dustynrg

many will say it means we'll sell taylor for 4mill. Not that I want it to happen, but I think we'd cash in Colo before Taylor. nah, Taylor's English (and young) so we can get more for him.

Outside the box, ref's waiting to give them a penalty man.

How many of our fans there today? When Plymouh come here it's on the national news when we go here it's not even mentioned. This commentary is great. Coloccini is in dire neeed of a haircut apparently.

We won't. Nailed on this is what will happen: If we get promoted, within a week Ashley will announce that the club is back on the market, with an increased price tag of around £150-200m (ignoring the fact we'll need to spend about £50m to stay up). We'll spend the summer in limbo, without a buyer and without any signings. Ashley will give up and announce he's holding on to the club for another season. We'll bring in a few loans and a few panic buys and we'll be bottom at christmas. At which point Hughton will be sacked and Kinnear will be brought back in to oversee our relegation. Yep, sounds about right.

We won't survive if Ashley stays and even if he goes whoever comes in won't be able to buy and build a team just like that. The Championship level of football is low and we're starting to falter, if we can't score against Derby and draw with the likes of Sheffield Wednesday we'd get slaughtered by the likes of Arsenal and Chelsea, and even Spurs, although it pains me to say it. All of a sudden Houghton doesn't need any players, wtf? That's not what he said even two months ago. We can only pray for a quick sale, it's our only hope.

Don't like him but he is clearly better than anything we've got in central midfield. Correct answer IMO. At the time (when he left) i was his biggest critic but i can't help think he's the sort of player we need to give our midfield some much needed life. The only reason i suggested it is because i don't see him getting back into the Spurs side next season, however i doubt he would want to come back here or most would want him back. Last thing we need is a chicken hearted crybaby who constantly passes the ball sideways/backwards/out of the park. At least 'Arry has seen through him. There has to be a better alternative.

I vaguely remember hearing he was born in Eighton Banks in Gatesheed.

It's completely different playing a second string in a competition that mean the least of the cups in the English League. He's quite right. He and Ancellotti should expect McCarthy to field a second 11 when he plays them next time, in fact why don't all the bottom 6 do the same and field weakened sides against the top 6? I mean they won't win against the top 6 so why try? Do you really want to see that?

It is very different. As mentioned time and time again, Man Utd and Arsenals reserves can easily beat almost any team in the Premier League, even Wolves first team have a hard time doing that. Man Utd and Arsenal play their reserves still looking for a win, Wolves just threw the match not caring about trying. McCarthy should be fined, or Wolves should get a fine IMO. Point deduction would be taking it too far. i dont think you can really say because wolves didnt try to win the match they should be punished, plenty of teams go to the likes of the top four and dont play to win, but just because he chose to rest players, he should be made to look different to those teams? Playing for a draw is different to admitting defeat before the match is played, and I dare say most managers don't change their entire usual starting XI before a match against the top four, most teams actually want to try to get something from them as getting something from the top four is not only confidence building, it's valuable points if their opponents do like Wolves. I'd be ashamed and almost feel violated should Newcastle ever field a team of reserves against Man Utd just because the manager didn't think we could beat them. which is why i can understand the fan's anger, but not the FA's, its MM's decision to do that and a manager has enough problems without having the FA telling him who he should and shouldnt play. it was the wrong decision by MM, but that dosnt mean he should be singled out, as what he has done isnt all that different from clubs playing for draws or clubs playing their second string. Not trying at all is different though. That's why it's all so appaling. If he'd played his reserves, and they'd actually given it a go, it'd imo be a different story altogether. i dont think at any point MM would have said to the 10 outfield players not to try, any lack of effort for any sort of result is down to the players themselves, not MM or Wolves for playing them, therefore they shouldnt be punished for it. no doubt it was wrong, but any formal action is a bit ott, especially as other clubs arnt much better. He didn't have to say it though did he, by dropping his 10 outfield players who had beat Spurs it was a clear indication of surrender. As someone said Burnley beat Man U earlier, if Mccarthy even goes into a match just thinking defeat he should be slaughtered. I repeat, if he was Manager here nad did that you'd all be up in arms, no good saying "Two different clubs", Wolves have a rich history and their fans deserve better than this.

