We're the first team this season they've scored three against. They only managed 9 goals in 18 games before today. Much like the Rotherham 4-0 debacle from last season, we'll just have to write this one off as a really poor result and move on. We know that if a team scores first against us we're basically dead in the water, and unfortunately it seems this is even true against the worst team in the league. Just have to hope we score first against Leeds. I do agree with the concensus that the ref was an absolute embarrassment today though. I don't usually comment on the referee's performance as it seems like an easy excuse, but he was their 12th man this afternoon. Can't blame JDT for losing his rag.

Eh? Rotherham are the other team in the bottom three. They drew away to WR's Birmingham.

I know there will be a thousand excuses, some relatively valid, but that is a shocking result. Only Wednesday's second win of the entire season, their other being Rotherham.

No rest for the wicked in the Championship, with a round of midweek games following the weekend's return to action. West Brom continued their recent impressive form with a 1-0 away win against Cardiff City. Not a game that will go down in history as one of the all-time classics, but WBA won't care, as three points are three points. It's a fourth win in five matches for the Baggies and sees them remain in 5th spot, four points clear of Rovers and Preston in 7th and 8th respectively. They also have the second best defensive record in the league with just seventeen goals conceded thus far, slightly less than one goal a game. Cardiff's form as of late has been inconsistent, with two wins, two defeats and a draw. As a result they have slipped down to 9th, but won't be too disheartened as their current position still represents a huge improvement on previous seasons. Coventry followed up victory at the weekend with another three points at home to Plymouth. Haji Wright's 75th minute goal was controversial, as Plymouth furiously protested that the ball had gone out of play in the buildup, but the decision stood and was enough to ensure the Sky Blues walked away with a fifth league victory. It moves them up to 15th in the table. Plymouth sink to 20th, having lost three of their last five matches. As far as I can see they have not won a single away game this season, with their home form alone keeping them above the relegation zone. As it stands they are still six points clear of the bottom three. Hull burst out of the gates at home to managerless Rotherham, with a four goal blitz inside twenty first half minutes basically putting the game to bed as a contest. As I've noted previously, Rotherham are absolutely pathetic away from home, but this took things to a new level of embarrassment. It will be even more disappointing for Millers' fans after watching their team fight to a 1-1 draw against Leeds only a few days prior. Former Rovers' loanee Tyler Morton scored for the second game in a row, opening the scoring in the fifth minute. Liam Rosenior's men jump back into 6th spot, having earned three wins from their last five matches and only losing once. Rotherham fall to 23rd and are now seven points from safety. Their 37 goals conceded is the worst in the division, with only Norwich close to them with 35 conceded. Rotherham ship on average more than two goals a game at this point. Speaking of embarrassing, Preston followed up the weekend's hilarious defeat to Cardiff by getting utterly demolished by Middlesbrough at the Riverside. Boro were 3-0 up by half time and added a fourth in the 94th minute just to rub some salt into the wounds. Nice. Preston didn't even have a shot on target. Michael Carrick's team move up to 10th, three points outside the playoffs. Ryan Lowe, meanwhile, sees his team drop to 8th, now below the mighty Rovers. PNE have now lost six of their last ten matches, and in that time their goal difference has plummeted to -6. They were a team known for being defensively resolute last season, but they have now leaked 30 goals, which puts them alongside the likes of Huddersield, QPR and Wednesday as one of the competition's worst defences. Tough times. Loftus Road witnessed a special occasion on Tuesday - the first time QPR had won on home turf this season. Not only this, but it was their first win in twelve games, in a run stretching back to September 16th. In that time QPR had accumulated a quite tragic three out of thirty six points available. Nonetheless, three points were theirs on this night, albeit with a slice of good fortune. The teams went in level at half time, with a goal each, but on the 53rd minute Enda Stevens was given his marching orders for a second bookable offence. Despite now being a man down, Stoke did take the lead in the 59th minute, but QPR were awarded and converted a penalty in the 79th minute to level the scores once again. An 89th minute own goal from Stoke's Ben Pearson was then followed by a 94th minute goal from QPR's Chris Willock, sealing all three points for the Hoops and a resounding 4-2 victory. Twelve games without a home win and twenty-two home games with no more than a single goal scored by the home side at Loftus Road were confined to the past, for now at least. It was Marti Cifuentes' first win as QPR boss. The result lifts them to 22nd, above Rotherham, but they are still six points from Huddersfield in 21st. Alex Neil bemoaned the performance of the referee in this match, but the fact remains his side have now not won in four matches, having picked up just two points from a possible twelve, and are in 17th position. They've now conceded seven goals in just two matches, dealing noticeable damage to their goal difference. Norwich had picked themselves up somewhat lately, with two wins from their last two matches. However, a wide-open defence remains an issue, and it was their inability to stop conceding that ultimately cost them at Vicarage Road. Despite being 2-0 up inside the first twelve minutes, Watford had levelled the scores by the 33rd minute and a 77th minute goal from Yaser Asprilla gave Watford a 3-2 victory. Post-match David Wagner claimed that a 17th minute injury to South Korean striker Hwang Ui-jo 'shocked' his players and led to their collapse, but that excuse cannot explain why Norwich are the second worst team in the division when it comes to letting in goals. They are second only to 23rd placed Rotherham, with 35 goals conceded. They do know how to find the opposition net, however, which helps. 