I'm very upset about this. Loved watching him as a player, lived near him, played footy with his son, received the cup from him after winning a schools final at Ewood. Lovely man, gentleman footballer with no equivalent in the modern game. .

Allison signed Tony Book from Bath City at the age of 31, and made him City captain ! Different era, very different people.

Not for nervous flyers ! http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38882789

Odd comment seeing the Leeds - Liverpool canal is closed because of a lack of water ! Weather's been perfect as far as I am concerned.

It has been suggested the man who died deliberately tried to head the bin. I ain't a legal eagle but if that is the case I'm not sure it can be manslaughter ?

Sad story just got worse. Hopefully the players will rise to the occasion and do it for a true Rovers fan.

BBC reporting the man who died was aged 30. It has been suggested on here that he tried to head the flying bin - is this true ?

The London media's going to love this - another stick with which to beat little Blackburn Rovers. RIP.

Possibly, but only because McCarthy refused to respond to Allardyce's instructions to act profesionally and look after his body properly. What does any organisation do with an employee with a bad attitude and not pulling their weight (so to speak) ? They get rid.

1 football Blackburn 2nd Nightlead ALLARDYCE BIDS FURIOUS FAREWELL By Martyn Ziegler, Chief Reporter, Press Association Sport Sam Allardyce delivered a farewell blast to Benni McCarthy after Blackburn agreed a fee with West Ham to sign the South Africa striker. McCarthy has gone AWOL this week in an attempt to force through a transfer but such action may have been unnecessary after the clubs agreed a fee believed to be £2.25million. The 32-year-old stayed away from training for the last three days, with some reports saying he was in Spain, and his behaviour drew the ire of Rovers boss Allardyce. Allardyce condemned McCarthy as ``unprofessional'' and said his conduct is symptomatic of selfishness and disloyalty shown by many players. Allardyce told Press Association Sport: ``What he's done is unprofessional. It shows you that the only loyalty a player has got is to himself. ``This is what we deal with today in football, there's not such a thing as loyalty as there used to be in the older days when I was a player. ``It's a selfish attitude they have and that's not just about Benni, that's all players today. If they want something they do anything to try and get it.'' Allardyce said McCarthy may have been badly advised. He added: ``If he is trying to manipulate a move by staying away it's not the right thing to do. ``Sometimes players will get advised wrongly and I think whoever is advising him to stay away is very wrong as he's done himself no favours.'' Blackburn have been linked with Turkey international Yildiray Basturk from Stuttgart, Stoke's James Beattie and Eidur Gudjohnsen, once a player with Allardyce at Bolton and now at Monaco. Allardyce hinted at interest them, saying: ``If those players are available we may start negotiations but the first thing would be to contact the club.'' McCarthy is, of course, absent from the Blackburn squad for tomorrow's home match with Wigan and Chris Samba is suspended but David Dunn has recovered from a knock and is available. Jason Roberts also comes back into the Rovers squad, although midfielder Vince Grella is still sidelined with a thigh strain. Allardyce wants his players to build on the form that saw them lose 6-4 in the Carling Cup semi-final to Aston Villa despite being reduced to 10 men. He added: ``If we win it's back to back victories in the Premier League and that is incredibly important. ``Wigan are a good side but we were not clinical enough when we played them before and drew 1-1, but we should have confidence to put in a good performance at home. ``It was very disappointing to go out of the Carling Cup at that stage but now we have only the Premier League to concentrate on.'' end

Would Ronnie and Bryan be Rovers players if they were around today ? Very doubtful. Bryan also tried to get a move at one stage but was quickly slapped down by Jack Marshall (I think). I know what you mean about loyalty though, and I would certainly put Pedersen in the same bracket as those two. Characters such as McCarthy come and go, time to move on chaps.

McCarthy has always had a poor attitude - it's why many so-called "big clubs" decided not to buy him before Hughes took the plunge and managed to get him cheap. He's been a good signing on the whole but after that excellent first season he has slowly lapsed into his old ways and from what I have been hearing is a bad influence in the dressing room. The club will be better off without him but the timing of this episode with an important match against Wigan tomorrow is unfortunate to say the least.

Not turning up for training is something you would expect of a Sunday player, not a supposedly top-class professional. . McCarthy quite frankly is taking the pi$$ out of Rovers. Anyone backing him and using this situation as a stick to beat the manager is not a true Rovers supporter.

McCarthy is still on the Rovers payroll and should be hit with a massive fine for his behaviour. More interesting is West Ham's role in this, probably instructing the player to stir up trouble to secure his move. Fantastic build-up for the Wigan game. Thank you Benni.

Alternatively, Benni is clearly a headstrong very obstinate man who doesn't 'knuckle down' even when he is being unprofessional. Personally I'm sure that, if I had a Champions League winners medal, I would looked at myself when being gently chided in the press by a manager who has always given 100 per cent his entire life. Obviously he will go and I don't see why Allardyce's criticism in the press about his fitness, work-rate affected the player one iota iota, psychology of the individual and all that.

The cleaners at Ewood have always been hard-working, conscientious ladies in my experience although I did spot a speck of dust behind the aspidistra the last time I was in the boardroom.

Classic McCarthy last night. Good ball from defence played up to him but because he never looks along the back line he was caught offside. He's scored some good goals for Rovers but my main memory after he's left will always be him being offside time and time again. He's also a lazy so-and-so. Rooney showed the previous night the sort of shift a top-class striker has to put in.

Hands up all those who think McCarthy constantly wandering offside because he cannot do basics such as look along the opposition backline, failing to make runs into gaping holes in defences and generally looking as if he could not care less, is "fantastic to watch".

McCarthy has only himself to blame for his lack of match time this season. He returned to the club clearly overweight after a summer of excess, was plainly unfit at the start of the season and since then has shown little inclination to buckle down and work for a living as Allardyce rightly demands of all his players. In these straitened times McCarthy is a luxury Rovers cannot afford. Time to move on.

Exactement. Poor professional with a poor attitude who does not look after his body properly. Au revoir et bon chance Benni.

The Champions League is a bore. But the old European Cup with knockout ties in every round was a fantastic, exciting competition. Looking back, the 1970/80s with Uefa Cup in Tuesday nights, the European Cup on Wednesday and the Cup-winners' Cup on Thursday were halcyon days for European football. Sky TV has much to answer for.

What happened to David Dunn....didn't he used to play for Rovers ? Also, 1960s players Alan Bradshaw and Ian Kendall ?

Um, how about Villa ??

Some furious defending of the indefensible by our convict cousins of their countrymen but it doesn't wash. Average player earning a ludicrous wage, just like most of the rest.

Chelsea made Barcelona look a poor side over 180 minutes. Not for the first time Ferguson has been exposed tactically.