no forwards.....

[modern matron]

except Rickie, Connelly out, Barnard needs an op for a hernia! Poor old Nigel has been left with a very empty squad hopefully NC will back him in the loan market quickly. Surely we can't afford to wait with 3 games in a week next week......

[doddisalegend]

except Rickie, Connelly out, Barnard needs an op for a hernia! Poor old Nigel has been left with a very empty squad hopefully NC will back him in the loan market quickly. Surely we can't afford to wait with 3 games in a week next week......

 

not strictly true we have................................

 

http://www.saintsfc.co.uk/page/ProfilesDetail/0,,10280~47722,00.html

 

Not that I know much about him. Surely though if he is touted as a first teamer and a striker he should be able to step up as short term cover ?

[Causer]

Saw Doble v Eastleigh, he is very quick and works hard but lacks a quality first touch, his lack of height would also mean he we would be dealt with quite easily by League Once centre backs. I think he will be a decent player in the future but he is not ready now IMO. We need one or two strikers in on loan this week.

[John D]

Where did the news about Barnard come from?

[Smirking_Saint]

We need to sort loans and sharpish, i must admit, the fact that we have been so quiet for so long regardless of the needed reinforcements is beginning to worry me.

 

(change of manager noted)

[modern matron]

We need to sort loans and sharpish, i must admit, the fact that we have been so quiet for so long regardless of the needed reinforcements is beginning to worry me.

 

(change of manager noted)

 

I know what you mean - surely NA can work out we need forwards now - so why are we waiting?

[modern matron]

Where did the news about Barnard come from?

 

On Solent interview with NA he said that LB was not fit and was playing for the team. Someone posted that LB said that it was a hernia...

[NickG]

where is it said he needs op?

[NickG]

http://www.saintsfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10280~2159477,00.html

 

"little condition we are trying to manage"

[trousers]

http://www.saintsfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10280~2159477,00.html

 

"little condition we are trying to manage"

 

Like they did with Lallana in the summer...?

[offix]

what happened to Connelly?

[JustMike]

if it is an hernia why wasnt it operated on whilst he was banned

[teamsaint]

if it is an hernia why wasnt it operated on whilst he was banned

 

quite. If its a routine hernia, he could have been playing again in a few weeks...

 

We really don't have time to waste now.

[charliegeorgesflymo]

On Solent interview with NA he said that LB was not fit and was playing for the team. Someone posted that LB said that it was a hernia...

 

Just had a double hernia op myself and can truly say very painful and takes a while to heal - appreciate Barnard is younger and much fitter than me but will take a month - wonder why it wasnt done during his enforced absence?

[MorningtonCrescent]

Remember Barnard taking a tumble at the Chapel End on Saturday? Some physio attention needed and he played on? Perhaps, just perhaps, that's when he picked up the hernia problem?!

 

People are so quick to criticise the medics at Saints! Get a grip!

[SaintRichmond]

except Rickie, Connelly out, Barnard needs an op for a hernia! Poor old Nigel has been left with a very empty squad hopefully NC will back him in the loan market quickly. Surely we can't afford to wait with 3 games in a week next week......

 

I certainly hope so

 

If someone is monitoring this site on behalf of Cortese, please relay the fact that we DO need to strengthen the Squad

 

What happened under Pardew is HISTORY, and Adkins must NOT suffer because he has inherited a disjointed Squad

 

Those "deficiencies" were there long before Pardew left, so now we will find out whether the "Budget" has all been used up until next year

 

If it has, then Cortese MUST accept that our "progress" this season will be limited, to say the least

[SaintRichmond]

I know what you mean - surely NA can work out we need forwards now - so why are we waiting?

 

Cortese has hidden his Purse until the next Financial year. Perhaps Pardew wanted to strengthen, but was told the cupboard was bare ???

[Joensuu]

Or perhaps Pardew decided not to spend the cash Cortese wanted him to.

 

Point is, we don't know the answer, so shouldn't use a lack of evidence to have a go at Cortese.

[SaintRichmond]

Or perhaps Pardew decided not to spend the cash Cortese wanted him to.

 

Point is, we don't know the answer, so shouldn't use a lack of evidence to have a go at Cortese.

