saint1977

Exactly, thought they were very poor actually and I can't remember Kelvin having to make a save. Only scored their goal by blatant cheating although superb execution by Puncheon who I thought looked quality and one we should try to sign. Sums them up as a club, I've liked a lot of the clubs this season but their fans were plastic toss today as well. Saints were unfortunate not to have won 5 or 6-1 today to be honest. Two of our goals were well-worked pieces of football and the third was clever from Connolly but garbage from their full-back who Antonio roasted and tortured. Add this to us hitting the bar, goal disallowed and several desperate scrambles in their box. If we are really on form by the time we go to their place, they should be very worried.

Great display and result. Momentum building now and we are hitting our straps. Connolly will give Lambert an outlet and Saga needs to raise his game to get into the first XI.

Bolton away in Carling Cup 2003/4 I seem to recall. Come on Saints.

Birmingham won this years ago and it kick started a revival in their long-term fortunes. Can't see any of our players wearing a "sh!t on the Pompey" t-shirt when they score though like Paul Tait did!

I have one and happy to pass it on but haven't renewed on here yet due to changing jobs and Paypal messing up so I can't pm my details. Should be able to renew over the next few days so keep a note of my username if someone hasn't sent you one by then and drop me a pm.

Pardew needs 3 points on Saturday and a convincing win or time for an urgent change. 1 win in 10 is pathetic even in the circumstances. We are going to League 2 if we don't bring in some decent loan players and some leaders. I was at Carlisle on Saturday and whilst we played decent stuff at times, something is not right within the chemistry of the squad. Every game is now a Cup Final.

Sounded good and pleased that Pardew and Cortese can see what we can after years of the board and various managers having their head in the sand. Roll on Carlisle where we can hopefully get into positive points and we are staying with Carlisle-supporting friends in Chorley and travelling up to Cumbria on Saturday so 3 points washed down with some Moorhouses's Black Cat and Witches' Pendle Brew will do nicely.

I'm meeting a Carlisle-supporting friend up there and like me, he is keen real ale fan. Will post any info that he passes on beforehand.

Thought we played some reasonable stuff at times today but lucky with the penalties. Back 4 and Kelvin were not over-worked but did what they needed to very well, impressed too with Hammond and Morgan who kept the ball well and distributed simply. However, we looked ponderous and narrow at times with a painful lack of width although we did get to the byeline more than some games this season. Useful cameo from Papa but we really need to bring in a couple of pacy loans still. We lost focus in the last 15 minutes of the first half and Leeds/Charlton/MK would have scored at least a couple of goals as Saints downed tools. We really have to get rid of that lazy, backward culture but the second half intensity was much better and we kept pressing right to the end which was an improvement. Overall we are getting better and look solid at the back but we cannot have Papa as the only pace outlet so there should be a couple more loans to give us that extra urgency to stretch teams. Didn't think Lallana was that bad today actually but I agree that Mills needs to take over set piece duty. I have my Carlisle tickets so looking forward to that.

LM was a fantastic manager for us and the only one ever to win anything. Never met him as a man so couldn't comment there. Solent have gambled here - it could work well if they can pick up a lot of consultancy from CCC clubs and lower-end PL. Developing Foundation Degrees, particularly if they are FA accredited, might be an option to blow the smaller Universities that offer Sports Science in the region out of the water. The research funding pool for Sports Science is quite heavily fished in though. Might be scope to work with Saints though at Staplewood in bite-sized projects. I think its appeal might be mostly local or regional at present but I wish the Centre and Solent well. I've criticised Solent on here in the past but they are heading in a better direction these days.

I went yesterday and I can only assume Rashid is not playing because either they don't want Aussies to see much of him before next year's Ashes. If that isn't the case, I can only assume Miller is playing County politics again. It is the reason why Collingwood and Bopara play. Why Shah plays, no-one knows. I watched Napier troubling Tresco and Langer with 90mph short balls and yorkers the other night - and he can bat although not such a great season with the bat. Still, worth picking for the bowling. What has Trott done wrong - clearly not a brownoser, that's how you get on at the ECB. Joyce did well in Aus yet a couple of low scores in the WC and he's out yet great Sussex season and a million times better on his worst day than Shah or Ravi are on their best ones. Prior should be on probation in the ODIs with Keiswetter qualifying and Davies's move to Surrey. Saw Shazhad for Yorks tonight - very good young quick and accurate, destroyed Hants at Basingstoke in tandem with Rashid. Two good British Asians to represent Yorks and England for the next few years.

Forget about Charlton - 3-0 defeat and that Charlton team would do well in CCC but a chance for Papa and Jaidi to bed in and I think we will beat Yeovil and Carlisle and that will get us going on a run.

Geoff Miller has to go before he creates another 5-0 Down Under next winter - I can already see the foot coming off the pedal. We've won the Ashes in spite of his daft and maverick selections, based on many years of indulging in County politics and driven by facial fit over talent and form. Well, this has left the England ODI side with only Strauss, Jimmy and Rashid good enough to be there (KP obviously is when fit, as would Freddie be assuming he recovers). Bopara and Collingwood wouldn't even get in the Essex and Durham sides at present and no wonder Middlesex are having one of their worst ever seasons with Shah to run everyone out. Prior is at best a number 7 batter and in a ODI side, it ought to be 8, whoever is behind promoting him to 3 should be banned from cricket for life. Cork found him out in the FP final as well. Swann is OK but keeping Rashid's seat warm. Leaves a lot of pressure on Wright - who bowled well last night - and he won't score a six-filled 90 or 100 every time. The bowling last night was alright but the batting was pathetic. If the England ODI side played in the Pro-40 competition, they wouldn't win many games and would probably finish bottom of Div 2. Doesn't that tell Miller and chums that just maybe their selections are just plain wrong? Hampshire would beat them comfortably.

