FM 2006 - Sinners to Saints: Returning Southampton to the EPL

[Butter]

It's time.

Time for glory to come to St. Mary's. Time for mediocrity to be banished from the halls of this sparkling new stadium. Time for winning football to return to the pitch. Time to stop playing like a bunch of scaredy-cats who couldn't find the net with a map and a compass. Time for these loyal fans to experience pride and enjoyment again, instead of frustration and disappointment, as has been the norm for the past several decades.

The Saints have not been a top Premiership team, historically speaking. Their greatest claim to fame over the past several years has been making the FA Cup Final in 2003... and before that it was being runner up in the Premiership way back in 1984. 21 years ago. Last year, chairman Rupert Lowe decided to make a change, allowing Harry Redknapp to retire, and bringing me on board, an unknown young American, to try to return Southampton to the EPL and ultimately bring their rabid fan base a title.

But first, we must find our way out of the Championship, a league with a grueling 46 game schedule. A league with only 3 promotion spots for 24 teams. A league that punishes the short handed, and rewards the determined. And, in the end, a league that Southampton must beat in order to move back to the top level of English football.

Time to take a look at the Southampton squad, and to see what kind of mess I've gotten myself into. I'll be making note of the changes I see in this game compared to the last iteration. If there are any questions or comments as we go along, I'd love to hear them.

I thoroughly expect to not make it through an entire season, just glancing at the club, but I thought I'd chronicle my frustrations here and let you bear witness to my failure.

[Butter]

A look at the game universe: I have 7 leagues running, the major European ones (Italy, France, Holland, Germany, Spain) and the MLS in basic detail, and England running with normal detail down to the Conference National level.

I note that Southampton have given me a 1 year contract worth $475,000. Generous for a complete newbie to English coaching.

Chairman Rupert Lowe notes that he hopes I will adopt a cautious approach to management and secure the long-term future of the club by employing sensible tactics in the transfer market. He expects us to win the League Championship title (as do the fans).

The fans are a bit more down on my hiring, actually going so far as to publicly express their disgust to the board that a manager of my anonymity would be hired to this position.

Finances
I have been give a transfer budget of $2.1 million, modest but probably ample, considering that I will need to pare over $1.5 million in yearly salary from the wage budget. The wage budget is $9 million, but the current wage structure is paying out over $10.5 million. It will be important to try and bring in some cheaper talent, while possibly trying to sell off a more expensive player or two to bring that wage total in line. I list my wages in annual salary, I know some of you prefer it as weekly. Another problem with our finances beside the wage overage is a $48 million loan that is still outstanding, and will be through 2029... which we will have to pay at a rate of $425,000 per month. Ouch. Luckily our balance sheet currently sits in the black, at $9,361,514 in cash on hand.

Southampton's St. Mary's Stadium is a lovely facility near the South Coast that seats 32,500 fans. Our facilities are considered top notch, with a quality youth academy. Our staff includes 5 coaches, 3 physios, and 4 scouts... at a total of $737,000, not including my $475,000 salary. Our coaches are not exactly overwhelming in terms of their talent level. All staff are full time, and sending those scouts out for other cheap European talent will be our first priority. I send the scouts out to Central, Southern, and Eastern Europe, and one into the UK. This is handled pretty much the same as in FM 2005.

Our second priority will be identifying weaknesses in the club, and selling those players off for as much as can be had to lower our wage bill.

Roster overview

Format: Position (if not apparent), Name, Age, Yearly wage - contract end, Market value
Red = reserve

Goalkeepers
Antti Niemi, 33, $700k - 2008, $2.7M
Paul Smith, 25, $130k - 2008, $2M
Alan Blayney, 23, %50k - 2006, $210k
Michael Poke, 19, $50k - 2006, $95k

Niemi is the choice from purely an experience standpoint, but anyone who watched Niemi's meltdown at Fratton Park last year can attest that he practically single-handedly could be the reason for Southampton's relegation into the Championship. Others would argue that without Niemi, Southampton would surely have been relegated anyway. I will take the stance that Niemi and Paul Smith are actually quite equal, skill-wise. I will let their play do the talking. Smith is the clear leader from a decision making standpoint, but Niemi's better athleticism and concentration may well allow him to win out. Smith has 3 inches of height on Niemi, and, possibly more importantly, is over $500k per year cheaper than his Finnish counterpart. With Alan Blayney a quality 3rd keeper that could find his way to the bench, Niemi may well become expendable as the season wears on, especially for EPL teams that become desperate for a top keeper.

Defense
SW/D-RLC Darren Kenton, 26, $350k - '06, $325k
D-RLC Martin Cranie, 18, $50k - '06, $625k
D-LC Kyle Critchell, 18, $30k - '06, $95k
D-LC Danny Higginbotham, 26, $400k - '07, $1.2M
D-C Tomasz Hajto, 32, $300k - '06, $725k
D-C Claus Lundekvam, 32, $400k - '07, $200k
D-C Darren Powell, 29, $300k - '07, $525k
D-C Michael Svensson, 29, $400k - '06, $2M
D/M-L Simon Gillett, 19, $30k - '06, $85k
D/DM/M-R Chris Baird, 19, $50k - '06, $375k
D/WB-L Jelle Van Damme, 21, $750k - '07, $275k (on loan to Werder Bremen)
D/WB/AM-RL Eddie Anaclet, 19, $10k - '06, $30k

Our reserves are very thin, as you can see, with only 2 possible helpers, and neither one truly of much help as Anaclet is not yet skilled enough, and VAn Damme away on loan for the entire year for $3.3 million, which helps us with his hefty salary. Baird is good enough to help us now, if needed.

Unfortunately, the best player on the defense is out injured for 2 more months. Michael Svensson tore up his knee during the season last year, and won't be available until September. Kyle Critchell suffered a knee injury during the summer, and will be out this entire season... which is not a big blow, considering his rawness. He wouldn't have played much anyway.

-Darren Kenton is one of our finest physical specimens, but lacks concentration at times, and also lacks ball skills. But, he is very versatile, and will likely see the field a lot thanks to that... we'll just hope that his speed can make up for his occasional zone-out.
-Martin Cranie can also play any of the 3 defensive positions, but appears best suited for one of the wings... his pace and exubarence should help compensate for his lack of tackling skill and below average technique.
-Danny Higginbotham will start at left back, and should be one of our most stable players... he is quality all around, but can suffer the occasional mental lapse that allows an easy chance behind him.
-Claus Lundekvam is aging but should be a quality center back for us. He can occasionally get muscled off the ball, but plays a very determined, composed style of football that should keep our keeper out of trouble.
-Tomasz Hajto is a new arrival from Poland, who has played in Germany the last several seasons. He lacks the marking skill of Lundekvam, and his technical expertise, but makes up for it with unsurpassed fitness and strength. He will play quite a bit in the back as well.
-Darren Powell is a large step down from Lundekvam. He lacks any sort of scariness in the midfield, but is a passable substitute or spot player. If he ends up playing large minutes this year, we're in trouble. We may look to move him out and allow Baird's cheaper salary to come up from the reserves.
-Simon Gillett is very short (5'6"), and very raw. He will probably ride the bench quite a bit, and may even visit the reserves later on... at least he would if we weren't so thin.

Our defense is our strength, and we'll look to these veteran players to keep us in games. Once Svensson comes back, we may well have the best defense in the Championship.

Projected starters:
DL: Higginbotham
DC: Lundekvam, Hajto
DR: Kenton

Midfield
D/ML Simon Gillett (see defense)
DM Dennis Wise, 38, $400k - '06, $9k
DM/M-LC Nigel Quashie, 26, $1.4M - '08, $2.9M
DM/AM-C Marcos Marcelo Tejera, 31, $275k - '06, $190k (on loan from Penarol of Uruguay)
M-RC David Prutton, 23, $300k - '07, $2.1M
M-RC Matthew Oakley, 27, $350k - '06, $2.8M
AM-RC Djamel Belmadi, 29, $300k - '06, $425k
AM-L Kamil Kosowski, 27, $425k - '06, $1.2M (on loan from Wisla of Poland)
AM-LC Jason St'Juste, 19, $60k - Dec. '05, $35k
D/DM/M-R Chris Baird (see def.)
D/WB/AM-RL Eddie Anaclet (see def.)
DM Yoann Folly, 20, $60k - '07, $650k
M-RC Rory Delap, 28, $1.2M - '06, $425k
AM-RL Leandre Griffit, 21, $50k - '06, $45k
AM-LC/F-C Neil McCann, 30, $300k

As far as our reserves go, Yoann Folly is still developing but could play a bit now if needed. Rory Delap may well be the first player sold out of our squad... he has some good skill, but nothing leaps out at you as an outstanding player. He is getting paid too much to go to waste in the reserves. I'll probably bring him up and play him a bit, but can't see him sticking around all season if we can manage a decent offer for him. Leandre Griffit needs to get a bit more polished before playing for us too much, so he may well be sent out on loan this year, as 5 lower league clubs are interested in him. Neil McCann actually looks like he would be a good left wing player, but lacks the physicality or strength to run up front as an attacker. He will probably also be moved up to the senior squad.

-Dennis Wise was a fixture with Chelsea for a decade before moving to the lower levels during this twilight of his career. He still has some quite nifty skill, and should do well as a fairly stationary defensive midfielder and a distributor of the ball.
-Nigel Quashie is a hard working determined player who will see a lot of time in midfield this year, likely on the left wing. He is a bit slow, but is not weak in many areas at all. A solid starter, and still young. It would be awfully easy to sell him and alleviate our wage problem, but his quality is too high to let go on a team with a dearth of quality in midfield.
-Marcos Marcelo Tejera is a masterful passer and quality decision maker. He is best suited going forward, as his defensive skill is not high. He is slow, and tires easily, so may fit in better as an attacking sub late in a close game.
-David Prutton will needs to show a bit more in his midfield skill to become a top level player. He is close now, but lacks that extra bit of quality to take over a match. He is a hard worker, and very fit, and will see a lot of the field for us. But only time will tell if his quality will be enough to perform here.
-Matthew Oakley is a very similar player to Prutton. They will be fighting it out for playing time in central midfield.
-Djamel Belmadi has some quality technique on the right wing. He is fast and agile, and may well find his way up front on several occasions, as he can play striker as well. He is solid with the ball at his feet, but lacks a bit in concentration.
-Kamil Kosowski will likely be a bench player for us... he is a good option on the left, but is not as good as Quashie there.
-Jason St'Juste is a young player who won't play much... he will probably be sent to the reserves, in fact.

Projected midfield starters:
ML: Quashie
MC: Prutton, Oakley
MR: Belmadi

Strikers
Kenwyne Jones, 20, $150k - '06, $1.2M
Brett Ormerod, 28, $250k - '06, $750k
Ricardo Fuller, 25, $500k - '07, $800k
Neil McCann (see mid.)
Marian Pahars, 28, $425k
Dexter Blackstock, 19, $625k

It's never good coming into a squad and seeing that you have 3 first team strikers... 3. And that's it. Belmadi from the midfield may well have to run up front a bit. And Neil McCann is not a natural striker, but may also see time there. Marian Pahars is out through late August with injury, nothing new for the oft-injured Latvian. When he does come back, he'll probably fall into the rotation, as his finishing skill and speed can be quite dangerous when he's not rolling around on the turf. Dexter Blackstock may also see some senior squad time, just because we don't have anyone else.

-Kenwyne Jones is young and fast... and possesses terrific heading skill, but his first touch and finishing skill can let him down at times. He may be a good late sub, but will also start some to see what he's got.
-Brett Ormerod is a fine physical specimen who is similar to Jones... but he has a superior mental game to Jones. Ormerod will fire into the crowd more often than he'll be on target, but he'll likely be given one of our 2 starting slots in the striker role.
-Ricardo Fuller is a good player... he is not a great player, but will likely be very good as a starter up front. We will give him the chance to start, thanks to his experience and quality technique, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Jones or Pahars here instead of Fuller later in the season.

We're not going to score much.

Projected strikers:
Fuller, Ormerod

Under 18's at a glance
Our U-18 squad has more players in it than the reserve squad. There are 4 players of particular note: DC Matthew Mills, M Andrew Surman, DM/AM Tim Sparv, and striker Leon Best. All 4 of these players are not far at all from being able to make the move into the reserves, and may well do so this season. Surman is on a season long loan at Bournemouth, so his time there may be very telling for his future, but he is far and away the best player on the U-18's, valued at over half a million dollars. David McGoldrick is a 17 year old striker valued at $250k mostly for his physical talent, not for his skill... so I may well part ways with him to ease our financial burden.


Roster summary
We're thin. Painfully so. I am going to try to put that $2.1 million in transfer budget to good use on a scorer, but I'd be surprised if I can find one within our budget at that price. Going on the transfer wire post haste are Rory Delap and U-18 David McGoldrick. Selling Delap alone could ease our wage restrictions. We may also list Niemi if things get dicey. We'll be lucky to score, but should be pretty good at keeping the ball out of our net as well. I see a lot of 0-0, 1-0, and 1-1 games, and will likely plan to run a defensive, counter-attacking 4-4-2 to that end. I have also noticed that almost all of our player's contracts expire at season's end... if we don't play well, I probably won't be around to see them expire anyway.

Again, our projected opening day lineup (barring additions or injury) will be:
GK: Niemi
Def. (left to right): Higginbotham, Lundekvam, Hajto, Kenton
Mid. (L to R): Quashie, Prutton, Oakley, Belmadi
Str.: Fuller, Ormerod

New features
One addition to each player's screen is a display that shows now which foot the player is best at using (and also a rating on each foot, as in "very weak", "very strong", or "reasonable")... and what positions the player can play, and their proficiency at each. That screen is quite helpful when deciding how best to use a player. For example, Belmadi is listed as an attacking midfielder, but at striker he is listed as "competent", along with being "awkward" at left midfield and central midfield, and "natural" at AMC.

Also, when comparing Niemi and Smith at keeper, instead of showing the better player's numbers in green, each attribute is now shown as a bar... and the further the bar tilts in one player's direction, the better that player is. The improvement will come when you can clearly see that one player has many bars tilting in their direction as opposed to the player being compared to... it is a bit easier to judge overall quality due to this sort of display.


Next up, we begin training and the pre-season.

[Butter]

Training is a bit confusing to me at first, with a completely new interface. I didn't really like the training interface before, so we'll see how this strikes me.

Bringing up training shows a schedule screen, with all schedules and the number of players on each. New schedules are now created based on a slider system... the sliders are in 9 areas: Strength, Aerobic, Goalkeeping, Tactics, Ball Control, Defending, Attacking, Shooting, and Set Pieces. You can move the slider on each from none to light, medium, high, and intensive. As you increase each slider, a workload slider at the bottom automatically adjusts, telling you how taxing this schedule is overall, from light to intensive. Also on this screen, you can change the players in each module at the bottom without having to move to a new screen by using a drop down menu on each player at the bottom. You can also change the coaches that are assigned to each different training category, instead of assigning each one to specific regimens. I let the computer do this for me, however, as I have never been much into nitpicking the training... in fact, I miss the "let asst. manager handle training" button.

I decide for the first couple of weeks of pre-season to work hard on strength and aerobicism, and keep tactics and specific position training light.

You can also now change a player's training from their player detail screen. I am programmed to go to the training screen to do that, so we'll see how long it takes for me to adjust to the change.

Our preseason schedule works out like this:
7/13 - @ Greenock Morton (Scottish lower level)
7/17 - @ Burton Albion (English Conf. Nat'l)
7/20 - @ Kilmarnock (Scottish)
7/24 - @ Birmingham City (EPL)
7/28 - @ Crawley Town (Conf. Nat'l)
7/31 - v. Manchester City (EPL)

Then we will begin the regular season with a road game at Derby County on August 6th.

It is presently July 4th, and I celebrate with a minor fireworks display on the St. Mary's field to celebrate my new position. I take a look at some strikers, and bid on 3... Eddie Gaven from the USA, Dulee Johnson, a Liberian international playing in Sweden, and Garry O'Connor of Hibs. I start out with extreme lowball tactics, and will try and work up from there.

I now take a look at the tactics screen... it looks much like it has in the past. There is one new slider, which is "time wasting"... you can increase or decrease this... I decide to leave it in the center, but this can come in handy late in tight games. There is also a new option of "Set piece marking" which can either be zonal or man... I stick with the default, man marking. I decide to set the sliders as follows for the first few matches:
Mentality: Defensive (slightly - 7/20)
Creative Freedom: Normal (10)
Passing Style: Mixed (skewed to short - 7/20)
Tempo: Slow (5/20)
Width: Narrow (6/20)
Closing Down: Mixed (10)
Time Wasting: Mixed (10)
Defensive Line: Normal (10)
Tackling: Easy (for preseason only, then normal for reg. season)
Counter attack: On
Marking: Zonal

AZ of Holland make a bid for Eddie Gaven.... then Marseille offer $3 million and Feyenoord offer $3.5M. Yikes. I'm not getting him, I offered something like $700k.

League 2 Lincoln make a loan offer for reserve midfielder Leandre Griffit. I accept it, they'll pay his $50k per season salary for the duration of his 6 month loan.

One thing I like about the transfer system now is that you don't have to pick which clubs to offer a player to if you don't wish to... I had offers on Delap and young striker McGoldrick within 2 days of listing them. Sheff. Utd. bid $425k on Delap, and 6 clubs put in the $250k asking price on McGoldrick. McGoldrick signs with Sheffield Wed., and we're $250k richer.

Hibs push our offer for O'Connor up, demanding $575k and 45% of next sale. I counter with $650k and 20%. Meanwhile, Blackburn R. has had an offer accepted on O'Connor... our offer is also accepted, but his contract demands are quite high, so we probably won't be getting O'Connor either. And we don't, as he signs with Blackburn.

