[Archived] Sam Allardyce

[ABBEY]

i saw us in the 3rd division .Granted as a boy but was at bury on that great night.

Im not being funny or awkward or anything but there were major grumblings on saturday at half time ,not because of the score but the way old big head had set the stall out and the non entertainment on show.I hold my hat up the second half was better but if the first half showing is sams first choice of style then im afraid for football because if thats the future it aint to bright.It wasnt one or two boos it was blooody thousands.Seriously if we had not won and his gamble hadnt paid off( i know it did this time and hes not arsed about away games ) he would have blamed the fans.

[S15]

No he wouldn't. You hate Allardyce and that is causing you to act irrationally and talk nonsense.

The home football this season has been good, and 75% of the time I've enjoyed watching the stuff we have played. West Ham first half and Pompey first half are the only two times it has been 'unacceptable.' However, we still picked up 4 points from those games.

Yes the away form is a problem, but I'd rather the home form was our foundation to build on, and not the other way round.

Allardyce is doing a good, steady job, and slowly building a team who will be comfortable in this division for as long as he is in charge.

That, to me, is doing a good job. Some of the stuff written on here lowers my opinion of Rovers fans far more than my opinion of the manager has been tainted by the odd tongue in cheek comment he's come out with.

[Miker]

so the first half was good enough for you was it...?

Sorry I didn't realise we're judging a whole season by 45 minutes of football. Here's a question for you: having the 5th best form in the league isn't good enough for you?

[Parsonblue]

i saw us in the 3rd division .Granted as a boy but was at bury on that great night.

Im not being funny or awkward or anything but there were major grumblings on saturday at half time ,not because of the score but the way old big head had set the stall out and the non entertainment on show.I hold my hat up the second half was better but if the first half showing is sams first choice of style then im afraid for football because if thats the future it aint to bright.It wasnt one or two boos it was blooody thousands.Seriously if we had not won and his gamble hadnt paid off( i know it did this time and hes not arsed about away games ) he would have blamed the fans.

Abbey, the slide I am talking about is that from the early sixties - when we topped the First Division - to the early seventies when slipped to the bottom of the old Third Division. We had no money, all the good players had to be sold and we had crowds that grew increasingly smaller. If we are relegated it is that kind of slide that will happen again.

At the end of the day, it is imperative that we stay in the Premier League and sadly, for our survival as a club, that is far more important than the entertainment factor. Having said that, apart from the West Ham game, and the first half on Saturday, I think the entertainment at Ewood as been OK this season.

Our major income is television money and not the gate money. Indeed, our revenue through the turnstile is becoming increasingly irrelevant because the fans are not prepared to pay Premier League prices and so the club have gambled in reducing prices to a level that makes it difficult to compete with those clubs around us.

Unfortunately, there are a number of fans - although I believe it to be a very small minority - who didn't want Big Sam in the first place which resulted in the madness of the Facebook campaign against him. However, they were prepared to put up with him while he saved us from relegation but now, once again, are voicing their prejudices against him.

At the end of the day the club have appointed him because they feel he is the right man for the job. As a supporter, I back him for the same reasons. I honestly believe that he is our best hope of avoiding the meltdown that relegation would bring.

[waggy]

Abbey, the slide I am talking about is that from the early sixties - when we topped the First Division - to the early seventies when slipped to the bottom of the old Third Division. We had no money, all the good players had to be sold and we had crowds that grew increasingly smaller. If we are relegated it is that kind of slide that will happen again.

At the end of the day, it is imperative that we stay in the Premier League and sadly, for our survival as a club, that is far more important than the entertainment factor. Having said that, apart from the West Ham game, and the first half on Saturday, I think the entertainment at Ewood as been OK this season.

Our major income is television money and not the gate money. Indeed, our revenue through the turnstile is becoming increasingly irrelevant because the fans are not prepared to pay Premier League prices and so the club have gambled in reducing prices to a level that makes it difficult to compete with those clubs around us.

Unfortunately, there are a number of fans - although I believe it to be a very small minority - who didn't want Big Sam in the first place which resulted in the madness of the Facebook campaign against him. However, they were prepared to put up with him while he saved us from relegation but now, once again, are voicing their prejudices against him.

At the end of the day the club have appointed him because they feel he is the right man for the job. As a supporter, I back him for the same reasons. I honestly believe that he is our best hope of avoiding the meltdown that relegation would bring.

