To me, the ongoing saga about his new contract is a case of the The Emperor's New Clothes.

For weeks fans have been bashing Jim Magilton for not getting a new deal under the nose of our combative centre-back, with vocal reminders from the North Stand of 'sign him up'.

Finally this week, a two-year contract was offered but, at the time of writing, it appears to be too little too late and Bruce will be on his way either this month or at the end of the season.

What has perplexed me is how the player's stock has risen so much over the course of the past year.

Go back to the January sales of 2008 and everyone was in agreement that we needed a centre-back to partner Jason De Vos because Bruce was not good enough for a team chasing promotion.

Twelve months later we are in the same situation, albeit with Gareth McAuley's name substituting our retired skipper for the man needing a sidekick.

Are the Bruce fans suggesting he is better than our new captain or that our problems at the heart of the defence have now been solved?

Both assertions are ridiculous.

It seems that Bruce's stock has risen when he has been off the pitch more than he ever has done on it and he is a convenient bat with which to bash underfire Magilton, during our rocky first half to the season.

The sad truth of the matter is that at 5ft 11in, Bruce simply hasn't got the attributes to be a top defender in the Championship.

His fans will always defend him by saying what he lacks in inches, he makes up with his wholehearted performances.

Unfortunately this attribute can spill over to recklessness, with his two red cards this season seeing him suspended for seven matches already.

This is not to say I don't rate Bruce, simply that he is fringe player who is a capable and versatile replacement for absences in our backline.

And I imagine that that is where the stumbling block lies. Fans are saying 'sign him up' but at what cost?

There is a big difference, for example, in a two-year deal on £5,000 per week compared to a four-year deal on £10,000 per week.

Or assuming he is a good old-fashioned footballer, Bruce might simply want assurances that his manager considers him a first-team regular and I would not blame for Jim not being able to give him such a backing.

If we were a club trying to stay in this division, I would agree that Bruce should be a player snapped up but as a team trying to get promoted out of it, I think we can find better.