sadoldgit

Apparently now it is a 3 year plan. Far less realistic and puts more pressure on the management but there you go...it didn't take Cortese too long to fall into the "success overnight" trap.

I think that many agreed that we weren't quite the biz in midfield. I didn't want one more, I wanted a player like Danns. Hopefully Puncheon will turn out to be a good buy but they are different kinds of players.

Yes but he wants it at a price. Fair enough as that is his job, but if he is blocking some moves and sanctioning cheaper ones he needs to take some of the flak if, as looks likely, we don't reach the play offs this season. A goal scoring midfielder like Danns would have been ideal.

I think he is taking the p*ss.

I think I can see were Pardew is going wrong. He is watching games! If he were to move to the continent, say Austria, and select his team and tactics based on an internet forum, I am sure he would be much more successful!

Yes I would be totally amazed. I doubt very much if the pay offs were seen as a realistic target this season and Pardew has done a decent job. Why on earth would you sack him or even start threads about sacking him? Haven't you had enough of the manager merry-go-round at this club?

Both of my Grandfathers died as a result of WW1. My Dad was too young to serve in WW2 but was aprt of the local Home Guard. I can't wait for Alpine to find this thread. Father in the SS and chased the Von Trapps over the Alps and Grandfather serving with Corporal Hitler in the trenches?

Yep, there is a lot to be happy about but you wouldn't think so if you read some other threads here!!!!

We don't seem to losing matches like we sued to so that I would say was a result. Yep, we have drawn too many matches and that needs to change but I think some people need to be patient. It took the great Lawrie Mac three seasons to get us out of the 2nd Divsion with much better players.

Me too mate.

Let us hope it doesn't come to that. Mind you, if Pardew was carzy enough to read the posts here he might start to think that he would be better off somewhere else.

There is a 5 year plan apparently. I doubt whether promotion this year was part of it. If Cortese was stupid enough to get rid of a decent manager who has been doing a decent job then I would expect that the witch hunters would give NC the same grief they gave RL.

Don't you think he is earning his cash then? Since our slow start to the season how many games have we actually lost? We could end up at Wembley and could quite easily turn over a Prem club shortly. It wasn't all that long ago that many doubted that we would finsih midtable, now the disquite starts all over again. What is it with a group of posters on here who find it impossible to get behind the manager for any length of time?

Once again it just goes to prove that you can't necessarily buy success.

I couldn't agree more. It wasn't that long ago when I expect us to lose every week so not losing is a massive plus. Win a few games and the usual suspects bang on about promotion, draw one and it is all doom and gloom again.

Sorry, but I don't think were are SFC without the red and white stripes.

Going back a few years...all top birds in their youth 1. Bridget Bardot 2. Raquel Welsh 3. Jane Fonda 4. Helen Mirren 5. Candice Bergen (on the bench, Julie Christie)

Bless you Ottery, you are as mad as a box of frogs! I have been right behind Pardew from the start and have no problem with the new management. I do however see shades of Lowe in Cortese, not a bad thing is some cases by the way. The club has finally turned a corner and with some financial muscle at last is in a postion to move forward. That is a good thing and it makes me happy. What I do worry about is if we don't progress as quickly as some on here would like (expect) I think we could end up with more witch hunts on the horizon, starting with Pardew. That would not be a good thing in my book. We need some continuity and a period of stable management and I hope that people give Pardew the time he needs.

What if he said I want Danns and Ward but Nicola gave him Puncheon and Seagrove instead? I know I harp on about this, but for a club the size of SFC, 10 years in the Prem, a Cup Final and European football was a lot more success than many clubs of our size managed. And I don't think that Lowe tried to be anything to anyone. He did what he thought was best, and didn't seem to worry about the fallout if the fans didn't agree.

10 years? In these days of Instant Success I suspect he will be given this season and up to next Christmas before the knives come out if we are not 1st or 2nd at that point.

Ah, the Alpine school of humour! Nice.

I was talking about being prudent because we seemed to by two cheap players when there were two more established players who would cost more but might have made a bigger inmapct on our season. I did also say that they players we bought could turn out to be great buys, time wil tell (and our best players have often not cost us a lot). I don;t know what went on in the Boardroom at that time, but perhaps Redknapps blowing of £6m and the financil effect of relegation might have had something to do with it? How many teams who get relegated go out and spend millions to try and get back up? Most try and keep their better players and the ones that do do well. We didn't from what I recall.

I was on a very old fashioned forum called the Saints List when the Dark Lord first appeared and he was hated straight away because a) of the reverse takeover and b) he wasn't a "football man." The ruddy cheeks, toff, hockey and duck shooting stuff followed in due course. I am sorry that I have not followed the debate closely, after starting this morning I have had a long day at work and have been flitting back and forth whilst making a particularly yummy turkey curry. Have only had a chance to read the last few comments but will go and read everything later as I am keen to know why we bought who we did and didn't buy who we didn't, if you get my drift. I do also see a lot of Rupert in Nicola (is he a football man by the way?) and can't wait to see how his relationship with the cyber fans pans out if we don't get out of this Godforsaken division anytime in the next couple of seasons. Back to the ruby.....

Play offs, no question. We need to get out of Div 3.

Sad news. I don't think the Echo were wrong to print the story but irrespective of that, it is time to grow up and make up.