Stephen Hunt

[Theskinloyal]

It was almost like some sort of karate kick. Thats why I could never warm to him, because he's capable of things like that.

[beautifulrock]

For whats it worth, he did have the decency to go into the City dressing room afterwards and apologise for it. A horrible tackle and anyone that has ever played knows that is a leg breaker

[CollegeTillIDie]

Yes and he's always a potential red card candidate .

[jebus]

There was no venom in it, he's not that kind of player.

That might have worked the first time Hunt clattered a player, he's a scumbag plain and simple

[Superhoops]

There was no venom in it, he's not that kind of player.
May not be any venom but it is certainly recklessness. He got the benefit of the doubt with the Peter Cech incident, but there was the incident in Prague and then again yesterday. He is getting a reputation which he could do without.

[MojoPin]

http://ie.youtube.com/watch?v=tsyiTG6Stc8

strange

[superfrank]

Horrible tackle. His leg was too high to be anywhere near the ball.

[viagogo]

Worst tackle ive seen in a while. dont know how he got away with it. Think he may be a liability in the World Cup qualifers if he is going to throw himself in stupid tackles like this. Hopefully Duff will be back.

[osarusan]

any link to it anywhere?

[MunsterMunch]

any link to it anywhere?

http://www.footytube.com/2007/11/24/man-city-2-1-reading/

[cheifo]

Impact sub for us at times of crisis.Full Stop.

[MojoPin]

link on youtube?

[geysir]

It's up there with Binya's tackle on Scott Brown alright.
Not even close.
Binya's was a chop, his studs came in with speed and downward force on Scott Brown's shin bone. An equivalent of a vicious stamp. It was a miracle that Brown escaped injury. A 6 match ban for Binya.
Hunt's was a bad tackle, not decisive enough to be malicious, just slid in, arse on the ground, left foot carelessly dangling high, made contact with the thigh, wouldn't have broken a leg in a month of sundays.

Hunt needs to gain some technique with his tackling.

[pete]

I don't think he meant it. He just has poor technique & no control. Should have been red card & several game ban.

[TonyD]

Disgraceful tackle. I wouldn't be too sure it wasn't intentional either. You don't just "leave your leg carelessly dangling" that high. Does anyone else think Hunt has far too much to say for himself too? He's only been in the Premier League and the International set up for 5 minutes(relatively) and just won't STF up.

[Colbert Report]

That tackle was DIRTY DIRTY DIRTY. I really like Hunt but he went for your man's knee there. Disgraceful. If you don't think that was intentional then you haven't played football even at the amateur level. If someone did that to a guy on my pub team, I'd be after him in a flash. I'd risk getting sent off just to break the guy's ankle. Well worth it if he did that to a team mate.

[onenilgameover]

he is clearly mental

[DRDoc]

To be honest I dont think calling Hunt a scumbag is right - where is the poster from who called him that?

I havent seen the tackle yet but if he didnt get a red for it how bad can it have been? Genuine question

[Rovers fan]

I havent seen the tackle yet but if he didnt get a red for it how bad can it have been? Genuine question

well lets just say it was a definite red card offense.

[rambler14]

Not as bad as Binyas but right up there. After the tackle Richard Dunne came up to him and told him to "calm the f**k down" to the best of my lip reading abilities.

[tetsujin1979]

Hunt came into the Man City changing room afterwards to apologise as well

[tricky_colour]

It gets worse

http://youtube.com/watch?v=E-3949SxkN4

:D

[bellavistaman]

There was no venom in it, he's not that kind of player.

Are you mad?


Wonder if he asked Stephen Ireland about his hair when he was there?!

Pointless comment there. Build a bridge!


Hunt came into the Man City changing room afterwards to apologise as well

Stephen O'Halloran was telling me Hunt is is a unbelievably nice fella off field, hes not a scumbag lads, just a hot headed bad tackler:p, paul scholes is the same.

[Paulie]

He's a very committed player that has worked very hard on his game but there is no doubt that he is prone to doing things like this. When he came on as a sub against Wales I said to my mate that he'd probably be sent off after 10 minutes for a two footed lunge on the ref.

[Dun Laoire]

Jaysus it was rough enough alright. Have we a team full of "not right in the head dept" fellas or what? Between Ste Ireland running around in his superman knickers and the hatchet that we've just seen there i think it's like something out of that film One flew over the cuckoos nest. Off topic i know but what a strike by Ireland for City's winner.

[Paddy Garcia]

Impact sub for us at times of crisis.Full Stop.

DOUBLE IMPACT

[mr miyagi]

He's not a malicious player....he's just a nutjob

[an_ceannaire]

Anyone else think they go way "over the top" about him...???
He looks like a fella with no football but a lot of heart to me. Wouldnt start him barring a real crisis
Think they are spot on about McShane tho

[tricky_colour]

He the only Irish player, apart from Richard Dunn, who I can recall puttiing in a tackle this season. And probably the only one I can recall winning a ball back in the last 10 years!!

