An all-time favourite of mine. He scored the best goal I ever saw personally at Ewood. The long ball came over from the right wing and Mike volleyed a left footed thunderbolt into the net.....from outside the box. (Can’t remember the opposition sadly). Also saw him take a penalty at a pre-season game at Blackpool. There were about 10 other supporters so i got right behind the goal for a close-up view. It was unstoppable, beautifully positioned, with pace, just inside the post. i don’t remember many things from those days.....but these memories still make me smile.

Here’s Harry Chapman....... “He’s a great manager - probably the best I’ve worked under. I love his philosophy about football and the style of play.”Read more at: https://www.hartlepoolmail.co.uk/sport/football/middlesbrough-fc/hartlepool-youngster-reveals-why-he-wanted-to-sign-for-blackburn-rovers-1-9563651

Championship Trivia Quiz (Data from whoscored.com) 1. We have 2 players rated in the top 50. Who are they? 2. Didn’t do so well there? Ok, we have 4 more in the top 100. Have another go. 3. Which former Rovers’ manager is currently displaying his skills with the bottom club? 4. Although he’s only played 3 games this season he is currently our highest rated player (average 7.29). Who is he? 5. Who is the lowest rated player in the entire squad and 344th out of 345 in the Championship (6.01)? 6. Which of these is our biggest strength and which our biggest weakness? a. Protecting the lead b. Stopping opponents creating chances c. Defending against skillful players d. Keeping possession of the ball e. Creating chances using through balls 7. Dack has made 3 of Graham’s goals. Who else has given Danny 3 assists? 8. Who has the best % pass success rate in our squad? 9. Which team has NOT gone 6 games unbeaten? WBA, Leeds, Villa, Stoke, Norwich. 10. Who has most MoM performances so far (4)? Answers 1. DL 31 (7.11) DW 40 (7.07), 2. CM 51 (7.03) BD 57 (7.01) DG 89. (6.93) HR 95 (6.92) 3. PL 4. PD 5. BB 6. e and d 7. HR 8. CC 9. Leeds 10. DL Cut me some slack on the formatting. I’m in the airport on my ipad!

Germany first, then UK so i might see you at Ewood! My kids still live in England.

Hi guys. Just to let you know......i am on overseas holiday for a month so these posts will be postponed for a while. Thanks for reading.

I’ve found it hard to take to Armstrong......even in the games where I was loading him with heavy blue stars (6 in one match!) Watching Conway against Wednesday brought it to a head; Armstrong will only ever be a “pretend” winger. He may do excellent things in the build up but invariably the endpiece is lacking in imagination or effectiveness.

An Assessment of Player Performance v Middlesborough Each player was judged on the following criteria: Instance of excellent play * Instance of decent/good play * Instance of disappointing/poor play * Instance of terrible play * E&OE Ratings Raya ****** Nyambe *********** Mulgrew *************** Downing ********************* Williams *************** Evans **************** Reed(84) *********** Smallwood(74) ******* Conway(69) ********** Dack ************ Graham ********** Armstrong(69) ********* Rothwell(74) ****** Brereton(84) Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings above) 3. Boro corner. Mulgrew loses his man and is beaten to the header and Evans is there to hack clear, 2 yards out. 8. Reed, Evans, Smallwood passing it around in midfield but making no progress. Boro’s giants are just tempting them to hit it long. Yep, there it goes and Graham is offside anyway. 9. The ball is poked through to Hugill unmarked, with his back to goal, on the edge of the 6 yard box but Williams gets a meaty challenge in before he is able to turn and shoot. From the corner Graham flicks it away but Mulgrew had lost the dangerous Flint again! 13. Nyambe moves towards the box and squares to Dack who turns and shoots but it’s deflected wide for a corner. 16. Nice lay off by Dack to Evans on the edge of the D but Evans, in a great position, dithers and is dispossessed. Disappointing ending! 18. Evans looks off the pace as he is left trailing. Fortunately Conway gets back and blocks for a corner. 19. Besic lets Dack dispossess him and there is a clear run on goal. Besic pulls Dack’s shirt and he’s off! Red card. Good grief! Mulgrew curls the free kick into the net from 25 yards…….bottom corner, bent round the wall from a central position. 33. Nice corner from Reed and Downing rises well but under pressure from Flint he heads over. 36. Good crossfield ball from Williams finds Nyambe who feeds Reed Just inside the box. He squares to Graham right in front of goal but the defender blocks his shot well. Close but good defending. 40. That’s the third interesting long ball into space down the right wing from Downing. This time it’s a bit too far for Reed but he wins a throw for his persistence. (Nyambe collected the other 2). 41. Evans wins the ball nicely in midfield and Dack sends Graham away into the edge of the box. His firm shot is parried by the keeper straight to the on-rushing Evans in the 6 yard box but he puts it wide!!! It came to him fast but he sliced it. 49. A Boro long throw causes a bit of panic ping-pong. Evans is too timid with his attempted clearance (not the only one). But there’s a foul and we survive. 50. Good clearing header by Downing takes care of a dangerous cross into the box. 51. Dack sprays a lovely crossfield ball to Conway’s feet. He waits for the on-running Williams who sidesteps his man on the edge of the D and squares the ball beautifully to Dack who’s shot hits the post. It’s cleared. 57. Nice interplay by Conway and Reed in the box and Conway cuts it back for the on-rushing Dack but the defender is strong enough to hold him off. The ball is launched far downfield over the top of the entire defence and Hugill is clear on goal. Mulgrew does brilliantly to get back and get in the critical, perfectly timed challenge; Downing clears. 60. Nice through ball from Smallwood to Graham in the D. He turns and feeds Reed. Reed squares back to Graham but his shot is deflected for a corner. Too many Boro players for a clear shot. 61. Assombalonga scores a great goal from outside the box. 68. The lethargic Evans sucking the momentum out of our play yet again with another backpass. 75. The third foul by Armstrong in the 6 minutes he’s been on the field! 77. Out of the blue……Reed is ambling along centrally about 25 yards out and he decides to have a shot. The goalie parries the firm shot away. Downing loses out on a 50-50 in midfield and Boro are away. Nyambe blocks the shot. 83. Evans wins a header in midfield and Dack picks up and holds off 2 men before threading a sublime ball into the box for a fast arriving Armstrong. Instead of burying the ball in the net, he takes a touch and loses control. The defender gets a foot in and it’s a corner. 84. A howler by Downing. He airkicks a simple lobbed ball and the Boro man is free and clear! He lobs it over the outrushing Raya but it’s weak and Downing is back to hack clear. Lucky! 87. Another long throw by Boro causes panic in the box; Raya collects eventually.

