“I missed the club so much and when I grabbed that jersey again it felt so good.”

Small boy's size.

Quote from the BBC report of the game:

"Johnson broke down the left in the sixth minute but his teasing cross was cleared, while Morten Gamst Pedersen shot wide after the outstanding Brett Emerton laid the ball into his path 18 yards from goal."

Crikey.. outstanding eh? Anyone who was there care to verify this claim?

Yes, his workrate was excellent. Hughes took him off when we were comfortably ahead, I'm sure to rest him ready for Chelsea on Wednesday. Emerton's running down the left and Thommo down the right gave us fluidity in attack. I also thought MGP & Johnson as a slightly unlikely strike partnership worked surprisingly well. They linked up well with some neat touches, though playing against Colchester's defence would have made all the above look good.

Nelsen does have a presence in defence. He looks much more solid & dependable than Mokoena, but its early days for both of them yet.

It's very naive to assume we deserve to get back for Ferguson what we paid. As well as the realisation that Souness miscalculated on a player's Premiership ability (yet again) and paid over the odds, there's also the matter of depreciation. The contract has less time to run and I cant see that Ferguson is a drastically improved player from when he arrived.

He has been poor quality for our investment but his departure (hopefully replaced by Savage) will be another step in Rovers transition from being Souness' team to Hughes' team, which has been 100% positive so far.

As for Ferguson, his commitment to Rovers on the pitch has not convinced in recent weeks. The running and willingness shown by the likes of Thommo, Gally, Dickov & Emerton, who all clearly want to play for Hughes/Rovers, has put that of our so-called 'captain' to shame. If he plays for us again, look out for him at throw-ins. He will often be the nearest man to the throw but very rarely moves to receive it and often actively holds back. When we have looked for someone to spur us on in recent weeks the man to deliver has been Todd, Thommo or Dickov - never Captain Shortarse Average-at-best Ferguson.

Well what a game, the second half was just superb from Rovers. Pretty much everything has been said but...

First half we just did not close them down and Tugay was absolutely appauling, his pass for the goal aside and he only seems to be able to play the ball backwards and sideways and he put Todd and Nissa under all sorts of pressure in the process. Silly mistakes, poor accuracy, putting the defense under pressure, not getting stuck in, getting sucked out of the middle of the pitch EVERY time the ball was played wide and he's surprised when he's subbed? He was just as much to blame for the third goal as jay because he wasn't tracking Dunn who ran about 20meters untracked to score.

Jay's lack of pace was exposed today, it's a shame because I think he is a good player. He is also so one footed it's unreal. Also,when going forward seemed very reluctant to cross, something Hughes should work on.

Brad - I don't care how good a shot stopper the man is and how many good performances he has put in, by not coming to the edge of the box, by not closing down the angle and by not collecting crosses and corners, he just invites the opposition to score. We always concede goals from crosses and corners and I want to know why he, nor the manager(s), will address this.

Now the positives - Reid was outstanding. Jesus what a transformation. Everything in his game today was exemplory, especially his response to Gronkjaer - nice and discrete and showed him whos boss. I like it. Not much more to say

But more importantly... THOMPSON. Are there still any questions whether this man can play in the centre? As soon as he came on he gave the team an edge, a new dimension. Two assists, countless decent and probing passes, ability to run at players, a cracking shot, pace, tenacity... His appearence was worth more than the point we got today and perhaps even three. Bring him in for Tugay immediately.

Todd and Johansson were good today, I just don't know who to blame for the goals. We had the numbers but seemed incapable of just simply booting it clear.

Gallagher was good upfront as was Jansen I thought. Nice to see the two appear and I think Jansen will be high on confidence scoring again. I'd play him again next week.

Freidel - 5 - not much to do other than the goals, doesn't fill me or the defense with any confidence when he doesn;t come to claim anything.

Neill - 6 - perhaps a little harsh, didn;t think he did anything wrong, apart from some wayward passing. Good option going forward and defended much better than usual.

Todd - 7 - Pretty solid and tough tackling today. I feel fairly confortable when hes playing. A couple of crucial tackles.

Johansson - 7 - again, stable at the back. A couple of "nissa," moments, but good in the air and some very well timed and crucial tackles.

McEveley - 5 - Unfortunatly not a good game for Jay today. His lack of pace was exposed by their wingers and his strength wasn't enough to deal with them. This will no doubt rattle his confidence. Otherwise he was looking to have real promise.

Reid - 9 - everywhere today. Absolutely everything in his game was spot on. He covered well, showed real confidence, ran at the defense... Very pleasing

Ferguson - 6 - Not a bad performance but gave them way too much space and time in the first half. Not enough probing passing or tough tackling.

Tugay - 4 - i'm afraid to say he was just woeful today. See above.

