He made some bad errors first half….and, for the first time ever, I judged he made more negative contributions than positive. I know we all come away from a game with different views and none of us are completely objective. That’s why I provide a commentary to let readers decide if they are on a similar wavelength.

PLAYER WATCH v Blackpool (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 ****** 13 Nyambe(61) ******* ***** 2 Lenihan ******************** ********* 20 van Hecke ******************** *********** 11 Wharton ( ******** ********** -6 Pickering ************* *********** -6 Travis *************** ******* 9 Rothwell ********** *********** -3 Dolan (61) **** * 2 Gallagher ******************* ******* 20 Diaz ******* ********* -4 Buckley (61) **** ******** 5 Dack (61) ****** * 7 Giles (80) * ** -1 Hedges (91) * -2 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) 06 All pretty quiet but Rovers are having most of the ball…….. until Wharton, the last defender, midway in our half is dawdling carelessly and allows Hamilton to rob him and head for goal. (Kaminski was actually outside the D when Scott was robbed!) Kaminski has made it back and comes out and spreads and blocks the shot with his leg on the 6 yard line. No wonder Hamilton is holding his head in his hands! 07 The corner comes in and drops to Thorniley near the penalty spot, his footwork beats Lenihan; Dolan and van Hecke can’t get a touch. His shot whistles past the left post. We’re living dangerously and should be one down! 09 A long punt downfield by Kaminski goes over the defender and turns out to be perfect for Gallagher. His first touch is excellent allowing the ball to run on but his second, into the box, is heavy and he pushes it almost too far but he just manages to get there before the keeper and dink it over him into the left side of the net. Sam’s 8th of the season. 11 A totally dumb push in the back foul by Pickering on the winger. 13 Wharton, near the centre-circle, threads a nice ball through the middle for Gallagher who’s on another good run. He leaves it for Diaz who takes it into the box and goes down as the challenge comes in. No penalty - correct shout. Van Hecke misses out on an aerial challenge and Lenihan completely mis-kicks as he tries to tidy up. Lavery is clear to run into the box and Wharton’s challenge goes in. Lavery goes down! Lenihan blocks a couple of half-shots in the subsequent confusion until someone hoofs it away! The commentators are convinced it was a penalty. But the ref disagreed so we have to say it was a good challenge by Wharton that saved the day again. 16 Another weak free-kick conceded by Pickering on the winger. 17 Wharton and Pickering allow Blackpool to attack down their right and Hamilton slides a low cross into the box but Travis is the only man around and he clears. 18 It’s a Blackpool long throw which is misjudged by Wharton and van Hecke; fortunately, as it bounces, Travis is there again to boot clear. 24 A well-delivered corner by Rothwell to the far post and a Blackpool man does well to head off the line as Dolan and Diaz challenged. 25 Another good corner by Rothwell from the left to the far post where Diaz, unchallenged and a few yards out, heads over. Bad miss! Several Rovers are holding their heads this time. 28 For the umpteenth time Hamilton does Pickering and delivers a cross…too long this time. But Blackpool keep the ball and another dangerous cross comes in and Kaminski punches clear acrobatically. The corner comes in and again we are not winning these aerial balls. A Blackpool man flicks it on but this time they stuff up and it’s a goal-kick. 31 Another good dispossession by van Hecke and another (yawn!) sideways pass from Rothwell. Then he drills a long punt forward, straight to the keeper. 34 Some poor defending again by Rovers but Wharton picks up and tries to run it out of the D but he’s too lackadaisical again and is dispossessed. Van Hecke blocks the shot. 43 Rothwell’s corner is to the near post and Diaz’s glancing header is well over. 44 Hamilton turns Rothwell too easily and then does a kick and rush down the wing. This takes Wharton out of the game and there’s only Travis chasing…….eyeballs bulging as he gives it everything. He manages to get in a sliding challenge and it’s a corner. Good stuff. Half time. We don’t really deserve to be leading but I’ll take it. 28% of aerial challenges won!!! 45 Here we go again. Three indecisive aerial duels, then Diaz is done by the Blackpool man at the byline. The cross comes in and van Hecke’s header is straight to Hamilton 15 yards out and he volleys the ball over the bar. 47 Lenihan commits 2 soft fouls in 1 minute. The free-kick comes in and van Hecke and Wharton get in each other’s way and JP’s header hits a Blackpool man, Diaz does a panicky air-kick, Lavery shoots from 14 yards and it hits Lenihan and goes just past the left post. We are getting murdered here. 48 Well that’s it! The corner comes in. Van Hecke is out jumped, then Lenihan can’t a good header in and it falls into a crowd of bodies just outside the 6 yard box. No one takes control and it’s serious pinball. Lenihan, Nyambe, Pickering, Gallagher were all there….but a Blackpool foot goes in and the ball ends up in the net. Disaster but it’s been coming. Blackpool deserve it I’m afraid. 