arbitro

It seems that since Ventre came in we are mixing things up on set plays (as we should too) and a variety of signals are used by the various corner takers. I My thinking on Saturday was that as Millwall posed a real threat from corners it was all hands to the pump.

I recall Beck marking Frey at QPR last season on corners and their very first one he scored. Interestingly it was the first time I had seen Morishita doing that. In some recent matches he has stayed further up the pitch from corners but I'm guessing that Ventre has autonomy on set pieces and is looking for variety which I'm all for.

Did anyone else notice that Morishita was picking up one of the big Millwall centre halves from set pieces. It was in a crowded penalty area and there was quite a bit of blocking but Morishita did his best to stay with him and to a degree succeeded because they didn't really hurt us. I'm guessing this is done to allow our bigger player to attack the ball.

Merry Christmas to all the people behind the scenes and thanks for your sterling work. It's sometimes taken for granted that the board will always be here without the realisation that there is some heavy lifting going on in the background.

Another six goals today in games involving our under 18's which (from looking at the table) means 49 goals in the ten league games we have played. Once again we started really quickly (something I wish the first team would do) and took the lead through Harvey Higgins who was playing at centre forward. He did miss a really easy chance to put us further ahead as we were well on top. The second half continued in a similar vein and a really clever finish from McCoy and a tap in from Clanford gave us what should have been an insurmountable lead but, just like the recent cup match with Bolton we took our eye off the ball and allowed Forest back into the match. At 3-2 there we were hanging on but another tap in from Wilkinson (his first touch after coming on) in stoppage time allowed us some breathing space to see the game out. For the majority of the game we were the better side but Paul Butler will have seen enough for him to work on the players complacency when getting into a comfortable lead. They are youngsters and still learning but I think the message to them will be loud and clear.

Farkas was good last night but his appearances seem to be sporadic and I haven't seen enough to of him to make a proper judgement. He coped with the intensity and physicality well last night and possibly needs a good run of games. As I have said before some loans don't work out and are of no benefit to either the player or Rovers. Khan did well last night and I was surprised to see him starting after his shocker against Derby. I expected Honour to start but as Khan was the third goalkeeper at Portsmouth perhaps he is injured. I would let him go as soon as possible personally as Wolstencroft will be looking to kick on next season. He has too many mistakes in him and he is 20 now.

Another entertaining goal fest for the youngsters but this time in our favour. We took an early lead with a deft Joseph header but the cross from Houghton was terrific. Two lapses in concentration allowed Watford to take the lead but we equalised on the stroke of half-time with a smart finish from Doherty. The second half was real end to end and both sides had chances but once again Joseph found himself in the right position for a tap in after excellent work from Doherty. We then sat in and went to a back five to try and hold out and Khan had to be alert to make a couple of smart stops. We countered really well though and the fourth goal came from one of these as Farkas got free and scored with a smart dink over the keeper. This was probably the quickest game I have seen this season as both teams played with intensity and a high tempo. It took it's toll on Joseph and Tyjon who, after a tough game on Friday were fatigued. There were several impressive performances but once again Joseph took the eye. He just keeps on improving and I honestly think he could offer more that Gueye off the bench. He is big, strong, holds the ball up well, wins headers and finds space in the penalty area. The only real similarity is they both get caught offside too often. Good to see Garrett get half a game too. Hopefully he can now stay fit and fulfil the potential we saw in him be it at Rovers or another club. Edit: I forget to mention that although we were across the pitch from Vignal we could hear him and he never stood still all night. The players seemed to respond to this and I was told he has impressed them in the short time he has been here.

I am one who doesn't use the numbers for positions but he was deeper than I would have expected. He was usually at the forefront of the midfield when we were pressing which likely was tactical. He got on the ball more and played more advanced after their player was sent off and Southampton sacrificed one of their midfielders. They also played on the counter attack after the red card.

Tyjon played behind Joseph although at times he dropped off a little bit too much for my liking. He showed some really good touches and displayed good vision by being aware of players making runs. He tired late on, understandable after not playing too much recently. There were a few scouts there and I know one of them from Arsenal who I spoke to walking out. There was no indication of who in particular he was looking at but several Rovers players must have impressed him.

A wholly spirited and committed performance saw the Rovers youngsters progress through to the fourth round for a game at either Birmingham or Coventry. With a smattering of first year scholars Rovers started the game on the front foot and played some good stuff against a Southampton team who were hell bent on trying to play out from really deep positions despite getting caught several times by a good Rovers press. Rovers took the lead through a smart finish from Joseph who impresses me more every time I see him. We perhaps should have added to that but a ridiculously poor decision allowing a clear foul to pass let Southampton in for an undeserved equaliser in the fifth minute of stoppage time (sound familiar?). Southampton came more into the game in the second half no doubt buoyed by their equaliser and the game was evenly balanced until the bad on of their centre halves sent off for a second yellow card after a foul on Joseph who was virtually unplayable. Southampton had to reshuffle and played a counter attacking game and in truth spurned a couple of good chances. With several Rovers players suffering from cramp changes were made and one of these, Harvey Higgins scored from close range in the last of six minutes of stoppage time after some incessant Rovers pressure. There were wild celebrations after the goal and it was great to see. Joseph and Vare caught the eye for me but there were quite a few just behind their levels. In the time Higgins was on he also impressed. I have said it before after seeing the under 18's but they do seem to be exceptionally well coached under Paul Butler.

It's a pretty much no win situation for the referee as anything could happen in the hours before kick off. I hated having to make a decision so early but I had to base it on actual facts at the time rather that a forecast.i the referee is only travelling from the other side of Preston, the Oxford team will be here so if it was me my prime consideration would the Oxford fans.

Having been in the same position several times in the past I feel the referee will have a really difficult decision to make at 2 pm (if that is true - there is still radio silence from Ewood). He will base his decision on several factors. Firstly the condition of the pitch at the time of inspection. He will have an up to date weather forecast and potentially contact with the met office. Given the forecast isn't particularly bad it will be at the back of his mind that it could change very quickly. He should speak to the ground staff and insist that both managers are there to gauge their opinions. The last thing he will want is to give the game the green light and subsequently postpone it when the Oxford fans are en route. If it was me that would be uppermost in my mind so he will have to be as sure as he can be that the game will go ahead if he gives it the thumbs up around 2 pm. I don't envy him to be honest.

Reports are saying it's a medical emergency in one of the home supporters sections.

Leicester are three up after half an hour at Derby and had a goal wrongly disallowed too.

I have no doubt that the biggest factor giving Wednesday hope is our home record (as it would to most teams). It's going to be an albatross around our necks until we get some wins in the board. Hedges is undoubtedly going to be a huge miss and it might be opportune for Ismael to revert to a back four and bring Ribeiro back at full back which will allow us an extra man in midfield or even further up the pitch. In doing so we would lose a lot of Alebiosu's attacking prowess but I think it would give us more balance.