JHRover

You are correct. We've spent less than them. David v Goliath on finances. So presumably you expect no less than a win tomorrow and anything less will be a failure? As we are Goliath to Coventry's David on that front. I don't demand we go to these places and get results. I would prefer a manager that sets us up to be hard to break down at these difficult places rather than just turning up and being wide open at the back and conceding for fun. I'd have had no major issues with the Watford result had we done the business in recent home games but we didn't and it is 1 point from 9 so the pressure builds.

I expect Mowbray will take this one more seriously than most other fixtures and will be going to make a point against his former employers. No pressure on him at places like Bournemouth and Watford. Can turn up with a cavalier approach and get beat and a raft of fans will eagerly point out that we were playing sides who were in a higher league last year. Coventry is a different kettle of fish. No excuses to hand and having been manager there recently I think (or at least hope) he will want to get one over his former employers and will be under pressure if another defeat happens. Score draw is my prediction.

I was impressed with our deadline day business. We arent going anywhere with this manager IMO. I wish it were different and that he would change but I see no evidence of it. Same old hard luck stories. Promotion might be won or lost anywhere. 0 from 6 at Bournemouth and Watford whilst 1 from 6 at home and 0 goals. Infact our couple of victories came against the dross of the division.

Being the "better team" isn't all about how much possession, how many passes and how near you get to the opponents box. Fatal mistake thinking that. There's two sides to every game of football. Scoring goals and keeping it out at the other end. Neither is more important or better than the other. Mowbray thinks he is clever. He clearly thinks a lot about football, enjoys trying to emulate Klopp or be some sort of bargain bucket Guardiola but there's two sides to every coin. He isnt better or more clever than a manager that focuses first on defence and builds from there. It might look better particularly to the neutrals and those who attach importance to such things but it is actually meaningless. It is all about results Already this season a familiar theme has emerged. So called good performances at Bournemouth, Newcastle, Watford yet nothing to show for it. Pats on the back all round because the stats were impressive, loads of possession going nowhere, a few half chances, opposition fans and managers impressed as they collect their 3 points unscathed. Nice guys finish last. I dont want plaudits from others I want us to be hated because then you know you are getting somewhere.

See how many games Forest and Derby put up with it.

Only 6 games in but on PPG heading for at best mid-table. Looking at our upcoming fixtures I'll be surprised if we've more than 14 points after 12 games which is borderline relegation form over a full season. May be helped by the Wednesday deduction and Wycombe standards. I agree this season is and probably will be our best chance at promotion in a long time. We're already looking like a massive turnover again next summer. I disagree individual errors were solely to blame tonight. This comes back to the manager and coaching staff not setting us up correctly as a defensive unit. It's happened too often to be blamed on errors. He can't or won't change though so that's up to him.

My view of the game was it was a typical Rovers-Mowbray effort. Having experienced this sort of thing now for over 2 years at this level it is tiring and predictable. I had absolutely no belief or expectation we would get anything out of the game from the moment we went 1-0 down. At 2-0 it was game over and most of us knew it, deep down. The shed load of possession and nice play after that was in part afforded to us by Watford who had probably watched similar efforts from us v Cardiff and Forest and knew they could let us do it with little end product. All the possession and pressure and yet other than the penalty save and shot from outside the area Foster didn't have much to worry about in the second half. Hand on heart time - if we had made it back to 2-2 or 3-3 does anyone genuinely believe we'd have come away with a point or all 3? I don't. I reckon it is more likely they'd have applied some pressure and we'd have crumbled at the first sign of it - see Bournemouth away when we contrived to lose despite twice doing the hard part and fighting back. If your idea of enjoyment is watching us play pretty football, plenty of possession, passes, being easy on the eye, a few talented lads having a right good go then fine, enjoy away. We will get loads of plaudits in the press and from rival clubs because it goes down well with the purists who like to tune in and watch sides 'have a go'. We are also a team full of nice men. A nice bloke in the dugout who won't upset anyone, a team in his image of nice boys who all get on together and do things the "right way". Won't get promoted that way though. Ever. My idea of enjoyment is watching us get points on the board whatever way necessary, being a well drilled hard to break down and beat unit, and show some semblance of a strategy and some adaptability in our approach to deal with the opposition - just a shame that we seem no nearer to such an approach. I'd have enjoyed tonight 100x more if we had turned up, put 10 men behind the ball and ground out a 0-0 or 0-1 win playing with no ambition other than to ensure we didn't concede. That might sound crazy to some but crazy to me is turning up at a side with Watford's quality and defensive record and thinking we are going to outscore them. They've had issues scoring goals - so start from there, build from a clean sheet and frustrating them. Instead we let them in with their first venture forward with acres of room to run into, followed by defensive clangers for their 2nd and 3rd. Mowbray thinks he is above all that sort of thing though so it won't change. So instead we will lurch from one extreme to the other with no consistency. I'm tired of the ludicrous suggestion that we only conceded 3 times due to individual errors. The better teams don't make errors like that. They are coached out of it.

Where's Gallagher? Another injury? Need more attacking options in reserve than what we have.

intel correct

One of the best headers I have ever seen in the flesh, along with his goal at Brighton the same season

I don't think I've ever witnessed a win at Watford. Be nice to change that. When was the last one there?

