U23s missed some decent chances, but Utd were the stronger side. Eastham let in a howler for the first. Goals 3 and 4 we let them walz through midfield. Barnes was back in the side and played the first half. Need to start winning though, and quickly.

I'm one of Mowbray's harshest critics, but he can not be faulted at the moment. That was a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon, Ewood was buzzing. Guts, determination and a dose of quality to win the game. Please Tony, don't start tinkering now. This is the best shot we've had in years.

Rovers, Burnley, Preston, Bolton are all generally much of a muchness attendance wise. Blackpool perhaps not so much.

If they get to 4.5k say, that's a decent effort IMO considering the extortionate price, lead up to xmas etc.

If Ayala is fit, he has to play. He's our best defender by a country mile. Worry about him being injured when he actually is, not when he might be.

Collins and Taylor played well as part of the defensive unit. My comment was more one of doubt that another PL team would come in for them should Burnley get relegated, at least one who's better than you.

Condescension is quite easy to spot, however.

That's a big IF

Based on last night, I couldn't see any Burnley players being attractive to other PL teams. That Cornet fella is supposed to be something, but he was anonymous last night. Tarkowski would probably be appealing I guess. Burnley's strength is physicality, discipline and organisation, rather than individual flair or brilliance.

That's true. It wil be interesting to see what their gates are next season.

Yep, Burnley Wolves was terrible. Burnley are hard to play against, but totally devoid of any entertainment factor. Atritional football, but it works for them.

Exactly. The very thought of putting Mowbray on a pedestal alongside Jack beggars belief.

Blackpool aren't. Nor Bolton.

Last 3 seasons overall. P6 W1 D1 L4 Mowbray owes us one

Tight game. Mowbray has a habit of letting us down in big games and local derbies, but I'm feeling confident about this and I think he's due one. 2-0 Rovers.

'It's live on Amazon' will be the excuse

Aye. Including a 7-0 drubbing at home to boot.

Personally, I don't care what Mowbray did or didn't achieve at previous clubs. It's what he does for Blackburn Rovers which matters for me. His last 3 finishes of 15th, 11th, 15th suggest to me that he's mediocre at best. The fact that we're currently in 4th place though is fantastic, something for which he should be applauded and long may it continue. However, let's not overstate what he's achieved here; we've been in a playoff position for 3 days. It's where we finish at season end that should determine how he is judged.

We're already at the point where we'll lose them for nothing or as near as, either in January or at season end. The best course of action is to keep hold for the remainder of the season, whilst continuing to try and get them to sign. That way, we continue to have use of them in the team, and it buys us more time to find replacements should they do leave in summer. Letting them go in January makes no sense whatsoever.

Lenihan is key right now though, especially if Mowbray keeps with 3 at the back. To replace Lenihan in January, with someone who could slot in, is a tall ask IMO

Yet some posters think we can pull a replacement for Lenihan straight off the shelf in January!!!

If I came across anybody comparing him to Cloughie, I'd simply refer them to the 'I believe in miracles' documentary on Netflix.

And 2 or 3 years after Mowbray does leave, we'll talk about him with the same regularity as we do now with Bowyer. ie hardly ever at all.

I wouldn't, Chaddy. What we'd get for them money wise in January is negligible. Keeping hold of them could be the difference between a top 6 place or not. It's not as if they've downed tools or anything, in fact quite the opposite. Plus, they may well still re-sign anyway come summer.

Lots of discussion about possible offers being made, reasons why new contracts haven't been signed, who's to blame etc etc. At the end of the day, the ball is in the players' court. They'd be stupid to sign the contracts now IMO, as they might still get better offers, either from the Rovers or from elsewhere As an analogy, if I put my house up for sale and someone meets the asking price on day 1, do I accept said offer there and then? No, I wouldn't. I'd hang fire in the hope that I get an even better offer. I think the players are in a similar position. They have offers on the table from the Rovers, but are happy to wait until the summer before making a decision.