Rory Delap tells us he won't move to Sheffield United unless we pay him an extra $300k for the remainder of this season. That would cut our cost savings to $900k as far as the wage budget goes, but I agree to it. He signs a $575k per season contract with the Blades, and we make $425k on the deal, saving nearly $1 million in wages on a player who appeared to be a bench player for us at best.

Reserve striker Leon Best goes on loan to League Two Northampton.

League Two Bristol Rovers want Dexter Blackstock on loan... I decline for the time being, since I may need him in our lineup. Several other teams offer, and I remember to remove Blackstock from the loan list.

Several of our reserves and U-18's are requested on loan, and generally I let them all go. Less in wages we have to pay.

Another welcome addition is the mention of a player's fee or other facts about him when a scout watches him and suggests him to be signed. This cuts down on the number of players I have to look at, since I know for some they are out of my price range without having to look at the player detail.

I won't bore you so much with the details of the friendlies...

July 13, Friendly #1
@ Greenock Morton

Morton lost to Wigan 2-1 three days ago. Our lineup is our projected starting lineup noted earlier. We'll see how things work out with everyone at poor to very poor morale.

Nigel Quashie with a pinpoint cross and Prutton finishes with a great directional header past the keeper to put us up 1-0 after 11 minutes. I tell the team at halftime "don't let your performance drop"! Another neat feature... the halftime talk. Some slack defending allows an equalizer in the 70th, but Neil McCann sends in a great cross that is headed in by Kenwyne Jones in the 74th from 6 yards, and we take a 2-1 win. Kenwyne Jones, Darren Kenton, and Paul Smith end up with 8's in the victory, with Kenton earning man of the match in central defense. I tell the team "well done" after the match, even though I'm not thrilled with the overall performance.

Win, 1-2

Next up, more friendlies, and the season begins!

[daedalus]

Good start so far.

Originally Posted by Butter_of_69

Rory Delap tells us he won't move to Sheffield United unless we pay him an extra $300k for the remainder of this season. That would cut our cost savings to $900k as far as the wage budget goes, but I agree to it. He signs a $575k per season contract with the Blades, and we make $425k on the deal, saving nearly $1 million in wages on a player who appeared to be a bench player for us at best.

Wow. That's . . . wow. Nice.

[Butter]

We bring up some players from our very strong U-18 squad for our 2nd friendly... most will probably play just a half.

July 17, Friendly #2
@ Burton Albion

Red = Reserve
Green = U-18

Lineup:
GK: Paul Smith
D: Simon Gillett, Darren Powell, Martin Cranie, Chris Baird
M: Neil McCann, Dennis Wise, Marcos Marcelo Tejera, Theo Walcott
S: Kenwyne Jones, Dexter Blackstock

Both Jones and Blackstock blow one on one chances in the first 4 minutes. In the 18th we score, thanks to another impressive header from Jones off a great early cross from Chris Baird. We tally again in the 25th, as a Jones cross comes off a defender, but right to Blackstock at 8 yards out, who half volleys it with power past the keeper. Baird to Blackstock, who sends in a great cross to Jones... who finishes inside the near post for a 3-0 lead. But we're not done, as Tejera sends a pinpoint 40 yard ball to the top of the box for Blackstock... Dexter with a great turn on his man, and he beats the defender and the keeper with ease, 4-0. The youngsters mostly come on at the break, including Tim Sparv, Jason St'Juste, and Yoann Folly. Eddie Anaclet appears later in the half as well. Blackstock completes his hat trick in the 61st minute, one touching a low Tim Sparv pass into the net. We play out the remaining time, and take an easy win. Hard to tell if we are that good, or Burton is that bad.

Win, 0-5
MoM: Dexter Blackstock, 3 goals

We continue to scan the globe for reasonable additions to the squad.

Finally, we land a player... 19 year old Dutch striker Guillermo Zschusschen of TOP signs a 3 year contract worth a total of about $1 million with us. We pay just $90k in fees to TOP for the rights to sign this player... Zschusschen is still fairly raw, but has absolutely deadly finishing skill (19/20), and blazing speed (16/20, Acceleration 17/20). He'll see the field a bunch for us this year.

We make another good signing, as 21 year old Italian midfielder Antimo Iunco agrees to don the red and white stripes. We pay Verona $200k (and another $50k upon promotion, and 25% of next sale) to sign Iunco to a $70k per season contract through 2009. He is a good dribbler, a hard worker, and very fast. He needs to improve on his passing some, but should help create havoc in the midfield, as he can play on the left, right, and in the middle. His right foot is his strongest, so he'll probably spell Belmadi out there mostly.

Zschusschen gets the start in our next friendly, while Iunco sits home with a bad cold.

July 20, Friendly #3
@ Kilmarnock

Lineup:
GK: Antti Niemi
D: Danny Higginbotham, Tomasz Hajto, Claus Lundekvam, Darren Kenton
M: Nigel Quashie, Matthew Oakley, Yoann Folly, David Prutton
S: Theo Walcott, Guillermo Zschusschen

Bad start, as Kilmarnock score off a corner kick in the 6th minute... a totally free header from 10 yards gets past Niemi. Higginbotham helps get us back level, with a nice 25 yard cross right onto a diving header from Zschusschen, and the Dutchman makes us look good with a score on one of his first touches. No good chances for a while, and Quashie picks up a minor injury in the 65th... then in the 69th, Darren Kenton with a nice cross in for Brett Ormerod, who heads it inside the right post for a 2-1 lead. Kilmarnock don't spend long behind, though, as they get a header off a nice cross to the near post past Niemi to make it 2-2 with 15 minutes left. In the 89th, we get the winner as Kenton finds Ormerod again, and this time Ormerod slots it home past the keeper from 8 yards for the 3-2 victory.

Win, 2-3
MoM: Brett Ormerod, 2 goals

We bring in Tottenham reserve center-back Calum Davenport on a 3 month loan to help us cope with the absence of Michael Svensson.

I decide to go ahead and switch to regular training... here are my training schedules:
Defending:
High: Defending
Med.: Strength, Aerobic, Tactics, Ball Control, Set Pieces
Light: Attacking, Shooting
None: Goalkeeping

Midfield:
High: Tactics, Ball Control
Med.: Strength, Aerobic, Def., Att., Shoot, Set Pieces
None: GK

Attacking:
High: Att., Shoot
Med: Str., Aer., Tactics, Ball Control, Set Piece
None: GK, Defending

All equal out to a high-medium workload. Not too heavy, but heavy enough. We'll see how this suits our players, and make adjustments accordingly. I also set up a heavy regiment of attacking and shooting for our midfield and attacking Youth players.

I am on the verge of selling Ricardo Fuller for cost saving reasons... plus he could bring in a pretty transfer fee. This match may well decide his fate, playing against a top level opponent on the road.

July 24, Friendly #4
@ Birmingham City

Lineup:
GK: Paul Smith
D: Simon Gillett, Calum Davenport, Darren Powell, Martin Cranie
M: Kamil Kosowski, Dennis Wise, M.M. Tejera, Djamel Belmadi
S: Neil McCann, Ricardo Fuller

It doesn't take long for the Blues to get on the board... Stan Lazaridis scores off a scramble in front in the 4th minute to put Birmingham up 1-0. Some slack defending allows Mikael Forssell an easy lane, and he converts a 15 yard shot to put us down 2-0. Neil McCann pops free and pokes a 10 yard shot over in the 26th minute. Forssell scores again in the 27th minute, and the rout has begun. To add insult to injury, U-18 midfielder Mathew Birley scores for Birmingham in the 65th to go up 4-0. No one picks up a rating above a 6 in this whitewashing. I sympathize with the team after the game.

Loss, 4-0

I ratchet down my asking price for Fuller from $825k to $700k to $550k... no takers.

July 28, Friendly #5
@ Crawley

Lineup:
GK: Niemi
D: Higginbotham, Powell, Davenport, Baird
M: Quashie, Tejera, Wise, Iunco
S: Fuller, Zschusschen

Some bad goalkeeping allows Zschusschen to finish a tipped shot from Ricardo Fuller for a 1-0 Saints lead. We control play, and net a 2nd in the 61st, as Calum Davenport scores on a rebound of a Ormerod shot. Danny Higginbotham gets MoM and plays the whole match at left back.

Win, 0-2

An easy win, and that'll probably be the last one of those for a while. We finally play for the first time at home in 3 days, then enter our league season after that. My lineup is still looking much as I thought it would long ago.

July 31, Friendly #6
v. Man. City

I am starting our projected opening day lineup in this match... except the 2 strikers will be Kenwyne Jones and Guillermo Zschusschen. They will get thrown out there to see if they can penetrate a top level defense.

Niemi with a couple of nice saves early on, but we're doing well and holding Man City out of our area. In the 36th, Jones flashes his speed, knifing through 2 defenders before a third takes him down. Quashie crosses back into him after getting the loose ball, but Jones shot is saved acrobatically by David James. Nice attacking football by the lads! In the 54th, we get a deserved goal... Joey Barton with a poor clearance off an Iunco throw in, and Kenwyne Jones pounces on the chance and scores! 1-0 Saints thanks to a poor defensive sequence. In the 57th, Jones nearly does it again, but James stops the 20 year old 1-v-1. In the 77th, we put it away... Jones' attempted cross deflects to Oakley... Oakley charges at James and slots it home! 2-0, Saints! The St. Mary's crowd seem happy and encouraged with this match.

Kenwyne Jones may well have cemented a starting slot with this performance... a goal and an assist, and Man of the Match honors. Antimo Iunco also pleases, earning the only rating above 7 of the second half perfomers.

Win, 2-0

This final performance makes me much more optimistic about the season than I had been, as we showed a lot of fight to hold Man City's first team out of the net for an hour until they were replaced.

Finally, the friendlies are over, and it's time to get to business!

[daedalus]

Omerod makes no sense to me. Ratings is, eh, unimpressive. But everytime I play against him, he kicks my ass.

Bastard.

[Butter]

Yes, he looks like total crap on paper... but he scored 2 goals and created a couple more in the preseason. I can't figure him either... just one of those minds for the game, I guess... he knows how to get in position to score, and every once in a while, he's just good enough to make you pay.

[Butter]

English Championship Promotion Odds
Ipswich - 7:4
Crystal Palace, Southampton - 2:1
Norwich, Derby - 5:2
Preston North End - 3:1

By offering odds of 2:1, the bookmakers are tipping you to put the disappointment of relegation behind you and make a serious bid for promotion this season.

I am approached by a reporter about our promotion odds, and I say "Definitely, I believe we've got the players with the ability to win the division."

Derby's manager tells the media that his side will beat us in the first match... I respond with "in order to go up, Derby will have to go out and beat the big teams."

We draw League Two Barnet in the League Cup, and will play them at St. Mary's on Wed., August 24.

August 6, Match 1
@ Derby County
Fav: Saints, 5:4

Lineup:
GK: Niemi
D: Higginbotham, Lundekvam, Hajto, Kenton
M: Quashie, Oakley, Prutton, Belmadi
S: Jones, Zschusschen

11'- Off a counter attack, Jones chases a ball down on the left touch line... then crosses for Zschusschen, who heads it just wide from 15 yards.

21'- It's Jones again, beating one man... then he centers the ball, but no one's home... Belmadi chases it down about 10 yards from goal, but his shot is headed away.

45+'- In the dying seconds of the first half, we start retreating a bit too early on a clearance, and it's stolen by Derby... Canadian Paul Peschisolido is left with a glorious 8 yard chance, and he converts it. 1-0, Derby at the half.

Ricardo Fuller on at halftime for a slightly injured Kenwyne Jones... I tell the team that we must get a result here, no excuses.

46'- Fuller steals an attempted clearance, but his first time shot is saved.

52'- Some disappointing defending, as Peschisolido is left open again on a cross, and he heads it in past Niemi. 2-0, Rams.

73'- Derby embarrass us a bit more, scoring on a 20 yard direct free kick. 3-0.

74'- We score practically off the restart, as Fuller finds Iunco wide open from 12 yards, and he buries it. 3-1.

82'- Prutton nearly gives us hope, just missing a 12 yard header from a Quashie cross.

We take the defeat. Perhaps I need to not shoot my mouth off quite so much, especially in this case. This did not go well at all.

Loss, 3-1, begin in 23rd place
Shots/on target: Rams 7/4, Saints 6/5
Poss: 50-50
MoM: Derby D Michael Johnson - 15/15 headers won, 8 rating
Saints ratings other than 6 or 7:
5 - Niemi, Belmadi
8 and above - None
Saints subs: Fuller (for Jones, inj., 45'), Iunco (for Belmadi, performance, 52')

Not a good debut for me.

[Butter]

Niemi looked just dreadful against Derby... and we're considering just selling him off altogether and going with Paul Smith, and then recalling Alan Blayney as our main backup. I'm not going to pull the trigger just yet, but Niemi's performance last game was just dreadful.

Aug. 9, Match 2
0-0-1, 0 pts., 23rd place
v. Brighton (0-0-1, lost to Preston 1-0 on opening day)
Fav: Saints, 4:6

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Powell, Davenport, Cranie
M: Quashie, Tejera, Wise, Baird
S: Ormerod, Fuller

Time to win one here on our home debut.

3'- Fuller with a flat giveaway to a Brighton midfielder... and he keys a 3-on-3 chance, but luckily Davenport is able to stick a foot in and end the threat inside the box.

8'- Ormerod is played through by Tejera... but his shot from 12 yards is stopped nicely.

20'- Ormerod chases down a very long ball, but his narrow angle shot is wide.

23'- Nervous moments out front as a shaky Higginbotham clearance just sails over our own goal. Off the corner kick, Smith grabs it and plays ahead to Nigel Quashie... Quashie plays ahead to Ormerod... Ormerod gets to the byline, then cuts it back to Tejera, who finishes inside the right post! Great counter attack, and we lead 1-0!

We take a 1-0 lead into the locker room, and I tell the squad I am pleased with their performance.

48'- Paul Smith picks up a minor knock, but he will continue.

52'- Cranie with a great diagonal ball from right to left... Quashie chases it down 6 yards from the end line, then advances into the box... he shoots one across the goal, and Fuller is there to touch it in! 2-0! Ormerod with a nice play to leave it for Fuller, and he scores his first for the Saints!

55'- A bad header back to the keeper falls right into Fuller's lap, but he misses the 12 yard shot wide! You can't get a better chance than that one. Fuller fails to score his second.

65'- A nice cross and header just misses for the Gulls.

69'- Smith with a nice save as striker Colin Kazim-Richards had popped free from 15 yards.

90+'- In the final of 4 stoppage minutes, Cranie with a superb ball to Fuller up the field... he attacks from the right, then crosses short to the left post, where Ormerod volleys it home! 3-0!

Great win and nice display by our starting strikers, as Ormerod and Fuller looked terrific out there today. I tell the team they had a sensational performance today.

Win, 3-0, up to 11th place
Shots/on target: Saints 15/6, Gulls 13/3
Poss: 50-50
MoM: Brett Ormerod - 1 goal, 1 assist, 9/19 headers won
Saint ratings other than 8:
9 - Ormerod
7 - Wise, Tejera, Kosowski
6 - Iunco
Saint subs: Kosowski (for Tejera (inj.), 65'), Iunco (for Quashie (fatigue), 83')
A: 16,791

No one else has managed to win 2 games yet, so we're only 1 point out of first at this early stage... 17 teams of 24 have at least 3 points, with only Hull, Wolves, and Brighton yet to manage a point.

[Butter]

Antti Niemi suffers a pulled hamstring, and is due to miss 2 weeks to a month of action... and us with all of our reserve keepers loaned out. Oops. I scramble to look for a replacement, and consider just selling Niemi outright.

Aug. 13, Match 3
1-0-1, 11th pl., 3 pts.
@ Burnley (1-0-1, 13th pl., 3 pts.)
Fav: Saints, 4:5

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Lundekvam, Hajto, Kenton
M: McCann, Oakley, Prutton, Belmadi
S: Ormerod, Zschusschen

I'm tired of typing out "Zschusschen", so from now on, he's known as just Z.

12'- Oakley with a throw in into the Claret area... and a Burnley defender has handballed! The penalty is awarded! Danny Higginbotham to take the PK... and he scores it! 1-0, Saints!

28'- Higginbotham is beaten flat-footed down the right... a cross is swung in short, and the header squeaks inside the near post past Smith. 1-1.

Both keepers with great saves right before halftime, and it's 1-1 into the showers... I try to encourage the boys, but I pull Ormerod aside and express my disappointment at his first half play in an attempt to motivate this very determined, team-oriented player.

56'- Great ball to McCann... he passes to Ormerod near the left post... Ormerod with his back to goal his a defender and the keeper converge on him... he pounds the ball into the keeper's chest, and it bobbles free... Z is there to apply the finish! 2-1, Saints on Z's first goal at any senior level!

We continue to apply pressure, and just seem to be playing with improved spirit.

We do a great job of just pestering every touch a Claret makes, and force them to play balls into space, that we're able to track down mostly. Burnley fail to get much of a chance in the last half hour, and we take full points! Nice road win here, and I tell the boys "well done".

Win, 1-2, up to 6th place
Shots/on target: Clarets 14/5, Saints 8/3
Poss: 51-49, Saints
MoM: Tomasz Hajto - 12/15 headers won, 8/8 tackles won, 14 pass interceptions
Saint ratings:
8 - Smith, Higginbotham, Hajto, McCann, Prutton, Oakley, Z
Saint subs: Iunco (for Belmadi (perf.), 45'), Cranie (for Kenton (inj.), 45'), Quashie (for Ormerod (defense), 83')
A: 11,626

Leeds, Millwall, and Norwich remain 1-2-3 with 7 points each, but we lurk just 1 point behind.

