Alright then, just saw the Toon game [R]

[Clan]

And they totally outplayed a very inept and imagination lacking Hammers lot.
4-0 pasting and totally deserved.

Score line is a little misleading though as it was more the pityfull performance of the iron men than the superior performance of the toon.

Now all of the top 6 from last season have won their opening game.
We finished 6th and the hammers 7th last time around and they showed tonight the vast difference between the top six and the rest.

[fernb8]

Im no pundit but I thought they would struggle, they havent done a lot this summer and they cleared out several squad players at the end of last season.

A possible dark horse to get relegated? I still fancy Villa to struggle this season, but as we say Clan the Prem is a marathon and not a sprint.

[Clan]

And they did have some bright moments out there.
Joe Cole had a good game as did Sinclair.
Defoe was simply marked out of the game.

but thats okay--one teenage striker sensation is enough in the capital eh?

[fernb8]

true, very true

cant believe they got slapped 4-0 though, must be plenty of Geordies on the piss right now.

Hide the sheep and the wippets

[Clan]

Ha Ha Ha.
Full house for 'em too--but then they pull 30,000 plus when they play in the Inter-Toto for gawds sake.

Shearer looked sharp also tonight.
Still i didn't see anything for us to worry about.
The Arse game yesterday on the other hand is a different kettle of fish i gather.
They were supposed to have completly dominated the entire game and the 2-0 score is misleading as they eased up quite a bit i gather.

[fernb8]

they looked strong Clan

passing was excellent
the Brummies had to clear two off the line and Campbell hit the post as well, not to mention the five or six good saves by the Birmingham keep

thought the red was a bit harsh, but Cole hammed it up and sold the foul

[Clan]

Pity we have to play 'em so early ain't it fern?

Be nice for the morale 'n all if we could beat the manc and get a bit of a run going.
The scouse got off to a nice start last season after losing two games though-wenton a 12 gane league unbeaten run and finished strong.

After we get out of August we have some so called easier fixtures.

[GPK]

Originally posted by Clanblue

After we get out of August we have some so called easier fixtures.

Easy? We haven't won those in years anyway. But you know that.....

Yesterday was a great start...we've got to play 'em all twice anyway, so bring 'em on....

Go Blues.

[geordienation]

Good Lord did West Ham look unimaginative. I guess not having Kanute and DiCanio will do that for you, but Joe Cole is not a striker.

They bunkered and then, when the inevitable goal came (did you see the possession numbers? Ouch), the floodgates opened.

If this is a good team, they didn't show it today.

[fernb8]

full credit to the Geordies

you lot certianly didnt slow down once you got one goal. West Ham looked shocking and if they continue to play like that then it could spell trouble at Upton Park.

[mst77]

I chalked up their performance last season to low expectations/pressure and some great team chemistry. I didn't think they would be able to duplicate it and that their team would age pretty quickly. Looking at their lineup though the have a solid young nucleus that should keep them in the top 6 for years - Dyer, Bellamy, Viana, Jenas, Bernard, Bramble... pretty impressive. I think the CL will sap a lot of their energy this season and the defence will leak a lot of goals while it takes time to gel. I think they will finish 5th or 6th barring any major injuries because I think they will be out of the CL after the first stage. Still, I would rather see them up near the top of the table than the Arse, Pool or United.

Think we could re-sign poyet after this season with a clause in the contract saying he would only get to play against the Geordies? He used to completely demolish them.

[BridgeMonkee]

Leeds looked ok, man city made them look good to be honest, man city have some good players, but Keegan is soo tactically inept, instead of pushing at the Leeds weak spot - the central defence pairing of Matteo and Raedebe, leeds have good full backs, you have to attack them down the middle, they're missing a certain something/someone in the middle(LOL), instead OurKev played Anelka up front alone, who became increasingly isolated and eventually just plain old sulky.
The return of woodgate to the centre will help the Leeds. Also, It seems that El Tel favours Bamby to Dacourt, which is just silly really, although Bambi did score and seemed purposeful at times, well he's just so barmby isn't really? barmby or dacourt? its a no brainer right?

[Clan]

Originally posted by GPK


Easy? We haven't won those in years anyway. But you know that.....

Snip


EH?
Are you sure you've got the right fixtures GPK? :)

We have
Arsenal--Home
Blackburn--Away
Newcastle--Home
Fulham--Away
West Ham--Home

Being realistic i see 11/12 points here.

[Clan]

The return of woodgate to the centre will help the Leeds. Also, It seems that El Tel favours Bamby to Dacourt, which is just silly really, although Bambi did score and seemed purposeful at times, well he's just so barmby isn't really? barmby or dacourt? its a no brainer right?

Methinks he's on the way out the door at leeds.