[Archived] Villa Semi Final 2Nd Leg

[Steve Moss]

At what point did Allardyce tell them to sit back?

I don't think he did.

I'm not his biggest fan, but how exactly is this Allardyce's fault? He got the tactics spot on today. He didn't tell Givet not to stop the cross. He didn't tell Nelsen to fall over under a challenge from that ugly prick. He didn't tell the ref to gift them two goals and send a player off.

100% correct. Some bad calls, some bad judgment on the part of certain players, and some bad luck. The team battled however, so I am pleased.

On Samba, he has not looked himself for a number of weeks now.

There is obviously something going on with Samba atm, the weird celebration on Sunday and his general play and demeanour in-game shows he aint happy about something,

Dunny looks to me on his last playing legs or he also isn't interested.

Dunn doesn't appear to be a long-term or short-term solution now. He's just no solution.

I'm back to my opinion that Samba needs a rest. Time for Givet and Nelsen for a few games, maybe Jones.

Dunn needs to go also, if only because his constant injuries make him unreliable. Unless he'd be content with a paid as played contract, which I don't think he would be.

Well I don't actually blame Sam much. He did really well early on. Referee far more to blame. Props to Sam.

Massive plus is Olsson. Looks every inch a premiership winger. Pedersen in the middle worked well too.

Not sure about Pedersen. I still think he's upping his game for a contract. I would not trust him once we've signed.

I thought the squad, as a whole, did well. Sam, and Rovers' supporters, should be proud.

Goodbye benni, I believe we have seen the last of him in a Rovers shirt.

I think this is right.

[jim mk2]

An unfit Dunn and powderpuff MGP in the middle were glaring errors.

Rubbish. Pedersen had an excellent game offering the craft and guile in midfield that has been missing for much of the season and should stay in that position from now on.

Samba is to blame for tonight's defeat. Agbonlahor is a poor finisher and still had Robinson to beat. Unless a forward is shooting into an empty net why don't defenders stay on their feet ?

[DarrellH]

It's a strange game is football... at 2-0 the euphoria was amazing, but still as a Rovers fan the nagging doubt that we'd throw it away was prevalent. Then all hell breaks loose, we're losing badly and a real sense of gloom kicks in. But looking back and reflecting on it I now feel a certain pride in the way we kept on fighting. Three totally different emotions in the space of what 2 hours?!

For me the blame cannot be leveled at Sams door tonight, Samba getting sent off with that reckless challenge is for me the primary reason we're out.

[magicalmortensleftpeg]

Fantastic effort. More commitment and desire then ive seen from any Rovers team in years. Nobody can criticse the players or manager after that. The ref had a poor game but it was Samba's attempt at Agbonlahor which made the difference. 11 v 10 in the second half was never going to be enough and is why to get to 5-4 was a great achievement.

Iam proud to be a Rovers fan this evening. Credit to Allardyce, I didnt think he could get a performance of that stature out of the lads but he did. Also mentions to Olsson, Kalinic and Nelsen. These boys cared. Niko's touch is world class, he is going to be a great player for us

[Kelbo]

We didn't defend a corner, didn't close down a runner/ shooter in the middle (yet again) and played a donkey onside. Nothing to do with being stretched. Their last goal was the only one attributable to pushing up with 10 men

Shooter?? and your comments tell me you been watching Canadian second rate football mate!!

[Kelbo]

We didn't defend a corner, didn't close down a runner/ shooter in the middle (yet again) and played a donkey onside. Nothing to do with being stretched. Their last goal was the only one attributable to pushing up with 10 men

Shooter?? and your comments tell me you been watching Canadian second rate football mate!!

[Flopsy]

I always thought MGP should be a striker.

Both teams served up a stonkingly good cup tie, Sam got the tactics spot on and although the first villa goal was iffy, we would have been fuming if disalowed at the other end. So well done Rovers and congrats Villa, good luck at wembly

[Rovers_4_life]

Very proud of the Rovers tonight, excellent effort. Sending off spoilt the game, was the right decision but it gave us little chance second half. The first half an hour is the best i've seen Rovers play for an awful long time, more of the same in the coming weeks please. 11 men would have meant a different second half but against a very good Villa side we were just overrun being a man short.

Very impressed with Olsson, looks very dangerous in midfield, about time we had some pace in the side.

Kalinic will be a great player in a few years, give the boy time and he will be very useful indeed.

Pedersen is getting better each game, very much involved with everything we had going forward, especially first half.

