Weston Saint

Definitely not. 100% on this.

Not when the right player to suit our style is not already available. That is what he was saying

Telling comments MP: “On Tuesday, we saw @Sam9allagher play very well. Why not give him the opportunity to keep playing? MP: “It’s not easy to sign someone who fits the profile of player we want.” MP: “@Mattytargett is going to train with us, and he has a chance of getting in the side if he performs at the level we look for. MP: “Sam can work well and learn from Jay Rodriguez, Rickie Lambert and Adam Lallana. So that suggests to me Gallagher is in and Osvaldo not part of his learning future so he is history. No replacement for Fox from outside the club. Right time for these decisions as we e playing well with this squad and safe from relegation. Summer is a time to strengthen when we have a pre season to bed in.

We need to be careful not to go the same way as the Roma fans. Of course what Osvaldo did was unacceptable but we should leave the club to sort it out. Hopefully he is now receiving counselling and anger management advice. After that it is up to the club and players to decide if he gets another chance. It is not for Supporters to make any rash judgements in my opinion.

KL appears to have embraced the "Southampton way" set up by Cortese but in a more friendly nature. She has publically backed the Manager, stated no player sales in this window if they are part of our future, addressed employee concerns over sale of the club and communicated openly with the supporters. She is also constructing a board to advise and run the day to day club issues. This my be a short term statement to stabilize the club after Cortese's departure but it is positive in all aspects. ML purchased the club for about £12m and add ons. After his death KL converted loans of over £30m into equity. Cortese was also provided with the means of purchasing more players to develop the plan. For me the goings on this last week suggest KL is making sure her investment it protected. The club value has been rising and she will be determined to see it through. When and if she is ready to sell the club could be worth £150M. Someone buying at that price will be serious players and will want to enhance that investment with more capital to drive the club further forward. So for me all that has been said by KL so far is positive and encouraging. It has taken a week but Southampton FC is back on track and likely to be a more friendly club to supporters, staff, suppliers and ex players, without losing it's cutting edge on the field of play.

Of course she will just as Marcus appointed Cortese, a financial man. It is the structure below who are football people. They are still in place.

It will be business as usual tomorrow. Pochettino and the players should be too professional to let this affect the game on Saturday. Of course the Manager and players will seek assurances that the vision of the club remains the same. That will only come when the owner appoints a new CEO so do not expect any rash decisions for now. According to reports it was Cortese who resigned. He was not dismissed. We do not know why and we probably will not find out the truth in the coming weeks. Cortese put in a structure so that if anyone was to leave the business would not be harmed. He was a good hardnosed Chairman & CEO as far as the business was concerned. He was not everyone’s cup of tea but he had the vision and someone else’s money. Let us see who comes into the hot seat. CEO’s go, businesses evolve and may be the time is right. A good win at Sunderland will be just the tonic.

Wise words for one so young

If top clubs want to pay silly money they obviously think he is the best left back around. Why would we want to see our best players going for any price. Why should supporters settle for second best in any positions!

First, it is well known that the majority of expensive mid term signings in the premier do not produce performances up to expectation. This is partly due to the needed to bed into the team and for overseas players to understand premier football. A pre season is essential to get the best understanding of our tactics, other players strengths & weaknesses as well as the team understanding that players strengths and weaknesses. Mid season are often panic buys and we do not need to panic. Obviously, if the right player comes along at the right price then we will likely sign but at present the message seems to be that the club are not active in the market or have made any approaches. Secondly, mention has been made of Cortese not engaging in extension contract talks with the Manager. That is Cortese's way when he is confident. He has probably told Pochettino that he will in due course. He did the same with Lallana last time round. Finally, for those panicking that we might lose players late on in the window and be left short that will not happen. This is a happy and together squad enjoying regular Premier football at a high standard. If there heads are turned Cortese will insist on them sticking to there contract. It has happened before. Remember Man City, Liverpool and Man Utd had top stars who pushed for moves but were refused. Everyone has their price but Cortese is hardly going to allow all he is achieving to go to waste. I am not naive, I am confident January will not see any of our regulars moving on.

Matt Paterson now playing for Aldershot

You make a good point CB Fry. My thread on FA cup was based on the premise that many clubs including ourselves do not put out their strongest teams for the FA cup. However should we reach the final that would be far more exciting than the final game against MU. Imagine the headlines "Saints finish eighth and deny Man. U. the title" or "Carberry scores a century on first day of home game against Glamorgan" Think I might just go to the cricket although as a season ticket holder of both I could dip in and out! Wonder what your namesake would have done confronted with playing in either? We are reasonably safe requiring a maximum of 13 points from our last 18 games and no real prospect of a top 6 finish. On that basis, as Duncan says, we should be putting out our strongest team and going for the cup. We have a realistic prospect of winning it this year. Team announcement at 2pm will give us a good idea but I am not holding my breath!