IF EVERY FAN WAS LIKE YOU PB ROVERS WOULD NEVER HAVE A PROBLEM,you will watch crap footie and as long as we stay in the premier you are happy,my best days as a rovers fan were in the lower divisions,proper football played by guys who you could mix with.now we have a string of foriegn mercenary;s whose view of bburn is from the motorway to ewood.i have never liked lardarse,and after that smug interview on motd i hate him more

[rovers_rob]

IF EVERY FAN WAS LIKE YOU PB ROVERS WOULD NEVER HAVE A PROBLEM,you will watch crap footie and as long as we stay in the premier you are happy,my best days as a rovers fan were in the lower divisions,proper football played by guys who you could mix with.now we have a string of foriegn mercenary;s whose view of bburn is from the motorway to ewood.i have never liked lardarse,and after that smug interview on motd i hate him more

What a load of crap. If you want to watch lower division "proper" football then there are plenty of crap lower teams in lancashire that need your support.

Reading this damn messageboard makes my blood boil

How the hell can anyone criticise the manager WHEN WE WON. The 2nd half was superb, the 1st half was rubbish. Thats what happens in fooball matches for gods sake.

Some of the so called fans on this board maybe need to support another team, we don't need all this crap when we have won a game.

[Fife Rover]

No he wouldn't. You hate Allardyce and that is causing you to act irrationally and talk nonsense.

The home football this season has been good, and 75% of the time I've enjoyed watching the stuff we have played. West Ham first half and Pompey first half are the only two times it has been 'unacceptable.' However, we still picked up 4 points from those games.

Yes the away form is a problem, but I'd rather the home form was our foundation to build on, and not the other way round.

Allardyce is doing a good, steady job, and slowly building a team who will be comfortable in this division for as long as he is in charge.

That, to me, is doing a good job. Some of the stuff written on here lowers my opinion of Rovers fans far more than my opinion of the manager has been tainted by the odd tongue in cheek comment he's come out with.

Spot on!!

There are obviously a number of people on here that have never known the hard times of being a Rovers fan and just expect the good times to last forever. Unfortunately they dont and never have done. Over a lifetime of Rovers supporting you can expect (nay, guarantee) a rollercoaster ride of good, bad and indifferent form, on a never ending and repeating cycle. If that's not good enough for you go and do something else, because that's the way it is, always has been and always will be. Oh, and as for the older moaners that have seen the bad times.......you should know better!!!!

[Fife Rover]

Abbey, the slide I am talking about is that from the early sixties - when we topped the First Division - to the early seventies when slipped to the bottom of the old Third Division. We had no money, all the good players had to be sold and we had crowds that grew increasingly smaller. If we are relegated it is that kind of slide that will happen again.

At the end of the day, it is imperative that we stay in the Premier League and sadly, for our survival as a club, that is far more important than the entertainment factor. Having said that, apart from the West Ham game, and the first half on Saturday, I think the entertainment at Ewood as been OK this season.

Our major income is television money and not the gate money. Indeed, our revenue through the turnstile is becoming increasingly irrelevant because the fans are not prepared to pay Premier League prices and so the club have gambled in reducing prices to a level that makes it difficult to compete with those clubs around us.

Unfortunately, there are a number of fans - although I believe it to be a very small minority - who didn't want Big Sam in the first place which resulted in the madness of the Facebook campaign against him. However, they were prepared to put up with him while he saved us from relegation but now, once again, are voicing their prejudices against him.

At the end of the day the club have appointed him because they feel he is the right man for the job. As a supporter, I back him for the same reasons. I honestly believe that he is our best hope of avoiding the meltdown that relegation would bring.

Another one spot-on!!!

[47er]

aye everything is rosy .we are about to equal our worst ever run of away defeats and oll over and take it on the road.

We're winning our home games so you concentrate on our away form. We beat Portsmouth with 3 goals in the second half so you concentrate on the first half. With the Burnley game it was all over at half-time so fans who can't stand the manager concentrated on the second and accused him of nearly throwing it away.

It doesn't matter what he does, he was the former Bolton manager, you didn't want him and this will go and on forever.

[Parsonblue]

IF EVERY FAN WAS LIKE YOU PB ROVERS WOULD NEVER HAVE A PROBLEM,you will watch crap footie and as long as we stay in the premier you are happy,my best days as a rovers fan were in the lower divisions,proper football played by guys who you could mix with.now we have a string of foriegn mercenary;s whose view of bburn is from the motorway to ewood.i have never liked lardarse,and after that smug interview on motd i hate him more

Waggy, you would see the club fold because you would be happy to see us playing a League game against Accrington Stanley in front of a couple of thousand supporters. Unfortunately, the infrastructure of the club has changed since the early seventies. We only just survived in those days - remember when Jim Smith couldn't raise £8,000 to sign Geoff Hutt? Remember when Bill Bancroft had to go around turning off lights because we struggled to pay the electric bill? Do you really want to see those days return?

Like it or not, the future of the Rovers depends on Premier League survival - John Williams has explained it often enough in great detail. Big Sam, is the man that the club view as the best person to ensure Premier League survival in our present situation.

