Fitzhugh Fella

I think the fact he came "armed" with his own photographer so he can paint himself as a man of the people tells you all you need to know about him as a person and your worship of him tells us all we want to know about you! Happy New Year.

According to @reluctantnicko (I know) we are "on the verge" of signing 18-year-old Joe O'Brien Whitmarsh from Cork City. A six figure fee has been mentioned.

It'd got to be related albeit indirectly

"Comfort zone crap". - I like that

Well said. A lot of fans think if we win then there's no point talking about the performance. While we all know, ultimately, the three points is the most important part of any game, our performances remain unconvincing at best and sooner or later we will be found out. I caught a lot of the Ipswich game last night and they are different class to us. I am yet to be persuaded Martin has what it takes - despite a 10 match unbeaten run n- and I know a lot of fans are not enthused about the football we play and they all go to every game and many away.

Well we needed a striker and Leeds won the race for Piroe so we had to do something but I am pretty sure we wont see the best of Stewart until next season probably. With Adams off in January (hopefully), we could do with a back up striker.

Agree with this

Yep I think we are all as one on this. There is Larios of course but why we let Perraud go beats me unless Martin thinks Manning is better?

In what positions would you see us making or needing signings?

Yea I';d agree with this. Yet to complete a full game for us this season (the most he's played is 76mins). He is very frustrating.

Portsmouth should be stripped of the FA Cup. Most of the players who turned out in the Final (and previous rounds) were purchased with money they didn't have.

There is no country in the world that doesn't have an element of corruption or lawlessness but the three countries you mention are at least acknowledged to be democracies, although how much longer the US stays so is anyone's guess. Also, as far as I know, the leaders of those three countries don't personally order their henchmen to bludgeon to death pesky journalists and then cut up their bodies with a bone saw and all done in plainsight of their embassy. Presumably you are quite comfortable with all this? You and David Beckham, I guess but the only difference is he'll be trousering £25m

Or Iran?

I have mixed opinions on this. Part of me says the only place to be is the top-flight as that's where it's at in terms of money, exposure etc etc. But football has sold its soul (WC to Saudi is just the latest example) and money talks loudest, which means the PL is simply not a level playing field any more. Clubs like Saints will always struggle and who wants to spend their Saturday afternoons (or whenever Sky decide) watching a struggling side who rarely wins (2022-23)? The fans have been shafted by the powers to be. There is no integrity in football and the PL in particular, the officials interpretation of VAR is killing what's left of the game and the players feigning injury has reached pathetic levels. Ticket prices have put the game beyond many, clubs have become corporate entities with fans now regarded as dispensable and problematic if they dare to have a voice (Celtic fan pro Palestine stance a case example). I love football, it's been a drug I can't shake off but i have no warm feelings towards the modern game and its corrupt and greedy administrators.

Adam Blackmore very enthusiastic about this having worked with him "in a previous life". Says he's one of football's nice men.

Apologies for the 1894-1994 error. My mistake. At least it proves someone reads the articles!!!

We really didn't "play well". Rotherham (apart from their keeper) were awful to start with but our negative tactics made them grow with confidence and mount a decent fight back. It was awful game management. Leicester without a doubt would have won 5-0 but all I can see on here are fans patting themselves on the back while claiming we played well. Jesus our standards have slipped alarmingly. If you are satisfied with what you saw yesterday then good for you but in the circles I mix in there is a lot of disquiet at the direction the club, under Martin/Wilcox, is heading.

Very much this. It seems our standards have dipped alarmingly with people describing yesterday's performance as excellent and then using the "if Smallbone had scored" argument. The fact is we were held to a draw by a team with an atrocious away record, who were suffering from a long injury list and little resources compared to us. We had them on the ropes after two minutes and because of Martin's obsession for "possession without intent football" we let them straight back into the game. Indeed they could have even nicked it. That might have shut a few of the Martin apologists up.

