Just now, bazza said:

We are going to win this. You watch.

Are you Mercer in disguise?

FFS. This had better be a Duggie Sandpit.

Just now, JHRover said:

Kick off at 12 noon. Made a decision at 11:15am to go, quick change, set off at 11:30, parked up across from the ground for free at 11:45, bought a ticket for cash by the turnstiles, sat where I wanted. Decent home crowd on of more than 2,000 which is over double what Stanley were getting a couple of years ago. The whole ground has been improved drastically over the last couple of years. New stand on one side, everything smartened up, investment into the pitch, loads of local companies sponsoring them.

Good win, Good atmosphere, home 15 minutes after the full time whistle. If I'd have wanted I could have gone in the bar and enjoyed beer for £1 a pint and had a natter with their fans and staff in a friendly environment. No price hikes for making a late decision. No membership needed. No £30 tickets. No car parking charges or parking wardens out trying to catch people. No £8 beer and pie 'deals'. Bowland real ale,Herefordshire cider on rather than overpriced rubbish. 

Once again from a cost, convenience and overall relaxed enjoyable few hours out perpective Stanley are beating us hands down. Why? They've an owner who cares and wants them to grow and prosper. We've owners who couldn't care less, have neglected the club and their employees have other 'targets' to deliver on.

Nail on head.

If we were getting things even half as right as they appear to be doing at Stanley (based on the above), I'd be back. End of.

The whole lack of clarity from the owners, baffling rationale for their continued ownership, secretive visits to India for each successive manager without any inkling about what these mean for the club as a whole, no clear brand (and some appalling decisions around this such as this year's vomit-worthy away kit), no sense of ambition at any point from the club (pre-season, during the season, post campaign), baffling recruitment 'strategy', bizarre 'let's talk the opposition up' pre-match build up, weird team selections, obvious omissions of potentially key players for big games, gut-wrenchingly poor tactics compounded by incomprehensible substitutions during games - it all points to a club in a zombie state, going nowhere and with not even enough puff for anyone in management to step up and admit we need to change.

It isn't any wonder that fans have drifted away, perhaps for ever. It won't change until every single symptom listed above is given the full bums' rush out of the club, and a new broom is allowed to sweep the club clean from top to bottom

I'd love someone with the nous of a Big Sam, or the footballing brain of Dicky Dyche to come in on the football side, but I do worry that the malaise runs muuuuuch deeper than anything that happens on the pitch, and until we get rid of the underlying cause, the symptoms are just going to get worse and compound each other till we are fooked.

Tony Parkes. Perhaps the last manager we will ever have who demonstrates anything approaching loyalty for the club and complete respect for the fans.

I think the £750k cap on TM's spending power is a genius idea!  There are plenty of excellent up and coming players at lower levels who would run through walls to play for a club of the quality and prestige as BRFC, so forcing the focus on that end of the market would be a positive development and avoid us having our shorts pulled down in public as has perhaps been the case recently.

Thanks for your thoughts and entertaining narrative.

A return to winning ways for the lads tomorrow night I think. Tough game, but I reckon they will bounce back after Saturday's shocking reverse. Rovers 2, Forest 0. Dack, Holtby

Just now, Stuart said:

He and Samba are pretty similar tbf.

Haha, yeah, but Carlos Kickaball did make his debut at a very cold and frosty Blyth, in the FA Cup..

Samba was a beast, and his partnership with The Admiral was awesome. Oh for a back line of Olsen, Samba, Nelsen and Neil...with Big Brad a safe pair of HellBoy Hands right behind them

Still, back to the real world of today and this weekend's challenge, I'd hope we can comfortably see off the mad Hatters and seal a satisfactory return from September.

4 hours ago, AspRover said:

I thought his debut was vs Blythe Spartans in the cup? Am I remembering wrong?

Either way somehow I forget just how big the bloke was until I see him celebrating with the rest of the team there... What I wouldn't give for a young samba in the current side!

I think you are remembering carlos villanueva ...still playing, apparently, in Saudi

This is a bonkers, topsy-turvy league, but I think we are building a strong enough side to compete, as long as we polish out the silly unforced errors and goal-giveaway tactics that have undone us in recent times.

I'd like to see Rovers come out of the starting blocks fast and fearless, using strength in depth on the bench to administer twists and turns that make us hard to play against for 90 minutes. I really want us to build a 'Fortress Ewood' mentality, because that will have a positive impact on attendances which will, in turn, benefit the club longer term.

That said, I am not yet convinced we have got rid of the glass jaw, so I think we will concede - but our new recruit plus the Dack talisman will be too strong for Luton. The last game against the Hatters that I can remember was an FA Cup tie at their place, on TV, where we scored three or four I think (Gamst amongst the goals

COYB

It reminds me a bit of when we signed Steve Archibald and Ossie Ardiles, back in the day... Definitely a coup for the Rovers, and on his day definitely a player capable of changing a game (for the better). 

Well done TM and team! 

Ee aye Ee aye here we go,

Up the Football League we go!

When I hear them calling, this is what we sing,

Lewis Holtby, Lewis Holtby, Ewood's new found King!

Just now, Doaksie said:

Luca Toni drove him over. Marcus Masdison took the picture. Assombolonga was doing the coffee runs at the service stations 

And Tugay Kerimoglu showed him how to pick a pass (he does seem to have a strong resemblance in that regard!)