I know. I downgraded it after i rewatched it and saw him put his head in his hands!

An Assessment of Player Performance v Sheffield W Each player was judged on the following criteria: Instance of excellent play * Instance of decent/good play * Instance of disappointing/poor play * Instance of terrible play * E&OE Ratings Raya ****** Nyambe *************** Mulgrew ************** Downing ******************** Williams *************** Evans(85) ******** Reed ********************* Smallwood ********************** Conway ************************ Dack(92) **************** Graham(92) ************* Travis(85) * Brereton(92) Conway(92) Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings above) 5. A dangerous Conway free kick from near the corner flag and Graham almost gets his head on it but the ball falls at his feet. He is falling forward and a defender kicks the ball into his body. Dack smashes the rebound in the net but the whistle’s gone. Danny is asking why! I think he’s told he pushed the defender in the back. Hmmmpf! 7. The defence is sleeping and the ball comes straight through the middle to Matias on the edge of the box. Fortunately Williams is awake and slides in to prevent the shot. Raya collects. Eventually Conway gets the ball and puts in a beauty of a low ball across the 6 yard box to an unmarked Reed. His first time shot grazes the post. He did well to get there though. 10. Exquisite skill from Conway as he plucks the ball from the air with his foot and wrongfoots his marker. He’s away and Dack is pointing……….Conway puts it on a plate for him in the box. Dack beats his man but the goalie saves his shot well; never fear Danny is there to ram home the rebound. Great stuff. Where have you been Craig? 23. It’s good to see a centre back dominating in the air again! Well done Downing so far. Dack looks like he’s been on the David Dunn diet? The lad Bannan is causing a few problems. 25. More lovely work by Conway as he teases a couple of defenders allowing Williams to make the run. Conway lays it in his path perfectly and Williams gets a decent cross in but the defender gets there before Reed……but at least Reed was thereabouts again! 32. Reach drives into the box at pace and looks as if he’s left Williams trailing but Williams gets back and slides in and does well to concede the corner. 42. After some good battling by Williams and Conway, Dack sends Conway away again and he squares a lovely ball across the box for Dack but he blasts it over! It just shows what we’ve been missing with these “part-time wingers”! 43. Raya is quick off the mark to clear out a dangerous through ball just inside the box. HALF TIME 46. A wicked corner close to the posts by Conway. Williams just gets there but his header from the edge of the 6 yard box is deflected and then headed off the line BY THE KEEPER! 47. Another pinpoint ball from Conway, diagonally into the box and perfectly on to Evans’ head. He tries to cushion it down for Reed but the keeper collects. Evans was in the right place though. 49. Bannan slides a nice ball through to Reach who loses Conway. Nyambe tries to put him off and Raya makes a good save at his near post. 51. Unbelieveable this…..yet another good ball from Conway, this time to Reed in the D but his attempted shot hits Dack who was offside too! 52. Conway, on the wing, changes the direction of play with a crossfield ball to Downing. He nudges the ball past a Wednesday player with his head and takes it on further before sliding a beautiful ball to the right edge of the box for Graham. He crosses into the 6 yard box perfectly for Dack to tap in. Great goal! 56. Dack is enjoying himself. The only way Bannan can stop this run to the box was by dropping him for a yellow card. 58. Good run down the wing by Nyambe, he has the beating of his man and crosses right to the penatlty spot, to Reed’s feet. Reed can’t get his feet moving fast enough and he’s closed down but, again, he was Johnny on the spot………….. again with his head in his hands! 61. Thunderbolt from Joao! 65. A couple of quick accurate passes from Smallwood and Conway puts Dack in position to run to the edge of the box. His shot hits the post and Graham taps the rebound into an empty net! 75. Downing does well initially to win the ball at the edge of the box but his pass is horrendous, straight to an unmarked Nuhui in front of goal. Fortunately he’s useless and he hits it wide. Ritchie did his bit to put him off. That’s the first foot Paul’s put wrong all game. It’s good to see him back. 79. Dack takes the ball on in our own half and runs midway into the Wednesday half with no one able to touch him. He lays a lovely ball through to Conway who unleashes a powerful shot from the edge of the box but it’s well saved. Corner. 81. Another of Evans’ momentum killing backpasses that I hate so much! Then a needless mix up about who is going for the ball between Smallwood and Raya. 84. Jaoa is too strong, holding off Downing and Reed; Bannan takes it on in the D and Mulgrew’s attempted challenge is not strong enough. Williams charges in with an attempted challenge but the ball bounces over Raya and hits the post. Raya tries to get there before Bannan but the ball hits the keeper and ends up in the net as an own goal. Disappointing! 88. Some nice interplay between Travis and Dack, then Smallwood plays a neat ball into the box to Dack’s twinkling feet. He’s away from his marker and squares to Graham who has the easiest of tap-ins for his hat-trick! 92. Standing ovation for Dack and Graham as they are substituted. FULL TIME. Normal service has been resumed! That’s it……if Conway’s fit, I never want to see Armstrong on the wing again!

