Saints Vs Brighton friendly 2/8/25 3:30pm

[Harry_SFC]

2 minutes ago, Verwood Saint said:

Absolutely this and it made us much more positive as an attacking force.  Edwards fitted in well as the right sided CB.

In the second half he also switched Archer to the centre playing a little deeper off Downs and he looked so much more dangerous.  Wee man went to the wing and he was much more effective in that role too.  

TBF the wee man put a real shift in over the 90mins, playing as a 10, a winger and then centre mid for a bit.  His energy round the pitch rubbed off on some of the other too.  Think he just might be a real utility option for WS.

 

 

I was thinking the same about Fraser. He isn't the best player in the world but he does have a good cross and also works his socks off. He was certainly better than Armstrong today. 

Don't like him at a false 9 or a 10 though. His best position is out wide. 

Edited Saturday at 20:13 by Harry_SFC

[chivvy]

With the lack of attacking midfielders and a unbalanced line up of strikers who are better in two 4231 doesn't really work. Plus our best full backs are wing backs.. 343 kinda fits or 523 or 532

Edited Saturday at 20:17 by chivvy

[Chez]

2 minutes ago, Harry_SFC said:

I was thinking the same about Fraser. He isn't the best player in the world but he does have a good cross and also works his socks off. He was certainly better than Armstrong today. 

Don't like him at a false 9 or a 10 though. His best position is out wide. 

He's a winger. Simple as that.

Did you not think he look like his legs had gone as some have said on this thread? 

[SW5 SAINT]

2 hours ago, Convict Colony said:

thank you amigo, i meant Disney FC

They play 17 miles down the road….

[Chez]

2 minutes ago, chivvy said:

With the lack of attacking midfielders and a unbalanced line up of strikers who are better in two 4231 doesn't really work. Plus our best full backs are wing backs.. 343 kinda fits or 523

Yep. You cant play Archer down the middle on his own (I still think we should have sold him to Leeds in January) or Armstrong. Maybe 4-4-2 would get the best out of those two?

[manji]

5 hours ago, Pamplemousse said:

We won't play a team as good as Brighton in the league but what it does show is that if (when) we're back in the Prem we need a brand new squad.

Which is the plan already Spors was working on us long before the official signing which was at the end of the transfer window I’m not in the COT I’m not a football geek but why am I the only fucker that knows and notices these things and I won’t bother to come back on here for a couple of days. This type of platform is swiftly becoming redundant sadly I was here from the beginning only the elite had PCs Internet nowadays any div has access 

Yep I check this out now and again but there was a time when I had this rolling in the background of my work PC in case something exciting happened. That concept is now hilarious you would only do that now if you were following one of the ITKs on here and wanted to give them a like and the newbies on here from what I’ve seen utter dicks.

[CB Fry]

2 minutes ago, manji said:

Which is the plan already Spors was working on us long before the official signing which was at the end of the transfer window I’m not in the COT I’m not a football geek but why am I the only fucker that knows and notices these things and I won’t bother to come back on here for a couple of days. This type of platform is swiftly becoming redundant sadly I was here from the beginning only the elite had PCs Internet nowadays any div has access 

Yep I check this out now and again but there was a time when I had this rolling in the background of my work PC in case something exciting happened. That concept is now hilarious you would only do that now if you were following one of the ITKs on here and wanted to give them a like and the newbies on here from what I’ve seen utter dicks.

Sorry i couldn't quite follow all of that but I think you were saying something about this being the greatest era in our history?

[Golac's Cunning Stunts]

20 minutes ago, manji said:

Which is the plan already Spors was working on us long before the official signing which was at the end of the transfer window I’m not in the COT I’m not a football geek but why am I the only fucker that knows and notices these things and I won’t bother to come back on here for a couple of days. This type of platform is swiftly becoming redundant sadly I was here from the beginning only the elite had PCs Internet nowadays any div has access 

Yep I check this out now and again but there was a time when I had this rolling in the background of my work PC in case something exciting happened. That concept is now hilarious you would only do that now if you were following one of the ITKs on here and wanted to give them a like and the newbies on here from what I’ve seen utter dicks.

