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Post by salfordblue on Nov 10, 2017 8:48:48 GMT
I have been supporting Chester for 25 years and following Deva Chat (old & new) for some time. Reading some of the comments recently about the playing staff, like Ryan Astles has prompted me into making an account for the first time. I understand that forums are all about opinions and fans will have their own individual views on players and managers. In the case of Ryan Astles though, he is a true footballer, he plays for the love of the game. He puts in 110% for the shirt week in, week out and I think criticism of his weight is extremely harsh. Let’s face it, if the rest of the match day squad shared the same attitude of Astles then I think we would be a few places above where we are now. The lad constantly throws his body in front of shots, his tackling is excellent and the lad scores goals, often towards the end of matches, which shows his fitness isn’t such of an issue.
I just sometimes fail to see what some fans want? Ok he might not be the quickest but if had the pace of Rio Ferdinand, I’m his prime, then he wouldn’t be playing at Chester. Steve McNulty has been a decent lower league centre back for years and he is far bigger than Astles, yet he has played for decent professional clubs.
I just think we should start recognising Astles for his footballing ability and give him the credit he deserves. We often talk about players ‘not caring’ and ‘stealing a wage’ well if I’m not mistaken Astles was the first one to sign a one year contract back in the summer, he didn’t haggle for money. Why? Because I believe he loves playing his football for Chester FC!
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Post by Hannibal on Nov 10, 2017 8:59:50 GMT
My favourite current Chester player is Ryan Astles because of the passion he shows every game. I do wish the people who keep drawing attention to his perceived weight problem would desist.
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Post by sqzl on Nov 10, 2017 9:25:54 GMT
I do agree, but partly disagree. Firstly, let me make it clear Ryan is my favorite player at the club as well as being a player i expect could play football league some day. However, people mentioning his weight isn't to be shunned. Nobody, player or staff in exempt from critique, regardless of who they are. I personally think Ryan should be playing league two football, even with his pace limitations. I do think though, he is overweight as a footballer, and with a stone or two off, he'd be a yard quicker and may not be with us too long.
Nobody can fault his application to the CLUB, but i think it's fair to question application to the sport if a player is a bit bigger than he could be. Like i said, Ryan is, for me, the best player we have, but i don't feel anyone that mentions his weight should be branded a 'moaner' and such. A lot of those people, like myself, will want to see him progress up the pyramid.
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Post by salfordblue on Nov 10, 2017 11:52:46 GMT
It’s a fair point about Ryan’s physicality maybe preventing him from playing higher up the football pyramid. I would disagree though that his weight is a negative sign of his commitment to his sport. He certainly has the drive to play through the pain barrier, even when injured, which for me demonstrates committment and self-motivation to support the team. Yes he may make the odd mistake but so do a lot of premier league defenders with access to the best dieticians/sports scientists. I just think his performances on the pitch don’t justify some of the harsh criticism he receives.
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Post by hughdemann on Nov 10, 2017 11:53:04 GMT
I like Astles, has a very sweet left foot, and unfortunately at the moment our most likely goal scorer. Yes he could be slimmer and quicker, lets hope he works on it
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Post by englishred on Nov 10, 2017 12:22:55 GMT
As an outsider I've always been impressed with Astles. He is clearly overweight though and considering he's 23, not 34 like Steve McNulty, it's probably something thatbshould be worked on as he's clearly got a lot of ability. He reminds me a little of Mark Creighton who we had a few years back.
Clearly a lynch pin to your defence and someone who is personally want to build my defence around. Hrs got all the makings of a club talisman. His central defence partner should be someone quicker than John mcCombe though, although j don't think Bignot will make the mistake there that McCarthy did.
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Post by Firestick Frank on Nov 10, 2017 12:31:12 GMT
I do thoroughly agree with the general theme of this thread - the lad is a colossus and will become a legend at this club. It's just ironic that he was at fault for the goal on Wednesday night.
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Post by zipper on Nov 10, 2017 12:52:33 GMT
He will always be thought of a joke because of his build,but if he give 100% every week and plays well,that is the type of player chester will need to climb out of the bottom 4,fair play to astles he did ok on wednesday.
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Post by sqzl on Nov 10, 2017 13:06:49 GMT
It’s a fair point about Ryan’s physicality maybe preventing him from playing higher up the football pyramid. I would disagree though that his weight is a negative sign of his commitment to his sport. He certainly has the drive to play through the pain barrier, even when injured, which for me demonstrates committment and self-motivation to support the team. Yes he may make the odd mistake but so do a lot of premier league defenders with access to the best dieticians/sports scientists. I just think his performances on the pitch don’t justify some of the harsh criticism he receives. Fair enough mate i do think most of that is fair. What i meant by commitment though, is commitment to the sport. Nobody can question his commitment to our club playing through the pain barrier and always giving everything. What i meant by commitment to the sport is that if i has an opportunity to be a football league center half, personally i;d work damn hard on my physical condition. I question whether he likes the pub and his food too much to really make the change and better that, as it's not improved since he arrived. Top, top centre back, no question, and a top player for us, but he could do better than us IMO. |
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Post by Lobster on Nov 10, 2017 13:29:20 GMT
Our site says he's 195cm tall and 17st 1lb, which is a BMI of 28.3. Actually closer to obesity than a healthy weight.
