Sport Republic

[whelk]

Just now, Badger said:

Agreed. Very underestimated part of the country.

Southampton remains my home town although long since exiled - and I have an attachment to it for that reason - but hand on heart would I want to live there (or surounds) again ? Probably not. Son looked closely at going to Uni in Southampton some years ago, St Mary's of course a great attraction but the trip around the place to be shown the town by the Uni was quite an eye opener. Saw a Police car parked up at one point, and when we got home found out there at been a stabbing !!

You are lucky if go out in Southampton and don’t get stabbed. Wish I could go up north and knock my neighbours open door and borrow some sugar and wax lyrical about how great Brexit is. Police have next to nothing to do up north so I hear

[verlaine1979]

In terms of beauty and liveability, all of the UK is a sh*thole compared to most of the bigger European cities where the top teams play. So there must be a reason why quite a lot of them still choose Manchester and London over Barcelona, Paris or Rome.

Edited 7 October, 2021 by verlaine1979

[Badger]

58 minutes ago, ecuk268 said:

Apparently the Saudi Public Investment Fund will be responsible for the day-to-day running of the club. The head of the PIF is a certain Sheikh Mohammed Bin Salman who, co-incidentally also happens to run Saudi Arabia.

I've read this is another loophole to be closed. Just as Gao was the last one with some dubious history - but nothing pinned on him - to slip in under the radar before that was amended so we'll probably find that post PIF will be to our cost.

Knowing our luck our Texan Oil Magnate/ Austrian Energy Drinks owner/ Former Lymington resident head of a Chemical giant (delete as applicable) will be barred due to an unpaid parking fine.

Or, Mike Fucking Dean heading up the Fit & Proper Persons test.

[whelk]

3 minutes ago, Turkish said:

Last weekend of September in Bamburgh. Show me something better in Southampton. I’ll wait 

This is quite sweet so many Saints fans slagging off their area. Not too late to change your club. Exciting times ahead at Newcastle. Hear there is brilliant night life for all you 40somethings.

[Badger]

4 minutes ago, whelk said:

You are lucky if go out in Southampton and don’t get stabbed. Wish I could go up north and knock my neighbours open door and borrow some sugar and wax lyrical about how great Brexit is. Police have next to nothing to do up north so I hear

Not saying the north is a utopia, god forbid, there are sprawling cesspits galore, but some of the countryside and coast is spectacular. 

[Badger]

8 minutes ago, verlaine1979 said:

Norway's sovereign wealth fund is almost 3x the size of the Saudis' (about $1.3 trillion). Maybe Claus can put in a good word.

That'll do.

[Micky]

I am yet another Southampton exile who holds no interest in going back.  Left at 16, joined the Army and travelled abroad for much of my service.  In fact my only UK mainland posting was in Turkish country - (Penny Pot Lane mate, which probably gives my Corp away).  But I can vouch for the fact that it is a stunning part of the country, with some beautiful areas.  After I left the Army I returned briefly to Southampton but soon decided to move on again - currently I'm settled in Shropshire in the West Midlands, again a stunning part of the country.  There's a whole lot more to the country than what's below Watford Gap.

[kyle04]

9 minutes ago, Turkish said:

Last weekend of September in Bamburgh. Show me something better in Southampton. I’ll wait 

Here you go, enjoy :

 

[Turkish]

4 minutes ago, whelk said:

This is quite sweet so many Saints fans slagging off their area. Not too late to change your club. Exciting times ahead at Newcastle. Hear there is brilliant night life for all you 40somethings.

It’s not my areas pal, I live in north Yorkshire, 2 1/2 hours drive away. Just pointing out some of your southerners need to educate yourselves rather than dismiss anything north of Winchester as a shithole. 

[Badger]

4 minutes ago, whelk said:

This is quite sweet so many Saints fans slagging off their area. Not too late to change your club. Exciting times ahead at Newcastle. Hear there is brilliant night life for all you 40somethings.

