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Reply | Swansea City v Blackburn Rovers : Match Thread
at 22:24 25 Oct 2026
Matos needs to get them attacking with more speed and purpose, fortunately I didn’t see yesterdays horror show, but against West Ham we were too slow in attack and took too many passes to get the ball in to the box, why pass it forward when you can pass it back 10 times and give the opposition time to get back in numbers!!!!!
It really annoys me when they are playing the ball out in triangles out from the back that the players are so close together, it makes it much easier for the opposition to close someone down and regain the ball - moving in to space and away from danger - it isn’t rocket science.
Last week, West Ham attacked at pace every time they picked up a loose ball in midfield and they took advantage to grab 3 points. I’m looking forward to a much better performance this week. |
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Reply | WRU £18M loss for the latest financial year
at 14:21 24 Oct 2026
I just can’t see that happening.
If you look at the English Premiership, all their teams have good facilities, better than anything we have bar Cardiff Arms Parc and Parc Y Scarlets. The English teams are all located in population centres of over 130,000 people and they’ve got money behind them, we’re light year away from that.
I just can’t understand where the WRU money is going to, there needs to be a massive investigation and overhaul. |
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Reply | WRU £18M loss for the latest financial year
at 19:21 23 Oct 2026
One part of the Central Glamorgan District’s letter requesting an EGM made reference to an audit to see where the money was being spent, no wonder!!! Welsh rugby is a small world and everybody knows everybody, so I wonder tif the Central District were tipped off about something. They m not an accountant, but I’ve got a pretty good idea as to how the world goes round and it’s staggering how much the WRU is spending and I’d like to know what. |
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Reply | 1966
at 08:25 23 Oct 2026
Thanks for clarifying, I was at the other end of the ground. |
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Reply | 1966
at 22:43 22 Oct 2026
I was about 6 months old when this happened and only became aware of it as I was growing up in my late teens early 20’s. It wasn’t something that was really spoken about.
Not long before he died, my father told me that on hearing about the disaster he and his best mate travelled up to Aberfan from Port Talbot to offer their help, it was a combination of lifts and walking, but as they got to Aberfan they ( and many others) were turned away by the police. I could tell it still troubled him. My mother can remember exactly where she was when she first heard about the tragedy.
Great to see the club holding the 1 minute silence which was well respected apart from the solitary West Ham fan - who I suspect was shut down pretty quickly by those around him. [Post edited 22 Oct 22:45]
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Reply | Okay I’ll post it. Call him what you want
at 23:11 19 Oct 2026
He’s already being held at Rampton Hospital, so I’d wager there’s a good chance the defence will be all about his mental state. I don’t think he’ll ever get out of there.
Totally agree with your comments about more prisons for serious criminals, we need to be able to lock people like this guy up for ever. What this incident shows is that our MH services are still failing, how many times have we seen this type of incident take place? There’s always an enquiry, a few people come out and say lessons will be learnt etc etc ,… but nothing ever changes.  |
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Reply | Swansea City v West Ham United : Match Thread
at 20:22 17 Oct 2026
Totally agree with you.
I thought they were the slightly better team, but there wasn’t much in it and the Swans should have had a draw. That said, I thought we were too slow in our build up play, especially when chasing the game, continuous passing around the back is extremely frustrating. West Ham broke with pace, picked up a lot of secondary ball from challenges in midfield, pressed well and they killed the game with their time wasting.
Ronald caused them problems in the first half and that was something we should have done more of in the second half.
I thought Vigouroux played well and made a few great saves which kept us in the game.
They are a good team, but with a bit guile and application we could have had something out of the game. I think Swansea needn’t be afraid of them in the return match. |
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Reply | Andy Burnham
at 21:17 16 Oct 2026
There’s always more that can be done, but to be fair she’s making more progress than many of her predecessors. This has been an issue for years and it’s going to take a fair while to sort it out. Changes to the legislation is a great start as is investing in staff to process outstanding claims, previously things were allowed to drift as staff numbers were cut due to “austerity.”
If people actually took the time to check things out from a range of different sources and research things themselves, they may have a more informed perspective. What Mahmood is doing isn’t rocket science, most of the things Mahmood is doing could have been done years ago - but they weren’t. She appears to be grasping the nettle where others have failed.
