[Archived] Sam Allardyce

[Majiball]

In light of recent circumstances, the club are making changes to season tickets:

http://bit.ly/bLtHY6

Very funny.

[den]

Come of it, we DID NOT play 'nice attacking football' under Ince, I went to most games home and away under him, it started off exciting at Everton, I'll give you that, but quickly descended into poor and niave football of a farcial level.

and there lies the point. We tried to play a passing game without the quality to be able to do it effectively. If you're going to take on sides on a pass and move basis, you have to be better than the opposition at it, otherwise, as we did under Ince, you get beat. We don't have the technical quality, currently in our side.

Show me the players in our squad that could dictate a passing game against the majority of other PL sides?

[John]

Why would we try to outpass teams out of interest? Or even be more attacking?

Look at our current set of midfielders and also strikers - gets you excited doesn't it...

Players like Charlie Adam and Barry Ferguson would walk into our team because unlike nearly all of our midfielders, they are not poor at passing the ball.

We had to rely on Keith Andrews for a lot last season, why was that? Because there was no one else - do we think we should be passing the ball or mixing it up more with him in the team (not meaning to have a go as he does try hard).

Why can't people see that the manager has a system which gets results. He has proven this before and also throughout his time with us. Perhaps we could mix it up but giving the ball away in your own half is likely to lead to opposition getting it back off us in dangerous areas leading to goals for them.

[Amo]

Do I think we have the players to outpass teams for 90 minutes? No. Do I think we have the players to put their foot on the ball when required? Yes.

While not blessed with the most gifted midfielders, we have players who have played at the top level, earning massive wages for being PL footballers. If you think they're only capable of hoofing it like a pub team*, you've been brainwashed by Big Sam.

* No offence to any Sunday league players who pride themselves on playing the right way.

[den]

Do I think we have the players to outpass teams for 90 minutes? No. Do I think we have the players to put their foot on the ball when required? Yes.

While not blessed with the most gifted midfielders, we have players who have played at the top level, earning massive wages for being PL footballers. If you think they're only capable of hoofing it like a pub team*, you've been brainwashed by Big Sam.

* No offence to any Sunday league players who pride themselves on playing the right way.

Ah Topman. Here we go again. The only picture you see is of every Rovers player hoofing it every, single time. It's impossible to discuss with anyone who simply posts this all the time. There's only you [or maybe there are more?] who believe that rovers only hoof it like a pub team.

[Majiball]

Ah Topman. Here we go again. The only picture you see is of every Rovers player hoofing it every, single time. It's impossible to discuss with anyone who simply posts this all the time. There's only you [or maybe there are more?] who believe that rovers only hoof it like a pub team.

At the end of the first half against Liverpool, in which we did try and get the ball forward as often as possible we had a possession stat of 22%. Your never going to get anything from a match without the ball, hence the stark turn around in the second half, style wise.

We don't launch it at every opportunity but we do use it far more often than perhaps we need to.

[john.leigh]

He had notable success aith his playing style at Bolton - so much so that Newcastle poached him to help build their "empire."

After Newcastle had successfully brought him on nboard, and had one of their better starts to the season, everybody started to push for a style change? What happened? he got sacked and the club ended up relegated.

There's absolutely no point at all buying a Ford & then telling it to change into a BMW. It just doesn't work.

Sam is what Sam is.

It's proven that over a season his teams get results, and that's exactly what we need.

I think Sam is very much wiser after his experiences in the north east and will stick with what he does best.

If blame is going to be apportioned to anybody for what is ugly in our play then I would pint the finger at Paul Robinson.

Great keeper & as a keeper deserves to be the England number one.

But his insistence on pumping long balls is bloody frustrating, it is him more than anybody that by-passes the defence & midfield in order to get the ball forward ASAP.

I know he's only playing to orders, but surely he could be a bit more accurate with it or just mix it up a bit...

[ABBEY]

Why would we try to outpass teams out of interest? Or even be more attacking?

why because its crap and its driving people away, i cant make this week and ive struggled to give my ticket away.

I know we cant play brazilian gung ho,but a team that is the prem should be able to play a mix of styles and not just 5 year old schoolboy playground kick n rush.

Sam is what Sam is.

[Miker]

why because its crap and its driving people away, i cant make this week and ive struggled to give my ticket away.

I know we cant play brazilian gung ho,but a team that is the prem should be able to play a mix of styles and not just 5 year old schoolboy playground kick n rush.

Abbey, you're a funny @#/?! I'll give you that much.

[neophox]

I would like us to have Martin'O Neill as manager if we sack Big Sam.

[ABBEY]

Abbey, you're a funny @#/?! I'll give you that much.

less of the funny lol

[beerwins]

He had notable success aith his playing style at Bolton - so much so that Newcastle poached him to help build their "empire."

After Newcastle had successfully brought him on nboard, and had one of their better starts to the season, everybody started to push for a style change? What happened? he got sacked and the club ended up relegated.

