garnersfags

Our January results mean he will be here til the end of the season. His last chance is Harwood-Bellis performing at centre-back, and Johnson and Holtby coming back this month, but they will need to do it despite Mowbray, not because of him. He will still play Gally in defence or on the wing, and he will still try to play Davenport, so the players will have to play even better to nullify this managerial genius.....

We will not play fluent football until Holtby plays. We have not repeated our Deepdale performance once, which backs up my thought that TM stumbles on a fluid, effective line-up accidentally 3 or 4 times a season. We really do not have the quality individually or collectively that we thought we would be oozing by now. Most of us thought that we would be gelling as a squad by now, but we genuinely look like a bunch of strangers. We win the odd game when one of two of our players individually snap out of the tactic-free zone and/or show the quality that TM's lack of genuine footballing awareness usually totally stifles. The right back fiasco tonight shows real desperation, not a considered plan. We just cannot keep going through games playing Dack, Elliott and Armstrong and only trouble the keeper once or twice. Preston really didn't need to be anything more than hard-working to beat us, ditto QPR. I think we have a decent squad that Mowbray is not utilising effectively. I really don't think Davenport is the answer any more than I thought Williams was the answer. Tony takes a bit longer to work things out. I would play Downing every game until our midfield re-appears. F**king pointless signing decent young loan players unless there is a decent system for them to fit into. We were, and usually are, clueless. Another hard-working, quality-free Championship where we can't seriously threaten the top 7. 'If' we play at our best for the rest of the season, we'll be seventh, but we won't. TM under pressure now, as I don't think much has been made of the wages we are paying our loan-players, and Mowbray must have made some guarantees about where he hoped we would end up if we secured them. January saved him, but now WE WILL NOT REACH THE PLAY-OFFS so he will know his chance of glory has passd him, and us, by. I'm truly sick of it. Bowyer mark 2, but more disappointing.

Mowbray seems to have committed to playing Harwood-Bellis in every game, and now he can/will play him alongside Lenihan.

Hope

It's ironic that we haven't played well for more than 15 minutes at a time since the Preston game. Davenport inneffective. No fluency. No tactics. No leadership. No hope.

We can now concentrate on signing a decent, championship defender well before deadline day. We have been generally disappointing since our annihilation of PNE, who'd have thought it? Trouble is, there will be hopes to be dashed until April. Not a happy prospect. Sigh....

The fact that he had improved on last season appears to mean we are not allowed to comment that, despite his endeavour, he often looks like it is his 1st game, and we can NEVER be sure that he will be able to create or take any of the pitifully few chances he has to score. It is his job to create and score goals, consistently. Compare him with Elliott and Armstrong, as this is the minimum level he needs to be at for us to challenge for the play-offs. The fact that the rest of the team were equally bad is immaterial.

Bloody rubbish, by any definition. 2 shots on target. Those of us who have been optimistic about our chances of sneaking into the play-offs, are having to accept that, collectively, we just are not good enough. Depressing. Thanks, Tony.....

I ageee BB has had a better season but as often as not when the ball comes to him, he does not control it. It feels like, since his return, he has had to start to learn to play again. That shot and total lack of composure epitomises his current form and my confidence in his ability to show consistency from minute to minute, never mind game to game.

Fair point but what is the answer?

Sure this has been said but this keeper has never before played in English football at any level. We have had zero shots on target. Their manager has been able to nullify us as an attacking threat. Happy days...

Genuine question. When did Buckley last have a really good game?

There have been times this season when I've worried about Dack's return and whether it would take a month or 2 before we could find a way of accommodating him, to allow him to score regularly but also start to beat all teams, not just the relegation fodder. I now believe that he's our only hope of any play-off push, as it has been the genuine quality to do it when it matters, that we have lacked all season. It's make or break, and if he's fit, he has the quality to make the difference against many of the teams we play in the next 6 weeks. How fit is he???? We'll see over Christmas...or as someone said earlier, against Doncaster.

Yep, it seems obvious. Good point about Downing, I really think Douglas has an injury/fitness issue, he's not just a bad player, so putting Downing in for 3 games may allow him to recover.

