uncy_chris

Well today I got an email from eBay saying that someone had been listing items on that ebay name without the account holders permission. I did a paypal resolution request and the seller refunded my payment, also saying that his account was hacked. Lesson learnt I suppose - usually when the offer is too good to be true, it really is too good to be true. Now I'm back to square one. FZ30 or Fuji 9600?!

You used to go after scammers? I'm a bit confused by this seller because whilst there seems to be several negatives on his feedback, there is also a lot of positives. Most of the negatives are from people who didn't expect to have to pay the customs and VAT charges. The majority of people who've left feedback seem to have said the packages came fine. The one worry from his feedback is that there seems to be a massive gap from February to October. I've emailed both him and a couple of past buyers to get a bit more info...

Yeah its a Hong Kong seller, but he's got decent feedback and he's going to refund the tax/customs. I know its a bit risky buying from Asian sellers, but it seems like a reputable shop... http://www.easishop.net The excess stock just gets sold on eBay, and the auction I found was a special with a silly end time of 9am. Most of the other FZ50s he was selling were going for at least £170+

Just won an auction on ebay for a new Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ50. Can't believe it but I managed to get it for a bargain price of £137 inc delivery! 12x opt zoom, 10.1 megapixels, maual focus, hot shoe slot, SLR like adjustability. Can't wait to play around with it! I need to get a decent, super fast SD or MMC card to go with it (2-4gb). Can anyone suggest one? Also, has anyone used a Raynox macro lens? I'm thinking of getting a 150, but they're quite expensive and I could probably get a 55mm lens off ebay for cheaper. Is the Raynox worth the investment?

How about an online poll on the avfc.co.uk? You could stream some mp3s of various potential club anthems, and ask for a vote on each track (thumbs up/thumbs down). As this might be quite a debatable issue given that everyone has different music tastes, perhaps this could be done for several weeks (maybe even until the start of the 08/09 season). In the final weeks of the polls the most popular tracks are put into a final vote and a decision could be made. Perhaps this online poll could be advertised in the match programme ("vote for the new club anthem"). It's a suggestion, and perhaps a great way to utilize and grow the new website.

DredG - Sanzen

Honestly mate, you haven't missed a thing. Everything is very, very quiet. Hopefully the calm before the storm. Cheers for the reply.

Guys, I've been away and don't fancy reading 50 pages of banter. So apart from this Hugo guy, who else have we been linked with over the past 5 days?

He's only signed two players from Celtic with a long term future: Petrov and Maloney. Sutton and the black man whose name I can't remember weren't exactly going to be prominent members of our squad -they were just stop gaps. I won't really mind if we sign one or two more of their players provided they're of the right quality and will improve on what we've got. Boruc would be a top signing, and Nakamura would be very decent cover for the midfield.

The way I see the NRC situation, is that he's raw talent much like Gabby, Young & Cahill, and we saw flashes last season what MON can do when he gets to work with this sort of talent. If we sign NRC then we'll have potentially 4 England internationals for the future. On the other hand, with this streak of youth in the side, we need to balance it up with a couple of experienced, proven players. (Lahm & Defoe anyone?)

Reo Cocker or Barton? RC gets my vote. Although, if Parker was ours, he'd be the better bet for attaining Europe next season.

My little brother just discovered Rock n Roll!

Nice thoughts Pelle. I agree with you about Sneijder - he's within out reach, but its whether or not the bigger clubs are willing to take a chance. Viduka, however, I'm not so convinced about. If we signed a big name striker it wouldn't freeze out Moore, Carew or Gabby. I think it would be the perfect incentive to step up to the next level. Training around grade A players is only going to help the youngsters.

Bollocks!

A very good, and plausible team for next season? GK: Sorensen DR: Juan (plays for Leverkusen - has been a regular for them, but they haven't had a great season. He might want a move, and since we've got the cash, why not make an offer?) DL: Bouma DC: Laursen DC: Mellberg MR: Ribery (Marseille - he's going to be a wanted man this summer, but perhaps MON can charm him? If not, how about Govou - Carew could put a good word in?) ML: Young MC: Sissoko (Liverpool - they've just signed some awesome defensive mid from Gremio, plus they already have Alonso and Mascherano. Why not give this a go?) MC: Barry SC: Carew SC: Owen (release clause 9M - @ a small club (!), gettable if none of the big clubs want him) Hows this sound for a new first team? Obviously we'd have Gabby, Petrov etc in rotation

Does anyone seriously think Fat Fred will let Owen go without making back at least what he paid. I mean, he's played only a handful of games in over a season.

Foals are a good band...

"I saw him at the hotel"!

^^^ You've got to add a centre back to that list Laursen won't hold out for the whole season, and without him with have shown frailties at the back. A goalkeeper is another position we could look at improving, but if we improved the other areas significantly enough, I think Sorensen would be sufficient for next season.

The majority of successful teams have 4 strikers to choose from. In our case we already have Gabby, Moore, Carew and arguably Young. If MON realises Young isn't suited to the role of striker, then hopefully he'll try and sign someone like Nugent. Bent is a bit overpriced, and to be honest, Nugent or some foreigner might have more potential to succeed. Assuming we sign a forward to make up that 4, then our midfield could do with two additions. One to replace Berger (ideally Van Der Vaart or Wes Sneijder) and someone to replace/challenge McCann (e.g. Appiah, Duscher). After that we will need a permanent right back, and I think MON might find someone better than Bardsley.

Tevez won't come to us. The big clubs are after him, and he'll want European football.

My ideal side for next season: GK: NEW PLAYER (eg Gordon) DL: Bouma DR: NEW PLAYER DC: Mellberg / Laursen DC: NEW PLAYER MR: NEW PLAYER / Gabby ML: Barry / Maloney MC: NEW PLAYER / McCann MC: Young / Petrov / Berger SC: Carew / Moore SC: NEW PLAYER (eg Bent)

I think Sneijder would perhaps be the perfect signing this summer. He's the sort of player that would raise us up a level, both on the pitch and Aston Villa as a brand. Please let this be true! But its NOTW so its highly unlikely!

Would be sooo defensive

I don't want NRC - he's a whinging clearing in the woods. I'm not that keen on Bellamy either. If we want to make that step up we don't want one season wonders, or inconsistent players. We need to spend wisely and probably spend a lot, and get pure quality. Carew is the type of quality that we need throughout the team to make the step up to Europe.