32 goals scored is joint-second best with Leicester, and as a result despite their problems Norwich remain in a relatively stable 14th position. Watford meanwhile move just above Norwich into 13th, with a decent eight points returned from the last fifteen available. Wayne Rooney's Birmingham City™ picked up their first victory of the campaign at the weekend, but made hard work of beating the division's worst team, Sheffield Wednesday. JDT's Rovers were not going to be as much of a pushover, and were looking to get their less-than-stellar home form back on track after a solid away win against Stoke on Saturday. The game was goalless at half-time, but Rovers stormed out of the blocks in the second period, with the Championship's top marksman Sammie Szmodics adding another two to his tally within seven minutes of the restart. Increasingly impressive Bournemouth loanee James Hill made it 3-0 on the 59th minute, and Rovers appeared to be cruising to victory. However, we never do things the easy way, and goals from Siriki Dembele in the 63rd and 78th minute made for a nervy final fifteen minutes. Thankfully it was Rovers who wrapped up all three points as a goal from Harry Leonard in the 92nd minute put the result beyond doubt. A third win in five for Rovers, and a second victory on the trot, lifts us to 7th place. We are now just two points outside the playoffs, very much mimicking the first half of last season where we either win or lose - with only one draw from eighteen games. The football, at the very least, has improved immensely since last year though. For Rooney and his team it is back to the drawing board, as just four points from the last fifteen sees them languish in 16th place, now eight points removed from the 6th spot they were in when Rooney arrived to bring 'no fear' football to the Midlands. Leeds bounced back from a disappointing 1-1 draw against Rotherham with a 3-1 victory at Elland Road over Swansea City. The Swans started perfectly, scoring within the opening minute, however they were pegged back just three minutes later, and went in at the break 2-1 down. Daniel James then added a third in the 61st minute, and that was that. It's a result that keeps Leeds within seven points of 2nd placed Ipswich, and eight of first-placed Leicester. They have won seven of their last nine games. Swansea, however, have not won in four and have only picked up two points from the last twelve available, which sees them remain in 18th position, seven points clear of QPR in 22nd. Sheffield Wednesday looked to be heading for yet another defeat at Hillsborough, 1-0 down to Leicester with the game drawing to a close. However, a 93rd minute equaliser from substitute Jeff Hendrick stunned the Foxes and gave the Owls a share of the points. Wednesday admirably went toe-to-toe with Leicester, and ultimately deserved their point, with a performance young manager Danny Rohl will be proud of. With that said, Wednesday still only have a single win to their name this season, and are now a massive twelve points from safety. Leicester remain top of the table, but a sudden dip in form - with only four points from their last twelve - has seen their lead at the top reduced to a single point, as Ipswich relentlessly chase them. This was, in fact, Leicester's first draw of the season. They won't be too concerned yet, but with Leeds also in tremendous form, the Foxes will know that they can't rest on their laurels and will need to get their mojo back sharpish. Southampton are another team in excellent form, and they put a disappointing weekend draw with Huddersfield behind them as they took all three points from Bristol City at St. Mary's, with a single goal from Kyle Walker-Peters enough to settle the match. The Saints are on a ten match unbeaten run and remain in 4th place, eight and nine points behind Ipswich and Leicester respectively, and just one point behind 3rd-placed Leeds. It was a first defeat for new Bristol City boss Liam Manning, whose side drop to 12th. Tony Mowbray's Sunderland fell to a second defeat in a row, as they were beaten 2-1 at the Stadium of Light by struggling Huddersfield. Despite having 27 shots on goal, the Black Cats' lack of clinical finishing meant that Huddersfield were ultimately able to snatch all three points. More worrying for Sunderland is that this is now a fifth defeat in eight matches, causing them to continue falling away from the playoff positions. Losing two consecutive matches to teams in 20th and 21st will also be of concern. They now sit in 11th place, four points from the playoff spots. Huddersfield had not won in five matches before this encounter, but will have been buoyed by an excellent point gained against Southampton and another fantastic result here. They remain in 21st position, but Darren Moore's men are now six points clear of the relegation spots and seem to have found a way to tighten their leaky defence, having only conceded three goals in their last four matches. Ipswich lost for the first time in twelve matches at the weekend, but evidently did not let that get them down, as they hammered a lacklustre Millwall side at Portman Road. The Tractor Boys were 3-0 up at half time, and a goal from Millwall's Kevin Nisbet in the 78th minute proved scant consolation, as the match ended 3-1 to the home side. Millwall have surprisingly been one of the Championship's most resilient teams on the road, having only lost one away match so far this season and conceded just seven goals on their travels. However, they were coming up against an Ipswich side who are the Championship's top scorers, with a ridiculous 39 goals now scored in eighteen games. They have scored three times or more at Portman Road in nine of ten matches this season, with 28 goals scored at Portman Road overall this season. If you're an Ipswich season ticket holder, you're certainly getting value for your money. This result pulls Ipswich to within a point of leaders Leicester, and keeps them seven points clear of Leeds in 3rd. A second defeat on the spin for new Millwall boss Joe Edwards - having shipped three in both losses - leaves the Lions in 19th position, seven points clear of the relegation zone.

