Pilsmer

Loving your work Saint John. That's some dedication to stats geekery.

Just got my ticket for this. I'd like to see De Ridder play instead of Guly because I thought we lacked width on the left against Burnley and Lambert was often the wide outlet on that side. If De Ridder can provide some genuine width then maybe Lambert can spend more time in the middle (Also, I've not seen much of De Ridder and would like to see what he can do). I'd also bring Hammond back in for Morgan. Our clinical edge has been missing the last couple of games but I predict it will return and we'll win comfortably. 4-1.

Well I walked in to that one, didn't I.

Me too. Wasn't it 2 days before Christmas? What a way to start the festive period.

There's me and my dad in the background!

I thought the best example of support on Saturday was the lad who came down the front in the second half and proceeded to gesture the Burnley fans with a thumb across his throat. From where I was sitting it looked like he was making death threats to half a dozen children and a 70 year old lady. Classy. As for the game, I thought Burnley closed us down well in the first half but we made it hard for ourselves with some poor passing and trying to play football in the wrong areas. Kelvin only tried to play it out short once and it nearly cost us dear. We did enough to win it in the second half but it was just one of those days when the clinical finishing was missing. Its just sod's law that they play poorly when you make the effort to travel for 5 hours to see them. I fully expect us to bounce back against Cardiff and Watford this week though.

I just saw on another thread Isgrove's name mentioned for possible involvement in the Preston game. This got me thinking that I don't know much about our youngsters and should maybe take more interest. I've just scanned their profiles and made a vow to follow them more but I was wondering what people on here thought. Who are our outstanding youngsters and which ones have got potential to develop into great players?

I know! I'll try and make up for it this season though and hopefully we'll emulate last season's achievements. Luckily I'm up north this weekend so can see my second game in a week at Burnley. Same again please.

I was away for the last 7 months of last season so yesterday was the first time I have seen Saints since the Bournemouth game last October. I think that was Adkins 2nd or 3rd match and its great to see how far he has brought this team. The football was genuinely some of the best I've seen Saints play and I love the confidence we have playing in tight situations. The fact we dominated a recent Premiership team more than we did against Bournemouth last year is testiment to NA's hard work. My highlights were Kelvin's performance (those two saves from the free kicks in the first half were excellent) and the Marlon King song I've seen a few on here criticising our obsession with playing it from the back and I have to agree. Don't get me wrong, I admire what we're trying to do but I question the logic of doing it all the time even when it's not the right option. Cork coming back and receiving the ball on the edge of the D with his back to goal is not, in my opinion, safe football. The short ball should be played to someone who has time and space to turn. The only option Cork really has in that position is to give it back to Davis and a few times yesterday he had a Brum forward closing him down very quickly so he had to get away from them before distributing the ball. We will get caught out doing this at some point this season. Its a small gripe though. I'm used to spending the whole match in a state of nervousness when watching the Saints; it's good that its now down to a few short goal kicks. A top afternoon was made even better when I saw Le Tiss outside the ground after the match.

...but Lallana does make Messi look ****e.

I agree that its much harder to predict the outcome of this season than last season, but even without the rose-tinted glasses that I'm a big fan of, I can see us pushing for the play off places. We've got by and large the same squad that were brilliant last season and I think this will help us to get that elusive good start to the season. If we can get 7 points from the first four games whilst we're getting used to the pace of the new league then that'll be a good platform to push on. I'm really excited about our attacking options and feel that we have plenty of goals in us with or without a new striker. Our defence kept countless clean sheets last season and I have faith that they've got enough experience and quality to succeed in the NPC. Adkins has not only got us playing attractive football but also effective football and he's got a familiar group of players with which he can execute his plans with confidence. I'm going to nail my colours to the mast and say we'll finish 5th. I'm also going to save this post until such a time that this prediction is proven hopelessly wrong.

*cough* Err yeah he is. Still a good tune though. Now where is that coat of mine.

How about the following to the tune of the can can introduction (24 seconds in the attached file - ) Steve de Ridder Gets the ball and does his thing* Steve de Ridder Our flying Dutchman on the wing Steve de Ridder On the left and on the right Steve de Ridder He's the knight in red and white (score a goal and hear us sing/he's the knight who would be king)

Hopefully Adkins will continue to add layers to our play so that we can adapt to any opposition on any surface. I think the passing from the back will always be the first thing on the defence's mind because Adkins has stated time and again his desire to win in style and this starts from building from the back. But he also said in his recent interview that we need to find as many ways as possible to win so I certainly don't think Adkins will continue with the tactic if for any reason it is risky/ineffectual. I certainly think that Adkins is a thinker and will continue to evolve our style to counter teams working us out.

This is the crux of it in my opinion. Adkins obviously has very clear ideas of how the game should be played, has conveyed these ideas effectively to the players who have in turn embraced them whilst being in a settled environment. When Wilkins was in charge the club was in a state of disarray and its no surprise that this was mirrored in or performances.

A call to arms for us lurkers. At last my skiving has some direction.

