Actually you are wrong re Roofe, they had him on loan and faced quite a bit of competition to sign him, but went there as they looked after him before.
The point is that yes no-one really knows if a player will deliver or not, much much more chance if you think player is on an upward curve rather than downward.
Fair enough, obviously my memory is playing up.
I agree with you, I think there is certainly room for us to take a couple of younger players from higher up the ladder every season. I think our fans have been burnt by the likes of Hanley and some of the loans we have "enjoyed" the last couple of seasons that they might not be so receptive. Would a young player get enough leeway from the stands to grow if they aren't from our academy in your opinion?