Really nice to see Sammie replacing Dack as our talisman. Think pretty much everyone likes him. Hard worker, vocal, never gives up, scores goals and spurs his team mates on. Great lad to have in the team, and what a bargain.

No fear football. Isn't that what Birmingham are supposed to be all about? 😄

The Championship returned after yet another international break with a Friday night game pitting lowly Rotherham against 3rd placed Leeds at the New York stadium. Rotherham are still without a manager, having sacked Matt Taylor on 13th November, and after going behind after just six minutes must have feared the worst. However, Leeds failed to extend their lead during a dominant first half and were punished when Rotherham equalised in first-half stoppage time to send the teams in level. The game ultimately ended 1-1, and Rotherham will consider this a vital point collected. Three points from fifteen still makes for grim reading, however, and they remain in 22nd position. Leeds will be unhappy to have dropped points here, ending a three-game winning streak, and remain in 3rd - seven points behind Ipswich in 2nd and ten points behind table-toppers Leicester. It all looked to be going wrong for Wayne Rooney's Birmingham City™, again, as they went 1-0 down at home just before half-time to the Championship's worst club, Sheffield Wednesday. However, a goal just three minutes later on the stroke of half-time meant the sides went in at the break with a goal apiece. Birmingham clinched victory in the 81st minute, with a goal from 19-year old substitute Jordan James. It wasn't the performance Birmingham would really have hoped for against a poor Sheffield Wednesday team, but nonetheless Rooney picks up his first win after six attempts. It ends a dismal run for Birmingham, but they are still 14th, having been 6th when Rooney was appointed, and six points from a playoff spot. It was a third defeat on the spin for the beleaguered Owls, who still only have one win to their name after seventeen matches and have collected just six points. They are ten points adrift, having been defeated thirteen times this season. Middlesbrough's resurgence continued to falter in an entertaining game against Bristol City at Ashton Gate. The home side were 2-0 up at the break and looking good, but two goals in the space of two minutes shortly after the interval meant it was all to play for. Bristol City showed resilience and clawed themselves back into the lead with a 67th minute goal which was enough to seal all three points for them. It was a first win for new head coach Liam Manning, having drawn his first match away to QPR. The result leaves Bristol City in 11th place, three points from a playoff position. Boro sit just behind them in 12th, four points from the playoffs. Another league goal from Adam Armstrong looked like it would be enough to see off struggling Huddersfield at the John Smith's Stadium, but a late 87th minute equaliser from Ben Jackson was enough to ensure the Terriers left with a share of the points. Much like Leeds the day before, Southampton will be frustrated to have not taken all three points from a match they would have been expecting to win. Also much like Leeds, it ends a run of three wins on the trot for the Saints. They continue to sit in 4th, eight points behind Ipswich and eleven points behind Leicester. Huddersfield's point keeps the gap between them in 21st and Rotherham in 22nd at four points. No win in five and just two goals scored in that time will provide plenty of concern to Darren Moore and his team, but after conceding four goals in two consecutive matches, they've only conceded two goals in their last three games, which they can take some heart from. Jamie Vardy scored twice - with one from the spot - to give Leicester a 2-0 home win against Watford. The Hornets also had their goalkeeper sent off in the 93rd minute, with defender Ryan Porteous being forced to take the gloves. Fortunately he wasn't confined to the nets to very long, but was unable to save Vardy's 95th minute penalty. This was a much needed boost for Leicester, who had surprisingly lost two in a row before the international break. The result moves them three points clear of Ipswich in 2nd, and ten ahead of Leeds in 3rd. Another clean sheet highlights their excellent defensive record, having only conceded ten goals in the league next season. Next best are Leeds and WBA with seventeen conceded, showing how impressive Leicester have been at the back. Defeat ended a nice run of six games without a loss for Watford, but they will fancy their chances of getting back on track at home to Norwich on Tuesday. New Millwall boss Joe Edwards got a glimpse of the struggles of his predecessor Gary Rowett, as the Lions were trounced 3-0 at home by Coventry City. The Sky Blues hadn't won in their prior six games and had fallen perilously close to the drop zone, with just three wins in their opening sixteen matches. The international break evidently gave them time to refocus, and they were able to record only their fourth win of the season. They remain in 20th place, but gain two points on both Huddersfield and Rotherham below them, three and seven points clear of each team respectively. They also have a hefty goal difference advantage over those beneath them, with their +1 in stark contrast to Huddersfield's -14 and Rotherham's -17. Millwall fall back to 18th, and will be hoping this was a blip rather than a sign of things to come. Norwich had broken a string of losses with a victory just before the international break, and gained another three points from QPR at Carrow Road. A single goal from South Korean striker Hwang Ui-jo was enough to hand Norwich victory, and was the first time since August that Norwich had been able to claim back-to-back wins. Despite managerial change, QPR's nightmare season continues in earnest, as they are now 11 games without a victory. Thus far new coach Marti Cifuentes has only been able to pick up two points from his first three matches, and the Hoops have still only won two games this season. This result keeps them in 23rd place, six points