 

It's not a go at Cortese

 

Perhaps he is working to the original financial strategy of the Five Year Plan

 

IMHO, it is common knowledge that more money was released to Pardew LAST season, on the "understanding" that Pardew put the League as No 1 priority. He didn't, so we are now in the situation of having "overspent" was was forecast for getting out of Div 1

 

That, IMHO, is not the fault of Cortese, but, as the situation has now changed, ie Pardew gone and Adkins in, I feel the financial situation has to be reviewed

 

I don't think Adkins can do too much with a limited strike force

[miserableoldgit]

It's not a go at Cortese

 

Perhaps he is working to the original financial strategy of the Five Year Plan

 

IMHO, it is common knowledge that more money was released to Pardew LAST season, on the "understanding" that Pardew put the League as No 1 priority. He didn't, so we are now in the situation of having "overspent" was was forecast for getting out of Div 1

 

That, IMHO, is not the fault of Cortese, but, as the situation has now changed, ie Pardew gone and Adkins in, I feel the financial situation has to be reviewed

 

I don't think Adkins can do too much with a limited strike force

 

Is it common knowledge or is it assumption and rumour. I somehow doubt that anyone on this forum has any intimate knowledge of the financial workings of SFC and the intricacies of the "5 Year Plan".

[SaintRichmond]

Is it common knowledge or is it assumption and rumour. I somehow doubt that anyone on this forum has any intimate knowledge of the financial workings of SFC and the intricacies of the "5 Year Plan".

 

OK, lets start with Facts then

 

We are currently in the Second year of the Five Year Plan

 

Progress ?? We are currently 22nd of 24. only goal difference keeping us from being bottom

 

Conjecture ??? Right from Pre Pre season, it was the opinion of many Genuine Football Pundits that we needed to either sign or replace Antonio and Papa. We did neither, so we were therefore TWO strikers short from last season

 

It does not look as if any Serious attempt has been made to bring more Quality in, so, a lot of people have come to the conclusion that whoever is in charge has to run with what we have

 

Now me personally do not think that augers well for any serious Promotion push theis season, and if that comes to pass, then that will be the 2nd Year of the Five Year Plan gone down the drain

 

That leaves THREE years left to reach the Prem ???? I don't think so

 

The Leibherr Family are good genuine people, but I honestly do not think they have the same Passion for Saints as Markus obviously did

 

I would venture to suggest that whereas Cortese could agree something over the phone with Markus Leibherr, he has nothing like the same leeway with the Family now

[Saint_John]

....

That, IMHO, is not the fault of Cortese, but, as the situation has now changed, ie Pardew gone and Adkins in, I feel the financial situation has to be reviewed

....

 

There may also be other issues like Markus estate ?

Does anybody know whether Probate has been granted on his estate yet ?

 

Certainly in this country things like Bank Accounts are Frozen until Probate is granted.

It doesn't mean the money is not there to fund loan signing but at the moment it MAY NOT be accessed. (? Didn't Nicola make a quick trip back to Switzerland when we were trying to sort out the money for Adkins ?).

 

I've tried reading up

http://geneva.angloinfo.com/countries/switzerland/wills.asp

but when the first paragraph says things like this I knew I was out of my depth.

International inheritance and estate matters can be very complex, in particular if your assets are located in different countries. Moreover, disposing of your estate may trigger tax consequences.

[PokingFun]

It's not a go at Cortese

 

Perhaps he is working to the original financial strategy of the Five Year Plan

 

IMHO, it is common knowledge that more money was released to Pardew LAST season, on the "understanding" that Pardew put the League as No 1 priority. He didn't, so we are now in the situation of having "overspent" was was forecast for getting out of Div 1

 

That, IMHO, is not the fault of Cortese, but, as the situation has now changed, ie Pardew gone and Adkins in, I feel the financial situation has to be reviewed

 

I don't think Adkins can do too much with a limited strike force

 

I often hear that AP did not put L1 first last season but cannot recall any instances where our playing in the cups affected the league situation. It's not as if we had shed loads of injuries resulting from cup games last season that meant we were not able to compete .... What AP did do was play strong sides in the cups to maintain continuity and promote a winning mentality and he was successful at doing that over the course of the season post the poor start.

[The Kraken]

I often hear that AP did not put L1 first last season but cannot recall any instances where our playing in the cups affected the league situation. It's not as if we had shed loads of injuries resulting from cup games last season that meant we were not able to compete .... What AP did do was play strong sides in the cups to maintain continuity and promote a winning mentality and he was successful at doing that over the course of the season post the poor start.

 

There were occasions last season where we played a midweek cup game, then at the subsequent weekend league game would "only" get a draw. That led some to conclude that the cup runs had a detrimental effect on our league form (despite some of the league games being away games, where a draw perhaps wasn't a bad result). It also negates to take into account that the cup games allowed squad members to come into the team to keep sharp, when the likes of Fonte, Puncheon etc were cup tied.

