Fitzhugh Fella

It's become an industry. You just have to look at FootballMartin's content to see how fans elevate themselves into being the font of all knowledge. That's the internet for you I guess. I remember when the only place to get your Saints info was on the back page of the Echo when it came out about 3pm.

He's had a lot of injuries since going to Stoke but he is happy there. He's in the lasst year of his contract so needs to hit the ground running. Looking forward to seeing him at St Mary's in a fortnight. He's never played there since leaving. Stoke have spent a bit in the summer and there are rumours they are chasing George Hirst which will have an impact on Sam

Spoke to son in law last night who obviously played with Mubama last season. "Very talented and will be a really good player". "Needed to mature a bit with us last season, he would want to start every game".

Sometimes you overthink things. Another year out on loan would have given the club longer to assess him. When he refused they had to make a decision there and then and it was sell with a buyback/big percentage option. They had a good look in January and decided against buying him back. Was that a correct decision? Time will tell but there's not much point in raking over this ad nauseum.

Maybe they still don't think he's good enough

The trouble was Saints wanted to keep him but reckoned he needed another loan and Dom was not interested in going out on loan again

That made me laugh out aloud

Yea completely blaming an intern is unacceptable but my remark - although slightly tongue in cheek - has some validity. I would have a bit more admiration if he had challenged (or at least questioned) what he was being asked to do. The whole intern thing is morally wrong anyway. Slave labour. My neighbour's son is an intern at Ipswich and apparently he too is treated like shit.

I assume the intern has a pair of balls and a mouth?

Is it too early to start a Simon Jordan appreciation thread?

But my point is that back before the first Boro game it was considered to be a storm in a teacup by everyone, worthy of a genuine apology. Boro/Gibson chose the escalation route. I don't think PP was blabbing, just offered a sincere apology. Wrong call in hindsight but as we all know that is a wonderful thing. Not many have never made a wrong call in their lives. I have made plenty.

Trousers he has a young family who he hardly ever sees - yes he has an obligation to the club but nothing is going to happen this week and everyone needs downtime. Yes us football fans are an impatient bunch and I understand the heartache, but lets not burn our bridges. Good managers don't grow on tress and like I said I have met many CEOs in my dealings with the club and PP comes out as the most committed and fan friendly.

I think when PP went up for the first leg he was under the impression that the crime was silly but hardly consequential and that an apology to Gibson would be the end of the matter. Many other owners/chairmen would have accepted the apology and moved on but Gibson sensed his chance to ensure his club now had two bites at the cherry. Now if PP had decided to ignore "the issue" he risked upsetting Gibson so he (rightly imo) chose the apology path. From what I have heard of the 3 instances (and I gather there are only 3) they have been very much embellished by the media and Middlesbrough. TE is not the machiavellian character that is being portrayed and neither is he a bully. The intern probably did feel pressurised but again the story is not as bad as some would like to make out. I am sure the club will give a thorough report back of exactly what happened when they all have a chance to get under one roof. It would be a grave mistake if fan power drove out a manager who proved his worth and a CEO who was placed between a rock and a hard place. I know its human nature to seek scapegoats and we are still in various stages of shock, but lets condemn (or not) when we hear the club's version.

Maybe people should hold fire until PP, TE and the club give a full nuts and bolts explanation of what actually happened. I genuinely think fans will be less inclined to throw everyone under the bus when hearing how it all unravelled and how events have been blown out of all proportion. Yes communication has been wat too slow slow. PP is on leave this week as are a lot of people connected with the club as its half-term and traditionally a quiet week for football at the season's end. I hold my hands up I know PP and like him. He is fanatically committed and has done many good things off the pitch as well as becoming a fervent fan. You should see how nervous he gets before a match. Yes he has made mistakes and has admitted them, but my overriding message is castigating the manager and the CEO based solely on what the media and the EFL hearing have alleged reported is premature. PP and TE were integral to last season's success - let's not throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Without wanting to sound like a smart Alec, having "global reputation" doesn't put silverware in the cabinet. We've blown our image for decades so we might as well draw up the drawbridge and do what is best for us and that involves keeping a manager who yes made a mistake, but did something which is completely legal in his homeland.