Dreams of 1995

Ye. Maher falling through cos his old coach has signed him at his new club is definitely a pretty big indication that all of our option a targets are failing. I'm gunna get the noose. Time to hang the club.

£70k a week for ROSS MCCORMACK? It just shows what we are up against really. Even paying somebody 40k a week to not play a single game is outrageous. Couple this with the big money players they already have at the club. Their wage bill must be staggering but their turnover to wage ratio has to look a lot better than ours. We are a poor club now, like it or lump it, even in this league. I'm starting to really consider my doubts about Brereton costing us £7m because, in todays market, is that even a significant figure when you have lumps like that sat in the stands earning that? Eye watering

I don't get this either. What are goalkeepers taught in these multi-million pound academies? Every single one of them wants to play football but none of them want to jump through a crowd of players and catch a ball. With their arms extended a goalkeeper should get a glove (palm, punch or catch) to ball every single time. If he has to go through a crowd then so what? You are quick enough off your line if there's a chance to cruyff turn an attacker so get off your line to do your bloody job and catch the ball.

It's not nice to see it done in the way it has, on the back of oil money. The truth is if their sheikh got bored of Man City and bought Leyton Orient in 6 years time we'll be discussing Leyton Orient at the top of the Premier League. Their success isn't built around Pep, David Silva or Aguero it's built around Sheikh Monsour and our love for oil.

There we have it. If we reach 300 pages it's time to protest.

97 pages and the season isn't yet over with the European cup games still to go. We are getting bloody good at this lads. If there's anything Venky's have given us it's ridiculously big threads before anything is actually done. They must have a right giggle at it. I reckon an easy 200 page target before we make a signing.

Coventry won the Southern League so is this to see who gets promoted to the "Championship" of the Super League? I'm confused how it all works, really. I don't know how we never got into the new Super League...aren't we one of the better of the womens football teams?? Also, if we win this game vs Coventry, do we get promoted? Can we get promoted?

Mowbray has also said he is looking for a 'keeper, defender, midfielder, right back and attacker. He's told Sharpe 6-7 signings in the same Q&A he's spoke about Gladwin. So if people can take the information about Gladwin on board - and use that to come up a million reasons to why our summer is going to be quiet - why can't they then comprehend the next snippet of info? If Mowbray had come out and said "expect a quiet summer...oh and Gladwin is staying even though he isn't fit" then fair enough. He hasn't. He's set his stall out with regards to what players he wants.

I agree he hasn't been the best player and I've been very vocal in my criticism of him. I wouldn't have even been bothered if they had released him. I certainly don't think him staying merits the reaction it has got though. You could be forgiven in thinking our transfer window is effectively over reading these past few pages. It's as if we have forgotten the power of context.

Fucking hell. If Gladwin's wage genuinely holds us up from signing players/has the costs associated with it to dip us into breaking FFP then I will eat my hat. Such an overreaction it is unbelievable. Citing man power spent, time and resources, is laughable. What on earth are you lot talking about that it could be symptomatic of other problems at the club? He probably hasn't earned his spot here but the manager sees a player in there that has been hampered by horrific injuries, so feels as if another short-term deal may benefit us and him. Who in gods name do you lot think will be negotiating this SHORT TERM DEAL? The UN? To put it another way we spent weeks upon weeks chasing Harry Chapman. He's had hamstring injury after hamstring injury. We pursued him for months and months and then finally signed him. Where was the furore then? We got an injury plagued lad and have given him a chance and most of the people here now shooting down our entire transfer window hopes based on this contract were happy to see him signed. What about the huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuge sums of money we must have spent chasing him, acting as an intermediary between him, his agent and another club.......................... Most of us did expect Gladwin to go but he hasn't. So what? He definitely isn't on big bucks and I don't for one instance believe the time and resources being spent on this is in any way going to affect our transfer potential this summer. In fact, I dare say more cost has been occurred to companies other than BRFC in the time spent discussing this as opposed to working efficiently in the day jobs. Wow.

Technicalities? No. Facts. You've criticised new deals for Conway and Gladwin but the fact remains they haven't got new deals. I don't like Gladwin as a player or, if the rumours of his pissed up rants are true, a person either. His attitude annoyed me in the few performances he had for us. I'm not into buying the whole compassion thing either. Yet the fact remains that he hasn't got a new deal, so I have nothing to criticise TM for really. If he's using our facilities to get fit so what? We have a duty to him really and if him getting fit means he can move on then so be it. I just don't get the overreaction. The only decision actually made is the release of Downing yet no one seems to care about that one - all of this is just conjecture. The day Gladwin gets a deal, the day you can make the claim he's had one and that TM has gone, seemingly, against his word of a overhaul. Until then the bloke is keeping three players on the hook.