53 Good chase and tackle by Gallagher wins the ball, Travis slides the ball nicely to Diaz, just outside the box. He tries a shot but it’s blocked out for a corner. 55 It’s a long punt by the Blackpool keeper and Wharton heads it down to the feet of an opponent. Thankfully his shot is blocked by Lenihan. Nyambe gives away a soft foul on the wing. 58 More comedy defending. Van Hecke gives the ball away near halfway and the ball is punted down their right wing for Hamilton. Travis manages to hold him up briefly but he still squares to Connolly just inside the box. His shot is blocked by Lenihan; van Hecke and Travis clear. It breaks well for Rovers and Diaz slips it to Dolan and they’re both flying downfield. It all comes to nothing though as Dolan’s attempt to find the final killer pass, near the box, is awful. Dolan has been poor today. 59 More poor work by Rothwell as he runs into a blind alley on halfway and is dispossessed. Blackpool are pushing us back continually and you have to ask “where is the heart of this team?” We look lost. Diaz is trying to wave his teammates forward as he’s the only Rover in the opposition half. 61 Dolan and Nyambe(!) off, Dack and Buckley on. 62 Gallagher gives away a dumb free kick just outside the box, hurling his opponent to the floor! Yellow card. It’s about 12 yards out but Blackpool stuff it up. 69 Van Hecke stands on the ball and loses it, just inside the Blackpool half. Dack wins it back close to the box, Travis takes it on and squares across the box to Gallagher who takes 2 touches and that’s enough time for the defenders to get back to block his shot. 71 A nice long pass down the wing from Pickering to Diaz. He feeds Buckley who loops a cross to the far post where it, more or less, hits Gallagher’s head and drops into the keeper’s arms. 73 Buckley controls well on halfway and sends a nice pass to Diaz. He moves towards the box but his shot is fluffed 90 degrees off target and goes out for a throw. 74 A nice jinking run by Diaz and he lays off to Buckley just outside the box. His shot is weak and straight at the keeper. 75 Lenihan is running down the wing and collects the pass from Travis. His through ball to Dack doesn’t look strong enough but it is! Dack collects, turns away from his man beautifully, and puts it over the keeper into the net. He was offside! Rats! 78 New sub Bowler goes past Pickering and Travis easily and slides it left to Anderson who’s shot hits Lenihan. 79 Some nice football from Rovers: Dack to Rothwell to Diaz on the left wing. He drives inside and into the box but he’s out-numbered 3 to 1 and loses the ball. Bowler embarrasses Pickering and the Rover has to foul him to prevent him running away with the ball. Yellow card. Harry’s had a tough day. 80 Wharton has been off with a face injury and he isn’t coming back. Giles on. 83 Dack controls and passes for Gallagher to chase to the right corner flag. He feeds Travis who takes it to the byline just outside the box where he lobs a nice ball square but it skims off Diaz’s head. Pickering lofts the ball back into the box, Gallagher goes up in the goalmouth, then Dack but neither make good contact. Eventually Giles puts in a decent cross but Dack was offside again. He wasn’t going to get there anyway. 89 Where’s the urgency? 90 Anderson beats van Hecke easily and feeds Bowler in the box. Pickering is struggling but he manages to deflect the shot and (I think) it hits the outside of the right post. Gallagher heads clear from the corner. 91 Gallagher off, Hedges on. (Wharton was a concussion injury apparently so we have the extra sub). 92 The ball is fired to Husband on their left and there is no one anywhere near him! He squares it to a teammate who smashes a shot from over 30 yards. Kaminski parries the swerving ball and Lenihan whips it off the toes of Madine near the penalty spot. Darragh is making up for a mediocre first half! 96 Final whistle. We have become a pale shadow of the team that went on that amazing run. We were becoming used to a poor first half followed by a decent second half but today it was poor throughout. It’s crazy that we are still in touch with the top 6! Our recent form is relegation fodder.