I didn't know too much about Adkins before we got him so didn't have any preconceptions about him but after watching the game on Saturday I was very impressed with the brand of football he's got us playing, or at least he's trying to get us to play. There really were some great performances out there and the desire shown by the whole team is completely at odds with what people on here were saying about performances earlier in the season. What impressed me most was the attempts to play out from the back at every given opportunity. Most of the time it was passed 3 or 4 times before going back to Kelvin for a hoof but at least the first thought is to try and keep it short. As the team gets more used to Adkins' methods and grow in confidence then more and more of these plays from the back will form the basis of attacking moves. I liked Pardew and am grateful for the silverware, the comebacks and the 5 goal matches which made last season so enjoyable. However, if Saturday was just a work in progress for what we can expect from Adkins' Saints then I think we're going to see some truly great performances in a very successful season this term.

Not Saints, but this excerpt of an interview with Shola Ameobi whilst he was at Newcastle never fails to make me laugh. Journalist: "So Shola, do you have a nickname at the club?" Ameobi: "Not really no." "What do the lads call you?" "Shola." "What does Bobby Robson call you?" "Carl Cort."

I've taken my missus to a couple of games over the past couple of seasons. The first one was Charlton away in 08-09 season. She had a good grasp of the songs but refused to join in the chants about Martin Cranie being a Skate c**t because apparently "It's just mean picking on one person like that". She stayed resolute even in the face of my argument "But he is a Skate c**t." The second match was that awful performance up at Tranmere last season. After the game, when we were walking back to the car she innocently turns to me and said "Your team isn't very good, is it?" I've always admired her powers of observation. Whenever 'Arry's on the telly I only have to look at her for her to chant the mantra "He's a twitchy, baggy faced c**t". Girls like that don't come along too often so I went and married her.

I got this email from a Bristol dwelling mate of mine this morning. "I went past the ground last night and all I could hear were the sweet melodies of the Saints fans." You were obviously treated to a cracker of a game and were rightly enjoying yourselves. Lucky bu66ers.

I think it will be obvious to all of us if Alan Pardew isn't up to the job next season regardless of our position come Christmas. I fully expect our squad to be significantly better come August than it is now and as a result I would expect us to dominate this division (if, of course, we're still in it). If come Christmas there are 8 or 9 teams ahead of us then Pardew will be gone and it will be justified. There is no way that over 23 games thare should be that many teams ahead of us. Granted we 'could do a Millwall' and get to an automatic spot by the end of the season but no one in any job gets judged on what they may do in the future. In fact, the greater disparity between your potential and your actual acheivement, the more harshly you will be judged. Personally I think it's a moot point anyway. I'm a big fan of Pardew and I think he'll continue to build a squad that gets us fans excited and that will be far too good for most, if not all, teams in this division. If he builds that squad and they don't perform then it will be with regret that I concede that he's not a good enough manager.

I've been to four games this season. Orient away, Norwich home (league), Tranmere away and Wembley. I'm sure there are plenty more die hard fans that me who didn't get to go to Wembley and deserved a ticket. I shouldn't feel guilty about this though, my mate sorted out some Club Wembley tickets and I jumped at the chance. I live in London and I can't justify going down to Southampton on a regular basis to watch the Saints. I've never lived closer than 60 miles to Southampton so have never been a regular attendee. I suppose I've just become accustomed to supporting Saints in the way that I do. There is a upside and a downside to being a sporadic attendee. Upside - Every game I go to, no matter how big or small, is a proper event which often brings me together with family or friends who live far away and I haven't seen for a long time. The excitement is palpable from the minute we can find a game we can all get to and regardless of the result it is always the basis of a great weekend. I know that there are a lot of you that go to every game and still get just excited. Fair play to you. Downside - We never seem to bloody win when I go! Wembley was the first time I've seen us win in years. After scoring 10 in two games I had high hopes for Tranmere and we end up playing crap and losing. A few years ago I had my Christmas ruined by a last minute goal by Mark Crossley on 23rd December at a freezing Hillborough. When I was a kid my friend's dad used to take us to an away game for his birthday. We lived in Wiltshire and travelled to Leeds, Liverpool, Villa, Forest and Tottenham. Saints didn't score once in those five games and only let in two (One of which being Richard Dryden's OG against Villa at the end of a narrow escape season). With all that being said, I can't wait until I next get an opportunity to get down to St Marys.

And what a day out that was. I stayed in the Dorchester in Mayfair. Very Regal it was too.

There were a couple of times yesterday that I thought the winger was passed him but he got back very quickly on both occasions and snuffed it out. I agree that he was excellent. I also thought Mills did well on the other side.

Me and 3 mates managed to get some club Wembley tickets and are looking forward to a great weekend and a great result to top it off. 2-0 Saints. Lambert getting one in each half. Please can everyone remember to put their clocks forward on Saturday night. I would hate for anyone to arrive at Wembley, all excited, only to discover that they've missed the first half. Up The Saints!!