PLAYER WATCH v Millwall (H) Each incident in the match was rated on the following scale: +5 GOAL +4 Excellent play +3 Very good play +2 Pleasing/good play +1 Decent play 0 Routine stuff -1 Sloppy play -2 Disappointing/poor play -3 Very poor play -4 Terrible play -5 Own goal The ratings for each player were then combined to produce a measure of the players overall contribution to the match. Ratings Key incidents per player = coloured stars Overall contribution = numbers Kaminski **** **** 0 R-Costello ************* *** 14 Lenihan ***************** ***** 15 van Hecke ***************** *** 20 Wharton ***************** ***** 14 Pickering ******* *** 4 Travis ************ ****** 9 Buckley (76) ************** *** 16 Rothwell *************** ***** 15 Giles (76) *********** *** 13 Gallagher (85) ********* ************ -4 Dolan(76) *** * 2 Hedges (76) * ** -1 Vale(83) 0 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) This is big. We can’t score from open-play, Millwall have won 5 on the trot and this is the first of a home triple header. We are are in big danger of dropping out of the top 6. 04 Nothing of note to report yet. Giles just made it to the byline, turned back to his left foot and tapped it straight to the keeper! 06 Nice flicks from Giles, then JRC gets the ball to Travis who moves into the right corner of the box before laying a nice ball across the 6 yard box….but there’s no Rovers’ players anywhere near and the defender clears. We win a corner. Travis gets it 30 yards out and launches an accurate ball towards the left edge of the 6 yard box where Wharton, under strong challenge, does well to square it across goal but the defender gets his foot in and clears. Wharton was clattered there. 12 Three Rovers in the box but Wharton’s cross, under no pressure, goes sailing into the stand. 15 A lovely 1-2 between JRC and Buckley puts JRC free in the box. He only has the keeper to beat but from the right corner of the 6 yard box he puts the ball across the face of goal and about 2 yards wide of the left post. Bad miss after some great approach play. The Rovers players have their heads in their hands! 18 A Giles corner reaches van Hecke, central and just inside the box, but his header is a yard wide. Millwall don’t look very good so far. How have they won 5 on the bounce?? 20 Van Hecke brings the ball forward, waits for the midfielders to come to him before bypassing them with a neat pass. Nice. Lenihan wins his header and Buckley and Giles interpass nicely allowing Buckley to slot a lovely ball into the right side of the box to Gallagher. Sam squares the ball across the penalty spot but, of course, there’s nobody there to meet it. Pickering almost dispossesses the defender but Millwall clear up. 24 Buckley picks up midway in the Millwall half, waltzes round the defender and advances to the right edge of the box before stroking a nice shot on goal, it grazes the outside of the left hand post with the keeper beaten. That came from nothing! 25 Wallace is away from Wharton but Lenihan is well-positioned and takes it off Afobe’s toes as the cross comes in. 27 Gallagher takes a shot from outside the box but it’s weak and straight at the keeper. 28 A terrible free kick by Wharton goes straight through to the keeper. 31 Rothwell attempts to lob the ball forwards into the box…..but why? There’s no Rovers’ player anywhere near. 38 Van Hecke strides forward again and feeds Buckley 38 yards out and he launches a superb lofted ball to the right corner of the 6 yard box where an on-rushing Gallagher butchers a peach of a chance. He pushes the ball a foot past the right upright. Well may he hold his head! Half Time. Millwall have had zero attempts on goal. 48 Pickering puts in a decent cross and the goalie collides with his own man and drops the ball but Gallagher is looking the wrong way and Millwall survive. 50 Rothwell runs the ball over half the length of the pitch before feeding Giles on the wing. He beats the full back and runs into the box before crossing square. It hits a defender and falls to Buckley on the 6 yard line. He shoots but it’s too weak and the keeper saves with his arm. Gallagher heads it back into the danger area and there’s panic until it falls to Pickering just inside the box and his shot is blocked for a corner. The best chance of the match so far! They take it short and Giles pumps in the cross…….Lenihan has a clear header from 6 yards but he puts it over! We are never gonna score at this rate! 54 Buckley’s influence is waning as that’s 2 poor passes in one minute! A sloppy clearance from Kaminski. Oh! Now he’s put the goal-kick straight into touch! I reckon most fans are thinking…..we’re set up for a “sucker-punch” here! 58 An all-round press from Rovers forces the goalie to rush his clearance into touch and the Blackburn End roar their approval! You’ve got to say there’s a lot of effort but unfortunately there’s no teeth! 60 A promising Rovers attack comes to nothing when Travis puts a poor pass into the box. 61 Millwall have every man back. 63 Turgid at the moment……..no quality on the ball. 64 Rothwell goes on one of his runs and enters the box before falling down. No penalty! 70 Well, that was almost the sucker punch as Millwall attacked down their left but Wharton was well-positioned to cut out the cross and it’s a corner. Travis heads clear. Then Travis wins the ball again and that’s a very nasty challenge from the Millwall man. Yellow card. The other players are incensed! 76 Buckley and Giles off, Hedges and Dolan on. We need some spark from somewhere! 80 A good, accurate challenge in the box by JRC dispossesses the Millwall man when it was looking dangerous. 83 Oh dear! Hedges on the wing puts his cross into row Z. Gallagher off, Vale on! 86 A Wharton header goes high in the sky but amazingly drops just under the crossbar and the keeper has to tip it over for a corner. Rothwell puts it to the far corner of the goalmouth and Wharton heads it back across goal but Dolan is an inch too short and it’s cleared. 88 Lenihan gives the ball away, Travis pulls out of a tackle and van Hecke takes a yellow for the team. 91 Another of those infuriating “going nowhere” short corners but Rothwell gets another chance. Cooper heads this one away. 93 Dolan pesters the full back and wins a corner. Pickering arcs it straight into touch! Ridiculous! Full time. That’s so disappointing - the lack of goals is sucking the life out of me! The slide continues.

PLAYER WATCH v Fulham (A) Each incident in the match was rated on the following scale: +5 GOAL +4 Excellent play +3 Very good play +2 Pleasing/good play +1 Decent play 0 Routine stuff -1 Sloppy play -2 Disappointing/poor play -3 Very poor play -4 Terrible play -5 Own goal The ratings for each player were then combined to produce a measure of the players overall contribution to the match. Ratings Key incidents per player = coloured stars Overall contribution = numbers Kaminski *** ******** -11 Zeefuik (16) ** 3 Lenihan ******************** ******** 19 van Hecke *************** *********** 3 Wharton ******** ***** 1 Pickering ******* **** 4 Travis ************* ******** 8 Johnson **************** ************ 4 Dolan (65) **** **** 3 Giles ************** ******* 11 Khadra * ***** -6 R-Costello (16) ************* ******* 5 Gallagher (45) ********** **** 10 Rothwell (65) ****** ** 8 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) Well, on paper, this has to be the toughest test of the season. Let’s see how we measure up! 05 A good ball out of defence by van Hecke finds Giles just in Rovers half. He runs towards goal and Fulham hold off…so Giles keeps going to the edge of the box before letting fly - but it’s a yard over. Nice positive run though. Van Hecke is drawn to Mitrovic on halfway but he loses out and Fulham stream forward. Now Mitrovic is free in the box but the cross is just too high! 10 Fulham are knocking it about with confidence. Now they attack down their right wing and Williams is too fast for Pickering who can’t keep up and the cross comes in. Wharton reads the danger and heads out of play. 12 Another Fulham attack and Mitrovic receives the ball on the edge of the D. Lenihan tries to tackle him near the penalty spot and he goes down claiming a penalty. He actually stood on Lenihan's foot! Travis puts it out for a corner. It leads to more extended Fulham pressure round our box and more panicky defending. 15 Kebano streaks down their left wing past a limping Zeefuik. His cross is met by van Hecke. 16 Zeefuik off, JRC on. There’s a massive gulf between the quality of passing between the 2 sides. And what a contrast from the QPR game. You’d hardly know Dolan was on the pitch and Khadra has done nothing positive at all! 23 Again Mitrovic draws van Hecke out of position, into the Fulham half, before turning him. Now Van Hecke tries to save a corner by heading back into play but it just falls to a Fulham man and a few passes gets the ball to Williams on the edge of the box. He shoots straight along the floor to Kaminski; it should be a regulation save but the Rovers keeper pats the ball out to the feet of Kebano who gleefully pokes it into the net. Terrible! 25 Pickering’s giving Wilson too much space…….but Khadra’s not helping much. Blimey, I can't remember a team whinging to the referee so much! (Fulham I mean!) 32 Travis and Giles mess up a simple pass between them allowing Robinson a free run on goal. Lenihan, in the box, tackles well and then clears. But back it comes and we are struggling to get any decent possession. Mitrovic performs another diving swan act….what a cheat! 33 Now Mitrovic leaves van Hecke and Wharton floundering as he heads towards goal again. He beats Travis just for fun before shooting from the edge of the box but Kaminski gets down to save. Now Rovers attack as Johnson sweeps a nice pass to JRC on halfway and he starts a long run, he comes under pressure and overruns the ball but Dolan collects and weaves his way into the box but there’s 3 defenders and he goes down looking for a penalty. Oh! He’s booked for diving! Amazing after Mitrovic’s efforts earlier. 34 To top it off, Tosin, from his own half, threads a lovely flat ball through our entire defence. Pickering has lost Wilson again and because our defence line is so high, he’s clear to run on goal. Kaminski comes out but Wilson chips the ball over him and it’s 2-0. Could Kaminski have done better? I’m not sure but it was a good finish. 38 Nothing’s working at the moment. We look like a poor team. Now Johnson wastes a free kick by lumping it straight into the keeper’s arms! Half Time 45 Khadra off, Gallagher on. 46 Fulham pull us apart all too easily again. Lenihan, Dolan, JRC far too casual. They eventually set up Carvalho with loads of space just inside the box. Fortunately Lenihan manages to deflect his shot on to the outside of the left post….with Kaminski going the other way. 50 Gallagher goes on a strong run down the left wing and wins a corner. Giles takes it and it’s decent. Gallagher gets his head to it but it’s disappointingly way off-target. 53 Dolan wins a free kick 35 yards out, just left of central. Giles puts a nice curving ball behind the defence for everyone to run on to but Ream is there just before Wharton to glance it behind for a corner. At the second attempt, Giles puts the corner into the 6 yard box but Tosin heads away comfortably. 58 JRC gets a block in to prevent the cross at the byline but it’s a corner. This is amazing. Mitrovic is next to van Hecke central……and he just pulls away and arcs round the back of everyone to the far post…….where he meets the cross totally unmarked. Van Hecke got trapped in the crowd and lost him completely. Fortunately the ball ended up in the side-netting. JP is being taught a lesson here. 61 Fulham playing with us at the moment. A bit embarrassing. 63 Johnson wins the ball and feeds Dolan on the left wing. He beats 2 men and they have to bring him down, 20 yards out. Giles puts in another of those wicked behind the defence balls for Rovers to run on to. Johnson gets in a header and the goalie dives to save it but Gallagher is there to tap in the rebound from 2 yards. Gallagher has the ball back at the centre circle before the ref rules it offside! The replay shows that Johnson and JRC were offside from the free kick. This is unforgivable when we have so few chances to begin with! 65 Dolan off, Rothwell on. 72 Lenihan wins the ball and Travis clips a nicely weighted ball out to Giles on the right wing. He cuts back to his left foot and bends another decent ball into the box. The goalie has to lurch forwards and punch the ball away as Gallagher steams in. The ref gives a soft foul on the keeper. 74 Wharton, on halfway, puts in a long, accurate crossfield pass to Giles. He brings it down well but the ball runs a little too fast into the box towards the keeper. Giles decides to shoot from a tight angle but the keeper saves on the near post. It may have been better to square to JRC but it’s a close call. Giles is making more of an impression this half. 78 Fulham breeze through our midfield again, Wilson has a pop from just outside the box and it whistles past the left hand post. Too easy. 80 Wharton is dispossessed just outside our box: big danger! Wilson again has a pop but this time it’s well over the bar. 81 A Rovers move breaks down near the Fulham box and Williams brings it out. He gets to halfway and, good grief, he punts a long ball towards goal from halfway! Kaminski is scrambling back from the penalty spot but is nowhere near as the ball slams against the crossbar! We’ve done better this half but there’s the distinct feeling that Fulham are sauntering along in low gear. 85 Carvalho is too good for Lenihan and the Rovers captain rugby tackles him to the ground on halfway. A really pointless and dumb yellow card! 86 An awful pass from Wharton, just outside our box allows Reed to get the ball before Johnson. Van Hecke intervenes but just gives it straight back to a Fulham man. This is pathetic! Finally JRC runs it clear but his pass is too short too! 88 Now Johnson fouls just outside our box. The direct shot comes in and Kaminski dives to push it round the post. 92 Another good cross from Giles but Gallagher is offside. Why is it that the ball only ever seems to hit the top of Gallagher’s head? He’ll never score a proper headed goal at this rate. 94 The whistle goes. Well it’s no disgrace to lose 2-0 away to the best team in the league but the gulf in class between the two teams brought me back to Earth. Sometimes we just don’t seem very good! After the triple home fixtures coming up I guess we’ll know exactly where we stand.

