I don't think Meli warranted his LAST contract. That said, for all my criticisms of him, if it came to a choice between him and Gardner to get rid of I'd probably pick Ade. He's been living life on easy street for far too long.
The thing is, wing is a luxury position. Sure, it's great to have a Martin Offiah or an Anthony Sullivan - but those kind of players are few and far between. Barring some miracle deal (like Lyon) I doubt we could afford to bring in a barnstorming winger without having to shave cash off of the forwards (which I certainly don't wish to do). And the game has moved on a lot since the times when you could simply sling the ball out quickly and your man would cruise around the fullback and score. The modern winger must also possess far greater skills in defence. No, as things stand in SL I think the next magician we see on the wing at Saints will be one we have grown ourselves (perhaps a long time off).
If we had shown Meli the door we wouldn't be in a position to buy a better replacement. Sure, we may have gotten a more solid player. But would he pose as great a threat in attack? Probably not.
Besides, Wheeler and Armstrong will both be fully mature next season. Without checking his age I think Lomax might need another season (but he will have improved significantly). Gaskill is hovering about the fringes and he has pretty good credentials.
I'm quite happy. Of course, I'd prefer another centre to partner Shenton - but with the constraints imposed by the salary cap I imagine every club will be thinking they are short in some position or other. It's the nature of the beast.
