spyinthesky

Might wander along but the Saints site doesnt give a KO time which seems to vary between 11.30 and 12.00 Anyone know? Also last time I saw the U 18's they didnt play on the main (old Roadsea) pitch. Is that still the case? Finally will this be a 'bubble' game?!!!!!!

Another supporter of long standing Very difficult to compare different teams All I can say it is an awfully long time since I have enjoyed watching Saints play in such a fluent style and with the expectation of a decent result

During the summer 3 people I know were fleeced by itinerant driveway 'contractors'. Three were older people who were susceptible. The other, I thought was rather more savvy but still got 'done' ie the price initially quoted was per metre and then changed to per foot with the threat of violence against his family if the 'revised' rate wasn't paid. Tonight's news shows the Tomney family, of four, put away for 5 years apiece (2+ years in real money) for making £500k from vulnerable people in and around the Preston area I wonder if dear old Vanessa Redgrave and her 'activist' mates will be in front of the cameras protesting about oppressed minorities ie the old folk who were robbed and threatened? No maybe not!!

David For the record I didn't say Danny Fox was third choice, rather than he was a third left back when signed. At the time the signing surprised me as I thought Harding and Dickson were good enough for the Championship and we could have used the £1.8m to strength upfront or in central defence However Fox has proved to be the No 1 left backand well done to him and the scouting team for this. btw as a supporter of very long standing I am, perhaps, rather 'realistic' in my view of Saints. However I am very pleased to say that my sense of 'realism' has been rather misplaced so far this season, and long may this continue.

For the record, comment on Tommy was laced with irony!!

1. DAVIS 16 Has done very well. One of best keepers in league 2. RICHARDSON 14 Generally good. wonder if he will be good enough if we go up? 3. FOX 15 Wasnt sure about the need to spend £1.8m on a third left back. Now settling in well and first choice 4. MORGAN 15 Good player. Still young and improving, Shame he hasnt a bit more pace and goal scoring ability 5. FONTE 15 Off the pace a little bit recently but still an excellent ball playing defender 6. HOOIVELD 15 Wasn't sure at first but has improved significantly and becoming an integral part of the team 7. LAMBERT 17 Again wasnt sure he would be able to make the step up due to his lack of pace. However he is a class act and links up ever so well. 8. GULY 15 Bit frustrating at times but another player who has stepped up a gear and improving 9. CONNOLLY 14 Probably now second fiddle to Guly but useful to have off the bench. Unlikely to figure much/at all if we go up 10. CORK 16 Would have marked him a bit higher on his early season form. However a slight dip in form recently. Excellent buy though 11. HAMMOND 15 Another player who has surprised me arguably playing better than last year. All action 12. LALLANA 17 Wonderful talent. Only a niggly injury prevents a higher mark 13. De RIDDER 14 Worth a higher mark due to his influence as a sub. Not sure if he is yet the real deal from the off. 14. BUTTERFIELD 14 Very able deputy when he plays 15. HARDING 14 Ditto. Thought he was unlucky to see fox brought in but he doesnt offer quite what Fox does. 16. CHAPLOW 16 What a transformation. From 4th choice midfielder to a regular. Great value for £200k? 17. MARTIN 13 A very able and committed defender. Not sure he is as comfortable on the ball as he needs to be to make to step upwards 18. BART 12 Can only judge on Carling Cup games. Talented but not ready to replace Kelvin yet 19. HOLMES 12 Unfortunately continued injuries will be his down fall. Can't see a long term future for him here which is a shame. 20. DICKSON 12 Thought he looked very promising when he first arrived. Obviously third choice left back. Future in doubt 21. FORTE 9 Two tap ins against MK Dons masked the fact that apart from a bit of pace he offers very little. Can't see any future here 22. BARNARD N/R - A battler (!!) but I have real doubts he can cut the mustard in the Championship. His off the field problems may influence his future 23. JAIDI N/R Knee problems in an ageing player is always a challenge. Will be surprised to see him play again 24. SEABORNE 13 Never been a fan of Danny but, to be fair, he was playing OK when sidelined. Think he will probably struggle to get back in. 25. FORECAST N/R No idea why this supremely talented keeper is plying his trade with Bromley but unlikely to see him again!!!!!

Singing ...'there is only one Stanley Ogden' to Man City fans many years ago

Years ago i used to sit in the East Stand near to a youngish irish guy who used to moan every game about Mick Channon, arguably Saints best ever player

Think most people would agree that we need to strengthen in central defence whether by doing a deal for Hooivet or elsewhere Another big (and/or pacey) forward would be good too.

