If Ainsworth weren't Blackburn-born, would he be a candidate ? Of course not, so why just because he is local do they think he would be a good manager?

Sam'll sort 'em out.

You've acknowledged that the rules allow Lancashire to sign overseas players. The residency rules allow overseas players to play for England after 7 years. As it happens I would rather counties didn't sign so many overseas players because I like to see local lads in the Lancashire team But that's not the point. The likes of Stokes, Pietersen, Trott, Prior etc etc etc etc have mostly English roots and have made England their home. Stokes has been here since he was 11, talks like a good Cumbria lad and probably would not want to play for NZ anyway. The bottom line is birthplace is irrelevant. Do you seriously expect Ted Dexter to play for Italy, Douglas Jardine, Colin Cowdrey and Bob Woolmer for India, Derek Pringle for Kenya, Phil Edmonds for Zambia, Freddie Brown for Peru, Dermot Reeve for Hong Kong or Geraint Jones for Papua New Guinea ?? Get real. I played club cricket for 50 years so I know a thing or two about the game. What's your excuse ?

Correct, at last. It's called globalisation. You might have heard of it. Cricket's no different. Trott by the way is of English descent, via the famous Albert Trott. He also holds a British passport. Just so you know.

Trott's been in this country since he was 18 and has lived here ever since. He's been a very good player for England and was always proud to adopt his adopted country. Morgan's lived over here for donkey's years. You can't criticise players born overseas playing for England and celebrate others playing for Lancashire. Ted Dexter and Colin Cowdrey were born in India by the way - does that make them Indian ?

The rules also say overseas-born players can play for the countries they reside in after a certain length of time. Your argument re England is inconsistent and nonsensical.

I would expect all those players mentioned would say they feel more English than the countries they were born in. You've a very narrow view of the world.

Strauss has English parents, went to Radley school and Durham University. Compton is related to the late England great Denis Compton, has made England his home. Morgan is Irish but Irish, Scots and Welsh players have always played for England. Stokes came here when he was young, has lived in Cumbria ever since and talks like a good northern lad. Nasser Hussain has lived in England since he was child and rose to be England captain. Trott's lived here since his late teens, his family home is in Birmingham and he has put down roots here, same with Pietersen and all the rest you mention. England's only "offence" (to some people) is that it is a multicultural open society that accepts and integrates people from all over the world - including cricketers. I'm not sure what your problem is. .

Dreadful news about Taylor. Having to give up a game he loved playing at 26 is terrible. A real blow for England too - a very good batsman at all forms of the game.. This is nonsense. England haven't "offended" at anything.

One thing is clear - if this current team lines up at the start of next season we will go down - with or without Lambert.

Stokes merely fed the shot whereas a grizzled old league pro would have put the the ball in the block. Poor bowling.

Smith's an immature, nasty bit of work. I wouldn't like him as captain of my country.

It's a shame we didn't have this defensive resilience 2 seasons ago when we were among the top scorers in the league but couldn't stop shipping goals.

Your team got stuffed in the proper cricket, and you were nowhere to be seen. Now your team is suddenly winning the slap and tickle stuff, you're back. Poor.

That's the phrase I was looking for "dead cat bounce" - usually used in stock market context after a large fall in share prices but describes perfectly the false dawn and hope in the first few weeks after Lambert arrived. Dead cat bounces are usually followed in the stockmarket but further falls that are deeper and last longer than the first one - and we appear to be in that phase now. The problem is, where is the market bottom - when we sink into the bottom 3 ? For me, Lambert has one more game to show he can turn the corner. The performance at Middlesbrough showed the potential so I'll forgive him yesterday because of the injuries. Assuming those players return in midweek, Lambert has to get it right against Fulham and deliver 3 points. Otherwise I think he'll be seen as a busted flush.

Sick feeling in my stomach this is a re-run of the 1970s when the club went into into a spiral of decline. I don't rate Lambert and have no confidence he will stop it.

How many players can you name who drop out of the professional game in their teens and then fight back their way back, all the way to the top flight and England team ? This isn't a "love-in" but a player deserves a pat on the back when it's due. Whichever way you look at it, Vardy's is an extraordinary story. Lambert's results have been poor; criticism on here has been pretty mild really. If Lambert is still here in 10 years I'll eat my flat cap.

Vardy has fought back from being released by Sheffield Wednesday as a junior and going into the amateur game to forge an excellent career that has seen him score 101 goals in 195 senior games, including 23 in 58 Premier League appearances. This season he has been recognised as the outstanding forward in the league and is tipped for a big money move in the summer. He has also won 4 England caps and is likely to lead England's attack in the European championships this summer. It is quite likely that he is a late developer but the fact he has established himself at the top later in his career is testament to his qualities as a person and a player. I would imagine that most players would gladly have adopted Vardy's lifestyle if they could be in his boots now.

I don't know anything about his "lifestyle" but to judge from the player Vardy has become every player should do it.

And how did all the "big" Lancashire clubs miss him when he was running his socks off for Fleetwood ? Kudos to Leicester for gambling £1m on him - no doubt they'll receive a huge offer for him this summer.

Vardy is phenomenon - no doubt about it. There's not many forwards who can beat a man, run with the ball at pace and finish like he does. Like all the best players in the modern game, he also works very hard, never stops - which is one of Rhodes's failings. He can be excused for being technically poor, but there's no excuse for not putting a shift in. It's astonishing to think that this time last year Leicester were in 20th place, and looking doomed to the drop. It must be one of the most remarkable turnaround stories in sport and, if they win the title, will probably put our 1995 triumph in the shade.

Graham was a fine player a few years ago but looks past his sell-by date to me. Hopefully he can notch a few goals before the end of the season to help us avoid the drop but I'm hoping Lambert has signed him only as a stop-gap until the summer. I certainly wouldn't like to see him signed permanently.

Wrong question. If you have anything to say to me please use PM, not a public forum. .

There was no goading - merely a request for an answer to a legitimate question on Stuart's pet subject. He responded with an insult. Stuart compared Rhodes to Cole so it was bound to bring a response.

All I did was request an answer to a perfectly legitimate question (admittedly asked by another member) - which you've still refused to answer. You chose to respond with an insult. You've served your time for insulting members over the years. You need to forget about Rhodes. He's gone.