New striker to back up DG + wide striker/winger = One Dominic Samuel esquire - like signing a new player !

The worse thing for everyone to hear would be it's ok Tony you don't need come over we are happy with the way things are going we'll catch up with you in Zurich at a later date ! Just my personal opinion but I suspect they've invested upfront in the last two summers in Dack/Armstrong/Brereton etc and that's it now they'll want that team to grow and be sprinkled with youth so next summer the 'book value' is higher than its been for a good while. What happens after that well I think i'd take a punt on how it'll pan out. Very similar soundbites now emitting as the GB era after he was allowed two nice little lumps of investment over a couple of windows. The toss up for me is team built to grow now to raise a big lump in a few windows time or team built to survive in the champ and only add minimal investment hoping for a bolt out of the blue miracle season whilst running more within its means. Of course like you say a face to face selling job or an owner whim could change all that in an instant but I bet the money men/accountants or whatever they are have set out a plan similar to one of the two I've mentioned. Perhaps Mrs M could send over some nice lemon drizzle for Mrs D just at the right time in the window.

Exactly what I mean about him talking himself into a hole repeatedly looking at that first comment. In Jan it was we are ok defensively i'm happy with the cover there so i'll let Downing go then literally 2 weeks later we were struggling and the cover was pish. Now he reals out that comment but we know it was partly self caused along with not having quality specialist defenders in the right place which has repeatedly lost us tight games. Also back to alluding to just signing back up players again. I think he's got an inkling about next seasons budget already which probably won't include room for decent cash signings. Expect that rhetoric to change again full circle once season tickets are on sale.

Think a lightbulb has finally switched on in the managers and a few players heads at Rovers these past few weeks alerting them that's there's a point to prove in these final games to fend off the gathering of pitchforks. Hopefully a few young ones playing a part here but i'd stick brass on the two defensive mids pairing returning as Tony continues his keep the seniors onside policy. Nevertheless..... QPR 1 Rovers 3

It's a difficult one with TM because in many ways he creates a rod for his own back or should we say a stick to be beaten with. He goes on record going back to last season after promotion was secured in saying we need a few better players to come straight in for the Championship and he says there'll be money to spend. He then back tracks and uses the money to lavish new contracts all over the squad and then says we only need to bring in players who can help those already there i'e back ups. He still says there's money but won't spend for the sake of it......then commits 7 million on a kid on the back of a few games showing potential in a season at Forest. He then says there's was still more money but wouldn't spend it for the sake of it yet he hasn't sorted a defence that took us down and was still a weak point last season despite promotion. He also doesn't bring in any striker with any sort of Championship pedigree on loan or otherwise despite us crying out for genuine back up to our ageing reliable marksman. Before anything else these are recurring things that he's constantly talked a lot about but then his actions always scream 'as you were' so it's not hard to see why a lot of fans get a bit aggravated. Trying to solve these problems won't turn us into promotion contenders overnight but they need addressing just to keep us competitive next season.

Proper boycott by them it seems, fair play to them for sticking to their guns i'm sure they are having superfan v boycotter debates right now ! Rovers bean counters won't be happy but a valuable lesson might be being learned - Home fans always come first you simply cannot rely on away following from anywhere to help hit your projections -

I always thought Reed would get fazed out once the season was sorted, we'll not see him again having him around puts too much pressure on TM to upset his mostly cautious approach ethos. Doubt we'd be able to afford him although if these owners were sold the right pitch by the right people then who knows, got to be worth a try but at the very least i'd try and be at the front of the loan queue again fir him next season. In all likelihood though so fancy kid from another Prem club will probably take his place in the squad, until he's sent back at Christmas ! I think people have to accept that until Mowbray spends some proper dosh on someone to come straight in anything else will always be back up to the pecking order he's now created. To achieve that one 'starting 11' coming in one would probably have to go anyway.

Aye maybe so. He'll learn the hard way that what might work in a London suburb or a city with 500k won't necessarily work in a small hemmed in corner of Lancashire.

I said when he was pulling his stunt here that this plonker would end up on skid row or worse before he's 40. I see no reason to doubt that.

