I haven't been posting much recently .... I only wish it was due to our relegation ... My Dad slipped away " gently into the good night " in the early hours of 21st May, aged 88. He had suffered from advancing vascular dementia in his last few years, but thanks to the love and support of our wonderful mother, was able to stay in his own home until relatively recently. Dad was brought up on a new Council estate in Aspley, Nottingham, the son of a Boots factory girl who left school at 14, and a Post Office Engineer. His father died on active service when Dad was 7, leaving my Gran to raise two children with the help of her family. Dad passed the 11+, and attended High Pavement G.S. where he became Head of School ( 1953-54 ). He was offered a choral scholarship at Gonville & Cauis College, Cambridge on the condition he obtained Latin " O " Level, then a requirement for the Engineering tripos. He achieved this qualification by correspondence School, in less than 6 months, whilst doing National Service between 1954-56. He was commissioned in the Royal Signals, serving in Egypt & Cyprus and stayed on the " Reserve " until 1968. He went up to Cambridge in 1956, with his £40 pa Scholarship " It wasn't a fortune, but it allowed me to keep Sherry in my rooms ! ", he often said. He would recall conversing with Harold Abrahams, the 1924 Olympic 100m Champion, at a couple of College Dinners, long before light was shed on Abrahams' story with the film " Chariots of Fire ". On graduating, he married my mother in 1959, whom he'd met at 17 at an inter-school dance in Nottingham. She was by then an SRN at Westminster Hospital. He then spent the next 45 years in manufacturing industry, running and designing new production facilities in primarily printing and glass manufacture. We moved to Clitheroe in 1975 when Dad was head-hunted to run Joseph Arnold & Co, in Church, then the largest printers of Greeting Cards in Europe. In 1996, he suffered a heart attack aged 60, and underwent a six-way bypass in Boston, Mass whilst on holiday, Luckily, they had taken out Travel Insurance. He was also fortunate that the lead surgeon at Deaconess Hospital was the Emeritus Professor of Cardiology at Harvard ! He retired aged 69, following the successful sale of a Glass Company in which he had a stake. He wasn't a clubable man particularly, preferring time with his family and in his garden. As befitting a former Choral Scholar, music was ever present in our house growing up. He loved his Rugby, Cricket & Athletics and was a life-long fan of Notts County. He's survived by our mother, his wife of 64 years, and his 3 children. He was an adored father-in-law, grandfather of 5, and had 2 great-grand-daughters ... Goodnight and God bless Dad .... Thank you for everything.

For once, I agree absolutely with you, Sir ... far too many " promising " signings, whereas a couple of " oven ready " Premier League players may have proved the difference. He also persevered with Trafford for too long, Muric is not only more experienced, but played the " extra sweeper " role far better, allowing us to play a higher line, and the results from the last 10-12 games show that .. Kompany will stay ... he was the attraction for so many of these signings, his departure would leave a squad in turmoil ..

Really ?

No, I'm still here , one or two personal matters with which you won't wish to concern yourselves ... Congratulations on staying up, it was looking dodgy for about 10 minutes on the final day for you .. I and I suspect many other Clarets had resigned ourselves to relegation some months ago. Not sure that Vincent knew his best team, and his blinkered refusal to drop Trafford for Muric certainly played a part. If our Chairman is to be believed, last season's promotion was unexpected, and two years ahead of " the plan ". We certainly have a large young squad, who I suspect will be better for a year's experience and will need to be culled somewhat, or loaned out. The vast majority of our players have " relegation clauses ", so hopefully the financial effects shouldn't be too severe ... On the positive side for both sets of fans, the 105th & 106th " renewals " of the derby will be eagerly awaited ! Will your owners be able to resist bids for Sammie Szmodics ? Did Mr Broughton see next years proposed budget and think " F**k that for a game of soldiers ! " Can Brockhall unearth another " gem " ? The very best of Summers to one and all !! 😁

Just a thought ... I was at Turf Moor when we were presented with the old 4th Division Champions Trophy in our last home game of the 1991-92 season, against Wrexham. Full house, party atmosphere .... and we lost 1-2 to a Wrexham side we'd tubbed 6-2 at the Racecourse five months earlier. One of your own and a friend of mine, Vince O'Keefe was between the sticks for Wrexham that day ....

I think you're on for a 2-0 today ... Human nature is human nature, huge disappointment for Coventry on Sunday, followed by another with their play-off hopes ending on Wednesday .. it's their 3rd game in six days, they've played twice since Rovers last took to the field. It'll take an almighty motivating effort from Robins to get them up for this game ....