On another night it might have been different but i was pleased with what i saw, which seems remarkable considering we shipped 6 goals!! If we can fit Benni into that team, especially at home, i think we'll have more than enough to keep us clear of a relegation fight.

Still fully behind Big Sam, as i have been over the last few weeks.

More of the same please Rovers.

[47er]

We are 13 points off 6 place and with no way to achieve anything this season, no matter how good the players perform. As for next season, if Kalinic does establish himself as a Premiership goalscorer, he will leave in the summer. Our one and only shot at glory was this game, and despite what some people call a "spirited display", we once again capitulated and lost any realistic chances of winning the tie way before the final whistle.

Honestly, I'm waiting for someone to explain how this can be perceived as good or hopeful.

How ridiculous! Its only a good season for us if we make 6th? With our spending power? Let's see--Chelsea, Manure, Arsenal, Spurs, Liverpool and Villa! There's 6 for you. Then when you add the clubs with more spending power than us( just about everyone) its a real achievement to reach the top half. I'm hoping for 12th which I predicted at the start of the season. Anything higher is a bonus. That's our club, that's how it is and Jack Walker apart how its always been. If that isn't good enough there are 19 other Premiership clubs to choose from.

[Darth Paul]

Where to begin?

I don't think I have EVER been as proud of my team in the face of defeat as I have tonight. The BBC has been broadcasting football for over half a century and tonights game has to go down as one of the best ever.

There are so many points to make, so I think they need to go down in bullet point form:

1. The BBc gave us no chance, we gave ourselves no chance and the arrogant Villa fans with their overly expensive, under-achieving side gave us no chance and they all should have got the upset they deserved.

2. The best team lost. At 2-0 Rovers were deservedly cruising. A very, very poor refereeing decision put Villa back in the game at 2-1, at which point you would have had your money on the next goal going to Rovers.

3.No arguments about the penalty. Just one of those unfortunate things at which point you could fully expect and understand a Rovers capitulation.

4. Half time - it has taken years but the style and heart of our play seems to finally have got Alan Shearer back on board. He really seemed to be flying the flag for us tonight. How many times do you see an ex-centre forward argue with an ex centre half (Hansen) that the first goal shouldn't have been given? Shearer bucked the trend tonight and I think we carried out a huge propaganda job tonight in front of the millions of viewers.

5.Second half - it was only against ten men could Villa muster any sort of genuine upper hand against our team. No surprise they scored a couple but I am sure no one in the ground expected the second half Rovers performance.

6. Martin Olsson - really impressed in the last two games he has played. Scored the goal of the game and really got stuck in.

7. Nicola Kalinic - All credit to Sam he has picked a real star up here...his goals will come now and I fully expect double figures for Rovers IN THE PREMIER LEAGUE next season.

8. Villa fans -all mouth about their great support but I bet they were cacking their sides tonight and the long periods of silence showed it. Rovers fans - vociferous throughout...well done - gave a great account of themselves on national tv.

9. I have never, ever seen a side keep going like Rovers did tonight. At 5-3 with no chance of winning we kept going, for PRIDE, for THE SHIRT, we got a goal. We battled and battled until the final whistle when we had every excuse to give up a lost cause,but never did.

10. The manager. Ok we lost, and we conceded six, but we very easily could be celebrating a place at Wembley tonight. I think Sam has quite rightly bought himself a few games grace now from some of the clowns and doom mongers on this board and at Ewood. Are these people big enough to give him that?

11. Villa's fans showed their class tonight with that pitch invasion. It is just a Cup final, although I can understand why you may not be able to remember what that is. Either Manc club will stuff you in the final anyway - you really aren't that good. Muppets. Thanks for the 8 million for Warnock. The next time we have that kind of money to spend on a full back I am fairly confident we will put you in your place. I hope that bans are dished out to the clowns who broke the law and went on the pitch. REMEMBER - A cup final is for 90 minutes but THAT accent is for life!

12. Probably loads more to think of but the brain is on overload now. We have done a massive job of changing the nations perception of our club, our manager and our players tonight. WAGGY - tonight presents an amnesty for you. You can go back to Ewood on the pretext of giving a chance to Sam after tonight and keep your dignity. Keep up your vigil of petty, stay at home anti-Roverism, and regardless of your years of support that your goons keep pointing to on here, you are no fan, and either your support or your wallet has given up, but don't tell me it is down to Sam.

