Number of things.
We may see more contracts handed out to new signings if we stay up at this level. The players who have been here for a while know they will be looked after and treated professionally, the lads who come in were offered contracts as a show of good faith, bear in mind O'Neill and Bowler both left professional/fulltime football to come and play part time, a huge step. My understanding is that neither will be offered a contract next year. I think at conf level the players of the required standard we try to sign will either be pro, on good money or have a lot of clubs sniffing around them be it whether they are dropping down or stepping up from conf north.
Bowler and Thomson, I don't know. I agree it was reasonable to ggive them a contract , GH seemed to think he could get the best out of thomson, for whatever reason he couldn't. Move on. Bowler started off brilliantly but threw a paddy after being subbed in the friendly the City and never gave a toss thereafter.
What on earth posesses players like that, surely neither of them will get a good gig or a contract next season for anyone now. Bowler in particular could have made a name for himself but at 19/20 seems to be wasting his talent. Weird.
Back to loan signings I think the level we're at now and the wages required, it's not like the old days where you could gamble on someone, do it now and you're doing it with a significant amount of money which we just can't do.
For what it's worth I know we have tried desperately to ssign players both permanently or on loan and been unable to. I think I'm ok in listing the names (only a couple are rumours) and it would've been a pretty decent squad all told so GH and DS have been tryin. - John Hardiker (RB), Matt Doughty (LB), Mark Tierney (LB), Danny Adams (LB), Graham Allen (CB), John Boardman (CB), Mark Roberts (RB/CB/CM), Jamie Tandy (LW), John Grant (CF), Dino Maamria (CF).
Prob the best example on that is Danny Adams, local lad, released by Hudds, GH desperate for him to stay, gets on well with him. As a solid left back and freeing up Warren for attacking duties, we'd probably be safe by now but he went to Morecambe for full time football, a good chance of getting back into the league and obviously a lot more money (nearly double I believe).