Did you do the hilarious thing of winding up other teams fans again, or did you realise that that would be a bit, y'know, prattish?
I'm just thinking about how pleasant and constructive it was having discussions with the Hull posters this week, without the need to resort to witless "banter" and thinly veiled insults. Just hoping things continue in that vein. We're in a fantastic position and a happy place - let's revel in that ourselves, whilst remembering where we have come from recently. Baiting other fans is at best rather pathetic, let alone somewhat tedious and embarrassing. Just my opinion.
Again, I haven't "baited" any opposition fans. I'll only do that if we are fortunate enough to play Pompey at some point.
It's a general comment, not necessarily directed at you. It just shows no class to do so, even to Pompey. Leave them to it. Being a WUM does nobody any favours at all. Look how annoying that Sunderland wally was. It's never, ever a good look. There's a lot to be said for dignity in good times as well as defeat. Again though, that's just my opinion.
Except maybe west ham. But only in response to a certain posters threads! I agree the hull fans were nice. I think some people forget you can't replicate the rivalry between fans at a match on a forum- it just doesn't work and ends in petulant insults. Think it will take a long long time for us to develop the arrogance of big clubs fans and these people will be the new generation of saints fans.
I can't wait for the first TV pundit to let slip through his lips that we might be title contenders. Radio ones don't count because 1] they're freer with their opinions anyway, and 2] nobody records the evidence [except me, but very few bother to listen, in my experience].
Like our North London friend, I have been a Saints fan for half a century. I even took stick at school when I was a kid in Southampton! Living in the North West for decades I've mostly endured sympathy from supporters of the big 4 up here - Scousers and Mancs take the piss, but with humour, and were genuinely saddened by events fours years ago. Now I can wear a Saints shirt while enjoying the sunshine as I did yesterday and find myself in conversations with fans who express nothing but admiration. The knowledgeable ones have picked up the full story. Not just 3rd in the league or three players called up for England, but the way the club is managed so astutely. I was chatting to a very sharp Liverpool fan and told him that our win at Anfield is looking better week after week as they destroy teams there at the moment. He said that on form we were the only team capable of going there and getting a result, and began to wax lyrical about how well we had played that day. He concluded by saying that he was looking forward to the chance of revenge when we play each other in next year's Champions League Final! Surreal conversation. Its absurd that the fortunes of a football team can have such an effect on my personal contentment, but it does and I'm determined to simply enjoy.
I used to find it amusing how fans of big clubs got distraught by the odd loss so that they were only second in the table or top by only 4 points, whilst Saints fans could be buoyed along by a small victory despite being in the bottom half. I think we have reached that point....I would have been annoyed if we'd dropped to 4th or 5th. If unreasonableness is the sign of a big club, then Saints is a big club
Better be prepared to be annoyed Fran! Because I don't think we are going to be 3rd after our next two fixtures!
BBC Sport: "Match of the Day 3: Liverpool or Southampton for the title? MOTD3 pundits Martin Keown and Alan Shearer debate whether there could be surprise winners of this year's Premier League title. The unpredictable nature of the season continued this weekend with title contenders Manchester City losing 1-0 to Sunderland, while Chelsea could only salvage a point from their 2-2 draw with West Brom. Third-placed Southampton have taken advantage of the teams around them dropping points and Shearer says that there is a new "respect" for Saints, with Keown adding that they could have a "huge say" in deciding who will eventually become champions." The first such comment is here.
Thanks for picking that up. I don't know whether you saw my enquiry, but your post/answer was well timed, and your last sentence in bold suggests you did. Here's the link to MOTD3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/24893777 I asked the question because there is definitely something in the air, at the moment. You can't quite cut the anticipation with a knife, but such are pundits opinions that pre-season predictions of top half has gradually become top 8, then top 6, and here they are saying that Saints could be King makers [ie, have a major affect on the title], and they chuckle as they cover their backsides by saying being title winners is not out of the question. We'll see how pundit attitudes alter and harden after the next two Away matches to Arsenal and Chelsea. The nice thing is, Saints won't be the side worrying about failure. Seeing new breed pundits Shearer and Keown admit something might be possible is one thing. Now I'd like to see a couple of die-hards like Hansen and Lawrenson admit through gritted teeth that Saints have a real chance. I suspect they'd rather be struck down by a lightning bolt first.
