JHRover

Me too. Its simple. The 3 stooges are at Ewood then I'm not

Its one step short of the Kean era. Manager not up to the job yet knows the owners can't or won't sack him I'm just getting wound up with it now but this is the cycle we get. 3-4 days of silence, let the dust settle then on to the next one. If by some miracle we get a result he'll be dining for another few weeks. 3 Coventry stooges out.

Yes. Ticks a few boxes. Excellent win record at Brentford, Wigan and Fleetwood. Wasn't at Leeds long enough. Knows the area, wouldn't need to settle in and well connected abroad. Could operate under a 'head coach' structure. Would be a wise move for PNE. I'd have an eye on Michael Laudrup also. Not worked for a couple of years but would be a big ambitious move.

Not for me. Done ok in hauling them out of League One twice but cannot keep them in the Championship and expect they will go down once again this season.

Waggott isn't CEO. He might have that title but in practice he does not possess the power nor skill set to deliver as CEO of a football club. A true CEO would have authority to make changes at the club. Waggott doesn't. The most important one of those changes is to the first team management when failing to hit targets or when the fanbase turn. We are well past that point yet Waggott can't act both because he doesn't have the power and because he's the only CEO in the country that got his job because of the manager below him in the hierarchy. It's almost funny it is so ridiculous. It's an insult to the genuine CEOs out there who have actually got jobs on merit via an exhaustive recruitment process rather than Tony ringing him up and asking if he fancied a job. This guy will be the main reason I don't buy a season ticket because I cannot bring myself to hand over £500 a year whilst he takes home £300,000 and does nothing to better the club, makes excuse after excuse, sells off the training ground and protects his failing mate in the dugout. Especially not after what he did last year - refusing the option of refunds, jacking prices up and lying in the local press. Another one who should be nowhere near the top job at a club of this size and stature after spending his days 'consulting' at Southend and Gillingham. He'll go to ground again now whilst the spotlight is on, hope for a few wins late on to ease some pressure and another summer of going through the motions.

I see that England will be playing two friendly fixtures at Middlesbrough's Riverside Stadium and using their Rockliffe training ground as their base. Like us, they have training facilities fit for international level. Not for long though when Waggott gets his way. Clearly an inside job with the Southgate connection there but it annoys me that we never seem to be in line for Ewood to host international games.

I'm not convinced Mowbray had much say in Lowe and Benson. He got the job because he was willing to work with them after the Coyle exodus, and just kept them on since then. Remember Coyle got the job on the proviso he was working with Kelly and Irvine, but both then got jobs elsewhere conviently opening up vacancies for his mates to come in. Says it all that the only changes to his coaching staff since the day he arrived have been to bring in his ever present deputy/assistant/head of football/director who seems to have his fingers in plenty of pies and more jobs than is possible to fulfil, and to promote Jonno from the reserves. I've no real idea how good or bad Lowe and Benson are at their jobs. I do know they've scant other experience managing or coaching to a high level. Promote from within is the mantra at this club and I think that applies irrespective of abilities or ambitions. Serious managerial appointments result in not just managers but coaching staff too. That needs to happen with the next bloke otherwise it will be the same voices on the training ground. It needs refreshing. It isn't normal to have the same staff in place through managerial change. But then £££ and convenience are the motivation rather than what is best from a football perspective this is what happens.

Not a happy hunting ground for us, though we managed our first win there last season with Armstrong's wonder strike. Cardiff an unpredictable entity. Lost a few recently including a thrashing at Sheff Wed on Monday. Won't be easy against a McCarthy side and expect a rebound of sorts. Past caring what the team or even the result will be now tbh.

There will be no shortage of players on their way out this summer, some of which I'd like to keep. Going to be a tough one when Mowbray's management forces these players out. Mowbray then survives and gets to fill the squad up with more dross. This is what Kean did. Survived whilst all around him went. The stuff of nightmares.

Funds being the operative word. You think he'd have left the club he supports to join mighty Fleetwood for the kudos of having a higher job title/position? No chance Comes down to cash. He's getting paid more at Fleetwood. If you're comfortable with that good for you. I find it worrying that our staff are walking out for a pay rise at lower division clubs.

This is Blackburn Rovers. They are Fleetwood Town. I dont believe any move from here to there represents a promotion. A pay rise yes, but that leads to more concerns and questions. We have a Category 1 academy, wonderful facilities and 3 sites to maintain. Highbury is a dump and Fleetwood a non league club propped up by their owner. They've a new training ground yes but that isn't remotely close to what we have at Brockhall. I don't doubt he's got himself a pay rise. I suppose the question is why? Why does a Rovers supporting groundsman see a move there as a progression in his career? We all know the answer deep down Not because Fleetwood is a promotion or a better club. But because they are a professional outfit whereas Rovers are not. Shame but that's now we operate nowadays which is why most people get out of here quickly and we lose staff to lower division clubs.

