Dreams of 1995

Lucky enough to have tickets for Headingley. Day one and two. Let’s hope for a Root masterclass followed by a Jimmy masterclass on a baking hot day 2 afternoon session. We can dream

FOOTBALL ULRICH…..FOOTBALL

Having watched Villa and living amongst Villa fans I’d rather shit in my hands and clap than have Neil Taylor at the club

That’s a damn shame Cooper is a quality defender. Have a word Clitheroe, tell him it’s not all that bad But one must not tell lies and all that

Is that for real? We had a few rumours about him a couple of seasons ago. He’s a good player so it’s a shame to know that would never happen.

We weren’t good today. A point is a good result tbh Buckley totally invisible. He needs to start getting involved. His pressing against Swansea was brilliant but today looked overawed. Needs to stop having these days. Butterworth looks a real player. Get him a start over Dolan. He’s having an easy time of it Dolan but he’s got to show more quality. Long live King Ben

That’s life. Not everything works out. On to the next man I hope

But again nobody made out like there was an angry mob out to get him So, where you claimed posters had moaned about Obafemi being “written off by an angry mob insistent that he is injured forever and has an irreversible bad attitude” was exactly what you was accusing posters of being - disingenuous. Quite why you made that up is another story but it appears to be because you want the right to criticise his attitude also For every post that criticises him I suspect someone will defend him. But don’t make up scenarios and then accuse others of being disingenuous. It doesn’t work like that

Funnily enough what is disingenuous is pretending that people are claiming there’s an angry mob after Obafemi Nobody has said that, but people have responded to the handful of people claiming he has a bad attitude without really knowing the lad

And what has that got to do with anything except yet another name drop? If the Obafemi deal is separate to the Armstrong deal, which appears to be the case given AA has had a medical and should sign today whereas Obafemi isn’t close as yet, then Mike Ashley has absolutely no recourse

Avoiding paying anyone £2.7m is a good thing If that £2.7m goes to the asking price of Obafemi then we have saved money - that is basic commercial management I think the last paragraph sums it up and explains this transfer. If he takes the cash it is lost in the club - if he ties it in with a player at least he has a body in the door to replace Armstrong with From the fleeting moments I have seen of Obafemi he looked a decent player anyway

I have to say I am amazed at some of the football knowledge on here How folk have managed to conclude that Obafemi has a stinking attitude, whilst also calling him a nobody, is a great feat of invention imo None of us really know anything about him, let’s be honest, so let’s not pretend like we have signed Joey Barton incarnate

Well, actually it would only be £3.3m given the 45% clause to Newcastle If they club have managed to tie in Obafemi whilst keeping him out of the Armstrong transfer they have effectively saved paying Mike Ashley £2.7m which I think we can all agree is a fairly decent bit of business

Sometimes opportunities present themselves Would Obafemi be for sale if Southampton don’t buy Armstrong? Maybe not

It was a downgrade in every single way Even the car park had less spaces which only signals one intent - less bodies in the building It is impossible to spin any other way than a downgrade and capitalising on expensive real estate, which is quite synonymous with Waggott funnily enough

Give Butterworth a game. Looked fantastic when he came on. But quite clearly needs game time to improve his fitness. Rest Ayala, Lenihan, Nyambe and Pickering. Sounds excessive but we absolutely need them for the league right now.

Dear Balaji Thanks for your well wishes Please employ experienced football directors to run the club in the same way it was run before you came Wish you well too The fans

I think it would be a good idea ojf. If Balaji is serious about attending and meeting the fans (his words) then the first port of call must be the Trust. It is a rare piece of personal communication, regardless of the doubt who wrote it. Most forms of communication in the past have been signed “The Owners” (or similar) whereas this one is direct from Balaji himself. The offer of a face to face meeting is a no brainier to me. And if, within the letter, there is the opportunity to present concerns about Waggots involvement / lack of senior oversight / still no professional structure it would set the tone for what the face to face meeting is about But don’t take this as me dictating what should be done - the Trusts previous open letter was good so I suspect you and co have it all in hand anyway

It is in his name Whether Waggot wrote it or not he signed it and all the words therein are his

Ideally it would come from the Rovers Trust. The last letter they wrote was pretty good. This time around it would need a bit more probing and spelling out of concerns imo. Sharpe published the Venkys letter so should publish the Trusts. It should start with the training ground fiasco. The concerns about Waggots past. The ongoing senior management concerns. And it should end with an offer of reconciliation providing certain objectives are made and met. All my opinion of course.

Maybe the fans should type an open letter back. Explaining the state we are in. The reservations about Waggott and the training ground. And most importantly how we are desperate to have our club running as it was before. He could even meet with fan representatives when he comes to the ground. No effing and jeffing, no anger, just civil and cordial communication

At some point in time the Club has to turn a corner. I have been and will continue to be very critical of the Owners. This letter doesn’t even begin to touch the sides of what they need to do to redeem the last decade of mismanagement. But small steps like returning to the ground can only be a step in the right direction. We need Venkys to be local. It is the only way we can stop the constant stream of people like Waggott and Senior. If they are happy to be around the place then there can be no excuse for not noticing the state of the Club. Ultimately though, it is under their stewardship which has seen Rovers fall so low. Not just in league position but in business sense. The only way Balaji will ever reconnect with the fans is by employing an experienced board of directors who will advise him properly on how to manage and better a football club. All the financial support aside this crucial part of football club ownership is missing. It is skeleton staff operating a club on life support. We have open letters every now and again, none have committed to attending iirc, but all of that is a sideshow in comparison to making sure the club is functional and not in the hands of conmen like Waggott. If he gets rid of him and brings in people of the ilk of Williams or Finn he will earn my respect. Until then, coat of arms and attendance or not, this club will not move forward and they will not be forgiven for their role in it.

Give over man, wouldn’t dream of doing that It might be a tough year. Only positive I can think is we will see some of the academy players. Some might surprise.

Short sighted JH We could be starting the season -10 pts if found foul of FFP rules Say what you like, the money has been there to spend the last two Championship seasons. The facts of the matter are it hasn’t been spent wisely and now this summer, coupled with the pandemic, has meant out relative spending spree has come home to roost The contract scenario is another of Mowbray and Waggot’s failures to properly look after the long term future of the club But all of the above would not be possible if they had genuine oversight from the owners and not instead just a yearly catch up

It is no way to run a long term club but sometimes you have to think of the near term. Whatever we have to say about Mowbray, Waggott or the “journey”, the here and now dictates we need bodies in If the Armstrong deal frees up the finances to bring in the likes of Elliot then I’d be happy in the short term. If we start the season with the squad we have at the time of writing we could be looking at a tough year ahead.