W-H

Having been to all of the games so far, I would rate the players'' performances, in order: Top 5 Andrew Crofts - really outstanding Leon Barnett - Great presence although shaky start. Adam Drury - Has been at his best Wes Hoolahan - Even I could hit the target from penalty spot, cost him two places! Chris Martin - not sure why he''s currently out of favour Next best 5 Korey Smith - bit out of sorts in last couple of games Grant Holt - hard working, enthusiastic but missing final touch. Disappointed that he''s not in top 5. Russell Martin - much better than expected, solid. Simeon Jackson - scraped into top 10, mainly due to his goals against Brizzie City. Good pace but not really happening at present. Simon Lappin - bundles of enthusiasm, great work rate Not sure about Elliott Ward - Something of the Doc about him - makes me nervous. John Ruddy - Not had a lot to do. A couple of mistakes but most goals not his fault. Stephen Smith - Excellent against Brizzie City but not great when twice brought on as a sub Any thoughts?

Anthony mcnamee - fooking kwik toomee Jon Otsemobor -F.F.S

I didn''t see a handball but there was a clear case for a face-ball as Leon was hit squarely in the chops. The Hoolihan "foul" was hilarious - he couldn''t have toppled the PNE player, it would have defied the laws of physics.

Sir Al cut me up at the lights outside the ground on the way home. Then gave me a stare that he normally reserves for Wenger. Boozy-faced twonk.

Brilliant! That''s my screeensaver sorted for the week!

I wasn''t a fan of his last season but I think that he looks better since the break.

Hucks - Fair point but you get some right spanners on here! What about Ruddy? What do you think of him so far? There appears to be a lynch mob gathering on here but as far as I could see he didn''t do a bad job on Friday: two deflected goals which any goalie would have struggled with. His distribution and kicking seemed ok so I don''t see why he is blamed by some for the defeat. Perhaps the No 1 shirt is a big one to fill at NCFC and expectations are too high?

Hucks - any chance of a forum on your site to comment on your observations? Notice that you didn''t comment on Ruddy''s performance which, for some reason, has been the focus of a lot of debate on here.

forgot to add x) Delias dodgy fish risotto

[quote user="Mello Yello"]p) Grant Holt only drives a Peugeot 307. q) Mick Dennis was at the game sat next to Delia. [/quote] I was impressed that he did 69 in a 307, I wouldn''t have thought there was the room!

a) Our goalie is rubbish - although he didn''t do anything wrong b) our RB is rubbish - ditto c) Sky cameras were there d) There were too many seats e) Wes is too good f) There were not enough fans g) The price of a cuppa has gone up h) The ref was an idiot i) The open day cost a £1 to get in j) It rained a bit k) It didn''t rain enough l) It was an evening kick off m) Did I mention the goalie? n) Chris Martin didn''t score a hat-trick o) We always lose the first game of the season Or maybe Watford were just a bit better than us on the night?

I bet that Fraser was glad to be at home watching the match on TV. None of the goals were goalkeeping errors and the misplaced parry didn''t result in a goal. Ruddy''s kicking and distribution were good and dare I say it, better than Fraser''s. We lost because Watford exploited some defensive errors - get used to this in the Champ.

Totally agree. Wes is key for our season and there needs to be more work done on the training ground to give him more options once he has disected the opposition midfield. I thought that Jackson was a nearly man in this respect last night - perhaps a bit more game time might see an improvement.

I''ve been really impressed with R. Martin so far in the pre-seasons and last night. Yes he made some mistakes but he is much improved on last season. Worst RB? Have you forgotten Mr Sky + himself Jon Otsemobor?

This is such a lot of B*llox! Ruddy did ok, none of the goals were his fault and to be fair he didn''t get many chances to shine. The fact is we need to get used to this type of game. I personally was disappointed with the CBs - Ward in particular didn''t cover himself with glory but he will know that and I''m sure he will improve. I was impressed that at 2-0 the players didn''t give up and I think that there were some good performances from the midfield to build on.

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My new avatar is a photo of the Home dressing room door: "Have no regrets when you come back into this dressing room" What inspirational words would you suggest to fire up the troops on Friday night? I was thinking "We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;For he to-day that sheds his blood with me Shall be my brother" or perhaps the more classic, simple: "Don''t f@ck up!" what do you think?

I would start with the diamond but if things are going bits up during a game because of ineffective midfield as you suggest I reckon PL is more likely to go with 3 at the back and two up front with Wes playing behind front two.

I asked in the Canary Store on Saturday and was told that it would be out in "2 weeks" although they told me that 2 weeks ago!

Sad news: I''ve just heard that at least one person has been made redundant in the Matchday Hospitality team. Not sure if other posts are "at risk" - nothing on official site. I thought that promotion would allay staff fears of redundancy, perhaps job losses are inevitable in the current climate.

Just asked "Cult Zeros" to produce a Lambert T-shirt and they have duly obliged: http://www.cultzeros.co.uk/proddetail.asp?prod=Nwh44

Ricky Martin as manager?

[quote user="The Irish Messi"]James Morrison WBA midfielder![/quote] James/Jim Morrison - I think that counts as two

Bristol Rovers put out Andy Williams against our very own Chris Martin. Hartlepool have the legendary James Brown and Huddersfield Robbie Williams. Any other singing legends (or bell-ends) past or present in football?

I met Paul Lambert at the away fans party last night. He was very relaxed and spent nearly 2 hours chatting, signing shirts and posing for photos without a break. Really top man who showed genuine respect for the fans. If he was thinking of quitting I doubt that he would have bothered, a quick appearance and a wave would have done the job. By the way, had a chat with Wes, he’s fully fit and will feature against Bristol Rovers next Saturday. I know that the result doesn’t matter any more but good to see him back!