Sawyers was/is class but he only can play the role of playmaker. He showed his potential a Walsall and fulfilled it at Brentford and WBA where he was/is surrounded by better players.
He isnt the sort of player that thrived when we were playing a bunch of cloggers. On more than one occasion he pulled out of tackles that the likes of Taundry, Keates and Kinsella would risk life and limb to win.
Iâve defended Keates, but canât defend Richard Taundry 
Youâve jumbled up your sentence.
Actually Taundry was decent bloke and always gave 100% and sometimes joined us fans in the stand.
I hope he is doing ok
Absolutely I just think Sawyers lack of a promotion damaged a few peopleâs perception of him.
I agree. Taundry exactly the type of person you really want to succeed. Unfortunately he was never quite good enough. I worry a tad that Liam Kinsella might ultimately turn out the same. Love his attitude and the way he will always put his body on the line for the cause. But Iâm not sure he has improved technically since he came into the first team some five years ago now. In fact he sums up our current dilemma. He will definitely be a player that makes us hard to beat but equally wonât win us a game either. More and more the response to the latter would be âwell it isnât his job to win games as heâs more of a defensive midfielderâ which speaks volumes to his spirit but alas his lack of technical progress
He did a q&a in the bar before a match a season or so ago. He acknowledged that fans thought he wasnt very good. He cut a humble figure.
It was slightly poignant to see that his Dad had removed the Taundry Doors advertising at the side of the pitch when his lad got the boot.
He should take a few chances and have a shot occasionally. He scored an absolute scorcher against Sunderland I remember.
I really like Kinsella, but I donât see a midfielder that dove tails with him in our side. Ironically he needs a Sawyers next to him (which is why Iâm saying how different his and Keates roles in the side were, as there are clearly similarities between him and Kinsella).
If you have Guthrie you have a player that can control the play next to him but also plays deep and doesnât seem to have the legs to get forward.
Bates is much of a muchness.
Sinclair looks every game of his 300 odd game career.
If you play a 4-4-2 none of them look like breaking forward. I think itâs unfair on Kinsella to say he sums up our current dilemma because I think all 4 of them do, and none of them solve it.
Didnât Sawyers finish second in the PFA League One Player of the Season awards in that 15/16 season, behind Bradley Dack? He canât have been that bad having been voted for by his peers. Massive difference between him and Keates for me. Keates was all action and got involved in all areas of the pitch. Sawyers knew that he could influence a game by receiving a ball in space so invariably found it. The best players play to their strengths.
Extreme example, look at Ryan Giggs. In his younger years he was a flying winger so hugged the touchline. Youâd never have seen him get involved in the middle of the pitch. When he lost his pace, he moved inside because thatâs where he could influence the game and not have his weaknesses exposed. It takes both the player and the manager to appreciate individual strengths, and Sawyers had that
Yes. I think that that was the PFA Fansâ player of the year. He made the PFA League One team of the year that season, as did Rico. He also made last seasonâs Championship team of the year.
The worry with Kinsella is that unlike the other four, he is now near his peak. Sinclair and Guthrie past theirs and hopefully Batesâ still to come.
Unfortunately I just think technically and in terms of nous he hasnât progressed as many of us thought he would when he first came into the side five years ago.
As I say above, I see more Taundry than Keates about him just now. All lads we loved to see do well because they all give their all to the cause and in many ways play as we as fans would play. But at some point a call needs to be made as to whether theyâve reached their potential and whether that is good enough or not. Iâd argue that this extended run in the side is really important in terms of which way it goes.
I always thought Taundry was the kind of player we were going to have at WFC. At a time when Jeef Boner seemed to be losing interest and we didnât show huge amounts of ambition, he was the quality of fringe/squad/semi-regular player we could expect.
If heâd have been better weâd have sold him on , worse and heâd have been off to Hednesford after a couple of games. He was just about right at that time, not too good, but good enough to be useful.
He was what he was, I always felt a bit sorry for him with the stick he got, as with several other of our young players I wondered who some of our fans expect to be coming through from the reserves.
Before tonight I might have argued with you but âŚ
I think Keates got/gets a bit of a raw deal from fans in terms of the actual quality he had. Yes he was terrier like, chased the ball down, made tackles. He was better than that though. Box to box, especially in his last stint with us, scored goals (was top scorer I think)
His technical ability wasnât bad either. Think the goal he scored v Swindon, or the balls he put in for a couple of the goals v Stoke in the play offs. His passing could leave a bit to be desired at times, he was no Mini Preece, but far better technically than he was given credit for.
I definitely wouldnât put Kinsella in that bracket, for all his effort I donât think he is quite good enough to play center midfield. He did a decent job for us at right back in the past, but center mid is such an important position, especially if you have only got two in there.
Kinsella is an honest player but hasnât improved football wiseone bit in recent seasons. In the year we went down he stuck out like a beacon as one of few to actually put his body on the line and us as fans appreciate that. Since then though, his limitations have been more noticeable.
Nor me pal. I was suggesting that Kinsella is more like a Taundry than a Keates. Taundry being somebody that didnât quite make it but Keates being somebody who most definitely did. Three similar lads with similar attitudes. Only one of them definitely good enough. Jury out on Kinsella which after five years it shouldnât be.
Keates was ace. A massive member of those Graydon years. Kinsella nowhere near there.
Shut that door
Edit: I hate it when a rapid edit beats a good gag
I think it says a lot that Smith never fancied Kinsella as a center mid at any time. With the first team football he has had over the past few years, you would expect to have seen some improvement, but sadly I canât see it. Weâve had worse mind !