Wigan Preview

[brfcs5359]

1. Dunn and Bentley were outstanding.

2. Roque and Roberts a handful - drop peds and play Benni in the hole

3. Peds poor - though ProZone will probably show how hard he works despite his poor control/passing

4. Ooijer is not a full back, bring back Emerton

6th .... Game on ....

and Tugay is finished unless we play a) a poor team play two attacking midfielders in front of him.

[Fife Rover]

Don't be such an arse, you clearly posted your opinion on Samba yesterday before you had seen any of the highlights of today's game.

I obviously have no problem whatsoever with anyone who has not been to the ground passing an opinion, howevever I stand by my original view that your initial character assassination of Samba was well over the top without having seen what actually happened.

The incident did happen in front of me and imo Samba didn't do a great deal wrong. Yes, with the benefit of hindsight he should not maybe have made any challenge at all, but he has to make a split second decision and was just trying to put the striker off. On another day the striker might not have gone down and Samba's actions might have been enough to unsettle the striker sufficiently.

A point you seem to be more or less conceding having climbed off your high horse long enough to view the highlights on your all singing and dancing DVD player.

I dont recall using any obscene comments in any of my posts RB, so why do you choose to do so in reply?

Also I suggest that before you jump in to try and make cheap jibes at the expense of other posters you actually READ what they are saying and give it just the a little thought before rushing in to print.

That aside, just look again at my post and tell me what on Earth gives you any inkling that I was referring to the match against Wigan? What I was doing was agreeing with Esulx that Samba has been playing well below his capabilties for some time now, and that it is time to rest him and give the coaching staff a chance to rectify the problem. That is all I meant, and if you can see any reference in my post to the Wigan match then perhaps you should point it out, because I can assure you there was none meant and I can see nothing in there that scould possibly lead anyone to think that way.

[AndyC]

handbags anyone?

I went along to ewood yesterday and I havent had the opportunity to see us in the flesh for a few months now. Things I noted

1. Dunn has improved immensly.

2. Pederson still has a confidence problem, but he made up for it yesterday with sheer hard work. He must have run about 10 miles.

3. Bentley was outstanding. Everytime he got the ball, you sensed he would split the defense open, or create something.

4. Friedal is still immense and always will be!

5. We give away hundreds of silly fouls. I lost count how many times we cynically pulled someone when he went past. Not sure if Hughes condones this, but I was very surprised at the frequency. Granted, the ref wasn't the best, but to be honest, both teams made it quite difficult for him not to blow his whistle.

6. Wigan are the worst team I have seen for a long time. They deserve to be in the bottom 3 playing like that. When we went to 10 men, they didn't close us down and they didn't stretch us on either side of midfield.

7. Hughes was a tactical genius when we went to 10. Most teams would have played 4 4 1. To play 3 in midfield worked very well.

All in all - a very happy rovers return for me!

Although the queue for a beer at half time....!!!

[thenodrog]

All in all - a very happy rovers return for me!

Although the queue for a beer at half time....!!!

Hardly any queue in the JW for beer but the queue for bovril coffee is immense.

[Presty On Tour]

good job by the 10 men, samba was just stupid.

yeah heskey fell like a snipper had shot him but it was samba's idiocy that made it happen, you can't do that when a player is through on goal.

the 3 man enforced midfield were excellent, the effort from the whole team never made us look that we were a player short.

well pleased especially as in the race for europe results have gone in our favor this weekend.

[Sandiway Blue]

good job by the 10 men, samba was just stupid.

yeah heskey fell like a snipper had shot him but it was samba's idiocy that made it happen, you can't do that when a player is through on goal.

the 3 man enforced midfield were excellent, the effort from the whole team never made us look that we were a player short.

well pleased especially as in the race for europe results have gone in our favor this weekend.

I agree,i can`t believe fans were booing the ref when he sent Samba off.Imo the ref was spot on Samba clearly pushed him in the back and was the "last man" so really the ref had no choice.

Fair play though to the 10 men who worked their socks off to get a result,even better as other results had gone for us.

[Neil Weaver]

Stand to be corrected by the likes of Fife who has no doubt recorded it, but I thought Ooijer's header that ended up putting Heskey away was anything but deliberate : if it was intentional then fair enough, Ooijer deserves a kick up the a**e. We all know Heskey goes down like a ton of bricks whenever anyone is within breathing distance, now Samba does too. Harsh sending off in the light of things like Cashley's antics, but them's the rules.

Who was it asking when was the last time we played well (a few weeks ago)? Well it was yesterday. Hard to find any player who was below par, even the likes of Reid did OK at right back. Maybe it says something about the strength of the opposition. But Fulham were worse than Wigan so that reason doesn't always hold water.

Just stumbled on Stuart Hall's match report - amusing as always with talk of fiery codpieces and runaway wardrobes........... worth a listen

[den]

Stand to be corrected by the likes of Fife who has no doubt recorded it, but I thought Ooijer's header that ended up putting Heskey away was anything but deliberate : if it was intentional then fair enough, Ooijer deserves a kick up the a**e.

