1 hour ago, neophox said:

Nice to see Harry Chapman doing well in league one...maybe he can come back next season as a starter.

Always though there is a big talent there.......................just needs managing in the right way.

If Kipre ends up at PNE, which I think he will, our televised game against PNE should be very enlightening with Kipre and Whiteman in the opposition.

3 hours ago, matt83 said:

How about a groundsman and ceo and manager

Main points for me from a totally shite match:

• We won
• We are having more than our fair share of luck
• We were unconvincing
• Our football is horrible
• Good job we have Kaminski and not Walton

We are now in a terrific position to challenge.

Big question is will we get closer to the top six and then enter another 'death spiral'?

I don't think this league has ever been so poor and I honestly think with a combination of the luck we are having and the ability of some of our players to produce a moment of magic, we could just find ourselves back in the PL next season.  We are allowed to dream......................where's that nice bottle of red gone!

19 minutes ago, Craigman said:

No Pickering in Crewe squad today.

He's injured!

6 hours ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

Did I say they have  a better squad? I thought I said they have a decent one. Anyways, whether he inherited or signed them is irrelevant. 

I would take Tavernier, Fry and Assombolonga for sure, but the players I would like that they have specifically are Howson, McNair and Saville, who cost £6 million, £5.5 million and £8 million respectively in transfer fees alone. 

I think Tavernier is the jewel in the M'boro crown.  Think he will develop into a top PL player.

Would think the six you mention are all out of Rovers' reach financially (transfer fees, wages etc).

Would love Fry as well.

Never mind, will console myself with a takeaway and a nice red tonight!   

12 hours ago, JBiz said:

Someone mentioned something about us being in a position to find the best upcoming candidates.

Reminded me of an article on Southampton from a few years back.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2717975-inside-the-southampton-black-box-informing-their-manager-carousel
 

Talks about scouting, but interestingly how Les Reed and the clubs football structure side of things doesn’t change when the manager does - ie the “journey” or club outline is all about scouting young players that have the right character.

From what I can gather - the club still implements this system, and Martyn Glover oversees the direction of football.

For me they are an example of a similar club in size / revenues - a good example of what can be achieved, even losing good players and managers regularly.

They even make mention of knowing potential management targets contract expiry - can anyone imagine our directors doing this? Nope.

Think I'm right in saying that we had Martyn Glover at Rovers for over 10 years and he was Head of Player Recruitment for just over 2 years until he, IMO, unsurprisingly went to West Ham in Aug. 2011 - coincidence this was within 9 months of Venky's buying us, Jerome Anderson rocking up and Kean being appointed manager???

Only ever heard positive things said about Martyn Glover and, IMO, it's symptomatic of what's happened to Rovers since Venky's bought our club in Nov. 2010 - think quality personnel have been replaced by third raters (if you are lucky!) from top to bottom of our club and in all areas of the club.  IMO, the 'dumbing down' has been astounding and it's little wonder we are where we are.

Not worth debating.

Win at Middlesbrough will have confidence surging through the veins as though delivered by a minute exocet missile.

A stonking home banker.

At almost evens, a licence to print money - fill yer boots!

3 hours ago, Roversider said:

Let's roll back time to pre-season, would anyone be calling for Mowbray to go if we said we would be 6 points off the play-offs and be the top scorers in the Championship?  A lot of the antipathy relates to the disappointment following the outstanding start.

 

IMO, we have no identity as a footballing team - there is no structure, no certainty of formation, no plan B (difficult to believe there is even a plan A) and precious little hope with Mowbray in charge.

I think it's all reactive management by Mowbray, often making it up as he goes along.

A bit of context to what you describe as "the outstanding start".  We recorded big wins against Wycombe (in only their second match in this league and they currently prop up the league and it will be amazing if they move up even one place), the hapless Derby (who have sacked their manager and remain relegation fodder) and against 10 men Coventry and 10 men Preston.

As a supporter, I can't see progress, I can't see a pattern of play developing, we are unconvincing- all I hear, IMO, are Mowbray soundbites such as "evolution", "slow build" thrown in with copious amounts of bullsh1t about challenging the top six.

