Bethnal

Spending time with this - I’d be happy with Gary O’Neil, I think. It’s been said before but I think his latter stage Wolves was the rug being pulled from under him in a way even Venky’s would raise their eyebrows at, perhaps. Gerrard - I get why people are against it. The Saudi move is a big factor against, for me. As Devil’s Advocate for a moment: he reminds me - in terms of profile, mainly - of two managers that are well-regarded by Rovers fans: Hughes and Souness. Both may have had him on toast to an extent, but he is very similar in terms of competitiveness, grit, etc. it’s a different club, different time, true. But these players would be impressionable in his presence and if he could harness his prestige, lean on the staff that know the players for the rest of the season, I don’t think it’s the worst option out there at all. I would be open to it, at least.

I’m in Dublin currently and looking to catch the Shelbourne match tomorrow evening, schedule permitting. Will be interesting to see how Duffer looks as a manager. Highly doubt he’ll be the chosen candidate, but as a “what if” thought experiment, should prove entertaining

Bit of Chris Rea on the radio for the 3h drive back to ‘Boro. ✅

Should lose our manager every week, to be fair.

We live in hope

Fucking FORSHAW?!

Mowbray already prepping his first “it’s not the 90s anymore” speech in the wake of a defeat where West Brom have looked toothless against a managerless side

Three glasses of wine in and I do think that - despite everything I’ve said over the past few days - while Waggott, Pasha and Venky’s can die for all I care, John Eustace can also go f**k himself as well.

And another one

I don’t think I want different strikers than Yuki and Gueye, actually. I will tomorrow, but I don’t currently.

Lowe is Pasha’s eyes and ears at Brockhall

Warren Lucy pissed me off a fair bit being a dickhead with Carter on co-comms a few weeks ago. Can’t view this as anything more than sucking up to his paymasters. Pretty shitty move, really. Read the room amongst the fanbase or don’t say anything at all.

‘Kinell, John’s been eating good down in whatever Derbyshire hotel they’ve pitched him up in.

I like Gary O’Neil, to be honest. Reckon he’s got something about him, but same as Rob Edwards - probably needs a little longer out of the game and refreshing himself. Ryan Lowe is a big no from me. Ian Evatt - honestly wouldn’t hate it, but I don’t know if the dressing room would agree.

Convinced this guy is a WUM, but have remembered that the correlation between talent and money is rarely proportional.

‘Kinell, I forgot all about that. Born to grift. Can keep a good grifter down.

A fair point and the problem with divorces is that they’re often very messy. Of course he’s acted in his own interests, but again, each manager could’ve been kept onside with the investment that they, the players and the fans have rightly expected in the last two seasons. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a Rovers supporter, so I hope we give them a proper hiding at Pride Park and that they go down and stay down, because I’m very petty. I just don’t think he comes close to shouldering even 20% of the blame here.

I’m one of the critical voices, Mike and while I still believe this could have come sooner, that doesn’t diminish how positively I view the stance the Trust is now taking. Many, many fans will support this stance and your future efforts. There are resources in the fanbase for you to lean on and I’ll be encouraging people to join or (in my case) rejoin the Trust in light of this. ”The best time to plant a tree was 15 years ago. The second best time is today.”

@LeftWinger has set out a cracker of a narrative and maybe we could be tempting the fate of a full-circle resolution doing so. Bit of black magic at play. Another narrative might be some form of Retro Rovers Avengers: David Dunn, Damien Duff, Morten Gamst Peterson, Ryan Nelsen, Tugay, Salgado, Matt Jansen. Set each to a task of coaching each positional unit. Very likely a catastrophe, but a hell of a watch, probably. If we were a normal club, I’d be all over Des Buckingham and his preferred coaching staff, but I think the scale of the job managing upwards is far too big for him. Needs more time managing in different circumstances, probably. Too much nous in the CEO/COO. I think Rob Edwards needs a stretch out of the game. Managing Luton through the things they’ve had to deal with looked exhausting. Their squad and he looked broken when they were at Ewood. Reckon he’ll make a good manager eventually. Allardyce - not anymore, for me. Looks happy in retirement. Who then? Ideally someone with nous, little to lose when it comes to paying short shrift to the nonsense, can spot a player and get the best out of them, has experience in the playoffs and promotions and doesn’t mind coming into a club in February. Basically, Neil Warnock ten years ago.

I think both Eustace and JDT being the snakes in all this is a pretty weak narrative. We’re all entitled to opinions and emotions are running high but the issue is - and always has been - anyone directly associated with the owners, representing their interests and managing the club into decline. Every compliant director, C-Suite exec, advisor, lackey, etc. And Kean. And maybe Bradley Orr. And probably Shane Duffy. But mainly the Venky stooges.

Good statement. Well done. No criticism from me.

Statement is pathetic. What’s even moreso is the childish briefing to Alan Nixon. I used to enjoy Nixon as a curiosity/shit stirrer (no shade, that’s his job). Who didn’t get a little rush for an “11 o’clocker” back in the day? Nixon’s an enabler of the club’s decline, in many ways. Ever-willing mouthpiece of those in charge. I don’t buy anything the club is selling - via official channels or the tabloids. When it’s always other peoples’ fault, it’s usually the one saying that. In that case, it’s the club, but specifically Suhail Pasha. He is patient zero. He’s very likely the source of that statement. He needs to be ousted.

I’ve encouraged my brother and his friends to stop going into the ground on matchdays and most of them are giving their season tickets up next season (or saying they will, but I’ll believe that when I see it). If you could give me the power of perfect execution, I’d say making Pasha, Waggott and Venky’s the target for protest before a game, for ten minutes during the game and after a game, as well as on the way to away days, across podcasts, across as much media as possible, via the fans forum and supporters’ trust would be the exact thing we should be doing as a fanbase. I now believe we simply cannot go up under these owners and the only divisional change will be fluke upwards and almost-inevitable downwards (eventually). FWIW, I don't subscribe to the theory that they don’t want the club to go up, but I think it’s an extremely difficult thing to do for the capable and very engaged owners that already try to do it every season. Being half the world away, taking no interest and now providing no funding takes the probability of our owners managing it to as close to zero as is possible.

I feel like at this point, Wayne Rooney would pay a club to let him manage, because I don’t know why else you’d get him in.

Sure but consider the fact that - whatever happens this season (and we’re not going up, we’re very likely not making the playoffs): there are only 13 of our 25 registered first team players that are contracted beyond the end of the season. Then look at where we are in the table, then look at how much we’ve brought in in transfer fees, then look at how much we’ve spent since and - while considering where we are in the table - look really closely at who we brought in over January. Why would you risk having to manage 13 players, plus youth prospects and whoever you can get in on a free, especially when the club has no intention of renewing contracts? If the job isn’t there in the summer, what do you tell your family? “Sorry, I realise the effect this job is having on us, but sticking it out and turning down that job in February was the right thing to do for the fans”? Nah.