We'll try and time their release for the same week as a vaccine goes into production. I'm afraid the minutes of the forum and the club statement from earlier this week just don't tally. The club statement is clear that refunds are not being offered, it goes as far as it can to tell people not to bother even thinking about them and attempts to guilt trip fans thinking of doing so into keeping quiet. Now in these minutes Waggott 'hopes' that the 'majority' would 'accept this' and plans a message to be released once all the codes have been sent out. Presumably therefore those who redeem their codes are in effect accepting the alternative and are waiving their right to a refund, and Waggott hopes the number left over who can't/won't use I Follow and still seek recompense will be very small in number. I'm still not sure why if businesses small and large around the country and world can continue to operate remotely that the billionaire heads of an international conglomerate can't use Teams to tell their very well paid CEO what is happening. You'd think they would want kits and tickets on sale NOW to bring some much needed cash in. Yet here we are, club shop still shut, still getting rid of the left overs at £30 a time.

Simple question that needs putting to Waggott is to ask why were are different to 21 of the other 23 clubs in not offering refunds as an option. Either he's one step ahead of all the others, or he's falling short. I know which i reckon it is.

True but I firmly believe that our slow starts to seasons are a symptom of poor planning and late decisions by Venkys with the barmy annual India review in May to authorise budgets and targets etc. This time their influence will be less so it will really come down to Mowbray and his staff getting them fit and competing quickly. Not optimistic of that mind you.

Waggott arrived in mid-2017 when we were half way towards promotion from League One. Since then we secured promotion and made a good fist of being back in the Championship last season, yet despite that upward trajectory the number of season ticket holders has at best stood still, and is actually significantly less than it was during the Gary Bowyer days in the Championship. I think it represents a failure, somewhere along the line, that crowds have bumbled along and our season ticket base has dwindled, despite a pretty good couple of years since he arrived. That tells me that either the Blackburn/Rovers supporting population are freaks of football nature, who react adversely to positive upward momentum, or one/several of the club's policies have failed in delivering an increase in season ticket holders despite having had success to build on. We certainly missed the boat with the promotion season and carnival Oxford fixture, inexplicably allowing 26,000 Rovers fans to come and go without ramming season ticket information down their throats. In my view deciding to rocket prices by some 17% overnight was another dubious decision that would probably have put some people off. When we were meandering along between 2013 and 2016 under Bowyer and Lambert were were getting more people on watching, but since then the club committed harakiri by bringing in the dingle clown and losing any good will that was left. Subsequent actions have repaired some of that damage but bewildering approaches to shutting various areas of Ewood down with seemingly no consultation and all done in a very insensitive manner again erodes trust and respect. Once a person is gone they aren't coming back. I firmly see Waggott as someone brought in to boost income and reduce what Venkys need to chuck in. To that end he's dealing in the here and now - maximising what he can as quickly and easily as he can from what is already here. Hence price rises across the board and a very much short term image about everything - all about immediate cash flow rather than taking a medium to long term approach on how to engrain new cultures into new fans. This is one of the reasons for my concerns because I suspect both Waggott and his bosses are solely concerned with the immediate cash flow situation, and have little-no interest in the impact policies will have on our support 5-10 years from now. Waggott because he won't prioritise this over cash flow targets and Venkys because they are clueless and disinterested in such things. If 500 turned up to league games I doubt they'd notice. For me the focus is on the wrong groups. If you want more people to come you target those most likely - the youths and younger end people of say 15-25 years of age (predominantly males) who are capable of buying tickets and going to games with their mates without their parents and who might well get into the habit and follow it for the long term. Especially who enjoy the social side of spending the afternoon out with their mates. Aiming at the primary school age children, is in my view admirable and even worth a shot but the focus should be on the above. I know the club do good work for primary school age children. Dishing out free tickets to kids is nice but in my opinion unlikely to see them suddenly become fanatics. Even if they were they can't do it on their own and can't spend.

I'm looking forward to matches happening again and watching the results come in and promotion/relegation be battled over. Not really looking forward to watching us on my laptop in an empty ground though.

