Nigel Adkins/Rickie Lambert

I think we can safely say that for both of them,being st Southampton was the pinnacle of their careers,they will never achieve anything higher at club level.

I can't believe he has failed so badly at Sheffield United. Like lots of Sheffield United fans, I would have expected them to be challengng top two this season, with Play offs as an absolute minimum.

 

Won't surprise me to see him sacked in the summer, and if he does then his next job is likely to be at a level and club no bigger than S****horpe, middling League One level. Real shame, but I am sure he will come good somewhere again, just at a lower level than we'd like to see.

I'm inclined to agree with your overall assessment, but Sheff. Utd are one amongst a bunch of teams who are all within distance of the play-offs.

Like several others, they have drawn a few too many games they ought to have won, and they had a bit of a leaky defence early season and lost some key games.

Adkins struck gold when he got Billy Sharp back to the Blades (yet again), and despite the odd injury absence, Billy has now scored 17 goals in 35 games so far..

If he holds that form, they may get the 6th spot....and, as we know, anything can happen in the play-offs.

1.3/10

it's more 8/10 for accuracy. He inherited the best squad the third division has ever seen and still failed to win the league.

He just isn't as good as people make out, as is being made obvious now.

it's more 8/10 for accuracy. He inherited the best squad the third division has ever seen and still failed to win the league.

 

He just isn't as good as people make out, as is being made obvious now.

"The best squad the third division has ever seen", who nevertheless were in the relegation zone when he took over and therefore clearly not the best squad the third division has ever seen at that point. In fact they weren't in the top 20 squads the third division was currently seeing, at the time.

"The best squad the third division has ever seen", who nevertheless were in the relegation zone when he took over and therefore clearly not the best squad the third division has ever seen at that point. In fact they weren't in the top 20 squads the third division was currently seeing, at the time.

After how many games? That was obviously not representative of performance, hence that Manager being sacked so early on.

Pretty clear that we had a squad that should have comfortably won L1. No weak links and an attack as strong as has been seen at that level with about 5 subsequent Intls ( for good European nations too).

After how many games? That was obviously not representative of performance, hence that Manager being sacked so early on.

 

Pretty clear that we had a squad that should have comfortably won L1. No weak links and an attack as strong as has been seen at that level with about 5 subsequent Intls ( for good European nations too).

No weak links? Apart from having to pick Oscar Gobern and get Dale Stephens in on loan in the last month because we didn't have a midfield? Dan Seaborne, Joseph Mills, Lee Holmes... a squad that was "SO GOOD" for League One that 6 of the starters who played on the first day against Plymouth didn't start on the first day of the next season in the Championship?

it's more 8/10 for accuracy. He inherited the best squad the third division has ever seen and still failed to win the league.

 

He just isn't as good as people make out, as is being made obvious now.

If he had been here at the start of that season we would have won the league.

He took us from the relegation zone of League 1 to within 3 points of Brighton in first place.

He inherited the best squad the third division has ever seen and still failed to win the league.

 

**** me , what a crock of shiete . I remember Aston Villa with Ray Graydon , Brian Little , Chris Nicholl , Bruce Rioch playing in the 3rd division . It's debatable whether our side was even the best south coast side to ever play in the 3rd division . Macdougal, Bowyer , Mel Mechin , Dave Jones , & John Benson went into to play for top clubs after being in a decent Boscombe div 3 side . They also had Jimmy Gaberial and a certain twitchy headed twt , who could both play a bit

He improved a number of our players immeasurably. They may have become internationals later but Fonte, Schneiderlin, Lambert, Lallana all improved rapidly under Adkins.

He took over a team which had picked up four points from their first five games and were all over the place. He then won more points than any other team from that point on.

No weak links? Apart from having to pick Oscar Gobern and get Dale Stephens in on loan in the last month because we didn't have a midfield? Dan Seaborne, Joseph Mills, Lee Holmes... a squad that was "SO GOOD" for League One that 6 of the starters who played on the first day against Plymouth didn't start on the first day of the next season in the Championship?

