shurlock

Just watched the full 90mins highlights and in the cold light of day, thought Guly was neat and tidy. Was a bit more static than usual but hull played the offside trap very well.

Arent the semis in january?

Agree, he probably will - just that lots of these palace prodigies don't exactly kick on.

He'll rot to nothingness in Bolton or Wigan or somewhere.

round of applause thing.

Dont see anything for our own law and order mastermind, supt. burrows.

Old Trafford aint no St Marys.

Why would a fan with a purchasing history on the database (but who doesn't have a ST or hasn't done four aways) be a problem for the OB?

Agree - its ridiculous to write Barney off after a grand total of 39 mins on the pitch (plus injury time); he isn't quick but he's an intelligent player with good close control -and commits defenders. I saw him enough last season, especially away from home where he was often a better target than Lambert to believe he can offer something in NPC.

The thing is that NA was more than happy to play Oxo, Lallana, Lambert, Guly together last season, so I don't think NA is instinctively opposed to playing four attacking players; he just has doubts over SDR's defensive qualities.

Not sure what you mean by your first point- I think we agree insofar as jobs at the lower end that have been outsourced to the private sector see pay fall. Note, I'm simply discussing jobs which are comparable across sectors which are admittedly hard to find but they exist i.e. prison services. Nonetheless, the distinction between higher paying jobs in the public sector at the lower end but higher paying jobs in the private sector the further up you go -once you've controlled for skill levels/job content/responsibility- is well-known. London weighting makes a difference; but it doesn't fully address the distortions caused by national pay systems - see work that suggests death rates from heart attacks are higher in the south because hospitals cant pay nurses more in light of national agreements. Having spent a bit of time in the Treasury, I've been in many a room with union leaders who know what's at stake politically if they lose control of their ability to bargain nationally -and I agree total deregulation would create more problems than it solves; but some loosening is necessary.

Those at the lower end in the public sector get paid more than their private sector counterparts; those at the higher end get paid considerably less than their private sector counterparts. Public sector workers in London and SE get rawer deal than those oop north because of union opposition to regional pay. Services provided by the public sector tend to be higher quality but are more expensive; the same services provided by the private sector tend to be lower quality but cheaper and more efficiently delivered. These are all more or less FACTS.

You would think that precisely because its a massive pain that it would reassure families - after all, the hassle is being justified in the name of safety. I've got even less time for those who say that the bubble is taking all the fun out of a proper away day and strolling around pompey. The skates are the skates. Absolutely no excuses for this one.

Still maintain Schneiderlin for Chaplow was the right call given Brizzle's overloading of the midfield and the timing of the injury- and if anything, our first half chances on Saturday were better than the second half (though neither were great). Yesterday, I agree, was an odd one. As well as driving at defences, SDR closed down well (at least those players in front of him)-and if that's what NA is really worried about, surely that helped his cause.

If he gets the ball square or behind him, its not Richardson's problem, its usually because we're so laboured in the middle of the park and play in front of defences instead of hitting the earlier ball; alternatively, it might be because our front men are not be winning enough flicks on for SDR to run onto or are winning the ball but playing it back into midfield rather than around the corner for runners (an exception was reading away). And arguably both those balls are harder to defend against than the fullback ball down the line. IF Richardson is bombing on (and lets not kid ourselves that he does it all the time, esp away from home), I'm more than happy he hits the byline -rather than SDR- because his delivery is excellent and arguably better than SDR; and dont underestimate the damage that can be caused by stretching defences and then slipping the ball behind and inside. Like you, I think these problems will be ironed out as the team adjusts to playing with pace in the side and learning that some things that might not have worked before will now o.e the early diagonal ball or flicks for runners. But for me that's more to do with how the forwards and midfield sets up than anything.

Thought he looked very rusty last night - but we also were flat after we got the 2nd. Barney had to jump for, and chase alot of nothing balls, so they probably made him look worse. It would be nice to have the luxury of time -and allow him to return to full match fitness; but we dont have it. At most, and assuming DC is still out, he's got only until the window to prove himself.

