The Kraken

Wigan's prices are so low because they can't fill their ground, even against the likes of Chelsea or Man Utd. Our prices when in the Prem were up to £35, and we filled the ground on many occasions. I imagine if were still up there, with inflation etc we'd be looking at £40 for a ticket, so it's all relative.

I'll be extremely worried about our prospects if we don't pick up a win on Saturday. I've been perfectly happy up to now to show patience and wait for the results to improve. Certainly our performances have gotten better but there's no substitute for points on the board. The new spine of the team (Trottman, Hammond, Lambert) have had a good amount of time to settle in with the old team, we've not really got too many injuries, so we need to see what this team is about now. A point away at Charlton is a very good result. Hopefully we can build on that with another good showing and a good victory to really get us going.

69% of them think they'll win. Another 13% think they'll only draw. Less than 1 in 5 think Saints will win. How does that translate to them "sh!tting themselves" exactly?

I came here to post exactly that, and it was the first reply!

Clearly not a lot if you think that the whole Islamic world comes to a complete standstill during Ramadan.

If Saga can keep showing the type of enthusiasm he showed on Tuesday night then I'd be very happy to keep him. It's a big if though...

I can't see anyone being willing to pay any sort of significant sum for him so perhaps it'll be a long term loan. Can't say I'd be sad to see him go, though it would certainly be good to get a replacement in, I don't think Gillett is up to the job.

Nineteen Canteen; still trying so desperately hard to get noticed by being controversial about a book he hasn't actually read. So terribly sad.

That's all well and good, and with the injury you're perhaps somewhat justified in that belief. However, we are a new side with new ideas and this was another chance for the manager to try things out without the pressure of a league game. Say, for instance, Murty had come through unscathed, I genuinely don't think we would have lost the game. That would have given the team a huge confidence boost and could have been the turning point of our season. Last night the performance was excellent and despite losing Murty, which is obviously a huge blow, I think there are many other positives than can be taken from the performance of the team, and indivuduals within it. I'm hoping it will be the kick start that we need to get rid of the points deduction and start dominating games. Only time will tell, I suppose.

He was on Hawksbee & Jacobs on talksport this afternoon; even the 2 Pompey fans in my office who listened were laughing along with his interview. I'm halfway through the book and enjoying it very much; a well written and funny read, and great to read a refreshingly honest account from him rather than the usual gumph from the modern-day footballer.

ebay is your friend. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Corinthian-Football-Figure-Southampton-Matt-Le-Tissier_W0QQitemZ320413251950QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_SportsMemorabilia_Football_Memorabilia_ET?hash=item4a9a1e396e&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

Perhaps a question of semantics, but I can't see how (except in certain extreme cases) where the two are not related. Sure, Notts County and Man City are not expecting to see a return on their investment. However, no-one really knows what Abramovich is going to do when he gets bored at Chelsea, and all of their spending has been tied to interest-free loans from him rather than just a new, obligation-free injection of cash, so they could be aboslutely stuffed if and when he does leave. You only have to look at them down the road to see how reckless spending, originally believed to be tied to just the individual owner, can actually crash the club when said owner gets bored and tries to recoup as much of their investment as they can.

It's all very well throwing money at the situation if the owners are prepared to completely write-off the cash. While it's frustrating to see other newly taken over teams around us achieve the instant success we would like, I'd like to think we'd learnt our lesson of reckless spending and are heading for a more stable financial future. That said, it would be nice to see some more positive signs of a revival on the pitch....

I don't understand why so many people fail to recognise that 19 is just a very poor wind-up merchant. It's so very sad to see him push out, time and again, views that are the complete polar opposite to pretty much everyone else's, just to try and get a rise out of people. I actually feel very sorry for him; it must be a terribly sad life to have to constantly resort to an internet forum to get the attention I can only presume passes him by in the real world. Of course, if everyone would spot this, and perhaps just completely ignore his fabricated nonsense, perhaps he might get tired of his internet persona and bugger off.

Because we seem to have a number of cretins on this message board who clearly know little about the mechanisms involved in turning around a club such as ours on a limited budget. The implication that a loan signing is a bad idea is simply absurd, and planning for 2 or 3 years time is all well and good when you're operating from a stable platform. We clearly are not, and have to turn around our performances and results as quickly as possible, and certainly within the 6 months that this loan spell is suggested for. I don't recall anyone looking back on the loan spells of David Beckham, Jermaine Defoe, John Terry, Michael Carrick as being anything but beneficial for both the players and the clubs involved.

