The9

If I was the club I'd be making sure that each year's influx of students to the Proper Uni and the Chimpstitute were encouraged to follow the local team, many of them will end up living here long term. I've just done a survey, and it's 100% of them currently sat in my living room! Whether that's student discount or however they do it, there's a viable new market there and the club should always be looking to increase its following.

So, seeing as they have £200k to spend on away travel, I guess you're supporting the renting of a lear jet for a few hours to take fans to an away match (but not bring them back)?

Wanyama is the absolute king of this, to the extent that I now refer to it as the "Wanyama Ball". Passing 30 yards backwards in order to keep possession, sometimes followed by a hoof upfield under pressure by a defender or keeper anyway - but also sometimes resulting in a simple pass and building again. We've stopped whacking cultured Wanyama raking passes to the opposing centre backs now as seen against Sociedad, and excessive diagonal high-risk play-switching passes to the opposite flank, at least. I'm assuming Pochettino saw the outcomes were not as beneficial in practice as they appeared to be in theory.

It makes no sense to penny-pinch when that is such a minor part of overall income compared to the tv money. Also, all of those choices has a revenue-reducing downside which suggests it's more a personal policy statement than a financial decision. Booking fees can deter people from buying on a matchday, parking fees reduce the numbers of ticket office and megastore visitors, and whilst selling cheap shirts for high prices impacts on sales, the design of the shirt itself is the bigger problem there - and that one's rumoured to be one person's choice rather than a financial decision, too.

So either you're trolling, or you don't understand what the phrase "hook, line and sinker" means. Because I don't think I was duped into reacting to the phrase, I think I reacted to a statement you genuinely believed, and are now climbing down because no-one else has supported it. But if you insist it was some kind of cunning trap, then I'll add you to the list of people who post stuff they don't believe just to get a reaction, and stop bothering to comment on anything you post. Which one was it?

Actually they went through a heap of terrible appointments after Busby left after his main stint, including reappointing him at one point after his immediate successor didn't last 6 months. They were up to about 6 (depending on criteria) by the time Ferguson came along, over a period of nearly 20 years : Alex Ferguson 06 Nov, 1986 19 May, 2013 Ron Atkinson 01 Jun, 1981 06 Nov, 1986 Dave Sexton 14 Jul, 1977 01 Apr, 1981 Tommy Docherty 22 Dec, 1972 03 Jul, 1977 Frank O'Farrell 08 Jun, 1971 19 Dec, 1972 Matt Busby 28 Dec, 1970 02 Jun, 1971 Wilf McGuinness 10 Aug, 1970 28 Dec, 1970 Matt Busby 01 Feb, 1945 08 Jun, 1969 Fair point about boring media angles though.

If we're going to sign THAT song we could at least note that "this" is NOT what it's like to be Pompey, and that "signing" is not a regularly used term for the acquisition of managers. If we start with "tell us how it feels..." and "you've got Whittingham..." there may be a chance I'll join in. Then again, to bring it full circle I was on a "Jose Fonte... hey Baby" strike for a couple of months due to the terrible cadence compared to the Human League original, so maybe I'm not the right person to question it?

Never give up. I of been arguing how illogical there use has been for ages.

I'm pretty sure they don't, since we've been harbouring bottle caps on our person most Saturdays for the past two years just in case. Before that it was about distracting the server long enough to grab a bottle cap off the worktop behind the desk after they'd removed the one it came with. I know WHY they do it, it's pretty pointless nevertheless. Got coated in cola (it WAS cola) in the Northam after a random bottle projectile after the second goal on Saturday, wouldn't have got the front-middle of Block 41 soaked if lids were still allowed.

Anyone want 30,000 "Free The Hipflask 1" t-shirts? Seriously though, good news and (eventually) a sensible reaction from the relevant authorities.

It certainly worked to stop any Bale or Suarez speculation in the summer.

And may as well have been in Japan on the occasions he's played full back for Saints so far.

What he said.

Same as it has been all season, and already used twice. Clyne, with Chambers at right back.

Are you reading my Facebook updates? I said exactly this on watching MotD on Saturday night.

I'm only angry about grammar, I thought everyone knew that?

My sneering was entirely at your inability to count. For the record, I posted this on my Facebook wall yesterday so I was more than aware of the three year throwback (and wondered even more why you'd started referencing 2009): https://twitter.com/SaintsRelated/status/384001721066086400 The other stuff was in response to the frankly preposterous claim than anyone who isn't insane thinks appointing Pochettino was "a visionary decision". That's got nothing to do with the success so far. For the record (in case you missed it on the two other threads) I'm nowhere near convinced yet, give it a few months of this though...

"(1)A person who has intoxicating liquor or an article to which this section applies in his possession— (a)at any time during the period of a designated sporting event when he is in any area of a designated sports ground from which the event may be directly viewed, or (b)while entering or trying to enter a designated sports ground at any time during the period of a designated sporting event at that ground,is guilty of an offence." So ignore my bit about being able to see the pitch, it's "any area of the ground from which the event may be directly viewed", which also explains why the under-stand concourse at Tranmere has a load of hatched zones and bits around the entrances to the viewing area where you can't drink because you can see the pitch. Having said that, just being drunk in a ground is also an offence : "(2)A person who is drunk in a designated sports ground at any time during the period of a designated sporting event at that ground or is drunk while entering or trying to enter such a ground at any time during the period of a designated sporting event at that ground is guilty of an offence."

Yeah, I also wouldn't ACTUALLY say this... FWIW it's the Sporting Events (Control of Alcohol etc) Act 1985 that introduced the legislation (which was amended shortly after to reduce the impact on Supporters' Clubs and the football hospitality industry which was very much in its infancy at the time).

Well, I suppose if he focused entirely on that for a few years he might...

He did seem to be the one "in the hole" when they lined up, I noticed Schneiderlin pushing up alongside him on occasion too, but to be honest anything that gives Wanyama two people to aim at when he passes the ball on the ground in midfield would be a good thing. Oh, and stick a space after the bracket ( until)

If we want to finish top 8 (my self-appointed criteria for the "unqualified success" of Pochettino's appointment) we'll certainly need to win more than we lose, which is also why I'm saying the first 6 matches of a season aren't enough evidence to come to that conclusion. And football IS about fine margins, that doesn't change whoever the manager is.

I was detailing where I'd expect us to be better, difficult to do that in matches where we won. I'd have expected us to beat Palace even at the start of LAST season though.

Yup. I still think Adkins taking the Reading job was a mistake when Sunderland and Stoke were obviously going to be forthcoming, so maybe it hasn't worked out for the best for him - but at least he's got to make up with Sharp...

I don't think we're in any danger of relegation, but then I didn't really by October last season either. To be honest the vast disparity in the quality of opposition at this stage makes reliable comparisons difficult. Based on league position so far and their performance against other teams, Sunderland and West Brom are worse than they were last season anyway so arguably we'd be expected to get better results even if we hadn't improved, and Norwich and West Ham seem much of a muchness. We're definitely more defensive and more successful at not conceding, but there's a cost in entertainment value and goals scored. The Liverpool performance and result was very good, but so far that's a one-off.