sandwichsaint

I've always understood it wasnt installed because with the pitch being virtually at sea level and close to the river it wasn't needed. I'm not sure it was ever a cost thing - it simply wasn't needed - and 'events' seem to have proved that correct over the years. Will make an interesting discussion if we ever return to the Prem (presumably we will be forced to have it!)

I saw this game too, can't remember if it actually rained during the game but I remember it was an absolute glue-pot of a pitch, the sort you just don't see now. Me, my dad and bro had seats in the West Stand down the Archers end and I remember it cos it was one of the first games we ever had seats at and that was a very rare treat indeed to go 'in the stands', seats being both more expensive and hard to get hold of. Guess those were the days when season ticket holders 'had until Wednesday' to buy their own seats - I can only apologise if we were sat in your ST seat that day.... (I'm not a ST holder, never have been, prob never likely to be ... why oh why can't Saints sell ST holders their 'own seat' for cup games? ... that can't be too hard via an electronic db surely? They used to manage perfectly well with telephones, letters, and hard-printed tickets .. I just don't get why they continue to choose to upset a certain section of their fanbase?)

And France and Italy and America again and Africa again and Australasia ... we are more likely to see Saints in the Chamions League than to see a WC in England.

Pretty sure they are for ticket holders only (ie ST or day-ticket) and you book them (coach seats) when you book your tickets - they do say no away fans allowed in the advertising. They do one from here, excellent value, match ticket and coach travel is about £20 for most games, sometimes more; I have seen ticket-and-coach deals at £12-£15 for midweek games ... ridiculously good value when you think it is 75 minutes travel time from where I am. A few of the lads from my school use it regularly (age about 12-18) and it costs them about £8 a game including travel from Deal or S'wich .. incredible! Anyways ... for about £25 you could buy a home ticket and guaranteed travel ... get off the coach, bin your home ticket, and go into the away end .. there are services from all over Kent and East Sussex ... get in!

The original was def Channon at the 76 final (you can see it clearly if you have the video or DVD), may have been reprised for Boyer in 79?

Channon strikes faster than British Leyland

While we are all having a good moan I can't believe the club are still running with the completely naff, generic 'OS'. Are we contractually obliged via the FL to subscribe to this pile of junk? I see that most other clubs (all other clubs?) in our league have something similar; I have just been on Huddersfield's and it is equally: confusing, out-of-date, cluttered, illogical, full of in-your-face adverts etc etc. Surely it wouldn't take very much for a club of Saints stature and means to produce a comprehensive, integrated, online system that delivered a decent web site and ticketing system? The fact that they haven't improved either so far says to me that the club don't much care for their supporters/customers, or that they are doing so well that they can afford to turn away potential visitors to their website (I only ever click on it for ticket details) and potential ticket sales (the same 'fee' for online booking and for phoning the ticket office is a joke - there is nil incentive to use the online service as it stands). Saints v Brighton, top of Division 3, 26k Leicester v Forest, top end of Championship, 23k Saints fans deserve better!

Yeah, that and cr8p players, cr8p managers, cr8p preparation, cr8p tactics ... I don't think we really need FIFAs big ref conspiracy to put us out of World Cups, do you?

Although the old BritishRail cost (lost) considerably less to run than the privatised railways now take in subsidies ... and the service was in many cases 'better' and with considerably lower fares pound-for-pound than those on offer nowadays.

It looks like Beckford is finding it soooo much easier with better players around him, is there any real 'evidence' that you can be 'too good' for Lge 1? I guess the Prem Lge and the top half of the CCC(sic) is full of players that looked-ok-but-never-did-much in the third division; is it just that I haven't noticed them?

Excellent draw for Saints, price it right and there should be a decent crowd and an entertaining match; if we win it will be a big morale boost to beat a Prem team, if not we go out to a team two leagues above and concentrate on the league -win/win - only downside I can see is a possible replay which we really could do without. Spare a thought for Dover! They've won through five rounds, comfortably beating two league sides in rounds 1 and 2 and are in the third round for the first time in their history ... they get drawn at Huddersfield away! Worst-case scenario! Miles away, very difficult game, and limited TV/media appeal. Huddersfield have had less than 4000 for their two previous games in the cup this season. Dover will prob take a 1000+ up there but it's a massive anti-climax after Saturday, to reach the third round and then not to receive a financial windfall is a right kick in the wotsits.

?????

Is it 'Ray' Reardon? I thought it was Jason Dennis or Mark Codd, wot a pollock I am.

You really should get out more ... it's a lovely non-lge ground (it's already league-rated if they ever get that far)- a much better pitch than plenty of those in our league - Dover v Saints would be a great third round tie (or we could all go to Chelsea/L'pool/Man U 'again', yawn).

