Bray looks quite slim there! I remember him as a big burley bloke you'd want to avoid.

I was.

I think he's done pretty well all thing considered. The summer transfer window didn't give us the 2 players we needed most and astonishingly neither did the second! We all knew we were light in key areas and the squad collectively was over-reliant on younger lads ex-Academy. So, he has made us hard to beat on the whole but that's to ignore too many heavy defeats where we didn't turn up. Didn't expect us to be in the 6 at this stage of the season. It hasn't been pretty but given the gaps that's hardly surprising. So, whatever position we finish, the season has been encouraging and 2 good transfer windows would allow us to build on what's being achieved . Its up to the rest of the staff to pull their weight in the summer. I'm happy we have JDT.

Pity Burnley chose the game for their winning run to end. 1-0 is alright once its over. .We won, kept another clean sheet and sit 4th in the table although somewhat precariously! Oh for another goal though.

Failure to win either of two home home games against sides in the bottom three will mark the end of our attempt to finish in the Top 6 as far as I'm concerned. I'm almost resigned to that anyway because we are just not good enough. Prediction, 1-0 to us but I'm not particularly confident even of that.

Its true that you're getting worse!

I agree and the attempt to keep him has been made. The problem is that we need a central striker and he simply isn't one. He's a forward and that's as specific as it gets. But before we can sign anyone decent we have to sell him! No-one else would bring enough. So it would be a difficult season next season even with him, unless we pull a rabbit out of a hat.

yes, my view too.

Why didn't we offer him a contract extension with higher pay earlier? Then, if he wouldn't sign, get a substantial fee for him. Amateurish

I guess Thomas has replaced Markandy, till the end of the season anyway?

Jesus mate, you're getting worse!

Yes, fair enough, can't argue with that. The feelings are historical with me. I always associate selling our best players with going backwards. As a kid fell I gutted when I saw my idols turning out for some-one else. I'd be be depressed for weeks. It started with Roy Vernon and continued with Pickering, England and so on. We always have been a "selling club" and I've adopted the attitude late in life that if some youth player turns out to be brilliant then I won't see him for long.

I read somewhere recently that we had the worst defence of all clubs in the top ten. This changes from week to week I imagine. But couple that with our low-scoring and it really does seem a miracle that we are even close to the play-off group.

Depressing but probably true.

The performance is irrelevant when we play that lot. Don't care how we did it if we win!

But we wouldn't want to would we? Are we bringing up these good young players for someone else?

so much for my memory!

I have never been as certain as I am now that that will not happen!.When did we last score 5? I think I remember one in Gesture's time. Gestede of course---predictive text!

Perhaps City gave him one?!!

If only!

Don't worry, when Mowbray was here and we lost matches it was all about the performance.

and lengthy possibly, simply making any victory a Pyhric one.

Makes me sad when the names of Rhodes and Gestede come up. In particular with Gestede. We had a regular route to goal then, which is completely cut off to us now. No tactician needed for them, they just put in the net every week. Who doubts that we would have finished in the top 6 and maybe better if we had 2 like those?

Yes but be fair. It does rather take the edge off a good result when you feel we'll fuck it up against a poor team at Ewood. Can't blame supporters for not being delirious in the circumstances.

JRC is injury prone sadly. I hope this doesn’t, damage his career.