You made me smile!

It’s a good point and I have thought about it. I do credit the obvious “closing down” successes but preventing things that “might” have happened is more nebulous. I will think about how/if this can be accommodated. Thanks for the input.

I had to check if I was "very harsh" on Travis. It's been bugging me! So I re-checked my scoring ....at least for the first half....then I ran out of stamina. My marks are in red. 00 A little wriggle and then a simple lay off. Travis tackled near their corner flag. Lobs a hopeful ball forward but it’s to a defender. 01 Heads the ball straight up in the air and Nyambe heads it on. Gets a foot in and is then fouled near our box. +1 02 Simple short pass. Neat pass to Giles on the wing. +2 05 Travis does well to rob Dabo near our corner flag. +2 11 2 simple lay offs. 12 Simple short pass. 13 Simple short pass. Collects the ball then gives a simple lay off. 14 Gets a foot in but his attempt to clear hits the City man and rebounds into our box. Van Hecke has to clear but it comes straight back and Godden heads just wide. 17 Travis beaten to the ball. 18 He intercepts. +1 21 Nice interception but then plays a poor pass down the wing for Gallagher to chase.+2, -2 23 Gets a foot in but Coventry keep possession. 25 Wins the ball on the edge of our box but gives it away immediately. -2 27 Short pass. 29 He punts the ball towards the box, City head away. 33 It’s a poor clearance by van Hecke. Fortunately the City player mis-controls but Travis lobs it back into danger and a City cross comes across the 6 yard box and Wharton clears.-2 38 Gets a foot in but City retain possession. 39 Collects, turns and lays off a short pass. 40 Intercepts but we still lose possession. 41 A nice lobbed ball by Giles to an unmarked Travis in the corner of their box. His cross is poor and goes out of play on the other side.-2 43 Travis is one of 3 Rovers who allow the City man to collect a throw and drive unscathed across the edge of our box. It leads to Maatsen tussling with JRC in the box, where JRC is lucky to come away with a foul. 44 2 simple short passes. 45 Outnumbered 3 to 1 in a chase for the ball, so is outmuscled and City keep the ball. 48 Coventry clear a corner and Travis lobs the ball back into the box but City clear. Total (first half) = +2 Second half: +3 I like Travis for his attitude but I think this sometimes masks his overall contribution. I notice that he did not get a mention in any of the significant events posted in the commentary. I think I was fair overall.

It was noticeable last match too. His little flicks just aren’t coming off……yet. Goal excluded of course.

