The club's gone transfer crazy over the first week of the window being open. Firstly we sell Jamie Ward for £400k and then we don't, as such; then we line up his replacement and sign him up despite Wardy not going, and then we let Phil Picken out to Notts County on loan. Trevor Carson went back to Sunderland this week, too.
Thirty-three players have scored more than Jamie Ward's current total of 29 goals for the club but, in goals-per-game terms, Jamie stands 12th in the list, one place behind Steve Norris and five in front of that other great goalscorer of recent times, Dave Waller.
Barnsley's offer to us was worth accepting; had we turned it down and hung on, The Tykes would have looked elsewhere and no-one would be forced to offer us more; I could see us being forced to accept less on the day before the window closes. As it happens, the move has stalled through rejection of the personal terms on offer. We have use of the division's leading scorer for at least another week, but the worry increases that he'll drift away in the summer for a fraction of what The Tykes were prepared to pay. At least we can go to a tribunal and say "Look - a Championship side agreed that he was worth this amount," which might have some effect when someone else offers us thirty bob and a bag of Wotsits.
Jamie's place in the side will be taken by Martin Gritton. As more of a target man the team's tactical outlook will have to change to make his inclusion work, and it may mean that more signings are in the pipeline to provide him with the necessary service. There have been times when frustration has been the only result of our forward play colliding with the more redoubtable League Two defences, and having someone with Martin's CV on the books will enable us to mix it up a bit more.
When Phil Picken first joined on loan from Manchester United he looked like a fine acquisition, but injuries, loss of form and the vagaries of team selection conspired to reduce his effectiveness for us. A new start will benefit him, and we are not without cover in the areas he plays; Dan Gray has grasped the right-back position firmly, while three others stand in front of Phil on the opposite side. It would be odd indeed for a player to leave for a rival side on loan without a permanent transfer following, so we should perhaps expect that to be tied up before we travel to Notts at the end of the month, although we remember Mick Leonard famously playing for Halifax against us while on loan from us!
Rochdale have seen some activity, too. Striker Lee McEvilly's loan move from Cambridge United became a permanent one, while Jon Shaw moved to join Fletch at Crawley Town, on loan. Goalkeeper Frank Fielding, who was said to be a target of ours before Trevor Carson came in, has joined on loan from Blackburn Rovers. Defender Marcus Holness has moved to Barrow on loan.
We lost 2-1 at Dale in September, after a bonkers period of injury time saw Ward sent off for two yellow cards in about a minute, while Dale got their winner from a free kick with our side in disarray from the Ward dismissal. There hasn't been a "double" by one side over the other for their last nine seasons of meeting: to prevent that, The Spireites will have to record their first win over Dale in eight home League games, for we have to go back to a 2-1 win in 1989-90 to find our last (league) success over them at our place.
Team-wise, there's no reason why Ward shouldn't feature. Gritton will be added to the squad along with Dan Gray and Jack Lester, returning after injury and suspension respectively. While we will want to express our appreciation for Jamie's efforts and give a traditional Saltergate welcome to the new man, I hope the biggest cheer of the day is for a returning Derek Niven.
The match will be covered live on Spireites World.
