Pre Season Friendlies 2025/26

[Holmes_and_Watson]

3 hours ago, hypochondriac said:

So people weren't bothered about people dying at the football just a decade ago? Not sure I believe that. 

A decent percentage of people in the early days of football, would collapse from cholera, or from their lungs being unable to cope with anythng other than fetid pit air. It was just part of a normal match day. 🙂

I'd not say that people weren't bothered before. That would be callous and not remotely backed up by lots of occasions of fans helping each other. But there does seem to be a shift in people looking for a football match to continue while someone is in possibly a life threatening situation in the ground.

I don't think there's been any rules changes, and no doubt there are other medical situations that are taken care of without stoppage. But when it's as serious as that, technology links up the various medical and safety teams, so that action can be quickly taken, with on site defibrillators there to save lives. It's surely easier for everyone to be aware of the situation and allow as swift and focused attention as possible to aid that individual.

There's probably VAR checks that have had longer stoppages.

[CSA96]

3 hours ago, Midfield_General said:

- Edozie got into some decent positions but didn’t do a lot with it. Should have scored, but missed the ball completely. Got free later but misplaced his pass 

[for_heaven's_Saint]

RE: the guy that collapsed- it was literally right in front of me. The guy next to him, who I think was his dad, sort of grabbed him and helped him down to the ground and he narrowly missed hitting his head on the bar in front of him.  It was fairly obvious that he had just fainted but obviously needed to not take any risks. 
 

I do agree that it’s not always necessary to stop the game but when everyone around him called the stewards, they didn’t really do anything other than talk into their walkie talkies. There were no medical staff on our side of the ground.  If it actually had been a heart attack or something, time would be of the essence so, given the lack of anyone coming to help, the crowd shouted to the players and they called the club physios over. 
 

It was just a sensible way to deal with the situation and thankfully everyone was fine. If it had happened at SMS there probably would’ve been medics close by to sort it without stopping the game. 

[Roo1976]

4 hours ago, sockeye said:

We’re going to walk this league.

what ?where have i been, you mean were in the Conference already?..............

[MindtheGab]

I didn't watch the game but staff were impressed with Robinson and BBD apparently 

[Saint Fan CaM]

Still sounded a bit pissed off in his post match interview - lots of work yet to be done!

 

[SW11_Saint]

3 minutes ago, Saint Fan CaM said:

Still sounded a bit pissed off in his post match interview - lots of work yet to be done!

 

He had a point that you learn a lot more in a game like this than a 7 goal romp. 

He also appeared to indicate that there is an opportunity this season for Arma & BBD if they want to take it (while others have scared they want to pursue other opportunities). 

[BarberSaint]

1 hour ago, MindtheGab said:

I didn't watch the game but staff were impressed with Robinson and BBD apparently 

BBD? Really? He did FA. Robinson, I agree despite what I'd said earlier, was the one making things happen and was the MOM but BBD? He was as good as he's ever been.

[Zorba]

6 hours ago, sockeye said:

We’re going to walk this league.

We walked the league last year and look where that got us.

[S-Clarke]

It was just a training game, but to be fair all we've played for the last year are training games. At least we won this one though.

Not much to read into it, we've got a hell of a lot of shit to shift, which we know. Interesting to see where we are in September.

[BarberSaint]

1 hour ago, Saint Fan CaM said:

Still sounded a bit pissed off in his post match interview - lots of work yet to be done!

 

"Interesting" is his word for 'shit'. He said that a bit.

[V.Johnathan.Wilson]

6 hours ago, MindtheGab said:

I didn't watch the game but staff were impressed with Robinson and BBD apparently 

Robinson was the best player on the pitch. BBD I don't think was that bad, didn't really do much but didn't do a lot wrong either other than 1 or 2 mis controlled touches. Probably not going to sway his doubters with this performance but was definitely in the top half of the first half performers. 