Although I watch Rovers home and away, whenever we don't have a game I go and watch Accrington Stanley. Why don't you give that a try Waggy, it always reminds me of watching the Rovers in the early seventies, so I suspect that you would enjoy it and Stanley need all the fans they can get.

[JAL]

Everything might not be rosy but it's not as bleak as you would have people believe. We have an experienced manager who gives us our best chance of staying in a League which is becoming increasingly difficult for smaller clubs like ourselves to operate in. John Williams and co appointed Big Sam because they know that relegation could well spell the end of the club as a top flight outfit and therefore opted for a man who has the experience of keeping a smaller club in the Premier League.

I've experienced the club slipping from the top division to the bottom of the third division once before and have no wish to experience it again. At times the football might not be pretty but as long as it keeps us at this level that is a price I'm quite happy to pay. There is nothing 'rosy' watching your club slip down the leagues while trying to play attractive football.

Do you not think that big Sam would benefit from another voice in his camp thats more attack orientated just to spice things up providing his ego could take another viewpoint.

At the moment big Sam looks a little bit predictable with one or two Rovers fans already thinking hes been found out at Rovers.

[JAL]

Come january big Sam has an opportunity to improve things further with the possibility of offloading MGP, EHD, Andrews, Grella and any others.

Hopefully big Sam can do the business and show us what hes capable of.

[Stuart]

Come january big Sam has an opportunity to improve things further with the possibility of offloading MGP, EHD, Andrews, Grella and any others.

Hopefully big Sam can do the business and show us what hes capable of.

I'll be surprised if Sam sells Andrews in January as he seems to rate him.

Sam will sell who he can to raise money for those players he wants to bring in. We've already been upset by some of the departures in recent times. I wouldn't be surprised to see McCarthy go if he can get £3m.

MGP and Reid might well be removed from the wage bill to make some room.

I just hope he is given some money to spend.

[ABBEY]

We're winning our home games so you concentrate on our away form. We beat Portsmouth with 3 goals in the second half so you concentrate on the first half. With the Burnley game it was all over at half-time so fans who can't stand the manager concentrated on the second and accused him of nearly throwing it away.

It doesn't matter what he does, he was the former Bolton manager, you didn't want him and this will go and on forever.

so away games dont matter,at least 18000 people booing dont matter,watching crap doesnt matter....ok i give in ..

we shall not be moved because we are gonna win the premier league...its just like watching brazil....we didnt nearly go bottom over the weekend ....everything is rosy and there are no cracks to paper over...

[MeanGreenMachine]

Can someone please just answer me this

why does rubbish football = staying in the league

good football = relegation

Teams like Fulham, Wigan and West Ham play some decent stuff and do well, yet we have to play rubbish stuff to survive?

Fair play to Sam for the second half, but the total negativity at playing 4-5-1 at home against the bottom of league, surely you can't think its unreasonable for some fans to be disappointed?

[Stuart]

so away games dont matter,at least 18000 people booing dont matter,watching crap doesnt matter....ok i give in ..

we shall not be moved because we are gonna win the premier league...its just like watching brazil....we didnt nearly go bottom over the weekend ....everything is rosy and there are no cracks to paper over...

Abs, do you actually hate Allardyce? You keep being accused of it but I don't think you've actually said as much.

I don't have any axe to grind with him, I just call it how I see it, and although I still believe he's the best man for the job, I think his approach (i.e. 0-0 is success and 1-0 is wonderful) will get us in trouble quite often this season.

It's ironic that some of us are shouted down for being negative, yet that's exactly what people are defending in Allardyce!

[JAL]

I'll be surprised if Sam sells Andrews in January as he seems to rate him.

Sam will sell who he can to raise money for those players he wants to bring in. We've already been upset by some of the departures in recent times. I wouldn't be surprised to see McCarthy go if he can get £3m.

MGP and Reid might well be removed from the wage bill to make some room.

I just hope he is given some money to spend.

True jisty, Andrews is me doing some wishful thinking.

Fingers crossed that players will be moved on to allow for some incoming quality.

[unluckymorton]

so away games dont matter,at least 18000 people booing dont matter,watching crap doesnt matter....ok i give in ..

we shall not be moved because we are gonna win the premier league...its just like watching brazil....we didnt nearly go bottom over the weekend ....everything is rosy and there are no cracks to paper over...

Open your eyes Abbey. We are a mediocre club, mid table at best at the moment. Sam has still got a massive task on his hands to rebuild what Ince wrecked.

We didn't nearly go bottom because we won 3-1, we did the job.

There was nowhere near 18,000 fans booing at half time, just half of BBE NO1 and a few others scattered about. The team needs support, and although it's difficult to get behind them after a performance like that first half I was disgusted with the so called fans that were booing.