Not really called for

Tonight I was given an epiphany in terms of why I support Rovers - we aren't the biggest or the best, but we are a proud, proud small town team who fight, and punch above our weight year in, year out and succeed where others fail. Any town team in this country would die for our record of success, plus many City clubs as well.

I hope the people of Blackburn get out of their armchairs tonight and get down to Ewood for the next home game to show their appreciation, the season starts here.

ARTE ET LABORE.

[bigbrandjohn]

The sun has set in Allentown. I watched the match on the board so either we were crap or we were great,Pedersen has found his form or was useless etc.

If I was impartial which I am not I would say that the team of cloggies are actually entertaining. They have some good young players and they gave Villa a good run in the end with 10 men.

At times this season we would not have scored against lesser teams with 13 men on the pitch so definitely an improvement. I think we have established that Kalinic is a "proppa player" and Olsson gives us options. It has also shown Sam that bottling up our talent with aerial bombardment is wrong and we may spray it around more after the last two games.

I am sure Benni will find his way to the land of cockles and whelks for around 2 million and Sam will start to call the team his own. Yes I am disappointed we lost but the one thing we have found is a renewed CONFIDENCE . Kalinic will feel a million dollars tonight which will help his confidence.

Roll on the weekend.

[Hughesy]

PROUD TO BE A ROVER!!!!!!

Absolutley gutted by the outcome, the ref gifted them 2 goals (1 & 4) and Samba made a bad error to get sent off (which effectively cost us the game.

Olsson - FANTASTIC!! Deserves to play every game from now on!

Kalinic - VERY GOOD - 2 goals - looks the part and worked his balls off. Well done

2-0 up - FANTASTIC, then the n0b head ref changed the whole game!

Down to 10 men and 5-2, Fantastic to see us rally to 5-4.

Ashley Youngs late goal just glossed over the result for them - but the whole of britian & bbc could see we really gave it a go - and you must admit, until the ref & Samba cost us - Sam got it 100% spot on.

Olssons goal - FANTASTIC play down the middle & wing - followed by a stunning finish!

MON - W@NKER & AGBONLAWHORE - CHEAT!!!

We lost, we are out....but the lads did us proud tonight....

[Mr. E]

How ridiculous! Its only a good season for us if we make 6th? With our spending power? Let's see--Chelsea, Manure, Arsenal, Spurs, Liverpool and Villa! There's 6 for you. Then when you add the clubs with more spending power than us( just about everyone) its a real achievement to reach the top half. I'm hoping for 12th which I predicted at the start of the season. Anything higher is a bonus. That's our club, that's how it is and Jack Walker apart how its always been. If that isn't good enough there are 19 other Premiership clubs to choose from.

Yeah, this excuse pretty much went out the window with the way Birmingham and Fulham have been performing this season. Two clubs with much weaker squads than us, but are giving everyone a right go, because they have competent managers. Add to that the fact that we were a top half team with Souness and Hughes not too long ago.

Forgive me if I can not get excited at the slightest over the prospect of a 12th placed finish.

[DavidMailsTightPerm]

We are 13 points off 6 place and with no way to achieve anything this season, no matter how good the players perform. As for next season, if Kalinic does establish himself as a Premiership goalscorer, he will leave in the summer. Our one and only shot at glory was this game, and despite what some people call a "spirited display", we once again capitulated and lost any realistic chances of winning the tie way before the final whistle.

Honestly, I'm waiting for someone to explain how this can be perceived as good or hopeful.

You are a little ray of sunshine aren't you.

Yet again we have been undone by a major refereeing decision going against us when playing one of the big city clubs. At what point will the FA look into refereeing and give the smaller clubs a chance ?

Unlike Me E - there is reason to be optimistic - we have for the first time some pace in the side, and a goal scorer. It is still some way to go - but we have waited some time for an attacking performance like that. It is also possibly the first time we have been on national television as a live game and the commentators actually say something positive about us. Having said that the commentators were a bit of a joke - drooling over Villa's 2nd half display, seeming to ignore our man disadvantage and the fact they were the home team. Ho Hum - we need to repeat the attacking performance against Wigan - and start to put our relegation fears behind us.

[Mr. E]

Where to begin?

I don't think I have EVER been as proud of my team in the face of defeat as I have tonight. The BBC has been broadcasting football for over half a century and tonights game has to go down as one of the best ever.

There are so many points to make, so I think they need to go down in bullet point form:

1. The BBc gave us no chance, we gave ourselves no chance and the arrogant Villa fans with their overly expensive, under-achieving side gave us no chance and they all should have got the upset they deserved.

