yorkie

I'm going to put my final post of the day to good use and respond to this Lowe Luvvie - so no response until tomorrow Scabby - sorry Scooby! Professions back in charge? Don't make me laugh! Why are we in this mess? Who was in charge when we were relegated? Can't disagree with the dynamic football - but Redknapp tried it under Lowe, and it didn't work. I wonder if that's because these lads are more mature now? The Golden Duo? No much Goalden about them - more Goalshy in my books. I've got plenty to moan about - like why the ticket office hours are so important on a website about a PLC? I thought it was a cost cutting exercise - then it was revealed it was to benefit the fans! Lot of good it does me in Yorkshire! The site is flat - we all had a moan after the Blackpool game which seems eons ago - who really cares about Eng...er...overpaid prima donna...land? FFS why would anyone waste their money watching them? To cap it all we have to wait until Sunday afternoon to play too! I didn't moan after the Blackpool game thinking about it - I was very disappointed by the performance we did show more signs of being a very good side. Onwards and upwards that's my motto - see any of you at the mighty Rotherham? Let's face it we now have what we can afford and not what we originally wanted - Mr. Lowe. In the words of the song taken on board by the Labour Party - Things Can Only Get Better.

Funnell's goal at Orient...what a night in London. I could start a thread on the events of that day - from meeting at the supporters club - to chasing Spurs fans off the pitch - to a night in the barracks near Chelsea as our coach got a brick through the window. Not all of us made it home...! Those days of following Saints were exciting - if not eventful. That whole season was immense. Only days before that night we were at Luton...another bricked coach. Still a brick in a coach is better than a knife in the hand!

Some of us old Codgers were reminiscing about that famous FA Cup game at The City ground that ended 3-3. I will personally never forget Ossie's fee kick into the goal in front of The Saints fans in the Trent End. I swear it went like an exorcet missile - but he curled it too! What a fantastic strike - I don't think even the great MLT hit one like that - and he hit a few.

Now we know why Rupert took him on...when he sacks him all he has to say is... "On yer bike son!"

I don't think he has fond memories of The Dell. Not only did he hear the songs - he saw the malice in our eyes too being so close to the pitch... Beckham goes Wilde on Lowe! David Beckham has just bought Southampton FC from the current owners Southampton Leisure Holdings, and says "Vix and me always wanted another kid - so to celebrate we going to have a quick sh@g in Hamble...it's a nice name for a boy!"

You have to realise anywhere north of Winchester and you're a Northern Monkey mate! God knows where I stand - living in deepest darkest East Riding. Still a Southampton lad at heart though! I have a very strange image of anyone drying his ar*e with a hand dryer - probably one of our more colurful fans who thought it would be good for a laugh! Derby rivalry...don't make me laugh! I save all my rivalry for the blue few down the coast. The fact is we have a love -in with most fans, all except them! We are the most loved visiting fans in the CCC, especially by the local constabulary because we now have an infamous firm called "The Youth" who go everywhere with us. The only problem is the police take them seriously and even the decent fans get more their our fair share sh*t because of them. Good luck this season - we will probably pass each other on the M1 at some stage of the season. Who'd be a football fan - or should that be a one club man? Even a golfer has more than one club!

Just checked their official site only £10 for adults! When did they move to Don Valley? I remember that awful night in the FA Cup when we played Delgado - he missed hatfuls that night, we were kack too! Just checked my diary - and don't think I can make it due to business commitments! Why oh why Tuesday night? Lets make it Wednesday!

Really disappointed with the result, but more with the defence. I don't thin Killer won a header in the whole game. Some players went missing in the second half - didn't see much of Lallana or Holmes in the second half...was Holmes on? The first half was very even and as soon as they scored I knew we would be in trouble. We are goal shy...never afraid to have a crack from distance but then we want to over complicate things and pass it into the net. I believe we will learn from this - Blackpool...still hard to swallow, but they deserved their win - but for Kelvin, the linesman and the referee it could have been a lot worse.

