2006/2007 Coca-Cola Championship Official Thread

[Embers]

Scouting next seasons opposition early, Embers?

You got it in one mate. In reality were probably gonna have 50 mill to spend next season especially given the fact were probably gonna be selling around 15-20 players.

May aswell buy out the competition

 

[sainter]

I remember seeing that original doco on channel 5 about a year ago, you get mentioned, quite a bit. They discuss the origins of our rivalry linking back to the Southampton Community Union Members AKA SCUM and the shameless breaking of the brave picket line our lads in Her Majesty's navy put up... Sellouts, disgusting the way they behaved that time...

Biggest team on the South Coast? Don't make me laugh... How many league titles have YOU won? 0, you've won as many FA Cups as us as well so you're not exactly Liverpool are you?

I found this quote very intreresting

Graham Hurley, a local author of Pompey-based crime
thrillers, sees the phenomenon in wider terms. 'I think the story really
begins and is shaped by geography,' he says. 'Pompey is an island, it's the
only island city in the country, and that makes it very insular, an inward
looking place.

'It is a tribal place, very martial. And this goes back to the time - which
is not a cliché - when it was born on blood and treasure. It grew up around
the dockyards, it sucks people in. And those families tended to stay. So
you've got this community that grew outward from the dockyards. And that has
led to a very particular culture. I've never, ever lived anywhere like it.
'There's a kind of clannishness within Pompey, built on family after family,
which has led to this feeling of belligerence and stubbornness. It's quite a
secret place, square-shouldered, right-angled and deeply unpretty. It has a
kind of gruff charm when you get to know it. It's very functional. And it's
uncursed by money.'

Very true that...

I could give you the opposing view of the SCUM argument had I thought it would make a difference to your thinking but I'd be wasting my time.

As for who is the bigger club, I was talking in term of supporter numbers, facilities, etc. We all hear about Pompey's magnificent support and yet in the late 1990's you were getting crowds of 9,000 people. You don't even sell out your 20,000 seat scrapheap all the time. You have won a couple of league titles but I don't think that automatically makes you a bigger club. Unfortunately what is fact is that you're currently a better performing club and many of our supporters have found it hard adjusting to not being the better team of the two. You'd have to be 50 years of age to remember the last time that was the case.

And yes, you're probably right Catman.

 

[sainter]

The Board have shown a total lack of ambition over the transfer window, just as they did last season and that will cost us. They have always tried to do it on the cheap and they don't seem to realise that it never works. The fans have been lied to again & again & we're getting sick of being treated like mugs season after season. If we don't beat Stoke next weekend then it could get ugly (but not as ugly as the inbred travelling support - I don't think that is possible).

It's interesting that you say that.

Like your team we were big spenders at the beginning of the season and yet when it gets to January and we're in a great position to challenge for promotion we make just the one signing. And even that was only on loan.

Compare that to Derby County. Personally I think your team, West Brom, Preston and Saints are all better than them but they've put themselves in a great position and have strengthened considerably in January.

We may have spent a record amount of money in August but I would have like to have seen a little more ambition last month as well. We did manage to get rid of Rupert Lowe but I'm hoping that Michael Wilde our new board aren't going to serve us up the same crap. The parachute payment ends this season and if we don't go up now I could see us fading away into a mid-table CCC side very quickly.

 

[snakebite01]

Don't worry sainter, no chance you'll stay down whilst the big Pole is firing.

Good bit of business for everyone that deal.

 

[sethlad]

Compare that to Derby County. Personally I think your team, West Brom, Preston and Saints are all better than them

Mmm,I think youre close here but the major difference is belief.
Derby County are now a team who have gelled.
We expect to win games,home & away & its still hard to get used to.

Its hard to explain why,manager,board,fans,circumstances,combination of all probably.At the start of the season we had just got rid of a board who almost put us out of business.There were plenty of rumblings re lack of pre season signings,even Howard was supposedly too expensive.
As it turned out,it was probably a blessing.

Are we the most skilled,talented squad.I agree we're not.
Hard to argue that we're currently the best team though.

Billy also built the current Preston side so Im not underestimating his role.

seth

 

[sainter]

Don't worry sainter, no chance you'll stay down whilst the big Pole is firing.

