spyinthesky

Wade I worked in the Docks in the 80's. The men had a decent job, good pay with plenty of time off due to overmanning but still they had disputes about the most obscure reasons. They even had internal disputes with people within their own union (eg if a lorry driver did not carry a union card he might not get unloaded) The NDLB Scheme was the prime reason for this which basically provided a Docker with a job for life. It was probably easier to sack a High Court Judge than a Docker The NDLB scheme ports were very ineffective in comparison to Continental or non Scheme ports. The men were v poorly led by their Union (TGWU) and, if the union had been more realistic it would be highly unlikely that Thatcher would have sought to repeal the NDLB act. As it was the NDLB was disbanded, many Dockers lost their job and the ports became far more competitive with productivity per man increasing by 300% on the first year the NDLB was disbanded. Individually the men were good people and great fun but collectively they were a pain in the arse

Proper nawty but spot on Shouldnt the sponsors be Gob s*hite

Andy Thanks Forgot Mellis. Wonder if his loan arrangement guarantees him a starting place?

Andy, Thanks Forgot Mellis. Wonder if his loan arrangement guarantees him a starting place?

B*ggar!!

One last try. Preview post looks fine so fingers crossed

Sorry original did not come out as originally set out. Hope this amendment will make more sense

With new signings hopefully available and all squad fit, whaddya reckon will be AP's favoured line up: First Choice? Cover? 1.Davis Bart .......................................................................... 2.Murty Thomas/James 5.Trottman Thomas 6. Jiadi Perry 3.Harding Mills Molyneaux ......................................................................... 7. Papa Wotsit McGlaggan Thomson 4.Hammond Wotton Gillett 10.Schneiderlin James 11.Mills Holmes Gobern ......................................................................... 8. Lallana Saga 9. Lambert Patterson Bit of a controversial pick playing Lallana off Lambert but depends on where Papa Wotsisname is likely to play Of course we still have the multi talented Anthony Pulis to fit in somewhere Hopefully squad will be strong enough to move us up the League

Suppose CH will be on soon comparing the Gobsh*tes massive foray into the transfer market compared to our, more restrained, action.

Out of interest are any of the following 'names' still seen regularly at St Marys since the regime change 1. Leon Crouch 2. Lawrie Mcmenemy 3. Mary Corbett 4. Guy Askham 5.Mike Richards 6 Perry McMillan 7. Richard Chorley 8. ? Strode- Gibbons 9. ? Salz 10. Mike Osman 11. Stuart Dennis 12. Jimmy Case 13. David Armstrong Presume Messrs Lowe/Cowen/Wilde have lost any interest in the game Is the previous Finance Director (cant remember his name, still in post?) Also does anyone have an idea of how many Boxes have been sold this season?

Hope whoever comes in today has the same impact as the 3 brought in by Ted Bates in a week (no transfer deadlines then) early part of 62/3 season. Saints were bottom of Div 2 (now championship) and brought in Stuart Williams (a cultured ex Welsh International right back - still lives locally), Dave Burnside (a ball playing inside left) and George Kirby (the dirtiest Centre Forward you ever did see but a gent off the field) These signings transformed our season and we got with a whisker of Wembley, only narrowly being beaten by Man utd in the FA Cup SF great memories for all us oldies

Replaces another ex Saints GK

True but there must be boundaries and these days those boundaries are blurred. I believe most kids thrive on a sense of discipline but more kids than ever consider breaking the rules as a badge of honour and our society is too weak to reign them in. I am proud of my country but despair at the behaviour of our young people (and also some grown ups) when abroad. Even the Americans (from whom we seem to have learnt some bad ways) appear to bring up their kids to behave reasonably well. Quite noisy but far less drunkeness and profanities. Same elsewhere in Europe by and large. Collectively we must be failing somewhere

ESB Agree with your viewpoint. Problem is nowadays kids are encouraged to grow up so early and they have higher expectations and 'rights' than in the past. Also, like you and many others, my wife and I have tried to spend time with our kids and teach them right from wrong. However parenting is not easy and there may be benefit in parenting classes, from an early age. Unfortunately the number of kids who are brought up without love or a sense of direction seems to be growing and we all suffer. Going back to the main topic, I used to get the occasional wack from my Dad and had the cane at school. A couple of times I felt a bit agrieved but mostly I had to accept it was my own fault and I had crossed pre set boundaries

Ohara and Boateng in from Spuds (useful signings)

To be fair Picquonne seems to be a useful acquisition Williamson came out of thin air. He looked like Bambi on ice when here and don't remember him featuring here for Watford. However Matt Mills went to Donnie Rovers on a free from Man City & couldnt make their starting line up but has been transferred for a miilion + so assume both have improved. Have a nasty feeling the Gobsh*ites will sign enough players to stay up but all dependent if the fake Sheik is kosher

Did I mishear it then Thought South Today said the fake Sheik had been PAID £4m to take over the Gob****es

Nick Anything you dig up is considered Treasure Trove and must be reported to the authorities who will sell on your behalf and return a small commission. However if you send me £47.50, paid into my Lagos account, I will not alert the authorities and therefore save you from instant arrest and incarceration in the Tower.

RPB Did you take GCSE in 1963 or 'O' Levels? I sat latter. All exams in those days, no course work, and a pass was 40% with an 'A' Grade 80% (I think) Was also distracted by the cold weather and Saints Cup Run (went to every game) and only achieved 5 'O's which scraped me into the 6th Form of my Grammar School. Worked a bit harder for 'A' Levels and achieved 3 but not outstanding grades. Have to say schools offer much more of choice nowadays and facilities are great compared to the very basic arrangements we had to put up with then. Discipline was much stricter and we had to wear uniform (incl caps!!) right up to the Upper 6th (I was 18 then!!!) Education is different now (and dare I say better) but think the marking criteria is more relaxed to maximise pass rates which then dilute their meaning

Scud Thanks for the response. Do we know any details of our loans or are they all different?

Jon A bit slow I'm afraid. Give us a clue (or two)

Anyone ITK able to explain how these work. Am I right to assume the club receiving the loan player will pay all (or in some cases part) of the players weekly wage and possibly bonuses plus a fee to the players club plus a possible agents fee? Iguess there is no hard and fast rule as circumstances will determine actual arrangements, just wanted to establish the fundamentals. Most people I have spoken to assume loans (and free transfers) incur little cost when this is unlikely to be the case

Anyone think the good Doctor may be a foreign relative of John Westwood? They both appear to share the same dress sense

Wasnt new player recruitment left to Rupert and Kim Van Der Waals?

Even Port Vale had a bigger attendance last night than down the road