Disagree - don't know how much you've seen of SDR but he cuts in all the time (both widemen -if you can call them that- are encouraged to do so). Richardson and De Ridder work very well together, giving us options on the line and just inside -and in both cases and more importantly- an energy and willingness to drive at defences. Our problem isn't the incompatibility of Richardson and SDR bur that we don't switch the ball quickly enough from side to another, and it appears we favour the left side (would be good to see the numbers). Remember when De Ridder started against Watford, he was virtually isolated on the right for large parts of the first half. Its also no coincidence that Schneiderlin wasn't starting that day and is the one player in the team who can move the ball first time and hit decent cross-field passes. Morgan is critical to getting the best out of SDR's game. Everybody was surprised that Morgan, Cork and Hammond started last night; but bringing Schneiderlin on for Chaplow after only 10 mins at Brizzle was still probably the right thing to do, even after taking into account the wonders of hindsight.

The Hull wall wasn't 10 yards either - looked like 6 or 7.

Good, satisfying 3 points. When the dust has settled, the record books will show we beat a resolute side on a cold November evening and kept the meter ticking over. Just a few thoughts: Surprised NA started with Morgan, Cork and Hammond, with Morgan playing right wing at times. The game was set up for SDR to start, and with three CMS square pegs in round holes, you do wonder what SDR has to do to convince NA. Still I thought his introduction made the world of difference, especially with FR in close support on the right. What was particularly impressive about SDR's performance was his willingness to close players down - maybe that's the last piece of evidence he needs to convince NA of a start. Arguably, with a central midfield of Morgan and Hammond which is more defensive-minded than Cork + midfield, we have greater protection and room for relative luxuries such as SDR and Lallana. Didn't think we played too badly first half - we enjoyed some good possession and worked some decent openings but weren't clinical enough in the final third. Guly and Lallana were both guilty of dwelling on the ball for too long; Rickie had and seems to have an aversion to shooting from open play; and too many crosses were underhit. Second half, we came out like an express train - and deservedly took the lead. After that, Hull came back into it; but they never really threatened. Rickie's substitution gave Barney a run-out, though he didn't add much - was brushed off the ball too easily and seemed a bit headless - wonder how close he is to full match fitness. Thought Jos and Fonte were excellent tonight. Morgan was a candidate for MOTM as he was central to us playing at a higher tempo in the 2nd half. But my MOTM goes to Frazer. His no-nonsense, selfless character and his ability to get up and down the pitch, a proper dynamo, is making him a cult hero for me. IMO, he's represents everything that is good about this southampton side.

English is ambiguous but I suspect what he wants to say is that he'll get the 22.35 from Waterloo which arrives in Soton at around 23.45. Should just about be able to catch all the game at the emirates that way. Words in somebody else's mouth. Never.

What happens if you pi $$ all over the wall?

Utter boll*cks- countries have managed to prosper with far larger public sector/welfare states (i.e. the Scandies). Depends on citizens preferences to taxation = in this country, the preference is for lower taxes and lower public spending, so there is a limit on how big the public sector can become. The idea that the public sector doesn't 'produce' is also boll*cks -if services like health and education weren't being delivered publicly, the private sector would be delivering them. They're not deadweights. The more important question is which sector -public or private- has a comparative advantage in which activities. Having worked in both public and private sectors, the answer isn't clear-cut. There are some things I would never trust the public sector to do; just as I could never imagine the private sector doing other things.

Think you're being harsh on him - if Charlton go up, guarantee he'll get goals in the NPC. The number of leading scorers in L1 who go on and enjoy success in the NPC is actually pretty high.

No excuse in this case: a simple read of the situation would have made it clear that there was little or no risk to confronting her. That white girl playing her phone looked like a polak to me, so I can just about understand why an immigrant would not want to get involved.

What? Nigg£ragua doesn't exist