Ellis heads out on loan: Reaction

February 7, 2019 Gary Activity, Headlines, Lincoln City, News, Opinion, Players, Transfers 0

Courtesy Graham Burrell

Danny has described it as lending his favourite toy to someone, with Ellis Chapman heading out on loan to struggling Chesterfield this afternoon.

There’s always been a suggestion he would go out, perhaps not to Port Vale as one rather errant account described, but certainly to a side where he’d get game time. The National League is one Danny knows well, having had several players on loan during his time as a manager in the division.

Ellis is very well thought of at the club, he’s a player with a lot of potential but like any young man he needs games to impress. You see it at all levels of the game, one team loans its youth out to the division below and so on. Chelsea give Villa Tammy Abraham, Villa give Cambridge Rushian Hepburn-Murphy, Cambridge give Kettering Town Tom Knowles. 

It’s a food chain and the players at new clubs have a chance to get regular games and hopefully come back with a wider experience which they can add to their game. it’ll certainly be a change for Ellis, his last outing in an Imps shirt came against Everton, his next match will be against Halifax. Those sorts of jumps in stadium and level of opposition will serve him well.

There’s always a danger a loan can go badly. If Joan Luque had been at Bromley, bagged six goals and looked the business, he’d still be with us now. He barely got a look in and I believe he’s now at Concord Rangers, but I don’t think that’ll be the case with Ellis. I think we can look to Sammy Szmodics as a fine example of what we hope happens.

Courtesy of Graham Burrell

He’s the insanely talented Colchester player who should, and will, grace higher levels of the game at some point. He’s a homegrown hero but he spent a short time on loan in the National League, namely with Braintree. He went back to Colchester and thrived, using the experience as a huge positive. I suspect Ellis will do the same.

Why? Why will Ellis do well when someone such as Joan Luque struggled? Simple; Ellis has a great support network. His parents are very involved in his development and Danny Cowley, a man renowned for getting the best out of players and spotting talent, has him close to his heart as well. The only way the kid could fail is with a bad attitude and let me tell you, Ellis doesn’t have that at all.

Nope, this is a good move all round. With no EFL Trophy games to worry about, no more cup involvement at all, Ellis just wasn’t going to play. He might have got on the bench, but with Mark O’Hara adding to our offering and Bozzy getting game time in the middle, it has all got too congested for our local boy. He’s best served going to a ‘proper’ club like Chesterfield, Football league in all but status, and getting game time there. Home crowds are decent, away matches are varied in terms of level and setting and he’ll come back richer for the experience.

At least that is the plan.

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