Damien Duff wasn't a Rovers fan. He just enjoyed his time here. And had played, and shone, in a World Cup. He won Ireland's player of the tournament award, and for me was one of the very best left wingers in the world at that time.

Any updates? Do we still have a 2nd division women's team?

It ain't the first time and it won't be the last.

Last time i looked at VH group there seemed quite a few shareholders although i presume the family are the biggest. There were some heavy hitters on their board as well, retired army officials etc. I doubt they've all been fully in favour of their company sending 15 million or more per year to a British company that provides nothing in return other than large tv exposure to the 'Venky' bit of the company. One does wonder how all this came about in the first place, inside job ???

I bet it looks great on the analytics. "Oh we had so much engagement on Twitter last year..."

Name of the game here is to pretend they are offering price cuts and making efforts to get more people in, without actually doing so or jeopardising their financial targets. Hence the Riverside price cut, knowing full well it should be cheaper given the facilities, it used to be before they upped it and drove loads into the JW stand instead. Only a lot won't move from behind the goals, relatively full and vociferous BBE to sit in the wide areas of the Riverside to save a few quid. But to compensate for the Riverside cut they've upped it in the BBE, which will drive some elsewhere and others put off renewing altogether after another season of nonsense from the management. End result another big drop in numbers. That hardcore that will 'always renew regardless' seems to me to be getting ever smaller.

Aye that's my point really as although they are fabulously wealthy i think that wealth is overstated and is all assets combined. The way they fund the club from what we see is the main VH group sends money for bills from its huge monthly turnover and the club via VLL just sits in the accounts somewhere soaking excess money up. So to send 10/20 mill a year over with the same amount guarantees against the business or assets is then stacking up extra debt against it all. Otherwise securing against personal money/assets if it goes on and on is tying huge amounts of money up and of course one wrong move or the govt decide to shaft them they'll keep the money or hold it forever, especially say if a full war breaks out over there. We moan quite rightly because they are in danger of dragging Rovers down again after propping it up off the pitch for years but it really isn't a straight forward issue unless restrictions are lifted. Even then i doubt previous levels of funding will ever be reinstated given their profit margins are now massively reduced due to price increase of raw materials. As you say though it's nothing like the slant SwagHail and the apprentice tea boy are putting on it and i suspect there are alarm bells on standby down there.

My fingers remain tightly crossed that this is going to break them and their cruel grip on BRFC. Either by them being found guilty of serious crimes once that investigation eventually completes, forcing them to relinquish control, or in the meantime by these clearly onerous requirements on funding preventing/discouraging them from keeping the show on the road. As with the Oyston era at Blackpool the only way we are getting rid of this lot is with the help of higher authority. As long as things remain ongoing on that front I'll stay hopeful.

Last shout to see if anyone can help me out with the survey. Thanks to those who have already completed it.

Other clubs have already made signings. There's a lot unusual about us not knowing our budget for the next season in May.

"Try and sort yourself out, Adam, but we'll almost certainly circle back to you in August when we're priced out of our other targets".

Careful use of the word should, in the second one. I think a separate statement was made by Waggott with the no legal impediment line trotted out. All in all, we have been fed a load of bull.

https://www.rovers.co.uk/news/2024/january/27/club-statement/ https://www.rovers.co.uk/news/2024/march/18/club-statement--18-03-24-/

I could be wrong, but I think the word legal was place there, to make it seem right. There is no legal impediment, but you are spot on and I have been a pains to state to other posters on here, that there is a huge impediment to them funding.

Explains why he held out.

Certainly feels like the slowest walk to the gallows this last 15yrs 🤮

I prefer to call it Gallows Humour Tony 😂

Bloody hell Tony, that's 2 bits of humour in 2 days! Have you got a bird on the go 😉

Always maintained next years retention list will be more interesting. Unless any are sold, then Batth, Weimann (if they sign), Hyam, Brittain, Travis, Tronstad and Hedges will be all out of contract this time next year. That's likely over half of our first choice starting 11 this coming season.

It wasn't cleverly worded, it was just a lie. An impediment isn't something that categorically prevents something, it is a hindrance, an obstacle, an encumberance. To say there are no impediments was always a lie. To have to allocate twice as much money is definitely an obstacle. It can be crossed, but absolutely it impairs the ease with which money can be sent.

My guess is that Hedges has been kept around with a view to him being a regular starter, rather than merely being a squad player.

Ideally Hedges isn't a starting player, but I can sort of understand keeping him around if only because it's one fewer player we need to sign. I think we genuinely need to be signing six or seven players minimum at this point, at least half of them regular first team starters. I think we are going to sign maybe four. If we released Hedges we'd need to sign seven or eight, and we'd still likely sign four. He works hard, can cover several positions and is cheap. He's not great, but he's not quite as bad as some on here make out. Would I trust our recruitment to replace him with a better player on a free transfer on similar wages whilst also addressing all the other gaps in the squad? I'd barely trust them to get the order right at a chippy. It's all depressing.

Elliott Jackson has done a bit of a spin aarticle saying how ruthless we have been with that retained list. Have we? We have given Hedges a new deal as its easy and cheap. We have given Weimann who is old and injured a contract offer, obviously Batth is a no brainer so that only leaves Forshaw who even then, and as he admits, we may revisit that one.

I mean the accounts show they sent across £5-10m at a few points since the court-case to keep the lights on so-to speak, but it is clear they have been unwilling to do so unless it endangered bankruptcy of day-to-day operations. Certainly they have not invested what Suhail/Waggot claim and almost none of it has gone to improving the club, facilities or players.

That would still mean they could send some funds, but not nothing at all. There is probably something hidden that we are not aware, where putting extra funds into a bond, is far riskier that we as fans think.