Armstrong had one of those days you dream about as a striker. He could run faster backwards than the two guys he was up against. It won't be like that every week.

If we were playing Wycombe every week we'd be OK , but we aren't.

Top half for me also.

Some good goals from both teams.

Glen Hoddle style pass from Buckley for Armstrong's hat trick goal. It had a message on it that said " Here, put this in the back of the net ". He's got that ability to get his head up early on and he knows where he's going to pass the ball before gets it. One for the future for me. I was expecting Armstrong to go around the keeper for what ought to have been his fourth. That score's put a smile on my face. They were like a pub team at times but we've struggled to beat pub teams in the past. Bring on the Rams.

He can't sub them all, Brereton usually gets the sheppards crook at around 60 minutes.

That team sheet is an uninspiring sight. If I was a Wycombe player I'd be fancying this today.

I heard it was a back injury. To be out for the best part of twelve months with a back injury suggests disc trouble. Speaking as a fellow sufferer it's not just what you need as a footballer.

The thought that goes through my head when I see us concede goals is that they are the sort of goals you see in pre-season friendlies. Nobody is really busting a gut to get a tackle in, throwing themselves into a block to prevent a shot or a cross coming in, risking a clash of heads to prevent a header etc. Nobody at the back seems to be too put out when we go a goal down.

Cue Bell putting in a Graham LeSaux style performance this afternoon, I hope !

What I call a chance is the sort of opening were you think -" Bloody hell, we should have scored there, that was a sitter ". Not the sort of opening were when the ball goes wide of goal you think - " That was a good effort ".

Well until recently we were trying to become a possession based, play it out from the back, style team. With out much success in my opinion. That appears to have changed with the signing of Ayala and the pursuit of Kipre Neither of those are noted for their passing ability. None of the existing centre halves at the club are any better in that respect. My main criticism of Mowbray is that he's never really come up with a way of playing that suits the players we have at the club, most of whom are his signings. It was only the very basic long ball to Graham bringing Dack into play that seemed to work. I await with baited breath our latest change of style.

What style of play is that then ?

The thing is mate those stats could have come from a hell of a lot of our recent games. We don't convert enough shooting opportunities/chances into goals. There's a reason for that.

How many players have we got at the club that are capable of taking even 1 chance out of 2 ? We've got a hell of a lot of blunt instruments playing for us at the moment in front of goal.

The number of shots on goal last Saturday ( 2 ) would suggest we are struggling to create chances.

I didn't either. He was just about ok the first time around but he'd obviously gone backwards since that point. Mediocre at Big Club and a nothing back at Southampton. He doesn't run his weight for me.

I'm expecting a turgid scrap were we have most of the ball and end up having a couple of shots on goal. The Wycombe bus well and truly parked. It'll be like watching a submarine race. The fans locked out will have dodged a bullet. Prove me wrong for once Rovers and take this lot to the cleaners !

I wouldn't argue with that but the goals he scored were evidence he knew were goals come from/

Nuttall knew the one thing that matters - to score goals you've got to get in the box.

I was just reading the comments in my local paper of a new striker Rochdale have just signed - " Brian ( Barry Murphy the manager ) is a manager with lots of modern ideas - he wants to play Premier League style football. We've got a new pitch so that will help towards the way he wants to play " I'm sorry son but to play Premier League style football it helps if you have actual Premier League players. It takes a lot more than a new pitch. Cue plenty of clumsy journeyman centre halves getting caught in possession at the Crown Oil Arena this season. I don't think he's the only manager with the new " pass it around until you lose it " mentality

When I look at these highlights reels I always look for what's missing. Like in the Brererton one -plenty of running with ball but not much play near to goal and no evidence of heading ability. Same with the Garner one, not one example of him out jumping an opponent to win a contested header. For a defensive midfield player I'd expect to see a few headers won under pressure. You've certainly got to have reasonable heading ability to play regularly in the back four.;

Yeah, you need to be quick out there. Henning Berg wasn't the fastest either but he was another class act whose positional play was exceptional.

Why have we been playing him there then ?

It would be worth having a look at him. I was labouring under the impression that he was similar in style to Buckley, going off the clip he obviously isn't.