“ Running out or road “ somes up the last few years of Southgate’s time in charge. If we’d have given him another 10 years we still wouldn’t have won anything. Looking into the future we haven’t got the players to win things. You need world class players to win trophies at international level and, with the possible exception of Bellingham, looking to the future we haven’t got any. When we won the big one we had 3 players that would have got into a World Team. Banks, Moore, Charlton. With three more in Ball, Hurst and Wilson knocking on the door.

That’s what Mrs Shoelaces says.

The photo in colour is worse. He needs to get on the Guinness and Steak diet asap.

They will be.

Lack of pace was Rhodes major failing. The first time I saw him play I thought he must have been playing with an injury.

They didn’t play like it last night. A couple of fancy passes and that was it. I could gather the ball and pass it back to the full back, it’s easy. Money for nothing.

I’ve still got the first 20 ish “ Rothmans “ . The first ( 1970-71 ? ) is in hardback and it’s worth a few quid these days. Information was hard to come by back then especially if you didn’t live in the Blackburn area. Quite often I remember opening the paper and being surprised to see we’d played the night before ! The score Rovers 1 Workington 5 comes to mind ! My grandson’s grasp of what is out there on the internet is amazing. He never ceases to surprise me. My knowledge came from reading the print off “ The Last Sports “ on my way back to Rochdale on the bus. I could still tell you the first 11 of most 1st and 2nd divisions form the early 1960’s.

Too many good Premier League players that aren’t international class. Saka and Gordon - what did they do ? Same thing goes for Eze.

One team wanted to be there and one team didn’t.

I was at the Rovers v Norwich game recently and that very same thought went through my mind.

My grandson is the same. I thought I knew a lot about football and players as his age. However with all the information available on the internet he would leave me trailing in his wake.

I had a neighbour that looked like that when he’d been sniffing glue. If fact he looked better than that.

That free kick at the end summed us up. We took an age to set up for it and then the ball in was awful. As it proved, it was more of a chance for Senegal than it was for us. Shades of Rovers corners.

Heinz - Just Like Eddie

Too much passing of the ball forward for my liking. I found myself missing the regular interplay between the centre halves

Johnny Otis - Willie And The Hand Jive

“ Puma “ back then were made in West Germany. Top quality boots. As you say real leather.

Just read this in today’s paper - “ Many players in the Women’s Super League are having to buy their own boots. ——— some players are spending up to £4000 on boots and other kit.” “ My daughter needs two pairs of boots every couple of months, and they can cost £300 “, the parent of an academy player at a WSL club said. “ How much ! What sort of boots are they buying ? My first pair of “ Puma “ boots lasted me two whole seasons and that was 2 or 3 games every weekend. I only replaced them then because I fancied a change ! My mate played in them for years afterwards.

The Doors - People Are Strange

A really class act.

I turned it off at half time. I was nodding off in my chair.

Explosion in a paint factory ?

And they get to vote. Just as an aside, should somebody with ulcerative colitis be eating bacon and sausages ?

Del Shannon - Two Silhouettes

James Ray - If You Gotta Make A Fool Of Somebody