This is where Armstrong lets himself down. He does score goals but he wastes an awful lot of chances.

Now that was a good individual goal.

Part of the current “protest”?

Sorry I read self-interest as ego. I agree though that fan representation should have been an aim. We currently have a fans forum which seems to be a bit of a reluctant coalition imho.

Also good, thanks Paul. Some fair observations there. I wasn’t aware of ego problems within the Trust. That’s a shame. Their aim now seems to be a seat on the board but I don’t see that happening under Venkys - and certainly not under Waggott. I still pay my membership but on the basis of an insurance policy of sorts. That there will be an organisation there to help to pick up the pieces when the inevitable does happen, and negotiations need to take place with administrators to keep the club name and badge. There is a credibility about the Rovers Trust that would benefit from outside support. I get the impression that the current Trust are not ready for that - hopefully they will be one day.

Hello Paul. Hope all is well with you. Perhaps you can elaborate on these real opportunities that were lost? Seems to me that the lack of a majority of dissenters hurt us back then just as it hurts us now. The majority of our fans have no appetite to cause any upset and will just put up with whatever is served - even if it means they are being taken the piss out of. Although to be fair we have lost a hell of a lot of fans in the process.

Mowbray’s (or Venus’) strategy seems to be buying L1 hopefuls and loaning non-PL-ready U23s. The irony being that Rovers youngsters are up there with the best in their class and yet are overlooked for said loanees. If anything we should be blooding our own and loaning experience.

Bowyer didn’t play the youngsters in dead rubbers either. After a season of abject failure there is still a slim chance of finishing in the top half. Despite what he says about not looking at the table, he would surely us that, and covid, and injuries to “key” players as an excuse for not making the top 6. (I’m not one of those people who thinks he is going anywhere in the Summer).

👆🏻This is the problem with too many u-turns, one inevitably ends up going round in circles…

The fact that this is one of the post popular threads on here right now shows exactly why we are stuck with Mowbray et al. Every shirt sold is a thumbs up for the Coventrio. The same people who have currently only “shelved” plans to sell off parts of Brockhall. Buy a season ticket, yes I understand the reasoning, there is a great deal of emotional and social attachment - but a shirt, an overpriced shirt? And a Macron shirt at that? This is a chance to protest in the “there’s nothing I can do” world that we live in. Show our displeasure with the numbers. As soon as they are gone, go ahead and buy one, hell buy two!

You really are going full u-turn at this point. You “want” Mowbray out but there is nothing you are prepared to do, sacrifice, abstain from in order to put any pressure on. Interesting that you are now not just declining to take part in but actively trying to marginalise my “protest” suggestion - and to be clear it was a suggestion that people stop buying any club merchandise until Mowbray is gone. Not that much of an ask. But you do make a good point, there has been absolutely no discussion about it aside from me suggesting it and you telling me that it won’t work - much like you would say about any suggested protest. The reason it won’t work is precisely because of people who think the same way you do. My request to you though would be: please don’t ever, ever complain about Mowbray again. All that said, does anybody else have a view on a merchandise boycott? Even from some of the most vocal people on here the chat has been about what next season’s shirt might look like and the manufacturing quality, FFS!

Please. Just don’t. You still haven’t answered the question of what type of protest you would be prepared to take part in.

It’s almost like he doesn’t want to bust a gut to impress Mowbray enough to extend his contract - maybe even get a new one. In all seriousness, would anyone blame him for wanting to get away from Mowbray. Hell, we have fans walking away because of him. His career is short and he needs to be somewhere that he can develop. At this point with all of the stopping and starting and being made a scapegoat I wouldn’t be surprised if the relationship is dead at this point.

Your posts adds nothing to the discussion but hopefully it has made you feel better. Have a good day.

