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Tris there was a half hour prog a week or so ago on Metallica, BBC3 or 4 I think-possibly even ITV , about how they have grown up. Not a big fan, but found it very interesting. If it was BBC then it may be repeated soon, in fact it maybe be on their www.

It has been the subject of speculation about a move to Newcastle United. According to NE journo Oliver Alan, they are looking at bringing the large percussion piece in to replace a fat lad from Wallsend, who fell out with the board over installing patio heaters on the stantions at St James.

Agreed, but it may further enhance Blackburns image as a Royston Vasey!

Of course you did Warren... ..thought it was Martin Caddick actually! Anyway, the FA cup run (if three games constitutes a run) was over so back to more the more pressing issue of the annual fight against promotion. After the Fulham victory, the thought was that we were back on track. February 23rd saw us match up to Oxford United for the fifth time this season, and not surprisingly the game provided poor fodder for the returning Match Of The Day TV cameras. Oxford had slipped up of late, two straight 1-0 defeats at Palace and Fulham, so were looking at the chance to strike back at top of the table Rovers, with these new fangled 3 points for a win system! The Bald Eagles team scored early, and it took Rovers an hour to come to terms with them and force an equaliser-Quinn again with the notch. The Guardian report below mentions the quality of Simon Barker, who was playing well at this time and running most things in our midfield. "He was erratic, and consequently the source of much additional frustration" wrote Erlend Clouston. So basically the Riverside gave him dogs abuse is what he meant. Our time at the top of Division two was coming to an end...with a massive massive game next week at home to Manchester City.

Bill-injurylawyersforyou.com is waiting to hear from you. Your injury is on a par with recent claims we have completed successfully for clients with Vibration White Finger. A company the size of Blackburn Rovers will have very deep pockets, and are very keen on good PR-just search the internet for Multi Faith Prayer Room.

Agreed RE Shane Meadows. Somers Town is out soon? and was well reviewed last weekend. Has the boy Turgoose in again, whom I thoroughly enjoyed in the uncomfortable This Is England. Always great soundtracks too.

Given up on a summer now, it's bank holiday weekend coming up this week too. Very depressing.

There are more this morning, from his brother.

Despite the failure with the claim for Dahlin, it seems some insurance claims are worth the paper they're written on. Boros premiums look set to shoot up, as young Utd player wins millions. Man Utd Player wins claim.

Ex Rover Barry Ferguson is about to be knocked out of Europe in Lithuania, coverage here on BBC.

Anyone know who got it?

Gary Bailey gets a clobbering here... And a rusty Simon Garner spaffs the best chance we had all night...

£2.00 to get in! Jimmy Quinn aims one at the moon.

Perfect timing Mr Caleano! The headline says Rovers Cup Dreams are Shattered, which was incorrect. Nobody at Ewood really ever dreamed we were going to win the FA cup. The dream had already been realized. I had started watching Rovers in the season we missed out on promotion by goal difference, 1981 I think, and by that time Rovers had not been in the top flight of English football in my lifetime, going back to 1966. The real dream of all Blackburn Rovers supporters was to be playing the big teams every week, and in the absence of that-a head to head in a cup match would have to do. It didn't get much better than a home game against United, and most of us knew deep down that we were not really going to have much chance of beating them. So we all rolled up, best part of 20,000 home fans, for a glimpse of what we had dared to dream of all season long, as the promotion campaign gathered momentum. more in hope than expectation. The coverage in the media for a Rovers game, was in my experience unprecedented. Articles in the Daily Mail, live TV coverage on the BBC, interviews with the tea lady...I absolutely loved it. My team, which felt like it didn't exist outside of terraced streets, crap pies and freezing nights on crumbling terraces fending of rival supporters bricks, were in the spotlight. So as I boarded the Cliff Owen coach at the Flat Iron around 5.30 that Friday night, I recall thinking that this was all slightly unreal, and as rival supporters sat on the coach, trading insults with each other, I considered for the first time that we wouldn't get promoted. The game came and went, we lost 0-2 as you probably know. I recall the glow of mini TV studio lights coming from a hastliy erected hutch in the no mans land between the Darwen End and the Riverside, where Jimmy Hill could peer out and cast his judgments on Hovis FC. I recall lots of sporadic fighting , in the Blackburn End after Strachans opener, and seeing lots more all round the ground during the match too. I clearly recall Strachan ballooning a penalty into the United end, and thinking we had a chance to get a replay. I recall climbing up the fence at the bottom of the BBE near the end, and running on the pitch after the whistle had gone, and beckoning the whole Darwen End to come and take me on! I was briefly on TV, for about two seconds, as the camera near the dugouts caught me saying, "Bring on City!" And ultimately, I recall thinking that it was all a bit of a let down. We were never in the game, and had only on ereal chance to score, when Garner came on and ballooned one over the bar late on. So the dream had come and gone, and Rovers players and fans alike woke up on Saturday morning to face the prospect of playing games against Barnsley, Grimsby, Cardiff and Hull. Without spoiling the ending to the season, we never really got over the United game in my opinion, our football never matched the quality of earlier games, and seemed like the zenith of our season. It was all, well nearly all, downhill from here on in...

