lambtiss

Nothing but good feelings towards Ryan and best wishes for his future. He always gave 100% for us and it was just age that caught up with him that hurried his departure.

Definitely

I don't doubt you but is a surprise nevertheless.

I guess we must disagree on this. My perception was that our performances dropped in intensity and quality upon Stephens return. I definitely think 4 at the back suits the current Saints personnel. That season in the Championship under RM where we played 4 at the back was the only successful campaign under SR's ownership. Playing 5 at the back requires 3 skilled, ball playing CBs which we don't possess.

My apologies, my response was unfair. However, I still think 4 at the back suits the current Saints personnel. That season in the Championship under RM where we played 4 at the back was the only successful campaign under SR's ownership. Playing 5 at the back requires 3 skilled, ball playing CBs which we don't possess. It requires good wing backs which we also don't possess. The players we have suit 4 at the back rather than 5. THB, our best CB, is far more comfortable in that setup. It means we don't play the ball sideways and backwards so much. It means we have to play 2 proper full backs rather than pretend that Manning is a wing back and hamper Fellows who is clearly a winger not a defender. Finally it allows us to play another midfielder or attacker, rather than Shoehorn a weak CB like Woods into the team. Just my take ..

Totally unsupported by facts. The great unbeaten run we went on in the championship was with a CB pairing of Bednarek and THB. Results started to deteriorate when Captain Jack returned to the fold and RM tried to Shoehorn him back into the team. Still, don't let facts get in the way of a story.

I hope Manning stays on the bench

Scienza and Azaz off. The white flag has been raised

We are starting to retreat and creak

Stewart has been excellent

The 2nd half is the big test for Eckhart. Will we go into our shell?

I’ve just heard that Sammy the Saint has requested a transfer.

It’s a low bar ..

I agree that Stewart looks better than Armstrong, the issue is that he hasn’t been fit for 3 seasons with the constitution of Walter the Softy. Your comment that I was responding to was that Armstrong is absolute shite which is nonsense when he is the 2nd top scorer in the Championship in an underperforming team.

So shite, that he is the 2nd top scorer in the Championship, in an underperforming team. Nobody thinks he is Ronaldo but he is the most prolific striker we have and losing him now would be a disaster.