How are you feeling about this post today? I’ve been forced to be an armchair fan for a few years now, and I do get the superiority complex that ‘real fans’ feel at times. The chant of “Where were you when we were ****?” being chanted by the Northam at ‘newbies’ when we played Coventry looking for a win for promotion still makes me grimace. Being there when we won the Cup, when we won the JPT are memories along side standing in the snow at Goodison when we lost 8-0. Those memories are an example of how lucky I feel to have been able to be there. Now I can’t be ‘there’ I am saddened. But no less a Saint, and no less hurt by what is happening. Sorry. Only just spotted your latest post. Nice one
Apology accepted. I didn't mean to piss you off and your belief that we should sack Still is a valid one, I disagree with it as I believe in giving the guy a chance, maybe I'm wrong.
I’ve followed (literally) Saints for over 50 years and believe me I totally get your frustration but I think calling for the manager to be sacked this early is an overreaction. He has only lost 2 games this season and I very much doubt his frustration is any less than yours.
You know how they've developed technology in cars which won't let them be driven unless you pass a breathalyser? Maybe not606 can have a blood pressure gauge which only let's you post when you've calmed down? I don't want to put words in Tom's mouth but apart from being an advocate for referees he's never been a dick to people on here. I think yesterday being that pissed wet through and watching that "performance" had most of us feeling a bit spiteful and stroppy.
In a way I actually think it's great sometimes when people post irrationally in the heat of the moment, it shows people are passionate and they care. As long as people aren't getting personal with each other which is extremely rare on here then I'm all for it tbh. Off topic but I used to wish I had breathalyser type technology on my phone back in my early 20s to stop me leaving declaration of love voicemails to exes when off my head. It wouldn't even need to have the actual detection technology and could just be based on logic. Try and ring/text someone and you get a pop up on screen: "It's 4:30am on a Tuesday and you're trying to ring a contact with a female name who've you not had contact with in 3 years. I detect cocaine - BLOCKED!' Would have saved me a lot of hassle
I think yesrtarday the fans at the game (well the ones around where I was) were kind of in shock at the total lacklustre, uncommitted, pathetic performance from the team. Unfortunately that does fall on one William Still. It’s his job to pick the team, motivate, and make them tactically aware etc. The worrying thing for me is that there is no real patterns to the play. It looks as if we just have 11 blokes on a field jogging around. There have been no signs of his supposedly high press, high energy play. However, it is still early days and whilst we can’t let things float like we have in the past with both Ralph and Martin, I feel like the next set of games leading up to the next international break, are massive for both Still and the club, moving forward this season. I want to see some ruthlessness from him for next Saturday. He says about the effects from last season, well he has options to drop the likes of THB, who again was truly truly awful again yesterday. He had an option of Manning, who again has regressed back to his boring play of playing safe kind of player. Think my son summed it up last night on the drive home, that Boro really is a massive game now. If and it’s a big if at the moment, but if we can get a win with a positive performance, it could be a season and momentum changer. It will give the players the confidence after beating the league leaders, about the way forward. But lose, and lose with another abject performance, then the responses to threads like this will grow ever louder, as sadly the fans are becoming less tolerant due to the absolute dross we have mainly had to endure ever since SR have been in situ.
If yesterday felt like the equivalent of the Sunderland defeat, then hopefully Boro will be the equivalent of the Leeds win. It has the potential to be. Of course, back then we followed the Sunderland defeat with three further defeats, before getting to that Leeds win. That wasn't a disaster because we started with 10 points from a possible 12. But we, and Still, don't have that luxury this time. If instead the Boro game is a second consecutive defeat - the equivalent of losing to Leicester in that run - and we ultimately repeat the four consecutive losses vs Sheff Utd and Derby, then I suspect the international break which then follows would signal a change. I do think it's fair though that he gets these three league games (unless the first two are both heavy defeats).
Roerslev. Case in point. This is what confuses me a bit. People love to have a go at SR and their recruitment (which up to this point they’ve had reason to), but bringing in a seasoned PL like Roerslev would on the face of it be a no-brainer. Sure, he was never going to be the new Bale or something, but it was a purchase everyone would sign off on as sensible. Yet at times he’s making Maitland-Niles look dynamic, and that can’t be an ability thing. Same with a lot of the players right now. So to me it seems like a messaging issue. They’re not understanding/absorbing/confident in whatever WS is trying to ask of them. It’s been an issue for the last few managers (and I do wonder if using three of the four in defence that have been subject to all that might be part of the problem). I have no idea of the answer here, but that message will need to start translating pretty quickly now.
Given SR propensity to stick by managers I'm pretty sure Will Still could run into the centre circle at half time waving his cock about, wearing a Noddy hat, singing Christmas Carols and they'd still not sack him! SR are simply programmed to never admit their mistakes, in fact they'd probably double down on him as they love a gamble!
We are way, way off the Will Still sacking (correctly IMHO), but IF it was to happen say on November, I really see SR giving Adam Lallana a chance.
I can understand this thread being made on the back of the poor result, the crappy weather, the hangover of the portsmouth game, the general level of animosity to SR due to the past few years etc and fully support everyone's right to their opinions and reactions to said opinion and I fully respect those fans that do make the effort to go to away games but with a step away from the emotion and being a bit objective: - WS inherited the second worst PL squad ever and they finished that awful season 4 months ago. - WS has had 8 competitive games since he got here and won 3, drawn 3 and lost 2 - the team has gone through 4 managers (including rusk) since the beginning of last season all of whom had different mentalities and preferences. - we still have players that played through all that and our two worst results ever (and most of them happen to be defenders) - WS wants to play a different way to our previous few managers - On top of that he wants to give players more playing freedom which some of them haven't had for years and are likely incapable of changing that fast - we sold a few of our best players that despite them not wanting to be here and the squad (on paper) being more balanced post window will have made many fans already negative opinion more negative. - we hit the portsmouth game at the worst possible moment in the entire season and yes totally dropped the ball on it. - we still can't score but is that simply a lack of ability or more likely a crippling combination of all the other factors as from the highlights AA's goal yesterday looked like a decent strike. - SR changed almost all the background team (recruitment etc) over the past months and despite all that the window was (on paper) pretty decent. We bought players proven at this level, some experienced PL and some upcoming well regarded players and shifted a lot (but not all) of those who don't want to be here. All that doesn't change the fact we aren't getting results we think / feel we ought to be and that needs to change soon but we aren't cut adrift from the top of the table at the moment. For myself I can't see changing the manager now would fix anything - the new one would have the same issues but in addition would want to press yet another way of working on the players, would want their own players, would need time to restart the season under them and frankly there isn't anyone available that is so many levels above WS that it's a shoe in - swapping for someone like rohl right now isn't a silver bullet, we aren't getting a slot or pep anytime soon and someone like potter / cooper etc isn't enough of a step up to guarantee anything. If we change a new manager will want the next window and not much time in the dugout before it to generate any more negative sentiment etc so we likely wouldn't get someone until nov/dec time and do we want yet another interim? Of course, as a rational human being of reasonable intelligence, I reserve the right to alter my opinion as I learn new things and the facts change so ask me again in 5 / 10 games.
The only thing that saved the day for me was after the game I drove through a puddle and soaked a bloke stood on the pavement wearing a referee's outfit.
