OnceaSaintalwaysaSaint

Quite ironic that we started singing "You've only got one song" though I did like the "F*cking useless" chant that we'd say about their goalkeeper as he knocked another goal kick in to touch and then they'd do the same to one of our missed passes. This match really highlighted the gulf in class between the top 4/5 in this division and the rest. Apart from needing a striker, it's looking pretty complete. Manning has upped his game and the centre back pairing is premier league. Only Smallbone spoils the midfield and the wingers are quality. Just a little concerned Jack Stephens is given game time. As people have said on here, he upset the balance of the team and I half felt that even Baz on his fuck up hesitated because he looked around and thought 'can't pass to that muppet' so options from playing out from the back are more limited.

I'm in the Sam camp. Physically he's not as strong as Sulemana, but when Sam has the ball, there's the feeling that's something positive is going to happen - and that's not just in the last couple of games. He also has a rough idea where the goal is. Contrast that to Sule who flatters to deceive. His control is rank, his crossing is rank and he can't shoot.

Also liked how the Swansea fans joined in our goal celebrations after the fifth goal. The goal difference between us and Ipswich is also now within touching distance. Happy days.

Ever since he cut his hair, he has played better. Perhaps he can now see what he's doing. When asked about his A-r-i-bo chant today, he said it's the first time he's heard it! He's evidently taken the cotton wool out of his ears as well! No wonder he's playing so well now 😀

He did, though I think he stopped short of calling him the 'wee man'. Our link kept switching between the Saints (Dean Hammond) commentary and the Swansea commentators, who sounded brain dead and made Efan Ekoku sound exciting. I'm sure when the fifth went in I heard one of them say "For Fuck's Sake" 😀

Yep, hope he's more in a CDM role. Don't trust him playing out from the back

And he's given the ball away in the first minute and they've scored. Hopefully RM was watching!

Good point. To be fair to him, he no longer runs around as if he's dragging a tractor tyre and yesterday, he held the ball up well, saw some good passes and even made intelligent runs in to spaces which weren't necessarily seen but could have broken their lines with the right pass. He's definitely starting to have an impact in our team.

Exactly. He's also probably happy knowing he's the best player in the club and in the summer he'll be in a better position to assess his options. If we're promoted, he may even think of staying. Don't know if anyone came for him in the autumn but maybe he actually likes it at Southampton - or maybe his agent isn't as pushy as most!

Totally agree and remember singing it at Villa when we won 3-1. Comprehensive win today but they were awful. Understand all the positives here but left the ground feeling less excited than I would have expected for a 4-0 win. We were good value in the second half, but couldn't help think Edozie's goal just before half time changed everything. Going in 0-0 might have got a different audience response. As a tip to our set piece coach, we need to stop doing those short corners and pump the ball in the middle and when we get a free kick on the edge of their penalty area, don't do the short pass.

Sort of bet we can find on Paddy Power. Thanks Convict, accurate as ever. I'm going for a Cardiff display and our first big win. 5-0. Only got poor odds (40/1), but tomorrow we'll walk away happy even though thread will only reach 12 pages.

What doesn't RM get? Like someone said, we had 12% less than our usual 70% possession against Cardiff and looked thoroughly dominant. Yet we quickly revert to this bore fest. I know Egg and a few others warned us to be prepared for this shit, but what's right about it? As Convict shows, at best we scrape wins. Against Coventry, it's the usual fuck about passing to nowhere and then when they score we make changes and chase the game. And when it's the other way around and score first, we sit back and try to hold on. Just one of our players costs more than the entire squad of Sheff Wed, Plymouth, Rotherham, Ipswich and Huddersfield. We have have the most expensively assembled squad in the championship by a country mile and while I appreciate that doesn't entitle us to be the best team, I still expect us to trounce some teams. C'mon RM. Speed up our game.

One big positive - Is this the same Joe Aribo we were watching play in wellington boots last year?

My other hang up is the set piece coach. What's he coaching? We've have 7/8 corners and now we're resorting to short corners so we can pass back to Baz as quickly as possible! Urgency please lads.

Hope he keeps both THB & Bednerek, but with Stephens being club captain and the way RM selects Manning over Bree, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Stephens back.

Quote from RM: "The nature of the goal we concede is what's frustrating me the most. I think it's such a poor goal to concede, they smash one big ball up the middle of the pitch..." Perhaps RM should try it once in while. We've got a goalie who is a fantastic distributor, we've got some fast forwards and now we've got a midfield that challenges for a ball. Mix it up. Be direct sometimes. There's nothing more frustrating than seeing us 10 yards from the opposition penalty area and then 20 seconds later Baz has the ball.

3) We don't have a striker 4) ....

That blip required a major reset. We tightened the defence and the midfield gained more spine and now we're in a better position. Problem is, our league is looking like the premiership where the gulf in the quality of teams is enormous. You know when commentators say in matches "No need to change what they're doing, there's plenty of time left...." There's quite a few comments on the forum saying it's a 46 match season, the other teams will have blips. Well, we're practically half way through and the teams ahead haven't yet had blips and we're just as likely to have them as they are. Those play-offs are looking more and more likely.

Thought we were very negative today. Lost control of the game towards the end of the first half and apart from the little man coming on for Alcaraz (who didn't seem to be at the races today), most of our players were looking for a backwards pass. In the last 15 minutes, there were plenty of opportunities to take the ball in to their half and attack their goal, but instead we held off. We tried all the time wasting tricks in the book but players don't realise this breeds negativity and a hold on mentality which often fails. They can't score if the ball is in their half - not even Hoedt. Actually thought Bednerek, HB and Baz were superb today.

If he's one of their key players, that's encouraging news.

Talking of memories, mine was Nathan Redmond coming over and give the bloke in front of us' kid his shirt which was then on the official Saints photo page, with our mugs right behind the guy holding up the shirt. Don't know him but this year at Reading he was waving at us as if he knew us...can only think he's got that photo on some screensaver! Strange how s Saintsplus members, we could get tickets for Watford when we were in the premiership but now in the championship they're sold out long before reaching us. Everyone likes to watch a winning team!

This isn't a coincidence. Yes, HB has been brilliant and equally Downes has shored up that gap in front of the back 4 (would also suggest Charles would provide further cover), but there seems to be a strength in the defence that was missing before. Like MiltonAggro said, this guy might be adding the Iron Bru.

Still think for any manager there's a degree of luck in picking the best team and formation. Adam Armstrong plays much better out wide and coming in rather than standing in a conventional no9 position, and with Sulemana out injured, he took on a wider role yesterday to great effect. The midfield of Downes and Charles looked in total charge yesterday, but wan't Smallbone injured? That said, once again his substitutions seemed spot on and injected a bit of life in to the team.

Convict Colony often points in the direction of Soccerstreams and the one today with Dean Hammond's commentary was really good. Cardiff were passive but that was the most convincing win of the season. Yes, Adam Armstrong was MOTM but defence was fantastic, Downes & Charles were superb, liked Alcaraz & Aribo. Very satisfying viewing.

Manning comes on for a couple of minutes in the last game and tries his best to fuck it up for us by passing to their player and it needed a fantastic Downes invention to stop an equaliser, and yet he's back in over Bree. Don't get it at all.