Given how much he babbles on pretty much every day, picking one thing he said 11 years ago and applying your own values against it hardly counts as evidence of anything in my view. But I suspect we can both agree that being owned by Venkys is a very long way from a normal definition of the real world.

I missed the bit where he said that was the absolute minimum, as opposed to the target, and that it would be a resigning matter if we fell short. I think people have conflated different things he said - and he certainly says a lot of nonsense - such as 70 points being the target and him being willing to walk away if he felt he couldn’t take us any further. I’m pretty sure he didn’t say those in the same sentence and there’s a huge difference between him feeling he’s taken us as far as he can and a few dozen posters on here feeling it.

The highest finish for five years wouldn’t normally prompt calls for a manager’s head along with predictions of imminent doom. He isn’t getting fired - there’s no money to pay him and his team off anyway - and he’s showing no signs of walking away, and why would he? I expect this thread to reach at least 500 pages before we have a different manager.

That’s for clean sheets isn’t it? Much more of team award than individual IMO. He faced the second fewest shots on goal in the league behind Leeds.

Given Armstrong’s lack of inches, headed goals and scruffy six-yard box goals - Luton being a rarity - I have big reservations about him being our starting number 9. Danny Graham never scored goals for us like Armstrong’s and vice-versa.

Was the grounds man drunk when he painted the touch line?

His breakaway 1-on-1 to put us 3-0 up in the first half at the Turd on Boxing Day ‘77 is one of my favourite all-time Rovers moments.

Field, Garner, Brotherston and Rogers were the names that sprang to mind for me.

To be fair to the bloke we have never been close to being in the mire since coming back up. Like any midtable team, losing runs will see you down in the lower teens and winning runs will see you seemingly within striking distance of 6th. The fact we only ever got close to 6th after a sustained run of good results tells me we were a temporarily over-performing mid-table team. I can’t see Pune pressing the panic button after two season back, both well safe from relegation.

268 pages virtually all missing the point that not once has Venkys changed manager for football reasons. Not once have they shown any concern for fans feelings or gates, and not once have they approached a close season with a plan, let alone lists of potential managers. I get confused by equally strongly-held opinions that the squad was good enough to get in the playoffs yet it’s a relegation battle for sure in seven weeks time. But that’s what most predicted this time last year. The only real pluses from this season were replacing 3/4 of the Mulgrew/Graham/Dack goals from the previous year, which most including me would have regarded as fantasy, the development of Travis into a dirty bastard, and the fact we can’t possibly sign a goalie as bad as Walton. Midtable beckons again and those in Pune will continue to give no shits.

We think we always bottle it at crucial times: Brentford lose their last two when a win or two draws would’ve seen them up, and Forest throw away a season’s worth of goal difference advantage in the last game. We finished where we deserved.

I must say I enjoyed the last 15 mins of route 1 a lot more than I did what came before. Walton - hilarious his last act was let a dribbler through his legs. Bye. Nyambe - A lot less effective when not muscling past players Lenihan - no new news Carter - he’ll learn from that R-C - no left foot so not sure where he will best fit. Rothwell - star in the middle third, near hopeless in the final third. Johnson - bad signing Travis - Savage MkII Holtby - really disappointing signing given his pedigree Brereton - most dangerous player in first half Armstrong - needs to cut out these invisible games to get a good move Gally - big pansy but a good finish DG - thanks for the last 4 years. Buckley - impressive 2nd half. Could be a big player for us at this rate Mowbray: out of ideas, out of time.

Couldn’t agree more. A standard cross swinging in from a square peg in round hole player on his wrong side at that!

I might even venture that other managers who led teams to be Champions of England, such as Revie, Paisley, Clough, Ferguson and Wenger were also better managers than Mowbray. It’s a scandal!

I suppose a +43 goal diff could be largely down to a heroic keeper, but the fact remains that when West Brom handed them the keys to the promised land, a gaffe-prone keeper handed the keys straight back to the Baggies.

Of course he is better than Walton, I am. But it seems having a better coach and manager didn’t improve him much after all - two clean sheets in the final two games and they were as good as up. Hardly a bargain at £3 million when he throws a crucial point and quite probably promotion away.

A point today for Brentford would’ve put them second with one game to go. His flap today could well have cost Brentford £150 million.

Plenty of talking points in that game. Carter looks more than ready, shame for Vale hitting the bar, and Nyambe showed his Premier League qualities in the 90th minute with a hospital pass to Lenihan immediately followed by standing by gormlessly watching a ball that was never going to go out.

Is this our first home-grown back four since Hird, Faz, Waddington and Bailey (if, indeed, they ever featured together)?

Well, well, well...”The only goal at the bet365 Stadium came in the first half when Lee Gregory tapped in after visiting goalkeeper David Raya palmed out Sam Clucas' long-range strike.”

Shallow analysis. Virtually everyone employed in those three roles over the past ten years has been a muppet, some much more so than the current incumbents. We are where we are because a) our owners seemingly have no desire to employ anyone who isn’t a muppet, and b) everyone in the game knows it.

Another question for you Tony: what did you learn about professional players through your reffing that you didn’t know as a fan (and we wouldn’t know either)?

You must’ve just blown for half time and the kettle was on! Very interesting podcast - did it feel like a hobby for you or more like a parallel career?

Blimey @arbitro, no more recent pic than that? ?

Dreadful mid-table fare. Their 5 in midfield outflanking our 3, not loving how much space Romeo is getting... Samuel hopeless in every possession, Graham no apparent threat and a midfield with no ideas