That side is play-off material. The side that Mowbray will pick is bottom half/relegation material. (Square pegs, round holes)

If Lenihan and Tosin are fit this is how I would line up. Get at them early from down the wings.

Has anyone mooted Matty for the u23 job yet? Would be a cracking choice IMO. Did a good job from what I can see at Chorley

Please note that we have a wonderful four-page 2000-word tribute to Kevin Stonehouse in Issue 97 of the fanzine. This is just the kind of richly deserved write-up that the club sadly fails to provide in enough detail to remember past players. It includes words from Mick Rathbone, Terry Gennoe, Mick Speight and other teammates. Issue 97 is available for just £1.50 on Kidder Street before the Boro match. It can also be purchased online as part of a SEASON SUBSCRIPTION HERE or INDIVIDUALLY HERE.

They also had to work 32 hours every day, and come home to their empty bean tin in the gutter and be murdered by their dad in cold blood. If they were lucky.

Honoured to have been given a copy of Matt's autobiography to read before its September release and yep, it's absolutely superb. The full sincere story - answers to all the questions we've ever asked and simply a must-read for all Rovers fans. We've got some extracts from the book in fanzine Issue 97 this weekend in order to whet your appetites! Fanzine subscriptions still available here - five issues for just £9 including P&P! https://roversfanzine.bigcartel.com/product/4-000-holes-full-season-subscription-2019-20?

Billy Barr...to be promoted he Is very much front runner apparently

Bolton have had their 2019/20 squad photo taken...

Perfect then if you have Chapman in front of him. One is still learning about football and tracking back (before he was broken and sent back to Boro last season) and the other may be much more comfortable just defending. Let them meet at the halfway line.

Last time the Clarets tried that one, it was a warm up for the Orient game in 1987. The cones won 1-0.

Whatever your belief on Nyambe it can't sensibly be argued that Bennett is a better right back.

That’s a good side but why people keep leaving Bennett out I don’t know. It’s a recipe for disappointment.

It really does sum up the current snowflake society we live in when there are objections to kids playing three or four times a week. I remember when people played on Saturday, Sunday and midweek depending on the time of year (there probably still are some now). And went to work/school too.

The main problem being, we keep losing.

Well I said on Tuesday I was leaning towards the Mowbray out side of the fence and he had 2 games to change my mind. We somehow won one of them albeit in slightly fortunate circumstances so I'll let him dazzle me tomorrow...... I think scoring a few goals will help, hopefully all them 3 men will start the game tomorrow. Literally no idea what to expect though in all honesty, in fact I feel like that almost every game these days. I know we have players capable of winning but we seem to be either dreadful or surprisingly impressive in spells. Might just be blind optimism but I think we'll win 3-1 tomorrow.

Well he's right we're not standing still. We're going backwards. If it works then that's what matters o we attractive football. Yes a successor to Graham was needed to keep the style going long term and yes the defence needed strengthening but these are improvements on what we had Vs starting again. Another option instead of Graham, and a rock hard CB and LB and I reckon last season's style could've seen us continue to progress. (Oh and a decent keeper coach or if that failed an experienced keeper but hopefully the former would do the trick.) Instead TM has woefully overcomplicated it again.

Bennett is dogshit. Mowbray has drained every ounce of confidence out of Nyambe. Nyambe is still just 21 FFS!!!

Walton Bennet Williams Lenihan Cunningham Travis Johnson Rothwell Dack Downing Graham i think that’s the lineup Mowbray will go with.

One can but dream. I have a large suspicion that to allow Graham to return up front Gallagher will be shunted to the wing.

There is no way Mowbray will ever start Rothwell, Dack and Chapman together in a league game.

Only 2 fit outfield senior players for their game at Tranmere tomorrow. Concerns also being raised by some about the welfare of the kids playing 3 or 4 games a week. Something has to give soon so expect the League to pay players to join them or invent a new transfer window to assist.