I sometimes feel that way about individuals but I try to mark what I see. Travis worked very hard yesterday - he had to. There were quite a few times were he got a foot in but it went back to Coventry straight away …especially first half where we were struggling to get the ball and keep it. Just in case, I promise to pay Travis extra attention next match. The most noticeable change in scores since the bad run started is that there are far more errors for each player. Here, Wharton had almost as many errors as Travis had (significant) touches!

PLAYER WATCH v Coventry 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 *** * 5 R-Costello (45) ******* ***** 1 Nyambe ************ ******* 10 van Hecke *************** ********** 8 Wharton ******************* *************** 11 Pickering ************ **** 10 Giles (45) **** **** 2 Travis *********** ******* 5 Buckley (80) ************ ******** 7 Rothwell ********** ** 9 Gallagher ************** ******* 9 Diaz (45) ******* *** 10 Dack (45) **** *** 5 Hedges (80) ** 4 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) Diaz is on the bench with Dack. Nyambe’s taking Lenihan’s place and JRC is right wing back. Giles is up-front on the right partnering Gallagher (scored 2 in his last 19 according to the commentator.) We’re out of the top 6 due to Forest’s big win earlier. 02 Nice long run by Buckley. He is too ambitious though and his long range shot is blocked and the rebound goes to an offside Gallagher. 05 Pickering is caught upfield and City collect the ball near the flag. It’s crossed into the box and Hamer meets it perfectly, 18 yards out, and it’s travelling but Wharton is in the way! 06 JRC gives away the ball near the centre circle and it’s danger! The City man threads a beautiful ball through the middle of our gaping defence to Godden running into our box. Van Hecke is chasing and the City man goes down. Was it van Hecke who clipped his heels or did he trip himself up? Hard to tell but Kaminski collects and it’s no penalty. Bedlam! Godden and the City fans are incensed. 07 Nyambe is beaten in the air, Van Hecke and Wharton are both drawn forward and Godden sucker-punches them with a neat ball past them both to the feet of O’Hare. He tries to turn past the on-coming Pickering but it hits Harry’s leg and is swept into the net. Own goal! 09 Wharton miscontrols a long clearance and it falls nicely to City. It’s slipped to Godden again but an unstable Nyambe manages to keep his feet and shield the ball back to Kaminski. Our defence is a shambles! 14 More panicky defence work and a City cross comes in to an unmarked Godden, on the penalty spot, who heads inches wide. He was offside but…….we miss Lenihan. As Colin Hendry used to say….it’s up to the centre halves to makes sure that doesn’t happen. Nyambe and van Hecke were nearest to him. 17 Travis is trying to do the work of two men because Rothwell is doing nothing! JRC makes a nice run and squares it low across the box. Gallagher tries to sweep it, first time, into the goal but it’s not very powerful and straight at the goalie. At least Sam got himself into the box. 23 Dabo plays with Pickering before putting in a nice cross which Godden heads over the bar. He was unmarked on the penalty spot again. Nyambe was marking him at one stage but he was drawn away. 29 Rothwell and Pickering stuff up a short corner. 30 Van Hecke is losing his cool. Here he pushes the City player for no apparent reason….other than his own frustration! 33 City cut us open again! Now, under no pressure, van Hecke passes straight to an opponent. Then Travis gives it away and Wharton has to clear the low cross from the 6 yard box. JRC wins the ball then passes it straight to a City player 25 yards out. Hamer takes it on and crashes the ball against the right post. This is garbage! 35 Van Hecke loses control of the ball and lunges into a desperate mis-timed challenge on the edge of the box - yellow card! The kick is only 20 yards out and Palmer bends it round the wall but Kaminski has anticipated well and flings himself horizontal to push the ball away. 38 They are so much quicker to the loose ball than we are….and they are more composed when they get it. 41 What is going on? A poor ball by Wharton hits a City man and ricochets towards Kaminski who is now well out of his goal near the wing. He clashes with the Coventry player and goes down. City look to take the quick throw in so Kaminski stays down and rolls in agony. Fortunately the ref buys it and blows to hold up play! From the throw, one City player beats about 4 Rovers and Maatsen tussles with JRC in the box. Maatsen goes down but we get the foul……phew…..both were tugging each other! 47 JRC launches a sky-high punt into the box and Wharton goes up with the keeper who fails to collect. A City man panic hoofs it over his own goal. 51 Half time. Another atrocious half….awful all-round. Toothless in attack and disorganised in defence. Apart from taking set-pieces, Rothwell has done nothing. 45 Dack and Diaz on, Giles and JRC off. Direct from the kick-off, Gallagher goes up, on the wing, and wins a flick on. Nyambe battles for the ball and slips it to Buckley just inside the box. He lifts it perfectly to Dack on the 6 yard line and he heads past the keeper!!! 15 seconds I reckon!!! We weren’t in the game……we are now! Diaz was sniffing too. We actually had 2 players in the goalmouth! The first away goal since mid-January. 47 City have gone a bit wobbly! 48 Gallagher mis-controls and then lunges in and gets a yellow card. 50 A long run by Rothwell goes nowhere as he runs it over the goal-line. 54 The Rovers fans are still loud. 55 Gallagher’s getting quite a few flick-ons from long punts today! Diaz and Dack were hovering. City hoof it away. It’s all Rovers….amazing! 58 The first mazy run by Diaz across City’s half. It’s back-flicked to Rothwell who drives into the box and squares across the face of goal where Dack slides in and misses it by 2 feet. It’s really loud! 60 Rothwell takes a free kick just inside the Coventry half. Wharton goes up and heads back across goal. Dack can’t get it but Diaz runs in and hits it against the left post from a tight angle. Someone was offside. Maybe Dack. 62 Another good flick on from Gallagher and Diaz lays back to Dack but his touch is poor. 63 Buckley loses the ball then fouls the City man 30 yards out. We clear it up fortunately. 66 Pickering intercepts in the centre-circle and Diaz picks up and decides to attack the whole Coventry defence on his own. He goes past 3 men, 4 more are back-pedalling, then lets fly a decent grass cutter from 27 yards and it whistles past the left post. Close. A dumbass pull back by Buckley on Maatsen. Yellow card. 69 The centre backs are drawn forward again, the ball is fired down the City left wing and there is no one in our last 50 yards except Kaminski! The cross comes and Pickering decides to intercept in front of Kaminski. It works out ok and van Hecke boots clear. 71 A nice curving pass by Diaz out to Gallagher just to the right of the box he drives a square ball through the 6 yard box and this time a sliding Dack was 2 yards off. 72 A nice back-flick from Diaz sees the Rovers play the ball across field. Nyambe slides it to Rothwell who drives to the byline before looping it into the goalmouth but it right into the keeper’s arms. 74 Some real ping pong around the Rovers goal but Dack blocks the crucial shot on goal. 75 I think this is the 3rd or 4th time van Hecke has been writhing on the floor! Maatsen goes in the book. Mowbray gets a yellow too. 76 Looked like a good challenge by Wharton but the ref gives a foul. There’s a bit of afters Big handbags swap involving most of the players! Yellow for Wharton and a City man. 80 A good run down the right wing by Buckley wins a corner but it’s Hedges on and Buckley off! 81 Rothwell takes it and Wharton on the 6 yard line gets a relatively clear header and he thumps it into the net. Great stuff, fans and players go wild! Unbelievable turn-around! I swear I saw Tony smile! You really can see how much it means to the players here. “He’s one of our own” rings out. 83 Nyambe fouls 30 yards out, then heads the nasty free-kick over the bar. 85 Maatssen flashes a shot 2 yards wide of the left post. 86 Nyambe gives the ball away and Wharton fouls his man 36 yards out. When the shot comes in Kaminski decides to punch it away although it was going into his chest. 89 Rovers’ players are falling down all over….now Diaz takes it to the flag and wastes about 1 second before losing possession. 6 nervy minutes of extra time to go. Rothwell is receiving attention. 91 Brief panic stations in our box as Nyambe fails to clear but the ref blows - offside I think. Blimey, now Nyambe’s down. He’s injured but we’ve no more subs. 96 The 3rd failed attempt by Diaz to waste time at the corner flag. 98 City attack down their right and Dabo crosses to the far post where Djokeres heads powerfully past Kaminski. He got away from the injured Nyambe and Gallagher wasn’t really marking anyone. I thought he had taken on the job of Nyambe’s protector since he was injured? Maybe Kaminski could have done better but what a catastrophe! I think Nyambe was living on one leg. We just couldn’t keep it out of our half. Final whistle. Back to 6th so the agony continues.