But that's the thing, true supporters don't. Something the people who run the clubs play on and exploit.

[Lighthouse]

3 minutes ago, Badger said:

Not saying the north is a utopia, god forbid, there are sprawling cesspits galore, but some of the countryside and coast is spectacular. 

Not doubting that but I very much doubt the likes of Pogba and Grealish would factor walking the dog on Blyth beach or a day trip to Alnwick Castle into their priorities.

[Turkish]

1 minute ago, Micky said:

I am yet another Southampton exile who holds no interest in going back.  Left at 16, joined the Army and travelled abroad for much of my service.  In fact my only UK mainland posting was in Turkish country - (Penny Pot Lane mate, which probably gives my Corp away).  But I can vouch for the fact that it is a stunning part of the country, with some beautiful areas.  After I left the Army I returned briefly to Southampton but soon decided to move on again - currently I'm settled in Shropshire in the West Midlands, again a stunning part of the country.  There's a whole lot more to the country than what's below Watford Gap.

Small world, I drive past that on the way to work every morning. 

[whelk]

1 minute ago, kyle04 said:

Here you go, enjoy :

 

Is that cafe culture I see?

[Lighthouse]

1 minute ago, kyle04 said:

Here you go, enjoy :

 

I can think of one footballers WAG who would agree with you there.

[Badger]

Just now, Lighthouse said:

Not doubting that but I very much doubt the likes of Pogba and Grealish would factor walking the dog on Blyth beach or a day trip to Alnwick Castle into their priorities.

True, although Grealish might be attracted by the nightlife. 

Keegan didn't have too much trouble attracting players to Newcastle I recall. 

[whelk]

1 minute ago, Turkish said:

Small world, I drive past that on the way to work every morning. 

You have a car?!

[whelk]

3 minutes ago, kyle04 said:

Here you go, enjoy :

 

Note it isn’t pissing with rain

[Turkish]

1 minute ago, whelk said:

You have a car?!

Who said anything about a car? I was talking about driving the digger down the road on way to the coal pit. 

[Ex Lion Tamer]

5 minutes ago, Lighthouse said:

Not doubting that but I very much doubt the likes of Pogba and Grealish would factor walking the dog on Blyth beach or a day trip to Alnwick Castle into their priorities.

For every Pogba there's a dullard footballer though. Some of them are actually dedicated to their careers

[whelk]

7 minutes ago, Turkish said:

It’s not my areas pal, I live in north Yorkshire, 2 1/2 hours drive away. Just pointing out some of your southerners need to educate yourselves rather than dismiss anything north of Winchester as a shithole. 

I have travelled you know. Went to Reading away a few years back

[whelk]

1 minute ago, Ex Lion Tamer said:

For every Pogba there's a dullard footballer though. Some of them are actually dedicated to their careers

Milner is knocking on a bit

[LuckyNumber7]

It's a shame so many feel the need to trash Southampton. Of course it's far from perfect but has a lot going for it too.

I've spent a fair bit of time up north, particularly in Leeds and I would hate to live there personally. Never been to Newcastle so won't comment but I'm sure it has it's fair share of 'chicken shops' etc! The weather alone would be enough to put me off though.

I've been living away from Soton now for nearly two years and cannot wait to move back, it's just home. The central parks, the Common, New Forest, even enjoyed Weston Shore and Netley Abbey on a recent visit! And there are loads of nice beaches nearby with the added bonus that it's not always bloody freezing! 

Agree on the whole though that this country is a dump compared to many others. It's the money that attracts players.

[Lighthouse]

4 minutes ago, Badger said:

True, although Grealish might be attracted by the nightlife. 

Keegan didn't have too much trouble attracting players to Newcastle I recall. 

