.......is defined in the Cambridge English Dictionary as "a willingness to give your time and energy to a job, to an activity or to something that you believe in."

That`s a pretty reasonable definition but I suspect for many people commitment can also be exemplified from experiences gained through life`s rich pageant.   For me, I have clear memories of when I realised what true commitment really is.  In my formative years I learnt to swim by the simple expedient of my father throwing me into Southampton Water from a small jetty to the rear of our house at Hythe.  Fortunately the tide was in and I swam alright but I have always thought that that episode not only evoked a sense of commitment for myself but also for my father, who must have known that  my aquatic baptism would be an activity that he believed in.  It turned out OK though.

Now over the last week or two I have been surprised (perhaps I should not have been) by the number of Premier League managers who have lost their jobs so far this season - Xisco Munoz (Watford,) Steve Bruce (Newcastle,) Nuno Espirito Santo (Tottenham,) Daniel Farke (Norwich) and Dean Smith (Aston Villa.)  And with those dismissals came the usual speculation as to who might replace them.  Some have been resolved already - Claudio Ranieri is at Watford, Eddie Howe at Newcastle and Antonio Conte at Tottenham.  

But it`s the remaining two where speculation has become rife and that is particularly concerning for us Southampton fans when we see that `our` manager, Ralph Hasenhuttl has been linked with both vacancies.  And this is where the business of commitment comes in, for me at least.  Ralph has been at St. Mary` for three years now and it has taken him that time to sort out the wheat from the chaff, bring in new players and begun at last to form a team and a squad in his own image.

During his time with us there have arguably been more downs than ups including two 9-0 drubbings at the hands of Leicester and the Damned United.   Now in normal football times those results alone would have seen the manager shown the door but the response of the Southampton boardroom after the second of those thrashings was to offer Ralph a new four-years contract which showed belief in him as an individual and what he was trying to achieve - a resounding demonstration of true commitment.  Ralph signed the contract on offer and maybe, just maybe we are beginning to see the rewards for that commitment.

So in my octogenarian naivete I hope it`s the case that Ralph will return the compliment, come out and say that he is flattered by the interest shown in him by other clubs but feels that he has a commitment to Southampton, is happy here and is going nowhere.  That would indeed live up to the Cambridge Dictionary`s definition as Ralph has already shown his willingness to give his time and energy to the job at Southampton, which he seems to believe in.   I hope I`m right..

 

I admit to taking some muffled pleasure at witnessing the events at Old Trafford on Sunday, when Manchester United were humiliated 5-0 by arch rivals Liverpool.  Now I feel  for those genuine locally born and raised United fans who have a loyalty to their club - suffering that kind of embarrassment is`t easy;  and I speak as a Southampton fan who has twice in the past two or three years been on the wrong end of a 9-0 drubbing, once at the hands of Man Utd themselves.  So I know what it`s like - been there, done that etc.....

But I also confess to a long standing disenchantment with the Damned United.   It stretches back a good many years.  Back in the day I did admire them when they were under the management of  Matt Busby and when they enticed David Sadler to Old Trafford from Maidstone United and his boyhood home of Yalding here in Kent.  And then there was the trauma of Munich and the pain and sympathy that reached out to the club during those times.

And then along came Ferguson with his deep seated aggression, his hairdryer, his ranting, assumed entitlement and disregard for the laws of the game and the sensitivities of others.  And whilst I acknowledge the results he achieved - the titles, the cups and all that - it was done so with an attitude that brought the game into disrepute and alienated many like me from any admiration we may have had.

I think what really set me against them was the experience of being at St. Mary`s Stadium for the last game of the 2004/5 season when, needing just one point to stay in the Premier League, Southampton lost 2-1 to Manchester United and were relegated to the Championship.  Hard to take of course - but at the end of that game United captain Roy Keane took it upon himself to wander round the touchline, waving goodbye and giving the thumbs down to us disheartened Saints fans.  Not necessary, cheap but consistent with the mindset of both Keane and the club he represented at that time.

So, Manchester United now find themselves apparently in deep trouble - it`s as if a national disaster has hit them;  cries for the manager to be sacked, the board to be attacked yet again and for sweeping changes and more investment to be made to build a team rather than simply collecting  world class players. Their fanbase are as sick as parrots... and yet they are seventh in the Premier League table.  If Southampton were currently lying in seventh place in the Premier League, I would be dancing in the street and over the moon.

 CORNISH REBELLION...

My round up of football this last weekend might have to be a bit brief.   But I start by explaining the photo above which I have unashamedly `borrowed` as it demonstrates a heartening attitude by Southampton defender Jack Stephens during the 1-1 draw against the Damned United at St. Mary`s on Sunday.

