Ted Bates Statue

I mostly agree with you except here. We're still left with a heavily bloated squad and having to completely sideline players like Aribo and Edozie is ridiculous for a team in the EFL. For me it's a warning sign that we're not being run properly, and that's before we consider that our biggest goal threat in Ross Stewart is out injured again.

I don't quite understand it really. In 2005-06 our average attendance was 23k. We only had one attendance above 30k, against Leeds when we lost 3-4. Even under Adkins our league average was 26k. How is it that we are so accepting as a fanbase? Blind loyalty or a sign of changing demographics?

I was thinking there already was, and then I realised you were talking about Palestinian bodies... this aspect has been very much kept quiet. The tank method sounds a bit Tiananmen Square. Similar bizarre attitudes over Maccabi fans getting banned from Aston Villa following their actions in Amsterdam last year. For all the instances over the years that a team's support gets punished due to hooliganism, it's only on this occasion that both our PM and Leader of the Opposition choose to weigh in and say they should be allowed to attend regardless of their past actions. Nobody really bats an eye over bans for 'tragedy chanting' so I'm amazed at the level of support for teams from a certain country to be allowed to do it.

In his defence, nobody won or lost games on the basis of their press conferences. Apart from the odd snippet of interest, it's literally a pointless exercise.

On the face of it, it's a baffling story, so this must be the sound of him and his agent activating the Alderweireld ejector seat button. "who gives a shit if Saints are interested, find me a better club to sign a contract with"

You could say that again. Reims aren't in Ligue 1 this season. I clearly meant to refer to Lens - shame you were totally incapable of reading between the lines. I look forward to my propaganda being dredged up and mocked in a few months' time, because it would mean that we'd be doing well. In the meantime, forgive some of us for expressing an opinion on a poxy corner of the internet. It's not as if Sport Republic is listening to us anyway.

That Wednesday team was essentially a League One side and he got them into top half as a basket-case club. If he goes to Rangers and sorts them out, it'll be a bit tragic for us given we've known about him for donkey's years but always gone for other options instead. The timing might not have been quite right this summer but this season is beginning to feel like a missed opportunity for us as we drift in mid-table. I don't really know what is so special about what Will Still achievements with the sides that he managed in France. His points average for both clubs over there is below 1.5 points a game, a trend which is continuing with us. At Reims he was apparently given decent funds to compete to qualify for Europe and he fell short. To compare with other managers in our history, I'd had next to zero knowledge of Adkins or Martin but putting aside any of their eventual shortcomings, the logic was clear that both had done well at their previous clubs and this translated into some degree of success for us. As a club, I accept that we are never going to compete at the top level without getting the most out of our limitations. I find it incredibly ironic that it still rings true despite being several years into the SR era where we have thrown away money like never before, in lame attempts to make our problems go away.

His ego will demand that he goes for at least one more job in a few months' time. If I try and think of the most arrogant option possible, that means he goes abroad to join a club in La Liga with the aim of touting himself for the ultimate prize, the Barcelona job. If things get really desperate (as they inevitably will), he could thereafter land on his feet in Turkey or America, before finally settling into managerial retirement with Sky Sports. On the other hand, if Lucy wants to stay in England then EFL teams like West Brom or Leicester need to watch out in case Martin ends up there. If he managed to blag his way into Ibrox after his spell with us in the Prem, he knows he can pull the same stunt in any boardroom. He'll be updating the CV and burnishing the book of excuses as we write.

Didn't expect to see "I wish we were Palace circa 2004-05" but there we go. Palace supporters don't exactly miss him, which should tell you enough. Much easier to snipe at Steve Parish from the sidelines than it is to run a club. I wonder if in an alternative universe people are saying "I wish Rupert Lowe was our chairman," but seeing how his popularity has only grown over time nationally, I'm not sure I want to think too much about this notion.

When a manager gets off to a bad start with Saints - sadly, more often than not in recent years - this quote from The Thick of It often springs to mind: “The PM is not going to sack you after a week. Sacked after 12 months - looks like you've fucked up. Sacked after a week - looks like he's fucked up.” Accordingly, they'll wait until the concept of promotion is a distant ship on the horizon, and any better, proven managers have grasped opportunities elsewhere, before cutting loose.

I mostly take the piss about Cortese on here, but I was struck by a post recently which said something like after Cortese's departure, staff felt they didn't need to walk on eggshells any more and things went too far the other way in becoming a free-for-all. Not saying I would have liked to work for him, but for all his faults, he had a vision of driving us to European qualification with everyone relentlessly pushing towards that, and we got there in part thanks to the rocket he put under this club. Whether the post is completely accurate or not, a change in attitude has been obvious to most of us for quite some time. For me it was when Krueger thought it was a good idea to inform us that we were just a small club. For others, maybe it was slightly earlier when Les Reed claimed that Pellegrino would bring us exciting, attacking football, when those who knew better warned that we would most likely only see that from the opposition. Compare and contrast with Cortese ruthlessly dispensing with far better managers for the betterment of the club. I feel like there can often be a lot of luck involved in this sport and things can change very quickly, but this club hasn't been in the business of making it for quite some time. It was glaringly obvious last season, and it's still reflected in our league position today.

That's a nice looking red and white kit, seems a bit different on screen though... oh that's Woking. Okunola having a nightmare.

In Kingsland North it was fine but I got the sense it was the Northam doing the heavy lifting, and generally the people who want to stand and sing the most will gravitate towards the top of the stands. Back of the Chapel was decent last time I was there a couple of years ago, with a decent group of people demonstrating that it was ok to sing there. Curious to know what block you were in, so I can avoid ending up being in your situation. Guessing it was south of the halfway line?