But what if Clattenburgh said those words, Adam said something and that was why he was yellow carded. I was not told what was said but I do know the club were very unhappy with the yellow card and that was part of the reason for the submission.

No, when I make a decision not to go to cup games I mean all cup games. Be a bit flaky to pick and choose. That is not how I operate.

There was a time when FA Cup 3rd round was an exciting time for all football supporters. Those in the 1st and 2nd tier joined those remaining in the lower leagues. In those days there was no team rotation. You put out your strongest team. Now most of the top teams put out almost their second eleven or fringe players because of the squad system and the need to give overpaid players time on the field. The romance has gone. The expectation diminished. The excitement reduced. I made a decision at the beginning of last season not to pay to see our cup games. We are being short changed. Don’t get me wrong, I am not blaming Southampton FC. It is the same for the majority of the Premier and high flying Championship teams. Success in the League due to the high financial rewards has to be a priority particularly when you add in the rich returns from the European Champions League. Times have changed. The FA Cup is the worse for this change. However football at the higher level has shown a positive progress. The skill levels are better, the facilities including the pitches are so much better. Just look at the New Years day weather. Remember the mud patched of old. Yeovil was live on the TV that lunch time and it was the old fashioned mud bath. Switch over to Swansea and the pitch looked like a carpet. Then our game with Chelsea. A perfect pitch that looked just as good at the end as it did before kick off. The FA cup will never die. But it is fading. I suppose it is just one of the casualties of progress.

I was told about this on New Years eve. What was said was not revealed to me but it did upset Adam.

Deforestation is not causing an increase in Carbon Dioxide. How can it! However Deforestation is resulting in less Carbon Dioxide, caused by other means, being absorbed. There is a subtle difference.

For those not on Twitter Pochettino says there's still no timescale set for Artur Boruc's return from injury, while @danistone25 has picked up an illness. #saintsfc Pochettino: “I think we’ve started the season really well. We’ve been able to establish our style and philosophy.” #saintsfc Pochettino: “We have a young side for one competing in the #BPL but overall our first half of the season has been a positive one.” Pochettino: “Our project is based around young players. It’s important to nurture young talent.” #saintsfc Pochettino: “We’re much stronger when all of our players are fit. We’ve been hindered by injuries over the last two months.” #saintsfc Pochettino: “Our mentality never changes – we want to win our next game, whoever we’re playing against.” #saintsfc Pochettino: “On Wednesday we will be facing one of the best teams in England and in Europe in #CFC, but we want to win.” #saintsfc Pochettino: “When all of our players are fit, that'll make us a much stronger group – and then we'll know our potential for 2014.” Pochettino reiterates that Artur Boruc and @VictorWanyama will not be involved against #CFC on Wednesday. #saintsfc Pochettino will assess @danistone25’s fitness after he suffered an injury against #NUFC before falling ill over Christmas. #saintsfc

I will start with rule changes applying to next season The changes in summary: ‘Finning’ In relation to a bowler who breaks the wicket as they deliver the ball, ECB will adopt the Law change recently made by MCC stating that this is now a ‘No Ball’ and this will apply in all domestic cricket. Super Over The introduction of a Super Over in all tied NatWest T20 matches – including for the first time in group stages of the competition. Over Rates In the NatWest T20 competition, the time allowed for the incoming batsman to be ready at the wicket will be reduced from 90 seconds to 60 seconds. Points system: LV=County Championship An extra two points will be available for a draw in order to provide greater reward for hard-fought draws and matches where bad weather has affected the outcome. This will mean five points in total for a draw, 16 for a win. Bonus points remain unchanged. Coloured Crease Markings Alternative colours to white may be used as crease markings from next season – subject to successful trials. This change is designed to make crease markings easier to see for both spectators and TV viewers. Royal London One-Day Cup ODI playing conditions will be replicated in the Royal London One-Day Cup wherever possible and two new balls will be used. Heavy Roller A heavy roller, should it be made available, may only be used once by each per team per match for a maximum of seven minutes in LV= County Championship fixtures. However the decision on whether to make a heavy roller available or not will rest with the home team and this will also apply in the one-day competitions. A light roller must always be available. TV Umpire and foot-fault No balls: ICC regulations will apply in domestic cricket. At the request of the on-field Umpire at the bowler’s end, the TV Umpire should check for a No Ball – for dismissals only. TV Umpire and waist-high full tosses: Waist high full tosses will be reviewed by the Third Umpire at the request of the on-field Umpire at the bowler’s end for dismissals only. Any benefit of doubt should be with the batsman. With thanks to Terry Crump, Hampshire Committee Chairman who summarised the above

OptaJoe ‏@OptaJoe The average finishing position of teams who concede three goals in their opening eight PL games (like Southampton) is fifth.

