Max Crocombe

Gone to Burton Albion. Wasn't expecting that one.

Location makes sense - good luck to him!

I think the saying goes.... good things come to those who wait! More money as well probally and playing in a division higher, no brainer.

Good luck to him. Was excellent in the play-offs and been steady ever since in the league with a good run in the FA Cup, his form tailed off to the back end of the season but goes with my best wishes.. Thanks for the memories Max and hope that cramp gets better!

Quoted from FishFan101

Location makes sense - good luck to him!

Location? Have you not seen the list of clubs he has played for, and the fact he is from New Zealand?

No doubt it was the best move for his career and the financial benefits of playing in league 1.

Was waiting to see where he would end up and at what level.

A league 1 club have signed him so PH must be confident of bringing someone good to the club if we felt comfortable letting him go.

Good luck Max.

Surprised he has been able to move up a league.  Shame we couldn’t keep him

Decent keeper yep league 1 keeper 🤣

Not league 1 quality, and i doubt he'll be first choice..
Yes, he commanded his area better than Macca but I maintain he was nowhere as good at 1 on 1s and wasn't as good a shot stopper..
Funnily enough his distribution seemed so quick n sharp when he first came in but seemed to lose concentration too quickly imo, too many kicks went into row Z and qhite a few were so flat the BP worms got headaches..
What I will say though is fair play to his agent getting him this deal, hope it works out well for max..

What a move for him . Not .

Couple of unwarranted digs above. From his recent interview it came across as if Hurst was looking for better, and even if that was a mere sound bite then if the lad’s had the opportunity to sign a longer contract elsewhere on better money then who can begrudge him?

People can point to his fairly unillustrious career so far and sneer at this move if they like, but that only serves to reinforce the point. He’s a footballer in his thirties who hasn’t made a lot of money out of the game; if he’s had the opportunity to earn a little bit more than he would have here (and we don’t even know if that’s the case), then he’s done 100% the right thing for himself, as he should.

He did well for us and played a meaningful role in getting us back into the league. I for one wish him well.

Great servant and will be missed but a bit sour the way he left for me. Rumour was he on his way weeks before the end of the season, then he leaves and hints to it being the fact he isn’t guaranteed top spot. Fast forward he signs for a club in the league above, like that’s not been on the cards and sorted a good while. All for him sorting himself a good deal but don’t turn it as if you didn’t want it.

Quoted from Poojah

Couple of unwarranted digs above. From his recent interview it came across as if Hurst was looking for better, and even if that was a mere sound bite then if the lad’s had the opportunity to sign a longer contract elsewhere on better money then who can begrudge him?

People can point to his fairly unillustrious career so far and sneer at this move if they like, but that only serves to reinforce the point. He’s a footballer in his thirties who hasn’t made a lot of money out of the game; if he’s had the opportunity to earn a little bit more than he would have here (and we don’t even know if that’s the case), then he’s done 100% the right thing for himself, as he should.

He did well for us and played a meaningful role in getting us back into the league. I for one wish him well.

A smidge under 30 but yeah, can't begrudge him really if it's more money and/or longer contract and/or wanting to test himself at a higher level. The life of a lower league footballer and a short career

Well done max, don't begrudge him the move at all, esp as looks like it was a mutual decision to part ways. Made some great saves AND distributions AND an assist in that playoff campaign so he owes us nowt.

Good luck Max!

Exactly - i know 2 or 3 of his team mates from the Buckingham /Oxford days n they are made up for him. He's worked bloody hard to achieve what he has. He took his chance at Gy, n played nearly 70 games without a meaningful break. Got back in the NZ squad n then had PH telling him he wouldnt be 1st choice and only offering him a 1 year deal, whereas everyone else is getting 2-3 year deals.
no criticism of PH ,but you cant blame Max for looking elsewhere.
I hope he goes from strength to strength, he deserves it

Max ... thank you.
Never mind last season, as I believed he definitely dipped in form...
But previously ...he waited in the wings...grabbed his opportunity, quite literally, when it came and made a huge difference.
His command of his area and distribution not only was great to see after a number of seasons of the "stay at home" Mckeown..but gave a visible lift to the back four. The hesitancy, unsureness  of the defence disappeared. His time wasting skills will always be remembered.
Pretty sure he can also claim an assist in the Notts County play off game.
I for one will be looking forward to applauding him next time our paths cross.