Oh! That’s no problem. I like it when people take the trouble to comment. It helps to make the effort worthwhile.

Oh! Don’t remind me…..but I kinda feel a commitment somehow; I know there are some folks who read regularly.

I used the word “outstanding” for Kaminski and I’m happy to stand by that. He stood out from the rest of the team and saved us from total humiliation. I did ping him for 3 disappointing clearances but none of them created immediate danger. It’s ok if other fans set different standards.

It’s been poor for a while but on this day I forgave him.

I don’t know if you caught this game Tyrone but it was another shocker. All confidence and urgency seems to have seeped away. Kaminski was outstanding.

PLAYER WATCH v Reading (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 ******* *** 19 Khadra (24) ** *** -2 Lenihan ****************** ********** 14 van Hecke **************** ***** 13 Wharton **************** ******* 11 Giles ********* ********* -2 Travis ********* ******** 2 Buckley (58) ********** ****** 3 Rothwell *********** ***** 9 Gallagher *************** ********* 4 Dolan (58) ***** ****** -3 Pickering (24) ****** *** 6 Dack (58) ** ** 0 Hedges (58) * -2 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) Reading are in a relegation battle and haven’t kept a clean sheet forever, have only one home win since October and we won last time out. We meet again with Paul Ince and son, Junior Hoilett and Lucas Joao. What could possibly go wrong? 00 It’s a back 3 with Khadra (!) and Giles as wing backs. 07 Absolutely nothing happening at all! 13 Reading attack down their left. Wharton puts in a good challenge on Joao and it runs to Khadra but he’s not strong enough and loses the ball. McIntyre close to the byline crosses to the feet of Ince on the penalty spot. His lovely first touch takes him past Wharton and Kaminski pulls off a brilliant save near the left post, rushing out to smother the shot. Eventually Rothwell hoofs clear. Wharton and especially Giles left Ince free there. 19 A poor Rothwell free kick goes over every one and out for a goal kick! Then a fairly powder puff attempt at a shot from Dolan just outside the box. 20 Poor quality all round so far…..from both sides. 24 Khadra off injured, Pickering on. Giles moves to the right. 29 Reading hurrying Rovers in their own half until Kaminski rushes his pass into touch. Joao beats Lenihan to the long clearance. Reading work the ball across the edge of our box and 2 attackers have good chances to shoot but they send it right to an unmarked Yiadom who fires in a shot. Kaminski is there to save near the post. Reading hero Swift is brought on. 31 Swift gets the ball 27 yards out on the left wing and sends in a perfect ball to the head of Joao, 8 yards out, (van Hecke had drifted away from him) but Kaminski parries the downward header up into the air and is fouled as he goes to collect. That was a sitter missed by Joao. 32 Swift flashes a shot past the left post. Reading are on top since Swift came on. Hmmm, the ref’s letting the play flow as some dodgy challenges go unpunished. 35 Dolan chases a long clearance into the box with Morrison. He tries a fancy back-flick to Buckley but it doesn’t come off. Buckley does get to the ball though, beats a couple of men and tries to drive in to goal but it’s narrow and his attempted shot is blocked by the keeper at the near post. He wins a corner. Giles takes and it goes to the far post where Lenihan’s header is disappointing. 36 Joao beats van Hecke in the air and Wharton attempts to stroke the ball back to Kaminski but it’s a poor pass and it’s there for Ejaria to run on to. Kaminski is out in a flash and puts in a tackle Keith Newton would be proud of to save the day…..again! The Reading fans are howling for a penalty but Kaminski definitely got the ball. 38 Another of those long hoofs downfield where Gallagher doesn’t even attempt to get off the ground to challenge! A nice crossfield ball from Swift; he looks a player this lad. 39 Lenihan is beaten in the air again and Reading attack. Joao rolls it across the edge of the box to Swift who does a clever flick to the on-rushing Laurent 12 yards out. He fires in his shot and Kaminski tips it over the bar. What a game he’s having! Reading should have this game in the bag already! Kaminski is exhorting his teammates to greater efforts! Unconvincing defending from the corner but it goes out for a goal-kick. 41 A nice cross from Pickering finds Dolan 12 yards out but his header barely reaches the keeper. 43 Dolan wriggles, as he does, in the box, and manages to slip the ball sideways to Gallagher but the defender is too close and blocks it away. 46 Reading are playing the ball around with confidence. Ince moves to the edge of the box, Travis turns his backside to the ball in a poor attempt at a challenge, Wharton gets a foot in and Buckley collects. He tries a pull back right in front of goal and is dispossessed but Wharton gets his foot in again but it’s straight to Ejaria who pokes the ball back into the box where Wharton, on the stretch, gets another touch! But it goes out to Joao, unmarked 8 yards out and he slides his shot across the face of goal and out by the right post by a foot. We look like the relegation team right now! 50 Half time 45 Rovers win the ball in midfield and Buckley slides a nice pass to Dolan on the right edge of the box but he miskicks his shot again and it’s way off-target. 47 Rothwell, on the right, bends a lovely ball behind the defender to the on-coming Gallagher 12 yards out but his first time shot is way off-target. Sadly we are all getting used to these pathetic attempts at finishing. 48 A totally unnecessary sliding foul by Buckley earns him his usual yellow card. 50 Lenihan heads away a Reading free kick but they retrieve and a shot flies in from the edge of the box where Kaminski does brilliantly again to get down and palm it round the post for a corner. Gallagher clears the cross and then clears again. 54 Van Hecke brings the ball forward to midway in the Reading half and lays off a lovely ball for Giles to run on to. He gets in a cross but the defender blocks and Gallagher picks up and squares perfectly for Buckley 15 yards out. He hits it firmly, first time but the goalie is equal to it and tips over the bar. Good save. 58 Dolan and Buckley off, Hedges and Dack on. 423 formation. 63 Rothwell wins the ball and drives downfield. He slips a nice ball to Hedges on the edge of the box but his attempt to clip the ball square is blocked all too easily by the defender. 67 A Giles corner is met by Lenihan under pressure but it’s straight at the keeper. 71 I’ve just witnessed the miss of the decade! Pickering lofts a lovely ball into the box where Dack ghosts behind the defender and takes it on his chest and shoots from the edge of the 6 yard box. Nyland saves well at his near post. The ball bounces invitingly for Gallagher 5 yards out with the goal gaping but he miskicks and slips on to his backside! Hedges hacks at the ball with a defender challenging but it’s well wide. You have to see this one to believe it! 72 Junior Hoilett on. 77 Reading attack down the left and a flat ball comes across the box where Wharton sticks out a foot to clear. But it’s straight to Laurent just outside the box and central and he bends a wonderful ball into the top right corner of the net. Even Kaminski couldn’t save that one, he was left clawing the air. 86 Strange. It’s a Rovers corner and Gallagher is very clearly dragged to the ground but the ref is looking the other way and, for some reason, is ordering the corner to be taken again! Giles puts it right into the keeper’s arms! 94 Wharton takes a yellow for the team and the final whistle goes. The slide away from the top 6 continues relentlessly.

That’s one of the most remarkable turnarounds I can remember. Dack didn’t actually do much apart from the assist but he seems to give everyone a boost just being there……..and Gallagher was re-energized. He is the most inconsistent player we have I think. Next match it wouldn’t surprise me if he was back to diabolical! I want to see him throw his weight around every game! Oh…..and get his head on more balls……Giles can deliver them if Sam gets into the box regularly. It was a decent finish to be fair……and he often gets in decent headers in OUR own box when defending. Let’s hope for more of the same on Saturday.

