Even so we have never festered around the bottom half. We’ve been largely mid table which is exactly where most posters expected us to be. All in all I’ve been happy with this season and don’t particularly see any part of it as a failure. We can agree to disagree on that. It’s obvious you see the good points and the bad but I took objection to the use of the word festering - it would imply we spent a lot of time there and that simply isn’t true. I suspect that the fact he went to a club like Hull says a lot about the player. Such a cheap deal for a man with so many goals and assists - why only Hull? It’s no use crying about spilt milk though and any arguments about whether he’d be a good or bad signing should probably wait until after the season to see how he’s done in this league.

Nah. It's overpriced. You can show interest in a player and then wait for the price back. Nothing wrong with that. Incidentally wasn't it you who criticised us for not going in for Maddison? He was £2,5m, clearly out of our budget if £3m is, so why would you have wanted us to 'chase an unrealistic target'? The goalposts move constantly at the moment. You are very good at using words to accentuate a point. "Festering" near the bottom would mean that we've spent a lot of time this season there. I decided, as usual, to do a bit of research: Matchdays 1 - 3 = Bottom Half. Matchday 4 - 11th Rather than list each matchday I'll zip ahead, for the sake of ease Matchday 5 = 13th Matchday 10 = 12th Matchday 15 = 16th Matchday 20 = 10th Matchday 25 = 13th Matchday 30 = 13th Matchday 33 = 8th In what part of the season did we "fester" near the bottom? The first 3 games? I'd never ever ever consider the first 3 games as festering. The table changes dramatically up until about gameday 12. Source: https://fussball.wettpoint.com/en/tables/england-championship.html We may have different definitions of festering and realistic.

If you don't think Ronan Curtis is a realistic target for us then you must think very little of the club. The £3m asking price was unrealistic but the player definitely not.

Yeah man it is a bit of a hap hazard statistic but without the data from things such as Opta it's impossible to put anything together with more accuracy. We do score most of our goals early on though and the line ups suggest he did start those games on the wing. With any luck we sign a right winger in the summer and this argument is dealt with then. We need to find some players who can can find the byline and cross the ball, it's a timeless skill because it is so hard to deal with.

Will we? If this current squad is sitting where we are now then the positions I see need filling are: GK, CB and wingers. I wouldn't say that's necessarily a overhaul. I suppose it depends on your definition of overhaul but I'd argue that adding to the squad isn't necessarily overhauling it. I'd consider an overhaul being what TM did when we dropped to league 1. We saw 19 players arrive between 17 / 18 and similar went the other way. Last season we had 7 incomings: Downing, Gallagher, Walton, Tosin, Cunningham, Holtby and Johnson with only Raya departing. Would you consider that an overhaul? I'd say we need about the same, 5 or 6 signings next summer, however we should see more departures with Mulgrew and Smallwood needing shifting. I think 'significant overhaul' is a significant overstatement.

I suppose you can want the man out and still appreciate all the work he’s done. It would have been with a heavy heart I’d have seen him gone but there’s been twice now where I’ve resigned to the fact we need a change. One, though, was totally reactionary to our terrible start in League 1 and I dare anyone to say they kept faith with him during that. Tony has this club in a better place now and, if we didn’t win a game until the end of the season, I’d be in the camp of saying goodbye but I’d also have tremendous appreciation for all he has done for this club. As someone who doesn’t live local anymore our reputation has grown massively since he’s came, to the point where someone actually said to me today “you have turned a corner and look to be on the way back, it’ll be good to see you back in the Prem”. I had to remind him we were some way off ever being close to what we were but it was nice to see that our stock has risen. He spoke more about how we seem to be operating normally and getting the right players in etc etc, it wasn’t just based on our league position.

It also has the potential to springboard us! This feels like a titanic game for us and I’m excited for it already - it’s only Monday!! Not felt like it in some time. If we lose I will be absolutely gutted but the test then becomes whether we can pick ourselves up. Make no mistakes this is a game we could lose easily, Brentford are no mugs but all the team can do is give it 100% and I’m sure all our fans will be happy regardless

Jesus. No one is taking pot shots. Stop being so over sensitive because every now and again you get it wrong. All people are saying is that on here it seems the man can do no right, so right now when he’s getting it right people are trying to highlight the fact. For example, we are plagued with injuries, still winning, and the likes of yourself are trying to peddle the line he’s winning BECAUSE of the injuries. It’s comical and, on occasion, can only be met with the derision it so deserves as discussion is simply a no go. Make no mistake that all this whinging about others is coming from the same guy that has brought up Chaddys support of Bowyer several times when in discussion with him, as if to discredit his opinion. When the shoes fits and all that ? Plenty of excellent discussion is still held on this board amongst some posters, I had a decent discussion only yesterday about Gallagher with Hasta n co. If you aren’t included in that discussion then perhaps you need to take a look at why, because it certainly isn’t the case across this entire board.