I beg to differ, sorry. The first half was "ok" - no more no worse. We got the goal after Rotherham twice gave the ball away near their area. After that we were comfortable (without scoring) against a team who have a shocking away record and loads of injuries. Describing that as "excellent" is over the top and I sense a little bit of a desperate defence of a manager who then at half-time told the players to retain possession, even if it meant allowing Rotherham to regroup everytime we approached their half. The amount of times we got to the half-way line only to immediately turn back, sometimes without even checking there were forward options, was indefensible and frustrating. I do not think Martin's tactics are the answer. 3 of our wins have come against clubs now in the bottom 4. His cautious build up play is a turn off in terms of spectating. Yes he has his apologists, (of which I sense you are one) but he is alienating large swathes of the fan base. Around me in the Kingsland yesterday there was quite a bit of discontent. In the pub afterwards there was 7 of us and we all were critical at the football being played. Some are more forgiving, choosing the Adam Blackmore route of appeasement but the writing on the wall is getting clearer to those who have been around the block a bit. Unnecessary sideways and back ward passing is a turn off, it will not get us promotion and its mind-numbing to watch. In a way Martin is not to blame. Wilcox decided what style we should play and appointed Martin to carry out his vision. Unfortunately this stupidity has divided the fans. You only have to read this thread to realise that.

That's nice writing off your fellow fans as brainless. You might like crop circle tip tappy constantly turning back football but quite a few brainless fans think it tedious. Yesterday was the first time Saints showing any attacking intent and you immediately triumphantly emerge from the woodwork to castigate those who have dared to criticise.

They were the chancers that nearly bought us (Thanks to Leon they didn't) who then went on to damn near wreck Coventry.

He really has lost the plot. If I didn't know better I would reckon he's taken a bung from the club.

Depends how old you are

I have just posted this on the match thread so apologies if this is your second encounter with my thoughts, this morning but Trousers recommended I post it here as well (if you want someone to blame 😀). Just back from the game (I overnighted in Manchester on the way back) and here are a few thoughts. Apologies they are a bit late (and long winded), but I need to unburden. I couldn't believe how all of our "new" signings have, suddenly, become so poor. Downes totally was inconspicuous on Saturday. The only time I noticed him was when he fluffed a pass which could have led to a goal had he delivered. Harwood-Bellis struggled all game, no pace whatsoever, hard to believe he is the captain of England U21. Fraser no impact at all, I prefer Amo-Ameyaw. Charles, having looked to be a really good player at first, has in the last few games become a shadow of his first few games. Holgate, well what can I say? First time I've seen him, describing him as being ponderous is being kind. Manning, when he came on, didn't seem to know where he was playing. He was everywhere he shouldn't be and no where he should be. No discipline. The yawning gaps down his side of the pitch were quickly exploited. It seems Martin's coaching is turning good players into dummies. Boro were utter garbage in the first half hour. The crowd were quickly on their backs and they were there for the taking. Although Armstrong took his goal well enough that was all he did, except run. He's such an ineffectual, ordinary player. I've been patient with him but have now lost it. Adams for a senior player was awful, too. Missed a good chance before our goal and he posed little threat whatsoever. And to think I was pleased he didn't leave. Give me Ballard any day or any other promising youngster. Smallbone I watched closely. He glides effortlessly and looks classy without delivering much. He should have scored in the 2nd H when presented with a good chance but he shot tamely and weakly at the 'keeper. It was the sort of chance that other teams always score against us. Walker-Peters huffed and puffed but made errors and his comical foul throw towards the end was embarrassing just when we had won back possession. It was a cluster fuck of a a performance and I felt deeply embarrassed to be a Saints fan. I was a guest in the players' lounge afterwards and I sensed an element of pity among those I talked to. Quite a few couldn't understand how we had fallen so quickly. It was hard to explain. I therefore spoke to quite a few current pros over the weekend, and the general feeling in the game is that Martin's sides are "soft" and he is not rated as a manager. I think we are all waking up to that fact, at the moment. Our players, on the day looked disinterested, half-hearted and were full of simple mistakes. Passes went astray all the time. The second half was so frustrating. Edozie brightened things up a bit and Sulemana injected pace and a bit of urgency but that was about as good as it got. We have severe problems all over the park. Goal scoring, midfield and defence - I wouldn't know where to begin, to be honest. We can't keep carrying on hoping, as if by magic, we are suddenly going to turn a corner - but the prospect of a fifth manager in less than a year is bat shit crazy and a sure sign of massive mismanagement on an industrial scale. Martin is I hate to say it.... a charlatan. I think he believes in himself and genuinely thinks he has what it takes but he sells snake oil. As well as the board, he has successfully duped Adam Blackmore, I noted, after the game, that while comparing him to Jones, he then was calling for him to be given "more time", but Adam, we will be serious relegation candidates very soon unless the rot is stopped pronto. I spent 12 hours in my car driving to this away game (and back) and had a lot of time to contemplate our predicament. Other than our relegation/administration season I can't remember being more depressed as a Saints fan. Even in the Branfoot days the players had fight in their bellies but that is now badly missing. We have been crying out for some leadership on the pitch but our calls have not been answered by the powers to be. Us fans are helpless to intercede, we are just bystanders watching a slow and inevitable car crash. We can only hope someone in SR is sensible and brave enough to smell the coffee and take a gulp. Otherwise we are in for a winter of discontent with the resulting damage liable to be long term.