PLAYER WATCH v QPR (H) Each incident in the match was rated on the following scale: +5 GOAL +4 Excellent play +3 Very good play +2 Pleasing/good play +1 Decent play 0 Routine stuff -1 Sloppy play -2 Disappointing/poor play -3 Very poor play -4 Terrible play -5 Own goal The ratings for each player were then combined to produce a measure of the players overall contribution to the match. Ratings Key incidents per player = coloured stars Overall contribution = numbers Kaminski ** 7 Nyambe (52) ******* * 7 Lenihan ****************** ***** 18 van Hecke ************** ****** 16 Wharton ************ ********* 6 Pickering (70) ************ ******* 2 Travis ************* ********* 2 Johnson *********** ******** 4 Dolan ****************** ***** 23 Gallagher (66) ************ ****** 11 Khadra ***************** *********** 7 Zeefuik (52) ****** ** 7 Hedges (66) ***** **** 2 Giles (70) ***** ** 5 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) Five games without a goal! We are also in danger of sliding out of the top 6. This is a big, big game. No Rothwell, no Diaz, no Ayala but Dolan and Johnson are in. 05 Khadra’s fancy footwork makes Adomah look silly by sending him the wrong way down Bolton Road and he’s away. He slips it to Dolan who carries the ball across the edge of the box under physical challenge by the defender. He’s fouled eventually in a great position. Dolan has been his usual bundle of energy since the start. It’s just to the right of the D and Pickering hammers it directly into the wall. Disappointing. 07 Johnson’s doing ok in the centre of midfield, distributing simple balls forwards. This one’s to Gallagher who wins a corner. The keeper punches away. This is a better start than we’ve had for a while. 08 Persistent pestering by Dolan again wins a throw in. He’s a better option in the so-called false 9 position I think 10 It’s also a delight to see Dolan fizzing around at our throw ins, offering the option. All too often, in recent times, our throw ins have been embarrassing! This time he wins a corner for his efforts. The fans love it. I notice, for the first time in ages, that I’m writing more blue than orange! This is an encouraging start and we are making QPR look second best in all areas. Oops! Khadra’s corner goes over everyone and rolls into touch on the far wing! 11 More Dolan pressing sees the defender pass directly to Khadra but the move fizzles out. 13 A bad tackle on halfway by Travis. 14 Van Hecke has this happy knack of dispossessing the man running straight at him. He does that here and slips it to Nyambe. The ball goes back to van Hecke, on halfway, and he launches a wonderful crossfield ball to the feet of Khadra who is totally unmarked 25 yards out. He runs into the box and the goalie comes out to challenge. Khadra, from 14 yards, tries to put it to the left of him but it’s a poor effort and the goalie stops it with his foot. Bad, bad one on one miss! 24 Two poor corners from the left by Khadra. Neither got past the near post! He’s having a nightmare patch right now. 28 The second poor pass from Johnson in as many minutes. Khadra flies down the wing, outpacing the defender, but his cross is a bit average and Rangers clear. 29 Some nice one touch interplay between Khadra and Johnson gets the ball to Dolan. He slips the ball beautifully, between 2 defenders to Khadra on the edge of the box. He takes it to the left corner of the 6 yard box but again he can’t finish. The defender gets back, slides in, and manages to deflect the shot sideways and Rangers clear. 30 A Gallagher cameo! First he gets up to a long clearance and flicks the ball on for Nyambe to chase. Then he blocks the defender’s attempt to clear and finally he races across the pitch to put in a full-bloodied sliding challenge to dispossess Adomah. Good stuff! 32 QPR have been made to look poor so far but now they have some possession; passing the ball around neatly in our half. Good pressing forces them backwards though. After dozens of passes, they eventually give the ball away! Oh! then van Hecke passes it straight back to them! Wharton cuts out the next Rangers forward ball. 34 Wowee….now we have some proper attacking play from Rangers! They come down their left wing and shift the ball central to Hendrick, unmarked, 35 yards out. He slides it behind our entire defence line to Adomah in the box - Pickering has left him free! Yet again Kaminski is the saviour, he goes down to block Adomah’s first-time shot from 6 yards. Great save! 35 It’s all QPR! 36 Here they come again and an unmarked Chair receives the ball 13 yards out but he fluffs his shot and it’s just wide. That was a good chance! Our defence looks rattled. 38 A nice ball from Johnson to Khadra allows him to edge into the box by the byline but the defender puts the ball into touch. Pickering’s corner is average, bouncing before it reaches the goal, but it falls to Lenihan just to the right of the penalty spot. He receives on his thigh I think, and off-balance and falling backwards attempts a left-footed shot but it’s well wide. Our set-pieces continue to be disappointing. 40 Khadra receives the ball on the wing, 24 yards out and whips in an in-swinging cross. Gallagher comes flying in at the far post but he’s at least a yard off. He takes out the Rangers keeper. This is the thing about Khadra….he can be infuriating, running down blind alleys, poor passes, terrible misses but he does make things happen! 43 QPR are persisting with their “play it out from the back” tactic and it almost costs them. Rovers are pressing well and this time Gallagher robs the full back on the edge of his own box. He slips the ball sideways to Johnson 15 yards out but it’s powder-puff along the ground and the goalie drops on it easily. Another bad miss. Rangers stream down to the other end of the pitch where we are struggling to get a foot on the ball until van Hecke sweeps in to dispossess the attacker. Arrgh! Pickering passes straight to Chair, unmarked and 26 yards out! He beats Wharton’s challenge and is into the D where Travis puts in a good block to clear. It’s hectic all around our box. 45 QPR have changed their keeper. 48 Gallagher receives the ball at the right corner of the box and lofts a cross to the far post, the defender gets there but can only glance the ball to Pickering, who passes the ball back to Khadra in the left corner of the box. He goes for goal again and the keeper makes a good diving save with his fingertips. 49 Johnson nods a lovely ball through to Dolan who runs across the box but he’s out-muscled by Dunne. We get the ball back and Khadra, on the wing and 20 yards out puts in another in-swinging cross to the far post but it’s just too far for Gallagher and the goalie collects. 52 Rovers break forward nicely and Johnson has the chance to send Nyambe into the box but his pass lacks pace and Nyambe has to slow down to gather but his touch isn’t perfect and the defender makes up ground and tackles him at the side of the box. This looks bad, Nyambe leaves on a stretcher! 57 Zeefuik on. 58 Zeefuik chases down the full back and blocks his clearance which bounces straight to Dolan in the box. He tries to dribble into the 6 yard box but wins a corner. It’s loud! Another poor corner by Pickering! 63 Dolan tries an ambitious shot from 25 yards but it’s row Z time. 68 Travis is dispossessed on our left wing and Gray is away. Wharton blocks but only to Field on the edge of the box. Van Hecke only manages half a challenge and it goes to Gray again, on the byline. His cross is blocked by Lenihan and finally Hendrick lobs the ball onto the roof of the net. 74 Hedges first touch of the ball is a bad one as he mis-passes and allows a promising move to break down. Excellent persistence from Khadra, riding several tackles, before he unleashes a mighty, long crossfield ball to the feet of Hedges on the left wing. He slips it inside to Giles who runs down the edge of the box to the byline. He gets in a cross which is touched by the defender and looks like it’s going in and the goalie, on the near post, has to push it behind! We take it short and Travis is fouled a few yards from the corner flag. 76 It’s about 8 yards from the byline and Khadra fires in another inswinger. The ball goes over the substitute keeper, who flaps at it, and whistles into the net! The relief is palpable…..all the players rush to Khadra and embrace him. He looks like he’s going to burst into tears. I confess, I was thinking to myself……get someone else to take this kick….his set-pieces have been poor! You’ve got to hand it to the lad though…..he’s got the bottle to keep trying. 78 Oh! QPR come straight back. Johnson is outmuscled in midfield and Gray is away flying towards our box. Van Hecke is there as the immovable wall and clears up the problem. 79 Wharton and van Hecke allow Gray too much space in our box and Hendrick lobs the ball right to his feet but he runs into Kaminski who collects the bobbling ball. 83 Travis cuts out the keeper's flat pass and the ball goes to Dolan near the D. He takes it on and gets in a decent shot but the keeper saves. Hedges collects the rebound but he’s offside. Giles dispossesses the defender and streaks off towards goal. He’s into the box but it’s a narrow angle and his shot hits the goalie at the near post. Dolan was available, square in the 6 yard box, and he throws up his arms in frustration. I think Giles has something about him though. He too can make things happen. 84 Another poor Travis tackle earns him a yellow card.He looks knackered. 85 Giles picks up the ball midway in the QPR half and inter-passes nicely with Dolan and Hedges and he’s into the box but overruns the ball slightly and the keeper gets a hand to it. He tries a couple more times to put the ball back into the danger area but each time he hits the keeper! Rangers finally clear. 93 Zeefuik wins a header from a long punt and Hedges slips the ball through to Dolan who chips the goalie and the ball lands on top of the crossbar…..but I think he knew he was offside. 94 The fans are nervous and whistling away! 95 Wharton and van Hecke are both beaten to a high punt into the box but the ball falls nicely for Kaminski to drop on it. The whistle goes and Khadra revels in the adoration as he waits for his teammates to leave the pitch. We needed that - it feels as though we might be back on track. Khadra and Dolan together inject so much energy into our play. I enjoyed it!

So after last nights disaster class it’s clear the team needs shaking up. My team would be KAMINSKI LENIHAN. VAN HECKE. WHARTON NYAMBE. GILES BUCKLEY. TRAVIS KHADRA. ROTHWELL GALLAGHER i think both the cms can win the ball back and Buckley can find a pass and unlock doors, those are his assets and that position is where he will best utilise them. We all know rothwells dribbling ability and to be able to cut inside and hit one . We’re desperate for some one to be able to hit a decent shot or at least create some corners or mayhem dribbling into the box. With Buckley spraying passes to joe and reda I think we could create some havoc down the lines and cutting in. Giles can deliver a proper ball in. Last night no body was in the box and the ball had to be played back or turn back inside and wait for players to catch up. Buckley I’m the middle is never the answer. Gallagher facing goal and directly down the middle is the only position he should play. It’s make or break time for him. With so many injuries he needs to start producing. Give him a run of games there with quality either side of him and behind him and if he still looks like a clumsy oaf and can’t hit a barn door then regardless of the contract it’s time to move on before we have a Corry evans jason Lowe scenario with him . make or break time lads . A defeat here and it’s over as far as I’m concerned