Now Jack Stephens has been with the Saints for ten years, having joined from Plymouth Argyle for a £150,000 fee.  He was born just over the Tamar at Torpoint in Cornwall.   The photo shows a bit of a contretemps he had with Manchester United`s Bruno Fernandes during Sunday`s game.   Fernandes joined the Village of the Damned in January 2020 from Sporting Lisbon for a fee of £67.6million.  He is a Portuguese international with 61 appearances at various levels for his country, including 34 full internationals, whereas Jack Stevens has a smattering of Under 18s and Under 23 appearances for England.

The `coming together` arose because Stephens had (fairly) won the ball from Fernandes and passed to Che Adams to slot home Southampton`s goal.   Fernandes thought (wrongly) that he had been fouled, made a big enough fuss for the referee to book him for dissent and Stephens rightly showed his opponent what he thought of it all.  A bit of good old fashioned football laced with a touch of Cornish grit is what was needed.

Elsewhere I thought I detected dancing in the street as my neighbour`s Gillingham secured another home win by beating Morecambe 2-1;  Maidstone United travelled to Chelmsford City and also won 2-1;  Truro City made the 500-mile round trip to Walton-on-Thames but could only manage a 1-1 draw.   However, things looked a bit grim in the Highland League where Fort William travelled to Brora Rangers for their `home` fixture but were on the wrong end of an 8-0 drubbing and Brechin City`s visit to Fraserburgh also ended in a 1-0 defeat.  

Sadly, the ultimate minnows of Stoke Gabriel are already propping up the table in the South West Peninsula Premier League East.  They didn`t have a game over the weekend but I see they had a midweek fixture last Tuesday against Newton Abbot Spurs and despite their recent merger with Torbay Police, the Railwaymen succumbed to a 5-1 defeat before an expectant crowd of 67.  Could have been worse though.   

But pride of place this week must surely go to Jack Stephens, so often the fans` scapegoat for his occasional defensive lapses, but on this occasion reaching man-of-the-match status for his inspiring performance in the face of petulant provocation.   `Sir` Alex Ferguson, sitting in the hard lap of St. Mary`s luxury must have been as sick as a parrot.  I`m over the moon, to be fair.

 

So last night`s Euro semi-final between Engerland and Denmark finally ended in a win after extra time for the home team thanks largely to an own goal and a dubious penalty.  England now face Italy in Sunday`s final, again at Wemberly.   Given the level of euphoria following last night`s nerve jangling affair one could be forgiven for thinking that some great battle had been won and that the future of the country had once more been assured.  Shades of 1945?

Now don`t get me wrong - I`m as pleased and relieved as anyone at the result, although I do feel a tinge of regret for Denmark, who were excellent and gracious in defeat.

I`ve always been partial to a nice Danish pastry and the country has a lot going for it, once having been voted the happiest nation in the world.  But what also added to my tinge of regret was that Denmark`s defeat was arguably down to the way in which they used their substitutes - too many, too early - and substituting Southampton`s centre back, Jannik Vestergaard before extra time commenced.   So it`s game over for him and although the rest of his Saints team mates reported back for pre-season training on Monday, Jannik will no doubt have a bit of a holiday before joining up at St. Mary`s once again.

That is unless the rumours about him going to Tottenham are to be believed;  after all he has spent the last few weeks in the company of Danish team mate and former Saints captain Pierre Emile Hojbjerg who left us for Tottenham last season.   Just as well after all, that James Ward Prowse, to name but a few, was left out of the England squad or he might have been tapped up as well. 

So on to Sunday`s final against Italy.   Should be a walk in the park, after all Italy remain undefeated in all of their last 32 international games and must surely be ready for a fall.  Aren`t they?

 

WORSE THAN WATCHING ?

It is a crazy world - and perhaps no more so than in the `transfer window,` which has just opened in English football.  And for us Southampton fans, the lunacy has already begun.  Now as the rest of the English football nation has their attention focussed on  Wednesday`s Euro Semi-Final against Denmark, quietly under the cover of that darkness the Saints` future prospects are rumoured to hang in the balance.

There are rumours and speculation about the future of a number of our top players.  Of course, that`s all it might be - rumour and speculation - but I`m old enough to recognise the signs when I see them.   Already it seems that Danny Ings has turned down a 4-year contract and is rumoured to be on the move to somewhere where he can do better for himself.   I take that to mean financially but with his injury record he might be a bit of a gamble for a top six club.  Southampton`s offer seems generous in the circumstances and it will be especially disappointing for him to leave his home town club who have shown loyalty and faith in him - qualities that are seldom, if ever, reciprocated.

