Richard Dunne

[stanistheman]

Yep. Lets not do a Fulham and rely solely on youth.
Wont be a regular starter but like Clint, will be a good head in the dressing room and more than a dependable back up. 46 games is a long season

I agree.

its all well and good planning on youth the the future but there will be many games where an older and wiser head is needed.

[surrey_hoop]

Honestly amazed that (at the time of writing) 19 people think giving a new contract to a 35 year old CB is a good idea. Has the last 4 years taught you nothing?

[dsqpr]

Yes, certainly keep for another season.

On the playing side, I think he has been our best defender this season, at the very least one of our best. Also has an excellent attitude which is just what we need as an example to the youngsters. I suspect he would be our best defender again next season but he would be valuable even as a squad player (which you may recall he was for a bit under HR and went about it with admirable professionalism and no complaints).

On the financial side, his wages are reasonable (apparently 457k this season) and when you compare salary to performance he was one of the few players this season who provided value.

http://www.celebritiesmoney.com/richard-dunne-salary-net-worth-centre-back-of-queens-park-rangers/

[surrey_hoop]

On the playing side, I think he has been our best defender this season, at the very least one of our best.

Being the best defender in a side that conceded 73 goals in the league this season is something of a back handed compliment, and certainly not a reason to keep him on when taking his age into consideration.

[Hitman34]

i have also seen a stat that says out of all the keepers in the prem league, rob green made the most mistakes, and he is in the england squad.

dont ask me to find a link but i did read it on the web.

[dsqpr]

Being the best defender in a side that conceded 73 goals in the league this season is something of a back handed compliment, and certainly not a reason to keep him on when taking his age into consideration.

I don't think there is anything back handed about that. Also, I'm sure we all know that the defence needs to be a stong UNIT and that a central pairing where one of the players is sh!te is bound to be leaky, no matter how good the other CB is. So far as his age, the effectiveness of a defender declines much more slowly with age as they can make up what they lack in speed with superior positioning, which Dunne does very well, always seemingly in just the right place to block a shot.

[surrey_hoop]

I don't think there is anything back handed about that. Also, I'm sure we all know that the defence needs to be a stong UNIT and that a central pairing where one of the players is sh!te is bound to be leaky, no matter how good the other CB is. So far as his age, the effectiveness of a defender declines much more slowly with age as they can make up what they lack in speed with superior positioning, which Dunne does very well, always seemingly in just the right place to block a shot.

Being the best defender in the worst defence in the PL by quite some distance is the epitome of damning with faint praise. As regards positional awareness a) I personally don't think it's that good where Dunne's concerned and b) the Championship is more focused around pace than any other division in English football, so if you run like you're swimming in treacle you will have problems in this league, regardless of your reading of the game. Dunne was absolutely nothing special the last time we were in the Championship (although he did save his best game for the most important one), but at 36 he will be completely found out if he stays on. That is my (not really that bold) prediction.

[dsqpr]

Being the best defender in the worst defence in the PL by quite some distance is the epitome of damning with faint praise. As regards positional awareness a) I personally don't think it's that good where Dunne's concerned and b) the Championship is more focused around pace than any other division in English football, so if you run like you're swimming in treacle you will have problems in this league. Dunne was absolutely nothing special the last time we were in the Championship (although he did save hs best game for the most important one), but at 36 he will be completely found out if he stays on. That is my (not really that bold) prediction.

I said he was our best defender. That is neither back handed nor faint praise! As I said above, it isn't his fault our defence was the worst.

I hope we will have the chance to find out whether he will be effective in the Championship!

[surrey_hoop]

I said he was our best defender. That is neither back handed nor faint praise! As I said above, it isn't his fault our defence was the worst.

I hope we will have the chance to find out whether he will be effective in the Championship!

It is when viewed in the context of our defensive woes this season.

Could you also please explain to me how our defence being the worst isn't his fault.....when he's a defender. That doesn't make any sense. He must've contributed to it's inadequacies to at least a certain extent. We weren't any better whether he played or not.

[dsqpr]

It is when viewed in the context of our defensive woes this season.

Could you also please explain to me how our defence being the worst isn't his fault.....when he's a defender. That doesn't make any sense. He must've contributed to it's inadequacies to at least a certain extent. We weren't any better whether he played or not.

There is no context that makes the phrase "our best defender" backhanded or faint praise!

I explained above why I don't think it is his fault but I'll do it again: you need a strong defensive UNIT to be effective. If one of your CB's is sh!te, as I think was the case this year (Caulker), then you are bound to leak goals because of mistakes made by the sh!te one. Defending is also a team responsibility, so that can be another reason for leaking goals. It is hard for one good player to turn a bad defence into a good one.

[Hove Ranger]

Being the best defender in the worst defence in the PL by quite some distance is the epitome of damning with faint praise. As regards positional awareness a) I personally don't think it's that good where Dunne's concerned and b) the Championship is more focused around pace than any other division in English football, so if you run like you're swimming in treacle you will have problems in this league, regardless of your reading of the game. Dunne was absolutely nothing special the last time we were in the Championship (although he did save his best game for the most important one), but at 36 he will be completely found out if he stays on. That is my (not really that bold) prediction.

I think you're being a bit harsh on Dunne. I wouldn't say he had a bad season season in our promotion year, we had a solid defence that year and he played his part, similarly to him contributing to our poor defensive record this year. I would disagree that the championship is the 'most' focused on pace of the english leagues when IMO the prem is completely infatuated with pace and one of the main reasons (among multiple others) that we struggled this year. Whether we should offer him a new deal, personally I can see the pros and cons but it ultimately depends on who else of the current crop fancy a slog in the championship because I don't think we have the money to buy a brand new defence as well as the pressing issue of acquiring strikers (as things stand I dont see either of our 2 1st team strikers being here next year)

[cross it Dave]

I voted yes, on a 1 year contract.

[Jimmy Floyd Rabbit]

Yes. I'd give him one year in the championship. Does what it says on the tin & solidifies the defence. I'd have him over Caulker, which is pretty alarming.

[surrey_hoop]

There is no context that makes the phrase "our best defender" backhanded or faint praise!

I explained above why I don't think it is his fault but I'll do it again: you need a strong defensive UNIT to be effective. If one of your CB's is sh!te, as I think was the case this year (Caulker), then you are bound to leak goals because of mistakes made by the sh!te one. Defending is also a team responsibility, so that can be another reason for leaking goals. It is hard for one good player to turn a bad defence into a good one.

So what you're basically saying is that mosts goals we conceded last season were Caulker's fault? Seems fair. I hate to break this to you, but Dunne really wasn't that good this season (hence my 'best defender in a poor defence' retort - it is all about context). I'm sure if you weighed up the number of games to the number of goals that he could've prevented, his ratio would be up there with Caulker. The difference is, Caulker is 22 and has at least 4-5 years ahead of him to improve - for that reason alone he is worth holding on to. Dunne is looking for a final payday, and we will probably be stupid enough to give it to him.

[Ginger Ninja]

So what you're basically saying is that mosts goals we conceded last season were Caulker's fault? Seems fair. I hate to break this to you, but Dunne really wasn't that good this season (hence my 'best defender in a poor defence' retort - it is all about context). I'm sure if you weighed up the number of games to the number of goals that he could've prevented, his ratio would be up there with Caulker. The difference is, Caulker is 22 and has at least 4-5 years ahead of him to improve - for that reason alone he is worth holding on to. Dunne is looking for a final payday, and we will probably be stupid enough to give it to him.

Gotta agree about Caulker there, he has youth on his side. I would keep Dunne as backup though, his experience could help Caulker.