Andy

As I walked to the ground, about 15-20 mins from KO, a few of their coaches were just arriving on Bolton Road. Suspect caught in traffic en route.

Really enjoyable evening tonight, glad I went - and over 18k on the gate is pretty exceptional for a wet Monday evening cup game, against League 2 opposition. I'd be repeating what most have already said about who performed well, but I did think Dolan looked very good in the first half in particular. Good to see Sonny get his first for the club also. Into the last 16 we go.

I remember having some dialogue with Dan Williams around the time he was sniffing around the club. Genuinely can't remember why it didn't work out, but he seemed a decent enough chap and was certainly interested.

I mean, most of us expected no signings, so technically that's an improvement...?

Alright with that, saw him play a few times for Liverpool and he never looked out of place. Isn't a downgrade on Hill, imo. Let's see if that final piece (or two) of the 'absolute minimum requirements' jigsaw falls into place in the next few days.

Cheers for that, saved me turning up tomorrow... 🤦‍♂️

Just bought mine and the little lad's tickets for tomorrow - JW looks ok, Blackburn End not great and Walkersteel sparse. Hopefully we'll see some 'on the day' sales, but otherwise 15k/16k based on current sales.

Don't forget signing fees (new contracts) and bonuses. His most recent contract would have come with a very chunky signing-on fee.

It's hard to see how it isn't going to end in disaster, whatever happens from here. What an absolute shitshow.

Yeah, I've only seen it back once or twice, but this is how I saw it. Gallagher made an attempt to challenge at the last second, but the Huddersfield lad wanted it more (and was given a free run).

Agree with someone else who made the point earlier that we looked ok early on, but it went to shit after the Carter injury and subsequent shuffle. Pleasantly surprised to see that Pears was quite a bit better than Leo - the one save in particular was very good, also came for a late cross when I suspect Leo would have stuck to his line. Adam W was good for most of the game. Gallagher did alright, all things considered and JRC looked bright from right back, once we'd changed the system. In terms of positives, that's about it. We should have lost, and comfortably. Against one of the worst teams in the entire division. Disjointed, sloppy, no momentum or willingness to take the game by the scruff of the neck. Always been a JDT fan whilst he's been here, but feels like we're getting to the stage where we need a change one way or another.

Exactly this - he won't walk away and be out of pocket. If he does leave before the end of his contract, some kind of mutual agreement would be most likely (so he gets a pay off).

Agreed - we can't afford to have a 'Venky's out at all costs' approach; we have to have a pragmatic view. We all (or at least the vast majority) want them out, but the simple fact is that their money is covering all costs such as the Academy, general operating costs and salaries. All of those cost millions upon millions every year. Those bills are still there, even with Venky's gone. We can't just close our eyes, shove our fingers in our ears and shout 'Venky's out'. Starting again from League 1/2 is not the worst case scenario. What the solution is, I have no idea, but we cannot be reckless with the future of the club.

We owe them one after the recent game in t'Yarksher. Early goal, keep the pressure on and score as many as we can. Rovers 14 v 1 Hudds (they're bound to score, no matter who plays in goal).

Going into administration is not guaranteed to be the saviour that some seemingly think. If we do, there's a very real chance that we will fail to exist after a short, miserable period. We are quite fucked whichever way at the moment, unless something unexpected happens.

January 2023 is when the restrictions first came into place, but we managed for a number of months with EFL payments / early ST sales / etc.

Agreed - if Waggott plays the 'no idea, guv' card, he's blatantly lying to the fanbase. There needs to be some answers and sharpish.

The other way of looking at it is an experienced Championship midfielder going straight into a newly promoted side from League 1.

No, I absolutely don't 😂 And I didn't say he was 'brilliant' against Watford - somebody had suggested that he had no redeeming features and I used that game (pre-Watford-goals) to point out that he'd played well, which anyone with actual eyes could see that he had. Leo (yes, easier to type than his surname) has dropped some absolute amateur-level clangers, like Huddersfield away and the 2 Watford home goals from the top of my head. But I've seen enough from both GKs for it to be blatantly obvious to me that he's still streets ahead of Pears and has a much higher ceiling. Jumping on a young GK when he makes some mistakes isn't going to help anyone, is it?

Continue where we left off in the last game and the start of a new good run of form. WBA 1 - 2 Rovers.

Pears apparently at fault for both goals. Anyone who genuinely thinks he's any better than Leo has a very, very (very) short memory.

To be fair, he's looked good in the last 2-3, where he's finally been given a start. Unlucky not to score a couple in those games (post at Hull, etc). Definitely think he'll become a useful squad player.

Yep, I said similar on the match thread - it wasn't just a firework, it was a pretty heavy duty explosive type. How nobody was injured is an absolute fluke. I was sat (with my little lad) central in the JW upper seats and whilst it landed on the pitch, it really wasn't that far off the fans at all. Hopefully the scrotes responsible are caught.

First half frustrating, SS sparing our blushes with a hat trick. Second half much, much better and you could see the confidence returning to the players - some of the play was fantastic. Leo did fine, his handling on a few long distance shots was solid, as was his distribution. Anyone criticising him on today's performance is reaching, at best. Ayari also showed a few very clever touches/runs to create a couple of chances. Shame it was a small crowd, a very enjoyable game overall - minus the firework thing at HT, which somehow nobody was injured by. It wasn't just a firework, it was a heavy duty explosive type.

Putting the transfer dealings from today to one side (I don't see Travis leaving as any kind of crisis move, btw), I have to say that I'm glad I don't have some of you lot in the trenches with me. We're 8 points from the play off spots (and more points clear of the bottom 3), even after a horrendous run of form and yet I'm seeing comments about 'this season is an undoubted relegation battle', or 'it's all about staying in the league'. We've got the same base of players we had, who finished 7th last season and lots of injured players due to return. Yes, Venky's are a bag of dicks and run the club horrendously - nobody is disputing this. But have a bit of backbone and a tiny bit of bloody fight in you, at the very least. Relegation fight my white arse.