The Forgotten Man
- Matt Mecham
- 6 days ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 5 days ago
Peterborough United released their squad photo recently and there was one omission that bothered me.
It was clear with so many arrivals that some would be cut from the squad, but I would have liked an extra chair to be found for one man.
That man is Chris Conn-Clarke.
How did he end up missing out?
Lighting up the National League
Conn-Clarke came to prominence with a breakout season for Altrincham in 2023/2024.
He became a fan favourite scoring 22 goals and assisting 12 more.
He took home the Vanarama player of the year, and secured his place in the National League’s team of the season.
Co-chairman Lawrence Looney admitted keeping Conn-Clarke was a losing battle, saying he “lights up the stadium”.
These accolades got him noticed by many clubs including Carlisle United, Portsmouth and Wigan, but he was destined for somewhere else.
Ready-made for Peterborough
If you asked AI to generate a non-league player that was the perfect fit for a step up with Posh, it would create Chris Conn-Clarke.
Tricky, scares defenders and loves a shot from distance.
When rumours started to swirl of our interest, fans took one look at his highlight reel and begged for his signature.
Our record of taking emerging talent and developing them into million pound men is well known and Conn-Clarke looked like the next on the production line.
All aboard the sinking ship
Unfortunately, Conn-Clarke joined at a bad time for the club.
A lot of senior talent had left while many mulled over potential moves in the last year of their contracts.
Replacements were inexperienced while Joel Randall was stropping around the training ground battling with Darren Ferguson.
It can’t have been a happy dressing room and young players need leaders to help them learn the ropes.
Instead, he was thrown into the deep end and expected to find the same form he had two steps below without any time to adapt.
When Randall left, he was given the No. 10 role and before he could get into a rhythm, he collided with the Bristol Rovers keeper and broke his collar bone, putting him out for months.
He spent the rest of the season in and out of the first team, mostly warming the bench.
Conn-Clarke has not been seen around the first team since being a named sub against Luton in August.
Conn-Clarke’s stats for last season are solid for taking two steps up. His player traits, which compares him to other midfields and wingers in the league, are:
90th percentile for shot attempts
86th percentile for chances created
69th percentile for touches
Taking a look across the season:
3 shots per game on average
2 chances created per game on average
It’s clear that he was starting to adapt to a more physical league with tighter spaces to operate in before being rotated out of the first XI.
Surplus to requirements
Recruitment this summer favoured taller, stronger players with Klaidi Lolos signed to play in Conn-Clarke’s position.
There isn’t much in the stats when we compare Conn-Clarke with Lolos during his season with then League Two’s Crawley:
3 shots per game on average
1.3 chances created per game on average
Unfortunately, so far this season, these physical attributes have not translated into success for Lolos.
Ultimately, Darragh’s deadline day trolley dash through the EFL saw four more arrive and the abandonment of the 4-2-3-1 formation in favour of wingbacks and two strikers.
With a bloated squad, decisions had to be made.
Ghosted
So Ferguson made it clear he wanted nothing more to do with Conn-Clarke.
His locker was emptied and he was told to train with a group of players destined for the door without any chance of breaking back into the squad.
The case for Chris Conn-Clarke
I feel for Chris. I remember watching his highlight reel and feeling excitement at his signing.
He looked every inch the perfect Posh player. Nimble, skilful and not afraid to have a shot.
But he was the right player at the wrong time.
However, I firmly believe he can still make it in League One with patience.
Unfortunately HMS Peterborough was slowly sinking when he joined with no time to be gradually phased into the first team.
Demanding a player, even the star player in the National League, to immediately step up to League One is a big ask. Previous successes were all afforded time to grow.
Ryan De Havilland was plucked from non-league where he was not nearly as accomplished but given a chance with nearly 70 games over two seasons.
What now?
Football is a brutal game, and it looks like Conn-Clarke is heading back to the National League, which is ridiculous given how sensational he was a few seasons ago, bagging several awards.
He is far too good at that level and the National League is not that far from the EFL in quality.
Thankfully Darragh still rates him and wants to keep him under contract.
He’s 23 and signed a deal until 2028.
I’m convinced he should stay at London Road.
If he was brought back into the squad he can train with less pressure, fast-track his progress with seasoned League One teammates and get minutes from the bench.
Many fans had written off George Nevett, but he's improved since playing with the experienced Tom Lees and Tom O’Conner.
With our 3-5-2 formation failing to get results, we could see our 4-2-3-1 formation return with a need for a No.10.
Matt Garbett’s vision and passing makes him the best option with Jimmy-Jay Morgan out wide.
However, Morgan only has about 65 minutes in him. Who better to come off the bench as a No.10, with Garbett switching to the wing, where he plays for New Zealand, than Conn-Clarke?
Perhaps that may go into UpThePoshCast folklore as a worse take than Ryan De Havilland as right back but I’d rather see Conn-Clarke over Odoh or Lolos.
Either way, keeping him around the first team to get ready for next season feels like a good investment given his potential.
Sadly, this is unlikely to happen as the club is actively looking to loan him back to the National League.
I’m holding out for a Harley Mills style loan-and-return success story.
But while Ferguson is manager, we’re more likely to get the Jacob Wakeling ending.
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