Legod Third Coming

Would you like sum yoof guidance for dat innit?

You will recall my note in the nomation thread about Tiger and Mickelson (and if you don't, look it up). That was previously the biggest distance between first and second in any national or international ranking tournament.... Until today.

Nonsense!!! By the same token we shouldn't attend SMS or ever listen to or watch a game of our own!!! Tonight, Matthew, I have adopted a gruff psuedo-Midlands-cum-Derby accent, I shall be drinking a swift brown ale, I shall be pretending I work for British Gas in Hinkley and cheering the Foxes from the Rafters!!! Lii-ine-kerr, L-ii-ine-kerr Blu'army, Blu'army, Blu'army Nigel Pearson's blue and white army, we 'ate Derby, Forest, County, Coventry, Villa, Burton Albion* *Apologies my football geography of the Midlands is not exact!

I could not disagree more. Find a recording of Saturday's game and watch it again for me. Chaplow was all over the full back putting him under pressure, pulling him out of shape and driving the team on down the right. Puncheon?? Are you serious - if he was the better player, he would be in the team. He flatters to deceive, sadly. Because his head is not right. If it was he could be a good player.

A few years back, Tiger was world number one and Mickelson number two. And the gap between Tiger and Mickelson was bigger than the gap between Leftie and the worst golfer in the international rankings... That's how close this competition is for me. We're not a one man team, we're a one GIANT team. And that behemoth of a footballer is Sir Richard of Hampshire.

Of that, I would agree he cost us one against Boro. At Reading his mistake came when the game was already over and the main fault that night lies with Fox and Hammond. We are a team who plays possession football. In a team like that you CANNOT give the ball away in midfield. The team isn't set up to break back because it's set up to keep the ball and play it wisely... As for Pompey, Harding might (and it is a might) have got closer to Norris. Fonte is a CB who was where he ought to be.

Someone above said he was like their dog. And he is. In a field of sheep. Defenders worry when he's around...

Does this make anyone feel better... "In the Championship Southampton's off-the-field controversy affected their on-the-field fortunes substantially during 2005–06[citation needed], and at one point they were in real danger of a second successive relegation. But their form improved during the final weeks of the season and they finished a secure twelfth. The good form which secured Southampton's Championship status in 2005–06 was carried through to the start of the 2006–07 season, and the turn of the year saw the team in fourth place in the table. The new board of directors had spent a club record £6 million on transfers. Polish strikers Grzegorz Rasiak and Marek Saganowski and 17 year-old left back Gareth Bale all had great runs in form. A drastic loss in the team's form overall, coupled with poor displays against fellow promotion hopefuls, saw the team drop to eighth place by mid–March 2007, and rapidly losing touch with the promotion race. However, with other promotion rivals dropping points and a small run of form in late April, Southampton were able to reach sixth place, the last play-off position. They lost the home leg of their playoff semi-final to Derby County, and on 15 May achieved parity on aggregate but lost on penalties in a thrilling encounter. Since relegation, the club has had to sell players to meet the shortfall in income. A number of players from the club's academy have been sold for large sums, such as Theo Walcott and Gareth Bale. The 2007–08 season went much worse for Southampton with George Burley revealing that players such as Gareth Bale and Kenwyne Jones had to be sold to stop the club going into administration and that not getting promoted put the club in serious financial troubles. New players such as Youssef Safri and Stern John were brought in, but Southampton made an inconsistent start to the season being lodged in mid-table around the Christmas period. However, manager Burley left the club in January to take over as Scotland manager and in the January transfer window two more important players in Grzegorz Rasiak and Rudi Skacel were loaned out. Jason Dodd and John Gorman took charge initially for what was intended to be the rest of the season. However, they failed to win a league game, and the team slipped alarmingly near to the relegation zone. In February Southampton appointed Nigel Pearson as manager. Under Pearson's management Southampton narrowly avoided the drop by beating Sheffield United 3–2 on the final day of the season. Even though Pearson kept the Saints up, the Southampton board did not renew his contract, because of financial constraints. By now, Michael Wilde and Rupert Lowe had replaced Leon Crouch as chairmen, and the new board brought in the relatively unknown Dutchman Jan Poortvliet as manager. The Club's financial troubles continued to mount, resulting in more players being sold or loaned out to lower the wage bill and parts of St Mary's were closed off to reduce costs. Due to their financial troubles, the club had to rely on youth and put out a very young side. Although they had a poor first half to the season, young players such as Andrew Surman, Adam Lallana and Morgan Schneiderlin emerged as potential stars. On 23 January 2009, Poortvliet resigned with the club one from bottom in the Championship, with Mark Wotte taking over managerial duties. Administration and relegation to League One On 23 April 2009, Southampton were handed a 10 point deduction, following their parent company going into administration. This deduction ensured that Southampton were relegated from the Football League Championship and play the 2009–10 season in League One.[14] Although the rules of the Football League state that a 10 point deduction would only be incurred if the club went into administration, an enquiry reported that the finances of the parent company and the club were linked to an extent that they were practically the same company/club. However the administrators and the club lawyers believed that the sanction given was unfair and "completely against the rules." After failure to beat Burnley in the penultimate game of the season on 25 April 2009, which ended in a 2–2 draw, Southampton confirmed their relegation from the Championship. This also meant that they would start in League One (third tier of English Football for the first time in 50 years) with minus 10 points, within six years of being FA Cup runners-up, UEFA Cup participants and the eighth placed team in the Premier League. By the end of May 2009, the club was unable to meet its staff wages commitments, and asked employees to work unpaid as a gesture of goodwill. Despite his statement opposing the sanctions a month earlier, administrator Mark Fry warned that the club now faced imminent bankruptcy unless a buyer was found. The following day, the Matt Le Tissier backed Pinnacle consortium paid a non-refundable fee of £500,000 to gain "exclusivity" for 21 days, which meant that the employees at the club could be paid. That period of exclusivity lapsed on 19 June without a deal being completed as the Football League refused to give the necessary approval of the proposed take-over unless Pinnacle waived any right to appeal against the ten-point deduction. The decision was confirmed by a meeting of the Football League Board on 21 June On 26 June 2009, administrator Mark Fry made a statement in which he said he had negotiations with two other groups of investors. He also confirmed that no group had an exclusivity deal and potential buyers will have to move straight away to purchase the club. This was followed by a statement from the Pinnacle group that they would accept the ten point penalty enforced by the Football League in order that the takeover of the club may be completed. On 30 June 2009 it was reported that the Matt Le Tissier-backed Pinnacle Consortium had withdrawn their offer for the club. They "up-turned tables" after a mystery overseas consortium announced that they were close to a deal after lawyers were in negotiations for the club..."

