suewhistle

'Long

I think this is a critical point: not one player is hiding, and I've seen plenty of that watching football.

Ta!

To be fair, Levy also got a fair bit of stick.

Occasional schadenfreude is fun..

GSR?

Edited a) show the bits that really made me chuckle (there's always truth in humour) b)worries me too!

Oooh, Ohio, I had you more down for smut than *****iness! I should explain that I injured myself at training during the week, which is why I was at home with a cuppa...

I didn't realise that Spurs were playing today, until a couple of minutes ago when I was browsing The Guardian website over a cup of tea and saw that they'd lost. Then had a look at the partial league table in a column on the right, and they weren't even there - it only goes down to Hull at number 10...

Reasonable report there, and although Stoke had no real clear-cut chances, hands up who wasn't a bit worried towards the end that they might nick a goal?

You're just trying to innoculate yourself against disappointment, standard fan practice.. Why not have a bet on Stoke, that's what some people do to lay off the pleasure, I understand.

If winning the League Cup is a reasonable possibility why isn't the FA Cup likewise? So yes, let's concentrate on the League for now and see where we are in January. Who knows, it could all be very exciting/depressing - take your pick. But remember that, for all the moans, the team that Pokey put out was perfectly capable of beating that Sunderland side.

Have they realised yet that this is a concerted wind-up?

Great description! Pity Seamus Heaney's not around any more..

Let's hope for a good walk up: weather forecast looks good.

It's a bit early in the evening to be drinking.

Ah well (sigh), I thought I'd better contribute as one of the few posters who plays women's football; mostly in goal although I did play half an hour up front last Sunday. There seems to me to be two issues; the poor quality of women's football and whether Saints should have a team. There's been a fair bit about the sorry state of grass-roots football recently, but there seems to be a lot of you on here who have been subverted by the Premiership or nothing ethos. Grass-roots participatory sport is a good thing in itself for society and football is a great game: there is a point in playing, whatever your standard. My club/team are at the base of the pyramid so we lose players to higher levels: one to Portsmouth this season and one off on a US university scholarship. Having a top local team gives everyone an aim, if they want to take things further: most of the players I know just want to play. But there is rarely financial benefit at being good and training hard, no wonder the levels are generally lower. I recall chatting to the club accountant of Bognor Regis a few years ago and he described how the part-time players earned a useful match fee, enough to make a real difference to their salaries from their main job. It would be nice if for more women players there was even the prospect of expenses being paid, but you'd have to go pretty high to get that. As it is my team were really pleased when somebody's relative subsidised our team jackets. We get nothing for petrol when we cross Hampshire for away games, we pay monthly subs _and_ match fees. Now the cost of running a higher level team would still be peanuts. The Barcelonas of this world have teams playing all sorts of sports, and it's part of their community ethos. Take it out of the PR budget if you like, or use any club fines towards it. Use the teams as a way of getting the younger players their coaching badges, and an appreciation of how well off they really are. The pitiful amounts we couldn't afford in L1 should no longer be an issue, and the community benefits would be great and nor would there be any negative impact on the first team. The final point: it wouldn't be compulsory to go and watch, although perhaps some of you should go: it would give you the chance to have a good moan.

Lallana making a difference according to 5L commentary. Whoops, Callum out jumped..

B*ms.

Stevenage 57% possession and no fouls. Pompey 8 fouls!

:-)

I sometimes go to one of the pubs at St Denys, and then take the footpath that runs right next to the Itchen. The Standing Order (a 'spoons pub) often has away supporters in there, never any problems, and The Platform is the same and brews their own beer. The Guide Dog has got good beer but is not recommended _after_ the game, it's crowded enough already!

bit chy...

Er.. isn't there a requirement to give the away club a certain percentage if they ask for it, even in the league (10% rings a bell)? S9o the OP may have a point and I await comment from better informed people..

Not my type.. Can someone also tell The Mirror that the plural of woman is women...