FFS, I simply don't think it's good enough.  I think Waggott, Mowbray, Venus etc are all on 'Easy Street' and need bombing out.  We need a CEO and manager with one objective - promotion in the quickest possible time.

So Chelsea sack Lampard.

Well done Abramovich.

He's backed Lampard to the hilt in the market and clearly decided results aren't good enough and he has not seen sufficient progress and has therefore acted decisively.

It’s a results business and Lampard can't complain - apart from an early flourish, Chelsea have looked far from convincing.

And this leads us to Mowbray.  IMO, results aren't good enough, there are no tangible signs of progress and we are unconvincing.  Our owners need to act decisively and sack Mowbray - there is no room for sentiment in either sport or business as Abramovich has shown. 

I just don't think the lad has any ability.

IMO, what he offers can be found down at Pleasington every Saturday / Sunday.

I honestly doubt this lad will be earning a living from the game by the time he's 24.

3 minutes ago, chaddyrovers said:

 

another usually rant from yourself. Same Mercer just different day. no difference to any other day. 

 

Delighted you are happy Chaddy and no doubt, similar to your cover photo, you are in your living room jumping up and down like a demented terrier.

Calm down, treat yourself to a takeaway, enjoy a beer and have a nice night!

6 minutes ago, HowieFive0 said:

If ..If ..If ..Christ anyone would think you wanted us to get beat Merce  (1-0 boro Merce ??)..its football shit happens for and against Rovers won .. happy days ..yeah ..??

Yeah we won.

Just hope Mowbray and co and posters on here contain their outrage when a key decision goes against us.

I've always argued that over the course of a season, you get decisions that go both for you and against you and, at the end of the season, they balance out.

Of course I'll take the win but it shouldn't overshadow the facts that it was fortuitous and, sadly, only serves to, IMO, paper over the cracks that are widening by the week. 

23 minutes ago, Mashed Potatoes said:

I thought the criticism of us was that we were too nice.

So you are condoning the incident?

1 minute ago, den said:

Apart from that penalty appeal, there were another 89 mins of football for Boro to score goals and they didn’t. They weren’t good enough.

The talk of the penalty is just diverting away from that.

True but that incident changed the course of the match.

Down to 10 men and one down from the penalty spot, we would have been on course for a hiding just as Rovers handed out to other teams (when down to 10 men) earlier this season.

IMO, Branthwaite should have gone with a penalty awarded.  Full stop.

Would have been a free kick and, most likely, a red card anywhere else on the pitch.

Inexperienced or not, you simply can't challenge for the ball with your foot six feet in the air.  It was both reckless and dangerous and Fry could easily have had his eye taken out.  If that happened against us, there would have been uproar on here.

Nothing at all has changed with today's fortunate win.

IMO, we've a manager who revels in disorganised chaos.

I think the longer Mowbray stays, the longer we will be from challenging to get back into the PL.

1 minute ago, Stonesrick said:

For those oldies on here he reminds me of David Helliwell (Spider). He was technically good but too lightweight. Had a decent career at Workington who in those days were in Division 4 (League 2)

IMO, 'spider' was a much more gifted footballer.

I've watched football for decades and rarely has a player underwhelmed me so much as Buckley - just wtf does the lad offer!?

Sadly, I think David Helliwell died in his early fifties.  By all accounts, he was a very decent lad. 

10 minutes ago, Mashed Potatoes said:

He's a similar style of player to Vardy in that he's best suited to a counter attacking team. Worth remembering that at his age Armstrong is some way ahead of where Vardy was.

IMO Armstrong will never, ever reach the heights of Vardy.

He has nowhere near the football intelligence Vardy has nor the overall game.

Chalk and cheese.

1 hour ago, jim mk2 said:

"Klopp is a big fan of how Rovers play"...... commentator

Knocked my bottle of red over when I heard that and I'm not joking!

Had to pour a bottle of white over carpet to prevent staining - fortunately has worked!

Totally unconvincing.

Mowbray got lucky we didn't concede penalty and go down to 10 men - don't want Mowbray to moan about decisions ever again.

