34 minutes ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

You can dress it up anyway you like, it's obvious to me that whatever thoughts Mowbray had about being able to make some decent early signings have foundered on the rocks of the Chicken Chokers complete indifference to our fate.

I think you are right.

When Rich Sharpe spoke at the Rovers Trust meeting in early June he seemed convinced that we would make 6 decent signings ( including loans) that would impact the 1st team. He had spoken to Mowbray that day and all seemed optimistic after the trip to India. It seemed that Mowbray had a definite list of targets at this point.

I think it was implied that the budget was better than last year ( bearing in mind the sale of Steele mostly paid for Dack ).

Since then, Venky's have had a lot to deal with in India - the Indian stock exchange has placed the company under ASM ( additional surveillance measures ) due to some irregularities in share dealings. Nothing illegal, but it has had a drastic affect on their share price which is plummeting ( down over 50% in a few weeks ). They are also nervous of an upcoming election which may reverse the beef ban in India and will affect their business.

So the EFL transfer window is probably not on their agenda at the moment and any extra money leaving the company to pay for Rovers players would not be too popular with Venky's shareholders.

We are way down their list of priorities and it will always be the case. There may be other reasons why we have not signed the players Mowbray hoped to get in before the Austria trip but I bet Communication with Venky's and release of funds is a major problem at the moment.

7 hours ago, roverandout said:

League 2

I'd take league 2 with new owners who actually care about the club and build from there.

Current situation is a complete sham.

Venkys out.

the site seems to have sprung back into life.

Rovers history page has some interesting bits

Just surfing the net and came across this:

http://www.venkyschicken.com/

It's a bit naff but maybe they are actually taking an interest - or possibly trying to cash in on our success last season? No idea if it is new or not.

4 hours ago, Ladyboys of Bank Top said:

 The link to Rothwell has been discussed since last January.

Been an open secret for weeks on the Oxford message boards. At least 3 weeks ago it was described as a 'done deal'

Seems that he has shown promise for a long time but never held down a regular place under any of 4 different managers at Oxford. Had a few spells out injured too.

See how it goes.

9 hours ago, chaddyrovers said:

Rich Sharpe doesnt know much about transfers at all. Guess he doesnt have the contacts the media press do. 

Cant remember the last time the LT did an exclusive on an incoming transfer

Rich Sharpe gave a talk at the Rovers Trust meeting a couple of weeks ago. He said he regularly talks to Tony Mowbray and seemed to have knowledge of the players on the managers radar and the budget promised for transfers ( if it materialises! ). 

However, he is professional enough not to start spouting details of what he knows.  He would lose the manger's trust and maybe derail any ongoing discussions. 

Seems like a nice guy and a real Rovers fan.

37 minutes ago, meadows said:

But why will an affirmation of the frequency of board meetings reveal anything useful? You could have a room full of incompétents meet twice weekly. Or a room full of efficient folk who know what they’re doing meeting bi- monthly and running the places like a sewing  machine. Which is preferable? 

What if they admit that they never have board meetings ? will that give you confidence the club is in good hands?

The whole purpose of these meetings, I believe, is to talk about the workings of the club off the pitch. To give the supporters a chance to ask questions about how things are run behind the scenes. 

Honest answers from the club could help increase the fans' trust in the owners. If done correctly it is an opportunity to build bridges.

If the whole evening is taken up by the manager talking about the playing squad and hopes for the coming season there is little point in having the meeting.

It's a chance for us to ask the questions we want and, possibly more importantly, a chance for the club to be open and honest and engage with the people who care about the club.

2 minutes ago, JHRover said:

 

The narrative is that Hanley, Duffy, Marshall, Gestede, Rhodes all got too big for their boots and wanted to leave Rovers. I think its the other way around - Rovers wanted shut of them to cash in and as a result of that those players realised they weren't wanted and looked elsewhere.

Add Cairney to the list but the 'cash in' on him happened so quickly there was no talk of him being unsettled. In fact he said himself he has happy at Rovers.

I'm sure it will happen again in the future. Has Lenihan signed a new contract yet?

1 hour ago, Ladyboys of Bank Top said:

Lenihan is the concerning one if he only has 12 months left. You have thought that would have been done before he went on holiday. 

Being realistic, I am sure Lenihan's agent will be telling him not to sign anything. at this point.

If he has a good season and plays at international level then the offers will come from far and wide when his contract runs out.

Unless Venky's come up trumps with a big new contract very soon I think he will be gone in 12 months.

5 minutes ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

Oh tally ho ladyboy. I do sincerely apologise for offending your senses 

Grow a pair. 

3 minutes ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

You are an absolute wart. Contribute nothing but guff. 

At least the person who I was responding to had a sense of humour about it 

Are these rumours, stories or discussions ? 

2 hours ago, JacknOry said:

Lenihan is the one i want to hear about and then Dack. Hopefully we start moving in the transfer market once we have tied down the players we want.

I think you are right about Lenihan. I can see him running his contract down unless we offer a big rise which is unlikely.

He has made the Ireland squad and a good season could give him a lot of options this time next year. 

It would be good to see Chapman and Armstrong return but I would think Jack Payne could possibly be a cheaper option.

He has 1 year left on his contract at Huddersfield so they may want to get rid while they can still get a fee. Not as good as the other two players but I can see him being considered.

Fits with Venky's 'young and hungry' mantra

20 minutes ago, Wing Wizard Windy Miller said:

I know we don't venkys bash any more.  Lots of talk about a decent budget, doing business early etc. However, maybe the funds aren't in place yet?... Wouldn't be the first time.  I still don't trust Venkys to follow through on anything positive!

