Blackburn Rovers (0) 1 – 2 (1) Charlton Athletic Rhodes 48 Stephens 26, Kermorgant 64 Referee: D. Coote Attendance: 13,647 On an afternoon when the Rovers slipped to their sixth home defeat of the season and the gap between themselves and the play-off places stretched to ten points, it proved to be a daunting introduction to Ewood Park for Michael Appleton. The manager was quite forthright in his post-match views on Radio Rovers and summed up the feelings of many of the dwindling Ewood faithful when he explained that a number of the players were struggling to cope with the pressure of being the club that everyone wants to beat. He promised changes for Tuesday's match against Brighton & Hove Albion and one can only hope he will be true to his word, for this bunch of overpaid prima donnas clearly have little heart for the battle. All too often this season an opposition that has been organised and hardworking has had little difficulty in leaving Ewood Park with some reward. By contrast the "tricks and flicks" of the Ewood "Fancy Dans" have been exposed for what they are — a triumph of style over substance and totally inadequate for Championship football. Having played the same number of games as sixth-placed Watford, the Rovers find themselves not only ten points adrift but some 15 goals inferior in terms of goal difference. To all intents and purposes the season is now over and that will surely be reflected in a continuing decline in attendances. All that Appleton can do is take the next few months to assess his playing resources and then look to make changes in the summer if the owners are prepared to back him. However, it appeared that today the owners were only prepared to back him for sixty-odd minutes before scurrying away. Perhaps the warm Lancashire welcome from Rovers fans when they arrived convinced them not to hang around. Having seen this family oversee the destruction of the club that Jack Walker built, the fans gave vent to their feelings when the Rao family disembarked from their vehicles and headed for the entrance. The snowball which hit Mr Desai in the face carried a message more succinct than any communication with the global advisor, namely that there is little or no hope of redemption for this family in this town. Michael Appleton could well have done without the presence of the owners at his first match in charge at Ewood Park as the atmosphere was soured from the very outset. Wisely, Appleton kept faith in the same players who had responded so well to Gary Bowyer during his temporary spell at the helm. The Rovers started fairly brightly with Ruben Rochina seeing plenty of possession. However, once again the young Spaniard managed to run up an increasing number of blind alleys. Quite why he can't seem to grasp the simple concept of passing the ball when under pressure is difficult to fathom. Of course, when he isn't dribbling himself into ever decreasing circles, he likes nothing better than a long-range effort and his first strike from distance was well off target. The closest the Rovers came to opening the scoring was when Colin Kazim-Richards rose to meet a corner from Rochina but only succeeded in heading straight into the waiting arms of Ben Hamer. From that point on Rochina became increasingly inept, while Kazim-Richards appeared to lose interest and spent the rest of the half petulantly strolling around as if the whole affair was somehow beneath him. Not that these two were the only culprits during a woeful first forty-five minutes. Danny Murphy and Jason Lowe made little or no impact in the centre of midfield, Simon Vukcevic flitted in and out of the game without ever looking the part on the right wing, while Martin Olsson did a passable impression of a guy looking for the exit door. It came as no surprise when Charlton took the lead on 26 minutes. A ball from the right was played into the area, but Olsson failed to clear it properly and somehow managed to set it up perfectly for Dale Stephens to unleash an unstoppable 20-yard volley which flew into the top corner of the net. There was nothing Jake Kean could do to keep it out and for the second week in succession fingers were pointed at the Swedish international left-back. The visitors might and perhaps should have doubled their lead just two minutes later following a goalmouth scramble. Kean parried a shot from Johnnie Jackson and Yann Kermorgant's follow-up was cleared off the line as the Rovers scrambled the ball clear. The Rovers faithful became increasingly frustrated with what they were witnessing as the visitors had little difficulty in protecting their lead to the half-time whistle. At the start of the second period Appleton made a tactical switch with Kazim-Richards being moved into the centre to support Rhodes, whilst Rochina moved out to the left flank. The former Turkish international started to make a welcome impact on the game when his cross was met by Rhodes at the near post, but unfortunately the ball ended up wide of the target. On 48 minutes the same combination proved more successful when Kazim-Richards fired a low cross into the area and Rhodes dived full length to glance his header past Hamer into the bottom corner of the net. For older supporters it was the sort of header that was a reminder of the cult figure that was Jim Fryatt!!! Charlton might well have regained the lead almost immediately, but fortunately they didn't — thanks to good work from Jake Kean, who raced from his goal to block a shot from Bradley Pritchard, and a piece of good fortune, when Stephens picked up the loose ball and fired it wide of an empty net. A neat piece of interplay between Kazim-Richards and Murphy ended with Hamer diving low to the foot of a post to turn the Turkish international's shot wide. On 64 minutes the visitors took the lead with the type of goal that has been conceded with alarming regularity this season. A ball played into the Rovers box after Rochina and Vukcevic had failed to keep possession saw Kermorgant rise above the static defence and send a powerful header into the bottom corner of the net with Kean unable to reach it. Once again, the 'keeper was left badly exposed by a centre-back pairing which has been far too easily dominated whenever the ball has been crossed into the penalty area this season. The owners chose this moment to make their exit and this was greeted with ironic chants of "Cheerio" by supporters who have become increasingly disenchanted with the cavalier attitude shown by the owners to this historic football club. They left the ground with the chants of "There's Only One Jack Walker" ringing in their ears. How it must irk them to know that whilst they might destroy his legacy, the esteem in which he is held amongst Rovers fans will never by touched by the chicken conglomerate from India. The remainder of the game was played out amidst increasing indifference by the players and increasing frustration by the fans. The visitors were able to defend their lead with little trouble and when Olsson fired a late effort embarrassingly high over the bar, there were many fans who would have happily driven him to Big Sam at West Ham in exchange for a couple of million! Appleton was left to reflect on a hugely disappointing performance, which one suspects he knows signals the end of any real push for the final play-off place. His post-match interview was harsh but bang on the money and hopefully he will start to make the changes which this club so clearly needs. Perhaps five managers in as many months is the reason why so many of the players look so disinterested in it all. The realisation that they are participating in what has become a national farce may be the reason why some have now seemingly thrown in the towel and appear to be barely pretending to go through the motions any more. For a few games Gary Bowyer and Terry McPhillips had been able to restore some professional pride, but there were signs at Molineux last week that it was beginning to wane and today we went back to square one. Jake Kean was one of the few who came out of the game with some credit. He could do little about either goal and kept us in the game with more than one decent stop. The lad has huge potential, but like Paul Bradshaw before him one suspects that his potential will probably be fully realised elsewhere. Todd Kane was awarded the Man of the Match award and, in fairness, he had one or two bright moments that caught the eye. The fact that he is young, learning his trade and has been loaned out to us to give him first team experience says everything about the direction in which the Rovers are heading — a training ground for other clubs' youngsters. Welcome to the reality of the wonderful world of Venky's. Martin Olsson at left-back looked like a player who desperately wanted to be elsewhere and after another indifferent performance one suspects that many fans will be only too happy to see him depart. The centre-back pairing of Grant Hanley and Scott Dann again demonstrated that they can do most things apart from defend crosses into the area. One might have thought that this was a fairly basic requirement of a centre-back, but apparently not. As someone brought up watching the colossus that was Matt Woods, one can only weep at what the art of defending has now come to at Ewood Park. Danny Murphy struggled to make any impression against one of his former clubs. Murphy is a reminder of times gone by when former ageing stars would turn up at Ewood Park for one last payday living on past reputations. John Radford, John Aston and Alan Birchenall are just three that readily spring to mind and one suspects that Murphy will duly take his place in this very select group. Jason Lowe seems to have cemented a permanent place in the centre of midfield, but regular watchers of reserve-team football over the years might ask if he is any better than a string of youngsters — Bryan Hodge, Ian Black, Adam Nelson to name but three — who have been axed without being given similar opportunities. Lowe is fortunate that there is such a dearth of midfield talent at the club at the moment that he can maintain a regular place after some indifferent performances. Simon Vukcevic showed flashes of what he can do, but once again he found himself on the periphery of the game far too much. Surely this guy deserves the chance to operate in the centre of midfield where he can be involved more and have a greater opportunity to influence the game. He could be the ideal box-to-box player if given the chance. Ruben Rochina was at his most frustrating in this match. Incapable of making a simple pass, Rochina never failed to take the opportunity to try to dribble past three players before losing possession. When he was eventually hauled off, it was greeted with cheers of blessed relief from the Ewood faithful. This lad has a huge amount of talent, but unless someone can harness it into a team ethic, then it will surely go to waste. Colin Kazim-Richards had a couple of bright moments at the start of the second half but for the rest of the game looked completely disinterested. There is no doubt that Rhodes looks a better player when Kazim-Richards plays further forward, but the attitude on display in this game was questionable at best. Jordan Rhodes scored a splendid goal. It highlighted his penalty area predatory instincts to the full and again highlighted what he can do if he gets the right sort of service. However, he rarely gets that type of service and the rest of his game offers little by comparison. He is deceptively slow. The ball over the top is not an option because of his lack of pace. He can't work the channels and his hold-up play is not the best. Nonetheless, given the ball in the area he can finish with the best of them. One can only wonder how many goals he might score if a team was constructed that could play to his strengths rather than his weaknesses. Morten Gamst Pedersen and Nuno Gomes made appearances as substitutes, but by then the game had gone and neither made any impact. The crowd of 13,647 looked more than a little optimistic given the mass of empty seats behind me in the Jack Walker Upper. Looking around at the sparsely populated Darwen End and the far from full Riverside and Blackburn End, one can only assume that a good many season-ticket holders had opted to stay away for one reason or another. How the owners react to their latest visit to Blackburn remains to be seen. Do they continue to support the manager with more funds knowing that they will never be accepted as true custodians of Jack Walker's legacy or do they jump ship and look for a buyer? Either way one suspects that there are troubled times ahead at Ewood Park and that the experience that Michael Appleton gained at Portsmouth may yet come in useful at Blackburn. Teams Blackburn Rovers Jake Kean; Todd Kane, Scott Dann, Grant Hanley, Martin Olsson; Simon Vukcevic (Morten Gamst Pedersen), Jason Lowe, Danny Murphy, Colin Kazim-Richards; Ruben Rochina (Nuno Gomes 78); Jordan Rhodes Subs not used: Sebastian Usai (gk), Gael Givet, Josh Morris, David Goodwillie, Diogo Rosado Manager: Michael Appleton Charlton Athletic Ben Hamer; Chris Solly, Matt Taylor, Michael Morrison, Cedric Evina; Lawrie Wilson (Callum Harriott 90), Bradley Pritchard, Johnnie Jackson, Dale Stephens, Scott Wagstaff (Dorian Dervite 79); Yann Kermorgant Subs not used: David Button (gk), Danny Green, Bradley Wright-Phillips, Rhoys Wiggins, Ricardo Fuller Manager: Chris Powell Bookings Blackburn Rovers – None Charlton Athletic – None Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

FA Cup 3rd Round Blackburn Rovers(1) 2 – 0 (0)Bristol City Murphy 7, Hanley 58 Referee: N. Miller Attendance: 5,504 After falling at the first hurdle in the Capital One Cup, the Lancashire Senior Cup and the FA Youth Cup, it was a huge relief to finally see the Rovers make progress in a cup competition in 2012–13. Even more pleasing was to see Gary Bowyer taking the competition seriously by only making one change from the side which beat Nottingham Forest on New Year's Day. In the event it proved to be a fairly routine affair with the visitors never really causing the Rovers any problems. Indeed, if the final ball had been better, the Rovers might well have run out more convincing winners than they actually did. Diogo Rosado coming in for the newly signed Joshua King was the only change that Gary Bowyer made to his starting line-up, while Grzegorz Sandomierski and Hugo Fernandez made their first appearances on the bench. Attacking the Blackburn End in the first half, the Rovers got off to a flyer when Danny Murphy gave them a seventh-minute lead. The Rovers' skipper intercepted the ball in midfield and drove towards the Bristol area. As defenders dropped off, he simply moved into the space presented to him and instead of opting to pass to either right or left, where players had taken up decent positions, he struck a pretty decent shot from 25 yards which flew into the top corner of the net. Tom Heaton, the City 'keeper, seemed surprised by the fact that Murphy had elected to shoot and, in truth, his efforts to keep it out will not go down as the 'keeper's finest hour. A header from former Rover Jonathan Stead flew over the bar as the visitors tried to rally from the early setback. However, from that point on until virtually the last action of the half, the Rovers dominated proceedings. Colin Kazim-Richards, who was playing alongside Jordan Rhodes in a two-man attack, forced Heaton to dive full length to tip an effort around the post for a corner. He then took advantage of some good work by Ruben Rochina to have another go at goal, but this time the shot was fractionally too high. The Rovers continued to press forward as City struggled to keep the lively Kazim-Richards in check. Liam Fontaine managed to block another effort on goal from the Turkish international, whilst the striker almost turned provider, but Rosado was unable to meet an inviting-looking cross. The interplay by the Rovers was very impressive, although the final ball was sometimes found wanting with Rosado and Rochina guilty of trying to beat one too many defenders before passing. The Rovers suffered a setback on 34 minutes when Adam Henley limped out of the action with what appeared to be a hamstring injury. This necessitated a reshuffle with Jason Lowe dropping to right-back and Simon Vukcevic coming on to play in the centre of midfield alongside Murphy. However, the changes did little to disrupt the Rovers' rhythm as they continued to knock the ball around with confidence. In truth, the Rovers ought to have worked Heaton rather more than they did, but the ease with which they kept possession meant one or two tended to be over-elaborate when a simple pass would have sufficed. The visitors might well have grabbed themselves an undeserved lifeline right on the stroke of half-time when Ryan Taylor headed for goal. Fortunately, the ever alert Jake Kean had anticipated the effort and managed to fingertip the ball over the bar. It was another excellent save from the young 'keeper. The second half began with the Rovers enjoying plenty of possession and looking increasingly confident on the ball. However, once again, a tendency to overplay and to shoot from seemingly impossible positions detracted from some excellent approach play. Nevertheless, on 58 minutes the Rovers finally scored the second goal that their play had undoubtedly deserved. A corner by Murphy found its way to Rochina and when he chipped the ball back into the area, Scott Dann showed a deft touch to take the ball on and push it forwards for Grant Hanley to force the ball home from close range. The two centre-backs showed their obvious delight at creating and scoring at the other end of the pitch! Just past the hour mark Jason Lowe left the field with what was presumably an injury and Morten Gamst Pedersen replaced him. Once again, Bowyer was forced to rearrange his side with Vukcevic dropping to right-back and Pedersen occupying a central-midfield position. The switch did little to interrupt the Rovers' superiority and both Vukcevic and Martin Olsson were able to get forward from full-back to cause the Bristol defence problems. Olsson was particularly unlucky not score after ghosting past players with ease and then firing a rocket-like shot just wide. He repeated the exercise minutes later as the visitors looked increasingly ragged. In truth, the Rovers ought to have had more goals to show for their efforts, but Kazim-Richards, Rochina, Rosado and King, when he came on, were all guilty of overplaying and shooting from difficult angles when a simple ball could have played in a better-positioned teammate. Nonetheless, this was another impressive performance and one which can only help to develop confidence within the squad. Three successive wins has proved to be a remarkable turnaround in the Rovers' fortunes and Gary Bowyer and Terry McPhillips are to be congratulated on what they have achieved thus far. Defensively the Rovers were never troubled by the visitors. Scott Dann and Grant Hanley looked imperious in the centre of defence, whilst Jake Kean handled what little he had to do in confident fashion. A young 'keeper is likely to mistakes and no doubt Kean will at some point, but the fact remains he looks the best young 'keeper that the club have had for many a year. Three players occupied the right-back spot and all performed admirably in that position. Henley looked very impressive going forward as did Vukcevic. Danny Murphy had a quieter game than of late but kept things ticking over in the centre of the park and, of course, his long-range effort set the Rovers on their way to another win. Ruben Rochina and Diogo Rosado were both a little disappointing in terms of their contribution. Both had a tendency to overplay and this undermined the good work that they did. Both are young and both need work if they are to succeed at this level. There is no doubting the innate ability, but it needs to be harnessed to the team "ethic" rather than seeking personal glory. The same criticism today might have been levelled at Colin Kazim-Richards, but the Turkish international has the ability to impose himself on opposition defences, because of his physique, in a manner in which Rochina and Rosado are unable to do. He gave another powerful performance but was let down by trying to shoot from tight angles rather than looking to play in the likes of Jordan Rhodes. Rhodes had a very quiet game due to the lack of service he received. He worked hard, took up some good positions in the area, but the passes he needed never came. It was undoubtedly a frustrating afternoon for the Scottish international. Morten Gamst Pedersen looked particularly useful in the centre of the pitch and one pass which sent Martin Olsson clear was sublime. There must surely be a role for the talented Norwegian international at Ewood Park. We simply cannot allow good players to keep leaving the club. Three successive wins has been an excellent return for Gary Bowyer and Terry McPhillips and the players are clearly playing for them. There seems a mutual respect between players and coaches and the players seem far more united in their approach on the field. The official attendance of 5,504 was clearly a disappointment but no surprise. Attendances have been poor all season and in an era when cup ties are no longer fashionable it was hardly a surprise that so few fans turned up. Nonetheless, those that did go will have gone away impressed by another decent performance. Leaving Ewood Park there was a sense of optimism in the air and it has been quite a while since that was the case. Teams Blackburn Rovers Jake Kean; Adam Henley (Simon Vukcevic 35), Scott Dann, Grant Hanley, Martin Olsson; Jason Lowe (Morten Gamst Pedersen 63), Danny Murphy, Ruben Rochina, Diogo Rosado (Joshua King 77); Jordan Rhodes, Colin Kazim-Richards Subs not used: Grzegorz Sandomierski (gk), Nuno Gomes, David Goodwillie, Hugo Fernandez Caretaker Manager: Gary Bowyer Bristol City Tom Heaton; James Wilson (Bobby Reid 63), Louis Carey, Liam Fontaine, Greg Cunningham (Martyn Woolford 70); Mark Wilson, Stephen Pearson, Cole Skuse, Paul Anderson; Jon Stead (Steven Davies 59), Ryan Taylor Subs not used: Dean Gerken (gk), Joe Edwards, Wes Burns, Matthew Bates Manager: Derek McInnes Bookings Blackburn Rovers – Diogo Rosado, Grant Hanley Bristol City – Liam Fontaine Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Blackpool (1) 2 – 0 (0) Blackburn Rovers Thomas 22, Broadfoot 81 Referee: G. Scott Attendance: 15,907 Six months ago Shebby Singh arrived in Blackburn to embark upon a charm offensive and engage with the increasingly disillusioned fanbase at Ewood Park. Question and answer sessions, endless meetings, radio and press interviews — indeed, at every opportunity Shebby has been ready with a quip in a bid to win the fans around to the Venky's brand. There can be no doubt that he has enjoyed some success over the past few months and massaging bruised egos has proved popular in certain quarters, whilst the rows upon row of empty seats at Ewood Park suggest many fans have not fallen for the soft soap approach. Fast forward six months to a far from festive Bloomfield Road and the deafening chants of "Venky's Out" and "Shebby Out" would suggest that the charm offensive has been derailed. Certainly the cries of "Shebby is a ******" left no one in any doubt about the esteem in which Venky's global advisor is now held amongst the Ewood faithful. To quote Leonard Cohen: So the great affair is over but whoever would have guessed It would leave us all so vacant and so deeply unimpressed Nine games into the reign of Henning Berg and already the alarm bells are ringing. Many of us who have had the misfortune to witness every game since the opening day at Portman Road have never been convinced about the strength of the squad and one suspects that Berg is rapidly coming to the same conclusions. After 22 matches the Rovers find themselves seven points adrift of the final play-off place — not the automatic places which Shebby said was the minimum required, but seven points adrift of sixth place. Whilst relegation might not yet be a major concern — due more to the failings of others than anything that the Rovers might do to determine their destiny — the reality is that mid-table mediocrity seems a nailed-on certainty for this season. This is a club in crisis — a crisis which began the moment the Rao family walked through the door and took the advice of people who had little or no understanding about a small-town club in East Lancashire and what made it tick. However, like them or loathe them — and I would suggest that the latter is how the majority of the Rovers fans feel — Venky's are in charge and they need to start making some decisions for themselves. The position of the manager and the backroom staff needs to be clarified. When he was appointed, it was quoted that promotion was the maximum and the minimum required. Clearly that is unlikely to happen barring a miracle in the second half of the season, for not only would the Rovers have to embark on an unlikely winning streak, but an ever-growing number of clubs who are now above us would have to go on a losing run. If Berg is to be retained, will he be given money to spend in January? On the other hand, if he is to be jettisoned at the end of the season if we fail to win promotion, is there any point in giving him money to spend in January? Similarly with the backroom staff: if Berg is being retained for next season irrespective of the final position this campaign, does he bring in new staff? If his own future is in doubt, will the owners allow him to make changes now? Already this week our preparations for the Blackpool match were undermined by reports of the imminent replacement of the backroom staff before Berg came out to deny them and stress that he, and he alone, would make those decisions. Sadly, the indecision which has blighted this club for the past two years appears to show no signs of being abated. As for the game itself, what can one say? Think of the worst performance this season and multiply it tenfold and you have some idea of just how abysmal this performance was, particularly in the second half. Pre-match the major talking point was the axing of Paul Robinson in favour of young Jake Kean. Whilst regular watchers of reserve team football will know of Kean's potential, the decision to drop the experienced Robinson came as a shock and surely places a huge question mark over his Ewood future. Other changes saw Gael Givet, Simon Vukcevic and Colin Kazim-Richards return to the starting eleven, while Grant Hanley joined Robinson on the bench. Illness and injury meant that the Rovers were without Markus Olsson, Mauro Formica and Danny Murphy. On a pitch that badly cut up, neither side looked impressive in the opening stages. The better chances fell to the Rovers, but once again we failed to take them. For the first time this season the Rovers looked to line up in a genuine 4-4-2 formation and as early as the second minute a long throw from Kazim-Richards enabled Vukcevic to blaze an effort over the bar. Kazim-Richards was again the cause of problems for the home defence when he played in Jordan Rhodes, who closed in on goal before a superb last-ditch tackle by Craig Cathcart denied him the opportunity to give the Rovers the lead. Matt Gilks was definitely the busier of the two 'keepers in the opening stages and he made decent saves to keep out further efforts from Vukcevic and Rhodes. However, the overall quality of the football on view was desperately poor with far too many passes going astray. The Rovers were undone after 22 minutes when a routine cross from Nathan Delfouneso enabled Wes Thomas to glance a header past Kean into the corner of the net. Whilst no blame could be attached to the young 'keeper, questions must be asked of a defence that allowed an opponent the time and space to head home in front of goal. Marking, it would seem, continues to be a concept which isn't covered in the Rovers' coaching manual. The Rovers huffed and puffed for the remainder of the half but rarely looked like getting back on level terms. Dickson Etuhu had an effort go wide and Vukcevic, undoubtedly the pick of the Rovers team along with Kazim-Richards in the first half, was unfortunate to see an effort beat Gilks but hit the post and rebound to safety. The less said about the second forty-five minutes, the