[Archived] Have we got our Rovers back?

[Waggy76]

I cannot see any promotion or even challenging but it was good to see some effort exerted by the players ..

The last 2 season have at best been shambolic and at worst , criminal ...

A good dominant centre half and a good midfielder (maybe the Hull signing)? ,,,,

[K-Hod]

yes, we have got our rovers back, venky`s have finally learned and we are a proper football club again and it`s showing now on the field. we CAN be successful under venky`s ownership provided they remain in the background as mere observers and backers, no more shebby and no more fanfare type visits in fancy cars.

NOW GET YOUR ASSES BACK TO EWOOD ASAP!

Oh god, who let him out again?

[Stuart]

I hope you're right Stuart. For me a large part comes from the divide Venkys have driven between the club and the support. I feel disconnected and have no feeling of excitement though I admit to checking the scores twice yesterday. I still haven't bought the STs and as far as I'm aware the only real changes at Ewood are GB is permanent, Murphy and Givet have gone, Judge has been signed. Best news of the summer being Shabby seems to have disappeared for good. If GB gives us some good football to watch it will make a huge change but I can't see us going anywhere soon.

Don't get me wrong, I know exactly where you are coming from.The title of this thread won't genuinely be true until we have people who care about Rovers as owners. For now, though, I'm just going to try to enjoy what's going on on the pitch - for as long as that's possible.

Hate to break it to you, by the way, but Givet remains a highly paid, unused substitute.

[xtp]

I'm feeling excited about the season and the squad for the first time since forever. The Rovers I used to love was the one which didn't have huge amounts of money to throw around and punched above it's weight by virtue of picking up relatively talented players for next to nothing and then working harder than the opposition. It's great to see Bowyer snapping up bargains from League One (Judge, Taylor, Spurr), rather than overpaying the likes of Etuhu and Murphy. It's also great to see someone in charge who I actually like - who quietly goes about their job, but deep down, loves the club and knows what it stands for.

Does that mean the nightmare is over? Does it guarantee promotion or even good performances? Of course not. We could still very well spiral down into financial oblivion in the next twelve months, but I'm going to enjoy this last echo of the Williams years as long as I can. Bowyer's probably the last man left at the club who actually gets what that legacy is.

[Andy]

If yesterday's performance is the standard for the season, then yes, absolutely.

Really enjoyed the game, the fitness levels, drive and passion to wear the shirt from a hungry young team.

Aside from King, Kane and Marrow, everyone else played well (Lowe wasn't as bad as some are making out).

For me, changing the formation killed our momentum for a while and I think we'd have fared better had Taylor replaced Rochina and swapped positions with Judge.

But Best, as poor as he generally is, finished well.

Play to that level all season and we will finish top 6 no problem.

However, all of that said, how many false dawns have we seen in the last few years alone...?

[DE.]

At the very least we have stability back at the club, which is something that has been sorely lacking over the past few years. We have a team that should be capable of maintaining our place in the Championship, and a manager who seems to know what he is doing.

My main concern is our finances, I can't help but think something terrible is around the corner as whatever way you look at it we must be in a perilous financial situation.

[Guest Norbert]

It seems a sense of normality is returning, but there is always that nagging feeling that something awful is going to happen e.g. Shebby appointed D of F, financial meltdown etc.

[RoyRover]

It's been very quiet this summer from those lunatics in India, which is exactly what we needed. For too long the football side of things has been a side note to the mayhem being cause by the owners and by Singh. Thankfully the owners have shut up and backed off and Singh is nowhere to be seen.

A bit of normality has returned to the club, but while these morons still own the club, that could change at any minute.

[alexanders]

One swallow doesn't make a summer. My point wasn't just about today's game against a poor side, albeit with one of the best home records in The Championship last season, more about the whole feel about the place.

This I agree with. IF people are talking about that our Rovers are back because of the result against derby they are deluded. However the factors you mention about stability, exciting young players and most important of all no circus sounds and arte et labore on the pitch !

[Steve Kean's Hypnotoad]

That's a long time to be angry.

Since Venky's came along another 8 clubs have also been relegated, including two well run North West teams who were also established in the prem. Who are their fans supposed to be angry at?