Ooijer wasn't trying to head the ball backwards, didn't think anyone believed that line.

[Sandiway Blue]

Stand to be corrected by the likes of Fife who has no doubt recorded it, but I thought Ooijer's header that ended up putting Heskey away was anything but deliberate : if it was intentional then fair enough, Ooijer deserves a kick up the a**e. We all know Heskey goes down like a ton of bricks whenever anyone is within breathing distance, now Samba does too. Harsh sending off in the light of things like Cashley's antics, but them's the rules.

Who was it asking when was the last time we played well (a few weeks ago)? Well it was yesterday. Hard to find any player who was below par, even the likes of Reid did OK at right back. Maybe it says something about the strength of the opposition. But Fulham were worse than Wigan so that reason doesn't always hold water.

Just stumbled on Stuart Hall's match report - amusing as always with talk of fiery codpieces and runaway wardrobes........... worth a listen

Ah yes Stuart Hall...... absolute legend.

Entertainment at its best !! :lol:

[Claytons Left Boot]

With regard to the way the modern game is played and the way 15 stone fairies like Heskey hit the deck so easily (ie.cheat), by contrast there was a refreshing throw back to when the game was contested by real men in today's Sunday Telegraph.

A piece about the great Tommy Smith of Liverpool. He joked that he has so much metal in him (hip replacement, knee reconstructions & assorted inserts here and there) that he sets off all metal detectors within a few miles of his home.

As the players ran out at Anfield for a game against Spurs, Smith passed a piece of paper to Jimmy Greaves. What's this says Greaves. Just open it says Smith. It was a menu from the Liverpool Infirmary!

On another occasion during a European game, Smith suffered a gash from just below the knee to the area above his ankle, leaving his shin bone open to the elements. To the astonishment of both the ref and the continentals Smith pulled up his sock and carried on, before being forced off by the ref for treatment. In the treatment room there was only enough stuff to give him four stitches, each an inch apart! Patched up he was back on.

During another game, Smith went down holding his knee. It's my knee boss, says Smith to Shankley. Smith was ordered to get up and get on with it and that it was not his knee. It was the property of Liverpool FC!

Brilliant stuff..............Heskey? Just another modern day tart.

[ABBEY]

What i want to know is the flaming hell heskey managed to stay upright in the blizzard just before h/t i mean he cant normally stay on his feet. I cant believe people are sticking up for the ref,ok pen for sure ...but lets have it right if he wants to implement the letter of the law lets have it a fair ref for both teams,there were loads of bad decisions no more so than santa having his legs taken from under him in the area....WELL DONE ROVERS IT WAS GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! EACH AND EVERY ONE

[AggyBlue]

i can`t believe fans were booing the ref when he sent Samba off.Imo the ref was spot on Samba clearly pushed him in the back and was the "last man" so really the ref had no choice.

Samba didn't clearly 'push him in the back' but merely touched his shoulder with his hand.

How many supporters in attendance would have been floored by a touch like that?

None. Exactly. Therefore Heskey took a dive and cheated. That's why the crowd booed.

Sadly until the referees stop giving these type of 'fouls', we will see more and more Heskey type collapses.

[JAL]

I find it unbelievable the number of people on Rovers messageboards who thought the referee Dean was poor in the Wigan game.

For me Dean had an exemplary game, faultless getting every decision right throughout the ninety minutes. The chant of 'your not fit to referee'yesterday smacked of ignorance.

I have to question how many fans know the Laws of the game and how they are interpreted, maybe now that referees are professional they should be running communications on the justification and implementation of the Laws of the game in various situations so that we can all be enlightened and a common understanding acheived to prevent misunderstanding in future.

[Beta Ray Bill]

I find it unbelievable the number of people on Rovers messageboards who thought the referee Dean was poor in the Wigan game.

For me Dean had an exemplary game, faultless getting every decision right throughout the ninety minutes. The chant of 'your not fit to referee'yesterday smacked of ignorance.

I have to question how many fans know the Laws of the game and how they are interpreted, maybe now that referees are professional they should be running communications on the justification and implementation of the Laws of the game in various situations so that we can all be enlightened and a common understanding acheived to prevent misunderstanding in future.

How many fouls did their number 11 commit before he was finally booked? Even the Wigan bench told him to calm down after about 30 minutes when he'd hacked Bentley for the umpteenth time.

It took Dean another half an hour to finally show the yellow, and then he pointed to almost every blade of grass on the pitch for persistent fouling. It's this type of performance that in no way equates to "expemplary".

[ABBEY]

and booking for diving ..JHC....has anyone ever been booked for diving against us?

