mizer Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 http://www.sundaymail.co.uk/opinion/columnists/gordon-waddell/2008/04/06/two-games-to-earn-me-a-deal-78057-20374367/ ALAN MAYBURY is out to make himself a star of the big stage AND the small screen this week in a bid to land a new contract. The full-back's loan spell at Aberdeen ends in seven weeks with his deal at Leicester City folding just five weeks later. But with nothing on the table from either club yet the Irishman wants to put on a show while he still has the chance. And two live games on the box in the space of six days - tomorrow night against Falkirk and Saturday's Scottish Cup semi-final with Queen of the South - won't do him any harm if bosses are on the hunt for next season. Dons boss Jimmy Calderwood insists he want to keep the rock-solid 29-year-old at Pittodrie if he can. But Maybury shrugged: "I'm still in the same boat as when I came here - just trying to get games and do my best. "It's not a desperate situation because I have a bit of slack. My contract with Leicester runs until the end of June and the season here finishes, hopefully, with the Cup Final at the end of May. "Guys who have been at Aberdeen longer than me are still trying to sort deals out like Barry Nicholson and Lee Miller. So I know I'm not a priority "But the main thing is I'm playing instead of kicking my heels in the reserves at Leicester. In fact I might not even have been getting that down there. "So purely for selfish reasons this isn't doing me any harm. "And the more people see me on TV in games like these the more chance I have of someone seeing I can do the job. "Not that you can ever drop your standards. I've witnessed guys playing in reserve matches and not giving their all then finding out someone was watching in the stands. "That's not me - I give it everything every time I play anyway." Former Hearts star Maybury is also hoping he can overcome his two biggest jinxes in Scottish football. He said: "Hampden hasn't exactly been great for me and neither has the Scottish Cup. "I've been to the stadium twice. The first time was when I was called up late by Brian Kerr for his first Irish squad against Scotland. " I was right on the doorstep at Hearts and Brian had known me from my days in the youth set-up. So I hoped I'd get on the pitch after a couple of days training with the Irish team. "But I ended up spending the game on the bench. My other visit there was when Hearts played Rangers in the CIS Cup semi and we were soundly beaten that day. "The Scottish Cup has also been a bit of a nightmare. "At Hearts we had a disaster against Falkirk when we were four down inside half an hour. "In the other two seasons I was there we lost to Inverness at Tynecastle and went out to Celtic really early. "So a little change of luck would be nice this time." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mackie's ace! Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 Sounds like he's trying to sell himself... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mackie's ace! Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 And also sounds like he could be our Hampden jinx... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glasgowdon Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 Get him signed. We'll not get a better right back than this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manc_don Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 Typical bloody AFC. Get this guy signed up ASAP. Stop dithering, we will most definitely not miss Hart if he stays. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TENEMENTFUNSTER Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 Might just be AFC are well aware his wages will be too much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manc_don Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 Who else would we be able to get in though with equal amounts of experience? I would rather we pushed the boat out a bit with him, because I think we've seen this season more than many, how important it is to have a settled defence. All we need is a left back... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TENEMENTFUNSTER Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 I would rather we pushed the boat out a bit with him If they won't do it with Hart/Nicholson/Miller then don't hold your breath. I like what I've seen of Maybury, love to see him stay on but I don't expect it at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El Padre™ Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 Typical bloody AFC. Get this guy signed up ASAP. Stop dithering, we will most definitely not miss Hart if he stays. I dont think they''ll make any solid offers to anyone till we know which half of the table we're playing in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manc_don Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 If they won't do it with Hart/Nicholson/Miller then don't hold your breath. I like what I've seen of Maybury, love to see him stay on but I don't expect it at all. I know, this is what frustrates me though. We SHOULD be on top of it, but as you said I don't expect it at all I dont think they''ll make any solid offers to anyone till we know which half of the table we're playing in. Good point but I don't think it should change