gumboots

Of course he would. Typical ex big club player. It makes it all the sweeter when they can't ignore us because we're just too good and achieve something they don't expect. They get really uptight too when our players say they are happy at Rovers, becasue of course nobody can be happy playing for a well-run club with a good young manager who actually plays you every game while you keep performing, can they?

The MOTD producer we know is not a fan of a big club though. He's a Boro fan. There is more than one producer and presumably there is someone else telling the guys who actually put the show out what they should show. As has been said before too many of the general public are fans of the big 4 because that's what they get fed and they don't care enough about football to demand anything else and so they want more big 4 coverage and so on and so on. If you want viewers it's no good saying Rooney is rubbish and deserved to be sent off yesterday. Real Man U fans know that and are questioning him all over the message boards but plastic fans and neutrals believe media hype and don't want to hear criticism of their heroes.

Didn't I read too that he'd missed some of the course and so there was some doubt as to whether he could complete his qualifications in time anyway.

Personally as a female, I can't see what they fall for. The guy wears built up shoes for heaven's sake. Something seriously wrong with his self esteem.

Personally I still have to turn off TV when he appears, because the sight of him makes me physically sick and I can't stand his voice and his teeth are awful. He still talks about making occasions when he means chances or opportunities and while, being a linguist myself, I can see why, I do feel somebody must have corrected him enough times for him to have got it right by now.My daughter went to one of his press conferences recently. Ended up in the front row and had to work very hard at not giggling every time he spoke.

Thing is, have you seen how small david Bentley is? and what about Aaron Lennon? But they do their best to sty on their feet, and even Ronaldo the arch-diver has realised that you do far better most of the time if you stay on your feet. Then when you are fouled, wherever on the pitch it happens, you stand more chance of getting what you deserve. Think back to Jansen who looked like a puff of wind would blow him away but he would get chopped down, keep the ball get up and run on. All this excuse about Johnson being small and light weight is a myth put out by Everton fans to try to influence people in Johnson's favour. And if he retires over the fact that he doesn't get free kicks as often as he thinks he should then he still hasn't grown up from when he was a kid at Birmingham.

Still think, looking at those clips, that we need to get his hair dyed again as they are nearly all scored when he had blonde hair.

Daughter had apology from MOTD editor who said he wasn't in work that day because he's doing today's show and that words had been said to those responsible.

My daughter, who knows the MOTD producer, who is not a dingle fan but a Boro fan, is contacting him personally to complain.

Presumably though England won't go with the same players as this time either. Only McClaren could have though that going back to the midfield that had repeatedly failed us was progress. A competent manager with new players who are playing regularly, not for their teams reserves occasionally when they can't find anyone else, must stand a chance in this group. Not easy but could have been nastier.

I'm not saying you're wrong but just that living elsewhere you see things from a different angle. If you lived here you'd realise just how far out of love many fans have fallen with our national team. As I said most of us would love to support them - I'm old enough to remember us being rather good - but it's hard to support a team made up of media favourites when they play like a bunch of strangers, when our club who are basically are a bunch of foreigners with a few English lads thrown in play like a group of mates most of the time.

Let's hope he can do it again on Sunday then

You must be one of the few. Most fans over here are now far more concerned about their club, whoever they support. That's not to say they wouldn't like to support England but it's not the same excitement as a good game at Ewood or any game that sees Rovers winning gives you.

Aren't there rumours around that Duff might have to retire? He's certainly nowhere near the player he was at Rovers or even in his early days at Chelsea. He seems to have been injured for most of the last few seasons.

Hasn't he already said that his team against Austria is his team for Croatia or did I dream that?

Presumably the one about if SAF goes and they want him at United before the end of the contract period, but other than that probably nothing more than the norm - the ones about compensation etc. Strikes me as a decent bloke who'll protect his interests without trying to get one over on the club that's given him his chance.

Are you Korean or just out there working? My son's out there teaching English in Seoul

There's surely the case that in the past we've perhaps not started well enough in the league becaue we've been a bit cautious in pre-season, playing teams slightly below standard in the last few years. the competitive nature of the games in this years pre-season may be one of the factors in our great start.

Thanks I start work at 8.20 and they'd been saying all the drive to work that they were going to interview him but I arrived before they did, so wondered what he'd said.

Did anyone hear the interview with Mark Bowen on the Sports Breakfast on talk sport this morning?

Got to agree with you BRFC4EVA. Rooney is still an obnoxious little so and so on the field and all that anger just bubbles away under the surface waiting for him to get frustrated again. I wouldn't want any child I had any conection with thinking Rooney was a suitable role model.

But looking at the crowd yesterday there are significantly more of the Asian heritage families coming to Ewood. It'll take a while but that is a good market and Rovers, with their community programmes, are gradually interesting more of the population. Had to laugh at one of my kids the other day who said "Miss, I can't wait for Saturday." "oh," said i " looking forward to the match, are you?" "Well yes, miss. But even better. I can have a cheese and onion pie!" Perhaps we need to advertise them better and more of our Asian heritage kids will come!

That's a really interesting and well-written article. Thanks!

I was really annoyed at the hugging between McCarthy and Jose at the start of the match. I thought it was totally inappropriate from both of them and would expect Mark Hughes to have a strong word in McCarthy's ear. I don't care how much they like one another, get on or anything else, you do not start a game hugging the opposition manager.

You're right Taylor did drop him. I'm getting tired of all the things being said against David now. Seems like the world and his wife want to knock him. In the end it's his decision: he made it after consulting a number of people and didn't do it lightly. He admits himself it's a 50-50 decision but in the end he's shattered and you run far more risk of injury if you're tired than if you're fresh. Who's to say he wouldn't have got a serious injury if he'd played and missed all but the first game or something. It would be too late for a sub to be brought into the squad and have any real impact, and we'd be without him next season. I just hope that all the revolting things that have been said by other fans don't stop him playing out of his skin for Rovers next season.