westofshannonsaint

Beattie in the last few minutes against manure. I got the p*ss ripped outta me for 88 minutes (+ half time) & then there was only one voice in the pub.

Happy to read the positive comments regarding Martins contract renewal. i'll freely admit I know nothing about him and have never seen him play. that's loads of time (in football anyway) to find the right player. there's this window + the loan (with an option to buy) window, the jan window + another loan window. Sorry, that is the one of the most mental statements I seen on the forum. Of course you can have bloated squads & you need to introduce youth to the first team at some stage (if the academy is working). my only question is if Martin is ready to "do a job for us" in the npc. how would ye feel if he was on the bench/played against leeds?

from the OS last april. http://www.saintsfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10280~2342370,00.html? I wonder if any of the Under 21 squad or the academy travel to Switzerland.

Lambert = 87 goals and 39 assists in the last 3 seasons. (154 starts) League one's top scorer in 2 seasons prior to last and 3rd top scorer last year. he's not ready to step up to the next level*rollyeyes*

great news, I didn't realise that he only a year left on his contract. I think this is as important as any new signing. Were not a selling club & are keeping our better players. great news.

Bulmers, or as my mother-in-law likes to call it "beat the wife" on sale @ SMS - happy days. That will make my very very rare visits to Southampton much more enjoyable.

that would be a great avatar.... I also see no need for the new thread, why not tag this on to the "we need to spend now" thread?

for context here is a link to the historical tables (since 2003). In 2008 Leicester failed to stay up with 52 points but there are seasons where an average of 1 point per game would see a team safe.

do you honestly think that the team as it currently stands is a relegation candidate? I think the major point that people are missing is that we are no longer a selling club. we have built a decent squad and have (so far) held on to our better players. In years past we would not have had a chance to hold on to players such as AOC, Lallana, & Lambert (if we bought him in the first place). We would have sold them for a lot less than the values being quoted & replaced them with lesser players to balance the books. I am sure we will strengthen the team, but I would much rather an approach of quality over quantity & players that fit our structure. e.g. Danns would have been a great free signing but how would his wage demands compare to the wages of our current *star* players & how would that affect team moral? If the right players are not available to us by the end of august I will not be overly concerned as I think the current squad can hold their own in the championship. Loanees can still strengthen the team after that and then there is the January window if relegation is a risk or the top 6 is in sight. IMHO stability & a good preseason are more important than any marquee signing. I think we have the best chance of a good preseason since WGS. I have faith in our (ex physio) manager to have a fit squad ready to start the new season. all that said, the only year that i was not positive before the season started was when l*we came back, sacked Pearson & started the Dutch experiment. & I am a fan who due to location does not get the chance to attend games.

he's too smooth for jokes about his name oh & I just noticed the halo on the innocent logo

If i was a betting man I would wager that the new 5 year plan is from now (top 5 in 2016/17). I know Cortese is ambitious but I am sure he is not without some realism. Paying large sums on players who are surplus to requirements is not rational (he says in a vein attempt to bring the thread back on topic)

had a look (but I'm not a collector)... thought I'd be nice though & post the details of your collection on offer (the link is a bit off & some can't access ebay in work)... http://item.mobileweb.ebay.com/viewitem?itemId=250841887203&cmd=VIDESC&title=Description Southampton FC Programme Collection All proceeds to The Markus Liebherr Tribute Flag Fund (less selling and courier fees)A mixed bag of mainly Premier league Matches that may fill a few gaps or make a good starter collection. All League Matches Unless Stated FAC - FA Cup LC - League Cup FR - Friendly OTHER - Other Season 1990/91 28th Aug v Norwich City 12th Jan v Luton Town 1993/94 8th Jan v Port Vale - FAC 1994/95 24th Sep v Coventry City 1st Oct v Ipswich Town 4th Mar v Coventry City1995/96 25th Mar v Coventry City 6th Apr v Blackburn Rovers 27th Apr Fulham v Gillingham - Gills Protion Match 5th May v Wimbledon - Saints stay up on last day of the season 1996/97 14th Sep v Tottenham Hotspur18th Sep v Middlebrough 19th Oct v Sunderland 23rd Oct v Lincoln City - LC 26th Oct v Manchester United - 6-3 - Le Tissier, Berkovic (2), Ostenstad (3) 22nd Feb v Sheffield Wednesday 5th Mar v Everton 19th Apr v Coventry City 1997/98 19th Jan v Manchester United 18th Feb v Coventry City 21st Feb v Blackburn Rovers 7th Mar v Everton 1998/99 28th Jul Bournemouth v Saints - FR - John Williams Testimonial 3rd Oct v Manchester United 26th Mar England v Poland - Under 21's UEFA Qualifier Played at The Dell Teams Included: Richard wright, Paul robinson, Gareth Barry, Wes Brown, Danny Mills, Lee Bowyer, Frank Lampard, Jamie Carragher, Lee Hendrie, Jason Euell, James Beattie, Kamil Kosowski 8th May v Wimbledon - Dellhurst Park16th May v Everton 1999/00 28th Jul v K Lierse S.K. - FR 15th Aug v Newcastle United 18th Sep v Arsenal 23rd Oct v Liverpool 20th Nov v Tottenham Hotspur 26th Dec v Chelsea 3rd Jan v Bradford City 22nd Jan v Everton 5th Feb v West Ham United 4th Mar v Middlesbrough 18th Mar v Aston Villa 22nd Apr v Manchester United 29th Apr v Leicester City 14th May v Wimbledon