He has just scored

Will Smith signs a 2 year contract. Presume he will bat at 4 Hamza Riazuddin has retired from First Class cricket as expected. Never really got going. Very intelligent lad from a good family. He will succeed outside of cricket. Adam Rouse, Jack Sheppard, Michael Roberts and Jake George. I knew Adam and Michael were going to be released. Never saw anything of Jack & Jake! Sean Terry given 2 year contract.

Australia have no fixtures during our summer season!

The overseas player is likely to be Faulkner. Not a done deal yet. We would like to have signed Watson but he wants next summer off. Harris would be happy to play in England next year but only for a 1st Div side! Listening to Coles today I think he is close to signing. Should know within a few days.

So we finish the season with back to back wins in what has been a very disappointing Championship season. Two semi finals in the one dayers has softened the blow but whilst the club want to do well in this format as it brings in the punters and much needed income the main aim was to gain promotion. My personal review of the Championship season players Adams Poor season for him with the bat. Two big scores mask the fact he had 7 ducks in the Championship and only 833 runs at 39.66. As captain he is a bit lacking in tactical knowhow when things are not going well but always willing to negotiate to get a chance of a result. 5/10 Carberry Only 687 runs at 42.93 and only one century in 16 innings is disappointing. However he has missed 5 matches. An England call up in all forms of the game is well deserved for a very focussed and hardworking player. 6/10 Dawson What a season he has had at number 3. 1031 runs at 49.09 is a fine effort. He just needs to get a few more big scores and he must get picked for the Lions next season. Only one 100 but eight 50’s and he is our best fielder (second slip) with 23 catches. He can bowl a bit as well but not used much as his batting and slip fielding need a high level of concentration. 8/10 McKenzie A class player and we will miss him. 433 runs at 48.11 in only 6 matches. 7/10 Vince Just pips Dawson as my player of the season. Has matured this season scoring consistently with four 100 and six 50’s. 1101 runs at 61.16. This season he has also shown what a few of us thought he could. An occasional back up seamer. 9 wickets at 44.00 might not seem much but it gives the skipper another player to turn to for something different. Good fielder too with 16 catches. 9/10 Ervine Poorish season for him but still an important part of the team at No 6. Only 458 runs at 25.44 is below the standards he has set himself and no 100’s to his name this season! In fact only four 50’s in 19 innings. Bowling wise he was used sparingly and took 17 wickets at 33.94. Good first slip fielder with 20 catches to his name. 5/10 Wheater The club always denied that they had promised him the WK gloves for the season despite both Essex and himself saying they did. I am told he bought out the remainder of his contract with Essex to join us. He is an ok wicket keeper and his batting whilst good in bits does not, in my opinion, justify Bates omission. 585 runs at 36.56 with two 100’s but only one 50 is ok but no more than that. 18 catches and 2 stumpings in 17 innings is not flattering when compared with Bates 16 catches in 8 innings. 6/10 Wood His batting has improved but he will come under pressure from Coles if he signs. 256 runs at 23.27 is a bit low for the all-rounder slot at No 8. However he is in the side as a bowler and 15 wickets at43.93 are less than flattering. 5/10 Balcombe Really disappointing season and his place is very much at risk. 22 wickets at 50.04 is one of the reasons we have struggled to bowl sides out. Shame because he is a nice chap, works hard and rarely gets any luck. 4/10 Briggs Not really done much this season. 22 wickets at 36.27 is moderate to say the least. Batting has improved averaging 27.11. Not bad for a number 10. 5/10 Tomlinson Stand out bowler for us. 53 wickets at 24.16 8/10 Other bit players Coles Has done well in the 5 games he has played. 21 wickets at 24.00 and a batting average of 29.5. 7/10 Bates I have said enough in the past about him. Should be automatic choice but his batting is still suspect although he has scored a few centuries in the 2nds.. Some of the catches he took down the leg side in the last few games most wicket keepers including Wheater, would not have taken. Hope the club recognise this. On wicket keeping alone 9/10 Terry Too his chance in the last 2 games he played with 50 in each. Hopefully he will get a new contract. The whispers from the Ageas Bowl look positive in that respect. 7/10 Roberts Has failed to step up from Minor Counties cricket in my opinion. Doubt we will see him next year! 4/10 Taylor Only 16 so one to watch. Unfair to rate him on one game