ronnie radford's boots

Hmmmmm....was my over-riding thought from last night I appreciate that it was an early pre-season friendly and that the priorities were to get match fit, not get injured, look at the squad in it's entirety and to get the new system across, however...hmmmm Let's start with the positives : JWP was the best player on the pitch. Clyne. The new system encourages him to get beyond the defence and if mirrored on the left, it will be profitable. Reed. Tidy, competitive and a winner Chambers. Shaw and a bit Cork. That bit of invention that we need Pelle. A man mountain, with great lay offs, who needs players closer to him. Suits the 4 3 3 better than anything else we had/ have Nigh on 1,000 fans travelling to a pre-season friendly Koeman looking resplendent in white shirt, cream schlacks and deck shoes We have sufficient funds to construct a very decent side The negatives : Gazza - Obviously a nice guy and popular in the squad but when he's cheered by his own fans for catching and holding an unopposed cross in a friendly, it doesn't inspire confidence Jos - Suffice it to say that the spectators in the front 8 rows moved from their seats after 15 minutes to avoid getting hit by his passes. He's slower than slow and turns back into trouble time and time again. The thought of him playing alongside Fonte at Anfield scares the begeebies out of me That leads to hmmmm Ok, Morgan, Lovren, Wanyama, Davis, Ramirez, Tadic and Boruc were missing, but if any of those get injured, the squad is paper thin. There are some prospects there for sure but we need to strengthen and quickly. I'm afraid that Isgrove is too lightweight and not pacey enough. McQueen is not the answer on the right as he constantly checked back onto his left. Mayuka showed why he's been overlooked before. Sinclair isn't up to this level. On last night's showing Targett, Turnbull, Stephens, Gallagher, Flannigan have something to offer for the future and Sharp, Davis, Fonte and Maya did what we know they can do, but a team with more than two of these nine in it would be a concern At the very least we need a keeper, a centre half, a left back and two to play with pace alongside Pelle and we need them fast to bond as a team. That's before any more departures This come's across a lot more negative than I intended, and that's after waiting instead of posting it when I returned last night, but we need reinforcements. As I mentioned before it is early pre-season and we have £££ and I'll support the stripes whole heartedly come what may, it's just frustrating to see a team dismantled so quickly. COYR

Add another to the growing list Good luck

YAWN !!! So much to discuss today and this is the best you can do ?

Do you need a mortgage and have one approved ? If so, get your financial advisor to call their in house guy and "re-assure" them. If your financial advisor is worth his/her fee/proc fee and your loyalty, they will willingly do it.

Just thawed out. Awful start to the game. The ball was moved far too sloooowly and the movement was too linear. Chaplow looked like he'd been out of the game for a while and consequently, we lacked any great competitive edge in midfield. This resulted in their first goal which was like something you'd see on a training ground ....far too easy. Thereafter, driven by primarily by the effort of Guly and Lalana, we started competing and to be honest, with better luck/finishing could have scored 4 or 5. Negatives : Both fullbacks were atrocious, especially Richardson, who looks unfit, couldn't cross without taking 1,2 or 3 touches first and invariably was robbed of the ball. Harding insists on turning back inside towards our own goal, thereby putting the centre halves and keeper under pressure. You're left footed !! Turn outside and use the line ! He was out of position for their second. Fonte. Stop hugging the opposition !!! Just how many unnecessary free kicks on the half way line are you going to give away by doing this ?Their 3rd came from this Bart. I have never seen a keeper more inept at kicking a ball ! Future home matches ought to have the first 3 rows of the crowd in the Kingsland and Itchen kept clear as his clearances are going to hurt someone sat there soon Positives . Adam is showing signs of regaining his form Lee. Not sure that he's the real deal or even any kind of deal, but his running off of the ball, industry and effort were impressive. Rickie. 3 of the oppo around him every time he challenged for the ball and yet he still invariably won it. Now there's a player who's improved way beyond what he was when he joined us. Reeves. His first 10 minutes were superb. A cultured left foot playing floated balls into spaces that forwards will love. Looks promising Hot choc at half time . Ooooh yesss ! Gutted to lose ? Always as it happens but not now that I'm home. We're starting to play again and have a manager who is able to recognise the need to change and effect the right tactical changes during a match, with a squad that is as good, if not better than any other in the league. Cup distraction over, bring on the league

Davis was the difference between 3 points and none today ....end of !!!

