His game has never been a Paul Dickov type of contribution. He conserves his energy and pops up to score important goals - lots of them. When he has to move fast, he does. When he has to deliver for the team - he does.

If he conserves his energy, you would think he would be able to manage a full 90 mins then wouldn't you?

Just got back from the game. Sat in one of the Wigan stands today as my husband bought the tickets (he is from Wigan).

I have to say what a great sight it was to see the Rovers' end full to the brim and also to hear them on good form!! Don't usually look at our away fans from another stand! The Wigan fans were fed up to say the least when Jingle Bells started.

Plus, it's hard work staying quiet in light of some excellent goals! I was half on my feet when Reid's went in before I realised and had to sit back down!!

I saw a brief interview with Stead on Sky and he didn't look very enthusiatic to be joining Sunderland - well in the extract I saw he wasn't gushing about joining like a lot of players usually are, or having a backwards swipe at their old club a la Barry Ferguson.

Sentimentality (I know, I know!) makes me feel gutted for him that he had such a poor season.....

I do not agree that Savage is a waste of money. In a recent interview with the LET he was refreshingly honest about his time at Ewood thus far stating that he hasn't shown anything like his best form due to injury. He said that whilst obviously no Gerrard, Keane or Viera, he believes he is the best player of his type in the Premiership and compares favourably with anyone else. I expect him to show that next season.

Must say Savage is getting a lot of stick for one injury hit half season compared with the likes of Emerton and Neill who have been pretty abysmal for most of the last two campaigns.

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I will be happy to he can manage to stay on the pitch for long enough to show us what he is capable of.

He is (obviously) as much use as a chocolate tea-pot if he spends half his time sat in the stands suspended. Before anyone starts quoting how many times he has actually been sent off - he's been very lucky he has not been sent off more often than he has, imo.

This might be one of those rare occasions where Scotty agrees with one of my posts... 

I'm certainly firmly in the category of "women's football sceptic".

If others like Paul have enjoyed the spectacle today, then I'm pleased for them.

But I'm afraid I can't join in myself with the gentle "touchy-feely party atmosphere" at women's games - I can't take the women's game seriously. The standard of fitness and speed of passing simply can't be compared to the men's game.

The girls typically string together four or five decent passes and then lose the ball needlessly - there's a lack of consistency and imagination to their passing.

Many of the goals come from horrendously bad defending, poor clearances and dreadful defensive positioning that would make Alan Hansen fume.

The standard of women's goalkeeping is also woefully poor. I'd suggest that most decent under-16 schoolboy teams would have better keepers than the women on show in this tournament. Indeed I'd back the old school team I used to play for - to beat most of the women's teams on show.

The women's marking at the back is often atrocious. I'd imagine that my old school team would have too much pace, speed of thought and aggression in the tackle for the women to be able to cope with. Our "shoot on sight" policy would have severely tested some of the weak female keepers.

Another point worth making is that in terms of national TV viewing figures, the Euro 2004 match between England and Portugal attracted over 17 million more viewers than the England ladies 3-2 win over Finland in Manchester - which peaked at 2.9 million viewers.  (2.5 million saw Arsenal play Charlton in the Women's FA Cup final.)

Whereas 20.7m viewers watched the England/Portugal quarter-final at Euro 2004, and if you go back to England's group matches in Euro 2004, the England/Croatia match attracted 18.1 million viewers and the France/England match had 17.8 million viewers. This is a vastly bigger difference than the gap between men's and women's tennis.

(The Wimbledon men's final had 7.7 million viewers last year, the women's final peaked at 6.3 million viewers.)

Given the huge gap that exists in terms of national TV viewing figures between men's and women's football - this suggests to me that despite the gentle party atmosphere Paul enjoyed so much at Ewood today - women's football still has rather a long way to go to catch up with the men.

Apologies to Roversmum....

I hope you'll be able to forgive me Mum and not send me to bed early tomorrow night without my cup of cocoa and motherly hug.... 

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I agree with Alan75, Roversmum and Laurence - what's the point of using statistics to compare the differences to the women's and men's games - they're never going to be the same!

Plus - the stringing together four or five decent passes and losing the ball needlessly - sounds like a team I know!

I agree with so much that has been posted, it makes me depressed. I have jumped from not renewing my season ticket to renewing and now I feel like I don't want to bother again. I think it's this Ashley Cole business that has made me feel like not renewing again.

When you read what everyone is posting - what hope is there for the game? It's nothing like it used to be and I don't think it's for the better.

Will it go like the housing market or the 'boom and bust' economy? Surely these high wages can't go on? Think about it, and how much you earn, it's obscene!

I was so glad to see the Reds win the Champions League because, on this occasion, the Russian and the sore-loser Mourinho had to swallow that no matter how much you throw at it it doesn't mean you'll win!

May be that fact is the only glimmer of hope.

Good luck, in his future career, to ex-Rover Le-Saux.

Surely as his experience grows, his commentaries will get better.

At least he can string a decent sentence together and not fill it full of a thousand 'you knows'.

Some interesting afters from the Liverpool win.

2) Benitez has been given £30m plus anything he raises from player sales to spend on transfer fees this summer. I'd trust Benitez to create a team good enough to beat Chelski.

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Now that Benitez and Co have won the trophy - I'd love to be there when a Journalist asks Mourinho if this fact makes Benitez the "Special One" instead!

I don't believe PNE are as bad as Burnley - no-one is!

Do we sing songs week in, week out, about PNE?

What a good night.

Though the game was obviously a friendly we can count our lucky stars as the Rovers defence in the first half that consisted of Short, Todd, Nelsen and McEveley were run fairly ragged. McEveley in particular will be praying to the gods he doesn't come up against Stuart Ripley every week who despite hanging is boots up over 3 years ago skinned Jay about 4 times....................Ripley was absolutely fantastic. The cheeky beggar even tried to do his old knock past and run on Jay Mac. One came off but the rest failed due to his lack of pace. but he still had the swivel and turn and very good touch and movement........and an excellent cross for Atko's header. We need this guy to train Emerton in how to cross. it was the first decent cross Ewood has seen for 2 seasons.

I agree with B&WA. The best part of it was getting to sing "Soooper Stu" again and watching him run down that wing...

I forgot to watch did Shearer raise his arm when he scored like he usually does?

PNE, so that three Northern clubs come up and three southern clubs go down (although I did previously hope Delia's crew would make it!).

That's not really actually that bad PMT. Teams don't win by 3 goals in the Premiership all that often. Second half of the season we've seen it happen a couple of times.

I 'spose then you can't blame fans for enjoying the situation when we are in the lead...any lead...even if they start singing "easy" at 1-0!

(Personally, it would make me cringe and start touching wood, peeping through my hands over my face...going to the ladies 'cos I can't take any more, etc.......!)

So until we're 3-0 up and there's only 5 minutes to go, be respectful and cheer our team on.  THEN give them sh*t.

It'll be along time to wait then - how many times have we been 3-0 up this season, 2 or 3?