Emerton - 8 - another very pleasing performance

Dickov - 7 - ran his heart out and had a good game. Deserved the third goal but any quality forward should have finished the chance he had at the end. Unforgiveable.

Jansen - 6 - took his goal well and did a couple of nice moves. Unfortunately the service in the first half was pretty poor and he had very few opportunities to shine. Very promising though.

Gallagher - 7 - solid performance and gave something going forward. Nice linking, nice runs and good vision.

Thompson - 9 - See above. What a way to make your return.

Hughes - 6 - didn't take Tugay off at half time, unforgiveable. However, did bring Thompson on his place. Switched Reid to the left wing to protect McEveley at times after his mistakes in teh first half.

Team for next week...

Freidel

Neill / Todd / Johansson / McEveley

Reid / Ferguson / Thompson / Emerton

Dickov / Jansen

Very good post, pal. I agree with your comments, particularly regarding Tugay who, with the welcome return of Thommo, may well be on his way out in January. I'd also agree with your starting line-up for the next game, but its a tough call for Hughes on who to start out of Gally or Jansen, both of whom performed well this afternoon.

Yes, I think Dunn conducted himself very well today. His argument was always with Souness, not with Rovers,and its apparent he's still a Rovers fan at heart, which is why he is different to Shearer. In Shearer's case he left us to play for the club where his heart is, so its hardly surprising he celebrates when he scores against us. I still think he's an arrogant git, tho!

I cant believe that no-one else has said what I am about to say, which is that i DID see the lad in the yellow shirt on the front row of the BBE making monkey gestures at Yorke. Ive since thought about it and its possible from that distance (I'm in Jack Wallker Upper) that he was making winker gestures with both hands and his arms bent, but it certainly looked like the same monkey gestures the England team faced in the week. I expected more people to confirm it but it was exciting on the pitch at the time so I doubt if many people were looking over to that corner. I'm sure the CCTV will confirm it more clearly but from what i saw that lad probably wont be coming back to Ewood again.

I thought Yorke totally deserved the booing and 'lazy bstard' chants he got but no-one can say he deserved racial harassment so lets hope the lads involved are dealt with properly so that Rovers send a clear message that we are not a racist club. Incidentally, I also think its a pity that Yorke will associate the whole crowd booing him with racism, instead of realising that it was a passionate set of fans showing that they dont appreciate lazy greedy gits fleecing their club, irrelevant of colour.

Parkes was Mr. Blackburn

Wouldnt that make him Tony Blackburn?!

Rovers to win 2 - 0 - Bothroyd & Ferguson.

Team:

Friedel

Neill Todd Nissa McEveley

Thommo Reid Ferguson Emerton

Bothroyd Dickov

subs

Enkleman; Short; Jansen; Stead; Djorkaeff

An article in the Yorkshire Evening Post this week was pleading with Leeds fans to sit down during their next away game with Reading because Reading have told Leeds they will reduce their ticket allocation if persistent standing continues. If Rovers issued the same ultimatum to the clubs of away fans who stand it would prompt them to action. (Or try to get tickets in the home sections, I suppose).

In any case, BRFC desperately needs to make a positive gesture of reconciliation towards the home fans after Saturday or, as others have said on here, (coupled with the appalling football on display) fans will simply not bother going. Attendances at the last 2 home games have struggled around the 20,000 mark. Last Saturday we were the lowest attended match in the Premiership. We are also the team to have conceded the most goals in the Premiership. The incentive to attend is diminishing each week.

I dont believe this has reached crisis point yet, but it will if the board dont act more sympathetically than the statement released by Tom Finn earlier today (20 October) which acknowledged the problem but made no indication of what would be done.

p.s. Dont blame the company who supply the stewards. At least they perform the seemingly impossible by getting a few Asians into Ewood on a Saturday!!

Of course picking up Bolton cast-offs can be used as another example of how far we've fallen in the last couple of years !

My first thought when I heard about it. If he's not good enough for them why is he good enough for us?

I'm also concerned about his age & fitness, esp after our experiences with the likes of Baggio. I suppose we know he can cut it in the English premiership, and people have written off the likes of Les Ferdinand, Sheringham, Paulo Di Canio in recent times only to see them reward a manager who took the risk.

If we get him, he can only make us better. We cant get much worse at the moment!

Wonder if he will try signing some of the welsh players if he gets it?

Wouldnt mind Earnshaw or Giggs or even Bellamy but please not Robbie Savage!

I'd love to know who are the applicants so far. Report say 12 applicants, maybe half of them are ones we have thought of. I'd say it includes:

1. Bryan Robson (desperate, applies for everything. Probably forced to apply on his Jobseekers Allowance form)

2. Mike Newell (we could do worse)

3. Stan Ternent (yea right. Dream on, dingle)

4. Craig Brown (no thanks)

5. Walter Smith (see Craig Brown)

In other words, I'd be surprised if Strachan, Hughes, Venables, Moyes or any of the other more capable suggestions have thrown their hat in the ring.