Rich Sharpe doing a Q&A at the moment on the retained list. States we are still after a new 'keeper, the Gladwin situation is different to Conway/Rodwell and TM goes to India on Saturday.

Gladwin hasn't got a "deal". He is contracted at the club for now and still hasn't been formally offered an extension. I don't see anything wrong with getting a deal for Leutweiler. If anything it says more about his confidence in the youth keepers we have. He obviously isn't prepared to risk going into the new season with one of them as number 2 if he fails to land a keeper. Samuel is contracted to the club. We won't be able to sell him so obvious solution is to keep him....... Conway hasn't got a new deal either.

I wouldn't be surprised to see Gladwin leave the club over the next 6 months. He hasn't done enough to earn a deal and Mowbray was brave enough to stick Rodwell on a year long deal because of attitude/fitness problems. Gladwin epitomises those and is clearly not as good as Rodwell so why would Mowbray give him a decent deal? We can only judge TM on what he has done at this club and he certainly hasn't sold the club down the river yet. As much as people moaned about deals to Smallwood or Mulgrew (in hindsight mind you) he's been pretty sensible in terms of dishing out contracts.

In fairness to Mowbray I think the criticism should be reserved until we know the finer details of any potential deals he offers. I'd like to know his thinking about not keeping Downing though. Out of curiosity would people be happy or frustrated at Jack Rodwell getting a deal? He's no centre half but I'm sure he can do a job in midfield for us still. The only issue with Rodwell is that last years deal was perfect for us taking into account past rumours of him refusing to play/seeing out long contracts but I doubt he will be up for another year long deal with no security. A 2 year deal would be perfect

It is only 3 players but yeah, you are right. I don't understand how Gladwin has managed to cling on when Downing has been sent on his way. Downing was a fantastic substitute centre half and has more of a role at this club than Gladwin. QPR fans hated him, he hasn't done anything here but has been injured in fairness yet the pissed up gobshite attitude he has out and about hasn't helped ease any worries about him. Downing must be wondering what's happened today with him going and Gladwin staying. WOW. As for Conway and Rodwell I'm surprised by neither. Rodwell would be a good addition to the squad and I suppose a player like Conway should be given the respect of being able to weigh up options. We have to offer him something it's just what is offered that will define that decision. A player/coach role with limited playing time? He's a popular figure in the back room by all accounts so yeah, whatever, keep him around.

Quite how Downing has been given the boot but Gladwin hasn't is beyond me. Seriously. What the fuck. We literally have no senior CB we can trust aside from Lenihan and they let him go but Ben Gladwin has been given a stay of execution. Horrendous start. Come on - chop chop.

The manager is talking of promotion on the back of comments about signing new players. He's already signed those. You've claimed it's a gamble doing something that he hasn't even done yet. If the narrative is that they are "effectively new signings" at the end of the window, and if we don't sign anyone of note, then you can criticise him. Until then it's just conjecture and you should take him at face value really.

Gems like this are fading out of the modern day game though. With more data analysts than you can shake a stick at it's a very, very rare occasion you'd be finding someone out of their level at 28. There will be 100+ videos of him training and playing circulated periodically to clubs to try and get his signature. Surely if he was any good some club would have took a punt on him earlier?

Three great players. Proud to have them as the face of Champions. The unwashed have Joey Barton as theirs. How fitting.

The council has pushed this through. After the success of the hotel in the Cathedral Quarter (full probably 6-7 weeks in advance at certain times!!) business has seen a real gap in the market. Prior to the Premier Inn I don't think we had another big named hotel in the town centre (correct me if I am wrong). There is a definite market for a hotel at Ewood. Blackburn College/University hold training centres every week which are quite often sold out to companies nationwide. Could well be room for Rovers to get in on that. Doubt it though - probably close the stand for good and continue without it.

Yeah it would be a real shame for them if they don't make it. Their team will likely be torn apart by teams like Tottenham this summer so here's to hoping they get to the final. Then the process of rebuilding through youth begins for them - another fantastic club are Ajax and one to admire.

I'd much rather Liverpool win it than a club like City (the PL that is). They can win the Champs League too as far as I'm concerned. Their manager is great, they play exciting football and never disappoint on the big stages. Ultimately they are a proper club, with which we've had many a good game against as I was growing up. City are the epitome of what I hate about modern football.

Burnley had a good European tour though didn't they. Aberdeen is probably as far as most of them have ever been. They are very lucky there is currently some dreadful teams etching a living out in the Premier League. Without a doubt the gap between top and bottom is as distant as it has ever been.

Grant Hanley would be a good buy. If nothing else he'll put his head through the ball and probably put a bit more confidence in the keeper behind him too. He probably shouldn't have left us in fairness but at the time we thought we may use the money wisely.....