arbitro

Sad, sad news. He really was one of our is own and if kissing the badge was in vogue in Mecky's days he could have done it with sincerity. I remember carrying him off the pitch at Port Vale in 1975 as we had just clinched promotion. We were one big, happy family and he was integral to that. He was a great player for us with skill and real aggression and formed a great combination with Tony Parkes. The accolades are a fitting tribute to a Blackburner to his core. RIP Stuart.

Not Blackburn but I think this might evoke a few memories for some of the 'owder posters. https://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/news/18630781.cranberry-fair-nightspot-dancers-frolicked-pool/

So we are pretty much in the same position as we were last summer needing players for the same areas we were short in then. That's some slow build.

He seems to epitomise the old saying 'bullshit baffles brains'.

Yes, a young coach in his first job. Who would've thought it.

Good strike from Bryan but no keeper at this level should be beaten like that. He does though, as we have seen many times have something like that in his locker.

I heard the commentators saying Mitrovic was warming up by himself pre match which indicates we'll only see him if absolutely necessary. I think with his movement inside the penalty area Fulham would have been ahead.

Obviously.

I just be watching a different game. Reed and Cairney have dominated the midfield and kept Fulham going forward at every possible opportunity.

You could be right but knowing the club are in dire straits (according to club communications) somebody should have had the gumption to stop the chartered flight and use a couple of coaches. That would have represented a £20k saving which could have been used on plenty of other more pressing things. Ultimately all spend goes on the bottom line.

I heard their chicken is tasteless too. ??

I was chasing up the recompense situation. Originally they said nothing would happen until after the season had ended because it was a skeleton staff all dealing with iFollow.

I'm holding back with that one for now if they play hard ball. At the same time I will ask why the team flew to Cardiff recently at a cost of £30k (I heard from a good source).

I am still having dialogue with them about reimbursements for season ticket holders who couldn't or didn't want to take up the iFollow option. Their latest reply gives some information about season tickets etc. Here is their reply (I received this last week btw): Dear Mr Leake Thank you for your patience in awaiting a response to your enquiry, as always, your continued support is incredibly valuable to the club and we appreciate that this is a difficult time for all. As mentioned, the inability to facilitate supporters attending games within the stadium has had a serious detrimental effect on the finances of the club. We greatly appreciate the support that many supporters have shown in understanding these difficult circumstances and taking up our offer of streaming the final nine matches of the season. Together we can ensure that the club remains on an even footing and push toward realising our collective goals both on and off the pitch as #OneRoversTogether Now the 2019-20 Sky Bet Championship season has reached its culmination we are now swiftly turning our attention to putting preparations in place for next season and - more pressingly - what our ticket offering will be. We are sure to be facing many challenges to facilitate supporters returning to stadia and are yet to hear what restrictions may still be in place by that time. Once we have some clarity on this, we will be able to adapt our pricing and strategy accordingly and in turn further advise on a benefit to the issue you have raised in regards to possible compensation. We thank you for your understanding at this time and will be releasing details in regards to future ticketing as soon as we can. Kind Regards Ticket Office

Wigans administrators have a duty to the club, the staff and supporters not whether or not the start of the season would be in chaos. The extra money from being in the Championship is £6m I recall from our promotion.

It looks like Charlton could mount a legal challenge. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/53637173

I'd be surprised if the appeal was successful primarily because cowardly EFL don't want a court case. They were always going to take the soft option in my view. I wonder if Wigan might go to CAS if they lose.

Whilst Tosin did well for us I am not keen on loaning another centre half. It's been a problem area for some time and I would much rather sign somebody permanent as a priority. I wouldn't be surprised if Tosin cost us over £1m with the wages contribution and loan fee. Bringing him back on loan just means we will more than likely be in the same position next summer.

The real problem highlighted here is Mowbrays penchant for awarding contracts and committing the club's money with, in a lot of cases no return. Platt was another example. Most people were shocked when he got a new two year deal last season. After one Carabou Cup match he was sent to Barrow. Similarly Smallwood, Hart, Leutwiler, Gladwin and Mulgrew must have cost the club a significant amount of money.

Mowbray saw fit to give him a three year deal last summer. Crap is harsh but I don't think there is a Championship player in there.

That is the way forward for clubs from the Championship down. In the main the financial issues are created by one thing - players are paid too much. When Reading pay 176% of their turnover in wages it's not difficult to see what is causing the problem. Signing players on new deals from now should really be the turning point in addressing the extortionate wages but I don't think there is a snowball in hells chance of this happening. Panic buys will ensue towards the end of the window which will add to the agents leverage with clubs.

I can envisage a situation where all the fixtures are released (as yet there is no date for this) and the leagues are thrown in disarray as clubs go bust. And from a Rovers perspective the wage deferral was only until the end of June. The wage bill will be proportionately higher for the next couple of months until the deferrals have been settled.

The mantra coming out of the PL and EFL to justify 'project startup' (that name is cringeworthy enough) was to protect the integrity of the competition. The decision to impose the Sheffield Wednesday points deduction next season blows that out of the water when the charge related to an offence was committed during 2017/18. It's an absolute dereliction of responsibility by the EFL board who, once again have shown themselves as not fit for purpose. I really hope Charlton take this further in the interests of 'intergrity'.

After the last few days it's difficult to predict what is going to happen next week let alone October. It's pure speculation at best. With Championship clubs having paid £210k for CV-19 testing to enable them to train and play then presumably clubs in League's One and Two will have a similar amount to find or at least pro rata based on staff numbers. That only covered the six week period to get the games played and with October being over 12 weeks away I just don't think many can survive when you factor in wages and other expenses. The only answer is to get a vaccine that works.

Relegating Barnsley and a subsequent appeal could have big consequences for the scheduled start of the Championship on September 12th. With the best will in the world it would be extremely difficult to set the wheels in motion and hear a court case in six weeks. EFL = Extremely Flawed Leadership.