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Player Reviews 2011/12 - Part 3
Vinny 3:02 Wed May 30
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Player Reviews 2011/12 – Part 3
To View last season’s Part 3, go to:
http://web.archive.org/web/20110702012056/http://westhamonline.net/article.php?5540007
Forwards
John Carew
On August 6th 2011 the club announced the signing of John Carew who had been released by Aston Villa a few months previous.
He made his debut in the 2-2 draw at home to Leeds United when he came on as a substitute after 66 minutes. First reactions to him was of course how tall and strong he is although a few days later in the league cup game at home to Aldershot Town you could really get the sense of just how slow he was.
His first goal for the club came away at Crystal Palace when he came on for the final quarter of the game and scored the equaliser late on.
Carew was then rewarded with a start against Blackpool in the following game where for me he was the best player on the pitch as we ran out 4-0 winners. He scored the first goal and I gave him my man of the match award, stating:
“He was simply unplayable. Blackpool couldn’t get near him and but a selfish moment which denied Baldock his hat trick, this was perfect performance.”
He started the next few games but found himself taken off in every one of them. His final two starts (away at Hull and Coventry) saw him removed on both occasions at half time.
This would really be all from John Carew and he did nothing again of note for the remainder of the season. He made no other impact on the league season and when we did see him come on as a sub (which was rare) he looked as though he was a former footballer who was in his forties or fifties and had returned to play a game for charity.
I cannot believe he is only 32 because the man cannot run. Maybe it is his frame, maybe it is fitness or maybe he just turned dog shit as he got older but the man clearly cannot play football at a decent standard anymore.
With Vaz Te and Maynard signing in the January transfer window he fell down the pecking order and with his contract expiring in the summer it has been announced that he is to be released which comes as little surprise.
Earlier this year he was declared bankrupt following a petition by HM Revenue and Customs. His off field problems may have contributed to his lack of interest on it but I would suspect he was a good wage and with that being the case the signing of Carew can be considered a bit of a flop.
Apps: League 7 + 11Sub Cup 2
Goals: 2
Bookings: 1
Verdict: Never had the desire and certainly does not have the quality.
Freddie Sears
It is easily forgotten that the first game of the season against Cardiff City Freddie Sears was in the starting line-up. He had done well in Pre-Season and scored the winner against FC Copenhagen and also scored in the home game against Real Zaragoza.
His performance against Cardiff didn’t fill me with too much confidence and he was taken off later in the game.
This wasn’t to be his last involvement as he was still in and around the first team squad and made another start in the League Cup game against Aldershot. Playing again on the wing I thought he did better than most on the pitch and actually thought he was our best player on a dismal night.
Sears was coming on as a second half sub frequently with his best cameo away at Brighton in the 1-0 win where he looked positive and helped us in the second half when we needed an outlet.
He started the game at home to Bristol City in the 0-0 draw but with us struggling he was again taken off.
His final start of the season and involvement with the West Ham team was away at Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup where he was poor like most of the team.
Not long after he was shipped out on loan to League One side Colchester United where he has started five games, came on as sub six times and scored 2 goals.
Having signed a five year contract in 2008 he still has another year to run at West Ham but can anyone see him making an impact or getting any sort of look in if he remains at the club? He needs to move on for the sake of his career as he just doesn’t have the ability to make it at the top level.
It hasn’t helped him that no manager apart from Alan Curbishley wanted to play him as a striker which is where he made a name of himself at youth and reserve level. He scored a staggering amount of goals at that level in the striking position but has always been used as winger in the main under Zola, Grant and now Allardyce.
Whilst it hasn’t happened for Sears we will always recall that day in March 2008 when he made his debut against Blackburn with the score at 1-1. It was a wonderful moment when he scored the winner as a 17 year old on his first senior start and whatever will happen in his career he will always have that and I’m sure we will remember that goal for a few more years.
Apps: 2 + 8 Sub Cup 2
Brian Montenegro
Brian from Montenegro? No, Brian Montenegro. From Paraguay. Signed from Deportivo Maldonado who are from Uruguay.
18 year old Montenegro was a fairly low risk loan signing who I don’t believe was ever brought here to play first team football during the season and was brought in to have a look at a promising young player.
He did make his debut for the club in the FA Cup game at Sheffield Wednesday as he came on a late sub but he did nothing of particular note.
He started 12 games for the development squad and scored 7 goals which wasn’t a bad return.
According to the match programme for the Cardiff Play Off 2nd Leg it states on page 83 that according to development squad manager Ian Hendon that Montenegro will be an important member of the development squad next season so I presume he will be staying on for another season’s loan or signing permanently.