 

We certainly didn't downplay the cups, with Pardew always playing a strong side. However we had a good run last year with very few injuries, and I never bought into the suggestion that the cup run had a directly negative impact on our league form.

[SaintRichmond]

I often hear that AP did not put L1 first last season but cannot recall any instances where our playing in the cups affected the league situation. It's not as if we had shed loads of injuries resulting from cup games last season that meant we were not able to compete .... What AP did do was play strong sides in the cups to maintain continuity and promote a winning mentality and he was successful at doing that over the course of the season post the poor start.

 

We will have to agree to disagree

 

I do not have all the facts to hand, but in essence, we had caught up the -10 and were circa 6 points from the Top Six in the League by Christmass

 

By March we had slipped to circa -15 from the Top Six,

 

So, to me, the argument that we had to make up -10 does not hold water, because we HAD made it up

 

The "Fall off" from a Top Six spot happened AFTER that, and IMHO, the involvement with the Cups DID have a major bearing on our League form

 

I am convinced that Leibherr/Cortese's Main Priority WAS the League, and I am equally convinced that Pardew did NOTfully go along with the Owners wishes

 

Going to Wembley was great, of course it was, but it was at a cost of One Year of the Five Year Plan, thus resulting in another season(at least) in Division One

 

IMHO, quite a few of the currnet Squad have at last realised that fact, and some will want away come January, and THAT will be the real legacy of Pardew

s

[Ivan Katalinic's 'tache]

Didn't Dean Wilkins say something about they were still trying to bring in players on deadline day, even though AP had gone? I'm sure it's just a case of NA running the rule over the current crop of players and then making a decision about what we need.

 

I think our impatience comes from the fact that we've suffered watching the team much more than him and have a distinct headstart in knowing what might be required!

[SaintRichmond]

Didn't Dean Wilkins say something about they were still trying to bring in players on deadline day' date=' even though AP had gone? [b']I'm sure it's just a case of NA running the rule over the current crop of players and then making a decision about what we need[/b].

 

I think our impatience comes from the fact that we've suffered watching the team much more than him and have a distinct headstart in knowing what might be required!

 

You mean we have to wait until NA has played Pulis before we have a chance of buying a Footballer ???

[once_bitterne]

and when you think this year's squad is also minus Papa Waigo and Antonio it's easy to see why we haven't scored a goal since AP left....

[Jones91]

Whats wrong with Chamberlain then?

[sandwichsaint]

I don’t really buy this ‘Pardew prioritised the cups’ business, for one ‘why would he?’; he was in a supposedly secure job and a key part of a five-year plan, what motivation would he have for flying in the face of the owner’s and his boss’s direct instructions as to what his priorities were?

In my view AP, whatever your view on him, did a pretty tidy job last season – on the field he turned round a wreck of a football team, built a decent squad, won a lot of games, and delivered the club’s first trophy for 35 years. More importantly he restored the spirit and the belief around the club and the fans – call it the feelgood factor – and he put us in a position at the end of last season where we were justifiably favourites to go up this season, the second year of the 5 year plan…. job done! Of course we might have gone up last season but it’s all ifs-and-ands now; most reasonable people would have taken two years from where we started from and the outlook for this season was at that stage very promising. AP had built a decent squad but appeared to have that knocked from under him, or he thought he could do better than Antonio/Waigo but the money was not forthcoming, or he, or somebody else(?) thought a new LB was a priority signing?

What followed has been nothing short of a disaster on the pitch and off it. A shoddy attempt to palm AP off at the end of the season, players let go and not replaced, a shambles of a ST sales, a really poor pre-season, poor player morale (before and after APs sacking), a series of misjudgements and PR gaffes from the chairman, all underpinned with the loss of our dear saviour.

Hopefully now we will stabilise under NA and I just hope he is given the time to do the job he is clearly capable of, with the very restricted resources he currently has. We are desperate for forward options with none of our three (!) established forwards currently in the best of shape or form. Guess the next few months will tell us what sort of club and what sort of team we are going to become…..

