4 of 8 of our loanees were granted playing time this week. Things returned to normal as each loaned player had fixtures in place.
4 of 8 of our loanees were granted playing time this week. Things returned to normal as each loaned player had fixtures in place. Some disappointed, whilst others earned valuable experience and were put through rigorous tests, which will only stand them in good stead. To find out who did poorly as opposed to those loanees who put in a game of virtue – read on.
| “Ben came sprinting in, opened up his body, with the inside of his right foot he struck a low drive at goal. It was certain to go in” |
Beginning with our Buddies’ loan man, Paul McGowan. Paul faced a key game against Hamilton at home in a relegation crunch match. Early on it would appear that both sides seemed intent on imposing themselves in the game. Challenges flew in firmly, and sooner rather than later, one was bound to be mistimed. Paul fell victim to one of those mistimed tackles! It was X-rated, deliberate and something even Gattusso of late would not be proud of! He looked as though he was about to return to the scoresheet when he was maliciously brought down inside the penalty area. On the more fortuitous hand, the villain was red carded and Saints were awarded a spot kick; which was dispatched by Higdon with ease. Both next and finally, the last highlight involving Paul was on 10 minutes when he played an elegant delicious dink to the far post, begging to be struck home but nobody was there to pounce.
After a lengthy spell of having no matches scheduled, Dubliner Richie Towell, eventually returned to action. He had Hearts at home to contend with. It was a real test of nerves for him in a fraught Edinburgh derby. The overall outcome was a 2-2 draw, which won’t have pleased many Hibees as Hearts equalised in the final minute of the game. He failed to make much of an impact compared to his usual self but, on the other hand, he made few mistakes and had a steady game. In a nutshell, it was a valuable experience and steady performance in a really tough pressure game, which can only count for a good thing in a feisty rival environment.
Next on the list is Imps’ loanee, Ben Hutchinson. Ben had a more than adequate test with an away clash at high flying Torquay United. The 1st half gave Ben the chance to offer very little as Lincoln were under the cosh and he was denied service. In the 2nd half Hutchinson had a golden opportunity. It was a lovely inviting left footed curling cross, along the deck, just six yards from goal. Ben came sprinting in, opened up his body, with the inside of his right foot he struck a low drive at goal. It was certain to go in. Ben began celebrating, his arms aloft, only to look to his horror and see that the keeper had pulled off a sensational save. After this event, which left him and the supporters of both sides speechless, Hutchinson did little and faded again. He was removed from the game on the 85th minute mark, when substituted.
Hugely on the negative side; Jos Hooiveld again found himself on the bench for FC Copenhagen. He was frustratingly given a path to the game in the 89th minute, allowing him to do next to nothing as the final whistle was blown just 3 minutes later.
With 4 of the players that played mentioned: there are 4 players left who didn’t experience playing time this week. Darren O’Dea was left on the bench for the entirety of Ipswich’s game. Morten Rasmussen did the exact same as Darren. As did Josh Thompson. However, Jason Marr, missed out on Ross County’s 2 matches this week due to injury.
Not much would have changed the opinion of Celtic on their loaned exploits this week. But the players that they have high hopes for won’t of done any harm and Richie Towell would have shown he is more than capable of coping on the big stage in a big fraught game.
Written by afcbliamk
* More expanded details of each players progress and their season’s statistics can be found under the thread with their name on in Liam’s Loan Reports section.
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