Fantastic Place

I've supported Southampton Football Club, the Saints, for most of my life and attended my first game on my 8th birthday (0-0 at home to West Ham).

For the majority of that time, they have been in the top division of English football. In the mid-seventies they did drop down a division, but during that time they won the F A Cup.

In 2005, when the man predicted to be the next England manager, Harry Redknapp, was our manager we were relegated from the Premiership and that started the worst period I've known as a Saints fan.

Redknapp stayed on as manager for our first season in the Championship, but in December that year resigned and returned to Portsmouth as manager. Saints appointed George Burley as his replacement and mid table respectability followed. The next season was seen as a good opportunity to go back up and although automatic promotion was beyond us we did make the play offs. This hope ended however on a rain soaked evening at Derby, when a penalty shoot out went about as badly as one can go.

Expectation was again high the next season, but any momentum was lost when George Burley left in January, to become Scotland manager. Eventually Nigel Pearson was appointed as his replacement, but by then the Saints had slipped down the table and it was only a last day home victory that avoided the drop to League 1, which rather confusingly is the third tier of English football.

Despite Pearson doing quite well in avoiding relegation, he was sacked in the summer and Jan Poortvliet, who had played in the Dutch team of "total football" fame, was appointed. Guess what, again expectations were high, and indeed in one League cup game I remember them playing some of the best passing football we had seen for a while. That was very much the exception and Poortvliet resigned in January of the season with Saints at the bottom of the league. There were also increasingly worrying stories of financial problems despite the best players having been sold in the previous two years. Mark Wotte, who had been assistant manager, took over but he was unable to save the team and they were relegated to League 1. Worse still the club's parent company went into administration and this resulted in a 10 point penalty being applied to the start of the next season.

During the summer months of 2009 the financial position was so bad that the club being liquidated was a possibility. Eventually a German industrialist, Marcus Liebherr, bought the club and appointed Alan Pardew as manager. Despite a 10 point penalty, the team started to climb up the table and for the first time also took part in the Football league trophy, known as the SJP Trophy. The league eventually proved too tough  mainly through the 10 point penalty and the team finished frustratingly short of the play off places. The SJP trophy though had a better outcome with the Saints winning the competition in a Wembley final; against Carlisle Utd (4-1).

The next season, promotion back to the Championship, was Pardew's only task. Sadly in August that year Marcus Liebherr died with his vision still a work in progress. When at the end of August, despite beating Bristol Rovers 4-0 away from home Saints were at the bottom of the table, the club still reeling from Liebherr's death acted and Pardew left.

His replacement was Scunthorpe manager, Nigel Adkins, who had successfully taken his old club out of League 1. His style was different and attention to fitness and focus on your tasks in the team become well known phrases in post match interviews. The team climbed the table and in May 2011 beat Walsall at St Mary's to return to the Championship as runners up.

This season started with mixed feelings, how would we do? Back in a league we had struggled in and with  ambitions to get beyond this league back to the Premier league. The season started at home to Leeds who would give a good test as they were a team expected to be one of the teams who would be part of the promotion race. Well Saints won 3-1 and they went on to win the next three games too which put them top of the table.

It's well known that football is a game of confidence and as that grew, results continued to go well and through the autumn Saints remained in the top two. A good November underpinned that position but then in December a bad patch arrived with only one win, yet the lead built up and other teams also faltering meant the top two position remained secure. January was slightly better but then all the hard work kicked in and a 13 game unbeaten run started. This saw the team to Easter and the business end of the season. The top of the table was Saints, West Ham and and a rapidly advancing Reading.  West Ham were drawing a lot of games, Reading were winning and Saints had to play Portsmouth. A last minute goal from Pompey drew the game, but an Easter Monday away win at Crystal Palace, kept Saints top.

Then came the big game, home top Reading, effectively the winners would all but be promoted. We lost & for the first time all season doubt started to creep in. Two away games to go and the first at Peterborough saw Saints win and West Ham only draw, we were 5 points clear with 6 points to play for. A win at Middlesborough and we were back in the Premier league. We lost.

Still another chance, if West ham lost at Leicester City we were up. West Ham won.

So to today, we needed to win at home to Coventry City. Coventry are already relegated and have the worst away record in the league (we have the best home record too). Surely we wouldn't throw away the best chance we've ever had of going back to the promised land.

Well we started nervously, but 2 goals in a minute calmed the nerves and two more in the second half mean that Saints won 4-0 and are a Premier league football team again!

COYR.