The Cardiff game on Saturday suddenly has taken on a critical status following the results at the weekend, it is nearly a sell out but not quite, if it isn't then there is something wrong.

With four days to go before a game that is now looking like it is going to be a pivotal moment of the season there are around 1,000 seats still available for the visit of Cardiff City to St Mary's.

Bournemouth's capitulation to the Bluebirds on Saturday aligned with our injury time debacle at Burnley means that instead of what could have been a 7 point gap going into this game and victory for us putting on us on the cusp of safety, that we go into it with only a 2 point gap and defeat likely to drop us into the relegation zone.

This means that this game always likely to be a key fixture is now perhaps the one game that will define what the rest of the season holds for us, victory will ease our worries but defeat will see them leap out into our faces.

There will be people missing at St Mary's on Saturday, firstly in the team itself where we always seem to have an injury issue, so we don't want people missing in the stands.

With so few tickets still left it is highly likely that the game will sell out, but it should do sooner than later or there is something drastically wrong.

Some will say that this is just me having a whinge about some (And I only ever whinge about some, the majority are brilliant) supporters again, but it is more than that.

Sometimes as supporters of a football club we have to put aside our moans and gripes and turn up and get behind it and this is one of those games, yes of course there are always some who have a genuine excuse or don't have the money, but that's not the case for the majority.

Football should be about going to games and supporting your team, getting behind it and helping it get results, it is easy to do that when things are going well, but the reality is that is not when it is truly needed, teams really need their support when the chips are down, some of the best games I have been to have been in that mould, Swansea away last season for instance.

So we need to fill those last 1,000 or so seats sooner than later, we need a full St Mary's creating an atmosphere to see the team home.

We saw some of that in the second half against Everton, the team got the crowd going by taking the lead and the supporters kept the team going in injury time to ensure that we took all three points, those extra points have turned out to be vital going into this game.

Last season and the beginning of this there was a lot to moan at, a reason to stay away for some at least, but since the arrival of Ralph Hasenhuttl the club has changed and has direction and a plan again, the form since the Austrian's arrival has not only been very good with 15 points from 10 games, but the football has been attacking and enjoyable to watch, well apart from the defending.

Hasenhuttl's ratio of points per game since arriving of 1.5 per game is bettered in our Premier League seasons only by Ronald Koeman's two seasons and those two were only slightly better, the Dutchman's first season averaged 1.57 and his second when we finished 6th 1.65.

Koeman had a better squad to work with so the impact Ralph Hasenhuttl has had on this club cannot be underestimated, famously the manager said two things at his first press conference that were crucial, he asked the players to get on the bus or be left behind and he told the supporters that if they wanted guarantees then buy a washing machine.

Those two pieces of wisdom are still pertinent, the players are on the bus and so are most of the supporters, but there are still a small but significant percentage who can't let go of the past and look forward, things are not quite right just yet, but we can see hope and light at the end of the tunnel now.

Ralph Hasenhuttl has put his heart and soul into this club, some still need to make a leap of faith and back him, if you are one of those and you want the club to be in the Premier League this season then time to look forward and fill those remaining seats.

Photo: Action Images

oldeastterrace added 19:04 - Feb 5 We all know that we need a full house on Saturday and three points, and I am sure we will have a full house, as this is a vital game, we really need to generate a decent atmosphere for the team and hopefully we can come out on top. As Nick said in the above article, Hasenhuttl is a class act, that is pretty evident. However, Ralph will have to be on his mettle every week to get the max out of a squad that is limited in terms of numbers and in certain areas, limited in terms of quality! We should have added a couple of new faces in January, we needed a decent centre half and a decent striker in my opinion. Ralph is already learning that he will get no help in terms of investment from the Gao family, as we are all aware the club have to generate their own transfer funds by selling first! That only works if you keep producing quality players that the big clubs want to buy and at this moment in time we do not have that level of quality in the side BUT Ralph HAS already improved the likes of Redmond, Ward Prowse and even Vestergaard, so maybe by the end of the season we may have one or two that the big clubs will be looking at. If they are not looking at these players, then where will the summers transfer funds come from? I will be honest I am not happy with our owners, Surely, they must be aware of the situation we are in and that we needed a bit of help?! The squad needed additions and as Nick said in his Burnley verdict yesterday that failure to add a centre half at least 'could' prove to be a MAJOR BALLS UP especially if we keep giving away silly goals that cost us points, like we did on Saturday!!! Hopefully though, Ralph can weave his magic and keep us up with a bit to spare. For this to happen we have to beat Cardiff for starters.

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SanMarco added 22:20 - Feb 5 As long as it is full at kick off I don't think it matters when the final ticket is sold.
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