[NeilMcD]

What a hat he was wearing this evening on Match of the Day. Maybe Stephen Ireland should get one

[feo123]

funniest thing i've seen in a long time :D what the hell had he on his head. you'd know he was irish anyway :D

[Maroon 7]

What a hat he was wearing this evening on Match of the Day. Maybe Stephen Ireland should get one

I think he was going for the elusive Quiet Man/P Diddy look.

God love him but he's some character.:D

[reder]

If Hunt leaves Reading and I hope he does, he has to chose Everton if he looks at it from a professional viewpoint. If he choses Sunderland he needs his head examined.

However, he is a red so he might chose to avoid the BS.

Everton - European football, doing very nicely in the PL (back in europe next season), possible carling cup final at wembley.

Sunderland - relegation battle and possible championship football next season.

Reading - football in the lower half of the PL with the danger of getting dragged into the relegation battle.

[CJTheGull]

Agree. Realistically the best Sunderland can hope for is a 17th place this season and a move there would definitely be a step down the food chain regardless of the Roy Keane influence.
Hunt is going to become a legend for Ireland in the next few years and if some of the other members of the current squad showed half an ounce of his commitment maybe we wouldn't be down with the likes of Slovakia, Cyprus and Wales.

[dr_peepee]

If Hunt leaves Reading and I hope he does, he has to chose Everton if he looks at it from a professional viewpoint. If he choses Sunderland he needs his head examined.

However, he is a red so he might chose to avoid the BS.

Everton - European football, doing very nicely in the PL (back in europe next season), possible carling cup final at wembley.

Sunderland - relegation battle and possible championship football next season.

Reading - football in the lower half of the PL with the danger of getting dragged into the relegation battle.

Is everton a realistic opportunity???

Everton aside... He should choose Sunderland... Sunderland are by no mean relegated. They have more ambition and potential than Reading. And most importantly for the sake of his future. He's relatively late bloomer and hasn't got the financial security of his peers. Sunderland can offer him more money plus a signing on fee.... I'm all for medals & Standards before cash, but there has to be a happy medium for players at his level. He'd be crazy not to punt for the move out of some misplaced loyalty to Reading. If a club out grows a player they've no problems shifting him along.. Same applies when a player outgrows a club. Look at Kinsella when Charlton go relegated. Stayed out of loyalty to the club when Spurs and Villa wanted him at his peak. When Kinsella came back from injury (never fully recovered if you ask me) Charlton got rid of him. Quite rightly too, but no more right than Kinsella would have been had he went to spurs. Point is loyalty is seldon reciprocated at that level of football.. Sure some of the big clubs have the ability to absorb the SOlksjars of this world, but at the level we're talking about it doesn't happen.

Hunt should go, with the blessing of reading gratefull for 4.5m clear profit and years of effort.

[EAFC_rdfl]

how much is hunt on at the moment? im sure he'll be on at least 15k per week, so how can his 'financial security' come into it. at that money he is making 780k per year (before tax admittedly), so for 3 yrs at that money he makes 2.34 million. hardly poverty now is it? I don't think any one playing for an established PL team (which reading are in my opinion) needs to worry about their back pocket

[Stuttgart88]

I think I heard 30k a week was what Reading have just offered him.

[dr_peepee]

how much is hunt on at the moment? im sure he'll be on at least 15k per week, so how can his 'financial security' come into it. at that money he is making 780k per year (before tax admittedly), so for 3 yrs at that money he makes 2.34 million. hardly poverty now is it? I don't think any one playing for an established PL team (which reading are in my opinion) needs to worry about their back pocket

Jeese... No one's saying he's gonna starve... Comparitively for a 26 year performing like he is... He is way behind his peers on what he has earned to this point and what he's currently earning. He has about 5 years earning power left. He shoudn't forsake a 300k signing on fee and double his wages out of some misplaced loyalty to Reading...

[Dr. Ogba]

he should stay at Reading if Sunderland are the only team interested. He would be mad to be sucked into the rotation vortex that is Sunderland. I don't think Reading are going to be dragged into the relegation scrap but Sunderland are definitely going to be there or thereabouts come the end of the season.
Now if Everton were looking at him on the other hand I think he should jump at it and I think he would be a great signing for them, providing excellent left-wing crosses for the likes of Johnson/Yakubu/Cahill to thrive on. Would be a great move for all parties imho....

[EAFC_rdfl]

suppose so, let him earn more money and get involved in a scrappy relegation battle, that'll improve his career no end!! If he stays at Reading til the end of the season and keeps the form up, there will be plenty mid-table teams willing to take him on board.