better. Blackpool adjusted their shape slightly and completely overwhelmed the Rovers, who struggled to make any impression on the game. Vukcevic and Kazim-Richards saw little of the ball and thus were unable to exert the same influence on the game as they had in the first half. Jordan Rhodes once again demonstrated that if he is not fed the ball in the area, his contribution to the team is negligible. The midfield duo of Jason Lowe and Etuhu offered nothing in terms of going forward and not much more in terms of defending. The statuesque Etuhu looks completely bewildered by it all, while Lowe runs around expending energy but achieving very little. Blackpool, although looking far from impressive, stepped up a gear after the interval and began to cause the Rovers a number of problems. The highly-rated Tom Ince and Delfouneso showed plenty of pace and trickery down the flanks, which nullified the attacking threat that Adam Henley and Martin Olsson could bring to the Rovers' play. Indeed, both young full-backs struggled to contain their opponents. Kean was called into action to save bravely as Ince ran through on goal and he then tipped a free-kick from Harris wide as he did his best to prevent the home side from increasing their lead. However, after 81 minutes the inevitable happened with Blackpool scoring their second goal courtesy of defender Kirk Broadfoot. Once again, the goal was the result of sloppy marking which allowed Broadfoot to storm into the area to meet a right-wing corner and find the back of the net with a powerful header. Givet had an effort ruled out for offside and Rochina managed to find row "Z" with a wayward effort, but in truth the Rovers were a well-beaten side by this stage. Indeed, Dann almost increased the lead for the home side when he headed the ball against his own post. There is little new that I can add with regard to assessing the contribution of the various players. Jake Kean did as well as anyone could expect coming into a struggling side which is incapable of defending. Givet looked a little rusty, as one might have expected after his lengthy exile from first-team duty, while Dann endured another difficult afternoon in the centre of the defence. Both full-backs struggled to make an impact on the game in an attacking sense and both were fully stretched trying to keep tabs on Ince and Delfouneso. In midfield, apart from Simon Vukcevic, the Rovers struggled to make any impression. King ran into trouble far too often and his passing was not great. Jason Lowe and Dickson Etuhu were simply overwhelmed in the second half and were unable to stem the tide as Blackpool came forward with more purpose. Once again, the distribution from both Lowe and Etuhu was poor and both are prone to giving away endless free-kicks in dangerous positions. Vukcevic looked the one player likely to do something and was unfortunate on a couple of occasions not to find the back of the net. However, in the second half he was starved of the ball, but it was still a surprise when he was withdrawn in favour of Ruben Rochina. Once again, Rochina offered a few tricks and flicks in non-dangerous areas but offered little in terms of an attacking contribution and, like so many of his colleagues, he seemed to have a knack of finding a tangerine shirt with too many of his passes. In attack Colin Kazim-Richards was the pick of the twin strike force. The Championship requires physique as well as skill and Kazim-Richards caused the home side problems in the first half with his ability to shield the ball and play in other colleagues — something which Rhodes is unable to do. However, like Vukcevic, he found himself struggling to get possession in the second half and faded from the picture. Jordan Rhodes was again disappointing playing alongside Kazim-Richards. His lack of pace is a worry as he is unable to get away from defenders when the ball is played long. He is a player who requires a particular type of service and, sadly, the Rovers are not a team that is able to provide that service. At £8 million he looks overpriced and one cannot help but feel that the money might have been better spent on two or three other players who might have made more of an all-round contribution to the team. Rhodes is a goalscorer but is very much the icing on the cake and at the moment the Rovers are a club that not only don't have a cake but seem to be lacking the basic ingredients to make one! One cannot help but feel sorry for Henning Berg within the present set-up. When he first arrived, one couldn't help but be impressed with the way in which he seemed to have galvanised the team in terms of performance if not results. However, with each passing week he seems more and more weighed down with the burdens that come with working with Shebby and for Venky's. Sections of the fanbase are clearly becoming increasingly disenchanted with his reign and the honeymoon period that all new managers enjoy is well and truly over. Quite where the Rovers go from here I really wouldn't like to say. Indeed, for the first time in over 50 years of supporting the club I'm sad to say that I'm beginning not to care. The greatest danger to the future well-being of the club is not the infighting among the various supporter groups but the growing indifference among the overwhelming majority of the fanbase to the plight of the club. What is clear is that the owners, the global advisor, the North End duo in the boardroom and the newly installed manager are all struggling to prevent the club becoming increasingly irrelevant to the football-loving public of Blackburn. It would appear the vast majority of supporters are happy to turn their backs on the grim reality of the Rovers of today and wallow in the memories of happier times that Jack and the Walker Trust provided in the past. After this woeful performance at Bloomfield Road one suspects that many more will be taking that view in the coming weeks. Teams Blackpool Matthew Gilks; Alex Baptiste, Kirk Broadfoot, Craig Cathcart, Bob Harris; Isaiah Osbourne, Tiago Gomes, Angel Martinez, Nathan Delfouneso; Wes Thomas (Gary Taylor-Fletcher 69), Thomas Ince (Nouha Dicko 82) Subs not used: Mark Halstead (gk), Neal Eardley, Kevin Phillips, Alberto Noguera, Gerardo Bruna Manager: Michael Appleton Blackburn Rovers Jake Kean; Adam Henley, Scott Dann, Gael Givet, Martin Olsson; Joshua King, Jason Lowe, Dickson Etuhu, Simon Vukcevic (Ruben Rochina 74); Colin Kazim-Richards, Jordan Rhodes Subs not used: Paul Robinson (gk), Bruno Ribeiro, Grant Hanley, David Dunn, Morten Gamst Pedersen, Diogo Rosado Manager: Henning Berg Bookings Blackpool – None Blackburn Rovers – Joshua King Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Blackburn Rovers (0) 1 – 4 (1) Cardiff City King 51 Hudson 30, Bellamy 55, Mason 84, Kim 85 Referee: S. Hooper Attendance: 12,460 In the week that the Blackburn Rovers Football Community Action Group opened their own particular take on the Samaritans at Ewood Park it was rather fitting that Blackburn Rovers should slump to new depths on the field of play. Henning Berg cut a pathetic, indeed somewhat tragic, figure standing on the touchline. The team that Venky's assembled is clearly not good enough for the Championship and one suspects that in his heart of hearts even Henning knows this. With Cardiff City already twelve points ahead of the Rovers, a defeat would surely put an end to any hopes that Henning Berg might have had about catching the leaders. With Danny Murphy ruled out with a hamstring injury, the manager was again forced to shuffle his pack and his starting eleven caused something of a surprise amongst the Ewood faithful. Whilst most people expected Joshua King to retain his place in the side at the expense of Morten Gamst Pedersen, the manager opted to leave out Colin Kazim-Richards and use King as the central attacking midfield player, while Markus Olsson occupied Pedersen's role on the left of midfield. Once again the Rovers weren't so much slow out of the blocks but more or less staggered out of them. Cardiff, by contrast, were soon into their flowing style of pass-and-run football with former Rover Craig Bellamy proving his usual handful for opposition defenders. In truth, Cardiff harried Scott Dann and Grant Hanley at every opportunity with the result that the centre-back pairing were often reduced to merely lumping the ball forward to prevent themselves getting caught in possession. In front of a small and subdued Rovers following at Ewood on a cold and bleak Friday night, there was little festive cheer to be had as Cardiff quickly took a firm grip on the game. Indeed, the game settled down into an all-too-familiar pattern for Rovers fans with their team struggling to find a telling pass in the final third of the field. Mauro Formica, who has enjoyed something of a revival in the past few weeks, looked out of sorts again, while Joshua King used his pace to try to trouble the visiting defence but invariably tried to beat one man too many before being crowded out. By contrast, the visitors looked a well-drilled unit who moved the ball around at pace and with confidence. It came as no surprise when they took the lead, but the simplicity of their goal merely underlined the defensive frailties which have blighted the Rovers for so long. A free-kick eventually ended at the feet of Craig Noone on the right and his straightforward centre was met by the head of Mark Hudson, who had outmanoeuvred Scott Dann, and flew into the back of the net. Quite how the Cardiff captain and centre-back was allowed so much freedom in the penalty area remains a mystery and clearly it's a mystery to the Rovers coaching staff as this sort of goal is being conceded on a regular basis. Those hoping that this would galvanise the Rovers into action were in for a disappointment. Apart from the odd corner or two, the Rovers never looked like threatening the league leaders. Indeed, it was Cardiff who posed the greatest threat in front of goal with Bellamy and Heidar Helguson proving elusive and posing a constant threat to the Rovers goal. On the brink of half-time the visitors might well have doubled their advantage when an exquisite pass from midfield set Bellamy on his way and the former Ewood favourite left the defence for dead before crashing a thunderous effort against the crossbar. Berg, who had stood stony-faced on the touchline during the first half, immediately withdrew Markus Olsson at the break and replaced him with Colin Kazim-Richards. The Turkish international quickly responded with a delightful piece of skill that saw him control, turn and pass the ball into the path of Joshua King in an instant. The Old Trafford youngster was onto the pass in a flash and used his pace to get away from the defence before he calmly tucked the ball under David Marshall to put the Rovers on level terms on 51 minutes. There was the promise of a Rovers revival as the mood around Ewood changed to one of hope and for a minute or two the players responded until poor defending gifted the visitors a second goal. Just four minutes after King had given the Rovers hope, Kazim-Richards headed a ball back which deflected into the path of Helguson, who wasted no time in playing in Bellamy, and in a flash the Welsh striker had moved wide and fired a shot across Robinson and into the back of the net. The Rovers might well, indeed should, have been on level terms on 64 minutes when Etuhu's shot deflected into the path of Formica, who wildly fired against the bar from just eight yards out with a seemingly open goal in front of him. That miss signalled the end of the Rovers' hopes of getting back into the game as Cardiff tightened their grip on proceedings. Berg introduced Fabio Nunes and Ruben Rochina, but, as usual, the Rovers' young foreign contingent offered a few flicks and tricks but nothing of substance. Cardiff, by contrast, went for the jugular and on 84 minutes scored a third, which again exposed the frailties in the heart of the Rovers defence. A long ball forward was met by the head of Joe Mason, who flicked the ball over Dann and then raced on to collect the ball and beat Robinson with a low shot into the corner of the net. It was the signal for many of the Ewood faithful to get up and leave and sixty seconds later the vast majority of Rovers fans were looking for the exits. Dann was again at fault, losing possession and giving Kim the opportunity to beat Robinson and notch the fourth goal for the visitors. For Henning Berg the nightmare seems never-ending. Eight games under his stewardship have brought just one win and a meagre return of six points from a possible twenty-four. The automatic promotion places appear to be long gone even though the season hasn't, as yet, reached the halfway stage. Indeed, the Rovers are desperately clinging onto the coattails of the sixth-placed club in the hope that they can somehow snatch a play-off place — something which looks increasingly unlikely with each passing week. The public of Blackburn appear completely disillusioned by the whole Venky's circus and are turning their backs on the club in ever increasing numbers. The rows upon row of empty seats are now a regular feature of home games. As for the players, what more is there to say? Defensively, once again, the team were pitifully poor. Quite why Gael Givet remains on the bench is a mystery to most of the few remaining supporters who actually bother to attend games. Scott Dann, after recent improved performances, returned to the accident-prone form which has blighted his performances for much of his time at Ewood Park. Grant Hanley seems to become slower and more cumbersome with every appearance. The holding midfield duo Jason Lowe and Dickson Etuhu proved to be depressingly poor. Neither is good in their use of the ball and whilst Lowe is at least mobile, Etuhu seems almost statuesque in his approach. Cardiff had little difficulty in circumventing them and exposing the defensive frailties of Dann and Hanley. Until the arrival of Colin Kazim-Richards, the Rovers attacking midfield trio offered little or nothing going forward. Mauro Formica was badly out of sorts after his recent revival. Joshua King did a favourable impression of Ruben Rochina running up too many blind alleys — admittedly King arrived there rather more quickly than the more sedate Rochina. Probably the first that most fans learned of the presence of Markus Olsson was when it was announced he had been substituted at the start of the second half. To describe his first-half performance as anonymous would be to flatter him. Jordan Rhodes again demonstrated that he is not suited to the role he is being asked to play nor is he suited to the style of football that the Rovers are trying to adopt. He lacks the pace and physique to play as a lone striker and without the necessary service he is little more than a passenger. The continued absence of Nuno Gomes has really affected Rhodes in much the same way as the sale of Andy Cole ended the career of Jonathan Stead at the Rovers. Both players benefited from the presence of an experienced partner who could guide them through games. The Rovers looked better, even if only momentarily, once Kazim-Richards appeared, for in this league as well as pace and skill there is a need for muscle and passion — qualities which are lacking in so many of the Rovers youngsters it would seem. This season reminds me of so many in the latter part of the sixties when the Rovers would begin brightly only to fade as Christmas and the New Year approached. Promotion this season looks entirely dependent on snatching the final play-off place and at the moment that is looking increasingly unlikely. A major rethink is going to be required and a restructuring of a squad that is clearly not suited to Championship football. Whether Venky's have the money to do this and whether Berg will be given the time to do this is another matter. The only Christmas Carol likely to be heard coming out of Ewood Park this festive season is "In the Bleak Midwinter". Teams Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson; Adam Henley, Scott Dann, Grant Hanley, Martin Olsson; Jason Lowe, Dickson Etuhu (Ruben Rochina 82); Mauro Formica (Fabio Nunes 80), Joshua King, Markus Olsson (Colin Kazim-Richards 46); Jordan Rhodes Subs not used: Jake Kean (gk), Gael Givet, Morten Gamst Pedersen, Simon Vukcevic Manager: Henning Berg Cardiff City David Marshall; Matt Connolly, Mark Hudson, Ben Turner, Andrew Taylor; Craig Noone (Bo-Kyung Kim 70), Don Cowie, Peter Whittingham, Craig Conway; Heidar Helguson (Rudy Gestede 90 + 3), Craig Bellamy (Joe Mason 80) Subs not used: Joe Lewis (gk), Kevin McNaughton, Aron Gunnarsson, Simon Lappin Manager: Malky Mackay Bookings Blackburn Rovers – Jason Lowe, Martin Olsson, Grant Hanley Cardiff City – Mark Hudson, Craig Noone, Heidar Helguson Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Burnley (0) 1 – 1 (0) Blackburn Rovers Vokes 89 Rhodes 68 Referee: L. Mason Attendance: 21,341 On the 4th December 2010 the Rovers enjoyed a 3–0 win over Wolves in the Premier League. Nine days later Venky's dispensed with the services of Sam Allardyce in the quest for entertaining football. Two years later and the entertainment is now to be found amongst the mid-table mediocrity that is the Championship. Whilst local bragging rights were happily shared by both sets of fans, the truth is that both of these fairly average sides are likely to be playing Championship football again next season. Shebby Singh, who made his way from the Directors Box to the dressing room at the end of the game, lapping up the applause and bowing in mock worship of the travelling Ewood faithful, has stated that it is promotion or bust this season. Perhaps now is the time to start explaining what he meant by the term bust? On the evidence of one point from a possible nine this week, promotion is surely no more than a figment of Shebby's imagination. This result leaves the Rovers a massive twelve points behind Cardiff City — a team who have already taken more points from their ten home games this season than the Rovers have from their full 20-match programme. Add in the fact that we are eleven points behind second-placed Crystal Palace and it's beginning to look like the play-offs are offering us the only chance of redemption this season. However, after witnessing this unimpressive performance against a distinctly average Burnley side one can only hope that the owners will sanction some finance to improve the make-up of the squad. Make no mistake: this was a pretty turgid affair between two mediocre sides. Burnley had the better of the first half but failed to capitalise on their superiority. The Rovers had the better of the second half but were unable to retain their lead in the dying minutes. In the end a draw was a fair result and the fact that snatching a point at Turf Moor is greeted with relief probably indicates better than anything else just how far this club has fallen in the past two years. As expected, Henning Berg began the game with the same eleven that finished the match against Bolton Wanderers on Wednesday evening. Thus, Jason Lowe, Colin Kazim-Richards and Morten Gamst Pedersen all started. Markus Olsson and Ruben Rochina dropped down to the bench, while Dickson Etuhu was ruled out through illness but David Dunn was fit enough to take a place on the bench. Once again the Rovers opened slowly and far too often they gave the ball away through sheer carelessness. Too many passes went astray and the home side began to dominate possession. Scott Dann produced a magnificent block to snuff out a Charlie Austin effort and then Ross Wallace forced an excellent save from Paul Robinson. Jason Shackell then wasted a good opportunity when he fired his volley effort over the bar. As an attacking force the Rovers were fairly anonymous. A promising run from Pedersen came to nothing and then the Norwegian's free-kick presented Danny Murphy with a shooting chance which was blocked. Burnley ended the half strongly and Robinson was called upon to produce some of his best form of the season to keep them at bay. Another effort from Wallace was parried away for a corner and from this Robinson produced a superb fingertip save to keep out an Austin header. Martin Paterson tried to beat the former England 'keeper with a 20-yard effort, but Robinson kept the shot out despite being at full stretch. The Rovers were grateful to reach the dressing room on level terms at half-time in order to give themselves the opportunity to regroup. The second half brought a welcome improvement from the Rovers and the early introduction of Joshua King provided some much-needed pace to the attack. Several times the young Norwegian international made dangerous runs down the left flank that caused the Clarets problems. It was King who left two defenders in his wake before setting up Kazim-Richards and the Turkish international was only just wide with a shot that was hit with the outside of his foot. The Rovers were now enjoying the better possession and looked more solid defensively than at any time in the first half. On 68 minutes the Rovers made the breakthrough when Adam Henley took the ball past two Burnley players before finding Mauro Formica with an inch-perfect pass. The Argentinean international delivered the perfect cross into the box for Jordan Rhodes to stoop and deftly head the ball past Lee Grant. The goal sent the 3,400 travelling fans into huge celebrations as three sides of Turf Moor fell silent. The Rovers almost added a second within minutes when Murphy's free-kick was headed on by Formica and Grant Hanley headed goalwards only for Grant to save. Sean Dyche shuffled the pack to try to instil more attacking options and Berg sent on Vukcevic for Formica in a bid to see out the final ten minutes. As the game ebbed to its conclusion the home side increased the pressure with a succession of corners and free-kicks which the Rovers did well to defend. However, in the 89th minute the Clarets gained the reward that their first-half endeavours had deserved with an equalising goal. Vukcevic conceded a fairly soft free-kick and when the ball was floated into the Rovers goalmouth, it was Sam Vokes, who had only been on the pitch a matter of minutes, who glided his header past Robinson into the back of the net. Turf Moor erupted and it was the turn of the Rovers fans to fall silent. Matters might well have gone from bad to worse for the visitors when Vokes almost added a second goal in the dying seconds but fortunately his effort went over. The game ended with honours even, but in reality it was very much a case of another two points dropped by the Rovers. Their inability to see out games in which they are leading is proving to be an Achilles' heel and one which has already most likely cost them any chance of automatic promotion. Paul Robinson had an outstanding game and but for him the Rovers could easily have been two or three down at the interval. Scott Dann was the pick of the defenders and managed to get in a number of vital blocks, particularly in the first half when the Rovers were under severe pressure at times. Adam Henley and Martin Olsson did well at full-back and got forward whenever they could. Grant Hanley had a steadier game alongside Dann, but his lack of pace is still a problem. In midfield Jason Lowe and Danny Murphy occupied the holding positions and got better as the game went on. However, neither was particularly good in terms of passing and far too often their distribution merely gave Burnley possession. The three attacking midfielders enjoyed varying degrees of success. Mauro Formica had another good game on the right although he seems to be under instructions to move inside as much as possible to support the attack. Formica's willingness to get back and cover Henley and his increased appetite for work has been one of the more welcome aspects of this season and he now seems to have cemented his place in the starting line-up. Morten Gamst Pedersen was restored on the left of the midfield trio and provided his usual mixture of good and bad deliveries. It wasn't his best game, but, as he showed against Bolton when he came on, he can still provide the type of service that Rhodes so badly requires. The central attacking midfield role was undertaken by Colin Kazim-Richards in place of Rochina and he provided the added muscle that is so often required in this league. He was a constant threat to Burnley, he harried defenders and was always involved. Hopefully, he will be given an extended run in this role as Rhodes clearly needs a more physical presence alongside him than Rochina can provide. Once again, goal apart, Jordan Rhodes contributed very little as the lone front man. He really is not suited to this role on so many levels. He lacks the pace and physique needed to work the channels and hold the ball up for others to run onto. However, the lad receives little help and it was interesting to note how quickly Burnley were able to get support to Austin — in the same way Bolton did with Davies in midweek — while the Rovers seem very slow in breaking from midfield to support him. The one time he received a decent cross into the box he converted, but sadly the Rovers simply don't have the players who can provide him with the service he requires. Joshua King caught the eye when he came on and his runs down the left wing provided a welcome injection of pace. However, far too often he had to stop to turn inside to get the ball onto his right foot before crossing and this sometimes negated the excellent work he had done in getting to the deadball line. Ultimately local pride was preserved with a point apiece, but the fact remains that the Rovers have now won just one of their last seven games since Berg's arrival. Having taken just six points from the last twenty-one on offer merely underlines the fact that the owners' demands for instant promotion are just about as ridiculous as every other decision they have made. At the moment the Rovers, like Burnley, look like a very average Championship side and it is going to take Berg some time to change that. One can only hope that the owners and supporters will accept that it may well take a while before the Rovers have a squad that is capable of challenging for automatic promotion. As for this season, the play-offs are looking like the best we can hope for and even that is in the balance. Teams Burnley Lee Grant; Kieran Trippier, Michael Duff, Jason Shackell, Ben Mee; Chris McCann (Sam Vokes 86), Brian Stock (Danny Ings 75), Dean Marney; Ross Wallace, Charlie Austin, Martin Paterson (Junior Stanislas 75) Subs not used: Brian Jensen (gk), David Edgar, Danny Lafferty, Marvin Bartley Manager: Sean Dyche Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson; Adam Henley, Scott Dann, Grant Hanley, Martin Olsson; Jason Lowe, Danny Murphy; Mauro Formica (Simon Vukcevic 79), Colin Kazim-Richards, Morten Gamst Pedersen (Joshua King 55); Jordan Rhodes Subs not used: Jake Kean (gk), Gael Givet, Markus Olsson, David Dunn, Ruben Rochina Manager: Henning Berg Bookings Burnley – Michael Duff Blackburn Rovers – Danny Murphy Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Blackburn Rovers (0) 0 – 2 (0) Millwall Wood 71, Henry 90 Referee: E. Ilderton Attendance: 13,898 After five games, in which ten points have been dropped, Henning Berg can be under no illusions about the size of the task facing him at Ewood Park. The automatic promotion places are fast disappearing over the horizon and many more performances like this one will surely see the Rovers struggle to clinch a play-off place. The simple fact was that Millwall were by far the superior team on show at Ewood Park and might easily have won this game more comfortably than they did. Not for the first time this season a team which, on paper at least, looked inferior simply outplayed the highly paid squad that has been assembled at Ewood Park. One suspects, rather too late sadly, that the penny might finally be dropping with the owners that it is far easier to keep a club in the Premier League than try to win promotion into that league. One can only hope that common sense will finally prevail and the owners will give the manager both the time and money to build a squad that will bring success back to Ewood Park without handicapping him with ridiculous timescales. Berg kept faith with the same starting eleven that had enjoyed such a convincing win at London Road last