Gobern started 1 league game all season

Mills started no league games

Lee Holmes started no league games

Seaborne started 14 and was largely adequate

We had Lallana, Lambert, Schneiderlin, Fonte, Chamberlain, Jaidi, Puncheon all of whom had/have gone on to do well at PL level plus a number of very good players for L1 at the time.

We should have won the league easily with those players IMO.

Not that he didn't do a good job, especially in the Championship season, but at L1 level he had by miles the best squad to work with. Surely that cannot be disputed?

Gobern started 1 league game all season

 

Mills started no league games

 

Lee Holmes started no league games

 

Seaborne started 14 and was largely adequate

 

We had Lallana, Lambert, Schneiderlin, Fonte, Chamberlain, Jaidi, Puncheon all of whom had/have gone on to do well at PL level plus a number of very good players for L1 at the time.

 

We should have won the league easily with those players IMO.

 

Not that he didn't do a good job, especially in the Championship season, but at L1 level he had by miles the best squad to work with. Surely that cannot be disputed?

You're right, and during the period he was at the club, we accumulated the most points out of any team. The reason we didn't win the league was because Adkins WASN'T in charge when we had our dreadful start.

 

We had Lallana, Lambert, Schneiderlin, Fonte, Chamberlain, Jaidi, Puncheon all of whom had/have gone on to do well at PL level plus a number of very good players for L1 at the time. We should have won the league easily with those players IMO.

 

Not that he didn't do a good job, especially in the Championship season, but at L1 level he had by miles the best squad to work with. Surely that cannot be disputed?

well I think I might dispute that Saint Charlie. There were a lot of inconsistancies during that season, too.

Of course Lambert was really on form, but Lallana missed a third of the season through injury, as did David Connolly (an able replacement - when fit).

Schneiderlin was just 20 and fast improving, but in no way can be compared to the player we know he later became.

Fonte (thankfully) was the centrepiece of the defence, but his partnership with Jaidi was not without problems, as Jaidi managed less than 30 starts because of injury, and Seabourne was a less than suitable replacement. Jaidi was at the end of his career, and never played in the Championship season.

Oxlade-Chamberlain was not even in the side during early season (except as sub). and did not become a regular until after Christmas.

Puncheon, as we all recall, had a very turbulent period at first. He wasthen injured, missing 8 games before Christmas ..and shipped out to Millwall in February.

even Barnard (who you didn't mention) played a lot of games without scoring, but did have a purple patch after Christmas when he had Lambert played well together.

In short, we can all remember outstanding games that season, but little real consistancy from only a few. By the end of the season, we'd used nearly 30 players.

Obviously, by the following season things had begun to "click " and we went through the Championship season ...and still finished second again !

I've seen Saints get promotion five times and only once (1960-61) were they in first place. In retrospect, I've always been pleased with a second place finish.

It's very rare that the champions of a league do just as well in the following season.

the league 1 season was the bare minimum of expectations.

the championship season was awesome

the league 1 season was the bare minimum of expectations.

the championship season was awesome

Spot on

**** me , what a crock of shiete . I remember Aston Villa with Ray Graydon , Brian Little , Chris Nicholl , Bruce Rioch playing in the 3rd division . It's debatable whether our side was even the best south coast side to ever play in the 3rd division . Macdougal, Bowyer , Mel Mechin , Dave Jones , & John Benson went into to play for top clubs after being in a decent Boscombe div 3 side . They also had Jimmy Gaberial and a certain twitchy headed twt , who could both play a bit

Who failed to get promotion over about two or three seasons in which Bournemouth under John Bond were highly talked of in the media and expected to make it.

Would have been interesting to see whether Pardew could have arrested the slide in Saints' results at the start of the 2010/11 season the way he's since failed to do so at Newcastle and Palace.

Pardew hardly had a chance to start the season. Nicola Cortese sacked him after only 3 league games (and the last of those being a 4-0 win at Bristol Rovers).

we may have to wait for the 50 year rule to find out the reason for that action, especially as Pardew had taken us to Wembley to win the JPT in his first season.

Although Adkins added some good players to his first season squad, he inherited a few good ones from the (previous) Pardew season.