I was thinking that myself! The away fans have been living the dream for quite some time.......the tide’s turned!

Oh no! You can’t do that to me! It was bad enough having to write it.......but if nobody reads it........................(maniacal laughter here......)

Sadly, I got up to watch it live. i’ve never learned my lesson!

An Assessment of Player Performance v Wigan Each player was judged on the following criteria: Instance of excellent play * Instance of decent/good play * Instance of disappointing/poor play * Instance of terrible play * E&OE Ratings Raya ********* Nyambe(77) *************** Mulgrew **************** Rodwell ***************** Bell ***************** Evans ************* Reed(45) ****** Smallwood(61) ********* Armstrong ******** Dack ******** Graham(45) **** Williams(45) ************* Brereton(61) *** Conway(77) *** Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings above) 12. Absolutely nothing of any value from any Rovers player so far! Some nasty fouls by Wigan. Two booked already! The second over-egged kick by Raya out to Armstrong on the wing. Looks like a pretty dumb tactic. 18. Rovers are being given no time on the ball and they can’t handle it. Wigan’s bully tactics are working. 19. The first bit of danger. Bell is beaten to the ball far too easily and the cross is just a little too far in front of Powell. 21. Morsy doing a wonderful job of winding up the Rovers players. Windass on for Powell. 22. Rodwell is turned by his man and Mulgrew has to make a crucial last gasp challenge to prevent a clear run in on goal! 23. At last! A good ball into the box by Nyambe. Reed swings and misses it….but it continues to Graham who scoops it over. Reed maybe put him off…. he had to snatch at it. 26. Just noted the first positive contribution by Reed! 29. Now that’s Evans first decent ball! 30. Evans wins the ball in midfield and has a clear run. He holds back to let Armstrong catch up but his ball into the box is underhit and telegraphed and the best Armstrong can do is win a corner. That’s Adams first positive contribution! A bit of “ping-pong from the corner and the ball somehow bobbles into the keeper’s hands. 32. Bell totally miskicks the incoming, long ball but it touches him and goes for a soft corner. Nyambe is beaten in the air by Vaughan and Evans stops the header on the line. It falls to the feet of Burn but somehow Raya manages to palm his shot on to the bar! It’s not over yet! Naismith goes past Smallwood as if he’s not there and his cross into the box ……well I’ve gotta say……is undefended! Mulgrew is stood behind 2 completely unmarked attackers. One of them manages to head the ball wide. It was easier to score! Rodwell was nowhere. 36. Smallwood’s first positive contribution! Wigan are targeting Bell and it’s working. He has 2 men on him as the long high ball comes in. Armstrong and Evans are back to help but now there’s 4 Wigan men. Bell is in “no man’s land” as Wigan interchange passes and that leaves Roberts the space to drive forward and unleash a great shot, in off the post, past Raya. Too easy…… 41. The dangerous sub Windass does Nyambe easily but Raya saves his shot comfortably. 42. Bell, as last man, tries a risky dribble and is dispossessed. He is fortunate to get the free kick I think. 43. Bizarre! Vaughan beats Mulgrew and Evans to the corner and it’s going in but Windass totally unmarked, standing on the line, heads it out. Great stuff……………..he should give our centre backs some lessons! 45. Everyone is running back and a lovely ball is lobbed into our box. Mulgrew is waving his hand claiming offside…..allowing Windass to pull clear and shoot unchallenged. It hits the post and he was offside. BUT Mulgrew was badly at fault there. HALF-TIME………………That was garbage! Wigan should be 5 up! 46. Mulgrew sells himself near halfway by throwing his body into an unnecessary challenge and Windass is off again. He crosses to Vaughan but Raya saves. 51 Nice ball from Williams reaches Armstrong, who takes it into the box but his shot is weak. Nevertheless, that’s the first save the keeper has had to make. He clears upfield and Rodwell misjudges the flight and bounce and there’s that man Windass to take advantage. He runs into the box, Rodwell stumbles and brings him down. Penalty! Vaughan scores. 57. A high ball comes into our crowded box. Burn rises to a free header as Mulgrew and Rodwell fail to get off the ground. It’s wide! Our key defenders don’t seem to know what they’re supposed to be doing! 64. The third time Brereton has been near the ball since he came on and each time his touch has been suspect. 66. Nice run forward by Dack but…..this is weird…..he slips the ball into the box but it’s behind Armstrong….who gives up completely! Brereton chases, runs into the defender and falls over claiming a penalty. 68. Commentators are praying for floodlight failure. One suggests Reed as man of the match! He has been totally anonymous but then again……….so has everyone else!! Wigan throw in. James and Windass make fools of Reed, Bell and Williams as Windass drives into the box. His shot is defected by Mulgrew on to the bar……………..again! Nyambe blocks the follow-up. 70. Wigan attack again from their right wing. You can clearly see the line of Rovers defenders falling back but AGAIN Rodwell is retreating and marking no one. The cross comes in to Vaughan (behind Rodwell) and Nyambe manages to get enough of a challenge in to put him off and he heads wide and high. 74. This is poor fare. There’s no impetus, no spark, no one capable of opening the Wigan defence. Armstrong and Dack are coming back into our own half to see the ball! 76. Stupid push in the back from Williams gives Wigan a free kick in a dangerous area just outside our box. Good grief! The lobbed effort bounces on the crossbar! Raya didn’t seem to know what was happening! 79. Evans miscontrols and we lose momentum…..so frustrating! Then Mulgrew and Williams miscontrol and it’s a Wigan throw in. Rovers fans are booing. 80. Brereton miscontrols (again) and it’s another Wigan throw! 82. Conway’s free kick from deep is met by Williams in the box………….it’s deflected into the net by a Wigan man for an own goal! Soft! 85. Mulgrew, near half way, has his hand up for another offside claim. It’s not given and now Windass is miles away…….onside! He does Williams far too easily and squares perfectly for McManaman to tap in. Maybe Raya could have cut out that cross? 86. Conway on the wing pulls the ball back for an on-rushing Dack but his shot is deflected off target. Hmm, that makes Conway man of the match for me! The corner comes back to Conway and his deflected cross/shot is palmed away by the keeper for another corner. FULL-TIME. WORSE THAN PRESTON! Reflections (i.e. humble opinions!) Bell needs dropping. We need 2 proper centre halves; give Downing a run and get Lenihan back. Evans, Reed, Smallwood……..not a spark of imagination from any of them! Evans kills the momentum time after time. Dack did nothing………again and Armstrong was lost.

Hmm! He doesn’t seem the same, does he? Once in each of the last 2 matches he seemed to dive in “slow-motion”.

It amazes me how players can be brilliant one week and terrible the next. But I’ve always considered Lenihan as Mr Reliable. So this was a shock to see him dominated so easily! I confess..............this was a BIG chore.