Apps: Cup 0+1 Sub
Frederique Piquionne
I thought he was pretty abysmal in the second half of last season and with no one willing to sign him given that he must be on a tremendous wage he started the season at the club as one of our main strikers.
Piquionne indeed began the season in the starting line up as he took his place up front on his own against Cardiff. He struggled to get anything going although this wasn’t entirely his fault given the way we were just lumping balls towards him.
It was clear though even at this stage that Piquionne would not be the answer to our goal scoring problems that we had endured the previous campaign.
Piquionne has a terrible goal scoring record and has only hit double figures in a season once in the last nine seasons and that came at St Étienne in 2004/05 season.
Having made little impact in the opening couple of games as a starter he tended to come off the bench to play cameo roles over the next few weeks.
He was sent off after only a few minutes having come on as a sub against his former club Portsmouth in an the ball incident with Greg Halford.
He managed a start at home to Bristol City on 1st November but as the game finished 0-0 and the focus was on us not taking our chances he was dropped again.
Piquionne did make an impact when he came on against Coventry City on 19th November as he and Carlton Cole changed the game and Piquionne actually managed to score the winner as the Coventry defender planted his header against Piquionne who was falling on the floor and the ball went over the line.
He came on early in our next game (20th minute) against Derby County and won a penalty which Mark Noble converted as the game finished 3-1.
This decent form saw him gain a start in the Tuesday night game at Middlesbrough where he was largely excellent and scored the first goal with a terrific header from a Matthew Taylor cross.
But then a really lacklustre performance away at Reading saw his form dip. You could argue that he was unlucky here as the reason we lost this game was due to our discipline deserting us as we had two players sent off.
Allardyce persisted with him at home to Barnsley, and away at both Birmingham and Derby. Average displays and most importantly no goals clearly displayed the need to go and bring in some firepower during the January transfer window and with Nicky Maynard and Ricardo Vaz Te signing this was the end for Piquionne.
He was sent out on loan in January to fellow Championship club Doncaster Rovers and scored a wonderful goal on his debut. He scored one other goal for Doncaster in March as they lost 3-1 to Birmingham and they were relegated.
With a year left on his contract he remains at the club and if he is stubborn he will remain here as he is likely to be on a wage that no one is going to pay him given his poor form of recent years, lack of goals and age (33).
Apps: League 8+11Sub Cup 1
Goals: 2
Bookings: 2
Sent Off : 1 (vs Portsmouth home)
Verdict: Doesn’t score enough goals and never has in his career. Would be positive for all concerned if he would leave in the summer.
Sam Baldock
It has seemed as though we had tried to get every striker available to come to the club but one after another refused so we were left with the end of list players such as Sam Baldock. I don’t mean this as disrespect to Baldock but his signing seemed liked a bit of a desperate move and not one which would solve our issues up front.
Baldock had done well for Milton Keynes Dons in League one at the start of the season and had played four league games and scored four goals. He had also played two cup games and scored in each of them also. Clearly he was a player with something and he excited the West Ham crowd early on with his speed and willingness.
He made his debut away at Millwall coming on as a sub and his full debut in the 1-0 home defeat to Ipswich Town.
He started against in our next home game against Blackpool and put in a terrific performance and scored two goals in the process. He took the goals well, was hard working, quick and effective throughout.
His performance away at Southampton was largely uneventful and he was dropped for the following game at Brighton but reinstated for the next game which was at home to Leicester City and for the second concecutive home match he would score two goals.
It seemed to me at this time that we had a real poacher on our hands and Baldock would be the one to get those goals from inside the six yard box. You could say, even know that he is the most natural poacher we have at the club.
Two games later we went away to Hull City and he opened the scoring in the second half with a goal again from inside the six yard box.
This game too place on 5th November 2011 and this sadly was to be his last goal all season. He picked up a injury at the end of November which kept him out for a month.
He came back and made a start at home to Coventry on 2nd January and stayed in the team away at Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup where he had a decent game but missed a penalty in the second half and we eventually lost.
Faith was kept in him by Allardyce in our next home game against Nottingham Forest on 21st January but Baldock was ineffective and taken off in the second half. This would be his last start of the season.
He was not on the bench for a number of games, an unused substitute for many and he came on a few times with no great effect. He should have scored up at Burnley when he and Maynard came on and changed the game in terms of how we were playing.
I was even calling for him to be in the first team after that game but Allardyce kept with his system.
Baldock did not even make the bench for the Play Off Final which I am sure disappointed him greatly and although he is popular with the supporters it would seem to me that Sam Allardyce isn’t a massive fan of his and I am not sure that he will be getting a chance in the coming season to show us what he can do.