Which just brings us back to my original point; the average Saints player can snatch a draw from the jaws of victory at 5pm and be in a central London VIP section with all his Spurs, Chelsea, West Ham and Arsenal mates, plus a battalion of page three girls and Only Fans ‘models’, by 9pm. Even allowing for a full hour to straighten their hair and dress up like a peacock. 

[CB Fry]

Lovely sentiment here from our Arabic cousins. Hit the translate button.

 

[badgerx16]

5 hours ago, whelk said:

Will also struggle to attract players to a shithole part of the country

is it Badger who will defend the north?

I'll defend the North if it faces down twats with baseless superiority complexes about the South.

( Remember, I was born in the Royal South Hants and went to school in Soton ).

[Fan The Flames]

1 hour ago, Turkish said:

agreed, wouldn’t move back now. Obviously my home town and love it for that reason but wouldn’t want to live there.
 

Last weekend of September in Bamburgh. Show me something better in Southampton. I’ll wait 

Very nice, but it's not Newcastle it's a hour away. Beautiful places within an hour of Southampton too.

[badgerx16]

1 hour ago, Turkish said:

Who said anything about a car? I was talking about driving the digger down the road on way to the coal pit. 

You have a digger ? You jammy bastard. What I'd give for a digger !

 

[whelk]

https://www.statista.com/statistics/866788/crime-rate-england-and-wales-by-region/
 

You need to scroll down for Hampshire 

[aintforever]

2 hours ago, Turkish said:

agreed, wouldn’t move back now. Obviously my home town and love it for that reason but wouldn’t want to live there.
 

Last weekend of September in Bamburgh. Show me something better in Southampton. I’ll wait 

Yeah, they look great, but too bastard cold to be of any use 9/10ths of the year. That’s why there are no expensive hotels or bikini clad beauties in the pics, just a few old tossers with frost-bitten faces walking their dogs.

[skintsaint]

someone get on the blower to Red Bull. RB Saints here we go. Who would sell out to compete in this league?

Personally think now, in a few years time the Super League will happen. The best thing from that will be Spurs and Arsenal not getting an invite but Newcastle will. From a Saints fans perspective I really want the rich clubs to bugger off. Yeah will be financially painful for a number of clubs for a while and some may not make it, but will bring the game back to the punters. Players wages will drop as well. 

[JxgrSaint]

As a young person (unfortunately not a millionaire) - I don’t think I’d leave London for Newcastle even for double or triple the money I’m on tbh.

Where would you spend it? There’s far fewer fashion boutiques; few fine dining establishments (only 24 Michelin star restaurants in the North); all the nightclubs have the Geordie Shore lot in; if one were a foreign player who doesn’t have great English, the Geordie accent would be a struggle; further to fly to get to anywhere nice; even colder than the rest of the country etc…

[whelk]

28 minutes ago, JxgrSaint said:

As a young person (unfortunately not a millionaire) - I don’t think I’d leave London for Newcastle even for double or triple the money I’m on tbh.

Where would you spend it? There’s far fewer fashion boutiques; few fine dining establishments (only 24 Michelin star restaurants in the North); all the nightclubs have the Geordie Shore lot in; if one were a foreign player who doesn’t have great English, the Geordie accent would be a struggle; further to fly to get to anywhere nice; even colder than the rest of the country etc…

Think of the expansive empty beaches though.. Couple of wind breaks and some towels over you and you might not freeze.

[Saintletiss]

Spurs and Arsenal will be looking over their shoulders - this morning the European Super League will be scratching out their names and calling Riyadh instead. 

Same for Mino Railoa and all the other 'super agents' - how long til the new Newcastle chairman declares that Haaland is the number 1 target.

As some have said above, I'd love to hear the discussion at Everton.... 