Branthwaite raw - is he really better than Carter or Magloire?

Douglas - IMO, robbing a living.

Davenport - don't think he has it or ever will.

Travis - don't think lad's fit.  Not the same player.

Buckley - FFS, a £10million PL player!?!?  Think this lad will be lucky to be ANYWHERE in the FL soon.

Armstrong - needs to get back to basics - think it's gone to his head.

We got lucky today, again!

Awful, awful match.

If this is progressive and entertaining football @chaddyrovers then forget it.  Think there'll be plenty of space at Ewood when fans are allowed back in.

Mowbray out, out, out.

7 minutes ago, Paul Mani said:

The most accurate reflection I can give is that we are playing like a freshly assembled team. We certainly are not a team who have had a manager in charge for 4yrs...no fluency, no pattern of play..please make it stop! 

Think it's time your 'mates' told Mowbray it's time to go!

2 hours ago, chaddyrovers said:

 

mercer, The same weekly rant at one of my post. why? 

A MB is for debate, discussion, opinions and views.

If you want to post and not expect feedback when views differ then it's time to put away your keyboard and take up fishing or stamp collecting.

4 hours ago, chaddyrovers said:

would you want to watch Dyche or McCarthy type of football regular basis and do you agree that type of football has a certain shelf life before fans get bore of it and depend a change of style? 

Look at Hughes and the job he did at Rovers and change style to more attacking style over time and signed excellent players whilst on a limited Budget. He proved it can be done on a limited budget. Or Rodgers at Swansea 

I like watching Southampton play and I have been very impress by Ralph Hassenhuntl there. His style of football is good and enjoyable to watch. 

A bit rich!

IMO, in the main, Mowbray has churned out absolutely dire football - his footballing philosophy is a myth.

I would watch a Dyche team every day of the week over a Mowbray team because I knew the team would know what they were doing and it would be successful!

IMO, Mowbray's football, in the main, is both ugly and unsuccessful.  He failed to keep us up, as he was appointed to, and since returning to the Championship we've stood still as evidenced by our league position, points tally and distance from play offs at this stage of the season in each of the three seasons we've been back.

I think it's a feckin awful journey Mowbray has taken us on - stop the train, I want to get off to be sick.

1 hour ago, Gav said:

I particularly liked this bit:

“I hope that I’ve brought a football mentality, I bring values to a club, I live my life by a certain set of values and I’m from a working class family and I know what’s right and wrong and how to deal with life and that’s what they get from me, open and honesty, and that’s what my team get from me as well.

After the likes of King Rat, Coyle, Agnew, Singh and Shaw we must never under estimate what bringing a footballing mentality and morals back to the club actually means.

Its not the sexy part, most wouldn't give it a second thought, but bringing this ethos back to the club is a massive challenge after pillage and plunder by the scumbags above, but a challenge Tony Mowbray has succeeded in doing in my opinion and hopefully will set us up long term, as long as the next appointment isn't another disaster....

Sorry Gav but not buying it.

Think Mowbray is a master bullsh1tter and, sadly, too many fall for it.  To me, an evening with Mowbray in Blues Bar, Feb. 2019 merely cemented my long held suspicions. 

IMO, he's not the self purported humble, honest, man of integrity etc - he's in it for number one and it's all about self preservation as he very likely knows he will never get another relatively lucrative gig, with little pressure, like this one.

3 hours ago, arbitro said:

Mowbray will be like a dog with two dicks for this game. Live on Sky, one of Boro's favourite sons returning and he will regale bore anybody who can be bothered listening about how he used to sit on his dads shoulders to go to the game, John Hickton and the Holgate End sucking the ball into the goal yadda, yadda.

I really don't think we will get anything here despite The Riverside being a good ground for using recent years. Warnock will have Mowbray on toast.

Think you are right.

Also think Warnock will be supremely motivated to smack Rovers in the face after he was supposedly lined up to take on the manager's job here only to be hijacked by Coyle and co. 

Seems like M'boro were 'at it' against Forest and impressed Warnock.

Think this will be a feisty one and not sure we'll end up with 22 left on the pitch with, IMO, Travis the first one to get his marching orders.