and with the near £20m spent on transfers, they probably have the most class, most depth and best-balanced squad of the strugglers.

20 million on transfers? Its probably me but I can't think of 5million worth of transfers let alone 20. Ok there's Earnshaw, but other than him I can't remember them spending any big money.

Blimey this is one of the most exciting and closest relegation battles for some time. Southampton WBA and Crystal Palace are all picking up points whilst Portsmouth continue to play absymally. Any of these four could stay up or go down, I really wouldn't like to predict who at the moment.

Rovers can't afford to be too complacent what with the strong form of the aformentioned teams. Relegation is still a possibility and what with the way the bottom 5 bar Norwich are playing the teams just above them should not be breathing too big a sigh of relief just yet.

Having said that our own current form is impressive, and with only draws needed against the bottom teams to stay out of trouble we should do it. Not sure that these 'easy' fixtures will be as comfortable or as rewarding as previously hoped a month or so ago.

Brilliant result, it shows how far we've come under Hughes. We had a bit of luck in the first half but with the effort we put in we deserved a draw.

United fans will next be suggesting tht teams should be penalised for trying to score versus manure. If they were so great they would have broken us down. Muppets.

The bbc said it wasn't pretty from Rovers, which was true, but then I suppose they couldn't give the underdog credit could they. Brad spoke on the radio after and seemed quite pleased though not suprised that they got hte draw. It sounded as though the team has a real confidence about it again.

What a pillock Toshack is blaming Hughes.

Personally I don't think Hughes' time can be classed as a brilliant success - Greece have shown what can be done and set the benchmark for lesser teams in terms of success. However, without a doubt Hughes has done a good job, and left Wales in a far better position than when he joined them.

Wales don't have that many talented players, that Toshack left out one of the few decent players Wales have in Savage smacks of stupidity. Even Ireland went crawling back to Keane and they've a fair few more options than Wales for cm. Savage is thirty (i think) which means hes at least 2/3 more years left at international level, certainly for Wales.

Ok so quite a few players retired when Hughes left. That to me shows how well thought of and respected our manager is; it seems as if the players were playing for Sparky rather than Wales. And that he managed to get Giggs to actually play for Wales is one of the most impressive feats of modern football. Toshack evidently doesn't have the respect or 'people skills' that Sparky has.

To be fair Wales aren't the most talented of teams. Hartson and Bellamy are hardly international class; in fact save Giggs many of them wouldn't get in most international teams. That Hughes gained them credability is a massive achievement in itself. The early indications are that Toshack will undo this. Shame.

Another thought. Against Burbley we knew they'd defend and want a physical game hence the 4-5-1 for that game too. However we knew we needed to breakt them down hence Tugay played. Perhaps Hughes should have adopted a similar tactic and played Tugs instead of Flitty as Mokeana and Reid seemed to be able to handle the hard man role.

Really disappointed that we got Arsenal as:

IMO they're the best team left in the competion. Oh and all their players including Gilberto will be back for that game. They'll have a fully fit squad to choose from.

I'd much rather beat Manure or the barcodes as its more personal and we've more of a history to them. The prospect of Todd firing in a thunderbolt header against Newcastle to win the tie or a beautiful handball volley from Stead for Dickov to put away vs manure were much more appealing. Oh well I suppose that'll have to wait for the final.

My housemate is an Arsenal fan - I'm not sure I could speak to him again if they beat us.

btw does anyone know when tickets will go on sale?

If we play like we did against Everton then we've every chance of getting a point. Granted we played poorly against Leicester but it was an entirely different type of game. Will be very interested to see how Todd & Nelson cope with Morientes.

My team would be:

Brad

Neill Todd Nelsen Nissa

Mokeana

Emerton, Reid, Tommo/Flitty, MGP

Stead

subs Dickov (if fit) Enks, Short, Flitty/Tommo. Tugay

This 4th midfield slot is a bit tricky, Flitty's more defensive, but Tommo could cause Liverpool some problems if he doesn't go missing. Dickov may have scored the penalty but wasted two good chances and Stead deserves his chance. The only thing with this formation is that if we go a goal down it would be very hard to get back into the match.

