JRC

Thank God for that, I was wondering how to fill that spare 30 seconds.

Great post, unfortunately I don't think rational thought has a place in this debate any more. Re the quote above - of course the club had to put FCH in, seeing as how that's how they said it would work at the start of the season, apparently. BTW, I love ACS as a STH who works away a lot - it's a genuinely fan-friendly service, the kind many always argue we don't do-, but I accepted that ticking a box didn't guarantee me a Final ticket. I did it because I wanted to go to the games, end of. There are (at least) 2 dangers with some of these loyalty schemes; firstly, next year, the bar will be 6+1, so 6+2 will be the guarantee. Fine, except more people will know they need to 'play the game' - in fact, maybe it will take '6+3' to avoid a ballot. That could end up with more unwanted tickets for the earlier games (possibly making their way to touts), and those who genuinely want to go may struggle to get tickets. Secondly, extended loyalty schemes can become self-perpetuating - classic Catch-22; need credits to get tickets, need tickets to get credits. It will prove more and more difficult for newer fans - not necessarily johnny-come-latelys, maybe kids starting to travel away, or old gits like me now free and financially stable enough to relive my younger jaunts - to get on the ride; those who already have sufficient credits will perpetuate them as long as possible; we'll see FC credits being passed through generations like ST's traditionally have. The scheme this year is not obviously better or worse than any others, and those who want to argue the toss should examine the club scheme and complain at the START of next season, not when (if) we get to a Final. Perhaps YNWA should post a sticky with the exact details of how the loyalty scheme will work next year as soon as it is made public.

Are the people complaining about the 'Corporate' cut the same who complained about us not gettig a big enough deal with Carlsberg? Maybe if the deal were bigger, they would expect even more tickets in the event of us reaching a Final? Or do we just think they pay the money and don't expect anything other than the name on the shirt and some ads around the ground? Sad thing is, the reaction to these numbers proves a point made by others - even if the allocation details were now given out by the club, rather than the sadly typical random generation of numbers based on hearsay and anecdote which has constituted most of the basis for peoples ire, it wouldn't matter; because assuming fyds' analysis is accurate, which points to a not unreasonable split (85% going to Fans), the frenzy that has been whipped up means people are still incapable of reading them as anything other than us being shafted, or being treated with contempt, and so falling out of Love witht club, protesting and all that cr*p.

None for me and my lad - once mine was out, almost relieved the second was too, so as not to have to tell him he couldn't skip school, and I was having his ticket...

I assumed everyone would be in the scheme; after missing out on Final Tickets over the past few years, I made sure I was. But on Tuesday, not many STH were in their specs around me, and it wasn't a game where you'd get a ticket and then sell it.

At the heart of the Final, a real South American battle - Mascherano to nullify Kaka. It is his destiny.

Xabi's form has dipped as Pennant has begun to show his worth - a pity, as I remember saying in the first couple of games that Pennant must have thought he'd died and gone to heaven as Xabi picked him out time and time again; get better movement up front and quality in the wide positions, and Xabi will have a field day; especially with Monster Masch alongside him.

Our Penalty Shootout record is something like won 10 from 11. That's the kind of 'lottery' I'm up for.

I believe Geoge Gilletrt was there lat night, according to some reports - that's good to hear, that's the kind of commitment and involvment we should expect. Well Done to the Lads and Steve Heighway, but thinks are about to change at the Academy for sure

I was very confident - optimistic even - before last night, but now that we have to 1. score 2. prevent them scoring ...and this at our own ground, where we are so poor, then I realise that ths is a task beyond mere mortals, and I have given up all hope. 1-0 in 90 minutes in a CL semi-final? Unlikely. 2-0 in 90 minutes against Chelsea at Anfield? Unprecedented. Prevent them scoring? Would have to emulate the Newcastle defence. Worst case and score 3? Only the mighty Tottenham have done that in the past...month or so. Anyone want my tickets for next Tuesday, it just doesn't seem worth it now?

I thought Agger was covering him well for the goal, but the angle of the touch as Drogba forced himself inside towards the area (plus a bit of acceleration and muscle) meant he could never get the tackle in, then the cut back in the area to unbalance Danny, and give Drogba a fraction to get the cross in - brilliant forward play, and would have embarassed many a top-class defender even more.

At least his shooting was OK today, and they weren't always the wrong option, unlike Wednesday. Last Saturday, he couldn't even be arsed running, never mind shooting. I expect him to be lethal against Chelsea, mind - he's working up to it.