I'm laughing at the "He's the manager - let him decide brigade". If (god forbid) he was our Manager and did exactly the same with us when (should I say if ever again) we visited Man U or Arsenal or Chelsea he would be hung drawn and quartered on the Town Moor.

You have to realise that the journos (with a few notable exceptions) are not football fans per se, they take on England as their team and know everything about them, inside leg measurement, fave breakfast cereal, names of all their children and generally know little (and more importantly) have little interest in teams that are outside the top 4 (too hard rememebering all the names in the teams - UNLESS they play for England). So they have a huge interest in keeping those England players sweet (hence the wankfest over Owen's hat trick midweek) and cannot POSSIBLY accuse any of them of diving. I even heard one today say that whether Rooney dived was "a matter of opinion" WTF!!!!!!!! If it had been an Eduardo he would have been foaming at the mouth in anger. So in other words, it's self interest - pure and simple. They need to interview Rooney and Gerrard and Owen etc to make a living and therefore have to disappear up their respective arses and NEVER criticise them. And Xenophobia comes into it, let's face it journos on the whole are a bunch of right wing little Englanders and most probably secretly hate ANY pesky foreigner, how dare he come and steal jobs from our brave English footballers.

Could it be Martins v Owen tonight?

See Jenas is playing his pass-it-5-yards-backwards-or-sideways-or-out-of-the-ground-creating-nothing game. I'm amazed Arry hasn't subbed him yet.

Yes, yes it is. Massive progress from where we are this season if it were to happen, and that is all that matters. Things can change so quickly in terms of injuries, players, managers, and owners; and at present the last three are not going to be attracted to the club as we stand, so lets just hope to f*** we make it. Writing us off before we even get back there as Bird is doing, is pure doom mongering at it's finest. The end is nigh my ass, the club will be in a better position for it, end of. What he's doing (and has been all season) is trying to spitefully wind up Newcastle fans solely because we haven't done a Leeds. No other reason. It's disappointment we haven't imploded. There's plenty like him. I think you've read this completely wrong. I'm sure Bird is a Newcastle fan, who, like all of us, is concerned that if we go up we will have a rocky road ahead of us. Surely there's no argument about that? He is saying it's not like last time when optimism abounded and with good reason. This time what do we have? A lot of players who are not Premiership standard, an owner who wants to sell at all costs and no prospect of anyone buying us. What's so difficult to understand? He's simply giving a pragmatic view.

What's the weather like out in the Sahara then?

Desperation? How do you work that one out? It's been done to get free advertising for his crappy shops. Perhaps this was his aim all along. I'll be very surprised indeed if he even looks for a sponsor, why bother? He doesn't need to splash the cash on TV advertising or newspaper full page spreads, he's got St James' Park. Desperation has nowt to do with it. This is how he has made all that filthy luchre. Going for the sidestep and surprising everyone. We just have to hope he gets done and becomes an improper person overnight. I won't hold my breath though. Billionaires don't get done like that. Or is he just a multi millionaire now? Anyway, you get my drift.

Too right. They should be stoned to death for ignoring the centuries old tradition of having poppies on football jerseys. Did anyone explain this poppies on shirts thing and WHY it started when it did? As I said before it can only be less than five years at the most. Does it actually matter when it started? The whole point is that for one minute people can have a minute to remember that thousands of people died to ensure we are free. I don't care whether people want to wear a poppy or not, or want to spend that minute silently thanking those who made the sacrifice or if they spend the minute silently singing the theme tune of the simpson's in their head. What annoys me is that there are some who won't allow that minute of silence to go ahead because they are ignorant idiots. Well yes it does matter, if only for the curiosity value. I mean we've had wars forever, soldiers dying for hundreds and thousands of years, poppies since 1918 but footballers wearing poppies since less than five years ago? It doesn't make sense to me. It's not as if the general public or footballers cares more than they did 30 or 40 years ago, we're just meant to show it more for some reason. I'm sure years ago a minute's silence for Remembrance day was only held if the 11th fell on a Saturday. Are you being serious? How can you not understand why public support for the poppy campaign may have increased in the last, I dunno, eight years or so....!?!? Eh? I'm not sure what you mean, did war start eight years ago? Is the war that's going on in Afghanistan now worse than the Falklands War? The Gulf War? The Northern Irish Troubles? The Palestinian wars in the 40s? Or the several Afghan wars in the 19th Century? Worse than the Vietnam War? the Korean War? Well, you get the picture. I truly have no idea what you mean.

