70's Mike

interested in knowing what is meant by investing in the Academy ?

does it mean going out and buying the best youngsters like we did a few years back ?

I am concerned , having watched our under 13 academy side last season, that we concentrate on small skillful players (MR WU's) and ignore the type of player needed these days (athletes).

Only 15th this week

Only reason they will not get better is burn out.

Bale in his first seson was not asked to play every week

Originally Posted by alpine_saint:- This goal was inevitable. We gave Cardiff 64% of the possession, FFS ! The team is simply not strong enough. They held on valliantly for 99% of the game, but this story is going to repeat itself throughout the season as the opposing team wear down and unlock the weaknesses in the team.

 

Very accurate calculation of possession, Cardiff 64%, (giving Saints 36%), although we don't know if that includes or excludes periods when neither team had possession. However, it would be fascinating to know how such a detailed calc is made, and not just to the nearest 5% point, but right on the 1% point. Could we have more details of the method of computation?

pro zone ?

Assuming the senior players left our today (Rasiak, Euell and Skacel) leave, how many injuries could this squad take and still be able to put out a side with half a chance of getting a result?

 

Say Perry, Killer, Schneiderlin, Holmes and DMG got injured. What would our starting 11 look like then?

 

 

Could be worse than this though, Arizona only asumes 5 injuries. Suppose it was 8, or 11, what then, eh? Suppose the team coach was in an accident and the whole squad were injured...... What if we had no over-the-hill, overpaid, journeymen to call on and we had to draft in reserve or youth players and had to go out for loans.....doesn't bear thinking about.......

another person who thinks the game is easy

To be fair to Merrington he has a good record with bringing on kids.

In fact that was all he was any good at

he was suspended

I know was talking about future games

All you have done is raise valid concerns about the ability of this young team to grind out results and there is feck all wrong with that. The only thing I can think of that might explain the aggression in the responses you've got is that maybe you might have been aggressive to other posters on here in the past. Could this solve the riddle?

a can of worms

See it is going back to 30mph west bound , i think, for road wprks on both flyovers.

Even during the Boat Show , is there any joined up thinking in the council or do we actually want this city to fall behind skatesmouth in terms of access

Too many people are assuming that today is as good as it is going to get,which is patent nonsense.These youngsters will be unrecognisable by the end of the season.

 

They are also lucky to be given the chance that they would have been unlikely to have got elsewhere.They are also priveleged to be reciving intelligent coaching to a degree they would never experience otherwise.It is because of this that they will take thier chance.

 

The Itchen bridge is still there the last time i looked.

I hope you are right my only concern would be will we burn them out , in the past youngsters have played and then been rested, Ted even did that with Chivers and Channon.

stern john?

yes , imo

Assuming the senior players left our today (Rasiak, Euell and Skacel) leave, how many injuries could this squad take and still be able to put out a side with half a chance of getting a result?

 

Say Perry, Killer, Schneiderlin, Holmes and DMG got injured. What would our starting 11 look like then?

 

Realistically, assuming those players (and possibly John) did leave I any more than 5 injuries at any given time and we'd really be scraping the barrel.

I posted this on a separate thread yesterday and got a load of abuse

With Saga gone and indications that Rasiak, Skacel and Davis may follow , will we really be struggling if we have a couple of injuries or suspensions.

With Michael Svensson , apparently, only playing Saturday games are we going to be spread to thinly especially at the back or will Wotton fill in as and when until Davies is fit because i am not convinced by Thomas's abilities.

I am looking forward to the season but concerned that unless we can field our best 11 we may struggle

To many people on here think the game is easy and that we can draft in any youngster , just because they can do a MR WU , the problem is the nasty opposition do not allow you to play you have to earn the right

i think it was one of the pundits on Sky who said Matt Mills was outstanding

So KD has cost us 3 points today,ah well only another 14 to go that he will cost us again this season.

 

Sunderland fans always said he cost them 17 points a season on avareage...

i am not a KD fan , i think he is to small BUT YOU ARE TALKING ABSOLUTE BO**OCKS

Just walked in and haven't bothered to read any threads of those not there.

 

FWIW I though Saints showed enough today to give me real hope for the future.

 

Lots of movement, give and go football and passion.

 

The thing that really concerned me was we really looked troubled by set pieces and that, at the end, cost us.

 

Also, we need a "proper" striker to hold the ball up and allow the others to get beyond him.

 

I feel better today that I did after the opening game of last season!

Exactly echo what my sons said and i have just posted their comments

I could not go today but my eldest son took his brother and they have just phoned from Membury services on M4.

They both said we played well in patches and that Davis kept us in the game during the first half.