Ok, I'll bite. How is it selfish?

Keep the team how it was vs Charlton, we were better in every aspect. They have some good defenders but when we've got corners / attacking free kicks get Lenihan, Johnson and Adarabaiyo on Raya and let's put the little tit under some pressure. He has a drop in him. It's on Sky which often means a Rovers loss but I'm going to go for a score draw here. 1-1.

Chapman has done absolutely nothing to deserve a start.

I don't doubt we can do better out there. It's just with our current squad we don't look nearly as bad as everyone is making out when he is played as a right sided attacking player. We are actually better when he's there than centrally. He's a good player in my eyes that is terribly short of goals. He's not had a good season but I'm willing to keep trying with him. by the players we were linked with it did look like Mowbray tried to solve the problem, or at least identifies it as one. In summer we might see more movement.

I think SG has goals in him. He showed under Coyle that if you put it into the box enough he will get on the end of some. 11 goals under him is a decent return considering the tosh he had behind him. I agree though. I think he needs more time up front personally but with a lack of options out wide, and the results showing he's more effective though, I think we will see him feature more out wide than up front for the remainder of the season. Especially with AA banging them in!

Exactly. Stats can be changed to suit whatever opinion you want them to suit. I was addressing the Gallagher on the wing vs up front though. Personally I'd rather have proper wingers than SG there. If we are to be a Premier league team I don't think I'd have Gallagher starting. However, once again, I was addressing the argument of SG being on the wing as opposed to being up front. It shows that the balance of the team isn't lost when SG is played out wide however. Alternatively, Hasta, we could argue that out of the 29 games that Gallagher has featured we have: Games lost when Gallagher features - 27.6% Games not lost when Gallagher features - 72.4% Everything can be taken another way, as you pointed out, but do the results suggest SG seriously unbalances our team to the point it deserves as much discussion we have had on here? I'd suggest not.

In fact, fuck it, in light of The Bores comments about facts I decided I'd do a little research this evening. We are talking about "balance of the team", or what that phrase basically means, are we any good with Gallagher on the wing? I'll have to add a caveat in that maybe google has the line ups / formation wrong however all of this info was taken from google: Results with Sam Gallagher starting up front: Won - 2 Drawn - 2 Lost - 7 Results with Sam Gallagher starting on the wing: Won - 6 Drawn - 4 Lost - 2 There are 10 games unaccounted in which he either did not play or did not start. Of the games he did not play we: Won - 3 Lost - 1 Of the games he came on as a sub we: Won - 3 Drawn - 2 Lost - 1 So, by collating the data I get it as we win more than we lose when Gallagher plays; we win more than we lose when he's on the wing; we win more times when he starts on the wing than when he starts up front; Gallagher is an effective substitution in order to not lose a game. If we are talking about balance of the team then one would have to assume that more wins = a more balanced team. Do we lose balance by starting SG on the wing? Not according to the results. Do the results trend towards Gallagher being more effective out wide right than up front? Yes. Of particular interest is that I don't get Gallagher down as playing up front since the Leeds game. Since then we've only lost 2 games in which he's started. Is Sam Gallagher a terrible failure of a signing? No. Are fans ignoring the 'facts' and only patrolling these boards with 'glib ad hominem quips'? Yes but it isn't those that try and defend Mowbray or Gallagher. Note: I value any fact checking you may want to do. I did this in approx. 15 mins by looking at line ups / results and putting it together. I may have errors- point them out to me and I will change the results accordingly. Note: Just noticed original post only accounted for 26 games. I have updated to suit all 33 games now. Stats have increased in favour of SG being on the wing.

We haven't really signed any wingers of real quality. Downing being the one this season and he's had to do a shift all around the pitch, to great effect I should add. Apart from Harry Chapman I can't think of many other wingers he's brought in. That, maybe, is a reason to be critical. However, my point was that Mowbray deserves credit when he gets it right just as much as he deserves criticism when he gets it wrong. I've said several times he should sign more wingers and even said that I'd have probably spent the Gallagher money on them too. That's all by the by though because whatever you may think of that situation we are on a terrific run of form and to claim that it is in spite of Mowbray is rather petty. If he deserves the criticism for all of the above then you must surely accept that he has put together a team that is, by results, doing very very well. That is to the managers credit. I don't think he's destroyed the confidence of Gallagher either. I think SG understands his role in the team. As said, he was playing regularly out wide during our winning runs too. It seems rather unfair to single him out for the poor balance of the team during our losses when he's present during the wins also. I think some quarters on here would refuse to give Mowbray any credit even if he got us into the play offs this season. They have entrenched themselves and are in overdrive trying to fend off any praise, even accusing other fans of "not seeing the facts", as if this game and fans' opinions are ever based on facts and not feelings. Like you say, football would be boring if we all thought the same, and whilst we disagree on whether or not we are succeeding in spite of Mowbray I'm sure we can both agree he wants the best for this club and has turned our fortunes around. Stuart I don't sit and wait on BRFCS to reply immediately. On Sundays I have plenty more to do. I apologise if the replies aren't to your liking in terms of speed but I certainly can't be accused of ever not providing a counter opinion. I'd suggest you yourself try and hold a discussion like the poster you quoted instead of going around this board waiting to have little passive aggressive "quips" at others. You'd probably get a bit more respect rather than being seen, and treat, as someone who only deserves little quips back.

