Dreams of 1995

Not by 10 - 20 million like you were telling us was absolutely certain for our survival. Wind up merchant

Des'ree - Life What a wobbler

This league is as open as it has been for years and looking at other squads I don't think ours is particularly weak in comparison. Kaminski is a bit of an unknown, but given his experience in quality games (European cups) I'd be safe to assume he is one of the most experienced keepers in this league at a high level. Out of our defence Nyambe, Lenihan, Ayala and Williams are all seasoned Championship players now. Nyambe and Lenihan are on their 3rd season as full time regulars, with Lenihan having a go prior to Mowbray too. Our weak spot is left back but other than that we have a nice balanced defence, with Williams and Wharton back up centre halves. The ability to have a right foot, left foot centre half partnership shouldn't be underestimated either. Midfield we have to be up there now with the best in the league. Travis, Johnson, Dack, Dolan, Rothwell, Evans - all top half Championship players. The youth we can play there are rated highly and even the likes of Davenport are improvements on the youth of some teams in this division. Then up top we have what I suspect will be the top goal scorer this season in Armstrong. Our subs are a bit weaker - which is frustrating given they are our most expensive players - but even Brereton has shown improvement this year. Not in bad shape really, but just missing a top player to really push us into the bracket of being the best. I suspect the top 10 will consist of the likes of Watford, Bournemouth, Swansea, Norwich, Brentford and potentially Milwall given their form at the back end of last season. I fancy my chances against all of them teams in honesty. I think this league is far weaker than last year, our squad is improved and had another season under their belts, and I wouldn't put it past us mounting a serious play off challenge this season providing we can stay injury free.

Don't think our business has been too bad so far with all things considered. Kaminski and Ayala are upgrades - less so in Ayala's case - but we own them, they are in peak years and both experienced. To get them for what I assume will be under 1 mil is exceptional business. If it comes down to a case of having to sign Nyambe on better terms or bringing in another player the choice is obvious - sign Nyambe up. However I still think there will be another player through the door. We've been linked with plenty of defenders and I don't think the left back link is over despite what he said about Bell. We can only wait and see but I'm not too disheartened at our squad at the moment. One or two injuries and that may change.

Size doesn't matter. Over time Buckley will learn that he hasn't got it in him to try and shoulder a player off the ball anymore. He might have got away with it at youth level but in the adult world you come up against people who are genetically bigger than you. No biggie. Buckley isn't a tall lad, so that low centre of gravity will benefit him, and over time you'll see how his game will evolve so that he doesn't get in situations where he needs to out strength an opponent. Some of the best players in the top divisions are small (Bernardo Silva, David Silva, Lionel Messi....) all known for their passing, technicality and not their pace or strength. That is what will define Buckley as a player. If he has the ability to counter his lack of physicality, and he definitely does, then he will be destined for a top league no doubt about it. He's quite simply one of the best footballers we have seen at Ewood in modern times. Core strength and a good football brain will see him through. I am excited to see him this season and think he'll play a much bigger part in the later stages of games.

PNE best midfield in the league? ?? How are they doing that without Travis and Dolan in it? ?

Oh well

What JB says shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone. We are slow in everything we do, so the fact that Suhail is behind it isnt news to me. You’d expect Waggott to be able to hammer home the importance of understanding your customer base though, and if he hasn’t been able to do that yet then who will?

Swag, the definition of stolen loot. He's stolen a living here for quite some time now. I'm yet to see the 'plan' down Ewood in fairness, we always seem to be behind the curve and the place is a disgrace. I'll wait for it though...

These credit companies are scumbags bottom line. Why can’t Rovers just accept a credit from the fan and give a ticket on an instalment plan? Be easier, safer and far less hassle than dealing with them lot

Mercer can fund it with his gambling winnings. Can just see the recycling bin overflowing with merlot now.

Let’s just hope he’s not a nonce like the last one you recommended

Couple of wind up merchants

Actually, £10.00 a game for iFollow home and away is cheaper than buying a season ticket at Rovers in the JWU. Only problem is the club will only receive £230.00. Do with that what you will

Not in disagreement I just don't trust the Venkys to appoint a better bloke. Like with the manager though, the counter argument is that you can't always settle with what you have for fear of what you could get

Be careful what you wish for Matty. I don't have much love for Waggott but we've had worse in them doors. At least there's a semblance of normality in the general running of the club, even if things do seem to have a rather cheap, tacky feel for a rather large price...