None or limited loan and transfer activity and we can start to think the worst – the money has either run out (unlikely in my opinion though it starts to look like it) or, as alluded to above, NC spent more than he wanted to last Jan and needs to keep the purse strings tight for the next twelve months? If this is the case I think it would be a major gamble from NC and the club – we have a good squad and an excellent manager and still have all to play for this season, but we are desperately short in certain areas -what’s the point of saving for a rainy day that never comes? If we don’t get the personnel in to kick start our season while there’s still time we will effectively condemn ourselves to another year at this level, with the strong likelihood that some players will want-away in Jan or at the end of the season, leading to a possible downgrading of the squad that has been assembled at considerable (in Div 3 terms) cost.

In my book NC has redeemed himself somewhat with an excellent appointment in NA, now he needs to back him with a decent loan or two to give the team and the fans a lift.

[PokingFun]

We will have to agree to disagree

 

I do not have all the facts to hand, but in essence, we had caught up the -10 and were circa 6 points from the Top Six in the League by Christmass

 

By March we had slipped to circa -15 from the Top Six,

 

So, to me, the argument that we had to make up -10 does not hold water, because we HAD made it up

 

The "Fall off" from a Top Six spot happened AFTER that, and IMHO, the involvement with the Cups DID have a major bearing on our League form

 

I am convinced that Leibherr/Cortese's Main Priority WAS the League, and I am equally convinced that Pardew did NOTfully go along with the Owners wishes

 

Going to Wembley was great, of course it was, but it was at a cost of One Year of the Five Year Plan, thus resulting in another season(at least) in Division One

 

IMHO, quite a few of the currnet Squad have at last realised that fact, and some will want away come January, and THAT will be the real legacy of Pardew

s

 

OK, this is our record month by month during last season:

 

August - 3 league games / 5 league points / Avg 0.6 per game / 2 x cup games

September - 6 / 5 / 1.2 / 0 x cup games

October - 5 / 12 / 2.4 / 1 x cup game

November - 4 / 3 / 1.33 / 3 x cup games

December - 6 / 12 / 2 / 1 x cup game

January - 5 / 3 / 1.67 / 3 x cup games

February - 8 / 4 / 2 / 2 x cup games

March - 12 / 6 / 2 / 1 x cup games

Apr / May - 9 / 17 / 1.89 0 x cup games

 

I suppose if you were being picky you could argue that having 3 x cup games per month led to slightly lesser performance in those months but equally there were other months with no cup games where we averaged less than 2 points per game. This quite clearly shows that the main issue for us was the start coupled with the deduction when you look at the first two months. The cup had little to do with it as we averaged 2 points per game after the first two months which is league winning / auto promotion form.

 

I would be interested to hear who you think might have been rested for the cup games and what improvement that would have made to our season. All I can see here is a team with a really good record month by month after the poor start and unfortunately the gap was too big to close in the end. Also, I don't actually recall that we had actually closed the ten point gap or ever got too close to 6th as the teams that ended up in the play offs continued to perform at a level that didn't allow our good form to close the gap on them.

 

I think your view is harsh to say the least and most pundits I have heard from in the media suggest that to get us as close as we got was a fantastic effort.

[miserableoldgit]

OK, lets start with Facts then

 

We are currently in the Second year of the Five Year Plan

Progress ?? We are currently 22nd of 24. only goal difference keeping us from being bottom

 

Conjecture ??? Right from Pre Pre season, it was the opinion of many Genuine Football Pundits that we needed to either sign or replace Antonio and Papa. We did neither, so we were therefore TWO strikers short from last season

 

It does not look as if any Serious attempt has been made to bring more Quality in, so, a lot of people have come to the conclusion that whoever is in charge has to run with what we have

 

Now me personally do not think that augers well for any serious Promotion push theis season, and if that comes to pass, then that will be the 2nd Year of the Five Year Plan gone down the drain

 

That leaves THREE years left to reach the Prem ???? I don't think so

 

The Leibherr Family are good genuine people, but I honestly do not think they have the same Passion for Saints as Markus obviously did

 

I would venture to suggest that whereas Cortese could agree something over the phone with Markus Leibherr, he has nothing like the same leeway with the Family now

Whilst technically you are right, I would prefer to say that we were just over a year into the "5 Year Plan". This season is not a write-off just yet.

[Window Cleaner]

Saw Doble v Eastleigh, he is very quick and works hard but lacks a quality first touch, his lack of height would also mean he we would be dealt with quite easily by League Once centre backs. I think he will be a decent player in the future but he is not ready now IMO. We need one or two strikers in on loan this week.

 

so it's true that you only need to possess a pair of flash boots to get a game with Wales U21s then

[Mowgli]

I seem to recall the OS building up Butterfield as a stand in striker too...