Shebby Singh came here because of the fan unrest. Ultimately it was the catalyst for change. You’re welcome. “Then get on with it”? Is that really your response? Get on with it? For a protest to work it needs more than one person to “get on with it”. You are making it pretty clear that we can not rely on you to help. Because her sacrifice might ultimately help to ensure that her children will have a club to by merchandise from. Is it really so difficult to say “no”? We are stuck with Mowbray because the majority of our dwindling fanbase agree with you and not me. Apathy over action.

The protests I got involved in ultimately saw Kean removed. But to cut a long story short, despite you wanting change, there is nothing you are prepared to do to try to affect it. Quite the opposite, you are prepared to help Mowbray and Waggott - because they are relying on fans just like you. Your need to buy club merchandise is greater than any moral stance you might take. Your posts on this topic sum up exactly why we are stuck with all of these people. I’ve tried to give you every chance but discussion about this with you is pointless. I just hope others out there - who are remaining silent - are a little more prepared to do the bare minimum to show their strength of feeling than you are.

Not that I’m Armstrong’s biggest fan but given that Harvey Elliott has been nominated for EFL young player of the season, it’s basically about the club rather than the player - including parent club.

Lol.

We’ve reached the point, Chris, like we always do, where you will pooh-pooh any and every suggestion. When you thought Mowbray’s days were numbered, you were very vocal about him going. Now it is looking like he may stay, you have gone cold on it. But what is the point of a boycott? What is the point of any boycott? It is to abstain from something until certain requirements are met and to build up pressure to do so. In this case, the removal and replacement of the manager who is taking us back to League One. What is the point of the social media boycott planned by footballers? It is to put pressure on social media companies to take down people, largely on Twitter, who are being abusive. But Twitter already does this - so what is the point of that boycott? Who are they hurting? What do they hope to achieve? Do you support that boycott? It’s one thing buying a ticket, I can fully understand the social and emotional element, and why people may not want to give that up. It’s as much about being with friends and family as it is the football - more so. However, it should be easy to abstain from merchandise or other discretionary spend. If Waggott saw sales drop through the floor BECAUSE he refused to act, or whomever at the club who makes decisions refuses to act, then it is them NOT fans who are responsible for the loss of sales. But let’s be really clear, it is no use complaining about what us happening if you are not prepared to anything in response. Here’s a question though, what WOULD you be prepared to do by way of protest? Any form of protest.

QED

If it were a proper protest then yes, I’d expect a 10 year old to be able to comprehend why they couldn’t have a shirt. Any younger and it would be a case of just saying ‘no’ and that they are ‘too young to understand but it is for the good of Blackburn Rovers and the town’. Parents to try to help them understand and to have a bit of pride in both. As it is, we are just spit-balling here as there won’t be a merchandise boycott, or a concourse boycott, or any kind of proactive boycott. We just don’t have that kind of fanbase, we are a very timid-yet-grumbling, live-and-let-live, c’est la vie kind of people (nothing wrong with that per se). We are just not able to unite around any of the key issues facing the club. The closest so far is Brockhall which must have really caught them off guard (although was more to do with Brockhall residents than fans). Venkys? Waggott? Mowbray? “It’s just the way it is” and “there’s nothing we can do about it”. (Of course there is but not enough will - and we have several fans on social media completely opposed to any kind of action). So the outcome won’t be 7,000 fans standing up for the ‘heart of club’, it will be another few thousand quietly walking away while the rest prop up the ‘shell of the club’.. Sales will drop naturally because of the loss of footfall and not because of any specific cause. Fans at other clubs wouldn’t put up with it. But then, other clubs wouldn’t treat fans with such disdain.

So I’ll put you down as a maybe on the merchandise protest front then? Seriously though, there is no hope for any type of protests if people aren’t even prepared to abstain from something as simple and non-confrontational as this. Anyone buying a shirt is supporting Mowbray and Waggott and should not complain about either of them being here.

Why do people keep calling him ‘Maglorie’?

You really are building the foundations for your next about-turn, aren’t you. It doesn’t matter the quality of the signings, Mowbray will not get the best out of them, and is more likely to take them backwards.