The injury report on Darren Kenton is a bruised heel... he'll miss 1-2 weeks.

[Butter]

Higginbotham, Oakley, Prutton, and Z are picked to the Team of the Week.

I notice on the ticker that Olympiakos sign US starlet Clint Dempsey on a $2.3 million transfer.

Despite having an entire week off, neither of our goalkeeper targets can agree to terms with us, so we're still stuck with Paul Smith and a greyed-out scrub from nowhere. I thought you could recall players from loan?

Aug. 20, Match 4 (TV)
2-0-1, 6th pl., 6 pts.
v. Leeds United (2-1-0, 1st pl., 7 pts. - Leading scorer: Richard Cresswell, 4)
Fav: Saints, 6:4

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Hajto, Lundekvam, Cranie
M: Quashie, Prutton, Oakley, Baird
S: Ormerod, Fuller

Fuller leads the squad with 2 assists in 3 matches so far.

Leeds have just loaned in 20 year old Aston Villa midfielder Steven Davis, who has 1 goal in his only appearance so far.

Leeds pretty well dominate the first half of this key early season match, but we go into halftime at zeroes. I encourage the squad.

54'- Cresswell breaks free for Leeds on an early ball in, but his header is misdirected.

65'- Cranie pushes too far forward in attack, and Leeds get a breakaway down their left side due to it... luckily the rest of the defense covers and we remain scoreless.

82'- A nice ball to the right side for Z, and he beats one man, but his shot whiffs a bit... the ball is cleared, but comes right back in to Z again, and this time his shot is spot on, but a marvelous save denies him.

The last 10 minutes come and go without incident, and we share the spoils. Not much of a match, really, but not a surprise that we're involved in a scoreless draw.

Draw, 0-0, drop to 8th place
Shots/on target: Saints 9/4, Leeds 11/4
Poss: 51-49, Leeds
MoM: Danny Higginbotham - 47/68 passing, 13 interceptions
Saint ratings:
8 - Higginbotham, Hajto
Saint subs: McCann (for Quashie (performance), 71'), Zschusschen (for Fuller (perf.), 71'), Belmadi (for Cranie (inj.), 83', Baird moved to DR)
A: 25,472

Good turnout for this match, too bad we couldn't bring home all 3 points to move into 1st.

[Butter]

Finally, some good news, as 19 year old GK Jake Cole signs with us from QPR for just a $4k fee. Cole will make $40k per season over the next 4 years at St. Mary's. This new acquisition will get the start for us against League Two Barnet.

Aug. 24, League Cup First Round
v. Barnet (11th in League Two)
Fav: Saints, 1:8

Lineup:
GK: Cole
D: Gillett, Davenport, Powell, Cranie
M: Kosowski, Wise, Tejera, Iunco
S: McCann, Jones

We come out with attacking tactics against a weak opponent at home,

Barnet comes out fired up, and almost make us pay, nearly scoring within 15 seconds... but a fine Cole save keeps it scoreless early.

11'- Iunco runs down the right... he crosses for Jones, but it's headed away... the ball finds its way to Tejera, who shoots from 15 yards... it deflects and goes in! 1-0 Saints on an early deflection goal, unlucky for Barnet.

A bit of a lackluster first half, but we take the lead into the break. I tell the team not to get careless.

We miss 2 pretty good chances early in the second half due to poor finishing.

54'- Tejera with a pass to Jones, who one touches it onto McCann's run into the box... McCann with an 18 yard shot, and it slots home! 2-0, Saints! Nice passing by Jones to create the chance.

59'- Simon Gillett with a 25 yard free kick... he swings it in to the left post, and Kenwyne Jones heads it home! Jones showing off his deadly heading skill, and putting us ahead 3-0.

64'- We nearly make it 3 in 10 minutes, as Iunco with a great early cross to McCann, but his volley shoots over the bar.

We back down, and take the win.

Win, 3-0, advance to League Cup Second Round
Shots/on target: Saints 13/2, Bees 12/2
Poss: 51-49, Saints
MoM: Darren Powell, 13 interceptions, 7/9 headers won, 6/7 tackles won
Saint ratings other than 8:
9 - Cranie, Powell, Iunco, McCann
Saint subs: None
A: 15,020

We pick up $40k for the win.

I also get approached about Jake Cole's performance in his first match... I am asked how I rate his debut, and I respond with "It was a good performance from Jake and I'm delighted to have captured his signature."

What I really wanted to say was, "This performance gives me the confidence to put Antti Niemi on the transfer list."

[Butter]

Niemi unhappy with Butter
Southampton boss Butter is coming under pressure to explain his actions to Antti Niemi after he reportedly touted the goalkeeper to other clubs.

According to the Daily Star, Butter could have a rebellion on his hands if he does not satisfy the popular player that he is wanted at St. Mary's Stadium.

Oops. I'm still going to sell him when he's better, though. No one is interested in him while he's got a hamstring pull. Sadly, there only remain 5 days in the transfer window.

The League Cup Second Round draw is held, and we will play League One Nott'm Forest away on Sept. 21.

One thing I have noticed is that my players aren't recovering very quickly after games. As such, I have to increase everybody's training sliders from "light-medium" on aerobics and strength to "high-medium" to just outright "high" to try and improve everyone's ability to recover.

This is important, as we're playing 2 games in 3 days here, and many of our players aren't even back above 90% from a match we played 3 days ago.

Aug. 27, Match 5
2-1-1, 8th pl., 7 pts.
@ Hull City (1-1-2, 19th pl., 4 pts. - Leading scorer: Stephen McPhee, 4)
Fav: Saints, 4:5

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Cranie, Powell, Davenport, Baird
M: Quashie, Oakley, Prutton, Belmadi
S: Zschusschen, Fuller

We still have no players with more than 1 league goal through 4 matches.

14'- Belmadi with a free kick from near the corner flag... it swings out to Prutton, who nods it down to Oakley... Oakley totally unmarked from 6 yards, and he makes no mistake! 1-0, Saints!

23'- Cranie with a steal in defense, sends a long ball to Z... Z cuts it inside, then curls it toward the far post... Belmadi charges on, and volleys it home! 2-0, Saints! Top quality stuff from the Z-man there.

42'- The Tigers get unlucky, pounding a header off the woodwork, and Davenport clears.

45+'- In the second stoppage minute, Oakley tries to send Z through... a Hull defender misses the ball, and Z is through! He attacks goal from the left, then curls a shot round the keeper and in! Premier level finishing from Guillermo Zschusschen, and we take a 3-0 cushion into halftime.

I tell the team I am thrilled with their performance at halftime. That seems to lead to some pretty lackluster play, as Hull are all over us right after the break.

51'- Great pass by Hull inside the area to a cutting midfielder, and he touches it past Smith for a 3-1 game now.

72'- And Hull tighten it up further, as we pretty much ball watch for about 20 seconds, allowing Hull to sneak in for another goal with an easy cross and finish. 3-2 now.

78'- Belmadi with a cross from the right... Ormerod's header comes off the woodwork, then Fuller's shot is stopped, but bounces free... Oakley pounces on it and finishes! 4-2! Oakley with 2 today.

80'- Cranie with a misplay, and that allows Hull to pick up 2 chances... and they finish the second one with style, half volleying in a 4 yard sitter. 4-3! Very odd game.

81'- Ormerod gets a great pass by Prutton, and has Fuller wide open at the back post, but goes for glory himself and misses.

Hull continue to press us to the end.

90+'- Ormerod gets free with about 1:30 left, but instead of taking on 2 defenders and losing the ball, he dribbles toward the corner flag and wastes some time... a feature definitely missing previously. We do a great job of taking our time in the final 3 minutes, and salt away a 4-3 win.

I tell Smith I am disappointed in his performance, but the rest of the squad gets a "well done".

Win, 3-4, up to 2nd place
Shots/on target: Tigers 11/5, Saints 14/8
Poss: 51-49, Hull
MoM: Matthew Oakley - 2 goals, 1 assist
Saint ratings above 7:
9 - Belmadi, Oakley
8 - Prutton, Z
Saint subs: Ormerod (for Zschusschen (fatigue), 51'), Higginbotham (for Fuller (def.), 86')
A: 17,401

If we could've held a 3-0 win, we would've gone tops. Instead, Norwich sit above us holding a +2 GD advantage.

[Butter]

After worrying that we wouldn't be able to score much this year, we're actually averaging 2.2 goals per game so far.

Aug. 29, Match 6
3-1-1, 2nd pl., 10 pts.
v. Reading (2-2-1, 11th pl., 8 pts. - Leading scorer: Dave Kitson, 4)
Fav: Saints, Even

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Hajto, Lundekvam, Cranie
M: McCann, Tejera, Wise, Baird
S: Ormerod, Zschusschen

10'- Neil McCann with a free kick from near the left flag... he swings in a nice cross, and Z outjumps everyone at the near post and heads it in! Z's 3rd of the year puts us up 1-0.

13'- Great diving save by Smith on a hard shot... the same striker ends up with it 20 seconds later, and Smith makes another outstanding save!

16'- Higginbotham's throw in finds McCann... he centers to Wise, who tries a ball into the box for Z... Z's man misses the interception, and Z tries a cheeky side volley from 15 yards out... and scores! What a finish by the Dutchman! 2 goals in 6 minutes, and we lead 2-0!

19'- Smith with another great save on a close in strike.

21'- Tejera is robbed by a good save from the Reading keeper... then on the counter, Cranie with a last ditch tackle to save Smith from having to make another highlight reel save.

45'- After spending the entire half making great save after great save, Lundekvam wastes that performance with a careless handball on a cross in. The penalty is converted, and it is 2-1 at halftime.

I urge the team to not let their performance drop in the second half.

65'- Smith with another fine save, as Lundekvam is beaten again. He is having a terrible game.

70'- Ormerod with a great through ball to Z, but he just misses the target with his low shot.

85'- Ormerod is sent away by Higginbotham, and is brought down on his way to the loose ball... and the Reading defender gets a straight red for a "professional foul".

90+' Wise with a poor clearance, and that opens the door for a nice through ball to Bobby Convey, who slots it home nicely inside the right post.

Great determination by Reading to come back and earn a point. Poor defending by us shows again. I tell the team that this performance was not good enough, although I tell Lundekvam specifically that he was an embarrassment out there today.

Draw, 2-2, drop to 3rd place
Shots/on target: Saints 18/9, Reading 15/9
Poss: 52-48, Saints
MoM: Reading midfielder Sekou Baradji - 1 assist, 29/37 passing
Saint ratings other than 6 & 7:
9 - Z
8 - Higginbotham
5 - Lundekvam
Saint subs: Iunco (for Baird (fatigue), 45'), Quashie (for Tejera (fatigue), 45')
A: 19,065

[Butter]

Finally, a taker for Niemi, as Wigan offer us $2.2 million for the currently injured keeper. I agree to it on the eve of the transfer window snapping shut. He signs with Wigan, and that $700k per year salary is off the books, plus we're $2.2 million richer. He signs with Wigan for $850k per season.

With that sale, the board is no longer worried about our wage bill, as it has dropped to just $150k or so above budget. Also, "some fans are now advocating giving you time to prove yourself because of the club's recent impressive form." The board is also encouraged by my start... but the fans do still dislike me for selling Niemi. Oh well. Get over it.

Matthew Oakley finishes 3rd in the balloting for Championship Player of the Month... meanwhile, Z finishes third in the Young Player of the Month voting... and Z's great side volley strike against Reading wins Goal of the Month.

We get a nice 12 day spell off thanks to World Cup Qualifying. We need it to bring our legs back into shape.

Reserve midfielder Jason St'Juste is suffering from a virus. We can send him home to keep him from spreading it to the rest of the team, but he'll be out 2-3 weeks... or we can have the physio treat him here, but risk the virus spreading to others, and that'll keep him out 1-2 weeks. I say, since he's a reserve, he gets sent home.

Z is named to the Team of the Week.

Prutton picks up a minor injury, but Michael Svensson is finally due back from his knee injury and will start our next match.

Sept. 10, Match 7
3-2-1, 4th pl., 11 pts.
v. Norwich City (3-2-1, 3rd pl., 11 pts. - Leading scorer: Darren Huckerby, 3)
Fav: Saints, 5:4

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Hajto, Svensson, Cranie
M: McCann, Quashie, Oakley, Iunco
S: Ormerod, Z

Martin Cranie has worked his way into the starting lineup with his recent performances... the 18 year old is playing very well at right back so far this year.

18'- First good chance of the match, and it's Ormerod putting an open 15 yarder well wide.

20'- Moments later, Norwich with a good cross , but a close in header by Ashton is stopped by Smith.

30'- Ashton pounces on a loose ball directly in front of goal, but Smith with good reflexes again to tip it over.

42'- Ashton's 20 yard free kick is acrobatically deflected out by Smith.

45+' - Darren Huckerby with a terrific strike from the arc, and Smith has no chance as Svensson just gave him too much space to score.

We trail 1-0 at the break, and are lucky it's not worse. I tell the team they look clueless out there, and expect better in the second half.

51'- It doesn't help, as Dean Ashton pops free from 12 yards thanks to a missed clearance by Quashie... Ashton buries it, and we trail 2-0.

60'- We bring on a couple of subs... and Fuller nearly converts a header right out of the gate, but the Canary keeper tips it over.

68'- Quashie with a good ball into the center... Cranie gets there, but his header is blocked out for another corner.

My halftime talk seems to actually have deflated the team... and I rip into them with anger at the end of the game. A sad effort.

Loss, 0-2, drop to 8th place
Shots/on target: Saints 12/6, Canaries 10/9
Poss: 53-47, Saints
MoM: Norwich def. Matthew Rose - 13/17 headers won, 13/13 tackles won
Saint ratings: All 6's & 7's.
Saint subs: Wise (for Ormerod (perf.), 51', moved Quashie to left wing, and McCann to forward), Fuller (for Z (perf.), 51')
A: 25,450

[Butter]

Sept. 13, Match 8
3-2-2, 9th pl., 11 pts.
@ Coventry City (3-1-3, 14th pl., 10 pts. - Leading scorer: James Scowcroft, 4)
Fav: Saints, Even

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Kenton, Hajto, Davenport, Baird
M: Kosowski, Wise, Tejera, Belmadi
S: Ormerod, Jones

7'- Jones breaks free in the area, and sends a great ball across goal to Ormerod, but he can't get his shot on target under pressure.

14'- Sky Blue midfielder Stephen Hughes creates some space, then shoots a long one from 25 yards, and it beats Smith and goes in. Great long shot, and Coventry lead 1-0.

32'- Ormerod breaks free down the left... he gets in on the keeper, but his shot is just tipped out for a corner.

40'- Again, Coventry creates a nice chance, and it's finished in behind Smith on an 8 yard header... 2-0, Coventry.

45'- Baird with a nice floating ball in, as Ormerod attacks the keeper, but the Coventry keeper tips it over the bar.

We seem to be falling apart in a hurry. I dress down the regulars, but don't know if they'll respond to that or not. May be time for a tactics switch.

64'- Ormerod with a nice header on to the keeper off a Belmadi cross, but he committed a foul anyway. We're playing horribly.

76'- Z plays Ormerod onside, but he misses a 15 yarder.

85'- A corner kick falls in to Anton Ferdinand, and he heads it home to put the nail in the coffin, 3-0 Coventry.

We lose 3-0. A horrific performance against a team we should beat, or at least draw with. I tell the team how disappointed I am in this game.

Loss, 3-0, drop to 16th
Shots/on target: Sky Blues 9/4, Saints 9/5
Poss: 52-48, Coventry
MoM: Coventry striker Gary McSheffrey - 10 rating, 1 assist, 4 key passes
Saint ratings: All 6's & 7's
Saint subs: Zschusschen (for Jones (perf.), 58'), Iunco (for Tejera (fat.), 73'), McCann (for Davenport (inj.), 73', switched to 3-4-3)
A: 19,508

If we don't start putting some results together, I may not have a job much longer considering how low an opinion the fans already have of me.

[Butter]

After suffering through some awful defensive efforts of late, it's time to switch to my old favorite tactic... the 4-4-2 diamond. I will play this in a normal style, with little creative freedom, short passing, and a counter attack. We'll see if it works.

Sept. 18, Match 9 (TV)
3-2-3, 19th pl., 11 pts.
@ Wolverhampton Wanderers (2-2-4, 22nd pl., 8 pts. - Leading scorer: Mark Kennedy, 3)
Fav: Saints, 5:4

Lineup:
GK: Cole
D: Higginbotham, Lundekvam, Svensson, Cranie
M: Quashie (DM), Oakley (ML), Prutton (MR), Iunco (AM)
S: Fuller, Zschusschen

3'- A dream start, as Z flicks a throw in past the defense and onto Fuller's run... he shoots early and low and beats the keeper! 1-0, Saints!

14'- Iunco picks up his 2nd yellow inside a quarter hour, and we're down to 10 men. What was he doing out there? We'll continue on with a 4-4-1, as Fuller pulls back to AM.

Wolves look thoroughly inept offensively, as they have created no dangerous chances with a man advantage after a half hour.

25'- Oakley with a 15 yard shot off a deflected Prutton cross, but it's saved.

33'- Quashie's corner finds Svensson's head, but a nice save tips it over the bar.

35'- Oakley passes ahead to Quashie, who sends a pass lofted over the defense to Z, who is just onside... he takes it first time from a nearly impossible position, but fires it on target and in off the right post! Guillermo Zschusschen is creating some magic on the field this year! The 19 year old Dutchman with his 5th tally of the season, and we take a 2-0 lead down a man!

45'- Quashie with a nice pass to Prutton in the arc, but his shot is tipped aside.

