Gallagher our wide, Armstrong centre forward. Arma picked for his pace already caught offside twice receiving the ball to feet. Meanwhile Barnsley aren’t afraid, playing a high line despite his supposed speed. Either swap Arma and Gally over or bring on Graham. Imagine Garner out wide crossing to Sellars!

Your team? You need to walk a mile in our shoes before calling any of us “shet supporters”. We’ve invested a hell of a lot more in this club that you - emotionally and financially.

He usually gets a bit of bad press. Nice to see he still has fans. ??

Rothwell, Holtby and Dack. At least he’s giving it a go. Shame we are lumbered with Bell but there you go. 5-0 Rovers and a contract extension for TM!

Johnson’s success was absolutely NOT through playing the Mowbray way. Quite the opposite. We seem to be back to the ‘ebb and flow’ argument for some whilst ignoring the short term changes that are bringing about these shift in phases. No matter what evidence there are some people who will continue to blame individuals and circumstances (inferred as being natural) rather than accept that there is an insidious malaise as a result of poor planning and poor decision making. Why remove Johnson, advertise for a replacement and then employ the bloke already at the club? He wasn’t the best option but he was almost certainly the cheapest. A recurring theme.

New manager effect. Bit like when Lambert came in against PNE.

Wonder if Mowbs will be tempted to play a few squad players for this one? All eyes on the Rovers twitter feed from 13:55 for this one. We simply cannot set up today to counter a perceived Barnsley threat. Let’s play to our strengths and go for the jugular. If not today then when?

I’ll bow to your great experience of this youth cycle but in my view this is very much down to Mowbray. Blocking the path for youngsters, not getting the right loan opportunities or early enough for those who need it. Johnson moving on and Billy Barr coming in has just made this even worse and the spectacle of the football match itself is fading rapidly. Right now we have the U23s more aligned than it has been to the philosophy of the first team. In theory this is correct but when the first team philosophy is wrong and we’ve now gone backwards at development level. It can also mean relegation and poorer opposition/development. The first team and U23s were promoted together in a surge of momentum and have now stagnated together. A change is needed at the top. On to the game... I thought the first half was drab but Rovers looked marginally the better side with City playing on the break. Second half we quickly went to pieces. The second game in a week where we have had vocal opposition fans in delight. It was pretty embarrassing to be fair just how OTT the celebrations were on and off the pitch. Chapman is definitely the odd man out, Mols is not a centre midfielder and Butterworth is looking a more frustrated man with each passing game. I left before the third goal, it was that bad.

Has he still got his boots?

Raya and Mulgrew singles out in relation to Rovers 69 goals conceded last season. Let’s have a look... Raya conceded 13 in 16 [0.8pg], 5 clean sheets (38%) Walton conceded 24 in 16 [1.5pg], 4 clean sheets (17%) Mulgrew conceded 6 goals in 8 games [1.3pg], 4 clean sheets (50%) Lenihan, 13 in 10 [1.3pg], 4 cs (31%) Williams, 22 in 15 [1.5pg], 4 cs (18%) Adarabioyo, 15 in 8 [1.88pg], 1 cs (at rb) (7%) Nyambe, 9 in 6 [1.5pg], 1 cs (11%) Bell, 11 in 5 [2.2pg], 1 cs (9%) Bennett, 24 in 16 [1.5pg], 4 cs (16%) The two player ‘blamed’ and let go for our 69 goals are actual better than our current lot. So is it still the individuals or is there something inherently wrong with the way Mowbray sets up his defence and goalkeeping departments? (We all know his recruitment there is shocking). Another ingredient in our 2019/20 recipe for disaster.

Mowbray’s happiness is not relevant if he is not successful. He has had almost 2 years of Championship football at Rovers... He failed in the first part-season: he was brought in to keep us up and failed. He failed to create any momentum last season and we drifted - including the club’s worst ever run of results. He is failing this season: having assembled his team, which still has players from Lambert’s and Coyle’s time as core players. He has had more money (net spend) than anyone under Venkys and has wasted it and we are nowhere near where we need to be and are on a trajectory for a relegation battle with a team/squad who have no mental strength, cannot come back when losing and wilt under pressure. Meanwhile the manager selects players almost at random (although regularly benching our influencers like Holtby and Rothwell until they have their attacking potential drilled out of them by Venus and Lowe) and making substitutions which baffle supporters while under-performers like Armstrong and Bennett are undroppable, even championed! Questions though: What do you think will be different at the end of the season? What happens if we are heading for relegation? How close to relegation would we need to be before you might change your mind?

Absolutely. For all of Mowbray’s tubthumping (and I genuinely think he believes his own press - not helped when the LT is simply an echo chamber) the only thing that matters is results. If you get them, you can point to the successful contributions of whomever you like. If you don’t get them then to congratulate folk for failure just makes you look foolish. In other walks of like, you have to have a clear idea of what a successful result is. In football is is very simple indeed.

I want Mowbray to go. I want Rovers to win tomorrow. And every other game.

If talking won football matches he might have a point.

I get that he has defaulted to Walton in the same way he defaulted to Raya - despite not having the set up to motivate either. Dack has reached talismanic status but hasn’t been near his best. But how on EARTH has Bennett earned his way to being a permanent starter? Injuries? Having no other full back? Fist pumps? He is past the point of no return. Lose tomorrow and there will be riots total and utter apathy.

Ouch!

2-0 on the break after Rovers missed a great chance to level.

Just had to check the team sheet to confirm but contrary to popular opinion here in deepest Leyland this is not actually the FA Cup Final.

1-0 City Absolute bedlam from the plastic-Manc nobbers in the stand. “Scenes”

Pretty quiet first half. 0-0. Chapman hit the side netting from a free kick on the edge of the box. City have largely played on the break. Been decent from Rovers but just the game is just missing a goal to bring it to life. Quite a good turnout though. “You’re only here cos it’s city!”

Chappers, JRC and Davenport playing tonight. No DomSam so probably on the bench tomorrow.

I used to have a lot of sympathy for Bolton’s plight (there but for the grace of God and all that) but reading bile like that makes me really hope they are relegated to L2. Bury did their utmost to keep afloat while Bolton pushed the rules all the time. Now they are let off the hook for unilateral cancelling fixtures. Integrity of the league? Don’t make me laugh. The EFL is a shambles and the FA don’t care.

Exactly this but doesn’t anyone have any faith that he won’t keep both. Samuel in the U23s is like a poor man’s Joe Nuttall. Gladwin, I had hoped we had seen the last of.

It’s just another in a lengthening list of reasons to want Mowbray out. Can’t afford time clean the stadium or offer better match ticket deals to increase support... ...or keep giving a wage to another substandard crock not earning it? ? It’s certainly a difficult one.