FWIW I’d also like to see her take a similar approach to dealing with Pakistan (as she has with the DRC, Eritrea etc) re their failure to take back the Rochdale offenders, however I suspect that’s a lot more complicated because of cooperation and intelligence sharing between the countries with regards to other issues in that area. |
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Reply | Andy Burnham
at 21:03 16 Oct 2026
You got a link to this news program because there’s no evidence or record of UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood saying that "immigrants have more rights than British people" on the news or any other programme come to that. What seems to be taking place is that this story line is being pedalled on the ever reliable internet when there is no substance to it, people are reading it and taking it as gospel without checking to see if it’s correct.
So far, Shabana Mahmood has introduced an overhaul of the UK's immigration and asylum framework, with measures focusing on tightening settlement criteria, restricting loopholes, and using visa leverage to enforce returns.
Key legislative and policy actions introduced by Mahmood to deter migration and manage the system include:
1. Significantly Extending Settlement Waiting Periods
Mahmood introduced structural changes to permanent settlement rights to lower net long-term migration numbers:
Work and Student Migrants: The government proposed doubling the qualifying period required for most migrant workers to earn Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), shifting the timeframe from 5 years to 10 years.
Asylum Seekers: Under the major Immigration and Asylum Bill, refugees granted asylum are shifted to temporary status. They face up to a 20-year wait before they can apply to settle permanently, during which time their refugee status will be regularly reviewed, and they may be told to return home if their country is deemed safe. That is very contentious and she’s getting pushback from quite a few MP’s.
Closing Legal Loopholes and Human Rights Abuse: In October, Mahmood tabled targeted amendments to the Immigration and Asylum Bill explicitly designed to stop migrants and foreign criminals from avoiding deportation. The proposed changes include
Closeing Article 8 (Right to Privacy and Family Life) loopholes used by individuals misrepresenting their family circumstances to stay in the UK.
Cracking down on individuals lodging last-minute asylum claims as a delaying tactic.
Introduce a means-tested scheme where asylum seekers are ordered to pay approximately £10,000 each for their state-funded living costs or face a denial of settled status.
She’s also pursued diplomatic penalties and developed a strategy of targeting nations that refuse to take back citizens who have no legal right to remain in the UK:
Eritrea: In October 2026, she threatened a complete visa ban on Eritreans after the nation refused to accept returns. Additionally, Eritrean diplomats were barred from travelling more than 60 kilometres (37 miles) outside of London without Foreign Office permission.
Egypt: She signed a migration agreement that reduces the processing time to return unapproved Egyptian nationals by roughly 90% (dropping from 30 weeks down to 3 weeks).
Other Nations: Following similar visa-restriction threats, countries like Angola, Namibia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) enhanced their returns cooperation, allowing the UK to run active deportation flights.
According to Home Office figures released in late 2026, arrivals via small boats dropped by 40% compared to the same period in the prior year, while total returns and deportations rose by 8% to exceed 40,600 over a 12-month period.
On the 30th of June the Government introduced an updated draft code of practice on preventing illegal working. The legislation went live at the start of this month and increases the scope of the term employment so that people illegally working in the gig economy, food delivery workers etc are now covered by the legislation and employers have to do checks etc and can be prosecuted when they don’t. The changes will mean firms that fail to conduct right to work checks will face civil penalties of up to £60,000 per worker. In serious cases, employers may face a criminal conviction, carrying a prison sentence of up to five years and an unlimited fine.
I’m not saying the immigration and small boat problem is resolved, but having regard to the above, I think it’s fair to say Mahmood has done a lot more than most, if not all of her recent predecessors. |
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Reply | Welsh Labour M4 Relief Road
at 23:35 15 Oct 2026
It’s common sense that we need a new road. It’s a pity Skates didn’t hold this view when he was in Drakeford’s government 7 years ago because he could have challenged Drakers about it and fought for one. It’s also a pity he didn’t hold the same view 7 months when he said he thought the opportunity had gone!!
Seems like all 3 opposition parties are now campaigning for a new road - are they campaigning because they believe we need one, if they get in power will they deliver one or are they making mischief for Plaid Cymru knowing there’s no money in the tin!
