PS,

The 15k hardcore is 7k more than we had 15yrs ago so thats something to be greatful for.....

And therein lies the problem.

To go from 8k to around 25k was an amazing achievement and all credit to the Blackburn public for rising to the occasion. But it's now 10 years on and the novelty has worn off for some. To still be getting gates of 20k against Pompey when we're 2nd bottom of the league and have been playing crap for over a year you could argue is still not shabby.

Anyway, John Williams has all the tools at his disposal to figure out the problem, since his ticket database can tell him everything he needs to know.

When any "brand" is losing sales, the main problem is usually one of not being able to get the right data to figure out what's going wrong. At Ewood, they have every customers names and addressed, and a full record of who attended (or not) which games for the past x years.

If I were in his shoes, I'd be looking first at my "heavy buyers" from 3 years ago and seeing what's happened to them. If you're losing heavy buyers then you usually have some major problem with the product. More likely is that the "light buyers" have got even lighter in the number of times they come. The 24k average is probably made up of well over 30k people who attend with varying frequencies, so it's important to look at that data and see what patterns emerge. Once you know exactly who's coming less frequently, then go and ask them why, and what would tempt them back.

Marketing 101, as we say over here. Given his provenance at Granada Studios, I'm sure he knows all this anyway.

Reading the various articles in the LET today has convinced me even more about Mark Hughes - I like the cut of his jib.

And also great to read that we will have two fully Uefa qualified coaches in Hughes and Bowen - I am now expecting quality of coaching to rival the standards set by Harford in our Golden Age.

Another thought that struck me is that, given Hughes job with Wales and the fact that half of his squad were outside the Premiership - he must have seen more games at that level and hopefully spotted more talent than any other manager around. Hence I also expect a few Alan Wright type signings once January rolls around.

Definitely a yes, and delighted that he appears to be bringing a competent coach with him - McLair didn't help Kidd's cause one bit.

I think it was the right appointment, I couldn't really see Dowie being able to command the respect of the likes of Ferguson. Sad, but true that "Show us yer medals" is a key factor with the thicko footballers.

Also delighted to have a relatively young manager - youngest since Kendall?

I am convinced we will stay up.

And our very own Henning Berg has the most disasterous of debuts, gifting 2 goals to Sheff Weds in the league cup semi-final. But then he was consigned to the reserves for a few months while he learned English football and the Rovers style. But then that was when we had decent management and coaching.

Billy Wilson

After a sensible page of "Who would you want to be manager" 5 pages ago, I see we're now off the topic and back to "Why you wouldn't want anyone as manager"

Anyway, no matter; I have it all figured out. A French Canadian neighbour has just phoned me to ask us round for a soiree this evening. When I asked what he'd be laying on, he said "Vin et boules"

Given that the backroom staff are gone and that we haven't had a good coach since Ray Harford, I am tending towards an appointment that puts reasonable quality across both management and coaching. So my 3 are

1) Dowie

2) Redknapp/Newell

3) Venables/Shearer

Not that I think any of them will happen

I for one am delighted and proud that such a host of top names are interested in becoming our manager.

How do you know who's applied?

I don't. But I believe John Williams when he talks about the quality of the list. And I believe that a lot of the names touted in the press are leaked by the individuals themselves.

37 pages of at least someone writing off every conceiveable candidate. We wouldn't have taken Bob Paisley -"#2's never work out", RFW - "No english experience"., or Wenger - Grampus where? at this rate.

I for one am delighted and proud that such a host of top names are interested in becoming our manager. FOUR ex-international managers FFS (I'm assuming Venables, Hoddle, Advocaat, Houllier)! Three managers of teams higher up the prem than us. And we're sniffy about taking any of them.

I am very confident that we will get a good appointment from all this, and it shows our true standing in the football world. Who was on Burnley's list???

Tripe.

I would not want any of those four within 100 miles of Ewood. They are all flawed either as people or as managers. They are out of work and want to get back on the Premiership gravy train. The club is irrelevant.

Maybe they are; the whole football world is venal after all. But I am delighted that they see us as a good vehicle to do so.

If we were the jumped up nobodies who were certain to quickly return to our previous level that some people would have us believe, I don't think they'd be doing it for 6 months of relegation battle and then obscurity. Would they all be besieging Palace if Dowie left?

37 pages of at least someone writing off every conceiveable candidate. We wouldn't have taken Bob Paisley -"#2's never work out", RFW - "No english experience"., or Wenger - Grampus where? at this rate.

I for one am delighted and proud that such a host of top names are interested in becoming our manager. FOUR ex-international managers FFS (I'm assuming Venables, Hoddle, Advocaat, Houllier)! Three managers of teams higher up the prem than us. And we're sniffy about taking any of them.