Quoted from Poojah

Couple of unwarranted digs above. From his recent interview it came across as if Hurst was looking for better, and even if that was a mere sound bite then if the lad’s had the opportunity to sign a longer contract elsewhere on better money then who can begrudge him?

People can point to his fairly unillustrious career so far and sneer at this move if they like, but that only serves to reinforce the point. He’s a footballer in his thirties who hasn’t made a lot of money out of the game; if he’s had the opportunity to earn a little bit more than he would have here (and we don’t even know if that’s the case), then he’s done 100% the right thing for himself, as he should.

He did well for us and played a meaningful role in getting us back into the league. I for one wish him well.

Totally agree with you mate.

Earlier on in the season I thought we'd have been losing him to a championship club the way he was playing.

Massively dropped off later on but I will be very happy if we get consistently better than Max.

Timewasting was a  bit to early on occasions but you've gotta love him.....

Good luck

Good luck to him, he took his chances over the last few years and has progressed to League 1.

Everything is about improving the club , for me he was better than macca and hopefully hurst gets better than max and we keep moving forward

Good luck Max

He moves on

We move on

I thought he'd end up in L1. Without him we'd have had a really bad start to the season. Wasn't great at the end, but didn't think he was bad.

Can't see why Hurst didn't want to keep him. The only keeper better than him we've had at this level was the one from the Slade playoff season and first half of the season he was probably as good.

Wish him all the best ...thanks for what you've achieved for Town ,for us..."Cramps for the memories!"  
UTM 2023-- 24

Why is there a misconception that Hurst didn't want him?

He was offered a new contract so clearly Hurst would have liked to have kept him otherwise he woud have not even offered him a contract?

Hurst was honest and stated he was looking to bring in another keeper to challenge and he couldn't promise Max would be first choice and as such he offered a contract to reflect that, Crocombe decided to reject it as he didn't like it, that's his prerogative and I wish him well.

But let's just put this "Hurst didn't want him" claims to bed shall we, they are inaccurate

Good luck Max, you did great for us.  I will never forget the first time you got 'cramp'.  I nearly choked on my tea.  All the best for the future!

Good luck Max, you did well for us sorry to see you go

Don’t let them cramp your style Max.

Quoted from Davec

Why is there a misconception that Hurst didn't want him?

He was offered a new contract so clearly Hurst would have liked to have kept him otherwise he woud have not even offered him a contract?

Hurst was honest and stated he was looking to bring in another keeper to challenge and he couldn't promise Max would be first choice and as such he offered a contract to reflect that, Crocombe decided to reject it as he didn't like it, that's his prerogative and I wish him well.

But let's just put this "Hurst didn't want him" claims to bed shall we, they are inaccurate

I think you are probably right , I admit I thought going off that interview Hurst had discarded him knowing he had someone substantially better lined up .
Now I am not so sure
Hopefully he has

I wonder if Burton know about this terrible cramp problem that he has?  

Have we officially signed a keeper yet???

Made a blunder in their friendly against nuneaton  

Jamal Blackman has just signed for Burton… might be a blow for Crocombe so soon?

Quoted from LN8Mariner

Jamal Blackman has just signed for Burton… might be a blow for Crocombe so soon?

They obviously got the best financial offer, but why would anyone sign for Burton, Crocombe and Blackman included?

They are the archetypal non-league club who have had a fantastic run, but really it is a footballing backwater and who wants to play their football there?

Money rules but if I were a professional footballer I would give a lot of consideration to the history, the ambition and the level and intensity of support more than seems to be the case in a lot of transfers, assuming any other clubs wanted them, of course.

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

They obviously got the best financial offer, but why would anyone sign for Burton, Crocombe and Blackman included?

They are the archetypal non-league club who have had a fantastic run, but really it is a footballing backwater and who wants to play their football there?

Money rules but if I were a professional footballer I would give a lot of consideration to the history, the ambition and the level and intensity of support more than seems to be the case in a lot of transfers.

