Here comes the rumour mill...

...and I’m not even trying,
It’s a game of cat and mouse,
And I can’t tell who’s lying (they’re spreading rumours).

So sang my favourite pop-punk troubadours, The Young Knives. If you believe everything you read on the internet (and why wouldn’t you, it's always been reliable in the past) much cat and mousery is going on behind the scenes at the Abbey at present, as United finalise their squad for the new season. Because I’m a nice lad, I’ve amalgamated the various U’s based stories which have been floating about in cyberspace:


Reed to ‘do a Quinn’ and leave by mutual consent
It popped up on the official message board last week that Reed had fallen out with Brabin and will be leaving the club shortly. I reckon this could be true because a) Reed seems a bit dense and you’d have to be pretty stupid to get on the wrong side of the Brabinator, b) There were reports of him getting too big for his boots at his previous clubs, and c) I’d be amazed if he hasn’t been offered the chance to reunite with his best friend Fester at Weymouth, a club much closer to his west country roots.

Potter to Rushden/Marriott to Cambridge
The Potter-Rushden thing has been doing the rounds all pre-season, as Lee Power strives to take another club to bankruptcy, er, I mean, the football league. According to their forum, it’s a done deal, so we shall have to wait and see. His replacement will be ex-Lincoln keeper Alan Marriott, so says the Lincoln website. I’m taking both these with a hopeful pinch of salt; Potter is under contract and would surely command a fee of £50k+, which I doubt even Rushden could justify spending on a keeper. And Marriott, who has often been linked with moves to bigger clubs during his time with the Imps, will surely have more attractive offers from league teams.

Chris Holroyd to join from Chester
The Liverpool Daily Post reports that we have agreed an undisclosed fee for the 22-year old striker. Six goals last season is not exactly a mind-blowing return, and he would appear to divide opinions of the Deva Stadium faithful. I particularly like the comment that he “wears gay white boots” and “dances around the ball like a girl”. You can never have enough players like that in my opinion.

Gary Hart to fly up from Brighton
“Gary Hart, who has been training with Albion after being released at the end of last season, is not in the Irish party. He is considering a contract offer from Blue Square premier club Cambridge United,” squawks the Brighton and Hove Argus. He’d be a great signing if we could get him I reckon – good pedigree, experience of several promotions, and comfortable on the wing and up front. Fingers crossed that one happens innit.