I am very confident that we will get a good appointment from all this, and it shows our true standing in the football world. Who was on Burnley's list???

Another thing, interesting to note that Ciaran Donnelly has not been included for the reserves tonight. Which could possibly mean that Tony Parkes will make the first big decision of his latest reign by promoting Ciaran to first team duties. Good on you, Tony, if this is the case.

Are you sure he is not just injured. It'll be good that Gally gets a clean slate now, I was more than a bit concerned after Souness' "big head" comment and the fact he has not figured much since. Jeez I am actually starting to get all excited again now.

Me too USA. Too much of a coincidence that he disappears from view after what I thought at the time were extremely unhelpful comments to be making public.

Can't wait to see Tony's selection on Saturday! As he said last time (or might have been any of his caretaker-ships) "There'd be no point putting me in if I was going to pick the same team as the last guy"

Despite having been anti-Souness for the last few months in terms of looking forwards, one cannot fail to be happy with the overall progress made under him, even despite the backsliding in the last 15 months.

He made us respectable again, and left while a lot of that progress was still intact.

But I'm still glad that he's gone as I really did think that he wasn't going to turn it around.

Not sure I understand the Not Houllier camp either: he achieved more at Liverpool than GS.....

Heart says Shearer-Newell combo, head says Strachan or Hughes

Deinitely the best outcome all round. Getting $1m for Souness sort of makes up for getting nothing for Andy Cole. Good for Souness to leave us in a better position than he found us, and I think good for NUFC if the tales of the lack of training discipline are even half true - breaking Dyers kneecap in the first training session should focus a few minds.

While the timimg looks bad on GS, I don't think even he expected such a high profile job to become available after 4 games, so I think he bought and sold players in good faith. No surprise that he's going though; he's never hidden his ego, and I think he still has a chip on his shoulder about his perceived failure at Liverpool, which could never be erased no matter what he achieved at Ewood.

History would suggest that his travelling entourage of Murray, Saunders and Boersma will soon be leaving also; meaning a clean slate behind the scenes assuming TP finally opts for the pipe and slippers.

Players who should be nervous of a new regime will no doubt include Emerton, Reid, Amoruso, Pedro the Donkey and Neill. Todd probably hasn't stopped laughing.

Shearer - would not be a good manager, would pick his favourites rather than in-form players

Very harsh. How can you even attempt to analyse his managerial skills when he is still a player. H could be good as a manager, could be bad. But pick his favourites? where the hell did that come from.

If Big Al's definition of a favourite is someone who tees him up for 25 goals a year, I'd be OK with that.

Hughes - yet to manage in Premiership.

Dowie - wouldn't leave Palace for a club in a similar position

Shearer - would not be a good manager, would pick his favourites rather than in-form players

Strachan - doesn't want to come back into football yet

Newell - has no pedigree, just ask Hartlepool fans!

Souness - spent $40m and created a team that has spent 8 of the last 12 months in and around the bottom 3.

Souness - clueless on tactics

Souness - picks several players out of position each game

Souness - demotivates by humiliation

On the plus side:

Souness - got a team promoted with an open chequebook

Allardyce/Dowie - got a team promoted with closed chequebooks

Souness - won a cup

Allardyce - nearly won a cup but "robbed thanks to dodgy penalty decision" (copyright G. Souness)

There are no stone-cold certainties in picking a manager. In fact most posters on this board ranted 3 1/2 years ago about Souness dodgy record in his European jobs.

At least we have the best dressed manager in the league

.... perhaps, but, how long before Graeme joins Sturrock?

For once I must throw my lot in with Oklahoma... Where's the Arte???

we show no creativity---and we won't playing with 6 in the back... but not having witnessed today's throttling... I'll hold my tongue. But just from the stat sheet, it would appear that GS went into Highbury to hold the result- if that's the case, maybe he should have had all XI rovers hanging from the crossbar to assist Brad.

but at St Mary's it was more of the same.... playing by the numbers- predictable stuff. Rovers just don't possess enough talent in the build up-

I see Tugay without a partner in midfield, someone that will assist him break down defenses.... a Dunny in his day. -

Anyway,... just venting... it sux to see Rovers propping up the table so early- I just wish I could be @ Ewood to shout them on come the weekend.

Given that our manager's aim was to make us harder to beat; am I the only one struck last night by the thought that the team who are, by definition, the hardest to beat of all time do it by, er..... packing the team with attacking talent?

His selections in midfield are just conceding possession to teams whose attcking capabilities are better than our defensive ones.

If there is to be a change who would you want?

For what it's worth my selections would be

1) Mark Hughes

2) Alan Shearer player/manager

3) Gordon Strachan

4) Iain Dowie

5) Mike Newell

I know that some of them would be unattainable but that would be my shortlist.

Good list LD

Hughes - might think he could do better than us.