I have the same worries.

Venky's share price has plummeted since Tony went to India. It's possible other issues will take priority over Rovers' transfer budget. Hopefully not.

3 hours ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

My god, you did well to find negativity in those comments. Well done sir. 

I would say cautious rather than negative - but thanks anyway.

To me, a stated aim of being 'youthfully competitive'  is not particularly ambitious. 

If we sign 5 youngsters who send us racing up the league table I will be more than happy. 

1 hour ago, chaddyrovers said:

there’s an ambition for the club to build a team that’s youthful and will be competitive next year."

I sometimes wonder if Tony has been given a directive from above and doesn't have a free hand at the moment.

Mowbray has also said he wants to give last year's squad a chance at playing in the championship as a reward for their great work and attitude last season. If we sign youthful players good enough for the first team then some of last years team will have to drop out.

We have a few youthful players of our own who are knocking on the door. Last year we borrowed a couple of youngsters from the premiership who were no better than the ones we had ( from West Brom and Liverpool ?).

I think the quote from Tony (above) is very carefully composed and it gives grounds for optimism but doesn't really promise much.

8 minutes ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

I read an interesting book a few years ago while on holiday called "The greatest footballer you never saw" about a player called Gavin Friday. It was a great book and written in a  really interesting way through interviews and old newspaper reports. Do any of you remember him? Sounded a real talent , but had many off field issues throughout his short career 

I remember Gavin Friday the singer from the Virgin Prunes. A fellow countryman of yours.

Turning the thread on it's head, how did Emile Heskey get 62 England caps?

21 minutes ago, 47er said:

Sell Sell Sell!!!

Another 5% wiped off today as soon as the market opened. Then suspended. 

Don't think they will be answering Tony's phone calls at the moment

56 minutes ago, JacknOry said:

Wasnt there a beef ban or something in India which was a big part of their chicken sales going through the roof?

Yes that's right. Cattle slaughter and the sale of beef were banned in many states in India. So Venky's made massive profits from extra poultry sales. Share prices rose accordingly. 

There could be indications of a change in legislation which will put beef back on the menu so speculators are selling Venky's shares while they are still relatively high. 

The worst that is likely to happen that the shares return to pre beef-ban levels ( when Venky's decided they needed to sell Cairney, Gestede etc !) 

30 minutes ago, blueboy3333 said:

Why, what is behind the drop?

I honestly don't know what is happening. I have a friend in India who keeps me updated on these things. He works in financial markets and can't explain it either.

Seems to be a rush to sell. Forecasts for the long term are mixed. Some analysts advise sell others say hold. Not many advising buy at the moment which suggests further falls.

20 minutes ago, EgyptianPete said:

Well unless i read that wrong, finances look very good. 

I think that report is from about 3 months ago when share price was maxed out. 

Venky's (India) shares currently have a 5% circuit limit. That means trading is suspended  when a change in share price reaches this limit on any given day.

Today the share price dropped 5% in first 6 minutes of trading then suspended. Share price down 30% in 30 days. Expect a 5% drop each day for some time to come.

I notice Venky's (India) share price has been on a steady decline over the last month - almost 25% down since 1st May. 

May be a bad time to be asking for transfer budget. 

2 hours ago, Mattyblue said:

He's a potential good 'un, no doubt.

But assuming the top 6 cartel stays as is, you think he'll be one of Man Utd/Man City/Lpool/Arsenal/Tottenham/Chelsea's keeper by 2021?

Quite a prediction!

Maybe he fancies waiting for a chance back at his hometown club - Barcelona!

4 hours ago, JacknOry said:

The day I wear a Rovers with Venky's as a sponsor is the day I slide down a giant razor blade naked, using my balls as brakes.

I'm sure they would sell plenty of shirts if they had the word 'OUT' underneath Venky's. I'd buy one for sure

1 hour ago, bob fleming said:

Cause they’re loaded. It’s the only plausible explanation. The losses (financial and football) simply don’t hurt them. If they did they’d have bailed out a long time ago.

It may not hurt them as such but how does it benefit them in any way at all? Even mega rich people don't like wasting large amounts of money on things they have no interest in. 

There must come a point when they say enough is enough

On 24/05/2018 at 15:57, philipl said:

VLL has £149m paid and allotted.

That is undoubtedly cash ploughed in.

In addition, there is the lending by the State Bank of India which is totally secured by Rao-owned assets which I would forecast the likelihood of being repaid without recourse to the Raos as being all but zero. Even though the bank provide the cash, in effect the Raos are denied the use of that money or assets for any other purpose.

So I am sticking with my quarter billion figure.

   

I don't think that was how you explained it on the podcast unless I am missing something

On 19/05/2018 at 06:04, Herbie6590 said:

@PLJPB it’s a great point which I missed, so I would argue that V’s “investment” is therefore of the order of c.£130m.

 

It's been a very interesting thread - well done to Herbie and PLJPB for enlightening us all.

If we had owners that we could trust and communicate with, there would be no need for us to worry.

If the Venky's investment is £130 rather than £250 then that is less than £20m per year. A drop in the ocean in corporate Venkyland and probably less than the club's income from other sources. 

Given that the losses and outgoings are not itemised for us to see, I would not be surprised if the £130m is not offset by some of the incoming transfer profits and TV money. Maybe they have actually spent very little at all!

Venky's admit they bought Rovers as an advertising vehicle for their company. They have no interest in football or Blackburn or the fans. Why would they keep throwing money at a failed venture?

Maybe we can't use the term 'stripping' but the assets Rovers had in 2010 have all but gone and the money has not been reinvested.   What does the future hold now that we can't top up the coffers with money from player sales?