I wonder if Mowbray and Woodgate shared a lift home to Teesside after the game on Monday? Maybe Downing and Pears too? Very cosy.

Since when has head groundsman at Fleetwood Town been a promotion on head groundsman of our Category 1 academy? Would Head groundsman at Clitheroe also be a promotion?

He's joined Fleetwood. What position can they possibly offer that makes him give up his job with Blackburn Rovers and our incredible facilities? If he's getting paid more with them, why? Very worrying stuff. Where this is leading i don't know but when groundsmen are jacking it in to move to Fleetwood and the Head of Recruitment is moving to Sunderland there have to be questions asked about what is going on here

I just think Mowbray's demeanour is a combination of a man out of ideas, knowing that he's got nothing left up his sleeve and no more excuses, and despite his best efforts there is no getting away from the cold hard fact that we have regressed in just about every measure. He's probably exhausted with the monotony of dealing with players that have given up on him, sussed him out long ago and just wants putting out of his misery. He probably thinks the axe is hanging above his neck ready to fall any day now. He's relatively new to all this, whereas we have the Kean and Coyle fiascos still singed in our memories. He won't walk out for a variety of reasons. Pay, stubbornness, loyalty to his mates who rely on him for their jobs, and because he knows he won't get it this good again. For all his talk about what a tinpot little club we are and how little money we have to spend in comparison to the titans we sit alongside he knows he won't ever again be entrusted with a bigger or better club than this one. The trouble we have is this isn't Middlesbrough with Steve Gibson, who will be patient to a point but be decisive and quick when he needs to be. This isn't any other professional club where there's a threshold that has been reached. I think even he underestimates just how disinterested and mental our owners are. He probably can't believe it himself that despite this horrendous run he's still here. Not because they have faith in him or things turning around, but because they simply don't care and can't even be bothered checking our results.

Pickup isn't head groundsman is he? Thought that was Trevor Wilkin? Still, very strange that a Rovers supporting groundsman based at the academy would quit and join the mighty Fleetwood just as an exciting future and state of the art new training ground is in the pipeline. It's almost as though things aren't as they appear and there's more going on here than Waggott lets us know.

Don't let them fool you. FFP or an embargo will not prevent them removing Mowbray. That is just a complete cop out excuse for a lack of action. If we are failing FFP and risking an embargo (how can any club be compliant?) then this is just another example of poor management of the club by those running it whilst smaller clubs without wealthy owners outperform us without FFP issues.

15

I've tried my best not to allow my frustrations with Mowbray become hatred and intense dislike. We've now reached the stage where it is spilling over into extreme dislike and will be for a lot of people. Shame it is going this way after a relatively positive 3 years or so but this is standard stuff in football for those who overstay their welcome. A sacking or resignation before now would have seen him on his way with a pat on the back and gratitude from many for his efforts. Shame he's taken this route but not surprising. The fact his two mates rely on him for their jobs probably adds to his reluctance to go, but I agree he should be way past the resignation stage. Any serious club would have sacked him long ago. He's past the point of no return, he knows it, we know it, the players know it. So it is going to get ugly. His choice. He can hide in an empty stadium but that won't last forever. I'll always wonder at what point did people like him and Kean realise they were bulletproof? It boils my blood that such inadequate managers can establish such control and invincibility over a club of our size and stature just by saying the right things to the owners. He's had a real do out of us over 4 years. We owe him nothing.

We're an established Championship club. And a mid range/big one at that. These jobs don't come up very often. They'd have us believe that nobody would want it and we'd have to get the begging bowl out for a decent manager to come. Give over. What a club and division for a confident manager to come to. *of course that's assuming most managers aren't ignored for not having the right agent.

He's only got to keep quiet for a couple of days. Then by Thursday people will have calmed down and attention will turn to Saturday. There will be folk then saying we can't or shouldn't axe him a day or two before a game, let's see how Cardiff goes FFS. Maybe he'll get lucky and we'll get a "positive result" at Cardiff after their smashing yesterday. If we do he'll be secure for a while longer without serious scrutiny. I wonder if he'll be chartering another £30,000 private flight down to Cardiff for this one? Just imagine the vacuum down at Ewood after a defeat. Not a single person on the payroll will say a word against St Tony. Not even the CEO. All happy to take home their good wages including our merchandise and ticket money but not rock the boat at happy camp Ewood. He's not even worthy of the CEO job title. Got the job through his mate and can't do it properly, either because he won't upset his mate or the owners don't give him the power.