An Assessment of Player Performance v PNE Each player was judged on the following criteria: Instance of excellent play * Instance of decent/good play * Instance of disappointing/poor play * Instance of terrible play * E&OE Ratings Raya *** Nyambe ************* Mulgrew ******************** Lenihan ********************* Williams *********** Reed(45) ***************** Smallwood(45) ******** Palmer(68) ***** Armstrong(64) ******** Bennett ************** Dack ******* Graham(45) ***** Brereton(68) *** Rothwell(64) ***** Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings above) 1. Lenihan is caught flat-footed by Browne’s quick flick and he can’t make up the lost ground. Browne squares across the box perfectly for Barkhuizen to score! No one picked him up and it was too easy. 4. Preston corner and I swear Lenihan loses his man and has to push him to the floor. Very, very risky! Smallwood hacks clear! 5. Good grief! Williams is done on the wing, Mulgrew flicks his heel up pathetically as the ball is cut into the box again. Nyambe makes a desperate but essential deflecting challenge and we escape with a corner. It’s almost a copy of the first goal - but from the other side. The defence is a shambles! 9. Mulgrew’s headed clearance doesn’t go far and it’s headed back. Nyambe’s hurried clearance is straight to Browne and he slides the ball into the box. Nyambe loses the footrace and Robinson puts it past Raya with assurance. 10. Bennett’s cross reaches Dack 14 metres out but his header is turned round the post by the keeper. He did well to trouble the keeper from there as it came from one of Bennett’s diagonal balls….from behind him. 27. Excellent free kick from almost 25m by Mulgrew but the keeper palms it over the bar. 35. Nice ball from Bennett to a tightly marked Palmer on the edge of the D but he flicks the ball one touch to Dack’s feet. His shot from 12m out is deflected and the keeper saves. 38. Armstrong dithers on the ball in our own half…… and is dispossessed. Fortunately the Preston man mishits his pass and Smallwood retrieves the ball. HALF TIME 46. Reed’s freekick into the box and newly arrived Graham heads home! 50. Poor play by both Lenihan and Mulgrew around the box but it’s cleared. 54. A great shot out of the blue from over 30m by Bennett. It’s a wee bit too central though and the keeper beats it away. 57. Armstrong gives the ball away in a dangerous position but Mulgrew cuts out the poor cross into the box. 58. Wonderful run down the wing by Nyambe and he squares it across the box but it’s slightly behind Dack and his attempted flick is weak and off-target. 59. Sloppy play by several Rovers allows Robinson to speed past Nyambe but his shot is wide. 62. Excellent chase back and challenge by Reed to win the ball from Robinson who was clear to run on goal. 73. Barkhuizen goes to the line, past Williams far too easily, and heads into the box. He squares and the shot is deflected into the path of Moult who hammers home from close range. Reed and Mulgrew couldn’t get there in time. 75. Nice ball into the box by Reed and Graham, near the penalty spot, cushions a header to Brereton’s feet and it’s in the net. Offside…….rats! 84. Browne and Moult torment and tease four Rovers players before Moult passes to Browne who has pulled away and his half-hit volley beats Raya and nestles in the net! Reed and Williams showed no urgency in chasing back and Mulgrew and Lenihan were made to look amateurish. Raya was a bit slow to get down I think. 93. Barker beats Reed and leaves him trailing; he strolls past Lenihan as if he isn’t there into the D but his shot is weak and is deflected wide. Worst performance of the season IMHO.

He was a bit better this week, I think, but is still the weak link. I was amazed by Nyambe......I had criticised his last couple of games heavily. He was a breath of fresh air. It’s as though his lay-off has left him mentally re-energised! Very interesting! He did some good things but was uncharacteristically sloppy and cost us the goal. It’s good to have Nyambe back.