I tell the squad not to get complacent with a 2 goal lead, especially considering that we're down a man.

74'- We play pretty well for a half hour, then Higghinbotham goes for the ball and misses on a pass across the front of goal, leaving a wide open 8 yard chance that is finished by a Wolves midfielder. 2-1.

Z gets injured towards the end of the match, but he stays on and guts it out with no subs left. We are able to take the 2-1 win, but still don't look all that impressive doing it. We are just 3 points out of first place now, however.

Win, 1-2, up to 12th place
Shots/on target: Wolves 7/4, Saints 12/11
Poss: 51-49, Saints
MoM: Michael Svensson - 12 interceptions, 7/7 headers won
Saint ratings other than 6/7:
8 - Svensson, Quashie, Oakley, Z
5 - Higginbotham, Iunco
Saint subs: Tejera (for Fuller (at AM), 63'), McCann (for Oakley (fat.), 63'), Kenton (for Higginbotham (perf.), 83')
A: 24,447

Iunco picks up the automatic one match ban for his red card.

Luckily, Z's injury is not serious, he should only miss about a week with a gashed head.

Rupert Lowe makes a rare public comment, noting that he was pleased with the style with which we won the game at Molineux.

The fans are still skeptical.

[Butter]

Svensson and Z are named to the Team of the Week.

I decide to switch it up a bit, and go with the same 4-4-2, but with attacking tactics, short passing, and utilizing a playmaker and a target man. Today's target man will be Kenwyne Jones, who will be instructed to head down any balls coming his way to set up Ricardo Fuller. Marcos Tejera is our playmaker today.

Sept. 21, League Cup Second Round
@ Nottingham Forest (18th in League One)
Fav: Saints, Even

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Kenton, Hajto, Lundekvam, Baird
M: Wise, Gillett, Belmadi, Tejera
S: Jones, Fuller

29'- Forest score on a nice looking counter attack... as Baird completely loses his man, who scores easily off a nice low cross. 1-0, Nott'm Forest.

37'- Ricardo Fuller is brought down trying to reach a rebound of his own shot and a penalty is awarded! Dennis Wise steps up to the spot, and he calmly sticks it into the right side of the goal. The 38 year old puts us level at 1-1.

41'- Shortly later, Tejera with a great ball to Jones, and Kenwyne Jones uses his speed to easily dribble past the keeper and tap it into an open net! 2-1, Saints.

I try to encourage the team, which since we were up was maybe not the wisest move.

60'- Our defense allows a striker to walk in on Smith... he makes the initial save, but can't stop the rebound... 2-2. Again it was Lundekvam allowing the first chance.

I don't know what I have to do to stop from allowing 2 goals every game... but our defense is awful, even after it appeared to be our strongest suit at season's beginning.

90'- As we enter stoppage time, Belmadi approaches a corner from near the right corner flag... he aims it for the far post, where Lundekvam climbs above everyone and nods it in!!! Claus making up for his defensive deficiency, and putting us through to the next round!

I give everyone a well done, except I again show my anger to Paul Smith to try and kick his ass into gear.

Win, 2-3, advance to League Cup Third Round
Shots/on target: Forest 8/3, Saints 12/8
Poss: 52-48, Forest
MoM: Claus Lundekvam - 1 goal, 12/13 headers won, 7/7 tackles won, 11 pass interceptions
Saint ratings other than 7:
9 - Lundekvam
8 - Belmadi, Tejera, Jones
6 - Smith, Kenton, Quashie
Saint subs: McCann (for Gillett (tired), 73'), Quashie (for Wise (tired), 73'), Ormerod (for Fuller (perf.), 73')
A: 15,080

We pick up another $40k for this win. But we also lose winger Djamel Belmadi for about a month with a severely twisted ankle that he played on for the final 15 minutes of this game.

Neil McCann picks up a thigh strain during a training session, and will miss 1-4 weeks.

[BigDPW]

I am enjoying this alot... Keep up the good work...

[Butter]

We will continue to experiment with variations of the 4-4-2 diamond through the next several matches.

Coming into this match a few of my players are starting to get annoyed that we're not fulfilling our potential. As many of you may know, that's a start on the road to getting fired.

Antimo Iunco mentions that he intends to leave Southampton as soon as possible, as he dislikes the type of football played in England. Hmmm.

Sept. 24, Match 10
4-2-3, 12th pl., 14 pts.
v. Sheffield Wed. (4-3-2, 6th pl., 15 pts. - Leading scorer: Ricardo Vaz Te, 3)
Fav: Saints, 5:4

As you can see, the difference between the top and middle of the table is very little. We can jump back into a playoff spot with a win here.

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Powell, Hajto, Cranie
M: Oakley, Quashie, Prutton, Iunco
S: Ormerod, Fuller

11'- Iunco with a brilliant ball to Fuller, who has an open 6 yard shot... but he nails the keeper's leg with it, and it bounces out of play.

19'- Fuller with open space again, but his 12 yarder hits the crossbar this time!

36'- Cranie with a long ball to Ormerod, who nods down onto Iunco's run... he's split the defense, and shoots from 15 yards out... and buries it top shelf! 1-0, Saints!

38'- And Smith gives it right back with a weak play on a cross to the back post... a half volley in at an angle that Smith should've had covered. 1-1.

We make 2 subs and alter tactics to a more offensive set at halftime. Fuller has to leave the game with a nagging injury, while Quashie is just playing awfully at the left wing. The play by play notes that Quashie is not happy about being yanked.

Ormerod misses 2 free headers during the early parts of the 2nd half.

75'- Kamil Kosowski with a nice run and short cross into the left side of the box... Iunco gets onto it, and hits an odd looking high arching shot toward the far post... it lobs over the keeper and drops inside the right post for a terrific goal! Iunco is enjoying his new AMC position, and we take a 2-1 lead with Iunco's 2nd of the match!

We try to back into a shell to preserve the 3 points.

83'- The Owls with a great buildup, and a nice ball into the arc onto the run of an attacker, but he puts an open 15 yarder over the bar.

We are able to keep the ball out of our end for the final few minutes, and do enough to take all 3 points. A vital win at home against a mid-table opponent. The play by play notes that our 2nd half effort was a vast improvement over the 1st half... we may well make this tactic a regular. I tell the team I am delighted with the win. For a disgruntled guy, Iunco played pretty damn good.

Win, 2-1, up to 7th place
Shots/on target: Saints 9/6, Owls 12/4
Poss: 52-48, Saints
MoM: Antimo Iunco - 2 goals, 5 key passes
Saint ratings:
9 - Iunco
8 - Powell, Prutton
5 - Quashie, Jones
Saint subs: Kosowski (for Quashie (perf.), 45'), Jones (for Fuller (inj.), 45'), Wise (for Jones (def.), 76')
A: 18,012

We now sit just 2 points out of first place, which Norwich occupies.

Nigel Quashie tells the media that his is upset at being subbed out of this last match. Maybe you should try NOT playing like shit, and you could stay in.

[Butter]

We draw Norwich away in the League Cup Third Round... that match will be played on October 26th.

Prutton and Iunco are picked to the Team of the Week.

I notice that my training regimen seems to be working, as many of our players are back and ready to go after just 2 days off for this next match.

Sept. 27, Match 11
5-2-3, 7th pl., 17 pts.
@ Luton Town (4-2-4, 14th pl., 14 pts. - Leading scorer: Steve Howard, 3)
Fav: Saints, 4:6

Luton have scored just 6 goals in 10 matches, but have allowed just 8 in that span as well. Favorites for relegation, they're trying to stay up with tough defense.

Lineup:
GK: Cole
D: Kenton, Powell, Lundekvam, Baird
M: Quashie, Kosowski, Oakley, Tejera
S: Ormerod, Jones

We have just 2 healthy strikers for this match, and they both start... McCann is on the mend, Z is nearly fit again, and Fuller is still suffering lingering effects from our last match.

1'- We nearly score off the opening kick, as Quashie plays it left to Baird... Baird with a great ball over the top to Jones... he can't control it, but the ball rolls to Ormerod, who has an open strike from 12 yards... and the Luton keeper is just able to tip it aside at the 15 second mark. Off the ensuing corner, Oakley's corner is headed back to him.... he crosses back in to the near post for Jones, who volleys it in past the keeper! 1-0 just 50 seconds in!

6'- Luton score to even the match, but luckily it is disallowed for offsides.

8'- Oakley to Jones again for a second goal... but Jones is ruled offside!

16'- Luton make no mistake this time, as the center of defense parts for an easy pass through Powell, and a 12 yard low shot inside the right post. 1-1.

35'- Ormerod with a great one touch pass onto the run of Kenwyne Jones... Jones' speed allows him to split 2 defenders, then shoot far post... and score! 2-1, Saints, 2 for Jones!

39'- Again, our 2 central defenders are caught with their pants down, as we fail to retreat on defense and allow a second goal on an easy breakaway. 2-2.

I tell the team they are unlucky not to be winning right now... I tell Quashie I am angry at his first half performance (rating a 6), and I try to encourage young keeper Jake Cole.

46'- Shortly after the restart, Tejera crosses back post... Ormerod has to chase it down, but then he cuts it back to the penalty spot, where Kenton gets a good run at a shot, but mishits it weakly. Moments later, Ormerod splits the defense thanks to a Tejera pass, but he chunks his shot into the crowd.

73'- After a boring 20 minutes, Lundekvam makes a steal, then we string together 3 nice passes... first to Kosowski, then to Tejera, and finally to Ormerod who is onside and in on the keeper... and he slots it home inside the left post! 3-2, Saints!

83'- Luton with a very dangerous buildup, but Kenton heads a final cross away to safety.

We are again able to weather the storm with defensive tactics... but the final minutes were not without their blown Luton chances. Luckily Cole holds up, and we take 3 more points, this time on the road. I tell the team "well done", and single out Cole especially for praise.

Win, 2-3, up to 5th place
Shots/on target: Luton 18/6, Saints 17/10
Poss: 52-48, Luton
MoM: Kenwyne Jones - 2 goals, 3 shots on target
Saint ratings:
8 - Powell, Oakley, Tejera, Jones
Saint subs: Iunco (for Jones (tired), 56'), Cranie (for Baird (inj.), 56'), Wise (for Oakley (def.), 84')
A: 10,441

Chris Baird will miss 1-2 weeks after suffering a concussion in a collision in this match.

[Butter]

We are allowed to bring in one more short term loan player if we so choose, so I scour the big clubs' reserve and youth rosters for some possibilities... I see a few good looking players, but we'll see if any take our bait.

Oct. 1, Match 12
6-2-3, 5th pl., 20 pts.
v. Plymouth Argyle (5-3-3, 7th pl., 18 pts. - Leading scorer: Paul Wotton, 3)
Fav: Saints, 4:5

We're surprisingly heavy favorites against Argyle.

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Svensson, Hajto, Cranie
M: Wise, Quashie, Prutton, Iunco
S: Ormerod, Fuller

8'- Argyle with an impressive move off a slow build-up, but Smith with an acrobatic save to move across and tip a diving header aside.

22'- Prutton collects an attempted punch out and fires from 20 yards, but the keeper does well to recover and get a finger to it... it trickles out for a corner.

30'- Higginbotham with a long ball for our target man, Ormerod... he heads down for Iunco, who is pushed over trying to reach the ball... it was on the edge of the box, and the penalty is given! Danny Higginbotham to take it... and he buries it! 1-0, Saints!

34'- Less than 4 minutes later, a corner kick comes in to Ormerod, and another penalty is awarded as he is bowled over! Higginbotham again to take it... this time, he strikes it straight, and the keeper saves it.

71'- Another chance at last, but unfortunately it's for Plymouth... a 6 yard header just misses the target off a corner.

81'- Oakley's cross finds Iunco, but his header is stopped nicely by the keeper with a reflex save. The rebound is put into the seats.

84'- We put a stamp on it, as Oakley's first touch is a cross into Kenwyne Jones, and the talented youngster heads it in from 3 yards past the flailing keeper. 2-0, Saints.

The clock winds down, and we finally record another shutout! Paul Smith with his finest performance of the season in net.

Win, 2-0, up to 3rd place
Shots/on target: Saints 13/6, Argyle 9/4
Poss: 55-45, Argyle
MoM: Paul Smith - 4 saves
Saint ratings:
9 - Smith
8 - Higginbotham
Saint subs: Jones (for Ormerod (perf.), 65'), Oakley (for Prutton (tired), 82'), Tejera (for Wise (perf.), 82')
A: 18,703

We move into a 3 way tie for first with Norwich and Palace (the other 2 relegated sides from last season), but trail both on our inferior goal difference.

In a complete non-surprise, reserve striker Marian Pahars breaks his wrist on a fall during a game vs. Arsenal's reserves. He is due to miss 1-2 months.

Unfortunately, none of the teams or players I asked for on loan are interested in coming to the South Coast.

With our last win, the Board state that they are "encouraged" by our start... then a few days later, they become "pleased" with my performance as manager. The supporters also begin to jump on board thanks to this winning streak, saying they are also pleased with me.

[Butter]

Quarter Pole review
We've reached the 1/4 mark of the season (or thereabouts, 12 matches), and here's where we are.

We're NOT a defensive power as I expected... only 1 of our matches has featured 1 goal or less total being scored. In fact, we're the 2nd best goal scoring team in the League Championship, only 1 behind Leeds. Unfortunately, we've also given up the 5th most goals in the league, which is dragging down our goal difference, and could come back to haunt us later in the season.

Our early bad form was partly thanks to our schedule... we've had to play 3 of the top 5 in the league already, with only Crystal Palace remaining before Christmas. Also, our recent good form is also attributable to our weaker schedule of late. Also, our new 4-4-2 diamond tactic seems to be improving both our offense and defense, as we've scored at least 2 goals in each of our last 5 matches, winning all 5.

Our wage budget is under control, and our 2 keepers are playing decently enough. Our strikers have been a pleasant surprise, but injuries have started to plague them a bit. Our midfield remains thin, as do our wing back spots.

Prognosis: Top 3 finish, if we can avoid serious injuries.

Another weak sister of the league is up next.

Oct. 15, Match 13
7-2-3, 3rd pl., 23 pts.
@ Crewe Alexandra (2-3-7, 22nd pl., 9 pts. - Leading scorer: David Vaughan, 3)
Fav: Saints, 4:7

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Svensson, Davenport, Baird
M: Tejera, Quashie, Prutton, Iunco
S: Ormerod, Zschusschen

1'- We come out aggressively, and make a terrific play... Svensson steals a Crewe pass off the kickoff, and shoots it down the left... Ormerod's speed helps him pass his man and collect the well-weighted ball... he cuts back inside his marker, then swings the cross toward the far post... Z stretches out to try and poke it past the keeper, but the keeper lunges at it and tips it wide... luckily for us, Prutton is behind Z in support and buries the rebound! 1-0 Saints after 25 seconds! Prutton's 1st of the year!

4'- Crewe strike on the counter attack after a free kick... our central defense again forgets their man, and Davenport fails to recover to stop the 15 yard strike. 1-1.

26'- A corner kick falls right to Ormerod at 5 yards, but his header is nicely stopped.

39'- Smith with a great stop on a walk-in after our defense goes out to lunch again.

45'- Z with a lovely 30 yard ball into the box for Ormerod, and he volleys it, but the keeper is also there to block it away.

I sympathize with the team at halftime... probably should've said "you had better win this".

A lackluster second half jumps to life with mere seconds to play... Paul Smith with a LONG goal kick that Neil McCann latches on to... he turns on his man, and would have blown by him, except he's taken down at 30 yards... and the defender rightfully receives a straight red for that cynical foul. Oakley stands over the free kick, but he can't put it on target, and the final whistle blows shortly thereafter. A disappointing draw against bottom feeders here.

Draw, 1-1, remain 3rd
Shots/on target: Crewe 9/5, Saints 11/6
Poss: 52-48, Saints
MoM: David Prutton - 1 goal, 4 key passes, 8/10 headers won
Saint ratings: None other than 6 & 7
Saint subs: Oakley (for Tejera (perf.), 71'), McCann (for Iunco (perf.), 71')
A: 7,086

I get a nice notice in the press after the match:
New Southampton boss shows transfer guile
Rookie manager Butter has shown good wisdom in the transfer market since arriving at recently relegated Southampton fifteen games ago.

Having sold experienced goalkeeper Antti Niemi to Wigan for $2.2M, Butter then swooped for Verona's attacking midfielder Antimo Iunco with cash to spare.

[Butter]

I make a signing that will come over on January 1... a promising young Swedish defender from IFK Goteborg... 19 year old center back Mattias Bjarsmyr will come to St. Mary's on 1/1/06. Bjarsmyr has good heading, marking, and tackling skill, very good concentration and decision making ability, and is solid physically. He should give us some nice depth along the back line, and he comes cheap as we'll pay Goteborg a total of about $100k for him, and his contract is only $75k per season for 3 years.

Oct. 18, Match 14
7-3-3, 3rd pl., 24 pts.
v. Preston North End (5-3-5, 14th pl., 18 pts. - Leading scorer: Danny Dichio, 7)
Fav: Saints, 4:5

Lineup:
GK: Cole
D: Higginbotham, Powell, Hajto, Cranie
M: Wise, McCann, Oakley, Iunco
S: Jones, Fuller

9' - Preston striker Danny Dichio with a wicked shot from 12 yards, but Cole with a fantastic save to keep it scoreless.

17'- Dichio busts through on a breakaway, but Cole tips his shot and slows it down enough for Higginbotham to get back and clear it off the line.

Preston are killing us early, we cna't get any possession together, but Cole is keeping us in it.

40'- Finally, we string togehter a counter attack, as McCann crosses for Jones, but his half volley is saved.

I urge the team on at halftime, telling them they can win this one.