Too right. They should be stoned to death for ignoring the centuries old tradition of having poppies on football jerseys. Did anyone explain this poppies on shirts thing and WHY it started when it did? As I said before it can only be less than five years at the most. Does it actually matter when it started? The whole point is that for one minute people can have a minute to remember that thousands of people died to ensure we are free. I don't care whether people want to wear a poppy or not, or want to spend that minute silently thanking those who made the sacrifice or if they spend the minute silently singing the theme tune of the simpson's in their head. What annoys me is that there are some who won't allow that minute of silence to go ahead because they are ignorant idiots. Well yes it does matter, if only for the curiosity value. I mean we've had wars forever, soldiers dying for hundreds and thousands of years, poppies since 1918 but footballers wearing poppies since less than five years ago? It doesn't make sense to me. It's not as if the general public or footballers cares more than they did 30 or 40 years ago, we're just meant to show it more for some reason. I'm sure years ago a minute's silence for Remembrance day was only held if the 11th fell on a Saturday.

Too right. They should be stoned to death for ignoring the centuries old tradition of having poppies on football jerseys. Did anyone explain this poppies on shirts thing and WHY it started when it did? As I said before it can only be less than five years at the most.

I can't be arsed to argue what Celtic did blabla who mentioned Rangers bla bla. Sectarian bile and bigotry and all that claptrap. All I want to know is -when did footballers start wearing poppies? 2 years ago? 5 years ago? They weren't wearing them 10 years ago, or 20 as far as I remember, so why now? As I said we've had the Falklands, the Gulf War, Iraq and Afghanistan. It's not like war is a NEW thing, so why is the poppy wearing footballer a NEW thing?

So if he's fighting tooth and nail to keep them and they go does he go in protest? I did read this article the other day and wondered what he would do if the Fat One decides to make a few bob on say Carroll and Taylor (S) in January. As Ashley can't give two flying wahtsits what the fans think he will do what he wants.

All I can say is reading this thread I hope the day never ever arrives when C*ltic and R*ngers ever appear in this League. All this Celtic is Irish and Rangers is bla bla, christ, let the Scots/Irish/whatever the fuck they are argue it out. In their own league. In Scotland. If they ever soil the Premiership with all this bigotry shite then the Premiership is well and truly fucked. As for the poppy thing I'm scratching my head as to where this football/poppy thing has come from and when. It wasn't around in the Falklands War, it wasn't around in the Gulf War, why now? You can respect or remember the dead without wearing a cheap piece of plastic. Or not as the case may be.

Mike Ashley knows this, thats why he is "Showcasing" the sportsdirect.com @ SJP name, and that will continue next season when no companies approach the club for the naming rights. Spot on, I'm sure he has no plan to sell the rights, he just wants the free publicity for his crap business.

I assumed he was being sarcastic about "netting money for the club". Ashley has paid nowt for his cheap publicity stunt.

I think protest is necessary because we can't sit back and do nothing, and yes a protest would bring it to the attention of any potential sponsors. But any decent potential sponsors would walk away from this after doing 5 minutes of research,protest or no protest. I am convinced he will keep the name for Sports Direct, and he will be loving the publicity, he is a sadist of the nastiest kind. And I repeat, SHearer will be getting the blame for this sooner than later (he took us down and look where we are Llambias will say), and there will be Newcastle fans who fall for that as well, I'd put my mortgage on that.