week. However, Millwall proved a very different proposition as one might expect from one of the form teams in the division. Millwall, who had been unbeaten in their previous ten games, looked a fairly impressive outfit from the very start. Indeed, after just seven minutes they found the back of the net when Andy Keogh headed home a super cross from James Henry. Fortunately, a linesman's flag delivered an offside verdict to wipe out the goal, but the warning was there for all to see. Millwall continued to get in a succession of dangerous crosses and after twenty minutes Keogh had the ball in the net again but once more had strayed offside. However, the ease with which the ball was being delivered into the Rovers area was a worry and only a brilliant clearance from Scott Dann, unquestionably the Rovers best defender on the day, prevented the visitors from converting yet another dangerous cross. Kenny Jackett's side were relentless in their approach — energetic in attack and uncompromising in defence — and boasted the same qualities that Berg would have remembered from the promotion side that Graeme Souness assembled — sadly the very qualities that this present Rovers squad lack. Paul Robinson was tested by a fierce shot from Chris Wood which the former England 'keeper couldn't hold. Indeed, Robinson looked fairly jittery all afternoon — and not for the first time this season. At the other end Ruben Rochina had a couple of efforts which David Forde dealt with, but in truth the young Spaniard served up another of his frustrating displays when he merely flatters to deceive. The Rovers started the second half in a more positive mood and it looked clear that the players had been instructed to get the ball into the danger areas a little more quickly. An early cross from Rochina was headed over by Jordan Rhodes and then Martin Olsson showed a deft touch to beat two defenders in the area and forced Forde into a brilliant fingertip save to deny the Swedish international from opening the scoring. Olsson had been set up by Joshua King, who had entered the fray as a substitute for Markus Olsson. The Manchester United youngster forced another good save from Forde before Millwall began to tighten their grip on the game and reassert their superiority. When the goal arrived on 71 minutes, it was largely due to a shocking error by Grant Hanley, who seemed to completely miss his tackle and allow Chris Wood to take the ball on and hammer a shot past a static Robinson. Berg immediately introduced Nuno Gomes in place of Mauro Formica, who had again shown a greater appetite for work, and later brought on Simon Vukcevic. However, try as they might the Rovers made little impact on a resolute Millwall defence. With the Rovers committed to attack in search of an equaliser, gaps at the back began to appear which the visitors looked more than capable of exploiting. In the last minute of the game the ball fell just right for Henry and he rifled home a thunderous effort that had Robinson clutching at thin air. The goal was the signal for the remaining Rovers fans who had not already left by this stage to make their way to the exits. Paul Robinson had a fairly unhappy afternoon and never looked completely comfortable either with his handling or his kicking. Both Adam Henley and Martin Olsson were tested early on but got better as the game went on. Both provided width and pace down the flanks and Olsson was very unfortunate to see his superb piece of individualism go unrewarded — in truth it was the best effort on goal from the Rovers. Scott Dann was the pick of the defenders and seemed to be in the right place at the right time on most occasions. Sadly, Grant Hanley again demonstrated that he is prone to costly gaffs and his error on the opening goal was unforgiveable at this level. Danny Murphy and Dickson Etuhu were less effective in the holding midfield roles than of late. Both were hustled and given little time on the ball and Murphy struggled to get his passing game into gear as a result. Physically, Etuhu looks like he should be capable of imposing himself on the game at this level, but as we reach the end of November he has yet to do it. Of the three attacking midfield players — Mauro Formica, Ruben Rochina and Markus Olsson — it was Formica who gave the most workmanlike display. He is clearly under instructions to come inside and support Rhodes when the Rovers have the ball and, when we don't, he works hard to cover young Henley. At times he looked our best bet for creating something and although he might lack the flair of Rochina, he seems to have a better all-round game. Rochina continues to remain a fascinating and frustrating enigma. Undoubtedly talented, with skill in abundance, and yet his judgement seems fatally flawed on so many occasions. Harnessing this talent for the good of the team is clearly going to be Berg's most immediate challenge. Markus Olsson again demonstrated a useful turn of pace but failed to make much impact in terms of delivering crosses for Jordan Rhodes and it was no surprise when he was withdrawn early in the second half. As for Rhodes it was another game in which he was largely anonymous due to a lack of service. When decent sides cut off his supply, the £8 million hit-man struggles to make much impact in a game. As is well known, Rhodes is a penalty-box predator and Millwall had clearly done their homework and ensured that he didn't get the service he requires. Sadly, with Leon Best out until January or February, the Rovers simply don't have a plan "B" and the need for a robust target man is there for all to see. Joshua King made an impressive debut when he came on and will clearly give the Rovers a fresh injection of pace down the left wing and looked particularly dangerous when cutting inside and using his right foot to shoot or centre. Automatic promotion is looking increasingly unlikely with every point dropped and the lottery that is the play-offs would seem to offer the most realistic route for a quick return to the Premier League. However, on the evidence of the season thus far the squad will need strengthening in January and one can only hope that sufficient points can be gained in the meantime to keep the club in touch with the promotion places. With Bolton and Burnley on the immediate horizon the next five weeks or so are going to go a long way in deciding the ultimate outcome at the end of the season. However, perhaps the greatest worry for those in the corridors of power at Ewood Park is the fact that only two clubs — Barnsley and Blackpool — had lower attendances than Ewood Park. The fact that the Walker Trust delivered the longest period of sustained top-flight football at the club since the 1930s should never be underestimated. The simple fact is that many supporters are unwilling to watch the dross that passes for Championship football and the shambles of the past two years has cost the club so many long-standing supporters who remain reluctant to return. Promotion is vital for so many reasons and yet seems so far away. Teams Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson; Adam Henley, Scott Dann, Grant Hanley, Martin Olsson; Danny Murphy (Simon Vukcevic 85), Dickson Etuhu; Mauro Formica (Nuno Gomes 72), Ruben Rochina, Markus Olsson (Joshua King 56); Jordan Rhodes Subs not used: Jake Kean (gk), Gael Givet, Jason Lowe, Morten Gamst Pedersen Manager: Henning Berg Millwall David Forde; Adam Smith, Danny Shittu, Mark Beevers, Shane Lowry; James Henry, Josh Wright, Nadjim Abdou, Chris Taylor (Scott Malone 87); Chris Wood, Andy Keogh Subs not used: Maik Taylor (gk), Therry Racon, Liam Feeney, Jack Smith, Dany N'Guessan, Karleigh Osborne Manager: Kenny Jackett Bookings Blackburn Rovers – None Millwall – Shane Lowry, Danny Shittu, James Henry, Andy Keogh Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Peterborough United (0) 1 – 4 (3) Blackburn Rovers Tomlin 88 Formica 3, Rhodes 20, 39, 79 Referee: C. Pawson Attendance: 5,997 With the game well and truly up for the home side, Darren Ferguson threw on Jermaine Anderson, a 16-year-old who was making his senior debut for the club and whose name and face would have been largely unknown to many of the home fans. Henning Berg responded with a double substitution which brought Nuno Gomes and Morten Gamst Pedersen into the fray — two internationals who can boast over 150 caps between them — and enabled him to withdraw Jordan Rhodes, the £8 million striker whose hat-trick had helped to demolish "The Posh". Such is the gulf between the clubs in terms of financial clout and at London Road that difference was clearly evident in the gulf between the teams on the pitch. In just two weeks Henning Berg has completely transformed the Rovers on the pitch. Players who had under-performed under Steve Kean suddenly look reborn. Nowhere is that more evident than in the performance of Mauro Formica. The Argentinean international has struggled to make any impact since his arrival at the club. Too often he has been the invisible man, making little or no contribution to games. However, under Berg he looks a completely different figure. At the heart of everything, Formica opened the scoring after just three minutes to set the Rovers on the way to their most impressive performance of the season. Berg kept faith the with the same line-up that had started against Birmingham City while Gael Givet and Colin Kazim-Richards returned from injury to take their places on the bench. Peterborough opened the game in lively fashion and forced a succession of corners in the opening two minutes. However, with their first attack of the game the Rovers took the lead on three minutes. The move was initiated by a powerful run down the right wing by Adam Henley and his subsequent cross was dummied by Formica and allowed to run on to Rhodes, whose shot was blocked. Fortunately, the ball ran kindly for the Rovers and fell to the feet of Formica, who coolly slotted the ball home. The game continued to ebb and flow, but there was an assurance about the Rovers' play which has been missing for so long. Both Formica and Ruben Rochina had decent efforts on the home goal, whilst Henley did well at the other end to clear a dangerous-looking situation. It was ironic that the Rovers' second goal should arrive after another purple patch by the home side. The goal was simplicity itself as Rochina worked the ball out to Martin Olsson on the left flank. The Swedish international raced down the wing before firing in a perfect cross to the near post. Whilst the home defence hesitated, Rhodes nipped in front of a defender and headed home off the defender's arm to give the Rovers a 2–0 lead after 20 minutes. Although Peterborough enjoyed plenty of possession, they rarely looked like breaking down the Rovers defence and Paul Robinson was largely untroubled throughout the first half. A tremendous block by Scott Dann snuffed out one attack and typified the improved work ethic which Berg appears to have instilled in the squad. It was noticeable that the team are now prepared to press the opposition when they are in possession and this constant harrying of the home side led them to give the ball away on countless occasions. The Rovers' third goal, on 39 minutes, was another gem. The much-improved Danny Murphy fed Rochina, who was advancing into the Peterborough half, and the young Spaniard hit a wonderful defence-splitting pass to Rhodes, who had got on the blind side of the defender. The Scottish international striker advanced to the area and then beat Bobby Olejnik on his near post with a delightful effort which saw him almost pass the ball into the net with both power and precision. To their credit Peterborough tried to make a game of it in the second half, but the truth of the matter is that they were simply outclassed in every department. Saido Berahino came closest to getting a goal back for the home side, but his well-struck effort was tipped over by Robinson. Rhodes almost clinched his hat-trick on the hour mark when Formica fed him with the perfect pass and the former Huddersfield man rounded the 'keeper but fired narrowly wide from a tight angle. The Rovers then put the home side under intense pressure as a shot from Rhodes was deflected away towards the far post, where Markus Olsson stormed in and crashed his effort against the woodwork. The ball rebounded into the goalmouth and Rochina eventually played it back into the path of Martin Olsson, whose fierce drive was tipped around the post by Olejnik. From the resultant corner the Rovers scored their fourth goal on 79 minutes. A cross to the back post was met by the head of Scott Dann, who steered the ball to an unmarked Rhodes, who headed home from close range. Berg introduced the vastly experienced Nuno Gomes and Pedersen at this point, whilst Rhodes left to thunderous applause from the Rovers' travelling fans. The Rovers might well have come away from London Road with a more emphatic scoreline as Pedersen netted when adjudged to be marginally offside and Gomes' goalbound effort deflected off the legs of Olejnik onto the inside of the post and then bounced away to safety. The gloss was take off an excellent performance when Rochina produced a typically careless piece of play that presented Lee Tomlin with the opportunity to snatch a consolation goal with a fine shot. Robinson raced from his goal to lambast the Rovers' youngster after some excellent defensive work was undone by a moment's carelessness. Undoubtedly this was the most convincing performance of the season. The players are now beginning to look more of a team and there is a definite identifiable pattern to the play with Ruben Rochina providing that vital link between the midfield and Jordan Rhodes. Defensively the Rovers looked fairly sound. The introduction of Adam Henley at right-back has proved to be a revelation and has introduced some much-needed pace down the right flank. Martin Olsson again showed a welcome return to form and linked up well with his brother Markus on the left wing. Scott Dann was the pick of the centre-backs and defended well throughout and played his part in the fourth goal for the Rovers. Although Grant Hanley was generally sound, one cannot help but feel that his lack of pace is a problem and at times he gets himself into the wrong position and is then forced to either make a last-ditch tackle or give away a free-kick to rectify the situation. In midfield Danny Murphy continued to show the type of form that won him such praise at Fulham. He was continually prompting with some inch-perfect passes which set up numerous attacks. Dickson Etuhu again provided the midfield anchor which enabled others to get forward and create problems for the home defence. Although he doesn't always seem to be fully in control of the ball, there is no doubting that he is proving effective and under Berg his partnership with Murphy looks far more impressive than under the previous management. Markus Olsson provided plenty of pace down the left wing and formed a promising partnership with his brother. He was very unfortunate not to score when his effort hit the woodwork and was a constant thorn in the side of the home defence. Mauro Formica had another hugely impressive game. A constant threat with his link-up play with Rochina and Rhodes, Formica was also prepared to battle back in midfield and made several tackles to thwart the home side as they tried to get forward. Like Rochina, Formica has an eye for goal and produced a cool finish to give the Rovers an early lead. Jordan Rhodes is beginning to look a far better player under Berg because the Norwegian has quickly understood that Rhodes needs service in and around the penalty area and not on the half-way line or running down the channels. He is now getting a better supply of crosses and passes into the box on which to feed and as he demonstrated in this game with the right service he will score goals. Rhodes is a penalty-box predator — more of an Andy McEvoy type of striker than an Alan Shearer — and the signs are that Berg is fashioning a team that will present him with the type of service he needs. These are early days, of course, but the signs are very promising that a resurgence may well be about to get underway under the astute leadership of Henning Berg. The difference the Norwegian has made in a couple of weeks has been nothing short of remarkable. Long may it continue. Teams Peterborough United Bobby Olejnik; Craig Alcock (Jermaine Anderson 76), Shaun Brisley, Nathaniel Knight-Percival, Joe Newell; Michael Bostwick, Grant McCann, Danny Swanson (Kane Ferdinand 64); George Boyd, Saido Berahino, Lee Tomlin Subs not used: Joe Day (gk), Gaby Zakuani, Emile Sinclair, Jaanai Gordon-Hutton, Jonson Clarke-Harris Manager: Darren Ferguson Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson; Adam Henley, Scott Dann, Grant Hanley, Martin Olsson; Danny Murphy (Jason Lowe 60), Dickson Etuhu; Mauro Formica, Ruben Rochina, Markus Olsson (Morten Gamst Pedersen 82); Jordan Rhodes (Nuno Gomes 82) Subs not used: Jake Kean (gk), Gael Givet, Simon Vukcevic, Colin Kazim-Richards Manager: Henning Berg Bookings Peterborough United – Joe Newell Blackburn Rovers – None Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Crystal Palace (1) 2 – 0 (0) Blackburn Rovers Murray 45 + 1, 65 Referee: L. Probert Attendance: 16,744 In his post-match comments Henning Berg was honest enough to admit that Crystal Palace were by far the better side. He admitted that the Rovers didn't defend well as a team and were poor in possession, giving the ball away far too easily. He also had to admit that as an attacking force the Rovers were seen all too infrequently. It was refreshing to hear the manager tell it as it is and there is no doubt that he now realises the enormity of the task which he faces. Getting this squad of players into the Premiership is going to take a miracle worker rather than a mere football manager. With Jason Lowe, Gael Givet and Nuno Gomes sidelined through injury, the new manager was restricted when it came to team selection but nonetheless opted to make changes with Bradley Orr and Ruben Rochina being dropped to the bench in favour of Adam Henley and Markus Olsson. Although Palace had announced the appointment of Ian Holloway as their new manager prior to the game, the team was left under the control of Curtis Fleming with the former Blackpool manager not making an appearance until half-time. By that point the home side had taken the lead and already looked a class apart in every department so that when Holloway addressed the crowd and opened with the words "How lucky am I", one could fully appreciate what he meant. He has inherited an exciting young team that have pace and power, whilst Henning Berg has inherited a squad that might read well on paper but has yet to suggest it can do it on the pitch! Palace were soon on the front foot thanks to the speed of their midfield players. Yannick Bolasie fired an effort just wide and Palace almost went ahead when Joel Ward got in a super cross which Scott Dann did well to flick away as Glenn Murray was waiting to pounce. Murray was a constant threat and was well supported by Owen Garvan, who continually popped up in dangerous positions around the edge of the Rovers box. In truth, the interplay by the Palace midfield and the speed at which they operated had the Rovers chasing shadows at times. Damien Delaney rose to meet a corner but was denied by an acrobatic save from Paul Robinson. The Rovers were fairly anonymous as an attacking force, but on 25 minutes they almost took an underserved lead when Dickson Etuhu crashed a header against the crossbar. Once again the Rovers' most dangerous moves came from set-pieces, which involved Morten Gamst Pedersen taking corners or free-kicks. Jordan Rhodes was totally ineffectual, not for the first time, in the lone front-man role. He has neither the physical attributes nor the speed to play this role and received scant support from an out-of-sorts Colin Kazim-Richards. Palace continued to pose a threat whenever they attacked and a stream of crosses from Bolasie caused consternation in the ranks of the Rovers defence. Murray, who was only inches away from converting more than one of these crosses, was a real handful for Scott Dann and Grant Hanley and the young Scottish centre-back, in particular, had trouble with the pace of the Palace players. Bolasie might well have given Palace the lead when he thumped a header against the post and saw Robinson gratefully dive to catch the rebound. Hopes that the Rovers might weather the storm and get to the sanctuary of the dressing room on level terms were dashed on the brink of half-time. A pinpoint cross from Garvan was met by a powerful header by Murray which gave Robinson no chance of saving and gave Palace the lead on 45 minutes. The second half brought no respite for the Rovers as Wilfried Zaha began to exhibit the skills which have won him rave reviews in recent months. His pace and trickery tormented a Rovers side that had struggled to get into the game from the very outset. He set up a good opportunity for Bolasie, who blazed over and then forced a save from Robinson. The Rovers might well have got back in the game but for a superb save by Julian Speroni after Pedersen had hit a fierce effort, from a tight angle, which seemed destined for the top corner of the net. However, on 64 minutes the game was over when Palace scored their second goal. Once again the pace of Murray troubled Hanley and when the Scottish defender seemed to bring the forward down, Mr Probert had no hesitation in pointing to the penalty spot. Murray took the spot-kick himself and sent Robinson the wrong way to notch his second goal of the game. Just six minutes later and a rampant Palace were awarded a second penalty when Henley appeared to trip Bolasie on the edge of the area. It was debatable as to whether it was in the area or not, but the referee immediately pointed to the spot. However, on this occasion Robinson managed to save the penalty when Murray attempted to bluff the Rovers keeper by hitting the ball straight down the middle of the goal. Having made the save, the ball rebounded to Murray, who seemed certain to score, but Robinson once again made a magnificent save to keep the ball out for a second time. Murray might still have completed a hat-trick but was off target when presented with another chance. Apart from an effort from Rochina which hit the bar, the Rovers never really looked like getting back into the game. Palace were happy to spend the final period of the match sitting back and hitting the Rovers on the break. The performance as a whole was one which will give Berg plenty to ponder about and in post-match interviews he readily admitted that there is much work to do. As a team the Rovers didn't defend well due to the fact that the midfield was simply overrun. The pick of the defenders was probably Adam Henley, although his performance was not fault-free. Scott Dann strove manfully to try to shore up the middle, but Grant Hanley simply found the pace far too much for him, while Martin Olsson gave another lacklustre performance at left-back. The Swedish international appears to be still unsettled by the summer transfer talk and this is reflected in his performances. The midfield was poor even by the standards of this season. Morten Gamst Pedersen had a poor first half but improved after the break before giving way to Mauro Formica. Markus Olsson struggled to get to grips with the pace of the Palace players down the flanks and was replaced by Simon Vukcevic. Ewood's forgotten man provided a bright cameo over the final stages of the match and surely deserves an extended run somewhere in our midfield. Danny Murphy is completely out of form and endured a torrid afternoon; firstly at the hands of the impressive Palace midfielders and finally at the hands of the travelling support, who began to express their derision with every misplaced pass — of which there were many – and every failed attempt at a tackle. Dickson Etuhu, at times, looks like the player who could be the one to be the dominant force in the Rovers midfield and yet all too often he drifts out of the game and goes missing for long periods. In attack the Rovers were quite simply woeful. Colin Kazim-Richards is struggling to find the form he showed in the opening two games and was hauled off early in the second half. Jordan Rhodes continues to demonstrate that he is not a lone front runner and that the present system is simply not one he can operate in. Rhodes is a penalty box predator and one can only wonder how many goals he would score if he was in the Palace side. Ruben Rochina and Mauro Formica demonstrated flashes of skill but never looked like they could make any lasting impression on the match. In many ways these players — and a number of other recent signings — demonstrate what is wrong with the Rovers. We have too many players of the same ilk, too many "fancy dans" who are full of tricks and flicks but who don't roll their sleeves up and engage in the battle to win the right to play their football. Ultimately, Henning Berg is going to have to be given time to structure a side that will play the sort of football he wants to play and that will, hopefully, be successful in the long run. He needs time to assess the squad, to ditch those who don't measure up to what he wants and he needs to be given money to bring in players who will improve a squad that has been second best in the majority of games that have been played thus far this season. Whilst Shebby and the owners are demanding instant promotion, the fact remains that it might well take a year or maybe two before the Rovers can assemble a squad to make a realistic challenge for a top two finish. Above all, the supporters and the owners need to give Berg time to assess and rebuild because two years of continual decline since the arrival of Venky's is not going to be turned around overnight. Teams Crystal Palace Julian Speroni; Joel Ward, Damien Delaney, Peter Ramage, Jonathan Parr; Kagisho Dikgacoi, Mile Jedinak; Yannick Bolasie, Owen Garvan, Wilfried Zaha (Dean Moxey 90); Glenn Murray Subs not used: Lewis Price (gk), Darcy Blake, Aaron Wilbraham, Jermaine Easter, Stuart O'Keefe, Andre Moritz Caretaker Manager: Curtis Fleming Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson; Adam Henley, Scott Dann, Grant Hanley, Martin Olsson; Morten Gamst Pedersen (Mauro Formica 59), Danny Murphy, Dickson Etuhu, Markus Olsson (Simon Vukcevic 72); Colin Kazim-Richards (Ruben Rochina 53); Jordan Rhodes Subs not used: Jake Kean (gk), Bradley Orr, Bruno Ribeiro, Diogo Rosado Manager: Henning Berg Bookings Crystal Palace – None Blackburn Rovers – None Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Blackburn Rovers (1) 1 – 0 (0) Sheffield Wednesday Hanley 5 Referee: P. Gibbs Attendance: 13,782 Eric Black's first win as caretaker manager brought an end to a winless streak which had produced just three points from the previous five outings. If the performance was far from convincing at times, there is no doubt that there were glimpses, as at Derby on Saturday, that there is a touch more organisation about the way in which Black sets the team up to play. Of course, third from bottom Sheffield Wednesday is hardly the sort of opposition that one should fear. Indeed, in normal circumstances one might have expected a more convincing win than this edgy affair. However, these are not normal circumstances and for a team which can often make a colander seem watertight by comparison a win, a clean sheet and three precious points were all that mattered. Black sprung something of a surprise when he opted to put Morten Gamst Pedersen, one of the better performers at Pride Park, on the bench and introduce Grant Hanley in the centre of defence. A defensive reshuffle resulted in Gael Givet being moved to left-back while Martin Olsson occupied Pedersen's place on the left-wing. Black could hardly have anticipated that the introduction of Hanley would make the impact it did after just five minutes when the Scottish international defender gave the Rovers the lead. David Dunn produced a typical piece of skill to beat two men in the area and make progress along the dead-ball line before firing the ball across goal for Hanley to tap home. The goal signalled a period of play that was some of the best that the Rovers have produced this season. With Dunn at the heart of everything, the