The bus has pulled in, Journey Compete!

7^th May 2011

Our final game of the season saw Walsall make the trip to St. Mary's. Saints needed a point to be assured of Championship football next year and the coveted runners up spot to Brighton.

The game was a sell out and over 31,000 supporters filled the stadium to enjoy the promotion party. Walsall fans played their part by bringing about 2,000 in their bid to avoid relegation.

Before the game, Saints fans held aloft red or white placards to show the support the team had behind them.



Before the game, Itchen / Chapel Corner



Chapel / Kingsland Corner 

As per most games this season, we started brightly with Guly and Lambert both moving around the visiting defence. Guly broke the deadlock with a well taken goal on 25 minutes, cutting in from the right before curling the ball past Walker in the Walsall goal. This joy was doubled 3 minutes later as Connolly finished from close range following good work from Lallana. We seemed to have wrapped up the points and took our foot off the gas. We got a little bit sloppy and gave away a goal on the cusp of half time as Gray cut in and drilled a shot past Kelvis.

Second half we seemed to have regained our composure and played in 3^rd gear. We could have opened up and scored many more, but there was no need. Saints bought on the returning Chamberlain who seemed fresh and eager. Alex should have scored a hat-trick within 10 minutes of coming on, but he made one chance count with the goal of the game, cutting in from the right and curling a shot in from 18 yards. A fitting end to the season.

The inevitable pitch invasion took place at the final whistle, with many of the players struggling to make it to the tunnel. It was all in good spirits and it was great to see the players celebrating with the Chairman in the directors box shortly after. Mission complete!

Party time on the pitch!

Block 42, Row W boys.
 (L-R: Me, Jamie, Dave, Brendan, Geoff)

Here is to a busy summer, with hopefully more additions to the squad. It would be great to be able to keep all our star players, but I think we may lose one in Chamberlain. Nigel Adkins deserves great credit for all his hard work and I for one cannot wait till 17^th June when the fixtures come out. The build up starts then! But for now, the bus is parked up in the station and getting a well deserved rest for the summer.

Adventures of a Saints Fan, Season Player Ratings:

1 Kelvin Davis - A good shot stopper, but poor communication and looks nervous coming off his line. Some vital penalty saves. 6/10

2 Frazer Richardson - Always dependable. Long term injury meant we didn't see the best of him. 7/10

3 Dan Harding - Got into good attacking positions, weighed in with a couple of goals. Shame his defending was inconsistent at times. 7/10

4 Morgan Schneiderlin - Best passer of the ball at the club. Needs to cut out silly bookings, but good to see him getting stuck in. A massive season awaits. 7.5/10

5 - Ryan Dickson - Yet another good attacking full back. A bargain signing who should establish himself as number 1 next season. 7.5/10

6 Jose Fonte - Hardly put a foot wrong and was our best defender this season. Scored his fair share too. 9/10

7 Rickie Lambert - Didn't reach the height of the previous season. Carried injuries, but still scored 20 goals plus and numerous assists. 8.5/10

8 Jonathan Forte - Signed midway through the season. Looks a good signing. Vital goals against MK Dons. 7/10

9 Lee Barnard - Despite off field distractions, still banged in almost 20 goals. Always works hard and a fans favourite. 8.5/10

10 Jason Puncheon - Absolute disgrace, should never wear the shirt for us again. 0/10

11 Guly Do Prado - Took a while to settle in. Hit double figures and bought some chaos to our front-line. We still don't know his best position. 8/10

12 Danny Butterfield - Great free transfer signing. Always solid, put in a few great crosses and offered versatility. 7.5/10

14 Dean Hammond - The skipper dragged the team at times to victory. Superb in second half of the season. 8/10

15 Radhi Jaidi - A rock at the back. Shame his legs are going. Scored a few and won lots of headers at the back. 8/10

17 Aaron Martin - Showed great promise with some impressive displays. Under used in my opinion. One very much for the future. 7/10

19 Danny Seaborne - Bobby Moore as we like to call him. Over uses his cross field passes, but another squad member who can be relied on. 7/10

20 Adam Lallana - Critical to all our success. Not only chips in with goals and assists but shows the passion required to be a fans favourite. 9/10

21 Lee Holmes - Another injury ravaged season. Showed glimpse of talent in his few appearances. 6/10

22 David Connolly - Injuries ruined his season. Once fit, showed his class. Scored a classic Connolly goal away to Brighton. 7/10

23 Tommy Forecast - Who? What a waste of space, even Eastbourne thought he was crap! 0/10

24 Bartosz Bialkowski - Didn't feature much, performs well when selected. Still doubts over long term fitness but should be number 1 in my opinion. 7/10

26 Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain - What a season from the young kid. Gave many a left back nightmares with his pace and directness. Scored his share of goals too. 8.5/10

27 Oscar Gobern - Potentially can be our Patrick Vieira. Breaks up play well and tries to get forward. Classic sending off at Bournemouth! 7/10

30 Richard Chaplow - Bargain signing at 50k. Added needed bite to midfield and always a goal threat. 7/10

32 Dany N'Guessan - Showed glimpse of skill but generally was a let down. 5/10

33 Dale Stephens - Came in and did a job. Too many sideways passes for my liking. Like a young Jim Magilton. 5.5/10

Other loan signings like Nicholas Bignall 4/10

The Gaffer Nigel Adkins - Nigel got us fit and motivated. Won mind games with most managers and always seemed to try to play flowing football. Tactically very good and not afraid to change the system. 10/10

Adventures of a Saintsfan, Player of the Season :

Dean Hammond wins my player of the year. Dean has skippered the side well and was the driving force behind the new found resilience that our players seem to have. Dean chipped in with a few goals and deservedly wears the armband. Well done Deano, hopefully the first of many awards!

I would like to thank everyone who has read, contributed and given me feedback this season. I plan to make lots of improvements over the summer and hope you'll all be back next season to read my thoughts on Saints in the Championship.

COYR!! We did it for Markus!!

A big thank you to all those that have been able to read this and if you have any comments, good or bad please get in touch. Email – modha79@gmail.com

Special thanks to my very good friend Alan who is helping spread the word by advertising this blog on his own website. Please visit http://www.bellsofhythe.co.uk/ for all your outdoor sports needs!

All the best

Neel