If he stays ...good If he goes.. so viet

Just reading through and 2 things came to my attention. 1. Last nights crowd was the season's lowest for a League game 2. James Ward-Prowse, in the young player profile, claims to have always supported Saints whereas the Echo did a piece on his family all being Pompey season ticket holders. All incidental, of course, as he is with us now but interesting to know who put the spin on their story.

Good piece about him in the Daily Record Consensus amongst the Celtic fans when he came here on loan was.... 'Good riddance' Now after his sound start here the view is...'How much over the £1.2m transfer cost can Celtic obtain from Southampton if he goes in January'.. He obviously would like to stay here. Question is will Nicola Cortese buy him a ticket for the bus!!

1,300 Pompey fans at Selhurst tonight for a first team fixture compared to the 2,500 away fans at last weeks Carling Cup reserve game

Are you saying that Gladys Knight was the cover or original version?

Have met him a couple of times Rather strange but generally inoffensive First time was outside BBC Leeds when I was a student. A gang of us were looking at his convertible Roller. He was absolutely fine and was happy for us to sit in it provided ...'you don't nick anything!!...

Ironically I was driving west ward along the M27 yesterday. Just before the Rownhams services my youngest boy remarked, without any form of prompting, that he had seen what he thought to be a large black cat prowling around in the nearby fields back in August. I wonder if Dog's original siting was in the same location?

whilst understanding the argument from our northern friends, could there be a compromise ie change by 30mins rather than an hour?

In a time when the majority of people in this country are struggling to see a select few getting massive rises does not help the 'we are in it together' spin The irritating thing for me is that bonuses often get paid to exectives who preside over poor company performance. They will say that pay awards are notthing to do with them ie decided upon by a Renumeration Committee. In reality these Committees include Non Exec Directors who are rely on the goodwill of the Chairman/Chief Exec and it is a cosy little club Bonuses are also generally based on short term performanced and the CEO/FD can generally doctor their company's performance to maximise the bonus structure and then buggar off after a few years when company performance tails off, pocket a sizeable golden goodbye and repeat the trick with some other gullible company. You will hear thesed well paid execs claiming ..'this is an international market and our pay should reflect comparative pay scales elsewhere in the world... A recent Sunday Times report rubbished this stating that very few UK business leaders are head hunted for work abroad Unfortunately I have no idea how to deal with this largesse at the top table but perhaps company shareholders should be more vociferous but again most shares are held by large organsations (pension funds etc) who probably have people on vast salaries running their businesses.

I thought that too It was interesting that none of the Travellers menfolk wanted to be involved as it would affect 'employment opportunities' It would also have been interesting to hear more from the local 'settled' community. There was one brief clip but either the BBC didnt want to progress this line of enquiry or the locals felt too intimidated to go on camera Agree that the guy who's garden backed onto the encampment didnt come over too well. I wonder if there was a bit of selective editing there? Mind you if any of us had to swap places with the guy over a period of 10 years I wonder how we would have coped? Feel rather sorry for the leader of Basildon Council too Local settled community wanting him to uphold planning laws on one side and the activists calling him a 'Nazi' on the other. There are so many unanswered questions in the matter, like the Travellers wanting to 'settle' at Dale Farm but refusing Council accommodation as this would interefere with their rights as 'Travellers' I guess most of us have a degree of sympathy with the Travellers aims in general but this liberal view of life is tainted by the way Travellers behave when they regularly take over various sites during the summer months and behave inappropriately.

I recollect that there was a post a week or so back, when Dan Seaborne became unavailable, that suggested Forte should be given a go at Centre back because of his pace (don't think this was a windup!!)

Excellent turnout

Forte was also poor v Preston. take away his two tap in v MK Dons and down in the Pulis/Forecast mould

Understand your point but it seems to me that Saints fans dislike of Pompey has almost always been reactive, at least in the recollection of current fans. For most of the past 50 years Saints have been the dominent team in the area and at one time Pompey were a bit off the radar and. for some people, had been replaced by Spurs.

Actually what I was trying to say re Spurs was at the time of the Glen Hoddle & Dean Richards incidents a fair amount of Saints fans had more animosity towards Spurs than Pompey, who were not doing very well at the time. During this period all Pompey fans continued to see us as their main rivals whereas a lot of our support were more focussed on Spurs Of course that has all changed now

Southampton is twinned with Le Havre, a city of similar population and boasting a reputation for developing young players. Le Havre currently sit 3rd in the French 2nd Division (Monaco are bottom!!), so they are pushing for promotion like us. However their average gate is 7-8,000 even with lower prices. One of their away games had a crowd of 1,500!! To be fair their current stadium has a capacity of only 18,000 although a brand new one is currently under construction nearby which will house 25,000. Hardly seems worth it but perhaps they are following the Darlington model. Makes you realise how supportive crowds are outside of the top level, particularly at St Marys As posted elsewhere the Championship is the 4th most watched league in Europe