The9

In which case Cortese should have stood down, citing his inability to work with... anyone, apparently.

I'm very sure. Very sure we were better with what we had. Even if he's a massive success we'd still be going into the Prem with a manager with no Prem experience.

Every team has hundreds of people wearing the kit in the crowd, it's a total non-factor. The only time I've ever seen it an issue was at Staplewood a couple of years ago, when I completely missed a Swansea player playing Saints reserves onside as he was wearing grey shirt and navy sleeves, white shorts and navy socks. That was purely because the backdrop was dark trees with the shorts and his pale legs sitting perfectly in line with the ad boards and his socks in line with the shadow under the ads/the pitch. The peripheral vision thing is flawed as players are either looking at socks against the background of the pitch or a distant object in sharp focus rather than in the background - otherwise teams wouldn't wear fluorescent (steward) colours either.

Personally to me he looks like a round peg to fit a square hole. If he can re-motivate our senior pros into instantly showing what we've already seen they're capable of then great, he'll already have proved he's got more skills than he's showed at Scvnthorpe, but if he wants to come in and flog them all because he's can't motivate experienced pros and is used to bringing through hungry U-25s, then we're going to go all George Burley 2006 and completely ar5e up our promotion chances for another year. Personally I'd have stuck with the one we already had, consistency is underrated.

Preaching to the choir here. In fact, possibly the choir with the most experience.

Ruddy flip, you mean Alpine thinks we should have kept Pardew too ?

If I'm Cortese I'm thinking "mamma mia, these-a-clumpy-boots-a-messed-it-upagain-a". © Me, all rights reserved.

A five second Google, you lazy bstard.

Not necessarily, if Adkins has been managing them for 3 years then they're mostly just his young team of 21-22 year olds that has matured. Also, 8 of that 11 is under 25, compared to only 3 U-25s in the Saints side. Not to mention that Alex O-C drags our average age right down and that was his only league start ever.

Losing our place in the Premier League reserves league isn't a big deal because it happened about 5 years ago. Though you could argue that Bale was the last player we produced of any note and he played his reserve matches in it.

What, all of his comments are "without doubt exactly true", despite most of them being massively antagonistic to the majority of posters ? I'd suggest that a debate about, say, Do Prado's role so far might possibly need match attendance for an informed view, given that about 90% of the good things he did on Saturday were off the ball and unnoticed by half his teammates, never mind commentators or people in foreign countries. Similarly, it's difficult to criticise Pardew for being one-dimensional in tactics if all you've got to go on is what some bloke on the radio picks up about changes he's made, and can't see for yourself why the team is lumping it because you can't see that when certain passes were made backwards to the hoofer there were two attacking balls on to feet, for instance.

I know, pathetic isn't it ?

What he said. With the addition that the team seem to have continued to resort to panicking and whacking it since he's left, no shock there.

The applause from the Northam at the end is usually just for Kelvin.

We weren't that bad in the first half. We started pretty well and kept possession (albeit in unthreatening areas) very well before getting caught on the break. Then when we got caught 2v2 and they managed to get 2 players up in support before we could get any back, it just became obvious they just didn't care enough to track back and work hard for a result. Tactically though the problem first half was the massive hole behind Lambert and Connolly and them not having anyone to lay the ball back to when they got it down. The general attitude was either that we'd pass and pass until the defence was back to organise themselves, then fling a ball in to get cleared, or if Chamberlain had it, fling an early ball in and wonder why no-one's attacked it. Second half we did a smart thing and put Guly on in the hole, and his movement off the ball was excellent in creating space for himself and others (which we didn't really exploit), but the delaying, lack of urgency and lack of penetration was the problem, and bringing the not-often-effective Mills on for the only player who DID have some urgency was possibly the stupidest substitution I've ever seen. Long and short, 22 shots to Rochdale's 5. It keeps happening, and we need more urgency in the play without resorting to whacking it. For about 2 minutes at the start of the second half I thought we'd sussed it - a couple of times we had the chance to thump it but kept passing. There was even a round of applause from the Northam for passing it around at one point, but it soon went and the next 40 minutes were just going-through-the-motions sideways football. Hammond and Schneiderlin are too defensive together, and I think Guly probably needs a more mobile striker than Lambert to give it to up front, as he'll not take advantage of any through balls even if Guly starts to play them once he's settled.

There was a programme today ? Excellent, they didn't bother with a proper one on Tuesday. The fcking turds.

Ugh. Well, that'll feel good until he sods off after 3 weeks after selling all our defenders.

Does this take into consideration local variations ? Pretty sure the JPT Winners splash cover wraparound we had wouldn't have been seen anywhere else in Hampshire, never mind the rest of the UK...

Pre-ordered on Monday, that won't be charged until game is released, got my Creation Centre code today, been online at lunch to have a look at it and it's ok. Only about 8 faces per skin tone for creation, and you can't map a Gameface onto them, but can save 50 players and assign 25 to a created club. Dunno if you can use your Pro in the teams, doesn't look like it. Also can only use teams in Creation mode not full online stuff or career mode - but having seen the number of maxed out players being created that's just as well. I've had a bit of a problem with my players not saving, maybe due to using IE6. Haven't managed to store any in draft or privately yet. You can't design a team badge other than from a range of pre-determined shields, home and away kits are from a selection of Adidas/Nike/Puma/EA ones with combinations of 2 from about 10 colours - and you can choose letter and number style and colour for the back of the shirts too. Can rename stadium and assign it to your team. It's not bad, just needs a few more options.

It's a sad indictment of Cortese's decision-making that we were discussing if we'd be better off without him and the money altogether last night. I pretty much said "One Alan Pardew" is what's coming out of my mouth, but what I mean is "Do You Think You Could Just Leave But Not Take The Money In Case We Need It For Anything ?". I'm not battling change as a general concept, for a start I was in favour of Woodward bringing some sports science and roundly mocked anyone who just didn't get it. I'm battling crap decision making initially at the expense of the fans, then in the pursuit of short-sighted revenue, and now, suddenly, at the expense of results.

Can we sticky an individual post ? I just want this lot left here somewhere to link to it in response to the "he saved our club so therefore we must love everything he does ad infinitum" drivel. PS docker, well done for resisting the temptation to add "stupid sash shirt" to your list, I know that must have been difficult for you. Maybe if you just slip "hugely underestimating demand for the new shirt so many people are unable to buy one" in there too ?

Keep reading, I have.

No, and if it has happened it happened after Monday, they were ringing around me and my mates for quotes then.

Yeah, lots usually, though I'm quite selective, none of that chavvy "Pompey Fan on a string" rubbish or the second line of "Jose Fonte, baby" because the pause is in the wrong place. And I'm singing "whites" instead of "reds" because I'm not completely blind or deluded about our shirt colour. But aside from that... yes, I sing lots. And I wanted us to play really well, get utterly robbed by the ref and lose on penalties, just for the record. At least one of those things happened. Actually after about 15 minutes and for an hour after that I wished I'd stayed home and just gone to bed, the ref being so hilariously bad it was good therapy, seeing Guly's home debut (less inspiring) and O-C (possibly the best sub appearance ever in contrast to his teammates) were about the only positives.

I'm saying that most generic alcohol or sexual relations rumours about managerial departures are utter cobblers.