The9

If I was ATTEMPTING to be TDD I couldn't do as good a job of it as you do trying not to be him.

They've so far used it on the Statement by Cortese, the adidas "Saints are all in" announcement and the Released List. Plus the rumour was out there before ANY of those came out.

I'm all in favour of us being "good fans" and being supportive of the team and imaginative with chants and that kind of stuff, but I retain every right to rip the p155 out of anyone giving out awards for it, FFS.

Not at Saints it isn't.

Was a central midfielder the only time he played for the first team this season, and that's all I've got to go on.

Frankly I'm offended that the JCL MLG ever managed to overtake me in the pendantry stakes, I knew it was inevitable when I eased up on the grammar fascism in 2006. It's a slippery slope. I didn't miss your main point. As it happens I've just asked my aunt about a job at a League 2 club, so no further comment.

Good list, best move Chambers into midfield though. All of our 2014 over 21 players will be out on loan or leaving during the forthcoming season IMHO Unlikely that any of Martin, Hammond, Chaplow, Guly, De Ridder, Lee, Barnard and Forte will feature in more than 2 games in the Prem next season.* *brought to you by the man that gave you "Sharp will outscore Lambert in the Prem last season".

I was going to suggest just stealing the £600, preferably from the disableder, much less hassle. In fact if you had their badge and proof away at the same time you could have two tickets for free and you could park next to Ted.

I'd be appalled if that was the case. This, however, is a feeble happy-clapping glad-handing award entirely worthy of massive mockery. With the exception of having a decently high ST turnout, Norwich fans are of no note whatsoever, and frankly nor are we.

I didn't say he couldn't do a job, I said it was delusional to think he could slot in seamlessly without affecting the way the other players would have to play. You can't just take players with specific skill sets which limit what they can do (in Lambert's case, pace is the main issue) and drop them into another system and expect the same results, and it makes even less sense when the player currently nearest to the role he'd be expected to play is significantly more accomplished than he is. I actually said Sharp would score more goals, as I was anticipating a long term injury to Lambert, truth be told. As it is he didn't get injured all season and we shuttled the rapidly improving Sharp off rather unexpectedly after only 4 months playing for Saints. Hindsight is 20/20 and all that, took me until the second week of August to retract it too... He's fitter now than previously, but his chances of staying fit at his age are rapidly decreasing, even with sports science extending players' careers. "Toughest league" is a very broad comparison I wouldn't be comfortable making, but it's completely different to the demands of tournament international football anyway, and in that sense is irrelevant. For every 60 minutes at home against Vidic and Ferdinand, or half hour besting Kompany in Manchester, there's a 90 minutes doing nothing against Ramis and Caldwell, or Vermaelen and Mertesacker. I'm not sure how style of play is relevant to general lack of passing ability, or how Lambert would necessarily improve that. For an alternative to the usual style it's a direct comparison with Carroll : I think in terms of pulling down high balls and finding a teammate that Lambert and Carroll are much of a muchness, shooting they're similar on accuracy and power, whilst Lambert has the edge on taking freekicks, Carroll on headers on goal and in terms of pace, mobility and agility, and Lambert has better vision and long passing ability. Carroll is of course much younger and is highly likely to offer more from after the World Cup onwards. He also plays up front as a conventional target man, which Lambert doesn't, and I think that's the key - Hodgson wants a front man, not a false nine / hole player, he's already got Rooney for that. If England are regressing, it's due to the respective quality of the players being produced, not the way they're being used, which seemed to be the problem the 10 years previously. Owen, Beckham, Rooney, Gerrard, Lampard, A Cole, Ferdinand and Terry were all better players in the 2002-2006 period than their respective replacements are now. I agree with you relating to the policy being flawed, but integrating the likes of Cork and Clyne into the setup and the system are the solution there, not players who probably won't be playing international football in 2 years' time no matter what.

I'd have rather being joint 1st and 20th, everyone gets cake !

Also... "JOINT THIRD"! What a namby-pamby bit of lame-ass non-decision-making that is !

Most likely that both will get opportunities in the lower leagues and may well work their way back into it.

You can't beat shiny cardboard.

Also, for the first time last season some Prem teams (inc Saints) were actually on the tv less than the contractually mandated 10 matches, so if anything we've been moved less frequently than expected. The clubs were paid the full 10 game facility fee nevertheless.

Just like all of those Pompey legends who got out of Div 4 from circa 1980, like... you know, him, thingy, and whatsisname ?

I think he was suggesting a Lukakuless West Brom with Lambert instead would still have finished top 10. I can't disagree with that, given that Saints with Lukaku probably would have finished at least 7th.

Lukaku plays for Chelsea, Turks.

I try very hard not to comment on this subject generally, but I do think there's a level of delusion around the people who think Lambert would seamlessly slot into an England team without having to change the whole style of their play to accommodate him - his position is admittedly almost that of Rooney (though not where Rooney played against Brazil) but he's in no way a better player than Rooney, and the relative lack of mobility means everyone around him would have to amend their game for him to be effective. The other thing, is he's now 31, which is pretty late for an international debut especially when there are plenty of kids with a much more significant potential impact over a longer period who need to be given the chance to sink or swim. I honestly don't think Hodgson thinks England have the remotest hope in 2014 (maybe a bit after the result in Brazil) and is picking a side with the intent of achieving something in the Euros in 2016. Lambert will be 34/35 by then.

I was under the impression that a troll was someone provoking an opinion out of the majority by making unfounded statements. Guess where the majority is on this subject ? Clue : it isn't sh111tting ourselves that we haven't signed anyone by July 1st until it's actually July 2nd, because, you know, a lot can happen in 4 weeks.

Our numbers were incredibly logical last year, to MLG levels. I don't think it'll matter as much to Pochettino - the cause of this would also be evident if Reading's numbers show signs of over-indulgent logic this season. I believe Yoshida signed after the numbers were announced and took whatever was available and vaguely relevant (i.e. a defender's number), and actually for me, Gazzaniga's 12 was the number which really stood out as Butterfield had it the year before, although that's a "normal" number for a keeper in a 23 man tournament squad, the previous season the keepers had 1,21,31 and 41. Mayuka's 24 was a tad off-base too, but mostly the numbers stuck to a formula and you could more or less predict signings (and failed signings like #5 Jemal in 2011) based on the number gaps. The basic premise of 1s for GKs, 2s and 3s for full backs, 5s and 6s for CBs, 7s and 9s for strikers, and the rest midfielders makes sense and actually I like it. Whether it's really necessary is another matter.

Just find a disabled person with no mates, you get a free ticket as an enabler.

Yeah, that Prem prize money is all going to pay off the billion pound BVI loan the Skates say we've got and are unaware of. You know, the one stated as being £3.1m in the last accounts.

Fox currently has it. Worth pointing out both that as we are changing all kits there's no reason to keep any of the current numbers, and also that I have assumed our anally retentive numbering scheme of previous seasons was an Adkins thing, and I think the numbers generally will be a little less methodical this season.

Un. Bel. Ievable.