SaintJackoInHurworth

Ah! But Guildford IS a city - that's why their football team is called Guildford City... ...although looking at their website it could be Saints next season!! http://www.guildfordcityfc.co.uk/

But then again... ...maybe it's not as bad as you pessimists think...!! You're believing this on the back of some big vendetta between The Echo and Pinnacle. Do we actually know anything of substance? Let's wait and hear what Fry has to say... after all, he did say that there would be no more drastic moves until Friday so that means his announcement must be an update of where we are up to as people are expecting to hear something today. Calm down everyone - we've still got a few days left with potentially 4 interested parties.

Perhaps not Larry David... but how about CRAIG DAVID?? Why do I say that?.... Craig David has strong link to Southampton. He is also half Jewish. And if you want a Russian link, he has recently completed a tour of Russia. Any thoughts?

Yes, you are right - both Arabs and Jews are Semitic. But they are two seperate nations/people groups within that categorisation, so perhaps 'race' was not quite the right word - perhaps I should have said 'nationality', though that can be easily confused because it is often used to mean something a little different. So let's just say that 'Jewish' refers to members of a people group rather than a religion. HTH

OK - looks like I was wrong!!! I should have checked out the stuff on his profile first! But it certainly looks great fodder for some conspiracy theory! In fact I suspect there will be a lot of conspiracy theories floating around should the Pinnacle bid fail and I must admit I am often one of the first to look for them (and have been known to come up with some pretty fanciful ones in the past!!) When the news about MF living in Barnet with his parents broke the other day my first thought was 'Is this some kind of Pompey conspiracy?' I keep seeing conspiracy clues in everything! But, the question still needs to be asked: If MF is part of a group, who is/are the main money spinner(s) in the group? I remember reading a comment from the other day about how MF has 'connections in his community': http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/4461152.Saints_bid_leader_Tony_Lynam_is_pleased_Fialka_has_made_himself_known/ That seems to me to suggest his Jewish background is significant. Elsewhere I have read that Jews are on average more wealthy than any other race of people (and, yes, in answer to a question raised elsewhere, being Jewish is an issue of race not religion - while many/most Jews follow the Jewish religion to a greater or lesser extent, it is not unheard of to be Jewish and follow another religion - e.g. there are quite a lot of Jewish Christians) With this in mind, here's a link to some of the world's most significant Jews: http://www.scientificpsychic.com/search/famous-jews.html To the list on there can be added: Simon Cowell, Goldman Sachs, Claudia Winkelman, Lord Levy among others!!

The link to him being Jewish is not what's important here though!!! That was just by way of explaining how I got to finding out what I have found out!!! LOL The important part is that link... WHY is Steve Ballmer making an obscure comment on a blog about the development of Southampton City Centre????!!! And bear in mind that this occurred some time after February 7th, so could have taken place in recent weeks. (btw, in case you haven't found the comment by Steve Ballmer it is about five or six comments up from the bottom!)

The BIG question then is who is the REAL money behind this bid. I've done a bit of research and found out some interesting facts that may (or may not) be a clue... 1. Michael Fialka is Jewish and there has been reference to his links in his 'community'. 2. The wealthiest Jew in the world is Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft. 3. Steve Ballmer recently posted a brief comment to a blog about the city of Southampton. Here's the link: http://nastybrutalistandshort.blogspot.com/2009/02/southampton-trawl-addenda.html#698987649855704163 Check it out for yourself!! Is this genuine do you think? If so it could be sensational!

Hang on a minute.... ...we are all assuming that Michael Fialka is the man behind the takeover, but maybe he is just an employee of a company that are the actual clients. He just happens to be the front man. So, who does this Michael Fialka work for? Maybe therein lies the key to the real purchaser of the Saints. I certainly hope so!

Quick question: If Pinnacle go ahead with the takeover before the FL agree to issue a licence, that should take the club out of administration resulting in the necessary cva... ...won't the FL be forced then to issue the licence whether or not the waiver has been signed? (Apologies if anyone has asked this before!)

Oh well! It was worth a try!!

'D' is for direct action: A question... Can we, the fans, help Pinnacle's case in any way? A Suggestion... If thousands of fans were to make a small claims court claim against the Football League for personal injury caused by the stress resulting from their ludicrous decision would that put pressure on them? Here's the scenario: Hundreds (or even thousands) of Saints fans put in a small claim against the Football League. It needs to be for less than £5000, prefereably more like £1000 or less. It doesn't need to be done with legal representation so there is no cost. It doesn't even have to be a strong case(!) the point is not necessarily to win the case, though more power to you if you can!! Within our claim though we include a waiver(!) that is conditional upon the Football League agreeing to reinstate Southampton FC to their full league status. The Football League must then respond to the case within 14 days or they lose the case. They will therefore have the following options: 1. Reply to each individual claim. Will they be able to? Perhaps not if enough people can do this! 2. Reinstate Saints before the 14 day deadline thus nullifying the claims. 3. Pay up to thousands of Saints fans. I doubt they want to do this! What do you think? Is it a go-er? Now before the legal eagles point out that we don't really have much of a case and it would be thrown out if contested, I know all that, but the point is not to realistically expect to win money from these claims but rather to put pressure on the Football League to act and to make it hard for them to contest each case, so that the easiest way to avoid the claims is to reach a quick solution with Saints. What do you think?

