Alain Perrin

I propose the original Saintettes (who must now be early 20's) racing around the pitch. First one to knock themselves out wins.

I have zero problem with it. I wouldn't say it bothers me or enhances me - in fact I'm not sure I know what it is at SMS despite having a season ticket (subconsciously I think it might be Blur / Song 2 - but I can't say for certain). In short, get over it, it is no big deal.

Discuss.

Also, in fairness to Suarez. Negro is Spanish for Black so really using that term hasn't got the same weight as when a native English speaker uses it. Interestingly, Poyet is also Spanish for c*ck.

Although I don't agree with the following viewpoint, because I the poppy applies to more than WWI, it is an interesting position ( http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/robert-fisk-do-those-who-flaunt-the-poppy-on-their-lapels-know-that-they-mock-the-war-dead-6257416.html ). I think a minutes silence 8 days before is akin to jumping on the bandwagon.

Fabrice Fernandez's no one around him dive impression after one of the Everton? players had taken a tumble. Earnt him a yellow card but very funny.

It's not idiotic, it's simple economics. Saints run a ticket office with a smallish staff that ticksover throughout the year. Some core staff (david luker equivalents, plus a skeleton staff) plus a a number of temps/part timers increased for matchdays etc. Then there are around 50 match events per year which have big peaks of activity. It doesn't make sense for Saints to maintain a full scale telesales operation (and the fixed costs associated with it), so they outsource it. My suggestion was that cost (understimate), £1, which I was told was being 'ripped offed'. My evidence above from a 5 minute google plus the fact I've worked on setting up some smaller scale callcentre contracts (albeit mostly for outbound) says otherwise. I can't provide you with the exact numbers for Saints, or prove if Nasty Nicolas is taking a % from the £2.50 as profit, but I suspect (if they are) it is small. I just think people are being naive if they think that the only costs are a stamp and an envelope. My argument, way back before the three post limit bit me, is that the ticket tax IS clearly for a service received and it is reasonable and fair. (it's fully hypothecated - nice big word for 3 am - unlike the rest of the ticket, which we don't know what goes where, or what extra comes from elsewhere (including ML's legacy)). Either way this thread is talking at cross purposes now!

If you really think £1 is a rip off, I'd like to buy things off you (you clearly don't know what you are talking about) As an example (US, but principles and scale are the same): "We define fully loaded cost-per-call as including direct, indirect, and management labor; benefits, incentive pay, training, recruitment, third-party call center services, correspondence costs, telecommunications, and occupancy. To better understand the cost per call, we reviewed our proprietary benchmarking database, looking at 18 large companies with call volumes ranging from 900,000 to more than 9 million calls annually. * Here are the findings: The direct labor cost ranges from $1.11 to $3.29 for a 3-to-4–minute direct consumer call. * When we add in indirect labor, the cost-per-call increases to a range of $1.39 to $4.75 per call. * When we add in occupancy, benefits, and telecommunications, the fully loaded costs range between $2.70 to $5.60 per call" " "

OK. - An online system of dubious quality (incidentally you pay £5 for this forum and don't even get a ticket!) - An outsourced agency at c. £1 per call to answer the phones / internal staff (hourly rate) to man lower volume / away sales. - Internal resources to print, envelope and dispatch. - A proportional increase of 2.5% surcharge for credit card purchases (no cash option over the phone) - +P&P 50p (stamp, envelope) Other than that, it's a rip off. I don't get the obsession. The 'ticket tax' is the most transparent part of the ticket price, you pay it on a service you are receiving - once per transaction, not once per ticket. I have no clue how much of the ticket goes to Rickie Lambert's wages or biscuits in the boardroom. As for the Coach tickets, unless you ordered that by the power of thought, most of the costs, bar the 30p stamp will still apply.

Stop shaking fences? HTH

Dear Mr Cortese, Please put the price of each ticket up by £3 next season and kill the ticket 'tax'. That way everyone can have the satisfaction of not knowing they're contributing to the operating costs and there's the off chance Dune will STFU. Kind regards, Alain

Reading this thread somehow makes me feel intellectually superior.....

