philipl

googlemail is being used in the UK and Germany because somebody got there with the gmail name first. However, I can invite people to gmail from my Maltese account.

One of the issues we have faced is not only the small population base but the extent to which our hinterland has been encroached upon. I genuinely want to see Accy Stanley do well but they went top of the Conference last night and surely their tiny crowds (1,500 last night) will grow if they keep their push towards automatic league promotion going. Not only that, but since our Championship win: Bolton have become an established Premiership club and have grown their gates having moved into an area which traditionally had good Rovers support and close to Chorley which was very much a Rovers town when I was a youngster. Wigan's rise must be hurting us in the Chorley/Wigan areas where we used to be strong. PNE have had some very good seasons. We still have exceptional support given the base we've got. The club has to be opportunistic and I wonder if any marketing effort is being directed towards Yorkshire given the poor state of football over there?

Spot on USA. Rovers being second in the betting is more a reflection on Keane's employability than anything else! (is that going to come back and haunt me?) Celtic indicating willingness to talk must point the road north of the border unless he emerges as player-manager at Pompey. Keane and Mandaric together- perhaps six weeks at most.

The BBC's view on Midlands clubs in the Premiership (at the moment). Forssel is now out for at least another three weeks with an injury picked up in training this morning. Couldn't happen to a nicer club really...

Outwards or through it in the case of Keane! Probably some smart deal doing by the Mancs to be honest. They realised Keane was way past his best and unlikely to recover and probably were able to use a clause in his contract re public utterances to get rid of him for next to nothing and siezed the opportunity. Keane was "only" on about £4m a year whereas Ballack would cost £6m a year in wages.

As a free agent without a contract, I think he can sign within the window. Otherwise the transfer window constitutes a restraint of trade and would be illegal under EU law. Looking at the Mancs, I am reminded of that old song; "Three wheels on my wagon but I'm still rolling along etc." Only problem is, the Cherokees (Glazers) got in a bit early.

In that case, wait another few years until some full Academy generations of players have been through the system before judging it.

Apparently Lucas was giving radio interviews from Manly Beach! Sensible decision by Hughes- 25,000+ miles in the air and two of the most emotionally stressed games in your career (chucking in ET and penalties) in the previous week is not the best preparation for a game on Saturday. Just as well Citeh are struggling to find some wingers to exploit the void down our right side. That said, no doubt two from Axe/ Reid/ Bentley will do a decent fill in job. Good to see Savage, Nelsen and Gray back if they are playing- that will make up for the absences.

I am getting confused now. Didn't Dunn and Duff get fed and housed, have training pitches, trainers, medics etc etc under "the old scouting network"? Weren't they signed by Rovers at 16 or younger? Didn't we run age group football teams (remember Rovers A and Rovers B in the old Lancashire Leagues)? The Academy is a fancy name for doing the scouting network in a more professional better structured way. The incremental cost of having an Academy over what we have always done to develop players is not a lot within that £2.5m figure. After all, Jack specifically wanted us to have the best youth set-up in Europe and invested his money accordingly so to that extent it was not an option for the club not to have an Academy. Dunn and Duff absorbed seven plus years' effort by the club before becoming sellable. Why should the current crop of youngsters be instantly sellable? Like any R&D effort, the Academy should be very closely monitored in terms of its current workings but results should be judged over five or ten year cycles. A five year cycle return for Rovers' youth development would read: Costs: £12.5m Return: Transfer income received £25m (Dunn, Duff, Taylor, Beattie sell-on, probably others I have forgotten) plus whatever value can be given to all the first team appearances and goals by players who came through the ranks. No doubt we'd be delighted if the rest of the club were so profitable.

Crikey, that's a good deal; only the cost of the VAT more than an ordinary ticket at Chelsea. Suggest everybody who hasn't got tickets go for that option and have a Rovers party!

Funny, my mind also went back to that 6-0 at Maine Road (plus a couple of very undeserved 2-1 defeats there as well) when I was walking yesterday. Despite some good victories against the Blue Mooners, we still haven't properly paid them back yet and I really hope we beat them humiliatingly. But I still think that this has banana skin written all over it looking at that Citeh injury list!

A question worth posing but really is a no brainer. Cost of Academy £2.5m pa (less cash outlay but allowing for depreciation of equipment and land and buildings etc.) Cost of wages £35m pa (at least £30m of that goes on the first team squad- many players are on over £1m a year) Cost of amortisation of transfer fees £11m pa in the the last two sets of accounts. So the Academy costs about 7% of the costs of running the first team squad. Translating that to normal business terms, Rovers are investing the equivalent of 7% of the costs of running its core business in research and development which is a healthy and not excessive ratio. This argument that x,y and z were before the Academy doesn't wash. R&D is a long term activity- the vast majority of businesses are in reality living on the fruits of R&D work done years if not decades ago- even in the high tech field. Therefore it is correct to take the transfer fees of the likes of Dunn, Duff, Taylor, Beattie (and the sell on transfer to Everton) into account. Just as it is right to count the dribbles of income from Johnson and the small fees paid by League clubs for transfers. Sales of the likes of Douglas, Gallagher, McEveley, Johnson (if Hughes decides to get rid) will bring in several hundred thousands if not the odd million which means the Academy would wash its face in current terms this year even if it hasn't produced a player for the starting eleven.

All Academies have a massive failure rate with most kids ending up at semi-pro level at best. The fact that we can point to having youngsters getting second and third division level experience (which might yet lead to Premiership places) is a big plus. How many players in the Prem starting line-ups this week-end will have come through from the clubs' own youth structures? 40 at most?

Going to adjust my forecast to a 3-0 defeat. That's what happened the last time we played a club with all its regular midfielders missing.

