COME ALL YE FAITHFUL

All Saints Day has come and gone, but not unnoticed among the faithful at St. Mary`s Stadium. The convention has been that as a mark of respect for those players or club officials or, indeed, any one of particular note in the football world who may have passed away, either a minute`s silence has been held or, more latterly, a minute`s applause and the players of both teams have traditionally worn black armbands.

No real problem with any of that but the truth is that on some occasions, the minute`s silence has been ruined by the mindless intervention of the thoughtless few, notably from a rival club a few miles down the M27. There was always the dilemma as to whether to `remember` players from bygone days who may not be so familiar to the younger generation and a more recent dilemma has been whether to have silence, applause or nothing at all.

An inspired suggestion came from among the ranks of Southampton FC supporters that All Saints Day gave us the perfect and elegantly appropriate opportunity to have just one day in the season when respects could be paid not just to former players or officials but also to departed fellow supporters. So it was decided to have a minute`s silence at the home game nearest to the traditional date for All Saints Day on 1st November each year.

This year`s first such `remembrance` came at the home game against Wolverhampton Wanderers when we remembered all those who had passed away during the past year including Tommy Traynor, Charlie Wayman and the unforgettable Peter Osgood, who was part of our FA Cup winning team in 1976. I had the pleasure of being at Wembley that day and Ossie`s passing was particularly poignant.

Our real thanks go to the players, officials and particularly the supporters of Wolves who, on the night, joined us in observing our remembrance with the dignity it deserved. In view of the respect they showed, it seemed churlish to take three points off them in a 2-0 win. However, fear not dear reader, for Saints form returned to normal with a humiliating 2-0 defeat at Meadow Lane against lowly Notts County and another reverse at the hands of struggling Colchester United at Layer Road. The dull 0-0 draw at home against Hull City did little to dispel the notion that mid-table mediocrity beckons for yet another season.

However, it`s still comforting to be part of a club which, whilst the football team may not be the greatest team the world has ever seen,has a community spirit which is alive and well among the constant faithful.