An assessment of player performance v Rotherham Each player was judged on the following criteria: Instance of excellent play * Instance of decent/good play * Instance of disappointing/poor play * Instance of terrible play * E&OE Ratings Raya ***** Bennett ************************ Lenihan(9) *************************** Rodwell ************** Bell ************************* Reed(45) ******** Smallwood *********************** Palmer *************** Armstrong *************************** Dack ****************** Graham(58) **************** Nyambe(45) ************** Brereton(76) ** Rothwell(76) ***** Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings above) 2. A beautiful teasing ball to the far post from Bennett is pushed behind for a corner. 7. A long throw into the Rovers box and Lenihan is outjumped. As the ball falls Graham hacks clear. The ball comes back into the box, this time Graham tangles unsuccessfully with Smith and the ricochet lands right at Newell’s feet. Fortunately Lenihan gets a block in and it’s a corner. The Rotherham men surround Raya. OHHHHH! The corner sails over most of our defenders and stays close to the posts as a Rotherham man heads wide from very close range. It looks like Lenihan lost his man but my view isn’t great. That was a let off. The overall organisation was rubbish. 9. Bell fails to prevent the cross but Raya comes and collects at the second attempt. 13. Sloppy pass from Bennett on the edge of the box puts Smallwood under pressure but two crunching tackles later and Smallwood lays off a nice square ball to Dack and suddenly defence becomes attack. Bell takes the ball on and feeds Armstrong. He dribbles in and out of the box before miscuing his shot behind for a goalkick. Ritchie’s name echoes round Ewood! 15. The defender miscontrols and Graham is on it. He squares to Dack who threads a lovely ball into the box and Graham has the keeper to beat. But, exactly as in the first minute against QPR last week, he goes for placement instead of power and the keeper has time to get a glove on it! At least this time he was offside (Dack held on a fraction too long probably). 16. Hmm, for the second time in a minute, Rodwell fails to dominate in the air. Here a long throw comes into the box and although Rodwell attacks the ball his header falls just outside the D and Towell’s shot lands on the roof of the net. Close. 18. A beautiful long ball from Armstrong cuts out the defender and Bell races after it, into the box. His shot is on target but hits the keeper’s leg and balloons to Dack on the penalty spot but he miscues his shot. 23. This is ridiculous! For the third time a long throw into the box causes mayhem! Rodwell loses his man, the ball is bouncing around Lenihan twice tries and fails to head clear and Smallwood half clears. It’s a corner. What is going on! The organisation for these set pieces is non-existent. As the ball comes in, Lenihan, Rodwell and Bell all run away from where the ball has been directed. They try to backpedal but ……..too late…..Smith has been left totally unmarked. He heads it back beautifully across the face of goal to the unmarked Mattock. Fortunately he is a worse header of the ball than I am and he puts it over! WHAT A LET OFF! Both Mattock and Wood were totally unmarked throughout that whole situation! Graham wasn’t covering his man either. 26. A lovely turn and run by Palmer who feeds Bennett. His cross is punched into the air by the goalie and Armstrong wins a corner. 33. Bell plays a nice ball into the left corner for Smallwood who holds off his man well. He feeds Armstrong who cuts neatly between 2 defenders into the box. His shot hits the bar! 35. Some nice inter-passing. Smallwood to Bell who slides the ball into the box for Graham to chase. Bell is getting more involved in the attacks. 41. A low, flat corner by Reed is met by Dack but his shot is blocked. 42. Bell, under no pressure, heads his clearance into the danger area just outside the D but Dack protects the ball and Reed hoofs clear. Armstrong shows great persistence to retrieve the ball but his attempted crosses come to naught. 