Perhaps good administrators in football clubs are like referees- you realise how good they are when you don't notice them. John Williams has been at the club seven years (?) and it is an astonishing achievement that I've heard virtually no criticism of him from within the club or those close to it. - The same goes for Tom Finn by the way. They are either Joe Stalin or very good at what they are doing. Contrast that with the recently appointed Secretary of Shrewsbury Town (whose blurb suggests he went there straight from Ewood and masterminded the Rovers' rise to the Premiership- at least he had the good grace never to admit he worked for the Dingles). Scarcely a month went by without some story circulating about the prowess and competence of John Howarth when he was Secretary of BRFC. Equally think of your own work situations and the respect and reputations of managers you know. There are four other points to consider: - apart from Peter Kenyon who has the global brand to build or Trevor Birch (deep in the mire others created), how many GOOD football chairmen or administrators are high profile? - the Walker Trust clearly prefer a low profile as indeed all Trusts do. They have a job of administration and good husbandry and that style extends to their commercial operations as well e.g. Flybe is a remarkable success story but that airline has a very different profile to Ryanair or Easyjet. - I'd far rather have a low profile JW and his track record of securing a very high percentage of the transfer targets identified by his Managers than the track records of the Chief Execs of Everton, Villa, Spuds (until recently) or worst of all, Karen Brady. - the Rovers are building a very effective presence behind the scenes in the broader corridors of power. We could only have joined the G14 in 1996 (and would have the embarassment of being kicked out for getting relegated in 1999!) but that organisation didn't start until after we were sliding out of contention. Apart from being a G14 member or Chelsea, probably no other single club wields as much influence as the Rovers do and have done down the years. A higher profile wouldn't help- better to be not noticed and effective than the other way round. At the end of the day, we are a football club and our fame comes from the team on the football pitch. And yes I will help if there is anything needed.

I don't know what its like after the game but for such a vibrant match, the crowd were extremely restrained in Istanbul. MGP and Vratty won't be joining Lucas and Bert at the WC. Seems that they came through unscathed (although Vratty didn't make a single pass to a colleague in the 15 minutes of the Slovakia v Spain I watched). Similarly Bellamy in a wretchedly bad performance by Wales which has set John Toshack moaning. Of course, all eleven players and subs were better than Savage would have been! An amusing description from the BBC: "Wales did sporadically threaten but their only dangerman was Craig Bellamy. His pace got him in some dangerous areas, but he was also too fast for his team-mates - and too often his crosses were wasted because of a lack of support." Given he was partnered by Hartson, I sincerely hope that we are not reduced to buying him.

That was one fantastic match and the Turks nust be wondering how they failed to get to Germany. A Sanli hattrick in a 4-2 win but switzerland do it on away goals.

Now watching Turkey v Switzerland. What a cracking game- Switzerland scored a pen in the first minute when Alpay was caught out by a chip back which he handled- tough but correct decision. Ref then didn't give two blatant pens for Turkey and has been so pro-Swiss as to be ridiculous. Even so, Turkey are winning 2-1 at Half Time and are playing some fabulous stuff. Our old friend Hakan Sukur scored the second. Emre will be very lucky not to get a second yellow card in the second half but the way Turkey are playing, the 4-1 win they need is very much on the cards. Arsenal's Senderos is playing up front. He very nearly created a chance by taking a keeper's clearance full in the face in injury time- the resulting shot from distance was straight at the hopelessly out of position keeper!

Just been watching Bahrain v T&T. Oh dear, the winner of this will be everybody's first pick for the Group stage in Germany. T&T much the better side but not showing in front of goal and their keeper has twice had Calamity James moments (Shakka Hyslop on the T&T bench by the way). T&T are basically a third division outfit- if that. Bahrain are physically so little you would worry for them against any European side. 0-0 at the moment so Bahrain in the driving seat. Oh yes Dwight Yorke is on the pitch according to the team sheet. Elsewhere, here's hoping Bellamy survives the attentions of some pretty physical defenders in Cyprus tonight. South Africa are lined up to play England in a friendly if we get an African country in our Group when the draw is made so The Axe better go easy on the chopping! Finally, Turkey v Switzerland is the likeliest game to see a reverse of the first leg lead amongst the European games this evening. Turkey have three big names coming back after suspension whilst Switzerland are hit by injuries and suspensions (Hakan Yakin and his brother both out for them). Quick update, T&T have taken the lead so the Manama samba can begin! When did Wrexham and Port Vale last have players at the World Cup? Will Dwight Yorke be the sole representative of the A League? FULL TIME: T&T go to Germany. Jack their keeper pulled off a fabulous save in the last minute to keep the score 1-0. Before that Ali Baba got sent off for pushing the ref after another Bahraini player had kicked the ball out of Jack's hands and stuck it in the net- couldn't make it up! So Gillingham will have a player at the World Cup as well.

Gary Harkins has gone on a month's loan to Blackpool. Is that six youngsters out on loan now? The fact that Rovers can place so many platers like this must give the Academy real heart to show youngsters considering coming to the Rovers that we are able to develop careers even for the ones who might fall short of the Premiership level.

Watching the Aussie game, its going to take a miracle to get a performance out of Bert and Neill on Saturday.

I know- every time I've seen him, Bruce has been a gratuitously offensive and arrogant nasty piece of work. Its no wonder the porn pushers of Brum love him. Dunn went from the frying pan to the fire in terms of escaping from Souness.

Why not stick a permanent link to the BRISA site on the tool bar?

'drog your question is an old one and I answered the last time you asked it. When I was in the UK I was a season ticket holder (which was of dubious value given as the most I got to was 20 home matches and usually 10 to 12) and sponsored the match ball and took an executive box at least once every season. And that went from Division 2 to the Championship season and beyond. Now tell us all about your financial support of the Rovers.

A one man chorus of "jingle bells" on the journey back?