Patches O Houlihan

Not if he was on loan.

Also at this point it is clear that the England ship has sailed for JWP. So then it just comes down to how much he valued the European games with West Ham. It's difficult to imagine him fitting in well at any other club besides Saints. Russ likes him too.

If ever there was a player who will pull a James Milner and play on forever it will be JWP. I would love it if we loaned him for a year, he broke Beckham's PL free kick record in a Saints shirt, and then let's see where things end up at the end of the season. Downes & JWP would not be so far removed from Romeu & JWP...

Everything I've read and seen suggests that Stewart would have smashed it for us at Championship level if he hadn't picked up that second injury. 😔 Of course the jump to PL is a worry but from what I've seen there is a possibility he could work out there. We've seen strikers from the lower leagues go up in un-fancied teams and do well. Lambert, Vardy & Ivan Toney immediately spring to mind. He also seems to be the kind of player who is determined, quietly good, and just what we need. KWP style if you like. I really hope it works out for us and him.

I think Perraud at LB might be a good option for us. He works hard, has PL experience, and probably has a relatively low sell on value. He can get a good cross in which Stewart, who seems to be a monster in the air, might really appreciate. Quality airborne crosses aren't really something we have seen from KWP. He might also get 2 or 3 goals across the season. Would give us Manning, Larios, Peraud and potentially Ryan Fraser & KWP & Stephens who could play there, so potentially overstocked... That said we know that there was friction last season between homegrown players and the European contingent. The only time RM played Perraud was at LCB in the Gillingham game. I was sat right behind him for the first half. I think he was recovering from an injury, it was his first game back, and he is just not built to be a CB against a League 1 side - he looked like a fish up a tree, and I felt really bad for him. Charlie was the only player who impressed that day, and Tall Paul couldn't get onto any of the crosses that were lumped in at the end.

Wait are you telling me that the exhibits won't be genetically modified chicken/monkey hybrids?! I'd set my heart on that 😠

Oddschecker has us as only 4th favourites to go down at the end of the 24/25 Premier League season. Bookies think Leicester, Ipswich and Everton are all at higher risk

Spotted this video which ~38,000 of us won't have seen. It's worth a watch, and it was clear to me that every Saints player gave everything and left nothing out there. Credit to Martin and the recruitment team for finding the right characters. Troy Deeney questions Leeds desire - Yep we Freed them from their Desire 😁😁

Maybe we could loan Charles to Leeds? They really need a midfield! and would probably be there or thereabouts at the sharp end of the season.

Franny in tears at the whistle - you love to see it

Will Peraud come back? Larios will also be fit

I was watching in the stadium and felt the same way. Fans really did their best to be the 12th man - I’m so hoarse I can barely speak! Team defended really well and worked their socks off. Judging by the celebrations THB & Flynn are excited to stay 🤞

On my way; bizarrely outnumbered by Leyton Orient & West Ham fans - but then I am headed west to Liverpool St. thanks to @WinchesterSaint 👍

Yes please 07956 152839

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Did anyone else think the grass looked thick and the ball was running slowly yesterday? Wondered if they had purposely left it like that so it would survive better for two back to back games. Maybe they will mow it between the games? Do we have a groundskeeper on Saintsweb?

Was that Juan Larios I spotted in the final seconds of the Inside Staplewood: Wembley Week video on the club website?

He was fit to play in November, seems to have a great attitude, and looks a threat in the few times we've seen him. Without an incredible save we would have been 1-0 up going into the 2nd leg due to him, and last night would have been a very different game as WBA would have had to come out. How were the club going to predict that he would get a 5 month muscle injury a month or so after getting fit? As a club you do the very best you can to rehabilitate and build up the minutes hoping for the best. Yes it is a risk, but he is exactly the sort of player we were looking for and we got him for a good price bearing in mind his excellent record and reputation. Some of the posts on here sometimes seem to come from people who think that Southampton FC, if only they were managed better, have the potential to be some mythical organisation that never suffers unfortunate or unlucky circumstances; that Saints should be an oasis of perfectness when the rest of life is at best a series of ups and downs. If you haven't worked it out yet' life is not like that. You celebrate the good times (like last night) and do your best to spot the doers and those who put in the effort, rather than only judge on success. With hindsight yes we might have been able to sign a player who would have been more effective than Stewart in the 2023/34 season. But you don't get to make big choices knowing for certain how they will turn out. There is even satisfaction to be had by supporting the team in this way because you feel extra pleased when someone with Will Smallbone's commitment scores a racy rocket that changes one of the biggest games ever played at St Marys.

Yes WBA have unleashed a host of shots McCarthy has had to batten down the hatches - NOT. One of their only two creative forwards has been nailed to the defensive 1/3 because we have been good. WBA are no mugs and they are very well organised. It’s ridiculous to imagine we can stroll through them like 1970s Brazil when they are clearly so focused on defence.

Important to remember that the final, if we make it won’t be played at Elland Road.

This is it in a nutshell. But also any time it feels like we get an appointment right they are offski before we as fans have even noticed their impact. That said Wilcox seems to have made wide-ranging changes and hires so will have left an impact internally. I've also heard that the DoF job role might be split amongst ~4 senior types; presumably Manager, Mowbray, Parsons (not sure who the other one would be)

Norwich are unbeaten against us this season. (4-4, 1-1), whereas we've beaten Leeds both times (3-1, 1-2) and against expectation both times. That said Leeds have a more threatening attacking line up... Have a listen to Adam Blackmore's interview with THB. He seems to think his teammates have turned a corner since Leeds and are now mentality monsters. I'd love him to be right.