Elliot Less

The transfer window is about to close, and out goes Elliot; eventually. I wish him well at Newcastle, and regardless of the salary involved, the one thing we do know is that it will be considerably more than he was earning at Charlton. The concept of a player being a club man through and through is not a concept I pay much attention or credence to, and Elliot is a case in point.

Lauded as being "one of us", the reality is that a footballers professional career is a short one, and if you have the opportunity to double or treble your wages, the chances are you are going to take it, irrespective of how much you love jumping out of a tunnel at the end of a game. I wish him well, although I suspect his chances may be very limited.

A good friend of mine oop North used to drink with a certain Leeds United goalkeeper, a backup stopper initially for John Lukic, and then Nigel Martyn, for several years in the 90's. They became good friends, and my friend asked him if he was frustrated at not playing first team football, and didn't he want to try elsewhere? The answer was simple if somewhat unromantic to the average football fan. Why would he want to go somewhere else, when he could turn up, do the training, play in a reserve game, and sit on the bench, and all for a monthly salary in excess of what the average bloke in the street was likely to earn in a year?

I am not saying that Elliot has similar motivations in joining Newcastle, but you couldn't really blame him if he did. I don't really need to wish him good luck, as he has just had it, and in the process secured himself both a five year deal, and the rest of his life financially. As he said himself, the chance to join the Premier League from the third division was a "no brainer".

Contract End - Dec 2011

(25) Davisson

Contract End - June 2012

(23) Alonso
(14) Benson
(12) Doherty
(17) Euell
(19) Francis
(15) Mambo
(18) Pritchard
(10) Wright-Phillips

Contract End - June 2013

(3) Evina
(32) Harriott
(2) Hughes
(33) Osborne
(30) Pope
(20) Solly
(13) Sullivan
(6) Taylor
(11) Wagstaff

Contract End - June 2014

(7) Green
(1) Hamer
(9) Hayes
(22) Hollands
(4) Jackson
(5) Morrison
(8) Stephens
(34) Smith
(16) Wiggins

First Professional Contract

(31) Cousins
(29) Gough
(21) Bover-Izquierdo
(26) Popo
(27) Warren

Loan

(28) Cort (May 2012)