Rovers played with a confidence that has been missing all too often of late. Sadly, it didn't last. Miguel Liera fired wide when he might have done better and Michail Antonio really ought to have brought Wednesday level when he controlled a long ball on his chest but poked his quickly taken volley wide of the post. The sight of Dunn leaving the field, somewhat gingerly, after 35 minutes with a calf problem was a major blow to the Ewood faithful. Although Ruben Rochina announced his arrival with a rocket like shot, which Chris Kirkland did well to stop, the loss of Dunn proved to be something of a turning point in the match. The visitors gradually began to enjoy more possession, but fortunately the Rovers defence held firm despite one or two scares. The second half began with Wednesday enjoying plenty of possession, and in truth they ought to have done better with a couple of crosses which they didn't make the most of. One chance which fell to Liera, Wednesday's impressive centre-back, seemed likely to end in the back of the net, but inexplicably the giant defender headed wide. Fortunately, there weren't too many clear-cut chances which fell to the visitors. Ironically, it was another defender, Lewis Buxton, who created a decent opening for himself before firing wide. The Rovers struggled to make much impression as an attacking force with Jordan Rhodes, once again, all too often left as an isolated figure. The lad may have many attributes in the penalty area but linking up play and leading the line is something which he appears to be ill at ease with. Nonetheless, on the one occasion he did manage to play Rochina in the young Spaniard was thwarted by the legs of Kirkland, who deflected his goal-bound effort away from danger. The Rovers improved in attack when Pedersen replaced a strangely subdued Olsson for the final quarter of an hour. Indeed, the Norwegian international almost doubled the lead with a 20-yard free-kick which was deflected and seemed to have beaten Kirkland before Liera cleared off the line. Rochina also had a fierce drive tipped over by Kirkland as the Rovers renewed their attacking intentions in the closing stages. However, Black sensibly introduced Danny Murphy for the final few minutes to try to keep possession as the Rovers closed in on an all-important win. Defensively, the Rovers are starting to look a little more solid and clearly Black is working on the training ground to improve this aspect of the Rovers play. However, as he readily admitted in his post-match interview, the passing and ball retention is something that still needs to be improved. Nonetheless, it is a refreshing change to hear the manager acknowledge weaknesses in the performance and clearly it is something on which he is working hard to improve. The back four were generally sound throughout. In midfield Jason Lowe caught the eye with a hard-working performance, while David Dunn was outstanding for the 35 minutes that he was on the pitch. Ruben Rochina had one of his better games and there is no doubt that he has skill in abundance. However, there are many flaws in his game and one feels that these need to be addressed if he is to fulfil his potential. Nonetheless, he remained the most potent threat we had, as Jordan Rhodes struggled to make much impression on a fairly rugged Wednesday defence that was ably served by Martin "Tiny" Taylor. These were three vital points which enabled the Rovers to jump from twelfth to fifth place in the league. Another three points against Watford on Saturday and the new manager, whoever it may be, will have a decent platform on which to build. The fact that the Rovers have played so poorly for much of the season and yet are still in fifth position merely underlines how mediocre the Championship really is. On any given day any side can beat another, which is what makes this league so fascinating. Sadly, the attendance was hugely disappointing and clearly the uncertainty with regard to the appointment of a new manager has done nothing to persuade people to return to Ewood Park. Teams Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson; Bradley Orr, Grant Hanley, Scott Dann, Gael Givet; Colin Kazim-Richards (Danny Murphy 83), Jason Lowe, Dickson Etuhu, Martin Olsson (Morten Gamst Pedersen 74); David Dunn (Ruben Rochina 35); Jordan Rhodes Subs not used: Jake Kean (gk), Mauro Formica, Nuno Gomes, Diogo Rosado Caretaker Manager: Eric Black Sheffield Wednesday Chris Kirkland; Lewis Buxton, Martin Taylor, Miguel Liera, Daniel Jones (Chris O'Grady 89); Jose Semedo, Jermaine Johnson, Ross Barkley, Paul Corry (Rodri 76); Michail Antonio, Gary Madine Subs not used: Adam Davies (gk), Chris Maguire, Joe Mattock, Danny Mayor, Nejc Pecnik Manager: Dave Jones Bookings Blackburn Rovers – Colin Kazim-Richards Sheffield Wednesday – Miguel Liera Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Blackburn Rovers (0) 0 – 1 (0) Wolverhampton Wanderers Sako 77 Referee: N. Miller Attendance: 17,034 A second successive home defeat and a mere two points out of the last twelve have placed a huge question mark against the potential of Blackburn Rovers to regain their Premier League status at the first attempt. The previous manager's boasts that the Rovers had the strongest squad in the division are looking a little hollow right now. Indeed, for my money Eric Black hit the nail on the head when he told Radio Rovers, in his post-match interview, that the club simply hasn't got a centre-forward who is capable of leading the line in this division. Of course, there are many other problems afflicting both the team and the club at present, but Black merely confirmed what many have thought and that is that the club embarked upon the season ill-equipped and ill-prepared for the challenges ahead. Compare the present squad with the one that Graeme Souness assembled in 2000–01 to win promotion from this division. Quite simply there is no comparison as the Souness squad was infinitely better in every department. We need to face the fact that no new manager is going to come in and wave a magic wand and suddenly turn it all around. What was witnessed at Ewood Park in this latest debacle has been two years in the making. Two years of abysmal decision-making, of indecisive leadership from the owners and of declining quality within the playing squad. You cannot strip a squad of the likes of Phil Jones, Steven Nzonzi, Ryan Nelsen, El-Hadji Diouf, Chris Samba and Michel Salgado, etc., and expect to continue to flourish. Indeed, when you replace good players with inferior ones, as we have done, there is only likely to be one outcome and it certainly isn't promotion. The visit of Wolves to Ewood Park saw the restoration of Colin Kazim-Richards to the starting line-up but, surprisingly, at the expense of Nuno Gomes, who was relegated to the bench. Once again Black opted to utilise a 3-5-2 formation in a bid to try to get more width into the Rovers attacking play. As always, the Rovers were slow out of the blocks and Paul Robinson was forced to make a good save to keep out an effort from Bakary Sako in the opening five minutes. The deficiencies in the Rovers midfield were there for all to see when David Davis ran through unchallenged before he fired a long-range effort over the bar. After 17 minutes and with one of their first meaningful attacks of the game the Rovers might well have taken the lead when Jordan Rhodes seemed to be hauled to the ground as he tried to get on the end of a cross from Kazim-Richards. Inexplicably the referee deemed that Richard Stearman's challenge had been fair and denied the vociferous penalty appeals from the Rovers players. Just a couple of minutes later Kevin Foley was given time and space to pick out Sylvan Ebanks-Blake, who headed against the foot of the post with Robinson well beaten. Fortunately, the ball bounced out to safety, but once again the Rovers defence was conspicuous by its absence. The rest of the half was very much tit-for-tat with neither side looking terribly convincing as potential promotion candidates. Mauro Formica reminded the watching crowd that he was actually on the pitch when he fired a decent attempt narrowly over the bar before he returned to the periphery of the game where he seems to permanently reside. Black made a change at half-time and Formica remained in the dressing room while Fabio Nunes was introduced on the left wing. The young Portuguese winger made a couple of decent crosses, but all too often his good work on the wing was spoilt by a succession of poor crosses and the less said about his corner kicks the better. The fact that a half in which he merely flattered to deceive was sufficient to win him the Man of the Match award merely underlined how dire the Rovers were. The Rovers offered little in the way of serious threat to the Wolves goal during the second half and a frustrated Rhodes opted to shoot from distance when the chance to play in Kazim-Richards seemed the better option. Wolves, too, offered little going forward with a badly struck shot from Anthony Forde going well wide when he really ought to have done better. On 77 minutes the visitors took the lead after the Rovers presented them with the opportunity. Danny Murphy was caught in possession, which resulted in Wolves gaining a corner. Not for the first time this season, a ball played into the box was not cleared properly and when Robinson punched the ball to the edge of the area, it was worked out to Sako who unleashed a fierce shot into the far corner of the net. Murphy, who was guarding the post, opted to wander away from it and create the gap that Sako needed to score. It was ironic that the normally static Murphy should choose that very moment to decide to actually move about. The Rovers huffed and puffed but rarely looked like getting back in the game. Scott Dann was pushed up front to try to beef up Rovers' woefully weak attack but all to no avail. The Rovers slipped down to ninth in the table and after ten games are six points off the top and five points adrift of the second automatic promotion position. Once again the 3-5-2 formation didn't really work. Although Martin Olsson got forward a little more, he still looks a mere shadow of the player he has been in the past. Bradley Orr offers little going forward and is easily caught out for pace when having to defend. The three centre-backs still look shaky at times with Gael Givet being the standout defender at the club. The midfield was again woeful. The combination of Danny Murphy and Jason Lowe hadn't worked at Forest in midweek and — surprise, surprise — it didn't work again. The form of Murphy is a real concern. Not only does he look physically slow, but he seems slow in thought on the pitch. Sitting on an expensive two-year contract, one really does wonder if he offers value for money. More and more supporters are beginning to voice their opinions of him during games, which, considering the silly money that the Rovers are paying for his services, is understandable. Lowe simply doesn't have the technique to play as a creative midfield playmaker. Perhaps sitting in front of the back four as defensive cover might be a better option for the youngster. Mauro Formica was withdrawn at half-time, not that anyone would have noticed his absence, and although Fabio Nunes made one or two decent runs, he let himself down with a succession of indifferent crosses. In attack Colin Kazim-Richards looked the more dangerous threat, while Jordan Rhodes again struggled to make his mark on the game. The lad clearly needs service and, one suspects, needs to play alongside a target man — something the Rovers don't have with Best being injured. The decision to keep Nuno Gomes on the bench was a mystery, but, then again, the decision to keep Danny Murphy on the pitch all season has been the biggest mystery of all. Quite how he can be selected ahead of David Dunn or Morten Gamst Pedersen I'm not sure. The international break now provides the Rovers with the opportunity to take stock of the situation and decide the direction in which they want to go. One thing is certain and that is that things have to change if Venky's demands for an instant return to the Premier League are to be met. On the evidence of the first ten games the Rovers are a long way off being viable promotion candidates. Teams Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson; Grant Hanley, Scott Dann, Gael Givet; Bradley Orr, Jason Lowe (Dickson Etuhu 71), Mauro Formica (Fabio Nunes 46), Danny Murphy, Martin Olsson; Colin Kazim-Richards, Jordan Rhodes Subs not used: Jake Kean (gk), David Dunn, Morten Gamst Pedersen, Nuno Gomes, Ruben Rochina Caretaker Manager: Eric Black Wolverhampton Wanderers Carl Ikeme; Roger Johnson, Richard Stearman (Anthony Forde 53), Christophe Berra, Kevin Foley; Karl Henry, Stephen Ward, David Davis (Ronald Zubar 61) Tongo Hamed Doumbia, Bakary Sako; Sylvan Ebanks-Blake (Danny Batth 87) Subs not used: Aaron McCarey (gk), Frank Nouble, Eggert Jonsson, Georg Margreitter Manager: Stale Solbakken Bookings Blackburn Rovers – None Wolverhampton Wanderers – Karl Henry, Bakary Sako Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Bristol City (1) 3 – 5 (1) Blackburn Rovers Adomah 1, Pearson 70, Baldock 83 Rhodes 28, 90 + 5, Nuno Gomes 55, Rochina 82, Dann 90 + 3 Referee: G. Scott Attendance: 14,657 After the game Steve Kean was quoted as saying "I thought the performance was good. I don't think our defending as a team was great, just like at Leeds. To concede six goals away from home in those two games was poor, but four points from those two games is excellent. Today we'll enjoy going top of the league and we'll enjoy getting three points on the road." One suspects that few of the travelling fans from Lancashire who were at Ashton Gate will disagree with that summary. There were times when the Rovers played some superb football and going forward they constantly posed a threat to a team that had opened their home campaign with a 4-1 win over Crystal Palace and a 4-2 win over Cardiff City. Defensively, the Rovers still look vulnerable down the flanks, but because of their own firepower they are getting away with defensive lapses. If these shortcomings can be overcome, then the Rovers must have a decent chance of promotion. However, it must be noted that having a strong squad is no guarantee of automatic promotion as West Ham found out last season. Nonetheless, the quality in the Rovers' ranks must stand them in good stead for the battles that lie ahead. Whatever the future may hold, there can be no denying that this was a match to savour and one that will last long in the memory no matter what the outcome of the season as a whole. Steve Kean made one change to the team which had started against Leeds United, with Bradley Orr returning against one of his former clubs. Bruno Ribeiro switched to the right side of midfield and Mauro Formica dropped down to the bench. Visits to Ashton Gate have rarely been happy affairs with the last league victory coming on the 13 April 1909 when Billy ‘Tinker' Davies grabbed all four goals in a 4-1 win. The last time that the Rovers visited Ashton Gate was in August 1991 when a goal by Wayne Allison was sufficient to condemn the Rovers to defeat. Within a minute the home side had taken the lead and it looked as if the Rovers' bogey ground would strike again. The opening goal was a pretty tame affair coming from a throw-in on the right which Jon Stead held up before slipping the ball to Albert Adomah. The winger somehow found the corner of the net with a fairly innocuous shot which seemed to take a deflection on its way into the net. The goal certainly rocked the Rovers and the opening period found City enjoying the majority of possession as they looked to build on the lead. Former Manchester United and Cardiff City 'keeper Tom Heaton was finally called into action when Nuno Gomes played in Jordan Rhodes and the 'keeper was forced to make a good save. Just as the Rovers were starting to find their feet, they received another blow when Markus Olsson limped off the field with a hamstring injury and was replaced by his brother Martin. Ironically, the Swedish international was the next to test Heaton when he popped up in the outside-right position and wove his way into the area and fired in a decent effort which Heaton saved at his near post. Heaton then denied another effort from Nuno Gomes before the Portuguese international played the ball forward and, after Liam Fontaine missed it, Jordan Rhodes latched onto the pass and ran clear of a static defence. As Heaton came to meet him, the Scottish striker slotted home. As half-time approached, the Rovers suffered another blow when Gael Givet limped off and was replaced by Grant Hanley. Stead might have opened the scoring at the start of the second half, but his shot lacked power and Orr had little difficulty in clearing the ball. Rhodes then fired in a wickedly swerving effort which Heaton did well to beat away. The Rovers took the lead on 55 minutes with a well-worked goal that saw Dickson Etuhu play the ball to Rhodes, who showed great composure to hold the ball up before slipping it to Nuno Gomes. Once again, the Portuguese striker showed his class with a quick shot on the turn which beat Heaton and found the corner of the net. The goal capped a period of play in which the Rovers totally dominated possession with Etuhu and Danny Murphy in control of the centre of the field aided by the hardworking Ribeiro and Morten Gamst Pedersen. Bristol gradually started to push the Rovers further back thanks to their pace down the flanks. Adomah, who was a constant threat with his speed, skipped past Olsson and Pedersen and then found Stephen Pearson, who drilled the ball into the bottom corner of the net from no more than twelve yards out. Once again, the inability of the Rovers to stop crosses cost them dear. With two home games on the horizon, Kean wisely took Nuno Gomes off after 78 minutes and gave Ruben Rochina another opportunity to impress. The young Spaniard was quickly into the action and embarked on an impressive run from his own half straight into the Bristol City penalty area. Although he had good options on either side of him, he seemed to dally too long on the ball and just as he was about to be closed down he somehow shifted position and managed to fire the ball into the top corner of the net. It was a superb piece of individualism and looked to have clinched the points with only eight minutes remaining. However, the home side refused to accept defeat and within a minute they were level once more. Sam Baldock, who had signed from West Ham United last month, came off the bench and lifted the home crowd with a superb strike from the edge of the area. The Rovers then tried to reclaim their lead, but a header from Hanley lacked sufficient power to trouble Heaton, while the officials contrived to miss what appeared to be a blatant handball by a home defender in the penalty area. As the game moved into injury time, the Rovers gained the rewards which their display thoroughly deserved. On 93 minutes a corner was cleared, but the ball came to Pedersen, who whipped a dangerous ball back into the area and Scott Dann was on hand to lash the ball into the back of the net. It was the type of finish that any striker would have been proud of. Bristol then threw everything at the Rovers and Heaton popped up in the Rovers area trying to head home a corner. However, the ball was cleared to Rhodes, who raced forward and tried, unsuccessfully, to find an empty net from just inside the Bristol half. Fortunately, the Scottish international was far more clinical on 95 minutes when he received a pass from Etuhu and raced clear. Many might have expected him to head for the corner flag to see out the remaining minutes, but the striker had other ideas and headed into the area and then bent the ball into the far corner of the net with Heaton at full stretch and unable to reach it. It was a goal that was reminiscent of Shearer at his best. The final whistle was greeted with huge celebrations by the manager and his players on the pitch and the huge travelling support from Lancashire. Kean urged his players to the fans who were happily chanting "Top of the league". Defensively, the Rovers still have problems, particularly in the full-back berths. However, Scott Dann had a decent game and with a fully fit Gael Givet the Rovers might have a solid central defensive pairing. The problems, however, stem largely from the flanks and, once again, Bradley Orr had a disappointing game, while Martin Olsson looked more impressive going forward. The midfield seems to be improving with Dickson Etuhu looking much fitter and covering more and more ground while Danny Murphy sits and simply keeps the play ticking over and then launches passes which are capable of opening up defences, particularly at this level. Both Bruno Ribeiro and Morten Gamst Pedersen worked hard in the wide positions. Ribeiro kept possession and combined well with Nuno Gomes and Murphy and Dickson in midfield. If Pedersen was a little more wasteful in possession, it was because he was trying to put balls over the defence for Rhodes and Olsson to run onto. In attack Nuno Gomes gets better with every game. This guy is a class act and at the moment Kean is being sensible in bringing him off between the 60- and 80-minute mark and thus saving his legs. Once again, his finish for his goal was sheer class and, of course, he also had a hand in the opening goal. He is not only a goalscorer but also a creator of goals and keeping him fit may well decide how successful the Rovers ultimately become this campaign. Jordan Rhodes had a wonderful game and at times had a look of a young Shearer about him. He seems to have pace and power, vital ingredients for a striker, but his hold-up play and ability to bring others into the game was very encouraging. His first goal was a wonderful piece of opportunism whilst his second was simply sublime. Ruben Rochina produced an impressive little cameo and scored a superb goal. Although I have not been amongst his biggest fans, he seemed more attuned to the needs of the team on this occasion. However, with Rhodes and Nuno Gomes in such excellent form, one feels he will have to bide his time on the bench for a while longer. Although it's early days, this was an impressive performance and the manager can take some satisfaction with regard to the points that the Rovers have claimed thus far. There has been much talk of targets in recent days, but at the moment the manager is bang on target in terms of gaining the points needed for promotion. Of course, this is the Rovers and with two home games on the horizon this week it can quickly go wrong. However, for the moment I, for one, am more than happy to spend a couple of days basking in the warmth of a thrilling performance and being top of the league. Teams Bristol City Tom Heaton; Richard Foster, Louis Carey, Liam Fontaine, Greg Cunningham; Stephen Pearson, Cole Skuse, Martyn Woolford (Paul Anderson 83); Albert Adomah, Jon Stead (Sam Baldock 64), Ryan Taylor (Steven Davies) Subs not used: Dean Gerken (gk), James Wilson, Neil Kilkenny, Marvin Elliott Manager: Derek McInnes Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson; Bradley Orr, Scott Dann, Gael Givet (Grant Hanley 37), Markus Olsson (Martin Olsson 21); Bruno Ribeiro, Danny Murphy, Dickson Etuhu, Morten Gamst Pedersen; Nuno Gomes (Ruben Rochina 78); Jordan Rhodes Subs not used: Jake Kean (gk), David Dunn, Paulo Jorge, Mauro Formica Manager: Steve Kean Bookings Bristol City – None Blackburn Rovers – None Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Leeds United (1) 3 – 3 (2) Blackburn Rovers Diouf 41, McCormack 56, Becchio 65 Olsson 19, Gomes 27, Rochina 84 Referee: N. Swarbrick Attendance: 24,411 This was the archetypical game of two halves. For the opening forty-five minutes the Rovers looked completely at ease as they stroked the ball around and played with a confidence not seen for some time. The magical left foot of Morten Gamst Pedersen continually opened up the home defence and he had a hand in both of the Rovers' opening goals, which were superbly finished by Markus Olsson and Nuno Gomes. Such was the dominance of the Rovers during this opening period that one really couldn't see Leeds getting back into the game until, of course, former Rover El-Hadji Diouf popped up, just before half-time, to reduce the arrears. In the second half Leeds looked a totally different proposition. Whereas they had earlier seemed in awe of the Rovers, giving Steve Kean's men time and space in which to play, they suddenly started to close the Rovers down, tackles became more robust and a general sense of urgency now filled their ranks. Goals from Ross McCormack and Luciano Becchio turned the match on its head and for a time it looked as though Neil Warnock's side would totally overrun the Rovers. Fortunately, Ruben Rochina, who had been his usual frustrating self since his arrival as substitute, provided a moment of impudence that snatched a point that was the very least that Steve Kean's team deserved for their first-half performance. After the disappointing performance against MK Dons, the manager opted for a more experienced line-up against Leeds and, as expected, Jordan Rhodes was given his debut following his £8 million move from Huddersfield Town. Kean also rewarded Bruno Ribeiro for his recent impressive performances by giving him the right-back berth ahead of Bradley Orr. Jason Lowe also dropped down to the bench as Mauro Formica was given the nod on the right of midfield. On a pleasantly warm and sunny afternoon the Rovers immediately took the game to Leeds and Pedersen forced a decent save out of Paddy Kenny. The Rovers suffered a blow after only ten minutes when Scott Dann had to leave the field, to be replaced by Grant Hanley, while Gael Givet picked up a knock which saw him limp through the rest of the match. Nuno Gomes was the next to try his luck from long range, but once again Kenny was equal to it and safely gathered the ball in by the foot of a post. However, the pressure finally told after 19 minutes when Olsson gave the Rovers the lead. The ball was worked to Pedersen on the left and the Norwegian international played a delightful ball with his left foot which set Olsson free behind the home defence. As he cut in from the left wing he had both Gomes and Rhodes waiting in the centre of the area but opted to go it alone and drilled the ball low and hard past Kenny into the opposite corner of the net. Eight minutes later the Rovers had doubled their lead and, once again, Pedersen was at the heart of the move. He again fed Olsson on the left wing with another peach of a pass and the Swedish youngster again raced forward, but on this occasion, instead of going for goal, he pulled the ball back for Gomes to beat Kenny with a pinpoint effort. The Rovers looked increasingly comfortable as Leeds had no answer to the quick interplay between the likes of Pedersen, Olsson, Murphy, Etuhu and Gomes. Sadly, the Rovers were unable to convert this possession into further goals and although he looked neat and tidy with the ball, Rhodes struggled to make much impression in the penalty area. As the half drew to a close, the home side found an extra spark thanks to the promptings of Diouf. The former Rover, who had switched wings and suddenly popped up on the left, started to win a few rather generous free-kicks in the way only Diouf can. From one of these the Rovers failed to clear their lines and when the ball was played back in, Paul Robinson seemed to be impeded as he came to punch the ball away. Under pressure he failed to make a proper connection and Diouf prodded home from close range. The Senegalese international might well have had a second just a couple of minutes later but for a wonderful tip over the bar from Robinson when he looked to be beaten. Leeds came out for the second half a totally different side to the one that had started the game. Initially they had seemed in awe of the Rovers, but clearly Neil Warnock had dispelled any such thoughts during the interval. Leeds now began to press the Rovers in a way which they hadn't previously and, combined with some hefty challenges, they began to knock the Rovers off their stride. Danny Murphy and Dickson Etuhu began to struggle to keep a grip in the centre, whilst Givet, who was clearly not fully recovered from a first-half knock, was