44. Smallwood is continuing to call the shots in midfield. He’s had a good half so far. Rodwell’s coming into the game more too. 46. Two meaty challenges from Bennett as he wins the ball high up the field but Smallwood’s cross is cut out. HALF TIME 45. A 1-2 between Armstrong and Graham, then Armstrong slides the ball to Dack in the box and he sets it up for Graham but his tame shot fails to beat the keeper again. 48. Bell’s nice long pass is controlled by Armstrong who squares to Bennett and his shot from distance is parried away by the diving keeper. 52. Sloppy work in our D and Bennett is dispossessed, Nyambe blocks the shot. The cross comes in, Bell’s challenge is ineffective and Smith’s shot hits Lenihan on the line! 53. Armstrong lobs a ball square into the box to Graham wide of the far post. He heads it back towards goal but no one is there to challenge and the defender heads off the line under no pressure. 54. Good pressure now and Lenihan plays a 1-2 with Nyambe and then fizzes the ball across the face of goal; the keeper can’t hold it and the defender hoofs it away for a corner. 55. Bell withstands a challenge and tees up Smallwood who fires in a low shot, Dack tries to deflect it but the ball is cleared. Nyambe comes back nicely and slips the ball into the box for Graham but his attempt is blocked and it goes for a Rovers throw. Nyambe is making a difference. 58. A lovely 1-2 between Nyambe and Palmer sees Nyambe reach the touchline and put over a great cross but Graham is outnumbered and the ball is cleared. 60. Another nice bit of skill as Nyambe skips past the full back from a throw in but his cross is intercepted. 63. Another dizzying run into the box by Nyambe but there’s too many defenders in front of him his shot is blocked and cleared; it comes back and Armstrong flicks a lovely ball into the box for Bell but he passes straight to the keeper. He did well to get on the end of the pass though. Dack is fed up, he was waiting for the cross! Rodwell is done by Smith but his shot is ambitious and wide. 64. Graham heads Raya’s long punt to Armstrong on the wing. He delivers the perfect ball to Dack in the D. Dack beats 2 defenders brilliantly but his shot hits the keeper’s legs. Smallwood wins the ball back bravely and eventually we get a corner. 65. Another nice move. Bell skips past defenders on the wing and squares to Dack who manages to hold off a couple of defenders before feeding Nyambe. Another cross into the danger zone from him but it doesn’t find a teammate. Nyambe has opened a whole new dimension of attack on the right wing. Not to be outdone, Armstrong controls the long pass and does the full back on the touchline…..squaring the perfect ball across the face of goal 2 metres out. There’s no one there!! 70. A lovely diagonal ball from Bennett to Graham at the far post. He gets there but he’s under pressure and his header passes across the face of goal. Danny stays down injured. 73. Dear dear; another of those seemingly innocuous lazy passes ……..going astray and leading to disaster. This time it’s Bennett giving it away close to the box (for the THIRD time this game!) The winger does Bell too easily and the cross is headed home by Smith. Raya seems to dive late and Smith is too good for Lenihan and Nyambe in the air. 75. Taylor gets away from Lenihan on halfway and it’s dangerous. But Rodwell is able to get a foot in as Rotherham stumble. 78. Armstrong sprints past 2 defenders and is into the box. His shot is palmed into the air by the keeper and Nyambe’s header is off target but goes for a corner. Where did Nyambe come from? 80. Brereton leaps on to Bennett’s deflected cross in the box and squares to Dack to score from 2 metres. 84. A lackadaisical Bell gives the ball away near the corner flag and the deflected cross is gathered by Raya. 86. Lenihan slips a nice pass through to Dack on the edge of the box. He leaves it for Palmer but his shot is way off target. 92. Rothwell puts a nice ball through for Armstrong into the box but the challenge comes in and it’s a corner. 93. Bennett heads the ball into the box but it comes back, he slips the ball to his left and unleashes a powerful shot but it’s deflected just over for a corner. The ball is bobbling about and Armstrong spins and shoots but it’s well off target.

