derry

As a schoolboy in January 1960 third division Saints were playing first division Manchester City at Maine Rd in the third round of the FA Cup, a big deal in those days. A special train to Manchester and back was laid on for Saints supporters, it was packed. On arrival at Manchester all the Saints supporters en masse marched around central manchester singing, to the hotel Saints were staying at. They all came out onto a balcony to salute the supporters. What an atmosphere. Eventually we arrived at the massive Maine Road stadium. The match kicked off against City full of internationals. Cliff Huxford pulled a muscle early on but with no substitutes in those days it was either carry on or go off. He limped through the match and played a stormer. As did the whole team. In the finest individual display I've ever seen, Terry Paine tore City to pieces, four goals for Derek Reeves and one for George O'Brien against the great Bert Trautmann saw Saints win 5-1, what a day it was.

We have established several patterns. We are now predictable. The first half hour, slick movement and breaks maybe score three goals. the next 15 mins more possession based preserve the lead and get to half time. All through the first half there was a common thread, pass the ball around at the back then slowly move forward and lose the ball before we reach half way. For all our possession most of the passes were in our own half and mostly the centre backs. Manning is a massive problem as he habitually passes back which in itself feeds the problem. He is hopeless defensively and often out of position not getting back. The second half we play passively for 15 minutes then take our best attackers off. That makes us even more passive whilst we lose the ball more having lost our outlets. The opposition know how we play and then press us. We then make more changes that only make the situation worse so for the last 20 minutes they are pretty much camped in our half. Last night we could have lost that game. WBA forward completely messed up an open goal header by heading straight to Bazunu, anywhere else it was an easy chance then just before the end a low cross from the left was stepped over and left the right winger an easy chance but he fluffed it and fired into the Chapel. We survived a succession of corners and as at QPR were hanging on at the end. The second WBA goal was a blatant obstruction of Bazunu and should have been disallowed however well before that our team should have been into the referee and aggressively marked the WBA players before the ball came back into play. We have to stop this pattern or it is going to cost us against the better teams. Admittedly getting the injured players back may help but we have to be more combative in the second half. Backing off and putting numbers behind the ball just doesn't cut it especially having taken Scienza, Azaz, Armstrong, Fellows etc off leaving us with little attacking threat.

Aribo was abysmal. Slow, not committed and going through the motions. Personally I've never liked Aribo because he is so embarrassingly left footed he can only turn one way, that together with his lack of pace and mobility it astounds me that we are paying him over £3.5m a year. He should be shelved now and got rid of in January even if a contribution is required to transfer him. His performance hurt us yesterday If Tonda thinks otherwise he is deluded. Enough to cast serious doubts regarding his promotion. Yesterday's result was unfortunate. Personally Stephen's went missing at the last goal, Manning's poor positioning facing the wrong way contributed. That goal spoilt an otherwise decent result in the circumstances.

For the first time in a long time I like the way we are playing. I see a manager who knows his players, is playing them in their natural positions and gelling the way they play thereby getting the best out of them and especially achieving more than the sum of the parts. Something no manager has done since Koeman and at times Hasenhuttl. All in three weeks. If he has done nothing else he has put us in a position to strike out for the top with 29 games left. He deserves the opportunity and should get to decide who he wants to work with. If the chemistry is there then let it be.

A hard bitten experienced manager. Rodgers looks like the closest to that for me.

I think Rodgers actually played for Newport IOW before he blagged the coaching job at Chelsea which really gave him a start. Also at Reading so the area is known to him.

Money talks! Rodgers has a very good record and his teams play attacking football. He might be an arrogant prick but football managers in the main appear to be. It needs somebody with a strong personality and a good record.

As a schoolboy I watched Saints in the old Div 3S, then Div3, Div2, Div1, FA Cup Winners, Premier League then up and down. They're still my team.

McCarthy is awful and Charles is out for a couple of months. I named only those that were fit. Thirdly Bazunu is a more accurate kicker of the ball and could target the 6'5" Quarshie. McCarthy struggles to keep it on the pitch.

We need to move on, Russell Martin is not the answer. the team needs an overhaul not reversion to the awful possession obsessed theories he refused to alter.

