CHAPEL END CHARLIE

My sense of 'whelm' is also at quite a low altitude in all honesty, but the last Nigel we had as manager did all right so lets hope this one does too.

Roberto Portalegre ?

And I can't understand for the life of me how anyone who was actually at St Marys yesterday could possibly hold this opinion. He had a proper 'shocker' against Rochdale in my view - and that I can assure you was not just my opinion but that of all the fans around me in Block 19, and (I strongly suspect) the vast majority of those who were paying attention. Look closer and you could tell it was not just Saints fans who were rapidly losing patience with him - poor Dan Harding was ready to throttle him at one point. The ability to run with the ball at feet is quite useful in a pro footballer, unfortunately, that's about all this player has in his game at the moment.

Indeed , as St Marys is perilously close to being underneath the flightpath to Southampton Airport, having Puncheon shooting at goal does represent a grave danger to low flying aircraft. I expect the Civil Aviation Authority to take this serious health and safety issue up with SFC any day now.

Could not agree more, a young manager with a bright future ahead of him I'd say. Signing a manager like Eddie Howe could be seen as a risk as there's no real way of knowing how he will handle managing better players and coping against better opposition. But his record at AFC Bmth is outstanding, and there's something to be said for having a manager who has never experienced failure yet, or learned to 'play it safe'. I saw him interviewed on BBC South Today this week, and while he didn't confirm any interest from SFC he most certainly was quite careful not to rule out the possibility either. Reading between the lines, I took that to mean we could get him if we really tried hard enough. Risky for sure, but some risks may be worth taking.

Indeed , and the horse he rode in on too.

Would be a truly outstanding choice - if true. O'Neill's mentor the late, great, Brian Clough dropped down the leagues to build a under performing club (Nottingham Forest) into a real force in the game. It might represent an entirely different (and reinvigorating) type of challenge to a manager who has already proved himself in the EPL. Probably too good to be true of course, but there's no harm in dreaming I suppose.

In the immortal words of Sgt Wilson to Captain Mainwaring : Do you think that's wise Sir ?

Then I would say you were wrong. I would also say that you would almost certainly be arguing the exact opposite point of view if we had signed Antonio and someone were to criticize him. Everyone on here knows perfectly well that you always post with an agenda, and that agenda is to support whatever the club happen to decide to do - right or wrong.

Michail Antonio is a contracted Reading player, and if they want to keep him (I can't think why they wouldn't) then that's what's going to happen - at least until his contract expires. I happen to think this lad could go far in the game, and if Reading are asking £1m for him then we should make them a offer in that region - providing we have the budget to do that of course. In the meantime I shall monitor his progress with interest - I expect it to be almost as rapid as he is.

Frankly I would start Dean Martin ahead of Jaidi at the moment - and he's dead .

You may be right , perhaps managers in the modern game do prefer their wide players to cut inside . But as my personal opinion only , I'm not sure that with Ricky Lambert in our team a succession of decent crosses would be that easily defended at all . Lambert is a beast .

Someone said he reminded them of a lower league Fabrice Fernades - no a bad shout that . It is the lot in life of players like Jason Puncheon who will consistently raise fans expectations by beating their man and breaking into the box - only to dash those very same expectations when they can't finish the move off - that they receive perhaps more than their fair share of criticism from frustrated fans . It remains my view that this player is no more or less than a good-to-average wide player at this level . As others have accurately observered Puncheon will tend to cut inside rather than take the ball to the line and cross it - just like Fernandes did . Unfortunately as much of our goal threat depends upon providing Ricky Lambert (surely the target man par excellence) with enough decent crosses this tendency of his (and Lallana for that matter) is a problem for us . Most wide players in the modern game (at all levels) seem to do exactly the same thing - which leads me to believe that crossing the ball from the by-line is a harder skill to master than it would seem to be .

I don't think many will question Jaidi's fine contribution to our defence last season . Unfortunately he picked up a injury at the tail end of that season and to be brutally frank this season he looks like a different player altogether .

