If that is passion, I would do without!

'Passion' and 'commitment' are among the virtues that the vast majority of us Pompey fans want from the players that pull on the blue shirt - in fact, in many ways, when all is said and done it is the Pompey way, from the stands anyway, to want this first and foremost, right?

Well, if Steve Cotterill truly believes that what we saw at Brighton on Saturday was 'passion' then I would rather we did not have any!

The referee, Graham Scott, has taken a battering from Cotterill - who I would 'think' will have to answer a few questions from the FA following his comments about him, and his ability - who feels the players were hard don by when we picked up 7 bookings and 1 red card.

Ok, to be fair from the sounds of it Scott does have 'previous' but even so with that in mind should the players not have been more careful in their actions?

More and more we have, as russellm puts it, been 'thuggish' in our behaviour and the more we are the more we will get punished. Given our shortage in numbers this is not something we can afford as suspensions, many of which have been needless, have hit us hard.

I agree with Cotterill that football needs passion but there is passion and indiscipline and what I felt we saw more often than not was indiscipline and not passion, whatever Cotterill said: 'I have told the lads I'm disappointed with the cards.

'At the end of the day, though, when the players cross that white line you want them to be passionate.

'There are times you can't do anything about a booking.

'It's a passionate sport. If the players aren't passionate at our club they will not be forgiven by the supporters.

'I said I thought we were a bit indisciplined after the red card but the players felt hard done by on it and that's where the recriminations have come from. The first major decision has kicked them in the teeth.'

I know, again in our position, the manager has to be careful with what he says but I would 'hope' that behind closed doors he has been a little less forgiving with the players and been a lot harder on them as I would be more than a little disappointed - and with the players - for some of the bookings, or he is condoning such actions and behaviour?

As far as I am concerned passion is not surrounding the referee and back chatting him, as we - and to be fair the vast majority of footballers - do these days.

Passion is not going head to head with an opponent, diving in feet first or raising hands to him, or am I wrong and that is what passion is...

PLAY UP POMPEY!

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