I suppose if they wanted to buy a similar player if he was under contract then they'd still have to pay a couple of million plus 30k a week.

There was something floating around a while back that Mrs D insisted Rovers have a women's team. Mind you she probably thought it wouldn't cost anything and would pull in 12k crowds at Ewood ! End of the day any one of them could stump up a few grand out of their own pockets for this if they deemed it important. A women's team at a club like Rovers was never ever making commercial sense let alone paying for itself so it would always need some funding to prosper.

I'm fully on board with the youth pathway etc but there has to be a balance to it other than keep growing a team every few years then selling it to pay bills whilst praying to stay in the Championship. What's the end game ? Is there one or is there just a set of people there now creating their own agenda with their agent pals ? When they brought JDT and GB in and the new DoF structure it seemed like a bit of a mini revolution to modernise things and actually try and build a top 6 side on a small budget. However that soon went tits up and it now looks like it was all being done as a desperate grow/polish/sell act because of the owners withdrawing regular necessary financial support. Time for some honesty from this club.

And they pass more and create more space, often less pressure to track back and do the dirty work because there are better players behind you. There's plenty lightweights in the Prem and no one knows how a player will cope until they get a chance but he'll likely end up on loan at another Champ club.

Yep look at those 2 now both started kicking on once they were a bit stronger physically and mentally. Coming here will have helped that, particularly the mental toughening side, even if it didn't help us much but it'll continue because it's another symptom of where we are.

ACD is probably more suited to Prem style football than the Championship, certainly at the moment. Looked quite decent at first but it all caught up with him physically and he lost confidence and was never really a Eustace style player anyway. Wouldn't be writing him off at but this kind of thing will keep happening because these are developing players and we are a beg steal borrow development club.

When you browse other clubs forums or see stuff on social media in regard to 'which player would you take' from another club Dolan is a regular name mentioned. 'Always looks good when i see them on telly/always has a good game against us/busy little player etc' There'll be a lot of interest in this lad so the wages and signing fee he desires will be out there.

Sending 10 million company money from a bank acc/borrowing facility serviced by huge monthly turnover is one thing. Providing 10 million in personal guarantees or bonds is another, further reinforces though that one of the primary reasons they hang onto the club is because it works well within the company accounting structure. Promotion means nothing to them.

I think if he goes North of the border that means less compo ? Which would be typical, not that it effects the budget anyway.

Ask that pillock Terry what the gates were when the women's team was started, allegedly at the request of Mrs D.

It cannot keep happening and it's far from ok with me we are on course to be desperate for money by next summer.

They were the only others that sprang to mind but obviously both Prem quality players who cost a few quid so we'd expect a bit more from them, Bert more of a wing back. Marshall looked ok in a few stints there but other than that there's been sod all in the last decade plus.

Retaining Brittain would be a coup to be honest as i expect him to have another good season under Ismael next season, hopefully injury free and he'll retain some value. Fast going into the cult status books if he keeps it up we not had a solid right back getting forwards and providing assists since ? I can't remember....

On the face of it they loaned us a lad who'd only just turned 25, was a regular for a few season until manager change and off field issue, and we are to believe a 1 million buy clause was inserted ? No chance, if there ever was one it would be more than that and this club can't spend even 1 million on bench fodder. It's a non story chucked in by the pot stirrer on behalf of an agent imo.

Ahh so you know it's the truth then ? When will you ever learn his job is to write stuff and to do that he has to make stuff up. If you think Rovers will spend a million quid they haven't got on a back up defender (who is worth about half that) then good luck to you. By the way the Brum end dismiss the 1 million figure out of hand they paid double and want that back.

There is no way this club is spending 1 million on a back up defender so i;m not worried about Nixons latest lies. He's half a million above his real worth anyway.

Every penny counts now and there'd probably be add on's.

We can trade with academy players or words to that effect. So in other words not much to cash in at first team level for big money so we'll now sell emerging talent before it even emerges.

So my point stands we only invest decent money after someone has been sold whilst Preston somehow manage to buy some players without selling anyone AND offer some cheaper season tickets.

I'd say they know someone in the court and they are filed under not urgent nor are they pushing it. As always with Venkys things are never as they seem.

Brittain, Hyam and Szmodics came when the Adam Armstrong money landed in the accounts a year after he was sold.

To be honest no matter how grim it gets here i'd never want to be Preston, the very definition of tin pot but yes thanks to Vs they still manage to spend without selling unlike us.

Those purchases were funded by previous player sales.

They still managed to spend 8 million quid despite cheaper ST's and not selling anyone for 18 million, imagine what JDT or Eustace could've done with that kind of investment.

A grifter whose landed a plum job, fair play to him but he shouldn't get upset when he's called out.