Im going for 1-1 Rovers taking the lead through a Todd corner before a late Liverpool equaliser - it has to be from Riise.

That wasn't a classic game and if anything really shows how we are the underdogs in these semis. Apart from MGP we lack players who can create that bit of magic. In tight games - and if we're to win the cup we have to make sure that they're tight games - that litle bit of magic is absolutely VITAL. However we're through and that is the most important thing.

Having said that at least we can be confident that the right work ethic is in place to make sure these games are tight. We seem to have the best centre back pairing I've seen for a long time, and we've got the whole team working hard and closing the opposition down. Under Souness this current squad would have been murdered by the teams in the semis - and probably slipped up against either Leicester or Burnley. We've progressed a long way but Hughes is still undoing much of the bad work of the past season. I've a feeling that our formation and work ethic is the right way to go about the semis being the underdogs. It's just that bit of magic we need that will cause me to loose a bit of sleep.

Against City who would obviously sit back and defend I felt Hughes should have gone for a more attacking formation as 4-5-1 isn't the best way to break a team down. In fairness all of the midfield or defence deserved their place following the everton game, but Stead should have started up front, and Hughes is paid to make harsh decisions.

The positives from the game to me were that the whole defence was excellent. Granted they didn't have too much to do but they did it well and professionally. Emerton being on the bench seemed to have galvanized him and he showed he can cross and looked a threat the entire time he was on. With MGP we look a danger from set pieces again and the guy is the start of getting some flair back into the team.

the negatives - Dickov the constant moaning instead of getting on with the game really annoys me. And his finishing is diabolical. Twice he got into good positions only to have a terrible finish. I'm not sure where these two premiership class strikers are - Stead will become one - but Dickov certainly isn't one. Today showed again how poor his finishing is. Flitty showed signs of age, to put it politly whilst Tommo again went missing. I still think Tommos better out wide but Hughes needs to get some consistency into the lad. As for Flitty he's sadly not got it any more. Im not too upset about that as the Axeman seems a more than adequate replacement.

Rovers should be somewhat worried about the performance but not too downhearted. Despite a poor performance they still deserved to win and still should have won by another goal. Hopefully Stead will continue to improve before the semis. Mokeana might manage to injure the entire Arsenal team next week and besides WE'RE GOING TO CARDIFF!

To be honest what with the finances being limited I reckon there won't be too many changes to the squad. There's a few key areas to me which need strengthening - namely up front and a centre mid and then proper cover for the left mid and right back positions.

Going through the team I'd say the gk situation is fine. Two very good keepers - can't complain. A young keeper might be nice though have hear good things about a keeper at the acadamy (Jones?). Anyhow there is no call for wasting our funds in this area.

Defence:

To me Amoruso must go - he's so far down the pecking order its untrue - and his wages aren't insignificant. Gray should also go by the same logic - he's at least third choice lb and a big earner. Short will probably go as age has caught up with him. If I had my way that useless lump Matteo would also be gone but Hughes likes him.

Gresko should stay. Hughes has done a magnificent job with the defence and I'm sure that he can get the best out of Gresko. As already stated Gresko has played for some big clubs and the lad's been unfortunate in terms of injuries and who he's had in front of him. A fully fit Gresko back to form would be much better value than anything we could buy with our limited funds.

Nissa should also stay as he's been impressive at both cb and lb, as well as having age on his side. Again could we buy any better with the funds we have available. If we keep both these players all that's lacking is another rb for competition for Neill.

