Just seen this article from the Times about Southampton's financial crisis

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/columnists/rod_liddle/article6036576.ece

"[Southampton] will no doubt continue telling themselves they are indisputably a Premier League club when they make the trip to Hartlepool next season."

What a disgusting thing to say about us.

Rest assured I have written a letter to the Times in response to this.

He should be applauded, I don't see any of us predicting so confidently that we'll stay up.

What has he said wrong

Get help sunshine, get help now!

Well, no, but don't you think it sounds like it's derogatory towards us - making people think we're a small, unattractive, unsuccessful club.

Or am I interpreting this slightly negatively?

You read The Times pok ?

Yes you are

Only very occasionally.

Though I don't agree with the views of their columnists all the time.

Ron Liddle was the editor of the Today Programme when allegations of sexing up evidence which led up to the assault on Iraq were made. He sometimes gets things right but mostly he's a self opinionated attention seeker. Not a serious journalist.

Not only that, but I speak with confidence here. My wifes family are Saints fans. All of them.

They adopted Hartlepool as their second club, when they met me.....in 1984. They are all gutted about what has happened to their club, and you had better believe it, when I say this, that for them to be in league one, but still playing, is far better than going bust.

They are the least pretentious fans I have ever come across.

I got married on the 24th February 1990. ll of my wifes family, incl her brother and dad, left the wedding reception at 2:30pm all dressed in their wedding suits and went to pools. Pools won but for the life of me, I cant remember who we played. They have all followed pools ever since. they loved it.

Still not as bad as the Coventry chairman who once said he didn't want to be opening their new stadium to the likes of Hartlepool.

Just a second while I check:

Small: yup, deffo
Unattractive: yes to most people

Seems like they got it spot on.

I have to agree on that one we are attractive only to a player that is playing in a lower divison, not getting their regular game and anyone with roots to the north-east end off, lets not kid ourselves we are a small culb in the arse end of nowhere (but i still love it), why apart from the obvious do you think the Boro and Sunderland cant attract players. Team such as tranmere, leeds and Leicester have much more appeal than us because put simply there to an extent better places to live.

Leicester and Tranmere better places to live?

I assume that you must be a Paki who has never been to Tranmere.

Obviously you havent been to Liverpool or the nice parts of the wirral then beacuse lets not beat around the bush its a better place to live than Hartlepool

Birkenhead is a dive .Even the real scousers turn there noses up at it .

wasn't talking about Birkenhead, as I know its a hell hole I used to live in Liverpool and on the wirral, the point I was making that players would find it more attractive place to live due to the fact most of them would live, go out, shop etc in liverpool or even chester, which is better prospect than going to yates's, bar paris and dalton park on a weekend

So if they played for Tranmere they could live and go out in Liverpool but if they played for Hartlepool they'd be confined to the town boundaries and not allowed to go anywhere except Yates and Bar Paris save for the odd day out at the shops in Murton?

not the point I was making surely you must see that the surrounding areas of say tranmere leeds etc has more for a young lad 18-29 to do than Hartlepool its a simple fact

Tranmere-Liverpool city, wirral, chester, wales and at a push manchester.
Leeds - brilliant city and nightlife, shops etc

Hartlepool - night life is ok for a small town, boro is good night out, etc (I would move back home ie surround areas prob newcastle like a shot, however I have an affinity to the place)

A young lad from say shrewsbury, colchester, yeovil etc were would they choose would be my question and honestly hand on heart I would say 75% of them would choose other locations than Hartlepool. I am not putting my town down as its my home and I love it but in my eyes thats the truth

I fully agree with Compo. Too many people with the old blinkers on here.

I love my town and i'm happy here, but other places (i'll use Leeds here as I visit regularly) have much more to do, better transport links, better nightlife, easier to get to other places, better music venues and clubs etc.

Anyone who can't see that has either...

a) never left the town
2) is a doil

I'll assume that you're notation above is irony.

Comparing Hartlepool to Leeds is not realistic.

Comparing Newcastle to Leeds is more of a comparable example.

But we're not really competing with Leeds for players. If we're competing with teams NEAR Leeds then surely we can similarly be classed as being NEAR Newcastle. Ditto with Tranmere and Liverpool.

But my point is still valid also you have to take into account that to travel to Hartlepool from down south is not ideal for young players to travel home etc. Surley you are arguing a slight aspect of my comment and not viewing it as a whole Hartlepool is not as an attractive prospect as other teams in our divison simple as that really, why do you think the boro and sunderland find it hard to attract certain overseas players beacsue they want to live down south and/or in London, now before you say we are not in the market for these type of top flight overseas players (allthough we have done well with porter and lange) the same rule applies to young english players

Just agreeing with the post. Of course places like Leeds/Liverpool have more of an attraction for prospective players, and of course comparing Hartlepool (town) to Leeds (3rd biggest city in the country or something daft like that) is not completely fair, but you can see why players choose to go to these places.

We might as well be in the highlands, we are that hard to get to.

I've always found Newcastle, Sunderland and Boro awful places to go.

For what its worth I think Leeds has to be one of the most overrated, over hyped cities in the UK
It's a fooking hole, it's the West Yorkshire brother of the Borer

Each time I go over the border from North Yorks to Leeds it feels like the badlands

Yes we all know you love pools , it's your town but what about other factors pollution ,radiation,gurners, oddballs etc etc

Nothing like bringing a debate down to a darlo level is there??

Howay, or should I say 'cam on mayte,' say summat useful...

Baked potatah, Sussex....do some reading.

Saw a programme on Sky One last night: NIGHT COPS.

Following a group of cops at night in various places in the UK.

Showed a drunk lad literally being carried into a police van in Darlington.

Enough said.

Aye, they know how to avoid paying for a taxi home, that lot.

Ok " Enjoy your noodles tonight "

I watched a similiar one on pools one night pok .No lies after giving it big to the coppers struggling , effing and blinding two lads in seperate incidents burst out crying down at the nick later .

Cah!!

One doesn't eat noodles at night. One eats noodles for breakfast or lunch.

Fancy not knowing that.......