Hedges future

[NeilInBristol]

"I don’t think we got passive against Preston, not at all, we actually got our biggest chance in the end of the game but weren’t clinical in that situation."

"Players don’t make mistakes on purpose, but when you are not scoring many goals you need to be even more focused and take care of those situations."

“It hurts everyone the goal we conceded, normally you win the game, you have the biggest chance of the game and then 30 seconds afterwards a player is unlucky to slip, another gets hit by the ball and it’s an own goal."

 

Hedges. That miss. He isn't a striker but my god he could have scored a great goal to make us 2-0 up. Reading JDTs comments are always interesting. He's telling him he should have scored.. what's his best position?

More importantly what's his future at rovers?

 

We seemed to sign Thomas to play on the right in Jan..

 

hedges was a TM signing..

 

he was effective when he came on at half time but I fear all his hard work was undone with that final touch passing it to their keeper..

 

[Mattyblue]

Squad player now, squad player in the future. That's about it really.

[Hasta]

I think he's generally OK. Nothing spectacular.

I'd hope that his mentality means that he is absolutely chomping at the bit to start tonight and make up for what he did on Saturday.

Edited April 25, 2023 by Hasta

[joey_big_nose]

I'll stick my neck out and think he may transform into a key player next season. I know he's 27 so hardly young, but I think he has it in him to step up a couple of levels from where he is at. Just a gut feel. 

[NeilInBristol]

4 minutes ago, Hasta said:

I think he's generally OK. Nothing spectacular.

I'd hope that his mentality means that he is absolutely chomping at the bit to start tonight and make up for what he did on Saturday.

Me also. Hope he gets to play to pick himself up. Wonder if JDT will keep him in the summer ?

[Wheelton Blue]

As I said after the PNE game, he flatters to deceive.

The second half summed him up. Looked good on the eye, but when it came to the crunch, he fluffed it.

He's not a winner.

[J*B]

He was JDTs favourite at one point this season, wasn't he playing right back just to keep him in the team? Decent squad player if you ask me for the coming seasons. Although across the board they all need to be taught top level decision making. We've had a consistency of players make some very very stupid decisions over the past few years - Hedges not either going into the corner, scoring or putting the ball into row Z, Wharton not bringing the attacker down... all the way back to Sam Gallagher not taking the ball into the corner against PNE and i'm sure Armstrong did something stupid as well. 

[DE.]

For a £200k-ish purchase of a player in their mid-20s from Aberdeen he's done better than I expected. A versatile squad player who can do a job. Every team needs a player or two like that. If we had actually signed a decent striker at some point in the last year maybe we wouldn't be relying on Hedges to score us a second goal in the dying minutes of a match. 

[Groundhog]

11 minutes ago, Wheelton Blue said:

As I said after the PNE game, he flatters to deceive.

The second half summed him up. Looked good on the eye, but when it came to the crunch, he fluffed it.

He's not a winner.

Bit harsh, see the winning goal against Reading. 

He was one of our best players on the pitch 2nd half against Preston, that's what made his soft chip even harder to stomach. 

I think he's typical of a few players in our squad, age is right but just not experienced enough in the big pressure games, the week by week toughness of the championship, where you need that calmness of thought when it matters, he's not played that much football in relative terms. There's a lot of players like this nowadays, just drifted through football and never been in the thick of it. I bet this season has been a shock to the system, it's intense. 

Putting my positive hat on, moments like Preston will hopefully stick with him and make him a better player.

[tomphil]

Handy squad man lets not write him off he was decent early season and he has a good work rate about him. I'd rather have the likes of him in the squad than under achieving piss heads like Ben Marshall and Luke Varney and the like.

[Groundhog]

5 minutes ago, tomphil said:

Handy squad man lets not write him off he was decent early season and he has a good work rate about him. I'd rather have the likes of him in the squad than under achieving piss heads like Ben Marshall and Luke Varney and the like.

Amen

[RoverCanada]

Liked him a lot at the start of the year, but he ultimately frustrates. Ooccasionally plays with a certain 'X factor' suggesting he's capable of creating some special plays, but too often his plays don't come off at all. Has had enough solid displays to suggest he's a decent squad player at this level, and probably relatively cheap, so happy to keep him around.

