CanadaSaint

I'm inclined to agree with you, but what exactly is he trying to do, Duncan? The longer it goes on with these snipes, the more it fuels the allegation that there is a group out there trying to do something.

Why has this important thread turned into yet another personal p*ssing contest?

Um, to me the only entity capable of making that peace is the fan base, because the protagonists each seem to have their own media outlets. Several of those outlets, sadly, seem to have deserted the middle ground, so they have no part to play in the peace-making. God knows (!) there isn't really one credible voice of the fans, so we'd have to try another way to get our point across that we see this as a very big, very sad negative in a sea of positives. I hasten to point out that I'm not talking about a protest (that's the last thing we need) but some direct fans-to-protagonists communication. Perhaps it's a poll that we could run on here with the results being forwarded to the club. I don't know. Any ideas?

True, but the absolute, crucial, unarguable first step is for the trio to STFU because it's becoming much more than a "spat" and good things are falling victim to it. Cortese is not the one doing the personalized sniping. Although his reaction to it is frustrating and even disappointing, it's also understandable. I don't think he's a man that deals in many compromises, and the sooner people accept that, the better.

hypo, if you have to misrepresent what people are saying in order to make your point, perhaps you don't really have one. Very few people "think Cortese can do no wrong" or that "the onus is entirely on those frozen out of the club to offer an olive branch". But a lot of people seem to think that shutting the frick up instead of sniping from the bushes would be a good start if they truly want this thing resolved. If you count that first step as an "olive branch", I guess I'll have to plead guilty.

So do I but respect is a two-way street. Cortese is a proud, principled and occasionally arrogant man. You cross him at your peril, and any changes in his tactics will occur on his timeline, not yours. It could well be that Cortese was "ready to bury the hatchet", with Le Tiss at least, but these continual snipes from the trio make that ever more unlikely. Until they STFU things won't improve and will probably deteriorate further. Very sad.

You would hope that the people at the Mail would look at the Telegraph article and feel embarrassed at what they printed, but the Mail has proven again and again that it's beyond embarrassment. I agree with .comsaint that they do seem to have an anti-Cortese agenda - fuelled, presumably, by their "contacts", but surely even they should now start wondering about those contacts.

Well, that put the lie to a lot of the crap that's been posted on here. to wit: 1. The (Liebherr) family isn't interested and "wants out" 2. We don't have any money behind us 3. Cortese and the family are in "take the profit and run" mode 4. All that stuff about developing the Academy was just puffery. 5. We'll do what we always do - sell our best players as soon as a good offer comes in. The truth is that the five year plan is a document he takes as seriously as anything in his day to day life, and he's now thinking we could even get there ahead of schedule. He's not going to pay "over the odds" for players. He fully expects - demands - that his relationship with his manager is based on mutual trust. When he said he wouldn't sell his best players, he meant it. We don't have a Premiership squad, although we certainly have a few pieces. We don't have a "big name" Premiership manager but the one we do have has the capability of being one of the best. But we damn well DO have a Premiership ground, a Premiership fan base, and an above-Premiership player development operation. And we sure as hell have an above-premiership chairman/chief exec. I feel better about our future than I've felt in decades.

Dave, I fully respect all of that, and to have both of you "of the same mind" is very compelling. Not least, you're better placed to see than I am but I've seen quite a lot of both of them - including the U-21 World Cup out here, when Bart played for Poland. I don't disagree at all with your assessment of Davis but I'm a long way from being convinced by Bart. As much as Davis is indecisive, Bart can be decisive but wrong, and I have huge reservations about his psyche. They're both weak on crosses but I've yet to hear from anyone about which modern 'keepers are consistently strong in that area. I have too much respect for your and John's opinions to keep bleating on about this and I'm not going to post on this topic again, but I fear the consequences of putting the relatively inexperienced Bart into the teeth of a promotion push - all the more so because we have a nasty tendency to ball-watch at the back. That's why I hold the "better the devil you know" viewpoint. One thing that we don't disagree on (I think) is that this is only going to be solved with the cheque book.

One of the people whose opinion I value most on here is very critical of Davis and all for giving Bart a chance. Normally I agree completely with what he posts, but not this time. Even though I have serious concerns about KD. If we're going to remove a very experienced 'keeper who has served us well, and the club captain to boot, we'd better be pretty damn sure that it will result in an improvement. Too many people are saying that we should give Bart a chance more in hope than justifiable expectation. We can't afford that gamble. Even after all the time he's spent with us he's still quite inexperienced because we haven't played him much, and it shows. There's a nervousness to his game and I still think he has a fragile psyche which could result not just in errors but in error chains. And I'm still waiting for someone - anyone - to name some keepers who "dominate the box" by coming for crosses on a consistent basis. Very few 'keepers do any more, thanks largely to the livelier ball. Bart certainly doesn't. For the rest of this season, at least, I'd prefer to stay with the devil we know, and I'd bet that our defence feels that way, too.

I wasn't asking you to take a week over it - just to answer the very valid question that beatle raised. If you can find the time to post a whole paragraph of utter crap, surely you can find the time to post a line of explanation. Or even to admit that you were talking out of an incorrect part of your anatomy. Or even to say that you posted when you were still p*ssed off at the Newcastle comeback.

I think there should be an apostrophe after "Saints" - as in "Saints' first team players." What say you?

It's the standard response for many on this site. I think it's the standard response if people post stuff or the media print articles without backing it up with some substance. I'd venture to suggest that less than 10% of the rumours we've read on here have proven to be true, so the cynicism is understandable isn't it?

That's a very good question, especially as Peterborough are know to be pacey up front with a lot of positional interchanging. Hardly Jaidi's cup of tea, is it? Unless I'm completely missing something, which is distinctly possible from this far away, the guy I'd be sitting on the bench - as part of his development - is Martin. Gradually increased exposure, especially in situations like today, would tell us whether he's "the real deal". West Ham seem to think so.

You're with the otter again, aren't you?

I thought we had one based on his early performances, and so - apparently - did West Ham. Does anybody have any idea why Martin appears to have been left out in the cold?

Ignoring all your other incredible over the top and ridiculous ramblings just for a moment could you please expalin to me how Jaidi would have possibly coped with the pace their forward line had ? Come on just for once have the decency to reply and answer a serious question !! So "Charlie Wayman", are you going to respond to that question or did beatle call it correctly - that you post this sh*t and don't have the brains or the balls to back it up?

Every sport has its ethics and one of football's, as I understood it, is that a manager doesn't talk to opposing players during the game. If it had been Roy Keane on the line instead of Nigel that could have got ugly.

Exactly. If Seaborne was badly exposed, which he was, I think Jaidi would have been humiliated.

That was the thought that kept striking me - again and again. Just take out Barney and put CMS in and they would be bedlam.

You have a greater propensity to talk out of your arse - overstatement gone mad - than pretty much anybody else on this forum, and that's really saying something.

I have confidence in our ability to score goals, and I think we'll get better at it in the last half or so of the season. But I know one thing: if we keep ball-watching at the back we're going to see more games like that. The only thing that can bail us out of those problems are a decisive, dominant 'keeper or Adkins going "hair dryer". Over to you, Nigel.

What an unpleasant post.

Like this?

Harding's one tackle away from red.