Just back from the game (I overnighted at son in laws on the way back) and here are a few thoughts. Apologies they are a bit late (and long winded), but I need to unburden. I couldn't believe how all of our new signings have suddenly become so poor. Downes was inconspicuous on Saturday. The only time I noticed him was when he fluffed a pass which could have led to a goal had he delivered. Harwood-Bellis struggled all game, no pace whatsoever, hard to believe he is the captain of England U21. Fraser no impact at all, prefer to have Amo-Ameyaw. Charles, having looked to be a really good player at first has become a shadow of his first few games. Holgate, well what can I say? First time I've seen him, ponderous is being kind. Manning, when he came on, didn't seem to know where he was playing. He was everywhere he shouldn't be and no where he should be. The yawning gaps down his side of the pitch were quickly exploited. It seems Martin's coaching is turning good players into dummies. Boro were utter garbage in the first half hour. The crowd were on their backs and they were there for the taking. Although Armstrong took his goal well enough that was all he did, except run. He's such an ineffectual ordinary player. Adams was awful too. Missed a good chance before our goal and he added nothing whatsoever. And to think I was pleased he didn't leave. Give me Ballard any day. Smallbone I watched closely. He glides and looks classy without delivering much. He should have scored in the 2nd H when presented with a good chance but he shot tamely at the 'keeper. It was the sort of chance that other teams always score against us. Walker-Peters huffed and puffed but made errors and his comical foul throw towards the end was embarrassing just when we had won back possession. It was a cluster fuck of a a performance and I felt deeply embarrassed to be a Saints fan. I met quite a few current pros over the weekend, playing for other clubs and the general feeling is that Martin's sides are "soft" and he is not rated as a manager in the game. I think we are all waking up to that, at the moment. The players looked disinterested, half-hearted and were full of simple mistakes. Passes went astray all the time. The second half was so frustrating. Edozie brightened things up a bit and Sulemana has pace but that was about as good as it got. We have severe problems all over the park. Goal scoring, midfield and defence I wouldn't know where to begin. We can't keep carrying on as if by magic we are going to turn a corner but the thought of a fifth manager in less than a year is bat crazy but a sure sign of massive mismanagement on an industrial scale. Martin is a charlatan. As well as the board, he has successfully duped Adam Blackmore, I see who was calling for him to be given more time, but we will be serious relegation candidates very soon unless the rot is stopped. I spent 12 hours in my car driving to this away game and had a lot of time to think about our predicament. Other than our relegation/administration season I can't remember being more depressed as a Saints fan. Even in the Branfoot days we had fight but that is badly missing. We have been crying out for some leadership on the pitch but our calls have not been answered by the powers to be. The fans are helpless to intercede. We can only hope someone in SR is sensible enough to smell the roses and take a gulp. Otherwise we are in for a winter of discontent............ big time.