Sounds like Elliott up top with Armstrong and Brereton. Midfield being Johnson, Evans and Holtby.

If Reading can go from relegation candidates to automatic promotion candidates so quickly then we should be making the step up. I've said all summer that a few clubs will surprise this year and challenge for promotion. Its going to be tough to watch if we aren't one of them. I still think sides like Millwall, Middlesbrough and Stoke are going to be well equipped with manager's who can deliver consistency.

Given Douglas played for Leeds vs Hull and Trybull has been training with Norwich I'm not sure what either will be missing. If Douglas has had a pre season and played under Bielsa then he's ready to play here. Same for Elliott and Trybull. They aren't coming from the other side of the world with different stages of fitness. They should be ready.

I'll be more confident of a result here than at Coventry the following match. Having said that Watford are a tough nut to crack and for all our gusto about our quality attacking players and abilities ive not seen much to show for it since Derby. I expect a low scoring affair. We won't win it but could come away with a point if we keep it tight. I just hope we don't turn up trying to outscore them and exposing ourselves.

I was baffled when the commentator said that we had been much improved in the second half. I must have watched a different game because in terms of chances I felt our best chances (not many) came in the first half and in the second whilst we had loads of meaningless possession we did nothing to test their goalkeeper. Mowbray simply doesn't have it in his locker to break teams down when they are well organised. Very frustrating and whilst I appreciate that we've got a lot of players missing the game still happens and the points still slip by. If you want promotion or to 'challenge for the top six' you need better than we've seen the last two games. I think there is something seriously wrong medically looking at who we have missing. Usually an international fortnight would be useful in getting people back to fitness and yet bizarrely the opposite seems to have happened with us and we end up with more missing than before despite only a couple having international duty. 5 games into the season and we've already had these players missing: Williams, Lenihan, Nyambe, Bennett, Evans, Travis, Rankin Costello, Rothwell, Holtby, Dack, Gallagher plus not calling upon Elliott, Trysull or Douglas when eligible. That is outrageous.

None of which matters. What matters is what happens between the whistles on matchday. Don't get points or prizes for injuries or deadline day business.

We don't just shrug shoulders and 'move onto the next one'. We analyse the hell out of today and Cardiff and work out how to address failings that have seen one point and no goals in 180 home minutes. Mowbray outdone again today. Not a surprise because Hughton is a top operator at this level who knows how to dig wins out of difficult situations. We don't do that which is why we will never be serious promotion contenders. What I'd give for a couple of those Forest performances and wins. Starting midweek at Watford. We need more in the locker than what we've served up the last two games. What was being hailed as a brilliant start is actually now a mediocre start with a decent goal difference. 7 points from 15 is OK. Nothing more than that.

A pleasing window and better than most of us would have expected, myself included. We have good options now. Mowbray will have to whip them into shape and get them working well. It does seem Venkys have allowed Mowbray a decent wage budget to get good players in the building so credit goes out for that. Without wanting to put a dampner on a good day's business I want us to urgently address the contact situations. We should be all set until May but after that we've a raft of players out of contract or at the end of loans. That must be addressed over the coming months or we will be in trouble next summer.

Alan Myers now saying that us and Millwall are after Bolasie. Don't know if that is just off what was claimed this morning or if there's more to it. He seems to know more than most though.

I don't know anything about Elliott or his abilities. A little concerned that we are 'hoping to persuade him' to make the switch. He's 17 and hardly played football at a competitive level. I wouldn't be wasting much time persuading him. If he wants to come and try to get in our team then fine. On another note I find it interesting that those clubs doing the most or significant business today appear to be those backed by the wealthiest of owners. Perhaps those most immune to the lockdown or those most able to have a gamble on promotion. Ourselves, Forest, Wednesday, Cardiff all looking like doing decent business but very quiet elsewhere at the less well funded clubs. Come 5pm I might just be heading over to the PNE forums for some light reading.

When Cardiff are going out committing to a £4 million+ loan deal today I have to say I agree with the Premier League sides.

I'm pleased with the blend of youth and experience we have through the ranks. Ayala, Lenihan, Bennett, Johnson, Douglas, Trybull, Holtby Evans - lots and lots of games and promotions in there Rankin-Costello, Dolan, Nyambe, Trav, Gallagher, Brereton, Armstrong, Buckley, Chapman - quality at the younger more inexperienced end of the spectrum. Blended together properly it should be a good recipe. I just hope we get straight with some of these injuries - obviously Trav out to January and Dack a balancing act on his rehab but hopefully other ones like Williams, Costello, Gallagher, Evans will start to be available on a regular basis from now on and we don't spend the next few months fighting fires with absentees.

Pete O'Rourke reckons us and Millwall trying to challenge Middlesbrough for Yannick Bolasie but he prefers Middlesbrough

We need to be targeting top 2 as a club and squad. Absolutely pointless aiming to challenge for the top 6. Even if successful it guarantees nothing. If the manager doesn't have his eyes on top 2 and is happy with top half competing with half the division for 4 play off positions then that isnt enough. IF we get these players in it seems to have been a good window. Mowbray can have no complaints at all and it reiterates to me that he actually has one of or even the best job in the Championship with the freedom and backing he gets here.