This new argument about Rovers doing well currently "BECAUSE WE HAVE INJURIES" is absolutely comical. If ever there was proof required that no matter what happens there will be pelters thrown at Mowbray look no further. If I remember when we went on our 6 out of 7 winning run (have I got that run right?) we were told: "Mowbray has finally listened to the fans", essentially because he played Rothwell. Then when that run continued it was luck, we weren't performing and we were winning "in spite of Mowbray's tactical cluelessness". Now we are still on a good run it's because of the injuries and Mowbray's hand being forced. We were winning whilst Gallagher played out wide and we are winning since he's been injured. I'm in absolute agreement that we need a proper set of wingers to allow Gallagher to go more centrally but it hasn't happened yet. However, here we are, with all our squads deficiencies sitting close to the play offs and having a decent season. There are a few posters on here that need to remember it can't be both ways; if Mowbray is at fault for the bad, he is at fault for the good too. You can't have it both ways. Mowbray has had untold amount of criticism on here for his signings, press conferences, mannerisms, ability to keep a dressing room etc etc but them same people are mysteriously missing as soon as there's reason to give credit or, in the more frustrating cases, go into absolute overdrive trying to talk down any praise. "We are were we are in spite of Mowbray" is a dumb thing to say. Sorry if that offends. If that is the case then all of the bad runs we have been on is also not the fault of Mowbray's. He picks the team, he picks the tactics and he is judged on results.

That bottom paragraph is a classic. It’s the one sentence that drives me insane. No business owner should ever get credit for not refusing to sign a cheque, it’s their responsibility. They are putting a service on for us and it should be worthy of the entry fee. Currently it isn’t. So all of this not refusing to sign off cheques is shite - you can fix the ground, get decent pies in and put on a decent show without worrying about FFP.

With all due respect tho he’s hardly going to stand there and say “yeah I’m looking to move this summer mate”. Here’s to hoping he does stay though

We have some tough games coming up though. Brentford don't look like losing and then we play Stoke and Swansea in that same week. Things in this league can very easily turn. A win vs Brentford and suddenly belief starts to happen...already excited for that game, which usually results in a lifeless 2-0 loss.

4 in 5 now on the road. Unbelievable form. Dare I say we've looked good since Dack and Rothwell have been out? Absolutely bossing the games we win at the moment and today was no different. Haven't been on an away day in a few months but loved every minute of today. Even stretched to a couple after breaking the whole no drink until April rule but how can you not? Three points from play offs and players still to return. We go again.

What are you even talking about man? This topic is about signing Walton, not the manager. Besides, he's never 'admitted he's clueless' anyway so that's a blatant lie. Give it a rest.

All of the above is modern football in a nutshell. For such a global sport it is a very close circle, each infesting different parts. The truth is what happened to us was sin, we got on the wrong side of a deal that has been done many times before and many times since. When an agency gets so involved in a football club there will only be one winner in the end. In the case of Wolves both sides are winning, right now, but that could change at the drop of a hat if Mendes isn't placated. Unfortunately for us our agent(s) are bad. They don't have the talent pool and in our early days were interested in lining their pockets only. Now you get an idea the right kind of people are at the club but there's still that potential for the 'odd' signing that raises a few eyebrows. A horrible symptom of a sport gone bad.

Walton has made a few errors but we’ve also kept a lot of clean sheets with him this year. His distribution is good and has to have some credit for our better defensive record surely. I think at this level he’s a good enough keeper to get promoted. I don’t think Brighton will sell him though and if he does he will probably go to a club further up the league than us. There’s a lack of keepers out there now that every manager wants one who can use his feet too. Raya has conceded fewer and kept more clean sheets though, so whereas at the start of the season it looked like Walton was an upgrade it’s swung the other way. Raya looks assured and every bit the goalkeeper we thought he could be, although he has dropped a couple of clangers himself. Part and parcel of a young goalie though! My point being that whilst I don’t think Walton is necessarily better than Raya I don’t think there’s a lot in it and if Walton wants to come, the finances are right then I wouldn’t be averse to him signing. I would prefer a more experienced keeper though.

We aren’t in a predicament though and it’s getting very frustrating trying to get this across. The only crisis we are facing is an injury one and we are so far coping as well as we could have hoped.