Hamilton Saint

This thread is a good example of the "whipping boy" syndrome discussed on another thread.

Egos - you don't need an apostrophe to form a plural noun.

The "whipping boy", of course, is another type of scapegoat. The interesting idea for both is that they are not actually guilty of anything; they are punished as an expedience - they pay for the sins of others. It's not quite the same in footballing terms ; one or two players are often identified as the "weak links" in a team - because of continuing deficiencies in their performances. Their mistakes are noticed and criticised. But the "scapegoat" tendency is always there: you recognise that it invariably follows a dispiriting loss. Instead of holding a significant portion of the team to blame, the simple-minded like to latch on to their favourite bête-noire. There really is some important psychological issues at play here, and the current "whipping boy" often tells you more about the critics than you might imagine.

Technically you might call them monks - they live in a community and take vows of celibacy, poverty and obedience. But their religious community is not called a monastery, and they don't live a contemplative life, secluded from the rest of society. They work as teachers. We never called them monks - in Southampton, Shropshire, or Liverpool.

Granted, but it's a vision - or ideal - worth striving for, eh?

Some players are relatively consistent; some are very inconsistent. A player's form in football is a mysterious component in their game. Is it a psychological thing? Or are these phases a natural thing? It's one of the things in football that makes following the sport endlessly fascinating.

Thanks! Yes, I get updated on important news about St. Mary's from friends in the UK. They are not "monks", by the way. The term is "teaching brothers". The method of recruiting young boys into the Order changed dramatically in the late sixties - that, and the social changes taking place in that era - led to a huge drop in "vocations" to the religious life. Their former school in Liverpool, on Menlove Avenue (Woolton College), closed in the 70s, and they took over SFX - a former Jesuit grammar school. The English province of the Order is pretty much dead.

I am VERY ambivalent about the Royal Family and the system of a constitutional monarchy. One the one hand, as a historical and cultural tradition that has managed to survive and evolve through the centuries, it is a fascinating phenomenon. And it provides regular bouts of unbeatable "pomp and circumstance". But on the other hand, it is hard to defend philosophically and politically. Inherited rank and privilege has no place in a truly democratic and equitable system. [Having said that, there are elements of the system that provide checks and balances that give more stability than is seen in other places of the world. But better systems can be devised.] Constitutional monarchy is a quaint and interesting thing - but it is used to prop up a class system that is ultimately undemocratic and socially divisive. So when push comes to shove, ultimately I'm a republican.

Duplication - because of technical hitch. Sorry!

I grew up in Hythe (1960-1968 ). Went to St. Mary's College in So'ton. Also attended a boarding school in Shropshire which had boys attending from all over England. Football was a very important part of the school culture - there was an intense bonding between each boy and his hometown team. I had been to The Dell several times as a young nipper. Saints were promoted to the old First Division when I was at that Shropshire boarding school - one of the two most memorable footballing moments of my youth (the other being England's World Cup success in 1966). After emigrating to Canada in 1969, news about the Saints was very difficult to get - apart from the list of Saturday results in the papers here (and then only fitfully) on Monday mornings. The long drought of news and views about the team was broken temporarily by the F.A. Cup win of 1976 - which was broadcast live on CBC Radio, for some strange reason. I taped it on my reel-to-reel recorder - I still have the tape down in the basement somewhere. It was the wonderful invention of the internet that turned all this around - suddenly I could get daily information from the English media, and I got hooked onto this site - well, the sites that preceded this one and evolved into it. And now I listen to every weekend game via Saints Player, and as much as the mid-week games as I can, after I get in from work. I usually listen along with my friend who lives in Motspur Park, near Wimbledon. Our friendship goes back to St. Mary's College and that boarding school in Shropshire. We Skype back-and-forth throughout the games - commenting on the action and exchanging news and views about the week's events. It's been a wonderful thing, this internet tool. My following of the Saints is of a different character than those who live in the city, but it is just as intense and passionate - based on those very impressionable teenage years. I'm not sure that some of the "locals" in So'ton really understand or appreciate that type of loyalty. Once a Saint, always a Saint. Cheers!

Yeah, it was bound to happen, eh?! I blame the fuc*ed-up computer in the lobby of the Zurich hotel we're staying in. But, will be home soon.

May I offer a reminder about basic forum etiquette? Give your thread a title that indicates what the subject is. "I think it's obvious" could be about anything. If you had called this thread "Obvious that Cortese struggles to find players", I would have known what it was about and avoided it! Danke!

May I offer a reminder about basic forum etiquette? Give your thread a title that indicates what the subject is. "I think it's obvious" could be about anything. If you had called this thread "Obvious that Cortese struggles to find players", I would have known what it was about and avoided it! Danke!

Don't know what you have against Canadians, mate. Canada was one of the first countries to support Cuba (thanks to Pierre Trudeau, back in the 1970s), when the U.S. was bullying everybody not to go there. You're the one who sounds obnoxious, to tell the truth. Your main interest seems to be alcohol ... sound like a typical Brit tourist. I've always found Canadian tourists to be friendly, courteous, easy-going, and keen to help the locals. I've been to Cuba with my family three times - Jibicoa, on the north-coast about 45 minutes east of Havana. Had a great time each year. Cuba is a welcoming place, with fiercely proud and enterprising people. Things are slowly changing for the better, as Castro's brother has liberalized the rules to allow more private enterprise.

Quality seeker! Sounds good to me!

Your thread title seems to be posing the question 'are women tennis players athletes'? Well, of course they are. Next question I can help you with?

Interesting technique. We tend to go to two or three places for several days each, and walk around each one (if big cities), or take day-trips away from them - when there are interesting things to see nearby.

The kits from 1950-1974 are the best: shirts with red-and-white vertical stripes; black shorts; and socks with red and white hoops.

'Twould be better if they were spherical, I reckon.

As a liturgical colour for the R.C. church, red symbolizes the Passion, blood, fire and martyrdom; white symbolizes light, innocence, purity, joy, triumph, and glory. White is used much more in the Catholic liturgy than any other colour. Red-and-white stripes, therefore, would be more versatile - would match the needs of many more days than a kit that is predominantly red.

Ron Davies.

Yes, if you turn the amp up to 10!

A big influence on Van Morrison! Turn On Your Love Light, I Pity The Fool, Ain't Nothing You Can Do. R.I.P. Bobby "Blue" Bland

The Beatles - Rubber Soul Bob Dylan - Blonde on Blonde Neil Young - After the Goldrush Frank Sinatra - In The Wee Small Hours of the Morning G. F. Handel - The Water Music

Chapel End Charlie wrote: "One of the many things I tend to keep quite about on here is that, although I was born in Dorset, there is actually plenty of Welsh blood flowing through my veins. Perhaps this genetic inheritance explains why the works of Dylan Thomas have long appealed to me ... or maybe it's just because the man was a bloody genius. In any case whether you hail from Swansea or Swindon, Dylan's wonderful prose style combined with Richard Burton's oh-so-perfect delivery results in something that is really rather special methinks" I love Dylan Thomas's work, too. Every Christmas season I listen to the great man himself reading "A Child's Christmas in Wales". Absolutely brilliant. My favourite poem of his is Fern Hill - another mesmerising depiction of his childhood. It is chockfull of references to the natural world. It's a portrait of a child enveloped by an almost holy awe for nature. Here's a YouTube video of Dylan Thomas reading the poem. His style of reading is completely idiosyncratic - sounding weird, at first, but then carrying you along with its perfect delivery. As close to singing as reading a poem can get, I reckon.