Whitey Grandad

My missus is not a fan of football but she used to come with us to away games just to see what it was like 'up north'. Now please remember that we were both well into our fifties when the stewards outside Elland Road took away her bottle of water 'in case she threw it at the players' and the police inside the ground were sticking a video camera up our noses and filming us and you can understand why she hates Leeds too. She was so furious that I had to stop her from whacking the copper with her handbag.

And a walk back? Seriously though, what are the buses like at that time of night going to Bradley Stoke?

They were renowned for using all sorts of 'unsporstmanlike' tactics to slow the game down and stop their opponents playing football. It was organised thuggery combined with every trick in the book to waste time and break up play. All in my humble opinion, of course.

That's really annoying. How many police do they need for Paulton Rovers? Do they have a history of crowd trouble?

That's a good point. Not everybody plays with a flat back four.

You might have put one 'u' too many in that.

That's the fantastic thing about the internet. From your computer you can tell what the weather's like right outside your house!

www.raintoday.co.uk A fantastic site with weather radar for the whole uk giving the last 2 hours of rain movements at 15 minute intervals. You can plan your barbecue by it.

I watched Connolly when he came on and the difference was remarkable. He was constantly adjusting his position relative to the centre backs to make sure that he stayed onside. Papa just drifts about hanging somewhere near his defender. He is clearly not aware of how to stay onside or how to time his runs so as to stay onside. I have seen him flagged offside several times and every decision looked correct to me. Let's face it, the fellow on the touchline is in the best position to see and has been practising these sorts of decisions for several years. It's amazing how many times they are analyzed in slow-motion and found to be correct.

I've hugged a few strangers in the past, but thankfully no tongues!

I'm sure it could be trained into him. What really upset me was the moment in the first half when we had a great attack going and he ran 5 yards past their back line and into the penalty area. Mind you, Harding should have seen his position and not tried to cross the ball to him.

Exactly! That's why I ask the question. It's an unexciting draw and I had been hoping for some more interesting lower-league ground but our daughter lives about 3 miles from the Memorial ground so we could make a weekend of it. I presume that it is just a choice between the Saturday and the Sunday? No Friday or Monday nights, for instance? We went there for the previous fiasco so it would be satisfying to get some revenge. Another defeat would be unthinkable .

Go straight to the horses' mouths: http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/lawsofthegame.html There's an interactive guide to the offside law on this page. The interpretation has varied a bit over the last few years with talk of 'daylight' and such but the present wording is: 'Nearer to the opponents' goal line means that any part of the head, body or feet is nearer to the opponents' goal line than both the ball and the second last opponent.' It's also worth remembering that you can download a pdf of the 'Laws of the Game' from this site without having to pay! Every Premiership manager should read them.

I thought he was offside at the time and looked straight away at the assistant so I was not surprised that the 'goal' was not allowed to stand. 'Technically' it was not a goal because the officials did not allow it, but credit to the lad for sticking the ball away. Too many times at the beginning of the season they were alll scared of taking a shot.

Does anybody know when the tv games get chosen?

Two of my neighbours had first scorer and final score so they were rather pleased.

One major concern amongst the people at EBC was that the 'strategic gap' between Eastleigh and Southampton would be filled in once one corner of the motorway junction had been built over. Like the Prof and Wes, I was also close to the discussions at the time.

I read a book once.... ....didn't like it.

Never believe a rumour until it's denied.

In the words of the great Mawhinney, they are 'inextricably linked'

Indeed, professor, we should enjoy the ride whilst we can. One can only hope that an astute businessman such as Herr Liebherr will have ensured the security of his succession but if, God forbid, anything should happen to our club's saviour who knows what might follow? I once met a president of an american company which made tv studio equipment and he said to me "Nobody's indispensable. Kennedy get's shot and we've got a new president in 5 minutes". This same gentleman died a couple of years later of a heart attack but his company continued without him. At my age, succession planning looms larger every year. Carpe diem!

I respect the fellow and his passion for his club, even if it is misguided. The amended vesion of the artwork is a wonderful piece of skill, but do I detect a Pompey badge still 'hanging' round his neck?

That's the beauty of speculation. Nobody can prove that you are wrong

I'm with you on this one. I like real football that I can relate to, with proper football grounds to visit and sensible ticket prices.