This is just rambling nonsense. Sorry

[Verbal]

55 minutes ago, manji said:

Which is the plan already Spors was working on us long before the official signing which was at the end of the transfer window I’m not in the COT I’m not a football geek but why am I the only fucker that knows and notices these things and I won’t bother to come back on here for a couple of days. This type of platform is swiftly becoming redundant sadly I was here from the beginning only the elite had PCs Internet nowadays any div has access 

Yep I check this out now and again but there was a time when I had this rolling in the background of my work PC in case something exciting happened. That concept is now hilarious you would only do that now if you were following one of the ITKs on here and wanted to give them a like and the newbies on here from what I’ve seen utter dicks.

Oh snap! That's exactly how I post when I've dropped a couple of tabs. 

[Matty's Caddy]

Thought Edwards looked very calm and composed, like he had more time than anyone else to get his head up. 
Robinson dangerous. 
quarshie raw,  but needs coaching  the finer points of defending, Early days though. 
Baz, decent and looked confident and commanding 

hard to comment on anybody in the first half really as the system made them all look shit, apart from Baz really

feel better about next week than I did this morning 

[EBS1980]

Of the players not featured today, Dibling, THB, Downes and Diaz were all at the game. Didn’t see any of the others though.

[Dark Munster]

1 hour ago, manji said:

Which is the plan already Spors was working on us long before the official signing which was at the end of the transfer window I’m not in the COT I’m not a football geek but why am I the only fucker that knows and notices these things and I won’t bother to come back on here for a couple of days. This type of platform is swiftly becoming redundant sadly I was here from the beginning only the elite had PCs Internet nowadays any div has access 

Yep I check this out now and again but there was a time when I had this rolling in the background of my work PC in case something exciting happened. That concept is now hilarious you would only do that now if you were following one of the ITKs on here and wanted to give them a like and the newbies on here from what I’ve seen utter dicks.

Gemini, can you make any sense of this?

This person is clearly a frustrated football fan, specifically discussing the transfer window and the perceived decline of online football discussion platforms. Let's break down their points:

• "Which is the plan already Spors was working on us long before the official signing which was at the end of the transfer window": This refers to a transfer strategy, likely for a specific football club, that they believe a person named "Spors" (possibly a sporting director, scout, or someone involved in club management) was implementing well in advance of the official transfer window closing. They are implying that the signings made at the end of the window were part of a pre-existing plan, not a last-minute scramble.

• "I’m not in the COT": If COT means "Circle of Trust," this signifies that the speaker is not part of the inner, exclusive group that has privileged information or is privy to the club's confidential plans. They are an outsider looking in, making their observation about "Spors' plan" even more significant to them, as they feel they've discerned it without being an "insider." This reinforces their self-perception as unusually perceptive.

• "I’m not a football geek but why am I the only fucker that knows and notices these things": This expression of exasperation and self-proclaimed insight remains the same. They still believe they are uniquely perceptive, but now it's even more striking because they're outside the "Circle of Trust" yet still seeing these things.

• "and I won’t bother to come back on here for a couple of days. This type of platform is swiftly becoming redundant sadly I was here from the beginning only the elite had PCs Internet nowadays any div has access": This remains a lament about the perceived degradation of online football forums/communities, where they feel the quality of discussion has declined due to wider, less discerning access.

• "Yep I check this out now and again but there was a time when I had this rolling in the background of my work PC in case something exciting happened. That concept is now hilarious": Still nostalgia for a time when these platforms were genuinely exciting and provided real-time updates or insights.

• "you would only do that now if you were following one of the ITKs on here and wanted to give them a like and the newbies on here from what I’ve seen utter dicks.": Still a criticism of the current state of engagement, focusing on following "ITKs" rather than genuine discussion, and a disdain for new users.