Yes please to the Leicester deal - a 30 year old player (a good one though) who wants away in return for a winger that tore up L1 last season and an exciting young striker.

I find it hard to blame Pardew. He's lost McGoldrick - lazy but would have scored goals in L1, Surman who would have offered some offensive help to Lambert and Rasiak. He's been left with garbage like James, Thomson and W@nkershire (all 3 in my worst ever XI and James has even dislodged Steve Baker at RB), the three academy players that can play any football have either been injured (Mills - very untimely but will excel once fully match-fit and Mclaggon who at least has pace) or lost form (Lallana). The buys he has made - Harding, Trotman, Lambert - have done well and Hammond will improve IMO with some urgency and leadership added from Waigo and Jaidi. If we don't win soon then fair enough but even Wenger or Fergie couldn't have got this mess off to a flyer. By the end of January, you'll see the back of last season's academy dross and more of Pardew's players. I am concerned at how adrift we are getting but with 40 games to go, wins could be accrued quickly.

I don't rate Thomson at all but him and Mills were about the extent of Pardew's wide options on Saturday after the WP hold-up. If we did try to sign Craddock from Luton and may go for a loan, why don't we throw in some of our academy rejects like Thomson, James and Lancashire in as loans to become frees in January as well? They are clearly not L1 standard but might do well for Luton in the BSP and after all, Pardew says we need to trim the number of youngsters. Mills is an excellent prospect and shouldn't be mentioned in the same bracket as the above poor players. We need a loan RB and RM, both with pace IMO. Mellis hasn't impressed me yet but it must be hard to join a side in such violent transition and that goes for Lambert and Hammond as well. Best is yet to come from them. Jaidi and Waigo should wake things up a bit.

Bournemouth would be my first choice and hopefully stuff them, Aldershot would be a close second.

Sickener - Gradel would have ensured we won some games as he is seriously quick and had League 1 defences in all sorts of trouble last year. He was superb for Bournemouth on loan as well. Hope Pardew can bring in 4 or 5 really good fringe PL or CCC loans by the time the loan window opens next Monday to give us a chance of staying up this season.

I agree and I am very concerned even if we've got the Boro lad on loan as indicated by some posters on here. I really think this current squad of players will finish in the bottom 4 even without the -10. In the games I've been to, we've been far too narrow and lacking any pace, guile and at set pieces at both ends, height. Lambert could be handy but not if starve him of any service. I'm just glad for Davis and Harding otherwise we wouldn't have any points at all.

Let's hope that Saints have signed three or four late deals and they haven't been announced. If not, Saints look relegated again I'm afraid and another season is written off. We have no pace, no RB, no width and one striker in Lambert that we lump it up to (expecting Saga to be loaned out as doesn't want to stay it seems). I mean FFS, we couldn't even score from open play Vs Stockport who are one of this division's weakest teams. More loans in the shape of average, bland youngsters like Mellis won't help us finish 5th from bottom, which I'd rip someone's hand off for right now in May.

Any more news on this? He would be a great signing, even just as a loan as we badly need pace in the side and this lad has plenty of it. I can see the logic in him being tied into a deal for Rasiak if he went to Leicester but Pearson seems to rate Gradel highly. Even if it isn't Gradel, we need a similar type of player to increase width and stretch defences to allow midfielders the space to support Lambert and A.N.Other.

Even in League 1. I remember watching him at Everton almost 10 years to the day as he ripped us apart in a 4-1 defeat at Goodison and he is still only 29 but has done nothing for many years except draw a wage. I know a couple of Sheff Wed fans and he is regarded as being an injury prone waste of space and Saints have had enough of those in the last 3 years already.

What an effing hilarious thread! Mods, surely this has to be saved as Golden Thread? I'm just about to play 18 holes at Worthing, so cheers for the tips folks. I thought the previous thread on alleged trouble (I walked back towards the Itchen Bridge on Saturday as I park in Woolston so didn't see anything) turning into a party political debate was hilarious enough but this is Champions League stuff!

Well, it was a 5.5/10 performance from a 2/10 at Swindon. Still won't keep us up though. AP is buying well which gives me hope - Harding, Trotman were 8/10 for me and Hammond was nice and tidy and we missed Murty, James and Thomson were so bad it was untrue. AP now needs to locate two wingers with pace and a striker with pace asap and we might turn the corner. Get the academy lads out on loan and that includes Lallana and replace them with adults.

Not surprising though, they are proper professional footballers and it gives me encouragement that Pardew can spot a player. The academy players are getting found out for what they are - Lallana, James, Thomson and Patterson. I'd loan them to BSP clubs and make them realise how pampered they have been. They are a hangover from a bad time in our history and need to starting proving their worth. In the meantime, let's replace the weak little kiddies with some more grown-up professional footballers that try 100% and track-back in the Harding and Trotman mould. Players that can improve from a mistake or setback - Trotman was released at 18 but looked how he has responded positively since.