Tyrone Shoelaces

He probably been having finishing lessons off Jason Roberts, he could shin the ball harder than I could kick it ! Remember Bolton away ?

I do like the look of him, he's what I was expecting Buckley to play like. The lad can play alright. I can't see Donny holding on to him. Do we need another midfield player now we've signed Downing though ?

Yeah, best player on the pitch for me. I'd like to see him against a better class of opposition though. He strolled through that game. He can see a pass early both short and long, rarely gets caught in possession and he's got a good engine for a big guy. Although not a ball winner he knew enough to take that guy out late on in the game. I thought that was a yellow card, if the game had have been a normal game it would have been. Having said all that I can see why teams haven't come in for him so far. He's all right foot and not blessed with great pace. The sort of player that can run the game when his team is on top but I don't think he's the sort of player that can get you on top.

Jimmy Greaves for me, if he was through on a one on one the opposition could get ready to kick off again. He had the lot, shots placed past the keeper or a dribble round him, it didn't matter to Jimmy.

There's a very interesting article about Nigel Pearson in my paper today. He's recovered from the Covid he caught early this year but it's revealed some heart problems. He lives in Devon now so wether he'd fancy a move up North is in doubt. The article sounds like he'd like to be back in football though.

I'd rather have John Stead any day than the two non striking strikers we have now. I see he's still playing at Harrogate !

Me too, that's an absolutely pointless loan. What is he going to learn there other than the wind off the North Sea is bloody cold ! We all know all three of our first choice centre backs are partial to a spell on the treatment table.

There's an interesting article in my paper today regarding OGS at Utd. - " The job of a manager isn't simply to send a team out and hope for the best but to devise and drill a culture where good decisions become second nature, where individual talents conceive of their role within a collective framework. The worlds best coaches improve players by encouraging them to see the game differently: to anticipate, to spot patterns of play and sense danger ". I don't think we've ever had a real " team identity " in Mowbray's time, or before that to be honest.

I agree that the treatment room usually fills up when things aren't right behind the scenes. Each time we've been relegated in my lifetime that's been the case.

I think we've more chance of going down than we have of going up unfortunately.

Totally inexplicable signing for me. By time he's fit to play most of the guys missing now will be back. You let your fitness levels slide at that age and you won't ever get 100% of it back. Not at pro level anyway.

The gates are going to be really interesting when we eventually get back to opening up for spectators. I think we'll find a significant fall off in attendances. Waning enthusiasm appears to be rife.

Anybody else thinking that home advantage doesn't count for much these days in our league ?

Jim usually starts that off, any day now I reckon.

Four points off the drop zone and Wycombe who are third bottom just won 2-1 at Big Club.

I say it every year but this year it really is true - " We'll never have a better chance than this year to go up. Every team is beatable ".

I played on the left wing a bit when I was starting out and even then I knew to get in the penalty box when the ball was over on the right wing. I got a few goals that way and a few bollockings from other older team members when the crosses from the right were over hit into the big empty space I'd just left ! It was noticeable that MGP's goals dried up a lot when he stopped getting into the penalty box.

I was probably in a minority of one, not for the first time, but I would have parted company with him at the end of the promotion season. I wasn't impressed with the way we played most of the time. As we know we rarely managed to play at our optimum for more than 30 or 40 minutes in any game. Given the squad we had that was enough to win most games. You have to be ruthless in football to win the big prizes.

It's not a fact, it's somebody's opinion.

Same in 1966. " When we get Dougie back again we'll get out of this mess ". Only we never did. Players get injured of course, but some don't rush back to play in struggling teams.

Looking at the recent results in this league any half decent team could get promoted. It's a crying shame we can't advantage of the relative weakness of the league.

4-5-1 when Boro have the ball. 4-2-4 when we have it.

I don't think I knew any of them. My Rovers mate then was a lad called Alec, he was a spring maker who emigrated to New Zealand 3 times. I think he's stayed there the last time. I haven't seen him for 20 years

That was my dilemma. How long to hang on at the ground. I always had to leave night matches about 10 minutes early to catch the last bus back to Rochdale. I was really fit then and I'd leave the ground and run all the way up through the rows of terraced houses to a bus stop up by Queens Park Hospital. The bus left the Boulevard at 9-15 pm and I reckon it got up to Queens Park roughly between 5 and 8 minutes later. For a 7-30 KO I'd leave at 9-00 sharp and set off running. Many is the time I've just got to that bus stop and the bus has been coming up the hill ! I never had to make the twenty mile walk back to Rochdale in the dark over the tops but I came very close !

If Downing was a bank manager I'd agree with you, but without being too controversial I'd like to think that running ability is a pretty crucial requirement for a pro footballer.