I'd love the likes of him, Friedel and Tugay to still be connected to the club.

Why not try a 4312? Graham, brereton and dack up top Johnson, Travis and downing in midfield with Cunningham, lenihan, tosin and nyambe in defence. For me we have to play 2 strikers and also dack as I am sick of wide forwards.

Spot on. Put it towards a signing on fee for Bauer if he was asking for silly wages - i.e. the signing on free mitigates/lowers the wages a bit (And Preston can't be paying more than us.) At least we would be our player too and as you say we'd get either a couple of seasons out of him or a good return on our investment. If we paid a loan fee for Walton that makes that move even more stupid.

Wow...just wow...

The story from the Wigan end of things is that they are paying £10k of his £14k a week. That’s from a source at Wigan that would usually be spot on. just passing it on for what it’s worth

I keep hearing about these. If we are committed to paying substantial 'fees' to borrow those players then that makes our transfer policy even more ludicrous. The only benefit to going down the loan route is that it avoids the need to shell out a substantial transfer fee, if we're still shelling out substantial fees just to borrow those players for 12 months and will have to spend again to replace them next summer then it becomes even more bonkers short termism. I saw someone say that Tosin was costing £1 million+ to borrow from Man City. If that's true then I wonder what the hell we are playing at. I am certain for £1 million+ we could have found a CB of good standard who we could own and build around for 2-3 years.

Because he is on loan this season and has a contract with us till the end of next season. While none of us think he will be back, technically he has no more left the club than has Magloire, and it’s not up to Bennett or even Mowbray to say that he has.

There is a danger that this starts to become like Bowyer and Kean before him (in a slightly different context) in that fans will get angry and react to our continued failure and then nothing will change. At that point, fan apathy will set in. Mowbray has already set his stall out that he has written off August because we are playing teams with top 6 aspirations. It’s such defeatist talk. Lower end teams beat higher end ones all the time in this division. Mowbray may be a positive football man but he’s a very negative football manager.

Tbf it's one thing more than most

The WMC Supporters Group met last Wednesday and will be meeting again at Ewood Park WMC at 7pm on Wednesday 28 August. Great new initiatives in the pipeline. All welcome.