[Clifford Nelson]

We still have Guly on loan. His favoured position is as a "no 10" which usually means somebody playing as we say "in the hole". That should do us, and if he isn't good enough we know not to sign him in January. He had an outing in the U-21s. Did anybody see him?

 

What wouldn't I give for young master Waigo to still be here...

[Rebel]

Connolly has strained a muscle in the abdomen or something like that!

 

I must admit when we signed Connolly in the summer on another one year deal I thought it meant the money to bring in the players we needed really wasn't there - at best he is a substitute player because at his age and with his injury record he was never going to last a full season

 

it was a cheap option - because there was nothing else

 

if Lambert and Barnard were both fully match fit for the start of the season we might have been OK - but the reality is you need at least 4 strikers to see you through a season and at best we've only got two and a half!

[The Kraken]

I seem to recall the OS building up Butterfield as a stand in striker too...

 

Which would be handy if we had someone who could fill in for him at right back. Apart from a left footed Dan Harding, we apparently don't.

[COMEONYOUREDS]

I seem to recall the OS building up Butterfield as a stand in striker too...

 

he scored a hat trick once

[Window Cleaner]

[quote=Clifford Nelson;856340 He had an outing in the U-21s. Did anybody see him?

 

.

 

 

there is a reflection on his performance on one of the two threads covering that game, I seem to recall that Holmes was the only

player worth keeping was about the jist of it.

[egg]

so it's true that you only nee

d to possess a pair of flash boots to get a game with Wales U21s then

 

Probably. Pulis has 4 caps for them.

[eelpie]

not strictly true we have................................

 

http://www.saintsfc.co.uk/page/ProfilesDetail/0,,10280~47722,00.html

 

Not that I know much about him. Surely though if he is touted as a first teamer and a striker he should be able to step up as short term cover ?

 

And Guly has also been on the score sheet for the SaintDevs. He should be played on Saturday.

[Ivan Katalinic's 'tache]

Which would be handy if we had someone who could fill in for him at right back. Apart from a left footed Dan Harding, we apparently don't.

 

I'm sure I read a rumour someone posted about Sam Argent training with the 1st team. It all fits, Argent at RB and Butterfield up front. And Saints nil. Again.

[NickG]

except Rickie, Connelly out, Barnard needs an op for a hernia! Poor old Nigel has been left with a very empty squad hopefully NC will back him in the loan market quickly. Surely we can't afford to wait with 3 games in a week next week......

 

has it been said he needs an op or was this made up?

[NickG]

except Rickie, Connelly out, Barnard needs an op for a hernia! Poor old Nigel has been left with a very empty squad hopefully NC will back him in the loan market quickly. Surely we can't afford to wait with 3 games in a week next week......

 

Barnard training today.

[leftback]

I don’t really buy this ‘Pardew prioritised the cups’ business, for one ‘why would he?’; he was in a supposedly secure job and a key part of a five-year plan, what motivation would he have for flying in the face of the owner’s and his boss’s direct instructions as to what his priorities were?

In my view AP, whatever your view on him, did a pretty tidy job last season – on the field he turned round a wreck of a football team, built a decent squad, won a lot of games, and delivered the club’s first trophy for 35 years. More importantly he restored the spirit and the belief around the club and the fans – call it the feelgood factor – and he put us in a position at the end of last season where we were justifiably favourites to go up this season, the second year of the 5 year plan…. job done! Of course we might have gone up last season but it’s all ifs-and-ands now; most reasonable people would have taken two years from where we started from and the outlook for this season was at that stage very promising. AP had built a decent squad but appeared to have that knocked from under him, or he thought he could do better than Antonio/Waigo but the money was not forthcoming, or he, or somebody else(?) thought a new LB was a priority signing?

What followed has been nothing short of a disaster on the pitch and off it. A shoddy attempt to palm AP off at the end of the season, players let go and not replaced, a shambles of a ST sales, a really poor pre-season, poor player morale (before and after APs sacking), a series of misjudgements and PR gaffes from the chairman, all underpinned with the loss of our dear saviour.

Hopefully now we will stabilise under NA and I just hope he is given the time to do the job he is clearly capable of, with the very restricted resources he currently has. We are desperate for forward options with none of our three (!) established forwards currently in the best of shape or form. Guess the next few months will tell us what sort of club and what sort of team we are going to become…..