First post of the day... Perhaps Lowe in his second tenure has learnt from his previous gaffs. For example he now choses MW to sound off in the press, he has not been in the papers spouting off, his PR machine has gone into hybernation, he's not hogging the lime light and letting the team do the talking on the pitch. Still has no respect for the man, or his previous handling of the situations we found ourselves in - he still has a long way to go before he gets my vote of confidence. You have to say he is doing a good job - infact anyone outside the club wuld have difficulty in remembering who our chairman was. Well done Rupert - stay in the boardroom away from team selections and training, keep the books balanced and everything at SFC may turn out rosey after all. I'm not totaly sure I have just written the above - but hey we have a team that plays football again - all is getting better in Yorkie's World!

I think the crowd is swelling to such a size that they will have to open the Itchen North Stand... We're The Itchen We're The Itchen We're The Itchen over 'ere! There must be something lost with that corner of the ground closed...just a thought?

I have read all the nice and positive things written about the team & new management structure, and all the anticipation about the future. I've been ranting on a bit in the last few days, perhaps it's because I've just come back to work after a holiday...not sure why! I wish I could put all the negative feeling behind me, I wish I could block the visions of Rupert's smug grin out of my mind. He is after all a very successful business man. He has been chairman for many years, and set up the academy that has produced all these talented young players - to which we probably owe an undying gratitude. He got us SMS - without him we would still be at The Dell. We have produced some of the most talented British footballers in the current game - Theo Walcott & Gareth Bale, both of who left because of the money on offer elsewhere. He has brought stability to the club in his second tenure at the helm - we all must be grateful for that. With all that said on all the positives he has brought to our club (I call it our club because it does after all belong to the fans without who there would be no club, especially now The Premiership money no longer comes in!) - I'm not going to try to justify my stance or even mention I am not coming to SMS again. A united Saints fanbase is fast getting behind the team. If we get rid of some more dead wood brought in by previous Managers I for one will be very happy, as will Rupert because it will save £000's per month on wages. How important is my (our) money to the survival of SFC? What do we have 22 league games a season at SMS x £30 (to make it easy) = £600/fan? If 10-more fans go every week then that equates to an additional £6,000 in the kitty If 100-more fans...£60,000 If 1,000...£600,000 If 10,000 - £6,000,000. So if I'm right and we get crowds of 28,000+every week it will generate an additional £6,000,000 for the war chest to keep players on better contracts! Perhaps nearer £5,000,000 as some fans will buy season tickets reducing the cost per game. So it's pretty obvious to me...let's all go to SMS every week, problem solved. Politics aside - if the fans generate this kind of funding - who get's to say where the money is spent? How does this equate to our current outgoings? £5,000,000 extra sounds a lot - but is it just a drop in the ocean? Perhaps we need to generate some more funds - what about attracting some investment? Come on you Saints - I'll never raise my voice in anger again!

I see myself as a fan first, a supporter second and never as a customer. Perhaps my outburst was uncalled for and aimed at some of the spotty faced oiks who seen it all and done it all before they were 17! I can only boast a few years less than yourself watching the lads, but come January 2009 I will hit 50. It was my plan to have a corporate day with my good lady before the events of last May - now I will be spending it in The Dales supping some Theakston Ale from the brewery tap room. My wife hates football with a passion, but she understands that some things she will never change. In nearly 30-years of married life she has never stopped me going to a game, never told me I am wasting my money, or tried to tell me to follow another team. Like all good things in my life she is reliable and faithful...just like I used to be trotting down to The Dell or SMS and handing over my money week after week. Even in "The Branfoot Days" I went until I was made redundant, then finances dictated I could no longer go. Mr Lowe not only knew there were 15-20,000 just like me every week - he took me and lots of others for granted when he called us customers...it truly shows he knows anything about being a football fan. Perhaps he gets more passionate about a chukka on the polo pitch - although I believe hockey is his preferred game of choice? Who knows I may just have to eat my words come January - after all it is my birthday! Perhaps I could wangle an all expenses paid lavish day corporately entertaining on my expense account? Not my money then is it - but that goes against all I believe in. I always said I would pick and chose my games, and living so far away I chose not to come to SMS at all, whereas before I would get down at least 5/6 times a season. What I saw at Derby was what this club has been crying out for years. People who play because they like playing - not because Saints offered a better contract than Spurs. How long it takes for some of the lads to be approached, and poached from us is just pure speculation. This truly is a team - you could see it on the pitch. Everybody had a job - but when Stern John came on he looked totally out of sorts. If the likes of Rasiak, Skacel or any of the other senior statesmen in the middle (or up front) tried to slot in they would be woefully short of the mark. This team has pace - sometimes they are too quick. This team can actually pass to another player in the side. They have confidence with a hint of arrogance. I hope they remember they enjoy playing at Saints because they have grown up together - and play for us for many years like Mike Channon and Matthew Le Tissier. It would be nice for the players to show the same loyalty as the fans - but there I go again with my idealistic views...money always talks. So just remember - when Gillet, Lallana, et al are all sold because the club can't afford to keep them...their wage demands are too high, and we got an offer we couldn't refuse, or we had to let them go or they would have gone for nothing...Rupert will put the PLC first before the fan. He has come back to exploit what's left of the assets in the club (the academy) for his PLC's financial gain. I really hope I am wrong but come January 2009 or perhaps August 2009 depending on our position in the league, all the promise will evaporate in a cloud of transfers, because the PLC cannot survive. It's a business not a rich mans hobby...unless...