Yep ... beat me to it !! 😉

Absolutely agree with you, although the winners only qualify for the European Conference League, the third ranked Competition. The " Top tier " Premier League sides involved in Europe should be exempted from the EFL ( Carabao ) Cup, which should reduce their games by 3-5 per season. I'd also get rid of the two-leg EFL Cup Semi-Finals, and have one game, at neutral venues .. As for the FA Cup, I'd go back to regionalising the 1/2nd Round games, and keep replays !! This was the case until the late 1990's, and would reduce travel costs for Clubs & fans alike. From round 3 onwards, I'd give any Club ranked in a lower Division drawn at home, the choice to switch the tie should they wish ! They can then make the choice of say, Marine hosting Tottenham at their tiny ground for one memorable day, or giving their players and fans a day out at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium, with the much higher gate receipts and securing the Clubs future for a couple of years ...

He could save himself a few quid, and just time travel back to 1884, FA Cup glory five times in the next few years, a reserved seat at Leamington Road, the excitement of the new fangled Football League ( it'll never catch on ! ),and a ground move to Ewood Bridge in 1890. He'd also see Rovers chalk up 6 successive big wins against Burnley ... Just watch out for the TB and Diphtheria though, Matt !!

Looks like the Derby's on again next season .... ☺️

Claret in peace .. thought the least you deserved was a point today ! Second half was so much better, but nobody to apply the finishing touch .. if Ipswich go up, they'll get embarrassed in the Premier League without some major changes ...

" RevidgeBlue " .... are you now finding that using the Mandy Rice Davies reference is increasingly being met by blank uncomprehending looks from those younger than us ? I used it the other week, and from the faces staring back at me, you'd have thought I was speaking Hungarian !! Jack Longstaff would be proud of you, though ... 😉

I think this sums it up perfectly ... The one part of the Radio Lancashire interview that made me laugh out loud, was when he said the events of the last two January transfer windows, would have no effect on future transfer dealings ... other Clubs and players will be very wary of dealing with Rovers in the future. This is not good for a proud historic Club like Rovers ... He talked about this lad at Crewe ... I'm sure Rovers won't be the only Club watching him. So let's say Crewe agree to sell, and their fee is matched by West Brom, Sunderland, Middlesbrough and Rovers. All historic Championship clubs of roughly equal size, why on earth would he choose Blackburn over the others ? Incompetent management, absent and despised owners, loyal but divided fan base .. it's a tough sell, to be fair

Yes, but I'm 60 and he was at Aston Villa by then, so severely follically challenged .... I think this is Andy around 1962 ... c80fbba8b8f9b6dadcbe8c476ac3252fcb989164.webp

He'd have been 4 months shy of his 22nd Birthday, so highly likely ....

I've asked the question on our Board, and apparently the " missing man " was Andy Lochead .. attendance was 16, 826, and might the score have been 4-6, rather than 5-6 ? If Bobby Seith was unable to make it due to injury, then it would make sense that the great Ronnie Clayton, from just up the road might have been asked to step in ...

The only image I found on the internet showed only the England XI, although curiously Bobby Seith of Dundee, formerly of Burnley, is listed as the right half, again may well have been included as a mate of Colin's ...

I thought the same, but he's listed in the printed programme as in the team ... so maybe just a call-up for a decent honest " pro ", especially as he was Burnley born, and possibly a mate of Colin's ?

He moved to Bolton in 1961, the year before so would have played with a very young Frannie Lee. I think it's been mentioned before that Lee made his debut, as a 16 year old amateur, in one of Nat Lofthouses's last games. He in turn made his Bolton debut ( aged 17 ) in March 1941 in a Wartime League game ...

Yes, Bert Cheeseborough was at Rosegrove Junior School in the same year as my Father-in-Law, he'd moved on to Leicester City by this time. His daughter, Susan, represented Great Britain at Gymnastics in the 1976 and 1980 Olympics ....

Thanks for that, new information for me ... I'm 60, and was always just over 6'4" when I played Rugby for Blackburn. However, " anno domini ", and 35 years of marriage has apparently made me 6'3", according to my last " well man " check ... Ironic that John Connolly and Bryan Douglas went on to be team mates at Ewood in the late sixties !

I don't see that we have any option but to stick with VK, and the " project " ... Most fans know that the players we've signed haven't come to Burnley for the massive wages or the honour, they're here because of Kompany and his reputation. If the board dismissed him, you'd have a very unsettled group of players. Relegation clauses in their contracts should see us OK when we go down, but we may need to sell a couple ...

Just to illustrate your point, Colin McDonald, now 93, was England's 'keeper in the 1958 World Cup. He broke his leg badly in a Football League v League of Ireland game at Dalymount Park in 1959, and never recovered ... A few years back, he was invited to Gawthorpe for a lunch and had a picture taken with Joe Hart, Nick Pope and Tom Heaton, during that short spell when we had 3 England Goalkeepers on the books .....

Ashley Barnes warming the bench ....