A question... Can we, the fans, help Pinnacle's case in any way? A Suggestion... If thousands of fans were to make a small claims court claim against the Football League for personal injury caused by the stress resulting from their ludicrous decision would that put pressure on them? Here's the scenario: Hundreds (or even thousands) of Saints fans put in a small claim against the Football League. It needs to be for less than £5000, prefereably more like £1000 or less. It doesn't need to be done with legal representation so there is no cost. It doesn't even have to be a strong case(!) the point is not necessarily to win the case, though more power to you if you can!! Within our claim though we include a waiver(!) that is conditional upon the Football League agreeing to reinstate Southampton FC to their full league status. The Football League must then respond to the case within 14 days or they lose the case. They will therefore have the following options: 1. Reply to each individual claim. Will they be able to? Perhaps not if enough people can do this! 2. Reinstate Saints before the 14 day deadline thus nullifying the claims. 3. Pay up to thousands of Saints fans. I doubt they want to do this! What do you think? Is it a go-er? Now before the legal eagles point out that we don't really have much of a case and it would be thrown out if contested, I know all that, but the point is not to realistically expect to win money from these claims but rather to put pressure on the Football League to act and to make it hard for them to contest each case, so that the easiest way to avoid the claims is to reach a quick solution with Saints - and hence its significance to this particular thread!

Personally, I'm pleased to see the end of paid membership. I originally became a member of the club back in the days when it was free of charge. When paid membership came in I was if I remember correctly a poor ex-student on a year-out unable to afford to get to many games (not that I can afford to get to many now!) and living too far away to get to many anyway. The cost of membership made it even more expensive and basically I was excluded from supporting Saints for several years because of it. It was only when I moved up north and joined a regional supporters group (in my case 'Northern Saints') that I once again found myself able to attend matches once more. Personally, this is where I would like to see the emphasis placed instead of on club membership. The regional supporters groups help develop a committed group of supporters, especially, but not exclusively, for away fixtures. Being part of one of these is a bit like being part of a little family. They also ensure fairness in terms of priority purchasing of tickets. For those that wonder how they will buy a ticket for a match now that membership is gone, I would urge you to join your nearest regional supporters group. If you are in the north, for example, why not come and join 'Northern Saints'?

hmmm... perhaps Paul Allen is buying a new yacht and a football club at the same time.

Darryl Duffy - Bristol City Jo Kuffour - Bristol City Simon Cox - Swindon Town - though reported interest from Leicester and Celtic! Joel Porter - Hartlepool Utd - Australian who is currently out of contract but one of the top scorers in league 1 last season. Reportedly may be signing for a Japanese team, though Hartlepool trying to convince hime to sign a new contract.

I believe he is going to be assistant manager at Darlington: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/d/darlington/8078697.stm

Hmm, Jim Ratcliffe could be our man, but this article sugests most of his wealth is tied up in INEOS who have made huge losses in the recession. Consequently he is no longer listed in the rich list: http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/business/4326015.Question_marks_over_fortune_of_Hampshire_s_richest_man/

Hehehe!! And most definitely, no!! lol Just a clue here - if they knock at your door holding a big bible, the chances are that they are not Christians, but Jehova's Witnesses or more likely Mormons. And before anyone writes in saying that those are Christians, neither of those groups accept that Jesus is God, so they can't really be called Christians! If I were to knock at your door (and since I live near Darlington that is probably highly unlikely!) I would be more likely to be accompanied by a group of young people, encouraging them to make a positive difference in their local community by doing free gardening, litter-picking or other community action stuff. It's all very well to go and tell people what you believe, but I think it is more meaningful to live out what you believe and then if people want to ask about my beliefs then great, I will tell them, but like I said before, I don't want to throw that down anyone's throats! But at the same time I am not going to stay quiet about what I believe either - if I am asked about it, like I have been, then I will answer the questions - after all I do think that it is good news (not bad news as some people seem to make it appear!!) Anyway... enough! Don't let me start wittering again!! lol