Good bit of business for everyone that deal.

Definitely. You guys got your money back and we got our badly needed striker.

Believe it or not despite being the leading goalscorer in the league he does a cop a bit of criticism from our supporters for not working hard enough and getting pushed around by the big central defenders.

Compare that to Derby County. Personally I think your team, West Brom, Preston and Saints are all better than them

Mmm,I think youre close here but the major difference is belief.
Derby County are now a team who have gelled.
We expect to win games,home & away & its still hard to get used to.

Its hard to explain why,manager,board,fans,circumstances,combination of all probably.At the start of the season we had just got rid of a board who almost put us out of business.There were plenty of rumblings re lack of pre season signings,even Howard was supposedly too expensive.
As it turned out,it was probably a blessing.

Are we the most skilled,talented squad.I agree we're not.
Hard to argue that we're currently the best team though.

Billy also built the current Preston side so Im not underestimating his role.

seth

Got no arguments with that.

I didn't mean that comment to come across a put down. Talent wise I'd put you behind the 4 clubs I listed but like you said you've got an extremely well drilled team who fully deserve to be where they are at the moment.

It will be interesting to see if they can keep it going. The other teams to open up a decent sized gap at the top of the table have come back to the field but so far the Rams have shown no sign of slipping.

I'm still a little frustrated over our loss. We had so many chances to win the game and didn't take it.

 

[sethlad]

You certainly deserved something out of the game,we rode our luck.

The first 30 mins seemed very one sided but it sounds like getting Teale on steadied the ship.
Adding Barnes after half time also helped,he hadnt played for several games so was keen to make a point & he's a handful.
I didnt hear it but from all reports it was quite a good 2nd half.
Ill be tuning in to the highlights show tomorrow.

I dont know if its possible to keep it going but it gives you a chance when you dont let many in.Long way to go & all the top 6 are in good form.

Your home form gives you a decent chance,just gotta nick a couple away.
We've won 10 away,theres the 6 point difference.

seth

 

[sethlad]

Some real 6 pointers this week for playoff hopefuls.

Birmingham V Stoke (4 v 8) Blues gotta start winning again
West Brom V Southampton (3 v 5) Huge game
Preston V Wolves (2 v 10) Wolves only 5 pts away from 6th
Plymouth V Sunderland (11 v 7) Both need to keep winning

At the bottom:Southend v QPR

seth

 

[sainter]

Definitely a big weekend coming up.

Last night Southend continued their revival with a 5-0 win at home to QPR.

 

[RoosterLad]

I would have thought QPR would put up more of a fight than that...

 

[Corrosion]

Holy ********! QPR are ********.

 

[sainter]

Kenwyne Jones through on goal, Curtis Davies is the last man and takes him down.....yellow.

Only one goal in the league so far, Colchester are up 1-0 at Barnsley.

 

[sainter]

22' Barnsley 0 - 2 Colchester U.

22' Burnley 0 - 0 Sheffield W.

22' Coventry C. 1 - 0 Cardiff C.

22' Derby County 0 - 0 Hull C.

22' Ipswich T. 0 - 0 Leicester C.

22' Leeds U. 0 - 0 Crystal Palace

Postp. Luton T. ? - ? Norwich C.

22' Plymouth Argyle 0 - 0 Sunderland

22' Preston North End 0 - 1 Wolverhampton W.

22' West Bromwich A. 0 - 1 Southampton

 

[sainter]

HALF TIME

Barnsley 0 - 2 Colchester U.

Burnley 0 - 0 Sheffield W.

Coventry C. 1 - 1 Cardiff C.

Derby County 2 - 1 Hull C.

Ipswich T. 0 - 1 Leicester C.

Leeds U. 1 - 0 Crystal Palace

Postp. Luton T. ? - ? Norwich C.

Plymouth Argyle 0 - 0 Sunderland

Preston North End 0 - 1 Wolverhampton W.

West Bromwich A. 1 - 1 Southampton

---------------------------------------------

Last man challenge --- yellow card
Headbutt - yellow card
Lineswoman missing a blatant offside leading up to goal. I'm not going to say anything else.

