Big Onion

As you've picked that out from my post I'll respond. Since when did longevity preclude the ability to be wrong like? (Johnny's Pele analogy is spot on ) I've got massive respect for Robson but he is certainly capable of talking shite man. It's not that long ago he was calling Jenas 'the complete footballer' and regarding him as one of the best prospects he'd ever had. I'd always listen to what SBR has to say and it's often spot on, but I disagree with him entirely here. Whether Ashley's pissed off is neither here nor there: the issue is who is primarily responsible for getting us in the shit. And as for 'educated judgements' that's the opposite of what he did. He gave key roles to his mates rather than people qualified to do the job. That's his own fault. I'd like to believe he's capable of learning from his fuck-ups but there's nothing really that suggests he will. I think Robson has been buoyed by the appointment of Shearer and is therefore disposed to chuck a few kind words in Ashley's direction.

How does this undermine Shearer? It doesn't in my eyes but I think it's spun to portray Shearer as excessively strict. 'Strange', 'counter-productive', 'it's just getting people's backs up' etc.

Coincidence that a leak from inside the club painting Barton in a bad light is quickly followed by one that is aimed at undermining Shearer? Could be I suppose but I have my suspicions.

This looks like it might be a precursor to the club seeking to terminate Barton's contract. That statement by his agent could be read as Barton signalling he'll resist. Just what we need at the minute all this shite like

Effectively confirms the stories about a spat. Bad enough he gets himself sent off but then he decides to turn on Shearer instead of taking his bollocking. Prick. And once again another negative story involving us will be all over the media. This club man, and what a shambles of a season.

Sacred cow or not, Robson can't half talk some shite. That's fault enough for me. His analysis also overlooks the glaringly obvious fact that the zero net spend over two seasons is solely down to Ashley. I don't like SBR's needless swipes at KK, and I don't think they do him credit. Robson wouldn't have touched the club in the state it was when Keegan took it first time. And to call him 'yesterday's man' when he was seven years younger than Robson was when he took the job on himself is churlish. He's right about us signing shite players but anyone with a pair of eyes knows that, and he wasn't immune from signing shite himself either.

The pair of them along with Ryan Taylor are just the sort of shite Keane was stockpiling at the mackems. I'm sick of watching them man, and matchdays being something you just have to endure

I don't see what he offers as a footballer anymore. He's just nowt.

Smith score Another arsehole. He could easily have gone yesterday as well, and his stupid 'cheeky grin' routine when he's yellow-carded for one of his daft sliding tackles is really starting to irritate me.

Geremi's got another year. Smith's got fucking three.

He's an arsehole, you're always risking a red putting tackles in like that. He's put himself out for the sake of a bit of petty score-settling with Alonso, and given his track record and our predicament it's totally unforgivable.

You're probably right that Hendry won't win another one. I still think his form this year is comfortably better than it was last, and it took some tremendous form from Murphy to see him off - fat cunt was cueing incredibly well that match. Up until the last third of the match Hendry's long-potting had been better than I've seen it for years, which is almost always the part of the game declining/ageing players lose first. What I was getting at I suppose is that the sheer class of Davis and Hendry has meant they've stayed competitive for far longer than could have been expected. Anyway, it's not over but Higgins has a good lead so hopefully the weekend won't be spoiled by the sight of Murphy lifting the trophy.

Barton wants shot for that. Fucking hell.

No chance - it's at Anfield so Gerrard's reffing it himself

Petrol, match

I consider myself a purist, but I'd take anything at all today, however it was achieved. A diving cunt like Gerrard's fair game anyway surely? I don't think we've got a prayer regardless like

Maybe this is the plan for Joey hes probably not got a lot of friends on Merseyside anyway Trouble is I doubt Barton could get close enough to Gerrard to get a decent kick in Maybe one of his trademark studs-down-the-back-of-the-achilles jobs is a possibility like

All we need now is for someone to snap Gerrard in half and our chances go up from zero to about 5%

It wouldn't surprise me in the least if Ashley sees himself as the victim in this. All that money wasted, poor me etc. He showed no real indication that he had any intention of changing his approach until it was getting really desperate. January's transfer window, and the period of inertia after Kinnear's heart wobble showed that. At a guess I'd say he probably blames Keegan for blowing the whole thing wide open.

It doesn't really matter whether it's incompetence, willful neglect or somewhere in between that's got us where we are. Just as, as far as the victim's concerned, murder or manslaughter amount to exactly the same thing.

Aye he's never been blessed in the complexion department. I don't know how he manages to shave without endangering his health I remember seeing him interviewed when he was about 17. Asked what his ambitions in the game were he shot back with: 'to beat (the almost unbeatable at the time) Steve Davis as many times as I can'. Which, over the course of the next few years, he proceeded to do. I've always felt he finished Davis as a major player through sheer force of will. The only player I've seen come close to matching his temperament under pressure is Alex Higgins, though obviously not as consistently. Snooker changed in the '80s and then again in the '90s, with Davis and then Hendry not just dominant but actually changing the way players approached and played the game. One by-product of this was that the older generation of players stopped being competitive. You had the odd exception like Mountjoy's brief revival but overwhelmingly the game became a young man's game, and things like Fred Davis reaching the World semis in his fifties just didn't happen anymore. It's quite remarkable that between the two of them the same two players are actually reversing this trend (not entirely but to an extent). Ten years ago I'd have said it's impossible for a forty-year-old to win the World title; if Hendry continues in this form he has a serious chance.

Danby gets a bit of credit from me for his winding-up of the mackems last time - did it very well I thought (I think it inspired quite a few non-too-complimentary threads on RTG, which shows it had the desired effect on them at least )

I was a bit uncomfortable with it as well, although I did wave the flag I was given anyway. One bloke in my end approved though, as he was collecting every flag he could find lying around as the ground emptied at the end

Keegan certainly did give an explanation, which was brief but very clear. Players were 'imposed' on him, something he refused to accept, and which was contrary to public assurances by Wise, Ashley and Mort, whatever they say about the small print. The club have never denied this; in fact they've more or less confirmed it through statements Llambias made in January. Beyond that, there's an ongoing legal compensation case. Just because he chooses not to whore himself out to the media doesn't make him a 'recluse'.