Not sure it was Poll with Berger, but he did disallow (perfectly correctly) Everton's last second 'goal' in the Derby when Hutchinson got in the way of Sander's Free-kick, making our cousins from across the Park even more bitter, always something to cherish.

We don't know whether he asked for a tip-off, or asked whether Poll would publicly warn Song if his persistent fouling had got to within 1 offence of another card; and Poll may simply have repled that, in those circumstances, he normally issues such a public warning - which I suspect he does, given his taste for the theatrical, and which in this case he did. Not collusion, just a Ref clarifyig how he will deal with a situation on the pitch. I'd be more concerned if Poll had told Pardew he intended to keep it a secret, and deliberately not issue a warning to Song (or any other player) that they were getting close to the point where he would be obliged to issue a card.

By all accounts, Poll's 'secret signal' to Pardew was by pointng to various parts of the pitch where Song had committed the previous fouls, then holding up 1 finger to say that he had had his last chance, and would be off if he did it again - and was seen and understood by 26,000 people, including Pardew. That is a fairly common sight, and sensible refereeing - there is no suggestion that he was warned as an alternative to sending off, or that a straight yellow offence would not have been carded immediately, or that anyone has been disadvantaged. Can't see the problem people have with this at all. It's better than Refs having a kind of 'Triple Secret Detention' list in their heads for persistent offending.

Didn't his dad play for Barca?

Masch by a distance.

To be exact, the etiquette is to engage them in negotiation whilst a colleague kneels down behind them, whereupon you push them over, Buster Keaton-film style, and relieve them of their ill-gotten gains before distributing them, as you say, in the manner of Robin Hood. I saw THAT at Wembley, and it was only enhanced when a very senior copper laughed directly in the face of the tout as he tearfully implored them to do something about him 'being robbed', and told him he hadn't seen anything happen and to stop wasting his time!

I'm surprised more haven't taken offence at the typically arsey Guardian comment at the end of the fuller article on the inside pages about the Barca game being ' a clash between two great clubs, even if Barcelona are genuinely that...whereas Liverpool are now owned by a Company which has a Head Office in Dallas, Texas, but which is registered, so as not to pay much tax, in Delaware, by way of the Cayman Islands.' i.e. we are no longer a genuinely great club, because our Owners are businessmen maximising the tax efficiency - legally - of their business.

I thought our bottle would go after they scored, but apart from a chance almost immediately, they didn't really get near our Goal again. By the 3 extra minutes, we were playing and controlling it in their half, which I loved - I almost relaxed!

...And perhaps for there NOT to be that collective and clearly audible groan of disapproval that he got on the one occasion he tried to take on Neville (and failed), and which still blights Garcia's efforts that turn out anything less than magnificent - not fair considering what he has produced at times, but which, thankfully, doesn't really seem to phase him - , and which possibly also helped prevent Smicer coming out of his shell and showing his full ability in his time...

Ah, Ziggy Boniek. He cold play anywhere - and did. In Poland (Lodz?), if he felt like being sweeper, he just told the manager he was going to, and then did it As mad as a box of Frogs, and as unpredictable, but blessed with Genius; but not, perhaps, an out-and-out striker? BITW candidates? Kenny, Rush, Souness, Hansen, Barnes - but Liddell actually PLAYED for a Rest of the World Team - twice, I think - , so has to be a contender

Imagine the outcry if no Liverpool players had been picked...deliberate snub....in denial of our greater success.....etc. etc.

Yeah, but it doesn't mean that G&T will be paying me back the remainder on my season ticket for the rest of the season, though, does it. Cheapskates.

Whilst I don't deny (and Moores apparently admitted to Gillett) that we could do more on Merchandising, I've yet to see proof of how 'Bad' we are commercially that is conclusive, as opposed to anecdotal. The Arsenal and Chelsea lead over us in T/O terms could well be down to ticket prices, other activities (Chelsea Village), winnings (CL Final), Media etc. (and our figures may be depressed by the Reebok case). Certainly they will include the factor that they have both recently signed Sponsorship deals at a new Benchmark level, whilst ours is several years old - the next deal will be interesting to see. In pure Merchandising terms, the last figures I saw (about 3 years ago) suggested our income stream was double that of these 2, behind only ManU in England, and that foreign revenue is only a small part, even for the Mancs.