I stepped off the train, made my way out of the station, reached for the map in my pocket showing the location of Courtwood House; carried out some quick calculations and decided to walk. Time was on my side and I could save the taxi money to put towards an LP. I was fifteen years old and on my way for my first ever interview. It was with Midland Bank… “The Listening Bank” - ask your grandparents - applying for entrance into their graduate scheme. I was far from confident. Frankly, I felt as welcome as David Dunn visiting “The Royal Dyche” for a swift half and couldn’t wait for the ordeal to be over and soon to be on the earliest train home. That was the first time I had ever set foot in Sheffield and had it been the last, I would have been neither surprised nor concerned. Fast forward fourteen years or so, I’m standing in the ballroom of the Royal Victoria Hotel in Sheffield, delivering my groom’s speech. I’d married a Yorkshire lass and Sheffield was now always going to be a significant part of my history; notwithstanding that at this point I lived in the West Midlands. Sheffield’s claws were now in me. Visits to the in-laws meant trips to Meadowhall and if I played a shrewd strategic game, could be timed conveniently to “coincide” with away games at Hillsborough and Bramall Lane…how fortunate ? By 2007, we’d moved both jobs and house. Birmingham was firmly in the rear-view mirror and Sheffield now became my home, as it remains to this very day. As a Lancastrian, I never expected ever to settle in South Yorkshire; but as I reflect for this piece, Sheffield has constantly appeared at significant junctions in my life…destiny perhaps ? If I’m being scrupulously honest; I’ve never felt more at home anywhere, than I do here.. I’d secured the Midland Bank gig, I’d married a Sheffield girl and as my Twitter bio proclaims…I’m now an “exiled Lancastrian undertaking important missionary work in South Yorkshire”. As luck would have it, there is a little cluster of Rovers fans in this neck of the woods. We provide mutual succour and comfort to each other and when circumstances allow; we travel to Ewood together, meet up at away games and chew the cud on social media. So it is that on 23rd February, I will proudly welcome my fellow Roverites to the Steel City and we will descend on Bramall Lane keen to secure three vital points. Sheffield has suffered during the Covid lockdown. Many of our favourite shops have closed. The exit of John Lewis especially, being felt much like a death in the family. At least some of my favourite bars, restaurants and venues have somehow battled to keep heads above water and all being well, will survive and hopefully thrive. If you’re arriving by train, visit the Sheffield Tap on platform 1 of the station. If you’re arriving by car (& not driving of course), the best selection of ales close to Bramall Lane is probably “The Beer Engine” on Cemetery Road. Most folks won’t have time on a Wednesday evening, but if you ever find yourself in Sheffield with more leisure time, check out the Kelham Island district in the city; especially The Cutlery Works, the Kelham Island Tavern and if you like pizzas and real ale, Craft & Dough. From a footballing perspective, the city has seen the Owls spending more time fighting financial meltdown of late than footballing foes; whilst the Blades rose to the Premier League, taking the division by storm, only then to implode and drop back to the Championship. A period of readjustment now seems to have calmed things down, thanks to the appointment of former Barnsley & Leeds Utd boss Paul Heckingbottom. In his enjoyable sporting memoirs, Michael Parkinson often used a generic name of “Arthur Strongitharm” to describe an all-purpose composite Yorkshireman; presumably to avoid legal issues with some of his more ascerbic pen portraits. Ignoring that fictional name and with the possible exception of Arnie Sidebottom, is there a more stereotypical Yorkshire sporting name ? Legend has it that the Blades tend to attract the working-class Sheffielder, whilst the Owls are viewed as the more aspirational, middle-class club. Whichever opponent, Rovers have suffered some heartbreak in the Steel City over the years; the most memorable recent victories tending to come at Hillsborough rather than Bramall Lane. The (if you believe it) working-class Blades have traditionally proved to be obdurate opponents and similar can be expected this February. The victory at Ewood earlier this season after *that* Fulham game, proved to be a catalyst for a sustained run of positive results which catapulted Rovers into automatic promotion contention. The New Year however, has served only to pour cold water on those heady dreams. Poor recent form means that Rovers really need to secure a decent Bramall Lane result this time, else the great work of November and December will turn us into footballing Bullseye contestants… “Look at what you *could* have won…” The form table after the draw at The Hawthorns certainly calls out the size of the task ahead for Rovers. A re-energised and re-invigorated United are seemingly starting the sort of late season surge that can easily propel a team to the play-offs. We all know the challenges that Rovers currently face in the goal scoring department and given the Blades’ defensive record, this match in the Steel City requires Rovers to be on their mettle. , With a hat tip to my fellow Sheffield-based Roverite Mike Delap - here’s a list of alumni of the two clubs… Kevin Arnott James Beattie Marcus Bent Alan Birchenall Nick Blackman Nathan Blake David Bradford Viv Busby Harry Chapman Gordon Cowans Tony Field Garry Flitcroft Paul Gallagher Terry Garbett Keith Gillespie Mick Heaton Alan Kelly Andy Kennedy Matt Kilgallon Jay McEveley Nicky Marker Andy Morrison Mark Patterson Neil Ramsbottom Jack Rodwell Craig Short Mick Speight Phil Starbuck Jon Stead Keith Treacy Lee Williamson Alan Wright Sheffield has many positive attributes that I find endearing - if United could afford us the sort of warm welcome that Wednesday managed in January 2020, then I’m sure many fellow Roverites would enjoy the city every bit as much as I do. 😊 #COYB

PLAYER WATCH v Sheffield United (A) Each incident in the match was rated on the following scale: +5 GOAL +4 Excellent play +3 Very good play +2 Pleasing/good play +1 Decent play 0 Routine stuff -1 Sloppy play -2 Disappointing/poor play -3 Very poor play -4 Terrible play -5 Own goal The ratings for each player were then combined to produce a measure of the players overall contribution to the match. Ratings Key incidents per player = coloured stars Overall contribution = numbers Kaminski ******* **** 10 Nyambe (81) ********** * 16 Lenihan **************** ****** 19 van Hecke ******************* **** 19 Wharton *************** ********** 6 Pickering *********** ******* 6 Travis *********** ******* 4 Buckley ******** ********* -3 Rothwell *************** ******* 6 Gallagher ************* *********** 3 Khadra ********* ******** 4 Dolan (81) * * 0 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) United are one of the form teams at the moment. They’ve won 8 out of 12 since getting a new manager but, overall, their home form hasn’t been great. 02 Pickering is well beaten and brings down Berge near the corner flag. Kaminski gets up to collect the free kick comfortably. 05 Rovers seem taken by surprise by a long throw. Kaminski misses it completely and it bounces off Wharton’s head for a corner. It’s been a prolonged bombardment by United but we’ve coped so far. Norwood fluffs his attempted shot but it’s another long throw in! 06 Kaminski punches and Travis hooks clear. 07 An ineffective Travis challenge 33 yards out allows the United man to square the ball to a completely unmarked Baldock. His shot, from 20 yards is low and hard and Kaminski does well to dive to his right and parry it into the air. Van Hecke gets his head in and eventually Nyambe puts it out for a corner. Norwood beats van Hecke in the air but it’s into the side-netting. United are making it all look too easy. We can’t get hold of the ball! 09 Rothwell gets his first touch of the ball! Now United surge forward through the midfield, cutting us to pieces embarrassingly! Norwood to Sharp to Berge, 15 yards out. Pickering attempts to challenge but the shot comes in and Kaminski is the saviour again. Davies puts the rebound into the net but he’s offside! 10 Buckley slips a lovely ball, between the centre-halves, through the right channel to Gallagher, in the box; he manages to get in a cross from the byline to the edge of the 6 yard box but a defender boots it clear. 11 We win a free kick wide on the right and the big men come up. They needn’t have bothered as Rothwell’s forward ball is pathetic. The rebound is back to Rothwell and he runs forward but his shot is well off-target. 13 United waltz easily towards our box again and Nyambe gets in a block. The ball bobbles around and Kaminski picks up. 17 A nice long pass by Rothwell to Khadra on the wing. He gets in a decent first-time cross but the defender is there well before Gallagher. We get a corner but it’s a poor cross by Khadra. 18 We get a throw just inside their half but Pickering throws it directly to a Sheffield man! White sends Berge free on the wing. Sharp has managed to get in behind Lenihan but he heads wide!! Another good chance for United as a result of our sloppy play. That should have been Sharp’s 263rd goal. 19 Poor attempt at a tackle by Rothwell, then van Hecke gives it away dangerously. This is poor fare from Rovers. Lenihan clears up with a meaty challenge. The midfield trio need to step up. 20 Great challenge by Gallagher in the United half and Buckley picks up. He heads towards goal and, with no one challenging, he decides to shoot from 24 yards. It’s well wide and disappointing. 23 A lovely bending through ball from halfway, down the right channel, by Lenihan for Khadra to run on to and he’s free and clear but he’s also offside! 24 Now it’s Travis with a lovely long ball down the right to Khadra. He beats his man and takes it to the byline and crosses but Buckley, back to goal, stretches for the ball and takes it off the toes of the incoming Pickering near the penalty spot. Rothwell falls over and United clear. Travis tries a shot from 30 yards but it’s straight at the keeper. 25 I was waiting for it! Rothwell, as he’s left behind, has 2 goes at snapping at the Sheffield man’s heels and it’s another yellow card. He’s the worst tackler in the team. Free kick, 30 yards out. It’s played wide to Baldock who beats Pickering too easily and crosses to the far post where Egan puts his header wide. Wharton probably did enough to put him off! 30 Raining and the relentless United bombardment has subsided for a minute. 33 Gallagher draws a foul, 30 yards out. Khadra whistles in a decent effort just above the right side of the bar. 36 Glory be! A bit of pressure from Rovers but nothing too exciting yet. 37 Another ineffective challenge for a long clearance by Gallagher. United move forward and Berge goes past Wharton easily and then does Pickering all ends up at the edge of the box before putting in a low cross from near the byline. Kaminski dives and parries straight to Baldock who’s shot hits Kaminski’s knees; the ball bounces against van Hecke and finally it drops into a prone Kaminski's arms! 43 Rothwell and Khadra combine to produce a poor short corner. 44 Some nice interplay between a few Rovers sees Pickering put clear near the corner flag, his cross reaches Gallagher but his back is to goal and he’s dispossessed. Eventually we get another corner on the left. It comes to nothing but we keep possession. Wharton puts the ball into the box where Gallagher is waiting 15 yards out. He tries to turn and volley at the same time but that would have been goal of the season! It’s well off-target but worth a go I suppose. It’s half time and Sheffield should be at least one goal to the good. We have improved a lot though, after the first half hour. 45 We win a free kick in the United half but Rothwell’s sneaky pass to the invisible man was awful. Our throw-ins and set pieces are really poor. 50 More positive intent so far this half but little quality around the box. 51 A nice cut back from Rothwell to Khadra 35 yards out. He advances on goal before laying on a lovely flat ball across the 6 yard box but Gallagher was nowhere near it in truth! 52 United work it from the keeper all the way to Fleck 25 yards out and unmarked (where is the midfield?) His shot is only parried into the air by Kaminski. Pickering can’t get a foot on it and White hits it back towards goal from just to the right of the 6 yard box but Kaminski is there and this time it sticks! 58 Van Hecke misjudges a long punt downfield and Sharp makes a fool of him as he picks up the ball and goes past him on the byline. He makes some amends as he gets back to block and concede a corner. Sheffield are claiming handball by van Hecke but he had his back turned. 63 Rovers have perked up at last but still there are those poor passes in the final third. Nyambe wins a corner. Rothwell’s cross is met by Lenihan but he can’t get it on target. 65 Pandemonium! Goode takes out Khadra with a vicious sliding tackle. Could have broken his leg there. Mowbray and the players are incensed. Goode off! Travis has to be dragged away. It looks worse on the replay! 68 Nyambe beats the defender and puts in a decent cross from the byline but it’s deflected and Gallagher can’t do anything with it. We keep the ball though and it’s sustained pressure. Buckley slides the ball square to an on-rushing Pickering, just outside the D, and he puts in a powerful drive which the goalie saves well, diving to his left. More pressure from Rovers. 69 Khadra picks up the ball on the left, 25 yards out, and manages to wriggle past 2 defenders and storm into the box. He goes for goal and the ball hits the defender's arm. Penalty! Khadra is taking it! He hits it central and shoulder height….just right for the keeper to save. It’s a poor penalty; will we ever score again? The keeper was off the goal-line too! 74 It’s a straight ball down the United right wing, Wharton trips over his own feet and White is away and clear. Van Hecke comes across to close him down but it’s a corner. Phew! Gallagher heads away. How come Sam gets in far more successful headers in our box than he ever does in the opponent’s? 75 Another scary long throw but Wharton gets up first. 79 Sheffield are still managing to cut through midfield and Lenihan has to make a commanding accurate challenge in the box to clean up. 81 Nyambe off, Dolan on. Lenihan drops to full back. 84 Rovers win a free kick on the left wing 17 yards out. Khadra whips it in and it bounces in the 6 yard box, takes a deflection and hits the startled goalie. Rovers claim a penalty but, as earlier, the defender had his back to the ball. United scramble it away. 85 Rothwell tries a shot from over 20 yards but it’s blocked. Travis, on halfway lobs a lovely ball to Khadra in space. He advances into the box and sends his defender the wrong way before curling a nice shot to the far post but it’s just wide. 86 Foul throw by Khadra! 91 United attack and Pickering prevents the cross at the expense of a corner. It comes in and Kaminski flaps and misses. The ball goes straight up in the air and McBurnie gets his head to it before Gallagher. It falls to Davies, in the 6 yard box who gleefully smashes it into the net. Catastrophe! The Sheffield players and subs celebrate annoyingly. It’s very loud. 95 Two, painfully, too short punts forward by Buckley as we send up the big men. And the whistle goes. I can feel us slipping remorselessly into the mire.

£25 for 2 forthcoming games, a great offer IMO......Negative is, there should have been the foresight for these 2 fixtures, 2 months ago in an 'Operation to fill Ewood' which was mentioned and discussed within the corridors but c'est la vie! Why just The Darwen End, Fuck only knows!? Please everyone, do your utmost and make the most of this offer if you don't already have tickets. It really could be key!! Please, please get behind our young and up and coming team, particularly in the remaining home fixtures, I KNOW that your support means so much to them! Best, in hope, 'darrenrover'. WATR!!!

Once again we have morons in the Blackburn End, throwing bottles onto the pitch towards the Forest keeper resulting in a warning being given over the broadcast tannoy inside the ground. What kind of idiotic scumbag supporter are we allowing to get away with this behaviour inside the ground? Its now time for the good fans to take this forward and SHOP THE SCUM who blight our clubs colours and trash the very good name of our supporters. We have an element of away supporters who think they are great because they have a few glasses of cheap lager, shout abuse and let off smoke bombs inside grounds - the same louts also run as fast as they an when they are approached by opposition supporters and/or police. We have a small minority who throw bottles on the pitch, home and away? Just what the fuck do they think that is achieving? Its time to shop a scum bag. In todays world of technology its easy to get a camera shot of the lout. Lets do everything we can to get this scum loutish lot out and away from our club forever.

Show your true love how much they mean to you. Get to the Hawthorns on the 14th.