And it had to be Kevin Phillips of all people to score.

Derby have gone 2-1 up to continue their impressive form. Preston are losing at home to Wolves in a surprise and Leeds have gone a goal up in a game that they must win.

 

[Mr P@H]

not the right league but it's relatively close... Bournemouth winning 5-0, they've been in awful form

Come on you RAAAAAAAAAAAAMS,

 

[sainter]

FEBRUARY 10 RESULTS

Barnsley 0 - 3 Colchester U.

Burnley 1 - 1 Sheffield W.

Coventry C. 2 - 2 Cardiff C.

Derby County 2 - 2 Hull C.

Ipswich T. 0 - 2 Leicester C.

Leeds U. 2 - 1 Crystal Palace

Postp. Luton T. ? - ? Norwich C.

Plymouth Argyle 0 - 2 Sunderland

Preston North End 0 - 1 Wolverhampton W.

West Bromwich A. 1 - 1 Southampton

-------------------------------------------

Some more interesting results. The battle for the second automatic promotion spot and the playoff positions is heating up. Preston lost at home to Wolves, the Baggies held on for a draw at home to Saints, Cardiff will be disappointed to draw having led 2-1 while Sunderland and Colchester continue to put pressure on the top six.

At the other end of the table Leeds had an important win while Hull scored a late equaliser away to Derby in a major shock.

Birmingham v Stoke tomorrow is a huge game.

 

[Embers]

Save us a seat.

We will see ya in a few months peoples . Time for me to get myself better acquinted with the CCC. Where can I get a list of all the stat leaders. Goals assits etc?

 

[sainter]

STANDINGS

1 Derby 32 63
2 West Brom 32 56

3 Preston 32 56
4 Birmingham 29 54
5 Southampton 32 53
6 Cardiff 32 53

7 Sunderland 32 53
8 Colchester 32 51
9 Wolverhampton 32 50
10 Stoke 31 49
11 Plymouth 32 43
12 Crystal Palace 32 42
13 Sheff Wed 32 41
14 Burnley 31 39
15 Ipswich 32 39
16 Coventry 32 38
17 Leicester 31 37
18 Norwich 30 37
19 QPR 32 33
20 Hull 32 32
21 Luton 31 32

22 Barnsley 32 32
23 Southend 32 31
24 Leeds 31 30

 

[sethlad]

Late goals have been our saviour a few times,credit to Hull who obviously came to play.

seth

 

[Catman]

Things are never dull at Elland Road.

A great 2-1 win has been overshadowed by the revelation that an unnamed Leeds player passed on our team sheet to Crystal Palace prior to the game. Dennis Wise has come out and said that this player will never play for Leeds again, but unfortunately the Leeds forums are now awash with discussion as to who it could be and unfairly raises suspicions about many players who are innocent.

But I suppose he probably can't release the name publicly due to legal advice. It's a dog act, especially in the situation we're in.

 

[RoosterLad]

Very disappointing draw, after going a goal down to hit the lead we should have held on. Going down to 10 men didn't help though. Good to see Chopra score yet again.

 

[Ray Nolan]

Excellent win for us at home to Stoke last night, wasn't the greatest game but these sort of 1-0 wins need to be ground out if you're to get promoted. 6 points behind with 2 games in hand, it's still within our power to bag that top 2 spot.

 

[moomba]

Heard today that Billy Bunter Blackwell tried to get Bendtner for the filthiest of filthies at the start of the season, but he told them that they smell and he'd rather die.

I'm going to have to start to rate the lad a bit more.

Actually watched him today, looks a prospect indeed, but he's still no better than anyone that has scored the winner against the yorkies.

 

[sainter]

Southampton facing bleak future
By David Bond

Link

The £470 million sale of Liverpool to American businessmen Tom Hicks and George Gillett last week once again demonstrated the growing global appeal of the Premiership to wealthy foreign tycoons.

But beneath the water line, in the far choppier waters of the Championship, the struggle to find investors willing to throw clubs a lifeline is tougher than ever.

Leicester might have found their saviour this week in the unlikely form of former Skatesmouth owner Milan Mandaric, but for Southampton, who have already been through a turbulent two-year period following relegation from the Premiership in 2005, the search for new backers is proving extremely difficult.