adrift, with both Rotherham directly above them and Huddersfield in 21st each gaining a point on them. Norwich meanwhile rise to 13th, five points outside the playoffs. Despite going into the international break having picked up a healthy seven points from their previous three matches, Sunderland were undone away to Plymouth, who recorded an impressive 2-0 victory. A fantastic strike from Morgan Whittaker in the 24th minute was followed fourteen minutes later by a second from Finn Azaz, just after Jobe Bellingham had hit the post for Sunderland. Despite hitting the woodwork again in the second half, Sunderland were unable to rally and Plymouth walked away with a hard-earned three points. It was a first win in four for Argyle and keeps them in 19th place, seven points clear of Rotherham in 22nd. Perhaps most surprising is Plymouth's goalscoring prowess. Few would have predicted that after seventeen games Argyle would be the third highest scorers in the division, having netted more than the likes of Leeds, Southampton and WBA. However, a leaky defence has been a problem, hence their current position. Sunderland meanwhile fall to 9th, with seven points from fifteen showcasing their erratic form as of late. They remain just two points from the playoffs, regardless. Preston went into the international break with two victories on the trot, and perhaps thought they had put their recent bad form to bed. Think again, however. They were fortunate to escape with three points from Ewood, but their luck ran out at Dumpdale against Cardiff in hilariously cruel fashion. They went ahead just after the break, but soon shot themselves in the foot as Robbie Brady got himself sent off in the 53rd minute for a second bookable offence. Cardiff dominated from this point onwards, but were unable to break down Preston's resistance, and it appeared North End would cling on to take all three points. That all changed in the span of three glorious injury-time minutes. A 96th goal from Karlan Grant was followed by a 99th minute winner from the wonderful Ike Ugbo, on as a substitute, to end the afternoon in miserable fashion for the hosts. Preston cling onto 6th place for now, whilst Cardiff edge just a point behind them in 7th. Rovers went into the break on the back of an unfortunate but nonetheless dispiriting home defeat to Preston. The team showed no signs of this affecting them, however, as they produced yet another solid away performance and earned a 3-0 away win against Stoke, with the final two goals coming in the final few minutes of the match. Nice for us to be the ones scoring those for a change. Scott Wharton's early headed goal from a corner - hopefully RIP the neverending short-corner routine - bode well for Rovers, who typically do well in matches where we take the lead. So it proved again today. Stoke pressed Leo Wahlstedt into a top save in the first half, but were otherwise superbly marshalled by a well-drilled Rovers defence. The result is especially impressive when you consider Stoke hadn't conceded in four games prior to this. Sammie Szmodics' late goal also keeps him top of the Championship scoring charts with eleven goals, one ahead of former Rover Adam Armstrong. Rovers' fans will have a sense of deja-vu as we settle into a WLWLW pattern once again. Nonetheless, one can't complain at a return of nine points from fifteen, and we move up to 10th position in the table, just three points from the playoffs with two goals superior GD to PNE. It was a first defeat in five for Stoke, but worth noting they have now failed to score in three matches. They are 16th, and perhaps unsurprisingly fourth-joint lowest scorers in the division alongside Rotherham. Swansea and Hull shared the points with a 2-2 draw at the Swansea.com stadium. Hull will certainly be the happier of the two teams, considering they were 2-0 down at the break. A goal three minutes after the restart from Jaden Philogene signalled that the fightback was on, and in the 68th minute the Tigers drew level with a volley from former Rover Tyler Morton. Hull had chances to win the match as momentum swung hugely in their favour, but in the end had to settle for a point. Swansea's wretched home form continues, having only won twice on their home turf this season. Just five wins overall sees them continue to flounder at the wrong end of the table in 17th, although they won't be too worried about being dragged into a relegation fight at this point, being eight points clear of Rotherham in 22nd. Hull's point means they've gained ten points from the last fifteen available and climb to 8th, one point outside the playoffs. Saturday's late kick-off saw 2nd placed Ipswich face a WBA side looking to keep their playoff push going strong at the Hawthorns. Ipswich have been on a frankly unbelievable run of form, having not lost a league match since way back on 26th August when Leeds beat them 4-3 at Portman Road. They hadn't lost an away league match since January, stretching back to their time in League 1. It had to come to an end at some point, though, and on this evening the visitors found themselves undone by a West Brom side who, on their day, can beat anyone in the division. A 5th minute goal from Darnell Furlong set the tone for what was to come, and a 47th minute goal from Grady Diangana underlined the hosts' intent. Having embarked on a remarkable 12 game unbeaten run, Ipswich will be disappointed to have failed to get a single shot on target in this match, but will have known they had a tough task on their hands against Carlos Corberan's team - the best home performers in the league over the past twelve months. Ipswich will also be thankful that Leeds were unable to take maximum points from Rotherham, and that Southampton also stumbled at Huddersfield, meaning that each team only gained a point on the Tractor Boys, who remain seven clear of Leeds in 3rd. WBA meanwhile surge into 5th place, having picked up an impressive twelve points from the last fifteen available. They remain ten points behind Ipswich in 2nd, but you wouldn't bet against them asking questions of Ipswich later in the season.