Promotion (Via the playoffs) is realistic (IMHO) I see no reason why not with the current squad along with a bit of luck. we have to get there first, then we can think about Top Half (in the prem) & Europe. I'd rather sustained growth than spending £4m (quoted above) on CMS when we were in league 1. what offer do you think we should have made?

Saints on sky, as always i'm delighted... & at least this year i'll have company as there are a fair few (dirty) leeds fans in Ireland... hopefully we'll put in a better display than we did against plymouth last year, when it was only me & the barman watching the game.

Sorry I meant realistic target mid table to challanging for the playoffs is top half. 12th to 6th had a gap last season of 13 pts, it makes sense to see what is required to achieve the best team in the league & it still fits in with the 5 year plan.

IMHO the target this season should be mid table/challenging for a playoff spot. IF we have a good preseason, I think we all agree that the current squad can achieve mid-table. in such a tight league a sixth place spot is not far away at christmas when we will strengthen where required. bringing the thread (kind of) back on subject. thanks OP for posting your twitter exchange & starting a decent thread in this long, dull summer. As others have said CMS would have been surplus to requirements last season. But there's nothing wrong with bringing in a good player at the right price & is making a low offer for a player a legal way of "tapping" them up?

here's a site for you stato's http://www.myfootballfacts.com/SEASONS-IN-TOP-FLIGHT----1888-89-to-2009-10.html http://www.myfootballfacts.com/ClubLeagueHistorySummary.html

Love to see bridge back at Saints... I wonder does he have his coaching badges, no better place to earn them other than one of the best academy's in the country. the only problem i see is that city want to sell him, I don't think we'll see him here unless it's a loan.

West Ham Away... it will be the first game of the season on sky. A settled Saints team will beat win 2 - 1 & 3 very valuable points.

to be fair, his opening statement was just kind of explaining that he's not involved in the club any more (or ITK). He's just a fan like the rest of us. He's probably a little bit disappointed with that & if I were him I probably would be to. Then there was a wry smile when he said Cortese probably thinks we'll go up straight away. I don't know who the reporter was, but it was a bloke so not Clare Balding (I hope).

Just seen Laurie McMenamy on SSN from Ascot. Here's what he said.... I thought we were relegated from the CCC on the field, that's why the points deduction carried over to the next season... Am I wrong?

when Saint Marcus bought the club (iirc) the plan was to see Saints in competing in the prem & self sufficient. It's nice to know our owners have real money, but I do not expect them to throw money at us. I'm just happy we are a position we are.... it's been a roller-coaster. thanks Marcus.

here's a screen shot, interesting.

as far as i have seen, Cortese has done a pretty good so far, he's employed a decent manager (admittedly he let one go, but if the relationship between manager & chairman isn't good someone has to go) he's improved the squad & hung on to important players (so far). He's improving the facilities & continuing to invest in youth. he's on target with his 5 year plan I can see that some are concerned about being "priced out of football" but the aim since ML & NC came to saints for us to be self financing. Where should these finances come from & how do our ticket prices compare to other teams aiming to win promotion from the NPC? edit>oh & as mentioned above the MLT situation is/was unfortunate. For anyone who doesn't think Cortese is great, what chairperson would you prefer?

interesting quote from van persie... http://www.joe.ie/football/premier-league/robin-van-persie-questions-party-lifestyle-of-young-arsenal-teammates-0013016-1 Perhaps Chamberlain snr might decide it's better off to keep his young lad here for a while (well I can hope, can't I)