Parsonblue

Yesterday, the failings were in attack not at the back. That in itself is a concern because last week we are awful at the back and yesterday our attacking side of the game was poor. I totally agree that we have to build from the back but we have what we have for the next four or five months. It will have to improve by working with the players on the training ground and that is the manager's responsibility. I'm not sure what other role you can give Armstrong or Rothwell other than playing in the wide positions at the moment. I suppose Rothwell could be used instead of Dack but other than that he seems more suited to operating in a wide position. In fairness, at the moment, there are no "Mowbray Out" chants to be heard and I suspect most are willing him to be successful. However, chatting to folk at the services on the way back there are certainly more questioning the decisions being made - the substitutions in the last two games have been dreadful. He appears to have the full confidence of the owners - for the moment - but like any manager results will dictate what happens next. With the window now closed the only way we can improve is by working on the training ground and looking to find a system of play that suits the players he has assembled. A move to three centre-backs and wing backs might serve us better instead of the rigid 4-2-3-1 that we seem to favour. During the first 30 minutes of the game yesterday we looked better in terms of possession but never really threatened the goal - the final ball being dreadful. When Armstrong and Rothwell continually hit their crosses against the first defender that's down to them rather than to do with the position they are playing. That could and should be improved on the training ground. I agree the buck stops with the manager. The acquisition of Brereton and Gallagher was a gamble that may well bring him down and I don't believe replacing Raya with Walton will do him any favours in the long run. I certainly don't want Mowbray potted but there is clearly work to be done with these players on the training ground to improve both attack and defence.

Goalscoring is looking a major problem at the moment. Until the first goal we totally dominated without ever really looking like we would score. I was very disappointed with Armstrong and Rothwell who looked good running with the ball but there was simply no end product. Every ball they ball into the box found the first defender. Gallagher looks mobile but very poor in the air and doesn't look much of a goal threat at the moment. Tosin and Williams looked very solid at the centre of defence and Bennett had a much better game at full-back. Johnson started OK and then went downhill pretty quickly. Really not sure why Travis was taken off. To say we had Gallagher, Graham, Brereton, Armstrong and Dack on at the end and couldn't muster a real threat on goal was hugely disappointing. I'm not convinced with Walton - really ought to have saved the second goal. Fulham are not really firing at the moment but they have quality players who will, once they get going, win more than they lose. I was encouraged by the first half but overall came away concerned that, despite the attacking players on the pitch, we didn't force their keeper to make any real saves. Certainly a lot of work to be done on the training ground to get the right blend on the pitch on matchday.

Really looking forward to this one as Craven Cottage is my favourite away ground. I think it will be a really tough game and we will need to be at our very best to come away with any sort of result. Would love a win, of course, but would be happy with a point.

On paper we have enough to be mid-table but a lot will depend on the players actually delivering on the pitch. I think we'll have a better idea of what the season will be like after the first ten games when the team have played a few games together. I think Johnson and Downing will definitely improve us and hopefully Travis will continue to kick-on and dominate in midfield. Much will depend on Gallagher scoring, Dack getting his act together and Graham staying fit. One way or another I think it will be an interesting season and I must admit I'm quite looking forward to it. Saturday was a poor start and Fulham, Middlesbrough, Cardiff, Hull and WBA are all tough games to face before the end of the month. Up to the players to show they are good enough to play at this level and cut out the mistakes that were far too frequent last season.

A good move for the club and the lad really. He needs first team football to develop - he's not going to improve much in the Under-23's now - and Rochdale will be good learning environment for him. At the moment, at Under-23 level, he has the pace to get out of trouble when he overplays in dangerous areas - something he is prone to do - whereas playing at Rochdale I suspect mistakes will be punished more frequently than in the Under-23's and hopefully his game will develop accordingly.

I think that is a pretty fair analysis of where we are at the moment. I believe that the owners have a far better relationship with Mowbray than any of the previous managers they have employed. I suspect that as long as we maintain a mid-table finish then he will get next season to make the push for the play-offs.

That was exactly my point tony - I hate losing but at long last it doesn't ruin my weekend like it used to do, although I must admit I was pretty poor company yesterday morning!