[Turkish]

7 hours ago, aintforever said:

Yeah, they look great, but too bastard cold to be of any use 9/10ths of the year. That’s why there are no expensive hotels or bikini clad beauties in the pics, just a few old tossers with frost-bitten faces walking their dogs.

meanwhile on Weston shore

 

 

[Ex Lion Tamer]

6 hours ago, skintsaint said:

Personally think now, in a few years time the Super League will happen. The best thing from that will be Spurs and Arsenal not getting an invite but Newcastle will. From a Saints fans perspective I really want the rich clubs to bugger off. Yeah will be financially painful for a number of clubs for a while and some may not make it, but will bring the game back to the punters. Players wages will drop as well. 

We could also achieve this by getting relegated to the championship, if it's really what you want

Edited 8 October, 2021 by Ex Lion Tamer

[skintsaint]

9 minutes ago, Ex Lion Tamer said:

We could also achieve this by getting relegated to the championship, if it's really what you want

Not really, without the top 6 and if we were still in the top league, I reckon we would attract decent players as wages would be down due to less money in the game. Would players like JWP be on 100k per week without a move to a Euro super league? No chance. If we went down as football is now we would be paying pretty wank players 20-40k per week still.

[skintsaint]

p.s any betting sites taking on bets for Kane to Newcastle? Might give that 10 bucks. Statement of intent signing seeing as the others cant afford his wages/fee it seems.

[Billy the Kidd]

21 minutes ago, Turkish said:

meanwhile on Weston shore

 

 

hmmmm.

 

[S-Clarke]

14 hours ago, egg said:

Now that's a question! Personally, I'm OK with Gao. He keeps out of the way, doesn't take money out of the club, and has appointed some decent people (Semmens, Crocker). Just a shame he's potless. I'm not sure what Ashley would bring to the party. 

Sorry egg, I can't agree with that at all. I don't understand how people can be ok with him.

Don't be fooled into thinking he's appointed anyone, he has advisors in this country who he tells to go and do whatever. Semmens himself has said that he's managing the takeover enquiries, he manages the day to day, he appoints the managers, he appoints people like Crocker etc. There's zero involvement from Gao and he has no say in the day-to-day running of the football club. Out of choice, I might add - he's not interested.

For me, that's bad. Not just in a financial sense but because there's no shared interest top down, all this creates is a situation where a club is in limbo without any clear objectives from above. We're in a situation whereby we're just being kept 'ticking over' by business people on this side of the pond, who aren't themselves the people who should be setting the goals or plans.

There's nothing positive about the Gao reign. The longer he stays the more damage that is being done.

Edited 8 October, 2021 by S-Clarke

[Highfield Saint]

https://www.propertyinvestortoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2021/10/the-uks-next-property-hotspots-where-to-invest-in-2021-and-beyond

Sandwiched between two national parks and the coast. Easy access to international travel and the capital. Better climate than many areas

https://www.centreforcities.org/publication/southampton-city-centre/

Fundamentals and masterplan for growth are in place

Southampton has been in the top three growth cities for a quite a few years now and has an opportunity to consolidate primarily by being the regional office hub that the area lacks with significant new office developments in the city master plan

Portsmouth - Southampton metropolitan area population - 1.547m (Tyneside - 1.599m, Liverpool - 2.241m)

Not denegrating the north in anyway of course

[CB Fry]

5 minutes ago, S-Clarke said:

Sorry egg, I can't agree with that at all. I don't understand how people can be ok with him.

Don't be fooled into thinking he's appointed anyone, he has advisors in this country who he tells to go and do whatever. Semmens himself has said that he's managing the takeover enquiries, he manages the day to day, he appoints the managers, he appoints people like Crocker etc. There's zero involvement from Gao and he has no say in the day-to-day running of the football club. Out of choice, I might add - he's not interested.

For me, that's bad. Not just in a financial sense but because there's no shared interest top down, all this creates is a situation where a club is in limbo without any clear objectives from above. We're in a situation whereby we're just being kept 'ticking over' by business people on this side of the pond, who aren't themselves the people who should be setting the goals or plans.

There's nothing positive about the Gao reign. The longer he stays the more damage that is being done.