Still is a theoretical tinkering coach fettered by systems. It's not systems that make a team. A manager needs and will look at the players, where can they play, what can they do and who are the best characters. We've done nothing like that. The Martin period has left it's mark. Allowing the team to play three random centre backs with two full backs whose default reaction is to pass back and retain possession. Why, because it slows everything down, allows opponents to get goalside and very difficult to break down. Where do we go from here. I know what I would do. Firstly I'd put Bazunu back in goal. he is a far better footballer than McCarthy. From there I'd forbid playing out from the back or even passing back. Two centre backs, Wood and THB, we've only two full backs available playing as a defensive four. The most important thing for me is a relentlessly high tempo. The midfield again is no choice, Downes and Jander with two wingers Scienza and Fellows. Now comes the conundrum. No pace, no power, no physicality up front we've got several alternatives, Armstrong. Azaz, Robinson, Oyekunle. Nothing there really works for me. Personally I'd throw in a wild card and take a chance by putting Quarshie up front and give it a go with initially Armstrong along side. As half our possession is backwards and sideways which we need to dispense with I'd get the ball out wide and let the wingers attack down the lines and the spare winger get to the back post. Quarshie might not be the answer but I'd give him the job of roughing up the defenders and winning the ball in the air. He'd also be usefull defensively against dead ball situations. Will it work, I haven't a clue but it's a lot more positive than the present situation.

At half time Still got it half right. Edwards off, Fellows on. He then added Robinson but the shape was wrong. Scienza and Fellows needed to hug the touchlines with Robinson and Armstrong in front. Roerslev and Manning to play as orthodox full backs alongside the two centre backs. Instead of that we were shapeless with no balance. After that it was chaotic. Bringing on too many forwards didn't work yet again just left us wide open. McCarthy instead of diving on the ball at the forwards feet went in feet first together with weak defending from Edwards lost the ball and conceded the goal. As far as I'm concerned Bazunu should come back at QPR with a back four, he reads the game so much better than McCarthy. I've had it with Will Still's negative tactics. After watching Armstrong unable to play as a lone central striker give the young lad a go with Armstrong in a 4-4-2. Downes and Jander were ok in midfield.

Garbage, most of our possession is defenders passing it around. Go 4-4-2 and take Edwards off, Fellows right wing and Scienza on the left, Azaz and Armstrong. Go for it.

Another self inflicted shambles. It wasn't great then Archer was injured. Substitute Fraser, what was that supposed to do except concede up front. Then the self inflicted, Stephens on Scienza our best player off. That really put Blackburn on the front foot. We were rabbits in the headlights so three more substitutions, that really stitched us up like a kipper. No shape no idea and there for the taking. I think the manager panicked. Robinson should have replaced Archer. That would have increased the pressure on Blackburn not lifted it. Scienza should have been left on and Stephens should have stayed on the bench. Wellington for Manning was just tinkering whilst Bragg made no sense at all. We lost all shape, conceded two rediculous goals whilst again squandering two clear chances. Armstrong trying to repeat last weeks dink, of course the keeper was ready for it. If Still wants to reinvent the wheel then do it somewhere else. The team was barely balanced but the manager proceeded to turn it into a shapeless shambles. Whatever substitutions are made have to keep balance and shape, ours destroyed the balance and the shape. One thing I forgot to say, we are totally incompetent playing three centrebacks allowing opponents to run through the gaps. This team is crying out for 4-4-2. Ie.Roerslev, Wood, Quarshie, Manning, Fellows, Jander. Downes, Scienza, Azaz and Armstrong/Robinson. That's assuming that Charles, Archer, Wellington, are out for the next month or so. As for the goalkeeper I think McCarthy showed today he's not the answer. Reaction saves and killer soft goals whilst totally inept in possession.

That was an absolute shambles. The team selection was a nonsense. The way we play three centre backs is a nonsense. It is totally negative we work the ball upfield then in two passes end up back with the centre backs so pass it around for a bit and start again. Possession statistics are a myth. It's just a count of the number of meaningless passes we are making. The three at the back left themselves wide open and were done regularly on the break. The three goals were defendible but the centre backs were incompetent. Charles made a beautiful thirty yard forward pass to open up Bristol for our goal. Scienza looks a handful. Armstrong might get the odd goal but as soon as an attacking ball reaches him he selfishly tries to finish. Last night he had the opportunity of a square pass to Archer for an open goal but just shot. I think Still is becoming a problem fiddling while Rome burns. He has the players, he now needs to stop trying to invent a shape and use the players in their best positions. As far as I'm concerned every set of players has a natural shape, it's negating their ability trying to shoehorn into a selected shape which is what Still is doing. It stands out like a dogs balls that the players he has are made for 4-4-2. No fit right full back. Edwards or Stephens could play there. Two wingers, Azaz and Armstrong/Robinson up front, Charles and Jander midfield, two centre backs, Wood + 1, Wellington/Manning. It's the most natural shape unless Azaz drops into midfield making a 4-3-3.