PLAYER WATCH v WBA (A) Each incident in the match was rated on the following scale: +5 GOAL +4 Excellent play +3 Very good play +2 Pleasing/good play +1 Decent play 0 Routine stuff -1 Sloppy play -2 Disappointing/poor play -3 Very poor play -4 Terrible play -5 Own goal The ratings for each player were then combined to produce a measure of the players overall contribution to the match. Ratings Key incidents per player = coloured stars Overall contribution = numbers Kaminski ** ** 0 R-Costello (73) ************ ********* 5 Nyambe **************** **** 21 Wharton ************************* ************ 23 van Hecke ******************** ******* 22 Giles *************** ******** 6 Travis ************ ******** 6 Buckley (89) ****************** ******* 22 Rothwell ******************* ****** 20 Gallagher ******** ************ -5 Diaz (69) *********** ********* 5 Khadra (69) ** ***** -6 Dolan (73) *** * 7 Johnson (89) 0 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) Ayala is injured during warm-up so JRC comes in, Nyambe moves into the centre. 00 Poor touch by Buckley loses the ball. 02 Awful attempt at a long pass by Rothwell goes for a goal kick. 04 Rovers are awarded a free kick midway in West Brom’s half on the right wing. It’s a decent cross by Rothwell but a defender heads clear. It falls to Buckley 22 yards out who immediately fires back a powerful half-volley. It’s goal bound but deflected by a defender’s leg, behind for a corner. Great technique after the criticism of his shooting in recent games! 05 Rothwell slides a nice ball through the centre to Gallagher who miscontrols but it falls perfectly to Diaz in the D, he nets but both Rovers were offside. 10 Nice Rovers approach play but Travis passes straight into touch. 17 A nice ball down the wing from JRC to Gallagher who’s in the clear. He heads to goal but his “no-look” attempted cross is poor and Diaz, in the centre, holds his head. 19 Wharton has tried a couple of long cross-field passes and neither have been good enough. Now Furlong has the ball on their right wing and he strolls towards goal with no one attempting to challenge him. Diaz can’t get back, Giles and Wharton stay with their men and Rothwell is spectating which allows Furlong to get a dangerous cross into the 6 yard box where it bounces off Grant for a goal-kick. Close! 21 An all too familiar “nudge in the back” Rothwell tackle concedes a free kick 32 yards out. The ball goes to Carroll eventually on the far edge of the box. He beats Nyambe and Travis before firing in a shot which Kaminski beats away at his near post. 24 Rothwell miscontrols and is dispossessed 30 yards out. Wharton and van Hecke combine to clear up. West Brom come straight back and this time it’s Diaz who commits a dumb foul from behind, just 25 yards out. Furlong’s attempt at goal is comfortably wide. 27 Lots of West Brom pressure around the Rovers box and some rushed, unpolished defending from Rovers. Now it’s JRC, then Travis with sloppy passes, and momentum is lost again. West Brom are first to every ball right now and we can’t get out of our half. 36 Giles gives Reach too much room down their right wing allowing him to cross. There’s a bit of ping-pong before Kaminski collects. Still plenty of self-induced pressure on Rovers. Fortunately West Brom aren’t very good. 39 A nice long ball into the left channel from Rothwell sends Diaz away but the defender out-muscles him and Diaz is judged to have fouled him. 40 JRC tries to play too much football close to our own goal, he loses control and has to foul the attacker. Yellow card. Fortunately the free kick comes to nothing but that’s the third free cross into the box we’ve given them…..with Carroll lurking! 43 Diaz brings the ball out of our half, beautifully side-stepping opponents as he goes, before laying off a nice pass to JRC who lobs a decent ball into the box where Furlong does well to launch himself and head the ball away from Gallagher who was getting ready to shoot. I’m not sure if Sam could have gone for a header but anyway, it was good defending. 45 The half-time whistle goes and we’ve struggled to produce anything of real quality. West Brom haven’t been much better. 45 Clarke beats Gallagher and Buckley, setting up Townsend for the cross. Carroll outjumps Wharton but heads well over the bar. 47 Reach is away from Travis, haring down the wing. Thankfully Rothwell has got back to cut out the cross. 48 Everyone is back for the WBA corner. Carroll beats Gallagher and Wharton in the air but Diaz is first to the bouncing ball. 49 Reach tries a shot from outside the box but it’s deflected high into the air. Kaminski fails to punch clear because Townsend backed into him and Clarke heads into the net. But the foul's given. 50 JRC puts in a long crossfield ball to Diaz in the box. He tries to volley it unsuccessfully but he was offside anyway. 53 A nice long ball down the wing from Giles for Diaz to chase but he’s outmuscled by the defender. 54 Van Hecke passes long down the wing to Nyambe and he takes it on and crosses flat across the box, 8 yards out. The defender somehow misses it which puts Gallagher off and, unbelievably, Gallagher does the splits and the ball rolls between his legs with the goal gaping wide! The next defender puts it out for a corner. Rothwell takes it and Wharton gets up first but gets under the ball and his header is well over. A bit disappointing. 56 Buckley wins a corner on the right. Rothwell’s cross finds Wharton again. It’s a clearer chance but again the header is off-target. He should have troubled the keeper this time. 58 Buckley slightly to the right and 40 yards out bends a lovely ball behind the defence to Diaz who finishes beautifully with his left foot. Frustratingly it’s all for nothing because Diaz was offside AGAIN! With so few chances coming our way, we can’t afford these misjudgements. 59 A bit of Rovers pressure and JRC crosses into the box. The defender’s header falls to Buckley on the left side of the box. He drives infield and dummies to shoot before firing from 16 yards. It takes two deflections and Johnstone does well to push it behind for a corner. 62 It’s more Rovers pressure and Buckley picks up the ball on the left wing. He moves forward confidently to the edge of the box and fires in a lovely cross which Gallagher and JRC just fail to connect with. 63 West Brom attack and JRC fails to prevent the winger getting in a good cross but van Hecke heads clear. 64 Diangana goes past Buckley too easily and passes to Furlong near the corner flag. This time it’s Giles who fails to prevent the cross but JRC heads away. West Brom come again, and again, JRC fails to prevent the cross. Carroll fouls Wharton but play goes on as Kaminski collects. 65 A lot of inter-passing by Rovers, then Rothwell slots the ball nicely down the left channel to Diaz’s feet. He takes it on and from just outside the box fires in a shot but it’s comfortably saved by Johnstone. Oh dear! It looks like Diaz has injured himself. 68 Play continues against Rovers 10 men. Giles is not getting close enough to his man and Diangana is allowed to cross under no pressure. Carroll heads it down to Reach on the edge of the box but he blasts the ball over the bar. I’m not sure Giles is a good enough defender to play wing back! 69 Diaz off, Khadra on. 72 Khadra runs down a blind alley on the edge of the box and loses the ball. Play continues and then he runs down another alley and loses possession. 73 JRC off, Dolan on. 74 Gallagher steals the ball from last defender Clarke but his lack of control means it’s all for nothing and the keeper collects. 75 Giles slips it down the wing to Khadra near the corner flag. He takes it into the box, nutmegging the first defender and beating a second before firing in a powerful shot from a narrow angle. The keeper parries away. There were Rovers players in the box…..perhaps trying to find one would have been a better option? 76 Travis gives away a soft foul just inside Rovers half. Wharton beats Carroll to the header. 77 Khadra gives the ball away in a dangerous position but Rothwell clears the subsequent cross. 78 Again Khadra gives the ball away. Apart from that one twinkling moment, he’s been awful since he came on! Finally Nyambe gets the ball clear. He’s had some excellent moments in the back 3 today! 80 Khadra fires a nice long ball towards Gallagher in the box. He controls first time (no really!) and lays back to Buckley who feeds Travis but he loses the ball. 84 Rovers get a free kick, central but over 30 yards out. Khadra decides to go for goal but it’s 2 yards wide. 85 Dolan collects a long Kaminski kick on the wing. He beats Townsend and takes it to the byline where he crosses to Gallagher who has his back to goal but it runs to Buckley who hits a decent shot on target but a defenders leg gets in the important block. 86 Travis steals the ball from Carroll then immediately gives the ball away! Wharton fouls Carroll near the centre circle. It’s taken short and persistent pressing by Buckley sees the ball go all the way back to their goalie. 87 It’s a West Brom corner. It’s deep and Carroll beats both Gallagher and Wharton and Kaminski, under pressure, paws away his header. A tired looking van Hecke chases the ball and puts it out for a throw. Furlong lines up his long throw and 3 or 4 players go up for it at the neat post. Someone heads it straight to a West Brom man just on the edge of the 6 yard box and his header has a diving Kaminski beaten but miraculously there’s Dolan to intercept at full stretch and prevent a certain goal! The ball flies high in the air, Nyambe gets an important foot in and Dolan runs it out of the box. All the Rovers players are streaming forward. We win a corner! Phew! 89 Buckley off, Johnson on. Nothing exciting happens from the corner. 93 Final whistle. A better second half but where is our next goal gonna come from?

Watching Forest destroy Leicester in the FA Cup. If they play like this on Wednesday we will be in deep trouble!

PLAYER WATCH v Nottingham Forest Each incident in the match was rated on the following scale: +5 GOAL +4 Excellent play +3 Very good play +2 Pleasing/good play +1 Decent play 0 Routine stuff -1 Sloppy play -2 Disappointing/poor play -3 Very poor play -4 Terrible play -5 Own goal The ratings for each player were then combined to produce a measure of the players overall contribution to the match. Ratings Key incidents per player = coloured stars Overall contribution = numbers Kaminski ******** * 15 Zeefuik (82) ***** ******** -6 Lenihan *************** ************* 1 Wharton ***************** ****** 16 van Hecke ******************** ************ 5 Giles ************* ********** 8 Travis ****** ********** -4 Buckley (53) ********* ******* -1 Rothwell ******** ************ -7 Khadra (57) ****** ****** 3 Diaz ************ ****** 11 Gallagher (53) **** **** 0 Dolan (57) ****** 8 Hedges (82) * -2 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) 00 Good noise from the fans. 01 Khadra drives down the wing with 2 defenders chasing. He’s into the box but falls down rather easily - no penalty. 02 Buckley dispossessed so he fouls the Forest man. 03 Van Hecke slides a lovely ball from halfway to Khadra, in space, on the wing. He takes it on to the edge of the box and tries a very ambitious shot which Samba saves easily at his near post. Diaz was in the centre but well marked. 04 A second Forest corner goes to the far post to an unmarked attacker; a shot comes in which is blocked by Diaz and it’s another corner. We look disorganised on these set-pieces. This time it’s a good punch by Kaminski. 06 Diaz offside. The rain is relentless. 08 Another nice long ball from van Hecke but this time Zeefuik is offside. 10 Forest stroll effortlessly through our midfield Giles, Travis and Lenihan fail to intercept but fortunately van Hecke makes the crucial challenge on Davis, inside the box, and the ball ricochets off Davis to Kaminski. 12 Buckley draws a free-kick, central and 35 yards out, and while Forest are organising themselves, Rothwell slips a quick pass sneakily through to Buckley, unmarked and just inside the box. He turns and only has the keeper to beat but he tries to sidefoot it tamely past the keeper and, falling the wrong way, Samba manages to stick a foot out and a glorious chance goes begging! Diaz retrieves the ball a yard from the byline and shoots but a defender clears off the line. Buckley should have hammered it……..another terrible miss from him! 16 Buckley loses the ball sloppily in the centre circle and Forest stream forward dangerously. Davis does van Hecke all ends up near to the left of the box and gets to the byline where he squares the ball and Kaminski blocks it with his legs at the near post. It only goes as far as Lowe just inside the box but his goal-bound shot is blocked by van Hecke. Lenihan fluffs his clearance back to Lowe who, this time, shoots into the side-netting. So much for our renowned defensive backline! Someone was offside at the end. To compound it all, Buckley is booked for a foul when he lost the ball! That’s his ninth. 21 Davis picks up the ball on halfway; Lenihan, Diaz and Travis can’t handle him and he’s away! Zeefuik gets back to challenge and bundles Davis over but he bounces straight back up and retains the ball before threading it into the box to Garner who pulls it back neatly and puts Wharton on his backside before slotting past Kaminski. A good goal but it relied on more comedy defending I’m afraid. 24 This time van Hecke gives the ball away on halfway but, at least, he manages to chase Johnson down to get a block in but Johnson retrieves and goes round van Hecke and, fortunately, Kaminski collects his high cross. 26 Oh dear! Buckley’s head’s gone I think. He tries an overly ambitious shot from just outside the box but it’s an embarrassing, total mis-kick! 27 A lovely ball from Rothwell to Zeefuik high on the right wing but his attempted cut back is poor and Forest clear. 28 It's strange that all our attacks seem to be directed towards the right wing after Giles’ encouraging performance last time out. Here he’s won a throw-in and there’s nobody anywhere near him to throw it to…..and no one seems eager to come for it either! What’s going on? 29 Travis jumps in to pinch the ball just outside their D and is fouled. Yellow card. Rothwell hammers it straight into the wall. 35 Another Forest attack instigated by Davis and van Hecke has to stretch to cut out the ball inside the box. But back they come and Giles lets his man go, so Kaminski has to rush out to collect the ball. 39 Lenihan can’t handle Davis. He drops him in the middle of our half and earns his 9th yellow card. 41 A beautiful ball into the left channel from Giles, well inside Rovers half, sets Rothwell free and he storms into the box. He tries to square it to Diaz on the 6 yard line but a defender slides in and intercepts. He should have gone for goal himself…another good chance wasted. 42 Giles puts in a decent cross and Diaz gets it on target but it’s a weak header and straight at the keeper. 43 Diaz offside again. 44 Van Hecke’s headed clearance is straight to Johnson who goes past Wharton easily and feeds Davis in the box. He beats Travis, van Hecke and Wharton before blazing over the bar. Phew, he’d done all the hard work! A let off! 45 Giles puts a low, flat ball square into the 6 yard box. One defender hits it against another and Khadra picks up. He tries to do his razzle dazzle but ends up on the floor. Wharton’s long pass goes out of play. 46 The whistle goes and it’s been dire. 45 It’s stopped raining! 48 Two poor corners from Giles! Now there’s some nice interplay between Buckley and Khadra and Buckley from just outside the box passes to Diaz’s feet near the penalty spot. The defender is tight on him and Diaz falls over allowing Forest to clear. Davis is clear and storming forward into the Rovers half. Rothwell puts in one of the dumbest challenges I’ve seen in a long time….scything Davis down from behind. He aimed for the man, the ball was miles away! Fully deserved yellow card. 51 Giles allows the winger to get in his cross and Lenihan heads clear. 52 Lenihan dives into a reckless challenge and the Forest players surround the ref. It’s a second yellow and Lenihan is off! 53 Gallagher on, Buckley off. 54 Spence goes past Gallagher and Rothwell with ease. Eventually Forest get the ball to Davis who turns and makes van Hecke look like a mug as he heads into the box. Kaminski and Wharton manage to block the shot at the near post. Diaz picks up the ball and from well in our half puts it into the left channel for Gallagher to chase.Sam drives powerfully towards the box, cuts back losing his 2 defenders before unleashing a good shot but it’s well blocked by one of the defenders who managed to get back. Wharton, under no pressure, hands the ball to Forest on the halfway line. Johnson runs forward and fires in a shot from 20 yards but it’s weak and too near Kaminski. Van Hecke looks knackered! 57 Dolan on, Khadra off. 58 Diaz is booked for dissent. 60 A lovely long ball down the wing from Zeefuik but Diaz is offside again! 63 Rothwell wins the ball and earns a corner. Giles’ delivery is too high and looping to get any force behind a header. 65 Ten-man Rovers are managing to exert some pressure but we don’t really look like scoring. 66 Neat play between Dolan and Rothwellsees Dolan get to the byline and cross into the box but Gallagher’s header is weak and straight at Samba. 69 Worrall hoofs a huge clearance downfield and van Hecke is chasing back desperately with 2 Forest men. Van Hecke goes down on the edge of the box and Johnson picks up the ball and beats Zeefuik. Kaminski saves low to his left at full stretch and new sub Surridge fires the rebound, back across goal, a foot past the left post with a sliding Forest man missing the tap in by a whisker! I reckon van Hecke was fouled in the build up there but it’s another big let off. 70 A long Forest free kick comes in and Johnson is away from Zeefuik and manages to push the ball across the box to Surridge on the penalty spot but thankfully van Hecke gets there first. 75 Diaz tries a shot from 22 yards. There’s not much quality in it but a deflection causes a bit of concern but Samba collects it. 77 Travis brings down Surridge and Forest take it quickly. Surridge gets it in the box but van Hecke blocks - although Surridge retrieves and still manages to get in a cross. Zeefuik heads away and it finally goes to Yates on the edge of the box and he hits the side-netting. Travis is booked. Following a brief flourish after the sending off, it’s looking all too easy for the Forest attack. It reminds me a bit of the way our defence crumbled after the Fulham sending off….except Forest aren’t finishing as well….. 81 Here we go again. It’s another long ball forward, Zeefuik is injured, and it’s 2 against 1 (van Hecke). Surridge gets there first and, from 13 yards, decides to have a go himself but he’s well off target. 82 Hedges on, Zeefuik off. 83 Gallagher gives away a soft free kick and the long ball finds Surridge on their left wing. He leaves Hedges on his backside and passes to Lowe on the 6 yard box but Wharton does well to block his attempted cut back and it’s a corner. Kaminski punches clear. 88 Van Hecke is beaten in the box by Surridge and the Dutchman brings him down. Penalty. Johnson hits the ball into the middle of the net. 90 Forest stream forward again but van Hecke blocks the shot. There’s no relief as they come again………and again van Hecke intercepts. 93 Giles midway in the Forest half, on the wing, bends a nice ball to Dolan’s feet in the D. He does a bit of flashy footwork before shooting but it’s straight at the keeper. 96 One final attack from Forest and mercifully, the final whistle goes. This is no fun any more!