My ratings for Saints v Leyton Orient (1-1) : K Davis 6 - His kicking has improved from the Plymouth game somewhat (it could hardly be worse) and only moderately busy here . D Butterfield 7 - I thought he had a good game without being particularly eye catching . Looks very comfortable at this level . J Fonte 7 - Had a real mans job on his hands today up against some very physical 'O's forwards - he coped with them well enough . R Jaidi 4 - Seabourne must be near death if this player is still starting ahead of him . As poor a performance as I've seen from a experienced SFC defender for some time . D Harding 6.5 - Good defending but couldn't get forward very much for lack of left side cover behind (Jaidi) or in front (Lallana) J Puncheon 5 - Is this player really 'all that' ? He has all the ability to beat his man and get into the box for sure - where he then rapidly runs out of talent & ideas . M Schinderlin 5 - A good technical footballer in pretty poor form at the moment . D Hammond 4.5 - As out of sorts as Spiderman but without the same level of ability . A Lallana 7.5 - Talented & athletic , not at is very best today but still class . Not really a wide player . L Barnard 7.5 MOTM - A real grafter and desperately unlucky not to have 2 or 3 goals today . I have no idea why he was subbed . R Lambert 7 - An excellent target man but he had to go back looking for the ball too much here . Substitutes : D Connolly 4 - So anonymous I forgot he was there . A Chamberlain 7 - One really bright spot from a dull game . A promising youngster by the look of it . Summary : After a moving tribute to Markus the team started the game like they really meant business . Our early pressure got its reward when a Lambert free kick was deflected in (off Jaidi ?) and we were deservedly ahead . Unfortunately it didn't last as some sloppy defending let Orient equalize from a corner . After that we kind of lost our way again and although we were the better team I thought , its hard to truthfully claim that Orient weren't fair value for their point . Waking away from SMS the game felt (to me) like a defeat rather than a draw . With so many central players just not performing properly anymore (Schinderlin/Hammond/Jaidi) we just don't have enough to break down teams that come to St Marys to defend - and we can't blame it all on the lack of Lambert and/or Lallana this time . We need to give the manager more quality players to select from, and he needs to get more from what he has - or we could be playing catch-up again all season . One to watch . The young Orient keeper Jamie Jones is as good a shot stopper as I've seen for quite a while - he needs to work on his kicking but he could go far .

"I can confirm to our supporters that ownership of Southampton Football Club shall remain solely within Markus' family's personal interests" - Nicola Cortese . No one with even a ounce of sensitivity would want to bother the Liebherr family at this exceptionally difficult time , but it has to be said that tonight we don't really know which specific member (or members) of the extended Liebherr family actually owns our club . As dedicated supporters of this great club it's surely not out of order for SFC fans to wonder who really is 'at the helm' of their club and to ask what course they intend to steer . In the fullness of time I hope the club come out with a unambiguous official statement clearly detailing what the precise ownership arrangements of Southampton Football Club now are . It remains my opinion that it is important that information of that nature should be a matter of record for all sporting clubs .

This is obviously true , and unless that person(s) desperately want to own a football club we'll probably be for sale again before very long I suppose . Just when you think that the club you love so much is stable with its future looking bright for once an awful human tragedy throws everything right up into the air again . I'm reminded of the old Yiddish proverb that says : "Men make plans - the Gods laugh" I can think of not deeper truth than that tonight .

I suspect that with Radhi Jaidi's mobility seriously in question (well I question it anyway) that Seaborne will before very long become a permanent fixture in the heart of our defence . Let's hope he's up to the challenge .

This must be the first time you and me have ever agreed on anything - a red letter day if ever I saw one . Unfortunately something tells me it may well be the last time as well . But let's enjoy the moment anyway .

That is undoubtedly true .

This really is not the time to be questioning Alan Pardew's future in my view . Everyone on here knows what he has to achieve by next May , so unless and until it looks like we're going to fail again this season we might as well let him get on with it .

The record shows that when someone makes a good point I do take it on board . When you on the other hand tried to defend a blatant attack on freedom of speech for some reason I did "completely disregard" you because you were completely wrong . If you or anybody else want to have a unjustified 'pop' at me then fine go ahead - but understand this - I'm very likely to reflect that exact attitude right back to it's sender .

pot , kettle , black .

It was free , now it costs £5 .

You've really not very bright are you ? There is of course no contradiction at all between defending the concept of freedom of speech and then preferring not to converse with someone you happen to habitually disagree with . Of course the value of your freedom of speech is compromised somewhat as you absolutely have nothing interesting or worthwhile to say in the first place .