I can sympathise because I'm a similar height myself and about a stone and half heavier than him! It's hard not to look like a complete grock if you're a 'big-boned' individual, but then I'm not an athlete.
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Post by salfordblue on Nov 10, 2017 13:52:28 GMT
Again fair point sqzl, I think we're both in agreement that he gives his all to the cause.
I think McNulty has always been that size since his Barrow and Fleetwood days Englishred. I've always thought he's good on the ball though and rarely caught out with his defensive starting positions despite his hefty frame.
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Post by englishred on Nov 10, 2017 14:22:42 GMT
Again fair point sqzl, I think we're both in agreement that he gives his all to the cause. I think McNulty has always been that size since his Barrow and Fleetwood days Englishred. I've always thought he's good on the ball though and rarely caught out with his defensive starting positions despite his hefty frame. McNulty has been the best defender down here for years. Maybe now less so but he was immense (no pun intended) for Luton and Fleetwood. If Astles gets anywhere near that you've got a hell of a player on your hands. |
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Post by wxmred on Nov 10, 2017 16:27:39 GMT
Again fair point sqzl, I think we're both in agreement that he gives his all to the cause. I think McNulty has always been that size since his Barrow and Fleetwood days Englishred. I've always thought he's good on the ball though and rarely caught out with his defensive starting positions despite his hefty frame. I agree with you, McNulty does look big but he has a good football brain. |
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Post by highpeakblue on Nov 10, 2017 17:12:12 GMT
Our site says he's 195cm tall and 17st 1lb, which is a BMI of 28.3. Actually closer to obesity than a healthy weight. I can sympathise because I'm a similar height myself and about a stone and half heavier than him! It's hard not to look like a complete grock if you're a 'big-boned' individual, but then I'm not an athlete. Depends how much credence you place in BMI. Many sportsmen would be classed as obese, particularly rugby players, if you use this crude measure of health. I am borderline obese according to it, but can assure you that I am scarcely overweight. I take a size 34 waist for a starter. |
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Post by massivefloodlights on Nov 10, 2017 18:34:48 GMT
Again fair point sqzl, I think we're both in agreement that he gives his all to the cause. I think McNulty has always been that size since his Barrow and Fleetwood days Englishred. I've always thought he's good on the ball though and rarely caught out with his defensive starting positions despite his hefty frame. McNulty has been the best defender down here for years. Maybe now less so but he was immense (no pun intended) for Luton and Fleetwood. If Astles gets anywhere near that you've got a hell of a player on your hands. Think Tranmere fans would disagree with you there. If you’re going back to his Fleetwood/Luton days then Creighton was a far better player and a lot more mobile. |
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Post by billyw on Nov 10, 2017 19:07:21 GMT
Our site says he's 195cm tall and 17st 1lb, which is a BMI of 28.3. Actually closer to obesity than a healthy weight. I can sympathise because I'm a similar height myself and about a stone and half heavier than him! It's hard not to look like a complete grock if you're a 'big-boned' individual, but then I'm not an athlete. Depends how much credence you place in BMI. Many sportsmen would be classed as obese, particularly rugby players, if you use this crude measure of health. I am borderline obese according to it, but can assure you that I am scarcely overweight. I take a size 34 waist for a starter. Agreed, BMI is pretty much meaningless. A muscular person without an ounce of fat on him could easily have a BMI which denotes he is obese. |
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Post by soulseal on Nov 11, 2017 10:18:58 GMT
I do agree, but partly disagree. Firstly, let me make it clear Ryan is my favorite player at the club as well as being a player i expect could play football league some day. However, people mentioning his weight isn't to be shunned. Nobody, player or staff in exempt from critique, regardless of who they are. I personally think Ryan should be playing league two football, even with his pace limitations. I do think though, he is overweight as a footballer, and with a stone or two off, he'd be a yard quicker and may not be with us too long. Nobody can fault his application to the CLUB, but i think it's fair to question application to the sport if a player is a bit bigger than he could be. Like i said, Ryan is, for me, the best player we have, but i don't feel anyone that mentions his weight should be branded a 'moaner' and such. A lot of those people, like myself, will want to see him progress up the pyramid. Absolutely agree. Ryan is terrific for us. A bit of lost weight and he could be terrific for himself and move up a division. |
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Post by whopper3 on Nov 11, 2017 10:54:40 GMT
Astles is clearly overweight and needs to shed at least 3 stone. He was 100% at fault for the Wrexham goal.
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Post by agl on Nov 11, 2017 11:18:33 GMT
And he was 100 percent responsible for the equaliser at Eastleigh
He wouldn't be playing for us if he was perfect.