We will only get into the play-offs if we play Holtby with with either Johnson or Trybull. It is the best way to get the best out Elliott, Rothwell, Arma, and Brereton/Gally. I also think we will have to play Lenihan & Ayala, with Nyambe, and (don't shoot me) Douglas, before Wharton returns. A settled back 4 in front of Kaminski, is the only way to improve at the back. That team must be played, despite the odd off-day. But it won't be, as TM continues to play Buckley at every opportunity, with Davenport as his back-up. Hopefully Downing will now be ahead of those two. I really think we can challenge for 6th, but only if we play our best players, and only rotate to give them a rest after 10 or 15 games. We really need to build the team around Holtby, and the spice boys will do the rest. We can dream....

Yep, replace him with the goal-fest that is Gallacher/Brereton. I repeat for the 20th time, there are 15 more players to get into before AA. He is not our problem. He produces quality when it matters. Very few others do at the moment.

I know we may well go on to win this game comfortably, but in 2 out of every 3 games, we just do not have the quality and decision making up front or in defence to get over the line. Yes, we can play indifferently and win at times but that just ensures we are 11th - 13th. It hurts. COYB

This seems to be controversial, but I repeat for the umpteenth time in 4 seasons, we will not progress if we have to play Williams. I would play Ayala and Lenihan until Wharton is back, because although Ayala is not perfect, he may improve and we won't lose anymore games than when we play Williams. This isn't necessarily a reflection of today's game, but a considered view over a number of seasons. There is more chance we will improve with Ayala, but in my opinion, we won't improve with DW. Sorry. No win against a top half side before xmas. This means building for next season, but next season we won't have AA, Elliott, Kaminski, and possibly Dack/Holtby. I'll be more optimistic when we wallop Rotherham, but we are the epitome of a mid-table side. Some will be ok with that, but I still maintain TM periodically stumbles over the winning formula, rather than knowing what will work week on week. Result > mid-table....

Looking good for sniff of 6th if we can get 3 points from the draw specialists Millwall. Drawn at least their last 5 matches. Long way to go, though, esp as Bristol just drawn level at QPR....

Yep. Sums up neatly. Encouraging signs but one summer and all that. We all pray this transformation continues against meaner defences, but really happy with everyone's contribution at present.

Much, much too early to judge this surely. He provided perfect balance on Tuesday to allow the atracking 5 to do their thing. I might have to agree though, that Johnson improved us when he came on, but I think Trybull will be a good addition to the squad, and will become more confident and forward looking, with patience and time (George Harrison song...??)

I really envy teams that have a system and a ball-playing discipline that means they will, more or less, play the same way every week, and always be so comfortable and slick on the ball. This was Barnsley today. What you can't produce with good tactics and management is a natural goalscorer. Or 3. Barnsley were just as good at Ewood last season, with a different manager, but I think they will be even better this season, especially if they can buy some goals. Today, for some reason, I was relatively comfortable that we would weather the storm, and I knew we only needed a couple of decent attacks to nick a goal against the run of play. I would still prefer Barnsley's slick play with our clinical finishing, but teams with both are promoted with 100 points. It was a really interesting watch, with 2 decent sides battling for the points.

This season we are more clinical, mainly down to AA, and that was the difference today. Baaaaahhhnsley had 43 min of pressure in the 1st 45, we had 2, but Armstrong could have had 2 in a min, with the best 2 chances of the half. More even in the 2nd 45, but again we were more clinical, backed up with this season's Aderabaiyo, the imperious, super-calming Kaminsky. He won't be at Ewood next year, unless we go up. Sigh. So, we are brilliant, and close to achieving consistency, but still to beat a top half side. What a bizarre, exciting season. Now, the hard work begins...really looking forward to the next few games.

If Nyambe goes, I'll be sooo disappointed. I really haven't seen the flaws TM & others have claimed. He will only get better and stronger. An genuinely ambitious club needs Nyambe.

Really good results for us tonight! In terms of Barnsley thoughts, Charlie Chaplin always plays well against us, so someone may have the job of watching him, plus they will sit back more than QPR and expect us to unpick them, something we've found difficult at home, except for Wycombe. Will therefore be a more difficult game, and we may need to be as patient as Tony, who likes us to be cautious in the 1st 45 (60?!) at home. Elliott and Dolan as subs is mouthwatering, tho I do think Dolan is now relatively easy to contain for a decent defender & manager. He's still having an impressive 1st season... 2 or 3 - 1