Miller11

That certainly killed our momentum. For me February was the turning point. As soon as the January window shut and he got his squad rejigged a bit, it started. The tombola came out player wise, and his stubborn head came out in terms of formation. While that phenomenal run was over in January, we were still looking pretty good. The Swansea game was a different story, dropping Brereton and Khadra to the bench and starting Giles and Hedges up top and Zeefuik at left back. Again he was stubborn and didn’t make a proactive change - the subs only occurred after they went down to 10 and shut up shop. We followed that up with a defeat by Forest, where he dropped Nyambe for Zeefuik for no reason. Nyambe put in a MOTM performance next time out against West Brom, but then got subbed off for Dolan against 10 man Sheff Utd who promptly went on to score the winner. Gallagher for whatever reason only set foot in the box about twice all that game, and has hardly been back in it since (Cardiff aside). He’s doubled down on the false 9. Pushed the midfielder forward more, and the strikers wider. It’s like he’s trying to prove he was right not to bring a proper forward in, except it’s completely failing and he just looks stubborn and stupid.

Couldn’t agree more. If it needs “freshening up” at any point we can switch Khadra for Dolan.

Can’t really understand what you are saying here. Are you saying you wouldn’t play Nyambe? If so that seems madness.

Whether we play 4 or 5 at the back at least we have Nyambe - our only competent right sided player back available.

I really don’t understand the clamour for either Dunn of Johnson. Dunn has failed miserably in every post playing role he’s had. I get the love for his playing exploits, but the free pass he gets for backing Kean and turning on the fans is more than reward enough for that without giving him a job out of sentiment. Johnson’s playing career with us was completely unremarkable, a bit like his visible contributions to our coaching staff. I do believe he was and is a big proponent of the possession based crap we had to endure last season. I don’t think he has anywhere near the presence or personality to manage us in the short term. Any new man should be allowed to pick his own staff. That’s essential if we are to attract anyone half decent… not that Venky’s will care about that.

I think we ought to be looking for a long term appointment - someone who might give us a hope of playoffs, but also someone who could take on the massive rebuilding job if we don’t. Johnson and all the rest of them would be out of the door too… a new man with his own staff. I wouldn’t let Dunn anywhere near.

“You have to drive the guy next to you on and that is what football is and some of them have fallen a bit short in that area” Like you were doing when you were sat sulking like a mardy teenager all second half on Tuesday Tony? Maybe they are learning from you eh?

This season had to be the culmination of the fabled journey. It’s been evident for a while that the squad will break up this summer. A big slice of good fortune, the unexpected rise of Diaz, some momentary excellent form, and an unexceptional Championship gave us a chance of promotion. Unfortunately it’s also been a season of record losses, record barren spells and typical horrific runs. He stumbled across something that worked, but couldn’t wait to deviate from it. Bollocks Buckley has played as a false 9 all season, he looked great as an attacking midfielder who closed down high up the pitch, but pushing him on further and further forward, and the strikers wider, has resulted in disaster. Its starting to look like sabotage at this point. No wonder people theorise that the club don’t want promotion. If Venky’s gave a toss he’d be gone before he set foot on the bus. Someone else might give us a slim chance of playoffs and we absolutely have to go for it - next season, and the foreseeable future looks horrific without promotion.

I’m having to listen to the radio today. It sounds pitiful.

I’m certainly willing to give it a try Glen! As a starting point, I’ll get the interview you and I did 18 months or so ago up on our new platform, and on Spotify too. With some of the recent comments cropping up it seems like there are people that need a little reminder of just how dysfunctional things were, and remain, under Venky’s.

Suppose this is as good a place as any to put this… That supposedly terrible goalkeeper who Mowbray was right to sell and Venky’s were astute business people for getting £3 million for has been called up for Spain. One of our youth products who certainly hasn’t struggled with the step up.

Mowbray Watch from the Derby game…

It’ll be very interesting to see what Mowbray goes with. There’s a definite argument to be made for going to a back 4, but personally I feel that the positioning of our forward players has been the issue lately rather than the number of defenders. As much as I wish it wasn’t the case, Dack looks a way off being ready to start games. A lot would also rest on whether Nyambe is fit or not. Ideally: Kaminski Lenihan Van Hecke Wharton Nyambe Giles Buckley Travis Rothwell Dolan Gallagher Otherwise: Kaminski Lenihan Van Hecke Wharton Pickering Buckley Travis Rothwell Dolan Gallagher Giles Lenihan isn’t ideal at right back, but neither is JRC at wing back. If we end up back at Gallagher marking corner flags out wide again I’ll despair. It shouldn’t take much to tactically outwit Paul Ince. 3 points is a must.

I don’t know how it came across on TV, but in Ewood I don’t think you could not get the impression that something went on at half time. As the first half progressed it descended into farce. It was a bit like it used to be back in the Kean days. Some players looked bemused, some looked pissed off, some exasperated. Travis was visibly not happy, I thought we might have another Batty/Le Saux moment with Lenihan and JRC, and it looked as though Johnson and Rothwell decided to make their own tactical change. On top of all this the fans were (rightly) livid. I came back up to my seat a couple of minutes before the restart and we were all complaining about how all the subs were still warming up so wouldn’t be coming on. Dack never came on to the pitch at half time on Saturday, so we weren’t expecting him to be there. All of a sudden he came out to the other subs and they quickly all headed down the tunnel. Gallagher clearly only entered the fray with a minute or so notice. The second half was full of urgency and fight. It was blindingly obvious that any game plan had been thrown out and in it’s place was a dogged determination to score the goals to get back in the game by any means necessary. There seemed a lot more togetherness and encouragement between the players, as well as a very deliberate attempt to get the crowd back onside. Then there’s the melancholic Mowbray post match interview. Something out of the ordinary definitely occurred.