If the clubs future is at risk that is because of the way it has operated including seemingly being comfortable with £10 million+ losses and a huge wage bill. Not because regular fans out of pocket may want compensating for games they have already paid for. The club could have done it so much better. A simple case of saying 'we can't offer refunds at the moment but we will ensure loyalty is rewarded with prices for the next season ticket' Season tickets could be put on sale now despite not knowing what is happening. Many other clubs have sold thousands already. This would help cash flow, ensure a base was retained through the barren months and win people over with discounts and reductions in lieu of losses this season. Quelle surprise we aren't doing that and are instead going to be playing catch up. Annoying fans by not providing a choice and allowing people to slip through the net over the coming weeks and months when (personally) I'd be ready and willing to sign up and hand over money now if the option and incentive was there.

The problem is that they are attempting to equate going to a match with a password to watch it from home on a laptop or smartphone. They are not the same. Far from it. I realise that it might be the best alternative in the current circumstances but for me 9 logins to online streaming is worth a lot less than admission to 4 home games. Others may disagree with that and feel online streaming is a more than adequate alternative. Rovers along with the other Championship clubs have done a deal with Sky and the media companies to allow all the games to be streamed in exchange for which clubs will receive the same media income as pre virus. So Rovers are still getting that cash and will have little to do to facilitate it, simply issuing additional passwords. I'm almost certain that I would prefer a discount on next season's ticket instead yet no suggestion of that being on the agenda, even though Waggott suggested it would be. I think most clubs are now taking the view that I Follow is a fair and pro rata equivalent to a season ticket. In that case why should I bother buying next season? Why are home games costing me £16 per game yet someone else can now buy a password for just £10?

I see Birmingham have avoided further sanctions for FFP breaches. So they've broken the rules by a country mile, failed to follow a transfer embargo imposed as a result and failed to then stick to the business plan and restrictions imposed by the league but only had one points deduction, timed for when they were comfortably mid-table with little chance of promotion or relegation. Still no news on Sheffield Wednesday, Derby or Reading for fiddling either. Remind me why anyone takes these rules seriously or worries about compliance?

Forest are doing the same, but theirs are 20 quid and they've already sold 500. I suspect we are watching and copying them seeing an easy way to make a few quid. Normally I'd applaud that but in the present circumstances it doesn't sit right doing that to fans already out of pocket. I suspect we'll sell a handful and it will look daft on tv.

Does anyone know anyone who has a box or place in Jack's kitchen/Premier Suite? Just wondering what the policy is towards those people who pay thousands a year to entertain guests. Are we really going to upset them too by giving them a password for I Follow? Could be corporate suicide.

Ok so I've had a productive day reading through the various options offered around the Championship and thinking about how Rovers compare to our rivals. As far as I can see only Preston and Reading come into the same group as us that being they are only offering one option of exchanging season tickets for access to IFollow. Nevertheless Preston have said that they are planning on rewarding fans next season for their loyalty which is more than Rovers have done (strange as Waggott himself suggested in May that he wanted to reward fans with discounts towards renewing season tickets yet there's absolutely no mention or suggestion of it in the club statement last week). Other than that every other club is offering a range of options some which completely shame us and our treatment of fans. Wigan are offering three options - a refund, I Follow access or credit for future purchases Stoke - every season ticket holder has been credited with pro rata club cash to use how they want - towards online games, future purchases, donation or cash refund. WBA - 3 options - cash refund, I Follow access, club cash for future buys or a donation Derby - 5 options - cash refund, donation, 4 home game vouchers next year, 10% off next season ticket & I Follow access or 20% off next season ticket Forest - cash refund, 10% off next year + pair of tickets for 2 cup games, I Follow access including digital programme or donation Birmingham - I Follow access, donation or 21% toward next season's ticket Sheff Wed - donation, pro rata refund or credit to club account Barnsley - donation, any 4 games next season, discount on season ticket or cash refund Huddersfield - 4 options - default is IFollow access but can change to refund, donation or club credit Leeds - donation, pro rata refund or 'bundle' including I Follow access, programmes & £50 retail voucher Hull - refund or discounts for next season Middlesbrough - refund or credit on future purchases - either way fans get free I Follow access Millwall - I Follow access but can request refund Fulham - I Follow access, pro rata refund, credit to club account or donation Brentford - I Follow access, refund, credit to club account or donation Charlton - I Follow access, refund or credit for future purchases QPR - Free access to I Follow and either a club credit or refund Swansea - can select either a refund, online streaming (with 70% off club shop & 50% off ST if promoted) or 'lucky dip' with 70% off club shop and 50% off season ticket if promoted Cardiff - cash refund, ticket office credit & I Follow access or donation Bristol City - refund, donation to academy or ticket office credit Luton - either a refund or donation to the club. If donating to the club you receive pack which includes I Follow access, programme, teamsheet and your name on next season's shirt. So in view of the above i hope nobody thinks we are just doing what everyone else is doing. We've made a decision and it is going to cost us. Dreadful treatment of supporters and that's before we compare the wording of club statements, many of which treat fans with compassion, honesty and respect. Sadly we aren't even capable of that. I think everyone can understand it is a tough situation and needs to be carefully managed. But to not offer any options or alternatives and basically say 'tough' to anyone unable or unwilling to use online streaming is terrible.