It's faeces FFS - the one thing I cannot stand is **** spelling.

I don't get this. We've only played two of the top 6, beating 1 (Leeds) and drawing today.

I think that Poyet would be a good call to replace him at Spurs if it did happen.

True, but as a chanted retort this is rubbish.

All of this is handbags being played out in the media or twitter. It doesn't matter how offensive the comment is, it is the fact that they're making them that is the problem. They should either sort it out or STFU. Cortese has a principle 'i.e. if I pay for my ticket, so should everyone else' - and personally (being an 'ordinary' fan) it's one I agree with. If you apply the spirit of that principle to other things (i.e. no favours be that freebies, preferential ordering etc.) then Matt and LM have fallen foul of it and that (in the past) has rankled them and they've been to the press (quite what they expected to achieve through that I don't know). Unless we expect that principle to be changed (which, given NC's single mindedness on other issues, ain't going to happen), the best for ALL concerned is to keep quiet / no comment.

This is because you are living in the pist.

Rarely a truer word said on this forum. The one exception though is myself. I have rarely, if ever, been wrong.

Very true. We're not going out of business, nor languishing at the bottom of the league. The world is out of kilter and even Alpine is posting stuff I agree with. Yes, everything is connected with how we got to where we are today; Mrs Bates having Ted, Laurie attracting Keegan, Le Tissier scoring from a corner at Dellhurst, Lowe building the stadium that made us a good investment, Markus for buying us and Nicola for currently being at the helm. However, whilst we can learn lessons from the past, the only thing we can influence is the future. At the end of the day (as long as it's not immoral) if people don't get freebies or the Chairman starts wearing a monogrammed tracksuit, I may not always agree, but I don't really care. Someone once said "It's about winning games of football" and that'll do for me.

Thanks for calling me a mong. Vile. The fact that you used that term says more about you than me. I didn't make anything up. The fact that the game didn't sell out has nothing to do with it. That wasn't clear at the time. MLT asked for preferential treatment (i.e. different to a the man in the street). FACT. I'd have sympathy if it was for MLT alone, he played (more than played) for the club. As far as I know his 10 mates didn't so I don't see why being a mate of MLT should qualify you any more than any other fan. That is why I said I had sympathy for both sides. But if you wan't to turn my opinion into something that it is not, feel free. Little point me replyin

A* for Patronisation. C- for Re-writing History. Clearly I was mistaken that when Matt made his request for 10 tickets, they weren't linked to Carlisle tickets and they weren't restricted to one per customer. But thanks for correcting me...... (Oh just one question, if they were so freely available, why didn't MLT ring the ticket office???). http://www.saintsweb.co.uk/showthread.php?27450-United-Ticket-Pricing-amp-Policy-Thread&p=932460#post932460

I have sympathy for both sides, but the truth is MLT has tried to use his standing to have preferential treatment. http://www.dailystar.co.uk/posts/view/172976/Matt-Le-Tissier-in-tizz-over-Southampton-ticket-snub/ 10 tickets for mates. Paying or not, most people were scrabbling around for one.

I agree with much of what has been said. The level of tolerance by pundits and commentators for kidology is ridiculous. Whether it is a player diving, making more of something than it is, arguing for a throw in / corner or trying to influence the ref - it's all cheating. I'd introduce three fundamental things into football : 1) Any chat back to the ref or linesman - regardless of the justification or the referees tolerance - results in a yellow card. The captain is allowed to ask for an explanation, but not challenge the decision. But players need to understand that genuine mistakes will happen. The Ref is always right, even when he's wrong. 2) The FA stop the pretense that the Refs decision cannot be questioned after the event using television evidence. Situations where a player is judged to either have been too lightly or too harshly punished can be rectified. Where someone has kidded the ref to get a major decision (penalty, opposing player punishment etc.), that player is punished after the event (by double the amount they'd normally get). 3) Punishments are quick (none of this waiting for months before reviews / defence). Decisions ideally should be made in the following week. Financial punishments should be significant and be payable to charity, not to the FA's coffers. That and give pundits a good slap for excusing poor behaviour.

To be honest, based on recent results, if you were a Forest fan you'd be on suicide watch.