There are two artefacts that definitively slam shut; a teenager’s bedroom door after a “full and frank” parental discussion and twice a year; the transfer window. The transfer window, at least in my febrile imagination, is an ornate Victorian sash window, crushing the fingers of those club chairmen and managers alike who have failed to complete their business in good time. You cannot help but get the sense that with the evidence of the very late business transacted by Rovers, the fingers of Tony Mowbray and Steve Waggott were extremely close to being trapped painfully at 5pm last Thursday, at the very least recipients of an ad hoc manicure. It was an odd transfer window, neither awful nor especially fulfilling. It promised to deliver but ultimately was something of a damp squib. The manifest shortcomings in last season’s squad had been identified, targets to address also were seemingly identified; but the necessary deals to close the gaps failed to materialise. Additional midfielders and strikers were recruited, the promise that “defenders are coming” uttered by Mowbray at the Fans’ Forum just a few weeks ago, seemingly an empty pledge. What confused Rovers fans further, right on the cusp of the deadline, was the departure, albeit on loan, of team captain and set piece supremo Charlie Mulgrew. This is a conspiracist’s dream, an unplanned departure of a popular player to a local rival with no prior hint, for no fee. Mulgrew’s powers did rather seem to be on the wane in fairness, many a forum thread considering the relative benefits of his set pieces versus his defensive frailties concluded that we could strengthen in that position. Indeed, we could and should have strengthened; but when all the business is complete and you are left with three loanees in a defence (including the keeper) it smacks of short-term expediency. It smacks a little of desperation. It is either extremely “courageous” or “foolish” depending on how charitable towards Mowbray & Waggott you may feel. Early on Saturday afternoon, the courage/folly was exposed yet further when it emerged that Darragh Lenihan and Ryan Nyambe were unavailable due to injury and that new loanee left back, Greg Cunningham was not in the squad, despite having travelled. Away to recently relegated pre-season promotion favourites Fulham with another defensive combo including another debutant, the Manchester City loanee, Tosin Adarabioyo. What could possibly go wrong? The answer in the first half, at least initially, was “not much”. Rovers started brightly and energetically. Chances fell to Bradley Johnson and Sam Gallagher but were not converted. Fulham looked edgy following their opening day defeat. Rovers really needed to capitalise, but the clinical cutting edge was missing. Pressure, pressing, possession; all good but it’s goals that are decisive. That Fulham’s opener came from Tom Cairney will surprise few Rovers fans. That he was given time & space to receive, control, set up and shoot without a navy-blue 3rdkit wearing Rovers player coming within sniffing distance was almost criminal. It was a fabulous strike but he was thirty yards out and Walton was sadly nowhere near preventing the goal. The second half started brightly, Armstrong coming closest to registering a shot on target but the half seemed to play out to a familiar script:- ROVERS: *Run out of ideas, make substitutions, play players out of position, run out of steam, make mistakes, concede a second, bemoan your luck…rinse & repeat* FANS: "Oh..." It’s a quote attributed to many, but most often to Gary Player, that “the harder I work, the luckier I get…”, Rovers can exclaim that luck isn’t on their side at the moment, however, this is a team that in its opening two league games has scored only via an own goal, failed to register a shot on target on Saturday and has never seriously threatened a clean sheet. More hard work may be needed you suspect. There were some positives on Saturday; the partnership of Adarabioyo and Williams looked promising, Bennett improved immeasurably (though he should not really be our first choice right back) and Dack’s first half performance was back to his impudent best. Overall though, we were beaten by a team that took its chances. Where next then? Well, back to Ewood for a Carabao Cup tie with Oldham Athletic, presenting an opportunity for redemption. Just the eleven changes and a chance for fringe players to stake a claim. The fact that a roller-coaster of a game needed the old firm of Dack & Graham to fashion a comeback or two to overcome League Two opposition will cause many a wry grin you suspect. A win is a win, but somehow this performance brought yet more problems to the fore and provided little in the way of (defensive) comfort. Dack & Graham appear to be a partnership which delivers a sum greater than the parts. Splitting them up leaves Dack bereft, but £12m spent on Brereton & Gallagher means scrutiny if the old firm starts on Saturday. Mowbray needs to find a formula from somewhere to use his recruits and bring out the best of Dack. With just two league games played, it is of course ridiculously premature to draw too many conclusions. Many pointed out on social media that the last time Rovers last their opening two league fixtures, the season ended with a glorious promotion. The counter argument to that sadly, is to point out that the last time Rovers lost all three opening fixtures, relegation was the final denouement to a season of disappointment. Saturday looms large. Rovers next league opponents Middlesbrough, have also started shakily; they too found the Carabao Cup particularly challenging, losing at home on penalties. They too will have reason to crave a victory. Their exciting Friday night TV opener at Luton followed up with a home defeat to Brentford has left them with just one point. Another former Rover in the form of Rudy Gestede lies in wait, though probably from the bench based on Woodgate’s team selections so far. Let’s hope that it is Downing, Graham, Chapman, Smallwood and Mowbray that have the upper hand against their former club and that somehow, Tony Mowbray can fashion an effective back four from his squad. One final cheery note to end on; bravo to all the supporters who have contributed to sponsoring the Rovers Ladies team this season. BRFCS forum member and podcast panellist Linz Lewis, has once again mobilised her formidable social media army to raise (at time of writing) over £3k. The original target was £250, with the aim of sponsoring one player; £3k covers a starting XI, so this is quite an achievement. #OneRovers in deed. *Thanks to Michael Taylor ( @MarpleLeaf ) for the photographs...