None or limited loan and transfer activity and we can start to think the worst – the money has either run out (unlikely in my opinion though it starts to look like it) or, as alluded to above, NC spent more than he wanted to last Jan and needs to keep the purse strings tight for the next twelve months? If this is the case I think it would be a major gamble from NC and the club – we have a good squad and an excellent manager and still have all to play for this season, but we are desperately short in certain areas -what’s the point of saving for a rainy day that never comes? If we don’t get the personnel in to kick start our season while there’s still time we will effectively condemn ourselves to another year at this level, with the strong likelihood that some players will want-away in Jan or at the end of the season, leading to a possible downgrading of the squad that has been assembled at considerable (in Div 3 terms) cost.

In my book NC has redeemed himself somewhat with an excellent appointment in NA, now he needs to back him with a decent loan or two to give the team and the fans a lift.

 

there really is no need for me now,this is 100pc correct.BELIEVE me. now just scrutinise REED,HUNTER and BURKE all substandard,even for 3rd tier. check their football backgrounds and please dont quote reeds fa/england career he was admin only and laughed at in a tracksuit, bbc, balls bibs and cones only, hodgson sacked him in record time for talking out of turn to players at fulham. set up all admin `only for the courses at the fa,so probably ok at staplewood ,but has appointed poorly,cronies only.secured job till retirement by having no threats around him.

[Clifford Nelson]

there is a reflection on his performance on one of the two threads covering that game, I seem to recall that Holmes was the only

player worth keeping was about the jist of it.

 

I noticed. It wasn't very analytical, so I'm not convinced. He played 39 games and scored 9 goals in a key position in the team to take it to Serie A. Complete crap don't do those sort of things.

[miserableoldgit]

there really is no need for me now,this is 100pc correct.BELIEVE me. now just scrutinise REED,HUNTER and BURKE all substandard,even for 3rd tier. check their football backgrounds and please dont quote reeds fa/england career he was admin only and laughed at in a tracksuit, bbc, balls bibs and cones only, hodgson sacked him in record time for talking out of turn to players at fulham. set up all admin `only for the courses at the fa,so probably ok at staplewood ,but has appointed poorly,cronies only.secured job till retirement by having no threats around him.

Even Babel Fish is having a problem with this! I think that you need to reduce the dosage.

[COMEONYOUREDS]

there really is no need for me now,this is 100pc correct.BELIEVE me. now just scrutinise REED,HUNTER and BURKE all substandard,even for 3rd tier. check their football backgrounds and please dont quote reeds fa/england career he was admin only and laughed at in a tracksuit, bbc, balls bibs and cones only, hodgson sacked him in record time for talking out of turn to players at fulham. set up all admin `only for the courses at the fa,so probably ok at staplewood ,but has appointed poorly,cronies only.secured job till retirement by having no threats around him.

 

bore

[Joensuu]

there really is no need for me now,this is 100pc correct.BELIEVE me. now just scrutinise REED,HUNTER and BURKE all substandard,even for 3rd tier. check their football backgrounds and please dont quote reeds fa/england career he was admin only and laughed at in a tracksuit, bbc, balls bibs and cones only, hodgson sacked him in record time for talking out of turn to players at fulham. set up all admin `only for the courses at the fa,so probably ok at staplewood ,but has appointed poorly,cronies only.secured job till retirement by having no threats around him.

 

How about Burkes' Man City track record? Or Hunter's Norwich City/Bradford/Watford credentials. All three of them seem well qualified to me. They seem well respected in the game. What evidence do you base your (really rather libelous) accusations on?

[up and away]

I don’t really buy this ‘Pardew prioritised the cups’ business, for one ‘why would he?’; he was in a supposedly secure job and a key part of a five-year plan, what motivation would he have for flying in the face of the owner’s and his boss’s direct instructions as to what his priorities were?

 

It's difficult to understand, but Pardew clearly stated in the programme notes (quoted in the Echo) after getting through to the JPT final, that he had "deliberately prioritised the cups". Directly following that Cortese gave his Solent interview stating that the league was the top, top priority. Going on to say that sanctioning of our January spending was solely in line with that aim. If you look at all the top teams, Saints consistently put out the strongest sides, with Leeds changing out 7 players when they played us at home just prior to mid-week legs. Our basic problem was the fitness required to get results, we just could not consistently string 2 games a week without our performances suffering. And if you prioritise on the cup game, it will come as no surprise that your chances in the following league game will diminish.

 

What's even more difficult to believe is Pardew's comments after the Bolton game, stating "it was not a priority game but we treated it as such anyway". I found that comment very strange but as we beat Bristol Rovers easily on the Saturday, it never resulted in a negative impact.