Then again, I think only Juve will become victims of a mass exodus. The other teams look to, in worst case, to be relegated to Serie B, meaning 1 year out of the top flight. The clubs may simply offer their players a cash bonus to stick it out for that year.

But the likelihood is that those teams relegated to serie B are also likely to have points deducted so that an immediate return will be very difficult. If you're a player at or just past your peak, aged say 26 to 30, will you want to commit to maybe two years in the wilderness with a chance of playing at the top level again in 2008, or look to move to a club towards the top of one of the best leagues in Europe and can offer good contracts?

Rovers vs Man City has now been moved from 16/09/06 to 17/09/06.

<thr33>

Presumably for the Uefa match the previous thursday. I imagine the home game with Wigan on 30th September will also be moved back a day.

Fair points herbergeehh but I'd rather have a blood and thunder premier league game where chances are created due to both teams going forward and chances caused pressure on the defneces and mistakes.

A half of football littered with misplaced pasess and long hoofs up front which generates 10 shots on goal will always appear more exciting to me than 45 minutes of playing the ball around (very skillfully may I point out) up to and around the area but very little goalmouth action.

And that, in a hutshell, is probably why England are unlikley to win the World Cup in the near future. As long as Premiership audiences demand blood and thunder football that's the type of footballer England will produce, who will then be found out when they come up against a team who can play the game properly.

It's up to the French to save the world now. They are football's only hope.

? After that display by Italy? Peerless defending and wonderful performances all over the park, particularly Pirlo and Cannavaro.

Yeah - hope Rovers don't get any Polish teams in europe, sounds a bit crazy.

I can remember it was a bit ugly when we played Legia Warsaw in the Champions League. After spending a very pleasant day and a half in Warsaw Rovers fans had to walk into the ground from the coaches through two rows of armed police with baying Legia fans in the background.

I'm sure anyone who was less than fit (i.e. from an injury) couldn't have managed those numerous high speed rolls............... which leads me to assume that Sommeil is a gentleman of dishonour................

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I'm surprised no one has mentioned Micah Richards' actions either. He went down as if he'd been shot when Kuqi tackled him (a definite foul but also a genuine attempt to get the ball and not the man). After treatment he bounced up, trotted over to Kuqi, pushed him in the chest with both hands and then walked away with an exaggerated limp again. If he picked anyone except Kuqi the player would probably have gone down (Robbie would have, holding his face for effect) but he just bounced off Shefki's chest. as soon as the game restarted he ran off like a spring chicken...

I have to say seeing Accy come back and Oxford go out is utterly surreal.

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Perhaps one of my second teams Southport (I was born there) can do the same next season to repair the injustice when they failed to get re-election despite finishing fourth from bottom. Unfortunately the team that replaced them were Wigan so it could be a few years yet...

Did McEveley get a game?

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It looked like it was planned for him to come on but everything had to change when Mokoena had to go off early on. Gallagher would also have had longer on but for Tugay's sending off.

This working party has existed for around two years, Rovers are involved. One particular piece of genius the working party has/is considering is to reduce the ticket price for away support. Personally I find this mind boggling. In terms of the overall cost of travel to a game the impact is minimal. Would £5 or £10 off ticket prices make a real difference to visiting Stamford Bridge from Blackburn? Such initiatives will do nothing other than irritate an already declining live fan base.

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I agree that if that's the level of ideas then it's probably worse than useless as they can hide behind the fact that they are "doing" something when in reality as you say it will more likely rile the fans. Nevertheless the new money does give an opportunity for imaginitive clubs (oxymoron?) to genuinely encourage fans to live games, although it will need a collective will rather than efforts of a few clubs. If other clubs put their extra money into players then everyone will have to follow or face decline.

Anyway time I was off to Ewood...

I think some of the conclusions drawn on here may not quite be as accurate as before, there will not be any more live games, sky will show 4 extra games, and the premierplus 50 games becomes 46 with the rights now held by Setana Sports, so essentially, extra money will be coming in, sky showing basically the same games as before (92 up from 88), and instead of paying sky the suscription for the extra games you would pay setana instead, thats my interpretation of it all, and could somewhat be totally wrong, but if it is, extra money will come in at no extra penalty

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Most commentators are suggesting that Setanta will be making their matches available to Sky and cable users for an extra fee, so it will feel little different to the current arrangement where the PremPlus matches are extra. What is not clear yet is how much you will have to pay for them. You might think more than now but there will effectively be two organisations competing so I suspect it may not be much different.

This is very interesting and I look forward to seeing how the PL handle their second tranche of new found wealth. We should fervently pray the PL chairman don't screw things up as badly as they did last time. The simple fact is something in the region of 75% of TV money goes out of the game, so this deal brings absoultely no benefit to the average supporter. Where does it go and where will this huge increase go? Simple to the players and agents unless the PL chairman find the courage to introduce salary capping.

This new deal is going to screw the fan in every direction, it's just a question of which one(s). It is terrible news for the live game and aside from the cash, most of which will never benefit the clubs or the live support, is another nail in the coffin for the live supporter.

What's going to happen? I don't know as there are several possible results.

