SaintDonkey

Bloody hell you can't half polarize things. I hope it's done for effect but please aknowledge the middle ground that most of us live in. Fan that thinks we HAVE to finish in the play off places and is looking for any opportunity to slag off the players and the amanger when we get a poor result are caharacterised as "negative moaner" for a good reason. That's what they are, just look at any match reaction thread and they're easy to spot. Even when we've won it's all about the negative and slagging off players. Fan who thinks we could just make the play offs with a little bit of luck and will back the team to the hilt while we're on course to do so, but won't turn on them if we falter a bit (a la Norwich and Leyton draws), but will rightly criticise the team after a mare like Brighton. That's a positive realistic fan, and encompasses most of the people on this board. Fan who thinks we're not a bigger club than Yeovil and should be aiming to just avoid relegation? No idea, can't say I've met one!

Waigo was man of the match for me. His endless offsides seem to be an artifact of playing with slightly better players than we have in our midfield - or at least players who were better at spotting runs. Yes it needs work in training - but rather than Papa having the offisde rule explained it's more the rest of the midfield who need work so that they spot the run sooner, before Papa's offside.

Yes Wycombe had lots of possession but they couldn't craft a decent chance out of it, we had possession and crafted at least half a dozen good chances. I believe that most teams in the league would have scored more than once with the chances we had, and that most teams in the lleague would have created more chances than Wycombe did. That does not mean that most teams in the league would have beaten us. On the night it was us playing Wycombe - and we thumped them one nil.

Got to disagree. We could have easily scored five or six whereas Wycombe didn't have a chance worthy of the name. The conditions were atrocious and conspired to make us look worse than we were with anything in the air holding up in the wind while anything on the ground died in the puddles. It was a terrible match to watch, but it was the conditions rather than the players who made it so.

Got to be the JPT, we have a realistic chance of winning it. Just look at hwow Aston Villa's season collapsed last year after they threw away a shot at the UEFA cup on the off chance of breaking into the Champion's League slot. Going limply out of a competition they could have won by 'concerntrating on the league ended up wrecking their season, I don't want that to happen to Saints.

I saw Rotherham / Luton at home and thought 'winnable', I would never think 'easy'. We're not a big team, we might have been had our success in the early eighties been back by investment, but it wasn't. However we are a 'big scalp' for lower league teams, just look at Brighton's DVD releasing glee at beating us.

Talking to a gooner cabbie on Friday he thought we were still in administration and heading towards another relegation! It really is amazing how much our salvation has been forgotten by the same national press who so reveled in our downfalll. Anyway back to tonight's game. I wouldn't rick Connolly - even if he is fit just stick him on the bench. In a 4-5-1 I think Waigo offers more of a threat than Connolly and I'd like to see James in the holding midfield role. So... Bart Murty Jaidi Trotman Harding James Hammond Scheiderlin Papa Lallana Lambert Bench: Forecast, Connolly/Paterson, Antonio, Thomas, Mills, Wotton, Gobern

Well would you trust the word of any one so closely associated with Rupert Lowe

I'm with you on this - rest for the cup not the league. Assuming Murty's fit I'd have him in at right back in a 4-5-1, I'm tempted to drop Morgan as he had a shocker on Saturday and Lambert who seems out of sorts. Waigo in for Antonio on the right since I think he just works better there when we're 4-5-2 Davis Murty Trotman Jaidi Harding Wotton Hammond James Wago Lallana Connolly Subs: Bart, Lambert, Antonio, Thomas, Mills

Home draw against the best team left - perfect. Really wouldn't want to have to go to Carrow Road, they always have a really good atomosphere there.

I think we probably had the balance of the decisions last night (although I did think we should have had a penalty for hand ball - not seen a replay though so that could be bollix). What I did think needed changing was Parkinson was forever shouting at the lino that every decision he gave in our favour was wrong and having a 'quiet word' with him wheneevr he was close. I do think PP 'got' to the lino in the end and smirked triumphantly when the lino gave a clearly wrong throw in decision Charton's way.

What I loved about last night is that for the seond time in this run we made a 'top 3' League One side look very very ordinary. And I love it that people still criticise the way we play. We have raised expectations as fans now - and if that goes through to the team in a good way (and we have a bit of luck!) I can see us making the play offs.

Pardew makes a point in his preview that Charlton 'have a very string midfield so that's an area we need to be strong in'. Makes me think that he'll stick with a five man midfield and not rest Hammond or Wotton. I reckon it will be... ---------------Davis James---Trotman--Perry---Harding ------------Wotton ------Hammond----Schneiderlin Antonio----------------------Lallana -------------Lambert With Waigo and Connolly as impact subs on the bench along with Mills, Thomas and Bart

Growing up in Fareham I know a fair number of the blokes I went to school with who switched from their childhood allegiences (mostly Liverpool) to the blue few when they went to Uni - it being trendy to support you're local team. One of them was a Saints fan - I've not spoken to him for nearly 20 years now for his act of treachery.

Sadly he'll probably be accepting some kind of insurance pay out on the end of his career - a condition of which will be that he never plays professional football again. A terrible waste since give a couple of years rehabilitation and there's the possibility that he might be a class act again. Of course if he hasn't got any such insurance...

Although I agree that central midfield is perhaps Lloyd James's best position, and that Murty is a better right back than James I wouldn't change anything. We've had a lot of success with a right wing (be it Papa or Antonio) going past defnders and then cutting the ball back to the oncoming rightback to deliver the cross. James isn't the quickest but he's faster than Murty and the tactic just wouldn't work with him. Changing James for Murty and Wotton for James isn't therefore just a position switch but a tactical one as well. And I don't think we should be changing that.

Pigs are notriously difficult to stop - particulary when greased. Maybe we should give Lallana a quick rub down with goose fat before kick off

Bugger I was hoping they'd dawdle until after the weekend. Poyet's a very decent appointmnet IMHO and it could make it tricky for us. Combine that with the fact I'm dragging my brother along (he's never seen us win!) and I'm worried about Sunday now.

It would be fantastic if we could get 24,001 - record non-final attendance for the competion is 24,000 according to wikipedia

I'll take a 3-2 win every time. Do we get the premiership teams not in Europe next round or is it just the Championship sides who come in?

It's a treat to be able to watch extended highlights of a Saints match with such thoughtful informed commentary. It's a shame that for the senior team's fixture tonight we'll probably have to make do with ITV's standard 20 second run down at half time in the Norwich game tomorrow.

Damn it I try to start a happy thread and within 4 posts it's become a doom and gloom thread.

Okay I was pushing it a bit with Watford - capacity 19920, but technically they could all fit in 19545 fans. I even left out Preston who just fall 20 seats short at 19525

Southampton average leaguue attendance: 19545 Portsmouth average league attendance: 18342 But besides the rivalry with them down the road we have a higher average attendance than Wigan, Coventry, Reading, Crystal Palace, Swansea City, Watford, Bristol City, Barnsley, Charlton, Hudderfield, MK Dons and Millwall. All of whom are ahead of us in the football pyramid and have the ground capacity to fit in more fans than our current gate. I think Markus bought the right club

Martin played in the qualifying rounds for Eastleigh so I guess he's out of the picture.