I suspect he will be sent out on loan or perhaps even sold.
Apps: League 10+13Sub Cup 1
Goals: 5
Bookings: 1
Verdict: Looked good at times but once he got injured and lost his place he couldn’t get it back again.
Frank Nouble
Despite much promise it has never happened for Frank Nouble at West Ham. He has played under a few managers and has come in when we have been short up front and never disgraced himself but with other options always available he has been continually shipped out on loan to lower division clubs.
This season was no different even though we had dropped a division and had only three senior strikers available as the season began.
He did come on as a sub in the League Cup defeat against Aldershot Town but despite being a willing runner he was isolated and had little support.
Nouble was shipped off on loan to League Two side Gillingham on 15th September and he did well there and ended up spending three months with them scoring 5 goals in 12 games. He came back to West Ham on 17th December.
Totally out of the blue he was given a place in the starting line-up for the away game at Derby County on 31st December. Allardyce gave him his chance and he took it as he scored his one and only goal for the club in a 2-1 defeat.
He was allegedly subject to a bid from Crawley Town in January which was accepted by West Ham but the move was rejected by the Nouble.
Despite scoring against Derby he was dropped for the following game against Coventry although he was on the bench. His last appearance in a West Ham shirt came away at Ipswich Town as we were smashed 5-1.
In March 2012 he was sent out on loan again, this time to Barnsley. He started five games but did not score any goals.
It was announced at the end of the season that his contract will not be renewed and he will be leaving the club on its expiry.
He came with a bit of hype but ultimately Nouble hasn’t been good enough and I would think his career will be based in the lower ends of the football league.
Apps: League 1+2Sub Cup 0+2Sub
Goals: 1
Nicky Maynard
Signed in the January transfer window 25 year old Maynard came to the club with a reputation for scoring goals at Championship level having done well with Bristol City in previous seasons.
He signed for an undisclosed fee on a 2 and half year contract.
Maynard made his debut against Southampton at Upton Park as he came on as sub and nearly opened the scoring with a good effort which was saved.
He made his full debut away at Blackpool in a terrific 4-1 victory and scored his first goal for the club in this game.
He was also in the starting eleven for the away trip to Leeds United although he missed a couple of excellent chances and was taken off after 55 minutes.
Maynard would get another chance at home to Middlesbrough but then was dropped and only made sub appearances in the next three games.
But against Barnsley at Oakwell he was back in the first team and scored a fantastic goal in a superb 4-0 victory. It was a real classy finish from a player who does have a knack for scoring.
He was poor in the following game at home to Birmingham and was taken off at half time and he would not start again for the rest of the season. This was partly down to Carlton Cole finding his form and Maynard would be restricted to appearances from the bench.
On one such appearance in the Play Off Semi Final 1st Leg against Cardiff he scored the third goal in a 3-0 win with a well taken finish.
Maynard looks a decent player and whether he can make the step up remains to be seen but he clearly is able to finish and hopefully he will rise to the challenge of the Premiership.
Apps: League 9+7 Sub
Goals: 3
Bookings: 1
Verdict: We haven’t seen too much of him but he has done well enough in his few appearances and we will see more next season.
Robert Hall
18 year old Hall has come through the club’s youth system and made his breakthrough into the first team with a league debut away at Derby County on New Years Eve. He looked dangerous when he came on as he went out wide and attempted to showcase his quick feet and skill.
He did the same away in the cup against Sheffield Wednesday when he came on as sub and looked a tricky customer.
A couple more sub appearances all pointed to a promising player but with others ahead of him he was sent out on loan for the third time during the campaign, this time to MK Dons where he only made two sub appearances.
His loan moves earlier in the season were both to Oxford United where he received more playing time and scored 6 goals in 11 appearances.
I hope he is given a chance to play at some point during the season as everything I have seen from him so far points to a very good player in the making.
Apps: League 0+3 Sub Cup 0+1 Sub
Ricardo Vaz Te
Signed on January transfer deadline day for an undisclosed fee on a two and half year contract, Ricardo Vaz Te has been nothing short of brilliant.
Having already scored 10 league goals in 12 starts for Barnsley it was clear he was in goal scoring form but even I have been surprised at the impact he has made since signing for the club.
He ended the season having scored 12 goals in just 16 starts for the club. His first came away at Blackpool in the 4-1 win.
His late equaliser against Watford at Upton Park ensured we came out with at least a point. He came off injured in the following game against Doncaster after just 24 minutes when he was looked incredibly dangerous.
