Hate being Scrooge but we need plan B for playing the better teams as the 4-3-3 doesn't, or hasn't yet worked against them. That said I am pleased there actually is a plan A which works and suits the majority of our squad. Bereton and Rothwell and Holtby all look much better in this system and long term (assuming we can keep the bulk of the squad together) it seems a good plan to have. We do however have to find a system that causes the better teams problems. Not sure what that is. Perhaps a return to 4-2-3-1?

Last time I recall so many injuries was 99. And a lot of key players then too. I think in some way our injuries are less problematic this year because everyone is picking up injuries and isolations due to the pandemic, but it certainly does make it harder. I kept saying I wanted another defender in, and it's not surprising that there we are looking really short. Compare that to midfield, where without Travis and Evans (not that I rate him) we still put out a strong midfield with plenty of options. It also doesn't help that Williams, Ayala and Evans aren't exactly known for the excellent fitness record.

Preston always strike me as a team who've punched above their weight. It always comes to an end sooner or later. That Neil did as well as he did was a credit to him as a manager. As a Rovers fan I won't be losing any sleep about their downward spiral. As for Derby - managers matter so, so much, why risk it on Rooney. Blimey he's hardly had a cracking influence as part of the caretaker set up anyway. Felt like today was a relegation 6 pointer for them. Cardiff got an emphatic win easing the pressure on Harris. Surprised to see them struggling so much.

Think this sums up my thoughts on him too. IF the crowd thing affects him that much it would be a real worry as there will be times when he/the team are playing poorly in the future (don't need to be Nostradamus for that prediction) and if having a restless crowd affects him that much, he really will struggle. For me, the formation change is key. It suits his strengths and hides his limitations. He's also not done it against any other clubs, and is a bit of a flat track bully. Both the not performing in other formations and not doing it against bigger clubs both mean he won't be top of anyone's shopping list anytime soon. But blimey, just having a player who causes weaker teams problems is streets ahead of where he was. I guess it's similar with Gally too. Right formation and position, he looks ok. Or as an impact sub vs tiring legs his physicality gives him an edge. Neither are particularly great but when we use them appropriately they can certainly contribute.

Totally agree it's nice and a welcome change. Also think yes often is a sign of a promotion contending team to win on their off days, but equally we've seen poor teams get fluke results - beating Manure under K**n for example. Now I don't think we are a poor team, or TM is like K**n but equally I am not convinced that this win shows we are a promotion winning team who can grind results on our off days. IF we do it on a few more occasions, than yes, but so far it seems a lucky aberration. It should go without saying however that I hope it is the start of us grinding out the results to a promotion, but off this one game I am not so sure. If nothing else - 23 shots to concede is a lot. Even a 1 in 6 strike rate would give them a number of goals. Yep, been suckered before by that and this in part perhaps is a reaction against it. Think our playoff hopes more rest on my lack of faith in the team to mount a sustained push rather than it being a mathematical challenge. Goodness knows how many chances we had last season to ge tinto playoffs and botched it. Again though, to clarify I'm delighted with the win. Just not getting my hopes up yet, and even factoring in guarding against disappointment I don't see us making the grade.

Being honest this performance doesn't make me that convinced we've enough in the locker to go up. However it is a very welcome 3 points and ones we haven't been taking recently, or at all this season, so on those grounds alone you have to be pleased with the results. The upturn of Gally and Bereton is huge. Sure neither are world beaters but both posing some.threat this season and has changed them from liabilities into options. Gally especially seems to be excelling as a super sub. More injuries is a kicker and I wanted more defenders in during the last window. I do worry that our lack of depth I'm defence will cause us all sorts of challenges over the season Shame for.Warton who seems to be bailing us out of a lack of centre backs. Having a good keeper probably got us the points. nice to have a keeper who gains rather than costs you points. Really supports the cliché build from the back. Overall much needed back to back wins and keeps our (imo slim) playoff hopes a possibility.

Forgot about the Taker Cena "match". Now that was another terrible, terrible waste of an opponent for the Taker. Good build up, terrible match. That would have been an epic way to turn Cena, retiring Taker, or with those two as story tellers they could have told an epic match. Neither happened though. As for raw and smackdown on the network both are a month behind which doesn't really help momentum. A poor product doesn't help either.

Maybe it was a how do we boost survivor series thing? After all there is little build up and zero consequence to survivor series these days with brand Vs brand. The only thing going for it is you see some match ups you otherwise wouldn't like Lesnar Vs Bryan or Styles that people think are interesting. Last year they had NXT involved to add intrigue. This year had pretty much nothing going for it. Got to boost ratings somehow.

Yes that was a cool image and a good image to end on. But surely the match and story make a huge difference too. Thinking of Ric Falir and Shawn Michaels retirements at Wrestlemania - although neither actually lasted, as you also say when money is involved - they were both excellent ways to go out. Good matches, good stories, the works. They were, imo, what wrestiling is. A cool visual after a crap match and lame story is not enough for me. Also, and I get Taker is slowing down, a good story and a hyped crowd can elevate a match. Thinking of Hogan-Andre at WM3 as the prime example. The match seemed wow, due to the storyline and crowd, and both wrestlers playing their parts well, even if the match itself wasn't great from a technical standpoint. No reason with with right opponent that this couldn't have been done even with Taker slowing down.