Barnsley get promoted from League One and harness that momentum and goodwill and use it to grow their fanbase. We get promoted from League One and somehow manage to reduce our season ticket base whilst upping prices by nearly 20% across the board. One club might be struggling on the pitch but at least knows the importance of treating fans with respect and the proof is in the numbers through the doors. Waggott will argue he has done his job on the balance sheets but the numbers of fans turning up suggest otherwise, and it is only going to go one way from here.

I was using my mobile. When I tried on my desktop it worked. Cheers though.

I've tried multiple times to register or login to My Rovers using that link and no matter what I do it claims the email address is invalid (it isnt because I use it every day and havent changed it in years). There are no spelling mistakes. Anyone else experience similar?

Nice football, constant improvement despite regularly losing best players, healthy finances. Let's face it, everyone wants to do that. Easier said than done. No owner is going to say "we're taking a short term approach and will appoint an old school manager and use whatever style of football gets results. It might be dull but all we want is promotion". Productive academies, profits, young coaches and nice football are all the rage these days. Not many with a better record in League Two on a tight budget than Keith Hill. Two promotions with Rochdale against the odds. Bolton would have been well placed at that level with him. Not a Championship manager though, despite the bizarre clamour for him to come here.

Yes, but those people haven't already paid for something they now aren't getting. If you live too far away then you don't buy a season ticket. Simple. If you don't have a laptop or internet you don't pay for IFollow. Simple. What the club are trying to do is transfer something that was paid and signed up for last year into something completely different with no alternative for those who cannot or will not adopt it. Proof will be in the pudding. If Rovers are doing it right then how come so many are offering refund options?

Amazing that Antonsson is still in this top 10 despite only being at the club for 1 year out of 3.5 under Mowbray and even then spent a lot of time sat on the bench.

https://www.nottinghamforest.co.uk/news/2020/june/letter-from-the-chairman-120620/#NFFC Now that's a professional, honest and reasonable statement from a rival club. Admission that cash refunds are not desirable but nevertheless offering the option to those who want. Alternative options to reduce the immediate impact on the club.

There are a couple of other admittedly smaller issues here that I will be asking the club about that can't be exchanged for a password to stream matches online. I bought a programme subscription at the start of the season, so I'd like to know if I will be getting money back on that. In addition, the terms and conditions of a season ticket clearly state that it also entitles fans to access to all home u23 matches, and I would go to them all work permitting. So I'd also like to know what will be happening there as there's been no mention of u23 games resuming and probably no prospect of online viewing. Much smaller issues agreed but I dont think it is reasonable for the club just to ignore it and hope nothing happens.

I agree, my suspicion is that all the season ticket money has already been spent and accounted for. The only chance of a refund scenario would be if Waggott went cap in hand to the owners and asked one of them to cough up the cash to allow that to happen. I don't think anyone at Rovers, certainly not Waggott, would have the balls at this moment in time to ring the owners up and ask for such a thing. It is less hassle just to tell fans they aren't having it and ride out any negative reaction. As I said earlier, I don't expect any mutiny on the terraces about it. There will be grumbles online and a few complaints going in but most will either just accept it or give up altogether and disappear from Ewood. A fair few will be unhappy but end up going back anyway (myself probably one), a fair few more will probably stop due to the virus irrespective of this but I also think some will simply see this as another reason not to return at a time we cannot be upsetting those fans we have left. I honestly fear for the future of our support base and I don't think the owners or their representatives have the slightest interest or understanding of how decisions like these can upset people and how people remember these sort of things when deciding whether to renew.

