Watford at St.Mary's (again) on Saturday

[channonite]

We get to see Watford at St. Mary's again tomorrow. We played them in the FACup 4th round replay back in February, and we won 3-0. More of that would be very welcome.

[earlscourtsaint]

Watford have absolutely nothing to play for so should be quite an easy win . . . . . . . which is exactly what Ipswich fans must have thought on Wednesday before being held to a 0-0.

I suspect they will come to defend with 7/8 behind the ball for most of the game, hoping to then catch us on the break - a tactic we have struggled with all season. We shouldn't, we have enough flair, guile & pace to unlock the meanest of defences, we just don't do it enough, preferring to play keep ball, this is where RM needs to mix it up a bit, every now and then quick ball fwds, dare I say it, over the midfield and out wide will create different chances - even Man City hit it long, sometimes!

Baz

KWP Stephens THB Meghoma (it'll be Manning)

Stu Downes Aribo

Brooks Adams AA

[spot51]

Apr 12, 2024 13:26:08 GMT earlscourtsaint said:

 even Man City hit it long, sometimes!

They do. Their keepers generally get a few assists each season so what is Baz playing at FFS? 

[choixkoix]

What a frustrating side we are. First 30 minutes we were different league from them. They were more 4-2-4 high press as the first half went on, and we just suddenly got stuck in the wrong gear for the next 55 minutes. And then when they equalized, we were spurred back into total domination.

Pros:
- Great spirit.
- Bravo to Fraser who was a shot of adrenalin to us when he came on (and whose disallowed goal for 3-1 should not have been disallowed).
- Manning's ability to open up other angles with his crossing, and his corner taking ability made a mockery of him not being in the team. He also gave Fraser licence to float into the centre in a way I suspect our other candidates for LB would not have.
- Bednarek did 2 jawdropping tackles.

Cons:
- Same old story. We are so flaky.
- Baz's distribution just at times seems a little too manic. Doubtful on his intuition of when to quick release a risky pass and when to sow some calm by slowing it down.
- Can't help but the feel the rigidity of some of our tactical principles is at the heart of our weaknesses.
- No Shea on the bench, and yet you cannae tell me that we did not need him at some point in that second half. Manager just seems hellbent on defending leads by bringing on attacking players.

[Mandochris]

I was watching the 2nd half on my phone at a friend's place. I stopped watching on 95 minutes and was ready to come on here and cuss Saints.
They are frustrating at times.
Is Martin the problem? I don't know what to think any more.

[Furry Frank The Combat Wombat]

Missed most of it as we were out for a long walk, but caught the last bit on the radio.. Nice to get a result like that, must've been bonkers in the ground.

[theallseeingeye]

Just woken up in LA…

Thought I’d checked the score over a coffee..

That will do…

Kind of glad I missed all the stress and just see the good bit!

Hi all

[stsaint]

All that matters at this stage of the season is 3 points. Just ask Leeds, Leicester and Ipswich.

[channonite]

Apr 13, 2024 16:58:45 GMT Furry Frank The Combat Wombat said:

Nice to get a result like that, must've been bonkers in the ground.

It was absolutely mental. When I had calmed down a bit, I looked over at the Saints bench, and they were all dancing around hugging each other. The noise in the stadium was absolutely phenomenal.

[channonite]

Listen to Adam and Jo after the game today on their podcast link here

Agree with Jo's mini-rant about early leavers

[yateleysaint]

Doddsy was on Saints Play and I enjoyed listening to his accent.

I was planning to watch the Eintracht Frankfurt game afterwards but was so drained by the ups and downs of watching Saints that I couldn’t face any more football.

I thought we gave the ball away too easily a lot but the possession stats looked decent so go figure.

What a funny team we are.

We made bloody hard work of it but at least we won.

[Willshakes.]

Apr 13, 2024 18:39:21 GMT channonite said:

Apr 13, 2024 16:58:45 GMT Furry Frank The Combat Wombat said:

Nice to get a result like that, must've been bonkers in the ground.

It was absolutely mental. When I had calmed down a bit, I looked over at the Saints bench, and they were all dancing around hugging each other. The noise in the stadium was absolutely phenomenal.

Oh to be a Saints fan ! As I always say I'll leave the tactics to you Gents. Phil (Channonite) That atomosphere, you mention, must have made it worth it.I Wish I was there, I'll always be a Saints fan, win, lose or draw . 

[channonite]

[channonite]

That goal!!

[yateleysaint]

We scored from a corner FFS!