[grizfoot]

Bentley was a different class. Roque best performance at Ewood. Dunn, Warnock & Roberts all played well as well. Can't really pick out anyone who had a bad game though. Makes you wonder how we couldn't beat Fulham with eleven men yet managed to easily brush aside Wigan with ten.

Also whenever Zurab & Ooijer have played together in the centre of defence we seem to look a lot more solid at the back. Think they've played together against Everton & Bolton as well as Saturday's game.

[ABBEY]

i thought reidy had his best game for yonk as well,i thought he was motm

[JAL]

How many fouls did their number 11 commit before he was finally booked? Even the Wigan bench told him to calm down after about 30 minutes when he'd hacked Bentley for the umpteenth time.

It took Dean another half an hour to finally show the yellow, and then he pointed to almost every blade of grass on the pitch for persistent fouling. It's this type of performance that in no way equates to "expemplary".

Dont think he fouled as many times as you may think and some of the so called fouls were very soft but they were called correctly by the referee Dean.

Your interpretation of what justifies a caution seems skewed from the referees and i think there lies an opportunity to begin a TV show just on refereeing decisions.

Dean did very well yesterday instead of the ###### coming from certain Rovers fans about his performance which just smacks of ignorance and a lack of respect.

[grizfoot]

i thought reidy had his best game for yonk as well,i thought he was motm

Always thought Reid looked a little dodgey when playing at RB in the past. But yesterday he was brilliant, did the job of two players at times with the right flank all to himself.

[Sandiway Blue]

Samba didn't clearly 'push him in the back' but merely touched his shoulder with his hand.

How many supporters in attendance would have been floored by a touch like that?

None. Exactly. Therefore Heskey took a dive and cheated. That's why the crowd booed.

Sadly until the referees stop giving these type of 'fouls', we will see more and more Heskey type collapses.

I totally agree that Heskey went down like a sack of spuds way too easy,but if you put your hands on somebody like Samba did (especially BOTH hands),in a penalty area,then they are asking for trouble.Samba should have known better and been a `bit wiser` to the event.

Either Samba was very naive or he isn`t as good a defender as we think he is.

[ABBEY]

Dean did very well yesterday instead of the ###### coming from certain Rovers fans about his performance which just smacks of ignorance and a lack of respect.

aye 35 years + and i know nowt ...

[Presty On Tour]

Always thought Reid looked a little dodgey when playing at RB in the past. But yesterday he was brilliant, did the job of two players at times with the right flank all to himself.

Didn't he do some work at right back in his Millwall days?

[tony gale's mic]

If that had been the other way round we would have been screaming for a penalty. It was a penalty, he didn't just "touch his shoulder with his hand", that's ridiculous. He had his hands all over him which you simply cannot do as the last man, sure Heskey went down very, very easily but you cannot fault Dean for giving a penalty. And if it was a penalty, it had to be a sending off.

[AggyBlue]

If that had been the other way round we would have been screaming for a penalty. It was a penalty, he didn't just "touch his shoulder with his hand", that's ridiculous. He had his hands all over him which you simply cannot do as the last man, sure Heskey went down very, very easily but you cannot fault Dean for giving a penalty. And if it was a penalty, it had to be a sending off.

Thanks for your opinion but i don't agree, especially when I think of some of the rugby tackles John Terry and many others have got away with in the area.

[RevidgeBlue]

I dont recall using any obscene comments in any of my posts RB, so why do you choose to do so in reply?

Also I suggest that before you jump in to try and make cheap jibes at the expense of other posters you actually READ what they are saying and give it just the a little thought before rushing in to print.

That aside, just look again at my post and tell me what on Earth gives you any inkling that I was referring to the match against Wigan? What I was doing was agreeing with Esulx that Samba has been playing well below his capabilties for some time now, and that it is time to rest him and give the coaching staff a chance to rectify the problem. That is all I meant, and if you can see any reference in my post to the Wigan match then perhaps you should point it out, because I can assure you there was none meant and I can see nothing in there that scould possibly lead anyone to think that way.

Don't want to prolong this fife, you're generally one of the more sensible posters on here.

I apologise if you thought I replied in an "obscene"** manner, I thought I initially raised a point in a reasonable and non abusive way and I thought you replied in a much less than reasonable manner if I'm being honest.

As regards whether Samba should be dropped, that's a different matter entirely. If Ooijer's daft header had put anyone else in an impossible position, and they'd been sent off instead, and we'd won comfortably, I don't think you'd be calling for Samba to be dropped.

I can however see where you're coming from in that respect, even the player or Mark Hughes would probably concede he isn't playing as well as earlier in the season. I'm sure Mark Hughes would love the luxury of giving him a rest but given the injuries to Nelsen and Emerton the alternative is Henchoz.

I'd rather go with Samba playing a bit below his best to be honest so I'll have to disagree with you there again.

** By the way I didn't find that word particularly offensive when the ventriloquist Ray Allen (was that his name?) and his dummy Lord Charles were using it on children's TV donkey's years ago!