Swansea away, 5.30pm kick off (thanks to Sky) but it's imperative that there are as many Rovers fans at Vetch Field (or what ever the fuck it's called these days?!) on Saturday. February is one hell of a tough month and we all need to galvanise as one and get behind this brave bunch of young lads in the cause of the both the red rose, BRFC and do our utmost to see us back where we belong....Bournemouth, QPR, who the fuck are ya?! I'll be in Swansea with my pals as normal, (another long day) I really hope that a couple of thousand of you at least, join us in South Wales..... COYB!!! WE ARE The Rovers!!!

PLAYER WATCH v Swansea City Each incident in the match was rated on the following scale: +5 GOAL +4 Excellent play +3 Very good play +2 Pleasing/good play +1 Decent play 0 Routine stuff -1 Sloppy play -2 Disappointing/poor play -3 Very poor play -4 Terrible play -5 Own goal The ratings for each player were then combined to produce a measure of the players overall contribution to the match. Ratings Key incidents per player = coloured stars Overall contribution = numbers Kaminski ** 2 Nyambe (68) ********** * 15 Lenihan ****************** ********** 14 Wharton ************** **** 20 van Hecke ********** *** 10 Zeefuik (59) ************ **** 14 Travis **************** ***** 18 Buckley ***** ******** -8 Rothwell *************** **** 13 Hedges (59) **** *** 1 Giles ****************** **** 25 Diaz (59) 0 Khadra (59) **** ***** -2 R- Costello (68) ** * 0 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) A big match today; it’s time to get our mojo back after a string of poor performances. New boys Zeefuik, Giles and Hedges start with Diaz and Khadra on the bench. 00 A pass straight into touch from Buckley. Giles and Hedges are playing up front. 01 Nyambe wins the ball on halfway and heads towards the box, he squares to Buckley near the penalty spot but his shot is blocked and bounces harmlessly to the goalie. 03 Some nice play down the left wing. Giles slots the ball down the line for Zeefuik to run on to. Giles keeps running and Zeefuik slips it back to him into the box and his cross is square about 4 yards out but the defender does enough to muscle Nyambe away from connecting. At least Nyambe did well to get in position! There are forlorn claims for a penalty but Lenihan picks it up on the right wing and puts in a decent cross. Again Nyambe can’t get to it but he was offside I think. 05 Hedges and Travis combine to win the ball and Buckley takes over. He slides the ball through to Hedges running into the D but it’s not accurate enough and Cabango gets there first and his sliding interception bounces back off Hedges to the goalie. 08 Buckley draws a foul 35 yards out but Rothwell’s delivery is disappointing and Swansea clear. 09 Hedges fouls Cabango on halfway. Buckley takes a pot shot at the Swansea goal and is lucky to avoid a yellow card! 11 Swansea attack down their left and Nyambe jockeys well allowing van Hecke to run the ball confidently out of our half and he wins a throw. 15 Swansea are strolling around with the ball near the halfway line, then it’s passed forward to a totally unmarked Paterson on their left wing. He moves forward, cuts inside Giles, and launches the ball into the box where it’s 2 v 2 but they’re all spread out. Lenihan and van Hecke are out of the game. Obafemi strolls in between Wharton and Zeefuik and has a free header past Kaminski from 6 yards. The whole of the backline (bar Nyambe) was at fault there I think. A terrible goal to concede….and we don’t do well when we go behind! The Swansea fans are loud. 18 Swansea are knocking the ball around with more confidence and Wharton steps in to make an important interception. 19 Zeefuik does a good job of shielding the ball out for a goal-kick. 21 Some nice football from City down their right wing and the ball is squared to an unmarked Paterson just outside the D but his first-time shot goes over the bar. We were opened up too easily there! He could have taken a touch really but it’s a small let-off. 22 More sloppy defending from Lenihan and van Hecke and we’re fortunate that the pass to Paterson, in the box, was too heavy! Rothwell is playing very deep. There’s a nice 1-2 between Hedges and Rothwell and Hedges slips it to Buckley on the D but he falls over under challenge, claiming a free kick. The ref ignores him. 24 Nice pressing from Zeefuik deep in the City half and Giles dispossesses the defender before drawing a foul. Giles takes it himself and finds Lenihan on the penalty spot but his header comes back off the post. It goes straight to Buckley but, leaning back, he side-foots it over the bar with the goal gaping wide! That should have been the equaliser. 30 Nice chasing back by Zeefuik to rescue the ball and slide it to Kaminski. He’s fouled for his efforts. 32 Zeefuik slides the ball forward to Buckley just inside the box. He’s trying to hold off 2 defenders but he loses possession and goes down and looks for a penalty. He should have released the ball to a teammate. He’s booked for diving! That’s his 8th! 34 Rothwell intercepts in the City half and he’s off. Giles goes with him and Rothwell slips it to him on the left side of the box. He fires in a decent shot but it’s a fairly narrow angle and Fisher saves at his near post. 37 Good persistent play deep in the Swansea half by Nyambe and he draws the foul. Rothwell and Giles stand over the ball but Giles curls it into the box where a defender clears 2 yards from the line near the far post. No Rovers players are near enough to challenge though. I like the look of the lad so far. 44 Rothwell gives the ball away dangerously, deep in our half, but fortunately the Swansea man’s through ball isn’t good enough and it goes for a goal kick. 45 Travis picks up the ball on halfway and slides the ball through for Hedges to run on into the box. His shot runs harmlessly across the face of goal. A good run but the end was a bit disappointing. 46 A nice ball inside from Lenihan to Buckley but he miscontrols and loses the ball. 46 Giles arcs another teasing ball, from the left wing, into the 6 yard box but Hedges can’t get near it. 47 Wharton puts a nice ball through for Buckley to chase but he’s offside. 49 Nice wing work from Swansea stretches our defence; Lenihan and Travis are beaten and it’s dangerous. Cabango 30 yards out and central slips it to the edge of the box where Obafemi touches it perfectly to the feet of Piroe who only has Kaminski to beat. That is until a sensational, goal-saving challenge comes in from Lenihan near the penalty spot. Kaminski collects. 51 Wharton wins the ball in the centre-circle and Rothwell drives it on into the box but there’s too many defenders and his shot is blocked out for a corner. Rothwell’s cross leads to a foul on the keeper. 52 Lenihan rushes in to head clear and Manning catches him with a high boot. It’s his second yellow and he’s off. Lenihan is holding his head but the contact was on the forearm and chest area! 56 Another decent Giles cross. We need a big lad in there! The Swansea fans are giving Lenihan the bird. 58 A poor Rothwell pass goes straight out for a goal-kick. 59 Diaz and Khadra on, Zeefuik and Hedges off. 61 Van Hecke slides a lovely ball into the box for Nyambe to chase and we win a corner. Rothwell takes it and Swansea head away to Travis running into the edge of the D. He hits it first time but it’s just wide by a yard or so. 67 games since Travis last scored apparently. 64 We’re struggling to break down a packed 10 man defence. No counter-attacking today! 65 That’s another juicy cross from Giles and it has the defender turning the ball out for a corner. All 3 centre-backs are up for it. It’s a bit disappointing from Giles this time as it fails to go past the near post. 67 We’re devoid of ideas around the box. So van Hecke thinks he’ll have a go himself. He pushes the ball forward and takes a shot from 20 yards but it’s high and wide! 68 Nyambe off, Rankin Costello on. Oh! He passes a secret note to his captain. “Please score” maybe? 69 It must have been more complicated than that because Darragh is reading it again! 74 It’s slow, tedious, approach play from Rovers until Giles wins a corner. It comes to nothing though. 77 We’ve got too many players crowding together on the wings. Here we’ve got 4 players stood where the ball has just gone out for a throw! Now Buckley doesn’t seem to know what to do as he receives a throw in the Swansea half and allows himself to be dispossessed before he can make up his mind. 78 Another tempting ball into the box by Giles is brought down nicely by JRC and he tries to put it back across goal but a defender blocks and it bounces up on to his arm. Rovers claim a penalty but it would have been harsh. Giles wins another corner. Khadra whips in a wicked cross under the crossbar and Fisher punches away but he gets the foul anyway. On the replay it’s a really dumb, blatant push by JRC on the keeper. What a waste! 81 By the way, Diaz has done nothing so far! 84 Travis is beaten by Wolf on their right wing and it looks dangerous but Wharton steps in with a robust challenge to put an end to it. 85 Giles is 18 yards out to the left of the box and he curves a delicious ball behind every defender and in front of the keeper. JRC can’t reach it but Lenihan is there, only 4 yards out and he blazes it over the bar. Big miss, Darragh buries his head in the turf! 86 Good grief! Giles bends in another cross, not quite as delicious as the last one but van Hecke gets up and loops a header towards goal and Fisher tips it over. Giles takes and it’s out for another corner. This time he takes it short to Diaz who loops in a cross. Wharton just manages to get his head on it at the far post and Travis does well to shepherd the ball back to Wharton. He rolls it perfectly to the feet of Lenihan on the penalty spot and his side-footed shot is a foot over the bar. Where is a forward when you need one? 89 Paterson fires a long ball forward and Kaminski, well out of his goal, has to fling himself sideways to head the ball clear! 90 Another cross from Giles finds Wharton, central and 10 yards out. He’s on target with his header but it’s too close to Fisher who gathers. 91 Buckley tries a shot from outside the box and it’s deflected for yet another corner. It fizzles out. 94 Another Rovers corner. Kaminski comes up for it. It’s pointlessly short to Khadra who crosses from the corner flag anyway. It bobbles about in the 6 yard box but eventually comes to nothing. The final whistle goes and the slide continues. One thing Tony’s got to do immediately in training………ensure we work on how to get the best out of Giles’s deliveries. It’s been many a long while since we’ve had anybody who can cross like that. Lenihan could have given him a hat-trick of assists but we needed some proper forwards on the end of them! Just to note: the subs, in combination, contributed less than nothing!

