Lazlo78

Best of luck Aaron. Not the player to lift us to the top half of the PL, but a committed and talented CB nonetheless. Hope he forges out a nice career at Championship level!

Very interesting "experiment" by the OP, and an important point is raised; the impression of a player varies greatly from watching the game in its entirety to focusing on the player. This should be taken into consideration when people write "X is the worst player ever at Saints", "Y was invisible today", "Z looked uninterested today" etc. - maybe the verdict would be different if the sole focus had been on the particular player's performance?...

Apologies if this has already been posted elsewhere on here: http://www.wired.co.uk/magazine/archive/2014/01/features/the-winning-formula Ha I hope we're ready for progress this time around...

You certainly seem to epitomise quality over quantity in this thread. Another unexpected swing from the blind side that has collectively left us in a crumpled heap on the floor. Allow me to lift my hat before I try to realign my fractured nose.

Apparently you were in before the edit

According to the Beeb, it was Lallana who came off, not Shaw...

Uh oh, I'm not sure that will go down well with saintbletch. We'll just have to await his response, but to be honest, I fear the worst...

Oh noes, we have to hire staff, buy players, sell players and sign contracts? Over time?! With no specific deadline?!? That must be quite a novel concept for a football club... We're doomed...

I wonder how Cortese felt, when he saw this story appear in the papers...

No, we should have gone for Lee Trundle when we had the chance. Maybe it's not too late though?

From the thread title I thought MP had sent a fiver to Steve Grant...

Hah, we have a winner

Here is footage from the training ground - is that Fonte's missus? And is that John Gorman he slaps?

#PrayForDani

Very well put - I can only agree with your views

No clue. And what's worse, I can't come up with a funny answer. Sorry... Edit: according to Herbie himself, it is Stan Clemence; the oldest living ex-saints player.

It's Herbie sitting on the right wearing pink, maroon and grey. He has got what I believe to be the most wonderful Hampshire accent - but perhaps someone will correct me on that one...

I've had the pleasure of meeting up with Herbie for a stadium tour of St. Mary's. You really couldn't find a nicer and more likable gentleman than him. Writes excellent match reports too!

Edit: those who can read German may find some interesting snippets in this preview of the book...

Very good lineup: Southampton: Cody Cropper, Jack Stephens, Aaron Martin, Jordan Turnbull, Matt Targett, Lloyd Isgrove, Dominic Gape, Harrison Reed, Sam McQueen (Omar Rowe 61), Jake Sinclair (Corby Moore 81), Sam Gallagher. Unused substitutes: Chris Johns, Matt Young, Andy Robinson. Hunter talks about Martin's comeback in another news article: http://www.saintsfc.co.uk/news/article/bright-beginning-buoys-hunter-1307239.aspx

We could always use a software update, so I won't feel too bad about venting my spleen in here - even if it's not the appropriate place

17,664 carefully prepared pieces of drivel. And still counting. Go you...

To me, this is the crux of the matter (which MLG has also pointed out); it doesn't matter if he touched the ball or not, when the tackle was so reckless that he snapped Gaston's ankle. I can only assume this was the explanation behind Wes Brown's overturned red card earlier in the season, where he got the ball and didn't touch the opponent, but the tackle was so reckless that the referee took action. Yes, 101gg are notorious for being overly dramatic, but still they write: HTF did Wesley Brown get away without so much as a booking for this horror tackle? The Sunderland defender butchered into a horrendous challenge from behind on Saints’ Gaston Ramirez, getting nowhere near the ball and snapping Ramirez’s ankle back. Ramirez was duly stretchered off with what could be a broken ankle; here’s hoping Brown gets a retrospective ban for this horror show! http://www.101greatgoals.com/blog/wes-brown-escapes-even-a-booking-for-horror-ankle-snapping-tackle-from-behind-on-gaston-ramirez/

Speaking of 'come on' and 'Mansfield', could Carolyn Radford DAJFU in place of NC?