I’ve walked up that slope many a time.

I’m sick and tired of us signing back up players. When are we going to sign a player who is the first name on the team sheet.

You’ve got to think they are not playing for the manager. We are individually better than this.

I remember it. Ayala looked like he was playing in quick sand. It was embarrassing. Totally ineffective. Centre halves are only any use up front when you can keep launching the ball onto their heads. Expecting them to play like a normal striker is foolish. Unless they are players as good as Sutton or Warhurst.

If you’ve had a shit Christmas you can always rely on Rovers making it shittier.

I still think I’d rather have Travis at right back in Brittain’s abscence than JRC.

Bloody hell, that bench is a bit light. I can’t see any game changers on there.

Only in theory.

Favourite Xmas memories - Going to the Dingledome to watch them play United and overhearing two Burnley fans talking. One bloke say to the other “ Did you hear t’bloody Rovers score ? They beat West Ham 8-2 away ! “ I hadn’t realised we were playing in the morning.

If we continue with this style of football we won’t make the play offs.

Yeah Johnstone was something else on his day. Unbelievably tricky and with amazing pace from a standing start. Unusually for a right footed player he was completely one footed. Normally that would give you a chance but with Jimmy it didn’t help much. He was really on song that day and Keith got a bit of a chasing. As a result Alf chose Gerry Byrne as Ray Wilson’s stand in for the 22 man World Cup squad. Gerry was a decent pro but not in Newton’s league. I think he ended up with one England cap. Ray Wilson was a class act and a better defender than our Keith.

I see George Cohen has died. An ever present in the 1966 World Cup team. I always though Keith Newton was a better all round right back but George Best thought Cohen was the best right back he ever played against. Who am I to argue ? Sir Alf was an ex right back and he picked the players. Drawing the short straw in marking Jimmy Johnstone in the Scotland v England match just prior to that World Cup did for Keith unfortunately. Jimmy was unstoppable that day. One of the best wingers I ever saw.

Spain has a lot to answer for. At that time they had the players with the amazing close control, two footedness and spacial awareness you need to play keep ball. We don’t have those players. Not many teams do.

Not again !

If the pitch gets bad the policy of playing out from the back will become more hazardous than ever.

The captain of the first mens team I played for used to wear a large corset under his shirt. He had a bad back - allegedly.

Did you mean “ Shorts “ ? If you did we used to laugh at them, just like I do now.

Oh dear, I hope you’re not waiting too long.

I preferred those shorts for playing in. I’d hate to play in the modern ones flapping around my knees.

What happens with young players is they have a game or two were they look good. Then they have a game or two off the boil. The haven’t yet got the level of consistency that older players develop. Our problem is we have four midfield players that all fit into that category - Morton, Garrett, Wharton and to a great extent Buckley. All of those can look great one day and very average the next. That’s all well and good if we’re content to bump around this league. If we want to get promoted we need better players in central midfield.

Is the object of the exercise 1) Getting promoted ? Or 2) Grooming young players to sell on ? If the answer is 1) We need an experienced midfield “ general “ for the rest of the season. If the answer is 2) We’ll just soldier on treading water.

If we can score first ………

I still have a pair of “ lucky socks “ . Unfortunately I only wear them now for hospital appointments ! They’ve worked so far.

As I said earlier he’s got whilst the end of the season for me. I’m uneasy at the moment. He seems to be getting as much wrong as he’s getting right. Long term that usually leads to the manager getting fired. That’s at a normal club of course.

Far be it for me to make excuses but given the fact we no longer have a reserve team as such - how many of those players will have played together as a team ? Although they are mostly decent players in their own right they lack the cohesion that playing together regularly brings. That cohesion is vital and it was obviously missing last night.