PLAYER WATCH v Derby County (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 Half time scores are in purple, full time in black: Kaminski **** ** (4) 4 R-Costello (45) ****** ********* (-7) -7 Lenihan *************** ***** (5) 16 van Hecke ********************* **** (13) 25 Wharton ******************** ******** (3) 24 Pickering *********** ******** (-2) 2 Travis *************** **** (3) 11 Johnson (45) *** ***** (-5) -5 Rothwell *************** *** (9) 18 Khadra (79) ******* ****** (4) -2 Dolan ********** ****** (2) 7 Gallagher(45) *********** ** 16 Dack (45) ** * 3 Giles (79) *** * 4 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) I’m trying to be positive: this is a big game and a test of character all round. Buckley and Gallagher out Dolan and Johnson in. 02 Khadra goes on a decent run and tries his chances from over 25 yards but it’s weak and the keeper saves comfortably. Johnson’s playing up top! 06 Hmmm. No real pressing from Rovers up front. No sense of urgency. Derby seem very happy to play it around at the back. 09 Pickering fails to stop a cross into the box. 11 Rothwell remembers the Fulham lad and tries a shot from the halfway line…it bisects the right post and the corner flag! There’s nothing much at all happening here! 15 Khadra, on the right wing whips in a dangerous looking cross to the near post and the defender nearly makes a mess of it but the keeper collects. No attacker in the vicinity….as we’ve come to expect in recent times. 16 Ebiowei beats Pickering too easily on the edge of the box and Derby ping it around our box. 18 Wharton gives the ball away just outside the box and Derby attack. They’re into the box but van Hecke and Wharton win the ball back. 20 Blimey, Derby are boring as they pass it from one defender to another around their box. 23 Another bad pass from Wharton gives the ball to Derby in the centre-circle. Lawrence’s shot is poor, however. Nevertheless, Derby look the more dangerous side. 24 A nice run by Dolan sets Khadra off and he drives square across the box but again there’s no end product as his tame attempted shot rolls wide. 25 A nice pass from Rothwell sets Dolan one on one with the defender but he falls over on the edge of the box! 26 JRC loses the ball in the Derby half. Ebiowei rolls Wharton on the centre spot then Morrison beats Wharton near the box. Pickering blocks Knight’s shot and Travis’s attempted hook clearance is fluffed and falls straight to Lawrence but his attempted through ball is booted out of play by van Hecke. What a shambles! From the throw, JRC fails to prevent Buchanan’s cross….it’s an easy clearance for Wharton but for some reason, Johnson puts an awkward pass back to Travis in our box. Travis mis-controls with his face and Lawrence robs him. Van Hecke holds him up but Ebiowei gets it on the edge of the box and turns Pickering inside out before shooting. He hits van Hecke’s leg and the rebound hits a prone Pickering allowing Byrne to square along the 6 yard line where Morrison pokes it into the net. The most chaotic defending I’ve seen for many a long while. We had multiple chances to clear up but panic removed all semblance of clear thinking. Well we’re in trouble now……..Derby deserve their lead. 32 Dearie me, Derby stroll the length of the pitch under no pressure. Ebiowei does Pickering all ends up again before feeding Byrne on the edge of the box. Big danger but his through ball is deflected and reaches Buchanan. JRC puts it out for a throw and a breather! 34 Derby stroking the ball around at a leisurely pace, no attempt to close down from Rovers. Bird breezes past Wharton effortlessly on halfway, they’re playing with us! The fans are booing! 38 Dolan gives the ball away and Travis fouls the Derby man midway in our half. The cross comes in and Wharton can only head into the air, falling to Morrison 15 yards out who volleys it powerfully past the left post! Another let off, Kaminski was beaten. 40 A Rovers corner, Wharton loops a header towards the 6 yard box where Dolan and van Hecke battle with several Derby men, it’s chaos but the defender gets his boot there first. 41 JRC leaves Buchanan in acres of space on the wing and the Derby man is free to move into the box where his decent shot flies across Kaminski’s goal. This is embarrassing. Lenihan gives JRC a rollocking. 44 A nice ball into the box from van Hecke to Khadra’s feet but he’s offside! 45 A terrible backpass from Pickering goes directly to an unmarked Lawrence on the edge of our box but Kaminski is out quickly enough to block the shot. Derby should be 3 up! The whistle goes, the fans boo and that’s the worst performance I’ve seen for a long time. 45 Dack and Gallagher on, Johnson and JRC off. It’s very unusual for Rovers to make half-time subs but it’s desperate times. We’re going to a back 4 and an attacking front 4. Gallagher wins a nice flick on from Kaminski’s long clearance and the fans roar their approval. 46 Khadra foul throws when in an attacking position! 48 Gallagher slides to partially charge down the keeper’s clearance and the ball runs out for a Rovers throw. Khadra curls in a decent cross…just too high for Dack. Now Derby attack and Ebiowei crosses from their right wing to Buchanan and van Hecke takes him out in the box with a cumbersome and risky challenge but it paid off as another Derby man puts his shot wide. 49 Whoa! Now we’re pressing!! But Derby attack again and Travis breaks it up, then commits the dumbest of “pull-back” fouls just outside the box. Fortunately it’s a poor delivery. 51 Another nice flick on by Gallagher and Dolan sprints to the byline and crosses into the 6 yard box where Byrne gets there just before Khadra and has to put it over his own crossbar. 52 Rothwell takes the corner and Wharton runs to the near post and, unmarked, flashes his header into the net. Great goal…and a massive relief. Scott’s first goal in the league for Rovers. 54 Hmm, Lenihan must have been practising his long throws as this is the second in as many minutes. This one goes right into the box……over Gallagher’s head! It comes out to van Hecke, 30 yards out and he fires at goal and it’s deflected for another corner. There’s some argy-bargy and the ref tells off Gallagher and Lawrence. Rothwell’s corner goes over everyone but Lawrence wrestles Gallagher to the ground. That should have been a penalty! Pickering heads it back into the box and Dolan mis-kicks in a crowded 6 yard box. It’s bouncing all over the place. Khadra somehow keeps it in play and Rothwell spreads the ball to Lenihan on the right. He lays on a beautiful cross to Wharton on the left corner of the 6 yard box and his header is powerful and on target but the keeper dives to make a good save. But it’s only parried to the unmarked Dolan, 2 yards out and unmarked, and unbelievably he heads it over the bar! 56 It’s relentless Rovers’ pressure as Rothwell rushes in to rob the defender and win a corner. Gallagher, for once, is throwing his weight around as they all jostle in the box. Dack seems to be trying to calm things down. Rothwell takes it short to Dack just inside the box and he clips a neat ball towards the far post where Dolan nods it down and into the net. Pendemonium! Fans and players erupt with ecstasy! Tony looks proper glum,however! 68 Khadra loses the ball and Derby stream forward. Van Hecke stretches but misses the tackle. Wharton manages to get back and part block the ball out for a corner. They take it short but Travis wins the ball and Khadra is off. Dolan and Rothwell sprint after him and it’s 3 against 2. Sadly Khadra’s pass lacks a yard of pace and Dolan can’t control it and it all comes to nothing. Derby attack and it looks dangerous but Knight’s shot is blocked away by Wharton. 81 Gallgher and Giles press well and we force a corner. 82 Travis is well beaten on the wing and gives away another yellow card challenge. 85 Rothwell picks up a loose ball 30 yards out and goes past 3 players into the box but his shot is disappointing and curls a yard wide. 92 Nervy times as Derby attack down their right but Wharton cuts out the low cross and Pickering clears. 94 Lenihan gives the ball away but van Hecke rushes in to clear up. Wharton is awarded the sponsor’s man of the match. 96 Pickering lobs a good ball to Giles on the left wing and he takes it forward. His cross is perfect to Gallagher, at the far post 8 yards out, and Sam beats his marker and heads the ball decisively into the roof of the net. The perfect ending. A left winger crossing to a big centre forward…can you believe it? Tony still looks glum. 98 The whistle goes and it’s loud. Great stuff after an appalling first half! All the players are embracing and enjoying the moment. Rooney shakes hands with every Rovers’ player.

