St Louis

Is Manning's brother any good?

Surely it’s only fair if he goes in goal for Boro for a bit? 46 league games for them, and we can use him in cups?

I have a small snippet worth sharing... I had dinner/drinks with a senior Saints director back in 2016, and as the drinks flowed, he started to share a few things he probably shouldnt have. One of which was that he said Fonte had come back from the Euro's in 2016 like Billy Big B*llocks (after winning it with Portugal), and that he was demanding a big pay rise, otherwise he wanted to move on (personally I think thats fair enough, he was 32 at the time, had players like Ronaldo around him all summer, was a Euros winner and probably felt it was his last chance of a big/fair contract). But the interesting part was that the Saints director told us that we were absolutely not willing to give him a new contract, as ALL of his metrics (fitness, pace, etc) had actually been in the decline for a few years and we were already keen to move him on in the near future, so this made the decision easy for the club. Incredible to think he managed another 10 years of playing! Admittedly didn't have a great time with West Ham, Braga, etc, but he did mange 5 brilliant seasons in the middle of that with Lille, playing 196 games and winning Ligue 1. Proper Saints legend, it would be great to see him back with us in some capacity one day.

For me, it 100% comes down to what the playing squad think…. If (and it’s a big if, and I’d assume not likely) they want him to stay, and feel they want to give it another go next season with a siege mentality and all stick together, then I would be happy for him to stay (the football played and the results he got, make him a better option than the risk and upheaval of a new manager) But… If (and I assume it’s most likely) they are disgusted by it all and want him gone and can’t forgive him for taking their chance away, then I want him gone. Bielsa did the same remember (it was only the punishment was lesser) and he was forgiven and loved again (like a god) by the Leeds fans (and media!)

Saturday's Sky Bet Championship Play-Off Final between Hull City and Middlesbrough will kick-off at 15:30. Should the outcome of the ongoing appeal process result in the Final being contested by Hull City and Southampton, the kick-off time for the fixture will remain at 16:30.

EFL Update:

Never been to Portsmouth? (Or Middlesbrough?)

SPYGATE LIVE 🤪 For those interested in wasting another day hitting refresh.... https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/sport/26118726.spygate-live---middlesbrough-southampton-play-off-verdict/

No, they don’t. They have to prove beyond reasonable doubt that we were attempting to cheat (on that occasion and potentially more). I think we all know there’s truth in it, just not the severity (and how much it’s been exaggerated hopefully by the sensationalist media). So we just await what they think is fair punishment for that.

This is genuinely true... my best mate just bumped into a Saints attacking midfielder (who might be Irish) in a department store in London (he sent me photo evidence) and had a quick chat. When asked, the unnamed player said 'Weve been told it will be a fine and we expect to play the final'. I know that he cant really say much to a random fan, and its just a useless snippet, but thought worth sharing 🤭 I'm hoping he might have said 'we dont know anything yet' if they werent confident... or am I clutching at straws!?

Excuse the ChatGPT, but I couldn't remember myself Southampton F.C. were initially allocated 35,667 tickets for the 2024 Championship Play-off Final against Leeds United at Wembley Stadium. A few days later, Wembley released an additional 1,233 tickets to Southampton after the initial allocation sold out, taking the total Saints allocation to approximately 36,900 tickets. The total attendance for the final was 85,862, which was actually the best-attended Championship play-off final in about a decade.

I know we don't have long to wait to find out, but the last few years have been... Year Kick-off time 2025 3:01pm 2024 3:00pm 2023 4:45pm 2022 4:30pm 2021 3:00pm (Covid restrictions) 2020 7:45pm (Covid restrictions, behind closed doors) 2019 3:00pm 2018 3:00pm

Team bus is due to arrive 90 mins before KO, so 6.30pm (but against WBA the coaches were running late due to the crowds lining the streets and the red smoke filling the skies!) So I guess people will congregate around 6.20'ish at the Ted Bates Statue. There are a few fan zones around the stadium now (with the Northam Fan Zone the largest) and beer trucks dotted around too (no charge to get into them, just wander in). There will be fans everywhere around the stadium tonight, as people will be arriving a few hours earlier than normal to greet the bus (and maybe 'welcome' the Boro one too!), so plenty of fans to have a natter with. Enjoy the game, and here's hoping we can all celebrate after the game too

I couldn't see a thread yet discussing the Home Leg of the Playoff games, so here we are.... Tickets secured today, didnt seem to be too many left and quite a wait in the waiting room before having the option to purchase. Let's hope we are still well in the tie following the 1st leg this Saturday. COYS!

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