Spot on. Never lets his head drop, keeps trying and wants to be involved even if things aren't going his or our way. An exemplary team mate and exactly the type of personality needed across the pitch to push a team to the top. JDT once again highlighting the difference between his ambition and Waggot's (and by extension the owners) lack of in the ITV4 interview. Good lad. Keep telling it like it is.

Millwall you could maybe make a case for, but the other two were very harsh sackings. As far as Rooney goes, from the sounds of it the American owners wanted him from the outset. Makes some sense as he'd been managing in the States and had previous Championship experience with Derby. Also a big name, which shouldn't mean anything but inevitably does. Difficult to draw any conclusions from his time at Derby, simply due to how dysfunctional they were at the time. He didn't impress at DC United. Certainly hasn't gotten off to a very good start at Birmingham. Their next three matches are Sheffield Wednesday home, Rovers away and Rotherham at home. You expect they'll want to target at least six points from those fixtures. Any less and it really will increase the pressure, particularly as there is a portion of the fanbase that pretty much turned on Rooney from day one.

The bottom four have now all changed manager. 21st - Huddersfield 21st September - Warnock leaves, Darren Moore is hired. Huddersfield were 16th at the time and had eight points from the first seven matches. Since Moore took over they've only gained seven points from nine matches and are now 21st. No new manager bounce here. 22nd - Rotherham 13th November - Matt Taylor sacked after a 5-0 drubbing at Watford stretches the club's run without an away win to 21 matches. It would certainly be ironic if Warnock was appointed and ultimately led Rotherham to safety ahead of Huddersfield. He's gotten Rotherham out of a worse situation before. 23rd - QPR 28th October - Gareth Ainsworth and his dancing, chanting motivational speaker leave after QPR go nine games without a win, including a 4-0 hammering from JDT's lads. Relative unknown Marti Cifuentes, a Spaniard who had been plying his trade in Sweden, takes the job on 30th October. Two days later QPR chairman Amit Bhatia stepped down, essentially saying it was because he had better things to do. Cifuentes is unbeaten in his first two games in charge, drawing away to Rotherham and at home to Bristol City. 24th - Sheffield Wednesday 4th October - It was a shock to hear Sheffield Wednesday had parted company with Darren Moore after last season's promotion, but hiring former Watford boss Xisco Munoz didn't seem like the worst idea. Turns out it pretty much was though, as ten matches, no victories and just five goals scored saw Munoz get the boot - although he probably wasn't too disappointed, as owner Chansiri had just announced he hated the fans and wasn't putting any more money into the club. 34 year old Danny Rohl thought yeah, that'll do me, and took charge on October 13th. He'd previously been assistant at the likes of Bayern and Southampton, and in taking the job became the youngest manager in the football league. Wednesday have mostly carried on as normal, however, losing four of the five matches Rohl has been in charge - the other being a home win against Rotherham. They're obviously still bottom and of the five games Rohl has been in the hotseat thus far, Wednesday have conceded nine and scored twice.