Its not as though I walk around grinding my teeth. Generally I tend to ignore them completely and try to pretend they have nothing to do with us. But if asked I'm not gonna forgive them just cause I can't be bothered anymore. To me they're like some asbo teenager who's spent years destroying his neighbourhood, doesn't do it anymore but never apologised for doing it in the first place or agreed to help repair the damage. And now some of the residents of that neighbourhood wanna let bygones be bygones, don't get it personally.

Regarding other relegated clubs, well there's a huge difference between picking a manager with the best of intentions and himself or the players failing to deliver, and what Venkys did to us. None of those 8 clubs deliberately got relegated. You might say neither did Venkys, but the actions they took were exactly the same as someone deliberately trying to. Sacking a great manager, sticking by a rubbish one against all advice. We got relegated for absolutely no reason whatsoever. I can't think of a similar situation to what happened to us, I suppose Stoke did the first part but then hired Mark Hughes instead of whoever Tony Pulis' cone layer was.

[Blue n White Rover]

I think it's just good to see no bad press for the club. Fans all seem to be united. Venky's are quiet and Shebby is nowhere to be seen.

I'm enjoying the football, I'm enjoying the fact our manager is supported and most of all I'm looking forward to watching Rovers again. Whereas before it was just a case of following the routine and going because I had nothing better to do on a Saturday afternoon.

Really looking forward to the Forest game on Saturday and hopefully some of the fans will have seen the commitment and passion from the current crop of players and turn up in numbers.

Arte et Labore.

[booth]

Getting carried away, Derby were a poor outfit I felt. If we can have a good follow up performance against forest, then fair enough...but this was a draw against a bang average side.

To be fair, Derby didn't deserve a point. I think if we hadn't conceded a daft penalty and Rochina hadn't had to go off we'd have won the game. Yes I know his replacement scored the goal that got us a point but I don't think we'd have been in that position had circumstances not dealt us a crappy hand.

[RibbleValleyRover]

If we lose the next two games do we have to wait until we get a draw or win again to get Rovers back?

Far too premature after one game to suggest that things are starting to improve, come back after 30+ games and you may have a point. I know football fans are fickle but some of the comments on the Derby thread are taking it to the extreme. Let's just sit back and wait and see?

[imy9]

Rvr- I don't think it's the result and performance against Derby which tells me that Rovers could potentially be back. It is the summer rebuilding job done by GB, it's the glowing reports from the players as to how pre season has gone, players look fitter, hungrier and most importantly look ready for the Championship. This alongside no Shebby, no Murphy and no ridiculous wages to average players means that potentially things have turned around.

However this is Venky's and a disaster is always just round the corner!

[arbitro]

I think it's just the normality of how things are (and should always have been) that is giving me optimism and hope for the future. Maybe I have been conditioned by the gross mis management over the past 32 months and I'm grateful for the lack of bad press, bickering and a host of other things that have been wrong. On the field the players seem better conditioned than they were last season and there does appear to be a far better spirit amongst them.

The more I think about it though it does seem that things have been hugely better since Agnew and Singh went. There have been no squabbles played out in the media and the bad press that goes with it.

[matt83]

I cant really articulate how i feel but still feel very betrayed by the club and while I support it I used to feel it was a club from the town I lived and was born in and who all my mates supported and everyone was in it together. Now I just view it as a franchise that plays nearer to me than anyone else.

To answer the original question have we got out rovers back for me the answer is no. The reason being is the owners are nutters who don't care like fans do about the club and its their trinket and things can go down the toilet in the blink of an eye. So if they wanted to rename the club to Venky fc, stop paying bills bringing on liquidation, sell or rename the ground, decide they want us to play in pink then they you'd better believe they would do it without a seconds thought for us fans.

That is why I don't think we have or ever will get our rovers back. But are things better now than this time last year. YES.

[JAL]

Have Rovers got some new local owners with this thread.

[Rover_Shaun]

It's a thread for short memories and the easily pleased Jal

[imy9]

It's a thread for short memories Jal. Where the defeated can pay homage to the house of Venkys.

I can't see anyone paying homage to Venky's, I'm sure you'll quote them if I've missed it.