PLAYER WATCH v Middlesbrough (H) Each incident in the match was rated on the following scale: +5 GOAL +4 Excellent play +3 Very good play +2 Pleasing/good play +1 Decent play 0 Routine stuff -1 Sloppy play -2 Disappointing/poor play -3 Very poor play -4 Terrible play -5 Own goal The ratings for each player were then combined to produce a measure of the players overall contribution to the match. Ratings Key incidents per player = coloured stars Overall contribution = numbers Kaminski **** * 4 Nyambe ************ *** 12 Lenihan ******************* ******** 19 Wharton **************** ******* 14 van Hecke ***************************** ******* 34 Edun (21) ** -5 Travis **************** ** 19 Buckley (75) *********** ********* 1 Johnson **************** ** 18 Zeefuik *********** ****** 7 Gallagher (50) ********* ******* 5 R-Costello (21) ****** **** 5 Butterworth (50) ***** **** 0 Ayala (75) ******* ** 8 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) 02 It’s a Luton throw near the right corner flag and some neat interplay allows Campbell to run away too easily from Johnson He’s deep into the box and jinks past Edun who has a nibble at him from behind and Campbell goes down. It looked like a good penalty shout but van Hecke deflects the ball into the air, a Town man heads it across goal and Zanfuik gets up there first. Phew! 05 A long ball is punted downfield by Luton and Jerome outjumps van Hecke. Lenihan is trying to shepherd it away from another Town man and Kaminski is confused about whether to come for it….it’s a stuff up and we concede a corner. The cross comes in and a Luton man is up before Lenihan and gets his header on target. Kaminski blocks and then gathers at the second attempt. 08 A sloppy pass straight into touch and then a nothing foul by Lenihan midway in our half. Naismith gets a header on target but it’s straight to Kaminski. 10 Edun mis-times his tackle and the Town man squirts the ball past him and into the box. Fortunately van Hecke is there to dispossess the attacker. 11 Campbell gets to the byline again and his cross is threatening but Lenihan hooks it clear. Luton are well on top at the moment. 12 Travis steals the ball on halfway and Buckley sends Gallagher forward. He runs it a bit far to the left and his attempted shot from 15 yards is more like a back-pass to the goalie. 21 Edun comes off injured after an earlier Lansbury “tackle”, Rankin-Costello on. 22 Another Buckley pass goes straight into touch. 24 Travis commits a foul on Luton’s right wing deep in our half. 26 Nyambe wins our first corner of the game. Buckley arcs the ball straight into touch!! 27 Free-kick taken for the team, near the centre-circle, by van Hecke as Luton threatened and it’s a yellow card. It’s taken short, then lofted high to the right and into the box where an unmarked Jerome squares across goal. Naismith puts it wide from 10 yards when it was easier to score. Luton should be leading! (Wharton was telling JRC to mark Jerome but he let him go!) 28 Down the other end of the park, Gallagher is quick to jump in and dispossess the defender but he’s brought down heavily for his efforts! Buckley crosses to the far side of the box where Lenihan heads it back across goal. Johnson heads a yard wide from near the penalty spot. A bit disappointing but the nearest we’ve come to a goal so far. 30 A very high ball is blown right back into the Luton half. I forgot to say it’s very windy today! 32 A nice cross into the goalmouth from JRC but an un-rushing Nyambe can’t get there as he collides with Bell and concedes the foul. 39 Onyedinma is a bit of a handful, he goes past Wharton and van Hecke on the right side of the box and squares it perfectly to Jerome on the penalty spot. He sweeps the ball past Kaminski but it hits the left post and bounces straight back into the prone Kaminski’s arms! Big escape! 41 A decent throw in by JRC from near the corner flag reaches Gallagher just outside the 6 yard box and he heads it on. Nyambe isn’t quick enough to reach it, 8 yards out, and Bell clears for a corner. Buckley’s cross is punched away by the keeper. 43 It’s a really scrappy game as Gallagher and then, even Buckley mis-control. The windy conditions are helping to make a poor spectacle even worse! We’re lucky to be level at half-time. 46 Gallagher goes down off the ball. Replays show that Lockyer appears to elbow him in the chest. Yellow card. The free kick is 25 yards out just to the left. Buckley goes for goal but it’s a bit too near the goalie and he palms it over the bar. It’s a decent corner by Buckley leading to a bit of ping pong in the box but Luton eventually draw the foul. 51 Gallagher hasn’t recovered so he’s off and Butterworth is on. 54 Van Hecke brings the ball to the halfway line and finds Butterworth with a long crossfield ball. He controls well and slips the ball for Buckley to chase into the box but the pass is a bit too hard and the keeper collects. Rovers are coming into the game a bit more this half. 56 A poor, wasteful free-kick delivery from Buckley. 57 Van Hecke misplaces his header from a long Luton clearance and it runs to Jerome near the corner flag. He beats Zeefuik and crosses low into the box but van Hecke is there to clear up. From the throw, a Luton man gets a decent cross into the box despite the attentions of Butterworth and Zeefuik and, this time Travis is in the box to intercept. 59 Travis gives away a cheap foul midway in the Rovers half. A Luton man heads the delivery well over. 60 Now Buckley gives away a soft free kick. 65 Travis squares the ball nicely to Johnson 25 yards out. He has plenty of time to line up his shot but it’s deflected a couple of yards wide by an on-rushing defender. The corner’s taken short to Zeefuik on the left corner of the box and he steers the ball dangerously towards goal. A Luton defender deflects it behind for another corner but Luton clear. A bit of decent Rovers pressure at last. 69 Two loose passes in less than a minute from Buckley. 75 Wharton concedes a free kick 25 yards out. Buckley off, Ayala on! Johnson heads the free kick clear. Ayala is gonna play up top! 78 Zeefuik cleverly shepherds the ball over the byline for a goal kick. 82 Ayala has thrown himself into everything since he came on. But now he gives away a foul and the little snot, Lansbury tells the ref to book him! The free kick out goes straight out of play. 86 Zeefuik gives away a corner. Kaminski, in a crowded goalmouth, punches the cross away but Wharton fouls near the corner flag. The pressure’s building. Ayala heads away but Luton get another corner! It’s taken short but it comes to nothing thanks to Wharton…..except another corner! It goes out for a goal-kick. 94 Another Luton corner goes straight out of play but Kaminski is absolutely incensed about something that happened in the goalmouth!! Blimey! Travis and Lenihan have to hold him back!! Cornick and Kaminski get yellow cards….the Luton man thinks it’s all very funny! It’s difficult to see what happened on the replay. 97 Travis takes a free kick towards the box, van Hecke heads it down to Butterworth in the D but he can’t get the ball under proper control as it bobbles into the box and Luton clear. 98 The whistle goes. That’s one of the very worst games I’ve commented on - very hard to allocate marks accurately; a lack of real quality everywhere on the pitch. No one looked like scoring in the second half - a poor football match.

Is now live! https://www.brfcs.com/magazine/football/match/717138/luton-blackburn?tab=voting You’re looking for “ratings”, which is under “table”. If you can’t see it, try refreshing the page a few times.

1,000 tickets sold on Day 1....not many London based Blues, as all sold to season ticket holders but I suspect there will be pockets dotted about elsewhere at Kenilworth Road on Saturday!😉 Just come out fighting Rovers, I'd settle for a point but 3 would just be fantastic. COYB!!!

PLAYER WATCH v Middlesbrough (H) Each incident in the match was rated on the following scale: +5 GOAL +4 Excellent play +3 Very good play +2 Pleasing/good play +1 Decent play 0 Routine stuff -1 Sloppy play -2 Disappointing/poor play -3 Very poor play -4 Terrible play -5 Own goal The ratings for each player were then combined to produce a measure of the players overall contribution to the match. Ratings Key incidents per player = coloured stars Overall contribution = numbers Kaminski *** * 4 Nyambe ********* ***** 6 Lenihan ******************** ******* 19 Wharton ******** ****** 6 van Hecke ************* *** 17 Edun ************* ********** 6 Travis ************ *** 15 Buckley (88) ************ ****** 9 Johnson *********** ****** 5 Khadra (76) ******** ******* 7 Gallagher ******************** *** 29 Butterworth (76) * *** -3 Zeefuik (88) *** 5 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) Rothwell injured and Diaz on international duty. Travis and Nyambe are back and Johnson and Gallagher start. This is a massive game and many fans fear the worst with the largely enforced starting line-up. 00 A huge roar erupts. The fans are up for this. 02 It’s a lively, encouraging start from Rovers. A nice period of possession ends when Buckley’s attempted shot from 25 yards is high, wide and not very handsome! 03 Travis takes exception to a foul on Nyambe and is thrown to the ground. He is the picture of bemused innocence by the time the ref arrives! Khadra’s free kick is decent and Johnson gets up first but heads over the bar from around the penalty spot. 06 Buckley, near the centre spot, finds Gallagher 30 yards out and he controls it nicely on his chest and manoeuvres himself away from 2 defenders before shooting from over 25 yards but it’s not the bazooka this time and the goalie collects comfortably. 08 Edun wins a corner. Khadra takes and it’s deep for Gallagher to head back across goal and it’s very crowded in the goalmouth. A Boro player,moving back, almost directs the ball into the net but the keeper panic-kicks it away as he falls backwards on the line and they’ve escaped! 11 Travis commits a foul, on our right wing, midway in our half. Gallagher, in the box, heads the free-kick away. Boro retrieve and, after some nice interplay, Crooks hares off into the box. But Gallagher has shadowed him all the way, forcing him to the byline where Boro win a dodgy corner. Great stuff from Sam. After giving him all-sorts for his performance at Hull, I have to admit he’s made an impressive start today. Kaminski punches the cross away. 14 Now Sam wins the ball in midfield and Khadra is fouled. Second yellow card for Boro. 16 Buckley, on halfway, launches one for Khadra to chase but the keeper read it well and rushes out of his box to clear. 17 From a throw, Buckley collects and glides gracefully through the Boro half, he gets a lucky break of the ball in the D and tries a shot but it’s blocked. 18 Khadra shows his pace as he sprints clear from our own half. He tries to bend the ball behind the defence to Gallagher but it’s way off target. Disappointing end. 21 Another awful cross from Khadra! 23 Rovers bring it out of defence and van Hecke plays a good long ball deep to Nyambe on the wing. He does his trademark drop of the shoulder and sprint to the byline. He puts in a cross but the defender gets something on it and it’s headed away from the goalmouth. It only falls to Gallagher though 15 yards out with his back to goal. He tries a half-decent overhead kick and it’s on target but not powerful enough. 26 Connolly brings down Buckley on halfway and it’s another Boro’ yellow card. 28 Another elusive, graceful run from Buckley takes him from halfway into the D where he’s dropped by Tavernier. Boro can’t handle him at the moment and that’s the 4th yellow card! Khadra takes the free-kick and goes for the top right hand corner but it’s disappointing and over the bar. 33 A bit of a mix-up as a long Boro’ ball bounces just outside our box and Edun, under pressure, chests it down, into the box, and past Kaminski. Kaminski falls, the Boro man stumbles over him and Edun is able to put it out for a throw. Phew! A bit fortunate there. Now it’s a clever throw in and Edun and Johnson are left for dead. Jones is clear on the byline but Wharton rushes in and smashes it out for a corner. Van Hecke heads the corner clear and it’s a foul anyway. 36 Nyambe earns a yellow card for a foul near halfway. 41 Good pressing from Rovers prevents Boro from moving forward. Oh! Eventually it’s a good ball forward, over Edun’s head and into the box but van Hecke is there to clear up. 41 Wow! Jones does Edun all ends up and heads into the box. Edun chases and tackles him from behind - looked like a penalty but we escape as Wharton clears for a corner. This time Johnson heads away but it falls to Taylor who fires it back but it’s well over. 48 Jones goes past Johnson easily and heads into the box but his square ball is intercepted by Travis. Boro are having a lot of joy down their right wing! 49 Needless yellow card for Travis. His 7th so far! 50 The already booked Connolly elbows Lenihan in the face….blood everywhere but he gets away with it. 53 Gallagher wins a corner but Khadra’s delivery is poor. 57 It’s all very quiet so far this half! 58 Khadra gives it away in the centre-circle and Boro attack. Jones breezes through midfield and slips the ball to Connolly in the box but Lenihan is there to block the shot. Just one lazy piece of play by Khadra and we could have been one down! Boro still have it and Edun rushes in recklessly and misses the tackle. Johnson is beaten on the edge of the box. Jones goes on past Lenihan but thankfully shoots wide of the post. A let off. 61 A Boro 1-2 high up on their right wing allows Jones to get away from Edun and his cross finds Connolly on the edge of the 6 yard box but his shot is deflected just wide by van Hecke! We’re living dangerously here! Ohhhhh! The corner comes in, Crooks gets high above Wharton and his header is powerful and on target. Amazingly Travis, on the line, saves the certain goal by heading clear! It’s all Boro at the moment, their fans are enjoying it! Play is halted due to a medical emergency in the stands. 72 A long looping ball comes into the Rovers Box from a free-kick and Gallagher is back to head away. 74 A nice long ball from Wharton finds Edun who wins a corner. Khadra whips it into the near post and the defender heads away. It comes out to Edun 30 yards out and he knocks it straight back, it’s deflected by Buckley and picked up by Gallagher on the edge of the box, just right of centre. He immediately turns and fires a great low shot across goal and into the net by the left post. Great goal….Ewood erupts with relief and ecstasy! 76 Khadra off, Butterworth on. It’s been another disappointing day for Khadra I think. 79 Gallagher is chasing down everything! I can’t understand how he can go from abysmal against Hull to excellent tonight! 82 Buckley gives the ball away in the Boro half. He’s not been so influential this half. 83 Balugan gets the ball in our box but he’s shepherded by a strong Lenihan. The Boro man goes down claiming a penalty. No way! But he wins the corner. It’s a poor cross and Butterworth heads away but doesn’t chase after it! He seems lethargic. 85 Nyambe and Lenihan fail to stop Balugan threading the ball into the box but Boro are crowded out. A long high ball comes back and Sporar just gets a foot to it, outside the 6 yard box, but Lenihan deflects the ball off-target for a corner. Boro bounce the ball around our box but Johnson and Buckley clear. 86 Gallagher blocks the keeper’s attempted clearance. 87 Gallagher picks up just over halfway on the right and heads for goal. Johnson has gone with him. His first attempted pass is blocked but the ball bounces back to him. He shoots from the D but it’s blocked and falls to Johnson on the edge of the box but the keeper gets down well to save, then Gallagher blasts over from 5 yards! Never mind, Johnson was just offside! Let’s pretend that Sam heard the whistle! 88 Buckley off, Zeefuik on. 89 It’s a great Boro ball through the middle to Sporar in the D. Wharton brings him down and concedes a yellow. Very, very dangerous! McNair blasts it way over the top. 12 minutes of extra time!!!! 91 A nice touch past the defender by Zeefuik in the Boro half but he’s brought down. Butterworth’s free kick goes out for a goal kick. 93 A nice cross comes in from Sporar and Nyambe heads clear. Boro keep the pressure on. 96 A fantastic chase across the field by Gallagher and he tackles McNair into touch. The crowd loves that as it sings his name. The Boro attack comes back down their right wing again. Watmore flicks the ball on and another attacker beats van Hecke and heads it forward into the box to Crooks. He lays it right to Connolly who goes past Lenihan but blasts it wide. Good grief, that was a fair chance! Connolly’s pretending he’s hurt….I think I would after missing that one! 97 Wharton heads away and Edun flies into a 50-50 with Jones on halfway with absolutely no compromise. He’s hurt though and it’s a foul. Brave commitment from Edun. 100 A long crossfield ball from Boro and Edun let’s it go but Jones collects at the byline. Oh! That was surely out of play. Play goes on and Edun fouls Jones near the touchline and is booked. The cross comes in and Crooks gets in front of Gallagher in the 6 yard box but incredibly heads it over! All the Boro men have their heads in their hands. Big, big let off! The ball goes forward to Zeefuik on halfway, on the right wing. He bamboozles 2 defenders and drives on into the box. His shot is defected wide for a corner. Impressive stuff from the new man - great pace and footwork. It’s loud! 92 The corner is taken short and it’s embarrassing as Johnson gives it away immediately! Finally the whistle goes and the roof comes off! Mowbray raises both fists. A massive massive win and we’re back into second place. I must admit I feared the worst tonight but it’s a big statement from the lads on the field.