Midfield:

The big worry here to me is that both Flitty and Tugs are past it and are on considerable wages; I'd get rid. However this does leave a gap in terms of centre mids though is not as dire as first appears. Firstly I reckon that Reid could do a job in cm in fact I think it's his best position, and has all the qualities of an all round centre mid. Also Mokeana can do the defensive battling just as well as Flitty can. The only hole in the squad is a creative cm but with Tugs and Flitty gone we should have the wages to attract someone decent. Unless Emo's up to playing on the left - another left sided midfielder as cover would be nice. As it is funds might dictate that Emo is too important to loose as he can play either wing.

Strikers:

Here in lies the problem. Our strike force is the worst in the Prem. Being honest Stead and Gally at the mo aren't good enough - although in both case I believe they can and will make it as Premiership strikers. However both should be learning there trade coming off the bench and not having the additional pressure of leading the line. Equally Dickov is a nice option to have but he is not a lead striker - he's not good enough. A good squad option I'll grant you (and sadly the best we have at the mo) but he does lack the quality and more importantly doesn't seem to help the development of Gally or Stead. We need at least one maybe two proven quality strikers to lead the line and bring on our youngsters. Two might prove difficult to get though.

As for Matty and Boothroyd. Due to the difficulties of getting a couple of new strikers. I'd keep Matty due to the promise he's shown this season - though on a reduced rate - as otherwise we could be pretty short of experience up front. If I never see Boothroyd in a rovers shirt again I'd be rather happy.

In short:

Amo, Gray, Short, Tugs, Flitty and Boothroyd out freeing up enough wages for a creative midfielder and at least one quality striker. Hopefully depending on funds a second striker and a right back will be added a max of 6 out 4 in and a large surplus in wages for Rovers.

Fantastic performance by the lads. I'd not been to Goodison before and was suprised how poor the ground was. Also didn't think much to the Everton team who just seemed to hoof it forward at every opportunity. There were loads of positives today:

Tommo proved that although he can't play centre mid he can certainly play on the right

Reid showed that he can play a more central role and was my man of the match.

Mokeana showed he can take over from Flitty as the hard man in midfield (although we've also got Savage). Ok his passing was limited but no more so than Flitty's and I lost count of how many attack he disrupted. There was that botch with Bent getting past him but Brad who had a great game made a crucial save, that would otherwise have seen a different game.

Stead showed why we brought him. Couldn't fault his effort before the goal though he was rather ineffective until he scored. The goal was sheer class though. Much improved after scoring, and it was great to see the guy looking so happy.

Nelsen and todd looked a really class partnership.

The only gripes were Flitty showing his age (though still put in a decent performance) and us briefly sitting back when scoring. Fortunately this only lasted for about five minutes but if we could cut it out altogether it would be nice. Nissa also showed he can defend well but was poor going forward. Hopefully a rejuvinated Gresko will come into lb next season.

In second half we more than matched Everton and a deserved three points to take us into a difficult period of fixtures.

Have got tickets and am going to this one. Last away game I went to was the liverpool away last season - it can't be as bad as that. Everton are good defensively which means our strike force will have no chance of scoring (not that they have much chance against weaker defences either.) The big question is whether our defence is solid enough to stop Everton scoring. Personally I think our defence is good enough to limit opposing teams to a maximum of one goal per game, but sadly with our weak offense this might not be enough. I reckon its going to be 0-0 or 1-0 to Everton.

Will Savage be fit for the game? Is Jansen still injured?

My team would be (injuries permitting):

Friedel

Neill, Nelsen, Todd, Nissa

Emerton, Savage, Reid, MGP

Dickov Jansen

subs: Enks, Mokeana (sp), Thompson, Tugay, Gally

Really think that its going to be a battle and not sure that its Tugay or gally's sort of game. Would like to see reid start as he's impressed me in recent weeks and will add some more steel to the midfield.

Cheers. Remember the West Ham one. And the Chelsea league cup one as well.

I'd forgotten about the Newcastle game and shoot out, probably trying to block out the memory of Davies playing up front on his own for us.

Think you have to look at the end results - and the results are MGP doing a great job at left mid - so full credit to Hughes for getting MGP to play like that.

