The9

Me too !

Adkins says it was Lambert on the OS interview. From the other end of the ground through a crowd of approximately 19 players I was unable to tell.

Something I didn't realise until just now was that Lambert was the player who cleared off the line, so once again he's managed to make a crucial intervention that's gained us points...

Fair points, but I'm not sure how well qualified you are to comment on whether it's the best performance *I've* seen Saints put in in 20 years, which is the only reference I'm aware of by anyone to that time frame... Even considering that I wasn't at a lot of the other matches people have suggested I think think we were excellent. The fact we passed comfortably was part of the key to that, Barnsley hardly stood off us, they put on a lot of pressure, but we just kept it. You're right that we should have made more chances (rather than very nearly making excellent goalscoring opportunities, which we did 4 or 5 times with through balls people didn't get on the end of), and yes, we were one goal line clearance from drawing because we didn't score more goals - but it was still a hugely impressive passing performance which was creating openings and showing excellent individual skill from Lallana and Cork in particular. Barnsley were a decent defensive side, but didn't offer anything going forward until late because we totally covered off their preferred long balls and worked hard to close down the short options. Even better, we won whilst still getting the kick up the ar5e Barnsley's comeback provided to show the players what happens if that level drops.

Ok, I have a question for those who were there (or have watched the 96 minutes back) - what did you think of Lambert ? Personally I know he was on the pitch, I know he went close with one free-kick, and won a header just before Connolly scored, and headed another just over, but given the amount of possession we had, and all the passing, was I the only one who thought he was a bit of a passenger with everything going on all around him ? I've already mentioned that I think we need a sharp player to make the kind of curved "last man" runs, that Lambert isn't used as a "target man" as such any more (though Richardson used him as such when we were down to 10, and the ball just came back), and I think, unless I've forgotten all of his linking play, that maybe Cork, Hammond, Guly and Lallana can cope with the ball retention, and what we need is pace in behind, not a target man we don't use as such. I can't justify leaving out Connolly, who definitely WAS heavily involved in getting the ball in dangerous positions and made runs in behind. So... maybe if we sign a "shoulder" player it'll be Lambert who's left out ? Even if we don't sign anyone, De Ridder wide right and Guly up top gives us more creativity and pace than having Lambert there. Anyway, just a few thoughts, it might be that Lambert was involved in everything, but I thought considering all the ball we had that he was pretty quiet.

Their QR code to get the teamsheets online (which I then screenshotted) was the best thing Barnsley did all day.

Not sure why, when he's played in both league games this season as a sub on the right of midfield and was clearly at best third choice even at the tail end of last season ? I'm quite pleased that it might give De Ridder a chance to play in his preferred position, he's not had much impact up front yet, but then with a propensity to play disguised through balls he wouldn't have anyone to pass to anyway.

It may or may not have been a red, but one thing it definitely wasn't was a "scissors tackle", which is a two footer wrapping your legs around some part of the opponent. Also not sure how replays are supposed to be the panacea for controversy when I've watched it back a couple of times and still can't categorically state he definitely meant it - but the point is that according to the International Board just the recklessness Chaplow showed is a red card, contact or not (and there definitely was contact, in case anyone wants to misinterpret that bit). So with that in mind, it was a red, but the interpretation is an ass.

He played a fair few Europa League matches under Hodgson at Fulham as well. Baird is not coming back any time soon.

Just for the record, the last time we were singing "we are top of the league" before this season was at 1-0 up against QPR in the game Kelvin went walkabout and we lost 2-1. Jermaine Wright scored for us. The last time I can remember before THAT was at 2-0 up at Derby in the first game of the Premiership season circa 1999, and neither of those lasted for more than 10 minutes. Also for the record, we ARE currently still joint top, alphabetical order is not a tiebreaker in the Football League competition rules.

You think ? Our Fantasy Football League is called "Saints Web Forum", Brighton's is called "Can You Keep Up League". God I hope we're 20 points clear of them when they come to St Mary's, they'll be getting that back in spades.

