Nought in the headlights: Massive defeat leaves Saints on edge

“This is our hour of need.”
Leon Crouch

“It’s all about you. Players come and go and directors come and go but you are here for ever.”
Lawrie McMenemy

“We underperformed.”
Mark Wotte

The 27,228 supporters who rallied to the cause after a week of crisis at St Marys were treated to a horror show yesterday as Saints slumped to a miserable defeat at home to bottom club Charlton. Their magnificent show of support could not be matched on the pitch, where the players appeared fazed and intimidated by the sheer scale and importance of the match.

Saints 2 – Charlton 3

Not just league survival, but the survival of Southampton Football Club as a whole is at stake in these final seven matches. That was the message given on the pitch by as former Chairman Leon Crouch and Cup-winning manager Lawrie McMeneny who issued passionate pleas to the supporters and the city to get behind their team in its hour of need. They duly delivered, first by turning up and then by raising the volume to a level not seen at St Marys this season.

However, it was the eleven on the pitch who ultimately mattered and they crumpled under the pressure. Charlton’s early goal came as no surprise as Wotte’s wobbly defence opened up welcomingly. The performances of the Saints players seemed riddled by a fear of defeat that found expression in the endless long balls heaped forward. Throughout the game, no one was prepared to get the ball down and take a risk.

However, credit to David McGoldrick for keeping his head and drawing things level after seventeen minutes. Few others in the side, however, were able to follow his example, except for the superb Kelvin Davies. His penalty save – after the woeful JP Saeiz had lost his head in a ridiculous act of petulance, dragging down his man in the box – should have kick started a Saints revival, but this was not to be on a day when all hope of survival seemed to perish.

The woeful standard of the game was briefly interrupted in the second half by Charlton’s winning goals, which put any hope of a Saints victory to be bed. That appeared to be the verdict drawn, anyway, by the thousands of supporters who disappointingly left after the third went in, despite there being twenty minutes left. Their actions appeared to sum up the complete loss of belief in its footballing side the city has undergone in the last couple of seasons. There appears to be a belief that it is enough just to show up as a pledge of support to the football club. It is not. Unless the side is supported to the end, there will be no football club- the two are inextricably linked.

Where does this result leave Saints? After staring down the barrel of the relegation gun for much of the season, this has pushed a lot of fans over the edge into thinking relegation is a matter of time. It is not. I remember feeling similarly after the loss to Burnley late last season, after which we survived. However, times are indisputably bleak indeed and if there is a chance the ten point penalty is carried over to next season – the Football League meets on Tuesday – (if there is a next season) it must be ensured it is taken now.

Knowing Saints, they will probably go and get a win at Watford on Tuesday. It is one hell of a hope, but we cannot afford – for the club’s sake – to give up now.

Administration arrives at St Marys- can the club survive 2009?

The future of Southampton Football Club hangs by a thread tonight, with the financial oblivion that has loomed on the horizon all season becoming a reality yesterday.

Many football fans waking up across the country must have thought the news was an April Fool. But for Saints fans - to whom the club's financial woes have been common knowledge all season - it was all too believable. The football board's inability to publish a set of bi-annual accounts made administration inevitable for the club's owners Southampton Leisure Holdings - the parent company finally brought to its knees by SFC's £27.5 million debt mountain.

The news was accompanied by Rupert Lowe's exit from the club, marking an ignominious end to his second spell at the club. His “Second Coming” has been characterised by drastic steps being taken to improve the club’s financial situation – including a slashing of the wage bill and sections of the stadiums closed during match days – but these measures were not enough to save the club and his reputation lies in tatters tonight. Fellow board members Michael Wilde and Andrew Cohen have also left the club.

The club’s fate now lies in the hands of administrators Begbies Traynor, the accountants who oversaw Bournemouth’s recovery. However, they make plain the seriousness of Saints’ situation. If the club fail to attract major investment before the end of the summer, Southampton Football Club will cease to function and drop out of the Football League.

It is an unthinkable prospect.

However, 125 years of proud footballing history count for little when the administrators get called in. After dropping out of the Premier League, the club has been encumbered by massive debts, largely the £23.1 million the club still has to pay off on its St Marys loan. The remainder is made up of the overdraft, which Barclays refused to extend after it was exceeded this month.

Compounding all this, Saints remain in danger of a second relegation in four years. If Saints were to drop down to the third tier it would make the club a far less attractive investment opportunity and reduce the chances of a buyer being found.

The situation is grave, but relegation would make it ten times worse.

Given all this, it is hardly a surprise that the administrators called on the club’s supporters to get behind the club this weekend. Their support for the rest of the season – both financial and physical – will play a massive part in determining the club’s fate. High ticket sales will help the club operate until the end of the season, while their support on match days has never been so important.

Fans put off by Rupert Lowe have no excuse now.

Survival this season would be a massive boost- and that is if we can also avoid a points deduction for going into administration. The fact that SFC’s parent company – not the club itself – has gone under could provide a vital loophole, one likely to be contested by Saints’ relegation rivals.

In the midst of so much uncertainty, one thing is for sure: Saints will have a fight to survive this year. Even if relegation can be staved off – unlikely enough, though possible – a buyer will have to be found and a points reduction avoided. These are perilous times indeed, and the economic downturn will not help the search for investment.

As Saints enter the unknown, the fans must again demonstrate their love for the club. The players must be shown what they are playing for and the moneymen must be shown the club has a future. Lets sell out these last three games and keep the club up.

To go from an FA Cup Final to extinction in six years would be a travesty, but that apocalyptic scenario is a real possibility. With so much at stake, Championship survival is the first priority.