What's going on with our kit in that QF video? Horrible shade of yellow! Thankfully we toned down the colours a bit for the final!

I'm just astounded that so many people think we're going to turn the corner so quickly, just because we've signed three new players. The gap between the Championship and League 1 is nowhere near the gulf between The Premier League and Championship, so we're not instantly going to be better than the others around us, just because we used to be in the league above. And especially so since we've lost a spine of the old team through players like Surman, JPS, McGoldrick (and to a lesser extent BWP and Euell) and with Rasiak and Saga knocking on the door for a move away. We're still only really replacing some of these players, and our team was pretty shocking last year with them in the side, so we've got a fair way to go until we start becoming cometitive again. I think Pardew has made a good start with the new players in. Effectively, aside from Kelvin, I'm sure he would bring in a new player in every position if he could, but finances just won't allow that. So he's filling the team with good, solid, experienced players who'll start to build the spine back up. Add with Hammond now in to bolster the centre midfield, I think (hope) we may see more of Gillett as then there's still an older head in the centre to help out the youngsters. And we know he also wants to sign a good, experienced, no-nonsense centre-half, so we're getting there. I'd already put the first half of this season down to a period of transition, with hopefully the team performing much better by November time for a safe mid-table finish this year, a summer of more good signings and then a proper assault on promotion with a much more confident team, losing the dead wood along the way. It always pains to see poor performances and results, but Pardew is just a good manager, not a miracle worker. Admittedly if things don't improve in the next 6-8 games then there's real cause for concern, but until then i think I'll give the guy a break.

We'll walk this league. And the game has just been described as a local derby on Sky. Yep, only 70 miles apart...

Fair enough, but can you suggest a better alternative method to points deductions? A method that is not just a slap on the wrists but which would actually serve as a dterrent for clubs not to over stretch themselves? I really can't think of any better way. Points deductions are in no way an ideal punishment, as they usually serve to punish a club for a previous regime's financial mismanagement. However, I do think they are the best of a bad bunch of options. Yes, they punish the club rather than the individuals responsible, but they also reward the other clubs who do exist on a more secure financial footing. And they also hopefully serve as a deterrent to perhaps a small number of clubs to resist fans' clamour for instant success and operate within their known budgets.

Terrible design. Umbro really should just pack it in and hand over the reigns fully to Nike.

I completely agree with the senitments of the article, and always have. I maintain that the stance Lowe took with Jones was absolutely the right one throughout that whole sorry episode, and the criticism the club has since received for the so-called treatment of Dave Jones has been extremely unfair. I read the serialisation in the Echo last night and its convinced me not to buy the book, as his slant on the actual turn of events is very disappointing. I think Dave Jones fails to recognise that, as the manager, he was seen as the front man of the football club, and the media spotlight he and the club were put under at that time was such that it just wasn't possible to sweep everything under the carpet and think it would all be ok. Something had to be done, and while I'm not at all a fan of Lowe and everything he's done to contribute to the demise of this club, I actually think he got this one spot on, and actually acted with a fair amount of sympathy for DJ's personal plight, while balancing that with the needs of the football club. It was an impossible situation and there was no resolution which would have suited all parties; but I think the route chosen was in the end the correct one.

No brainer really; if they're still here, get them in the team, as they'll both score goals in this division. Sadly, I think they will both be gone by the start of the Championship season. I guess we just have to hope that Pardew already knows this and has lined up suitable replacements for them.

The Trust has certainly reached the end of its natural life. There can be no doubt about that now. I've never been a fan of their's but can recognise a small number of good things that came of the Trust's formation. But I think what would be sad to see now would be for the Trust to carry on as SISA has done for many years, abusing a previous and no longer held position so that a handful of vocal imbeciles can achieve their ambition to gain media space, supposedly in the name of the fans. I don't know Nick Illingsworth, and so wouldn't want to judge the man on a personal level, but I'd hope that if he really held the club's interests at heart he'd realise this moribund association of his was dead in the water, as was his role as a self-made spokesman of the fans, and see him and the Trust retreat into the background as soon as possible. And stay there.

Good God, sign him up, I didn't realise the Swiss links were so strong. I'm off to sign for Barcelona on the basis that I like paella. Adios.

I'd love to know what the conection is, given that: a) Ivan Campo is Spanish b) Ivan Campo has never played in Switzerland before Maybe he likes Swiss Rolls? Or his favourite TV character is Swiss Toni? Other than that, I'm lost...