Not sure the Roman match was a big enough storyline to finish on. That being, there was very little storyline. More a crap, we need to make Roman look as good as Brock idea. The feud was badly built up, if at all, with no emotional investment whatsoever. And the match itself was far from a classic. So not sure it was a great way to go out. That said not sure Survivor Series was right either...

Delighted with the result and super delighted for Dolan. Great to prove his previous club wrong in such a manner. And no one can be unhappy with a very comprehensive win. However a note of caution I'm not too sure we learned much new. We knew we can hammer the bad teams - and by all accounts Preston were dreadful (how are they above us?) We've known we need someone pulling the strings and a couple of runners in the three. And we have seen this season that Bereton is a flat track bully. And that is not a knock - it's 1000% better than what he was and what I ever envisaged he would be for us. All in all I'm not too sure how much changes from last night albeit it is good to get a good result (especially Vs Preston) and be reminded of the positives in our situation. A couple of other thoughts. 1) TM going on about how great we will be when we get over Covid and injuries isn't living in the real world. Given Covid and the high volume of games neither Rovers or anyone else will get their whole squad at their disposal at any point. Also when you have 2 or 3 professional crocks its a tad optimistic to say the least! 2) The youngster whose development is perhaps most important to Rovers is Warton. Given how thin we are at the back and our reluctance to spend money there, a dependable solid option provided by him is huge. Really pleasing to see him developing.

It's an odd set of comments no doubt. Glad he cleared the 2 teams bit up - that's a relief to know. As for the rest you might not be sure but you can have a jolly good guess. I mean they're not going to all turn round and bare their arses or all leg it into the stands. Most teams have a style and patterns of play and strengths and weaknesses. The man comes off as utterly clueless.

The fact that Preston are above us again given our resources really annoys me. It's a damning example of how poor we are under TM. 3 years, 12 million and a better wage budget - not to mention no pressure - and we still can't overtake them? Poor do all round. They're above us in the league so reckon a draw is on the cards. Although whenever pressure mounts on TM (and I use the term pressure in the loosest sense of the word) he pulls out a result. So who knows maybe it's time for the 1 win in 4.

Sounds like you are disagreeing with what I wrote but I actually was saying he should get the boot...

The question I ask myself is do we look any more likely now 3 years on to get promoted then when we first came up. And whilst on paper yes, on the pitch it's a clear no. And if for no other reason than that he needs to go.

Is that possible? And yes Evans should have been gone a long time ago.

Bournemouth are the one that surprise me. A rookie manager doesn't often do that well, although I guess Fulham's squad compensated for Parker's weaknesses. But given I don't think Bournmouth's squad was as strong I am surprised they are doing so well. Norwich and Watford less of a surprise imo.

Whilst I think this is an accurate assessment as a strategy it will only end in tears. What's the phrase about standing still is actually going backwards? Goodness we are a mess of a club.

Ince got MK Dons promoted. Coyle got Burnley promoted. All managers, if they don't sink after a stint at a single club generally have one success on their CV. It's what gives them a bit of longevity. As it is 1 prior promotion doesn't prove much. And whilst I think he is better than the ones I've mentioned, I don't think TM is far superior or a huge upgrade.

We've played 7 decent teams in the league and not beaten a single one. Time for TM ro jog on. I have no faith in the owners choosing a better manager given their attachments to an agency, but even so I think that TM has really run his course. He's run out of ideas, is getting a squad to underperform and still has a shed load of the same mistakes being made. This is a manager on a down and we need to get rid before he takes us with him.

Agreed. And going beyond one game when the likes of Millwall, Luton, Barnsley and Preston are all above us, you really have to question what the manager is doing with his resources. ,

If you are referring to us only signing managers from one agency I agree you have a point in that it's difficult to replace him. If you are suggesting that there aren't better managers a club of our calibre could appoint, then I would suggest you are highly mistaken. In the time TM has been floundering, Rowett, Houghton and Warnock have all got jobs with clubs no bigger than ours. (Maybe Forest, but surely historically only.) I'm not sure who is currently out of work, but even that is a fallacy connected with Rovers - there's a school of thought you can try and get managers who are in other roles. TM isn't the pinnacle of managers by any means. And if people think he is, they should be calling for Vebkys to clear off for making that the case.

And how we are slowly progressing. Was talking today with my Dad about Hughes time at Rovers. 1 season to keep us up, one to make us a prospect and a top half team, a third to get us challenging for Europe. In contrast our progress under TM is glacial.

I appreciate it doesn't help having a crap ref, but let's be honest, we're not very good are we? I mean, ok on paper we look like a good side, but we haven't beaten a single decent team. We've hammered the dross, and that's highly laudable, but to not have beaten a single one of the 7 or 8 decent teams we've played is pretty poor and worrying. We're going nowhere fast. Season will be over by January.

Strong team, well other than the defence which as ever looks threadbare. Should be more than capable of getting the win. And if we don't it's another blow to our promotion ambitions. We can't afford to fall further behind. But I expect a good result today.