Dover away would be nice - I went today and Dover were well worth their win; in fact they have been good value for both their victories over league oppo. Over 4000 at Crabble today and a cracking atmosphere, would love to see Saints play there.

Morgan is the same age as Bale and Walcott b1989- make of that what you will but I doubt the other two would struggle in the third division!

Massively disappointing so far! I saw nearly 20 games last year home and away and I really enjoyed it; I've only been to MK, Notts Co and Brighton so far this year. At the end of last season I was really looking fd to this season but the endless PR gaffes and negative vibes through the summer really knocked my enthusiasm for it; chuck in the carp pre-season, ant and dec moved on and not replaced, carp start, the AP fiasco, individual players under-performing .... all a bit lame thus far but hopefully NA can pull it out of the bag and 'January' might bring some improvement. I also hate the sash shirt and the endless talk of a 50,000 seater stadium! I'm sure I'll see 10-12 games by the end of the season but there's a constant feeling that we 'ought' to be doing a little bit better!

Good things: a decent first half for Saints, plenty of tempo and bite, plenty of variation in our attacks. Dickson looked good. Hammond really up for it and put himself about well. 26k in the third division on a Tuesday evening. Clean sheet, we rode our luck and were a bit last-ditch at times but we shut out the division's leading scorers. Medium things: we created lots of half chances and bits and pieces (we only needed one to go in) but we failed to create too many really clear openings, don't be fooled by the 11-shots-on-target stats, I can't recall Ankergan(sp) making a meaningful save? Not very good things: Gully was shocking, my first sight and he was truly awful on that 15 minute showing. Brighton's 'professional' attitude, timewasting and ref-baiting, it's obviously a winning style but I'm not sure I'd want to watch that everyweek. Atmosphere was carp where I was (third of the way up block 42) - the 'boyfriend' chants are just about the naffest thing in football, we failed to get any of our songs going properly and were easily outsung by the oppo (Saints fans at home really aren't anywhere near as 'good' as they used to be). M25 closed for 'maintainance' on the way home so a 30 minute detour through the very scenic Surrey hills and home at 00.45 ... gggrrrhhhh! Onwards and upwards, we have a run of 'easier' games ahead and we really do need to get on a good run, I think we will be all right and I'm very much looking forward to 'January' as Adkins referred to it three or four times in his post-match comments on Solent.

I'll see your Forbes Phillipson-Masters and raise you a Manny Andreszeski (sp?)

Martin (or Gurr) Hollywood Kirkup McGrath Walker O'Neil Fisher Gabriel Paine Big Ron!!!! Channon Jenkins A sort of a hybrid team that I grew up with from the age of about 5-8, it may not be entirely chronologically accurate but they would walk this league (and the one above too).

shouldn't we be deleting the above post pdq?

I thought, given where he started from, that he had a 50-50 chance of getting us up this season, and if he didn't do that (barring any spectacular foul ups this season) he would be the man to take us up next season. I also thought that there would be a measurable improvement in results and hopefully alongside that an improvement in playing style. I also thought his appointment was generally well-received and that he may start to win over the doubters who thought he wasn't a big enough name for us. So far he appears to be delivering on his side of the bargain - results are demonstrably better and we are in a much more realistic position for promotion than when he took over, we have also played some good football in parts but perhaps not as much as people were expecting (?). Maybe when we get to the other side of the January window he will have shuffled the pack and he will be developing his own team (rather than managing the one he was given). I would say he's very much on track to meet my (realistic) expectations but I am under no illusions that he is unlikely to get a second season if we don't go up this season ....

It wasn't - we ended last season as red-hot favourites to walk the league this season, and justifiably so! Somewhere between Wembley and Plymouth we managed to lose the plot completely (including two of last year's better players). We are where we are, new manager but same old under-performance; I don't think NC is planning to spend a shed load of cash on more players, NA will obviously have to shuffle his pack if he can't get anymore out of what he has inherited.

Yes. If NA has been told to sell before he can buy then he will obviously be considering the position of one of his most expensive and least productive players.

Not quite the end of the world tho is it? Decent player but one who has never settled or achieved very much anywhere he's been - if he had the right attitude/temperment he is prob good enough to have been playing in the next lge up (as we will no doubt see in the coming weeks!). It's fairly clear reading between the lines that 'something' isn't right behind the scenes (and hasn't been right since Wembley) and if this is the first of NA's steps to clean the place up and re-calibrate our sights for the middle third of the season then I am right behind him, I don't think 'ambition' really comes into it - we all want to go up this year and NA is the man who has to plot the best way of doing that (wait for the solids to hit the ventilation when he moves RL on, for the same sort of reasons!)