[gio1saints]

3 hours ago, V.Johnathan.Wilson said:

Robinson was the best player on the pitch. BBD I don't think was that bad, didn't really do much but didn't do a lot wrong either other than 1 or 2 mis controlled touches. Probably not going to sway his doubters with this performance but was definitely in the top half of the first half performers. 

BBD was playing on Stills side of the pitch so he was obviously under closest eye scrutiny 1st half. IMO He did what he did v Lazio last year except didn’t score. Did some movements that showed he’s experienced but I personally question whether he’s willing to bust a gut for us. No real pace and cannot beat a man. Competes in the air. Showed he is better than national league full backs -just - but Teddy Sheringham he ain’t. 
JR was pitched up against a triallist 2nd half and yes he had him on toast with a cup of tea - though I did notice Wellington gave him some evils a few times having  made at least half dozen overlapping/underlapping runs and only getting one average pass out of it for his efforts. Did make JR look even better though so as exciting as JR was to watch give credit to wellington and bearin mind the oppo was a kid younger than him I think! 

Edited 11 hours ago by gio1saints

[gio1saints]

My selective players report :

AM : nothing to do except dive over the cross for their goal.. GB : Ditto. Still popular with support though. 

Taylor, Stephens, Bree, Fraser, RS and Will :forgettable nothingness. 

BBD, SC, Sanda and AA : best of rhe meh lot first half. 
Best player : Shea. Classy and looks the part. 

Second half : 
Downes: looks a class act at Nat League level 🤣. 
JR: a ray of sunshine that graced the day and made the £15 worth it. 
Tyler : Class obvious. combined well on rh flank with SE. A difference maker. We shall see. 
SE : lost weight. Still got tricks still got flair still no end product and looks like has got half a yard extra pace or was his opponent just a Nat league defender? 

CA: took goal well. Ran around a lot. Usual Cam except the goal scored thing. Wish I could see some personality in this player 🙁. 
Wellington : cool dude and decent player with skills. LB this year imo.Matsuki - nothing much. 
Wood  : did ok but rarely troubled. Yuki same. 

Quarshie : lovely lovely lovely big man bullying the opponents! At last. And can run and can pass and can header! Must start. 
 

Overall : Quarshie, JR and Tyler stood out. 

 

 

[Saint Billy]

I cringe at some of those names still being on the team sheet.

[Matthew Le God]

11 minutes ago, Saint Billy said:

I cringe at some of those names still being on the team sheet.

Which of them are cringey playing at  Championship level?

[Saint Fan CaM]

21 minutes ago, Matthew Le God said:

Which of them are cringey playing at  Championship level?

It would be quicker listing those who might actually be worthy of a start. And from the post match interview Still thinks the pretty much the same - he was clearly disappointed in the performance (don’t think his comments on the 2nd half excluded that team).  What he will find out however is these players were selected to play a different, much slower system - they just don’t have what it takes both in physical and mental attributes to play a fast, pressing, goal scoring game. 

Yes this was the first pre-season game, but it was against a relatively lower level side. It’s going to be a shit show unless there’s a significant improvement in either the players or new players arriving. And I predict neither will happen…there I said it.

[CB Fry]

7 minutes ago, Saint Fan CaM said:

It would be quicker listing those who might actually be worthy of a start. And from the post match interview Still thinks the pretty much the same - he was clearly disappointed in the performance (don’t think his comments on the 2nd half excluded that team).  What he will find out however is these players were selected to play a different, much slower system - they just don’t have what it takes both in physical and mental attributes to play a fast, pressing, goal scoring game. 

Yes this was the first pre-season game, but it was against a relatively lower level side. It’s going to be a shit show unless there’s a significant improvement in either the players or new players arriving. And I predict neither will happen…there I said it.

What a load of bollocks. 

We've already got a squad that is perfectly capable of finishing top 6 Championship.

Work to do to keep (or more likely reinvest once the big names go) to ensure we are top 2. But its still July.