In my opinion (and I believe we all need to work out what we believe for ourselves, so I am happy to say what I believe and put a case for it, but I'm not going to try to force anyone to believe it!): 1. Yes. 2. Omniscient, omnipotent and the only God. The issue of God's gender is a red herring so I will leave that one! 3. Jesus is 'probably' the main example of this! Also, actions of Christians serving God in all sorts of caring activities, charities, etc. Also the acts of others - who's to say God only uses those that believe in him to achieve his works? And then there's people who have been healed and stuff. Plus many people will tell of their own experiences of God at work in their lives and the lives of others around them, etc. 4. If he is omniscient that means he is everywhere, if he is omnipotent, that means he is all powerful; on the basis of those two things, where would the "scarcity of remedial prowess and the need for some sort of rationing mechanism" be? There would be no such scarcity and there would be no need for a rationing mechanism. And God is just as concerned with the trivialities of everyday life as he is with macro-level disasters. The bible has numerous examples of God providing food, etc. for nobodies (like a widow and her son who had run out of food; like some shade so that a rebellious prophet could have a rest out of the sun, etc.) so yes, God is interested in SFC! 5. As explained above there would be no such trade off, but if there were, yes I would! IMO Shankly was wrong - there are many things that are far more important than football, including life and death. As I say, these are just personal opinions. I know there are a whole load of difficult issues around this and would not want to say that they are easy to get to grips with! It is really tough to get to understand how a God of love can allow suffering, for example, and frankly while I can offer some explanations to questions like that, I also get to point where I have to hold my hands up and say 'I don't really know'. All I know is that I think he is real and that I have experienced 'God' for myself and believe that he hurts too when we hurt. I also believe that he experienced some pretty bad stuff himself when he came into the world and ultimately got killed on the cross (a pretty brutal way to die by all accounts!) In terms of where my faith interacts with my passion for Saints (and I will try to bring things back to football as this is a football forum!) I would say that I pray to God for Saints from time to time, although sadly he has been saying 'no' an awful lot recently for whatever reason! Fortunately today's prayers for a takeover to emerge got a 'yes' answer! I would also say that I believe that Saints has an important spiritual status in terms of the city of Southampton and therefore concern for the club is beyond just private tribal interest. And so it is right and proper that I am concerned for the club's future as the standing of the city of Southampton is to some degree intrinsically linked with the fortunes of the club. I don't know if any of that makes sense or if I just sound like I am wittering rubbish, so I will shut up now, but as I say these are just my opinions. I hope that they do not in any way offend anyone. Thanks, Neil

No incoming!! I agree with you... but... that doesn't mean Christians aren't interested in praying for the club. I'm sure there are plenty of Christians in Southampton who, like my pastor friend, support Southampton and would be happy to pray for the club; and, yes, I don't just mean praying about some stupid allegations about cursed ground, but actually praying about meaningful stuff like getting a new owner, etc. After all, as another thread on here alludes, there is a link between the welfare of a football club and the welfare of the town in which it is based, especially in a city like Southampton.

Evidently, the Pompey takeover deal could go pear-shaped: http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/may/28/portsmouth-takeover-premier-league I thought there were some quite amusing comments in the Times too (especially the bit about their new ground ending up under water!) http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/portsmouth/article6382896.ece

What a BAD BAD idea! The nickname of this football club is SAINTS and there is a very good reason for that. It was founded originally as a church football team from St Mary's Church. To suggest confounding the whole history of the club by doing something so stupid is beyond words! It is like an insult to our founding fathers!! If you really believe in occultic ideas then it is a bad idea beacuse to so go against your history must have some sort of bad karma (or whatever you would call it), while those that hold to Christian beliefs would point out that the bible urges people to steer clear of occultic practices like this. Either way, you're onto a loser! And if you are not religious then of course you are not going to want to waste even more of the clubs money on bringing in some white witch! But if anyone really thinks it is an issue, why not invite some of the leaders of the local churches to hold a prayer meeting of local Christians in the stadium? I am sure they would jump at the opportunity and they wouldn't even charge to do it! If I remember correctly Kriss Akabussi goes to a church just up the road from the stadium so perhaps he could be involved in some way? Also, a friend of mine is the pastor of one of the bigger churches in Southampton and he is a big Saints fan too, so I am sure he would help out!!

Boy, I still haven't found what I'm looking for on this thread. It could all end in War. Still, let's hope we're not still here in October, with Sunday as the new Friday... cos you know what they'll be saying then don't you: "Sunday, Bloody Sunday!" Hopefully instead they will have the grace to get it done in a little while, or we will just be stuck in a moment you can't get out of. Anyway, with or without you and your support (and you know, sometimes you can't make it on your own) I wonder if it would result in the unforgettable fire-ing of Mark Wotte. And how much would it cost? But how much more might we be worth in a few years? 40 million maybe. That would surely bring a lot of Pride in the name of love for the saints badge. Yes! The Saints are coming! Let's just hope that the Electric Co. don't switch off the lights before it all goes through, cos it really could turn out to be a beautiful day and each day is one step closer to when we sing our adulation in God's country to the city of blinding lights that is southampton and also to Bono, declaring that it's 'all because of you'. Yes, when I look at the world, that really could be a great outcome! (U2 can waste ur time quoting song titles from songs!!!)

Whether or not the Leon Crouch on Facebook is the real Leon Crouch, I notice that among his friends is Dave Merrington. Is that the real Dave Merrington? And among Dave Merrington's friends are a number of Saints players and staff past and present including: Josh Dutton Black Danny Wallace Ray Wallace Reuben Agboola Claus Lundekvam Theo Walcott Mark Wotte Also Nick Illingsworth's name is there too! So... are any of those genuine or are they all fakes?