not his dominant self and Hanley, who had been poor against MK Dons, continued to struggle. However, when Leeds did equalise on 56 minutes, the goal was surrounded in controversy. A ball from Drury was about to be headed clear by Givet, but the French international received a nudge in the back which meant he missed the ball, which ran through for McCormack. With Hanley too far away to cover his partner, McCormack took the ball on and then smashed it past the helpless Robinson. On 65 minutes Leeds stormed into the lead and, once again, Diouf had a hand in the goal. When a half-cleared free-kick found its way to Diouf on the right wing, he merely lifted the ball to the far post where Becchio was on hand to head home. At the time he looked suspiciously offside, but the linesman, who was looking right along the line, deemed it to be onside. Apart from a shot from Gomes which flew narrowly over the bar, the Rovers were now non-existent as an attacking force. Murphy was struggling to maintain a grip in midfield and was being harried into making mistakes. Etuhu began to drop deeper and Rhodes became increasingly isolated. Leeds continued to up the tempo and had a goal disallowed as they dominated possession. In a bid to stem the tide, Kean switched Lowe, who had earlier replaced Formica, and Ribeiro. Six minutes from time the Rovers snatched an equaliser from a Pedersen corner. When the ball fell to Rochina, he had his back to goal, but a cheeky back-heeled effort caught everyone by surprise and found the back of the net. Both sides had chances to win it in the closing stages. Another wonderful flowing move by the Rovers ended with Etuhu racing through and firing narrowly over. At the other end Diouf ought to have scored, but Olsson's last-ditch challenge resulted in the Leeds man firing over. A point each was probably a fair result as both sides enjoyed spells of dominance during the game. The Rovers completely overran Leeds during the opening forty minutes and really ought to have put the game to bed, such was their superiority. In the second half, Leeds looked a different team and denied the Rovers the time and space in which to play. Although it looked as if he was fouled, Robinson will probably be disappointed with the first Leeds goal but was left totally exposed for the other two goals. He did well enough on his return to Elland Road and his first-half save from Diouf was outstanding. Bruno Ribeiro had another neat and tidy game at full-back and did well when he was moved further forward late in the game. Markus Olsson had an outstanding game at left-back and was, once again, the only serious threat in terms of pace that the Rovers had. He linked up well with Morten Gamst Pedersen, who was my man of the match. Pedersen was continually able to pick up the runs of Olsson in a manner that was very reminiscent of Dave Wagstaffe and a young John Bailey many moons ago. In the centre of defence the Rovers were disrupted by injuries to Scott Dann and Gael Givet. Grant Hanley replaced Dann but once again looked very shaky and at the moment there is no doubt that Dann and Givet are the strongest centre-back pairing. In the centre of midfield Danny Murphy and Dickson Etuhu started very well, but in the second half Murphy tired and Etuhu sat increasingly deeper as Leeds pushed forward. Mauro Formica, who has been disappointing up to this point, had one of his better games today and looked very impressive during the first half. He seemed to reveal a greater appetite for work and linked up play very well on the right. As I said earlier, Pedersen was outstanding and almost scored direct from a corner on one occasion as well as having a major hand in the opening two goals. Nuno Gomes again showed that he is a class act with a superb strike for the second goal. He is still adjusting to the pace of English football and, like Murphy, is going to have to be used sparingly at times during the course of the season. However, in terms of playing in the hole behind the main striker, there is no doubt that at the moment he is the best-equipped player for this role. Jordan Rhodes had a fairly quiet debut. He looked neat and tidy in possession but never threatened to do any damage to the Leeds defence. Clearly it is going to take time to adjust to the Rovers' system of play. Ruben Rochina will capture the headlines with his cheeky back-heeled effort, but once again his poor decision-making was a cause of frustration for fans and teammates alike. His insistence on shooting from long range when colleagues are in better positions is a continuing cause of concern. Less of the individualism and more awareness of the team dynamic would greatly enhance his opportunities for a starting place. Whilst some might see this as two points dropped, I left Elland Road feeling that this was a point gained. Indeed, for the first time this season I left a ground feeling genuinely optimistic about the prospects for the season. Having gone behind, it was a test of the team's resolve and, fortunately, they weren't found wanting. The Championship is going to be a battle, in every sense of the word, and today the Rovers will have gained an insight into what is going to be required over the course of a season. As well as playing football, which they did well for forty minutes, there is going to be a need to be able to dig in and defend a narrow lead, something which they have been unable to do so far. Nonetheless, eight points from four games is a pretty decent return under the circumstances and is exactly the type of return needed for an automatic promotion place. It is, of course, early days as yet, but the signs are encouraging in that the Rovers find themselves second in the table without being at their best for the course of a full ninety minutes. Finally, a word of praise for El-Hadji Diouf, who received a warm welcome from the Rovers fans and who, in turn, showed his appreciation to the travelling support. If only the manager had been able to handle him and deal with one or two other strong characters, one suspects that we would not now be sampling Championship football. However, that is the past and promotion has to be the aim to safeguard the long-term future of the club. Thus far, the points return has been better than many, including myself, expected. At the end of the season if we can return to the top flight, I suspect few will complain about how it was achieved. Teams Leeds United Paddy Kenny; Lee Peltier, Tom Lees, Jason Pearce, Adam Drury; El-Hadji Diouf, Rodolph Austin, David Norris, Luke Varney (Sam Byram 90); Luciano Becchio, Ross McCormack Subs not used: Jamie Ashdown (gk), Paddy Kisnorbo, Aidan White, Michael Brown, Andy Gray, Dominic Poleon Manager: Neil Warnock Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson; Bruno Ribeiro, Scott Dann (Grant Hanley 10), Gael Givet, Markus Olsson; Mauro Formica (Jason Lowe 55), Danny Murphy, Dickson Etuhu, Morten Gamst Pedersen; Nuno Gomes (Ruben Rochina 75); Jordan Rhodes Subs not used: Jake Kean (gk), Bradley Orr, Paulo Jorge, Edinho Manager: Steve Kean Bookings Leeds United – Adam Drury, Luke Varney Blackburn Rovers – Mauro Formica, Grant Hanley, Dickson Etuhu Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Capital One Cup 2nd Round MK Dons(0) 2 – 1 (0)Blackburn Rovers Chadwick 52, 68 Goodwillie 82 Referee: M. Russell Attendance: 5,873 Let there be no mistake – this was not a giant-killing act. For that to take place there needs to be a giant in the vicinity. Forget the manager for a moment — difficult, I know, but try to look past him — and have a close look at what some would have us believe is one of the strongest squads in the Championship. The manager gave the opportunity for this strong squad to flex its muscles at the stadium:mk against League One opposition and the result was a complete and utter embarrassment. The manager tells us that he is buying the players, whilst our global advisor tells us that the purchase of players falls under his remit. The question I would ask is not who is actually buying them but who is scouting for these players. Clearly whoever is recommending them has no grasp of the qualities required to succeed in English football. One might forgive our recently recruited Iberian brethren for not being up to speed, although judging by the ineptness of their performances in this game, one suspects it might well be some time before they are ready for the rigours of Championship football. However, Messrs Formica and Rochina have been here for eighteen months and yet still can't adapt their game to the requirements of English football. Formica does a passable impression of the invisible man: you knew he was on the pitch because the stadium announcer told us when he entered the fray, but he was damned difficult to find for the spectators let alone his colleagues on the pitch. Rochina, our former Barcelona prima donna, is little more than a show pony whose main contribution is a series of flicks and tricks that usually end in abject failure. Most of this game he spent falling to the ground in spectacular fashion and looking aghast when the referee didn't award him free-kicks for fairly routine and legitimate challenges. Fortunately, Steve Kean spared us the embarrassment of having both of these so-called "prospects" on the pitch at the same time! MK Dons thoroughly deserved their win as they were the better team in every department. Karl Robinson has built a team that is quick, inventive and thoroughly entertaining. By comparison, the Rovers were lacklustre in the extreme. Slow in thought and execution with a passion for passing backwards and sideways, the Rovers players looked devoid of any attacking ideas. The fact that, Olsson apart, none of the Rovers players possesses that vital ingredient of pace probably explains why we played in front of the home defence instead of trying to get behind them. Again, this surely comes back to the scouting of players, and to continually sign players who lack pace is unforgivable. That a former "Claret" should apply the coup de grâce merely added insult to injury for the small band of supporters who had travelled down from Lancashire to witness the latest embarrassment for a once proud club. However, the Rovers presented the opportunities to Chadwick, with Grant Hanley being badly at fault for the first goal and Jake Kean handing him the second one. David Goodwillie's late consolation proved too little, too late and the home side had little difficulty in seeing out the game. The manager made several changes from the side which was rather fortune to beat Leicester City on Saturday. Jake Kean, Bradley Orr, Grant Hanley, Simon Vukcevic, Paulo Jorge, Ruben Rochina and Fabio Nunes all came into the starting eleven. The home side were without the suspended Dean Lewington and had a couple of regulars missing through injury. MK Dons quickly showed their intentions when they took the game to the Rovers straight from the kick-off. Charlie MacDonald found Daniel Powell on the right wing and the impressive young winger worked his way into the area and drilled a low shot towards the far corner of the net which Kean did well to parry to safety. As a personal aside, the performance of Powell left me wondering why we are obsessed with bringing youngsters in from abroad who have yet to taste first-team football and yet we seem to ignore the talent that is on view in the lower leagues in this country. The Rovers then had a wonderful opportunity to take the lead when Nunes got into the area and pulled the ball back for Edinho in front of an open goal. However, instead of blasting the ball home the youngster tried to be too precise and his effort lacked sufficient power and was cleared off the line. Until Goodwillie's late effort, this was as close as the Rovers would come to scoring. The game quickly settled into a pattern which saw the Rovers content to keep possession with a series of backwards and sideways passes without ever threatening to test the home defence. MK Dons, in contrast, worked the ball into positions where they were able to play in their wingers, who continually tested the Rovers' full-backs and often found them wanting. MK Dons continually pressed the Rovers further and further back as the men from Ewood found it difficult to contain the lively League One outfit. Crosses fizzed across the Rovers area and Kean looked increasingly jittery in goal. Chadwick fired over with the Rovers defence all at sea and Kean was then called upon to push another Chadwick effort clear for a corner. The Rovers managed to reach the sanctuary of the dressing room at half-time on equal terms but were distinctly second best in every department. The second half began in the same way with MK Dons probing for an opening and the Rovers looking sluggish and disinterested. On 52 minutes the home side got the breakthrough that their play thoroughly deserved. Grant Hanley and Jon Ostemobor set off in a race for the ball as it was heading towards the byline. Hanley tried to usher the ball out of play, but Ostemobor was far too quick for him and nicked the ball from Hanley whilst brushing him aside. The Scottish international defender stumbled to the floor and Ostemobor cut the ball back for Chadwick to calmly fire home past Kean. It was a clumsy piece of defending from Hanley, who endured a torrid time all evening. As the half wore on, more and more of the Rovers players simply faded as they found the energetic pass-and-move game of the MK Dons too quick for them. Edinho, who again gave a good impression of "little boy lost", was withdrawn in favour of Goodwillie, while Jason Lowe replaced Dickson Etuhu. However, the changes did nothing to alter the course of the game, with the home side dominating possession and continually threatening to score a second, whilst the Rovers struggled to make any headway going forwards. Out of the blue, Goodwillie fired a long-range effort just over to give the small band of followers from Lancashire something to cheer. However, this proved to be only a minor blip in the home side's dominance and on 68 minutes the Dons scored a second goal. Another excellent move presented Powell with a shooting chance and his effort wasn't held by Kean but merely parried to the feet of Chadwick, who had no difficulty in accepting the gift and slotting the ball home. The game was as good as up for the Rovers at that point and the cries of "Kean Out", which had been few and far between up that point, increased. Rochina was mercifully withdrawn after another inept performance, but the introduction of Formica did nothing to alter the course of the match. Indeed, Formica quickly did his usual vanishing act until the dying minutes when he headed a decent chance onto the roof of the net. With eight minutes remaining, the Rovers did find the back of the net with one of their few decent moves of the night. Nunes, for once, managed to get behind the defence on the left and when he whipped in his cross, Goodwillie stole in to nod home from close range. One might have expected or at least hoped that this would spark a late revival, but sadly not. The Dons continued to dominate right up to the end, with Formica's late headed attempt the nearest that the Rovers came to grabbing a second and taking the game into extra time. In truth the win was nothing less than the MK Dons deserved. They were by far the superior side and that must surely be a cause of concern for the Rovers management. This was not a case of the tactics being wrong so much as the personnel on view were simply not good enough to compete with a League One side. Kean looked a bundle of nerves in goal, while Hanley had a nightmare in the centre of defence and did nothing to enhance his claims for a regular starting role. His error for the opening goal was crucial and really quite basic. Having all the time in the world to have cleared the ball, he opted to be too clever and tried to see the ball over the line as defenders tend to do. On this occasion he came up against an opponent who was stronger and quicker and paid the price. Scott Dann tried to hold the fort, but with Bradley Orr and Hanley having a poor night he got little help. Marcus Olsson looked decent going forward and was the only player who was prepared to try to get behind the home defence. The fact that he was the only Rovers player on view with any pace perhaps explains why he was our most dangerous attacker. However, his role last night was full-back and with Nunes not prepared to cover when Olsson went forward, there were gaping holes down the left of the Rovers' defence which the MK Dons were only too willing to exploit to the full. The midfield was the area where the Rovers were totally pedestrian. Vukcevic started promisingly but faded, Jorge did likewise, Etuhu struggled to try to keep the play moving but was fighting a losing battle, while Nunes is yet another winger with no pace. The result was that the team went backwards rather than forwards and the players seemed unable to either run at the opposition or try to pass the ball through them. The result was that they opted for the safety of passing back to an unmarked defender who then, nine times out of ten, launched it forward straight to the opposition. In attack the Rovers were woeful. Rochina was abject, while Edinho is simply not up to the job he is being asked to do. Formica was every bit as inept as Rochina when he came on, while Goodwillie did at least have a shot at goal and, of course, was on the spot to head the ball home. Perhaps the most worrying aspect of this display is that with only three days left to the closing of the transfer window, the Rovers are still woefully short of quality in every department. The squad may well be big in terms of numbers, but it really is dreadfully short of quality. At the moment one feels that the issue regarding the manager is hiding the fact that many of the foreign players who are being brought in are going to take time to adjust to English football and time is the one commodity that the Rovers simply don't have. Teams MK Dons David Martin; Jon Otsemobor, Gary MacKenzie, Shaun Williams, Adam Chicksen; Darren Potter, Stephen Gleeson; Daniel Powell, Luke Chadwick (Jay O'Shea 76), Dean Bowditch (Jabo Ibehre 90); Charlie MacDonald (Ryan Lowe 74) Subs not used: Ian McLoughlin (gk), Dele Alli, Brendan Galloway Manager: Karl Robinson Blackburn Rovers Jake Kean; Bradley Orr, Scott Dann, Grant Hanley, Marcus Olsson; Simon Vukcevic, Dickson Etuhu (Jason Lowe 59), Paulo Jorge, Fabio Nunes; Ruben Rochina (Mauro Formica 65); Edinho (David Goodwillie 59) Subs not used: Sebastian Usai (gk), Josh Morris, Martin Olsson, Bruno Ribeiro Manager: Steve Kean Bookings MK Dons – None Blackburn Rovers – None Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Blackburn Rovers (1) 2 – 1 (0) Leicester City Gomes 33, Pedersen 79 Vardy 55 Referee: R. Madeley Attendance: 13,935 If picking up points while playing poorly is a recipe for promotion, then Steve Kean might have finally cracked this managerial game. After three performances which have ranged from indifferent to the downright awful, the Rovers sit third in the table with an impressive seven points from three games. Quite how Leicester City left Ewood Park pointless is a mystery, but nonetheless the fact remains that the Rovers have now beaten one of the promotion favourites with what was undoubtedly their poorest performance thus far. One suspects that after this impressive start, in terms of points, those awaiting the departure of the manager may well have to wait a good deal longer. Not even his staunchest critics, and count me among them, can deny that seven points from nine is an impressive tally. Admittedly the football hasn't been great, but come next May if the Rovers are in the top two places, nobody is going to remember the quality of the football. The visitors dominated much of the game but were ultimately undone by two quality finishes from experienced internationals Nuno Gomes and Morten Gamst Pedersen. In between these goals the Rovers had committed their usual defensive blunder with Scott Dann being the guilty party on this occasion with a hopelessly underhit backpass which allowed Jamie Vardy, the former Fleetwood Town striker, to race through and slot the ball past the hapless Paul Robinson. The Rovers had to endure a nervy last ten minutes before the final whistle left many of the Ewood faithful convinced they had seen an act of daylight robbery right before their very eyes. Mind you — playing badly and winning is not a bad habit to fall into when you are chasing promotion! Once again, the manager was forced to make changes with Colin Kazim-Richards being joined on the injured list by Bradley Orr and David Dunn, while Fabio Nunes dropped down to the bench. Nuno Gomes and Morten Gamst Pedersen returned to the starting line-up, while Bruno Ribeiro made the first start of his Rovers career replacing Orr at right-back. The manager surprisingly overlooked David Goodwillie and opted to give Portuguese youngster Edinho his debut as the lone front runner. The Rovers began in similar fashion to Wednesday night in that they tried to keep possession with a series of passing movements which rarely threatened the visitors. Content to go backwards and sideways, the Rovers made little headway and Edinho, although full of youthful enthusiasm, struggled to make any impact on a rugged Leicester defence. As the game settled, it was the visitors who began to enjoy the greater share of the play and would have taken the lead on twelve minutes but for a wonderful point-blank save by Paul Robinson. A ball from the right from Ben Marshall was met by the head of David Nugent, but Robinson miraculously kept it out as he spread himself while moving across the goal-line. Leicester quickly started to find their attacking rhythm whilst the Rovers seemed disjointed and ill at ease. With Danny Murphy and Dickson Etuhu sitting deep and with Jason Lowe and Morten Gamst Pedersen lacking pace down the flanks, the Rovers struggled to make much impact as an attacking force. The visitors, by contrast, offered a continuous threat down the flanks, particularly Lloyd Dyer on the left wing, who was ably backed up by Paul Konchesky. Andy King looked a certain scorer, but somehow Dann managed to slide in at the last minute and block King's goal-bound effort. Fortunately, like Hull on Wednesday night, the visitors didn't make the most of their opportunities and paid the price for their wastefulness after 33 minutes when the Rovers took an unlikely lead. Gomes was the architect and the executioner of this goal. He initiated the move with a splendid ball to Jason Lowe on the right wing. Lowe, who had been largely disappointing in a wide position, escaped the attentions of Konchesky and found the oncoming Gomes in the centre. From 18 yards or so, the veteran Portuguese international struck the ball perfectly and found the bottom corner of the net. It was an exquisite finish which was not in keeping with the Rovers' performance up to that point. The visitors hit back and Robinson was called upon to make another good save to keep out a long-range effort from the lively Nugent. Steve Kean altered things at half-time with Edinho, who seemed rather overawed by the occasion, being withdrawn in favour of Goodwillie. A tactical switch resulted in Ribeiro and Lowe swapping positions as the manager tried to stem the flow from Leicester's left wing. Leicester continued to take the game to the Rovers and only a combination of Robinson and Ribeiro clearing the ball off the line kept the Rovers in front as they came under heavy pressure. Ribeiro seemed to revel in his move to midfield and was unfortunate to see a glancing header fail to find the back of the net. The Brazilian was showing some excellent touches on the right side of midfield and was always in the thick of the action. Leicester, however, were not to be denied and on 55 minutes they got the goal which their play deserved. However, once again, the Rovers were the architects of their own downfall. A fairly aimless ball was headed back by Gael Givet towards Dann. The former Birmingham City centre-back attempted to turn to knock the ball back to Robinson but failed to make proper contact. Vardy immediately took advantage of the situation and took the ball into the area before slotting it past Robinson and into the net. It was the softest of goals to give away and one which, at the time, looked as if it might be costly. The visitors looked the favourites to go on and win the game as the Rovers struggled to get their game together. Etuhu worked hard in the centre of midfield, but Murphy was struggling to get his radar right with his passing. Far too often his passes went astray, while his deadball kicks were disappointing to say the least. In attack, Goodwillie made little impact as he struggled to get to grips with the pace of the game. Things might have gone from bad to worse for the Rovers after 75 minutes but for the intervention of a linesman's flag. A cross from the right was met by the head of Vardy and the ball flew into the back of the net. While the Leicester players and fans celebrated, the linesman raised his flag to indicate that Vardy was fractionally offside. It was a tight call and one that could easily have gone the other way on another day. However, this was a day when Lady Luck was betrothed solely to the Rovers. With the game about to enter the final ten minutes, the Rovers grabbed the winner. Ruben Rochina, who had replaced Gomes, had a wildly optimistic effort on goal blocked, but the ball spun up and landed at the feet of Pedersen, who was lurking on the left of the penalty area. The Norwegian international cut in and curled a superb right-foot shot into the net off the far post. It was a moment of class from a player that so many are too eager to cast aside. Pedersen then ran to the dugout, where a walking stick was provided for him to make his point that there is still plenty of life left in this so-called "pensioner". Leicester poured forward in search of an equaliser, but the Rovers held firm. Indeed, on more than one occasion they caught the visitors on the break and if Rochina had been a little more intelligent in his decision-making, the margin of victory might well have been greater. As it was, Goodwillie managed to force Kasper Schmeichel into making a save when he broke into the area. Leicester will rightly feel aggrieved about the result, but once again we have seen that the quality of finishing is what might make all the difference in this league. Gomes and Pedersen both produced moments of genuine quality to score the goals which won the points, whilst the opposition simply couldn't convert possession into goals. Whilst the points are more than welcome, the fact remains that the Rovers are not playing particularly well and defensively the team as a whole seems unbalanced. With two sitting midfield players in Murphy and Etuhu, and with Lowe and Pedersen on the wings, the Rovers lack pace in the centre of the pitch. The Rovers looked better in the second half when Ribeiro moved into midfield and Lowe dropped back and Marcus Olsson provided some pace down the left when he got forward from his full-back position. Worryingly, the Rovers still look vulnerable down their flanks. In the first half in particular, the visitors were able to send over a steady stream of crosses which we seemed unable to prevent. With regard to individual displays, the star of the show was undoubtedly Bruno Ribeiro, who, particularly in the second half when he was moved into midfield, showed a decent touch and an ability to retain possession and cause the opposition problems. Although Murphy wasn't at his best, both he and Etuhu look comfortable in the centre of the park but need to get forward rather more than they are doing at present. On the wings neither Lowe nor Pedersen have the pace to trouble the opposition, although Pedersen showed that he can produce moments of quality that can win matches at this level. In attack young Edinho got his first taste of senior football but understandably struggled to make much impact. He was bought for the future and at this present time is simply not ready to lead the line on his own, particularly as the Rovers are not firing on all cylinders at the moment. Playing just behind Edinho, Gomes showed some neat touches and his finish was a moment of quality. Both Goodwillie and Rochina were