In summary:

The speaker is a highly frustrated and self-important football fan. Their core point is that they, an outsider not privy to the "Circle of Trust" within the club's operations, have nevertheless discerned a long-term strategic plan (by "Spors") for transfers, which they believe others on the online platform have failed to notice. This makes them feel uniquely insightful. Their frustration is compounded by what they perceive as the declining quality of online football communities, which they feel are now dominated by unintelligent "newbies" and are only useful for following self-proclaimed "insiders" (ITKs) rather than engaging in meaningful discussion. They feel the platforms have lost their initial value and excitement.

Edited Saturday at 22:13 by Dark Munster

[Sheaf Saint]

1 hour ago, manji said:

Which is the plan already Spors was working on us long before the official signing which was at the end of the transfer window I’m not in the COT I’m not a football geek but why am I the only fucker that knows and notices these things and I won’t bother to come back on here for a couple of days. This type of platform is swiftly becoming redundant sadly I was here from the beginning only the elite had PCs Internet nowadays any div has access 

Yep I check this out now and again but there was a time when I had this rolling in the background of my work PC in case something exciting happened. That concept is now hilarious you would only do that now if you were following one of the ITKs on here and wanted to give them a like and the newbies on here from what I’ve seen utter dicks.

[The Kraken]

A fairly accurate assessment of mingey, tbf.

[S-Clarke]

First half was mostly more of the same, quite passive and easy to play against in the main. I wasn't too impressed with Quarshie for either goal, I thought he stood off and didn't really commit. He clearly has pace/power and height, of which will be big for us this season - but he just needs to be a bit sharper and less passive in his defending. 

We lacked width in that first half IMO. Two poor full backs who offered nothing, and a striker (Archer) entirely out of his comfort zone and not impacting the game at all. Fraser as a 9 was really weird and I never, ever want to see that again.

Second half was much better once the likes of Suguwara and were Wellington introduced, energy and attacking intent, ability to overlap etc - made a huge difference. Robinson drifting around in front was a threat too, a lot of this is because opposition know little about him - so he can sneak in like he does, but he did cause more problems than anyone else in that second half.

I really liked Charles' performance though, a real box-to-box display from him. Good on the ball, good breaking up play - pretty much everything. He's a good player and always has been, just really poorly used by Martin in our last Championship season. Edwards too is exactly what you'd expect him to be - a very classy and cultured centre back, makes the game look easy. 

Archer, imo, was utter utter trash. I don't know if it's confidence with him or that he's simply not fitting in with the right players here. He's not a wide man that's for sure, but even through the middle I thought his game was off. Downs was pretty quiet too, he's got a real presence about him, but I thought he was a bit subdued overall.

A good comeback though and an enjoyable second half compared to the first. I still don't think much of what happened today will really make any odds once the real season starts, for either ourselves or Brighton, but it's nice to be going into the Wrexham game with a tiny shred of positivity at least.

[Lard]

Time to face up ladies.
we have got….

a pretty shit manager. 
appalling coaching staff. 
an abundance of crap players. In every area. 
An owner that has no clue about football. 
A tech director, analysts and such like that don’t know there arse from their elbows.  
the club is rotten from the core. 
damn I miss the days of Channon,Ball,Boyer etc. 🤷🏻‍♂️

[hypochondriac]

Just now, Lard said:

Time to face up ladies.
we have got….

a pretty shit manager. 
appalling coaching staff. 
an abundance of crap players. In every area. 
An owner that has no clue about football. 
A tech director, analysts and such like that don’t know there arse from their elbows.  
the club is rotten from the core. 
damn I miss the days of Channon,Ball,Boyer etc. 🤷🏻‍♂️

Is everyone just taking a load of pills and spouting off this evening? 