Stage set for agonising April as Saints salvage point

David McGoldrick’s second half strike was enough to secure a point for Saints at Blackpool today, but, with games running out, their failure to get all three may prove costly come the final reckoning.

Blackpool 0 – Saints 0

Saints fought back bravely after conceding a dodgy penalty in the first half, but this is nonetheless a result which extends their run of matches without a win to four. The result was even more excruciating to bear for the one thousand strong travelling contingent with Andrew Surman hitting the post from a free kick deep in stoppage time.

Other results, though, did go Saints’ way for once and a string of good results and a bit of luck will still see them to safety. It is not all over, though Radio Solent analyser and ex-Saints boss Dave Merrington feels Mark Wotte may not be giving his side their best chance of survival. He criticised the Dutch Head Coach for not being more positive and playing two wide men from the start, a change which paid dividends when it was eventually made in the second half.

Saints now have a two week break to work on their shortcomings and prepare for a month of fixtures which will determine the future of the club. I just hope they can take the pressure- I know I can’t.

Relegation race takes shape as Saints slip up again

Saturday’s failure to secure three points at home to a lacklustre QPR outfit means Saints remain entrenched in the bottom three with just eight games left. Just two points adrift – and with a game in hand on most of their rivals – their safety remains in their own hands, but if Saints fail to be more clinical in the weeks ahead survival will look more and more unlikely.

Saints 0 – QPR 0

A gap of three points has opened up between Blackpool in 18th place (46 points) and Plymouth in 19th and it looks as if the bottom spots will be filled by three of that bottom cluster.

Plymouth P39 43pts
Norwich P39 42pts
Forest P39 41pts
Barnsley P36 40pts
Saints P38 39pts
Charlton P38 28pts

Charlton look too far adrift now so it looks likely that those two other spots will be filled by the five teams above them, propped up for the moment by Saints. The run-in has not been kind to Saints, with five of our eight games left away from home (Thanks to the re-arranged Watford fixture). However, that has not made much of a difference for us this season so should not be regarded as too important a factor.

Blackpool A
Charlton H
Watford A
Wolves A
Palace H
Wednesday A
Burnley H
Forest A

Saints should be looking to get points off Watford and Wednesday (who should be a bit safer by then) and Palace and Burnley (who should be out of all reckonings by then). Either way, it is going to be tight and looks sure to go all the way to the final day, where a showdown with fellow-strugglers Forest will make excruciating viewing.

The bottom line is that if Saints underperform as they have done at home in the last two games, they will go down. They need to rediscover the spark which drove them to three wins on the bounce if they are to have any hope and probably look at take 3 wins and 2 or 3 draws from these 8 fixtures if they are to do it. Over to you then, lads.

Hopes take hit as Saints caught in doldrums

"What if?" was the prevailing sentiment around St. Marys this evening, as Saints were held to a costly draw by a run-of-the-mill Derby side

Saints 1 - Derby 1

Still far from safe, Saints entered their tenth-from-last game of the season knowing that nothing other than three points would be enough. Saints fans' hopes may have been artifically inflated by their recent wins but with time running out, tonight was an ideal opportunity to push on. However, in a tightly contested game Saints could not deliver the performance required, providing a result which piles on the pressure for Saturday's fixture against QPR. There is still hope, but a similar failure then really would send Saints into the wilderness.

Saints goal - which came, luckily, via a Derby defender - raised hope of an undeserved win, but the visitors were able to level minutes from time. They remain in touching distance of their rivals, and still have a game in hand, but tonight's was not a game to inspire confidence. The most worrying thing, in view of the fact that a win - however undeserved - would have lifted them marginally away from the trouble, was the nature of the performance. The lack of flair and passion displayed in such an important game explains the boos that came at the final whistle and the deep sense of frustration that rancours amongst Saints fans tonight.

Disappointing afternoon leaves reds feeling blue

After the party, the hangover. Saints' restored hopes of survival were offered a significant wake-up call this afternoon, other results leaving them entrenched in the bottom three as they slumped to defeat at St. Andrews by a single goal.

Birmingham 1 - Saints 0

Saints' amazing run of late had to end at some point, but the manner of the Blues' win will leave them feeling some regret that they could not salvage a point. The only goal came in stoppage time at the end of the first half during a tepid affair in which Saints failed to create the chances that have characterised their recent performances. Wins for Derby, Blackpool and Watford add a further shade of grey to a poor afternoon and mean it is now even more crucial Saints pick up at least four points in their upcoming brace of home games if they are to stay in touch.

COYRs

Bloody Hell! Survival bid steps up a gear in East-Anglia

Saints made it three out of three on Tuesday night, apparently blessed boss Mark Wotte describing their 3-0 demolition away to Ipswich as one of the best nights in the club's history.

Ipswich 0 - Saints 3

Three on a bounce has been an unheard of feat for Saints recently (last achieved under Burley in 2006) and the result gives another significant boost to hopes for suvival. Though other results again went against Saints - they still lie two points adrift of Blackpool - the side's mounting confidence has got rival teams looking over their shoulders going into the run-in. A tricky trip to St Andrew's follows tomorrow, but subsequent home games against QPR and Blackpool provide massive chances for Saints to kick on in their bid for survival. And let it not be forgotten that these three wins have come against top-half opposition; proof that it is all about form - and not necesarily class - in this division.

With more unsavoury reports in today's papers coming as an untimely and unwelcome distraction to the players, this unlikely survival bid could come off the rails at any time. But at the moment, anything seems possible - expressed perfectly by Jason Euell's brace on Tuesday night. On the pitch, things appear to be consistently going Saints' way for the first time this season- let us hope it can continue tomorrow.