47'- It must've worked, as Jones heads down to Iunco, who passes ahead to Fuller... Fuller splits the defense and shoots hard and low from 18 yards, and scores! 1-0, Saints!

60'- Again, our defense is dismantled by some quick passing, and Dichio with a nice 12 yard strike to level the match.

78'- Another nice counter, as Wise plays it down the line for Jones... he cuts it back for Fuller, who bursts through 2 markers and hits it square on the button, burying it into the net! 2-1, Saints! Fuller with a terrific match today.

83'- Carlo Nash's goal kick goes toward the center circle... Darren Powell wins out and heads it back toward the Preston end... Fuller is standing all alone in the middle, played onside by a lazy and slow to advance right back! Fuller with 10 yards of space attacks the keeper... he gets into the arc, then chips the onrushing keeper and scores! Fuller gets his hat trick, and we lead 3-1!

We take all 3 points thanks to Ricardo Fuller, with possibly his finest match as a professional today. This win and Norwich's loss bumps us up the table.

Win, 3-1, up to 2nd place
Shots/on target: Saints 12/5, Preston 16/8
Poss: 50-50
MoM: Ricardo Fuller
Saint ratings:
10 - Fuller
8 - Cole, Powell
5 - Hajto
Saint subs: Prutton (for Oakley (tired), 62'), Kenton (for Hajto (perf.), 62')
A: 23,279

We remain 2 points adrift of first, just behind Crystal Palace.

[Butter]

Current starting keeper Paul Smith starts complaining about his pay... he makes $130k per season for the next 3 seasons, and he feels that's a bit low. I am given a few different ways to respond to this through the media, but I decide to say that I will be reviewing the wage structure at the club at the end of the season. Smith seems pleased by this, and a media report says so... but I also notice that under "manager promises" on his personal screen, it now reads "promised a new contract at the end of the season". Oops. I guess he won't be forgetting about that.

We extend Calum Davenport's loan from Tottenham by 3 months... he's been playing well, and we'll keep him through February now.

Oct. 22, Match 15
8-3-3, 2nd pl., 27 pts.
v. Cardiff (6-3-5, 8th pl., 21 pts. - Leading scorer: Michael Ricketts, 6)
Fav: Saints, 4:5

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Powell, Lundekvam, Cranie
M: Prutton, Tejera, Oakley, Iunco
S: Ormerod, Z

23'- Some bad defense by the Bluebirds nearly creates a goal for us, as Ormerod chases down an attempted header back to the keeper... Ormerod sends it across the goal mouth for Z, and he has an unmolested 6 yard shot that the keeper does very well to stop.

29'- Oakley cuts a ball inside to Z's run, and he takes a tight angle shot from 8 yards and nearly bends it in... it just whistles out for a corner.

33'- Tejera with a great cross to Z... his point blank header is stopped! The rebound is also stopped! Stuffed at close range twice is Zschusschen.

I tell the team they can win this game as we head to the locker room... and we can, too, we've dominated Cardiff so far.

53'- Some good work by Powell keeps the ball alive in midfield, and he passes ahead to Ormerod... Ormerod square to Oakley, who one touches it into the box for Z... Z is past his marker, and first times it past the keeper and in! 1-0, Saints on Z's team leading 6th of the year.

Cardiff finally start putting some chances together in the last 5 minutes against our defensive tactics... and in the 2nd added minute, Powell with an ill-advised backpass that is stolen, but luckily Martin Cranie was awake on the play and covers for Powell, blocking the chance and saving the game for us. We take a 1-0 win at home, but just barely.

Win, 1-0, up to 1st place
Shots/on target: Saints 15/10, Bluebirds 11/3
Poss: 53-47, Saints
MoM: Cardiff GK Neil Alexander - 9 saves, 8 rating
Saint ratings:
8 - Smith, Powell, Oakley, Tejera, Z
Saint subs: Jones (for Ormerod (perf.), 71'), McCann (for Oakley (tired), 71')
A: 18,887

Crystal Palace lose at Preston 4-0 on Sunday to keep us in first thanks to our 7 game unbeaten streak.

[Butter]

Ricardo Fuller is named to the Team of the Week.

As much as I'd like to advance in the League Cup, I can't ignore the fact that we have Crystal Palace, the 2nd place team, in 3 days following this match.

Oct. 26, League Cup Third Round
@ Norwich City (5th in Championship)
Fav: Saints, 5:4

Lineup:
GK: Cole
D: Gillett, Lundekvam, Svensson, Kenton
M: Sparv, Walcott, Baird, St'Juste
S: Totti, Jones

A lot of holding and pulling early on, as 5 yellows are issued in the first 15 minutes.

17'- Theo Walcott with a great ball in to Totti, but has volley from 8 yards hits the keeper square on, and deflects out for a corner.

32'- Jones chases down a ball from Gillett... he centers for St'Juste, who has an open 12 yarder, but he chunks it into the seats.

35'- Norwich go on top on a standard corner kick-header goal. 1-0, Canaries.

42'- Dean Asthon makes it 2-0, as he buries a 25 yard direct free kick.

I encourage the youngsters at halftime, as Norwich has sent mostly their first choice team out there... I wouldn't mind a 2-1 loss here.

47'- We come out looking much improved, especially with Walcott moved to striker... he just misses on a header from a corner kick early, then moments later he is through on goal, but his shot is just tipped aside after a nice ball from Jones.

We don't do much the rest of the game either, and Norwich are content to sit on their 2-0 lead and move on. A sacrificial game to get a look at some of the youngsters in first team action. Theo Walcott looked the best of the lot.

Loss, 2-0, out of League Cup
Shots/on target: Canaries 12/4, Saints 10/3
Poss: 52-48, Saints
MoM: Norwich mid. Dean Marney - 9 rating, 37/47 passing, 1 SoG
Saint ratings: None other than 6/7
Saint subs: Quashie (for Totti (tired), 45')
A: 18,281

League One Rotherham with the upset at home to move past Arsenal on PK's.

[Butter]

Leeds pass us in mid-week to move tops, 1 point ahead of us, and 2 clear of 3rd place Palace.

Oct. 29, Match 16
9-3-3, 2nd pl., 30 pts.
@ Crystal Palace (9-2-4, 3rd pl., 29 pts. - Leading scorer: Andy Johnson, 5)
Fav: Saints, 5:4

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Davenport, Powell, Cranie
M: Wise, McCann, Prutton, Iunco
S: Ormerod, Z

Palace have shut out their opposition in 5 of their last 6 matches.

A tight match early on....

20'- Powell clears a half volley off a corner kick off the line to save a goal.

37'- Smith survives a flurry of chances in front of goal, keeping it scoreless. We can't keep the ball out of our half.

I try something different, telling the squad I am pleased with their first half performance... and really, I am. 0-0 on the road against a contender is not bad.

69'- After some more pedestrian football, Palace finally hit us... they score with a 2 on 1 counter attack off a stolen throw in deep in their own end... Smith can't stop the chance this time, and we trail 1-0.

76'- Oakley with a great free kick, right onto Z's head, but he puts it over.

We up the attack even more late, but can't get on the board. Tough loss at Selhurst Park, drops us out of the automatic promotion spots. But it's still early.

Loss, 1-0, drop to 4th place
Shots/on target: Eagles 14/7, Saints 4/1
Poss: 51-49, Saints
MoM: Palace GK Gabor Kiraly - 8 rating, 6th clean sheet in last 7 starts
Saint ratings: None other than 6/7
Saint subs: Tejera (for Wise (off.), 73'), Oakley (for Cranie (off.), 73', switched to 3-4-3, moved McCann to striker, Oakley to ML)
A: 22,775

[Butter]

We attempt to sign several South American players (mostly from Peru) for fairly cheap, but none can obtain a work permit.

Nov. 1, Match 17
9-3-4, 4th pl., 30 pts.
v. Stoke City (5-4-5, 17th pl., 19 pts. - Leading scorer: Sambegou Bangoura, 7)
Fav: Saints, 4:5

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Svensson, Lundekvam, Baird
M: Tejera, Quashie, Oakley, Belmadi
S: Z, Fuller

19'- Finally, after over 3 hours of football without a goal, we score... Z passes to Quashie, who centers for Belmadi... but the ball skips past him to Fuller a the far post, who has an easy finish! 1-0, Saints.

24'- Z is tackled from behind on a breakaway, but the referee signals to play on... off the ensuing goalie clearance, Oakley passes to Belmadi, who gets Z onside and in clean... and he scores! 2-0, Saints.

36'- We're angry today, and that's good... Tejera steals a pass, and sends in a great ball to Z, who finishes first time with a low shot to the near post... 3-0, Saints.

60'- Stoke make it 3-1 thanks to Svensson heading a cross into his own net. Nice play, doofwad.

63'- Fuller gets it back for us moments later, as Quashie crosses for Fuller, who heads it in from 8 yards. 4-1.

We play out the string, and take a dominant win over a weak Potters team. I tell the team their performance was "sensational", even though looking at the stats, it really wasn't. Stoke's keeper was horrible, allowing all 4 shots on goal in.

Win, 4-1, up to 3rd place
Shots/on target: Saints 11/4, Potters 18/8
Poss: 50-50
MoM: Claus Lundekvam - 12/16 headers won, 20/28 passing
Saint ratings:
9 - Lundekvam, Tejera, Quashie, Fuller
8 - Smith, Baird, Higginbotham, Svensson, Oakley, Belmadi, Zschusschen
Saint subs: Kenton (for Z (tired, def.), 45'), Jones (for Fuller (inj.), 64')
A: 17,674

Leeds remain top by 2 points.

[Butter]

Time to make some hay, as our next 2 games are against 2 of the bottom 3. We must get 6 points out of these to contend for the title.

Nov. 5, Match 18
10-3-4, 3rd pl., 33 pts.
@ Queen's Park Rangers (4-3-10, 22nd pl., 15 pts. - Leading scorer: Stefan Moore, 8)
Fav: Saints, 4:5

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Davenport, Powell, Cranie
M: Wise, McCann, Prutton, Iunco
S: Jones, Z

8'- Jones is set loose by Davenport, but his tough angled 10 yarder is saved.

27'- QPR with some nice spacing, and they split the defense with a 20 yard shot... and it curls in around Smith's outstretched hand. 1-0, Rangers.

33'- Jones with a shot from a similar spot, but he hits this one well into the seats.

45'- Wise nearly scores a 30 yard free kick, but it's tipped away.

I question the team's passion at the break. We need to win this game.

57'- Prutton with a 3 yard header off a free kick, but a sensational reaction save denies him.

We seem to spark in the last few minutes, but can't get any good service into our 3 strikers, and we lose embarrassingly 1-0 to bottom-feeders QPR. I light into the team after the win, informing them of the total disgrace this game was. It seems like any time I tell the team I am thrilled with a performance, they go out and lay an egg.

Loss, 1-0, down to 4th place
Shots/on target: Rangers 12/7, Saints 7/4
Poss: 52-48, QPR
MoM: QPR def. Danny Shittu - 17/21 headers won, 7 pass interceptions
Saint ratings:
5 - Danny Higginbotham
Saint subs: Fuller (for Higginbotham (off.), 72'), Ormerod (for Iunco (perf.), 85'), Oakley (for Wise (off.), 85')
A: 12,436

We remain just 3 points out of first place.

[Butter]

Lundekvam, Belmadi, and Quashie are named to the Team of the Week.

We accept an offer of $10k for soon-to-depart reserve wing back Eddie Anaclet. He is only 20, but doesn't look very good to me, and I don't plan to re-sign him at season's end. The beneficiaries of this move are obscure club Weymouth, who are outside the league structure right now.

After 2 weeks off for international play, we get back to the grind.

Nov. 19, Match 19
10-3-5, 4th pl., 33 pts.
v. Ipswich Town (2-8-6, 23rd pl., 14 pts. - Leading scorer: Sam Parkin, 4)
Fav: Saints, 5:4

Lineup:
GK: Cole
D: Higginbotham, Hajto, Powell, Cranie
M: Quashie, Kosowski, Baird, Oakley
S: Jones, Fuller

I tinker with our tactics a bit against an Ipswich squad that was projected to contend, but is contending for League One right now.

A boring first half, as our defensive tactics produce no counter attack to speak of.

57'- Parkin with a great cross to the far post, and an uncontested header finds the back of the net for Ipswich. 1-0, Ipswich.

I am disgusted by this game. So much so, that I'm cutting short the write up. Ipswich score on their only on-target shot of the match.

We lose. The end. Can't figure this team out. Except to say that their work ethic is horrendous.

Loss, 0-1, drop to 5th place

I am quite tired of the streakiness of the club... but it's hard to figure out how to motivate them.

We are still just 3 points out of first, but we missed a golden opportunity to pick up some easy points and jump back on top.

[Butter]

The media question why I'm still playing Kenwyne Jones, as his recent run of form has just been awful. Can't say I can argue with their logic, as he now holds the worst average rating on the team, around a 6.5, with a 6.3 in league matches.

Palace move to the top of the table with a 1-0 Sunday win over QPR... pushing us 4 points behind the Eagles in the race for first.

I switch back to the tactics we had during our winning streak that I was tweaking the last match... we'll see if it makes a difference. We have failed to score in 4 of our last 5 outings, including three 1-0 losses.

Nov. 26, Match 20
10-3-6, 6th pl., 33 pts.
@ Leicester (7-5-7, 10th pl., 26 pts. - Leading scorer: Mark de Vries, 6)
Fav: Saints, 5:4

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Svensson, Powell, Cranie
M: Tejera, McCann, Prutton, Oakley
S: Ormerod, Z

5'- Ormerod gets a glorious 1-v-1 chance, but can't beat the keeper.

8'- Ormerod again, but this time defender Dion Dublin with the saving tackle.

26'- Prutton with a good ball up the line for Z... he cuts it inside of Dublin, then fires toward the middle... Oakley traps and controls the ball niftily in traffic, then right foots it toward the far post and in! Nifty goal by Oakley, his 3rd of the year makes it 1-0, Saints!

32'- Prutton with a super cross back post for Ormerod, but the defender beats him to the ball and heads it out for a corner.

38'- Oakley with a long ball to Ormerod off an errant Leicester free kick... he gets into the box, then slides it left for Z, and he taps it home! 2-0, Saints, on Zschusschen's 9th of the season.

58'- Ormerod again centers for Z... but his shot is deflected wide... but Prutton is there to pick up the pieces! 3-0, Saints!

72'- Iunco with a nice pass to Brett Ormerod, and he undresses 2 defenders and slots it home! Great individual effort to score by Ormerod, it's 4-0.

82'- The Foxes' keeper has a total lapse, advancing up the field as the ball is not even cleared from the 30 yard mark... he is near the spot, and Higginbotham makes a steal, then shoots from 30 yards into a totally empty net for his 3rd of the year, and a 5-0 Saint lead.

Our finest game of the season against a not-too-shabby Leicester side restores my confidence... a bit. I tell the team I am "pleased" with the win, trying to avoid the let down that telling them I was "thrilled" seemed to provide.

Win, 0-5, up to 3rd place
Shots/on target: Foxes 3/1, Saints 12/8
Poss: 50-50
MoM: Darren Powell - 5/5 tackles won, 11/13 headers won
Saint ratings:
10 - Powell, Tejera, Prutton, Ormerod
9 - McCann, Oakley, Cranie, Higginbotham
8 - Smith, Svensson, Z
Saint subs: Iunco (for Oakley, 63'), Quashie (for Z, 63', moved McCann to striker)
A: 32,478

5 different goal scorers in our biggest win of the season. That pushes our goal difference to +11, 3rd best in the league. Sadly, we still trail Palace by 4 points.

After this win, Chairman Rupert Lowe personally congratulates me for "masterminding" such a convincing win, sure that this will rally our supporters behind the team even further.

The supporters, I notice, are now fully supportive of my management of the team, and are "very pleased" with me.

Higginbotham, Powell, Prutton, Tejera, McCann, and Ormerod are all picked to the Team of the Week.

Next up, another key promotion clash with 5th place Sheffield United.

[Butter]

Our next opponent, Sheffield United, come away with a surprise 4-3 PK win over Manchester United in the 4th round of the League Cup.

We get notice towards the end of November that just tons of our players have their contracts up at season's end.

Let's go over them one by one:
D-RLC Darren Kenton
-Kenton wants $900k per season, and makes $350k per now. He is a decent enough player, and flexible... but his skill does not warrant that sort of payout.

Reserve ST Marian Pahars
-Pahars won't even discuss contract with me right now because he's stuck in the reserves. He is 29 years old, and earns $600k per year. Bye bye, dead weight.

ST Kenwyne Jones
-Jones had flashes of brilliance early in the season, but has been dreadful of late... he is still only 21, and shows lots of promise. Looks like he wants to test the market though, as he does not wish to renegotiate off his current $150k per season salary.

DC Michael Svensson
-Svensson makes $400k per year, and has performed decently so far this season. He is 30 years old, though, and wants a bump to nearly $1 million per year. I will wait and see on him.

M-RC Matthew Oakley
-Oakley has been on fire of late, with 3 goals and 4 assists this season. He is very reliable, and possibly our most versatile midfielder. I would like Oakley back, but he doesn't wish to negotiate now either... he currently makes $350k per year. I can only assume many of these players want to wait and see if we get promoted before committing themselves to us further.

ST Brett Ormerod
-Ormerod also does not wish to discuss contracts... he is 29 and makes $250k per season. I doubt I would bring him back for a season in the EPL if we make it there.

DM Dennis Wise
-He's 38 and makes $400k per season. I don't think so.

AM-RC Djamel Belmadi
-Finally, a player willing to talk. He is 29, and wants an increase from $300k to $500k per season on a new deal. He has been mediocre this year, though, so I'll probably just hold off and see how he finishes up. Totally replaceable if it comes to that.

