I watched the first let of Partick against Ayr in midweek and Ayr brought a substitute on called Ethan Walker. He looked familiar so I googled his name and sure enough it was the lad we took from Preston in similar circumstances to Dolan. I saw him play several times for the under 21's and never thought he was good enough for the Championship. It's good to see him playing at a decent level.

Sunderland got their tactics spot on and the old fashioned 4-4-2 worked perfectly as the front two dropped deep when Coventry had the ball rather than pressing high up. Coventry really didn't have an answer and whilst they might point to possession and other stats being well in their favour it showed there are many ways to win football matches not just the possession based style which many managers and coaches obsess over.

Lunacy. Last season an under 18 in the Upper JW outer was £59. The early bird price this season was £99 and the Phase Two price has gone up to £149. How on earth can they justify an almost 200% increase?

Nobbers won't be too happy with this article. 😂 https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cp34kj9p8xno

Football is a cutthroat world and whilst Gilsenan is undoubtedly talented his injuries have really impeded him and will have played a part in this decision. Being injury prone could be a factor in his next move and future and I wish him well.

I was looking through the list of names for Junior Rovers birthdays and two stood out (if they are who I think they are). One is a local radio presenter and the other played Premier League and international football.

After an injury hit season Sam Barnes has been released by Barrow. Hopefully he can get fixed up somewhere and stay injury free to fulfil the potential he showed at Rovers.

AhI thought I'd seen some announcement that they had committed (they have certainly been offered deals).

That day is right up therein the Rovers memory bank Gav. A 4-1 win, carrying Stuart Metcalfe shoulder high from the pitch at Vale Park and Gordon Lee announcing to us from the Directors Box that we were the champions. We were on the special train that day and the journey home was fantastic.

We don't sack managers. The last two have left of their own volition because of broken promises and a lack of ambition from above. The one before was treated awfully and kept in abeyance regarding his future by the people below. We are no different in that respect than Watford because we have erratic owners and self serving governor board level.

Have I misunderstood your inclusion of Eze and Higgins? They will both become first year scholars this summer.

He is a confident lad for sure and I don't think stepping up would faze him too much. As for next season he is likely to be the under 21's regular keeper if, as expected the plethora of keepers we have are released. Personally I would be happy to see him getting regular football with us unless it was National League or even League 2. A good first half to the new season would potentially be the platform for this to happen.

Excellent summary and thanks for your efforts during the season. On the whole I would think that Rovers have been disappointed by the loans out although that could be the main factor in how Rovers decide their futures.

Arran Avenue until 1964/5 when we came to Darwen.

He still has the programme from the game. It's in Latin 😁

November 1963 was my first game. A 4-1 win against Arsenal which included a Fred Pickering hat trick. I remember catching the bus from Shadsworth to the Boulevard and then getting one of the football specials to Ewood.

Extending the deadline is an admission they got it wrong in the first place (although they'll never admit it). The figures don't lie.

Of course there are lots of incidents which affect the season but I was specific about Pears error at Bristol because a draw there would have seen us get into the playoffs and not having had the pressure of having to win yesterday.

Their predecessors didn't all leave because they moved to bigger clubs. Broughton and Park (twice) were marginalised and victims of the power struggles. There are other recruitment staff who have left who simply couldn't work for this regime. The evidence is irrefutable.

I know and that emphasises my point. The lack of continuity and constant departures should worry every Rovers supporter. Why do you think it will be any different under Gestede?

One aspect of Ismaels time so far where I think every supporter agrees on was persisting with Toth over the calamitous Pears. Since Toth came in at Luton we have only conceded three goals in five games and none of them were down to him. It's difficult to point to any one incident that cost us a playoff place but I can't help but think back to Bristol City away when Pears gave Twine two thirds of the goal to shoot at from a free kick. Drawing that game would have seen us over the line.

Losing staff is a symptom of how the club is run I afraid and I honestly don't see that changing with the likes of Gestede being given more power.

My granddaughter cried happy tears when we scored and floods of sad tears at the end. On the train home I explained to her that those two emotions are common in football but not usually in the same game. She doesn't really understand about poor ownership, snide directors and the like - she just wants to see Rovers win every week and there are many kids like that. It's up to us older ones to keep some pressure on these wretches to try and ensure the club is safe for generations to come.

There was clearly a game plan today which up until the equaliser played out pretty well I thought. If we hadn't conceded so soon after going ahead I could see us going to a back five with Forshaw coming on in a three man defensive midfield as we have successfully done recently. Them scoring within eight minutes meant the other option covered by Ismael was all out attack. In that respect I thought he left it five or ten minutes too late but I could also understand his reasoning as conceding a second with so many attacking players on would have given us a mountain to climb. We were in with a chance of promotion up until the last kick of the season. Had that been said a few weeks ago the poster would have been deemed certifiable.