I have heard from a very reliable source that at long last, Macauley Bonne will start this evening against Wigan Athletic at Portman Road. I have been pleading for manager Kieran McKenna to pick him for some time and I think you will see a big difference in his performance if he starts. I feel sure that he would not have missed that James Norwood sitter if he had played against Rotherham United.
My source also suggests that Cameron Burgess will return to the backline in place of Elkan Baggott, and there could be one of two other changes as well, which is interesting. If Bonne is recalled to the starting line-up, then it is the right decision. It should have been made a few weeks ago, but better late than never, and in front of his home crowd, I feel sure that Bonne will try his damndest to get back into the team and prove his real worth on a more permanent basis. With contract talks already ongoing this is perhaps his last big chance to convince the gaffer to purchase him from QPR. He is still our top goalscorer, and some of the goals that he scored earlier in the campaign were outstanding. He has the ability but even the best strikers have lean spells.
I badly want him to succeed because he is one of our own, and he delighted the crowd at the start of the season with some fabulous strikes. Remember the fourth against Doncaster United, when he cooly took the ball on his chest, with his back to goal, before turning sharply, and rifling the ball into the roof of the net. What a goal that was! And there were many more. At the beginning of the season, it seemed that everything he touched turned to gold, and he quickly went into double figures in terms of league goals scored for the club. Sadly, the goals dried up, and so too did his confidence, but sitting on the bench endlessly, first under Cook, and then under McKenna, certainly did not help. He needs time to find some match fitness.
If he plays tonight, as is anticipated, then he has a great opportunity to nail down his place in the side – especially if he finds the net! Let’s hope he does, and if there are more changes tonight, they will probably be enforced as Janoi Donacien is doubtful and Matt Penny or Kane Vincent-Young could come in to replace him.
I really wanted Bonne to score last night and I appreciate he has had problems off the pitch for which I feel for him.
But if last night was his last chance he didn’t take it. Removing the fact he’s one of our own is he really the striker to get the 20+ goals we need from a striker next season? I don’t see him being at Town next season. He’s constantly offside and certainly wouldn’t be my first choice starter. Oh I would love to be proved wrong and see him stay and set the league alight all season but I’d be worried if we don’t get another striker in too.
Essex Tractor Boy, I know where you are coming from. I also badly wanted Macauley Bonne to score last night, and the question is, will he get another chance? I genuinely hope so because we played brilliantly in the first half, and he was a part of it. You are right of course. Bonne alone won’t solve our problems, but he is the best of the rest, and we need at least one if not two new strikers to take us forward in this division. Glad to see Ben Morris has been given another year. I have always liked the player.