Well what can I say.....
The match was really poor!! Our defence was solid with Claus back, and Powell looking suprising solid (never been a great fan of his previously). Baird played ok at right back, but he's played so fantasticly in the centre that it seems a shame. Bale was as good as always, although his free kicks were slightly off the mark for once.
The midfield was a bit lost, Wright, usually the anonymous but vital cog allowing our play to flow was strangely off the boil, as was Pele. Licka showed alot of industry, but did not have the luck at the crucial times, like when he was chopped down in the box immediately in front of the ref, only for him to be warned about diving. I am pleased that David McGoldrick has made a break into the first team, it was just a shame to see him playing out of position on the left-hand side of midfield. He showed his quality in patches, but played too many wayward passes and drifted in and out of the game.
Up front Rasiak showed quality in patches but it wasn't until he was denied a penalty midway through the second half that he really seemed bothered. Jones coming back from his suspension, showed alot of effort, but seemed a bit rusty, he too seemed to be on the end of a few unfair refereeing decisions. Bradley Wright-Philips replaced him at half-time and his pace seemed to add something different. And while Saints display improved, it was never really electrifying.
All that said, Saints were by far the better team. Burnley never really got a hold on the game. They were physical and broke up the play successfully (helped by the ref). We should have won, there is no doubt about it, and dropping two more points at home certainly doesn't help the automatic promotion push. Especially with Derby, Preston and West Brom all winning!! Sitting 5th now, 7 points off the 2nd, isn't where we want to be, or where we should be.
The referee: Awful!! The simple things seemed beyond him. Throw-ins and free kicks 10 yards further forwards, missing hundreds of pushes, missed 2 penalty shouts (1 clear, 1 debatable) etc etc. He was completely biased, just very bad. I always thought that referees in the premiership were poor, but there brilliant compared with the football league ones. I am a bit fed up and will be attempting to contact the FA or football league about the standard of the officials.
Lets just hope that Burley can bring in some players in to livin up our attacking play. The talk today on the radio was of two possible loan deals being worked out. One could be Mohamed Farouk who is reported to be coming for a trial (sky sports). Not sure that'll be the answer, but we certainly need someone!!
