The9

He doesn't appear to be in the squad or team lists on the OS, so you may wish to rethink that ?

And conceded two penalties tonight, not that I was there, but that's Lancashiresque.

In that case I'm sure he'd like to hear that some of us are following along nicely. The work permit thing is nation-based as the restrictions on who can play where are currently only limited by the state employment law and league regulations, but UEFA also have an input and are trying to ensure there is a homegrown restriction overarching all of their member nations. Of course UEFA also have to ensure they work within EU law.

Going back to the OP... I'm confident this squad will at least finish mid-table, and might even mount a bid for promotion in the right circumstances, and will certainly have a chance to do so with the addition of a top-flight standard CB to partner Fonte and the addition of a proven Championship or above level striker. My concerns are a little that Adkins is unproven above half way in the Championship and may not be able to acquire the kind of players we need to get back into the Prem and stay there - but we'll see on that front. Other than that, only that the club is sold, causing everything to fall apart with us still in nPC limbo - and there's precisely zero evidence to suggest this will happen, or that we have a really really bad injury crisis, and even then I don't think we'd be struggling unless we lost Fonte, Cork and all competent replacements for a sizable period. Off the field I have some concerns about the whole nature of the club's customer relations, but on the pitch I think we look pretty well placed.

I think my ability to compartmentalise things allows me to mostly not be affected by Saints' results afterwards. I can usually find some positives in most performances, and rationalise why we've lost without getting mental about it, and the over-reaction to defeats on here annoys me significantly more than the defeat itself nowadays. I haven't yet lost my ability to go utterly mental with excitement actually during the match though, and my underpinning level of cheerfulness is still slightly impacted by defeats, though we've had so many of them over the years I'm kinda used to it.

Attendance figures definitely include all ST holders, whether they're there or not. You can tell from how the ST voucher stubs are handled at the turnstiles that no-one ever has to count them or bothers to.

Hallelujah.

That is a big "If".

It's not just the booking fee(s), it's the parking fee and the sudden need to have to visit the TO in person to do everything.

As the amount varies depending on timing rather than method (and the cost is the same per unit for the cheapest methods of buying tickets - online and by phone) the charge doesn't seem to be to do with the cost of administration. It almost certainly costs the same to the club to sell a ticket face to face on a Wednesday afternoon as a Saturday afternoon - and if it doesn't the club should be amending their staff contracts to reflect the need to work occasional match days and get time off in lieu during the week at the same rate. The cheapest way to sell tickets is probably to remove the TO altogether. Clearly Saints' business model implies that a TO is cheaper than the club from having to pay to outsource, or we'd be doing that. For a smaller club with lower volumes with plenty of "closed" days that may not be the cheapest option. The methods of being able to acquire tickets without paying SOMETHING extra are being squeezed, and I'd suggest that the costs are being applied to significantly more people than was the case even last season due to the introduction of parking fees and apparent removal of the options to have tickets posted - for most people.

Nope, I've got a few on my phone too. PS the club owns that copyright - and according to the legalese on the tickets you've agreed not to take cameras into the ground or use a phone for anything other than calls.

Lots of people do, they're usually just happy for me to take the flak...

My St Mary's Memories so far : Mark Venus' 3rd for Ipswich on Strachan's managerial debut - would we ever win at St Mary's? Steve Brown of Charlton's shot hitting the post and trundling along the line when we were still desperate for that first home win. Scott Parker's curler into the top corner with Niemi just watching Telfer lobbing the keeper from 35 yards in the last game of 2001/2 (and El Kelloggs decapitating Dyer) Pahars' goal v Skate Cheats FC The megastore manager getting me a UEFA Cup XL sized shirt from player stock as we'd run out Prutton shoving the ref whilst trying to get to the linesman Crouch's 90th minute penalty winner v Skates The last 10 minutes v Norwich in the Prem with the roof all but coming off 3-0 up against Leeds and cruising with 15 minutes to go The sound of banging chairs at 3-0 down to Watford in the Championship The first chorus of Swing Lowe Stand Up if you want Lowe Out going all around the ground Gareth Bale's first 5 free-kicks in his first full season Viafara smashing his teeth out and then heading the ball clear from the next corner "We are top of the League" when Jermaine Wright scored to put us 1-0 up against QPR, before Kelv went walkabout (mainly because I was still running to the ground at the time) On the pitch after staying up against Sheff Utd Saints Aid Beating Yeovil at home for our first win of 2009/10 when 8 points adrift of League One - we had finally turned the corner. Waving wads of Monopoly money at the Skates in 2010 Telling the wife I'd propose to her if we scored 10 against Walsall and Huddersfield in 2010 and the team going out and doing it (I was going to ask anyway) Chaplow's goal v Man U, and knocking it around for 10 minutes whilst leading Forte's equaliser v MK Dons in the League One promotion season. Pahars' goal was the top one for me, I nearly passed out.

I didn't think anyone was moaning about the ticket prices ? I was pretty happy with the cost of my ST and (60-64s aside, which is a separate issue) most people expected the rise to be about what it has been. Plenty of people are moaning about the various stealth taxes though. It's the principle, not necessarily the cost.

I'd go for the bloke with International and European club experience in the past 12 months just as readily as the one who just won the league we're in. The communication thing might be an issue at first, but Jemal looks like a quality player and Jaidi would get him up to speed on the language and football terminology quickly.

If you need a scouting network to find a player who played against a club from the same country as yours in the Champions League the previous season I'd say you were doing it wrong.

It is entirely down to the "global footballing calendar", England having a larger top division than most top European nations and the need to cram all of the League matches in around the League Cup, FA Cup, Europa League, a fixed global international match calendar with priority over top leagues, and more importantly for the decision-makers, clearing the midweek board for numerous Champions League games. Even with early starts (and this season's April finish) we still get debacles like the FA Cup Final being played before the last week of League fixtures (around 2005ish) / on the same day as a full Premier League programme (last season) / at 5pm (this season) and the Playoffs getting shunted around the country due to the need for Wembley to have the Champions League Final to help pay for itself - and they've got it again in a year or so.

They've already got one, it's called hospitality.

Nice to know you're as irrational a consumer as the rest of us.

Personally I'd deal with it by fixing it.

The lack of queue and therefore lack of a parking charge being somewhat offset by having to pay significantly more for the ST due to it not being bought during the far more busy two week renewal period.

The Jemal one has been authenticated by at least one poster I know personally who not only knows when his medical was (an hour or two before De Ridder's) but also that there was a minor problem with it. He has also been at the very least accommodating to Saints fans on his Facebook, which has the kind of obscure pic you'd expect of a genuine profile. It's not just football-rumours made up guff.

Jemal, as a Tunisian working outside the EU (in Switzerland) is certainly going to take longer to sign than anyone with an EU passport or already working in an EU country. I wonder if we still have to go through the "rejected and reapply" charade based on the proportion of games played for the country, etc. Last time I heard there was a "guaranteed" criteria, and then a "special circumstances" application if the stats weren't met. Of course, it's just as likely to be a delay due to him inviting other offers... or maybe that "old problem" that came up on the medical that the OP mentioned to me cooled us on the idea.

You'll note he was described as "cover" for a League Two team... how many years' contract has he blagged this time, anyway ?

On holiday of course. Definitely not also being put off by ticketing policies...