Got this Ping from a Brit at work. Couldn't find the link on FansFC.com, but has anyone else heard anything about this possible transaction? "Norwich forward Darren Huckerby could be on his way to the Canada to play for MLS side Toronto FC. (FansFC.com, 1458 GMT)"
From the mls rumors blog: INCOMING: Darren Huckerby to Toronto FC? Again, in Mo Johnston's love all things Scottish (and English) he appears to have got the forward help he was looking for. 31 year old year old Darren Huckerby, a winger who also can play forward. This rumor comes to us via a UK source whose brother is a physio (sports medic) for the English Championship club Norwich City. The rumor has received press in the Said and Done" football transfers section of the Guardian. You mugs will like Huckerby. He won't have Angel impact but will score goals, that's for sure.
If he is a DP I am going to start an "out with Mo" chant at every game until he is gone. I recognize I am overreacting until if and when it is announced, but if three of his most recent imports from the UK are Welsh (at 300k+ an enormous waste of money); Samuel (a waste at any amount); and a DP Huckerbee what other response can I give. At 250-300k he is worth it - keep in mind this is a guy with a reputation in England for being great in the Championship and absolutely useless in the top flight.
See the offseason roster thread for most on him: https://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=613520&page=19
Three other imports were Dichio. Brennan and Robinson. Were they a waste? Welsh is playing in the Championship League in the U.k. so he just didn't suite Mo although he wasn't as effective as the other three. Samuel has been picked up by another M.L.S. team if fans have reported correctly so who is right you or Mo?
I agree with the salary range. He is not worth a DP, even if we get Fiore. He is not worth a DP as well.
Of course, I didn't say all of his imports from Europe were bad, just that "three of his most recent" - recognizing that Dichio came after Welsh and before Samuel. "Welsh didn't suite Mo" - he was absolute crap. He ran up and down the wing fast but couldn't cross. He is gone and good riddance. Samuel is fat and can't finish. Normally I am not a fattist, and I can't finish myself, but we brought him in to play in a position where fat and an inability to finish are clear handicaps. Even if you say they aren't crap (and I just can't see how you can say that) the fact is that Mo brought them in and didn't hold on to them for more than a couple of months. Fact is that Mo agreed that I was right on those two as well.
And your point is? Given that MLS isn't at BPL level of play, having someone who is considered a great Championship player is not a bad thing. Did you mistake Danny Dichio of Wayne Rooney or something? DD isn't a great player from the top flight of England either and seems to have done pretty well for TFC. As for other players that are/were busts.... stuff happens and almost no one gets personnel correct all the time. How about giving Huckerby a chance before burning Mo in effigy (assuming that Huckerby is even on the way over). Perhaps I missed something. Was there a suggestion that Huckerby would be taking TFC's DP slot? Cheers!
Did you read my post (other than the part you bolded)? Look again at my post - the second paragraph - "I recognize I am overreacting until if and when it is announced..." - I didn't say there was a suggestion, I didn't say I had heard that he would be the DP. I simply said (rightly in my view) that Mo has a recent track record of signing and overpaying players from the UK. Huckerbee doesn't necessarily have to be in that mold if he is not overpaid (he is clearly from the UK, so the other part will apply). My point was that Huckerbee would be worth it for 250-300, (in fact, I said "At 250-300k he is worth it") but not more and never as a DP. Danny D has worked out fine, and done a great job. If he were a DP I would say we were wasting money.
Where would O'brien play if either Huckerby or Fiore sign with TFC? Is it possible he has not recovered from his injury?
Please don't inject logic into the debate. It makes it much harder for those who seem to bitch about everything and view themselves as professional scouts to do so. your post was spot on.
Er, can we strengthen the off-season roster thread by keeping this stuff there? Just a thought. Plus, if you check it regularly you'd have known about Huckerby and Fiore on the weekend.
Absolute load of bollox you lot signing Hucks this month, yeah he maybe off in the summer cos he's said he doesn't want to just fade away so a step down a level to something like MLS might just be what he needs. Dunno whose started the rumour but its been denied from all angles at Carrow Road - see the link below http://norwichcity.myfootballwriter.com/full_article.asp?i=2532 Having got rid of some of the deadwood from our squad already this month in Chris Brown, Julien Brellier, David Strihavka and Ian Murray, plus cashed in on Joe Lewis we are seeking replacements rather than shifting more out the door. To be honest its hard to take any level of football that treats Carl Robinson, Danny Dichio and Jim Brennan as stars seriously - Brennan was a mediocre Div1 player at best with Robinson and Dichio failing to reach even that standard!
who says that brennan. dichio and robinson are stars? they're good players and probably some of the best we have on the team but i don't think many of us consider them stars. at best, dichio has overachieved but is cerrtainly our fan favourite because of his no bull@#$% play and his first ever tfc goal. brennan is canadian so he always has a spot in our hearts and is an iron man when it comes to making it on the pitch. robinson is decent but most people feel he is overpaid for the level of play he gives. so in terms of stars, we don't really have any. and we know that. we are a soon to be second year team that is looking to add some depth. we are not the level of epl but we are probably a championship level. but if huckerby does sign here, thanks or that! he will be a welcome addition to our team!
Er, why? The idea of a chat room is not to keep all discussions in one small box- each bit of news should have its own thread- that way we can talk about Huckerby and focus on Huckerby; we can talk about Fiore and talk about Fiore, Wagenaar and talk about Wagenaar, etc etc
Huckerby's in the same mold (as in, hard working blue collar type of player) though he's better than those three IMO and certainly has scored some goals in the past. Championship level forward, nothing special, he'll probably be pretty good in MLS. IF true it's a decent squad-building sort of pickup for TFC, but I wouldn't expect him to go out and bag 20 goals next year. TFC to me always looked like a championship side anyway (lots of hoofers who give it their all, but not much more) so he'll probably fit right in.
You're right, I must think I am a professional scout if I think Welsh and Samuel are crap. And saying that Huckerbee was a good signing at 250-300, but would be a huge waste of a DP slot was nuts too. I guess the last thing we want on a chat group is people expressing their opinions.
Huckerbee is a left-winger/striker. Fiore, while he can play wing, is primarily a central midfielder (and is not coming to TFC). O'brien is a right winger.
Huckerby would be a cracking signing for Toronto FC. Rest assured too, he wouldn't be a DP. Not a chance.
I saw Huckerby make his football league debut as a 17 year old because he was a product of our youth team. Fantastic player and I remember him scoring a wonder goal in what turned out to be his last game for us as Kevin Keegan was watching him and then signed him for Newcastle a couple of days later for a reputed £400,000. We knew he would go onto better things because he was head and shoulders above everyone else in our team on the skill level.
Roeder Hushes Huckerby Talk: Huckerby might not happen according to Roeder. http://www.soccer365.com/mls/story_29108182142.php
Could also be a case of a manager finding out at the last second. As they said in the article ... These days the manager's are usually the last to know and the deals are done at the back door.
I don't buy the claim that nobody has approached him about Huckerby. A number of reputable sources have reported that Mo has been speaking with him. (BTW - Nothing so far to back up the Fiore stories beyond the MLS rumours posting)