Gloucester Saint

@steve green excellent response covers it and he is also right around inflation and interest rates which I can remember hitting double digits including early 1990s. I prefer the music and football from the 1970s and 80s, you lot have actually seen us win a major trophy in 1976. I enjoyed the JPT but not the same…. Major and Blair kept on with lower income (direct tax) levels but VAT had already doubled in 1979. Infamous thing was top rate of tax in 1970s 83% off earned and 98% on unearned but there are caveats even within that in this very interesting article https://taxpolicy.org.uk/2025/05/08/tax-rich-1970s-loopholes/#:~:text=People associate the 1970s with,investment income) was 98%.&text=83% income tax plus 15% investment income surcharge.

Third of my degree was economics from a top UK University so that’s a third more than you then and handle six figure operational budgets at work and brought in tens of millions of income for the last decade bar the lockdowns. Postgrad in a relevant area too. Had my own business for years before that. So yeah, I know a lot more about this topic than you guessed at. Some people will have a different opinion, which is fine. It’s called a democracy….but this passed you by. Many posters on here do have different politics and views but the difference is they can debate them in a civilised way with some manners. Even Chat GPT is more articulate than this. Let’s hope you never need A&E or an ambulance so those nurses and doctors stealing a living have to waste time treating you. Don’t bother responding directly, I won’t see it, you’ve joined another abusive poster called Guided Missile on ignore. I hope you are both happy together. If I wanted to read this type of post, there’s plenty of them on the Lounge, but I come on the main board for SFC and football, not to see the lunatic rants of a poundshop Patrick Minford (you might need to look up who he is).

He pissed on the seats at the league cup game in 03 and was banned for the PL game at Xmas. I remember singing ‘Ding Dong Ding Dong, where’s your Bell gone’? at their section. Then tried to go to the England v Kosovo qualifier wearing a Pompey shirt (idiot) and wasn’t let in. Just add some more bitterness and mythology from them. If he’s in the bubble next Sunday morning and they’re banning alcohol on board he will have the shakes like crazy.

No, because he isn’t a politician. All in favour of deporting him but Hayling Island is actually quite a nice place. How about those forts in the middle of the Solent if the fans of both clubs have a whip-round? Their fans like him as much as we do. Hopefully wouldn’t hear his bell from there either. Petersfield would smell more pleasant too.

Yes, I did comment on it because I know the mentality of the people who do that sort of thing. I grew up and moved on my life, some people don’t or can’t. Yes, they are right wing nutters same as anyone signing about Boris at SMS when he was PM would be branded a loony leftie understandably. It’s abnormal. 99.9% of people want to watch a game. If I wanted to hear political signing, I’d go to a Conservative, Liberal or Working Man’s club. God forbid, even that dump of a pub Reform bought in Blackpool if I wanted a pint of Carling from filthy pipes. Governments don’t tend to be very popular in power. Maggie wasn’t popular at all 1979-82 and 1988-90. Maggie recovered with the Falklands, Cameron won in 2015 but only by promising the referendum. Blair did maintain good ratings, Boris started spectacularly and plummeted. Major started well but never recovered from the ERM. Oh, and what part of ‘I’m a Liberal Democrat voter’ was difficult to comprehend? Summary: Russell Martin is asked to comment on whether he’s met Rishi at a midweek game. Says he hasn’t and their politics are different. Gets hammered from the right-wingers for being out of his lane and apparently is disrespectful. A few hundred National Front sing about a centre-left Prime Minister at a nothing and dire England game - that’s Ok apparently. No need to correspond further on the topic. There’s loads of people at other England sports with a divergence of views and rugby/cricket is Conservative with a small c. But people there have manners, education and keep things in a decent place focused on the sport. Also, our Barmy Army hasn’t smashed up town centres or racially abused people. England football fans or a segment of them have been doing it since the early 70s.

Those games are a joke and have been for years. Like cricket and rugby, full international status should be much harder to attain and get into.

Bollocks. What a load of. Unlike you, I’m not a politics-obsessed nutcase. Do you know how many England football, England cricket, rugby let alone several hundred Saints and neutral matches I’ve sung a song about a Prime Minister or any politician? Answer: like 99% of normal people, never. Not about a Tory, Labour, Lib Dem etc. The only time I’ve ever heard it was from the Northam in solidarity with Ukraine straight after Putin’s illegal invasion. If people want to sing about that sort of thing, go to a party conference or a Patriotic Alternative event. I go to watch sport. Full stop. Same applies to the Just Stop Oil nutters who nearly injured Bairstow and Warner invading Lords during the Ashes. Reform has nowhere near a majority of support. 70% don’t. 48% of Remainers for a start - me included - and that figure is higher since Brexit has failed so dismally. The party I voted for has around 70 more seats for a start.