2. The best team lost. At 2-0 Rovers were deservedly cruising. A very, very poor refereeing decision put Villa back in the game at 2-1, at which point you would have had your money on the next goal going to Rovers.

3.No arguments about the penalty. Just one of those unfortunate things at which point you could fully expect and understand a Rovers capitulation.

4. Half time - it has taken years but the style and heart of our play seems to finally have got Alan Shearer back on board. He really seemed to be flying the flag for us tonight. How many times do you see an ex-centre forward argue with an ex centre half (Hansen) that the first goal shouldn't have been given? Shearer bucked the trend tonight and I think we carried out a huge propaganda job tonight in front of the millions of viewers.

5.Second half - it was only against ten men could Villa muster any sort of genuine upper hand against our team. No surprise they scored a couple but I am sure no one in the ground expected the second half Rovers performance.

6. Martin Olsson - really impressed in the last two games he has played. Scored the goal of the game and really got stuck in.

7. Nicola Kalinic - All credit to Sam he has picked a real star up here...his goals will come now and I fully expect double figures for Rovers IN THE PREMIER LEAGUE next season.

8. Villa fans -all mouth about their great support but I bet they were cacking their sides tonight and the long periods of silence showed it. Rovers fans - vociferous throughout...well done - gave a great account of themselves on national tv.

9. I have never, ever seen a side keep going like Rovers did tonight. At 5-3 with no chance of winning we kept going, for PRIDE, for THE SHIRT, we got a goal. We battled and battled until the final whistle when we had every excuse to give up a lost cause,but never did.

10. The manager. Ok we lost, and we conceded six, but we very easily could be celebrating a place at Wembley tonight. I think Sam has quite rightly bought himself a few games grace now from some of the clowns and doom mongers on this board and at Ewood. Are these people big enough to give him that?

11. Villa's fans showed their class tonight with that pitch invasion. It is just a Cup final, although I can understand why you may not be able to remember what that is. Either Manc club will stuff you in the final anyway - you really aren't that good. Muppets. Thanks for the 8 million for Warnock. The next time we have that kind of money to spend on a full back I am fairly confident we will put you in your place. I hope that bans are dished out to the clowns who broke the law and went on the pitch. REMEMBER - A cup final is for 90 minutes but THAT accent is for life!

12. Probably loads more to think of but the brain is on overload now. We have done a massive job of changing the nations perception of our club, our manager and our players tonight. WAGGY - tonight presents an amnesty for you. You can go back to Ewood on the pretext of giving a chance to Sam after tonight and keep your dignity. Keep up your vigil of petty, stay at home anti-Roverism, and regardless of your years of support that your goons keep pointing to on here, you are no fan, and either your support or your wallet has given up, but don't tell me it is down to Sam.

Not really called for

Tonight I was given an epiphany in terms of why I support Rovers - we aren't the biggest or the best, but we are a proud, proud small town team who fight, and punch above our weight year in, year out and succeed where others fail. Any town team in this country would die for our record of success, plus many City clubs as well.

I hope the people of Blackburn get out of their armchairs tonight and get down to Ewood for the next home game to show their appreciation, the season starts here.

ARTE ET LABORE.

....because we scored 2 consolation goals after Villa had effectively killed of the tie? That's what we're supposed to be proud of? What the hell?

[joey_big_nose]

Yeah, this excuse pretty much went out the window with the way Birmingham and Fulham have been performing this season. Two clubs with much weaker squads than us, but are giving everyone a right go, because they have competent managers. Add to that the fact that we were a top half team with Souness and Hughes not too long ago.

Birmingham maybe (I would say we were on a par personally), but Fulham have consistently spent loads more than us in the transfer market and never made the massive sales we do (Cruz, Bentley, Duff, Warnock etc etc). Their squad player for player has far more established talent that they have bought in than we have.

Tonight was a great game. Happy with the performance.

[DavidMailsTightPerm]

PROUD TO BE A ROVER!!!!!!

Absolutley gutted by the outcome, the ref gifted them 2 goals (1 & 4) and Samba made a bad error to get sent off (which effectively cost us the game.

Disagree - and strangely agree with Sam. The first goal was what changed the match - I doubt Samba would have been in the position to give away the penalty if it wasn't for the ref's mistake/oversight for the first goal.

Totally agree with your first sentence - for once we can hold our heads high. The players - and our away support - did us proud.

