Red button time... Mind you ifollow I find better quality, but I guess I need some value out of my Sky package!

Sheffield Wednesday need a result, so no easy 3 points here.

I’d give starts to Dolan and Buckley, might as well build up game time for next season.

Huge slice of luck - though as pointed out earlier in the season when we were on the wrong side of decisions etc - it evens itself out.  The joys of football!

Decent 2nd half against a very poor Derby side.

Big win.

On 15/04/2021 at 11:43, AllRoverAsia said:

Things to Come:

This time next season with Mowbray still in charge and Ayala having made half a dozen more appearances, having also taken his usual mid December to end January non-injury annual holiday, he will have become world class and if we'd had him the full season we wouldn't have been relegated by mid March 2022.

And because he has won promotion twice he has earned an extended contract.

We should by-pass Brentford and sign up Peterborough’s striker, works for them.

Friedel - propped us up for years, so whilst Tugay had the excitement, Friedel probably secured us the most points over the years.

Shout to Carlos Villanueva, showed real potential when we overcame Blythe Spartans in the FA Cup.

Defeat beckons, TM emphasises we are finally consistent, losing week in, week out.

14 hours ago, JPTSwindon said:

Confident of 3 points...Well that’ll be my Rovers team on Football Manager gets upgraded to my laptop / big screen whilst the real Rovers 3-0 defeat is relegated to my iPad.

My FM Rovers beat Forest in the FA Cup, whilst as predicted the real Rovers whimpered through a feeble 90 mins to another expected defeat.

Confident of 3 points...Well that’ll be my Rovers team on Football Manager gets upgraded to my laptop / big screen whilst the real Rovers 3-0 defeat is relegated to my iPad.

15 hours ago, JPTSwindon said:

Miserable, pathetic... we are going backwards. 

On reflection we wouldn’t even manage to go backwards without tripping over ourselves, falling down the stairs and TM claiming it was simply a sign of great agility.

Miserable, pathetic... we are going backwards. 

Glass ankle, big wages - panic buy, huge waste.

Very poor.

On 21/02/2021 at 22:11, JPTSwindon said:

The reverse fixture we were desperately unlucky to lose, this time there will be no luck in the defeat.

Only hope is Watford aren’t too hot away from home, but we are generous hosts.

Many years ago I went to Vicarage Road where we won 1-0, Marcus Bent. I had a 50p / £1 bet on that so won £33. As a student that was a real bonus. Not massively relevant but at a stretch the only positive thought I could come up with for this match.

As expected.

Confidence, tactics, shape, leadership, hope... AWOL.

Grim.

On 01/01/2021 at 11:53, JPTSwindon said:

Yes, the match engine is much improved - but the new interface and removal of condition rating, and press gestures takes some getting used to.

Ive just won the Premier League and Champions League with Rovers on FM20 in season 2027/28!

Just completed my first season on FM21, managed to get Rovers up as runners up to Norwich. Good start to the Premier League, sitting 7th coming into November.

No real money to spend, but a good set of younger players (JRC, Dolan, Buckley, Vale etc) give options for the squad. Shipped high wage fringe players (Gallagher, Bennett, Evans etc) which gives room to sort new contracts for Armstrong etc.

The reverse fixture we were desperately unlucky to lose, this time there will be no luck in the defeat.

Only hope is Watford aren’t too hot away from home, but we are generous hosts.

Many years ago I went to Vicarage Road where we won 1-0, Marcus Bent. I had a 50p / £1 bet on that so won £33. As a student that was a real bonus. Not massively relevant but at a stretch the only positive thought I could come up with for this match.

It’s really, really hard to judge.

The older players are injured so often we can’t judge them.

The younger players are rotated, dropped, mislaid so often we can’t judge them. (Key reason why the confidence has drained away)

If TM could settle on a team / formation / tactic - he and us could judge.

Billy Barr / Damian Johnson caretakers - if immediate upturn, carry on until the end of the season then review.

Otherwise the Cowley brothers, young, ambitious, great job at Lincoln and started to turn the ship at Huddersfield who were a right mess.

My issue with TM is the constant changing of players, formation, tactics etc. This is why the team isn’t clicking, making errors that lead to the goals conceded and have lost the instinct / confidence to score. In a break of play in the 2nd half they were showing one of the players a new set of tactics / formation and he looked bewildered.

Yes we have injuries, but what other clubs don’t? (It doesn’t help matters by signing players like Ayala who was always injured at Middlesbrough etc - hardly a shock it’s now happened for us.) 

We have lost our way and as the season peters out, we will lose key players in the summer.

Another poor Saturday.

On 15/02/2021 at 22:36, JPTSwindon said:

Enthusiasm, excitement... hope? It’s telling when I am needed to start the match thread!

With settled teams often the most successful, TM will be reaching for his selection lottery machine. Heaven knows what the starting XI will be. Tea-lady might be in with a shout for right back, if they haven’t been furloughed.

We tend to nick a result when it’s all doom and gloom, but I can’t see past a draw which TM will be brimming with pride over, despite the calamitous late equaliser.

My one hope is that Dolan gets a run, our young ‘stars’ need game time to kick on.

Presume the match will be on the red button, though iFollow gets the nod on quality.

 

Dismal.

The tea-lady probably is too good for the team.

Enthusiasm, excitement... hope? It’s telling when I am needed to start the match thread!

With settled teams often the most successful, TM will be reaching for his selection lottery machine. Heaven knows what the starting XI will be. Tea-lady might be in with a shout for right back, if they haven’t been furloughed.

We tend to nick a result when it’s all doom and gloom, but I can’t see past a draw which TM will be brimming with pride over, despite the calamitous late equaliser.

My one hope is that Dolan gets a run, our young ‘stars’ need game time to kick on.

Presume the match will be on the red button, though iFollow gets the nod on quality.

36 minutes ago, Paul Mellelieu said:

Did you know she supported Burnley before you married her?

Yes. Did I know it would be Rovers not Burnley relegated during our time, no.

My Burnley supporting wife has a spring in her step this morning.

I attempted to explain that our squad is more than good enough to challenge for promotion, but TM delegates the starting XI and crucially formation to our 18 month old daughter. On reflection I might actually be onto something.

Hopeless.

I’d be less bothered if we didn’t have such a good squad. When we were relegated the squad was poor, but we could and should be doing better.

So with Dolan or Elliott to choose from in the right, TM goes for Gallagher - sigh.

On 25/01/2021 at 12:45, benhben said:

Anyone managed to pick up a PS5 yet? Crazy how there is still no stock nearly 2 months after its release.

Is it a noticable improvement over my PS4 pro? Only really play call of duty.

I only use the PS for CoD as well. If there is a difference on the PS5 version of CoD on the next release I’ll probably upgrade then.

Is this on red button?

To be fair I find the screen resolution and commentary better on iFollow.

Another random selection tonight and we will need some luck. That said we are due a decent performance and I expect Swansea to not sit back, which might help us.

This is a tricky one...

I live in Swindon now, so would only normally watch one or two home games (family visits), but during lockdown I’ve paid £10 for every matches the club has gained.

However would that be overwhelmed by those who would normally attend switching to £10 online? In which case they would need to cut admission prices or increase iFollow costs? Also, what about families - multiple tickets versus a single £10.

Also, I like live football so I normally would choose watching Swindon Supermarine live Sat 3pm, that TV - but would smaller clubs (Accrington, Chorley, hey us to Man Utd, Liverpool etc) lose fans with 3pm TV/Digital matches.

Personally I’d like to see admission prices reduced, with TV income making up the shortfall.