I thought he might be an exciting replacement for Williams when he arrived. He’s not pushed on though. Saturday was his worst performance in my opinion. I hope it’s just a confidence thing.

It’s all about opinions! I’ve been pushing Williams’ cause for a while but I’m still not a fully enthusiastic Reed fan. Williams did make a shocking error against WBA and Reed was our Mom (whoscored rating 7.9). Williams was still rated second best though (7.6) and he made goal saving blocks in the 75th and 93rd minutes. Against QPR, Williams was the overall Mom (7.8) while Reed was rated 6.8. He also made another goal saving block on 71 minutes.

I think Williams and Lenihan have both grown in effectiveness and importance. Watching Williams, he takes responsibility and communicates well. He’s also composed in his new role......confident on the ball. I think he can be a key player.

I had a good chuckle reading this while eating my lunch. I gave Danny some slack because he's the only guy getting himself into these positions in recent games. I gave Dack and BB blue stars for their time wasting. When I think of the boardroom's oak panelling and the trophies in the display cabinet...……..I couldn't bring myself to give more. Same with the penalty...……...I couldn't go beyond light blue, I tried. Mind you, that is the only penalty we've won this season were I didn't give a deep blue. Your eloquent explanation almost had me convinced! Oh! nearly forgot...….I stuffed up Leutwiler's ratings. I didn't give him anything negative. I'm off to edit it now!

An assessment of player performance v QPR Each player was judged on the following criteria: Instance of excellent play * Instance of decent/good play * Instance of disappointing/poor play * Instance of terrible play * E&OE Ratings Leutwiler ** Bennett **************** Lenihan ********************** Williams ********************** Bell ******************** Reed *********************** Smallwood(62) ************** Evans *********************** Armstrong(79) ******************* Dack. ************** Graham(73) *********** Palmer(62) ****** Rothwell(73) *** Brereton(79) **** Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings above) 0. The ball falls to Graham’s feet in the 6 yard box but, with just the keeper to beat, he goes for placement instead of power and the shot isn’t good enough and it’s saved. Bad miss! 13. Well, I suppose I should write something but there’s not a lot happening. Williams is looking composed, Dack has been throwing himself around enthusiastically, Lenihan has just won another header and Bell has been rounded again. Armstrong wins the ball and outsprints 2 defenders as he runs the length of the pitch but he’s dispossessed by the third. 28. Commentator lamenting that “there’s nothing to write home about in this game so far!” How right he is! 34. At last! Neat footwork from Evans and good hold up play from Graham. Evans then sends a lovely ball down the wing for Armstrong to chase. He teases the defender on the edge of the box until Bell hares forward to receive the ball. Bell falls under the challenge….no penalty, just a corner. 36. Reed slips the ball through for Graham who lays it off square to Bell. Bell’s cross is dangerous but Armstrong fails to connect. Bennett crosses again but it’s cleared. Williams puts it back in the box but it’s overhit; it falls to Bennett but his cross is deflected. Good spell of pressure but no serious goal threat in truth. It’s a corner. Reed takes and Graham flicks it on. Williams can’t quite get there. 40. Long hopeful ball played into our box and Smallwood makes a real hash of his attempted headed clearance. It falls to a QPR man right in front of goal but his shot is wide! He should have buried it! 44. Dominant headed clearance by Williams and eventually the ball comes to Armstrong who spins beautifully to beat his man and he’s haring down the field again. He rides another challenge and lays it off to Bell but QPR have too many back and Bell is squeezed off the pitch for a throw in. 45. Rovers work the ball down the centre of the field with a series of first-time touches, Williams to Smallwood to Dack, who with the lightest of flicks puts Graham through. He’s challenged in the box and he puts it wide. Good chance! Reed slips a nice ball to Dack who takes it on and feeds Armstrong on the wing. He beats his man and puts a good cross to the near post for Reed but his effort is cleared. 45+1. A neat 1-2 between Bennett and Reed sets Bennett up for the cross but Graham can only head it straight up in the air and the keeper collects. Half-time. 46. Neat interplay between Smallwood, Reed and Dack allows Dack to send a beautiful crossfield ball to Armstrong’s feet. Unfortunately Bell and Armstrong mess around with the ball and the chance is lost! Evans wins the ball in midfield but, for the third time in a minute, Armstrong is disappointing and his attempted chip runs for a goal kick. 48. More neat stuff between Smallwood, Bell, Graham and Armstrong. Eventually Armstrong drives to the line and wins a corner. 49. Williams heads on Bennett’s long ball and Dack is on to it in the box but he’s under pressure. Twice he tries to get a shot away but both times he is blocked. Reed fires in the rebound but again it’s blocked and runs for a throw-in. 50. Armstrong anticipates Bell’s quick throw and lobs a nice ball into the box but Graham is outjumped. 56. Blimey Smallwood is treading water here as the QPR man leaves him for dead! Yay!…..I get to note a positive for Leutwiler as he opts to come to the edge of his box to clear up, putting the ball out for a throw. QPR are doing everything they can to waste time. 62. Armstrong whips in a low bobbling cross that fools almost everyone but Lynch wakes up in time to hack clear! 68. Palmer is chasing back, covering Bennett, but can’t prevent the cross. It’s dangerous but Williams gets there first; his header hits Lenihan and the ball whistles past the post for a corner! L and W high-five each other! 69. Palmer is too casual and is dispossessed in the centre circle but Reed gets a foot in to help. Now Bell is dawdling about and loses the ball! Now Evans gives it away! 71. Good tracking back by Palmer but it’s a corner. The QPR players have all been taking “how to walk really slowly” lessons! It’s a low cross and an unmarked Wells smashes a first time shot on target but somehow Williams manages to get his head in the way. It was travelling! As the ball comes back in, Williams is there to head clear again. 74. A very nice move by QPR from one end of the pitch to the other. Bennett justs gets enough pressure on Eze in the box to put him off his shot. 76. For the second time in a minute, Evans gives the ball away. It’s dangerous as Luongo drives past Bell far too easily…..but Reed cuts out the cross into the box. Bell is having a stinker. 83. Tired, terrible ball to no one from Evans! 84. Tremendously persistent work by Bennett under pressure and he manages to flick the ball neatly to Brereton down the wing, He drives into the box and goes down easily when challenged. Penalty. You want to know why Bennett is important to the team? Watch this replay! Dack puts it away easily. 90. Bell heads the QPR throw straight into the middle of our box!! Fortunately Bennett is there to boot clear! 91. Rothwell pumps a nice first time ball forward for Brereton to chase. He drives into the box; the defender gets a foot in and it runs for a corner.