PLAYER WATCH v Bristol City (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 ** **** -2 R-Costello (60) **** * 4 Lenihan ********************* *********** 18 van Hecke *********************** **** 29 Wharton ****************** *********** 14 Pickering ********* ***** 4 Travis ********** ******* 5 Buckley (69) ****** ****** -1 Rothwell ******** ********* 1 Khadra ********* ****** 5 Gallagher ************ ****** 9 Dolan(60) *** *** 1 Dack (69) ** *** -6 Highlights and Lowlights (A justification for the main ratings given above) Bristol City, sitting 19th, haven’t kept a clean sheet away from home all season! We haven’t scored forever and Dack is back! 01 Semenyo turns van Hecke inside out and enters the box but he drags his shot across the face of goal and it’s well wide. 04 A Bristol man breezes straight past Lenihan too easily and passes to Semenyo but this time van Hecke dispossesses beautifully. 06 The dangerous Semenyo is attacking the box again but Lenihan tackles him perfectly in the box, gets the ball, beats a man and launches a nice long ball for Khadra to chase but the defender just beats him to it. Bristol are already looking a better team than Millwall last time out! 08 Van Hecke wins the ball again and passes long to Khadra on the wing. He turns inside and tries a shot but it’s deflected and runs to the goalie. 12 Travis wins a corner on the right. Rothwell takes and Lenihan has a free header, central and 8 yards out. It’s powerful, low but straight at the goalie who makes a good save. It should have been 1-0. 14 A great long pass from van Hecke on to Gallagher’s chest on the edge of the box. Sam brings it down well but his shot is blocked. 16 Yawn! Another sideways ball from Rothwell. 22 Buckley tries a fancy flick on the wing and loses the ball, now Travis is messing around with the ball and is dispossessed. Semenyo is away. His cross is dangerous and Lenihan puts it behind for a corner. 24 I think that’s the 3rd poor downfield pass so far from Wharton. 26 Kaminski’s free kick goes all the way to Bentley. Now he puts a clearance straight into touch! It’s poor stuff right now. 27 Buckley goes down just outside the box…..I think the defender breathed on him! Free kick anyway. Khadra’s shot hits the wall. 29 Highlight of the game so far…..a standing ovation as Dack goes into his warm-up. 31 Buckley, 28 yards out just left of central, whips a nice curler into the box but the defender does well to block off JRC’s run. I think that’s Buckley’s first serious contribution to the game! 32 Travis again running into trouble 30 yards out! 34 City attack from their own half. Martin heads the cross down to Semenyo’s feet near the penalty spot. Fortunately Semenyo is not as good as I thought he was as he completely scuffs the shot right into Kaminski’s arms! Wharton and Pickering failed to cover Martin between them. That was a great chance. 34 I think that’s the first forward pass from Rothwell but it’s a good one, crossfield to Khadra on the left. Offside! Khadra is blasting Buckley who failed to spot Khadra unmarked a minute earlier! 38 Lots of poor passing. We’re having trouble getting into the final third of the pitch. As the commentators point out, we are no longer playing the ball behind the defence (where there’s lots of space). It’s all to feet and it’s not working. 42 A lovely long ball by Lenihan finds JRC in lots of room 35 yards out and fairly central. He takes it on but seems to lose his nerve and instead of going for goal, he squares the ball to Pickering. He takes a touch, the defence arrives and his attempted shot is blocked…. JRC gets the ball again 16 yards out. He controls with his back to goal, spins and shoots but the keeper saves comfortably. Why are JRC and Pickering the only players venturing into midfield in an attacking sense? Half Time. A much poorer display than we produced against Millwall. Lenihan and van Hecke the only players to come out of it with any real credit. 48 Khadra booked for simulation. 49 Gallagher wins the long ball and does an outrageous backflip to the feet of the on-rushing Rothwell but his attempted square ball in the box is blocked. Eventually it comes to Travis, 30 yards out but his rising drive is over the bar. 74 games since his last goal apparently. 52 Slow, boring stuff from Rovers. We are creating nothing from the back. I like it when van Hecke brings it into the opposition’s half - he has a good pass on him. At least it’s something a bit different. Where’s the long raking, defence splitting passes from Buckley? It’s hard to tell that he’s on the pitch today. 