There's absolutely no point at all buying a Ford & then telling it to change into a BMW. It just doesn't work.

Sam is what Sam is.

It's proven that over a season his teams get results, and that's exactly what we need.

I think Sam is very much wiser after his experiences in the north east and will stick with what he does best.

If blame is going to be apportioned to anybody for what is ugly in our play then I would pint the finger at Paul Robinson.

Great keeper & as a keeper deserves to be the England number one.

But his insistence on pumping long balls is bloody frustrating, it is him more than anybody that by-passes the defence & midfield in order to get the ball forward ASAP.

I know he's only playing to orders, but surely he could be a bit more accurate with it or just mix it up a bit...

There not told to mix it up they are told to bombard the box, many a time a free kick could be played short or a goal kick rolled out, this does'nt happen because they are TOLD to get the ball into the box.

If you watch the second half against Liverpool we lost all our tall players and our playstyle changed, Robbo rolled the ball out every time and we played it out from the back not once did robbo hoof it downfield.

With Sam its back or white there is no inbetween, no short throws and long throws, no long ball and shortball mixed together, its one or the other, the players get drilled into playing one way and do not change unless told, is it a coincidence that Sam never signs headstrong creative players who like to play there own way or do we just sign players that will do as they are told, the only way to find out is let Sam have some money and then we can see, if he targets one player like Etherington or Tuncay who can produce from nothing then I will back him to change for the better, if we target 6 foot 5 kids then we know we will play the same way.

[john.leigh]

I know I'm setting myself up for a roasting because I haven't been to Ewood for 5 years now, but....

Virtually EVERY Rovers game home and away is shown on TV here & I watch them live (usually around 2am).

I record each game & then watch 'em again - especially the games where we've lost.

We don't just play long ball - that's a fallacy.

We do however resort to long ball when we are struggling in a game and recently that has been way too often.

We do have some great gifted skilful players.

Jones is great with the ball at his feet & Samba is brilliant. Nelsen ain't too bad either.

El Hadji Diouf is another skilful player

Michel Salgado yet another one who plays some majestic stuff.

We have the players there who can & do get the ball down & pass it, but unfortunately we don't have too many of these up front...

However with Sam there IS an inbetween, we DO take short throws, we DO have long ball and shortball mixed together - the trouble is we seem to have been on the back foot to often recently & have resorted to playing to our primary strength.

Mixing sporting metaphors here - we're great baseline serve and volley players, but when we come into the net we get found out.

So what do you do? You stick with serve & volley & power your way through as many games as possible, knowing you might not win many grand slams, but you'll keep on picking up ATP points.

Possibly Sam never signs "headstrong" creative players who like to play there own way because he has built a great team ethic at the club - one where everybody can rely on a team mate to do their job - not some 'headstrong creative player' who will just do what he wants & sod the rest of you... See Samba's recent interview in the LT

Having said that - can you name me a more "headstrong' player in the Premier League than El Hadj Diouf?? But he's come into line & certainly ths season has been playing as a great team member

I'm not trying to defend Sam, he's a big enough boy to do that himself & anyway his record will do that for him.

We do play some awful stuff at times & it's sometimes not a pleasure to watch.

BUT we play to our strengths - why shouldn't we?

If we're good in the air & the opposition have a suspect keeper then lets play on that.

Maybe we should start whinging that Arsenal aren't fair?

When they play against us the use all this pace & skill and it's just not fair

We haven't got as much pace as they have - so why should they be allowed to use it against us?

RANT CONTINUES

Sligthly off topic but I can't believe how much protection keepers get now.

The goal against Fulham where everybody whinged about a foul on Schwarzer is just bullsh!t.

Remember Schwarzer is what 6'3" or 4"? He is solid muscle, he has forward momentum and he can use his arms to get to a ball.

Diouf just picked a spot to stand his ground, he didn't barge into Schwarzer. Yet the rampaging Aussie gloveman doesn't have enough determination to get past a stationary pipsqueak.

Schwarzer should have just run all over the top of him, the ref would have just waved play on & no goal would have come from it.

But Schwarzer's moment of hesitancy has cost his team a goal & has now unfairly seen us branded as cheats.

And the trouble is this has followed us into other games as well.

Now every time a Rovers player is anywhere near a keeper the ref is blowing up.

It's a man's game - keepers SHOULD have some protection, but only some.

Rant over.

[K-Hod]

Anyone suggesting that our players (professional footballers don't you know) aren't capable of passing a ball short, they need to have a word with themselves.

There have been times when we don't play the long ball way, but obviously we do get the ball out wide and whip crosses in (albeit not always well ), even with the way we play- we have the lowest pass completion rate in the league.......

[thenodrog]

I would like us to have Martin'O Neill as manager if we sack Big Sam.

Could you pad that out a bit more and explain why? Take your time.

[K-Hod]

Martin O'Neill's departure from Villa should act as decent proof of why we DO NOT EVER want him to manage us!