The great thing is that barring us selling him we've got a left mid one of our problem positions sorted out for another 5 yrs or so.

Have we ever won a penalty shoot out other than Wallsall recently?

i.e. last 5-10 yrs

There really is no excuse for loosing this one. Our super fit squad of twenty plus players have had a trip to Dubai whilst the reminents of the dingles team have been continuing their loosing streak. Surely it should be no trouble for Rovers to dictate the pace and have em chasing shadows throughout the game. The opportunity to get into the next round could not be bigger.

So why do I feel so nervous? Probably because Rovers have a habit of messing the easy things up. I'd be a lot more confident if we had someone who could finish on a regular basis.

Even despite Rovers talents for messing up the easy stuff I'm still going for a rovers win 2-0. Prefer a more experienced striker than Jemal on the bench and maybe this is the perfect opportunity for Stead to score.

OK Den I'll give it a go though I didn't vote for him I've still a soft spot for the lad. I think a lot of it was right player at the right time.

Considering the glut of good strikers we'd had in the past years (Garner, Speedie, Newell, Sutton, Gally and that Shearer chap wasn't bad either) the current crop of recent strikers were somewhat disappointing to say the least. Davies Ostenstadt and Ward were hardly inspiring - Rovers needed a cult striker again. Which is where Matty came in. When the crowd called for a hero Jansen answered.

The guy took a while to find his feet at rovers but even in the relegation season he showed glimpses of the talent and potential to be one of england's top young strikers. By the time the promotion season came that potential had become evident talent.

Matty was exciting to watch, in fact one of the most exciting I've seen as a Rovers player and always looked as if he could score a goal or two. In the promotion campaign Matty rightly won player of the season hauling Rovers out of the fire on many an occassion. And some of the skill he showed was magnificent - that cheeky feint against Bolton away, that rocket shot against Norwhich at home, the fantastic solo effort fort the late winner against Birmingham - are just a few which stick in my mind. Ok it was agianst first division but the guy looked class.

Another huge plus for Jansen was that he always seemed to give 110%, a fact which became more apparent as he stepped back up to the Premiership. despite playing with grabbi and then Ostenstadt and then on his own Matty continued to score on a respectable basis. And in the premiership his work ethic became even more apparent always harrying defenders and moving about, fans knew that Matty would earn his wage.

Then there was his contribution to the Worthington cup - top scorer in the rounds leading up to the final and then he played a key role in the final scoring one and setting up the other - yep it was Matty who harried Leadly into thinking he could take three touches. Not only did Matty have the style and talent, he also wasn't afraid to work hard and be part of the team.

Finally there was his rapport with the fans. Matty always looked as if he enjoyed playing for rovers, and who else can remember his celebrations with the blackburn end after seeing off Sheff Weds to get to cardiff. Matty seemed to enjoy a special relationship with the fans, which continued and was evident through their support after his accident.

Ok since the accident Matty's been poor but the guy still gives his all. But when looking at all time greats look back to the old Matty. The exciting talented hard working matty. Speedie gave us one season - matty gave us two great seasons. Not only did Matty possess all the desirable qualities of a cult forward he came at the right time. When Rovers needed a front line hero Jansen answered. There's only one Matt Jansen!

Oh and Celtic rangers is not a big game. Man Utd Arsenal was a big game. Rovers against either of them would be a bigger game. In fact Bolton Rovers could be construed as a big game by SPL standards. I'm fairly confident that both teams would clean up the rest of the SPL and give Celtic and Rangers a good game too. The truth is on the international stage Celtic-Rangers is scarcely worth bothering with. Just like baby bazza.

What nonsense.

The Old Firm game is easily the most intense derby on the planet. As the only two teams capable of winning the title, the victor often stands in good stead in the league rankings. Set aside the quality of football (which is rarely of a very high standard in any derby game) and factor in the history, tension, atmosphere and large fanbases (all the things that contribute to such an occasion). It is utterly wrong to dismiss it outright like that. Yes the SPL is crap, but the Old Firm is one of its few positive aspects.

