Hamilton Saint

Just remember, Nigel, that it's all about winning games of football.

What an assinine idea for a competition.

"Budweiser F.A. Cup" - have they no shame! "Barclays Premier League" - just as annoying. And then there are those public buildings (theatres, sports stadia, etc.) that are renamed after mega-corporations. F**k that!

Thanks for that interesting article. I remember getting into The Dell for 1/- back then. And the Hythe ferry cost 6d. I made the trip by myself (started going when I was about 11) - my father was not interested.

What was surprising in this latest incident was the size of the wall - only three players. There was a large amount of space on the left-side of the wall (from the kicker's perspective) for the kicker to aim around the wall. Who decides on the size of the wall, anyway? Surely, free-kicks that close to goal, from that angle, require a bigger wall?

Maybe it got delivered to that call centre in Mumbai?

wonderful Freudian slip!

I phoned my local newpaper's subscription department to let them know that the paper had not been delivered that day. I got to speak with someone in Mumbai, India. I thought that was pretty outrageous. So, I called the paper's business department to suggest they might employ local people to do that job, instead of shipping the work overseas, so that they could pay the employees less. The nice lady I talked to about this was in Kingston, Jamaica.

Well ... usually the defender is under pressure, with only a couple of seconds to kick or pass - whereas the pass back gives the goalie an extra 5 seconds, or so, to compose himself, and kick downfield. [This is my emoticon to show that this is a sincere response.]

Go "whoosh" yourself. To indicate the difference between sincerity and smart-arse sarcasm, I recommend the use of an emoticon.

"Real time"? Camera doesn't need to be level. Player in white is further away from the line than the player in red. Clearly.

Saints legend is one thing; England legend is another. But Saints AND England legend? Probably poorly-worded. I can't think of too many players still around who fit that bill.

Well, indirectly - on BBC Football he is quoted thusly: "I need 11 people with ability to put effort in. If they don't they're not going to play and I'll get 11 who do." In the same article they mention that he saved Portsmouth from relegation twice - but didn't mention his failure at SFC.

I hear he prefers to do business with brown paper bags.

Yes, an idiot. He apologised for using the word holocaust - he didn't seem to see that the problem was the ridiculous comparison he was drawing between losing a game of football and genocide.

Rooling Stones? Must be a typo - you meant Drooling Stones, right? [Just kidding - they're one of my favourite rock bands, although they've only done a few decent albums since the early 70s.]

Why the hell does Saints Player not begin until 19 minutes before the kick-off - when it's at a home game!

Yeah - a good pun there - let me think of one!

"Southampton manager Nigel Adkins does not feels he owes predecessor Alan Pardew a debt of gratitude for the work done before his arrival at the south coast club." Who knows what has motivated NA to say this at this time (probably the timing - right before AP and Newcastle come to town), but it is undeniable that Pardew brought a great group of players to Saints. Adkins built on what Pardew had already set up.

I've had a bicycle stolen three times during my life. Each time it has been very upsetting. Not that the things were worth a huge amount, you understand - it just feels like such a personal violation.

The new double-CD release from Neil Young and Crazy Horse; it's called Psychedelic Pill. This is excellent - especially if you appreciate the long, lead-guitar improvisations he gets into when playing with Crazy Horse. His guitar - a 1953 Gibson Les Paul ("Old Black") - has never sounded better!

Finally found a copy of Ill Met By Moonlight at my local library. It's one of just a few films by the interesting British film-makers Powell and Pressburger ("The Archers") that I haven't seen before. It's set on Crete during WWII, and tells the true story of the kidnapping of the Nazi general who commanded the German occupying troops. It features Dirk Bogarde and Marius Goring.

These are all from BBC Radio 4 Desert Island Discs [fascinating to hear what music people will pick - and the conversation is always interesting] Great Lives [even though I find Matthew Parish annoying] In Our Time [even though Melvyn Bragg can be seriously annoying!] Books and Authors Coast and Country Thinking Allowed Play of the Week I download these to my ipod on the weekend and listen to them in my car (an hour-long commute to and from work every day).

Our tradition is to go out as a family to a local Christmas Tree "farm" about two weeks before Christmas and cut our own tree down - about 6-7 feet high. When I was a kid growing up in Hythe my parents always put up all the Christmas decorations (including the tree) on Christmas Eve. And then took them down on Twelfth Night (Epiphany).

Yeah, why be an optimist and feel good, when you can be a pessimist and feel bad?