It's been a busy summer transfer window for Notts. So far eleven players have been recruited, with a promise of more to come before the transfer window closes.

The first league game of the season saw five of those new players included in the starting eleven, & four more came on as a substitute, with another; goalkeeper Griffiths not used.

The Notts match squad looks very different to last season, with Martin Paterson ringing the changes big time.

Of course, with so many changes ,it comes with it, potential problems with player lack of familiarality & team gelling, however the indications from that first game, particularly in the first half, is that it didn't seem to be evident.

One thing is clear, the new players must have impressed the Head Coach to such a degree that most of them have forced themselves into the Matchday squad.

By bringing in all these players, the owners have laid down a statement of intent to give Notts the best chance of success this season. Do PON members agree?

Sam Slocombe, Kyle Cameron, Sam Austin, Adam Chicksen, Charlie Whitaker, Tyler Miller and Robbie Cundy, were released. Not forgetting David McGoldrick, George Abbott and Alex Bass.

So with the new No. 9 to come is that a fair exchange or a minor upgrade?

Answers on a league table coming to you about the 11 October. (12 games in)

i still think we should have kept charlie whitaker, he ran himself into the ground and when he performed well, he was class. a few years he could have been a massive player for us. i dont think we have replaced alex bass and david mcgoldrick on paper. kelle roos looks good enough for this level, but i dont feel confident that he will be ready for league one when we are. didzy could have retired at any moment, his legs could go but him chasing a new dream at barnsley for me says that hes wanting to peruse one last celebration.

when you look at the quality of loan signings, it does seem like we are avoiding the ones clubs just want to gain first team experience and have no real interest in their development just hopes of them being good enough one day.

those we have signed all look to have bright futures and they fit in very well, giving us a younger edge with some good experienced players in the middle.

the biggest sign of content the club could make at this stage is by signing another striker, but i agree they are trying and have done quite well with using the loan system.

I don’t think you can knock the commitment to the cause but I feel like we’ve over-recruited in a way, possibly bringing in unnecessary players (although that is too early to say at the moment). Even though a good number of players departed over the summer some of them formed zero part of the squad. Players like Cameron, Chicksen, Cundy & Morias, they didn’t need replacing they just to needed to be let go.

We have a number of players who can cover more than the one position so I never thought we needed a massive squad either, but right now we’ve got a large squad, 25 outfield players and that’s excluding any academy players... In the midfield positions, which covers the wingbacks, central midfielders and attacking midfielders that’s 6 spots that get filled each match we’ve got 16 players that can play in these positions!

Sometimes you are better off investing the wages of 2 decent players to get 1 very good player, you take the hit of a smaller squad but get quality over quantity. My slight worry is that we have tipped the balance towards quantity.

7 hours ago, Robbie said:

The Notts match squad looks very different to last season, with Martin Paterson ringing the changes big time.

I don’t think MP had much to do with the recruitment of players that’s the recruitment teams job, MP just works with what he’s given, he may have some input on the type of player but not the individuals.

We may need to be patient while the team gels, you can’t just throw lots of new players into a squad and expect them to work together efficiently quickly, that takes time to learn how each others minds work and anticipate what they will do, I just hope that if things get off to a slow start the fans don’t start to get on their backs.

Quality loans do tend to cost money and good wage contributions, so just because we opted for this doesn't mean we aren't willing to pay. It might be more of a statement that the club believes there are better players to be brought in temporarily while we try to push for a League One return.

The way I think of this season is that the club might be trying to ensure only quality is signed permanently, and those who have arrived on free transfers look to have potential to step up or be allowed to move on without much fuss. League One football isn't going to be easy; a lot of good teams are failing, and the landscape of the division has improved a lot since last year. League Two is more competitive than when we were last here; the issue with football at this level is that some clubs are willing to gamble for promotion.

Accrington's chairman, for example, loved to comment about how his "punching above its weight" team earned promotion. It's been downhill since, and for a club to have such a wonderful season that earned them promotion, I think intent and questioning Notts should not be made so lightly. I know Accrington have a small budget, but their chairman's complaints about fair play, whilst ruining the progress made over one magic season, sort of baffle me as to why he is liked so much.

A striker was on our wish list even after Matthew Dennis; all it takes is one injury, and Mai Traore isn't going to fill me with confidence up top. I think, from what I have seen of him, he's best behind the ball and allowed to run with it.

We only have Alassana Jatta who is a true striker; Dennis still makes me believe he should be playing in a similar role to Jodi Jones and Conor Grant.