Dowie - might think he has to buckle down for a couple of seasons at Palace.

Strachan - Sounds promising if he really did leave Saints because of an over-bearing chairman: not a problem he'd have here.

Newell - the Hartlepool thing bothers me, but he seems to be doing well at Luton.

Shearer player/manager - the more I think about this, the more I like it. Robson's demise will come too quickly for him to get the job there - I can't see a club like Newcastle taking a punt on an unproven anyway. His goals will keep us up. We all know he is obsessed by himself and his goal tally: what could be better for him than to be able to pick himself every game for the next 2-3 years, thus guaranteeing an unbeatable PL goals total. Of course the only unknown being will he be any good as a manager!

Maybe Newell and Shearer.......

Stead, far from looking out of his depth, looks a class above those around him - I really do think he's going to score every time he gets the ball

Not too sure about that but i hope your right!!

Am I the only one who thinks that???? He provided most of our relatively few class moments today.

I thought his first shot was in; then when he robbed the defender, turned him and shot; his run to make the space for Fergie's goal; his ball over the top for Emerton - the boy is our most exciting young forward I've seen for years.

Forgot to add my 1000-1 shot: Shearer as player-manager

On the plus side, I am convinced we have more than enough talent at the club for a good coach to get us well up the league.

Go on then.... who would you rather have ??

Given who is available at the moment !

This 'Souness out' brigade really pisses me off just who would you get in his place ????????

Changing the manager is all about balancing risk. There's no doubt that Souness' abilty to throw a sackfull of medals onto the table does attract players to the club, and there's nobody around who we could afford who has that charisma. So lets assume that a new boss won't be as good at getting the spoilt for choice players like Dickov and Matteo to come.

On the other hand, it's not too difficult to find managers who do know their best formation, who do know their best starting 11, and who are capable man-managers.

But our circumstances mean that we would have to take some risk on someone less experienced. Dowie, Fat Sam (not that he'd ever come), even Paul Jewell. They may step up a la Stead, or they may not - it's a risk.

We can disagree over which approach has the most risk. I happen to think that with the players we have at the club and in the academy, the balance of priorities is to have a manager who can work better with what we have than Souness seems to have done for a year now.

Do you always get angry when someone disagrees with your PoV?

On the plus side from today:

Dickov will distract more defenders that Yorke will

Stead, far from looking out of his depth, looks a class above those around him - I really do think he's going to score every time he gets the ball

Tugay can still do it

Good to see Ferguson getting a goal, and the way he got it. No chance of Flitty doing that.

Gray looks excellent

Personally, I though Nissa did OK

But 45 mins with a hopeless formation, 3 players out of position, a ridiculous penalty and a lame keeper meant that even an out of sorts team like the Saints had enough going for them.

It's certainly hard to fathom what goes through the great man's mind. I think he massively over-reacts to what seems to be an over-simplified problem analysis.

His first insight after our best finish since we won the league was that playing stylish attacking football with 2 wingers made us vulnerable to the counter-attack. Then before we know it, Duff, Dunn and Gillespie are all gone, with only the useless Emerton and a Spaniard to fat to start. Has that changed our vulnerability? No - for a year and a bit we have had an even worse tendency to let in schoolboy goals.

Now the analysis is that we're just too easy to beat - which is obviously true, but doesn't seem to get to the heart of the issue - so it's 2 formations in 2 games that had to be binned at H/T.

Personally, I think the clock is now irredeemably ticking for him. I wasn't surprised that we had less money for him to spend, but I was surprised that all of a sudden we seem to have less money than all the other 19 clubs. Maybe the unseen money men in Jersey have decided that he's had more than enough to date, and he either does the job with what's been invested to date or he goes.

The irony is that if he had only ever been restricted to a max transfer fee of $1.5m, we'd be hailing him as the best manager ever: Freidal, Gray, Tugay, Stead, Dickov (very impressed with him today) are all fantastic buys. But when it comes to $3m and above.....

On the plus side, I am convinced we have more than enough talent at the club for a good coach to get us well up the league.

He had already spent the money on Grabbi, Yorke and Cole. The board had to take the money for Duffer to balance the books after the crap deals Souness took us into.

The board then unfortuntely gave him more money to squander in the transfer market, Stead the exception.

To be fair, I wouldn't pick on Souness for his transfer record. Most clubs have a Grabbi-like horror story to tell (Rebrov? Veron? Heskey? etc.) But not every club can match the Tugay, Freidal, Berg, Stead bargain basement list.

Plenty of other issues, but I think his transfer legacy isn't one of them.

Got to be Roger Jones Best I've seen in 50 odd years at Ewood.

Totally agree.

If I could choose from any of them in their prime to be between the sticks next week against the Arse, I'd have more confidence that Sir Roger would keep them at bay than anyone else.