[yeti-dog]

Yeah, this excuse pretty much went out the window with the way Birmingham and Fulham have been performing this season. Two clubs with much weaker squads than us, but are giving everyone a right go, because they have competent managers. Add to that the fact that we were a top half team with Souness and Hughes not too long ago.

Forgive me if I can not get excited at the slightest over the prospect of a 12th placed finish.

You need to try and get excited Mr E...football has changed.8th-12th is something to aspire to,13th-20th something to accept and be fearful of.1st-7th,not going to happen...you need to re-set your expectations I'm afraid to say.Football has changed and not for the better...

[BomBom]

Philipl, am trying to PM you with regards to the Clubs Accounts thread but you cant accept pms, can you get in touch please? would be most appreciative. Apologies for the OT lads, gutted about the result tonight

[Darth Paul]

....because we scored 2 consolation goals after Villa had effectively killed of the tie? That's what we're supposed to be proud of? What the hell?

You must have been watching a different game to all the pundits and the millions of viewers... Villa were almost embarrassed to win that.

You either -

a have never played the beautiful game,

B don't watch much football,

or

c need Prozac...try to look for the positives in life a bit more. Or perhaps a better prescription would be hidden in your name?

[RibbleValleyRover]

Disagree - and strangely agree with Sam. The first goal was what changed the match - I doubt Samba would have been in the position to give away the penalty if it wasn't for the ref's mistake/oversight for the first goal.

The first goal did have a huge impact on the team, when a side feels aggrieved with a decision they can lose their heads or switch off, which is what happened imo. They really should have risen above it though, we had the lead and the away goal advantage so not all was lost.

[philipl]

Rubbish. Pedersen had an excellent game offering the craft and guile in midfield that has been missing for much of the season and should stay in that position from now on.

Samba is to blame for tonight's defeat. Agbonlahor is a poor finisher and still had Robinson to beat. Unless a forward is shooting into an empty net why don't defenders stay on their feet ?

I agree- Agbonlahor was also being forced to run to his left by Samba's run (making Robinson's shot stopping options easier) and there was another defender running straight back whom Agbonlahor would have run into if he had and Samba had carried on running.

Poor decision making by big Chris on this occasion.

Also agree that MGP actually looks a player when played inside as does Bert MkIIIa or whatever he is now.

[Lytham]

Where to begin?

I don't think I have EVER been as proud of my team in the face of defeat as I have tonight. The BBC has been broadcasting football for over half a century and tonights game has to go down as one of the best ever.

There are so many points to make, so I think they need to go down in bullet point form:

1. The BBc gave us no chance, we gave ourselves no chance and the arrogant Villa fans with their overly expensive, under-achieving side gave us no chance and they all should have got the upset they deserved.

2. The best team lost. At 2-0 Rovers were deservedly cruising. A very, very poor refereeing decision put Villa back in the game at 2-1, at which point you would have had your money on the next goal going to Rovers.

3.No arguments about the penalty. Just one of those unfortunate things at which point you could fully expect and understand a Rovers capitulation.

4. Half time - it has taken years but the style and heart of our play seems to finally have got Alan Shearer back on board. He really seemed to be flying the flag for us tonight. How many times do you see an ex-centre forward argue with an ex centre half (Hansen) that the first goal shouldn't have been given? Shearer bucked the trend tonight and I think we carried out a huge propaganda job tonight in front of the millions of viewers.

5.Second half - it was only against ten men could Villa muster any sort of genuine upper hand against our team. No surprise they scored a couple but I am sure no one in the ground expected the second half Rovers performance.

6. Martin Olsson - really impressed in the last two games he has played. Scored the goal of the game and really got stuck in.

7. Nicola Kalinic - All credit to Sam he has picked a real star up here...his goals will come now and I fully expect double figures for Rovers IN THE PREMIER LEAGUE next season.

8. Villa fans -all mouth about their great support but I bet they were cacking their sides tonight and the long periods of silence showed it. Rovers fans - vociferous throughout...well done - gave a great account of themselves on national tv.

9. I have never, ever seen a side keep going like Rovers did tonight. At 5-3 with no chance of winning we kept going, for PRIDE, for THE SHIRT, we got a goal. We battled and battled until the final whistle when we had every excuse to give up a lost cause,but never did.

10. The manager. Ok we lost, and we conceded six, but we very easily could be celebrating a place at Wembley tonight. I think Sam has quite rightly bought himself a few games grace now from some of the clowns and doom mongers on this board and at Ewood. Are these people big enough to give him that?