This doesn't really make sense. If you're not accepting that Gao appointed decent people like Semmens ("his advisors did") then fair enough Gao has got himself good advisors, so Egg's point still stands.

If Semmens was awful you'd be blaming that on Gao without a second thought, so I don't get why you need to distance him from the decision when the guy we have seems pretty good.

It's weird you want a Chinese guy to impose more control and set "clear objectives" when from what I can see there is an incredibly clear strategy, Semmens seems completely empowered to activate it. I don't really see how Gao being significantly more visible would be any real benefit vs where we are now.

Or, as I suspect, you don't really want "clearer objectives" or "shared interest" whatsoever.

You just want us to outbid Villa or Everton for some striker from Belgium. Just say that. You don't want us to be skint anymore. Fine. Just say that.

 

 

[HarvSFC]

1 hour ago, skintsaint said:

p.s any betting sites taking on bets for Kane to Newcastle? Might give that 10 bucks. Statement of intent signing seeing as the others cant afford his wages/fee it seems.

Kane to beat Shearer's Premier League goal scoring record at Newcastle.

[saint michael]

1 hour ago, skintsaint said:

p.s any betting sites taking on bets for Kane to Newcastle? Might give that 10 bucks. Statement of intent signing seeing as the others cant afford his wages/fee it seems.

I thought they were taking Cole to Newcastle 😬

[Whitey Grandad]

9 hours ago, aintforever said:

Yeah, they look great, but too bastard cold to be of any use 9/10ths of the year. That’s why there are no expensive hotels or bikini clad beauties in the pics, just a few old tossers with frost-bitten faces walking their dogs.

We went up there a couple of years ago. The reason the beach is empty is because it’s bloody miles from where you can park and there’s a golf course in the way. Or that might have been some other deserted beach up that way.

[Weston Super Saint]

1 hour ago, Turkish said:

meanwhile on Weston shore

 

 

I think you'll find this is the 'real' Weston shore  

[CB Fry]

I'll try and upload some pictures of the famous Derbyshire coastline later on.

[Wade Garrett]

The north is a shithole.  Full of pissed up, workshy, flatcap wearing wankers.

They moan like fuck about the South, but it is our hard work and endeavour that finance their backward lifestyles.

 

[Ex Lion Tamer]

21 minutes ago, CB Fry said:

This doesn't really make sense. If you're not accepting that Gao appointed decent people like Semmens ("his advisors did") then fair enough Gao has got himself good advisors, so Egg's point still stands.

If Semmens was awful you'd be blaming that on Gao without a second thought, so I don't get why you need to distance him from the decision when the guy we have seems pretty good.

It's weird you want a Chinese guy to impose more control and set "clear objectives" when from what I can see there is an incredibly clear strategy, Semmens seems completely empowered to activate it. I don't really see how Gao being significantly more visible would be any real benefit vs where we are now.

Or, as I suspect, you don't really want "clearer objectives" or "shared interest" whatsoever.

You just want us to outbid Villa or Everton for some striker from Belgium. Just say that. You don't want us to be skint anymore. Fine. Just say that.

 

 

Exactly, it has a lot more to do with an emotional desire for a "regular guy" at the top, ideally English, who will speak to the fans and seem nice. Ok Gao doesn't do that, but all that stuff is window dressing.  He's overseeing the club well enough, he just can't invest unfortunately

[Dellman]

I wish Gao had never bought us and that we had an owner with a local presence and some real interest in us other than as an investment for his own gain or for his own ego in China. But we have got him and the good side is that he doesn't interfere with the people who are in day to day charge and they have a clear  policy and are capable of carrying it out. Things could be a lot worse. It is the rich clubs who are living in a bubble, we are in the real world. Its only a section of fans who don't accept the realities and want to be in the bubble.

[hackedoff]

So, in a nutshell the reason we were not considered was not enough nice beaches and too many chicken shops.