Just catching up. Some great posts in this thread today. And some desperately awful ones. Waggott’s pricing strategy and attitude towards fans is being proven the wrong one as the shit hits the fan and he needs supporters to stump up cash that they don’t have for a product they can’t use. Loyalty works both ways and we have had NONE, just year on year price hikes while blaming fans themselves for falling numbers. If he had gone for a lower cost but higher volume strategy he might have seen that loyalty repaid. The killer has been the £80 (25%) increase in the Riverside “to make it fair” when they piss people about by moving their seat every game. #WeAreMoreThanJustEntriesOnABalanceSheet

Anyone who puts up with it for the cash is complicit. Are you trying to say that the patronising quotes Waggott makes are handed to him in a script? He’s a big boy and knows what he is doing.

There is so much wrong with that it’s hard to know where to start but perhaps he could explain why their overall share price is still far better than any time pre-2017 and already this year their share prices has recovered to their pre-pandemic levels. “Throughout this period, our Owners have continued to be as supportive as they can be, whilst their own business battles with the issues created by the global pandemic.” I reckon Blackburn folk and Blackburn businesses are struggling more than them. The guy is a walking insult. Has his wage taken a hit as a result of this pandemic? He dangles the club like a puppy by its neck “I don’t want to kill your lovely pet but I will if I have to”. We want our Rovers back.

I was listening to an old podcast (Undr the Cosh) and they had Gary Roberts on. Very candid but what a bellend. Drink, drugs and gambling were his only vices - and he has no regrets “because he really enjoyed himself” he explained it as he took another swig from a pint that was stored below the table (I’m guessing it was on a tray of six given he was a 10-20 can kind of guy). It does open your eyes to some of the “characters” in the game who literally piss away their talent. I sometimes think that fans should be told why players are dropped as it might provide a different perspective on managers’ personnel decisions. And I’m not saying Maddison has any such vices just that you never know because the ‘football family’ always keeps these things in-house - maybe because they are a big part of the problem. Pressure, youth, and money are a bad combination without good advice. All footballers under 21 should get ‘pocket money’ and some kind of investment fund instead of huge wages.

Anyone “undecided” I expect will renew. So about two-thirds of BRFCS respondents support Waggott’s strategy - even if begrudgingly. If that is shown to be representative then we are looking at about 6000 ST holders. (And there seems to be a lot more annoyed fans on the Fb groups than on here - which is kind of ironic) Let’s say for the sake of maths, we had 9000 last season and we get 75% adult tickets and 25% of them sit in the Riverside. And Riversiders accept the £80 (25%) price rise (assuming die hards = early birds). Was 9000: 6750 adults (1750 @ £319 plus 5000 @ £349) £2.3m BRFCS pro rata 6000: 4500 adults (@ £399) £1.8m Half a million down quid on last season. He needs to convince another 1200 fans to renew by October. You know, with a few wins early in the season he might just do it. But we will have to play the Squeeze The Diehards game every season - although I’d like to think that annual price increases will eventually be in line with inflation of course. (Imagine if your council tax went up between 15% and 25% every year!) If someone told him Matty’s JW story about having 8000 supporters then he has certainly taken that to mean they are his cash cow. I expect if SW is around to tell his successor anything (and his desk hasn’t been cleared for him) then he will be saying “Now remember, you have 5000 supporters...”. What a legacy. This is all on him and his low volume, high price strategy so don’t anyone start blaming fans for any of this. We’ve put up with a hell of a lot and are now being made to pay - “and be grateful you even have a club thanks to Venkys” (a statement which will read very differently if we do survive after they eventually drop us).

Does that mean it won’t be on iFollow?

Thanks Mike. I know we don’t see eye to eye often but your comments are appreciated. I worry hugely that Waggott is used to operating in different conditions, and different towns and cities, maybe he has got used to cheques just being signed (eventually) by Venkys and fans just paying whatever price he comes up with but he has potentially overestimated just how much he can keep squeezing out of Rovers fans. He is using their love of the club - the club that pays him an eye-watering sum - against them. That on itself is unforgivable. How much further he goes with this is the real worry. The air should have been blue at this week’s fans forum meeting. I look forward to reading the minutes to see just who has spoken up in defence of fans when this was (surely) announced.

No. It actually hurts to say that. Unless something changes by January, in which case I might get a half season ticket.

I’m still fuming about this. We were being told for weeks that Rovers were right to not put STs on sale until they knew that we would be able to go back. My view at the time was that people should have been given the choice with that fact understood. After all that pontificating they have now gone on sale anyway in the week leading up to our first home game of the season, and that fact still hasn’t changed. But what has not been offered is choice. Much of what has been put together seems to be what you would expect after last season. The ability to watch iFollow if you can’t get in with the price refunded (but only if you buy a ST next year - price unknown). The kicker is that the club is using what I would call extortion tactics in forcing supporters - especially long-standing ones who don’t want to break their ‘run’ - to pay more and get less. You will lose your ST seat if you don’t renew. Regardless of the jam-tomorrow offer (that could be withdrawn due to circumstances) every game missed will mean a per game price increase this season. If supporters get to go to NONE of the home games they will get 40% off a 2021/22 ST (providing they are able to renew). Attending this season should have been a choice which means ST seats should have been suspended. With full renewal on a pro rata match basis if or when normal circumstances resume. Or held open until next season. Vulnerable people in particular have been left out in the cold - unless they pay with no expectation of going back. If you go to a game on your own then you could look at this differently. No worse than iFollow prices as long as you renew next year and a few away games thrown in. If you buy several season tickets as I do, it is a bad deal. As always under this regime there is no incentive to draw fans in, there is no reward for long-standing loyalty, there is only blackmail, both financial and emotional. “Are you committed?” The tipping point for me though has been not being able to sit with my usual group because we already have an elderly relative in our bubble. This isn’t the clubs fault but it makes all of the above even less attractive because the most important element of going to matches is lost. This should have been compensated for not ignored (but it’s easy to blame the government for that so nothing is done). Would we even be offered iFollow if it weren’t for the EFL? And I’ve not even fully considered not even considering the code of conduct - presumably repeat offenders who over-celebrate after a goal will be asked to leave? Gutted.

Will you be taking Waggott up on his ST offer?

If you want to praise him for converting a positive player into a negative one go ahead. Dunny gets the original credit from me.

Could see him playing JRC. Do we really have the budget for a new midfielder?

I’ll post what I like but, yeah, cheers.

I really like Travis and would have like to have seen him have a workhorse alongside him, not become the workhorse for someone else. Gutted for the lad but CM is a position Mowbray has been collecting players for at the expense of other areas so hopefully Johnson’s injury isn’t too bad.

Didn’t know you had been banned. Can’t think why. Hopefully now you are back you can stop the sniping. Let’s overlook the false start and both move on.

Holtby has taken Travis position. Travis now just gets asked to run around a lot like Savage did. Not sure it’s his best game. When he first came in he was a breath of fresh air taking the game to the opposition. Now he’s been Mowbray’d.

And that.

No need to. You’ll be gone again soon. That’s what trolls do.

Shame for the lad. Marginalised by Mowbray and converted into a defensive midfielder but then replaced by Holtby. One of these days we’ll have a balanced side.

“Abuse”. I’ve really not missed your trolling.

Or if one wasn’t. Nothing worse than watching an attack and your phone notification hasn’t pinged so you know it will come to nothing.

A night to forget. We are missing a striker.

Is Brereton’s middle name Corrado?

Is there a worse team in the league at set pieces than Rovers?

While you got the fork out, can you shake it at Mowbray who still perseveres with playing Brereton out on the right wing.