How would people set up their team for this game? Boro play 3-5-2 formation under Wilder. I would chose this team and formation Kaminski Lenihan Van Hecke Wharton ZeeFuik Travis Rothwell Edun Buckley Markanday Khadra Subs:- Pears Ayala Nyambe Davenport Johnson Gallagher Dolan or Butterworth

After a great win last night, the voting for the Man of the Match award, supported by Rovers Trust, is now open. You have until 7:45 tonight to get your votes in. https://www.brfcs.com/magazine/football/match/717122/blackburn-middlesbrough?tab=voting

PLAYER WATCH v Hull City (A) Each incident in the match was rated on the following scale: +5 GOAL +4 Excellent play +3 Very good play +2 Pleasing/good play +1 Decent play 0 Routine stuff -1 Sloppy play -2 Disappointing/poor play -3 Very poor play -4 Terrible play -5 Own goal The ratings for each player were then combined to produce a measure of the players overall contribution to the match. Ratings Key incidents per player = coloured stars Overall contribution = numbers Kaminski ****** * 11 R-Costello (68) *********** ************* -4 Lenihan ********************** **************** 14 Wharton ******************** ********** 16 van Hecke ********************* ******** 23 Edun ********************* ********* 20 Buckley ************ ***** 13 Rothwell ************* ******** 9 Khadra (68) **** ********** -8 Gallagher (68) ******* ********* 3 Diaz ******* ******* 0 Markanday (68) *** 4 Ayala (68) *** ** 2 Johnson (68) *** ** 1 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) It’s a big test tonight, we haven’t played well since the Wigan defeat. Travis is ill but he hasn’t been replaced like for like (Davenport?). JRC replaces Nyambe. We are changing our previously successful formation to squeeze Gallagher in it seems. The midfield was bad last time out and now there is no bite at all!! 04 Nice long crossfield ball from Lenihan to an unmarked Khadra in the box but he can’t control it first time and we pass it back to halfway. Lots of Rovers passes but we’re getting nowhere until Lenihan’s long hit and hope ball gives possession away. 06 A Hull man launches a long punt upfield and it bounces in our box. There’s a fatal hesitation from Kaminski and Eaves is the first man to the ball, near the byline. Lenihan can’t handle him and he lays it back to Longman who breezes past an out of position JRC, and crosses low into the box. It’s perfectly to the feet of Honeyman but no one was covering his run. Van Hecke and Wharton are too passive and the Hull man slips it under Kaminski. Edun makes a brave attempt to stop it on the line but it’s just over. 09 A good challenge and then a great long ball out of defence by Lenihan sets Khadra on the charge from just over halfway. He doesn’t look convincing though as he reaches the box, he tries to beat too many men and he loses possession. There were Rovers men in the box. 12 Edun gives the ball away on halfway and Eaves is causing some trouble. He goes past Buckley and van Hecke towards the box before letting go a shot. Fortunately it was scuffed and goes wide. A big gap in midfield there; Eaves looks like the big physical nuisance that Gallagher should be! 13 A nice long ball down the wing from van Hecke and Diaz is on his way. He has a defender with him but moves into the box and unleashes a fierce shot which the keeper parries away. It was all for naught……….Diaz was offside! Ridiculous time lapse there before he put the flag up! Last time I heard the stats mentioned Diaz had 10 more offsides than anyone else in the division! 15 By the way, Gallagher has done absolutely nothing so far! 17 Eaves outjumps Lenihan and van Hecke, Wharton clears up. 19 A beautiful, length of the field pass from Buckley to Khadra on the left wing. He can’t beat his man and is dispossessed. Hull are outplaying us at the moment. When we get the ball, we are quick to give it away. 23 Buckley intercepts a poor pass 12 yards in our half and sends the perfect ball to Diaz midway in the Hull half. Ben turns and leaves the first defender and storms into the box, there’s only the goalie to beat…..until Bernard barges into him and flattens him. The ref waves play-on…….he reckons it was a fair shoulder charge but the replay shows it was a premeditated foul, more on Ben’s back than his shoulder! Bernard was the last defender too so he should be off! Big moment! Immediately Hull attack down their left wing and Potter goes past Rothwell and JRC with ease and wins a corner. It’s a good punch by Kaminski. 25 What happened there? The camera panned away and then returned to show Eaves charging on to the penalty spot trying to get to a long ball. He misses the ball, thankfully! He has the cheek to appeal for a penalty!!! 26 We get a free kick in Hull’s half. We take one of those pointless short kicks which dissolves into a frustrating backpass to van Hecke. Dearie me, we are very short of ideas as the ball is passed back and forth along the halfway line. Eventually Edun wins a corner. It’s taken short and Khadra sends in a wicked ball to the far post but the defender gets an important touch to deny Lenihan. Another corner and Wharton, running in from deep, heads well over the bar. Disappointing. 28 Potter does JRC easily but Lenihan is in position to cut out his cross. Buckley picks up and fires a length of the pitch ball to Khadra on the left wing. The keeper runs out of the box and Khadra flicks the ball over his head and from the edge of the box tries to stroke it into the net. It’s on target but Bernard has run back towards goal and manages to deflect the ball wide. A quality save from the guy who should have seen red but Khadra could have taken another touch! Now Khadra fouls a defender. 33 Khadra again tries to beat one man too many then Edun commits a soft foul near halfway. 34 Wharton picks up the ball near halfway and advances to 25 yards out before whipping in (I think) a cross which ends up a decent shot and the goalie beats it away for a corner. Rothwell’s cross isn’t great but Lenihan meets it low, on the half-volley, at the near post but it’s over the bar. 35 Eaves beats Wharton in the air. Lenihan collects eventually and sends a great pass downfield to Khadra who controls it well, into the box but then slips over! Rothwell picks up the clearance and hares into the box but his attempted pass is blocked. Hull fire the ball downfield and Eaves is too good for van Hecke and Wharton. Eventually van Hecke puts the ball out. We can’t get near the ball. Potter gives JRC and Lenihan lots of trouble before running the ball out near the corner flag. 38 Khadra tries a very ambitious shot, from 20 yards and wide, but it’s row Z. Wasteful! 39 Eaves beats Lenihan in the air. 41 More back and forth along the halfway-line from Rovers. We’re out of ideas! Finally Lenihan tries a hopeful ball down the line but there’s no quality and it’s straight to a Hull defender. It bounces off him to Gallagher who can’t control it. By the way, I have not given Gallagher a single positive mark so far! 43 This time it’s Edun out of ideas and he,too, tries a hopeful but fruitless long punt. 44 Now even Buckley’s doing it! 45 So Rothwell thinks he’ll have a go too. 46 Gallagher blocks a clearance near halfway and it bounces forward with the defenders all behind him. The bounce is a bit unkind and the defence gets back. Sam tries to flick it sideways to Diaz but it’s a pathetic attempt and Hull clear up. 48 We’re definitely looking brighter at the start of this half. Some neat passing sees Diaz pick up the ball on the left. He shifts the ball sideways to make some room then fires in his shot but it’s blocked. The fans roar! We’ve still got the ball and finally Edun gets it just outside the box but his cross is blocked by the arms of that man Bernard again. They were folded across his chest so he got away with it. 50 Buckley lobs a ball into the box but there’s little Gallgher can do with it but touch it on. Edun picks it up, still in the box, turns nicely and fizzes in a dangerous cross which the defender does well to put out for a corner. Lots of Rovers pressure, now Lenihan finds himself high up the pitch, on the wing, he beats his man and enters the box. He shoots but it’s deflected and the keeper saves at the near post. 55 JRC is done by the winger who cuts inside and puts the cross in but Lenihan is right there to hoof away. Meanwhile Eaves has another shot on goal but it’s way off target. 58 Having just given away a dumb throw, Lenihan now allows himself to be pick-pocketed on the edge of our box. Buckley allows the Hull man to do as he pleases, JRC follows him into the box but may as well not have bothered as he fails to put in any kind of a challenge. The shot comes in from about 10m and Kaminski saves well. The follow-up shot is on target but slams against van Hecke. JRC wins the ball and hacks clear. I think our bright spot has faded. 59 Wharton concedes a corner. In it comes, low, Diaz and van Hecke miss it and the ball hits the outside of the near post. It rebounds to Longman, 6 yards out, and unbelievably he puts the chance wide. What a miss! 62 It’s a nice ball from Buckley to Diaz on the left wing. He moves it inside and into the box. Edun’s made a good run to his left and Diaz finds him. He moves into the 6 yard box but the defender gets in a block and the keeper goes down at the near post. Edun should probably have passed square but he won a corner. Rothwell’s deep cross is met by Wharton who heads it back across goal but there’s nobody there. It was probably meant for goal but it’s 2 yards wide. 65 JRC is done by the winger again and the cross comes in, Lenihan has to stretch to put it out for a corner. Kaminski punches it away. Docherty picks it up and glides past Buckley but his shot is blocked. Diaz misses his clearance kick and Hull pass it around. Longman, on the right over 30 yards out, lofts a ball to the far post. McLoughlin launches himself directly into Kaminski and Eaves outjumps Lenihan all ends up and puts the ball into the net. He’s a proper centre-forward that lad but it was a foul on Kaminski any day of the week. The ref goes over to tell off an apoplectic Tony Mowbray. Johnson, Markanday and Ayala on; Gallagher, Buckley and JRC off. 69 Williams on the left wing goes past van Hecke easily and crosses from the byline. Wharton in the goalmouth chests it down, right to the feet of Honeyman who hits it on target from 3 yards. Incredibly Kaminski palms it on to the bar! It rebounds to Potter on the 6 yard line and he blasts it over the bar!!! That should have been three. Potter is so distraught he daren’t take his hands from his face. 73 Some nice work by Edun around the Hull box, attacking, clearing up then winning a corner. It comes eventually to Johnson over 25 yards out but his shot is blocked in a crowded goal area. Markanday blocks the clearance and it goes to Diaz 12 yards out to the right but his first-time shot is well off-target. 77 The ball comes out of the crowded Hull box and van Hecke volleys it back, on target, from 20 yards but it’s blocked. Van Hecke is trying to get back as Hull counter and he looks knackered! 79 This patient possession football doesn’t suit us. I thought we’d decided that? We can’t break them down! Now honeyman has it to the right of our box. Wharton looks a bit lethargic and doesn’t prevent the cross. Van Hecke puts in a great tackle to save the goal. 80 Rothwell lets Potter run half the length of the pitch before dropping him with a push in the back just outside the D. Yellow card. Potter’s free-kick from 25 yards flashes 6 inches past the post. 86 Johnson gives the ball away and Hull attack. Potter is teasing Ayala who is backing off, so Potter shoots and it’s just wide. 87 Eaves barges into Ayala so that the Spaniard fluffs his header and Smith is storming forward, Wharton can only clip the ball against him and, luckily, it runs through to Kaminski. Lenihan is feverishly tackling anything that moves but he concedes a foul. Another yellow card….that’s 8 now for Darragh. 90 Rothwell inside Hull’s half finds Lenihan in the box perfectly. He controls well but he’s over-crowded and dispossessed. 91 Edun brings the ball out of defence nicely but then slips a poor pass square right to a Hull man. Smith runs into the box and fires a shot from 13 yards and Kaminski goes down to his left to save. Corner. 93 Edun does well to rob Eaves, who is shielding the ball by the corner flag (for the third time!) and drives a great crossfield ball to Mankanday. It comes to nothing but a little later Markanday picks up again on the right wing. He beats 2 players with fleet footwork and pace as he drives into the box but his attempted cross is blocked. Nice glimpse of what he can do though! 94 Diaz fouls and gains a yellow card. 96 Final whistle and it’s back to reality. The run of poor performances continues and there’s a big test of character ahead.