But honestly we are going into a Championship season. Some of the hysteria on here is insane.

Edited 9 hours ago by CB Fry

[Matthew Le God]

34 minutes ago, Saint Fan CaM said:

It would be quicker listing those who might actually be worthy of a start. And from the post match interview Still thinks the pretty much the same - he was clearly disappointed in the performance (don’t think his comments on the 2nd half excluded that team).  What he will find out however is these players were selected to play a different, much slower system - they just don’t have what it takes both in physical and mental attributes to play a fast, pressing, goal scoring game. 

Yes this was the first pre-season game, but it was against a relatively lower level side. It’s going to be a shit show unless there’s a significant improvement in either the players or new players arriving. And I predict neither will happen…there I said it.

Please list the ones that aren't good enough for the top end of the Championship. I'm not denying most are out of their depth in the Premier League.

27 minutes ago, CB Fry said:

What a load of bollocks. 

We've already got a squad that is perfectly capable of finishing top 6 Championship.

Work to do to keep (or more likely reinvest once the big names go) to ensure we are top 2. But its still July.

But honestly we are going into a Championship season. Some of the hysteria on here is insane.

Exactly!

[CamSaint]

One interesting comment (IMHO) from Still's interview was: "We're being hard on them, especially physically, which they're not used to, or weren't used to in the previous years. They've run a lot, we've worked incredibly hard and we're going to keep working incredibly hard." It reinforces what many people thought about fitness levels under RM, especially last season, and suggests that it is a key area that they are working on. Fitness levels at the start of pre-season are usually pretty low in general, but it sounds like there is a fair way to go to get to where Still wants them to be.

[Matthew Le God]

If rather than just a training photo this was the club announcing Joe Aribo returned to training on 10th July like they did for internationals like Manning and Smallbone, does anyone know why he was given extended leave? As he doesn't appear to have been with Nigeria over the summer. At least not in the squad vs Russia on 6th June.

 

Edited 8 hours ago by Matthew Le God

[Midfield_General]

1 hour ago, gio1saints said:

Quarshie : lovely lovely lovely big man bullying the opponents! At last. And can run and can pass and can header! Must start. 

I think ‘must start’ is a little premature. He’s played 45 minutes against a national league side and looked competent against a very limited attack who hardly got into our half and didn’t have a single shot in that time. He’s clearly quick but his passing wasn’t perfect. Let’s not get carried away. 

[Saint Billy]

1 hour ago, Matthew Le God said:

Which of them are cringey playing at  Championship level?

Do I really have to spell it out. I grant you, some of them will probably perform better in a lower standard such as the championship, but unlike you and some others I am not quick to forget the lack of effort and pitiful performances by many of them last season and I want them out of our club for providing us with one of the most humiliating seasons we have had to suffer for a very long time if not ever.

[gio1saints]

12 minutes ago, Midfield_General said:

I think ‘must start’ is a little premature. He’s played 45 minutes against a national league side and looked competent against a very limited attack who hardly got into our half and didn’t have a single shot in that time. He’s clearly quick but his passing wasn’t perfect. Let’s not get carried away. 

Yes you are right. I got carried away by us having a big CB who looks like he might enjoy mangling forwards. 😋

[Matthew Le God]

20 minutes ago, Saint Billy said:

Do I really have to spell it out. I grant you, some of them will probably perform better in a lower standard such as the championship, but unlike you and some others I am not quick to forget the lack of effort and pitiful performances by many of them last season and I want them out of our club for providing us with one of the most humiliating seasons we have had to suffer for a very long time if not ever.

It wasn't lack of effort, it was lack of quality relative to the league we were in that led to the 'pitiful performances'.

I haven't denied last season was dreadful or that most of the players were completely out of their depth last season. We are now in a significantly shallower end and many of our players have their 10m badge gaving already been good enough to win promotion in the shallow end.

