Weston Saint

Season starts tomorrow (Wednesday 10th April) with a home Championship game at the Ageas Bowl against Leicestershire Team likely to be Adams, Carberry, Dawson, Bailey, Vince, Ervine, Wheater, Wood, Balcombe, Tomlinson, Griffiths I think Briggs will miss out as the early season wickets will favour seam and I think Bates will lose out to Wheater as we need a number 7 who can bat a bit. I am loath to drop two of our best young players but I see this season as a promotion priority.

Adam was carrying a groin injury incurred during the Liverpool game. He started training including running again on Monday and is expected to be available

This should not be left hanging. There is no evidence to suggest any issues. Nowadays the players are regularly tested and such a problem would show up. Likewise the players would know. I am assuming FF might be hinting at old news rather than the present

I was at a dinner up in Berkshire on the Monday and received a call about 8pm to say the shares would be suspended first thing in the morning but that did not mean Administration was definate as they were still looking for investors! I do know that the Administrator was called in first thing and the delay in announcing (finally made about 11am) was because the Administrator was insistant Rupert Lowe resigned from the board and had no further involvement. He took a little persuading!! Bearing in mind it has been suggested that following the takeover all creditors, other than Barclays & Aviva, were paid and a deal was made with Aviva, we started from a good place with a good owner and a determined Chairman It has been suggested that the deal with Aviva included a Premier League, within a set period, bonus clause. I wonder if that was from the loan reported last year? Progress to where we are today was beyond anyones wildest dream. Keeping our Premier status will be the icing on the cake!

In my view it is all about balance in the CB positions. Yoshida has had his better games on the right side of Centre Back and reads the game well. Fonte is also a right sided CB but lacks the heading skills and although he reads the game ok I prefer Yoshida. On the left there is really only player suited and that is Hooiveld. He is pretty dominant in the air (slip against Terry excepted). He is a weak Premier CB but is doing a decent job at present. Like I say, it is all about balance and best options. Hope Foran can come in next year if he is good enough. When Pochettino came to the club he said Foran was one for the future! On that basis we need to look for a strong left sided CB in the summer with Fonte & Foran as cover.

I do not post much anymore because of the number of immature trolls and idiots spoiling this forum. I do not intend renewing my full membership. However I thought I would reply to VFTT post (I do not categorise you in the above group) I was one of those so called old duffers. I did not rate Schneiderlin in the Championship or Division 1 He may have covered more ground than most but with what end product. Very little in my opinion. He just seemed to lollop around and find a safe haven when he could He may have more completed passes than most but backwards and sideways short passes got us nowhere. It slowed the attacking allowing the opposition defence to regroup. It was the lazy option He was a powder puff tackler and when he tried a bit more aggression he got booked. He had virtually no impact of the positives of the game. This season and especially in the last few months he has changed his game radically. He is more positive in the tackle, he has upped his pace going forward and returning to his defensive duties, he is now a goal threat without diminishing his defensive duties and he is now showing all the quality the doubters like me all hoped and prayed he would. We have not gone quiet over Schneiderlin. We are just fed up with the drivel that is now posted on this site. Again I am not including you in that comment.

Saints executive chairman Nicola Cortese's full statement on the club's interim Premier League financial results, and accounts for the 2011/12 season: “From where we started, it is a great achievement to have reached the Premier League in just three seasons. We have done this during a period when we have invested in all of our business areas, radically reformed how we operate the Club to conform to best practice and, at the same time, produced sound financial results. “Effective financial management is about making the right investments at the right price, at the right time. When combined with sound business decisions, commitment, a strong company structure and great ambition across the whole organisation, we have proved that only a modest outlay - when compared with most Premier League Clubs – is needed in order to achieve success. We fully intend to maintain our culture and a diligent approach to our financial affairs. “Our people at the Club have worked hard to achieve this result and I am proud of them and their contribution to our success. They all know that we can still improve further and that is our constant aim. We have a plan to compete at the top and all of our decision-making and investment spending is geared to achieve that. The creation of a state-of-the-art training facility at Staplewood - which is planned to be operational towards the end of 2013 - will be a shining and proud example of that. “Our results also demonstrate we are already operating within the spirit of likely new Premier League financial regulations in respect of average profits and losses over three years. We believe very strongly that each club should continue to be permitted to run their business – including their pay rolls - as they see fit. This is fundamental to the future integrity of football.” Saints' chief financial officer Gareth Rogers' full statement on the club's interim financial results for the Premier League, and the accounts for the 2011/12 season: “Our first six months in the Barclays Premier League show the dramatic impact promotion has had on the Club. However, the significant increase in turnover has not deterred us from our stated aim of financial prudence in the top division. "I am delighted to report the Club’s first profit without the aid of player trading since 2005 which demonstrates that prudence in football can be achieved whilst significant investment, both on and off the field, is still being made. Our wages to turnover ratio has also been reduced significantly and we strongly link remuneration to performance. “Another pleasing aspect is that non-broadcasting revenues are up across the board, representing a culture shift in the way we do business as a Club. This is vital for our continuing success as, in the long term, our aim to challenge and compete with the top clubs in the division cannot rely solely on broadcasting income. “Overall these are excellent results and back up the full year results from our promotion season in the npower Championship which was achieved on an underlying loss of only £2.4m, significantly down from the £11.5m loss that promotion from League One resulted in.”

