Sheaf Saint

Simon Hooper, take a bow.

Absolutely mental that we've had that in our locker this whole time, but Russ obviously wouldn't let them use it because there's too much chance of losing possession from them I suppose.

Well I really enjoyed that second half. A great goal from Archer, some good positive attacking team intent, and generally looked much less apathetic. Awful refereeing, from the ref and linos.

Ref obviously has a bet on Liverpool. That is a fucking shocking decision.

How the fuck is that NOT a foul?

I think his problem is that he's such a big unit, he can't slow down once he's got going, so if the ball is ever so slightly behind him and he's going full tilt, that's going to be the result.

Indeed.

Like the Terminator?

Oof. How did we keep that out?

Archer has had so little of the ball so far, so it's great to see him show what he can do when he does get it where he wants it, even if it came via a deflection.

The obvious lack of fitness is staggering. Simply no excuse for that. Russ clearly not familiar with the old saying "hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard". Going into a season knowing full well we couldn't match most teams for quality - to not at the very least make sure we can match them for fitness and effort is just unforgivable.

Bugger. Lucky deflection and a slip from Macca. Nunez wasn't going to miss that.

Bree looked onside. No VAR though so the lino had to make a call.

Just got this from a Wendy fan friend of mine...

This is what Co-Pilot has spewed out in answer to that question... Point 2 appears to fulfil the possession requirement, but point 3 worries me because we've shown we really don't have the players to play inverted full backs. Or perhaps we do, it's just that Russ didn't actually know how to implement it properly.

You mean assuming, and making sure everyone knows about it like the attention seeker you obviously are. Yes, Weston's post was aimed at you, and for once I'm actually in agreement with him. He's got you pretty well sussed on this.

Considering you are supposed to be 'ignoring' him, you don't half make a big song and dance about it. Nobody quoted him this time. So if you're not taking him off ignore then how the fuck do you know his post was aimed at you?

In previous relegation battles over the years, the minimum expectation put on a new manager coming in mid-season would have been to do whatever it takes to get to 17th place. But that ship left Southampton docks a long time ago, and nobody - not even a Pep or Klopp - could realistically be blamed if they failed to achieve that this season. So what would I/we expect or accept from the new manager? A bit of fight and pride in the shirt, along with some semblance of defensive organisation and tactical flexibility, and some indication that we might actually be competitive in the Championship next season. Is that really too much to ask?

This post takes the biscuit, but don't milk it too much.

This. If they weren't hell-bent on keeping him in post no matter what this season then why on Earth did they wait so long to pull the trigger? That Bournemouth game was an utter shambles, and it was obvious to literally everyone except SR/Rasmus from that point that he was out of his depth. So why did they wait until the situation was unsalvageable before making the change? It beggars belief really.

Not sure Rohl would come, even if we offered him a significant pay rise. His stock is high currently, and the Wendy fans love him. I know money talks and all that, but he would be mad to leave there now while he's still building a good reputation to take a job at a basket case club like ours.

Is this a cryptic clue? Is Dick Dastardly the leading candidate to be our next manager? At least he's well versed in the dark arts and not ashamed to use any available methods to win at all costs.

In a way, our hopeless position may work to our advantage in the immediate future. We're still able to offer a decent wedge to anyone willing to come in, and at least when we inevitably get relegated that person can legitimately claim that the damage was already done and only a miracle would have changed the outcome, meaning their reputation won't be tarnished. It all depends on whether or not they are willing to stick around and build again from the championship next season, because the last thing we need is yet another change of manager in the summer.

Every cloud etc...

ITK credentials confirmed 👍