[Saint86]

30 minutes ago, Lard said:

Time to face up ladies.
we have got….

a pretty shit manager. 
appalling coaching staff. 
an abundance of crap players. In every area. 
An owner that has no clue about football. 
A tech director, analysts and such like that don’t know there arse from their elbows.  
the club is rotten from the core. 
damn I miss the days of Channon,Ball,Boyer etc. 🤷🏻‍♂️

What on earth are you on about?!?! We've got a good manager, decent coaching staff, and a squad that's pretty decent for the championship. We look set to clear out a few more players (some good, some less so), and you have to assume we'll be spending. So far the business we've done (Downs and Quarshie) look to be good and relatively inexpensive buys, plus Charles and Edwards both look to be very good players. We need 2-3 creative midfielders/wingers to be really comfortable and have a great season to look forward to... 

Edited Saturday at 23:35 by Saint86

[chivvy]

1 hour ago, hypochondriac said:

Is everyone just taking a load of pills and spouting off this evening? 

Some need anti depressants

[skintsaint]

2 hours ago, Lard said:

Time to face up ladies.
we have got….

a pretty shit manager. 
appalling coaching staff. 
an abundance of crap players. In every area. 
An owner that has no clue about football. 
A tech director, analysts and such like that don’t know there arse from their elbows.  
the club is rotten from the core. 
damn I miss the days of Channon,Ball,Boyer etc. 🤷🏻‍♂️

[trousers]

6 hours ago, Lard said:

Time to face up ladies.
we have got….

a pretty shit manager. 
appalling coaching staff. 
an abundance of crap players. In every area. 
An owner that has no clue about football. 
A tech director, analysts and such like that don’t know there arse from their elbows.  
the club is rotten from the core. 
damn I miss the days of Channon,Ball,Boyer etc. 🤷🏻‍♂️

Hi Alps... Welcome back to the forum. Liking your new user name 

[Convict Colony]

good to see the usual saints optimism before the season.

4-0 win coming up

[Harry_SFC]

7 hours ago, S-Clarke said:

First half was mostly more of the same, quite passive and easy to play against in the main. I wasn't too impressed with Quarshie for either goal, I thought he stood off and didn't really commit. He clearly has pace/power and height, of which will be big for us this season - but he just needs to be a bit sharper and less passive in his defending. 

We lacked width in that first half IMO. Two poor full backs who offered nothing, and a striker (Archer) entirely out of his comfort zone and not impacting the game at all. Fraser as a 9 was really weird and I never, ever want to see that again.

Second half was much better once the likes of Suguwara and were Wellington introduced, energy and attacking intent, ability to overlap etc - made a huge difference. Robinson drifting around in front was a threat too, a lot of this is because opposition know little about him - so he can sneak in like he does, but he did cause more problems than anyone else in that second half.

I really liked Charles' performance though, a real box-to-box display from him. Good on the ball, good breaking up play - pretty much everything. He's a good player and always has been, just really poorly used by Martin in our last Championship season. Edwards too is exactly what you'd expect him to be - a very classy and cultured centre back, makes the game look easy. 

Archer, imo, was utter utter trash. I don't know if it's confidence with him or that he's simply not fitting in with the right players here. He's not a wide man that's for sure, but even through the middle I thought his game was off. Downs was pretty quiet too, he's got a real presence about him, but I thought he was a bit subdued overall.

A good comeback though and an enjoyable second half compared to the first. I still don't think much of what happened today will really make any odds once the real season starts, for either ourselves or Brighton, but it's nice to be going into the Wrexham game with a tiny shred of positivity at least.

To be fair to the strikers we gave them absolutely nothing to work with for 65 minutes of that match 

[ErwinK1961]

Did Still say anything post match about injury updates or transfers? Couldn’t see anything (I’m not on Twitter)

[CB Fry]

1 hour ago, trousers said:

Hi Alps... Welcome back to the forum. Liking your new user name 

In fairness Saint Lard was a regular back in the day. Was always quite a long way from the sunshine and lollipops sunny side up type of poster.

Welcome back I say

[goodymatt]

18 minutes ago, ErwinK1961 said:

Did Still say anything post match about injury updates or transfers? Couldn’t see anything (I’m not on Twitter)

Matty - ‘ill’ and has not trained last few days

Downes - still getting over his injury, hoping he trains this week

BBD - locked hip, didn’t want to risk it

Dibling - played 60 mins on his return from injury in the behind closed doors game that morning

THB - not mentioned as we know he’s recovering from his surgery. Expected back 2nd week of August I think

Smallbone - journos said picked up an injury but not discussed by Still.