It's easy to say that when it's not your job. It's a short career so you have to think about the £ notes.

Quoted from jamesgtfc

It's easy to say that when it's not your job. It's a short career so you have to think about the £ notes.

Agree with this but it could be an interesting one in this case if he was "sold" his contract on being number 1 and now he has probably become number 2 just a few days later. Might not make a happy bunny.

Quoted from jamesgtfc

It's easy to say that when it's not your job. It's a short career so you have to think about the £ notes.

I covered all that in my post. Money rules, but if "I" were a professional player it would not be all about money, because I am not a money-minded person, and I would rather go to a club with a richer history and support.

How much extra do you think little Burton Albion would be paying anyway? It's not going to be a king's ransom, is it?

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

I covered all that in my post. Money rules, but if "I" were a professional player it would not be all about money, because I am not a money-minded person, and I would rather go to a club with a richer history and support.

How much extra do you think little Burton Albion would be paying anyway? It's not going to be a king's ransom, is it?

But they gave him a 2 year contract ( we only offered 1 ) hes closer to home n no doubt got something of a pay rise

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

I covered all that in my post. Money rules, but if "I" were a professional player it would not be all about money, because I am not a money-minded person, and I would rather go to a club with a richer history and support.

How much extra do you think little Burton Albion would be paying anyway? It's not going to be a king's ransom, is it?

If not money, what do you propose he (or anyone else) puts food on the table and a roof over his family’s head with?

I get the argument that money’s not everything when players who already have an 8 figure net worth opt to sacrifice some of the best years of their career to play in some shíthole in China or Saudi Arabia for no other reason than to further inflate their own wealth, but Max Crocombe going to Burton Albion is a million miles from that.

Quoted from forza ivano

But they gave him a 2 year contract ( we only offered 1 ) hes closer to home n no doubt got something of a pay rise

Where does he live? The last I heard he lived in Habrough, near Immingham.

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

I covered all that in my post. Money rules, but if "I" were a professional player it would not be all about money, because I am not a money-minded person, and I would rather go to a club with a richer history and support.

How much extra do you think little Burton Albion would be paying anyway? It's not going to be a king's ransom, is it?

For a start, they offered the security of a 2 year deal compared to the 1 year we offered him.

2 years ago, the week of our final friendly of pre-season away to Boston, Crocombe was about to sign for them on a one year deal. We came in at the 11th hour and doubled his money. Their wage bill in 2021/22 was £4.6m compared to our £3.1m. Last season, I imagine that gap was closed a little but I would still imagine Burton to pay a bit more than us.

Quoted from Poojah

If not money, what do you propose he (or anyone else) puts food on the table and a roof over his family’s head with?

I get the argument that money’s not everything when players who already have an 8 figure net worth opt to sacrifice some of the best years of their career to play in some shíthole in China or Saudi Arabia for no other reason than to further inflate their own wealth, but Max Crocombe going to Burton Albion is a million miles from that.

Good grief. He is not going to be going to Food banks, is he? Even part-time he would get a decent wedge; every professional club will pay reasonable money to keep the wolf from the door, I was just musing why he would choose Burton. Perhaps it was the only offer he got.

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

Good grief. He is not going to be going to Food banks, is he? Even part-time he would get a decent wedge; every professional club will pay reasonable money to keep the wolf from the door, I was just musing why he would choose Burton. Perhaps it was the only offer he got.

I dunno. Perhaps it was the best offer he got?

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

Good grief. He is not going to be going to Food banks, is he? Even part-time he would get a decent wedge; every professional club will pay reasonable money to keep the wolf from the door, I was just musing why he would choose Burton. Perhaps it was the only offer he got.

I don’t disagree but if footballers were bothered about history and the likes, nobody would sign for Franchise Scum illegitimates…

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

I covered all that in my post. Money rules, but if "I" were a professional player it would not be all about money, because I am not a money-minded person, and I would rather go to a club with a richer history and support.

How much extra do you think little Burton Albion would be paying anyway? It's not going to be a king's ransom, is it?

* Little Burton Albion " - so patronising !