Indeed. They'd have to hope he hits the ground running - because if it didn't happen for him within a few matches it'd likely be a complete waste of a six month loan.

Can't imagine we could afford to even come close to paying a reasonable % of his current wages.

Unsurprising if so. His post-match comments after getting obliterated by Watford suggested he knew it was over.

Would a 'General Rovers Discussion' thread be considered useful? Basically a thread to post random thoughts that people don't necessarily think would warrant their own thread or fit into an existing one. Most structured forums do have a thread like this, but I don't think we do. I feel like most topics people would want to discuss in regards to the club are covered somewhere though (JDT, match threads, season tickets, Waggott, the Trust, Burnley, the academy, transfers, various threads for former players) so I'm not sure how useful it would actually be. As noted previously, this thread is supposed to be for people to post optimistic takes without the need to defend themselves, so it isn't really designed for debate. A general discussion thread would be neutral to potentially facilitate that, but again, not sure whether it's actually needed.

It was what I wanted to do when I was younger, but I realised pretty soon that my personality wouldn't mesh well with that kind of career. I'm naturally an introvert and whilst nowadays I can pretend to enjoy longer/repeated social interactions, I don't think I would have been happy in that kind of job. Sports journalism I may have been okay with, but I just didn't go in that direction. Writing is something I genuinely enjoy doing, but it's probably for the best that I didn't make it my job, as that tends to suck the fun out of things.

