Derby couldn't have had a better match today than a Tony Mowbray team on the fringes of the playoffs, With that said, Eustace has done an incredible job there. Derby were down and out. Their form since he arrived would, I imagine, have them comfortably mid-table over the course of a season. Even if they go down he's done very well to even get them into contention to stay up. Still think he should have waited for better options in the summer, mind.

1 more save than Pears would have made. A shame we waited until essentially all hope was gone before dropping him.

9 shots to 1 in Sunderland's favour, and we're 1-0 up. Of course. It's like we live in a simulation where, no matter what, Rovers will crash out of the playoffs only to suddenly have a surge in the final few games leaving us just outside the playoffs.

We're in a division where we're owned by Venky's and yet generally remain comfortably upper mid-table and regularly occupy top six positions until the last few months of the season - so yeah, that's the level.

I had genuinely forgotten that he even played for us!

Well, we all know it would have disappeared into the same black hole as the Adam Wharton money. So, I'm glad Venky's didn't get a penny from either of them. All it did was further emphasise the club's incompetence.

A Port Vale side who had our former midfield lynchpin on the bench as an unused substitute, no less.

Glen and the coalition supporters groups know they'll be playing the long game. Casuals are swayed purely by on pitch results so can't be relied upon for support unless we're bottom of the league and hopeless from very early next season. I still trust them to keep pushing as best they can, but I'm sure their planning will not be focused on harnessing a groundswell of support from casual fans. They know that barring a truly terrible season this won't happen.

Obviously a great result, but difficult to feel anything positive considering how we've thrown away our playoff chances and yet again only start playing once it's too late. Results like this also give ammunition to upper management who will weaponise our usual pointless late season surge to encourage fans to give the club the summer and we go again next season. Venky's out.

Seems like they're actually quite similar to us in that they derail their own playoff hopes. Time to look in the mirror and realise that, just like us, they're a part of this swarm of average, inconsistent teams in the middle of the division who don't have the fortitude to go the distance. We, however, have shit owners who consistently sabotage our efforts. Not sure it's the same for them.

Feels a bit insulting tbh after the past two months. With that said, if you're a Millwall fan this must be massively demoralising. Oh well.

Same as every season, we only perform when the pressure is off. A mentality issue that's plagued us pretty much since Venky's took over and moreso in the past 6/7 years. Yeah you can say this season there was managerial disruption and there's a fair point there, but our form has been declining before Eustace left as well, so that excuse only goes so far. Injuries also impact us heavily because we lack squad depth, something else that's been a theme since day one of Venky's darkening our doors. Our first eleven is very solid for this division, but it only takes a couple of injuries and suddenly we're much weaker. Not weak enough to take a pathetic 2 points from 21, but still.

The annual surge to 7th or 8th is well and truly on.

I don't know, it could work in the opposite way as it would be a move that would draw a lot of attention to us and therefore them. I think they'd prefer that not to be the case.

Well, we did win a match after all.

Both teams were poor but Luton had 18 shots to our 4. Granted we played most of the second half with 10 men, but even when 11 v 11 it was basically the same.

Pressure's off. See almost every season for the last 5 years or so.

Same old, same old. Start picking up the points again when it's too late. The predictability of this sequence of events every season we're anywhere near the playoffs is absolutely pathetic. I would say laughable but there's nothing funny about it. I long for the day when we have owners that can give a decent manager a team that has the depth, and the courage, to last an entire season and thrive under pressure rather than collapsing under it. One day. In fairness to the bottlers it's not like they were good today. Luton are just shit. Couldn't even beat us with the refs help. It's hard to congratulate the lads on a battling win after they threw away countless points over the past couple of months and totally tanked our playoff hopes. That aside, delighted to get the three points. Allez les annual futile post-collapse rally.

Considering we are, imo, currently the worst team in the division, 0-0 away at half time against anyone is reasonable. The joys of getting Venked in January.

Just another variation of Mowbray's "it isn't 1995 anymore". A way to make the club look like they are sensibly fighting against unchecked fan entitlement. The idea that anyone is expecting Venky's to invest at JW levels is of course absolute nonsense, but spin that narrative long enough and eventually the sizable uneducated portion of the media and the majority of the non-Rovers footballing community will accept it as a truth.

You can imagine that being said to placate the unrest a little - 'well he'll be gone in the summer, then we'll start again'. The bigger issue, as was mentioned above, was that if Suhail and Gestede want to keep him then he's staying regardless of a break clause existing. I guess we'll see. Yep I said this a while back. We'll suddenly get some form going at the end, when playoffs are practically gone, finish a few points off 6th and it won't look so bad. The pressure to remove Ismael will be lessened and it'll be 'let's see what the club does in the summer before judging'. If we fail to win a game by the end of the season then it would be extremely difficult for upper management to hide from the fact they made a colossal mistake, and we'd be going into the summer with negative momentum.

I don't think there's any chance of us going down this season. Assuming Cardiff lose tonight I believe it would take: Cardiff winning 4 of their last 5 games, minimum. or Luton winning 4 of their last 5 games and drawing the other, minimum (GD factored in) or Plymouth winning every one of their remaining games. Also the other teams above them getting enough points to go above us. Realistically it isn't happening - but next season we have to be favourites to go down if Ismael stays.

Ultimately the season has been over for some time, and every defeat makes upper management look worse (especially after their interviews bigging up VI), so at this point bring on the short term pain for (hopefully) longer term gain.

Injuries seem to have affected his ability now as well, sadly. Even when he has played this season he's been really poor. With that said, JRC is wayyyyy down our list of problems.

Just don't come back out for the second half lads. You don't want to be there, the fans won't want to be there, so let's just call it.