Toys out of the pram because he couldn't get any transfer funds for repeatedly finishing outside the top 4, and to be told to sell before buying. What an idiot!

[thenodrog]

[/b]

If you watch the second half against Liverpool we lost all our tall players and our playstyle changed, Robbo rolled the ball out every time and we played it out from the back not once did robbo hoof it downfield.

In fairness Lpool had also got their noses in front and sat back. That meant less room and tighter marking up top and more space for our full backs.

As far as Hoof ball is concerned the main difference between Mark Hughes and sam allardyce is that our best outfield players have been sold, we have some very tall players, Robinson has a miles better delivery from on the floor than Brad Freidel ever had, and Allardyce utilises Pedersons ability to throw it a long way.

The only criticism that I have is that we do not get up close or quickly enough to support the lone centre forward. Rem in Hughes first season and until he was given some money in the summer he played 4-5-1 with just the diminutive Paul Dickov up front!

[Amo]

Ah Topman. Here we go again. The only picture you see is of every Rovers player hoofing it every, single time. It's impossible to discuss with anyone who simply posts this all the time. There's only you [or maybe there are more?] who believe that rovers only hoof it like a pub team.

Of course we pass it at times, that's why most of us get frustrated when we see it happen and soon after the team resorts back to aimless punting. Sam doesn't know any other way to play, he did it at Bolton, Newcastle and now here.

[John]

Obviously did not follow all their games, I thought Bolton were OK to watch under Sam had a mix of flair and grit, plus some players who could, funnily enough, pass the football

People conveniently forget our brilliant end to last season when we played and matched some of the best teams in the league. All of a sudden with no money spent in the summer, Sam is public enemy number one again.

[Majiball]

Obviously did not follow all their games, I thought Bolton were OK to watch under Sam – had a mix of flair and grit, plus some players who could, funnily enough, pass the football

People conveniently forget our brilliant end to last season when we played and matched some of the best teams in the league. All of a sudden with no money spent in the summer, Sam is public enemy number one again.

No-ones forgetting the brilliant end to last season, that’s the whole point. They showed then that they can play and mix things up very effectively. Suddenly in less than 6 months the quality has apparently dropped and that’s no longer possible???

I do not see the correlation between other teams signing a few players and us not being able to carry on in the same vein as last season.

The Liverpool game highlights things very nicely. We let them have the ball and play 1st half and if not for a inspired Robbo display would have been well beaten come half time. At the close of the first 45 we hadn't had a single shot on target and had had the ball for 22% of the time it was in play. We start to mix things up more in the second half and we actually created or looked like creating a thing or two. We still played it long at times but we also played through them at times, if not for some seriously sloppy defending especially for Torres goal we had have nicked a draw.

I no longer care where blame should be assigned the groundsman, JW, the trust,the tea lady, Sam, coaches or the players. It’s an absolutely atrocious way of playing football and I'm desperate to see a return to the style the tail end of last year, achieved with the exact same identical team we still have.

[BuckyRover]

You are fighting a losing battle. Apparently we are paying wages 90% of turnover for players that can't pass to each other (between August and February), and it's not the managers fault because he doesn't teach them how to pass.

[faceplant]

[Miker]

Of course we pass it at times, that's why most of us get frustrated when we see it happen and soon after the team resorts back to aimless punting. Sam doesn't know any other way to play, he did it at Bolton, Newcastle and now here.

He's not the one doing the playing. Can anyone actually confirm how much instructions Sam barks at the players from the sidelines? He can tell the players to hoof the ball clear in dangerous situations, but there's no way he's telling them to pass it around on the ground for a bit and then kick it back to the keeper to hoof it in. If someone is actually aware of Sam instructing this, then I'll stand corrected.

[Majiball]

I'm honestly beginning to think Sam is somehow related to hypno-toad such seems the brain-washing of some towards how we can play.

[seekay]

Nevertheless the first message from the new owners to BFS should be" Hey up Sam, remember we are Venky's, we use wings, not hoofs".

[Miker]

No-ones forgetting the brilliant end to last season, that’s the whole point. They showed then that they can play and mix things up very effectively. Suddenly in less than 6 months the quality has apparently dropped and that’s no longer possible???

I do not see the correlation between other teams signing a few players and us not being able to carry on in the same vein as last season.

The Liverpool game highlights things very nicely. We let them have the ball and play 1st half and if not for a inspired Robbo display would have been well beaten come half time. At the close of the first 45 we hadn't had a single shot on target and had had the ball for 22% of the time it was in play. We start to mix things up more in the second half and we actually created or looked like creating a thing or two. We still played it long at times but we also played through them at times, if not for some seriously sloppy defending especially for Torres goal we had have nicked a draw.

I no longer care where blame should be assigned the groundsman, JW, the trust,the tea lady, Sam, coaches or the players. It’s an absolutely atrocious way of playing football and I'm desperate to see a return to the style the tail end of last year, achieved with the exact same identical team we still have.

I know what the problem is. We miss Andrews' pointing.