sandwichsaint

Don't make stuff up, it's probably 50/50, I'm quite happy to have him, I can't be bothered to dig it out but I would have had him in January.

We could probably get SRL back for 14 million ......

Tricky tie, will def go if tkts are reasonable, reasonable=

Reality check - this is where we are now, just another mid-table, also-ran Prem team. Once we had disposed of half of one of the best, young, mainly homegrown teams the Prem has ever seen, we were left with a pile of smoking ruins and a big pile of money. We can't attract players from the first or second tiers (we can't pay the wages other bigger clubs play and we can't offer much prospects of glory or trophies on the pitch either), realistically we are left with third tier players/young players/cheap unknowns. In the circumstances we have done 'OK' so far, the jury's still out in that we haven't played any real games yet (!) but in the circumstances: Forster - potentially very good, should get a number of good seasons out of him and will maintain value Bertrand - could go either way but no big fee committed, option to buy if he does well Tadic - hopefully will be very good for us, should maintain value Taider - excellent squad player/utility player, no big fee committed Pelle - probably the biggest risk, we need to find a system that creates chances for him Shane Long - decent honest pro, potential to form a double act with Pelle, I've seen him live several times and I've not seen him have a poor game. Saints could be the making of him. The price is ridiculous but unfortunately when you must have a striker, this week, and you have a pocket full of cash you are going to get burned whoever you try and buy. Did people 'really' think we were going to take £100m in sales and buy 5x £20m players?

Les-lie, Leslie, He comes from Hack-nee He f===ing hates Pompey Les-lie Les-lie (Alternatively - 'You don't know what you're doing ....'

Will come out on top in a relegation battle? Nice work ....

This, once SRL was allowed to go pre-WC the rest is inevitable; rank amateurism from our board. If SRL wanted his dream move to his spiritual home he should have been made to sweat it out in pre-season then dragged all around the dutch non-league scene, then to Swindon and B'mouth then we'll think about it (and then let him go!). He was the domino, other players looked and said 'What's stopping us?'. I'm taking MS and JRod as givens and I will be 'astonished' if VW or JC are here for the L'pool game. The board have built a house of cards and it's all fallen over... it's not impossible that it's all part of a cunning master plan and RK will be given the wherewithall and money to sign 10 PL players in the next three weeks but somehow I doubt it. At this rate I will be surprised to see RK last much beyond the first 5-6 games.

Consider yourself spared, when I was there they just reached behind for a scratch.

Adam Scott for me then Rory E\W

Gosh, an outbreak of common-sense and moderation seems to have fallen over the mong board. Could Saints have got more than £1m for their shirt sponsor? Almost certainly yes, but that may well have involved going with a casino/online betting/money-sharking payday loans company. The silent majority seem to think that for a marginal couple of extra £m they would rather not besmirch our shirts with that type of tat. I expect the owner's values may well come into this side of things too. Are the new Carlos Kickaballs 'better than Lambert and Lallana?' - it seems most people are going to forsake the you-tube option and wait until they've a) seen them play, and b) seen them play at least a good few times. I can guarantee that this question would have had a completely different answer one or two summers ago.

Maybe we will travel to Euroean games on car ferries?

Richard Wright was excellent in his time with us.

Best one yet.

You didn't need a commentator if you were there, a real awayday special if you were there that night. Considering how carp we were we had fantastic away support in the dark days ... don't know what the allocation is at Watford but we had 1500+ up there midweek.

1) SRL 2) Lallana 3) Shaw 4) Lovren 5) Morgan

The game with the wonder goal? (for them).

Awesome weekend! We went up on the Friday and rode a chunk of stage 2 including Crag Vale, Ripponden bank and Elland, 45km with over 1000m of vertical. Saturday we parked in Shipley and rode over the top to Ilkley to see them early doors, then over a big top to Harrogate for the finish, we couldn’t get near the course and watched it on a big screen at a hotel, back over to Otley and back up to the cars (up’s a word you use a lot when cycling in Yorkshire), 82km and 1100m. Yesterday we rode the course down from Elland to Huddersfield up through Holmfirth and up Holme Moss. Just a stunning day, 8 am depart and we started with a 10km downhill on closed road into Huddersfield (70kmh) and through the barriererd-up town centre, then the long pretty drag to Holmfirth then Holme Moss, amazing crowds, must have been 30-40 thousand on there at 10-00 in the morning. Dropped back to a pub in Holme with beer/band/BBQ, saw the tour again then the big scramble back to Huddersfield and back up to the cars, 60km and about 700m. Unbelievable the way the Yorks public have embraced this weekend, just about every house and street on the route was decorated, I reckon they must have got their money back 10 times over, there will be people riding these routes for years to come. Back at work at 7-15 this morning!

What could possibly go wrong?

Real car-crash television, when in a hole, stop digging! I can't work out if he's incredibly thick, incredibly ill-advised or he's just deliberately rubbing our faces in it? Hang on, I've got it now, it's all three.

I love anagrams.

Anybody going? We are going up to Halifax on Thursday night (group of 9), middle-size ride and beers on the Friday, we are going to Cray to watch on the Saturday with a 100k ride and big beers + BBQ in the evening, then going to a friend's cricket club to watch a big screen and it goes right by the door on the Sunday. Strongly fancy Cav to win on the Saturday, hopefully the overall isn't spoilt by wind or crashes on the cobbles next week, and then who knows? Anybody going to France? We haven't been for a couple of years and I wasn't really bothered this year but I'm getting itchy feet now. We might go to Paris for the Sunday, never been to that, friends went last year and said it was awesome day out.

Hell in a handcart?

'Pap to the main board, Pap to the main board please'.

All of the above (scouting / coaching / facilities / cohort size / opportunity). Two more for me: a large and well-defined catchment area, we are the only 'big' club for elite youngsters in a semi-circle from Brighton, across the M3 towards Newbury and into the west country with the Bath centre as well. Stability - I would imagine that once a youngster is in our set-up there are very few distractions to leave, we have a player pathway that genuinely goes to the first team. A talented 10 -12 -14 year old at Arsenal will forever be getting attention from the other London clubs and vice versa, I should imagine in the midlands and NW / NE this issue equally applies, our youngsters have fewer distractions and no real need to look elsewhere for a 'better' offer. Don't rule out the power of 'positive thinking' / role models / expectations / self belief / the belief of others in you: our youngsters across all ages work on a defined pathway towards the first team; demonstrable fact ... what is the point of going to the Chelsea academy for 10 years? (thanks for Jack Cork though!)

Cheers for the link, that was special. We really have been blessed to watch some wonderful stuff the last couple of seasons.