For the sake of the question at hand, it should be noted he's currently signed through 2025 with a one-year option.

2 hours ago, J*B said:

He was JDTs favourite at one point this season, wasn't he playing right back just to keep him in the team?

It came to mind that JRC seems to be flourishing in the role that JDT was trying to slot Hedges into earlier in the year. A sort of 'roving RWB'...

[jim mk2]

Pound for pound he hasn't been a bad signing. When he's good, he's very good, as in the second half against Preston, but sometimes he disappears and looks awkward and crab-like on the ball. Playing irregularly can;t help him though, and neither can not having a settled position, and he certainly needs to improve his finishing - he missed another sitter in the Leicester cup tie.  He looks happiest and most effective on the right wing - I'd certainly play him there instead of Thomas

[NeilInBristol]

7 minutes ago, jim mk2 said:

Pound for pound he hasn't been a bad signing. When he's good, he's very good, as in the second half against Preston, but sometimes he disappears and looks awkward and crab-like on the ball. Playing irregularly can;t help him though, and neither can not having a settled position, and he certainly needs to improve his finishing - he missed another sitter in the Leicester cup tie.  He looks happiest and most effective on the right wing - I'd certainly play him there instead of Thomas

Have to agree. Find it interesting that JDT brought in Thomas. Has played him a lot and clearly rates him but decided to sub him at half time against PNE and brought on hedges. 

[Exiled_Rover]

3 hours ago, J*B said:

He was JDTs favourite at one point this season, wasn't he playing right back just to keep him in the team? Decent squad player if you ask me for the coming seasons. Although across the board they all need to be taught top level decision making. We've had a consistency of players make some very very stupid decisions over the past few years - Hedges not either going into the corner, scoring or putting the ball into row Z, Wharton not bringing the attacker down... all the way back to Sam Gallagher not taking the ball into the corner against PNE and i'm sure Armstrong did something stupid as well. 

At the time he was one of the few players that could receive the ball in a tight space / with a man on his back and not lose it. 

[Miller11]

He’s a decent enough squad player, but he’s no goal threat as he goes to pieces in the box. Handy to have around, not ideal to bring on to try and change a game though.

[roverandout]

I'd happily involve him in a swap deal for sorba thomas 

Edited April 25, 2023 by roverandout

[NeilInBristol]

1 hour ago, roverandout said:

I'd happily involve him in a swap deal for sorba thomas 

Love this interview. JDT - I would have put it in the net.

 

Yes we need a f***ing striker. The message is clear!

Think he has been quite honest about hedges there.

 

 

Edited April 25, 2023 by Neilbristol

[Bbrovers2288]

12 hours ago, roverandout said:

I'd happily involve him in a swap deal for sorba thomas 

Not that I’m a massive hedges fan but what exactly has Thomas done to support this view? I was expecting a lot more than what we have seen. Stay away is my thoughts 

[chaddyrovers]

Good squad player with Experience. Deffo keep

[1864roverite]

He is a quality player and like all footballers he can have a bad game!

 

[Exiled_Rover]

5 hours ago, Bbrovers2288 said:

Not that I’m a massive hedges fan but what exactly has Thomas done to support this view? I was expecting a lot more than what we have seen. Stay away is my thoughts 

In his defence he's had no-one to centre / cross the ball to.

[47er]

5 hours ago, Bbrovers2288 said:

Not that I’m a massive hedges fan but what exactly has Thomas done to support this view? I was expecting a lot more than what we have seen. Stay away is my thoughts 

I don't think either of them are good enough but I agree there were no target players to cross to.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

5 hours ago, 47er said:

I don't think either of them are good enough but I agree there were no target players to cross to.

If you rolled them together you’d have a decent player. As it is both are pretty average.

[RevidgeBlue]

Catches the eye with his movement as he tends to buzz about a lot but the problems start when he actually receives the ball at which point  our moves tend to break down, we lose momentum or he gives the ball away.

Very poor player imo, get rid.