The team on the pitch is what I support. I think it's obvious to all (bar people who have a deep hatred of Venky's) that things have certainly become better in the last six months. I give a lot of credit to GB who is a honest bloke with a genuine love of Rovers.

[jim mk2]

We won't have our Rovers back until Venky's have departed.

The arrogance, ignorance and ineptitude of the Indians over the past 3 years has inflicted wounds from which we will probably never recover.

The departure of the shyster hangers-on is welcome but the Venky's boil needs to be lanced once and for all.

[K-Hod]

Things are better than they were, we played well in large parts yesterday, and the application, drive and desire shown by the players was encouraging.

Granted, I'd sooner see Venky's cock off elsewhere, but who's buying?

[tkturner]

Rovers is always ours...

Owners will (and have) come and gone...

I was away this weekend and didn't manage to catch the game but I'm feeling happy that there seems to be more effort on the field.

This pre-season was a much more stable affair and for me, Bowyer saying we have got to the levels he was after in terms of fitness is a great starting point, that coupled with some graft from the players on the field, a few more smiles on the fans faces and lets see how it pans out...

I feel like I'm only doing myself damage by remaining annoyed with the whole Venky's thing, yes, what they have done is awful, but I want to support the lads and enjoy some time with friends at Ewood

[Rover_Shaun]

I can't see anyone paying homage to Venky's, I'm sure you'll quote them if I've missed it.

The team on the pitch is what I support. I think it's obvious to all (bar people who have a deep hatred of Venky's) that things have certainly become better in the last six months. I give a lot of credit to GB who is a honest bloke with a genuine love of Rovers.

I chose the wrong words......hence the edit whilst you were replying........but I feel it can be construed as praise for Venkys. It is praising them for doing the absolute expected bare minimum. An improvement it maybe but worthy of credit, it's own topic or hyperbole such as "our rovers back"? Never.

Incidentally, on the mention of hyperbole, posters have been castigated for using it in relation to calling Orr the worst Rovers player ever but then others are using it to describe Bowyer. "He loves Rovers" people gush. Does he? How do we know? As far as I can see he's doing the job he is employed to do which by it's very nature requires the incumbent to put the best interests of the club first. Other than Kean (who did not) Bowyer is doing nothing different to what Appleton and Berg did. Both of those put Rovers best interests first and tried (to the best of their ability) to push the club forward. They may have failed and had massive shortcomings but you cannot say Bowyer has more love for the club than Henning Berg? Up to now Bowyer is doing better (which isn't hard) but gushing about him "Loving Rovers" is hyperbole in the extreme and unnecessary tabloid-esque fluff. We can do without it. It just undermines the posters point imo

As for the current situation all I can see is more of the same. A manager employed who shouldn't have been and no real backing in the transfer market. All that is needed to make now like then are bad results.

Agnew may have gone, Shebby may not be evident at the moment but to me the status quo remains and will remain as long as Venkys are around.

Improvement? Possibly. Praise? Never

[Paul]

Don't get me wrong, I know exactly where you are coming from.The title of this thread won't genuinely be true until we have people who care about Rovers as owners. For now, though, I'm just going to try to enjoy what's going on on the pitch - for as long as that's possible.

Hate to break it to you, by the way, but Givet remains a highly paid, unused substitute.

Yep i'm hoping to enjoy the matches as well. It would be wonderful to walk down LBR with some anticipation and expectation of an exciting and winning afternoon. Doesn't have to be every week but just the feeling we are in with a chance, which disappeared for me a long time ago. I'll settle for a period like the Don MacKay years - those were pretty damn good in fact.

If we can have the Givet who wants to play and is played I'm pleased to read this as I thought he had gone. Whether things have changed or not remains to be seen.

[imy9]

Bowyer has been with the club for ten years. He has spoken on numerous occasions of how much he cares for the club. A number of posters on here including Kamy have said what a genuinely nice bloke he is. I don't think it's hyperbole to say he loves the club. The massive difference between Bowyer and the others is that he has worked his way through the ranks in management at Rovers, thus he knows all the players here from the youth set up to the first team squad.

Incidentally this does not mean that he will be successful but I think he understands what the issues are and is trying to resolve them.