[livehead1]

Moyes also has a good track record of making good players into better ones, see yobo, hibbert, arteta cahill etc etc

[Drumcondra 69er]

Hunt would be mad to go to Sunderland. He's only coming into his own at this stage in an enviornment he's comfortable in and under a manager who's had him at 3 different clubs and is obviously a huge influence. Being dragged into a relegation battle under a manager who's obviously struggling and is still relatively inexperienced would not be a good career move. He's a late bloomer and another year's development at Reading would be ideal before looking to move on.

Everton may be a decent option with Moyes track record of improving players as alreaady mentioned (you could include Carsley in that list) and the feel good factor that seems to be there at present.

I said this time last year that Hunt was a poor man's Ray Houghton in his style of play and meant it as a compliment. He's actually come on in leaps and bounds since then and like Houghton (who was another late bloomer) a move to Merseyside at some stage could be the making of him....

[drinkfeckarse]

I think I heard 30k a week was what Reading have just offered him.

He's come a long way in 2 years.

[Bondvillain]

Devils advocate ;

If Reading WERE to take the Quinn's shilling and let Hunt move to Wearside, what would his future hold were he sign up, maintain his current level of performance, and go on to shine like an Arclight in a mediocre midfield that Kavanagh et al can't hack and Yorke, clever as he is, arguably cannot keep pace with for 60, never mind 90, minutes?

Assuming his agent managed to insert a relegation escape clause or similar compensatory package, he'd be on a decent contract in a club in the Public eye, with a healthy salary and, going on current form, MOTM and Fan's Player of the season awards would be a mere fomality (facetious, but you know what I mean).

If they survive, He'd be the man of the hour, and his confidence would be sky high - No harm to have a skillful battling midfielder in top of his game in the Irish set up for a change - and if Keane were to be unsucessful in maintaining premiership survival, Hunt , Like Reid at Charlton before him, would be almost universally exempt from blame, leaving him (assuming a clause was in place and he remained injury free) to take the plaudits for a job well done (despite the consequences) and pack his bags for the first £6m offer that came in from a PL team.

The Reading fans are on Hunt's side no matter what, as he skillfully got his retalliation in first when he suggested recently that, happy as he was with Reading, any decision on his future would be in the hands of the money men.

Really, and I mean this as a genuine question; what is the worst that could happen if Hunt went to Wearside?

[dr_peepee]

I dunno lads... I like Hunt.. I really do.. But I think he's on the crest of a wave at the minute, and should strike while the Irons hot. I don't think in a year or two's time he'll have the power of negotiation he has now. He's making the best of limited ability... I'm not saying leave purely for Sunderland, I'm saying for his own sake if a lucrative offer comes in from a premiership club (Aside from Derby), he should really consider it. People are getting bogged down on the Sunderland/Keane/Ireland factor. If West Ham or Everton do come in I'd say by all means tell Sunderland to get f'cked... But I think Sunderland are better placed in the bigger scheme of things than Reading... Just my humble opinion!!!!

[ifk101]

Totally agree with dr_peepee. He should go to the team offering the most money.

Hunt has a very high profile for somebody with a low technical ability and the only thing I think Hunt offers a team is high energy levels and a bit of urgency. He's by no means a top player and I think he should cash in now while clubs are prepared to pay top dollar for him because I don't think he improve beyond his current levels.

[Stuttgart88]

I think people underestimate the quality of his delivery and that very valuable asset - timing. He often pops up at the right place at the right time.

I think the package Reading are offering will set him up for life and he's already on the road to being very wealthy anyway. I think he'd be surrounded by mediocrity at Sunderland and if a move to the likes of Everton is on the cards he should take it but Sunderland would be an unnecessary gamble.

If it ain't broke don't fix it, as they say.

[Wolfie]

The more discerning of us had championed Hunt for a long time.

His direct style of play, urgency and intelligent reading of the game are very effective.

Doesn't always harnass all of that energy in the right way and has a tendency to waste energy running onto lost causes but a minor gripe.

Should be a hugely influential player for us in the next campaign.

[Hibernian]

The more discerning of us had championed Hunt for a long time.

His direct style of play, urgency and intelligent reading of the game are very effective.

Doesn't always harnass all of that energy in the right way and has a tendency to waste energy running onto lost causes but a minor gripe.

Should be a hugely influential player for us in the next campaign.

He has great bottle to be fair and gives it 100% ecery time I have seen him play and its all you can ask for from the player.

He is a legend!!!!!

[Wolfie]

He has great bottle to be fair and gives it 100% ecery time I have seen him play and its all you can ask for from the player.

He is a legend!!!!!

I'm in total agreement with you. I think his attitude is spot on and has been sorely lacking among some of his International team mates.

My point was more along the lines that he was almost overly psyched up against the Czechs away and got himself sent off.

Possibly, like Roy Keane - he needs to have that edge to his game to perform to his level best.