Sounds like they had a lot of our old foe 'bad advice' in their time at Ewood. Now how could that be ?

Comfort zone is perhaps the word you're looking for to make any easily offended understand ? Once one has been created it takes an experienced old head to roll with the punches and stay in it but it can be done.

Another club that Stevie boy has misjudged probably thinking they'd more or less fill that end even at Cat A. Surely there enough people around Ewood who've been there long enough to advise him how crowds work or don't in this little corner of England !!! I thought we were getting a pro active CE at last ?

I've never seen two strikers stick so close together on the pitch, they didn't seem to cotton on they were never going to get chance after chance gift wrapped for them like at UTD

Sounesses call deciding to reunite them and I thought it was a bad move at the time and proved to be the case, especially when he had Suker on the books as well. Would have been interesting how it would've panned out had Jansen not ha his accident.

These are the kind of things that need investigating in regards to what was going on at Ewood back then i'll bet there's a familiar path in there somewhere. It all comes out bit by bit years later.

What a scumbag, a known scumbag when we signed him as was Stokes and almost identical very murky deal and he'll end up the same way. Kean brings in Goodwille ( Always remember Craig Brown on a live interview saying if Kean got the Blackburn job permanent he had an agreement in place to sign Goodwille) Coyle brings in Stokes........... Don't ever anyone tell me those toerags and their pals weren't up to no good giving homes to players no one else would touch on those type of deals and contracts.

You mean you don't think Yorke peaked at Rovers ? ?

Mostly agree although with BB I don't class him as Grahams back up because of the way he's been used. Hardly a sniff up top and system hasn't been altered to try and suit him better when he's come on even if Graham is off. Dack shoved up top pointlessly in the DG role and Brereton shoved wide. Yet when the odd glimpses there have been from him are when he's got himself into central positions in the box. Poor handling I really don't know what they expected to happen with the way its been done but they've certainly created a confidence crushing situation for him rather than the other way round.

They've handled Brereton poor from start to finish and I don't care about Mowbray coming out with the stuff he has because i'm sure they actually thought he'd light up a game or two from some of his early cameo's and at least show potential. I think some of the more recent comments actually allude to that as well as playing for more time 'next season' season after, future seasons etc etc They've dropped a ball and they know it but have now plonked themselves in catch 22 as far as he's concerned. Got to use him a bit to justify it and maybe honour what's in the contract BUT he really should have spent the last 3rd of the season in the U23s scoring goals and building full match fitness then have a look at him through summer and decide whether to loan him out till Jan. Won't do any of that though because it'll embarrass the hell out of them and probably get questioned by those who agreed to sanction the fee. All will be ok on that score though when we sell someone else to cover it............... I feel for the lad, it's a balls up end of !

It was an emotional night all around that was as a fan it's not often you remember testimonials but that'll always stick in the memory. A night for true Rovers and one only diehards of clubs understand, nearly 14k on ? and no actual opposition !

Tony Parkes testimonial healed the rift I think both sides had got over it by then and where ready to embrace each other again. He was visibly moved by the reception he got that night.

Yet i'd back him to get more than Samuel in a season if they played same number of games he might not be a natural finisher but he does somehow have a knack of poaching goals despite doing very little else. Always handy to have about those types.

Agree a lot of the needless swapping and changing has to stop and a few noses need putting out of joint but he seems to have most faith in the ones most fans don't so I wouldn't expect too many changes. Raya is a tricky one but all keepers especially at this level cost the odd goal but it is a common theme with him which is worrying. It's ok saying he saved as many points as he's given away but that's not what a keeper is supposed to do, he's there just to save goals and points not strike a balance between what he costs and what he gains, that's Mulgrew territory again. Can't have two like that in the same defence if you want to get somewhere i'm afraid.

That's an art he's perfected down the years....apart from International selection or new contract time is looming. He needs the gaffer and some leaders in the team on his case all the time, dig him out when he's hiding to get the best out of him. Great to hear Mowbray is on at him, pennies dropping.

Now that is long overdue and would just cap the season of !