I predict another long tenure for Tony Parkes. We might even see players starting in the positions they were bought to play in!

Bizarrely, Souness's move to Newcastle does bring back some memories of that Godawful day when Shearer made the same journey. The similarities continue when you think that both men left a club where they had won a trophy for a wealthier club where they would/will win nothing.

The odds must also narrow for Shearer as a possible player-manager for us (perhaps more realisitically at the end of the season) - if Newcastle wanted him in that capacity they wouldnt have appointed Souness, who will surely be on a minimum 2 or 3 yr contract.

I'd love to see Strachan manage us but something tells me this isnt the club he's holding out for to return to management. More likely is Mike Newell. It would be a gamble, but we have to be realistic about who we can get. Just like signing players, we cant expect to attract the best so we have to look for a potential rising star. We could do worse than Newell. But would he offer much more than Tony Parkes? Both men have a proven love for Rovers.

Newell/Parkes to steer us to the end of the season, then Shearer as player/manager.

Substantial eh? Must have been a £2 coin.

Heskey and yorke up front!! - Be like a dentists trolley coming at you with them 2.

Couple of deckchairs in the opposition penalty box. Crate of beers. Matching t-shirts saying 'I used to be good, me... and I still get paid a fortune.' Big grins all round.

Bye bye, Yorke.

Souness's creche is now officially closed. 'No more babies!!'

A bit like a poor horror filum though Bryan - where they say "Thank God that's all over - it / he / she's dead" only for it / he / she is still alive and there's another massive scare to come.

I can see it now - a set of tombstone gnashers looming out of the gloaming, a fair-skinned English rose on her bike, the panic as Yorke flips about and trips over the bike, almost letting the girl get away, before using his clever "It's looks like I'm not closing down but actually I am" technique, and shagging the grunny out of the bike ... before making his way off on the cycle.

WTF was that all about??

Penalty banner is a good idea. It'd get a showing on MOTD at least.

Even better, how about a national petition to go round all the clubs asking fans to sign in favour of video evidence being brought in on controversial refereeing decisions? (e.g. Saha's hand ball)

I cant see how any genuine fan can object to wanting to see fair play and even the refs might be glad to take a bit of pressure off themselves. Its the one thing which would really improve our game at the moment. And no-one can benefit more than Rovers given the comedic displays we are so often treated to by the likes of D-Urso, Wiley, et al..

Steve Bruce is doing us more favours than our own manager! Last season he took PieBoy and Bambi On Ice off us. Now he's taken on the wages of Yul Grynner. Fantastic! And his lad Alex sounds like a decent prospect for us in the youth team. How about a chant for him next time we play them? =

'Steve Bruce and his Blue n white rejects..'

Just been told by girlfriends sister, who is one of Steve Cotterills p.a's that Burnley will make a bid early next week.

That really would complete the ultimate fall from grace. Poor Matt. I'm sure we'd all love to see him deliver for us but the reality is like thenodrog said in his earlier post - we cant be sentimental, we need to be premiership quality in all areas & Matt just isnt good enough any more.

I dont agree with those who say he hasnt been given a chance. If he was outstanding in training or the reserves he'd be in the squad. As it is, by all accounts he's just been average (as he has been when he came into the team - usually off the bench - last season).

Before we signed Pederson and Pedro the Donkey I wouldve advocated giving Matt a run down the left but now there isnt really that option there either.

Sounds harsh, but knowing what we know lets get him off the wage bill and get something for him before he's out of contract.

Personally I could see him going back to Crystal Palace and being a decent squad player for them.

Like many on here I genuinely like Graeme Souness for his commitment and passion - I really do believe that he has a passion for Rovers. However, for the first time since he joined us I have to seriously question whether he remains the right man for the job. I think he has simply run out of chances and excuses.

As has been stated so often (yet never seems to change), his starting line-ups are a joke. He has players back from injury and new signings yet he still fields people out of position and makes eccentric choices which have to be rectified with half-time substitutions with us losing and chasing the game.

Secondly, he falls out with too many players. Cole looks destined to have a good season with Fulham and even showed promise for us, but the position between the two of them was 'untenable'. The other 'baby' is now turning in decent performances for us presumably to earn a move away from Souness. Add to that Todd, Gillespie, Dunn, Berg, etc.... Souness needs to grow up. Hacking your own players down in training is not really conducive to good team spirit.

Thirdly, his excuses for losing - lady luck, referees, blaming individuals - is all a smokescreen for the fact that our manager simply isnt good enough tactically.

Admittedly, he has attracted some good players to the club. But how many of them have realised their full potential under him?

This season Souness has pitted himself against the managerial might and resources of Gary Megson and Paul Sturrock, giving away 2 home points to the former & all 3 points to the latter. We've now got Arsenal & Man Utd to face.