We all know what happened last night, so not going to go into details. Rovers were beaten 2-1 by Preston at Ewood, the second defeat to them on home turf in a row, following last season's 4-1 humiliation. At least this result was a slight improvement. It was Preston's second win in a row, and eight points from their last fifteen has seen them climb back up to 5th place after a dismal run of form had seen them fall out of the playoff positions. Rovers fall to 12th, stuck in a similar position to the first half of last season where we either win or lose. Just a single draw from our opening sixteen matches means that despite losing eight games - joint worst in the division outside of the bottom three - we are far clear of the relegation scrap. For what it's worth, despite last night's disappointing result we've still accrued more points than Preston in our last five matches, with nine points from a possible fifteen. Another thing to note is that Sammie Szmodics' strike took him to ten goals for the season, and he's the first player in the league to get to double figures this season. If only there was anybody else in the team capable of regularly putting the ball in the net. It was another disappointing match for Wayne Rooney’s Birmingham City™ in the early kick off, as they were handily beaten 3-1 at the Stadium of Light by Sunderland. Rooney has now lost four of his first five games, with the other being a draw. The result drops Birmingham to 18th in the table - they were 6th when Rooney arrived, although it's still early days. The Black Cats sneak into 6th position, with seven points from their last nine. Their +10 GD is the fourth best in the division behind the top three teams. It all seemed to be going wrong for Norwich, again, at the Cardiff City Stadium. Despite going a goal ahead in the 22nd minute, they were trailing 2-1 by the time the half time whistle was blown. The Canaries showed their fighting spirit in the second half, though, and two goals in two minutes towards the end of the game gave them a much needed 3-2 victory. They are still leaking goals, but for this week at least they scored enough goals to overcome their defensive woes. The result will be a massive relief for David Wagner, who had seen his side fail to win in six and only gain a single point from the last eighteen available. It was only their second away win of the season, and moves them up to 16th in the standings. They have still conceded the most in the division, but are now joint-worst with Rotherhan, who we'll get to shortly. Cardiff will be bitterly disappointed to have lost this one, on the back of two wins and a draw from their previous three matches. They sit in 9th place. Coventry played out a 0-0 home draw with Stoke, ending a run of four straight defeats. By all accounts it was a desperately poor match in terms of quality, but the Sky Blues' boss Mark Robins will at least be satisfied with a first clean sheet since October 4th. They remain in 20th position, five clear of Rotherham in 22nd, whilst Stoke have now collected a very respectable eleven points from the last fifteen available, and are 14th in the table. A last-gasp 92nd minute goal from Liam Delap gave Hull City a narrow 1-0 victory against struggling Huddersfield at the MKM Stadium. Hull utterly dominated the match with 20 shots to Huddersfield's 2, and deserved the three points. It's a third win in five matches and moves them up to 8th position, only outside the playoffs on goal difference. Huddersfield meanwhile continue to disappoint under new boss Darren Moore and remain in 21st position, four points ahead of Rotherham just beneath them. For Ipswich Town two draws in their last two matches was considered 'a bad run of form', which shows how impressive their campaign has been so far. They've only lost one match in the first sixteen, and had no problem brushing a weak Swansea team aside at Portman Road. Swansea did take an early lead with a 7th minute goal, but by half time they were 2-1 down. A 53rd minute penalty from ex-Rover George Hirst put some daylight between the sides, and a sending off for Liam Cullen for two bookable offences in the 69th minute made Swansea's task even harder. The Swans did manage to claw one back in the 95th minute, but the damage was already done and the match ended 3-2. The Tractor Boys are still in 2nd position, but are now level on points with Leicester City in 1st place. It should also be noted that Ipswich are the top scorers in the division by a long stretch, with an incredible 36 goals in 16 matches. Leicester and Norwich are closest to them with 29 goals scored. It's a third defeat in five for Swansea, who are in 17th. Leeds kept their chase for the automatic places going with a 2-1 home victory against Plymouth. Ben Waine's 84th minute goal for Plymouth gave them some hope, having trailed 2-0 since the 28th minute, but despite late pressure they were unable to find an equaliser. It's a fourth win in five for Leeds, and they are currently eight points behind both Leicester and Ipswich in 1st and 2nd respectively. Leeds also boast the joint-second-best defensive record in the division, with only 16 goals conceded in their first 16 matches. A return of five points from the last fifteen available sees Plymouth in 19th position. Their 27 goals conceded is not a great stat, but they will be pleased by having scored 27 goals, up there with the best teams in the division and meaning their GD is 0. They are the only club in the bottom seven who are not in negative goal difference. Leicester had been strolling through the Championship, but have recently fell flat on their face. Today's 1-0 defeat by Middlesbrough at the Riverside was their second defeat in a row, and their third of the season. A stunning free-kick from Sam Greenwood was enough to give Michael Carrick's Boro all three points. A third win in five games means that Boro have now collected ten points from the last fifteen, and move up to 10th position, just two points outside of the playoff positions. Leicester currently remain in top spot but have been pegged back by Ipswich and are now level on points with the second-placed Suffolk club, only ahead of them on goal difference. Leicester have still only conceded a meagre ten goals this season, which comfortably makes them the best defence in the division. The next best are Leeds and Bristol City who have each conceded 16. Leicester are also the only team in the division yet to draw a match, having won 13 and lost 3. Two newly-appointed managers faced off as QPR took on Bristol City at Loftus Road, with Marti Cifuentes taking on Liam Manning, who was at the helm of Bristol City for the first time. It was also Cifuentes first home game as QPR boss. Ultimately, however, it was a boring match which ended goalless. QPR didn't even manage a shot on target. Nonetheless, they were the only team in the bottom four to get any points this weekend and sneak closer to Huddersfield in 21st, with the gap now five points. QPR will also be happy with a clean sheet, having not kept one since a 0-0 draw with pre-Wayne Rooney's Birmingham City™ way back on 22nd September. It's a second draw in a row for QPR, leaving them 23rd. Bristol City move ahead of us, into 11th. Their return of 16 goals scored is the worst outside of the bottom four, however, their defensive record of only 16 conceded is joint-second-best, so Manning will be looking to find a way to increase their firepower whilst retaining their excellent defensive instincts. Sheffield Wednesday's embarrassing season further descended into farce as they were dismantled 4-0 at home by Millwall, of all teams. Joe Edwards was making his debut in the Millwall dugout and, truthfully, couldn't have wished for a better opponent to start against. Young boss Danny Rohl will now be realising that being able to beat the worst away side in the division in Rotherham was not a turning point for his hapless Owls team, who have been soundly beaten twice since then and as usual failed to score in both matches. Defeat leaves Wednesday at the bottom of the table, nine points from safety. Their goal difference of -20 is the worst in the division, not helped by the fact they have only managed to score seven times in the entire campaign thus far. They've now lost twelve of their sixteen matches. Millwall had been on a run of five games without a win, so this was a welcome three points for them as Edwards looks to turn around their season. The Lions move up to 15th in the table. Southampton and West Brom had both been in good form heading into their match at St. Mary's, with both occupying playoff spots and both having won their last three games. It was Southampton who came out on top in the end, a 79th minute goal from former Rover Adam Armstrong deciding the contest. Arma has scored nine league goals thus far, one behind Szmodics. The result keeps the Saints in 4th, one point behind Leeds and nine behind Leicester and Ipswich. Defeat for the Baggies drops them out of the playoff spots for now, as they sit in 7th and are overtaken by Preston and Sunderland. You have to feel for Rotherham fans who continue to stump up cash to watch their team away, only to see them capitulate time after time. The Millers have not won in 21 away league games now, a record which spans over a year, and have taken a single point from their travels so far this season. No change in fortune today either, as they were mercilessly hammered 5-0 by a rampant Watford side. The Hornets went into this match having gained eight points from their last twelve, and ensured their good form continued as they put a disgraceful Rotherham side to the sword. Rotherham boss Matt Taylor had some ominous words post-match, saying that the goals they conceded were "unforgivable" and that he is worried that he has "a group of players who aren't believing". Not the comments of a man who is likely to be there much longer, you'd think. Nonetheless, victory for Watford means they are undefeated in six and rise to 13th in the table. Rotherham remain in 22nd place, four points behind Huddersfield, but the manner of their defeat means that they now have the joint-worst defensive record in the division alongside Norwich. Two victories in sixteen matches means there will realistically have to be a hell of a turnaround for both themselves and QPR to avoid the drop at this stage, although both will be given some hope by the almost-as-poor performances of Huddersfield and Coventry above them. I think we can already write Sheffield Wednesday off.

