his passing, even at his age he is able to keep the ball til he sees the pass he wants, with simple but sublime jinks. Obviously Sav works harder, he works harder than almost anyone. That's his value to the team, and I'm not sure this is good business (In money terms it is, but it could cost us just as much if we don't have a good replacement lined up). But to call Savage a better footballer is a bit silly.

[rebelmswar]

Lol, I don't think it's confidence that makes him a great passer, it's sheer class. And not just his passing, even at his age he is able to keep the ball til he sees the pass he wants, with simple but sublime jinks. Obviously Sav works harder, he works harder than almost anyone. That's his value to the team, and I'm not sure this is good business (In money terms it is, but it could cost us just as much if we don't have a good replacement lined up). But to call Savage a better footballer is a bit silly.

I think I used a bad term, my meanings was off. I meant his vision and foresight in to where players should be making a run, he inspires confidence with his passing is what I was meaning to get at. I still say that I am not jumping for joy that he is going, but if he wanted to leave then we shouldnt stop him, same goes for any player really in my opinion.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

When I played I was a bit like Savage, ran around a lot, tackled everything that moved ( the bigger the better, the rougher it got the more I liked it ) not the greatest on the ball but smart enough to give it to the ones who were. Then I broke my leg, all of a sudden things weren't quite as simple, I didn't like being caught in possession any more, and I weighed up my chances in tackles, sometimes went in with the "wrong" leg to protect the one I'd broken.

I wasn't the same player after the break, I'd been playing at a good level and I knew I could never reach that level again so I gave up the game after about 6 months.

Maybe Savage is going through the same emotions, you've got have experienced a bad injury to know just how hard coming back is, that's why I was concerned about Reid, Nelsen and Savage when certain people were fully expecting all three to be back and raring to go, it's not that easy.

As for Robbie, I didn't want us to sign him when we did, I accept that you can't fault his commitment but for that sort of money we needed somebody who could do more on the ball and contribute more in attack. I'm pleased we've got a pretty good deal for him and I've got to be honest , I'm happy to see him join Derby.

[Tim Southampton Rover]

As Savage is about to say goodbye to Rovers, I just want to say

THANK YOU ROBBIE!

I shall always applaud you when you come to Ewood.

[blue phil]

He gets booed because he lied about his intentions. Had he gone to Liverpool, an undeniably bigger club, then he wouldn't get half the reaction he does now. It's the fact he went to WHam, who were a good shout for relegation, for £40k (or whatever) more a week and then proclaimed it was to further his career at a larger club.

It's hardly a lie to say that West Ham are a bigger club - merely an opinion .

Neil was a lot more honest than many players . Savage's record in this department isn't exactly unblemished .

[1864roverite]

Why bring Lucash back up like a bad pile of sick/bile?

his reasoning for moving to wham has blown up in his face as he said he wanted his career to move forwards. Like ricky ponting and the rest of the aussie clowns he talked complete and utter bullshyte as is evidenced by the current league table.

[revolutionrock!]

Ye i am sad to see him leave.

This is a very bold move from MH, and i just hope he knows what hes doing. Hes selling, in my opinion our best CM , i hope to god that he has a replacement lined up.

Sidwell/Huddlestone/Diarra for me.