Aribo - Not mentioned, perhaps discussing an exit?

Edozie - not mentioned, we know he’s close to leaving

[Lard]

1 minute ago, CB Fry said:

In fairness Saint Lard was a regular back in the day. Was always quite a long way from the sunshine and lollipops sunny side up type of poster.

Welcome back I say

I aim to please. 👍

[gio1saints]

My view on the match : 

High up central Itchen was a better view but less noise than my mid Northam ST😁.  

Fraser played his best game since the last Championship season. Not a high bar perhaps but a Timely return to early Fraser. Put in a lot of hard yards. He’s fit for sure. If Flynn, Mateus, Tyler, Smallbone and Aribo are all “unavailable” - as likely - then he’ll start v Wrexham. And deserve to on that contribution. 
 

Im hoping Sesay will start also. A big match and he did not wilt - he flourished. Showed mature confidence, -and skill-and applications that made me nod my head in appreciation. New rough diamond we may have ourselves!  I love it when we blood kids and they do well. Love it!🙌. 
 

Stephens haters turn away now. Best game, like Fraser, since the Championship days. Looked a real captain at times, some important blocks, calming distribution and actively supporting / encouraging kids like Jay and Sesay on the pitch. Quarshie partnership obviously good -

-but most of all that final three CB’s solution with Ronnie , Quarshie plus the attacking wingback pair Wellington and Sugawara really clicked.👍

It might just be the optimal / default defensive formation this season. Especially as I don’t see too many teams coming to SMS and attacking much. Having a flat four may be too passive for home matches - especially with Manning and Bree not as dynamic offensively as Suga and Wellington. 
 

Gavin did good/ok. Conceded two and Just one bad pass - but several very good saves and generally good distribution. No criticism on the goals and he seems fit and confident. Obviously starting v Wrexham. We will and need get another GK in - but I am reassured he is in decent form for the early games of the season. 

Apart from the penalty Adam was quiet.  Ditto Downs though he made a few good channel runs. Think they are both going to start. Cam was a bit more lively towards the end and unlucky not to score having had several decent attempts blocked. All three to start next week. 
Jay Robinson came on against Tired Legs ( Brighton’s new Danish full back 😉) & looked great. Think that’s a plan for this season. Got a feeling he’s  going to start from the bench, initially, until his legs can take 90 minutes. He will be targeted by hatchet men defenders but he’s got a lot about him and he’s a starter by Xmas I hope. 
 

Lastly my twin MOM - Shea and Joshua Quarshie. Build team around them. Herculean effort. Great I’m not being subbed off attitude from JQ - made the penalty, should have done better with first half header  and cleared everything in the air away - which he will need to do in this league -got done twice by that excellent winger but no disgrace and his sum contribution to team fuck off we are not getting beaten bollocks was excellent. A star is born. 

 

Edited Sunday at 07:08 by gio1saints

[ErwinK1961]

6 minutes ago, goodymatt said:

Matty - ‘ill’ and has not trained last few days

Downes - still getting over his injury, hoping he trains this week

BBD - locked hip, didn’t want to risk it

Dibling - played 60 mins on his return from injury in the behind closed doors game that morning

THB - not mentioned as we know he’s recovering from his surgery. Expected back 2nd week of August I think

Smallbone - journos said picked up an injury but not discussed by Still.

Aribo - Not mentioned, perhaps discussing an exit?

Edozie - not mentioned, we know he’s close to leaving

Thanks mate - any discussion/hints on incomings at all? I presume not but asking more in hope than expectation.

[goodymatt]

3 minutes ago, ErwinK1961 said:

Thanks mate - any discussion/hints on incomings at all? I presume not but asking more in hope than expectation.

Sadly nothing given away in post match interviews I have heard. You’d like to think that there is plenty going on behind the scenes!

