den

I guess this could come under “nostalgia “. Went to the legends night at King Georges hall last week. Tim flowers was recalling the Southampton game at Ewood when Matt Le Tissier scored two pearlers against his old team mate. When they were walking off Le Tiss was giving it large to Flowers about the two goals. Flowers replied (and this got a lot of laughter) “what are you on about? We’ve just beaten you 3-2 ya big nosed twat.” 😀

I’ve seen nothing to suggest he’s even a good header of the ball. Being tall doesn’t mean you’re good in the air. I know I keep going on about him, but I don’t see anything whatsoever in him. That leads to the question, what exactly did our scouts see in him to believe he would be a success in the Championship? 26 yrs old. Ohashi is 28. There’s not much in either of them that we haven’t already seen.

I know Wilsden, I’ve read them.

Why don’t refs give a free kick whenever the ball hits a hand?

unintentional handball has never been an offence.

Exactly. “Giving the opportunity” that doesn’t mean it should be an automatic infringement. It isn’t an automatic infringement either. If the ball hits someone’s outstretched arm from just 12” away, normally it wouldn’t be penalised. This is just a guidance to supposedly help the referee make a decision on whether it’s deliberate handball, or not. Its a ridiculous clause. It has to be deliberate handball. That’s not guidance, that’s the law.

2nd sentence. The position of his hand/arm was a consequence of his body movement. It had to be, his arm was already there before the ball was headed onto it. more importantly, it plainly wasn’t intentional.

Which of our “strikers” would people back to score, say, 15 goals this season?

Yep. unintentional handball isn’t an infringement of the rules. So it obviously follows that handball has to be intentional. The authorities have brought in guidelines to help a referee decide if it was intentional but they’re nonsense, make no sense and don’t clear anything up. For instance, in this case today, it’s so very obvious that it wasn’t intentional. However the guidelines say that a referee must take into account whether …. the opponents hands:arms were in an unnatural position. Well seeing that we know it wasn’t intentional handball, how could his hands be in an unnatural position? They couldn’t, could they. Unless you believe that players run around the pitch for 90 mins deliberately putting their hands in an unnatural position. Refs should be left alone to make their judgement solely on the intention to handle the ball.

Smodic?

Offering next to nothing in midfield or up front but defending well and picking up points is great - for a short spell. The problem is that you can’t continue playing like that and expect to get out of this league. Seems obvious to me.

I thought we were second best by quite some way. The really worrying thing for me is this wasn’t a rovers team underperforming, quite the opposite, it was a rovers team performing to the best of its ability. Defensively we did very well but midfield and up front there’s nothing. We don’t have anyone in the squad that even resembles a front runner, let alone a goal scorer - and that isn’t going to change. Good job we’ve started well points wise because this coming winter could be difficult.

Front three of Ohashi, Dolan and Hedges wouldn’t be good enough one league lower. * just seen Mercers post.

Couldn’t care less where he comes from. Judging someone on their nationality doesn’t interest me at all.

33 years old. He could add a lot more yet if he has the drive.

When, year after year you sell your best players and give your manager nothing to replace them with. When you have owners who have no idea about English football appointing under achieving nobodies to run it for them, you eventually get to exactly where we are. we’re at a point where the squad is too small in numbers and lacking in quality. There’s nothing in midfield, the back four can’t compete even for everyday crosses into the box and up front neither Gueye or Ohashi offer anywhere near enough - and where’s the competition from a third or fourth striker? I don’t think there is any. Dont blame the manager. I doubt anyone could succeed under those terms. Don’t blame the players either. We are set up to fail and until the owners realise that and understand they aren’t capable of changing it, nothing will change.

I just think if a player does what he did, they should be thrown out of the game. If it happened on parks football they might have been.

From previous experience, it’s very difficult for any rovers fans body to reach supporters or members without having a presence on here. Emails don’t replace discussion. You get very little feedback from emails, nor do you know whether they’re being read. It’s a difficult job that they’ve tasked themselves with. Without significant membership numbers they could struggle to be taken seriously. They will have to face criticism of being either too pro club management or too anti club management. It’s a very, very difficult job to be effective enough to actually change anything of significance. Their task becomes harder as their aims become more radical. I honestly wish them well but numbers give them relevance. They should use this m/b to help push their ambitions as much as possible IMO.

It isn’t inexplicable Jim. This squad isn’t good enough. There isn’t what you could call a top Championship player to be seen.

We looked weak. How many of our players beyond the back line won their individual battles - any? Powder puff performance and technically lacking today. Very poor.

Physically weak in midfield and upfront. Too easily brushed off the ball.

It’s a fact that nobody under the age of 64yrs has seen North End play in the top division. Just tell ‘em that.

That should open a few eyes tonight. This squad of players is terribly weak and is going to find the long hard slog of a Championship season a huge challenge. Where is the penetration, whose going to replace Smodics’s 30+ goals? No threat down the right and we finished tonight watching Sigurdson turning back to cross with his right foot towards Ohashi. That was it really. Scary. We don’t just need bodies, we need class and in more than one area.

I would hope not.

Full backs were coached to show them the outside in my day ER. Away from the danger zone.