Maybe our rumoured interest in Rathbone at Rochdale may become more serious now. A poor mans Travis if ever I saw one.

Look at the pitch, that's terrible.

Yeah it's hilarious, just tell us what you really think about the ref Mick. Skerrett, who went in with the swinging arm, got his jaw broken by a similar " tackle " in a subsequent game against Cas.

Wasn't it Brian Clough who paraded Ian Storey-Moore around the old Baseball ground as a new signing before a Saturday game only for him to sign for Man Utd on the Monday ?

It seems a lot to pay for a probable bench warmer. I would have thought a decent second in line could be got for quite a bit less than that Maybe Mowbray has heard Pears looks like a decent outfield player in training, he could slot him in at left back.

He might get a bad back picking the balls out of the back of the net.

I don't know wether you follow Rugby League but at half time in yesterdays Cas v Hull game on BBC TV they had a piece about Rob Burrow, the ex Leeds scrum half. He's another MND sufferer. He's one hell of a tough little guy but it was heartbreaking to watch the interview. It's a cruel illness in one who should be in his prime with a wife and very young family.

You couldn't have met a nicer,more modest,or humble bloke than Stan. He'd been a great servant for Rochdale. I went to his testimonial at Spotland in the May. The usual suspects were playing, Nat Lofthouse, Danny Blanchflower, maybe Tom Finney. No Rovers players for some reason. About two weeks later I was cutting through the works warehouse and who should be coming the other way pushing a sack truck but Stan Milburn ! How times have changed. He was the regular right back for Leicester City in the old First Division for about 6 seasons back in the day. He'd be loaded if he was playing for them today. Their players will earn more in a couple of months than he earned in a lifetime. He was still playing local amateur football into his 50's. I remember meeting up with him in M&S one day just before he died and he only just about remembered me. Another football victim of Altzheimers unfortunately.

Unfortunately Samba was played up front for us that day. If he had have been marking Torres it might have been a different story altogether.

It's a bugger that predictive text. In the politics thread I wanted to say words along the lines of - " the Tories hanker for power ". It changed " Hanker " to " Banker ". When I tried again it changed "Hanker " to " Wanker " ! I gave up then and resorted to " yearn."

I was thinking of the game against Liverpool away. The one were Torres scored what could have been the goal of the season. I was embarrassed for Samba that day.

The left back looks like Walter Joyce. Referring to my trusty " Blackburn Rovers A Complete Record " we played Sunderland away twice in that mid sixties era - 1964-65 season Sept 19th Lost 1-0 in front of 40,695 fans. Else Newton Joyce Clayton England McGrath Ferguson McEvoy Byrom Douglas Harrison 1965-66 season Sept 11th Lost 1-0 in front of 35,537 fans Else Newton Joyce Sharples England Clayton Blore McEvoy Byrom Ferguson Rogers So if the photos are from the same game and Mick McGrath is in photo 1 it must be the game in 1964. Elementary my dear Watson. Looking at the boots the Sunderland player is wearing reminded me of the safety boots I wore for work ! I used to play in the same works team as Stan Milburn ( Bobby Charlton's uncle ) who had been a long time pro and an England " B " international. He was in his early 40's by then and he wore boots just like those. The younger players ( like me ) ribbed him mercilessly about his old fashioned boots but he used to say " Laugh all you like lads but I never missed a game with an ankle injury " ! He still had better ball control than any of us.

If there isn't there should be !

I think he got shown up when Big Sam played him as an emergency centre forward.

Joey, for all our attacking prowess we had two shots on goal on Saturday. One I could have kept out.

You wouldn't describe either of Samba or Nelsen as wonderful footballers in terms of ball playing technique but if you were looking for a pair of centre backs who can get a head or boot to every ball that came their way, that would fling their bodies in the way of every shot, and could find the nearest blue and white shirt with the ball they were your men. What we wouldn't give to find two equally unlikely signings now, or an Aaron Mokoena. Either of those legends would be worth two of the lad we had on loan from City last season in terms of simple defending.

I think Jimmy scored when Spurs won the Euro Cup winners cup. I remember Spurs parading the cup around the pitch at Ewood before Rovers battered them 3-0 ! If I had had to chose between Jimmy or Tommy to play for Rovers on Saturday Jimmy would win hands down. The best goal poacher I ever saw. Having said that he rarely played well at Ewood for some reason.

Makes Williams look like a worldbeater.

I think Commondore is being satirical.

I was reading an article about Mike O'Grady who for the youngsters was a winger playing for the very good Leeds Utd team in the 1960's. He was talking about playing away at Liverpool and Bill Shankly. He said Shankly was always waiting for the opposition team in the foyer as they got off the coach.. He'd say - " What are you doing here boys ? You'll get nothing today. You might as well just get back on the coach and go home " !

It's the best job in football. A pressure free zone, especially now its all behind closed doors. Nobody waiting for you tomorrow morning - " It's about Saturday's match Tony, Can you just come into the boardroom ? The directors would like a word ".

I like to give the new guy a bit more time before deciding he's the answer to our prayers. I really hope he is, I'm well Walton'ed out. He did have to pick three out of the back of the net yesterday when all said and done.

His half time motivational speech - " Don't leave anything out there on the pitch lads, give it all you've got, try dying, oops sorry I meant die trying "

That's always going to be the problem, the Chicken Chokers don't know the first thing about the game and in ten years they're still as clueless as they were when they first bought the club. That takes some doing when you think about it. At 16 I didn't know how to read a micrometer, at 26 I was a skilled engineer with the world at my feet. We can only dream though, it's either that or pack up watching all together !

I'm not looking for son in law material I just want someone who's a winner and who will get us out of this division whilst we've still got a club left.