I can’t believe some of the posts on here over the last hour or so. We are weeks away from seeing 3 players that we have spent a combined 25 years developing walk away for absolutely nothing. Praising Venky’s transfer acumen has to be an attempt to deliberately provoke other members of this forum.

Deja Vu…

If we are to credit Mowbray for making the changes that got us out of this rut, can we criticise him for doing it 10 and a half games too late?

Can’t believe anyone is willing to credit Mowbray with salvaging that game to be honest. Only by completely binning off all his match preparation, favoured shape, and bonkers ideas did we do anything. The first half was utterly disgraceful. As bad a 45 minutes as you will see. Not one player could’ve complained at being subbed off at half time. Few players deserve a mention for varying reasons… JRC - very bad. Praying Nyambe is back on Saturday Lenihan - uncharacteristically poor first half, but a leaders performance in the second. Playing him at full back is definitely not a long term option. Pickering - Woeful. Fortunate in the extreme to last the 90. Has to be dropped for Giles. Johnson - Mowbray’s latest and stupidest in a long line of idiotic decisions. Knackered after 8 minutes, not his fault. Gallagher - well played lad. Grafted, looked like a good centre forward rather than a massive donkey stood near the corner flag doing nothing. Dolan - excellent performance, eventually. Could have had a hat trick on another day. Always positive and looking to make things happen. Khadra - greedy and ineffective. A poor man’s Harvey Elliott. Looked like a spare part and completely out of place when the other forwards were doing the business in the second half. Dack - way off match fitness, but the one player who could play that ball for the second. Lifted those around him. The players came out like men possessed second half, all credit too them. But there has to be serious lessons learned from that first 45. I hope Gallagher’s header gave Mowbray some sort of epiphany. Keep the back 5, ditch the false 9, play the strikers centrally… we might still do it!

Imagine what Souness would say and do if Suhail Pasha knocked on his door and told him he had been summoned to Pune by the Venky’s.

One of my all time favourites. The visible decline in his health over the last 20 years has been very noticeable. The demons clearly taking their toll.

I don’t think we need to move away from the back 5, we just need to stop playing our forwards so wide, and Buckley needs to be less advanced… an attacking midfielder rather than the focal point of the attack. I’d start… . Kaminski Lenihan Van Hecke Wharton Nyambe/JRC Giles Buckley Travis Rothwell Dolan Gallagher I don’t think Gallagher deserves to start, but he’s in by default. He’d be under strict instruction to stay central and I’d sub him off the first time he went within 10 yards of either touchline. I do realise this will never happen as it negates the 10 or so wide forwards Mowbray has stockpiled and obsessed over.

There’s loads of screen grabs of the penalty doing the rounds, but I think this one is far more relevant…

Point by point… 1. I take it you are referring to the desperate substitution that totally unbalanced us? We all know Gallagher will be a wider than ever forward again on Tuesday. 2. I could certainly do with a lift after that debacle, and the shit show we’ve experienced this calendar year, and I expect I’m not alone. If the players aren’t gutted and really disappointed in themselves this evening they aren’t worth their salt… so yeah, they might need a lift too. Maybe they wouldn’t look like rabbits in headlights whenever they got near the opposition box either. 3. He’s going because he has been summoned by the stupid, arrogant twats. They expect slavish obedience, and if they demand it before the 30th of June, of course he will go. It’s not beyond the realms of possibility that they will offer him another deal, but if we fail to make the playoffs it’s yet another unforgivably bad decision by them. I reckon he’s got retirement plans anyway. 4. Well according to you, they won’t get a better offer from another club anyway. Perhaps Waggott should get you to have a word with the players and tell them how lucky they are, maybe give their agents a dose of Chaddyreality too. 5. Of course it’s not guaranteed, particularly with who our moronic owners will turn to for a replacement, but I think it’s more likely than Mowbray arresting this slide in time to salvage a playoff spot. 6. I’m not going to bring anyone in. HSH are. If it had been down to me none of the managers Venky’s have appointed would get near the door. Obviously Mowbray has been their best appointment, but that’s like being the nicest guy in prison. He’s bang average. You don’t think that any of our players can do better than our club, but you don’t think our club can do better than Mowbray?

Not that I think there is any chance of it happening, but there are several arguments you could make as to why it could be positive. - We’d likely see a change in style/shape, and by do we need it! Mr Stubborn will just keep doing the same thing and expecting different results - It might give the fans a lift and the players a kick up the arse - He’s likely off at the end of the season anyway, so why not get a new man in now to assess what he might be working with? Might even be able to persuade some of the lads with contracts expiring that their future lies at Rovers. - New manager bounce would be lovely right now.

“I’m going to play Gallagher in certain games because he’s got the physicality, the speed, the power, and I’m trying to give him the game-time because you can’t score a goal if you’re sitting on the bench. I think he has to try and get into the areas between the sticks to score goals.” Well today both him and Khadra were as wide as ever. Gallagher spent most of our attacks deeper than Pickering and JRC. I don’t know who is to blame, but it doesn’t work. He HAS to change things on Tuesday, but the stubbornness will win out.