The BRFC MOTM voting is now open for last nights game here: https://www.brfcs.com/magazine/football/match/717077/hull-city-blackburn Navigate down to ratings and then give your own for each player.

PLAYER WATCH v Cardiff City (A) Each incident in the match was rated on the following scale: +5 GOAL +4 Excellent play +3 Very good play +2 Pleasing/good play +1 Decent play 0 Routine stuff -1 Sloppy play -2 Disappointing/poor play -3 Very poor play -4 Terrible play -5 Own goal The ratings for each player were then combined to produce a measure of the players overall contribution to the match. Ratings Key incidents per player = coloured stars Overall contribution = numbers Kaminski *** * 6 Nyambe (75) ************ *** 10 Lenihan ******************************** ************* 29 Wharton *************** ******** 11 van Hecke **************** ***** 18 Edun *************** ********** 10 Travis (83) ******** ****** 4 Buckley ******* **** 1 Rothwell *********** ***** 10 Khadra (64) *** ***** -1 Diaz (77) ******* ******* 0 Gallagher (64) ****** **** 3 Ayala (77) ** * 1 Johnson (83) 0 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) No crowd for today’s match and an early kick-off. Let’s hope it’s a better performance than last time out! 05 Nothing much happening; we’ve had a decent share of the ball so far but we’ve given it away too often. Cardiff are a big side. Nyambe has just won a corner but Rothwell didn’t get it past the first man! Lenihan gives away a cheap foul. 07 I like it. Van Hecke shows how to track a winger and make sure he doesn’t get his cross in. Corner though. Oh! According to the commentators, Cardiff have scored 46% of their goals from set-pieces! Let’s see what happens. Hmmmm Nelson heads over the bar. He beat Edun and Lenihan to the ball! 11 Edun miscontrols the ball from a throw-in and it’s danger. Harris goes past van Hecke, in the box, too easily and fires in a cross to the far post. The in-flying Collins misses it by a whisker! Lucky escape there! 13 A nice little lay-off by Khadra to Rothwell near the centre-circle and he’s on one of his runs, leaving 3 men in his wake. From 23 yards, just right of centre, he strokes a beautiful, curving ball just inside the right post. Great goal, not a lot of power but perfectly placed. 15 That’s a second nothing foul committed by Lenihan. It’s another dangerous high ball for the big Cardiff men to attack. Ralls beats all 3 of our centre-backs but it falls weakly to Kaminski who gathers easily. 16 The second failed attempt at a long crossfield pass by Diaz. 21 Some nice football from City ends up with Edun blocking the cross, conceding the corner. I think that’s the first set-piece we've won as van Hecke heads away. He’s doing well. 24 having applauded Lenihan for weeks I have to point out that he’s having a bad one so far; beaten in the air, giving away 2 sloppy fouls and now misjudging his header in a dangerous position! Ahh! He gets chance to make amends immediately as he challenges the winger and it’s another corner. Kaminski comes for it but his punch only reaches Vaulks on the edge of the D. His powerful volley comes back, Kaminski is beaten but Travis, 2 yards from the line, manages to get his body behind the deflected shot. It was going in! We’re not dealing with these set-pieces at all! Oh! Dear, now it’s a long throw into the box! It’s 5 men head-tennis before Diaz attempts some kind of overhead kick and just about gets away with it! Finally Wharton gets it clear. 26 Now van Hecke gives away a foul 8 yards inside our half. Lenihan gets it away. Another long throw comes in and Lenihan is there first again. That’s more like it…..but we still can’t get out of our box effectively! 31 Yet another dangerous cross comes into the box. Van Hecke gets a slight but important touch and Edun is able to clear. 34 Now it’s Khadra’s turn to be dispossessed. Khadra, Buckley and Diaz in particular are struggling to have any impact on the game against a physical Cardiff side. Travis is pretty much of a mixed bag too. 37 A nice move involving Harris and Collins sets Ng up for a shot from the edge of the box but it’s scuffed and is easily saved by Kaminski. We’re just not in it at the moment! That’s another misdirected Diaz pass! 40 Khadra runs down yet another blind alley and loses the ball instead of laying it off. It’s poor play from Rovers since the goal. 41 Van Hecke is beaten by Harris and has to pull the City man back. Yellow card. More danger. 42 Now it’s Travis with the poor ball. Cardiff come again. Van Hecke gets his head in, then Rothwell gives it away close to our box. Wharton is beaten too easily, Travis can’t get his foot in and eventually another shot flies in from the edge of the box and Lenihan blocks. City are still passing it around with growing confidence. 44 Khadra then Travis give the ball away again! 45 We make a rare foray forward and Edun drives ahead from the centre-circle. He lays it square to Buckley who, with no one in front of him, decides to try a first time shot from 27 yards. It’s scuffed and straight at the keeper. Another bad decision (it’s getting a bit of a habit for John around the box!) as he could have taken a touch and thought about his options. He would have had a better shooting opportunity or Diaz was waiting on the left. 46 Now Edun gives the ball away needlessly. Seconds later he fouls the City man and it’s another dangerous free-kick, on the wing and close to the box. It results in a bit of ping pong before the ref blows the whistle. 45 It’s back to where we were. Cardiff on the attack. Ralls goes past Lenihan too easily and his shot is deflected behind for a corner by van Hecke. The cross is missed by Wharton but it falls kindly and it’s cleared. 47 Within one minute Travis wins the ball well…..but then later gives it away ridiculously easily. Cardiff attack and Lenihan half clears. Nelson beats Nyambe to the byline and his floated cross finds Drameh beyond the far post. His looped header is gathered above the head of Harris by Kaminski. This is garbage so far this half! Lenihan is given a warning by the ref for holding up Ralls a little earlier. 49 Now Lenihan commits another needless foul, allowing City to launch the ball into our box again! Oh, it’s taken short but this time Travis fouls just outside our box. Again it’s short but the cross from their left comes in finally and I think Nyambe got a slight touch and Lenihan hoofs clear. We still can’t get out of our half though. And we can’t retain possession either as this time Rothwell puts in a poor pass. There’s a temporary sense of relief as Cardiff run the ball out of play. 52 Harris skins Lenihan on the wing and he drives on to the box but van Hecke dispossesses him nicely. Nyambe is the next man to give the ball away cheaply. 55 Another poor Lenihan challenge earns him a yellow card. The free-kick is 30 yards out, on our right. It skims off a Rovers head and we win a throw. 58 Lenihan shields the ball over the byline as Ng clatters him from behind. Nasty stuff. Nyambe gets involved in some pushing and gets a soft yellow. Ng gets a much more deserved card too. It must have been close to red! 59 Buckley on the right wing crosses into the box. Diaz has 2 men near him but manages to get a weakish volley in from 14 yards. It’s deflected wide for a corner. Rothwell’s cross is too high for Lenihan. 62 Diaz carries the ball forward but he’s on his own with 3 defenders and tries an ambitious shot from wide and outside the box. It’s well off-target. 64 Khadra off, Gallagher on. Two Cardiff changes too. 67 A Cardiff long throw results in head tennis before it goes out for a corner. Oh wow! A storming Nelson outjumps Wharton and Gallagher comprehensively and his header is going in low inside the left post until a diving Kaminski reaches out a paw to push it clear. It’s even more impressive as Collins was attempting to follow it over the line! Brilliant from Kaminski. 69 A Lenihan interception reaches Gallagher. He turns into the box and there’s a collison and Gallagher is floored. No penalty…….looked like clear obstruction to me! Another poor Rothwell pass kills our momentum 71 A nice run and pass to Nyambe by Gallagher. There’s no one to meet Nyambe’s cross though. Gallagher may not be the prettiest footballer but he’s made a difference since he replaced Khadra. We’ve spent more time in the Cardiff half. The real Lenihan has reappeared too! 72 Another horrible foul by a Cardiff man, this time on Wharton. 75 Silly jump-in type tackle by Nyambe earns him a second yellow, so he’s off! There’s a big challenge ahead! 77 Diaz off, Ayala on. Lenihan goes to right full-back. Diaz wipes his nose on the palm of his hand, then on his shirt, then he high fives Ayala, then high fives more Rovers’ folk on the pitchside. I mean, I’m just saying! 78 Kaminski comes out confidently to collect a high ball into the box. 82 Rothwell picks up just outside our box and finds a nice pass to Buckley on halfway, he slides it nicely inside to Gallagher and he’s on the charge. He returns the ball to Buckley in the D. He could have shot but he tried to return to Gallagher and it’s behind him and the good move collapses. 83 Johnson on, Travis off 84 Davies beats Edun all ends up and takes the ball to the byline. His cross comes back off the outside of the near post and Edun can hack away. 85 Davies gets past Edun again. Fortunately Lenihan is in the centre of the box to clean up as the cross comes in. Van Hecke loses the ball to Ralls near our right byline. The cross comes in and thankfully, Edun is there to challenge the City attacker brilliantly on the penalty spot. Lenihan hoofs away. Gallagher picks it up and drops his marker. Rothwell is trying to catch up. Sadly Gallagher’s attempted pass is intercepted. 88 Lenihan’s playing particularly well since he moved to right back. Gallagher gives away a daft foul midway in our half. Yellow card. Wharton clears but it’s another long throw! A nervy 4 minutes of extra time! It’s more head tennis around the 6 yard box. It comes to Ralls 12 yards out he controls on his chest then volleys the ball towards goal but van Hecke blocks….with his head I think. Another one that was definitely going in! Finally Edun blocks a cross and concedes the corner. Edun is first to the cross and Buckley hooks it downfield. Back it comes but Lenihan is strong and City foul him. 92 Davies beats Edun to the line again and his accurate cross is met full-bloodedly by Ayala. The final whistle goes and, somewhat unbelievably, it’s another clean sheet. It’s gonna be a big night up in Hull on Wednesday. Onwards and upwards.

Hi, Boro fan here, just after advice for match parking for next Monday evening, anything within say 10 min walk of the stadium, aware not much street parking, so any payable match day car parks?? Many thanks.