FWIW, I think Ken Skates should get on the dog and bone and get Burnham to trouser up the cash for the road and atone for the cluster @@@@ decisions made by our previous Labour government. |
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Reply | Andy Burnham
at 23:21 15 Oct 2026
Given the short time she’s been in post she’s done a fair bit, how many Home Secretary's have done more than she has in such a short time? |
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Reply | Andy Burnham
at 21:30 15 Oct 2026
There’s a lot more in need of doing, but to be fair to Mahmood she’s done a lot more than any of her predecessors to deal with the issue. |
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Reply | Public sector pensions unaffordable ?
at 18:37 10 Oct 2026
But it’s not 3/4 of a million quid, when Res’s father retired 32 years ago the pension would have been around £10.5 to £11k per annum, inflation has done the rest. When Res’s father worked, part of his remuneration package would have been his pension and we can’t change that now retrospectively. A number of recent governments have changed the terms of pensions schemes and many public sector pensions are far less attractive.
Going back to Res’s dad, many of his colleagues will have already passed on, and some wouldn’t even have drawn 1 payment from their pension scheme, it’s a matter of luck. As someone else said earlier all the pension stuff is worked out by actuaries. |
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Reply | Wales v Norway : Match Thread
at 21:45 2 Oct 2026
Went to the game last night and I thoroughly enjoyed, didn’t have high hopes in the way up but the result surpassed my expectations.
Thought Wales played really well and it could have been more than the 2 goals with a little bit more luck. Norway were a big physical side and our pace and movement caused them problems. On the negative side, I though that there were a couple of times when our players could have taken a shot and tested their keeper instead of passing around or passing it backwards. There were also shades of last March against Bosnia towards the end when they had us under pressure and were pressing for a goal, but we held out and bagged the 3 points. It needs addressing. Thought the team played well, a couple of individual errors but on the whole 3 deserved points.
There was a good crowd there considering it was a Thursday night and the first of 2 games in 4 days, that’s a an expensive commitment for fans from West, Mid and North Wales. [Post edited 3 Oct 0:42]
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Reply | Burnham on Fuel Prices
at 21:30 2 Oct 2026
Petrol is cheaper than it was at its peak in 2022, but diesel has surpassed its previous high point and is now at a record high.
After the initial surge in the Spring and early summer of 2022, the price of fuel started dropping and was on a consistent downward trend until February and March this year when, it went started climbing significantly. It’s gone up ever since and the cause is the tension / war in the middle east. |
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Reply | Jailed for throwing a plastic bottle and swearing
at 20:37 29 Sep 2026
The government (Attorney General) are actually appealing the sentence because they believe it’s too lenient, a judge has made the decision to allow the offender’s legal team to appeal in the grounds is too harsh. |
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Reply | RAF Fairford
at 08:16 29 Sep 2026
Trump’s been talking about a diesel ban for over a week and it’s not just to the uk. The price of diesel in the US has gone through the roof and is at unprecedented levels and with the mid term elections taking place in less than 2 months the Republicans are struggling in the polls.
A number of US politicians are promoting the concept of an export ban to reduce diesel prices at home, but the oil companies are resisting and pushing back. The North Sea will take a while to come on stream, but it’s something that has to be progressed. The UK now only has 4 operational refineries and we only produce 45% of our diesel requirements so we are vulnerable. The price of used diesel powered cars is falling while used 3 - 5 year old EV’s are going up in price. |
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Reply | RAF Fairford
at 21:49 28 Sep 2026
What makes you think there’s any substance to the claims and comments these individuals on X have made? I highly doubt that they are privy to inside information.
I’m pretty sure that if there was evidence to suggest they were going to bomb a US air base they wouldn’t be on bail, the police and security services would have 14 days to deal with the suspects and they’d investigate everything, no bail, do not pass go and straight to jail if they had anything. The police could hold the prisoners incommunicado, deny them legal advice for 48 hours etc etc.
The police are taking a bit of a hammering on the decision to bail the subjects and I highly doubt they are putting themselves on offer and through this for no reason - I suspect if they’d had grounds to detain these people they would, - I think they’ve had no choice other than to release these people because they’ve done nothing related to terrorism. If it’s not a terrorist offence, a murder etc then the police may only have 24 hours to deal with the suspects. Anything else doesn’t make sense.
I believe the police have received a report from the public, they’ve attended, aren’t happy with the facts and have taken positive action which is what they should always do. The investigation then kicks in while the suspects are in custody.
The police don’t always get it right and lots of people have been arrested in the past and then been NFA’d or dealt with for a lower level offence when the investigation is completed. Let’s see what happens. [Post edited 28 Sep 23:28]
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