Southampton: The ball's in Kev's court now
The chairman of Southampton FC, who have bid £3m for Kevin Phillips, says he's done everything he can to persuade the player that St Mary's Stadium is the place to resurrect his stalled Premiership career.
Rupert Lowe said that the club has been in lengthy negotiations with Phillips and his agent, and that the next move must now be Kev's.
Lowe said "We've agreed a fee, now it's a question of the player and his agent deciding if this is the place he wants to come - which we hope he will."
But he continued by emphasising that Gordon Strachan's squad-strengthening would continue - irrespective of Kev's decision.
"We are strengthening the squad and looking to strengthen before the season starts and the transfer window closes."
Niall Quinn - MBE !!
Sunderland legend Niall Quinn is to receive an honourary MBE for "outstanding services to international football and his contributions to United Kingdom charities".
When Niall announced last year that 100% of the money raised from his testimonial match - would be handed to charities in Sunderland, Dublin and overseas, many people said that he should receive some sort of honour for his decision; and now that has become a reality.
Quinny will receive his award from the British Ambassador to Ireland at a ceremony in Dublin this Wednesday.
A spokesperson at the British Embassy in Ireland said "Niall Quinn's initiative of donating the proceeds from his testimonial match between Sunderland and Ireland last year to children's charities led to his idea being adopted by a number of other players."
At the time of Quinny's testimonial, British Prime Minister Tony Blair said, "It is absolutely typical of the individual. In circumstances where people in sport often get a lot of bad publicity, this is an example we can hold up to everybody."
Honorary awards are presented on merit to non-British citizens by the Queen on the advice of the Foreign Office to people reckoned to have made an important contributions to British interests.
Niall donated a large share of the £1m from his testimonial match to Sunderland Royal Hospital and also to Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children in County Dublin, but he is also a patron of the Glass Slipper Appeal which raises money for hospitals in the Sunderland area, which raises money to treat sufferers of breast cancer.
The RTG/ALS End of season poll
The results are in and well as expected it ain't pretty reading ...
Welcome to the 2002-03 ALS/RTG Poll. You have voted in your thousands this year, making your feelings known on the players, the club and the way it is run. As is traditional, we have compiled the results starting with the biggest prize of best player. It’s taken a team of dedicated vote-counters the best part of their summer to tot up all your responses, but the results are in and here they are…
Best Player
1st Jody Craddock, 29%
2nd Sean Thornton, 21%
3rd Claudio Reyna, 11%
Worst Player
1st Tore Andre Flo, 39%
2nd Phil Babb, 27%
3rd Stephen Wright, 13%
Best Young Player
1st Sean Thornton, 68%
2nd Michael Proctor, 11%
3rd George McCartney, 4%
Favourite Player
1st Jody Craddock, 31%
2nd Julio Arca, 24%
3rd Thomas Sorensen, 11%
Least Favourite Player
1st David Bellion, 41%
2nd Kevin Kilbane, 26%
3rd Phil Babb, 9%
Most Improved Player
1st Michael Proctor, 29%
2nd Kevin Kilbane, 8%
3rd Kevin Kyle, 4%
Top Man of the Season
1st Jurgen Macho, 39%
2nd Sean Thornton, 24%
3rd Darren William, 17%
Bastard of the Season
1st Bob Murray, 35%
2nd Peter Reid, 26%
3rd Howard Wilkinson, 18%
Coolest Player
1st Sean Thornton, 37%
2nd Emerson Thome, 19%
3rd Kevin Phillips, 15%
Hardest Player
1st Gavin McCann, 29%
2nd Joachim Bjorklund, 23%
3rd Marcus Stewart, 14%
Best Haircut
1st Sean Thornton, 44%
2nd Stanislav Varga, 9%
3rd Mick McCarthy, 2%
Best Signing
1st Sean Thornton, 31%
2nd Kevin Ball (as coach), 29%
3rd Talal El Karkouri, 2%
Worst Signing
1st Tore Andre Flo, 44%
2nd Matt Piper, 23%
3rd Phil Babb, 21%
Murray – Should he stay or should he go?
Go: 87%
Stay for definite: 4%
Stay ‘cos there seems to be nobody to replace him: 9%
Phillips – Flog him or Keep him?
Flog him: 47%
Keep him:53%
Least Positive Aspect of the Season?
Too many various gripes to list as percentages, but people seem pissed off with the fact the we are the Premiership’s worst ever team, scored the fewest goals and won so few points. The appointment of Wilkinson in October figures highly, as do the derby defeats. The complete lack of commitment and desire from players. The worst Sunderland team in many people’s living memories. We are not, it is fair to say, a happy bunch right now.
Who is to blame?
1: The players: 42%
2: Bob and the Board: 38%
3: Reid: 20%
Marks out of ten for…
The Board: 1.2 (average)
Reid: 1.7
Wilkinson: 2.4
McCarthy: 3.8
Will you be renewing your season ticket?
Yes: 65%
No: 35%
Will we get promoted?
Definitely: 34%
No way: 39%
Don’t know: 27%
Goal of the Season
1st: Thornton v. Chelsea, 71%
2nd: Bellion v. Villa, 15%
3rd: McCann v. Blackburn, FA Cup, 6%
Most positive aspect of the season?
The vast majority of you were to numbed by relegation to contemplate this category, but the performance in the Scum game at the SoL was mentioned, as was the emergence of young talent like Thornton, Proctor et al. Plenty were just relieved it was all over.
Is McCarthy the man for the job?
Yes: 66%
No: 20%
Too early to tell: 14%
Another year passes and another poll is put to bed. All we can hope is that we have something a little sweeter to reflect on in nine months time.
Compiled by Andy Walker.