Sam needs the rest of this season and probably all next season as we've no choice. We can't afford to back another manager and I don't believe there is a manager out there who could, or would want to do a better job without any funding.

A club and a town the size of ours are lucky to be in the top flight, lets get behind the lads and the manager and enjoy it while we can!!!

[JAL]

so away games dont matter,at least 18000 people booing dont matter,watching crap doesnt matter....ok i give in ..

we shall not be moved because we are gonna win the premier league...its just like watching brazil....we didnt nearly go bottom over the weekend ....everything is rosy and there are no cracks to paper over...

You can just see and hear the Rovers crowd with their dark sense of humour next time out, taking the pish chanting 'Its just like watching Brazil' followed by a 'Big Sam give us a wave' and as he waves back gleefully, they hand gesture to him falling around laughing.

Its in their makeup.

[unluckymorton]

Can someone please just answer me this

why does rubbish football = staying in the league

good football = relegation

Teams like Fulham, Wigan and West Ham play some decent stuff and do well, yet we have to play rubbish stuff to survive?

Fair play to Sam for the second half, but the total negativity at playing 4-5-1 at home against the bottom of league, surely you can't think its unreasonable for some fans to be disappointed?

Survival is key, we'll work on the fancy stuff at a later date. I'd rather be in our position than West Ham's. Good football isn't helping them is it? There's also every chance we'll finish above Wigan and Fulham.

I think we all agree that Sam made the wrong decision starting with one up front, but he did the right thing at half time and it worked.

[thenodrog]

Considering that the term 'hoofball' is used frequently on here and levelled at SA and the team as a form of insult based on the 'throw enough mud' principle, I cannot think of many goals that have been scored by this method. In fact 2 v Burnley and Roberts second have been about as good as it gets. The only goal from hoofball that I can think of was Samba's v Villa. Needless to say but the top 4 score plenty from hopeful long balls too.

[JAL]

Considering that the term 'hoofball' is used frequently on here and levelled at SA and the team as a form of insult based on the 'throw enough mud' principle, I cannot think of many goals that have been scored by this method. In fact 2 v Burnley and Roberts second have been about as good as it gets. The only goal from hoofball that I can think of was Samba's v Villa. Needless to say but the top 4 score plenty from hopeful long balls too.

NZonzi at Arsenal is another.Hoofball at its best.

[unluckymorton]

Considering that the term 'hoofball' is used frequently on here and levelled at SA and the team as a form of insult based on the 'throw enough mud' principle, I cannot think of many goals that have been scored by this method. In fact 2 v Burnley and Roberts second have been about as good as it gets. The only goal from hoofball that I can think of was Samba's v Villa. Needless to say but the top 4 score plenty from hopeful long balls too.

When Rovers play a long ball it's hoofball.

When Liverpool, Man Utd, Arsenal or Chelsea do it is a calculated pass.

NZonzi at Arsenal is another.Hoofball at its best.

Wasn't that a freekick into the box???

[ABBEY]

Open your eyes Abbey. We are a mediocre club, mid table at best at the moment. Sam has still got a massive task on his hands to rebuild what Ince wrecked..........WE DONT HAVE TO BE MEDEOCRE AS PROVED IN THE 2ND HALF

We didn't nearly go bottom because we won 3-1, we did the job. ....NIT PICKING..WE COULD VERY EASILY HAVE GONE BOTTOM.

There was nowhere near 18,000 fans booing at half time, just half of BBE NO1 and a few others scattered about. The team needs support, and although it's difficult to get behind them after a performance like that first half I was disgusted with the so called fans that were booing....JUST 1/2 THE BBE...BULL IT WAS ALL AROUND THE GROUND.

Sam needs the rest of this season and probably all next season as we've no choice. We can't afford to back another manager and I don't believe there is a manager out there who could, or would want to do a better job without any funding.

...NO CHOICE? IF I WITNESS THAT 1ST HALF PERFORMENCE AGAIN THEN IM OUT OF IT AFTER 40 YEARS.

A club and a town the size of ours are lucky to be in the top flight, lets get behind the lads and the manager and enjoy it while we can!!!WHY ARE LUCKY TO BE IN THE TOP FLIGHT..WE ARE THERE BECAUSE WE DESERVE TO BE THERE.

[JAL]

Can someone please just answer me this

why does rubbish football = staying in the league

good football = relegation

Teams like Fulham, Wigan and West Ham play some decent stuff and do well, yet we have to play rubbish stuff to survive?

Fair play to Sam for the second half, but the total negativity at playing 4-5-1 at home against the bottom of league, surely you can't think its unreasonable for some fans to be disappointed?

The second half against Portsmouth wasnt rubbish football, it was pretty good to watch mainly played along the floor with plenty of attacking moves down both flanks.