Raya going for £15m this summer is further proof that the decision to sell him was a wrong one. If the rumours are true that we had a bid in for £10m for a player, then if we are to be lazy and assume Arsenal's bid would have come anyway, that would mean we could potentially have had £25m to put into the club in one window. Might have made Waggott less emotional about fans back in the ground; might have meant our cash flow isn't "as bad" as made out; might have meant season tickets didn't require an 18% price hike; might have also meant we'd be paying 7 figures for a top quality player that we need to push us over the line to play offs / promotion. All entirely hypothetical, but as with everything involved in finance, eventually you can always spot your mistake and hypothesise about what you could have done with the money had you done something differently months / years ago. It was a mistake by Mowbray and Waggott. That's the end of it.

They didn't give a flying shite when approx 5,000 started boycotting in the early days. Ignored it all completely. Since they have taken over there's been plenty of business closures around Ewood that relied on the bigger match day attendances (Ewood Arms and Aqueduct) but they didn't care then. They don't care about the community because look at the filthy state of the stadium. Time for an open letter from ourselves that demands the changes we have been crying out for for 10 years? I suspect that will be filed with the remaining dozen or so letters penned to our custodians - the bin. Isn't it funny how a club message never ever fails to praise the "Owners" for "their continued support". F*ck off, it's your job as the owner of a business to support it. Every piece of correspondence the club gives out alienates me further from them. It's why in later years I've tried my best to treat Rovers as a squad and not as a club. I follow the manager and the players, what happens to Waggots and Venkys bank balance is none of my concern, because I would continue to follow Rovers even if we had to start all over again. The funny thing is more Rovers fans would be prepared to generate income for Rovers if Waggot hadn't behaved in the way he had. He's clearly annoyed a lot of people, but rather than address those issues he gives some other heartfelt plea for help. When they came they always promised to respect Uncle Jack's legacy. Never, ever, ever forget that line when considering listening to a heart felt plea from the owners / directors of this club because they never once respected the legacy of this club, and continue to treat it with utter disdain, despite the fact they pay the electric bill.

Creedence Clearwater Revival - Have You Ever Seen The Rain?

I was more thinking this with Waggot's pricing structure........................

In Fergie's autobiography he spoke about Hargreaves and how it was less of a physical problem to him but more of a mental problem. Hargeaves often declared himself injured when he believed he wasn't. It is pure wild speculation but something strikes me as odd with Evans. I understand the breaks this year have been genuine, but he is injured that often that you can't help but wonder if all the past injuries are making him reluctant to ever risk a game here and there. With modern sports science I've no doubt he is categorised as high risk and therefore the medical team won't take any risks whatsoever if he tells them he's not "feeling" fully fit.

Ayala is not a 'coup' for this club. It is exactly the type of signing we should be making. I do wish Mowbray would stop talking about us like we are a small club. We are bigger than Middlesbrough.

Lowe is the archetypal Sunday League player. I get pissed off when I'm watching sunday league football and the bloke who is pissing with sweat, lunging into tackles and knackered is being lifted to the heavens by the sidelines for his effort. Then, when he finally gets the ball, he's that fucked he gives it away. Lowe is that guy. Every Sunday League team has the "harrier" in the middle of the park - usually one of the worse players and gobby. Only problem is Lowe was professional, and you need to be able to pass and move and dribble in professional football. Sadly, he couldn't. Salford is his level, fair play to him too, he chose the club with the easiest route to promotion, highest wages and best facilities. Probably about right.

I don't even think there is any discussion about Dack coming straight back into the squad is there? He scores goals, and that's a damn good trait to give away. I think Dack, Armstrong, Brereton, Dolan, Chapman, JRC, Gallagher can all operate as our front 4 or 3 if you will. Whilst you have Holtby, Johnson, Evans, Travis and Rothwell as the middle 3 or 2 depending on the game. Seems clear cut to me. If Dack starts then he plays centrally and up top, but his game relies on the likes of Armstrong, Gallagher and Brereton winning the ball for him and putting it in behind the defence or the wide players putting it across the box low. Graham will be a big miss to Dack's game but if he is as good as we think he is he'll adapt. Dack in behind Gallagher and Armstrong is a good set up on paper as big 6 foot Gallagher should be winning the ball and holding it up for the likes of Dack and Armstrong to play. Unfortunately though Gallagher doesn't strike me as wanting to be that guy.

That's a good deal for the youngsters. It's a risk free move to buy them a ticket in that respect. You can't help but feel the young adults have been hard done by. They have a reduced ticket because of cost associated factors with that 'demographic', and are basically being asked to risk 100% of their ticket price whereas the rest get a fairly decent saving back. As always though, there's always going to be one group that is left out.