After a short spell of things being a bit topsy turvy, I'd say the pecking order is now back to almost how it was when I was a nipper in the 70's & early 80's. Top Division: Southampton 2nd Division: Brighton / Bournemouth 3rd Division: None 4th Division: Exeter / Torquay / Plymouth / Portsmouth Non League: Aldershot / Salisbury Including Aldershot as they are Hampshire, although do they really consider themselves as part of Hampshire? Guess where I see Hampshire as pretty much being dominated by everything south of Winchester. Even Basingstoke feels a bit alien to the aaaaaampshire vibe if you know what I mean. Bournemouth have done well, but can't see them getting above midtable at best in the Championship, although they may benefit from loans by Saints? If the rumours about Brighton looking at Redknapp are true, then god help them. At least he'll be used to lots of **** in the dressing room. Pompey will either be brilliant or **** next season. They will be a scalp for other clubs so that will make it extra difficult for them. Overall, I feel comfortable that normality has returned to South Coast football.
Pleased for Bournemouth and hope they do well . IF **** house leaves Brighton , I hope they do well Unless the other ****house takes over . . Pompey will go straight back up IMHO , they will have players that WANT to play and of course the money wont /. cant be a factor .
Aldershot and Salisbury aren't on the South Coast, Yeovil and Crawley are closer to the south coast than Aldershot is!
Seems 'Arry has been installed as a favourite to take the job at Brighton. Talk about out of the fat and into the fire on the 'manager idiocy' front. That will scupper them, but of course it won't be 'Arry's fault.....
Couldn't happen to a nicer couple!Think Arry would fit right in http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/22606048#
Back when we were struggling in the Championship/League 1 and Pompey were flying high in the Premier League, I always said the natural order of things would return. That the balance would be restored and the tables would turn back correctly - well now it seems I was right all along!
Good to see the cherries doing well but i hope we dont have to play them for a long long time Just check this out 1. Why you were looking forward to going to the ground (or not as the case may be): I was looking forward to the short trip to St Mary�s for several reasons. Firstly, it was the first league meeting between the two sides for 50 years. It is largely unknown outside the area that is a fierce rivalry between the two clubs, so it was a mouth watering prospect. Also, St Mary�s is a very modern ground which I was yet to visit, making it an extremely excitable game to go and watch. The fact that Bournemouth were on a great run and Saints were off to an unpredictable start to the season, made this an interesting spectacle. 2. How easy was your journey/finding the ground/car parking? The journey from Bournemouth was straightforward, just along the M27. We decided to use the away supporter�s park and ride, located by Junction 8 of the M27, as this was the safest way of getting to the ground. Usually I would expect no problems parking in the city centre, but we decided to be cautious due to the rivalry and experiences of others in the last meeting in the cup 2 months earlier. From that point onwards finding the ground was easy. There were plenty of pubs to get food and drink. 3. What you did before the game pub/chippy.... home fans friendly? Before the game we decided to have a mooch around the stadium, before entering. The stewards seemed relatively friendly. However, due to the rivalry the home fans gave us a hostile reception outside the ground. I wouldn�t assume that you would experience this with any other team apart from Portsmouth! We got into the ground about an hour prior to kick off. 4. What you thought on seeing the ground, first impressions of away end then other sides of the ground? The ground itself is very modern, all seated with the corners filled in to enhance the atmosphere. The view from the away end was outstanding with ample legroom, which is a luxury in this division. It was everything you would expect from a new ground. Away fans receive an allocation of 4000, which was sold out for this game. The stadium has four decent stands, the ground perhaps a little too large for the division with all due respect. The catering facilities were good and prices were on par for all league grounds. 5. Comment on the game itself, atmosphere, stewards, pies, toilets etc.. The game itself was not good for me and my fellow supporters. Southampton got two dubious penalties, which Ricky Lambert scored both. Bournemouth played poorly after hitting the post in the first minute, we expected better! The atmosphere was electric and the roof came off when Southampton scored. There was a lot of derby day banter, which got unsavoury at the final whistle. The stewards weren�t over zealous and handled the minor trouble well. Catering facilities and toilets were good. 6. Comment on getting away from the ground after the game: Getting away from the ground was very easy in terms of transport. There were minor outbreaks of trouble in the surrounding area as anticipated. However we were back at the park and ride area 30 minutes after the final whistle. Obviously if you park in the city centre, the traffic would have been pretty grid locked. This is why I would recommend the park and ride. 7. Summary of overall thoughts of the day out: I found everything about the trip to St Mary�s excellent bar the result! A good atmosphere was generated, while the combination of good facilities and a great view of the action would make me go back there. It is an enjoyable day which I would recommend to any fan! Source - http://www.footballgroundguide.com/southampton/fans_review7.htm
All those years we were in the top flight and pompey were in the lower leagues, I bore them no animosity whatsoever. When they were in the premiership and we weren't, I resented everything about them. Now that the natural order has resumed, I find myself wishing them well again. I've come to the conclusion that where I thought I was being tolerant, I was just being patronising.
What hope is there for Saints when the horizons of some fans seems to lay claim to being top dog in Hampshire/South Coast? More ambitious would be 4th best club south of the River Mersey. That ambition would put us in the Top 10 in the Premiership.
Well you are clearly small time, my ambitions is for Saints to be the biggest club ever in the world ever in the world ever in the Universe. Call yourself a fan, pah!
No, Portsmouth are 1st, Portsmouth ladies are 2nd, Farnborough are 3rd, then Basingstoke 4th, Havant & Waterlooville 5th, Aldershot 6th, Southampton 7th, then everyone else.
Retitle the article then CBK!! Being best in the world is just stretching the imagination a bit, fourth best south of the Manchester Ship Canal a very tall order!!
You're right, it was wrong of me to consider Portsmouth Men and Portsmouth Ladies as separate as they are in fact the same team that represent the same club, the same city and indeed both represent the entire county of Hampshire as a whole, Pompey Ladies are not separate from Portsmouth Football Club but a part of it.
Nah....PL you know the order very well......the leagues don't lie........the average gate doesn't lie, the type of ground doesn't lie, the ambition doesn't lie.......I guess there is only one that at the moment has that distinction....