DC Tomasz Hajto
-This 33 year old Pole wants a 1 year deal for $500k, a $200k increase on his current contract. I may well give it to him, depending on his finish to the season as well.

D/DM/M-R Chris Baird
-He makes only $50k per season, and is just 23 years old. He wants a bump to $650k... a bit much if you ask me. He has performed decently this season, but was most impressive in the preseason... not a good sign. Another "wait-and-see".

Reserve GK Alan Blayney
-The 24 year old keeper is currently on loan at League One Brentford, where he has allowed 24 in 14 matches, holding just one clean sheet. If we make it to the EPL, I doubt he has a future here at his age... especially not at $625k per season.

Reserve GK Michael Poke
-He actually is requesting a pay CUT... from $50k per year to $40k. He doesn't look like he'll ever have the skill to perform at the top level, but has kept 6 clean sheets for Conf. Nat'l leaders Exeter in 17 starts there. I may re-sign him just for depth.

D/M-L Simon Gillett
-Still lots of room to grow for this 20 year old, and he is willing to hang around a bit longer for his same salary: $30k/yr. A probably re-signing.

Reserve ST Dexter Blackstock
-19 year old Dex recently scored a goal for the English U-19 team, and has 2 goals in 12 apps. for League One contenders Walsall. He wants a large bump from $75k per year to $400k... I'll probably try to talk him down, considering his talent. He has tremendous potential, and I'd hate to see him running up front for a big club in a few years when I could've kept him for fairly cheap.

D-RLC Martin Cranie
-A 19 year old with his talent is a no brainer re-signing. He has played pretty well in 16 appearances for the senior club this year, and I'm excited about his future.... and considering he is asking for similar terms as his current $50k per season salary, his re-signing is as good as done.

Cranie signs back up immediately, which gives us at least one flexible quality player in the back for the next 2 seasons. Simon Gillett also re-signs quickly. Blackstock wants an improvement over the $200k + $50k signing bonus I offer, so I bump it to $250k+$75k, and he agrees to it after a couple of days of thought.

Dec. 3, Match 21
11-3-6, 3rd pl., 36 pts.
@ Sheffield United (10-5-5, 5th pl., 35 pts. - Leading scorer: Danny Webber, 8)
Fav: Saints, 5:4

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Svensson, Powell, Cranie
M: Oakley, Quashie, Prutton, Tejera
S: Z, Fuller

Former Saint Rory Delap is a bench option for the Blades in this one.

1'- Quashie's corner is headed away... Quashie chases it down, then sends a ball in from 25 yards.. Fuller heads it on, but it's tipped aside... but Prutton is there to tap in the rebound! 1-0, Saints after just 60 seconds!

We are just absolutely dominating possession, and the Blades are pulling us down all over to prevent chances.

26'- Quashie with some nice moves to get to within 12 yards, but his shot through traffic is saved by Paddy Kenny.

30'- The Blades with their only shot of the half, a long header collected by Smith.

I tell the lads I am pleased with their first half performance, but tell Z and Cranie they were disappointing.

46'- Cranie comes out and gets a yellow within 45 seconds.

60'- Disarray in front for the Blades, as a Oakley corner is left out in front... Prutton attacks, and pokes at the ball, it comes off a defender's leg and bounces in! 2-0, Saints!

73'- Smith with another fine save on a close-in header.

82'- Rory Delap with a horrible 20 yard attempt that is 10 yards wide easily.

We watch the final 4 minutes of added time flash by, and take a good 2-0 win over the Blades. A much needed point-proving win at home against a contender.

Win, 2-0, remain 3rd
Shots/on target: Saints 8/6, Blades 7/4
Poss: 52-48, Saints
MoM: David Prutton - 2 goals
Saint ratings:
9 - Prutton
8 - Smith, Higginbotham, Svensson, Oakley, Quashie, Fuller
Saint subs: Iunco (for Tejera, 73'), Kosowski (for Prutton, 73')
A: 24,485

Leeds with a big win to stay ahead of us, and Palace draw to stay on top... but we're only 2 points out of first now.

[Butter]

David Prutton is selected to the Team of the Week.

The FA Cup Draw is held for the Third Round, and we get an easy draw... either League 2 Torquay or League 2 Boston Utd. will come to St. Mary's in early January.

Z hurts his wrist in training, and will miss about a week of action.

We make a couple of signings of some defensive youngsters, that I'll detail when the transfer window re-opens in January.

Dec. 10, Match 22
12-3-6, 3rd pl., 39 pts.
@ Watford (5-6-10, 21st pl., 21 pts. - Leading scorer: Darius Henderson, 12)
Fav: Saints, 4:5

David Prutton is suspended for this match after picking up his 5th yellow card in our last match.

Lineup:
GK: Cole
D: Higginbotham, Davenport, Powell, Cranie
M: Tejera, Kosowski, Oakley, McCann
S: Jones, Fuller

3'- Watford with a gilt-edged chance early, as our defense parts for 2 attackers, but Watford send the chance wide.

25'- Higginbotham with a LOOONG ball from near midfield... it drops perfectly to Fuller at just 5 yards from goal, and the keeper is caught out... Fuller finishes! But it's called back! Offside on Fuller! Terrible call, as it looked like he was at least 2 yards onside when the play began!

28'- Again the middle of defense parts and allows an easy chance and goal this time for Watford. 1-0.

45'- Fuller with a great header to Jones, who has a 10 yard chance, but a good save denies him.

53'- Fuller is sent away by Powell, but he is tracked down and the ball tackled away at the last moment...

63'- Again, Fuller has a long ball played onto his run... he has a yard on his man and gets to the ball... he dribbles at goal, and the ball is tackled away again from behind... but this time a foul is called, and the penalty given! Danny Higginbotham to take it... and it's saved! Our finest penalty taker has his 2nd miss of the year from the spot, and it stays 1-0.

78'- Brett Ormerod is through on the keeper, but his shot is saved... the Watford keeper just refuses to let one in today.

We fail to develop any meaningful chances, and take another embarrassing loss here.

Loss, 1-0, remain 3rd
Shots/on target: Watford 14/3, Saints 8/5
Poss: 52-48, Watford
MoM: Watford GK Alec Chamberlain - 5 saves
Saint ratings: None other than 6/7
Saint subs: Ormerod (for Jones (perf.), 74'), Quashie (for Tejera (tired), 74'), Iunco (for Cranie (off.), 82')
A: 11,162

Fortunately for us, both Leeds and Palace lose as well, so we lose no ground, but could've gone tops yet again with a victory.

[Butter]

Another big home match to round out the first half today, as we face contender Millwall along the South Coast.

Dec. 13, Match 23
12-3-7, 3rd pl., 39 pts.
v. Millwall (9-9-4, 5th pl., 36 pts. - Leading scorer: Ben May, 8)
Fav: Saints, Even

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Cranie, Hajto, Svensson, Baird
M: Wise, Quashie, Prutton, Belmadi
S: Ormerod, Jones

Millwall with an unconventional 4-2-1-2-1 formation, with 2 DM's, and 2 wingers in support of the lone striker.

7'- Svensson with a header clear off a low cross, and Wise hoofs it out of danger... the ball carries in the breeze, and Brett Ormerod has gotten onto the end of it, behind the defense! Ormerod with a 35 yard run with the ball... he shoots low, but the keeper blocks it wide... right to Kenwyne Jones, who has an easy shot into an open net and scores! 1-0, Saints.

18'- Wise with a crashing shot from 18 yards, but it's well over.

26'- Ormerod sends a cross in to Jones, but he is forced to play it while falling backwards and can't get any power on it.

36'- Millwall with a man free on the left of our defense... he tries to cut the ball inside to make a play, but Cranie with a terrific shoulder charge to win the ball and clear our lines.

45'- Cranie with a quality cross from deep, but Jones' header is over the bar.

45+'- In the first minute of stoppage time, our defense looks puzzled, as Millwall put together a couple of great passes, ending with an 8 yard touch past an out of position Smith.

45+'- In the dying seconds, Ormerod heads down a cross to Belmadi, who has a glorious 8 yard chance, but the Millwall keeper with an acrobatic save to keep the game level into the locker room.

I tell the team they are unlucky not to be winning this game... and considering Millwall has only had 1 chance at goal, that is certainly true.

52'- We put together a strong flurry near the goal, but can't finish any of the chances.

Ormerod is winning a lot of headers in the box today, but no one is finishing the chances he is creating.

66'- Quashie's corner kick falls to Hajto, but his header is stopped by the keeper.

Despite a superior effort, we can't find the game winner, and earn just 1 point.

Draw, 1-1, remain in 3rd
Shots/on target: Saints 11/7, Millwall 4/2
Poss: 55-45, Saints
MoM: Millwall ST Barry Hayles - 1 shot on goal, 8 rating, 16/24 passing
Saint ratings:
8 - Hajto
Saint subs: McCann (for Jones (tired), 73'), Tejera (for Belmadi (tired), 73')
A: 17,578

Leeds with a win to carry them back to the top. We trail 1st place now by 3 points.

[Butter]

Midseason recap

Well, we're 23 games into the season, let's see how things look.

We've got the best goal difference in the league, because when we lose, we lose tight ones, but lately when we win, we've been winning big. We had a roller coaster beginning, bouncing up to 2nd after 5 games, then down to 19th after 8... but we've levelled off to hang in the top 6 since match day 12.

We're the 2nd highest scoring club in the league, at 38 goals (Leeds - 43), and in the middle of the pack defensively, having allowed 26 goals. We don't really have anyone among the league leaders in rating or scoring, and no one has had excessive discipline problems. WE also have not had too many injury problems, hopefully mostly thanks to our increased workout schedule after finding our initial training schedule was causing too much of a problem with recovery time between matches.

We have a good solid team that should continue to contend for the title. The Christmas period is one of the most grueling of the year, but we should be in good position to handle it, as our depth has been fine for the most part.

Guillermo Zschusschen has been a super pickup, leading the team with 9 goals. Antimo Iunco, our other big signing prior to the season, has struggled after having a roaring opening game with 2 goals. Paul Smith has levelled off at keeper, doing a generally good, but not great, job. David Prutton has hit a nice vein of form, and Matthew Oakley has also been solid wherever we've put him. Other than that, we have a lot of players who don't separate themselves much from the pack. They show up, generally do their job, and head home. We need someone on the team with a bit more fire, that would help us pull out these slogging 1-0 losses and draws we've been suffering through.

Projection: Finish top 6, with a strong push could make top 2 for automatic promotion

I notice that Kenwyne Jones is "jaded and in need of a rest". I also get a note that the fans are unhappy at me for my recent public criticism of Jones' form. Well, of course they'll be pissed about it NOW after he scored a freaking goal. Maybe my comments are partly responsible for motivating him, eh fans?

Claus Lundekvam is the subject of some transfer speculation linking him to Hull for $160k. The way he has played, I'd be more than willing to sell, but my assistant manager thinks we should tell them "hands off". I decide to say that I'll only sell him for the right price... he is the 5th highest paid player on the team, but has been mediocre this year, and is 32 years old. Plus, we have 8 defenders who can play center back, so we wouldn't be sacrificing much in depth to sell Claus. I also notice while examining Claus that he is listed as "tries to play his way out of trouble". The only thing I can think of when I see that is goals in the back of the net.

The Derby County manager tries to tell us how they'll be beating us to keep us from getting promoted... I respond by saying I can't wait to beat him. Both Kenwyne Jones and Nigel Quashie like that comment, saying that they believe we have similar characters and will work well together... meanwhile, Matthew Oakley says that he will be more determined to prove the Derby manager wrong and help us get promoted.

Dec. 17, Match 24
12-4-7, 3rd pl., 40 pts.
v. Derby County (8-5-10, 18th pl., 29 pts. - Leading scorer: Paul Peschisolido - 6)
Fav: Saints, 5:4

The Rams were expected to contend this year, but now sit just 6 points clear of relegation.

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Powell, Davenport, Cranie
M: Quashie, McCann, Oakley, Tejera
S: Ormerod, Fuller

5'- A long ball by Higginbotham finds Fuller, but his first time shot is way wide.

12'- Powell has a go off a free kick, but his 20 yarder lacks the power to beat Derby's keeper.

A dull first half finishes with no scoring, and I try to prod the team by telling them they need to win this game.

60'- Paul Smith has to leave with an injury (uh-oh), and we bring on Jake Cole.

84'- Nigel Quashie puts a 22 yard free kick into the side netting.

It ends up, as the play by play says, as "a bore draw". I sympathize with the team after the draw.

Draw, 0-0, remain in 3rd place
Shots/on target: Saints 12/4, Rams 9/3
Poss: 51-49, Rams
MoM: Derby GK Lee Camp - 4 saves
Saint ratings:
5 - Fuller
Saint subs: Cole (for Smith (inj.), 62'), Iunco (for Fuller (perf.), 62', switched to 4-5-1), Kosowski (for McCann (inj.), 84')
A: 25,266

Leeds with a 2-1 win at Plymouth Argyle to go 5 points clear of us, and 2 clear of Palace, who stay up with Leeds thanks to a Sunday afternoon victory.

[Butter]

19 year old player Chris Baird is diagnosed with arthritis... so he has to visit a specialist and will miss 2-3 weeks.

Luckily, it appears that GK Paul Smith's injury was not serious in our last match, and he should be back for our next one following Christmas.

Sadly, the entire team who started our last match is now suffering from poor to very poor morale... I can only assume it had something to do with my post match sympathizing.

Dec. 26, Match 25
12-5-7, 3rd pl., 41 pts.
@ Brighton and Hove Albion (7-2-15, 23rd pl., 23 pts.)
Pvs. meeting: Saints 3:0 Seagulls
Fav: Saints, 4:6

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Lundekvam, Svensson, Kenton
M: Wise, Quashie, Prutton, Belmadi
S: Jones, Z

11'- David Prutton with a sensational individual move, as he gets the ball at about 45 yards on the counter attack, and just whizzes around 2 men, and slots it home with his right foot! 1-0, Saints.

27'- Jones heads a long ball to Quashie on the left... who then plays it back to Jones on a nice run behind the defense! Jones in on the left of goal, and he scores inside the right post! Another nice goal makes it 2-0, Saints.

I implore the team to not let their performance drop following halftime.

55'- A couple of magic stops by Smith on point blank chances for the Gulls.

64'- Smith with another good 1-v-1 stop.

79'- Smith does it again, this time coming way out to make an early save on a Gulls breakaway.

Smith is clearly the man of the match as we do nothing offensively in the 2nd half, but Smith makes the 2 first half goals stand up, perhaps undeservedly so.

Win, 2-0, remain in 3rd
Shots/on target: Gulls 14/8, Saints 6/2
Poss: 52-48, Gulls
MoM: Paul Smith - 8 saves
Saint ratings:
9 - Smith, Quashie, Jones
8 - Back 4, Wise, Prutton
Saint subs: Fuller (for Z, 72'), McCann (for Quashie (inj.), 72')
A: 6,854

Neil McCann suffers a badly twisted knee during this match, and he'll be out 2-4 weeks.

Both Leeds and Palace win, so we remain 5 points out of first.

[Butter]

Martin Cranie is linked to a transfer to Wigan for "at least" $875k. I would like the transfer money, but I'm not letting the boy go. I issue a "hands off" warning. Much like last time, the asst. mgr. disagrees with me, saying we should allow Cranie to leave for the right offer. I think not.

Dec. 28, Match 26
13-5-7, 3rd pl., 44 pts.
v. Burnley (10-3-12, 15th pl., 33 pts. - Leading scorer: Danny Graham - 11)
Pvs. meeting: Clarets 1:2 Saints
Fav: Saints, 4:5

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Davenport, Powell, Cranie
M: Tejera, Quashie, Oakley, Iunco
S: Ormerod, Z

3'- The defense does a horrendous job of marking, particularly Powell and Davenport, allowing 3 passes to go directly to attackers' feet instead of challenging them... and we pay with a Burnley goal. 1-0, Clarets.

12'- Ormerod's header off a corner kick is just over the bar.

An even rest of the half, but we go in down 1-0. I tell the team that they are unlucky to be behind, because aside from that one flurry, we had the run of play.

53'- Z looks to be played onside, but a last ditch tackle saves him... luckily, Quashie is there to send it ahead to Ormerod against an out of position defense... but he puts his 1-v-1 chance just wide and into the side netting, causing a roar from the crowd who thought the shot was in.

Burnley are pushing almost no one forward, which means we'll have to push up a bit more to try and find the gaps.

I'm going to start inserting the subs into the game commentary.

58'- Substitution: Kenwyne Jones on for Higginbotham as we switch to a 3-4-3.

63'- Oakley with a bad pass to kill a chance... but later the ball is played in by Tejera, but Ormerod misses a sitter! On the ensuing corner kick, Z looks to be fouled in the box, but play on is signaled.

72'- Subs: Prutton on for an ineffective Iunco, and he swaps spots with Tejera, who moves to AMC, and Prutton bumps up to the middle. Fuller on for an ineffective Z.

87'- Ormerod with a great flick on to the run of Tejera, who beats his man! He swoops in near goal, and puts his low shot wide! That was it!

I actually tell the side it was a good effort afterwards... because I really think we played better than Burnley, but just got unlucky.

Loss, 0-1, remain in 3rd
Shots/on target: Saints 11/5, Clarets 7/3
Poss: 52-48, Saints
MoM: Claret def. Wayne Thomas - 10/12 headers won, 8/9 tackles won
Saint ratings:
5 - Cranie
A: 17,912

Leeds draw and Palace win, so we're now 6 points behind both of those teams in 3rd. It looks more and more like it'll be the playoffs for us, if we can avoid a bad patch.