 

Edited 8 hours ago by Matthew Le God

[kitch]

Had a brilliant seat over in the main stand next door but one to Alfie House, so be interesting to see if his thoughts are similar to any of mine.

Game of two halves (duh). First half gave me the heebie jeebies. No pace, no character, no hunger - just totally flat. Charles looked tidy, BBD was trying hard but looked like could have been one of Eastleigh's players, the youngster in defence was an absolute unit, fuck knows what they've been feeding him and Smallbone's mishandled pass was what started Eastleigh's breakaway to get their early goal, so nice to see nothing has changed there. Eastleigh set up deep and surrendered possession and deserved their lead until a questionable penalty gave us an equaliser. "It's all just for fitness" ...is what I kept telling myself.

Second half the entire team changed and with it, the entire pace of the game. First half looked like what we've been used to for the past couple of years, but second was fast, direct, energetic and determined...for about 30 mins, at which point they looked out of ideas.
Quarshie is FAST and a bit nasty, but some of the passing was concerning (keep telling ourselves it's pre-season). GReat signing though. Woods looked more a leader in defence. Downes is Downes - different gravy. Matsuki is an upgrade on Smallbone, good close control and lots of movement. Not a PL player by any stretch but he's a decent squad addition for the Championship. Dibling had a couple of moments but looked like he had the handbrake on a bit, or his head was elsewhere. Edozie looked like he'd forgotten how to beat a man, which is a concern because that's all he ever really had in his locker to begin with. 
Standout was Jay Robinson. Yes, it's against a National League team, but none of the others stood out, whereas he did. Good control, decent pace, good positioning...he's going to be useful. 

Will Still looked pissed off on the touchline for most of it. Maybe that's just his demeanor?

[Saint Since '51]

Putting aside other criteria, such as quality, experience in the Championship, etc, it's interesting just to look at how many of the players yesterday seemed to fit the physical criteria which we're told Will Still wants to promote; things like size, speed, energy, aggression, pressing.

Robinson showed energy. Downes is terrier-like. Quarshie was massive and aggressive. Matsuki was business-like. Armstrong can be all-action. Welington flies around everwhere (in a slightly headless fashion). Harwood-Bellis is combative. Fernandez will certainly fit. Downs sounds like he will. Possibly Fraser.

But I'm running out of candidates now. Will is going to have to put a bomb under the rest. Stamina won't be enough. We need energy.

Perhaps this needs to be a key criterion for who stays, who goes and whom we should buy?

[Badger]

17 minutes ago, Saint Since '51 said:

 

Robinson showed energy. Downes is terrier-like. Quarshie was massive and aggressive. Matsuki was business-like. Armstrong can be all-action. Welington flies around everwhere (in a slightly headless fashion). Harwood-Bellis is combative. Fernandez will certainly fit. Downs sounds like he will. Possibly Fraser.

But I'm running out of candidates now. Will is going to have to put a bomb under the rest. Stamina won't be enough. We need energy.

Perhaps this needs to be a key criterion for who stays, who goes and whom we should buy?

Against National League opposition perhaps. As skilful as he is at Championship level, he remains a bit lightweight in my view. Good job he had man mountain Smallbone alongside him as an enforcer last time down here.

Charles may offer a bit more physical presence in MF, otherwise we need to recruit in my view.

 

Edited 7 hours ago by Badger

[ecuk268]

Bit of over analysis on this thread.

Will Still said before the game that he just wanted to have a first look at his squad in a reasonably competitive match.

A better time to judge will be the Brighton match when they have had a few games under their belts and the manager will have a better idea of his preferred squad.

[Fabrice29]

50 minutes ago, kitch said:

Matsuki is an upgrade on Smallbone

45 minutes vs Eastleigh btw. Where can I get odds on Matsuki delivering more than 7 goals and 4 assists next season?

[Kenilworthy59]

I thought the penalty was soft. And the players seemed a bit surprised when the ref pointed to the spot. I think he was making up for missing a nailed on penalty a few minutes earlier.