Pardew did exceptionally well when you consider he started with -10 points. I think Pardew is a good manager...

He had a dictator for a Chairman at Newcastle who sold his best players from under him, and a naive dreamer at Palace who spent big money on some poor choices.

Coupled with a squad full of sub-standard players on long contracts, and major injuries to his key players; I don't think he can be blamed for too much.

Trophies are important, Adkins missed out just...... on two of them. The championship season was immense though

 

Very good for us but certainly not the next great English manager, Ferguson etc

 

He will never ever manage in the prem again unless he promotes a team to it, sadly

That was my favourite season as a Saints fan, unless Ronald gets us into Europa next year and we actually make the group stage.

Pardew hardly had a chance to start the season. Nicola Cortese sacked him after only 3 league games (and the last of those being a 4-0 win at Bristol Rovers).

 

we may have to wait for the 50 year rule to find out the reason for that action, especially as Pardew had taken us to Wembley to win the JPT in his first season.

 

Although Adkins added some good players to his first season squad, he inherited a few good ones from the (previous) Pardew season.

 

Pardew did exceptionally well when you consider he started with -10 points. I think Pardew is a good manager...

 

He had a dictator for a Chairman at Newcastle who sold his best players from under him, and a naive dreamer at Palace who spent big money on some poor choices.

 

Coupled with a squad full of sub-standard players on long contracts, and major injuries to his key players; I don't think he can be blamed for too much.

I wouldn't say he did exceptionally well that season. We were by far the biggest spenders in the league and a lot of other supporters in League One deemed us as underachievers for not making the play offs at least.

Had Pardew been sacked and Adkins appointed in the Summer then we would have ****ed that league.

I wouldn't say he did exceptionally well that season. We were by far the biggest spenders in the league and a lot of other supporters in League One deemed us as underachievers for not making the play offs at least.

 

Had Pardew been sacked and Adkins appointed in the Summer then we would have ****ed that league.

I'd also argue that had we stuck with Pardew the whole season we would have also won the league

I'd also argue that had we stuck with Pardew the whole season we would have also won the league

Not really supported by his results at other clubs recently once the teams got into a losing habit.

I'd also argue that had we stuck with Pardew the whole season we would have also won the league

No evidence to back that up - he couldn't win L1 with Reading and with Reading and WHU only managed the play offs in the division above - with West Ham especially he stuttered and stammered through two Championship seasons with one of, if not the, biggest club in the division.

And his record since then is littered with hot and cold runs of form, verging on triumph (Newcastle 5th) and disaster (Charlton rock bottom of Championship). His last few seasons have been hot and cold and it's been a common theme through his career.

I like Pards and he would have got us out of L1 but he would have been as likely to scrape us through the play offs as win the league, something he has never achieved anywhere.

I'd also argue that had we stuck with Pardew the whole season we would have also won the league

Why not just leave it as "I'd also argue". You clearly have a problem with NA. Most of us liked the bloke and thought that he did a good job for us. He got us two promotions, and the way that he left after NC sacked him was class.

I'd also argue that had we stuck with Pardew the whole season we would have also won the league

It is more than possible that you are both correct. In either case considerable managerial skill was required and Pardew or Adkins respective approaches may have been different

I wouldn't say he did exceptionally well that season.

 

We were by far the biggest spenders in the league and a lot of other supporters in League One deemed us as underachievers for not making the play offs at least.

.

maybe they forgot that we started our first season in L1 with - 10 points?

Just watching Southend against Sheffield Utd......the only saving grace for Adkins is Billy Sharp.....

They are losing again however and **** poor in all depts.

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Everyone ignore the troll.

Oh and Hammond has just scored for the Blades. Looks like the troll was a bit premature with its post

maybe they forgot that we started our first season in L1 with - 10 points?

Or maybe they remember Leeds finishing 5th despite having barely any money and starting on -15 points just two seasons before.

I'd also argue that had we stuck with Pardew the whole season we would have also won the league

Seriously, who the fu ck cares about winning some tinpot league? It's like boasting about cracking one off to xhamster whilst you mate is fu cking Megan Fox. No one fu cking cares.