Rovers need every advantage they can muster to survive in this division. I think we've got a very good board, a decent academy, and a manager who has had a lot of chances in the last season. If we are still playing like this by Christmas and Souness remains, we are relegated.

Like many on here I genuinely like Graeme Souness for his commitment and passion - I really do believe that he has a passion for Rovers. However, for the first time since he joined us I have to seriously question whether he remains the right man for the job. I think he has simply run out of chances and excuses.

Firstly, his starting line-ups are a joke. He has players back from injury and new signings yet he still fields people out of position and makes eccentric choices which have to be rectified with half-time substitutions with us losing and chasing the game.

Secondly, he falls out with too many players. Cole looks destined to have a good season with Fulham and even showed promise for us, but the position between the two of them was 'untenable'. The other 'baby' is now turning in decent performances for us presumably to earn a move away from Souness. Add to that Todd, Gillespie, Dunn, Berg, etc.... Souness needs to grow up. Hacking your own players down in training is not really conducive to good team spirit.

Thirdly, his excuses for losing - lady luck, referees, blaming individuals - is all a smokescreen for the fact that our manager simply isnt good enough tactically.

Admittedly, he has attracted some good players to the club. But how many of them have realised their full potential under him?

This season Souness has pitted himself against the managerial might and resources of Gary Megson and Paul Sturrock, giving away 2 home points to the former & all 3 points to the latter. We've now got Arsenal & Man Utd to face.

Rovers need every advantage they can muster to survive in this division. I think we've got a very good board, a decent academy, and a manager who has had a lot of chances in the last season. If we are still playing like this by Christmas and Souness remains, we are relegated.

Based on lessons learned from last Saturday, here is the lineup we should put out:

              Friedel

   Neill   Short   Matteo   Gray

Thompson   Ferguson   Tugay   Gresko

           Stead   Yorke

Though I think we'll probably wind up seeing something like this:

              Friedel

     Emerton      Amoruso

              Matteo    Fitzgerald

                     Gresko

                        McEveley

                     Gray

                        Wilcox

                  de Pedro

              Stead

Is the Souness formation supposed to look like a question mark? That would be apt - its getting beyond a joke how clueless he is with his starting line-ups.

I'd go for:

Friedel

Neill Amo Short Grey

Thommo Tugay Ferguson

Yorke

Stead Dickov

encouraging Micky Grey to push up the left flank where possible.

Failing that, switch Thommo to the left and bring Gally on. But dont let dePedro the Donkey or Emerton anywhere near the pitch after Saturday's displays.

I know it makes for an interesting discussion point for the pragmatists out there, but defining players' roles within the team as if they are set in stone is fairly pointless. Over the course of the season we'll play 19 teams (+ Cup games - we usually manage about 3 of those!) and each will require different things of the team. On top of that it is inevitable that injuries will creep in. Hopefully fewer suspensions with Todd on his way out, Flitty out of favour and Neill promising to behave. However, having a squad of versatile players is far more important than 11 clearly defined roles.

Thommo may well start in the middle against WBA, but its inevitable that Souness will call on his versatility should either of the first-choice wide players become unavailable (or just crap, like Emerton at the end of last season).

Doesn't seem that long ago Flitcroft was renegotiating his contract and we discussd whether he would be such an automatic choice if he wasnt captain. After the team's inability to get motivated for so many home games through the middle of last season you have to look to the captain as well as the manager & the bench. The reshuffle involving Parkes, and now Ferguson instead of Flitty as captain (a good move, IMO - Fergie is a volatile little so-and-so who probably hates losing as much as Souey does) means that we're approaching games with a completely new set of motivators. Got to be good news.

Another reason to renew that season ticket & get down to Ewood!

Can't really go wrong at 150k. The David Speedie comparison sounds about right too. We know we're not going to attract the likes of Henry to Rovers (we'd do well to get Henry's Cat), but I'd rather have a battler like Dickov than a lazy playboy like Yorke.

Incidentally, it does look like Souness is making positionally like-for-like swaps in the transfer market this season to replace underperforming/dissenting players. Dickov in, Yorke out. Matteo in (hopefully), Todd/Babbel out. Pederson in (hopefully), Andreson out. He clearly feels he's got the balance of the squad right, but key players have underperformed and it looks like he's fine-tuning to get the best out of the rest of them. Judging by last season I think he's right. With 2 or 3 astute signings and the removal of people like Babbel, Todd & Yorke (who have made no secret of their reluctance to play for club and/or manager) I think we'll be back to the level we were the season before. I'd settle for that.

I liked the comment by Stan's biographer (Sunday Sport editor!) that Turd Moor was like Tower Circus when Stan arrived. It still is, isn't it? Full of clowns & smelling of animal dung...