Finally something we both agree on - Bell needs replacing. Agree that defensively he is all over the place and for all his pace going forward he rarely delivers a dangerous ball and seems to lack the confidence to take people on at times. Good League One player, as you say, but at this level and if we want to go forward we need better.

I'm sure you be there alongside me still supporting the only club we could both only ever support!

The solution for you is simple 47er. If you don't find watching Rovers entertaining find something that does entertain you. You've followed Rovers long enough to know that we have good times, bad times and pretty mediocre times. At the moment it's pretty mediocre but we continue to follow the club because we are supporters - it's why supporters of Bolton and Notts County etc are still supporting about their clubs despite some pretty dire years in recent times. There are thousands who have walked away from Ewood and will probably only return when Premier League is on offer. Personally, I think the Championship is pretty exciting but the quality of the football at times is not the best and full of mistakes that better players wouldn't make - perhaps that's what makes the Championship what it is in that any team is capable of beating any other team. Until Mowbray made the substitutions yesterday I couldn't see us not winning that game. The substitutions completely changed the game and for that the manager must take the blame. I understand why the manager wants Bennett in the team but he is not a right-back and is doing the lad no favours by playing him there. As for twitter etc. I really can't understand why any player would want to get involved in social media looking at some of the nonsense that is put on there.

As I said it's the manager's choice who he signs. If you believe you can influence his decision - great, please tell him to get an experienced centre-back. Ultimately, manager's who get the majority of decisions wrong get the sack. That's the one constant in football. Mowbray is no different from any other manager in that regard. After almost sixty years of supporting Rovers I can now, finally, take results in my stride without getting too carried away with a string of wins or too depressed with a run of defeats.

I not sure what your point is 47er. The manager signs the players he wants and can afford. You or I have no influence over that so why waste energy being angry. At the end of the day it's his job that's on the line if he gets it wrong. Like all supporters I want us to be the best we can be but at the moment I honestly believe that we are a mid-table Championship club, one who will finish somewhere between 10th and 16th. I honestly don't believe this squad is poor enough to take us down but I'm not convinced they are good enough to take us up. Like last season they'll string results together and then go on a losing run. At the end of the day much will depend on how the likes of Gallagher and Brereton develop this season along with the new lad from City. A fit Williams would add competition in the centre of defence as I thought he and Lenihan did OK towards the end of last season. There is still a week left in the transfer window so we'll see if the manager can bring in the players who give us what we need. A commanding centre half of the McNamee, Hawkins, Moran variety would be my wish but I'm not buying the players or paying the wages so I can't really influence who we bring in. Yes I enjoy attending matches at all levels with friends and yes I want us to win every game. But a lifetime of supporting Rovers has taught me that disappointment is never far away.

I thought the game turned the moment he withdrew Armstrong and Downing and introduced Graham and Rothwell. We lost all momentum at that point and the two subs did nothing to justify the change as it completely upset the balance of the team. I thought Downing and Johnson look positive additions but I'll reserve judgment on Gallagher and Walton at this point. Once again we conceded two very soft goals - although in fairness we also scored a soft goal. On the evidence of pre-season and today I would think that Hart will be given a chance at left-back when fit as I thought Bell and Bennett were poor today. Early days but I still think we have more than enough in the squad for a comfortable mid-table season. Looking at the results today it just shows how difficult and unpredictable the Championship is.

I think that's what Bolton fans said - and then Anderson arrived!

Personally, I would much prefer to see the survival of famous old clubs like Bury rather than worry about missing out on my first game of the season. I remember Stanley going out of the League in 61-62 and look how long it took to get League football back in that town.

Personally, I think the EFL have a lot to answer for with regard to what's happening to clubs today. As you say the rules and regulations are flimsy at best and then seem to be applied as and when the EFL feel like it. It's always the long-suffering supporters who have to endure the prospect of seeing a beloved club go under because of the incompetence of others. The old concept of owners being merely custodians of clubs and handing them on from one generation to the next seems long gone. When I first started watching Rovers most fans would have been hard pressed to name the directors of a club - today the owners are often THE story in newspapers. Egos, money and football - a deadly combination it would seem.