anything. We still need to build/consolidate the team for next season. We made plenty of money this season so I wouldn't think that it would have much dependancy on league position would it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TENEMENTFUNSTER Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 Good point but I don't think it should change anything. We still need to build/consolidate the team for next season. We made plenty of money this season so I wouldn't think that it would have much dependancy on league position would it? I agree, I don't think our league position this season will make that much of a difference to 2 or 3 year contracts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El Padre™ Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 I agree, I don't think our league position this season will make that much of a difference to 2 or 3 year contracts. Knowing that we have income from a top 6 finish and a cup final I think will have a huge bearing on where we spend our cash. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manc_don Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 Knowing that we have income from a top 6 finish and a cup final I think will have a huge bearing on where we spend our cash. I know, but, as I said, we need to consolidate from the back first and foremost. We've leaked far too many goals this season, and conceded easy sloppy goals. I just think from what I've seen of Maybury, he looks like what we need so I just want AFC to break the trend and be pro-active. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topcorner Posted April 6, 2008 Share Posted April 6, 2008 I hope we sign him up and am pretty confident we will. I actually prefer him to Michael Hart at right back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigAl Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 I hope we sign him up and am pretty confident we will. I actually prefer him to Michael Hart at right back. I hope it happens as well, but am pretty confident it won't happen as he'll potentially get three times as much as we'll offer iat a.n.other Championship club Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobbyBiscuit Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 Might just be AFC are well aware his wages will be too much. There was a similar article in yesterday's Herald, pretty much said that we can't afford his wages. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kowalski Posted April 15, 2008 Share Posted April 15, 2008 Maybury could be gone in summer Published: 15/04/2008 ALAN Maybury’s future still isn’t any clearer with the Dons, writes Andrew Moir. The defender, on loan from Leicester City, is a free agent in the summer but would consider a permanent Pittodrie move. However, in the wake of the Scottish Cup exit at the hands of Queen of the South, he doesn’t know what to expect. “There is no news on my contract situation, so I’m just waiting to see what happens,†said Maybury. “Performances like the one against Queen of the South don’t help. “Having an opportunity with such a huge reward on offer and then not take it, is a big disappointment. “We did show some fight and determination to get back into it after going a goal behind. “That should have given us the impetus to kick on but things were crazy at the start of the second half. “We didn’t do it in the semi-finals of the CIS Cup which just makes things even harder. “It’s not that often you get to play in semi-finals and we’ve blown two of them. “We all have to take a portion of the blame and I hold my hands up that I was meant to have the guy who scored the winner. “He ran off me so that’s my fault but it’s a collective thing. “But having played so well against Celtic in the quarter final, it’s just so frustrating.†Meanwhile, Barry Nicholson is remaining tight lipped about his own plans. The midfielder scored as the Dons lost 4-3 to tumble out of the competition. Nicholson is out of contract in the summer and it now looks increasingly likely he’ll quit Pittodrie and head south to England during the close season. He said: “I haven’t made any decision about my future and I’ll see what happens over the next few weeks.†Lee Miller will be a free agent in the summer and he could also leave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ally s Posted April 15, 2008 Share Posted April 15, 2008 A lot will depend on who else is insterested in Maybury. If another Championship club comes in then we're screwed, likewise if Hearts go back in for him. If he's willing to take a pay cut and have another stint in the SPL then I'd welcome him with open arms. Apart from Saturday he's been solid, a really decent full back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glasgow sheep Posted April 15, 2008 Share Posted April 15, 2008 that story's headline could just as easily be "Maybury could stay beyond the summer" Fucking EE full of shit, as per usual. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigAl Posted April 19, 2008 Share Posted April 19, 2008 A lot will depend on who else is insterested in Maybury. If another Championship club comes in then we're screwed, likewise if Hearts go back in for him. If he's willing to take a pay cut and have another stint in the SPL then I'd welcome him with open arms. Apart from Saturday he's been solid, a really decent full back. Maybury doesn't have an offer from AFC or indeed any other club at present Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manc_don Posted April 19, 2008 Share Posted April 19, 2008 Wasn't that convinced with him today, a bit wasteful, and slipped a lot after doing the hard bit which was a shame. I still think we should keep him though. I wonder if the worry of his future is playing on his mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DON 71 Posted April 19, 2008 Share Posted April 19, 2008 The situation seems clear to me. From day one Maybury has impressed and is currently one of our best players. AFC hit us with pish like we are undecided and will wait until the end of the season to make a decision - What they really mean is that there is no way we can match the wages he is on/or expects to be on and all we can do is let it drag on hoping he gets no offers from any other club, and he ends up out of contract with no club and is kind of forced into accepting AFC's offer. Sadly nothing the fans say or do will change this fact and all we can do is wait and see. I actually don't think Maybury is really that bothered about signing for the Dons and would prefer more money at whichever club offers him it. Although having said that I would prefer him to sign for us as I think he is a damn good player. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheepheid Posted April 19, 2008 Share Posted April 19, 2008 The situation seems clear to me. From day one Maybury has impressed and is currently one of our best players. AFC hit us with pish like we are undecided and will wait until the end of the season to make a decision - What they really mean is that there is no way we can match the wages he is on/or expects to be on and all we can do is let it drag on hoping he gets no offers from any other club, and he ends up out of contract with no club and is kind of forced into accepting AFC's offer. Sadly nothing the fans say or do will change this fact and all we can do is wait and see. I actually don't think Maybury is really that bothered about signing for the Dons and would prefer more money at whichever club offers him it. Although having said that I would prefer him to sign for us as I think he is a damn good player. That goes for almost every single professional football player (except perhaps those who are nearing the end of their careers, have made their cash and want to play for a club they support). The thing we as fans all tend to forget is that this is their job. If Maybury (or any other person for that matter) stacked shelves for a living at Tesco and Lidl's are paying twice the money, then he'd be off to get twice the money, the same as any of us would! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kowalski Posted April 25, 2008 Share Posted April 25, 2008 Aberdeen may lose battle for Maybury Big wages could tempt defender south Published: 25/04/2008 ABERDEEN boss Jimmy Calderwood fears he could be priced out of a move for defender Alan Maybury. Calderwood has been impressed with the Irishman, who will face Hibs tomorrow, since he moved north on loan from Leicester City in January. However, the 29-year-old could be tempted to return south with the prospect of bumper wages. Calderwood said: “Alan started very well before hitting a little dip but has now come back strongly. “Aiden McGeady was recently voted player of the year in Scotland which is an honour he deserves. “But he didn’t get the better of Alan too often when the pair met. “We will need to see what his situation is in the summer but I would like to keep him if possible. “These things come down to finances and I’ll need to see how he feels about staying. “If we can afford him within our wage structure then I’d be keen to keep him. “But it’s a worry he might be made a more lucrative offer elsewhere. “He’s played at the highest level with Leeds and is also a Republic of Ireland international.†Meanwhile, Calderwood has also targeted a positive finish to the season. The Dons have four matches left of the campaign and Calderwood wants his troops to finish with a real flourish starting against Mixu Paatelainen’s men tomorrow. He added: “The matches against Hibs are always very open so hopefully that will attract a crowd. “Hibs are a good side who are a wonderful attacking team and they still have a chance of Europe. “Mixu has changed the way they play as they are now a bit more direct. “They now get the ball up to the forwards a little bit quicker which can make them more dangerous.†Darren Mackie and Karim Touzani have both recovered from knocks to be included in the squad for tomorrow’s clash. However, Richie Byrne, Jamie Smith, Sone Aluko and Lee Mair will all miss out on the clash with the capital men. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hopeisimportant Posted April 25, 2008 Share Posted April 25, 2008 We should only keep him if we can get him on a low contract - which probably wont happen. I think he is half the player Hart was. Far too often he is posted missing when he should be marking someone. Unfortunately, not sure we will get anyone better due to the fact we will be signing so many new players. I bet Duff starts as RB next season! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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