Then there is club captain James Ward-Prowse, for whom a transfer to Aston Villa is rumoured and has not been denied.  He like so many others came from our Academy, started with us at the age of 8 and has been our captain for the past two seasons, during which he has played every minute of every Premier League game.  Maybe it`s ambition - to go to a club that might win something - but Aston Villa?

And now Jannik Vestergaard, Saints` stalwart Danish international centre back currently strutting his stuff in the Euro Championships to rave reviews.  No wonder other clubs are interested and speculation is becoming rife.   If he does go, along with Messrs. Ings and Ward-Prowse, then the established `spine` of our team will go with them and we have to start again.   Not easy and so in many ways this close season transfer window is, like most others, at least as stressful as watching actual games of football.

I guess I should be used to it by now.  I recall being at St. Mary`s all those years ago to see Theo Walcott`s first game for the Saints - he went off to Arsenal - and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain`s first game for us - he went off to Arsenal too - and Gareth Bale`s first game before he went off to Tottenham.  Then I saw Luke Shaw`s first game before he went off to the Damned United.   And so it goes on, year after year.  But perhaps I`ve finally accepted that for the club to survive at all it must be financially self-sufficient otherwise, as happened when I was a shareholder, the finances became so stretched that we almost didn`t have a club at all.

The next few weeks in the livestock market will be interesting and informative as to whether we can survive another season in the Premier League.  Already, we have lost Ryan Bertrand to Leicester but, to be fair, the club have been quick to find an impressive replacement in signing Romain Perraud from Brest and we now wait with hope and expectation that other equally impressive signings might take the place of those who wish to seek their fortunes (literally) elsewhere.   Could be a long Summer, like most of the others.

 

LOOSE CONNECTIONS...

Big day in the Euro Footy Thing with England playing Scotland at Wembley this evening. I should perhaps be more excited than I am but I confess to a degree of ambivalence.  It is, of course, high Summer - the cricket season - and domestic competitive football was supposed to have come to an end.  Well it hasn`t quite - there`s still the play-off final for promotion from the National League to the English Football League between Torquay United and Hartlepool to come this weekend and on the international stage the finals of Euro 2020 drone on despite being a year late.

Tonight`s game is billed as the oldest international ever and so has with it some history and tradition not a million miles away from Bannockburn in its intensity and deep rivalry.  Not so much a football match, more a re-enactment.

I suppose the reasons for my ambivalence are twofold.  First, it`s interfering with what Summer should really be about but secondly because, with the dumping of James Ward-Prowse from the England squad, my Southampton based interest has been replaced by what loose connections with the Saints I can find.  I guess three of our Academy graduates, Luke Shaw, Tyrone Mings and Ben White will play for England although they each went off to other clubs.   Scotland will have current Saints midfielder Stuart Armstrong and striker Che Adams who now qualifies to play for Scotland thanks to his grandparents apparently going there on holiday once.

All very tenuous links for me to encourage any real interest in the game or the outcome and so I`ve been looking at more compelling examples of Southampton`s influence on this fixture.   And it doesn`t get any better - any more romantic - any more inspiring than the England debut of Rickie Lambert Southampton`s Goal Machine (RLSGM) scoring the winning goal against Scotland at Wembley in 2013.    Here it is:-

Unforgettable !

 

......and for us Saints fans, staving off relegation to secure another season in the Premier League is one of them.   Something we`ve got used to over the years, epic last ditch battles to stay up - Swansea and Crystal Palace spring to mind as examples of games needing to be won at the dog end of previous seasons.  And last night`s defeat of Fulham by Burnley meant that Southampton are now mathematically safe from relegation with four games still to be played.  

It`s curious how the emotions run when you support a club that seems always to be struggling to survive.  For the past few weeks I have been concerned that we might not make it and although it was highly unlikely that Fulham were going to win their last four games and the Saints would lose all of theirs, nevertheless when last night`s result came through there was a collective sigh of relief.  The stresses and strains were finally lifted and a general sense of wellbeing descended on a hitherto nervous city.  The dancing in the streets is probably still going on.

Now of course it would be nice to win something - a long time since my last visit to Wembley when Southampton won the Johnstone`s Paint Trophy and a long time too since we were top of the Premier League back in November last year.   And I understand the elation that must be felt by supporters of clubs like Manchester City, Chelsea, Man. Utd and Liverpool who have grown used to winning things.  It must be nice for them.

But it does make me wonder whether they feel any better than we Saints fans do on days like this- it`s a different kind of emotion I guess, between the elation of winning and the relief of not losing. It might be a better feeling, having come through yet another anguished time and lived to tell the tale?