53 Oh! That’s what I’m on about. Van Hecke wanders into midfield and does some nice interplay with Rothwell which results in van Hecke receiving near the left of the 6 yard box. The keeper goes down at his near post to save the shot and the ball bounces towards the penalty spot where a City man boots clear. Again it’s a defender showing the midfield and attack how it should be done. 54 A long clearance by City and it’s 2 against 1 but Lenihan sorts it out with a neat interception. Then he puts a long crossfield ball right to the feet of Khadra. Good stuff but it’s deja vu as the keeper saves Khadra’s shot at the near post and the ball again bounces towards the penalty spot with no Rover hovering. I wonder where Gallagher was? 57 Travis tries a shot from the edge of the D but it’s deflected wide for a corner. Rothwell puts it straight into the keeper’s arms. 65 A good challenge by Wharton in our box and Rothwell picks up and storms downfield before releasing a lovely ball down the wing for Khadra to chase. He takes it to the corner of the box and turns the defender one way, then the other before shooting with his left foot. It’s a narrow angle and it hits the keeper and yet again bounces forward. Travis collects just outside the box but his attempt at a shot is blocked. 66 Blimey Khadra gets it again near the left corner of the box and this time his shot is deflected to the keeper. 67 Buckley dawdling in the City half is dispossessed. City attack and the cross comes in from City’s left. Pickering is beaten in the air and it falls to Wells. Van Hecke is close enough to prevent a shot. Wells flicks it sideways and Pickering is there to make amends, booting it clear. 69 Well, the Rovers fans erupt as Dack appears. Buckley makes way. Rovers fans are wondering if we are in for a fairytale ending or the cruellest of suckerpunches. I’m shaking my head as I type that! 70 The whole stadium has lifted as a Gallagher flick on just beats Dack to the byline. 71 It’s loud. Khadra receives from a throw, 17 yards out on the left wing. From nowhere, he whips in another of those wicked curlers and it hits the top of the bar! The keeper was beaten. 72 Rothwell through to Dack who backflicks the ball into the box for Rothwell, who kept running. Between them Rothwell and Dolan lose the ball. 75 Lenihan is drawn out of position and City move forward. Van Hecke is drawn over to cover and the cross flies past him. It’s headed down to James in the D and Kaminski has to make the save. That was close. End to end stuff now! 78 A Rothwell drive downfield ends up in a blind alley and he concedes the foul. 80 Lenihan, 25 yards out and just left of central lofts a ball into the box. Van Hecke has his shirt pulled, he goes down near the spot and it’s a penalty!! Dack has the ball! Hearts are fluttering! Oh no! He stutters his run…..and right-footed he strokes the ball low and straight at the keeper who holds on to it. Poor, poor penalty. Fairytales don’t come true. 83 Dolan flicks a nice ball out to Khadra on the wing. He squares the ball beautifully to where we always knew Dack would be, 8 yards out. But, unbelievably, his touch is poor and he pushes the ball right across the face of goal and out of play. This wasn’t in the script! 85 Gallagher and Khadra both go down in the box claiming penalties. 87 City wasting time. Van Hecke is the sponsor’s man of the match. Dack mis-kicks the ball to City midway in our half. Williams goes past Dolan and Lenihan to the edge of our box and rolls it to Martin 8 yards out but Wharton robs him. 88 Travis gives the ball away in our half. Now he chases and fouls the City man! 90 4 minutes of extra time. An unmarked Williams fires a right footed shot over the bar. It was a chance, stemming from Lenihan failing to win his header from a City throw and being left out of position thereafter. 91 Van Hecke fouls the City man 10 yards inside our half. It’s lofted into their left channel to an unmarked man and our centre halves are all claiming offside. He’s not and he lays it back to Williams who, I think, slices his kick across the box to a totally unmarked Weimann who volleys the ball past Kaminski. The cruellest of suckerpunches but surely there should be someone marking City’s top scorer? In truth, we don’t deserve to be in the top 6. Final whistle. Bristol’s first away win since October. Why do I do this? Is anybody brave enough to read it?

Thanks for the encouragement. I’m gonna keep going, I still hope for the best, even though the evidence is thin! Yes, we’ve got to stay in touch until our important injured players get back. If we can make the play-offs with everyone back we’ve got a chance…..that’s what I’m telling myself anyway.

No, writing this is becoming a chore! It’s the same old story (bar QPR) every week.

Now you’re talking!

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.

Yes I like van Hecke, I hope we keep hold of him. I just hope we can reproduce something like the QPR form over the next 3 matches….we looked like a team again…..but Saturday was a reality check and injuries are killing us. In less than 24 hours we’ll know if the lads have what it takes to complete the job I reckon. It’ll be a nervy game.

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.

I just noticed the average scores on whoscored. Diaz 7.11 and Gallagher 6.95.

Thanks LD. He caught the eye on occasion (see my comment on 7 minutes) but was punished by some negative incidents. For instance, if that bad miss had gone in on 43 minutes his score would be instantly transformed to +12! His second half was good. Here’s how I assessed his performance in more detail: First half: +1 -1 -1 -2 +2 -2 +1 +2 -3 = -3 Second half. +2 +1 -1 -1 +1 +2 +1 -1 +2 +1 = +7