Sure the atmosphere is pretty intense I'll give you that. But then so are many other derby games (Barca Madrid say.)

So the winners of the rangers celtic match most likely win the SPL - wow - what a prize. The SPL is so insignificant, you've said yourself the SPL is a joke, that the stakes are hardly much more than bragging rights. And what with at least four derby games per season the derby's highly repetative and too commonplace. Similarly I'd argue the quality and class on display is far higher in a premiership derby for example. Tottenham Arsenal for example is littered with high class players. As for tradition - is the tradition any greater than that of the other derby? Is it a greater tradition than the Rovers-Burnley derby? Ok they're two comparatively small (in terms of catchment area and on the international scale) clubs but to me that just adds to the tradition and atmosphere of the occassion.

To me Celtic Rangers games are too commonplace, fighting it out for very little, prizes which internationally are looked down upon.

Amo has many of the desirable extras that you'd like in a defender but sadly he CANNOT defend. The guy is a liability at the back and considering that it is his job to defend then the guy is not worth playing. A defender's first priority is to stop goals and Amo doesn't do that. (Off the top of my head I can recall him playing az large part in goals conceeded against Fulham, that Turkish team and man city). I'm not saying Amo doesn't have qualities, he does - just not as a defender.

Since Hughes has dropped Amo/or he's been injured our defence has tightened up considerably - coincidence? The good news is that Amo wants to go, the bad news is no one wants him, even Rangers.

Regardless of whether Amo is a decent player or not, i think most people would agree that the centre backs don't need changing and that Amo is fifth choice for the cb position. His wages are too much for a 5th choice cb so we should get rid and put the wages towards a striker or centre mid. Amo wanting to leave is good news as hopefully it'll help us get him off the books in the summer.

The comments just make Ferguson look like a complete looser. (I'd use stronger language if it were allowed.) How he has the nerve to slag off Blackburn after how they stood by him and took a chance on him is beyond me.

By the way Barry, the reason you left was cause you failed. You aint going to improve as a player in SPL. Fair enough you wanted to win things - is not the F.A. Cup worth winning or the league cup? Both are worth more than that mciky mouse SPL league. Rangers have just as much chance as Rovers at european success - none whatsoever.

The only way that Barry would've had a chance at European glory would be through a big club Arsenal, United, Liverpool, Chelsea etc. or abroad and none would touch him unless he proved himself as a Premiership player. Well, that's another lot of tropheys he'll never win.

Oh and Celtic rangers is not a big game. Man Utd Arsenal was a big game. Rovers against either of them would be a bigger game. In fact Bolton Rovers could be construed as a big game by SPL standards. I'm fairly confident that both teams would clean up the rest of the SPL and give Celtic and Rangers a good game too. The truth is on the international stage Celtic-Rangers is scarcely worth bothering with. Just like baby bazza.

Has to be Gallacher for me. Always gave one hundred percent for the club, and linked up well with so many players. The guy had seemed to genuinely enjoy playing for Rovers and didn't jump ship as soon as we got relegated despite saying otherwise (cough Sutton cough). Added to which the guy scored some fantastic goals for us.

Incidently if Matty had not had that accident i reckon Garner would have been pushed more for that second position.

This is going to be good. After their win over Liverpool's under 12s B team (and still only due to one of the worst own goals ever) Burnley think they've got a chance. it'll make it all the sweeter when we wallop em.

I think any manager of rovers would've sussed out this is a biggie - this goes doubly for Hughes who knows not only how important it is but the atmosphere and tone of the game.

After walloping Norwich I'm very confident we'll win. We're finally showing that we can beat poor opposition. (Though I still have doubts about us against quality opposition.)

Reasons we'll win.

Todd and Nelsen looking strong at the back and can handle what will undoubtedly be a physical encounter.

MGP is on fire (not literally.) I fancy him and Emo to terrorize the Burnley defence.