Just as the previous act ended at the Pyramid stage. They have a set of barriers with a gap between them about 40 people back from the front, creating a separate section right at the front, not obvious on the TV. Just slide into that area as people leave after the previous act and the job's a good'un...you're a matter of a few feet from the front and have space to move

Tosh ! Just back from Glastonbury with m'missus and our eldest (14), who has had the experience of his life - Mosh pit at Cage the Elephant and crowd surfed to the front at Coldplay, to mention just two of his hilights. I loved every moment of it ( again ) and really feel that it's been a great education, as much as anything else, for him. Only downside for me, was having to endure most of the Tinnie Tempah set, as getting from stage to stage was really hard, given the foot of mud and we wanted to be together for the rest of that night. He's been in amongst positive people, made good friends, got loads of stories to tell and impress his mates and it was a great bonding time for me and him. We got to 10 back from the front row every time we were at the major stages and YES, I did put him up on my shoulders ( Pendulum, Coldplay, Elbow etc ). Why not ? When others did in front of me, I simply stepped to the side 1ft ...basic physics

Just heard a very strong rumour, from a very good source, that it's like the Air Florida shirt.

I'm running it for the first time this year ( knees, hips and 45 year old ankles permitting ) and YES I'll be wearing one of my Saints shirts as well. It'll be a sea of red and white by the time we're finished. How's about a group photo before or after ?

I can't believe some of the comments on here! Premiership team ( that's them boys, not us in case you've forgotten ! ) Open style of football played by both teams The chance to "welcome back" some old friends - Ormerod, Euell and Crainey A chance of winning and getting another payday / premiership team / Wembley visit I'll for one be going and will be glad that some on here won't !

I thought that Chaplow was our mom tonight. Not just winning countless challenges, but moving it on quickly and positively and really covering the ground, popping up in the box ahead of the forwards half a dozen times. It's been a while since we've seen that from a Saints shirt Barnard also had a good game and gave that bit of movement that allowed OC, Lallana, Chappers and also Harding to find space in and around the box. On a less positive note, our defending of corners in the first half in particular was shocking. All 11 players back in the box and yet time and time again it fell to a Dagenham player, with Davis flapping and the rest looking on. Also Richardson seemed slow and indecisive throughout, but I'm hoping that that is down to lack of games. Let's be careful to not build O|C up too much. He's a prospect, he's exciting but he's got a long way to go. Just hope that it's with us !

Now that's what I call football. The ball was played out from the back on the ground with patience, intelligence and width ( to the extent that Lallana was 6ft off of the pitch at times making the pitch even wider ) and for the first time in a while we created good chances and looked like scoring. I can't remember the last time we had so many players ( Guly, Lallana, Punch, Harding, Butter, Ox-Chamb ) hitting the goal line and cutting the ball back across/behind. Guly was outstanding, making both goals. His touch defined his origins. His pace and strength were something else and I loved the way that there was no such thing as a no win ball ( 1st goal anyone ? ) . Can we put the ghost of Antonio to bed now please ? Finally, I loved the fact that at the final whistle, the four defenders and Kelvin all looked for each other and celebrated together as a unit. Doesn't that say something for the management that we have now ? Nigel, if you carry on as you've started, I'll be a very very happy man at the end of the season !

Like everyone, I was initially shocked by the announcement on the SSN ticker-tape, but then after a few minutes and particularly after reading the whole statement, it all made a bit more sense. It's a pragmatic, business decision, made with the future structure and success of SFC in mind and it is in line with the 5 year plan. Are we any closer to promotion than last season...no Do we look like champions...no Is there a distinct style of football being played that separates us from others in the league ...no Can I see the influence of AP on the team, making tactical changes when the game is going against us ....no Would I be confident that if we were promoted, he'd have the nous to manage a promotion out of the championship ....no What we do have is an expensively assembled ( L1 stds) squad that should win games, playing well most of the time, but then again I can't help but feel that it's because of the individual players and not the management of those players. AP is a nice guy, a good manager at this level, but not the guy to take SFC to the levels that ML/NC envisaged. Forget the media ( SSN / Talks**t ) phrases perpetuated by ex pros and look at this from a cold hard pragmatic basis. Forget all of the normal football management/ownership standards and models. There is a plan. It's not on track. Taking the emotions out of it, I'm happy that we have someone that determined to achieve something that they are prepared to make decisions regardless of how they might personally be perceived. I might be wrong, but I'm prepared to buy into this different way of doing things. The appointment will tell us so much about the immediate and mid term future of this great club. AP is a good manager, but not a great manager. I thank him for the day out at Wembly, but I feel that he was appointed through necessity, when the takeover was ( thank Markus ) completed at the 11th hour. One very positive thing that everyone should take from this, is that AP would still be in place if the plan was no longer viable and therefore we should assume that future financing is secure. With all that in mind, I wouldn't be at all surprised if the new man isn't MON or an overseas coach used to the proposed structure. Whatever the decision, I love this club and will still be there at every home game ( as I have done for the last 35 years ) COYS WIFM

As above, drop me a PM if your accountant's tack isn't successful, as I'm an IFA and can advise on your options ;-)