I've never been a big knocker of Clarke's ability as he always seems to be the one throwing himself in the way of shots.

He can lack concentration at times and certainly isn't the quickest but I think he's ok in general.

5 str Mirf.

You really should get your name darn for a match thread

I've never taken to him Mirf
100% huff & puff, awkward & clumsy.
His heart is in all things 'Town'...
but I reckon he lacks (for a pro footballer) basic skills & i'm not convinced.

He might be a 'battler', but to be honest we need something a bit more than that in this league..Robins is basically sacrificing our midfield to cover for his lack of ball skills..

but if you're okay with that, fine..

the trouble is Jacko,
Robins seems 'fine' with that too,

&. I agree with you on this one, It ain't 'fine'

However, it makes for exciting, nerve racking, unpredictable viewing..
What MORE could we want

Don't you lot know anything about football.
Clarke has led one of the best defences in the championship .and you say he's not in very good condition.

Darn,

So what, Jack Charlton lacked basic skills but it didn't stop him playing for England and getting his hands on a World Cup winners medal, did it?

Is ChampagneSuperNovak still around?

Yeah mate

If its about the SG.....no chance pal. Hardly any time on my hands, especially now GTA5 is out!

I don't accept GTA 5 as a legitimate reason

Nah it doesn't matter just thought I'd tell you before I start looking for someone else

Awesome game. Awesome

No I appreciate that Lubo

If ever work loads lift, you know where to find me

?

Don't worry yourself Jacko...

The lad is part of a sports gaming league that I was/am interested in

Err . Champagne super dirty Leeds fan

Mirf.
True, he wasn't 'blessed' with skills, but.
to compare the two...
Roy Ellam was ..lets say ungainly , But despite that, & you'll remember this as much as any of us, very very few centre forwards got the better of him, & I include those two seasons for us in league 1 (premier league for those born after the time 'government' started telling people how to think & what you could & couldn't say)

And as for Clarke & 'Wor Jackie',
I can't see him playing for England anytime soon or getting a medal in Brazil...such is the divide

Darn,

Overall I reckon Clarke has been a good buy for Town, although I would rate him a very good League One player and a more than adequate Championship player, providing the defence is set up correctly.

OK, so he might not be the fastest player around, which make him susceptible to balls over the top, but on balance I reckon his advantages still out weigh any negatives, which the likes of 38 might throw his way.

Lets face it, I reckon a lot of it is sour grapes from 38, since he never quite made it in the pro game himself, although he appears to think that he was every bit as good as Clarkey, or even better

Anyhow Darn, b-llocks to 38, Robins and Clarkey right now, the main thing is that England have qualified for the World cup final in Brazil.

Still too last ditch, through himself in and give away a free kick and get booked, for my liking.

However, he is one hundred percent committed!

Mirf..
Too right pal,
Come on ENGLAND ,

I'll be on the move however while the last fortnight of the comp is played out ! Sunday the 13th is the final I believe..
Lets hope me & thee along with a few other cronies on this chat board are all wired in on that day & we are still 'involved'.
How good would that be

Clarke in defence? He has bagged one for Leicester today!

Gerrard actually...who is a right donkey, stumbling and misskicking...now scoring own goals...he gaffed against Watford missing a high ball and laying it off straight to the Watford striker 25 yards from goal...yesterday he was falling all over the place....not the nimblest of players..

I did wonder though whether Smithies might have come out and punched the ball clear...it was only on the 6 yard box...?

Jacko - the most laughable part of all is Gerrard's heading ability - completely free headers coming off his head like a thre'penny bit and going into touch or straight to their man when he has time to find a Town player. Awful - comical even.

Clarke is actually benfitting from pplaying alongside Gerrard becasue it makes him look better. Lynch is clearly the best of the 3 but at least Clarke has a decent pass on him - Gerrard is just a fake - a conman who talks himself up and struts and shouts like a confident footballer yet has zero ability on the floor and very little in the air.

As for the original post - I like Clarke and he's been a really good servant to Town but, if we are to continue to progress, he will need to be replaced. His back-pedalling is second to none - he runs faster backwards than he does forwards and he knows - yes he knows - that he's not a top half championship footballer, hence his anxiety when faced with pacey forwards. Having said that, there's no rush to dump him just yet - unlike the big lummax next to him.

We are a mid table 2nd tier side,,, Aint seen many class centre halves, this season playing for the opposition, Ait seen owt that is much better than the much maligned skipper (3 managers now) nor Gerrard (bought by at least 2 managers in this division, Both of whom ar now in top tier,,, Do our defensive stats say we are pants ? Granted i ant seen all our games where these 2 may have had shockers,,,, The games i have been too where we have been turned over, I would put down to te midfield 3 being out of sorts, not getting in close, hiding, off the pace, lacking the desre to get the 2nd ball,,, Not AG or PCs lack of pace or distribution skills,,,,,,,,,,, Is there a Morrison, Jones or Monkou willing to sign for us ? Nah,, ,,,, 3 quarters of the centre halves in this division are prone to commit an error, shat thee senz when against pace and be pap at passing the ball to a team mate, PC n AG are no different.