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This world cup makes me feel very uneasy. The location it's being held in, the unnecessarily expanded format, the manipulation to ensure 'bigger' countries don't get eliminated early... no sir, I don't like it. Although of course I'll still watch it, out of morbid curiosity if nothing else.

Have to say I was genuinely shocked by how poor Ipswich were. When you consider the inherent talent in the squad, I think they were the worst team to visit Ewood this season - and by that I mean how the team played on the day relative to expectation, not necessarily the overall worst team. It was the same in the first match tbf, maybe your lads just don't like travelling that far north. It'll be interesting to see if your owners spend any more in January. Seems a fair amount of the recruitment since the promotion to the PL has been flawed, although I think with sales the club is still technically in net transfer profit? In terms of what you're getting on the pitch versus the amount spent on fees and wages though... nowhere near good enough.

That last point you make is very real. Where will the big bucks come from when that money runs out? Cantwell, Alebiouso,Toth, Gudjohnsen, Tronstadt? Beyond those there not much at all and even these won't break the bank

And there is the never ending project. It never ends because as soon as we get anywhere players quite rightly expect improved/extended terms which the club is unwilling to provide and other clubs start to take notice and offer them more than this regime is willing to offer. Still, in the middle of this is highly lucrative employment for the people facilitating it, not to mention the agents tasked with bringing in their clients to fill the void every summer, so at least someone is benefiting. Just not Blackburn Rovers or the supporters.

40+ in front now with 4 wickets left. 5 dropped catches. I fear played two, lost two and series already gone. Not good enough from England against a pretty ordinary Aussie team.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c997y4l20jgo World cup draw tonight starts at 5pm uk time. New system in place for the top 4 teams, they all get separated into 4 quadrants. Spain, Argentina, France , England all begin in separate quadrants Should be interesting

Dropping catches as damaging to our chances, as getting out to shots we should be leaving. I think that's the most frustrating thing with us, we make such a mess of the basics.

Don't think even Roar would get one with his past history..........

Artey the Badge!

I'm glad Ripley and Atko get theirs

First awareness of Jayden Sergeant for me was a strong varied wing play performance in these extended highlights of an impressive under 18s win v Liverpool. No pressure but reminds me of some of the no 11 skills of Duffer.

Still got another 6 months of it yet, maybe Roar & Roarina will be getting a cap towards the end

You were saying old chap? I thought England were 100 light on 1st innings and it looks like going that way. You don’t win by Tests by dropping catches and giving wickets away - the difference between us and them

John Buckley, local, academy product, I'm sure he's a lovely lad. Putting him on a plinth with the likes of Garner, Shearer, Dalglish. Clayton, Douglas and the rest, is brain-dead from this football club and makes a mockery of the whole thing. How would he make the cut of 'legends' at England's tenth most successful football club? Could this anniversary season have been any more tinpot?

Really, really not looking forward to this. When do Rovers EVER do anything the easy way? Was only the other season we really needed to beat Sheff Wed at home to give us the best chance of staying up (might have been enough to keep us up?) and we turned in an absolute horror show and lost 1-3. Instead we went and drew with Coventry and then turned champions Leicester over in their own back yard to secure safety.

Again, I am boring myself saying it, but the most clear and obvious tweak he could make is to bring on Ribeiro/Pickering instead of De Neve. I'd wager we'd be at least two points better off.

Obviously, a year or 2 down the line, these obscure recruits may well (at least in some cases) progress and become experienced Championship performers with the required "know how" to close out games. Unfortunately, by that point, they will be wanting Championship level wages befitting their stature, which Venkys/Pasha/Rudy/the club will not offer, so the process will be repeated ad nauseum

This weekend is the FA Cup second round proper and the Premier League and Championship clubs are entering in the next round. Despite the almost downgrading of the competition by the FA and clubs for me the third round is a special date in the football calendar. I guess it's an age thing as many of a certain generation will recall the excitement and magic of the cup. I have vivid memories of crowding around a transistor radio at school on Monday lunchtime after the previous rounds games had been played. Replays were always the week after the original game and replays would go on until there was in a winner in a proper game. And clubs would play a full strength team. The draw takes place on Monday evening around 6.45 but the bad news it's on TNT, Discover+, ESPN, something called FUBO and YouTube which pretty much precludes a lot from watching it. Personally I would like to get an away match at a lower league ground I haven't been to but failing that any home draw.

Buckley honour cap... I'm flabbergasted

If they'd given the training ground back to the club it would be more attractive. It all depends on who might fancy buying it though, a wealthy investor who wants to rebuild it or a hedge fund then 55 mill is probably way too steep but to a billionaire it's cheap.

Agree with most of your post, but, (if you had the money) would you pay (at least) £55m for it tomorrow?

That's what that over-rated "Championship experience" gets you. "Let's replace them with some relegation specialists from obscure European Leagues. Think of how much money we'll save!"

The narrative has definitely changed in terms of the accounts now though so there has been some sort of a shift in head office and some alarm bells finally going off. I've been of the opinion that possibly the main finance people and bankers at the VH group have taken the reigns off the loons due to all the ongoing court/investigation/asset seizing that went on. They way it's now being run suggests a serious administration intervention in India. I don't think the owners would sanction any sale if they can stop it but the cashing in of all assets, the wage cap, no contracts for better paid players moving forwards and the minimal reinvestment on less wages to sell in the near future all points to preparing the club for something. Shadowman himself said the benefactor model - such as it supposedly was with them - is over so that suggests past funding levels are over for good now. Once this latest reset proves useless when income continues to dwindle and we don't create 10 million quid players to sell out of nothing overnight, what then ? There really is nowhere to go and those finance people might hopefully finally insist on selling the club and finally cutting the mess away.

Could get back into it! Hold those catches lads!

Wow - 5 minutes of subline to ridiculous cricket! We could have had 3wkts in 3 balls, we have 2! Come on England.