I like these "first name on the teamsheet" discussions. It's interesting to read the different opinions. Here is my contribution: Raya...……...because ...………….there is no suitable alternative. And the lad has saved us a fair few points too! Bennett because he sets an example to all around him .....about what the fans expect of a Blackburn Rovers player....."there's no such thing as a lost cause!" Mulgrew because he is class, he brings calmness and leadership. Lenihan - I admit I was unconvinced before his return from injury. But I hold my hand up, he has been one of my favourite players this season...…….give or take a few penalties! Never takes a backwards step - regularly, he is the last man standing. Williams - a bit like Lenihan, he took a long time to convince me but he is tough and consistent this season. I don't mind him at centre back either. Dack because he has the X factor. He has been pants for a couple of games but you never know when he is going to launch his magic. He has that ability...……….. to send the whole crowd home with smiles on their faces! Graham because he reminds us regularly that the rest of our strikers still have a lot to learn. Sometimes we seem so clueless when he is unavailable. Let's hope he stays injury free. Evans, Smallwood and Reed...……...all OK but my enthusiasm is muted. I know Reed is drawing big plaudits but I am still biding my time. Same with Brereton..……… (keeping my fingers crossed). He could be a good 'un. Nyambe and Bell...….……...make too many errors...……...little ones maybe but.....that ball that bounces off the shin...…..it's still gifting possession to the enemy...….(they are young though). Armstrong and Rothwell...…………..run a lot but I want to see more end product. That final pass/shot...…...it could be better definitely! Palmer...…….Mr Showboat? Maybe, but he has had a couple of good games (including the last one). Against West Brom he nodded on several long punts, stuck his toe in to win a few timely challenges and a couple of his tricks came off. I hope he plays today. Conway...………..a few good things BUT.....for every good thing, there is a disappointing one! Oops! almost forgot Rodwell...……...When I saw him against Bolton I thought wowee………...we have some player here! But since then I have started to wobble...……….trying to stay positive though!

I included the whoscored ratings just for comparison. Their weightings seem very different......a goalscorer always gets a good score. I did think about doing my own number system but I ended up with the 4 grade system above so that players could be compared no matter their position. Routine action.............not recorded decent/good/excellent play..........acknowledged as a positive contribution to the team disappointing/poor/terrible play........flagged as a concern My thinking was that each player could be judged on this set of criteria no matter where they play. I also wanted to be as objective as possible so I shared my thinking in the written commentary.