Dickov's back on the goal scoring trail.

Tugay will be up for this and I reckon he's likely to put in a good game. His sophisticated passing will be too much for Burnley.

Matteo should miss the game through injury and Amo will miss it cause he's pants.

Savage is miles better than anyone in the Burnley squad and will dominate the midfield.

All in all I reckon 2-0 to the Rovers with Savage and Emerton to score. If we score early it could be a few more.

Arguably Rovers biggest game so far under Hughes, a match which could conceivably have the biggest impact on Hughes' success during his time at Rovers. His tactics, formation and team selection will have not come under so much scrutiny as for this must win game.

Looking at our squad there's some pretty tough choices to be made and not the nice type of selection problems that they're having down at Chelsea:

The goalie situation is fairly settled. Brad's had a few blips this season but overall has been quite solid, and on several occassions has shown just how good a keeper he is. Regardless, this isn't the type of game you want to be throwing a different keeper into - high pressure is something of an understatement.

Defensively we've improved a huge amount yet despite this the selection still isn't clear cut. Our full backs seem to get beaten regularly every single game although there doesn't seem to be much alternative. Neill has had a poor season but lacks a replacement, Matteo is woefull but somehow has got Hughes' favour, Nissa didn't seem to do much wrong but if he's off at the end of the season is there much point in playing him, McEvelely isn't quite ready yet and Nelsen may be better off at, and required for, centre back duties. Fortuately Norwich don't have any class wingers of the likes of Robben, Duff and Downing who we've faced in the last couple of games.

At the centre of defence captain Todd, one of our most solid players and puts in a good performance every week. Todd's most likely to be partnered by either of the new boys Mokeana (sp)or Nelsen both of whom have looked encouraging. I believe that Todd's centre back partner will be dictated by who hughes wants to play other postions. Then there's Nissa. I thought he did quite well there, but Hughes seems to have given up on him, and a player who is leaving wouldn't help forge a solid centre back paring we've been missing since Short and Berg. Incidently Short if fit, could possibly be involved. Certainly his experience would be nice. Chaos theory dictates that Amo could also feature in some form. Norwich's biggest threat comes from the pace of their forwards Huckerby and Ashton which is Rovers biggest worry, and Hughes must bare this in mind when making his selection.

The midfield depends very much on the formation that is employed. Tugay is too much of a liability in a 2 man midfield, but Rovers have sorely lacked his killer passing (or any other form of accurate passing). In a must win game Hughes may gamble on adding some much needed creativity to Rovers offense by playing Tugay. Tommo is another hero of yesteryear underperforming. The guy's pass completion rate is dire but he does like to get stuck in and isn't afraid to shoot from distance. However after some poor performances surely it is time for him to be dropped. Flitty is a battler and always gives 100%. Sadly these days he doesn't give much more, but a Savage-Flitty partnership would certainly provide the defence with ample protection if not much else. Reid to me deserves a chance in the centre, and has impressed when he comes on. Nothing fancy but a dependable all rounder who is capable of making some powerful runs from midfield. However he seems to have fallen down the pecking order. Then there's Savage. Thank god we signed him. Ok he's not a Zidane or Viera but the guy is quality. He gets stuck in and also has more to his game then his defensive duties. Rovers really need a big game from Robbie.

The wings see arguably two of Roversmost talented players in Emerton and MGP. After an excellent start to the season Emerton has faded somewhat of late; if he could refind his form for this game it would be very welcome. MGP has a tendency to drift inside, which when playing a five man midfield means it gets rather crowded in the centre. He's scored a few which is nice since Rovers have decided that scoring isn't for them. The alternatives on the wing aren't great; an out of form tommo, or Reid who seems better suited to a more central role.

