U18s currently 2 up in youth Cup match, & well deserved according to the Stoke Sentinel's correspondent whose feed I'm following! Harrison Wood & Harry Leonard the scorers.

Of course, I meant Dembele!! 🤣

I've just had a quick squint at transfermarkt; I think it's quite accurate re player contract expiries, even if other aspects are off the mark (eg it gives BBD'S market value as £9m). Anyway, it says there are 212 championship players whose contracts expire this summer. Across 24 clubs, that's nearly 9 players per club. Included amongst those for Rovers are BBD & TK (both of whom appear to have 12 month options in the club's favour), plus some of our U23s (McGloire etc). And there are some decent names on that list too (David Brookes, Nick Powell, Jonathan Swift, Debbie etc.). So are we unusual in having so many players with contracts expiring this summer? The stats suggest not; it seems to be across the whole league, and to be fair if one assumes the average contract is 3 years long (?) then that's potentially 27 players OOC every 3 year cycle. I suspect / speculate this year's divisional figure is higher than in previous years due to covid, with club finances being unforeseeably stretched as a result, leading to a mismatch between player expectations & club resources (assuming we did start negotiations with them 18 months ago, as stated). Where we are unlucky / stand out from the rest, is that 3 of our "rebels" are all very suddenly considered very important due to this successful 5-3-2 formation that they all fit right into, whereas 5 months ago a significant cross section of fans (me included) wouldn't have been too despondent to see any one of them leave. That puts the club in an unforeseen difficult situation that I'd think would be hard to navigate currently. FWIW, I think we should push the boat out (without rocking it too much!) to keep Lenihan as he's been huge recently; and likewise Rothwell, who has some rather unique ability that I think is irreplaceable, and who's also now found some consistency to go with it. Re Nyambe, I'm really torn; he's obviously a good egg, an academy product & in a 4 he's absolutely solid; but in a 5 he lacks ability offensively & just hasn't developed as far as I'd hoped he would; plus he does have injury issues. Of the 3, imo he's been the least influential & most replaceable overall. That doesn't mean I want to see him leave, and he certainly deserves an improved deal, but clearly the club don't value him as much as he / his advisors do. If the difference is down to the funding of his academy (as SW has seemingly suggested; sorry if I've got that wrong), why should the club pay him more just so that he can continue to fund it, without a say in its operation at least? It's up to him how he spends his money (and I applaud his intentions wholeheartedly), but is that Rovers' responsibility, without benefit? Absolutely not. None of us have any idea how far apart each offer is from the players' bottom line. Traditionally, forwards get paid more than defenders, signings from other clubs get paid more than Academy graduates (at least in their younger years); I'm not sure there's much different to that pattern here? Ideally all 3 renew, perhaps with bonus & further improved standard terms if promoted. If not, then we just have to take the risk of them leaving for a small amount this month (but absolutely not to a promotion rival) or for free in summer. Tbf to all of them & much to their credit, whatever their reasons for not re-signing, none of them have letvthe uncertainty affect their performances, or indeed look like they're hankering after a move. Hopefully that continues if they're still here on Feb 3rd.

It's only sensible to make a prediction once we've seen the teams, otherwise it's a total lottery!

I doubt there's nothing that hits the spirits of a team more than going down 0-7 at home in the league, then 1 nil down in the first two minutes of the next game 3 days later!. They dealt with that OK, so a defeat for a team containing a few fringe players at a top L1 team ought to be water off a duck's back in comparison... I agree that use of fringe players is the way to go at Wigan, to give them game time & most first teamers a rest. Yes we had less games in December than expected, but 2 of those were leggy affairs on a sodden pitch, & all the prep (training, travel etc) was done for the Hull game, which is now an extra game in January that we will have to deal with. Cup is great, & let's not throw it away, but the league MUST be prioritised.

To be fair to jny, whilst as fans we are rightly proud of our rich & silvery history, in current terms we are very much punching above our weight currently. We're currently 2nd with a decent gap to 7th, in a season when even the most optimistic of us would've been happy with just a top half finish in August having lost Arma and signed no replacement + a few loans none of us knew anything of! In that context, in the here & now, our squad is punching above its weight.

Sorry to remind everyone of Jason Lowe in the transfer thread, but he's a perfect example of that not necessarily being true...

Good spot; now corrected!

They signed Ronaldo because if they hadn't done, he would've signed for their noisy neighbours (who did / do have need of a striker), which they just could not have allowed for face-saving reasons. They literally had no choice in reality.

It's a delicate balancing act that's for sure. On term of the contract "rebels", ourr current form makes it both easier to persuade them to sign up (I.e they'd be mad to go elsewhere given our position & their first team action, & if we do go up we may be shopping for bigger fish when they'reout of contract) but also increases their bargaining power too because they've all been so key to us being where we are. I just hope common sense prevails & all parties to staying as their best option, and tbf none of them look desperately unhappy, which must count for something. BBD is different of course; for me he stays the rest of the season, no matter what offer comes in.

A guy on their forum has posted today saying he was at Ewood today to buy tickets and the queue was "all the way up the big hill". I presume he means Livesey Branch Rd, not Cravens Brow! But whichever, that suggests there's good demand for tickets 24 hours pre k/o.

Spot on.

It's worth noting with Gallagher that another goal would put him in amongst the top 20 scorers in the division, not bad for someone who has only started half the matches and even then only as a wide forward with significant defensive responsibility. Give him a traditional no9 role and he will easily be a 15-20 goals a season man at this level if he plays the majority of the season there. Therefore well worth keeping on imo, given that BBD will almost certainly leave this summer if we miss promotion.