[east-stand-nic]

Does anyone else worry that Still maybe just the same as recent managers as in he is not sure of his best XI yet and thus will play safe with the old guard and then change it with successful subs, as he did yesterday and then keep doing this week in week out? This is just was recent managers were doing. They seemed to keep picking the same sort of XI and then find themselves losing, forced to change things, see a team set up that worked better but ignore that fact next game. I mean after yesterday, surely he can see Suga, Wellington, Edwards and Robinson are the better bet?

[obelisk]

I'd be more worried if Still wasn't changing things when things aren't going according to plan during games. That was definitely something missing with previous managers.

[Football Special]

1 hour ago, east-stand-nic said:

Does anyone else worry that Still maybe just the same as recent managers as in he is not sure of his best XI yet and thus will play safe with the old guard and then change it with successful subs, as he did yesterday and then keep doing this week in week out? This is just was recent managers were doing. They seemed to keep picking the same sort of XI and then find themselves losing, forced to change things, see a team set up that worked better but ignore that fact next game. I mean after yesterday, surely he can see Suga, Wellington, Edwards and Robinson are the better bet?

Bound to be a bit of that, Still also gets a 'free hit' game away at Northampton where no one will really care if we lose so can use that to give more minutes to young players and try out some others. I remember Martin using players who wanted out at Gillingham in an awful performance two years ago 

[saintant]

8 minutes ago, Football Special said:

Bound to be a bit of that, Still also gets a 'free hit' game away at Northampton where no one will really care if we lose so can use that to give more minutes to young players and try out some others. I remember Martin using players who wanted out at Gillingham in an awful performance two years ago 

Don't agree - this is not a free hit game and if Still gets it wrong and we lose the fans will not be forgiving. Most fans want us to win every game and rightly so.

[Football Special]

4 minutes ago, saintant said:

Don't agree - this is not a free hit game and if Still gets it wrong and we lose the fans will not be forgiving. Most fans want us to win every game and rightly so.

Nah we all know the club have no intention of even trying to win this fixed competition which ensures teams qualified for Europe not only get a bye to 3rd round they also now ensure they don't draw each other due to European fixture schedules, it's a farce and should be treated as such 

[S-Clarke]

4 hours ago, Harry_SFC said:

To be fair to the strikers we gave them absolutely nothing to work with for 65 minutes of that match 

Oh absolutely, especially the first half I thought Downs was way too isolated. But it just highlighted the lack of attacking options we have across the 3 (10, wide left, wide right). We need at least 2 across that area, 3 if we're being really ideal. We can't go into a season with Fraser and Archer being our wide options, or even 'false 9's' as Fraser played during points. He'd get eaten up and spat out doing that at any level.

Fraser can be an asset to us, but only as a sub. If he starts as a first team player for the majority of the season then we've cocked up recruitment imo.

[saintant]

3 hours ago, S-Clarke said:

Oh absolutely, especially the first half I thought Downs was way too isolated. But it just highlighted the lack of attacking options we have across the 3 (10, wide left, wide right). We need at least 2 across that area, 3 if we're being really ideal. We can't go into a season with Fraser and Archer being our wide options, or even 'false 9's' as Fraser played during points. He'd get eaten up and spat out doing that at any level.

Fraser can be an asset to us, but only as a sub. If he starts as a first team player for the majority of the season then we've cocked up recruitment imo.

It's a pity Downs wasn't still on when we switched things around and had a go. Think he'll be great in a front footed approach from the team as he makes clever runs and has some pace and strength. His impact yesterday was limited by the way we played when he was on the pitch.

[Gloucester Saint]

16 hours ago, Sheaf Saint said:

🎵 Fuck is the worst word that you can say….

[tdmickey3]

Awful first half,better moments in 2nd

[spyinthesky]

Sorry if this has been mentioned earlier but has there been any report on the morning game v Brighton, which I understand we lost 1-0 eg who played etc etc

[egg]

Just now, spyinthesky said:

Sorry if this has been mentioned earlier but has there been any report on the morning game v Brighton, which I understand we lost 1-0 eg who played etc etc

I've not seen any report, but the line ups are up there somewhere ^^^. Can't find them online so no link I'm afraid. 