given outings from the bench but merely showed why they are not in the starting eleven at the moment. The Championship is a league which requires, first and foremost, a certain work ethic and at the moment both Goodwillie and Rochina are not quite achieving that. Goodwillie made some intelligent runs as the game went on, but his lack of pace is a serious handicap. Rochina is clearly gifted, but his decision-making is questionable and his habit of losing possession with fancy flicks has proved costly in the past and was nearly so again on one occasion in this game. With a greater level of discipline to his game, he might well prove a valuable member of the squad, but at the moment there is too much of the maverick about him. Once again, the attendance was very disappointing with only Peterborough and Watford attracting fewer spectators. If, as Shebby said, Kean is to be judged on results, then the manager is likely to be at Ewood for some time to come and so low attendances and the lack of atmosphere that comes with that is something that all concerned are going to have to accept. However, there is no doubt that the manager will take some consolation from the fact that having played three games, and not really performed to their best in any of them, the Rovers sit third in the table with seven points from three games. If two points a game is the requirement for automatic promotion, then the Rovers have ended their first week of Championship football on course to achieve that goal. Teams Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson; Bruno Ribeiro, Scott Dann, Gael Givet, Marcus Olsson; Jason Lowe, Danny Murphy, Dickson Etuhu, Morten Gamst Pedersen; Nuno Gomes (Ruben Rochina 77); Edinho (David Goodwillie 46) Subs not used: Jake Kean (gk), Grant Hanley, Paulo Jorge, Mauro Formica, Fabio Nunes Manager: Steve Kean Leicester City Kasper Schmeichel; Ritchie De Laet, Wes Morgan, Liam Moore, Paul Konchesky; Ben Marshall (Jermaine Beckford 90), Danny Drinkwater (Neil Danns 76), Andy King, Lloyd Dyer (Anthony Knockaert 69); David Nugent, Jamie Vardy Subs not used: Conrad Logan (gk), Martyn Waghorn, Matty James, Jeffrey Schlupp Manager: Nigel Pearson Bookings Blackburn Rovers – Danny Murphy Leicester City – Ritchie De Laet Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Blackburn Rovers (0) 1 – 0 (0) Hull City Kazim-Richards 75 Referee: T. Bates Attendance: 13,562 A vital three points were gained in the first home match of the season, but Steve Kean was left to rue the possible loss of goalscorer Colin Kazim-Richards for Saturday's important clash with Leicester City. Kazim-Richards, who'd notched his second goal of the season to clinch the points, limped off near the end and if he is not fit for the weekend, the Rovers' wafer-thin resources in the forward department will be stretched to breaking point. With a tricky cup tie at MK Dons on Tuesday and a trip to Elland Road the following weekend, Steve Kean simply cannot afford to have any more injuries to key personnel. The manager made three changes to the starting line-up by dropping Morten Gamst Pedersen and Nuno Gomes to the bench, while the club reported that Mauro Formica was missing due to illness. Marcus Olsson came in at left-back with Jason Lowe switching to his more familiar midfield role, albeit on the right-wing. David Dunn came in for Gomes, while Fabio Nunes made his debut on the left wing. Steve Bruce opted for a fairly defensive line-up with three centre-backs, including his son and former Rover Alex, with no fewer than half a dozen players occupying midfield berths. Thus, when the Rovers had possession, the visitors simply dropped their wing-backs into the full-back positions and denied space for the Rovers to exploit. It was a strategy that worked extremely well for 75 minutes until Kazim-Richards broke the deadlock. [caption id=attachment_4996" align="alignright" width="189] Colin Kazim Richards © cn174[/caption] The first half was a fairly forgettable affair with the Rovers enjoying long spells of possession but without ever threatening the Hull goal. Some neat interplay between Lowe and Dunn presented Kazim-Richards with a sharp chance, but his shot was wide. That effort came in the opening minutes, but for the rest of the half Ben Amos, on loan from Manchester United, had little to do in the Hull goal. The visitors had spells when they threatened to create something, but often the final pass was woeful or the shot was well off target. In midfield Dickson Etuhu cut an imposing figure and provided the sort of defensive cover and ball-winning attributes that have been missing for so long in that particular department of the Rovers team. Danny Murphy tried to keep things ticking over with his usual array of passes, but Hull's defensive line-up meant that Kazim-Richards struggled to find as much space as he had done at Portman Road at the weekend. The result was that Murphy became increasingly frustrated as a number of his passes came to nothing and the Rovers struggled to create any clear-cut chances. Indeed, it was Paul Robinson who was called upon to make the first real save of the game when he had to beat away a powerful effort from Nick Proschwitz on 25 minutes. Although the Rovers enjoyed the greater share of possession, it was Hull who started to look the more dangerous as half-time approached. The visitors really ought to have profited from a superb cross from Liam Rosenior while Abdoulaye Faye out-muscled his markers but headed over from a corner. Robinson was then called into action to save from Robert Koren. The Rovers players left the field at the end of forty-five minutes to a chorus of boos from the Ewood faithful, who were greatly reduced in number. The visitors produced another scare early in the second half when Joe Dudgeon arrived at the far post to meet another cross from Rosenior. However, by the time the ball reached him, he was at the tightest of angles and could only put the ball into the sidenetting. [caption id=attachment_4998" align="alignleft" width="300] Nunu Gomes © cn174[/caption] Steve Kean attempted to instil some urgency into his side with the introduction of Nuno Gomes to operate behind Kazim-Richards in place of David Dunn. A second switch saw Bruno Ribeiro make his long-delayed debut, coming on to play at left-back, which enabled Olsson to move forward to use his pace on the left wing. It was somewhat ironic that the first meaningful shot that Amos had to save came from Ribeiro, who took the ball forward on the left before cutting inside to fire a right-foot shot which Amos saved at the foot of the post. The goal came with just 15 minutes remaining. Etuhu played the ball towards the far post, where Gomes managed to chest the ball down and then flick it back towards Olsson. Unfortunately, the young Swedish international was unable to make a proper connection with the ball as he attempted to volley it into the net. Fortunately, the ball struck a defender and rebounded back to Olsson and then bounced off him into the path of Kazim-Richards and the Turkish international wasted no time in finding the back of the net. It was a scrambled affair but, nonetheless, a vital goal. Hull then pushed forward with a little more urgency and, in truth, created several good opportunities, but their finishing was desperately poor. The difference between Premier League and Championship football is clear for all to see and that is in the vital last third of the pitch. One suspects that Premier League sides would have taken at least one of the chances that Hull spurned. The final whistle was greeted with cheers of relief rather than the howls of disapproval that had come at the end of the first half. Whilst it was a far from convincing performance, the fact remains that it was a win. The clubs that win automatic promotion this season will be the two who can grind out maximum points without playing well. Thus far, the Rovers have managed four points from two games without playing at their best. The performance of Dickson Etuhu suggested that the Rovers might well have found the midfield anchorman that they have needed for so long. Bruno Ribeiro provided an encouraging cameo to suggest that he might yet have a role to play in the senior squad. Colin Kazim-Richards was in the right place at the right time to notch another goal, while Danny Murphy again impressed with his range of passing, albeit not as much as he had at Ipswich. There is no doubt that this squad is still very much a work in progress and if a realistic promotion challenge is to be mounted, then there is still work to do in the transfer market. A specialist left-back is a matter of urgency, while another striker is now the top priority if Kazim-Richards is out for any length of time. [caption id=attachment_4997" align="alignright" width="300] Empty Ewood © cn174[/caption] The lowest league attendance at Ewood Park since 1993 must be a cause of concern as must the lack of revenue from advertising, shirt sponsorship and hospitality packages. However, despite the problems, four points from two indifferent performances is encouraging, although one suspects that the Rovers will face their first real test of the season on Saturday with the visit of Leicester City. Nonetheless, one feels that Steve Kean will be fairly pleased with the points haul thus far as it will surely have bought him more time to try to rebuild the club's fortunes. Teams Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson; Bradley Orr, Scott Dann, Gael Givet, Marcus Olsson; Jason Lowe, Danny Murphy, Dickson Etuhu, Fabio Nunes (Nuno Gomes 61); David Dunn (Bruno Ribeiro 61); Colin Kazim-Richards (Morten Gamst Pedersen 84) Subs not used: Jake Kean (gk), Grant Hanley, Paulo Jorge, Edinho Manager: Steve Kean Hull City Ben Amos; James Chester, Abdoulaye Faye, Alex Bruce; Paul McKenna (Jay Simpson 83); Liam Rosenior (Aaron Mclean 86), Corry Evans (Tom Cairney 72), Robert Koren, Sone Aluko, Joe Dudgeon; Nick Proschwitz Subs not used: Mark Oxley (gk), Cameron Stewart, Paul McShane, Seyi Olofinjana Manager: Steve Bruce Bookings Blackburn Rovers – Colin Kazim-Richards Hull City – None Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Warrington Town (0) 0 – 1 (1) Rovers Reserves Sullivan (pen) 38 Referee: P. Mahon Attendance: N/A Gary Bowyer's Reserve side ended their pre-season campaign with a hard-fought victory over Warrington Town at their Cantilever Park ground. With the recent departures of Jordan Slew, Myles Anderson and Anthony O'Connor on loan and the transfer of Nick Blackman to Sheffield United, the Rovers had to make a number of changes to the team that had played in previous pre-season games. Kellen Daly and Jack O'Connell formed a new centre-back partnership, while Jamie Maclaren was asked to lead the forward line with Micah Evans and Osayamen Osawe providing the support from the wings. Although the Rovers enjoyed the greater possession throughout, they struggled to break down a well-organised Warrington side, particularly in the second half when the home team were strengthened by the arrival of the experienced Lee McEvilly. A first-half penalty settled matters, but the Rovers couldn't find the key to unlock a rugged defence to add a second goal which, in all fairness, their play deserved. The Rovers began brightly and an intricate passing movement ought to have produced the opening goal, but Osawe blasted over the bar from close range when he really should have found the back of the net. Osawe then used his pace to make progress down the left wing before finding Maclaren, whose shot was deflected for a corner. Although they defended well, Warrington didn't offer too much in attack during the first half as the Rovers' youngsters enjoyed long spells of possession but without making the most of their opportunities. However, on 38 minutes the Rovers were given the chance to break the deadlock when Phil Davies brought John O'Sullivan crashing to the ground in the penalty area. The referee had no hesitation in pointing to the spot and O'Sullivan picked himself up to slot the ball home, sending Adam Judge the wrong way. The second half brought wholesale changes for the home side with former Accrington Stanley and Northern Ireland international Lee McEvilly being introduced to lead the line. The Rovers made just one change with Jack O'Connell being withdrawn in favour of Darragh Lenihan. While the young Irishman took up his normal place in midfield, Hugo Fernandez dropped back to take over from O'Connell in the heart of the defence. The changes made by the home side certainly seemed to invigorate them and they began the second period looking far more effective and started to make inroads in the Rovers defence. However, rather like the Rovers' youngsters in the first half, the home side failed to make the most of their opportunities. Undaunted, the Rovers youngsters continued to play their passing game despite the fact that the playing surface was not conducive to such a game with the grass seeming to be rather long. Maclaren, who had a very impressive game, created another opportunity for Osawe, but Judge was equal to it and made a fine stop. The second period ebbed and flowed without either side really forcing the goalkeepers to make anything other than routine saves. Gary Bowyer took the opportunity to give game time to Chris Dilo, Bradley Mason and Tom Brown during the half and Mason almost nicked himself a goal when he evaded a couple of defenders, but unfortunately his well-struck shot went narrowly wide. Warrington created one or two chances in the closing stages, but their shooting was wayward and Chris Dilo, the young French goalkeeper, was never really troubled. John O'Sullivan, who has had senior experience during the pre-season, almost snatched a second when he cut in from the left and tried to curl an effort with his right foot into the top corner of the goal. Sadly, he was just inches wide of the target. This was a good workout for the Rovers' youngsters against well-organised opposition. However, with pre-season at an end, attention now turns to the newly formed Under-21 Premier League and the opening match at Norwich on Monday afternoon. Teams Warrington Town Adam Judge; Peter Doran (Carl McKenna 46), Adam Flynn (Douglas 46), Jay McCarten (Daniel Murphy 46), Lee Roberts (Colin Flood 46); Peter Dogan (John Dawson 66); Liam Shipton (Ash Ruane 46), Phil Davies (Phil Mooney 46), Michael Reid (Kevin Townson 46), Fraser Ablett (John O'Driscoll 46); Rob Hardwick (Lee McEvilly 46) Sub not used: Neil Weaver Manager: Shaun Reid Blackburn Rovers Reserves Matthew Urwin (Christopher Dilo 66); Peter Wylie, Kellen Daly, Jack O'Connell (Darragh Lenihan 46), Will Beesley; Hugo Fernandez, John O'Sullivan, Raheem Hanley; Micah Evans, Jamie Maclaren (Bradley Mason 76), Osayamen Osawe (Tom Brown 80) Coach: Gary Bowyer Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Chorley (1) 2 – 3 (2) Blackburn Rovers Denham 19, Vermiglio 67 Goodwillie 25, Pedersen 27, Dunn 52 Referee: P. Dermot Attendance: 642 Originally scheduled to be a reserve team friendly, this match was upgraded to first-team status as Steve Kean opted to mix senior players with some of the club's more promising youngsters. The result was a fairly entertaining affair with the performance of Simon Vukcevic — something of a Lord Lucan figure at Ewood Park — being the main talking point of the evening. On the evidence of his first pre-season appearance it would appear that Vukcevic could yet have a part to play for the Rovers as the quality of his use of the ball was highly impressive. On the day that the manager announced that the additions of Colin Kazim-Richards, Diogo Rosado and another forward would see the end of incoming transfers, it's clear that although the senior squad is large in numbers, doubts remain about the quality of many of those numbers. Certainly the performances of Vukcevic, Morten Gamst Pedersen and David Dunn suggested the club can ill afford to dispose of them as easily as some would suggest. The Rovers made a sluggish start and Grant Hanley was forced to hack the ball away for a corner after Jake Kean miscontrolled the ball in the opening minutes. Josh Morris then shot wildly over, while Vukcevic found the back of the net after a pinpoint pass by Pedersen only to find his attempt ruled out by an offside flag. In a game that ebbed and flowed, Kieran Kilheeney tried a spectacular volley when well placed in front of goal but saw his effort fly high over the bar. The home side took the lead on 19 minutes when former Clitheroe player Simon Garner crossed the ball into the area and, after the Rovers defence failed to deal with it, Chris Denham was on hand to score from close range. Once again, questions must be asked about the ease with which the opposition were able to attack down the flank and capitalise on what was nothing more than a simple bread-and-butter cross. Fortunately, the goal brought an immediate response from the Rovers and Vukcevic showed his quality in the build-up to the goal when he played a lovely ball into the path of David Goodwillie as the Scot broke into the area. Goodwillie showed great composure in rounding the 'keeper before slotting the ball into the net. Two minutes later the Rovers had taken the lead thanks to a superb piece of opportunism by Pedersen. Andy Robertson, in the Chorley goal, came out of his area to clear the ball, which fell to Pedersen just inside the Chorley half. The Norwegian international wasted no time in firing the ball back over the heads of the home defence and into the back of the net. It was a wonderful goal and a timely remainder to the manager that the quality that Pedersen has in his locker is something that the club is going to need in the Championship. Goodwillie then fired just over after more promising build-up play, while Rochina worked a good shooting position for himself, but his final effort lacked power and Robertson had no problem in gathering the ball safely in. Adam Roscoe came closest for Chorley with a fine long-range effort which Kean couldn't hold but did well to collect at the second attempt with a Chorley player in close attendance. The second half didn't bring any substitutions, but the Rovers rearranged their line-up with several players swapping positions. Bradley Orr moved over to right-back with Adam Henley switching to the right of midfield. Simon Vukcevic moved over to the left wing and Josh Morris dropped to left-back. The Rovers started the second half quite brightly with Pedersen and Dunn prompting from the centre of midfield and Vukcevic working hard down the left wing. On 52 minutes the Rovers scored a third goal when Rochina showed a neat touch to play in Dunn, who fired the ball across the goal into the far corner of the net. It was at this point that Steve Kean and Garry Flitcroft started to make a plethora of substitutions and the game suffered as a result with both sides trying to adjust to the continual change in personnel. On 67 minutes the home side pulled themselves back into the game thanks to a superb strike by Jamie Vermiglio which flew past Jake Kean, who moments earlier had made a terrific save at point-blank range from a Steve Foster header to foil the home side. As the game entered the final ten minutes, Matt Jansen entered the fray to the delight of both sets of supporters. Four minutes from the end the home side were awarded a free-kick in front of goal and Jansen blasted a fierce shot which Kean did well to fingertip over the bar for a corner. Hugo Fernandez, who looked very impressive during his short stint on the pitch, tried to curl an effort into the top corner but was wide of the mark. The performances of Vukcevic, Pedersen and Dunn were encouraging, but again questions were raised about the defensive qualities of the team, with the full-back positions looking particularly weak. The Rovers close their pre-season against Cork City on Sunday, while Gary Bowyer will be left to find another fixture for his young side after having had to give way to the seniors for this game. Teams Chorley Andy Robertson; Kieran Walmsley (Mark Ross 59), Andy Teague, Andy Russell, Simon Garner (Matt Jansen 82); Chris Denham (Tom Williams 59), Adam Roscoe, Jamie Vermiglio, Tom Ince (A.N. Other 68); Steve Foster, Kieran Kilheeney (Ahmadi Proya 59) Manager: Garry Flitcroft Blackburn Rovers Jake Kean; Adam Henley, Grant Hanley, Anthony O'Connor, Bradley Orr (Kellen Daly 75); Simon Vukcevic (Edinho 64), Ruben Rochina (Osayamen Osawe 81), Morten Gamst Pedersen (John O'Sullivan 64), Josh Morris; David Dunn (Hugo Fernandez 75); David Goodwillie (Raheem Hanley 64) Sub not used: Sebastian Usai (gk) Manager: Steve Kean Join in the discussion on the forum here. Editor's note: Since publication, we have received an update on the Chorley team: Ahmadi Proya replaced Kieran Kilheeney (not Proya Amedi) and Tom Ince was replaced by someone other than Russ Saunders. View full article

FC Halifax Town (2) 3 – 1 (0) Rovers Reserves Gregory 33, Lowe 40, Johnson 88 Slew 85 Referee: Mr Holmes Attendance: 812 My last visits to The Shay were in the early seventies when the Rovers found themselves languishing in the old Third Division for the first time in their history. In those days The Shay was a decaying relic, but Halifax Town as a club still boasted League football and was, for those early years of the 1970s, on level terms with the Rovers. How times have changed. Halifax Town has long gone and has been replaced with a new incarnation in the form of FC Halifax Town and league football is but a distant memory as the new club has had to rebuild its foundations in the lower reaches of non-league football. However, today they are on the up, just one level below the Conference, and The Shay has been rebuilt by the local authority and is now a well-appointed stadium that hosts both football and rugby league. At a time when the Rovers' own fortunes are on the ebb, it is perhaps as well to remember that football is cyclical and that good times are often followed by bad and vice versa. FC Halifax Town is a shining example of that principle. Having enjoyed a fairly successful pre-season against non-league opposition, the Rovers' own future hopefuls turned up at The Shay looking to build upon an impressive sequence of results. However, FC Halifax Town, who only missed out on promotion to the Conference in the play-offs last season, were to prove the most formidable opponents that the Rovers' young guns had faced thus far and at times it really was a case of men against boys. Neil Aspin, well known to Rovers supporters as a rather rugged defender with Leeds United in the 1980s, has developed a very impressive outfit who play a style of football that is easy on the eye whilst being well organised in every department. There were times when the Rovers' youngsters were left chasing shadows as Halifax moved the ball around with some delightful interpassing that opened the Rovers up time and time again. The Rovers' youngsters received an earlier warning that they were in for a tough afternoon when Danny Lowe's free-kick was met by the head of Ben Futcher, who rose above the Rovers defence and headed down into a dangerous area before Seb Usai gratefully clung onto the ball. The home side were looking inventive in possession in the early stages, whilst the Rovers were surprisingly sloppy in their use of the ball. Usai was again called upon to keep the Rovers in the game when he made a good save from Lee Gregory after Halifax had broken at speed and created a good goal-scoring opportunity. Gregory then showed a nifty piece of footwork to evade Anthony O'Connor, but the young Irish defender recovered and blocked Gregory's shot. The Rovers had struggled to make any impact as an attacking force, but that changed when Osayamen Osawe floated the ball to the back post, where Jordan Slew met it on the volley but failed to get any power into his shot and Matt Glennon collected with ease. Myles Anderson gave away a free-kick in a dangerous position, which presented Paul Marshall with the opportunity to blast a low shot past the wall but which Usai did well to hold on the line. Within minutes the Australian goalkeeper had to rescue the situation again when Anderson put him in trouble with a woefully underhit backpass. The opening goal, on 33 minutes, was a personal nightmare for Anderson, who endured a rather torrid afternoon. A long kick forward by Glennon bounced over the head of Anderson after he was muscled out of the way by Gareth Seddon, who was then left with a clear run on goal. Cutting in from the right he rounded Usai but found the angle too narrow, with the result that his effort hit the foot of the post and bounced out. However, the ball ran into the path of Gregory, who slammed it into the back of the net despite the fact that a couple of Rovers defenders had managed to get back on the line. In truth, the goal was no less than Halifax deserved such was their dominance at this point. Halifax almost immediately grabbed a second when excellent interplay between Gregory and Seddon presented the latter with an opening and his fierce shot was pushed over the bar by the impressive Usai. However, the Rovers couldn't continue to withstand the relentless pressure and on 40 minutes the defence cracked again as Halifax doubled their lead. It was a very well-worked corner routine that saw Marshall play the ball into the path of the oncoming Lowe and the Halifax skipper, who had evaded his marker, wasted no time in rifling the ball into the bottom corner of the net. One suspects that Gary Bowyer had a few harsh words for his young charges after a very disappointing forty-five minutes of football from the Rovers. Halifax made a change at left-back at the interval with Luke O'Brien replacing Jason St Juste, whilst the Rovers introduced Darragh Lenihan in midfield to replace Jamie Maclaren. The Rovers rearranged things in the second half with Slew moving into the middle and Micah Evans and Osawe occupying the wings. Lenihan seemed to add a little more steel to the midfield and Fernandez was given more scope to get forward and support the attack. Although they had a little more possession, the Rovers still looked ragged defensively as they struggled to cope with the 3-5-2 formation that FC Halifax Town employed. Time and again the Rovers' youngsters were able to scramble the ball clear, whilst at the other end little was offered apart from the odd long-range effort from Slew. The second half was littered with substitutions and as a result the Rovers, despite never really looking like they might score, began to hold their own as Halifax chopped and changed their side. More was seen of Fernandez going forward and Evans forced a superb save from Glennon after outstripping a couple of defenders before blasting the ball goalwards. With five minutes remaining, the Rovers finally got on the scoresheet when Slew hit a shot from 25 yards which Glennon managed to get a hand to but was unable to keep out of the net. Hopes of an unlikely comeback were dashed on 88 minutes when FC Halifax Town scored another well-worked goal that caught the Rovers defence cold. An inswinging free-kick by Liam Needham was perfectly placed so as to prevent Matty Urwin from coming for the ball and, with the defence static, Dale Johnson rose to power home the perfect header. The Rovers could have no complaints about the score as they were well beaten on the day. FC Halifax Town were stronger in every department and dominated large parts of the match. As for the Rovers, there were few performances that caught the eye, although Seb Usai looked impressive in goal if a little hesitant on crosses. Jordan Slew had a better game, while Fernandez looked better late in the game when he was allowed to move forward rather than playing in front of the back-four. Sadly, Osayamen Osawe was unable to reproduce the form that he showed against FC United of Manchester, while Micah Evans had another disappointing game on the wing. In defence, Myles Anderson endured a personal nightmare in what was an error-strewn performance from the young defender. Teams FC Halifax Town Matt Glennon; Liam Hogan, Ben Futcher, Danny Lowe; Ryan Toulson (Liam Needham 70), Jason Jarrett (Chris Worsley 70), Jon Worthington, Paul Marshall (Osebi Akidaki 70), Jason St Juste (Luke O'Brien 46); Gareth Seddon (Jamie Rainford 58), Lee Gregory (Dale Johnson 58) Subs not used: Phil Senior (gk), Conor Qualter Manager: Neil Aspin Blackburn Rovers Reserves Sebastian Usai (Matty Urwin 70); Kellen Daly (Peter Wylie 70), Anthony O'Connor, Myles Anderson, Will Beesley (Bradley Mason 80); Micah Evans, Hugo Fernandez, Raheem Hanley; Jamie Maclaren (Darragh Lenihan 46), Osayamen Osawe (Curtis Haley 58), Jordan Slew Coach: Gary Bowyer Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Curzon Ashton (0) 2 – 2 (0) Rovers Reserves Kay (pen) 70, Evans 80 Blackman 52, Haley 60 Referee: S. Maher After three impressive wins the Rovers travelled to the impressive Tameside Stadium to take on Curzon Ashton as part of their Reserve pre-season programme. The Rovers started brightly, although a crossfield pass by Hugo Fernandez was short of its intended target and almost presented Curzon Ashton with a goalscoring opportunity. Fortunately the home side couldn't make the most of it and the Rovers cleared their lines. Fernandez was then in action at the other end when his free-kick floated narrowly over the bar. Brian Summerskill failed to make the most of a good position for the home side when he poked the ball past Danny Devine and then set off down the left wing. However, with men in the area to aim for his cross was poor and was easily cleared by the Rovers defence. At the other end, Myles Anderson got his head on a corner, but the ball was cleared off the line by a defender. The crossing from both sides was not the best and, as a result, goalmouth incidents were few and far between during the opening half. Raheem Hanley again caught the eye with his tireless running, and his work ethic — not to mention his ability — suggests he has a bright future ahead of him. The Rovers went close when Jordan Slew fired a fierce long-range effort just over the bar, although, in truth, his partnership with Nick Blackman failed to cause the home side too many problems. Another careless crossfield pass, this time from Anderson, put the Rovers in trouble, but once again the home side were unable to make the most of the opportunity and the Rovers managed to clear the ball. Curzon Ashton's best chance of the half came when Blackman gifted possession to the opposition and Kristian Dennis found himself bearing down on goal. Fortunately, when he opted to shoot, he failed to execute it properly and Seb Usai had little difficulty in making the save. Both sides made changes at half-time and the Rovers again made life difficult for themselves with some careless play at the opening of the half. A backpass by Jack O'Connell was woefully short, but an attempt to chip the ball over Matty Urwin was unsuccessful. On 52 minutes the Rovers took the lead when the ball was played up to Nick Blackman on the right of the Curzon Ashton penalty area. The Rovers striker turned in an instant, which wrong-footed the home defence, and rifled the ball past Joshua Ollerenshaw to find the back of the net. Although the home side enjoyed plenty of possession, they were unable to make much headway in terms of creating clear-cut goalscoring opportunities. On the hour mark the Rovers stretched their lead when a shot from Danny Laverty was parried by the 'keeper and fell to the feet of Curtis Haley, who had no trouble in slotting the ball home. With a two-goal advantage the Rovers took the opportunity to introduce a couple of trialists, with Bernard Lopez coming on to play in the centre of defence while Titus Palani came on to play at left-back with Will Beesley moving to occupy the left-sided midfield position. The switch also saw Osayamen Osawe move from his left-wing position to take over from Nick Blackman in attack. The rearranged line-up had barely time to settle before Curzon Ashton got themselves back into the match when Anthony O'Connor was adjudged to have fouled Scott Metcalfe just inside the area. The Rovers defender appeared to have nudged Metcalfe in the back as the Curzon man headed towards goal. Matthew Kay stepped up to take the spot-kick and sent Urwin the wrong way to pull a goal back for the home side after 70 minutes. The Rovers' play became increasingly ragged as Curzon began to dominate possession and started to cause problems for the Rovers' makeshift defence. Neither of the trialists looked particularly comfortable and Lopez was badly at fault on 80 minutes when he allowed a ball to go over him and into the path of Tony Evans, who wasted no time in accepting the gift and picking his spot to fire the ball past Urwin. Haley might have snatched it towards the end, but his shot was excellently saved by Ollerenshaw. All in all, it was a disappointing performance by the Reserves, having seemingly had the game won at one point. On the plus side, Danny Devine, who was with Preston North End last season, looked impressive in defence in the first half, while Raheem Hanley had another impressive game at left-back. Teams Curzon Ashton Joshua Ollerenshaw; Simon Woodford, Jonathan Hunt, Andrew Watson, Connor Hampson; Stuart Cook; Lewis Nightingale, Simon Lakeland, Brian Summerskill, Lee Blackshaw; Kristian Dennis Subs used in the second half: Scott Metcalfe, Matthew Purcell, Nathan Neequaye, Andrew Lundy, George Bowyer, Matthew Kay, Tony Evans, Shelton Payne Sub not used: Matthew Green (gk) Manager: John Flanagan Blackburn Rovers Reserves Sebastian Usai (Matthew Urwin 46); Peter Wylie (Anthony O'Connor 46), Daniel Devine (Jack O'Connor 46), Myles Anderson (Titus Palani 61), Raheem Hanley (Will Beesley 46); Micah Evans (Danny Laverty 46), John O'Sullivan (Kellen Daly 46), Hugo Fernandez (Robbie Cotton 46), Jamie Maclaren (Osayamen Osawe 46); Nick Blackman (Bernard Lopez 61), Jordan Slew (Curtis Haley 46) Coach: Gary Bowyer Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Blackburn Rovers (2) 2 – 1 (0) AEK Athens Gomez 7, Best 29 Kourelas 76 Referee: C. Foy Attendance: 994 The injury to Leon Best, late in the first half, cast a huge shadow over this game and, depending upon whether there are sufficient finances to find a replacement, may well cast an even bigger shadow over the coming season. In the absence of Best at both Rochdale and in the second half against AEK Athens, the Rovers attack has looked woefully inadequate. On a sunny afternoon at Fleetwood's Highbury Stadium, the Rovers started their final friendly on home soil in fine fashion. Once again, Steve Kean juggled his resources with Grant Hanley and Gael Givet forming the centre-back partnership, while Bruno Ribeiro moved forward from full-back to occupy the right-sided midfield role. Paulo Jorge was given the nod in the centre of midfield, while Leon Best and Nuno Gomez resumed their partnership in attack that had looked so promising at Accrington a week earlier. The Rovers impressed during the early stages with their passing, with Danny Murphy at the heart of most things. Sitting in front of the back four, Murphy looked the consummate professional, spraying the ball around to all parts of the ground and always finding time on the ball. Best and Gomez again linked up well and were able to make runs knowing that Murphy would find them. The Rovers opened the scoring within seven minutes when Marcus Olsson picked up the ball on the left and sent over a deep cross which Best headed goalwards for Gomez to nip in and glance a header past 'keeper Giannis Arabatzis. Such was the dominance of the Rovers that they almost doubled their lead just four minutes later. Murphy's cross was headed against the bar by Gael Givet and Best was on hand to snap up the rebound and find the back of the net. Unfortunately, the celebrations were cut short as the linesman raised his flag having adjudged that the former Newcastle striker was offside. Givet was almost responsible for handing AEK a way back into the game when his careless pass was intercepted and Thomas Tsitas was played in, but Grant Hanley was able to block the shot on goal. A goal for AEK would have been completely against the run of play as the Rovers had dominated the opening period and it came as no surprise when the Rovers doubled their lead on 29 minutes. It was a peach of a goal with Murphy opening up the opposition with a superb pass to Best, who, in an instant, brought the ball down on his chest and slipped inside his marker before curling an exquisite shot into the far top corner. It was a goal of real quality by the new signing. Sadly, that was to be the last meaningful contribution that Best will make to the Rovers cause for some time. As half-time beckoned, Best went down under a seemingly innocuous challenge from Yago Fernandez and the Greek defender was incensed when Chris Foy awarded a free-kick against him. Best received treatment on the pitch for some time before being stretchered off with what we now know to be a serious knee injury that is likely to keep him out of action for six months or more. The second half saw a plethora of substitutions both at the start of the half and during the remainder of the game. As a result, the Rovers lost much of their momentum and, without Murphy pulling the strings in midfield and Gomez and Best in attack, the team struggled to make much headway against an AEK side that looked decidedly average. Formica and Dunn did link up well, however, which resulted in the latter firing a long-range effort just over. At the other end, Jake Kean made an uncharacteristic error when he presented the ball to Panagiotis Lagos, but with an open goal beckoning he merely succeeded in lobbing the ball into the side-netting. The visitors, who looked to be in the very early stages of their pre-season judging by their display, pulled a goal back after 76 minutes. It was a well-worked goal with several passes being made before the ball was played in between Adam Henley and Grant Hanley. Nikolaos Kourelas raced onto the ball and, as Kean came to meet him, he slipped it past the 'keeper and into the net. Worryingly for the Rovers, it was the type of goal that was conceded all too often last season with a gap between full-back and centre-back being fully exploited by the opposition. The Rovers almost restored their two-goal lead immediately after when a free-kick from David Dunn floated narrowly wide of the post. But the Rovers hung on to notch their second pre-season victory, in what was undoubtedly their best performance thus far, but it came at a heavy cost with the long-term loss of Leon Best. Another disappointment came in the size of the crowd, with just 994 being enticed to watch the Rovers against foreign opposition. This must surely be the lowest attendance at a Rovers first-team game in this country in modern times and again underlines the problems the club will have in trying to entice supporters back to Ewood Park. Teams Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson (Jake Kean 46); Bradley Orr (Edinho 72), Grant Hanley, Gael Givet (Scott Dann 46), Josh Morris; Bruno Ribeiro (Adam Henley 46), Danny Murphy (Jason Lowe 46), Paulo Jorge, Marcus Olsson (Fabio Nunes 72); Nuno Gomes (David Dunn 46), Leon Best (Mauro Formica 44) Subs not used: Radosav Petrovic, David Goodwillie, Ruben Rochina Manager: Steve Kean AEK Athens Giannis Arabatzis (Dimitris Konstantopoulos 56); Christos Arkoudas, Mavroudis Bougaidis (Alexandros Nikolias 84), Michail Tsamourlidis (Valentinos Vlachos 80), Panagiotis Lagos (Chronis Tomaras 66); Enias Kalogeris (Taxiarchis Fountas 46), Antonis Stavros Rikka (Xenofontas Fetsis 80), Yago Fernandez (Spyridon Matenzidis 80), Christos Papadimitriou (Dmitrios Grontis 31); Thomas Tsitas (Andreas Stamatis 31), Roger Guerreiro (Nikolaos Kourelas 59) Subs not used: K. Kostaridis, Joseph Agyiriba, Giorgios Nikoltsis Coach: Vangelis Vlachos Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Rochdale (0) 1 – 0 (0) Blackburn Rovers Thompson 76 Referee: M. Haywood Attendance: 1,375 Whilst it would be wrong to read too much into pre-season games, there can be no denying that some worrying trends are emerging. The inability to keep clean sheets against League Two opposition ought to be a concern as should the fact that we are continuing to struggle to create clear-cut opportunities in front of the opposition goal. When the opportunities did come against Rochdale, we simply lacked the quality to put them away, with David Goodwillie being the main culprit-in-chief. Indeed, the Scottish international cut a rather dejected figure at Spotland as he failed to make any impact on a defence which was still in the experimental stage of development. With Leon Best missing through injury, Goodwillie was asked to lead attack with Nuno Gomes in the first half, whilst the second half saw him playing as a lone striker with David Dunn supporting from midfield. Once again, Bruno Ribeiro was given the opportunity to play at right-back, while Josh Morris was given the role on the opposite flank. Scott Dann and Gael Givet were given the nod ahead of Grant Hanley for the centre-back pairing, while new boys Paulo Jorge and Edinho had to settle for a place on the bench. In truth, the first half was a fairly lacklustre affair with neither side able to create a clear-cut opportunity in front of goal. A neat piece of interplay between Danny Murphy and Gomes ended with Fabio Nunes firing a shot narrowly wide with the home 'keeper struggling to cover his goal. At the other end, some hesitancy between Paul Robinson and Scott Dann led to the Rovers conceding an unnecessary corner. Ryan Edwards met the corner with his head and found Phil Edwards, in the middle of the goal, but his headed effort flew narrowly wide. A ball out to the right found Ribeiro galloping down the wing and the Brazilian full-back showed a deft touch to control the ball without breaking stride and then found Mauro Formica with a perfect pass. Unfortunately, the Argentinean's well-struck shot was deflected wide. In a dull first half the neat touches and runs made by Ribeiro were one of the few highlights and suggest that Ewood's forgotten man may yet have a future at the club. His performance on the right was in stark contrast to Morris on the left, who struggled defensively and was extremely wayward with his passing. Morris doesn't look comfortable at left-back and, with a question mark hanging over the future of Martin Olsson, a new left-back is becoming something of a priority. Rochdale's best effort came shortly before half-time when George Donnelly picked the ball up and, with defenders standing off him, struck a powerful low drive which was inches wide of the post with Robinson well beaten. John Coleman opted to change his entire team for the second half with the exception of 'keeper Josh Lillis. Steve Kean introduced Jake Kean for Robinson, while David Dunn replaced Gomez. The Rovers began the second half on the front foot with Goodwillie finding plenty of space while the newly assembled Rochdale defence took time to settle. Another excellent run by Ribeiro produced a super cross which Goodwillie met but could only stab his effort over the bar from close range. As the hour-mark approached, Goodwillie broke free on the right wing and for some reason Lillis dashed 20 yards outside of his area to try to get to the ball before the Scottish striker. Goodwillie nicked the ball forward as Lillis attempted to make a sliding tackle and the 'keeper clearly played the ball with his trailing arm to deny Goodwillie the opportunity to break clear. However, the linesman, standing right over the incident, inexplicably failed to see the handball and waved play on. Goodwillie fired the ball into the area but Sam Miniham was on hand to clear. The Rovers almost broke the deadlock immediately after when Goodwillie again broke clear and played the ball into the path of Nunes, who chipped the 'keeper as he came out only to see the ball cleared off the line. Gradually, the home side started to enjoy more of the play in the Rovers' half and Joe Thompson forced a superb one-handed save from Kean. The Rovers' manager continued to make changes in a bid to give his players some playing time, but it was Rochdale who began to look the more comfortable of the two sides. With just under 15 minutes remaining, the home side finally made the breakthrough to take the lead. Reece Gray played a ball over the top of the Rovers' defence and Thompson was on it in a flash and found himself in front of goal with just Kean to beat. The Rochdale man struck his shot past Kean, although the 'keeper managed to get a hand on the ball, and Grant Hanley, who had got back on the line, was unable to prevent the ball from entering the net. Efforts from Dunn and Givet then came to nothing as the Rovers slipped to another defeat at the hands of League Two opposition. On a night with few positives apart from the fact that a large number of players got more game time under their belts, the performance of Bruno Ribeiro was, perhaps, the highlight of the night. Neat and tidy in possession, he looked very good coming forward and made good use of the ball whenever in possession. Gael Givet again demonstrated that he is undoubtedly the best defender at the club and it's essential that the Rovers do everything they can to ensure he stays at Ewood Park. Danny Murphy again impressed with his use of the ball and his link-up play with Nuno Gomes suggests these two veterans might well cause problems for Championship defences. Fabio Nunes again caught the eye but was not quite as effective as he had been against Fleetwood. At times he was knocked off his game by some physical challenges and this is clearly something he is going to have to get used to playing in the Championship. In terms of strengthening it would seem a new left-back is the number one priority, but the midfield also needs some strengthening with an experienced "enforcer" required to play alongside Murphy. Without Best, the attack looked very ineffective with Goodwillie again demonstrating that he cannot lead the attack. In general, considering we are about to start a campaign in what many regard the toughest league of the lot, one cannot help but feel that we are asking too much of the younger players at the club. Whilst signing players with potential from Portugal might well aid us in the future, there is a clear need for some experienced old heads in key positions if the Rovers are serious about mounting a promotion push. Teams Rochdale First half team Josh Lillis; Joe Rafferty, Ryan Edwards, Phil Edwards, Kevin McIntyre; Andrew Tutte, Peter Cavanagh, Brian Barry-Murphy, Ashley Grimes; Jason Kennedy, George Donnelly Second half team Josh Lillis; Sam Minihan, Neill Byrne, Rhys Bennett, Matt Pearson; Reece Gray (Godwin Abadaki 80), Luke Watson, Ian Craney, Joe Thompson; Ray Putterill; Danny Johnson Manager: John Coleman Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson (Jake Kean 46); Bruno Ribeiro (Radosav Petrovic 85), Scott Dann (Grant Hanley 67), Gael Givet, Josh Morris (Adam Henley 67); Mauro Formica (Ruben Rochina 75), Danny Murphy (Paulo Jorge 85), Jason Lowe, Fabio Nunes (Marcus Olsson 75); David Goodwillie (Edinho 80), Nuno Gomes (David Dunn 46) Unused substitute: Sebastian Usai (gk) Manager: Steve Kean Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Last Saturday, for the second successive season, the Rovers embarked upon a double-header against League Two opposition as part of their pre-season preparations. This year the matches were held at the Crown Ground, with hosts Accrington Stanley providing the opposition along with Fleetwood Town. Fleetwood Town(0) 0 – 2 (1)Blackburn Rovers Formica 6, Gomes 54 Referee: N. Swarbrick Attendance: 1,879 Fleetwood Town v Rovers The first of the matches saw the Rovers face Fleetwood Town, who are about to embark upon their first campaign in the Football League. Both sides boasted a number of summer acquisitions with the Rovers reshaping their midfield with the presence of Danny Murphy, Fabio Nunes and Paulo Jorge, while Leon Best and Nuno Gomes formed a twin spearhead in attack. The Rovers quickly found their feet and were ahead after only six minutes and former Portuguese international Gomes was at the heart of the move which opened up the Fleetwood defence. Gomes worked the ball out to the right wing where Bruno Ribeiro had raced forward to join the attack. The forgotten man at Ewood Park showed a deft touch to control the ball and after taking the ball on he whipped in a deep cross to the far post where Gomes was waiting to head the ball down for Mauro Formica to fire home from the edge of the penalty area. The Rovers took control of the game with Danny Murphy sitting deep and simply spraying the ball around with unerring accuracy. It was the sort of midfield display not seen in a Rovers shirt since Tugay departed the scene. Nunes looked lively down both wings as he switched around, while Jorge worked hard in the centre of midfield alongside Murphy. Best had an effort cleared off the line and Scott Davies had to be on his toes to keep out another effort from the former Newcastle man. Fleetwood rarely troubled Jake Kean as Scott Dann and Gael Givet kept Jon Parkin quiet without too much difficulty. Ribeiro performed neat-and-tidily at right-back and looked to get forward at every opportunity. However, on the opposite flank Josh Morris looked rather uncomfortable at times and again highlighted the fact that he really isn't an orthodox full-back. Apart from an effort from Parkin on 34 minutes, when the former Preston striker hit a powerful shot which flew narrowly over the bar, the opposition offered very little as an attacking force in the first half. The Rovers ought to have been more than a goal to the good and a golden opportunity was missed when Best broke clear and failed to spot Murphy on his outside, who was in an excellent position. Best, however, held onto the ball until he managed to weave his way past a couple of defenders before firing in a shot that was well saved by the 'keeper at the foot of the post. Best might well have scored early in the second half when he again went clear, rounded the 'keeper and then saw his shot cleared off the line by a defender. However, the Rovers were not to be denied and on 54 minutes Gomes scored his first goal for the club after excellent work from Formica. The Argentinean international showed a fair turn of speed to get to the by-line and from his cross Gomes volleyed home from about 15 yards with the ball striking the inside of the post before hitting the back of the net. Best had another effort cleared off the line as the Rovers dominated the game and as the match entered the final 15 minutes Nunes forced the 'keeper into making a brilliant save when he tipped his well-struck shot around the post. Such was their dominance that the Rovers took the opportunity to withdraw Gomes and have a look at Edinho Junior, another Portuguese youngster, who is clearly being looked at with a view to the future rather than the present campaign. There were a number of heartening displays to revive a little hope that the forthcoming campaign might offer a little more hope than many of us expect. Murphy and Gomes both had excellent games with the veteran Portuguese international showing a turn of pace and speed of thought that belied his advancing years. He looked remarkably trim and seemed fitter than many of the squad who are much younger. The defensive pairing of Dann and Givet looked sound while Ribeiro was neat and tidy in possession. Fabio Nunes caught the eye with his work on the wings, while Paulo Jorge was steady without being spectacular. Leon Best worked hard in attack and, if his decision-making wasn't always the best, he certainly looks to have the physical presence to cause a few defenders no end of problems. All in all it was a very encouraging performance, but, of course, these are early days and the challenges ahead are going to be far more difficult than Fleetwood. Accrington Stanley(0) 1 – 0 (0)Blackburn Rovers Smikle 66 Referee: D. Bond Attendance: 1,879 Accrington Stanley v Rovers After hopes had been raised during the first game against Fleetwood Town, the Rovers reverted to their old, lacklustre ways for the second game and were, to put it bluntly, embarrassingly poor against their Accrington neighbours. Stanley's winning goal, on 66 minutes, typified the carelessness which pervaded the entire 90 minutes of mind-numbingly poor football delivered by the Rovers. A cross from Adam Rundle was met by the head of Brian Smikle at the back post and although Paul Robinson seemed to have the ball covered, a momentary lack of concentration resulted in him allowing to ball to slip from his grasp and drop over the line. [caption id=attachment_4850" align="alignleft" width="320]Dunny on the ball against Accrington Stanley. Image courtesy of cn174[/caption]As for the rest of the game, it was instantly forgettable with the Rovers failing to make any impact on a Stanley side that was experimental to say the least. On the plus side for the Rovers, a number of the club's younger elements like Adam Henley, Raheem Hanley, Hugo Fernandez and Curtis Haley were given a chance to play at senior level and Edinho came on as a late substitute and livened up proceedings when he replaced the woefully inept David Goodwillie. The Scottish international is becoming something of an enigma at Ewood Park as his record in Scotland suggests that he ought to be doing better than he has thus far. However, in fairness to Goodwillie, he was being asked to fulfil a role — as a lone striker — that he seems ill-suited for and the service from midfield was exceptionally poor. As for the rest, there is little to be said that hasn't already been said many times before. Petrovic struggled in midfield, Dunny knows what he wants to do but the legs no longer allow him to do it, whilst Rochina, although technically gifted, merely flatters to deceive because of his inability to fit into a team pattern. Playing wide on the right he wandered far too often and allowed gaps to develop in front of his full-back. Lowe was workmanlike, but no more, while Marcus Olsson is quick but rarely delivered an end product. Edinho went closest for the Rovers when his last-minute shot came back off the post. However, the fact that it took 90 minutes for the Rovers to seriously threaten the Stanley goal just about sums up how ineffective the Rovers were as an attacking force. Overview It is, of course, far too early to make any predictions as to what the future holds for Blackburn Rovers in the Championship. The only certainties are that it is probably going to require at least 90 points to get one of the two automatic places and that it is going to be a hugely competitive division with a number of "big" clubs desperate to win promotion and reach the Premier League "gravy train". [caption id=attachment_4851" align="alignright" width="320] Grant Hanley wins aerial battle against Accrington Stanley. Image courtesy of cn174[/caption]The only other certainty, which was clearly evident at the Crown Ground on Saturday, is that the Ewood faithful — or what is left of the Ewood faithful — will continue to voice their displeasure towards Steve Kean and the owners. The unedifying spectacle of a strong security presence surrounding the manager while he posed for photographs with the fans merely underlined the surreal situation which the Rovers now find themselves in. Having failed to make the one change that the fans craved in the summer, the owners have ensured that an atmosphere of hostility will continue to pervade Ewood Park for the foreseeable future. The games themselves gave us little indication of what type of season the Rovers are likely to experience in the coming months. There were times during the match against Fleetwood Town that we looked pretty decent and the more optimistic amongst us might have harboured hopes of a promotion push. However, the performance against Accrington Stanley was so abject and devoid of hope that you didn't have to be a pessimist to realise that a second successive relegation is not beyond the bounds of possibility. Personally, I left the Crown firmly of the opinion that much more needs to be done in terms of strengthening the squad in general, and certain positions in particular, if the Rovers are to make any impression on the Championship. Defensively we look thin, particularly at full-back, while both midfield and attack could do with extra bodies. Teams v Fleetwood Town Fleetwood Town Scott Davies (Chris Maxwell 64); Shaun Beeney, Nathan Pond (Kieran Charnock 64), Rob Atkinson, Dean Howell (Alan Goodall 68); Andrew Mangan (Danny Rose 57), Lee Fowler (Alex Titchiner 74), Jamie McGuire, Junior Brown (Rodrigo Branco 68); Steven Gillespie (Richard Allen 52); Jon Parkin (Barry Nicholson 46) Manager: Micky Mellon Blackburn Rovers Jake Kean (Sebastian Usai 74); Bruno Ribeiro, Scott Dann, Gael Givet, Josh Morris; Mauro Formica, Danny Murphy, Paulo Jorge, Fabio Nunes; Leon Best, Nuno Gomes (Edinho Junior 74) Manager: Steve Kean Teams v Accrington Stanley Accrington Stanley Ian Dunbavin (Andrew Dawber 89); Craig Linfield (Adam Stockdale 89), Toto Nsiala (Tom Eckersley 60), Dean Winnard (Peter Murphy 60), Michael Liddle; Luke Joyce (Ryan Hopper 89), George Miller (Bohan Dixon 79); Charlie Barnett (Adam Rundle 54), Luke Clark (Will Hatfield 54), Aidan Chippendale (Brian Smikle 46); Marcus Carver (James Gray 46) Manager: Paul Cook Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson (Sebastian Usai 72); Bradley Orr (Raheem Hanley 46), Grant Hanley, Anthony O'Connor, Adam Henley; Ruben Rochina, Jason Lowe, Radosav Petrovic, Marcus Olsson (Hugo Fernandez 46); David Dunn (Edinho Junior 72); David Goodwillie (Curtis Haley 80) Manager: Steve Kean Join in the discussion on the forum here. 