I was with TM until the 2nd half of last season, I felt he'd done well up to then, & was scuppered by injuries to key players the season before. But I would've been happy to see him leave in summer, as Feb - April was a disaster, no doubt about it. But clearly he still had the players on his side, so whatever he was doing with them behind the scenes was working, whatever else it might have looked like to us as outsiders. Imo he deserves all the credit that comes his way for galvanising this squad into what it has become, much against the odds; let's hope this ride can continue, I don't see any reason why it shouldn't.

Does it not show though that the club has has learnt it's lesson and shows they're looking ahead a little? After all, had the club done this 2 years ago with Arma, or 1 year ago with BBD, TK, JR, DL & RN, we wouldn't be risking them leaving on frees (or cheap, in Arma's, BBD's & TK's case). Someone said on here previously that it's famously quoted that the definition of madness is to keep doing the same thing & expecting a different outcome. This is an example of the club doing something different to what has been done in the past, yet being criticised for it. Hopefully it's a positive sign of some forward planning, of football people making sensible football decisions, for which the club should be given credit (albeit perhaps standard operating practise elsewhere, but we know hasn't been the case at Rovers for far too long).

As an interesting aside, I had to scroll onto page 2 of the forum contents page to find this thread; if that's not a sign of the times, I don't know what is!! 😅

With reference to SG signing a new deal, coupled with the spirit, passion & togetherness shown in recent weeks, I think we can safely lay to rest the suggestion that TM is not someone who the players respect. He, as much as anyone, would have cause to complain about TM's square pegs/round holes approach, & his insistence on his (mis)use as a right winger, yet here he is signing a new deal despite his best attributes perhaps being sacrificed for the greater good of other players & the team as a whole. Money talks of course and contractual security is a 2 way street, but there's no way he would commit himself now if he thought badly of Mowbray. Let's hope DL, RN & JR can quickly come to see things through the same prism as SG does; or maybe the club will be see fit to offer further improved deals now given the current situation anyway? Either way, I don't think the reason they're not signing new deals is a reflection on the manager...

As for the match itself, apparently a lot of their players were out on their feet on Weds night after their win at Forest. With one day less than us to recover, we've got to view this as a really good opportunity for 3 points.

This tickled me on one of their forums: "£30, do you get the town of Blackburn thrown in with that 🤔"

I'm a 3rd. But it's more than just his work ethic for me; his goals to minutes record isn't that bad considering he's been mostly played on the right as opposed to through the middle, which is entirely on TM. Also notable that TM says in an interview on the website that Gallagher will get his chance down the middle. Tying him down is right, if we don't then imagine the uproar if he becomes another top scorer who could potentially leave for nothing at the end of the season. Now to try everything possible to secure DL, RN & JR...

Happy New Year all, at home and abroad, & thanks for all the work done on here by all mods & feature writers. Despite our differences, and there are many (like there should be, or life on a forum would be boring), this club is the lifeblood of us all. We all want it to succeed, albeit we have different ideas of how that might be achieved. 2022 could be THE season to get us back into the PL. From various national platforms (even Jim White!!) I'm hearing a lot of love for this team, for TM and for the club, with many saying they'd love us to go up. Let's hope this year they all get their wish. HNY COYB

Hi all, Sorry if there's a thread related to this, but I thought that now Christmas is done & we've probably all given received presents, it would be good to put stuff up here. Not only would it be interesting generally, but it will help all fans know what weird & wonderful things are out there & might increase sales of said item. Hope this is all within the scope of forum rules! I'll start with a book I received called "No Nay Never - Blackburn Rovers v Burnley" by Michael Hodkinson, published in 2021 by Legends Publishing. I've barely scratched the surface of this 480 glossy-paged behemoth but it goes from the 1880s to the most recent meeting and seems to cover everything that could possibly be covered, and there are swathes of quotes & interviews from players, staff, fans & contemporaneous newspaper articles. The detail is sensational, really well presented & full of really attractive pics and photos. I'm really looking forward to settling down with this once the Christmas & New Year madness has died down. I'm sure it's a must read* for all those who bleed blue and white!! Hats of Mr Hodkinson sir, for a wonderfully researched & produced read about football's longest existing professional Derby! (* except the chapter entitled "Burnley Back On Top: 2009-2021"; I might give that one a miss.)

Spot on. Hope you're feeling OK. I think we'll win on Sunday, more comfortably than on Wednesday. Yes Hudds are on a good run & can't be underestimated, but we should have enough pace & creativity up front to score & enough steely determination & organisation at the back to limit chances. They got a great result last night, winning 1-0 at Forest. But by all accounts Forest should've won, having 23 shots (6 on target) to Hudds' 9 shots (2 on target). If they allow us 23 shots, I'd be confident of half being on target and at least 3/4 goals. Likewise if we allow 9 shots on goal, I'd be confident no more than 3 or 4 woud be on target & 2 or 3 of those blocked or saved. Plus, they'll have ideas of attacking us given their form, leaving pace in behind for our pacey forwards to thrive. I know football doesn't work like that, but I think a 3-1 or 4-1 win can be reasonably predicted. Fingers crossed!!

Beat me by seconds!!

Credit to Barnsley too, they played well and fought for their club's shirt too. I know it's only one performance, but I thought their No 7 Brittain had something about him. Potentially someone we should be interested in as RWB cover? Styles too impressed. If he and Bucko are good friends and last night epitomises what he is like, he might be worth a shout as well