[Butter]

Wigan do indeed approach me about defender Martin Cranie, and I tell them it will take $2M to take him off my hands.

Wigan also offer me $375k + 30% of future sale for Chris Baird. I decide to let that figure ride while trying to re-sign Baird to a new contract. I have a week to decide, so I'll try to sign him for a week, and if that fails, accept Wigan's offer.

Youngster Andrew Surman returns from his "worthless" loan to League One Bournemouth, where he scored 3 goals and averaged a 7.33 in 18 appearances. I'm going to bring Surman up to the senior squad and see what he can do. He is an impressive looking 19 year old left winger.

As January 1 hits, it's transfer time again. We bring in 3 players for fee:

-19 year old Swedish DC Mattias Bjarsmyr joins the Saints for $120k to Swedish side IFK Goteborg. Bjarsmyr has some good looking talent, and may well compete for a starting slot right away. His contract with us is for $75k per season through 2008.

-18 year old Belgian DL Nick Vangrunderbeek from Belgian side Anderlecht will be sent to the reserves. He has potential, and only cost us $6k. But he is not ready now, lacking quality marking or heading skills, and needing to bulk up his 5'9", 158 lb. frame a bit. He signs for $26k per season through 2008.

-17 year old Belgian D/DM/M-RC Cedric De Troetsel comes over from Belgium for an initial $40k fee (plus over $100k paid over the next 6 months). Sadly, De Troetsel blew out his achilles in a Christmastime match, and will miss 2-3 months of action for us... which is a shame, because he is a good looking young midfielder... but sadly could be a bit injury prone. For $40k per season through 2010, I'll take that chance.

A finally healthy (but surely not for long) Marian Pahars joins the first team, along with Andrew Surman, and suddenly we're bursting with depth. We'll see if this helps us out, as I plan to start a fully fit Pahars in our next match.

Kenton, Higginbotham, Prutton, and Jones are named to the Team of the Week.

Wigan do it... they offer me $2M for young up-and-coming defender Martin Cranie. This is a tough decision. Cranie could be an absolute star for us in defense, especially playing on the wings where his passing ability will shine. But on the other hand, 2 million bucks is a nice bit of scratch... I'll think through our next game about it. Wigan are currently dead last in the Premiership by a good bit, and headed for relegation. That may also factor into my decision.

January 2, 2006, Match 27
13-5-8, 3rd pl., 44 pts.
v. Hull City (10-8-8, 8th pl., 38 pts. - Leading scorer: Stephen McPhee, 12)
Pvs. meeting: Hull 3:4 Saints
Fav: Saints, Even

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Svensson, Bjarsmyr, Cranie
M: Quashie, Surman, Prutton, Iunco
S: Pahars, Z

We set Pahars as the target man with balls played to his feet, since "likes balls played to feet" is his preferred move.

Bjarsmyr and Surman make their Saint debuts today.

4'- Quashie's free kick to Pahars, and he half volleys it at the keeper, who makes a nice save.

Hull are just scrapping all over the pitch... they are closing down the ball at every opportunity, not letting us have a breath, and applying pressure on our central defenders.

17'- Finally, out of chaos comes a good chance... Svensson shoots a long ball down the left for Surman, but the Hull keeper comes ALLLL the way out to the corner flag, and boots the ball up field... Higginbotham gets it near the midfield line, advances about 15 yards, then sends a long ball in to the Z-man... it's placed perfectly, and Z gets up on a free 10 yard header, and buries it past the keeper! 1-0, Saints on a nice move.

38'- Hull with a terrific lightning-fast counter attack, but a 20 yard shot curls just over the bar.

43'- Prutton cuts the ball into the box for Z, who plays it forward of Iunco... Iunco on the right edge of the 6 yard box, hits a first touch shot that the keeper tips clear... but not clear enough, as Prutton pounces on the rebound and poaches another goal! 2-0, Saints on Prutton's 6th of the season.

A highly entertaining first half comes to an end as we lead 2-0. Andrew Surman is having a ripping debut, rating an 8 and passing the ball efficiently on the left wing. I warn the team against a performance drop.

71'- Mattias Bjarsmyr gets in serious trouble in his first match in the red and white, getting his 2nd yellow card of the match and an early bath. Subs: Kenton on for Pahars, as we shift to a 4-4-1. Tejera enters for Iunco, who has been mediocre in attack. We back into a defensive shell.

79'- An energized Hull with a quick move, but a cross and header is tipped over by Smith.

82'- Darren Kenton totally misses an interception, allowing his man behind him to score past Smith. Kenton has been bad this season.

88'- Hull nearly sneak the equalizer past Higginbotham, but he's aware enough to make a good challenge and bother a close in shot, and Smith makes the save.

We barely hang on, as Hull have at least 2 more good cracks at goal, but we take the 2-1 win. Andrew Surman with a good debut, while Bjarsmyr has one to forget... and Pahars was decent in his return.

Win, 2-1, remain 3rd
Shots/on target: Saints 8/5, Tigers 13/4
Poss: 50-50
MoM: Michael Svensson - 14/16 headers won, 11 interceptions, 6/7 tackles won
Saint ratings:
9 - Smith, Svensson
8 - Higginbotham, Quashie, Prutton, Surman
5 - Kenton
A: 17,554

A journalist approaches me and asks me about Bjarsmyr's debut. I tell them that I believe he'll be a very good player for us, and that his game will only get better as he gets used to the club.

Crystal Palace now join in the Martin Cranie derby, offering me $1.9M for the lad.

I don't think I'll be selling Cranie, and I notify them as such.... not even for $2 million. If he becomes a star, great. If not, that's fine too... at least I gave him a shot in red and white.

[Butter]

Next up, an absolutely crucial match against the league leaders. Our defense may have already peaked sadly, allowing just 4 goals in our last 8 league matches.

Jan. 4, Match 28
14-5-8, 3rd pl., 47 pts.
@ Leeds (15-8-4, 1st pl., 53 pts. - Leading scorer: David Healy, 11)
Pvs. meeting: Saints 0:0 Leeds
Fav: Leeds, 5:4

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Powell, Davenport, Svensson
M: Wise, Kosowski, Oakley, Tejera
S: Jones, Fuller

This match will help decide if we have any shot at the title.

24'- First real chance of the match in a tight one. Higginbotham with a free kick from 20 yards, and the Leeds keeper just gets there to block it, and the rebound is cleared.

I encourage the team after a boring first half... neither team wants to make a mistake, but even so, there were plenty of off target shots in the first half.

52'- Kosowski with a long ball for Jones... he chases it down, and has his man beaten... he tries to cut it inside, but is barged over... PENALTY!!! Kenwyne Jones earns us a penalty kick! Danny Higginbotham gingerly places the ball on the spot... and then bangs the air out of it with a vicious strike past the keeper and in! 1-0, Saints!

59'- Fuller sends Jones through again, but this time he can't quite get around the keeper before the defense is upon him.

We have our 2 strikers limping around and 3 players with yellows... if we can hang on to win, it'll be miraculous.

64'- Eddie Lewis with a 20 yard goal kick... but he can't get it up and down over the wall, and it sails over the bar.

71'- 2 on 2 for Leeds, but Smith with a superb save to turn aside a 6 yard first touch shot.

80'- Subs: We make all 3 subs at once... Ormerod for Fuller, who is not playing well besides his injury. Tejera moves to DM, as Belmadi enters for Wise, and settles at AM. And Iunco enters for a tired Kosowski at left wing. We also back down into a shell, hoping to salt away 10 minutes and a win.

82'- The Leeds keeper with a poor clearance that Tejera heads forward... Ormerod chests it down in the arc, and turns on his man... then slots it home low and to the left post! Ormerod with a first touch goal to bury Leeds... it's 2-0, Saints, as the away side is in an absolute panic!

Leeds pretty well give up, and we take our biggest win of the season! A marvelous performance by the entire squad to win it 2-0, and get us right back into the title hunt! Our defense was absolutely brilliant... we won all 45 headers attempted, and 27 of 29 tackles attempted... we allowed Leeds no space whatsoever, and forced their speedy attackers to try to pelt Smith from long range.

Win, 0-2, remain 3rd
Shots/on target: Leeds 14/4, Saints 16/5
Poss: 52-48, Saints
MoM: Darren Powell - 22/22 headers won, 9/9 tackles won... what a defensive effort!
Saint ratings:
9 - Higginbotham, Svensson, Powell
8 - Smith, Oakley, Kosowski, Tejera, Jones
A: 30,515

Palace pick up a win, so we're now 3 points behind both Palace and Leeds for first place.

Several teams inquire about the availability of Antimo Iunco... I price him at $750k, well above his set price of $130k.

Dexter Blackstock returns from his loan to League One Walsall, where he scored just 2 goals in 18 appearances.

[Butter]

Next up, we get a bit of a breather as League Two Torquay hits town in the FA Cup.

Jan. 7, FA Cup Third Round
v. Torquay United (1st in League Two)
Fav: Saints, 1:6

Lineup:
GK: Cole
D: Kenton, Lundekvam, Hajto, Cranie
M: Quashie, Iunco, Griffit, Belmadi
S: Ormerod, Blackstock

A boring opening half hour.

36'- Cole with a long ball... it bounces in between a defender and the keeper about 30 yards from goal, and Blackstock is there to get a toe in to keep the ball alive... it's a race in the back between the keeper and Blackstock to reach the ball first as it rolls toward the Torquay goal, but the keeper gets their a whisker ahead of Blackstock and falls on it.

38'- Blackstock knocks it right to Cranie... he one touches a cross in the middle to Belmadi, who half volleys a shot... not good direction on it, but good enough as it hits the left post and goes in! 1-0, Saints.

68'- After some missed chances, we get the insurance goal, as Iunco knocks it ahead to Ormerod, who has 3 yards on his man... and he shoots far post from 15 yards, and bends it in. Nice goal by Ormerod, and we lead 2-0.

72'- The Gulls have given up hope, as Ormerod fools around with the ball on the left wing, then turns and crosses towards the spot... Griffit is there, and connects well with the header, picking out the top left corner and scoring a goal! 3-0, Saints on Griffit's first senior goal since 2003.

87'- Torquay get a consolation goal as Claus Lundekvam loses his man on a cross, and he heads it in. 3-1.

An easy win at home, and it should've been. We advance.

Win, 3-1, advance to FA Cup Fourth Round
Shots/on target: Saints 15/6, Gulls 4/1
Poss: 51-49, Gulls
MoM: Leandre Griffit - 5 key passes, 2 shots on goal
Saint ratings:
9 - Griffit
8 - Kenton, Hajto, Lundekvam, Quashie, Belmadi, Blackstock, Ormerod
A: 15,603

[Butter]

Ipswich and Crewe both offer in the $700-750k range for Iunco, but we will owe 45% of that fee to Verona if we were to sell him. I counter-offer for $850k... and 4 teams are in the running: Luton, Crewe, Cardiff, and Brighton. Luton offer $725k + 30%, while the others offer a flat $850k. I accept all offers.

Svensson and Powell are picked to the Team of the Week.

We get a mediocre to bad draw in the FA Cup... as we'll host Premiership side Everton in the Fourth Round, on January 28th.

Z picks up a back strain in training... I can either give him injections, but that could prolong his outage by a month, rather than leaving him to the physios on staff, which would see him out 3-4 weeks. I go the physio route.

Bolton come in and offer us $500k and 30% of next sale for D/DM/M-R Chris Baird, who is 23 years old, talented, but wants too much money to stay on. I take the offer. Leeds come in with the same offer, and I accept that as well.

Teams are crawling all over our young talent, as Hull now ask me what we would take for U-18 striker Leon Best. I respond by saying $1.5 million. They back off.

Jan. 14, Match 29
15-5-8, 3rd pl., 50 pts.
@ Reading (8-12-8, 17th pl., 36 pts.)
Pvs. meeting: Saints 2:2 Reading
Fav: Saints, Even

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Svensson, Powell, Kenton
M: Tejera, Quashie, Prutton, Iunco
S: Ormerod, Fuller

2'- A WOW!!!! moment... Prutton cuts the ball inside, then passes short for Iunco... the ball is stuck in between some players, and the keeper advances about 10 yards out to try and hop on the ball, but instead the ball is booted upfield a bit. Tejera is the player the ball falls to, and he looks up and just chops a lob from 40 yards towards goal... and it goes in over the surprised keeper! 1-0, Saints on a highlight reel strike from M.M. Tejera!

24'- Our defense is completely lax, as a long ball falls easily to a Reading striker, who splits our 2 center backs, but luckily Smith makes a fine 1-v-1 save.

35'- Ormerod with 2 cracks inside 10 yards, but can't finish either.

39'- Tejera with a 15 yarder through traffic off a deep throw in, and it hits the upright! Bad break for Tejera, who almost had 2.

I urge the team not to let their performance drop on the road, with a 1-0 lead.

48'- An odd bounce finds Fuller let in to the Reading box, but his 15 yard shot is hit wide. Ormerod moments later with another breakaway chance, but the keeper makes the save.

51'- Midfielder Steve Sidwell gets a pass with his back to goal at 15 yards... he turns and shoots, but his shot comes off Svensson and goes in past Smith. A tough luck ricochet, and we're level.

57'- A long header finds a Reading attacker behind the defense, and he scores past Smith... but was offsides doing it.

58'- Prutton cuts the ball inside, then lays it ahead to Fuller... Fuller with 2 men on him trying to get to the byline... he appears to have been tugged down... penalty! We get another spot kick! Higginbotham our assigned PK taker... he steps up and shoots... saved! Poor shot by Higginbotham.

67'- Subs: Belmadi and Pahars in for an ineffective Iunco and Ormerod.

78'- Tejera with a nice ball to Pahars... he has it tackled away, but the ball falls to Belmadi, who has a go from 20 yards... well wide of the mark.

Neither side can get much going late, and it ends 1-1. A fairly dull match, and one we're unlucky not to win. I sympathize with the lads afterwards.

Draw, 1-1, remain 3rd
Shots/on target: Reading 7/3, Saints 11/6
Poss: 51-49, Saints
MoM: Marcos Marcelo Tejera - 1 goal, 2 key passes
Saint ratings:
8 - Tejera
A: 14,245

Sadly, Leeds and Palace both win, so we're now 5 points behind each of them in 3rd.

[Butter]

Chris Baird signs with Leeds, and we're $500k richer. Baird will make $1.2 million per season for Leeds (!) through 2010. He's not THAT good. But we pick up $500k for a player that was probably going to leave anyway, although we do make our first place rival a bit stronger in the process.

Antimo Iunco signs a deal with Crewe, for which we'll receive $850k (about $475k after our 45% goes to Verona). So, we make about a quarter of a million in profit off Iunco in the 5 months he spent with us. Iunco signs with Crewe for $240k per season through 2010. Iunco calls the move from Southampton to Crewe "the best moment of his life". Yeah, screw you too. Iunco scored 3 goals with 4 assists in his time with the Saints this year.

We bid Claus Lundekvam adieu, as Hull come knocking with $200k, and we accept the offer. Lundekvam has been mediocre-to-poor this season, and makes $400k a year in that mediocrity. He is 32, so his skills are in decline a bit, and we have lots of depth at center back, so this move doesn't hurt one bit. Lundekvam averaged a 6.89 in 9 league starts this year.

Luton offer us $400k for D/M-L Simon Gillett. Gillett is only 20, and is tied into us cheap through 2009... but doesn't really look all that impressive to me, so I let him go as well.

We make our biggest signing yet with me at the helm... Danish starlet Michael Jakobsen, a 20 year old D-LC signs on the dotted line with us, for $1.6 million plus future incentives for his Danish club, AaB. Jakobsen has good physical attributes, a superb mental game, and quality marking and tackling skill. He becomes our best all around defender immediately, and gives us some much needed depth at fullback. Jakobsen doesn't come cheap though, as we'll pay him $575k per season through 2009, but it should be well worth it, considering his youth and potential... not to mention his current skill.

Jan. 21, Match 30
15-6-8, 3rd pl., 51 pts.
v. Wolverhampton Wanderers (12-6-11, 7th pl., 42 pts. - Leading scorer: Seol Ki-Hyeon, 7)
Pvs. meeting: Wolves 1:2 Saints
Fav: Saints, Even

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Jakobsen, Svensson, Bjarsmyr, Powell
M: Quashie, Kosowski, Prutton, Belmadi
S: Jones, Blackstock

Wolves start out strong, but we slowly begin to assert our control over the game.... unfortunately, it stays 0-0 at halftime. I tell the team they are outplaying Wolves, but just need to find that one finish to end it.

58'- Sub: Neil McCann enters for a poorly performing Kenwyne Jones.

78'- Subs: Ormerod in for a slightly nicked Blackstock, and Dennis Wise comes in for Prutton, who is having a rough game. Belmadi moves to right wing, and Quashie to AMC, as Wise slips into his familiar defensive midfield role.

A poor effort, and a poor result as time winds down and we finish scoreless. Jakobsen with a less than impressive debut, but no one else was any better.

Draw, 0-0, remain 3rd
Shots/on target: Saints 7/4, Wolves 8/4
Poss: 53-47, Wolves
MoM: Wolves mid. Colin Cameron - 8 rating, 40/50 passing
Saint ratings:
5 - Jones, Ormerod
A: 25,971

Leeds move out to a 7 point lead over us, while we remain 5 points behind Crystal Palace. We're also 8 points ahead of 7th place, so it looks increasingly like we'll be heading to the playoffs to try and obtain promotion.

[Butter]

Next up for us is Everton in the FA Cup... and as much as I'd like a win and the adherent prize money, I also know that our road to cash and glory resides through league success... so I'll be setting my lineup accordingly.

