imported_slough_saint

But will he still play once McClaggon is fit? I think we need to see make this kind of impact consistently and over the full 90 minutes. I suspect he was drifting in Reading reserves but Wally Downes knew his potential and recommended Ap to take a look. Unless he really sets the world alight in the next few weeks i can't see Reading wanting to recall him anytime soon.

I think we need to give a big pat on the pack to his backroom staff also. I'm sure it was Dean Wilkins who recommended we get Dean Hammond as he played for him at Brighton. I reckon he was also instrumental in get Melis in on loan from Chelsea (via his brother). If Sneiderlin or Lallana lose form or are injured i think he will be a real find - especially as he would be playing alongside a confident team. And i think Antonio was a recommendation from Wally Downes who was a coach at Reading and knew his potential. But the biggest thanks goes down to ML who has funded all these purchases. At the end of the day money talks!

What a wonderful day! I can't remember the last time i saw Saints come from behind to win. The changes made by AP certainly changed the game but for me it was Antonio who was the big difference - because of his sheer physical presence and directness. Connelly for me was a bit off the pace and his first touch was poor. A number of times he failed to control the ball or released it too late. But this sharpness will come with games and there is no doubt he has the poachers instinct. He very nearly scored when he first came on, just failing to lob the keeper. I aslo thought Papa didn't have a bad game other than being continually caught offside. He has the ability (and speed) to ghost into positions unmarked and potentially be a real threat. I'd like to see how offside he was for his disallowed goal and also had a clear header on goal that was saved. At least he is getting goal scoring opportunities. Defensively he appears lightweight but i think that is a bit deceptive as there were loads of times where somehow he managed to get a foot in and stop the attacking opponent. If I was AP i would start the same 4-5-1 tactics against Orient with maybe Antonio coming in for Papa.

Are you insame! There is no way Saints will keep a clean sheet!

Since when has the purchase of a football club been good value? When you think of all these astute businessman talked about on here as potential savours by so called ITK-ers, none of them wanted to put their hands in their pockets and bale us out. If I had the money i would love to have bought Saints. But it would very definitely be heart over head. Sure the value of Saints assets is much greater than the amount paid but in the end ML will be paying out money every season until/unless he gets us promoted to the premier league. Even then it is likely he will not make much unless he sells the company. Even in the premier league it is likely that our expenditure will have to increase to attract the top players which will offset any additional income we may get. I just hope ML doesn't get bored with the continual request for more money by the new Saints board and that the crowds don't turn on him if they feel the team is not up to scratch as they have on plenty of times on the players on the pitch. Just like finally to say one big huge thank you to ML and his team for taking a gamble on buying us. Even if it is not financially successful I hope they enjoy the thrills and excitement of getting us back and thriving in the premier league.

Lets hope the Swiss win it!! http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1197540/Swiss-billionaires-roll-save-League-One-Southampton.html?ITO=1490

I think some of you are missing the point. If Fry can get more by breaking up the club, selling its assets piecemeal to repay the creditors then he must do it. His duty is to the creditors (Barclays) first and the fans second.

Totally agree with M271. These guys are looking to spend their own hard earned money and potentially waste it on a football investment (as did the original shareholders of SLH - me included). You have to accept that Fry did his due diligence on all interested parties and check on proof of funds. Not only is it disrespectful to question these guys integrity, it is likely to push them away from the deal. Why would they want all this hassle for potentially a loss making venture. We should be supporting and encouraging their efforts not questioning their background. If none of these 3 bidders complete then Saints are history.

I agree with Manji that the Daily Mail article claiming RL could be coming back could be planted so as to make any alternative offer look far more attractive than it is. But the sad fact is that the club is a busted flush, starting league 1 with -10 points and no matter how much fans may not like it, our destiny is largely out of our control. The administrator's sole purpose is to get the best possible deal for the creditors. Hopefully this will also mean the best deal for the football club but it doesn't have to. If RL is part of a successful consortium that rescues my football club from oblivion then i will still continue to support and follow it. We can talk about who's to blame for the current predicament until the cows come home, but my view is that RL would never have gambled like the previous regime by racking up a huge overdraft that ultimately forced us into playing the youngsters and loaning out the better paid players that we had to this year. Hindsight is a wonderful thing but I wish RL had refused M Wilde's request to come back and attempt to sort out the mess the prevoius management team had left. Perhaps Crouch, McMenemy, Wilde and other would be getting a bit more flack for their own actions over the previous 2 years.

Given it was under the Crouch/Wilde regime that cash in the bank plus future transfer instalments (Walcot / Bale) were replaced by a £6m overdraft that eventually lead to the position we are in now, i think Crouch's rallying calls are a bit rich. I can't quite understand why in spite of the mess we are in the mud has only stuck on Lowe.

I get the feeling that most of the posters on here don't like Rupert Lowe! They will never forgive him for getting the club relegated from the premier league even though he went all out in the January transfer window to give HR the players he wanted - Camara, Rednapp, Quashie, Davenport, Bernard are some players who spring to mind. Even HR said he was happy with the transfers made at the time. It wasn't RL who got Saints relegated, it was HR and the players. Its true that RL may not have the most likeable of personalities - he is arrogant and pompous with an abrasive character but the fact is that if players left the club he damn well got the best price for the club. It is a matter of fact that when he was kicked out of the club we did not have an overdraft with Barclays and looked forward to future payments from the Walcott transfer. Enter the new board and money was wasted on the likes of SKacel, Licka, Idiakes, Thomas, John and Euell for an all or nothing promomotion push. And guess what, we got nothing! And what I find incredible is the fact that RL gets blamed for all this too. Crouch, Wilde, McMenemy etc seem to have escaped unscathed from any criticism at all. Yet it was this new administration that has brought us to our knees by racking up such a huge overdraft. Do you think RL would have taken such a gamble if he had been in charge over the last 3 years? Of course most of the Lowe haters will just not want to believe any of this. They just want to pin all the blame on him. Perhaps if he was called Reg, spoke with a hampshire accent and was semi-literate they would be more forgiving. This season we now know why the high wage earners were loaned out. It was a list ditch effort to stave off administration. Sadly it failed. I've no doubt i will be accused of being a Lowe lover or a Pomp** fan or any other abuse you want to throw at me by all the Lowe haters on here. That is not true. I have been a ST holder for over 20 years travelling 140 miles for each home match. But I happen to think this obsessive hatred for the man needs to be balanced by an alternative view. It is not his fault that we are here it is the previous administration - Now fire away!!