So Conor Wilkinson has gone, but it seems as if he was never really ours to have. It's a departure as frustrating as it is solemnly inevitable, with Conor the latest in a long line of fans' favourites whose spell here was painfully short-lived. Just as in the case of Morgan Ferrier, Fejiri Okenabirhie, Jodi Jones and most others who exhibit even an ounce of promise at Victoria Road, it was never meant to last. Realism rules optimism and the longer Wilkinson began to star, the shorter his spell would ultimately be. However, that's the life of a non-league club and especially one which prides itself on its ability to mould and shape players into talented physical and technical specimens. The lure of the Football League is too much and, though it's infuriating to lose a player of Conor's ability, especially to Leyton Orient, the move is something you cannot begrudge him. This is especially after his rapid impact kept us up, almost on his own. Without his 12 goals and 5 assists we'd now be facing the devastating prospect of the National League South. Although the outcome is a familiar sense of disappointment, that we've neither seen enough of Wilkinson nor received a satisfactory amount of money to warrant him leaving, you can't fault the club in this case. It seemed like we pulled out all the stops to keep him here as long as possible, but through a complicated combination of Wilkinson's desires, his agent's self-motivated infiltration and financial technicalities, we had to put the buyout clause in. The buyout clause was a win-win situation short-term but a lose-lose situation long-term, it would seem. We'd got him for an extra six months on top of the loan deal, which we would've all been delighted about anyway, but more or less accepted that he was unlikely to remain here beyond that point, clinging onto the unlikely hope that the environment in which Wilkinson was flourishing would sway it in our favour. It was worth a try, as improbable as it was that he'd stay. The announcement that he'd signed on an 18-month contract was merely a technicality to ensure we wouldn't have to pay him during May and June, rather than the monumental statement of our intentions we all thought at the time. We were sold a dream - but who can blame the club? We tried our best, even matching his League One wages, which is a testament to not only how well we regarded him, but the extent we were willing to go to get him to the club. Essentially, the fee that we received covered Wilkinson's wages during the summer months so it hasn't cost us any excess money. What we gained from his spell at the club severely outweighs what we've lost. Wilkinson kept us up and with his superb displays ignited hope amongst supporters. His performances helped give us an incredible couple of months around Christmas where morale was as high as it has been in years, coming after a prolonged spell of misery. He was far too good for the National League - that was blatantly obvious to everybody. Aside from his attacking capabilities, he was a brilliant antagonist, the likes of which we hadn't seen for ages. It was so satisfying to see him get under the skin of every team as he performed with a streak of aggression which seemed to drive him to play well. He thrived on anger and being the villain, which was evident when he celebrated directly in front of many teams he scored against and that made the goals all the more enjoyable. Loving a player hated by the majority of the division brings such a good feeling, especially as you knew it was likely Wilkinson would have the last laugh. However the biggest thing we'll miss is his clinical finishing. With him in the team, we felt as if there was always a chance of getting anything out of any game, even if we had played awful. Whenever he picked up the ball, there was an audible vibe of excitement and there's not many players who we've seen do that in recent years. It's a testament to his effect on the club that he'll be missed so sorely despite only featuring 23 times for us. Although there's an overriding element of disappointment that it's Orient to whom he'll now be endeared, we are left in appreciation for how he helped turn our season around in such a short space of time. Conor Wilkinson came in to do a job, to be a short-term fix, and it's fair to say that he definitely did that. He had an unimaginable effect on the team, but now we have to move on and find the next Conor Wilkinson. There's always another one around the corner. Replacing him will, though, be a difficult task because he offered us so much. Now we have to trust in the management team that we can find a suitor who will have a positive effect on our chances next term. We can't judge the replacement on Wilkinson's standards but, as long as he gives 100% and brings a potent cutting edge to the team, we'll be more than happy. Losing Wilkinson is a blow but it sounds like we were expecting him to go, so hopefully we were prepared for this outcome and have a replacement lined up, just as Leyton Orient did with Macauley Bonne, to our detriment of course.
1 Comment
Mark B
22/6/2019 08:50:38 pm
Absolutely gutted but it was inevitable. If the club knew he was certain to leave then why not have a decent replacement lined up such as McCallum on a free. Once again Daggers sitting on their hands and not getting the best deals done
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