Everyone ignore the troll.

 

 

Oh and Hammond has just scored for the Blades. Looks like the troll was a bit premature with its post

But shouldn't they be beating teams soundly with the new Alex Ferguson at the helm?

I've always stuck to my beliefs...if that's trolling,so be it.

I would rather be classed that than a sheep blindly following the majority because it carries favour with your peers.

But shouldn't they be beating teams soundly with the new Alex Ferguson at the helm?

 

 

I've always stuck to my beliefs...if that's trolling,so be it.

I would rather be classed that than a sheep blindly following the majority because it carries favour with your peers.

You're just a co ck. A huge throbbing co ck. Your argument is just the argument of a co ck.

You slagged him off and when we pulled it off you disappeared and didn't post for ages because you're a co ck.

When he was sacked you re-appeared, delighted because you're a co ck.

In summary, you're a co ck.

You're just a co ck. A huge throbbing co ck. Your argument is just the argument of a co ck.

 

You slagged him off and when we pulled it off you disappeared and didn't post for ages because you're a co ck.

 

When he was sacked you re-appeared, delighted because you're a co ck.

 

In summary, you're a co ck.

Pretty much nails it.

Just watching Southend against Sheffield Utd......the only saving grace for Adkins is Billy Sharp.....

They are losing again however and **** poor in all depts.

 

 

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Sharp actually ballooned one over the bar when totally clean through one-on-one under no pressure whatsoever. Decent-ish player but never anything special. Bit of a testament to how much our fans love a trier that some were calling for him to play up front in the Premiership in the beginning of our first season (although admittedly this was at the stage where we lost something like 8 games out of 10 and were pretty desperate).

getting sacked in the morning.....

pleased for Sam McQueen and Southend, better team won on the night.

getting sacked in the morning.....

 

pleased for Sam McQueen and Southend, better team won on the night.

Looked like it was Sam who played the ball through for 3rd goal, nice pass. Showed some good quality on the ball I thought.

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Looked like it was Sam who played the ball through for 3rd goal, nice pass. Showed some good quality on the ball I thought.

 

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I think it was, the young lad that scored it looked pretty tidy, decent finish. Not convinced SM has enough to do it at PL level but would love to be proven wrong.

Wow-Sheffield Utd were terrible tonight..... Total dross...

Wouldn't have thought Nige will last there now..... Shame....

The Southend lad Payne was very decent though and would be well worth a punt...man of the match by a mile...

You're just a co ck. A huge throbbing co ck. Your argument is just the argument of a co ck.

 

You slagged him off and when we pulled it off you disappeared and didn't post for ages because you're a co ck.

 

When he was sacked you re-appeared, delighted because you're a co ck.

 

In summary, you're a co ck.

Brilliant contribution.....and many wonder why this place is ****......

And to think....some of you actually pay for this ****.

Same insular posters spouting only the truth in their eyes.....how dare they be questioned.

Final score ...Southend 3-1 Sheffield Utd

Adkins was and still is less than mediocre....bordering on ****.

No wonder he was hailed the new messiah by many on here....the comparisons are there to be seen.

Brilliant contribution.....and many wonder why this place is ****......

And to think....some of you actually pay for this ****.

Same insular posters spouting only the truth in their eyes.....how dare they be questioned.

 

Final score ...Southend 3-1 Sheffield Utd

 

Adkins was and still is less than mediocre....bordering on ****.

No wonder he was hailed the new messiah by many on here....the comparisons are there to be seen.

Being that you only ever post on threads about Nigel Adkins then I think this forum can survive without your sparkling contributions.

Whatever utterly pointless sh ite you post on this forum is never, ever going to change what Nigel Adkins did at our club.

But keep being bitter, it's quite funny if nothing else.

saint lard obviously doesn't like two promotions in two seasons and that's probably because he's a skate.

Skate or not, he's only on the wind up and it's best to ignore him.

Or maybe they remember Leeds finishing 5th despite having barely any money and starting on -15 points just two seasons before.

it's impossible to compare any two clubs...... in two completely different seasons. Different players, different opponents.....