Sky's market penetration is someway below the 75% needed for advertising to have a meaningful effect on revenue. Setanta are looking for customers. Will Sky subscribers be prepared to pay more for less? Will Setanta take a very aggressive marketing view and sell access cheaply? Will this force Sky to reduce cost to subscribers? Who are Setanta? I have no idea, they have 14 months to raise awareness of their brand, so that won't cost much. Setanta currently only broadcast at weekends and will have to become a 7 day, 24 hour operation, no extra costs there then. There is only one certainty, this has to be paid for and it is already clear who will pay - the fan, one way or another.

This deal will lead to more football on TV as Sky and Setanta achieve methods, legitimate or less so, for earning the required revenue. The end result will be fewer people at Ewood Park. Plain simple fact, the true support has been p!ssed on again. I wouldn't celebrate any extra cash arriving at Ewood in 2007, we've been shafted once more.

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I was about to write a post wishfully thinking that some of the TV money could be used to reduce ticket prices, at least for the televised games. However, I was pre-empted by hearing on FiveLive that a report in the Sunday Express says that an attendance working group is being set up by a number of clubs, including Rovers and, more bizarrely, Chelsea and Arsenal to look at reducing ticket prices and subsidising away travel etc. Is it too much to hope for some progress in this area? Maybe the new contract might bring a little bit of benefit for the fam who turns up rather than the armchaire and pub fan.

That's 2 years ago though...not saying you're wrong, but still, could've changed.

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According to today's Independent each place in the Premiership is worth £484,000, so finishing 6th would bring in £7.26m, so for once Lawro gets something right.

I haven't received a renewal pack despite having a season ticket for decades and just assumed that it was lost in the post, however, today I have spoken to four season ticket holders who have also not received the packs. AnywayI renewed mine today by ringing up because the internet booking site would not accept my customer number for some reason.

I don't want to sound like a moaner but these errors are very amateurish.

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There were no packs but you should have had a flyer, there were ads on the big screen at the match, in the programme. I have had a recorded message from Mark Hughes to my home phone and an email reminding me of the deadline. I think they've done pretty well with the marketing...

Also another question, are we still in 6th today because our club name begins with a B?

Yes, the table is shown in alphabetical order if teams can't be split any other way. God knows what would happen, though if the season finished with us and another team tied for 6th place on points, goal difference and goals scored. presumably some sort of play-off?

Looks like Rovers are working hard on this.

Have we any ideas as to how many have already renewed?

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No idea but it's probably quite low at the moment, as I imagine most folk will be waiting until the last few days of April...

Has anyone else had a recorded message at home from Mark Hughes reminding them of the season ticket offer? I was in London yesterday and it threw my wife for a while! It did, however, allow her to write me a note saying Mark rang while I was out!

This is bad news for all of us hoping to get local pubs from showing Rovers matches live on foreign satellite channels...

http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/legal/article357239.ece

Compare the wages stated below to that of your 'average' working man on the street and you wonder why some folk are p1ssed off and turning their back on football......

Welcome to the world of the rich and INfamous

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this is the original article in the Independent with a bit more info http://sport.independent.co.uk/football/ne...ticle357006.ece

Can someone tell me definitively what combination of results adds to or reduces the number of UEFA cup places in the league?

First 4 places go into Champions League (unless Arsenal win this year and don't finish 4th).

5th place goes into UEFA Cup.

Winner of League Cup goes into UEFA Cup unless already qualified by final league position. In this case, as this year, runner-up does not qualify but extra place goes to 6th in the league.

Winner of FA Cup goes into UEFA Cup. If winner already qualified by final league position then runner-up goes into UEFA Cup. This year, either Middlesborough, Charlton or West Ham will go into UEFA Cup. In other years, like 2005, when both finalists have already qualified, then extra UEFA place goes to team finishing 7th in the league.

There is the slight possibility that, if Arsenal finished 7th or lower and won the Champions League, then the 6th placed team would lose out.

BBC have just announced that Mark Hughes has shook hands with Tugay on a new one year deal, so perhaps we have a bit more time to find and develop his successor.

if arsenal somehow win the champs league, 4th spot will also become another uefa spot.

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Presumably, though, if Arsenal win the Champions League but finish 7th or lower, then only the 4th and 5th placed teams will go into the UEFA Cup? I know it's unlikley at the moment given Arsenal's form but you never know...

Mark Hughes has just stated on BBC1 that a Champions' League finish is a possibility and one they will be going for. The interview is also available on the club website.

For me it's a bit optimistic but full marks for being willing to admit they arre going for it.

The list Darren Gough as a Spurs fan, I know he supports Barnsley and has even worked as a commentator on some of their matches.

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If I had a list with both Bryan Adams and Phil Collins on it I'd be ashamed to publish it....

You can assess the quality of the journalism by the statement that "sources close to the club say attendances are down to 21,000". I can't imagine how much digging Bose had to do to extract that gem....

Top review again Bob.

Just one piece of really exciting news you missed. Last week it was announced that Condoleeza Rice will be coming to Jack Straw's Blackburn constituency later this year. Given that when Jack went to Alabama, Condy's home state, last October he went to watch her local college football team and said that he wanted her to come to Ewood, I assume that we can expexct a royal visit early next season. The good news will be that all the CIA goons and media types should put about 1,000 on the gate alone, although it might be tempered by a forest's worth of articles in the Hovis, cobbled streets, grim up north stereotype.

I can hardly contain myself.