When Michael Wilde, the Jersey-based property entrepreneur, ousted Rupert Lowe last June after a bitter five-month power struggle, Southampton fans thought they had found their own wealthy benefactor to rescue the club.

Worth more than £80 million in his own right, Wilde promised to put in his own money and lead the search for new investors to help shore up the finances and fund a push for promotion to the Premiership.

Lifelong Southampton supporter Gavyn Davies, the former chairman of the BBC who is reportedly worth £96 million, was mooted as a possible backer, as was Alan Goodenough, the former chairman of casino group London Clubs International.

However, more than seven months after he seized control of St Mary's, Wilde is no closer to finding new investors, and following his failure to raise new finances, Inside Sport has learnt that the 54-year-old non-executive chairman of housing group Merlion is no longer fronting the search.

Chief executive Jim Hone and Southampton Leisure Holdings chairman Ken Dulieu have now taken charge of the hunt for new investors.

For the time being, Wilde, who is the biggest shareholder in the club, will remain as chairman of the football club board. However, it is thought he will step aside and could even sell his stake if a new buyer emerges with the money to take the club to another level.

The development is another major blow to the club's fans, who might have hoped the arrival of Wilde would herald a new period of stability after the Lowe era.

But while Southampton are fifth in the Championship and still very much in the hunt for promotion, the club have taken urgent action now, fearing they are heading for a very heavy landing if they miss a return to the Premiership.

The £6.3 million parachute payment, paid to clubs relegated from the top division for two seasons after they do down, stops in May. Hone has estimated that from next season they will be £30 million worse off than when they were in the Premiership.

Hone, Wilde and Dulieu implemented a tough cost-cutting programme which included the departure of Sir Clive Woodward, the £500,000-a-year former technical support director, and slashing the players' wage bill from £23.2 million to £13.6 million.

But despite selling Theo Walcott to Arsenal for £5 million (rising to £12 million dependant on England and club appearances) and Peter Crouch to Liverpool for £7 million during the last financial year ended June 2006, the club still made an operating loss of £7.2 million.

Figures for the six months up to December 2006, to be released in the next two weeks, are expected to show that the club are still incurring heavy losses.

Outside the wealthy world of the Premiership, where even those clubs that go down will receive £30 million in TV money, finding new backers to help stem those losses is near impossible.

It will become even harder to close the gap between the top clubs and the Championship next season when the parachute payments to those relegated goes up to around £11 million.

So far Southampton's long-suffering fans have not shown any signs of dissenting against the new regime, but it is clear that they are becoming anxious.

A spokesman for Southampton supporters group the Saints Trust said: "There are valid questions to be asked as to why the directors who promised to put money into the club haven't yet done that.

"We were also given the impression that there were these other investors ready to come in but these guys, for whatever reason, have not stepped up to the plate yet.

"We are realistic. We know they inherited a mess. But if we do not go up we will have to make some big decisions."

Unless new investors can be found or promotion guaranteed, it looks like Southampton's troubles are only just beginning. And, like Walcott before him, it will come down to the sale of a talented teenager, this time Gareth Bale in the summer to Manchester United, Tottenham or Arsenal, to keep the south coast side afloat.

While this article is about Southampton, it could be written about half a dozen other CCC clubs. It just goes to show how difficult things are when you are relegated and how difficult it is to attract investors when you aren't in the top flight.

 

[sainter]

Derby call in PFA to end dispute


Link

Derby have called in the Professional Footballers' Association to help decide what bonuses should be paid to their players if they reach the Premiership.
It has been claimed recent signings have been promised bonuses in excess of those offered to long-serving players.
But Derby's managing director Mike Horton said: "The previously reported facts in this case are not accurate.
"The PFA are supportive of the club and are confident a satisfactory conclusion can be reached in the near future."
Horton refused to discuss the terms and conditions of players' contracts. The scale of bonus payments to a player is written into his contract on signing after being individually negotiated with the club and is usually expected to remain confidential. Derby are top of the Championship table, four points clear of second-placed West Brom, with 14 games left.

Sorry Sethland but I'm hoping this might be the event that brings your team back to the rest of us.