He made it back in the team for the game at Peterborough United where he opened the scoring with a header and in the next game against Reading he would also score with his head.
Vaz Te went back to former club Barnsley in the next game and scored the fourth goal and in the Easter Monday clash with Birmingham City he would score again with his head and would even get another as his late penalty saw us grab a point.
It would of course be the following game at home to Brighton which would be his masterpiece as he scored three goals in an epic 6-0 victory. His first a powerful shot which the keeper didn’t see, the second a brave header at the back post and the third, a magnificent scissor kick to complete the hat trick.
A brilliant finish against Cardiff at Upton Park saw us book our place at Wembley for the Play Off Final and with three minutes remaining on the clock he was on hand to slam the ball into the roof of the net and send us into the Premiership.
Ricardo Vaz Te has been a fantastic signing. He is exciting to watch, skilful, has the ability to make things happen and most importantly – he scores goals.
Apps: League 16+2Sub
Goals: 12
Bookings: 1
Verdict: A big challenge for him to step up but I believe he can do it and he has been fantastic for the club since signing.
Carlton Cole
Well here we are again reviewing Carlton Cole. It seems as though he has been here for an age and in fact he has been with the club since 2006.
He is a player who divides fans with many disliking him more than any other player and others who see what he can bring to the club.
Then there are people like myself who take Carlton Cole for what he is and what he always has been which is a striker who will get you a few goals, have a few good games, have a few bad ones but overall he gives his all for the team.
Criticising Carlton Cole for being lazy is just that – a lazy criticism which holds no merit. The same was said about Harewood, Wanchope and Kanoute.
Cole has again finished top scorer and has come out with 15 league goals. His form before the Christmas period was satisfactory for me but he did not score enough goals when the new year hit and he went through a poor run of form.
Cole would go on a terrible run after scoring against Millwall and would not score again in any of the next eleven games. Granted he did not start all of these and rarely played the full 90 minutes but this was a very poor run at a time in the season where we needed our best striker in form.
Cole has that knack of bringing the ball down expertly but then fails to play a pass to a team mate two feet in front of him which is extremely frustrating.
From the Reading home game onwards he did find that form and Cole scored 6 goals in his next 8 games.
One of those goals would of course come in the Play Off Final as he put in an excellent display and opened the scoring.
His form near the end of the season was really encouraging with his display away at Cardiff in the semi-final being the pick of the bunch.
Carlton Cole has hit double figures in each of last four seasons (in all competitions). He scores around the same amount of goals each season (between 10 and 15) and I have no doubt that he will do it again in this coming Premiership season because that is what Cole offers.
He is not a world beater; he never has been and never will be. Carlton Cole is not Didier Drogba.
What startles me is that certain supporters cannot work this out yet. You would think they would have figured this out by now. He’s only been here six years.
If West Ham could go out and buy better strikers than Carlton Cole then we wouldn’t even be talking about him. But we can’t, and we won’t and Carlton Cole will again lead our strike force next season.
Apps: League 30+12Sub
Goals: 15
Bookings: 7
Verdict: Top scorer again. Double figures again. It’s always the same thing with Cole and this is something that certain supporters need to accept.
So that concludes the Player Reviews for season 2011/12.
Thanks for reading.
Email: vinnywhufc@hotmail.com
Twitter: @vinnywhufc
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Replies - Newest Posts First ( Show In Chronological Order)
WhamZam
5:34 Thu May 31
Re: Player Reviews 2011/12 - Part 3
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Cheers Vinny for three good reads.
It's astonishing to see in black and white the number of players that have turned out for us this season. For me it's about inconsistency more than anything, too many players have struggled for form which has given chances to others who sadly haven't been good enough either. Fortunately, though, we managed to find a settled side for the run in, and I would be happy if, with perhaps two additions, these players formed the basis of our team next season.
Reviewing what our former players have been doing in the past year does nothing else for me than give a reminder of the incredible amount of shit that pass through our gates pretending to be footballers. Please stop it, swt.
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Vinny
4:24 Thu May 31
Re: Player Reviews 2011/12 - Part 3
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Strikers from last season and how they have fared since leaving.
Benni McCarthy
Signed for Orlando Pirates on August 2nd.
McCarthy finished his successful season with 10 league goals, ending the campaign as the fourth leading goal-scorer in the Premiership, helping the club secure their second successive treble
Victor Obinna
Went back to parent club Inter Milan and on 19 June 2011, Obinna signed a four year deal with Lokomotiv Moscow on free transfer.
Records seem to indicate he has played 16 games and scored 1 goal.