Yeah I know how guys like you feel about as "non-supporters". However at Derby on Saturday, I was there with about 1,100 other Saints fans giving it large and losing my voice through singing them on...but my contribution does nothing for the team or atmosphere! REAL fans - don't make me laugh! In the first ousting of this cancer - I went out a bought shares so I could attend the EGM. It was called off at the last minute because the man walked. I was going to attend the second EGM and put my point of view forward again, but another resignation saw that cancelled. I have probably invested more money in following SFC than you have ever earned! I am a fan, and some might say a supporter - but I am not a customer. As soon as I became a customer I reconsidered my position. The dross being served up by the club (and the board are the club) was absolute rubbish - not worth £5 of my money. We sold our best players and got lots of has beens on frees - but the wages crippled us. We had no team - it was me him and that other bloke on £15k/week - the rest of you are crap! I am really pleased for all you loyal fans who are now watching decent football - the side you deserve. I will watch from afar and on TV - and may visit Southampton on matchdays to meet with friends and chat about football. However it will be a cold day in hell before I set foot inside SMS - unless RL has nothing more to do with my club. The club represents the City I was brought up in - not Rupert Lowe's PLC.

Never said I was a supporter - always been a fan myself! Everyone is entitled to a point of view - I was prepared to give RL a second chance but his arrogance and attitute towards the "supporters" has not changed since the days when Theo was sold. Yeah he got us a good deal - he could have gone for nothing (so they say) but he couldn't give a toss about the club I follow, fellow fans or current playing/coaching staff. I am a fan - I was a member for many years, I joined the Trust to ensure the Wilde cause beat Lowe and took control, and I went to games home and away. Nowadays I watch what I can when I can. It's my choice not to spend at SMS - like not buying ESSO or BP fuel. Awaydays are much more fun anyway...anyway where can I go he's shut the Itchen North - my preferred home location. It's not difficult for me to say no - as I have over a 500-mile round trip to SMS, and that cannot be supported by my meagre wages week in and week out. If I lived in Southampton not going to SMS would be much harder, but then I'd have he radio to listen to for updates or commentary. I feel as though I am taking the morally high ground by standing by my decision not to go to SMS. I loathe Rupert Lowe after everything he has done to our club since not backing WGS after the Cup Final. If we were so attractive why has no external investment been obtained - it has to be down to the Chairmen and their egoes and what say they want in the new regime. The sooner we get RL and his pals out of our club the better...but I'm not holding my breath. So for me it's away games and SKY TV until he's a goner. Of course I'm not a real fan, only 40+ years following them home and away...I am not worthy of any respect for my opinions or methods adopted to oust the cancer within the club. I'm bitter - yes I'm bitter. We should never have got relegated, but thanks to a blinkered vision at the top (We're too good to be relegated) we did. I've got over that and still hurt when we lose, and feel elated when we win. It may not hurt the club me not going, I doubt if £30 every 2-weeks contributes to Rasiak's or Skacel's salaries very much, so get off my back. Unless of course you multiply my stance by the other 2/3,000 who aren't going? Look at the crowds - nothing to do with RL or the team is it? So why don't we get 30,000 week in and week out? Questions I bet the current board ask themselves...but nothing to do with me is it, after all I'm the only one! SFC should take a leaf out of Bradford's books - cheap prices and the crowds are up! What about payback to some of the fans...oops sorry financial supporters of the club? After all if it wasn't for all your supporters the club would be bankrupt without the Premiership money. Well Rupert you should have thought of that before you got us relegated...now you need every penny from supporters and fans alike.