Be careful what you wish for. If our owners ever decide to pull the plug we will be in the same boat as Bolton and Bury. The League should do everything in their power to prevent these famous old clubs from going under, particularly as they sanctioned the owners who got them into this mess.

I think Nuttall has tremendous potential in terms of pace, power, physique etc. However, there is something missing - that something that I can't quite put my finger on. He drifts out of games and seems to lose concentration. He improved around the turn of the year after Mowbray had words with him but then his game drifted again, in my opinion, towards the end of the season. We played Everton on a number of occasions last season and I compared him with Bassala Sambou and that lad seem to have that missing ingredient. I dearly wish Nuttall comes good because, as I've said, I think he has all the physical attributes required but that certain something that makes great strikers. Hopefully we can loan him out somewhere that will enable him to play first team football on a regular basis and then come back and score goals for us. As I don't know Tony Mowbray I wouldn't what he and his pals think of Nuttall. I only know what I think as someone who has watched him an awful lot since he arrived and as someone who really wants him to succeed at this club.

Everton play at Southport. Rovers moved from Morecambe to Leigh a number of years ago and for the past couple of seasons have been at the Lancashire FA headquarters at Leyland. It just seems that over the years a number of our players who drop down the leagues seem to end up at Southport at some point on their travels. With regard to Chapman and Armstrong I would say that Armstrong is a far better player at this point in time and Chapman will have his work cut out to get a starting place based on what we have seen in pre-season.

Decent run out for the Under-23's at a very wet Brockhall today. Southport had six former Ewood men in their line-up and gave a good account of themselves with Charlie Albinson outstanding in goal. Nuttall came up with two, the first a superb free kick over the wall which beat Albinson all ends up. However, Nuttall's general play was not quite so impressive. Chapman, again, flattered to deceive and despite his pace there was no end product until the final stages when he created the goal for Nuttall. Danny Butterworth, recovering from illness, was lively. The back three of Louie Annesley, Tyler and Matty Platt, were rarely troubled and looked comfortable. Brad Lyons was the pick of the players for me with a very good display in midfield. It will be interesting to see who Mowbray keeps and who goes out on loan. My guess is that Platt, Tyler, Lyons and Nuttall will be given the opportunity to taste first team football elsewhere for the first half of the season before re-evaluating in January.

Agreed Gavlar, my examples are old - bit like me - but are merely to illustrate that different clubs work in different ways. The role of a sporting director who buys and sells players as opposed to the manager is probably the way we are headed and is very similar to the American model of a General Manager and a Team Manager. I don't think that will happen with the present manager at Ewood but I can see it happening in the not too distant future when Mowbray leaves if someone like Johnson was appointed as manager to work with the players and a senior figure appointed above doing the administrative work, including the selling and buying . We had something a little bit similar in the late sixties when Eddie Quigley was the team manager and Johnny Carey returned to Ewood as an administrative manager. Quigley worked with the players and Carey did the paperwork etc.

It seems similar to the Busby/Murphy - Clough/Taylor relationships in terms of the manager and the assistant handling different aspects of the job. Then Waggott and the owners either sanction a deal or don't. Every club handles things differently. Personally I don't see a problem with it. At some clubs the manager has no say in who is bought and sold - it's done by others and the manager just coaches what he is given.

Tony Carss. I think Darragh Tuffy was assisting him.

Comfortable win for the Under-23's at Kendal last night. Four first half goals in a seven minute spell - Vale, Chapman 2 and Nuttall - proved far too much for Kendal. Credit to them they worked hard in the second half, as the Rovers seemed to ease off, but never threatened our goal. Louie Annesley again looked impressive at the back whilst Tom White and Brad Lyons held the midfield with little difficulty. Chapman troubled them with his pace in the first half but often tried to beat one man too many and faded out of the picture in the second half - clearly still working on his fitness. Nuttall troubled them with his strength and power but his finishing was erratic at times. An enjoyable night in a very warm Kendal.

Have to say that we spent a very enjoyable time in the Louden before the game. Everyone was very friendly and the staff were excellent. Great place to go for a pre-match drink.