11. Villa's fans showed their class tonight with that pitch invasion. It is just a Cup final, although I can understand why you may not be able to remember what that is. Either Manc club will stuff you in the final anyway - you really aren't that good. Muppets. Thanks for the 8 million for Warnock. The next time we have that kind of money to spend on a full back I am fairly confident we will put you in your place. I hope that bans are dished out to the clowns who broke the law and went on the pitch. REMEMBER - A cup final is for 90 minutes but THAT accent is for life!

12. Probably loads more to think of but the brain is on overload now. We have done a massive job of changing the nations perception of our club, our manager and our players tonight. WAGGY - tonight presents an amnesty for you. You can go back to Ewood on the pretext of giving a chance to Sam after tonight and keep your dignity. Keep up your vigil of petty, stay at home anti-Roverism, and regardless of your years of support that your goons keep pointing to on here, you are no fan, and either your support or your wallet has given up, but don't tell me it is down to Sam.

13. ABBEY - YOU ARE UNDOUBTEDLY THE BIGGEST LOSER ON THIS WEBSITE - THE BEST PART OF A DECADE READING YOUR SELF INDULGENT CAPS-LOCK RIDDLED CRAP HAS REALLY WORN THIN NOW. THE QUALITY OF THE GRAMMAR AND SPELLING IN YOUR POSTS REALLY SHOWS YOU UP AS THE LOW IQ IDIOT THAT YOU ARE. TAKE A LOOK IN THE MIRROR AND MAYBE GET COUNSELLING THERE ARE CLEARLY SOME ISSUES HERE. Do the mods have the balls to delete any posts in caps that this clown continues to post as I am sick of the poor etiquette it displays...would the younger posters get away with it???

Tonight I was given an epiphany in terms of why I support Rovers - we aren't the biggest or the best, but we are a proud, proud small town team who fight, and punch above our weight year in, year out and succeed where others fail. Any town team in this country would die for our record of success, plus many City clubs as well.

I hope the people of Blackburn get out of their armchairs tonight and get down to Ewood for the next home game to show their appreciation, the season starts here.

ARTE ET LABORE.

Great post, best one I've read on here for a bit. A nice change from the usual grinding depressing defeatist moaning that holds sway amongst quite a few of the serial posters. Great game tonight, wonderful entertainment, even if our hopes ended when Samba was sent off.

[rebelmswar]

I really feel that we have turned a corner. We have to be able to build off of these last two matches.

Gamst should be played in the middle next game to see if he can do it there more, maybe as he has aged his position needs to change also?

We have a gem in Kalinic. Does anyone know what his contract length is?

[hermitstool]

Tonight I cried. We blew away a two-nil lead, which in a normal game is inexcusable. In a cup semi-final, 100 times so. The formation change cost us dearly. One cannot deny that tonight, as in many recent games we were on the rough end of some refereeing decisions, but in the fullness of a season these even out. It's a shame that tonight they cost us so, so, dearly.

It was a relief to see some heart in a Rovers performance, but I still firmly believe that this is in spite of the manager. A performance showing this much heart and passion (not just the players, but US the fans) in the first leg and we could have been looking at a vastly different situation at kick-off tonight. The insipid performance in the first leg, excluding the inevitable 10-20 mins of good performance sums up our season, sadly not tonight.

HOWEVER, *IF* tonight's performance is a zeitgeist change in the way we play, then that is brilliant. If we play with as much heart, passion, guile and effort as tonight we will be able to push on to much greater things in the remainder of the season. Is so the credit must go to not only the leaders within the playing staff but also the management as well. If that is the case my faith in Big Sam will be restored. If not, and we return to the laissez faire performaces that have been sadly so commonplace this season then we have a problem. Tonight is a turning point, but which way will the team turn? I hope, with all my heart, our beloved Rovers push on and perform for the rest of the season. If this is not the case then my previous posts exposing the benefits of a change of management stand.

Please, please, let us push on from here and not fall back into old habits.

Additionally, although tonight's game was a freak of poor defending and the fastest team in the country exploiting the space granted to them by Samba's red-card, it is entirely unnacceptable in any circumstances to concede SIX goals in a CUP semi-final.

I'll be intrigued to see what happens next, it will probably define the rest of the season... and maybe just the future of our beloved Rovers!

Finally, we can all be proud of our Rovers tonight, but I demand we can have that pride after every game, not just tonight.

Apologies for rambling a touch, but I am emotionally drained after the rollercoaster of tonight.