[Fabrice29]

2 hours ago, spyinthesky said:

Sorry if this has been mentioned earlier but has there been any report on the morning game v Brighton, which I understand we lost 1-0 eg who played etc etc

https://www.brightonandhovealbion.com/media-article/albion-beat-saints-behind-closed-doors

This from Brightons perspective. With our team here.

[CamSaint]

4 hours ago, spyinthesky said:

Sorry if this has been mentioned earlier but has there been any report on the morning game v Brighton, which I understand we lost 1-0 eg who played etc etc

https://www.southamptonfc.com/en/news/article/saints-and-brighton-face-each-other-in-behind-closed-doors-training-exercise

[DT]

On 02/08/2025 at 22:41, Matty's Caddy said:

Thought Edwards looked very calm and composed, like he had more time than anyone else to get his head up. 
Robinson dangerous. 
quarshie raw,  but needs coaching  the finer points of defending, Early days though. 
Baz, decent and looked confident and commanding 

hard to comment on anybody in the first half really as the system made them all look shit, apart from Baz really

feel better about next week than I did this morning 

Totally agree with this. Edwards was so good. Should be playing in place of Jack - mystifying how we have made him captain and given him such a long contract.

Baz was actually ok but we still need a keeper to keep McCarthy at bay.

Sesay excellent. Robinson offered us the directness we needed, and we laughed as Still put Fraser into midfield but it worked. Very disappointed with Charles in the first half - was a passenger and offered nothing. Archer had moments of okayness and physicality. Thought Downs up front was a bit meh but will score lots of headers.

Overall, at 2-0 down I was pretty depressed about how we were chasing shadows and the gulf looked huge. We should have had a free kick before their second and the way we fought back gave me a little bit of optimism for the season ahead once we can get a bit of stability via selling the obvious - Dibling and Fernandes - and hopefully getting someone in to get the goals or be a midfield enforcer.

[trousers]

It's blindingly obvious (to me anyway) that Edwards and Quarshie are our best centre backs as things stand. Will tell us a lot about Still's acumen* if Stephens is a default starter despite this (if we play 4 at the back rather than 5/3)

(* Or perhaps if he's under pressure from the powers-that-be to play Stephens regardless)

Edited yesterday at 09:49 by trousers

[OldNick]

2 minutes ago, trousers said:

It's blindingly obvious (to me anyway) that Edwards and Quarshie are our best centre backs as things stand. Will tell us a lot about Still's acumen* if Stephens is a default starter despite this (if we play 4 at the back rather than 5/3)

(* Or perhaps if he's under pressure from the powers-that-be to play Stephens regardless)

Interesting that as QUarsie was siad to be at fault and stood off too much in reports I saw and the ultra critical Glen De La Cour said that JS had a good game lol

[trousers]

7 minutes ago, OldNick said:

Interesting that as QUarsie was siad to be at fault and stood off too much in reports I saw and the ultra critical Glen De La Cour said that JS had a good game lol

Yeah, agree that Stephens had a decent game at the weekend, but it's more my  general impression of the whole of pre-season, not just one match. 

[OldNick]

1 hour ago, trousers said:

Yeah, agree that Stephens had a decent game at the weekend, but it's more my  general impression of the whole of pre-season, not just one match. 

I just think we should get off his back, it does s no good ruining his confiidence and accept he has 3 more years on his contract. Managers play him and see stuff that makes them do so.

[DT]

Stephens played an absolutely ridiculously risky short pass in his own box in the second hand which would have been punished with better finishing. He does at least one of these brain farts every game. Which is why he will never be much cop. Edwards looked like a Rolls Royce to his Lada.

[spyinthesky]

Away from the actual game, it seemed rather odd that around 20-30 Brighton fans were in the Itchen Stand and had to be escorted to the away end in the first half.
Seems rather strange that they were able to access this amount of tickets in the home section.