The eldest lad (20) felt we struggled at set pieces , including throw ins , where physical size is more important than skill.

He also felt that although Michael Svensson and Perry played well, he always worried when the ball was played high into our box because both are footballers not in the traditional center half build and Davis is small.

Gillett and Morgan Sch were busy and closed down well.

McGoldrick took his goal well but disappeared for long periods, when I said the stats were saying we only had 32% posession they were surprised but did admit that some of the players were struggling when put under pressure, which obviously did not occur during the friendlies, and that posession was given away.

Stern John may be a better option away from home

But the good news is that they both felt we looked more likely to get something today than when we played there last year.

I invite anybody else who has seen MLT play over many years to debate whether he was a great playmaker or not. I'm amazed that I seem to be the only one challenging this assertion from Derry that Schneiderlin is the best playmaker we have seen at the club since Ball.

 

The number of assists that MLT had credited to him over many seasons was testament enough to his prowess as a playmaker. In sharp contrast, you seem to have gone orgasmic about this Schneiderlin fella based on half a dozen friendlies, half of which were against lower league sides. How do you know that he hasn't shone because the rival midfield hasn't closed him down and denied him space? Until we have seen him play regularly against the other teams in this division, it is foolish to credit him with this over the top praise.

 

Just a simple question that I'd be interested to hear your opinion about. If players are slow, disappointing, overpaid, under-performing, unmotivated, unfit and disinterested, then is that their fault, or the fault of the manager?

Wes,

the original post is just another example of people trying to re write history to justify todays events. never thought i would read a criticsm of MLT.

You honestly think Pearson was more to blame than Dodd and Gorman or Crouch for taking so long to pick a manager? are you mad?!

i think a lot of people find it easy to blame pearson it makes it easier to support the decision to replace him

I think a good analogy for the plan is to think of it being like a managed forest. Yes you need to have the tree's to have your forest but if you don't fell and sell trees on a regular basis you have no income. Its all about getting the balance right between the two. With Saints it appears unlikely they we will be able to balance the books, and thus stay in existence, without regular player sales. In an ideal world we would not have to do this but this is not an ideal world and people need to understand that.

totally agree i just think people believe that rupert will sell , whether it is necessary or not, and pay a dividend on the proceeds once the books are balanced.

So we are supposed to think the bank are that stupid that customer base allienation is an alien notion to them ? Right.

 

Also, that means Lowe is making sod all difference, despite the worship in certain parts, since the bank would have forced the same actions if Crouch were still in charge.

Fair comment , you will have them all after you now Alps.

Wightlink do an all-in-one ticket for the Isle of Wight "Islanders" speedway. Around £20 for return ferry fare, bus to the Smallbrook and entry to the meeting. Good deal I think.

 

Speedway is an excellent sport and HAS to be seen live for the noise, the smell and the excitement.

have not been since it stopped in southampton , but the smell and noise will always be remembered.

What is the parking like at Poole

I dont think you understand the direction the club is going in but you may do and disagree with it.

 

The main problem at SFC is of course finance which everybody knows about.

 

So the strategy appears to be to get rid of overpaid and under achieving players are replace them with keen and talented youngsters on lower salaries.

 

The Benefits of this Stategy

 

1 Lowers the risk of Administration

 

2 Keeps the Bank happy

 

3 Gives the fans a better type of football

 

4 Develops Players who may wish to be sold off thus enabling the financial situation to improve.

 

5 Develops a team which may be able to push for promotion in 2 to 5 years and stay in the Premiership.

 

 

Disadvantages

 

1 The team may not perform and will be relegated.

 

2 The team may not perform to the fan's satisfaction with lower gates and less income.

 

I feel that the advantages are real provided SFC pick up 6 or 7 points per month and stay in the Championship this season but of course we will have to wait and see.

Surely 4 and 5 are in conflict , and where is the ambition.

The club suffered through the 50's and early 60's because the board were happy with our lot, Ted changed that way of thinking.

A view that I share also. Nail on head. Feels like we have got the spirit back again even though I think we will have a fight on our hands both on and off the pitch.

My only concern would be that if we have a great start to the season, will we be able to resist the prem boys from sniffing around in January. That will be a test of Lowes credentials.

bigger test could be if we have a bad start, young players lose confidence and crowd numbers drop

They were not Rons they were original Oz drawings, the guy that used to do them in the echo. I have one in my loft of Neil Maddison. The last few days of the supporters club, staff and regulars were given them or or had the chance to win them

i stand corrected, i thought some of them were his

Apparently 21,000 tickets had been sold last week for the Brum game so that seems to suggest revenue might hold even though we are playing our non 'superstars' cough cough.

Brum 3800