Saints have five of their current squad out of contract this summer, so Nigel Adkins has some difficult decisions to make with the prospect of telling some that the Premier League is still as far away from their reach as before.

Perhaps the biggest decision will be David Connolly, or will it ? Connolly made 26 appearances for Saints last season scoring six goals, but four of them were in the opening five games of the season with the last coming mid January up at Forest, once again Connolly spent a lot of time injured and with the arrival of both Sharp and Lee found his chances limited in the final stages, add this to the fact that he will be 35 in June and the fact that due to injury he has only managed 34 starts and 27 as sub in three years and it could be that Connolly will be thanked for his services in the summer and let go.

Next big decision is Bart Bialkowski and this could perhaps signal the Club's intentions with regard to the goalkeeping slot next season, if the Polish keeper is released it could be bad news for Kelvin, in that it could signify a big name keeper coming in, Bart only played one game in the league last season, that against Blackpool and it was a bit of a nightmare for him, but over the years he has had some good games for this club and been a loyal servant, in 2007 he came in and rescued our promotion bid as Kelvin fell to pieces, our now number 1's return to favour after two years when he was poor, perhaps give Bart some hope, I feel if we stick with Kelvin then Bart may be good enough to deputise whilst we see if Kelvin can hack it, if we let Bart go it could signify higher intentions.

Radhi Jaidi is next up, this is perhaps the easiest of the five, he did not play one game last season after being injured and turning 37 in August, it seems a step too far for him and a chance for him to find another club and a final swansong early in the summer.

Lee Holmes too looks likely to be leaving the club, despite never letting the side down whenever called upon, it seemed that Nigel Adkins didnt really rate him and he wasnt given a decent opportunity to plug that troublesome right midfield area, even as others put in some dire performances, his four years at the club were blighted by one injury after another meaning he played in less than a fifth of the games he could have, there will be no shortage of takers with perhaps Swindon being in the forefront where he finished the season on loan.

Last up is Ryan Doble, although a player with promise, it seems that he cant seem to turn that promise into something a bit more tangible, at 21 years old he has only played one first team game, that in an FA Cup tie this season at Coventry, his various loan spells have not been prolific either and he perhaps suffers from the fact his best position hasnt really been decided, is he a midfielder or a striker, with Saints in the Premier and already having a big squad that needs to be both trimmed and improved, it could be that Doble will be very much out of the picture if he was to stay and therefore the Club will let him go.

Saints have to put in their retained list by the third Saturday of May which this year is the 19th

These five look set to be the first to depart from St Mary's, given the size of our squad and the need to improve it they wont be the last.

Photo: Action Images

JimmySteal added 09:37 - May 2 Think Bart needs to play some 1st team football elsewhere for the sake of his career/experience. Give him a new contract and send him on loan.......he's still only 24!!
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SaintNick added 09:39 - May 2 thats a fair opinion, although perhaps we should have done that in the latter part of the season when he wasnt getting on the bench, with a recall clause in his contract
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st_mike added 11:49 - May 2 Just wanted to say "Thanks Nick" for The Ugly Inside. I bet it must feel like a thankless task at times, but I'm sure that your pragmatic view is greatly appreciated by many of us Saints fans. Yours is always one of the first Saints sites I read. Keep up the good work.
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ExiledSupporter added 12:26 - May 2 Agree with this Nick, all the points are valid. There are others, not out of contract, who I can't see ever making it in the Prem League and who are unlikely to be reliable enough performers to be strong understudies. Apologies if I am a bit confused, but what is Guly's status with us, I had thought he was on a season's loan, is this still so...I think he should be kept if possible. Clearly Falque will go back to Spurs. Forte (is he on loan too?), Dickson, Seaborne (prefer Martin's potential) and Harding are probably surplus and should be made available for transfer. Really don't know about Barnard after such a disrupted year...any views. Similarly unsure about Puncheon's value and whether de Ridder, for all his pace - which we noticeably lack, will ever learn when/how to pass and cross accurately Look forward to your views about the rest of the squad

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st_bangkok added 12:30 - May 2 I also like the idea of retaining Bart and putting him out on loan, but this would still mean we would have to sign a new keeper as decent back up to KD at least.
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bstokesaint added 12:38 - May 2 Ditto with what St Mike says Nick. Well done on another good season's work. It's not always easy writing articles everyone will agree on. At least next season expectations should return to a normal level. Not necessarily all doom and gloom, but I think a Champions League spot may be out of the question.. In terms of players I would release all of the above, perhaps with the exception of Bart. He needs to get some match practice though or he's going to be forever haunted by that Blackpool game. I'm not sure what got into him that day. I have a lot of respect for Jaidi and Connolly, but at their age and with the latter particularly prone to injuries you'd have to expect them both to be looking now at getting into coaching/ management because regular first team action, especially in the Premiership, looks unlikely. Both have played their part in our success and for that I commend them.

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thingummy added 13:59 - May 2 Agree with your comments but regarding KD, he has totally earned the right for ashot at the big time. He has been brilliant this year. As per all our players, if they have a nightmare in the premiership then there are consequences but KD not one of my concerns. I woiuld focus on a centre mid to protect us as we fly forward, back up at centre back (or one with more pace), and full backs who have pace to attack, and positional sense to defend the ball inside them. Oh, and unless we are going to play chappers/ Cork on the right (which I think we may well need to) then a right winger cos steeve has not made it yet and not sure his final ball will ever be good enough while his approach play/ goal threat does not compensate IMO

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scummerlou added 16:32 - May 2 Jst wanted to add my thanks to Nick, and all the contributors to this site over the past 2 seasons. Im serving in the Royal Navy, and this is always my first lookup whilst away with the ship. Luckily I have been back for the run in and was there on saturday....what a day!!! Cant argue with the release of the 5 mentioned above, inc BB...wouldnt be surprised to see a new keeper come Aug. IMO, another Centre back is also needed in place of JF to strengthen the defence.

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Whatsforpud added 21:26 - May 2 Nick, you say that Bart has been a loyal servant. In turn the club has supported him over the years. It is one opinion against another, but I don't have confidence in him, and at his age he could be looking to cement a regular place in a Div1 or 2 side. As you alluded to, do we go for an up-and-coming younger keeper as No.2, or go for a big name. I think most supporters would like to see Davis in our Premier League side.

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simmo400 added 06:32 - May 3 No decisions here they can all go. Along with Dickson. We need some new faces with extra quality for next season. These players have done us proud but we need to push on now.
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