arbitro

I too was on that train. It was the first match after getting promoted from Division Three and there was a wave of optimism so the train was full. Oh for the days of 'Specials' again when several hundred like minded supporters travelled together.

Another nice journey home after watching Rovers claim their third successive win with a solid if unspectacular performance. And once again Ismael gets some praise from me as his changes were exactly what was needed to see us over the line. Sunderland looked like they were going for the record number of corners in the first ten minutes As we didn't see too much of the ball but we patiently played our way into the game with some good passing and movement. Scoring first is always important and Dolan with a smart finish out us ahead and gave us something to defend. And once again we defended as if our lives depended on it as we blocked and tackled with great commitment. Toth once again proved he is a better all round keeper that Pears and only conceding one goal in three games should ensure his place for the last two games and further opportunity to establish himself. All the defence and midfield worked exceptionally hard as did Dolan and Ohashi. I really don't believe that, despite it still being mathematically possible that we will make the playoffs but this winning feeling certainly beats the depression of losing and long may it last.

This needs investigating immediately. https://news.sky.com/story/chelsea-fans-criticise-unethical-ticket-resale-platform-which-club-chairman-invests-in-13352484

Poor choice of words there. If you couldn't give a toss fine but I suspect around a thousand Rovers fans are travelling in the hope of a win and lots more will be watching on TV hoping for the same.

Condolences to Mick's family and friends. Hopefully his passing is respectfully remembered by the club next Saturday.

Is that 20% for each of the three kits or 20% for all of them? Sometimes the devil is in the detail.

Great minds Ian. 😁😁 Please delete my thread.

I was thinking more of a 150% surcharge.😄 Disclaimer: If any of the stooges or their acolytes read this I'm joking.

Managers are responsible for results, the buck stops with them and ours clearly haven't been good enough which I think everyone agrees on. However there is sometimes some context which is what I was saying.

if it's obvious then tell me. But you're right - it's probably not worth discussing as you must have seen it completely different to me.

I said a couple of exceptions. How many others are there?

With a couple of exceptions (Derby away going to a back three) the shape has been pretty much the same as Eustace and Lowe. I haven't seen too much of a shift in tactics neither. I really don't understand your 'boys in the playground' comment.

He was easily knocked off the ball a couple of times in the first half but you are spot on about his effort and endeavour. He played in a similar vein at Luton until he was sacrificed after Montgomery's red card.

Changed everything?

The games you mention were good performances but we got two points out of a possible nine. I really think that losing matches affects confidence even if it's a good performance. Lowe's first two games were undoubtedly good but his third was one of the worst of the season. The last eleven games under Eustace were won 2, drew 2, lost 7. Currently Ismael has player nine, won 2, drawn 2 and lost 5. Comparable to say the least.

That's why I said conjecture on my part.

But Swansea away, the last match under Lowe we looked particularly poor.

I was referring specifically to the results under Eustace.

I was referring to the form under Eustace which was mediocre. West Brom was definitely one of the best performances of the season but in the eleven games preceding that we won two. It's pure conjecture on my part but I don't believe that had Eustace stayed our league position wouldn't be too different from where we are now.

The facts don't lie but I think there needs to be a bit of context. Confidence was absolutely waning when Ismael took over as proved by the poor results and performances. I'm not privy to what went on but I know that confidence is so important in professional sport and we were shorn of that before Ismael arrived. The run he presided over was awful but I honestly think it wouldn't have been too dissimilar had Eustace stayed. I'm not saying it's the second coming or anything like that but as I said context is important.

But he was also his usual diligent self defensively too. He broke up several Millwall attacks with tackles and interceptions. His sensible choice of passes today helped us keep possession when it was needed. The criticism of him is farcical and in my opinion shows a complete lack of football knowledge.

He is probably our hardest working player. He was getting further forward today than in any other game I can remember. Perhaps Ismael is allowing him to get forward more.

In my opinion that performance was in the top five of the season. The momentum we got in the second half against Sheffield and the win at Luton was built upon with a really good win and performance against one of the Championships form teams. There was lots to admire today. The tempo, quality of passing, resilience and intensity but what actually pleased me most was the quality of our goals and the play leading up to them. Who would have predicted those three players as goal scorers today? Ismael deserves some credit too as he did last week. Our shape and tactics worked a treat as we pressed and played a bit further up the pitch. I thought the substitutions were sensible too bearing in mind we have a game on Monday. I also like how he kept faith with Toth by playing him again today. There have been some testing times over the last few months but the last two and a half games have been a stark reminder to me of what Rovers mean to us. The mood of the supporters was really good As we were walking back to the car. That winning feeling takes some beating.

Millwall are very strong defensively so them scoring first would make it extremely difficult for us. Hopefully the renewed confidence shown in the second half against Sheffield Wednesday and the game against Luton will be evident and we go on to win.

And that is the most pertinent point of the whole sorry saga.