Parsonblue

He would Jim, as long as it's not as manager.

Or have the temerity to have a different opinion to 47er

Nuttall, whilst full of potential, has looked somewhat raw at times at senior level and is certainly not going to be ahead of Graham. Tomlinson, of course, had an alarming drop of form earlier in the season but has improved in recent months. I agree that I would have Travis on the bench at the moment but with Evans and Smallwood playing well in the centre of midfield, Bennett is able to do an excellent job as an attacking full-back, particularly in away games when he is afford the room to break. We have some excellent lads in the centre of defence but they aren't going to replace Mulgrew, Lenihan or Downing at the moment. The fact that Mowbray is giving these lads extended contracts shows that he sees a future for them at the club.

Now we've reached the business end of the season I think it's simply a case of Mowbray putting his faith in the more experienced players in the squad rather than untried youth. Of all the recent managers, I can only remember Mowbray and Gary Bowyer, actively taking the time to go and watch virtually every Under-23 game at home and also take in some away games as well. I think Mowbray has been one of the more supportive managers of the youth set-up at Ewood.

A perfect season for me would see Rovers promoted, the Under-23's promoted, Stanley to win League 2 and Burnley to finish in the top eight of the Premier League. If nothing else it would show those who seem to think that football success is the preserve of the big-spending city clubs that the traditional town clubs are still here and still achieving success.

Personally, I think AFC Wimbledon have that honour at the moment.

Excellent performance from the Under-23's tonight at Molineux. Wolves didn't have a worthwhile shot in 90 minutes. Rovers were dominant in midfield with Travis, Tomlinson and Hardcastle in total control whilst Platt, Magloire and Grayson didn't give the attack a sniff at goal. Considering that the likes of Butterworth, Doyle and Rankin-Costello are all out injured, the quality of young players stepping up from the Under-18's is very encouraging. The future for this club is certainly looking bright with the amount of talent coming through our own ranks.

The Lancashire Senior Cup is one of the oldest competitions in this country - the Rovers first participated when the competition began in 1879 and has a proud history of winning this competition on numerous occasions. I accept that you look upon it with disdain but not every supporter does. I understand why the club treated it as a training session for senior squad players but perhaps that could have been made clear before the game instead of allowing people to turn up expecting to see a competitive game as the previous rounds have been. Ultimately, the supporters who were at the game left hugely unimpressed with the attitude of the players involved.

It was a competition that the Under-23 lads had worked hard to get to a semi-final in. So I suspect they did care when the senior players strolled around with the aim of getting fit. As the next round - the final - isn't until August I'm not sure how that would impact on the fixtures over the next few weeks.

One - John Buckley. The rest of the Under-23 squad was too old for the Youth Cup game.

An appalling effort from both teams last night - both filled with senior players who clearly weren't interested. Nothing new in this. Everytime a second string game is filled with senior players you end up with a non-event - it's been the same for years. Both sides seemed to treat it as a behind closed doors friendly match, simply the opportunity to give senior squad players a run out without risking injury. I feel desperately sorry for the lads who normally play at Under-23 level and who had reached this stage with the prospect of a final next August. I can understand the need to give fringe players a game, and I suppose if the weather had been better a behind closed doors game could have been arranged at Brockhall, but this was a really poor effort from both teams.

Couldn't agree more - it's probably the only thing we do agree on . At the end of the day if you want a season ticket the prices at Ewood are certainly not going to put you off buying one. They are excellent value for money over the course of a season if you attend every game.

Sensible decision. I suspect the pitch may be fit but it's the area around Ewood Park that may have been tricky and even more so later on tonight.

Agreed, another promising performance from a very young side against a much more experienced Southampton team. As Stuart said, considering there was nothing to play for both sides served up an excellent night's entertainment.

007 I believe.

Barnsley have just given Heckingbottom a new deal - within the last few days - so Leeds are going to have to pay. Leeds are the classic example of a club that continually changes managers and achieves nothing as a result - other than large compensation packages that they have to pay out to managers and coaching staff.

Sensible move for the lad as he had fallen down the pecking order.

A 3-3 draw which was probably a fair result for all concerned. Middlesbrough had a number of overage players on view who Pulis wanted to look at so it was a pretty good performance by our lads to hold them and, but for some rare defensive lapses we might well have got all three points. A cracking game of football though - end to end for ninety minutes. A bit of a shaker when you realise that you actually watched the Middlesbrough 'keeper's father play in goal for 'Boro. Felt the same a couple of years ago when we had Wally Joyce's grandson playing for the second string!

A thrilling game at Bishop Auckland this afternoon when Rovers youngsters played a very experienced Middlesbrough side. A cracking end to end affair between two teams challenging for promotion. Lewis Travis had another outstanding game and there were good performances from Charley Doyle and Tomlinson again. With Mowbray again watching from the stands, these lads have again shown that they are ready for first team football when needed.

Very comfortable performance, particularly in the second half after Morecambe went down to ten men. Travis and Charley Doyle looked particularly good and young Buckley, promoted from the Under-18's, looked very comfortable in midfield on a difficult pitch.

As Mowbray stated, it wasn't perfect yesterday - not by a long way - but it was enjoyable and proved that we have the ammunition to step up a gear when required. That opening spell in the second half was devastating and I doubt any side at this level could have lived with that sort of fast flowing football. If we could play every game away from Ewood I'm sure we would walk away with this League. We are definitely a team that is suited to counter-attacking and, of course, away from home the support is more vocal particularly during difficult spells in games. In January I feel that if we could get that tricky, orthodox winger it would provide us with another avenue of attack which we don't have at the moment. Defensively we need to tighten up collectively, particularly when defending balls into the box. Nonetheless, at the moment I'm beginning to find this every bit as enjoyable as the previous two promotions from this division. We aren't as good as the 74-75 or 79-80 sides yet but we are getting there and seem on an upward path at last.

It's the old City player - Mike Sheron who has moved up from the Under-16's.

Sorry, I thought you meant Ian Jones.

Stuart Jones left the Rovers in the Summer to become Head of the Academy at Burnley. The present Under-18 side isn't the strongest and injuries haven't helped. Most weeks there are a number of Under-16 players making up the numbers which partly explains why we languish next to bottom of the table. Manchester United are top of the table, at present, and along with Chelsea and City have one of the best Academies in the Country, as you would expect from one of the world's biggest and richest clubs. Rovers are the only Third Division club attempting to compete at this level so under the circumstances it's no surprise that we are struggling at the moment, particularly when we come up against the better Academy sides.

He's just finishing a three-match suspension after being sent off in a recent game.