I don't think anyone has written either of them off. But I'm prepared to be disappointed. Wise way to be with anything Rovers since, oh, about 2011! Similarly I wouldn't be assuming anything about £25M from the sale of Brereton----should it happen.

Long-term we need English cricket to connect with more people so that more "ordinary kids" play the game. Increasingly we are forming a side from the elite Public School system as more and more of our free schools sell their sports fields to pay for printing paper and the like. The gene pool is too small. In particular we should try to engage various ethnic populations--West Indies, indians, Pakistanis and so on. I mean "engage" in a different way than Yorkshire have by the way. Finally, live international cricket should be seen on Free to Air TV again.

And he's 32 and been around forever!

Time for a wholesale clear-out, including Root as Captain---no leader of men and poor judgement. Selectors and back-room staff as well. The whole series has reeked of amateurism. Supposed to have put a plan together months ago and have stuck to it. Resting Anderson and Broad for the first Test and "saving them " for the second was apparently part of the master plan. Beaten before we started.

If the story is true then at least we know that our owners know we are third!

They are not the sort of signings for a club which should have promotion ambitions. IMO of course and delighted to be wrong but I haven't seen anything special in either of them( although my viewing of them has been limited.) But if they are to be replacements, then I think our promotion bid will stutter.

He imposed a system on players who were not able to carry it through. And he kept imposing it when it was obviously not working and we were leaking goals like a sieve. Now it feels like they've had their straight-jackets taken off this season and they are enjoying it.

Saw P.P Arnold and the Nice At Richmond Festival 1967. She was great, thought she'd died when I first saw the photo! Good bill that--Fleetwood Mac, Cream ,Pink Floyd, Who and a few more!

Remember that could happen to us and cost us a top 2 place or place in the play-offs. The only questions should be about the timing (and whether the tests were genuine which I'm sure they were) But I do agree that unvaccinated players shouldn't be in the count.

Who valued Khadra at £250000? Scrooge?

But everything is going swimmingly now! Are we going to exchange that for faith? I'm in the "bugger FFP" camp, get this lot in the Pemiership and it won't be an issue will it?

Yes---our fickle fans again!!

Missing the point. We knew when our players' contracts ere due to expire and could have got money for them in the summer too. In fact, we heard that anyone who hadn't signed up to a new contract would be sold in January! My point is that we can't accuse our players of disloyalty when the Club has actively encouraged that disloyalty at another club.

My question to our Scottish posters---is Hedges good enough? I've seen him a few times admittedly on TV but he doesn't look that great to me. On anther track, its interesting that we have pursued him and apparently persuaded him to leave Aberdeen without a fee. We can't then have any moral authority to blame Lenihan and co if they do exactly the same thing can we? But we have had comments questioning their loyalty and suggesting they owed us in some way.

I'm happy if he keeps on playing like he is and makes more goals for others!☺️

Ugh! Boxing Day expectations! Still gives me the shivers.

It occurs to me than in the example of the type of post you mention, it would be best to simply delete the line or two that offends you and leave the post with the good bits intact? What do you think?

Absolutely obvious isn'i it, but some are just programmed to support whatever the Club is doing. if the Club changes its stance they'll support that too!

No, the original point I made is that he made the goal for Buckley---and he did! I have a higher opinion of Nyambe than you do---we can agree on that!

But what he did before that final cross was brilliant?

is that all?!

The story I heard about Christmas 1963 is that the directors had promised the team a pay rise should they be top at Christmas. After thrashing West Ham away 8-2 the directors reneged on their promise. The return game was so odd. 29000 on and full of expectation. You could tell from the off that something was going wrong as the players weren't themselves at all. They were going through the motions. A hush came over the crowd, briefly lifted when McEvoy scored his goal. We were never the same again. Pickering left for a record fee and we lost match after match to finish 6th. 2 seasons later we were relegated. The best side we ever had in my lifetime and all thrown away. Please don't make the same mistake Venkys, although I'm sure you know none of this piece of Rovers history.

That was a half season to remember! I was scarred forever from that and thinking about what could have been for years after. That's why I've posted so often about the current contract issues, I'm terrified it will happen again. At Christmas again!

What is this "significant and appropriate salary" then? Unless 1)you actually know and 2) you tell us, your post has no value.

but not if we got promoted!