Potts was just barging a few people around and putting in some solid tackles, it's not like he was squaring up to players and scything them down. If the referee had booked him early on when he blatantly barged Moran into the advertising boards, as he should have, it would have stopped. The leniency of the ref allowed Preston to bully us as they knew they had plenty of leeway. We obviously need to be able to stand up to that, but the ref played a big part in letting Preston play the way they did last night.

If JDT had been given the same backing as McKenna at Ipswich (which, for the record, is not a huge amount) I think we'd be right up there with them. Unfortunately instead he's been given less than nothing to work with.

Never met Birdy but it's obvious he was Rovers' to his core and dearly loved the club. Great tribute last night.

We had some performances last season that I felt were below-par, and where the team weren't putting in 100% (for example Burnley at mordor, or when Preston dicked us 4-1 at Ewood), but I haven't seen any evidence of that this season. The lads are giving their all and trying to implement the manager's vision as best they can within their abilities - we're just hamstrung by lack of investment and injuries. The fact we're desperately waiting for Gallagher and Hedges to return says it all, really.

Think that model might be dead after receiving £0 for Brereton, and absolutely no hope of making profit on Gallagher even if he was sold.

I'd like for them to explain why at this point. Not interested in hearing empty platitudes about caring about the club or the fans, because we know they don't, and truthfully there's no reason for them to. They never have. They bought it as an investment on bad advice, at best, and if we take this entire nightmare on surface level as being nothing more than that then said investment hasn't worked out. So what's the real reason they are so intent on holding our club hostage? Because there's nothing to suggest it has anything to do with genuinely caring. Paying the bills (the bare minimum expectation as an owner) isn't enough to prove that they do. Nor is claiming this to be true in the odd soulless statement we get. Give us a practical reason. A logical reason. Just one. Why are you here?

He came to us injured and didn't have a preseason, which obviously doesn't help. Regardless of his ability it's been far from an ideal transition into the Championship for him, which is a demanding league physically. Such is the situation the owners have put us in though. We've had to take punts on risky players because we have no real money to spend, aside from the £800k for Leo which was presumably taken from the amount we got for Kaminski as an absolute needs must, although truthfully I'm surprised we weren't tasked with finding a free replacement there too, or just told to use Hilton as backup. Maybe JDT put his foot down there.

He'd been carrying a knock since the first half. Surprised he wasn't taken off earlier, but I suppose it speaks to our total lack of suitable replacements on the bench.

We won't because we have a massively underfunded team and shit owners. JDT is doing the best he can steering a broken down ship full of holes through the storm. At best we'll finish mid-table, but for Rovers in this division that can never be considered a 'good season'.