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" We've had to be a little bit patient, we've had a lot of competition for the young man but he has come to our football club which is excellent. Ever since he has been here really we have been asking the question of Blackburn, could we take him on a full-time basis? We've just had to be patient over the summer, we knew that other people would be interested because of the quality that the lad has. I think we have signed potentially one of the best young English centre-forwards hopefully who is going to score goals for us and take us further up the league to where we want to be.
" He's got a fantastic relationship with the football staff, everybody looked after him when he was here at the football club off the field. I think he's got a special relationship with some of the players, he went on Kevin Gall's stag do at the end of the season as well so he has got a great relationship with everybody.
" Sometimes you have to be careful with the loan system. What I've tried to do is bring in players who are signed, sealed and delivered, I think that gives them an association with the football club. That's what I have tried to do, we've always got the loans in the background if we need them, if we get a few injuries and stuff like that. It was vitally important to secure all the players that we brought in on a permanent deal, we've done that and we've all worked extremely hard behind the scenes to achieve that.
" I think they can certainly see the way the club is run, it is on the up after the two seasons of promotions and then finishing eighth last year. They are enjoying their football and they are certainly enjoying their training but most of all they are playing in a winning team hopefully. "
" I think that since I have come to the football club the club has meant business all the way through. It's not so much because we have broken the club record which is fantastic, but the way they have gone about things. Every time I have asked to try to bring a player to the football club they have tried to accommodate it. They have been very, very supportive, I came out before and said that they have had a little bit of unfair stick. Our budget has gone up and we've tried to improve the playing staff that we have got, with me being greedy hopefully it is not the last.
" I'm surprised we got him for that little, he is only 19-years old, he did score five goals in 17 games so we are buying potential. We have a squad that is young and fresh but has plenty of fire in it's belly, we've got the experience in the team as well so it's not as if it's just youth, youth, youth. It's not and hopefully with that balance that we have got it makes it exciting certainly for tomorrow, and it makes it exciting for the rest of the season.
" I've said it many times, I was very happy with the squad that we had, I wanted to try to improve that if we possibly could and I had to be patient. We still have some very, very good players at the football club, we have lots of competition but Joe brings something different of course. Sometimes you are looking for a goalscorer who maybe doesn't run about or you are looking for a goalscorer who just plays inside the box.
" I think though that the potential hopefully tells us that he can run about, he can work hard for his team, he can definitely take lots of pressure on his shoulders as in leading the front line, and hopefully he can score the goals. In the future hopefully we've got the complete player but he is still young, he's still learning and we've got to try to bring the best out of him. As we did the last time he was here and as we have done, since I have come to the football club anyway, to get the best out of the players that are here at the football club. "
" We've been trying to get him registered through an emergency loan, so we've got until 12 noon tomorrow to do that. Fingers crossed that the Football League and the Football Association can agree to that, we've had the people working, we're just waiting to hear back. So it will be fantastic if he can be in tomorrow, it gives everybody a lift.
" As soon as he walked through the door and everybody saw him the crack was there, he was very, very comfortable in the place. He's had a very busy couple of days speaking to different clubs and he's a tired young lad so hopefully he'll have a good sleep tonight. Then if we get the permission I'm sure that he will be in the squad tomorrow.
" We've been in talks (with Rogvi Jacobsen), and we're still in talks with a lot of clubs, enquiring whether we are going to get players or not, or laying down the seeds, and obviously he is one of them. We never try to shut the door because you never know what is around the corner.
" We've got some very, very good players at the club at the moment, we need competition for places and if I can be as greedy as I can and have another defender coming in. In the club behind the scenes, if Fred (Story) and John (Nixon) and the rest of the directors support me as they have done then fingers crossed we might get another one in. "
" We're certainly focused, we're ready for Walsall, we've done our preparation over the last six weeks. The pre-season games tells us that we are in decent form, the teams that we have played, and we've got a lot to look forward to because of that. To add Joe to that just gives stiff competition to everybody because that's what we want, that's what we need if we need to push on, we need competition for places.
" I don't want to speak too much about Walsall, I went to watch them the other day, they have their strengths and their weaknesses but we certainly have plenty of strengths. Hopefully we have less weaknesses than they have got and we have to try to exploit their weaknesses as much as we can so let's see how we go tomorrow.
" We've been fortunate to set a programme over the summer where we haven't had that many injuries, certainly muscle injuries we worked very, very hard on the prevention of in the training. Contact injuries we can't really call for, a tackle, or a twisted knee or stuff like that so we've been very fortunate.
" There are only two that aren't available for selection, that's young Ged Dalton and Shaun Vipond has just started training this week so the game has come a little bit too early for him. It's been fantastic in the pre-season to get everybody fit and everybody is available and knocking on the door. "