Who'd have thought that we'd be above Chelsea for a whole season?. Good job they got rid of that idiot Mourinho...he'll never get another job - will he?

Palace rumored to be interested in SRL

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/transfers/crystal-palace-transfer-news-rickie-lambert-free-agent-dougie-freedman-steve-parish-a7968586.html

Ahaha...I love SRL. He's my favourite footballer ever but he'd now do well to get a League One club. Hodgsin is a dope.

It's time Rickie bowed out while he still gets a cheer, at least from us

Didn't he do that just before the World Cup?

IMO if he's fit and utilised appropriately he'd still do a job for someone. He's 35, so unless he's broken physically why not?

Yes, I know he's done naff all down the leagues for a while now.....good on him if it happens.

It seems he is broken physically though. Even at Saints he was a player who needed to play 90mins every week to stay sharp.

Its so long since he played regularly, I wouldn't expect him to make any impact at PL level now.

Palace rumored to be interested in SRL

 

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/transfers/crystal-palace-transfer-news-rickie-lambert-free-agent-dougie-freedman-steve-parish-a7968586.html

I do love how papers report things.

Steve Parish is a long-time admirer of the former Liverpool striker

Yes he was a former Liverpool striker, but....

Blackpool - 3

Macclesfield - 44

Stockport - 98

Rochdale - 64

Bristol R - 128

Saints - 207

Liverpool - 25

WBA - 20

Cardiff - 18

I do love how papers report things.

 

Steve Parish is a long-time admirer of the former Liverpool striker

 

Yes he was a former Liverpool striker, but....

 

Blackpool - 3

Macclesfield - 44

Stockport - 98

Rochdale - 64

Bristol R - 128

Saints - 207

Liverpool - 25

WBA - 20

Cardiff - 18

Be fair, he is a striker from Liverpool, I'm sure that's what was meant.

You're just a co ck. A huge throbbing co ck. Your argument is just the argument of a co ck.

 

You slagged him off and when we pulled it off you disappeared and didn't post for ages because you're a co ck.

 

When he was sacked you re-appeared, delighted because you're a co ck.

 

In summary, you're a co ck.

A classic post!

Be fair, he is a striker from Liverpool, I'm sure that's what was meant.

If it meant he's a striker FROM Liverpool it wouldn't say 'former' as he's still a striker from Liverpool. The criticism of Parish seems fair because he's taken the lazy route of linking Rickie to the club he briefly played for that is not even his last Premier League club, but it is one of the media's favourites. There's no doubt that Rickie is properly described as "the former Southampton Striker" but our name sells fewer newspapers.

It's sad to hear that Rickie is still trying to stay fit when he's been out of the game for so long and had become a fringe player. His problem may be finding any other way of earning a living. Even towards the end of his Saints' career he wasn't really a true striker any more but was doing a job in a supporting role. The great shame is that he was ever tempted to go to Liverpool because had he stayed here it's very likely that Saints would have looked after him in the way they have with Radhi Jaidi and Kelvin Davis. Unfortunately, he broke the link and probably regrets it. A nice bloke who made a mistake.

If it meant he's a striker FROM Liverpool it wouldn't say 'former' as he's still a striker from Liverpool. The criticism of Parish seems fair because he's taken the lazy route of linking Rickie to the club he briefly played for that is not even his last Premier League club, but it is one of the media's favourites. There's no doubt that Rickie is properly described as "the former Southampton Striker" but our name sells fewer newspapers.

It's sad to hear that Rickie is still trying to stay fit when he's been out of the game for so long and had become a fringe player. His problem may be finding any other way of earning a living. Even towards the end of his Saints' career he wasn't really a true striker any more but was doing a job in a supporting role. The great shame is that he was ever tempted to go to Liverpool because had he stayed here it's very likely that Saints would have looked after him in the way they have with Radhi Jaidi and Kelvin Davis. Unfortunately, he broke the link and probably regrets it. A nice bloke who made a mistake.

I can't believe anybody who has played Premier League football for 2 years or more would ever have to work again.