Quoted from rancido

* Little Burton Albion " - so patronising !

But so true. They are not giants of the English game are they?  

So Max will end up number 2 anyway .Apparently vying for No1  and contract length was his reasons for leaving

And now, he's got a 2 year deal in a higher division, quite probably with higher wages. I doubt he's too gutted. It's a short career and you ultimately need to do the best for yourself.

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

Good grief. He is not going to be going to Food banks, is he? Even part-time he would get a decent wedge; every professional club will pay reasonable money to keep the wolf from the door, I was just musing why he would choose Burton. Perhaps it was the only offer he got.

Well one thing players tend to set value on, as well as money, is the level they are playing at and it's a step up to league 1. Probably wants to try and show he can play well at that level. It's definitely going to be an attraction, players are competitive like that.

We should have done more to keep him especially as we didn't have a replacement in mind. Why wasn't he offered a 2 year deal in the first place. He served us well last season and was definitely good enough for div'2

Quoted from golfer

We should have done more to keep him especially as we didn't have a replacement in mind. Why wasn't he offered a 2 year deal in the first place. He served us well last season and was definitely good enough for div'2

You don't know we did not have a replacement in mind golfer.

You do know Hursty likes to keep things close to his chest until AFTER we have signed them.He might have one on the books already but has not told us yet.

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

But so true. They are not giants of the English game are they?  

True but then neither are we. Many clubs play at a higher level than us but are not " giants of the English game".

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

Good grief. He is not going to be going to Food banks, is he? Even part-time he would get a decent wedge; every professional club will pay reasonable money to keep the wolf from the door, I was just musing why he would choose Burton. Perhaps it was the only offer he got.

Not sure history has any impact on players at all. Good job as most players will remember us as a lower end League 2 or Non-League club, the last time we where higher than League 2 Conteh was 3! I wouldn’t leave a job to go to a competitor because they were better 30 years ago.

Don’t forget very-best case scenario for a footballer is retirement at 40, worst case they could never get another contract.

Shall we have this conversation in 6-months time when we've got our new 'keeper in and he's had chance to impress or not?

Saying we should have kept him is just conjecture at this time.  We might downgrade but we might also upgrade.  

I remember people absolutely crying their arses off when we didn't keep hold of Carl Magnay over some petrol money, we then ended up signing Richard Tait who was the best right-back we had for a long, long time...

That Hurst only saw fit to offer Max a one-year deal suggests he didn't view him as someone who he wants for the long-term.  I wish him the absolute best and he goes down in our history as a bit of a cult hero and someone who was right in the thick of it for some truly memorable moments (there's so many of them!).  But honestly I'm not sure he will be what we want as we move up the leagues and adopt a slicker style of play.  He was an upgrade on McKeown and we now look to upgrade him him in turn.

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

But so true. They are not giants of the English game are they?  

Neither are we.

Quoted from grimsby pete

You don't know we did not have a replacement in mind golfer.

You do know Hursty likes to keep things close to his chest until AFTER we have signed them.  He might have one on the books already but has not told us yet.

Why would he do that?

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Quoted from diehardmariner

Shall we have this conversation in 6-months time when we've got our new 'keeper in and he's had chance to impress or not?

Saying we should have kept him is just conjecture at this time.  We might downgrade but we might also upgrade.  

I remember people absolutely crying their arses off when we didn't keep hold of Carl Magnay over some petrol money, we then ended up signing Richard Tait who was the best right-back we had for a long, long time...

That Hurst only saw fit to offer Max a one-year deal suggests he didn't view him as someone who he wants for the long-term.  I wish him the absolute best and he goes down in our history as a bit of a cult hero and someone who was right in the thick of it for some truly memorable moments (there's so many of them!).  But honestly I'm not sure he will be what we want as we move up the leagues and adopt a slicker style of play.  He was an upgrade on McKeown and we now look to upgrade him him in turn.

Tait was a very good right back, shame he left the season  before we got Andrew at left back. That would’ve easily been the best pair of full backs

We did get a few games of Tait and Townsend in 15/16, which for my money is probably the best set of full-backs we had since McDermott and Gallimore.