Saint Fan CaM

Get behind the plank FFS! (Thought ya'll might appreciate a blast from the past there).

Don't need supposed supporters booing their own team - it detracts from my enjoyment of the game and it's counter-productive in terms of success. So if you want to boo go watch Pimpley - you'll be acting more like a proper Saints supporter by doing so.

Great post. And Art's too.

This.

The Northam and Kingsland/Itchen North were FAR better at singing tonight than on Saturday. At least in the 2nd half anyway and it made a lot of difference. Idiots booing at half-time - I ******* hate them with a vengeance.

And Plank of the year award goes to....

Why make any kind of differentiation between English football and Swiss merchant banking? Frankly I see that as an extremely derogatory remark - NC has clearly got the credentials to be a great BUSINESS leader. And that is what he is here for because without this we will not survive and indeed improve longer term. Has anyone considered that NC is in fact shaping the club for the future - to change the status quo of the old guard in English football? Because it needs a massive shake up - the old dogs with their old ways are failing to live up to the realities of the game now. It's time for a new approach and when eventually Saints make it back to the Prem all the building blocks will be in place and someone will have to sit-up and take notice of "the Saints way".

There's some ******* hypocrites on here alright. Bang on about how much it costs getting into a game, but then stand-up for the likes of Murdoch and Sky - the very organisation that has ruined English football by maintaining stupid player salaries. Personally I couldn't give a stuff about a 'news' paper that dishes up Correy stories as if they're real life and an organisation that props up the disgrace that is the English football Premiership.

This seems appropriate.

OK - fair point Minty. As I said, I don't disagree with the sentiment - I'm just one of those I guess who cares much more about what's happening on the pitch after suffering from the 10 year overdose of Lowe-inspired non-football b*ll*x. And I think the club have improved that side of things.

I would suggest that the issue with your guts was self-inflicted. Or perhaps it was the terrible support from the Northam that made you feel that way - the atmosphere in the ground was muted and for me one issue with this club is there are too many fickle fans who expected success on a plate. Typified by the idiot booing mob.

Come Alpine, surely even you don't believe that after one game AP's position should be doubted? So if we've won 6, drawn 1 and lost 3 after 10 games - you would sack AP would you? Even though that is significantly better than last seasons results at the same time and based on last season would see us go up as Champions? If you think that's the right approach based on your dogmatic position r.e. AP then I can understand why you get pulled over the coals on here TBH.

So just who makes the decision about when it's suitable to provide an explanation? You? Me? Or perhaps the CEO of SFC? For the answer, see below.... I can understand your concern and of course like you I may wish for explanations for certain decisions. However, that does not mean that we're entitled to get everything we want. To think that way is somewhat immature I would argue. What we have got in place of Lowe and then administration is a regime that have saved the club AND invested heavily in the club's infrastructure for the future, including replacing a squad going nowhere with a decent side (I could go on about the detail but it's all been said before). In the days of Lowe, we all complained about how he dominated communications - now the news from the club is dominated by the football side of things and that's surely a good thing?

Fantastic, but what does this have to do with Saints?

You seem quite eloquent in expressing your concerns Minty, so have you tried approaching the club directly with them? Who knows, with the right approach you might find that NC or perhaps Jordan Sibley can provide you with some assurance(s)? To be honest, I feel that the club is not providing less information but doing it in a different way. I think in close season for SaintsTV subscribers certainly there was more information than previous seasons about what was going on in Switzerland for example. I also feel that we FEEL less informed because the strategy for communication has changed dramatically to ensure the correct information is put out into the outside world in general. There is no speculation - just fact - and that doesn't sit easy with a very small minority of supporters who want to know if club cat is planning to sneeze.

Well I thought we looked OK, but for a sloppy period just after half-time - our improved defence switched off totally. Kelvin's distribution was awful and we played too much hoofball when we had two smallish strikers to aim at. Hammand and Schniederlin were not attacking central midfield areas enough. Overall the team didn't close down Plymouth quickly enough. Dickson is too slow to be a winger IMO, but he did an OK job. In terms of subs, I would have brought Lallana and Holmes on with 20 minutes to go and taken Harding and Connolly off. Put Dickson to LB, Holmes at LW and Lallana in the hole behind Barnie (because Lallana had the pace and skill to drill through the defensive wall). In terms of tactics, we always seem to try to pass sideways to the wings and then try to pass through the eye of a needle down the wing or hoof it forward. We never seem to move down the field as a unit, which is why we rely so heavily on Lambert to be strong enough to hold the ball up. Looking forward to see how AP shakes things up this coming week.

Oh dear - one game in and the doom-mongers are predicting the end. Let's just wait until 10 games in and reflect on where the season might take us at that time eh? Comment on the way the game went for sure, but to start to question AP's position is extremely premature IMO.

I feel sure there are sound reasons for the strategy regarding the press. It's a storm in a teacup and anyway, when the time is right and the 'ban' is lifted, they'll all be falling over each other to get a slice of the club's success.

Incredible - don't understand how idiots that boo can call themselves supporters. They're certainly not that - bleating girls would be more appropriate. We lost our 1st game of the season by 1 goal against a promotion rival - so what? It was an entertaining game. And while I'm in slating mode, the Northam should be ashamed - what a pathetic lack of noise generated from our 'kop'! Outsung by a bunch of rosy cheeked pastie munchers in green FFS. I challenge anyone to remember how many times OWTS song was sung...and as for the last 30 minutes of the game, where was the rousing continual chant that the team needed to spur them on? We were only one goal behind. I admit I sit in the Kingsland and so to fair you could say I have no right complaining, but those of us who like to sing rely on the Northam to start the songs off - it's the only way the stadium is going to get noisy because the lead will not come from anywhere else in the ground (now the Itchen North contingent seems to have been reduced). So come on those who sit in the Northam - you need to up your game on the singing front. You lead the rest of us will follow. (:

Great news. First of a couple of signings?

Yes, it would be great to get Antonio back - he had something about him and he gained much by being here. However, I am afraid to say I don't believe the rumour because it is exactly that - a rumour - and nowadays rumours tend not to be true. I know nothing about the other boy - Phillips. Still concerned we don't have a player to challenge Spiderman and Hammond.

Right here, right now, I wouldn't swap Pards for ANY other manager - even one out the Prem. He is the right manager for this club because he's getting results, he's building his team and providing crucial managerial consistency which is supremely important at whatever level you're playing at. If we're to get out of this league, he's the man to do it - I just hope that he is getting the right level of support to sign another decent CM otherwise our hopes might be very easily dashed.

Yes, I too think that NC is determined to keep reign on the finances and that some of the players discussed have not fitted in with those arrangements. We cannot complain about this - the whole game needs to be better regulated in terms of salaries, so NC is doing a good job to keep a lid on it. It's a concern for the season ahead, however I still think we've got a squad that can do the business this season providing fitness is not a concern. For me though, we really need to get another decent central midfielder as an absolute minimum.

Echo in "have a stab at Saints for any reason" shocker! FF in "I'm a bitter ex-freeloader" shocker! I am of course playing devils advocate a little bit. (;

Completely agree with this.