[kitch]

11 minutes ago, ecuk268 said:

Bit of over analysis on this thread.

Will Still said before the game that he just wanted to have a first look at his squad in a reasonably competitive match.

A better time to judge will be the Brighton match when they have had a few games under their belts and the manager will have a better idea of his preferred squad.

Quite possibly, but we've not had football for a while and we're all (well, most of us) are scarred 😆

[kitch]

3 minutes ago, Fabrice29 said:

45 minutes vs Eastleigh btw. Where can I get odds on Matsuki delivering more than 7 goals and 4 assists next season?

I dunno, a bookies?

[SaintBobby]

As others have said, can't really read much into such a match.

One thing that I am a bit concerned though is who will play the number 10 role - didn't Fraser play there first half?

[coalman]

1 minute ago, kitch said:

Quite possibly, but we've not had football for a while and we're all (well, most of us) are scarred 😆

It's not scar tissue, it's "bravery bruising"

[Nordic Saint]

19 hours ago, DT said:

We are still playing McCarthy. Hilariously shit. Club has absolutely no clue. 

I agree - I expect most fans do - and I'd say the same about Smallbone. We've had years with this rotten core of players in the squad and until they're cleared out, things won't improve much. When you see them lining up yet again, it really makes you feel that we're just sleepwalking towards disaster. 

[sfc4prem]

8 minutes ago, Nordic Saint said:

I agree - I expect most fans do - and I'd say the same about Smallbone. We've had years with this rotten core of players in the squad and until they're cleared out, things won't improve much. When you see them lining up yet again, it really makes you feel that we're just sleepwalking towards disaster. 

Agreed. It's a disease that has been diagnosed and consciously left untreated. The real worry is that the club don't seem to see it as a disease, instead considering them to be healthy and valuable for us.

[Lighthouse]

12 minutes ago, Nordic Saint said:

I agree - I expect most fans do - and I'd say the same about Smallbone. We've had years with this rotten core of players in the squad and until they're cleared out, things won't improve much. When you see them lining up yet again, it really makes you feel that we're just sleepwalking towards disaster. 

Smallbone, as a squad player in the Championship, will be perfectly fine. He wont make the team of the season but he's adequate as an option to have in the squad, along side Charles, Aribo and Downes (based on our current options). If we get promoted and he's still starting games, that becomes a different issue.

[Gloucester Saint]

22 minutes ago, Lighthouse said:

Smallbone, as a squad player in the Championship, will be perfectly fine. He wont make the team of the season but he's adequate as an option to have in the squad, along side Charles, Aribo and Downes (based on our current options). If we get promoted and he's still starting games, that becomes a different issue.

With the caveat that it locks Still into 4-5-1 because he can’t tackle or track back effectively because of physical development, broadly agree. He’s got a very good first touch, can score goals and good forward passer, as evidenced by Wembley. 

He’s an 8 or bust. His weakness is even at this level, you cannot play him in a central two. Not if you want two strikers which I have an impression Still might by August. So you either build around him in a 4-5-1 or move him on with 12 months left on his deal.

He will never be Declan Rice or Kante, but I’d hoped the penny might drop and he’d have got on the protein shakes and hit the weights during June to compete a bit more as JWP did under Ralph.

[OneMrsWallace]

7 hours ago, Saint Billy said:

I cringe at some of those names still being on the team sheet.

Don't forget the scar tissue too 😁 We seriously need some more new faces in obvs. 

[OneMrsWallace]

3 hours ago, Lighthouse said:

Smallbone, as a squad player in the Championship, will be perfectly fine. He wont make the team of the season but he's adequate as an option to have in the squad, along side Charles, Aribo and Downes (based on our current options). If we get promoted and he's still starting games, that becomes a different issue.

But are they right for the style of play? I don't think we know that yet. They could be ok, they could be a disaster. Let's check back on this 5-6 games in to the season proper. You may be proved right but maybe not.