Tell me about it! I was counting my winnings after Hull... 14/1 to win the league looked the most inspired bet in living memory...

It all depends where your ambition lies. I thought like that on the last day last season, but I haven't thought it once this season as we've torn apart teams week in and week out. If we finish next season in, say, 8th and Reading are relegated (which I hope they won't be), finishing 2nd on Saturday will be immaterial. And if, as I sincerely hope, Cortese is here to build a club in the mould of Barcelona, you will be going to watch us play the Champions of Europe with your granchildren and not give our 2nd place this season a second thought. And when you tell your grandkids how you were there when we lost 1-3 to Reading, they will say... "who?"

If only Birch would wind the fecking club up tomorrow - which he should because it has been trading as an insolvent business all fecking year, we could still win the league!

Poor bugger. Never stood a chance. On days like today wouldn't it be wonderful to hear a Chairman come out, say sorry and resign.

Against Reading he was sensational but in other games recently his passing has been dreadful by his standards. Clearly carrying a knock but too important to us to let him recover. He has the summer for that!

Which is strange after last year...

Very poor. Don't think the attacker would even have controlled the ball... hey ho.

I agree. We had at least three we wasted. They had one. Perfect shot. Unstoppable. There is no excuse not working the keeper from a free kick. There are always at least five clear days a week to practice them.

You are being greedy. If we come second and beat West Ham, remember that we will be there on MERIT. Against a side that kept: Cole, Green, Nolan, Noble, Taylor and also added players of the quality of Vaz Te - and also paid Pompey to keep them from going under...

You are mental. I want to be sipping malt at 10pm tomorrow and then having sex with the missus. The stress means I haven't had a genuinely good night since Xmas!

Thought he was outstanding yesterday bar his finishing - coming back from a bad injury, getting better every game. A powerhouse. Not the greatest first touch but then that never stopped Viera or Keane from being half decent. Or Scholes for that matter. Missing him, Lambert and Lallana in December cost us the league in my view. He's the sort of irritating Barton or Savage that a good side has always had.

I am teed off we're out of the Championship race. There's an argument that Reading have been more 'professional' in the last few games - more clinical for sure. But some of our football this season has been, put simply, exquisite - a total joy to behold. So while I would love to have won the league - I ask myself, would I have rather won it on the back foot nicking games on the break? Or would I rather finish second and have stood not to celebrate a goal but in awe of the total majesty of its creation and dispatch - well, each to their own, but I know where my toast is buttered.

If you would genuinely spend the summer as you indicated, you need psychiatric help and it is beholden on the moderators of this forum to help you. That is all I want to say on the matter. It's not a joke. It's my feeling. I hope you were simply wound up and said something you don't believe.

It's more fundamental than that. Some people think (mistakenly) that they can have an impact on destiny. Some of us have lived long enough, seen enough injustice, unexpected success and failure, experienced enough genuine and perceived drama to know the difference between failure and setback. Yesterday was a setback. Promotion is still within our grasp. And with no disrespect to the 3000 who went yesterday, this allows for 32,000 fans to say 'I was there'. Wouldn't that be more fitting? If we ultimately fail, then AND ONLY THEN would be the appropriate time for an outpouring of anger and grief. Anything before that is simply giving up on the dream halfway through.

I agree. Losing Chaplow cost us our attacking drive from midfield. When your bench only has one 'attacking' option there's not much you can do to change the tempo...

Hahaa, there speaks someone who doesn't bet... You're right, I didn't bet two grand, it was my winnings... But to see your slip ripped up when having it handed back would have paid for all of next season's expenses... Although bizarrely losing two genuine grand (which has happened, not often thank God...) feels slightly more acceptable than yesterday's loss of potential.

Loss of Chaplow would be a big miss. He is getting back to his best and was superb yesterday (bar his finishing) before the injury. He is the power from midfield pushing on that the team thrives on.