Alessandro Diamanti
Since leaving at the start of last season having only taken part in one game (against Aston Villa on the opening day) he left to sign for Italian club Brescia for a fee of £2m. To this say we still have not been paid for this.
He played 32 times scoring 6 goals. Brescia were relegated and at the start of the new season he signed for Bologna.
He has been in excellent for for Bologna and this saw him make the provisional, 32-man Italian squad for Euro 2012.
Zavon Hines
After failing to agree a contract with the club he signed for Burnley.
He has yet to start a league game for them.
Hines was shipped out on loan to Bournemouth in League One in March.
He played 7 games, scoring 1 goal.
Robbie Keane
Went back to parent club Spurs and then signed for Keane American club L.A Galaxy of Major League Soccer.
He has started 9 games and scored 3 goals.
Went on loan to Aston Villa after the MLS season ended.
He joined Villa for two months, played six games and scored 3 goals.
Demba Ba
Joined Newcastle United on a free transfer and has had a fantastic season.
He has scored 16 goals in 32 games and there is much speculation that he will leave Newcastle this summer.
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Monk~koknee
5:42 Thu May 31
Re: Player Reviews 2011/12 - Part 3
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Carlton seems to be a great bloke who loves the club. How much we can rely on him (bearing in mind his fitness) in the Premier League remains to be seen. It would be a huge gamble.
Excellent review Vinny.
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Sir Alf
4:27 Thu May 31
Re: Player Reviews 2011/12 - Part 3
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Texas Iron 4:17 Thu May 31
Yep :)
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Texas Iron
4:17 Thu May 31
Re: Player Reviews 2011/12 - Part 3
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Sir Alf 12:03 Thu May 31
Yep...
When fully fit...CFC became...CMC...
Carlton Maravilhoso Cole...
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Sir Alf
12:03 Thu May 31
Re: Player Reviews 2011/12 - Part 3
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Carlton is good when he is fully fit.
Unfortunately, an alledged degenerative knee problem means he has to be managed in order to play at peak fitness and he said himself he only started to feel fully fit at the ened of the season. It coincided with his best spell.
He deserves to be in teh squad and will be a decent part of it if he is not expected to play every game. BFS rotates the strikers and Carlton will benefit from that but we need another quality "big un" in teh squad next season.
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jimbo2.
11:05 Wed May 30
Re: Player Reviews 2011/12 - Part 3
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Well its quite possible that RVT will end up as our leading goalscorer next season. Thanks for the excellent reviews Vinny.
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Jasnik
10:54 Wed May 30
Re: Player Reviews 2011/12 - Part 3
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I'm also thinking Baldock will come good .
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westhamlegend
10:53 Wed May 30
Re: Player Reviews 2011/12 - Part 3
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Cheers Vinny. Agree with most of it.
Re Carlton Cole - we cannot rely on him as our main striker. He scored 5 goals in 35 appearances in our last Prem season. Simply not good/prolific enough at the top level & we'll be in deep shit if he's our main man. Demba Ba put him to shame with his goals and Vaz Te has done the same this season. We need to push the boat out and buy someone better than Cole (unlikely we'll unearth another Ba though). Cole should be on the bench (at best) for emergencies only.
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Jasnik
10:14 Wed May 30
Re: Player Reviews 2011/12 - Part 3
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Cole play just frustrates the hell out of people I think the is the problem.
He will do all the hard work to keep a ball just to give it away in the wrong place .
He will then take the most difficult chance and put it away.
He frustrates the hell out of us as he is so inconsistant and when he gets the ball no one including his team mates knows what he is going to do .
But his heart is in the right place. I think we keep thinking if he just pushed on he would be class, but I think after 6 years Cole is what Carlton is going to be .
Nearly an England player.
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claretandbluedagger
6:08 Wed May 30
Re: Player Reviews 2011/12 - Part 3
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Brilliant reviews Vinny, cheers!
Couldn't agree more about Cole, some people seem to think he's supposed to be as good as/better than Lionel Messi, which is a shame, as he plays a lot better than most give him credit for.
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keddy
5:27 Wed May 30
Re: Player Reviews 2011/12 - Part 3
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Thanks Vinny. I enjoyed that.
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Lee Trundle
3:25 Wed May 30
Re: Player Reviews 2011/12 - Part 3
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Cheers Vinny.
I'd go along with a lot of that. I still do have doubt over Cole, but I think he deserves a chance to prove he can be a hit in the Premier League (again). Maynard, hopefully, to step in if/when needed.
We're a left footed Vaz Te away from having a decent attack, I reckon. Get one of those, and we'll be laughing. The kids like Hall and Montano will get more chances with 7 subs on the bench next season, so it'll be good to see them.
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