Rovers FA Cup exploits in times previous to 1985 were always memorable-well for me anyway! In 1983-84, we played Chelsea , Swindon and Southampton in three great games, culminating in David Armstrong knocking us out on Friday night Match Of The Day on BBC-1. 1983 saw us play Liverpool in the 3rd round at home, which I missed. I was playing for the School Team that morning, away at Darwen Vale (3-3) but couldn't get a ticket for the match-ironically driving past the ground at lunch time coming back to Chorley from Darwen just to rub salt in the wounds! Plus the two monster games in 1980~ish when we were in the 3rd division, firstly against Coventry at home (won 1-0) then the draw and defeat against mighty Aston Villa in the promotion season. So the next in the line of cup clashes to remember were Manchester United.

Number 9 I think will be Noel Brotherston Number 10 is Viv Busby Number 11 is John Lowey

So the build up to the big televised game had started, and if you think that Rovers don't get much press these days, then you should have tried reading anything on us back then. So to find two pieces in the national press that were not match reports was a sign of the country starting to notice what was going on down at Ewood. Two pieces here from I think The Express or Mail, and a great photo of the old Blackburn End in the background.

Me circled!

Some of my Utd supporting mates had those Chorley Reds flag, Cotty from Brinscall. I remember the comment too, it was Channel 442 on Sky last year ESPN channel, I taped it (Soz Claire still not been back for the videos yet!).

Look under the vidoe bit Den. "Hi Alex This is Arch answering, my 10 year old son Elliot has just shown me the video and you comments, and you were right I was puffed out as I had just ran the length of the pitch, but it was worth it. Seeing the video and your comments has brought it all back, great times and brillian people in Blackburn, Don Mackay and the club really looked after me and I enjoyed a great experience, you included. Kind regards Steve Archibald"

Whittle Blues superb uploads of old Rovers footage to Youtube are wonderful, and his clip here of that superb game against Villa, when Steve Archibald got two has even attracted comments from Arch himself!

Rovers line up for the Fulham game- Gennoe Branagan Keeley Faz Rathbone Brotherston Barker Randell Miller Thompson Quinn The Fulham line up had ex Blackpool keeper Ian Hesford, Leroy Roseniorand Ray Lewington, and were managed by Ray Harford. Young Simon Barker watches Quinny notch the first here... Chris Thompson manages to steer this one into the Darwen End goal, from two yards out, much to the anguish of the Fulham defender, and the delight of a thinning Riverside crowd! Sunday morning saw a large crowd at Ewood Park, as the tickets for United went on sale, and the queues snaked all along Kidder Street, as the faithful waited patiently for the precious green bits of paper. Once you purchased the ticket, the ground was unlocked, and many people took the chance to wander onto the terraces and of course the pitch, which I did and dreamt of taking a penalty into the Blackburn End to win the match the next Friday! And it was truly and absolutely freezing cold!

Does or did anyone know the fella from popular music group Blancmange, who supported Rovers-he listed Noel Brotherston as a hero in an interview on a copy of Smash Hits once. From Darwen I remember.

Here's the Legend Noel Brotherston taking on the Fulham full back, watched by our own Mick Basil Rathbone.