Quite the opposite - Reform UK spent £40k just between mid-July and mid-August 2025 on Facebook and Instagram adverts mainly about asylum. This figure was considerably more than the main parties spent combined. Rather drives a coach and horses through the idea of Reform as plucky underdogs clutching St George flags. Chances are the money came from overseas.

That was vile, bad enough that their gun running owners swizzed local SMEs but to do it to St John’s Ambulance… Still not forgiven them for interrupting the Bates silence (although stupid of Lowe to have given them the opportunity).

Last sop to the Labour left as they have another go at welfare reform I would guess, but people more ITK with the Labour Party might know better.

Which would be fine were ICE, on the orders of Trump, not barring from America anyone who has made even the slightest criticism of policy. Not even Trump, or the GOP, but a single policy decision https://news.sky.com/story/scientist-denied-entry-to-us-after-messages-critical-of-trump-found-on-his-phone-13332518 And Farage has been slagging off the UK in the US Senate last week, comparing it to North Korea, but if an American did the same they would still 100% get into the UK for a conference.

@Rivers so sorry for your loss

And he’s very isolated now she has gone.

Chris Philp moans on about asylum seekers and hotels - let’s see how he and Yvonne Cooper compare: - September 2023, 56042 ASs housed in hotels when Philp was Home Office Minister - June 2025 (most recent data) ASs housed in hotel 32059. (source Private Eye)

Those type of people also spent an entire flight from Rio to Heathrow racially abusing John Barnes after his wonder goal in the Maracana. And for West Ham, Leeds and Chelsea on club duty throwing bananas at Danny Wallace from the Archer cage. They also kept signing ‘No Surrender to the IRA’ long after the Good Friday Agreement was signed. I won’t be putting any store in the ‘views’ of the England members travel club any more than I would Mark Collett from Patriotic Alternative (Nick Griffin’s former deputy). They also spent most of Euro 2016 in the bars of Germany singing about Brexit - look how that’s turned out for them. This is typical of them https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c51y7p8rnggo and same Neanderthals who sent the racist abuse to the lads who missed penalties in the final of Euro 2021. Same type of knuckledraggers have also vandalised local roundabouts. My England international sport is hence watched at cricket test/ODI venues and Twickenham where people can behave and respect a range of views.

His agent can smell Saudi money. And they’ve just seen Brownhill to Al Shabab for £100k p/wk plus. But the risk is if that doesn’t come off he’s a fringe Championship player in a WC year.

He’d got into the Championship team of the year at Swansea and Leeds also wanted him, was linked with PL clubs. It was assumed that he’d probably follow Martin (and did) but very underwhelming first season, slightly better last year but this season going forward is what we had expected in terms of set pieces and assists.

She has previous form as with many of Reform’s Tory B String cast offs

Robert Bloom resigned from North Northamptonshire Council last month after being recorded using the N-Word at a neighbour where he also said that he would set the EDL on her and stated that there would be black body bags. Note no criticism in the Reform press release of his behaviour. https://www.northantstelegraph.co.uk/news/people/corby-reform-councillor-resigns-over-serious-racism-allegations-5289085 Furthermore, Bloom’s inevitable resignation triggers a by-election costing the taxpayers of Northamptonshire £25k. Slashing wasteful spending my fucking arse,

According to Reform Rayner built up a Mount Everest hypocrisy of a property portfolio whilst lamenting a housing shortage. Some truth in that but do as I say, not say as I do it appears. Farage has at least FIVE properties.

I do know some jokes about that topic if you want to hear some 😉 Although might save them for the Skates match thread nearer next Sunday

And along with Mad Nads, found the keys to Toad Face’s alcohol cupboard. Which does exist despite him claiming the UK is like North Korea. He’s forgetting that Maggie cracked down on football casual violence just as hard as the current government and law courts.

Doing his BWP and Nathan Dyer impression at 🐅 🐅?

I suppose it’s an upgrade from biting from Luis Dracula, but spitting at a football coach at the age of nearly 40, deary me https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c20eme1rm73o

Decent analysis ahead of Reform UK’s conference in Birmingham on their economic plans. Summary: they’ve not improved significantly and would lead to significant increases in public borrowing. The thing that is apparently really bad https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clyx4v44438o