I'm not coming but going to my local for SKY coverage. I will try and spend the entrance money on beer - alas I would miss the second half trying to get my 10th pint down! Rupert if you read this - my money is never being spent at SMS until you are well and truly no longer involvded with the football club.

I think I have to second that!

Got back quicker than most of you only 90mins to home - but what a great day out! Met up with a few of the old regulars from TSF and headed to The Brunswick - great beer and a nice little boozer with a biju beer garden! Tried it on a bit at the turnstiles offering him a £5 note to let me in before I bought a ticket! Thought the fans were great - noisey and proud. Unaware of what was to follow we all seemed full of hope. Savage was a shadow of his old self and our youngsters seemed not in awe of the man. Infact I would say he was taken aback by some of the tackling! We were unlucky with several opportunities to go 1-0 before Kelvin pulled off a great save form a header from a corner just on HT. Before that Savage had missed a sitter, and a defensive mix up let one of their forwards in to fluff his shot. HT came and went with little conversation - and The Saints came storming out attacking the end we were stood. What impressed me more than anything today was the passion our lads showed in keeping the ball. As soon as a pass went astray, or someone intercepted an intended pass - someone (even 2-players were after it) when was the last time we saw that? Just before we went 1-up, Kelvin made a critical save with his legs when effectively the Derby forward was through 1-on-1. From this we got the ball back, composed ourselves and scored on the break. I know it's early days, but we looked like a team up for it. When John came on we lost something. I don't think he touched the ball once. Not sure if he is even on the same wavelength as the rest of the team. I see one major problem...most of the team are young and play as a unit. We seem to have experience in defence, but lack any experience up front. At time we are so fast breaking there is no support. I wonder if there is any one out there who could fit the system and score goals. Not wishing to put a downer on McG but he needs to improve his conversion rate. I would still give him a starting position, his pace and awareness is great - but if he had John's eye for goal he'd be lethal. It will be interesting to watch them on SKY next weekend against Blackpool and see what they have to say about our style...I am concerned we may get rave reviews and make others aware of the talent we have for January. It will also be nice to see what the game looks ike from the camera angles available - it may make the effort by the lads even more evident. I think Drew had a poor game by his standards, but with Holmes in front of him there wasn't much he could do. Out of sorts? Not convinced but come 31st August once the dust has settled he should be more focused. 10/10 for the day out...I was impressed by the new look Saints - but didn't we ask good ol' 'arry to do something similar a few seasons ago?

Just back from Derby...more of the same please. Fantastic to watch if not a little nerve jangling - nothing unusual then. At last a team that plays together, finds space for the pass, run for each other, looking for the ball, but what we need is a killer poacher in front of goal. We are nice to watch for once. Even though I will not visit SMS whilst Rupes is at the helm...I am really looking forward to my next game up North. Well done lads...a side to be proud of at last.

I think you'll find that's the Yorvik museum! York is a cracking night out - less popular than it used to be Harrogate seems to be the IN place. The Maltings is a lovely little pub - voted the best away pub by the Bournemouth supporters in 1998 (?) I think. York is OK - but closer than York is Selby... now there's a strange place!

I'm not sure how I feel about the impending season. On the one hand we should see some exciting football - but as soon as teams "suss" us out will we be good enough to change things around? Pretty passing, movement, one touch football sounds great on paper - but it doesn't always deliver. If we can be solid at the back and not give anything away and sneak a few 1-0's on the way - it would be great. I just hope we don't go off like a rocket, and fall to earth with a massive bump sometime in the new year. There is a possibility we could take this league by storm - as we are playing ex-Prem teams early doors - which should be a good indicator of the season ahead. I'll be going to Derby - but I will not visit SMS whilst Rupert is anywhere near our club - besides which the awayday support needs every fan we can muster. Besides which it's more fun away - SMS is so sterile!