We get a $3M offer for Matthew Oakley from Bolton... I turn it down, and sign him instead to an extension, worth about $2M total through 2009. That should help Oakley see out his career with us.

That bumps our wages back over $1M over budget. Oops. I'll have to stop signing folks again.

Jan. 28, FA Cup Fourth Round
v. Everton (18th in Premiership)
Fav: Toffees, 5:4

Everton only a slight favorite here.

Lineup:
GK: Cole
D: Higginbotham, Hajto, Bjarsmyr, Cranie
M: Wise, McCann, Oakley, Tejera
S: Jones, Blackstock

4'- James Beattie with the nice flick on to Duncan Ferguson, and Ferguson flashes past Bjarsmyr and buries it past Cole. 1-0, Toffees.

21'- Higginbotham with a free kick just inside the arc and straight on at goal... he fires it toward the left post and it goes in! 1-1 on Higginbotham's 5th of the season!

It stays fairly even through halftime, and I try to implore the team to find one more goal for the win... and we come out strong...

53'- Blackstock wins a long ball, flicking it to Tejera, who plays it onto the run of Jones... Jones with a crashing 18 yard shot, but it's well into the seats.

57'- McCann's cross finds Cranie from 10 yards out and his header is on target but saved! Nice save by Nigel Martyn.

72'- Subs: Pahars on for a nicked up Jones... Belmadi on for an ineffective Oakley.

We fail to grab the winner, but so do they, so you know what that means... replay!

Draw, 1-1, replay on Wed. Feb. 8th
Shots/on target: Saints 5/4, Toffees 11/2
Poss: 50-50
MoM: Danny Higginbotham - 1 goal, 6 key passes
Saint ratings:
8 - Higginbotham
A: 15,919

[Butter]

Another big match as the transfer window comes to a close, as we visit Carrow Road and the 4th place Canaries.

Jan. 31, Match 31
15-7-8, 3rd pl., 52 pts.
@ Norwich City (13-10-7, 4th pl., 49 pts. - Leading scorer: Dean Ashton, 16)
Series: Canaries lead 2-0-0
Fav: Saints, 6:4

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Jakobsen, Powell, Cranie
M: Quashie, Kosowski, Prutton, Oakley
S: Ormerod, Fuller

Another fairly slow, pedestrian game. Until...

36'- A ball heads into the box for Leon McKenzie... he takes a 10 yard shot that deflects off Powell and in. 1-0, Canaries.

I tell the team they look totally clueless out there, and we better look alive in the 2nd half, or else. Or else what, I don't know. But that's not important right now. What is important is that we don't let Norwich back in the race here. We need a point.

53'- Sub: McCann in for Quashie, who took a nasty spill... Oakley will move to DM, McCann to AM.

71'- Ormerod crosses in close for Fuller, but the keeper just beats him to the ball and tips it away.

75'- Sub: Blackstock on for a gimpy Fuller.

All of a sudden, we can't score again. With Guillermo Zschusschen on the shelf with a virus, we're having major problems scoring goals.

Loss, 1-0, drop to 4th
Shots/on target: Canaries 7/1, Saints 5/2
Poss: 51-49, Saints
MoM: Canary GK Paul Gallacher - 2 saves
Saint ratings: None other than 6/7
A: 25,718

Brett Ormerod will likely miss a month of action with a severely twisted ankle suffered in this match. Also, Nigel Quashie is due to miss 1-2 months with broken ribs he suffered during a vicious collision as well. Our midfield depth suffers further.

[Butter]

Michael Svensson finishes 2nd in the Player of the Month of January voting.

DM Yoann Folly and AM-RL Leandre Griffit get call-ups to the senior club, thanks to our current injury situation, and the prolonged absence of Andrew Surman to South Africa for the Nations' Cup tournament.

Speaking of depth, here is our current injury list...
-DC Michael Svensson - out 3-7 days with a virus
-ST Brett Ormerod - out 2 wks-1 mo. with a twisted ankle
-DM/ML Nigel Quashie - out 1-2 mos. with broken ribs
-AM-RC Djamel Belmadi - out 5 days-3 wks. with a chest injury
-ST Guillermo Zschusschen - out 1-4 days with a strained back
-ST Marian Pahars - out 1-6 days with a facial injury
-D/DM/M-RC Cedric De Troetsel - out 1-2 mos. with blown achilles

And tired for this match are (90% fitness or less):
-ST Ricardo Fuller
-M-RC Matthew Oakley
-AM/F-LC Neil McCann

And gone on int'l duty is:
-M-LC Andrew Surman, who has only started one game, and then I wanted to see more... and now he's been gone for AN ENTIRE FREAKING MONTH playing for South Africa.

If we don't stop the bleeding soon, we may well fall out of the top 6.

Feb. 4, Match 32
15-7-9, 4th pl., 52 pts.
v. Coventry City (13-6-12, 7th pl., 45 pts. - Leading scorer: Andy Morrell, 14)
Pvs. meeting: Sky Blues 3:0 Saints
Fav: Saints, Even

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Kenton, Powell, Hajto, Cranie
M: Folly, Griffit, Prutton, Tejera
S: Jones, Blackstock

9'- Kenton with a good pass to Jones, but his low shot is tipped through the goalmouth and out for a corner.

We dominate the remainder of the half, sending ball after ball into the box, but nothing is rewarded with a goal... we cannot get the ball in that net. Leandre Griffit is playing especially well. I try to encourage the team to keep at it.

57'- Jones breaks loose down the left, then crosses short for Griffit, but a nice last second intervention is made to keep it out of the net.

72'- Subs: McCann on for a fading Jones, and Oakley in for a tiring and ineffective Prutton.

78'- Hajto with a bad clearance allows a walk in past Smith, but luckily the striker totally mishits the attempt, and the shot goes into the side netting from 10 yards.

85'- Darren Powell heads down for Tejera, who passes to Griffit... Griffit with a beautiful flick onto McCann, who has beaten his man! He shoots low from 10 yards toward the far post... and it's in!!! Griffit creates it, and we take a 1-0 lead!

We hunker down and get all 3 points! An important win to get back on track. Folly and Griffit both impress in their season league debuts.

Win, 1-0, move into 3rd
Shots/on target: Saints 13/3, Sky Blues 3/1
Poss: 53-47, Saints
MoM: M.M. Tejera - 8 key passes, 3/4 headers won
Saint ratings:
8 - Cranie, Griffit, Tejera
A: 19,160

Norwich with a draw to allow us to pass them again. We sit 4 points behind Crystal Palace for 2nd, and 7 behind Leeds for the league lead.

Next up, we visit Goodison Park in the FA Cup Fourth Round replay against Everton.

[Butter]

Feb. 8, FA Cup Fourth Round replay
@ Everton (17th in Premiership)
Fav: Toffees, Even

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Jakobsen, Bjarsmyr, Higginbotham, Kenton
M: Folly, Griffit, Prutton, Tejera
S: McCann, Fuller

5'- Darren Bent with a nice mazey run, but it comes to nothing.

9'- Beautiful play, as Jakobsen knocks a Griffit steal forward... right to McCann, who is onside down the left... he closes in on goal, then centers inside the six for Fuller, who toe pokes it home past Nigel Martyn! 1-0, Saints as the small South Coast contingent has something to cheer about early!

21'- Bjarsmyr heads down a long Martyn ball to Prutton on the right... he plays it forward past the defense, and to an onside McCann! McCann with 3 yards on a defender, charges at Martyn, then touches it around him and buries it! 2-0 Saints, as the Saint fans have to be held back!

24'- Poor defense, as Tim Cahill and Darren Bent play the give-and-go... Cahill slips behind the defense and slots it home from 15. 2-1 now.

32'- Arteta plays Bent onside, but Smith with a fine save to keep us ahead! Moments later, Higginbotham with a horrendous giveaway to Bent, who finds Beattie in front of goal with a golden chance, but he misses.

35'- The Toffees continue to pile on the pressure and finally get the equalizer, it's Naysmith crossing to Simon Davies, who heads it past Smith. 2-2.

45'- Davies with an early cross for Bent, and he heads it past Smith. Everton come all the way back and take a halftime lead of 3-2.

Not much action early, as Everton are going to try and back down for a full 45 to take the win.

66'- Subs: Pahars on for a nicked up McCann, and Oakley enters for an ineffective Tejera at attacking midfield.

80'- Another ineffective stretch, and Blackstock enters for Bjarsmyr as we switch to an all out attacking 3-4-3.

81'- They make our offside trap pay after 1 minute, Bent to James McFadden in front, and he taps it in. 4-2, Toffees.

84'- Pahars with a nice run down the left... he cuts it back inside then swings one toward the far post... Blackstock charges at the ball and flicks it past Martyn and into the net. We're still alive at 4-3!

90+'- Jakobsen with a great ball to Oakley, who stands alone behind the defense! He has a great chance, but the flag is up... Oakley just barely offside, and that kills our final chance.

A tough one goal loss... our defense fails us again. I sympathize with the team following the defeat. I really thought we had this one after the opening goals. I guess the defense did too.

Loss, 4-3, out of FA Cup
Shots/on target: Toffees 13/8, Saints 10/4
Poss: 52-48, Toffees
MoM: Everton ML James McFadden - 1 goal, 5 key passes
Saint ratings: All 6's/7's
A: 20,506

[Butter]

Feb. 11, Match 33
16-7-9, 3rd pl., 55 pts.
@ Plymouth Argyle (9-14-9, 15th pl., 41 pts., Leading scorer - Nick Chadwick, 9)
Pvs. meeting: Saints 2:0 Argyle
Fav: Saints, 4:5

Lineup:
GK: Cole
D: Higginbotham, Powell, Hajto, Kenton
M: Wise, Surman, Oakley, Tejera
S: Jones, Blackstock

8'- Jones nods down a Higginbotham ball to Tejera, who sends a through ball to Blackstock... he runs through the defense and gets their first, and slots it home! 1-0, Saints!

13'- Plymouth gets a penalty as Powell trips up a man on a loose ball in the box... Argyle's attacker steps up and buries it. 1-1.

46'- Jakobsen on for a disappointing Powell at halftime. We could not look any worse to start the half, as we give up 3 chances in the first minute of play.

50'- Blackstock nearly connects on a header from a Higginbotham free kick.

53'- Plymouth get the go ahead goal, as Cole deflects a point blank shot, but no one is there to clear the rebound away from Nick Chadwick. 2-1, Argyle.

64'- Oakley just misses on an 8 yard header from a Higginbotham cross.

78'- Jones crosses to the back post, and Blackstock connects... but it whistles wide! Tough header to keep down, but Dex did his best.

79'- Z is back from injury, and enters for Kenton. Kosowski in for Wise, and we switch to an aggressive 3-4-3 to try and pull a point out of this one.

87'- Kosowski gets a quick cross in to the near post, and Surman meets it, but just misses.

That was our last chance, and we take a poor result on the road here. We continue to be unable to keep up enough to merit a place in the top 2.

Loss, 2-1, remain 3rd
Shots/on target: Argyle 17/5, Saints 10/3
Poss: 52-48, Argyle
MoM: Plymouth ST Matt Derbyshire - 2 assists
Saint ratings:
5 - Powell
A: 20,898

We are now 7 points behind both Leeds and Crystal Palace.

[Butter]

We spot and try to sign an old friend... 19 year old Lebohang Mokoena of South African club Orlando Pirates is a terrific looking young prospect whom I noticed while scouring Andrew Surman's national team waiting for him to return to us. I make a $600k-ish offer to them, and get the opportunity to sign the extremely talented youngster. He does sign for around $700k per season, now we just wait for the work permit.

So far, Michael Jakobsen has been a dreadfully awful signing, averaging a 6.25 in 4 appearances. I'm gonna stick with him though... he's only 20, and his attributes are very impressive. Mattias Bjarsmyr has been mediocre, but he is cheap so that's not such an issue.

Feb. 14, Match 34
16-7-10, 3rd pl., 55 pts.
@ Sheffield Wednesday (11-10-12, 14th pl., 43 pts. - Leading scorer: Danny Graham, 13)
Pvs. meeting: Saints 2:1 Owls
Fav: Saints, 5:4

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Jakobsen, Davenport, Svensson, Powell
M: Folly, Kosowski, Griffit, Prutton
S: Z, Fuller

13'- The Owls score on a nice looking counter attack, but luckily the flag was up for offside on the cross into the six.

29'- Jakobsen with a long ball, and the Owl keeper decides to come WAAAAY out of goal... but his first touch is a bad one, as he tries to settle the ball instead of blasting it away, and Z picks up the ball and dribbles straight past the keeper... he shoots from 20 yards at a completely open net and scores! Z's 11th of the year puts us ahead near the half hour mark!

41'- Griffit with a stellar pass over the top for Z, and he has an open chance, but the Owl keeper makes the stop.

Guillermo Zschusschen clearly showing his supreme ability compared with everyone else on both sides today. He is one of the top players in the Championship.

67'- The defense goes out for a smoke, as a throw in is stolen and sent to the penalty spot, but luckily Smith is able to make a very good save to keep it 1-0.

69'- McCann enters for an ineffective David Prutton in central attack.

86'- An Owl corner kick is headed on at 5 yards and hits the woodwork! Lucky to avoid a goal there.

Luckily, we are able to hold on and take a hard earned 1-0 win. Both Folly and Griffit continue to play well in midfield, improving our thin depth there.

Win, 0-1, remain 3rd
Shots/on target: Owls 6/3, Saints 3/2
Poss: 51-49, Owls
MoM: Calum Davenport - 11/12 tackles won, 19/19 headers won
Ratings:
9 - Svensson, Davenport
8 - Smith, Folly, Griffit, Kosowski, Z
A: 18,557

Palace manage a draw and Leeds lose, so we draw within 4 points of 2nd and 5 of 1st.

[Butter]

Several teams have put in contract offers to Michael Svensson, so we'll likely be letting him go in the offseason.

Palace lose on Saturday, and Leeds win, so we can move to within 2 points of 2nd with a win on Sunday.

Feb. 19, Match 35 (TV)
17-7-10, 3rd pl., 58 pts.
v. Luton Town (9-8-17, 22nd pl., 35 pts. - Leading scorer: Roman Vine, 8)
Pvs. meeting: Luton 2:3 Saints
Fav: Saints, 4:6

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Jakobsen, Davenport, Svensson, Cranie
M: Oakley, Surman, Prutton, Tejera
S: Jones, Blackstock

14'- After some nice long possession around midfield, Luton suprises our defense with a great low pass from 30 yards out, right to a cutting attacker at the spot, and he finishes past Smith to make it 1-0, Luton.

43'- After failing to pressure Luton for most of the half, we put together a flurry in the closing stages, as Blackstock fails to convert one chance, then misses a header moments later.

I tell the team that they are letting the team, the fans, and hell the entire country down by trailing right now. A poor performance in the first half to say the least.

47'- Oakley gets the ball at his feet and drives toward the center... he gets to within 15 yards and has a go at it... good save by Luton. Blackstock with the rebound, but there's a lot of traffic in the way... he passes to Prutton, but the ball is deflected and bobbles to Surman... and both players go down. A foul is called... on Surman! The crowd are ready to charge the field!

53'- Another good chance goes by the boards, but we seem to be playing better.

61'- Jakobsen crosses in short for Tejera, who tries to flick the ball at goal with a header, but it misses. Surman out, he's not playing well... McCann in.

71'- Blackstock with a wicked 20 yard strike, but the Luton keeper is able to block it away.

73'- Fuller enters for Jakobsen as we're again forced to go with a 3-4-3.

82'- Griffit in for Kenwyne Jones, who has been poor up front... McCann switches to striker.

The final whistle goes, and we are in a bad way right now. We cannot score any goals. We again fail to pick up any ground on the leaders.

Loss, 0-1, remain 3rd
Shots/on target: Saints 9/6, Luton 6/1
Poss: 52-48, Luton
MoM: Luton DR Kevin Foley - 8/8 tackles won, 11/14 headers won
Ratings:
5 - Cranie
A: 18,510

Z is named to the Team of the Week.

[Butter]

Michael Svensson accepts the offer from Bolton, and will join the EPL outfit in July.

In other transfer news, I nearly click my heels when told that Lebohang Mokoena's work permit has gone through! Assuming we can go up to the EPL, the 19 year old South African should fit in nicely (much as he did in my FM 2005 Peterborough career). Mokoena has 16's or above in the following skills at right midfield and striker: Finishing, heading, aggression, determination, acceleration, fitness, pace. Not to mention that he is near 13 or above in nearly all other important attributes. He should be a tremendous signing once we get him in July.

Feb. 25, Match 36
17-7-11, 4th pl., 58 pts.
v. Crewe Alexandra (6-8-21, 24th pl., 26 pts. - Leading scorer: David Vaughan, 6)
Pvs. meeting: Crewe 1:1 Saints
Fav: Saints, 4:7

Lineup:
GK: Smith
D: Higginbotham, Bjarsmyr, Powell, Kenton
M: Folly, Griffit, Oakley, Tejera
S: Fuller, Z

Let's see if we can avoid falling still further against the worst team in the league. We switch to my old favorite, defensive counter-attacking tactics to try and spark something.

26'- First quality chance of the game, Griffit lifts a pass back to Tejera, who touches it on at 10 yards, but the Crewe keeper with a good reaction save.

Belmadi on for an injured Oakley at halftime.

81'- Pahars on for a tired Tejera, but this one is heading for a nil-nil draw.

Draw, 0-0, remain 4th
Shots/on target: Saints 4/2, Crewe 2/0
Poss: 51-49, Saints
MoM: Crewe MC David Vaughan - 33/48 passing
Ratings: 6's/7's
A: 18,212

Millwall and Preston are now level with us on 59 points, so one more misstep could see us drop to 6th.