The situation with the players has been brought about by the club and the way it has conducted its contract business over a number of years. The chickens are coming home to roost. I've been warning against it for months, nay years, about the dangers of short termism, over reliance on loans, not issuing proper long term contracts of 4 years or more, or planning well in advance of windows. Well this is why. Normally at this stage of a season a club such as ours would have maybe 5-6 contracts expiring or loans ending, and those out of contract would have been phased out of contention and would have already been replaced or trying to earn themselves new deals. Not here though. 15 out of contract or loan. We're starting games with 7 of them in the starting XI, who between them know there's little or no chance of them being here (even if they wanted to be) AND who will have lost all faith in a failing manager, that was never actually that good to begin with. Call it professional pride but in the ugly world of football why would half these players bust their guts when they have futures elsewhere and fitness to protect? This perfect storm of a manager who can't arrest a slide (see WBA, Celtic, Boro and Coventry for previous), players who won't be here/don't want to be here, dereliction of duty on contracts and medium term planning, an underlying arrogance instilled from the manager who clearly thinks he and his side are much better than they are and it is ideal conditions for a slide to sleepwalk into relegation. We might get away with it due to the Sheff Wed deduction and the gap to Wycombe and Rotherham. I won't be betting on it. I also look at these fixtures coming up with trepidation and worry. Pressure games against sides fighting for their lives just below us. They'll be rubbing their hands - imagine this lot turning up at Rotherham or Hillsboro needing a win to secure safety.

I can't stand to listen to Mowbray's interviews. I'll have to sleep on it first before I can stomach it. Very troubling rumours about Travis. Of course if there is truth to the rumour, at a normal club when senior players such as he start falling out with the manager that spells the end of the manager. Not here though, it probably just adds Travis to the list of exiting players in the summer whilst the manager stays on. I'm perplexed by the quote that Mowbray says Travis isn't fit or 'ready' to play. He wasn't so bothered when Travis just returned from serious injury and he chucked him straight into action. He also was happy to take him on the bus to Wycombe on Friday. Not sure why you'd do that if he isn't fit enough to feature. Corry Evans another baffling one which makes me wonder if there have been words or a bust up behind the scenes. Evans plays and plays well in a good performance and result at Norwich before the international break, plays twice for Northern Ireland, Mowbray then rushes him back from international duty, plonks him on the bench and doesn't use him at lowly Wycombe and then he's out of the squad altogether today. Maybe he's another who has had a falling out, or knowing he is out of contract in a few weeks and has lost all faith in this manager. So bored with it all now. He's going nowhere and he knows it.

I just find it remarkably coincidental. Armstrong has had an outstanding fitness record here in the 3 years to date, and I can't remember the stats but put a long run of appearances together without missing any games. Then all of a sudden a previously impeccable fitness suddenly becomes a problem keeping him out of action for weeks on end whilst the season unravels and Mowbray talks him up in the press. He's our only major asset. Maybe it is all down to an innocent explanation but after what has gone on here over the years I take everything with suspicion and scepticism. I don't think they'll have the interest they might have hoped for or expected this summer though. The pandemic will take care of that, meaning only the PL clubs or those parachute clubs who sell a few will have the dosh to hand to send us a windfall. Even those parachute clubs will have outgoings of their own to take care of first. I think at best 2-3 PL clubs will look at him and most of those will be at risk of relegation for the next few weeks. I do worry though that a combination of Mowbray wanting a sale to impress/satisfy the owners and Armstrong sensing this and wanting out after this shambolic season will result in increasingly desperate attempts to sell him, before he is eventually ushered out to a league rival at a knockdown rate. That would just add insult to injury, but I can see it coming. With only a year left on his deal this also weakens our bargaining position massively

Stalin would be proud of the cult they've managed to develop here. As I say, Mowbray's biggest success here has been to develop this image that he is absolutely and utterly indispensable and the best manager this club has had or could hope to employ. Some turnaround from taking Coventry to the bottom division and missing out on the Chesterfield job to having a giant flag of yourself commissioned and paid for by Blackburn Rovers. I'll never forget Waggott in an early interview of his and there was talk about budgets and structures and he mentioned needing the right structure to ensure the club could keep people like Tony Mowbray here and not lose them. Incredible comments for a CEO to make but those were in the days after promotion when things were ticking over quite nicely. I don't believe anything they say or do is an accident. They're on a continual communication cycle with people in India. The idiots have been had again and they still can't see it.