Cod Almighty | Diary

If you aren't excited, you aren't alive

28 January 2014

Dull are they of heart who, on learning of the signature of a new French striker, have not entertained fantasies of him bagging a hat-trick or coming on as a sub to score a late winner tonight and get Luton as well as Cambridge looking over their shoulders.

Oumare Tounkare is a 23-year-old Parisian. He has signed on loan until the end of the season from Stevenage, having previously been on the books at Sunderland and Bristol Rovers. However, most of his appearances have been garnered in two loan spells at Oldham. Our thanks to Jamie, an Oldham-supporting friend of Cod Almighty, for this account of his impact:

Oumare was amazing for the first half of the 2010-11 season. He was big, strong and labelled "a human wrecking ball" by the Huddersfield Examiner after we destroyed them at Boundary Park. He had a hilarious technique of chasing after a seemingly lost cause by thrusting up his chin and tearing after the ball in a straight line Forrest Gump-style. He'd nearly always get there too, often taking an opposition defender by surprise and always gave the crowd a proper lift when he did it.

The second half of the season, he just seemed burnt out. He looked devoid of energy and confidence, but I put that down to him being a young lad and putting everything into his earlier performances on his first loan out from a Premiership club. He's not really done much since, but he was at Stevenage. Knowing Graham Westley, their manager, he'd not have been utilised properly, I expect.

In short, he's decent, if you play to his strengths, which is knocking a ball
down the flanks and watching him burst onto it before knocking defenders aside like ten pins. I hope he does well. I loved seeing Oumare.

Tounkare gives the impression of a slightly more sophisticated style in his free-to-view Mariners Player interview. Don't rely on the transcript for that – you need to see his embarrassed grin after he has described how he is a good finisher and clever in his movement.

In a few weeks' time we might be thinking Mickaël Antoine-Curier or Serge Makofo, but for now let's imagine Chima Okorie, Isaiah Rankin, Michael Reddy and Jean-Louis Akpa Akpro rolled into one irresistible package.

When Town take the field tonight, you really, really want to be in that number.