I wouldn’t say he’s far from the problem when he cost us a goal and would have cost us another if not for poor finishing in our first game

Give your head a wobble. He's dogshit on toast at RB.

Id expect cunningham to play tomorrow. The big question is will lenihan come straight back in or will he go with Tosin and Williams

Good appointment if true. Like Johnson, when he took over the Under-23's, has a good knowledge of the Academy, worked with the players during their formative years and has produced some decent teams at Under-18 level. Last season he was working with Johnson at a number of games - Billy and Mike Sheron shared the duties, after Dunny left, on matchday as you have to have two qualified coaches on the bench. A different character to Johnson but well qualified and a decent coach.

Some crazy comments tonight about Nyambe and Mowbray draining his confidence. I don't buy that for one second. Nyambe should have been chomping at the bit to get his chance, but when he did get it he was poor against Oldham. Bennett was very good last week so I expect him to start tomorrow. Very good time to play boro tomorrow and im optimistic that we can get the 3 points and kick start our season.

I'm aware of what gets you on in life (sheer luck in the case of the other person in my example though). I don't want to go too much into my personal circumstances, but there are other issues at play in them. I'm over it, partly through knowing you need to just kick on, but I'm older. Nyambe is barely past being a kid. The manager simply hasn't given him a fair crack of the whip and looks unlikely to do so whatever Ryan does. Much like myself, it's time for the lad to move on somewhere his abilities will actually be appreciated. He's on a hiding to nothing here. He needs a move and to rebuild himself.

Finally worked it out? Doesn't a lifetime in football tell anyone that? In 40 years watching Rovers, the best atmospheres home and away have been those with plenty of home and away fans close to the pitch. All this mucking about closing stands is losing home fans and moving away fans must be about money because both are doing nowt for atmosphere.

Well if he plays, maybe it was actually ‘fluid in his eye’ due to Big Skip going...

She clearly doesnt have a clue

Sorry, Stuart. ? Some of us are happily retired!?

Train - Drops Of Jupiter

Them were the days. I had a few games in the same side as Mark too. He was at Darwen Vale, so played against him for our school team every year as well. Good days those were.

I have a sinking feeling that Lenihan will be unavailable, a relapse needing further 'investigation' Bennett is an absolute certainty to start as RB/Captain. I do not know if Bookies do odds on such things but this is a 'banker' at pathetic odds. To select a starting 11 without Bennett is part of the 'denial' stage of ultimate acceptance of the Madness of Mowbray.

The Undertones - Kiss in the Dark

Wyatt has been the sole bright point of Raw for the past few months with his amazing Firefly Funhouse segments. I love what they're doing with it so far, and apparently the plan is to have Bray appear sporadically to increase the mystique, hence his non-appearance on Raw & Smackdown this week. I don't trust WWE creative to do this justice long-term, but it's been great so far. Wyatt's character desperately needed a refresh and this is an incredible way to do it without completely abandoning his previous character work. There are a lot of rumours that Finn is planning to take some time off soon, so it would make perfect sense for the Demon's first loss to be at the hands of the Fiend. It gives a massive credibility boost to Wyatt and sets up a return feud down the line if they want to go in that direction. You could easily have Wyatt win this feud by banishing Finn/the Demon, then have a final showdown at WrestleMania where the Demon exacts his revenge - as at the end of the day the good guys should go over. If done correctly it doesn't have to damage Bray at all, although WWE aren't exactly good at doing things correctly so I have my doubts as to whether they could.

Psh. Look at you people, picking players in their ACTUAL positions. That kind of orthodox thinking has no place at Ewood.

Might have just been frustrated with his performance, he may well have thrown a paddy but we can’t say he’s thrown his toys out the pram without knowing for sure... There’s definitely something wrong in the squad at the minute though, maybe TM is feeling the pressure.

he also still had his gamely brain fart and nearly got caught out by a quick corner