Andy

Important point. At the moment, JDT is using what he has available to him, to accumulate as many points as he can. It's not always pretty, but we're very organised at the back, which is always the ideal starting position for any new coaching team (start with the defence and build forward). And, as we're sitting pretty comfortably 3rd (and have been for a while), it's hard to argue that it's not effective. He's said all along, judge him after 3 transfer windows. We're just starting the second of those now and if we can get more 'Hyams' in, I'm looking forward to seeing how we develop. But patience is key. I'm still absolutely flabbergasted by anyone genuinely shouting for JDT to go after a few months; I can not see any logic in tearing up the last few months, all of the future plans and starting again with an unknown. Madness.

Agree on JRC, he’s been tidy on the ball, took up some good defensive positions and has been aggressive off the ball. Glad to see the red has been appealed; it’s clearly a ludicrous decisions and if it’s not overturned, the FA have defended the indefensible. I wasn’t wanting to share this, as I hate the ‘I’m not sharing my source’ thing. But I'm not sharing my source for reasons of confidentiality (shared some info a number of years ago on the Rovers site forum and almost got somebody at the club the sack, so I won’t do it again). Feel free to disregard, it genuinely matters not to me. But the Adam Wharton stuff is plainly untrue. He should be playing more, totally, but none of the ‘clash with the manager’ happened.

And yet we’ll still be higher than the other two teams / new managers that were mentioned in the post that I’d replied to. We can’t say, for example, Mowbray has done well to get Sunderland into the top 6 in a few months and criticise our similarly new manager, whilst we sit above them.

And we are sitting third…?

This times a thousand. Shouting for the manager’s head after a few poor results, yet we remain very high in the league, is ludicrous. Performances on the whole haven’t been good, but we can’t ignore the positive performances either. We as a support are better than that.

Wow. 1st half was very good. Conceded early in the second, but the red card is what’s killed us here. I’m pretty sure JDT’s instructions to Buckley at HT wasn’t ‘go and get yourself sent off nice and early lad’.

That is never a red in a million years. The fact that it’ll be overturned immediately will be indication of that. And now 1-2. Such a shame after that good first half.

One of the best moves and phases of play I’ve seen from us this season, lovely.

Really good first half, against a very much in-form team. JRC has been really good again, Pickering continuing to be consistently solid on the other side also. I’d have Adam Wharton in instead of Morton, if I’m honest, but I think Bucko has been very good tonight - see the difference between how comfortable he is on the ball and his vision versus when Travis plays there. And Dack’s quality shows every time he plays. Thought large chunks of the play in that half were a lot easier on the eye than a lot of performances this season; hopefully that’s JDT’s style starting to finally show.

Why so much hate for the ‘project’ thing? Jack himself admitted that is winning the league was a project - one we achieved a year ahead of his plans. Seems sensible to me to have a plan/strategy for year-on-year improvement. As nice as it’d be to have everything right now (or results and performances), but that’s not how life works. Anyway, fingers crossed for 3 points tonight, with some winnable games ahead of us. A real chance to build on the points tally garnered so far.

This gives me cause for optimism; whenever I notice you write something like this, we win comfortably. It's the Championship, as much as we can look at stats,, form, xG and all of that gubbins, these games are as variable and unpredictable as they come. We're at home and have been very strong under JDT at Ewood, so hoping for a continuation of that form. Couldn't care less how well we play as long as we leave with the 3 points. Another Darragh OG would be nice to get us motoring...

Today's performance wasn't good enough and you have to be beating the newly promoted sides, if you have any ambitions of a top-6 finish. However, the table doesn't lie and if you're 3rd in the league, with over half of the season gone, it's absolutely not 'fluke', or because everyone else is shit. It's because we've found a way to win enough games to put us third. Which, in a new manager's first season, having had to replace some key members of the first team and introduce a new style of play, is extremely impressive. We (as fans) tend to swing from one extreme to the other; I've seen both 'we're going up' and also, more bizarrely 'we'll be in a relegation fight' in recent weeks and the truth is neither. Like it or not, we're in a transition season and need to manage our expectations accordingly.

I'm not sure about the last bit - the win at Norwich in our last game (with first team players in the side) showed a hungry and motivated side. You can't read too much into a load of reserve jobbers being beaten tonight. What now happens on Monday is the important bit, though I do agree on it being a shitshow for the fans who turned up tonight.

Wharton literally at fault for all 4 goals (and scored the other).

I wonder what European Cup winning, World Cup scoring former top-class striker JDT genuinely makes of Hirst. He'd have struggled in our League 1 side.

Feel for Scott Wharton - he's been poor, but gives the penalty away, gives the free kick away and then the shot from the free kick goes in off him.

I've always said that he's a decent number 2, just prone to the odd blunder. He's been very good tonight.

Pears has been really good so far, to be fair to him. Markanday also looking sharp, has to be worth keeping around the first team squad as something different. Get BBD and a couple of first teamers on at HT and let's have a go at them.

I'm sure Kaminski was a product of the European scouting we were doing under Mowbray? Either way, certainly cause for optimism moving forward. But, as ever, the proof is in the signings...

Whilst I agree, 2 dire results don't spoil half a season where we find ourselves comfortably in 3rd place.

I can't agree with that. We were good tonight - not always in quality and decisions, but in endeavour and effort. We made them look poor; they were a couple of points off us before this game - firmly in the top 6.

Huge win in the promotion race - against a promotion rival. That sets the standard for the absolute minimum requirement for every game now, in terms of efforts and endeavour. Credit to JRC, we expected nothing but he was as good as anyone (barring the ever-injured Brittain) at RB so far this season. Bucko in place for Travis is exactly what we've been missing.

Very, very good away performance. You know you're not having most of the ball, but stay aggressive, press, keep organised and take your chances when they come. Perfect response after the last 2.

Woohoo! Well deserved.

Dack's been decent tonight, but I think taking him off now is a good decision. Still easing him back to full fitness and fresh legs in Sam S.