Called it ages ago and i still reckon Mowbray will have some kind of extension. It'll either kick in this season or after a small good run that happens occasionally it'll 'leak' out. Silence on this speaks volumes and maybe it's the real reason he appeared to be so disinterested and sulking. Something has clearly gone on last season and probably it was him seeking the assurances of a longer stay for his journey.

So we need an influx of big transfer cash to balance out FFP yet they are talking about part player swap ? No, not having that.

If we only have survival in mind then hoof might be the way to go. It would be handy to have someone like that in the squad though and an actual plan B. How many set pieces did we score last season or the one before that ? A pathetically low number i assume. Would do no harm having another option, another attempt at dominating possession stats style football will only deliver similar to last season again.

That's hindsight though as he wasn't crap at Leeds but if we are really being honest he was average. Like the term legend, or brilliant or great the crap jibe gets chucked about a bit too often. This is the Championship after all and for whatever reason he couldn't recreate his past form here. For me Tommy Spurr had his limitations but he was a better actual defender than either Douglas or Bell. From what we've seen of all 3 here so i'd be looking at someone of his ilk from the cheap section. Does what it says on the tin, everything here under this present regime seems like it has to be a damn experiment !

Yeah they all pour it on thick when they get signed but i just thought the last bit about not seeing that before was telling. I don't think it was a dig just an observation but it touches on something missing here as you say. Mowbray is clearly a passionate football man - when it comes to talking it - but drive to get us in the mix over just maintaining something he can cope with ? No chance.

Do you not read the LT ? 'On Jones, the 27 year old added: 'Meeting him, i saw his passion and his drive. I really bought into that and thought it was something i definitely want to work with. "It's different to what i've seen before" Pretty much what a lot of us feel is the missing ingredient here with a guy who prefers to plod on and protect his status quo above anything else.

Bell will probably finish above us in the league next season as well. His comments on his meeting with the Luton manager were quite revealing imo.

Coming to terms with owners giving so little a toss that they'll sit back and watch relegation form week after week, regardless of the possible consequences is one thing. Watching the manager overseeing it look and sound like he gives even less of a care about it is another. Worst thing about it all wasn't the predictable nature of the defeats etc it was having to watch and listen to him.

Changing full backs according to opposition at this level is a bit daft especially when they are of the Douglas/Bell variety. Lets just a left back in there and let him defend first and foremost, then leave him be if he's playing ok. Douglas looked a good signing on paper and most were pleased with it but in the flesh not so good. Never looked like he settled here and was obviously on the wane ability wise. For me just another get him for the sake of it signing with not enough thought into whether he'd do the job defensively. Like Bell more emphasis on what they want from him going forward.

He loves a project does Tony though.

Lets hope he's just one of those who needs a change like the usual championship journey man. Short contract then he can try and earn another.

Are you really thinking there's no grapevine or jungle drums in football ? Everybody in football who takes an intertest would soon know about it, probably before it's announced. Certainly before fans.......and Nixon.

That's vintage Nixon. Splinters in his arse and nobody any the wiser, including him.

Odd that he didn't know the state of play with Chapman's contract seeing as A) He's the all knowing Rovers oracle running everything. B) His best pal and number 1 assistant is in fact according to him also the DOF who does the deals. C) His CEO is also his pal.

It would be less daunting if it was a 2 year contract they might thrust in front of him rather than 3 or 4. Anyway if he's an embargo signing he'll have to take 10k pwk or less. Again though we don't want to be doffing out long deals to these types to come here and kick back rather than kick on. He's what 28 ? and sounds very much the average champ plodder capable of good/bad but mostly average.

Its begun to go backwards again quite a while ago.

To be honest if i was a Rovers finance man i wouldn't let Mowbray near any other recent ex Boro boy with a contract.

That;s probably it i saw a few tweets asking where he was. I don't think gaffers get involved until the balls come out so nothing in his absence there.

Just Tony looking after another ex boro lad even if he doesn't fancy using much. We've seen it before a plenty. For me Chapman has always looked miles more at home in league 1 but he's still quite young so there's time. Yet another on our books who needs to be working for a manager with different football principles imo.

The are parallels at times with what Southgate does with a team of highly talented internationals. Doesn't quite work the same with a group of championship plodders and kids but he's happy to lose 1-0. Gareth however has it the right way round.

Will they though ? I'm not so sure i think their tenure at Rovers could well out see a lot of fans. Reason it went pear shaped with the Walkers is the younger ones weren't interested. If Barry's lad and other younger members of the Rao clan have an interest, even if it's only as a toy, then it could go on a long time. Their empire is growing and the spare money is there to chuck around annually. These lot view it as an ongoing project/game/experiment. Jacks empire was ripe for breaking up and reigning in to a manageable, profitable size. His kids and grandkids just seemed to view it as the old mans expensive obsession but the old man was gone. The Rao elders are only 40's/50's this could go on a long time yet.

It's a slow news day they have to start some bullshit.

It's only ever good business if you get something back out of it. If he ends up loaned out again it's only good business for the middlemen and maybe the lad himself financially. Personally i don't expect anything different from the Chapman/Mowbray saga we've already seen recently.

The manager who doesn't like wingers re-signs a winger. Off out on loan again probably.

Again there are silly idiots abound on social media claiming Vs have just injected 29 million and turning it into Mowbray propaganda. The finer details of it all, like it's mostly money already spent, totally lost above their heads. How many of these lot will stump up £30 for walk on tickets i wonder ?