5-1 to Boro with Rovers capacity for self-destruction tested to the limit and beyond.

Boro have the bit between their teeth, and are scoring for fun at the moment, so you'd expect this to be a real challenge to the boys of hot and cold. As in any contest, composure and taking chances will be key to getting anything out of this one, so I'd expect JE to go with as close to the last team selection as he can. I wouldn't be surprised if we come very much unstuck in this one, but then again I wouldn't be surprised either if we were to do well - hence my hot and cold comment above. Difficult to predict, but I think on balance, Boro have the form, momentum and home advantage, whilst Rovers have an intermittent suicide streak. Head Boro 3 Rovers 1 Heart Tees Siders drowning their snow melt sorrows 1 Roving Plunderers 3 Hot Damn, slugs in slow cookers 0 Rusty Rovers 0 match abandoned on 53 minutes due to frogs on the pitch

Well, I guess we will find out soon enough, when the January sales come a calling down the soggy corridors of old fortress Ewood. If the powers that be do decide to cash in, I think there would be an exodus on a cataclysmic scale. S' probably just media speculation, and Rovers-bashing by journos neither in the know or clutching at straws for stories to catch punters' eyes, and since TC does stand head and shoulders, quality wise, above many at this level, it is only natural for them to conclude he will attract attention from (haha) 'bigger clubs'... Balls to em! Let's hang on, to what we've got, don't let go cos we've got a lot.

As things stand, we are the only game off in the championship today. Unbelievable - we apparently have a thermoclime that means our drainage is less effective than any other professional football club in the region... I don't think so! 😞

I can just see it now,... Pears to Baath, Baath to Hyam, Hyam to... oh fook, it stopped in a pool of water right in front of their striker... FFS!

Has anyone else been picking up vibes from social media that Rangers are looking at TC again following his 'rehabilitation' at Rovers? I've seen some articles in the Scottish media claiming he is hoping to return like the prodigal to prove his credentials in front of the Ibrox hordes... Can't see it myself, but then again, with Rovers always looking to cash in on assets, and there being no smoke without fire...

It will be down to whether the pitch has been covered, and if there is functioning under-soil heating. We've had a few days of hard frost in the area, and a fair amount of snow overnight. Although it is raining here, and forecast for heavy rain until 3pm, the issue will be hard / icy patches on the playing surface, and the ability for surface water to drain away. Any normal club would have been all over this from daylight, especially as a courtesy to fans travelling 284 miles (5 hours minimum) in large numbers for a game mid afternoon. But Rovers aren't a 'normal' club... so that might not go so well. On the up side, the outside temperature is rising rapidly, so perhaps things will right themselves, pitch-wise as the day goes on. It will be a soggy and blustery affair, whatever happens, if it goes ahead.

Send him on loan to Accy Stanley, or Rochdale, or Halifax, or Mill Hill St Peters.... That's the direction his 'career' will be taking if he adopts a stupid mentality and 'downs tools' as rumoured. We are a club that is already scraping the barrel for players, so we simply can't afford to be carrying a prima donna ne'er do well dead weight / make-weight. Mr Siggurdsson, put up or ship out. Moving on, the game tomorrow is a banana skin, and will need Rovers to somehow rekindle the spirit and form that brought success in South Wales, in front of a slightly warmer than recent days crowd and a mini-wobble on home soil. Am expecting a spirited and energetic performance from the lads, and surely things will have to come good for Yuki at some point again? I just hope he keeps on getting into dangerous areas, and gets a lucky break that brings his confidence back up. Rest of the team needs to crack on and do the things they are good at, especially Cantwell, who continues to impress his quality without showing goal instinct, yet. Head Rovers 1 Pompey 1 Heart Rovers 3 Broken Bell 0 Heave Ho me Hearties Rovers 3 (inc 2 by Yuki) Chimers 3 in an end to end goal fest, Aaarrrrrrr. COYB!

My favourite US city too - I spent a fair amount of time in the US in the 90s and felt the place of the smelly onions really stood out as having a distinctive character and vibe compared to most other places I visited. Lake Michigan is a mind bender for folk from round here, who are more used to the brownish brackish water off the Fylde coast than the pristine fresh water expanse of the Great Lakes. Greg will surely fit in with his west coast smile and lugubrious personality.

Football is a game of skill, teamwork, individual flair, tactics, commitment and creativity, bound together by a big dollop of luck and the rub of the green. A major factor too is the confidence of the players, in themselves and in each other to produce the chances that ultimately turn into goals and win games. When there is a lack of any of these elements, heads can quickly go down, with a consequent impact on all of the other elements and resulting in a downward spiral in momentum and team spirit. What we have seen in the last few games is clear evidence that some of the basics mentioned above are sadly lacking in this Rovers team, or at least in the team selections made by the manager. I think we are seeing the unravelling of whatever meagre plan the tin-pot faceless folk behind the scenes (including the Maggot) had hoped might pull a rabbit from the hat this campaign. My prediction is that, without a significant upturn in fortunes (including somehow something going in the net for our toothless strikers soon) we will see an exodus rather than an influx in January. It is clear that Cantwell is head and shoulders above the standard of anyone else in our team, and it is perhaps only a matter of time before someone turns his head toward a brighter future elsewhere. As for the rest, ho hum, would we even notice (or care) if they were gone? Sad days, painful capitulation once again, and a clear trend towards looking downwards and reminiscing about the past rather than upwards and forwards to a brighter future. I take full responsibility for the shit show - I don't see anyone else offering to do that, so if you want to vent, people, empty your spleen on me, even though I am as disenfranchised and powerless as the rest of ye. Hoping for an upturn starting soon, but not holding my breath. Come on, please, you Blues.

So much for Eustace talking about Ohashi and Gueye on the pitch together then..

FFS

First goal wins this I think.. 😞

You just know the script for the second half now...

Rovers started well. But not hurting this lot.

Someone needs to plant their feet firmly on the ground and get back to basics, like creating chances, defending with resolve and cutting out the frankly silly farting around at the back from goal kicks. If JE with all the technology and evaluation available to him to explore basic issues on the pitch, can't see the glaring truths that are holding us back AND do something to fix them, then there is little for us keyboard coaches to do other than moan from the sidelines. Not that anyone is listening...

We keep trying to football our way past opponents. Not a tactic that is likely to work with our squad. Let's cut out the horse poo for a few weeks, stop fannying around at the back, go direct, use the big man for target practice and hold up play, and let the poacher that we saw in Yuki's early outings feed off the scraps. That will steady the ship. IMO

I think I was vindicated in my comment to be fair.

Harry Leonard on the bench, in good scoring form for the U21s. Unbelievable

Pickering, Buckley and Gueye subs,, FFS we really don't want to hurt this lot do we?

Pedestrian plod ball, with no attacking intent, no cutting edge, no sign of life

Might as well make wholesale changes now. This lot won't concede three against us 😞

I think we are seeing the real character of this squad, to be fair. Which is largely that they don't appear to have any... 😞

We don't look like we are in the same league as these, on the showing so far, neither in terms of quality or attitude. Long hard afternoon ahead, methinks.

Turgidity! 🤣 I don't think it will be as flowing as that, to be fair.. It will be full, but not with liquid (unless you count the Venksters taking the pish as liquid). More likely to be flatulent, than turgid, methinks. Anyway, unless there are outgoings, I don't expect there will be any incomings. That's just the way it is now, down Ewood way.