trousers

Hmmm....perhaps better than I instinctively gave him credit for then..... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tam%C3%A1s_Priskin

Tamas Priskin? Can I be the first to say: "Who?" Aren't we supposed to be in the market for players who will help us push for the Championship title next year rather than rejects from struggling Championship sides....?

Please no.....not this season......if there's anything that could derail our quest for automatic promotion it's the cut and thrust of a clash against our local rivals....the hype would be a huge distraction for the players..... IMHO of course (that said, if we were to beat them and come out injury free it could turn out to be a catalyst.....now, how do I get down from this fence....?)

Nicola Cortese, 8th December 2010 http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/s/southampton/9269293.stm "I think we're in a very good position. We had a difficult start to the season but luckily the other teams are now beating each other. Now the teams ahead of us are closer and we're convinced that we're going to win this league." Cortese added "he could not see any players leaving in January", including midfielders Adam Lallana, who has been linked with Birmingham, and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who is being trailed by Arsenal. "I can't see a possibility we would sell Adam in January," said Cortese, "and Alex is not going to go anywhere - we're talking about a very young player in the first year of a professional contract. "We'll have to cope with the rumours and we have to help the kid cope with the rumours. He's very well looked after and I don't think he'd wish to be anywhere else than here. "We're very proud to see the progress he's made in such a short period [but] there's still a lot for him to learn, and he's aware of that. We've got a great prospect for the future, but not the transfer market." Thread closed?

Why thank you sir. I know I'm good at this football strategy malarkey, but 'expert' is probably over-egging it somewhat.... ;-)

Even more reason to 'throw' our cup game this weekend....if we were to beat a 2nd string Blackpool side on Saturday our home game against Charlton on 29th January would possibly also be moved to March (due to clashing with 4th round fixtures), which could see the following make-or-break fixture sequence looming: Sat 12th March.....Away.....Bournemouth Tue 15th March.....Home....Charlton Sat 19th March.....Home.....Sheff Wed Tue 22nd March....Away.....Charlton Sat 26th March.....Away.....Plymouth In Nigel we trust (to see the bigger picture when selecting his team and tactics for the Blackpool game....)

We need to lose this one. Otherwise our home League game against Charlton on 29th January will be deferred until later in the season....

A cynic might say that Saints are holding back the news that Guly has signed permanently to give them a "player signs" headline this month in the event that the bids they've put on for other players don't come off. Good job I'm not a cynic... ;-)

The insurance companies will base their pricing structure on facts and risk assessments so statistically young men must cost the insurance industry more than young women. Anecdotal evidence and observation may suggest otherwise but insurance companies will use tangible stats.

Or....Cortese/Adkins want to buy him to spoil Brighton's attempts to secure promotion ahead of us? As far fetched as that may sound, in a metaphorical game of chess the best strategy is just as important to weaken your opponent(s) as it is to strengthen your own position. Preventing our promotion rivals snapping up the top players in this league would be a shrewd move IMHO.

The article in question on Exeter's OS does seem to be a thinly veiled attempt to inflate his price...but the way I read it is that they are more likely saying to Brighton: "Up your offer and he's yours" rather than "Saints - beat Brighton's offer and he's yours". Who knows... http://www.exetercityfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10436~2257955,00.html

danroan Breaking: Vauxhall to be new sponsors of the England football team, BBC Sport understands, replacing Nationwide after 11 year partnership. 2 minutes ago via web

For which football team...?

Raise the minimum legal driving age to something sensible...say 25 years of age. Voila, problem solved.

Gerry Raffety

Alas, my recollection of who clobbered who is somewhat lacking. I just remember my instinctual reaction to the incident which was "ay oop. That's a penalty". Anyway, all immaterial now

Thanks for the links Micky. I think they've recently added anticipated shipping dates on those as I could've sworn they were out of stock when I first looked. Cheers for the head up.

Devil's advocate alert.... Bolton did rest 9 of the 'first choice' 11 players who started Bolton's preceding Premier League game vs West Ham. As such, I think it's probably more realistic to say Adam has looked comfortable when playing against teams who are, in effect, good Championship level. He's yet to play against a decent / full-strength Premier League side.

In America or Australia (for example) they would call it having a positive attitude and winning mentality. Only in Britain is having such "can do" thoughts deemed to be arrogant. That said, it's not surprising when a typical British child over the decades has the "It's the taking part, not the winning that counts" mantra drummed into them from an early age....

Yep, that's what impressed me most. One minute he was leading the the front line the next he was tracking back winning the ball deep in our own half.

I have to say it looked pretty nailed on to me. Can't think why Saints Player omitted it from the highlights....hmmm...... ;-)

It's the naughty step for you me lad ;-)

Thought for the day: When would we rather play Charlton, arguably one of our biggest promotion rivals , at home? Get it out of the way as soon as possible (i.e. as scheduled on Saturday 29th January) or....defer it to later in the season? Personally, I'd rather get as many of these 'crunch games' out of the way sooner rather than later. On that baisis, we ought to put out a weakened side on Saturday to give us the best chance of not making the 4th round....which happens to coincide with the Charlton fixture on the 29th January. Bigger picture and all that.... p.s. of course, this wonderous piece of logic also relies on Charlton not winning away at Spurs on Sunday!

Apologies for raising ecpectations. That said, the only highlights I've seen so far were the paltry minute or so shown on the Football League show last night. When/Where were the "original 5 minutes" highlights shown? Btw, these 6.5 minutes 'mysteriously' seem to omit the stonewall penalty appeal that Daggers had when 1-0 down....interesting editorial decision by Saints that one.... ;-)