Norwich have nothing special at the back, and from what I've seen of them look shaky defensively. The good news for the Canaries is that rovers have nothing up front. Dickov works stunningly hard scores the odd cracker, but isn't the most reliable of shots in front of goal. However he could be just what we need to unsettle a jittery Norwich defence. As for the rest Gally's best contribution comes when dropping off to the midfield, Jemal has too little experience for such a big game and Stead has even less confidence. Anyone who saw the Bolton game would be disappointed if Boothroyd played for us again. Jansen has never been the same since his accident and injuries seem to have slowed him down even further. However he does seem the best of a bad bunch and the only one who seems likely to get a goal from open play. Anyone remember his stunner against Norwich during the promotion season? A repeat of that would be very nice.

Looking at the choices Hughes has to make is pretty depressing. Fortunately norwich ain't up to much either so I'll go for a 1-1 draw, Savage for us then a very late equaliser from a Norwich forward.

http://www.teamtalk.com/teamtalk/News/Stor..._284289,00.html

"Barry admits leaving rangers to go to rovers was a bad career move"

Not as bad as moving back up there.

The board to me did well with a player who held all of the cards. 5million for a player whop doesn't want to play is pretty good considering. Indeed had we paid a sensible price for him, we'd all be considering the 5m an incredible piece of business by rovers.

The biggest looser in all of this is Ferguson. Blackburn will get over this, one player is not a club. I'd much rather have lost barry than Todd, Brad, Dickov or Emerton. Ferguson will never now get the chance of playing for a top club, whereas had he excelled at Rovers he may have become a true Scottish legend.

What I would have liked to see as part of the deal is one of their strikers on loan with option for a perminant deal. A bit of a gamble admittedly but since we have bobbins up front it would have probably been worth taking.

Or they could have taken Amo back with them.

Blackburn have had their fair share of Scottish legends: Colin Hendry, Kenny Dalglish... even Graeme Souness!

Then there was Kevin Gallacher. A neat and tidy, nippy winger-come-striker, Gallacher was a truely enjoyable player to watch; gave defences the run around on many occasion that I watched him. A hat-trick back in the 96/97 season against Wimbledon was a highlight, particularly when he nicked the ball away from Neil Sullivan, who'd spilled his shot, and poked it into the net.

His partnership with Sutton was perhaps not the most prolific, but at least when the two of them were up front you knew there'd be chances and some level of excitement. In fact Gallacher's talent was perhaps more in laying on chances for others than it was taking them. He remains affectionately remembered wherever he played in football, from Dundee to Coventry, Blackburn to Newcastle. Gallacher was a great little player and, for me, rated above Sutton (although I may well be alone in that!)

Gallacher was also a very mild-mannered man, from what I remember of his time at Rovers, never got involved in the sort of dodgy escapades that now litter the world of football and are smeared across tabloid front-pages nationwide.

I've given my first vote to Shearer, but Gallacher is definitely worthy of the second striker's berth. Then we'd be cooking with GAS.

My thoughts exactly, my favourite Rovers player of all time. Shearer and Gally are my choices too.

Have to agree with Paul. The football on show has not been exciting for a long time. Even the two league home wins we've had this season have been pretty dire 1-0 affairs and very scrappy. Last season I didn't see a single Rovers win despite going to over half the home games and a couple away. For the average none ST holder to see that it's pretty likely that they're going to have second thoughts about going. This is where attractive football, heros, players who look as if they care and atmosphere all play a big part in retaining support.

Another factor which IMO has an effect is the increased number of 18 - 22 year olds at Uni. I know quite a few people who used to be ST holders for various clubs but now they've moved away to university, it's too impractical to see their team and the costs in time and money are too high. Maybe between terms Rovers could make more of an effort to attract returning Uni students.

Overall though Rovers need to shape up more on the pitch. With any other product if it isn't good enough you change it or stop using it. Football is slightly different but the principle is the same, if you don't produce a satisfactory service people aren't going to come. Yes, football is a chancy form of entertainment, there is always a chance you'll get laced but if there's a good chance you'll win a few games too then people will be willing to take the 'risk'. Sadly Rovers haven't been doing this for a while.