The flag is upside down meaning distress. They got that bit right

We are the new boys in the division having come from 2 leagues below in only 2 years. We have to earn Premier respect. Despite the reports from Managers saying it was the worse their teams have played they all gave credit to our outstanding play. We are no longer being mentioned as relegation fodder. Respect is coming and we are playing the right way.

Old Spice is one of the HNW individuals who has been putting money in to keep the club going. That stopped on 5th January

If the club goes into liquidation the parachute payments cease. If the FL say only the trust will get the Golden Share to play football then any other consortium will pull out. You do not buy a business that trades only as a football club and whose sole income is from football if you are not able to compete in the football league.

My take on it It is in the correct court. It is the Commercial Court. If the Administrators win then you cannot appeal just because you do not like the decision. You have to appeal on a point of law. If there are other issues they have to be in the pleadings. I have been there on both counts.

Its ok Bomber Harris has just been shot down by the Football League

Let us be clear, the Football League are not stopping the Administrators selling to the new consortium. They are just saying they will not transfer to them the golden share. Administators go to court and will say without the golden share the business cannot be sustained. If the court do not rule that the £3m offer by the trust for the ground is approved then the trust bid cannot proceed and liquidation is the only answer and that will prejudice the creditors.

Well well, so it is Trust or bust. Best of luck to them.......but on reflection Alphabetical position at start of League 2 might be their highest position for that season. I think the Football League know who is really behind todays bid. Good to see them have balls at last.

Forget this is PFC, it would have been interesting to see the Trust run the club. They would have received support from most areas. Their problem was always the ground and Chainrai’s charge/valuation I now believe the Trust bid is dead in the water. This new consortium will likely succeed now the creditors have approved and it gets the Administrator off the hook. It is now clear why the Judge was happy to adjourn the proceedings. One can feel sorry for the HNW individuals whose money kept the club alive. Crouch did the same for Southampton to the tune of £500,000. Like him I doubt they will be able to recover those costs. It is what happens if you back the wrong horse even if the other horse had not even arrived at the racecourse. However, the damage has been done. The window has closed and all that is available now is in the loan period. The minus 10 points will kick in soon. They will start 2013/14 season as a Division 2 side. If they cannot afford to pay for the ground now they must have limited investment. It will be a long and rocky road to recovery. For me they have not got away with it. Premier to Division 2 is a fine punishment. The trust has worked hard and after all they are only supporters like you and me. They may have supported a stinking regime in the past and perhaps the present consortium will be the stinking regime of the future. But credit where credit is due, the trust deserves some recognition. As for Mr Allen, the News journalist, perhaps he should enrole in a course of journalism at Southampton Solent University. That comment will not be lost on one of our contributors. The end looks in sight, for now………..

I have always believed a man with a chip on his shoulder damages no one but himself. Le Tissier should now let matters rest, keep his public comments to Southampton Football Club, not the Chairman. As someone famously said "Remember, a chip on the shoulder is a sure sign of wood higher up" I also agree with Apline Saints comment below

Forren has a slight muscle strain to add to his not being quite match fit due to his lay off.

So Adam's groin tweek he got in training is ok then or is he on the bench?

We sat high up to the right of the "stage" and the view was brilliant. I had never seen Cirque Du Soleil before and normally circuses and the like are not my cup of tea but I was enthralled with the whole thing.

To suggest Cortese was distracted by a change in Manager is a bit disingenuous. He has brought in what at first blush looks like an improvement to our centre back position. January is notorious for panic buying by clubs and very often they are failures. We were linked with Philippe Coutinho but here is what is being reported ““Andrea Ramazzotti, who covers Inter for Italian newspaper Corriere dello Sport and has watched all Coutinho's 28 games for the club, told BBC Sport: "He just didn't show his potential in Milan. Coutinho played very well when he was on loan at Espanyol last season, and started well for Inter this season, but they were only brief spells really. "For the rest of the time he just showed flashes of his potential and I fear the way of playing in England, which can be very physical, will not suit him, because he has a slight frame." So he is one for the future not the present and does not strengthen our present team. I am comfortable and even said to others at the Everton game that we would not sign anyone. The summer is when we can buy and intergrate pre season, not upset the balance of the team that so far does not look like relegation in play or form.

A few pompey supporters views by way of conversation "Well, League Two won't be too painful, I don't think we'll be there long enough for that" "getting out of the conference could be hard though...only 2 spots" "Staying up in the conference could be hard the way we are going" "Short of sticking rusty nails in my eyes, nothing could be more painfull than what I have been watching down at the park recently. I did not think it could get much worse until I endured that 90 minutes yesterday" "One day, someone will actually pull the trigger - hopefully!"

Glad to see your sense of humour is intact Frank!

Mauricio do you want to talk in English?" MP: "I understand English, but I still need to work on my vocabulary and confidence. Okay, lets talk in Spanish."

This was not going to be an easy game even if Adkins was managing the team. From reports we appear to have a good Manager who may well take us to the next level but for now he knows very little of the Premier League, the teams, the tactics, the weaknesses and strengths. He is also disadvantaged by not having much grasp of the English language. All that will take a time. He says he has studied our players for weeks so he should at least know our players strengths and weaknesses If we can pick up a point I will be very satisfied. That will give us 15 games to secure 17points to reach the magic 40 points. 5 wins and 2 draws! Survival this year by which time he should be able to communicate and have learned what the Premier League and the Teams are all about.