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News of the recent passing of Chris Thompson, at the tragically early age of 52, was a real shock and his death puts recent events at Ewood Park into true perspective. We may all believe that relegation is the end of the world, admittedly I have felt the same, but next to the passing of one so young it really doesn't seem all that important at all. Life at Ewood Park will go on, in one form or another, and as long as it does those who were privileged to see Chris play will cherish the memory of a player who always gave 100 per cent to the cause of whichever club he represented. I was tempted to use the term "journeyman" to describe Chris, but in recent years the term has become almost derogatory in its meaning. However, looking at its exact definition I find the words "one who works" and nobody worked harder than Chris Thompson when they were on a football pitch. He was, in many ways, "a player's player". He was a footballer who truly embraced the work ethic and none of his employers could ever have felt short-changed by the commitment he gave for those ninety minutes on the pitch. Although born in Walsall, Chris was a product of North-West football having been groomed at Burnden Park before leaving the Wanderers to sample the delights of the Rovers, Wigan Athletic and finally Blackpool. A former England youth international, Chris served his apprenticeship with Bolton Wanderers before making his senior debut against Peterborough United in a third round Football League Cup tie in October 1977. A certain Sam Allardyce was amongst Bolton's scorers in a 3–1 win. That was the season that the Wanderers won promotion to the First Division and boasted a quite formidable outfit with the likes of Tony Dunne, Big Sam, Willie Morgan, Peter Reid and Frank Worthington amongst their ranks. As a result, it wasn't until the 1979–80 campaign that Chris finally started to feature on a regular basis, but it wasn't until the 1981–82 season, when the Wanderers were back in the Second Division, that Chris became an automatic choice for one of the starting positions. He notched a dozen goals in 34 League starts, plus two substitute outings, that season in a team that only just avoided relegation to the Third Division by a couple of points. The Wanderers side that had been so strong in the late 1970s was breaking up and, as a result, Chris found himself plunged into a struggling side and this impacted on his own game. By the latter stages of the 1982–83 campaign, Chris had lost his place in the Wanderers team and was loaned to Lincoln City in March 1983. The Sincil Bank club were chasing promotion from the Third Division and Chris was signed to provide short-term cover for the injured Glenn Cockerill, Lincoln's star midfielder. Success might well have brought a permanent move to Lincolnshire for Chris, but a sixth-place finish meant the end of any possible transfer and Chris returned to Burnden Park. Chris left Bolton to join the Rovers in the summer of 1983 and was on the bench for the opening day fixture against Huddersfield Town at Ewood Park. Norman Bell, who was partnering Simon Garner in attack, was unfortunate to suffer an injury that not only necessitated him being taken from the pitch but forced him into premature retirement. Chris immediately took his opportunity and scored one of the goals that gave the Rovers an opening day 2–2 draw. With Bell sidelined, Chris formed a twin spearhead with Garner and the two worked well together in tandem. Chris was used as an old-fashioned centre-forward who put defenders under physical pressure with his non-stop running. He harried and pressurised defenders into making mistakes, never giving them a moment's rest. Good in the air, Chris also had good control of the ball on the ground and was a steady finisher. He was the perfect foil for a goal poacher like Garner and helped to create many of the goals that Simon scored. Although never challenging for promotion, the Rovers ended the 1983–84 campaign in a very respectable sixth place with big spenders like Chelsea, Sheffield Wednesday, Newcastle United and Manchester City ahead of them. Chris ended the season with eight league goals, second only to Garner who had scored 19 goals in the league. With money extremely limited at Ewood Park, the arrival of Jimmy Quinn in the summer of 1984 suggested that Chris might well find himself relegated to the bench. The Rovers had spent in the region of £32,000 for Quinn, while Chris had arrived on a free, but Bob Saxton opted to start the season with the partnership which had done so well the previous campaign. It proved to be a wise decision as Chris ended the season as the club's top scorer with 15 League goals while Garner ended with 12 goals and Quinn notched 10 league goals. Although Quinn offered moments of brilliance, it was the willingness of Chris to chase lost causes and his selfless running which endeared him to the fans and clearly found favour with a manager who put great store in the work ethic. Simon Garner certainly benefited from the presence of Chris as he readily admitted in his autobiography. Chris took defenders away from Simon with his clever running off the ball and it was his willingness to bear a heavy workload that made him such a valuable component in the team. Having climbed to the top of the table by Christmas, the Rovers fell away badly and ended the season in fifth place. Perhaps because of the increased expectations which the Ewood faithful now had, the manager felt inclined to shake things up a little. Perhaps the fact that he had invested a substantial amount of money in bringing Quinn to Ewood Park necessitated change. Whatever the reason, the result was that Chris started the 1985–86 campaign on the bench while Quinn was asked to form a new strike partnership with Simon Garner. The team which had taken the division by storm twelve months earlier suddenly began to stutter and struggle for form. Having missed out on promotion, the Rovers found themselves hurtling towards the exit door at the wrong end of the table. Chris, like so many of his teammates, found his form had deserted him and for long spells found himself consigned to the bench or the Reserves. He was recalled for the last seven league games, which produced eight points and ensured the Rovers survived by the skin of their teeth. Chris, whose season had been blighted by injury and loss of form, found himself surplus to requirements in the summer of 1986 but was quickly snapped up by Ray Mathias at Wigan Athletic. The man who would become the assistant to Paul Ince at Ewood Park clearly recognised the attributes that Chris could bring to the Third Division side. In only his fourth game for the club he netted a hat-trick in a 5–1 win over Walsall and helped steer the Latics to within a couple of points of promotion. Wigan also reached the sixth round of the FA Cup that season with Chris netting three goals in his six cup outings. Sadly, injuries undermined his second season at Springfield Park and the summer of 1988 brought another move with Blackpool being his destination. Initially used as a substitute, Chris eventually won a place in midfield and ended the 1988–89 season with eight goals from 25 league starts and 11 substitute appearances. Injuries had clearly had an impact on Chris and after a mere handful of appearances in 1989–90, he was released by Blackpool and allowed to join Cardiff City in March 1990. Attempts to resurrect his career with Walsall came to nothing and Chris called a halt to his first-class career. Outside of Bolton, Blackburn, Wigan and Blackpool, the name of Chris Thompson is unlikely to ring any bells in the memory bank. However, for those who saw him play for their club, there is the memory of a hardworking professional who never gave less than his best. A "player's player" in every sense of the term, Chris Thompson was not only a genuine professional but, as many of his former teammates have emphasised since his passing, Chris was also a genuinely nice guy. Ultimately there can be no more fitting tribute than to have won the affection and respect of your colleagues, the guys who played alongside you and knew just how important you were to the team dynamic. Chris was not the most talented player ever to wear the "Blue & White" and, like all players, he had his fair share of disappointing games. However, Chris never hid on the field, his work ethic was second to none and he always gave 100 per cent to the cause. Whatever he lacked in technique, he more than made up for with his sheer energy. Whilst Chris might not have fulfilled his true potential, the fact remains that he was never short of employers as his attributes far outweighed his shortcomings. He was, perhaps, the archetypal "journeyman" footballer, a solid pro who was valued and respected by both teammates and supporters alike. Chris Thompson Career Statistics Bolton Wanderers, July 1977– Football League66 + 7 appearances18 goals FA Cup3 + 1 appearances1 goal Football League Cup3 + 1 appearances1 goal Total72 + 9 appearances20 goals Lincoln City on loan, March 1983– Football League5 + 1 appearances0 goals Total5 + 1 appearances0 goals Blackburn Rovers, August 1983– Football League81 + 4 appearances24 goals FA Cup10 + 0 appearances2 goals Football League Cup5 + 0 appearances0 goals Total96 + 4 appearances26 goals Wigan Athletic, July 1986– Football League67 + 7 appearances14 goals FA Cup7 + 0 appearances3 goals Football League Cup4 + 0 appearances1 goal Freight Rover Trophy4 + 0 appearances 1 goal Total82 + 7 appearances19 goals Blackpool, July 1988– Football League27 + 12 appearances8 goals FA Cup1 + 0 appearance0 goals Football League Cup1 + 4 appearances0 goals Sherpa Van Trophy3 + 2 appearances1 goal Total32 + 18 appearances9 goals Cardiff City, March 1990– Football League1 + 1 appearances0 goals Total1 + 1 appearances0 goals Walsall, February 1991– Football League3 + 0 appearances0 goals Total3 + 0 appearances0 goals View full article

Blackburn Rovers (0) 0 – 1 (0) Wigan Athletic Alcaraz 87 Referee: M. Clattenburg Attendance: 26,144 The chickens finally came home to roost, in more ways than one, on a wet and dismal Bank Holiday Monday at Ewood Park. What a stark contrast to that wonderful Victory at Ewood night on a Bank Holiday Monday in May 1995 when the heroics of Tim Flowers and a goal from Alan Shearer sent the Ewood faithful home happily singing songs of celebration long into the night. The Ewood faithful were again in full voice throughout the 90 minutes last night but this time it was songs of vitriolic hatred towards the clueless owners and manager which filled the air. The absentee owners and their puppet in the dugout have brought the club to its knees within eighteen short months and the Ewood faithful turned up in force to vent their spleen at those they hold responsible for the destruction of their club. Rarely has the ground resonated to the sound of all four stands singing in unison and demanding the removal of the manager and owners. Once again, Madam Desai and the Brothers Grimm were nowhere to be seen as the club's eleven-year tenure in the Premier League came to an end. Over the past few months they have no doubt sat in the splendour of their complex in Pune, regaling their friends with tales about owning India's Premiership club and outlining their strategy for Champions League football, whilst the reality on the ground in Blackburn has been completely different. A successful, well-run club brought to its knees by incompetent owners and a clueless manager. The game itself was, like much of the season, something of an irrelevance. Wigan, under the astute ownership of Dave Whelan and inspirational management of Roberto Martinez, arrived at Ewood in search of the win that would secure their Premier League status for another season. Although they didn't get the winning goal until late in the game, the truth is that they dominated much of the play and created the better chances as the Rovers, once again, proved lax in defence, lacklustre in midfield and timid in attack. Steve Kean, in a last desperate throw of the dice, opted for a 4-3-3 formation which proved no more successful than any of the other formations which have been tried with equal ineptness during the course of the season. Sadly, formations are an irrelevance if the quality of the players on view is as poor as the squad that has been assembled by Desai and Kean. Make no mistake, these players would struggle in the Championship and have been completely out of their depth in the Premier League. In his post-match interviews Kean complained about the lack of experienced players in the squad and the need to bring in such experience in the summer. However, it must be remembered that this was the manager, be it on the owners' behest or not, who was happy to show the door to El-Hadji Diouf, Brett Emerton, Jason Roberts, Keith Andrews, Ryan Nelsen and Chris Samba. This was the manager who opted to completely ignore Michel Salgado for over half a season and the same manager who kept Gael Givet out of the team for long periods at a crucial time in the season. Kean bleated on about having too many young players in the team but, then again, who was the manager who replaced experienced players with inexperienced players? The finger of blame points to Kean and Desai. Considering it was a must-win game, the Rovers proved rather conservative in terms of posing an attacking threat during the first half. Despite playing three up front, with Anthony Modeste operating on the right, Junior Hoilett on the left and Yakubu through the middle, the Rovers simply couldn't develop any sort of attacking rhythm. With the cries of "Kean out", "Venky's out" and "There's only one Jack Walker" growing ever louder, the players looked completely bereft of ideas or inspiration. Victor Moses ought to have given the visitors the lead when he met a superb cross from Franco Di Santo, but his header went across goal instead of into the net. Just before the break David Dunn, again the one player who seemed totally committed to the cause, limped off to be replaced by Marcus Olsson — quite why Steven Nzonzi wasn't introduced is another of the strange mysteries that surround the decision-making process of Steve Kean. Gael Givet was withdrawn at half-time due to injury and was replaced by Radosav Petrovic, which resulted in another reshuffle at the back. Although the Rovers forced a couple of early corners, they rarely looked like making the breakthrough. There were a couple of goalmouth scrambles, but it seemed more a case of hope than expectation. At the other end the visitors continued to spurn opportunities to take the lead with Moses firing over the bar after being set up by Di Santo. The Rovers had a decent claim for a penalty on 59 minutes when Emmerson Boyce appeared to kick Hoilett in attempting to clear the ball in a goalmouth scramble. However, Mark Clattenburg was unmoved and even the Ewood faithful only made half-hearted appeals. Paul Robinson was called into action to make an excellent double save from Moses and James McCarthy, but he was helpless when Shaun Maloney squandered a glorious opportunity by heading over with the goal at his mercy. However, the visitors were not to be denied and with three minutes remaining they scored the goal that ensured their safety whilst condemning the Rovers to relegation. The ball was floated into the Rovers' penalty area and whilst Petrovic stood and watched, Alcaraz rose above him and headed into the net despite a valiant attempt by Robinson to keep the ball out. The cries of protest grew ever louder as the Rovers' Premier League life ebbed away in the pouring rain. In a game that had to be won there were two memorable moments. In the first half play had to be stopped because of a chicken walking around the penalty area in front of the Darwen End. Clearly, intent on trying to prevent banners getting into the ground, an aim in which the security proved every bit as inept as the rest of the management at Ewood Park, they overlooked the fact that a fan would enter the ground with a chicken tucked under his arm! The other moment that will live in the memory is of the supporter marching over to Kean early in the second half and throwing his season ticket at him. It was a gesture that brought the fan in question a standing ovation from the rest of Ewood Park as he was led away by the police. The fact that the two highlights had nothing to do with the game itself says it all really. As for the players, Paul Robinson, Gael Givet and David Dunn gave everything they had as usual. In defence, Bradley Orr was more effective giving interviews supporting the manager than stopping the Wigan attack. However, he did front up that the players had not been good enough and fair play to him for that admission. Scott Dann again looked grossly overrated at £6.5 million and one cannot believe than any other club is going to take him off our hands at anywhere near that valuation. Sadly, Martin Olsson looks destined for the exit door while one suspects that brother Marcus is likely to still be around next season. Martin has too bright a future ahead of him to languish for any length of time outside of the top flight. Marcus, who has struggled to adjust to Premier League football, may well be more effective in the Championship. In midfield, the lack of genuine quality has been there for all to see. Dunny remains our most creative player but is surely coming to the end of his career. Pedersen appears to be going through the motions and one suspects he has graced Ewood Park for the final time. Petrovic continues to struggle, while the fact that Steven Nzonzi has fallen out of favour points to his likely departure in the summer. In attack, Modeste will return to France, and Yakubu and Hoilett will both find new employers in the summer. Eleven years of Premier League football has come to an end and the work of Jack Walker and the Walker Trust has been destroyed in eighteen months by owners who have never shown the slightest interest in the club or the town of Blackburn. Who knows what the future holds? But if the future of Blackburn Rovers remains in the hands of Desai and Kean, the future is indeed bleak. The Rao family and their chosen manager have shown themselves to be inadequate at every level over the past eighteen months. The greatest irony of all was on the day that Sam Allardyce took West Ham United into the play-off final, Steve Kean took the Rovers into the Championship. Allardyce, the man who turned Ewood into a fortress and achieved a comfortable tenth place, was deemed not good enough for Desai, whilst Kean, the man who has overseen twelve home defeats this season and taken the club down, remains her favoured son. No wonder thousands are now turning their backs on the Venky's Circus at Ewood Park. Teams Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson; Bradley Orr (David Goodwillie 80), Scott Dann, Gael Givet (Radosav Petrovic 86), Martin Olsson; Jason Lowe, David Dunn (Marcus Olsson 44), Morten Gamst Pedersen; Anthony Modeste, Yakubu, David "Junior" Hoilett Subs not used: Jake Kean (gk), Steven Nzonzi, Mauro Formica, Ruben Rochina Manager: Steve Kean Wigan Athletic Ali Al Habsi; Antolin Alcaraz, Gary Caldwell, Maynor Figueroa; Emmerson Boyce, James McCarthy, James McArthur, Jean Beausejour; Victor Moses, Franco Di Santo (Conor Sammon 85), Shaun Maloney Subs not used: Mike Pollitt (gk), Albert Crusat, Ben Watson, Jordi Gomez, Hugo Rodallega, Mohamed Diame Manager: Roberto Martinez Bookings Blackburn Rovers – Radosav Petrovic, Morten Gamst Pedersen Wigan Athletic – Victor Moses Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article

Blackburn Rovers (1) 2 – 0 (0) Norwich City Formica 41, Hoilett 49 Referee: K. Friend Attendance: 23,218 Victories at Ewood Park, once proudly known as a fortress, have become as rare as hen's teeth since the arrival of our poultry experts from India and their favoured Glaswegian son. With eleven defeats already in the bag, a win over Norwich City ought to have been cause for celebration and yet I left Ewood Park in deflated mood. Indeed, my mood was even gloomier a couple of hours later with news that QPR had enjoyed another win, under former Ewood favourite Mark Hughes, and were surely destined to win the battle for survival. On the day, the Rovers played well. Unlike the abject surrender at the Liberty Stadium last week, the players rose to the challenge and kept their Premier League status alive for at least another week. The restoration of Gael Givet was greeted with universal approval and there is no doubt that Scott Dann and the defence as a whole benefited from the return of the French warrior. However, the sight of Givet's heroic defending probably explained my mood at the end of the match. If only we had utilised the squad properly all season, we might well have avoided the fate that now surely awaits us in the next couple of weeks. Instead, the owners and their puppet in the dugout have embarked upon a cost-cutting exercise that has seen players ostracised, the services of experienced players dispensed with at the drop of a hat, an influx of mediocrity that, for the most part, even Kean seems too embarrassed to select and the continual attempts to force square pegs into round holes with all too predictable consequences. Ultimately a Premier League existence that has been nurtured so carefully for so long has been frittered away so easily by people who have no feeling or understanding of the club and the community it serves. It's the sheer folly of the ownership and team management that makes me weep in despair and the realisation that the past twenty years have been undone at a stroke by a family in India who would appear to have no love for the club which we hold so dear. This was a must-win game and win it we did against a Norwich side that appears to be finally hitting the wall that the majority of newly promoted clubs hit at some point. Fortunately, for both Norwich and Swansea, they have accumulated sufficient points to be clear of the relegation battle and now have the luxury of looking forward to a second season of top-flight football. With Givet restored to the defence, the Rovers had a more solid look about them and it was noticeable how much more comfortable Dann looked with the Frenchman alongside him. With Bradley Orr at right-back, Jason Lowe moved into the midfield slot vacated by Steven Nzonzi. Kean explained that the youngster had been rested, but there were strong rumours pre-match of a training ground incident with a member of the coaching staff — not the manager I hasten to add — that might also have explained his absence. Norwich started brightly and might well have taken an early lead but for James Vaughan missing his kick in front of goal. Fortunately, the Rovers gradually gained a foothold in the game and started to make inroads into the visiting defence. Dann came near to opening the scoring with a flicked header from a cross by David Dunn, but the visitors also came close to finding the net when Jonathan Howson struck a fierce long-range effort that Paul Robinson did well to tip over the bar. Howson had been able to run some distance unchallenged before getting in his shot as the Rovers midfield went missing once again. The Rovers responded with a brilliant piece of athleticism by Yakubu when Junior Hoilett's cross was nodded down to him by Morten Gamst Pedersen at the back post. The former Everton striker, with his back to goal, acrobatically managed a back somersault that saw him connect with both feet and send the ball goalwards with the 'keeper completely wrong-footed. Unfortunately, this superb piece of opportunism went unrewarded as the ball struck the post and rebounded to safety. However, the Rovers were not to be denied and on 41 minutes the breakthrough came thanks to a very good piece of play down the left wing. The ball was played down to Yakubu, who broke down the flank but, with nobody in the middle, was forced to hold the ball up before laying it back into the path of Pedersen. The Norwegian international swept over a pin-point cross to the opposite side of the area where Mauro Formica raced in and volleyed the ball into the back of the net. It was a super piece of football and brought back memories of when Pedersen used to deliver crosses like this on a regular basis. Four minutes after the break the Rovers doubled their lead thanks to a wonderful piece of individualism by Hoilett. The young Canadian collected the ball on the left touchline, jinked his way inside and then curled a 25-yard right-footed effort past John Ruddy into the top corner of the net. It was a brilliant goal which only Hoilett of the present squad is capable of producing. On 54 minutes Hoilett almost set up his fellow striker, but Yakubu was unable to reach the ball as it curled away from him. Once again the move had been begun by a break down the left with Hoilett racing clear before delivering his cross. Both managers used their full complement of substitutes with Dunn, Hoilett and Yakubu all being withdrawn as a precaution due to previous injuries. Norwich fashioned a few late scares but, in truth, looked like a side that was coming to the end of a long, hard season. They have accomplished what they set out to do, which was to retain Premier League status, and they have done it with ease. For the Rovers these three points just about keep them in the relegation battle, but QPR's win over Spurs means that unless our rivals lose every match, we will need another six or seven points to avoid the drop. Givet was named "Man of the Match" and Hoilett again demonstrated what a hole he is going to leave in the squad when he departs in the summer. Pedersen was much improved in midfield, while Orr and Dann gave better performances in defence. The midfield continues to be a problem with David Dunn's ageing legs having to be used sparingly, while Jason Lowe again looked completely out of sorts in the centre of the park. Radosav Petrovic gave an impressive cameo during the short time he was on and looked far more impressive than Lowe had done. However, neither looks as impressive as an on-form Nzonzi. We must now hope that Bolton lose at Villa Park in midweek and that the Rovers can return from White Hart Lane with at least a point and hopefully more. The sad fact is that survival is no longer in the club's own hands and we are relying on others to get us out of the mess that Venky's and Kean have put us in. Teams Blackburn Rovers Paul Robinson; Bradley Orr, Scott Dann, Gael Givet, Marcus Olsson; Mauro Formica, David Dunn (Martin Olsson 62), Jason Lowe, Morten Gamst Pedersen; David "Junior" Hoilett (Radosav Petrovic 82), Yakubu (Anthony Modeste 76) Subs not used: Jake Kean (gk), Steven Nzonzi, Ruben Rochina, David Goodwillie Manager: Steve Kean Norwich City John Ruddy; Russell Martin, Ryan Bennett, Elliott Ward, Adam Drury; Elliott Bennett, Jonathan Howson, Andrew Surman, Wesley Hoolahan (Anthony Pilkington 59); James Vaughan (Steve Morison 59), Grant Holt (Aaron Wilbraham 66) Subs not used: Jed Steer (gk), David Fox, Bradley Johnson, Kyle Naughton Manager: Paul Lambert Bookings Blackburn Rovers – David Dunn Norwich City – Jonathan Howson Join in the discussion on the forum here. View full article