Best player we have
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Post by englishred on Nov 11, 2017 13:55:32 GMT
McNulty has been the best defender down here for years. Maybe now less so but he was immense (no pun intended) for Luton and Fleetwood. If Astles gets anywhere near that you've got a hell of a player on your hands. Think Tranmere fans would disagree with you there. If you’re going back to his Fleetwood/Luton days then Creighton was a far better player and a lot more mobile. A far better player? We'll have to agree to disagree there. A fully fit Creights was definitely on a par or at least close to but how often did we have that? |
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Post by Dodge on Nov 13, 2017 12:56:24 GMT
I remember Chris Herbert saying in the Chronicle in the summer "It looks like he carries a lot of weight but he actually doesn't. He's just a big-built lad. He's trim."
Regardless of his BMI, he's the only player in the squad other than Mahon who looks as though he's on his way to club legend status. I can't believe he's not on the radar of league clubs, maybe they look at him and just see a fat lad and don't take him seriously, which bodes well for us because he is top class. I fear that if he lost a bit of weight he would be snapped up, I can see Tranmere looking at him to replace McNulty.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 13, 2017 14:51:15 GMT
Astles alongside Manny Smith would be a formidable partnership.
The 2 Wxm centre halves were the most effective bus Ive seen parked at the Deva for years.
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Post by Imperial on Nov 13, 2017 15:25:23 GMT
Depends how much credence you place in BMI. Many sportsmen would be classed as obese, particularly rugby players, if you use this crude measure of health. I am borderline obese according to it, but can assure you that I am scarcely overweight. I take a size 34 waist for a starter. Agreed, BMI is pretty much meaningless. A muscular person without an ounce of fat on him could easily have a BMI which denotes he is obese. That’s not true I’m afraid. You’re both right to say that there are examples of people who would be given an obese result but who in fact are very muscular as muscle is heavier than fat but for the average person it’s a fairly accurate way of establishing whether you’re overweight or not. It’s much maligned but for most people it’s reasonably accurate. |
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Post by Lobster on Nov 13, 2017 15:38:42 GMT
Agreed, BMI is pretty much meaningless. A muscular person without an ounce of fat on him could easily have a BMI which denotes he is obese. That’s not true I’m afraid. You’re both right to say that there are examples of people who would be given an obese result but who in fact are very muscular as muscle is heavier than fat but for the average person it’s a fairly accurate way of establishing whether you’re overweight or not. It’s much maligned but for most people it’s reasonably accurate. I'm not exactly an authority on health, but is it not true that being overly muscular is not great for your health either, so a high BMI is not ideal whether it's muscle or fat? |
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Post by highpeakblue on Nov 13, 2017 15:58:19 GMT
Agreed, BMI is pretty much meaningless. A muscular person without an ounce of fat on him could easily have a BMI which denotes he is obese. That’s not true I’m afraid. You’re both right to say that there are examples of people who would be given an obese result but who in fact are very muscular as muscle is heavier than fat but for the average person it’s a fairly accurate way of establishing whether you’re overweight or not. It’s much maligned but for most people it’s reasonably accurate. It is very much meaningless for many people I know. I am average height, not fat, yet borderline obese. How does BMI account for that? I have always been fit, eat healthily and am active. I have always been like this. It was developed as a benchmark after WW2 when diets and frames were very different. |
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Post by Hannibal on Nov 13, 2017 19:55:57 GMT
Astles alongside Manny Smith would be a formidable partnership. The 2 Wxm centre halves were the most effective bus Ive seen parked at the Deva for years. Last really good parked bus was Brackley (0-0) when we won the Conference North. |
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Post by whopper3 on Nov 13, 2017 20:20:40 GMT
Bottom line is Astles is at least 3 stone overweight. Anyone can see this.
Bignot needs to knock him into shape and fast.
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Post by catfordbags on Nov 17, 2017 8:55:05 GMT
I have it on good authority from a reliable source deep inside the club that after Bignot’s arrival, he attempted to change the ethos of the group by telling Kingsley to ‘lose the tail’ and confiscating Ryan Astles potato peeler. Ryan went batshit mental with the ‘mash’ cold turkey resulting in a slight dip in form. However, Ryan’s recent cultured marquee performances have coincided with his new found discovery of ‘jackets’. For technical culinary reasons (which I won’t go into here), ‘jackets’, don’t need a peeler. Bignot, being a professor of footballing philosophy, has recently gone through a tuber enlightenment and is now changing tack. Not only has he amended Ryan’s win bonus to include ‘one sack of maris piper’s’ but is also considering returning the peeler.
If the peeler is returned and club dietitians put Ryan on the double carb diet (mash with jackets) we should expect to see one of finest centre halves to ever grace the Deva.
On a lighter note – my reliable source from deep inside the club tells me on good authority that the Kiosks will soon be serving an Astles’ Pie – (a delicious potato based slurry topped with potato) – which can be bought as a meal deal with a bag of potato crisps and an isotonic potato flavoured sports drink.
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Post by archwhopper on Nov 17, 2017 16:15:09 GMT
it's not true by the way that the christmas ostrich has already been stuffed and primed ready for furnace at shotton steel
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Post by Rio Doherty on Nov 17, 2017 18:23:37 GMT
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