But he was.

Quite. It was obvious we'd turned the corner when we beat Yeovil 2-0 circa September 2009... though 28_F it is a decent flashback... if taken completely out of context.

They've already sold half a team though.

It can't possibly be down can it ? I mean the club knows we'll pay for anything, right ? And go out of our way to throw the cash together in a recession to watch a team that wasn't selling out last season when winning all the time... and giving us a two week period to renew, charging to park, manually collect the tickets, hoiking up the amount it costs by over 70% for some of the longest serving fans, removing free U-8 STs everywhere except the Chapel, etc. I wonder if last year's FREE U-8 tickets were counted in the 13k... cos I know of 4 people who had one and never used it who just don't have one anymore. We weren't making any money off them, but they made the numbers look better. Maybe that's where the shortfall is ? I still can't believe there are people who genuinely think the club is being run as a business to maximise revenues - it's clearly just the adhoc ramblings of a banker with no retail, footballing or customer service experience pretty much making it up as he goes. Still, at least he's giving us access to a wad of cash and his eccentricities don't affect the on-field stuff (well, not since Pardew got fired), so I'll live with it.

Quite. Not the win of a team that's going to win the League by 15 points, maybe... but this is the Championship, and there are a ton of twisty-turny things to come yet.

"p155ing themselves" = laughing "sh111tting themselves" = worried. HTH. Stupid conspiracy theory of the day, as just invented by me : Saints let Maynard stay at BC for another week to try and weaken Cardiff's title challenge.

That is precisely why I insisted on kicking off a "back from the match" thread, even though it was lunchtime on Sunday by then. There was some really weird stuff being said by people who clearly weren't there in the post-match thread(s).

I disagree on "more direct", when we do that we give it away too much. I think we've got it spot on keeping possession as much as possible, and we do need someone with the nous AND the spark to make the runs into the space our passes are finding. I also don't think Barnsley are a bad side, they hit long balls because we left them no options to go short in the middle ( until late on).

...aaaaaaand I wasn't at any of the matches in the videos above, so I stand by my statement. Though I did also enjoy us stuffing Spurs... on the tv.

I think he's in a run of poor form based on what he did pre-season and doesn't deserve a place in the team. Cork and Hammond appear to complement each other well and he's not going to get a game at the moment. Can't say I'm too bothered either, the only times he looked impressive to me were the weeks immediately after U-21s matches when he seems to be pinging the ball around at a faster pace and has some urgency in his game - he doesn't seem to want to inject that urgency into a match normally and that won't get him into the team. He has to take the few opportunities he will get and show he CAN'T be left out. Making massive goal-related mistakes in pre-season won't have helped his case.

Not at all surprised to see teams trying to outscore each other to go top with the target just sitting there, simplest form of motivation there is. I'm not going to start complaining that we should have scored more after yesterday's performance, and it probably won't matter at the end of the season for one reason or another...

Not sure it was so much a ball over the top as the balls through their back line we were already probing with but didn't manage to get more than 2 players through on the end of. Lallana thrashed one into the side netting, we marginally overhit 3 or 4 of them - the most pleasing part was that our possession was on loads of occasions so very close to creating a goal.

The other player was running straight at him and had Chaplow not booted the ball (and then put his boot down on the opponent), they'd have just run into each other. If his opponent wasn't near enough for a collision, how was Chaplow able to make contact ? I think he was unlucky, the natural defence against a collision is to put something up to fend off the impact (usually an arm), Chaplow in the split second after playing the ball held his boot there because it was already raised and between his body and his opponent's. He was slightly off-balance and falling forward, and led with the boot he'd put up into the player's thigh area.

I said pretty much the same thing about us needing someone to get on the end of the through balls above. I thought Kelvin did all that was asked of him too, one punch at the far post to take it off a striker's head, a save in one of the melees at the end, and confident on crosses. I'd give him an extra point just for getting off the floor to defend the goal in injury time after getting the whack in the head that had him getting treatment.