 

It sure feels like it.  The definition of `fateful` according to the Cambridge Dictionary is "having a very important and often negative effect on the future."  So why the negativity?  Well, today is FA Cup semi-final day for us Saints fans.  We now know that Chelsea are through to the final as a result of their 1-0 win over Manchester City yesterday and today at Wembley the Saints take on Leicester City is the second semi-final.

And anything can happen, of course.  But the default condition of us Saints fans is one of nervousness, uncertainty and an anticipation of disappointment and so we face today with all those emotions, hoping for the best, expecting the worst.  Not helped by the fact that it was Leicester City who inflicted a 9-0 defeat on Southampton at St. Mary`s last season, although to be fair the Saints won 2-0 in the reverse league fixture at the King Power, so maybe there is a glimmer of hope in that.  At around 8.00 this evening, we will know the answer.  At least I won`t be able to watch it even from behind the sofa, as the game is televised by BT - which I don`t have and which might be a blessing in disguise.

In other news, it was good to see Forest Green Rovers manage a 3-2 home win against Scunthorpe to keep their play-off hopes alive.  Following the sacking of manager Mark Cooper last week, Rovers are now under the interim coaching of Jimmy Ball, son of World Cup winner and ex-Saints player and manager Alan Ball - maybe this connection, however tenuous, might be an encouraging omen.

Gillingham went down 3-2 away at high(ish) flying Oxford United, so the Gills have the proverbial mountain to climb if they are to reach the play-offs this season.  I fear the mountain might be a shade too high.   As for Brechin City, yet another defeat (why do I always follow teams who have a preponderance for failure?) this time a 3-0 loss away at Annan Athletic.  Brechin have now amassed just five points from 17 games this season and with their goal difference of minus 31 they are now assured of a place in the play-off with whoever wins the game between the respective champions of the Highland and Lowland Leagues to determine City`s future.

So, a fateful day for Southampton. We`ve had semi-finals before and come through them so here`s hoping.  However, if you don`t hear from me for some time, you will know why.

  

WHEN I GROW UP.....

When I was very young - just a few years ago - I never really knew what I wanted to be when I grew up.  I used to enjoy drawing a lot and looking at maps and I did flirt with the idea of becoming a cartographer but no-one ever asked me what I might like to do and even in those days I didn`t take myself at all seriously, so in the end I guess I just drifted.

But one ambition came to pass in April 1946.  My father, not long home from his five years as a Prisoner of War, decided it was time to introduce me to football.  And so we made the journey across Southampton Water on the Hythe Ferry and made our way to The Dell, home of Southampton FC.  For a boy of not quite seven it was a real adventure.  The game was against Derby County who, less than 48 hours earlier, had won the FA Cup at Wembley, beating Charlton Athletic.  So they were a formidable side and maybe their exertions or their celebrations crept up on them but the Saints came out 4-2 winners. 

From there on, I was hooked;  and I knew that one thing I wanted to be when I grew up was a Saints fan.   And so it has endured for all these years - almost 75 years ago since my first initiation.  And over all that time there have been ups and downs, good times and bad but throughout it all there has been the companionship of fellow Saints fans and because supporting the Saints is not all about winning trophies - more often than not, it`s about struggles and disappointment -the feeling of belonging to a community of fans becomes more important. 

Which might explain the photo above - it is a calling card of the Codgers Crew, of which I was proud to be a member.  It was in its heyday a good few years ago now when we all had season tickets and met up for pre-match coffee and cake at Monsieur Hulot`s Patisserie on Southampton Town Quay and enjoyed each other`s company during and after the game, even if the result did not always go the way we would have preferred.

And it is experiences like that which - at least I hope - encourages me to avoid growing up too much.  Life is short, it seems especially precarious these days, so there seems every sense in avoiding the customary inevitability of anno domini having its way, but instead maintaining the links with people, places and times that have made it all worthwhile and look forward to what might still be

Don`t worry about me - I`ll be fine when I grow up.

 

.....or whatever counts as `normal` for these pages.  Anyway, sorry for the delay caused by circumstances beyond my control and which cannot be named for legal reasons.

Now, where was I?  Ah yes, football and this weekend has seen yet another chapter in the extraordinary life of  Southampton FC.   In midweek, the Saints went away to Wolverhampton in the FA Cup and secured an impressive 2-0 win to propel them into the quarter-finals of the Cup, when they will play close neighbours Bournemouth some time in March.