Question is, who is driving? If it is him, should he really be incriminating himself like that ;-0) ?

Back to soon, gloom and despondency this weekend, methinks

Going for a 3-0 shocked for the lads, with Dack having a return to his flaky form. 

Would be delighted to be way off the mark, but just have a feeling we won't get anything at the Hawthorne.

COYB 

20 hours ago, Alex Rover said:

Crickey lads, what was going on at SMC?

Some things they did very well - the football side (mostly) for one, with some good players coming through (Mike Duxbury being the cream of the crop, but others like Danny Keogh, the Barrow brothers also doing well). Other things would probably merit the kind of witch hunt that seems fashionable these days, but should probably be left in the past. Good things - Ken Holt, Tommy Duckworth, Ma Riley !, Peter Rose, Fred Rose, Mike Neild, Mike Finlay, Spam Eastham & the barmy school bus amongst others. Some good memories, some crap ones!

Me and my two brothers all played for MHSP at some point or other, younger bro being the best footballer out of us. We were all St Mary's College boys too, although the footballing side there was destroyed by a certain priest saying there wouldn't be any team with a player sporting our surname in it (Fr. Wynne, gawd rest his hairy soul). I only played a handful of games, in the West Lancs League for MHSP - disclocated my shoulder on a slippery pitch (at Burnley UTD I think) on the day our club linesman kicked a heckling (burnley) spectator in the nuts and shouted at him "don't rub em, count em!" Them were the days

I think I will have to continue making pessimistic forecasts for the Rovers - It has worked a treat since last week's game with the Latics.

Good solid performance this evening. Hull seemed to be a little bit uncertain of themselves and didn't really make any serious threats (that I can remember) other than hitting the woodwork in the first half.

Football is a confidence thing - this can only be good for team morale and confidence. I was extra pleased with Walton, not just for his excellent penalty stop, but he kept his concentration and dealt with that late high ball into the box very confidently and safely. Defence looked solid tonight, midfield worked hard and moved the ball well, our attacking players got in where it hurts (but without really hurting Hull). Gally and Arna worked hard, and both need either some goals to come from their deliveries, or to get on the end of something themselves, which I think will bring them on even more.

Did we look a 'good' side? Well, we certainly didn't look a poor one, and the result was fully deserved. 

Isn't it great to watch the proper strip away too? Makes the win even more enjoyable, for me anyway.

4 hours ago, rigger said:

Are we playing Huddersfield? 

Whatever..

Not sure how Hull have gone about strengthening their side over the summer, but I'd like to see Rovers go at them and looking for a positivie result. If there is a repeat of Saturday's energy levels and endeavour, I think we might get something. If we are back to experimental formations and players all out of position then I guess it is a formality that we wie will concede, and therefore a complete lottery as to whether we can muster any meaningful response.

Going for a sweaty 2-1 to the Terriers, I'm afraid, as even though there was much to take positives from in the game on Saturday, I am still wary of the glass jaw we appear to want to maintain.

Second game of the season for me. Somewhat more convincing than Tuesday night, although still a lot of huff and puff without much end product. The back four was certainly better and more stable than the back three, even if Bennett did look out of his depth.

Baffling substitutions - Dack and Graham were perhaps the most energetic and effective players on the pitch throughout, and other than giving them a well earned breather, the subs did nothing to improve our approach to the game. If anything we nearly capitulated once we lost their contribution. I think we only kept a clean sheet because Boro weren't able to function as a team - lots of individual endeavour, but nothing cohesive to leverage whatever their strengths are. I wonder how long Woodgate will get before questions are asked?

From where I was (Riverside) it looked like TM was wearing a tank top. Was he?

Just now, bluebruce said:

Give your head a wobble. He's dogshit on toast at RB.

I suspect your colloquialisms may be lost on our friend in el salon Mexico.

Just now, windymiller7 said:

Are u the guy I spoke to on a young lady's phone outside the pub a few weeks ago & told u about this forum? Your joining date seems to coincide with this. If so, welcome to the forum. If not, welcome to the forum anyway!

What, you just rang someone in Mexico, randomly, to tell them about BRFCS??! Absolute legend!

31 minutes ago, Alejandro Tapia said:

come on Rovers!!!! So exited pals thisbis a very important match to us we need those 3 points so much!!!

I bekive on my team we played very good against fullham...also rovers has some good ways to defeat boro...

We have fast transitions with ball we don't have probles with our sides cause Downing and even Chapman could give us some speed we only need to focus on fucking score o i knowthat nobody trust on Gallagher but i do he has the pontential to be at least a very descent scorer but maybe wpuld be a good idea if he comes from the banch this match cause Graham deserves an opportunity to show he can still being reilable...

Something happens on me whne Rovers has a match against a york rival and im from mexico i can only imagine how exited you are.

 

Are you Juilo Geordio in disguise?

Do tell us some more about why you have such a passion for the Rovers? !

Actually I was led to believe he is a defender, with attacking capabilities. From recent evidence it appears I may have been misled. I'm sure there is a player in there, and yet due to the square peg / round hole approach, it looks like something is going wrong. More than happy to be re-educated about Nyambe, on the pitch, of course

Just now, Exiled_Rover said:

Was he?

I thought he was good when he was actually allowed to defend.

A lot of huff and puff and passing square, but left us exposed when charging forward and totally so for their first goal, where he was nowhere. Other than that, top bloke...