So due to FFP we screw our own loyal season ticket holders, in turn likely resulting in a significant drop in buyers next time and for years to come, in turn reducing revenue. See what i am getting at? Even if FFP has played a part in this decision - which isn't mentioned once in the statement (infact the club actually goes further and suggests the club's future and existence is at stake if people get refunds) - it is an extremely short sighted approach - which may well have no relevance in any event if FFP is suspended as surely clubs will demand - but even if it helps us comply by the skin of our teeth this year it damages the club longer term. How are Leeds going to go about refunding 20,000+ season ticket holders if we can't manage less than 8,000? How are Wigan doing it when at risk of the financial strife from relegation? It's about how you see and treat your loyal fans. Once again, and not for the first time in recent seasons, loyal longstanding season ticket holders are taken for granted and are treated poorly by the club. The idea that we should be grateful for access to the remaining games online (even though Sky have done a deal with the EFL to do this and the clubs are receiving their full media income as a result) doesn't sit well with me. As our season ticket base drops away further below 8000 down to 5000 or 6000 at least Waggott can collect his full salary and crack open the bubbly because we didn't break FFP rules and saved some cash on refunds. He's already seen one drop despite promotion after deciding to up the prices on our return to the Championship - good for the balance sheet but bad for bums on seats. A wage deferral, whilst admirable, is not a reduction, cut or loss. The players will still be entitled to that cash, expect to receive it and almost certainly will unless the club is liquidated. The PFA would see to that. I've seen no mention at all of 'short term deductions' from anyone at Rovers - can you tell me where this was stated?

So Covid 19 results in redundancy or wage cut to minimum wage yet a father struggling to make ends meet shouldn't expect £100+ back for him and his sons tickets because? Money that would pay the rent or shopping bills Meanwhile a director takes home £300k salary and we've another 12 months on Charlie Mulgrew's deal for him to sit around not playing because Mowbray doesn't like him any more or giving Ben Gladwin 6 months wage for nothing. Money is there when the right people ask for it.

FFP really is the excuse that keeps on giving at Rovers. People seem to forget that numerous rival clubs have already confirmed refunds will be given to their fans. How do they afford it? Leeds are doing it despite having far more tickets to refund at far greater expense. Their owner has his head screwed on though. The likelihood is that FFP rules will go out the window or at least on ice for the foreseeable with the chaos Covid will bring to clubs and budgets. Even if it doesn't the cost of refunding 8000 paying ST holders is a drop in the ocean compared to our losses and wage bill. Not that guilty clubs are punished anyway. Whatever happened to Derby and Sheffield Wednesday? The same Derby now refunding their 20,000 or so season ticket holders. Good job they dont hide behind FFP excuses and tell their fans to forget about refunds.

I wonder if Waggott has discussed this policy with the owners or instead has pursued it on his own. I wonder because if he is being judged on reducing the burden on the owners it perhaps then indicates why he hasn't gone cap in hand to them to refund supporters, as it would earn him no credit upstairs actually probably the opposite. It seems he gets brownie points for avoiding using their money so probably feels entirely justified in taking this approach. Like with everything at Rovers these days it's all about the short term rather than one eye on the long term state of the club.

All clubs are going to have to be very careful over the coming months to try and keep their core support on side or risk a horrific decline in attendances when this period finally passes. Looking at the Rovers season ticket holder demographic you will have a lot of people in there who will be financially harmed by the virus and lockdown - people who would benefit from 50 or 60 quid back from their season tickets - and who might be unwilling or unable to cough up £350 for another season ticket and simply not renew. You'll have a chunk of people who will get out of matchday habits. If this goes on for many more months people will just realise they are quite content with not going to watch football, habits have changed and once you go down that road it becomes so difficult to get them back into it again. Then you've the supporters in the higher risk category, significant in numbers, who even if football resumes will think twice about putting themselves at additional risk by going to a crowded football match. We aren't in good shape crowd wise as it is. We need to do everything to keep those here happy and give them a reason and incentive to return when this is over. Another chunk of cash to watch boring 2nd division football isnt enough. Unfortunately Waggott as ever is more concerned about short term balance sheets and cash flow as that is what he will be employed on. Whether he knows it or not he's running a steamroller through an already delicate situation. I expect the results to be horrendous. Then he will question loyalty and commitment.