That win seemed to be the spark for a return to a bit of form in the Premier League but, of course, when the Wolves came to St. Mary`s yesterday, the Saints somehow contrived to lose 2-1 in a game which they dominated for long periods but were overcome by a combination of bizarre decisions by the match officials (not for the first time this season) and a sagging of the collective shoulders as the inevitable prospect of yet another defeat seemed to drain the players of their energy and confidence.   Fair play to Wolves - not their fault that VAR is bonkers - but the result merely added to the obscure records that the Saints have `achieved` over the years.

This was the first time in their 135 years` history - and possibly a Premier League record as well - that six league games have been lost in succession.  A mid season slump indeed and especially puzzling as not too long ago the Saints were top of the Premier League (OK, only for 48 hours) with eyes on a European qualifying place.   That record is now added to other snippets alongside the two 9-0 defeats as the joint highest, along with Ipswich, in the Premier League; the quickest hat trick in the Premier League (Sadio Mane took 2 minutes, 56 seconds to knock three goals  in against Aston Villa in 2015 before Liverpool came calling for him);  the quickest Premier League goal scored (Shane Long netting in just over seven seconds against Watford, who had actually kicked off.)  There are others.

So it`s a bit random being a Saints fan - full of ups and downs, unpredictability, confusion and uncertainty but, you know what?   It`s all of those things that maintain the devotion to the cause, that even in the difficult times we once again find ourselves in, there are no cries to sack the manager; just a forlorn hope that somehow enough funds will be available for him to strengthen the squad (it`s far too thin on the ground right now) and a genuine hope that he stays despite it all.  What other clubs, boardrooms and fans would feel like that?

Fifteen games left to play this season - about ten points needed for safety.   Surely that should be possible, if only to avoid yet another record of being top of the league and relegated in the same season.

Enough about that.  In other news, my neighbour will be ecstatic that pride of place once again goes to Gillingham who had an impressive 3-2 victory away at Charlton, each of which clubs has had the fortune to have our street`s bearded wonder Scott Wagstaff among their ranks in seasons past;  however, Scott`s present club, Forest Green Rovers, were denied the chance to consolidate their promotion hopes when their game against Barrow was called off due to a frozen pitch.

So, normal service has been resumed - in more senses than one.

It sure was.  My last post about football revealed a new found `sanguinity` at the recent home defeat not only by Aston Villa but also by the incomprehensible refereeing and VAR decisions which arguably cost Southampton the game.  Last night - you don`t need me to tell you - saw Southampton lose 9-0 away at Old Trafford but the curious thing is that whilst I am naturally disappointed about that, given that there`s nothing I can do about it, I am once again shrugging my shoulders and moving on, as they say.  After a defeat, one of our favourite ex-Saints managers, Nigel Adkins, would always say, "Blue line.  Move on."   So we will.

This time though, as well as the questionable standard of officialdom, there were other factors at play which added up to just one of those nights.  As a Saints fan I`m used to disappointment, inconsistency, unpredictability and bewilderment but on this occasion I accept that nine of the first team squad missing through injury didn`t help.  That resulted in two academy lads making their first team full debuts - away against Manchester United of all things - and a bench consisting of other academy players and two goalkeepers.  Not helped either by the sending off of full debutant Alexandre Jankewitz after just 79 seconds for an unprovoked assault on an innocent opponent.  (Jankewitz apparently put in a transfer request last week as he wasn`t getting enough `game time.`  Well, after this 79 seconds game time, I hope his request has been granted.)

Last time we lost 9-0 there was widespread astonishment that our current manager, Ralph Hasenhuttl, wasn`t sacked on the spot.  He wasn`t, he was given a new contract, such was the belief in what he was trying to achieve for the club.   This time, given the lack of investment by the club`s oriental, silent and largely absent owners, there might be widespread disbelief that Hasenhuttl wants to stay.  I hope he does.

Anyway, as Nigel said, `blue line, move on.`  And so to the other game I was following last night.  Forest Green Rovers, with our street`s local hero on board, made the 604 mile round trip to Carlisle.  Oop north, they`ve had a lot of snow, so goodness knows what their coach journey was like - it`s supposed to take over five hours each way on a good day so I wonder what time in the early hours the team returned to their Gloucestershire retreat.   Anyway, it was worth the journey as they came away with a 2-1 win against their fellow promotion hopefuls to go second in League Two.  Nice one.

So, just one of those nights;  just one of those crazy flights;  a trip to the moon on gossamer wings;  just one of those things.

 NICE WHILE IT LASTED..

A couple of weeks ago we were top of the Premier League for 42 hours - last night it was for 42 minutes so now we`re back to 3rd thanks to Arsenal equalising in the second half.  Time to sack the manager.

 PICURES PAINTING MORE THAN WORDS...

Well, please forgive me but I`m enjoying it while it lasts.