The Relegation Thread

[Neil Weaver]

2 hours ago, had.e.nuff said:

I will be surprised if we survive I cant remember a team spending so long in the bottom 3 and surviving I think we have only been out of the bottom 3 for 2 weeks all season.Thought we would go down after first game, squad just not good enough for any league, has anyone gone down with out being in the bottom 3 until the final whistle of the last game?

It's a long time ago so probably more accurate if someone researches........ but I seem to remember a Dave Bassett-managed Sheff Utd getting relegated from the top flight (might have been pre-Prem days).  I think their first venture into the relegation places all season was about 10 mins from the end of their last game.

[RevidgeBlue]

Just now, Neil Weaver said:

It's a long time ago so probably more accurate if someone researches........ but I seem to remember a Dave Bassett-managed Sheff Utd getting relegated from the top flight (might have been pre-Prem days).  I think their first venture into the relegation places all season was about 10 mins from the end of their last game.

I said a week or two ago I  could see a side thinking they were completely safe with 20 mins to go on the last day then bang, a couple of quick goals in different games and they're gone.

Let's hope Forest or Brum are this years "Sheffield United".

[Cherry Blue]

Trying to remain positive.

This season is now about hope after so much disappointment. We look to be hanging on by the skin of our teeth but as Greavesie said, its a funny old game. Who would have thought we could take 6 points off Newcastle.

Well done to the travelling 1,600 going on Sunday, hope this Sunday is a day of celebration for all of us.

 

[rog of the rovers]

From 20th July 2016

Wish I'd put more on!

 

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

Just now, rog of the rovers said:

From 20th July 2016

Wish I'd put more on!

 

I was as sure as sure could be we'd go down and I said so on this site the day we appointed Coyle. It looked like money in the bank but I could never back against us though.

[rog of the rovers]

Just now, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

I was as sure as sure could be we'd go down and I said so on this site the day we appointed Coyle. It looked like money in the bank but I could never back against us though.

It pained me to do so, but seeing as I never win bets, I hoped I'd jinx us to stay up!

Alas, not

[Tom]

Is this now next years thread?

[Stuart]

4 hours ago, rog of the rovers said:

From 20th July 2016

Wish I'd put more on!

 

That £50 will be like One-Eyed Willy's treasure.

[jim mk2]

I've seen enough. It must be patently obvious to even the most rabid Rovers fan that there is something seriously wrong at the club. We are sinking like a stone down the table and although we have a cushion above the relegation places it  could  still be touch and go whether we stay up.  

Assuming we do stay up what happens next season ? As it stands, it is clear that this squad under this manager is relegation fodder. It is too old, too slow, unbalanced, with too many weary and demotivated players who are not good enough for this division. And it is badly led by a negative and weak manager who is tactically suspect and has failed to address defensive failings that have been apparent throughout his time at the club.

So, as i see it, the squad needs wholesale reconstruction, with as many as 7 players from today's starting line up needing to be replaced and requiring the owners to spend substantial sums in the summer.  Will they do it ? And is Mowbray the right man to continue managing the club ?  Some big changes are required because even at this early stage the portents for next season do not look good at all. 

 

[47er]

Good post but I'm more worried about this season's relegation battle at the moment. We currently do have a cushion but it will disappear very quickly if we cary on like this.

Yes, the owners need to spend big in summer.Yes, the team is too old and slow. But right now, the answer is to get some more hungry, quick and tireless youngsters in. Team needs turning round, Parkes did it.

Will the owners splash the cash in summer? Doubt it given the farce of Brereton.

Will they sack Mowbray? Doubtful, given the latitude they showed Kean.

We really are in a mess and always will be so long as Venkys are the owners. I truly despair.

[Crimpshrine]

1 hour ago, 47er said:

We really are in a mess and always will be so long as Venkys are the owners. I truly despair.

This is the key issue - the owners.

We can rant and rave about the manger ( who isn't good enough) and the team ( who aren't good enough) but until we get owners who understand football and care about the club we are going nowhere. We need a proper board and infrastructure to allow us to function as a real football club with ambitions. The owners are the root of all our problems.

I don't rate Mowbray at all but I don't think anyone will succeed at Rovers under Venky's. I think we need to ramp up the protests again. Venky's Out.

[blueboy3333]

7 hours ago, jim mk2 said:

. And it is badly led by a negative and weak manager who is tactically suspect and has failed to address defensive failings that have been apparent throughout his time at the club.

 

 

Bingo. He also blames everyone but himself for the teams failings. 

I don't rate him at all and have no faith he will bring in the players needed to make us better. His record in the transfer market is frankly very poor. 

Trouble is he won't be sacked by the idiots running the club. I include his mate Waggott in that. 

Edited March 3, 2019 by blueboy3333

[DeeCee]

10 hours ago, Crimpshrine said:

This is the key issue - the owners.

We can rant and rave about the manger ( who isn't good enough) and the team ( who aren't good enough) but until we get owners who understand football and care about the club we are going nowhere. We need a proper board and infrastructure to allow us to function as a real football club with ambitions. The owners are the root of all our problems.

I don't rate Mowbray at all but I don't think anyone will succeed at Rovers under Venky's. I think we need to ramp up the protests again. Venky's Out.

You can't blame Venkys for team selection, tactics and fitness, that's down to the whole of the footballing team, primarily ToMo 

[47er]

Just now, DeeCee said:

You can't blame Venkys for team selection, tactics and fitness, that's down to the whole of the footballing team, primarily ToMo 

There's no Board, existing staff are promoted from within with no selection process beyond their level of competence, we haven't got the back-up staff we need---even TM is complaining there's no Euro scouting network, important decisions have to go through India to be ratified by people who have hardly ever set foot in Ewood, we never have any idea from year to year what the transfer budget will be or even if there's going to be one, there's a history of players being sold over the manager's head whether its in the interests of the club or not. I could go on.

You think these factors have no effect on team performance? Only if you don't think beyond the 90 minutes.

[DeeCee]

Just now, 47er said:

There's no Board, existing staff are promoted from within with no selection process beyond their level of competence, we haven't got the back-up staff we need---even TM is complaining there's no Euro scouting network, important decisions have to go through India to be ratified by people who have hardly ever set foot in Ewood, we never have any idea from year to year what the transfer budget will be or even if there's going to be one, there's a history of players being sold over the manager's head whether its in the interests of the club or not. I could go on.

You think these factors have no effect on team performance? Only if you don't think beyond the 90 minutes.

At the moment, the 90 minutes is the most important otherwise we'll be back in Div. 1.  Then we'll see what the infrastructure would be, absolutely pathetic I would imagine

[RoverCanada]

11 hours ago, 47er said:

Good post but I'm more worried about this season's relegation battle at the moment. We currently do have a cushion but it will disappear very quickly if we cary on like this.

Current odds on getting relegated are being given at about 350-500 to 1. Guess you should put a fiver down?

[47er]

Just now, RoverCanada said:

Current odds on getting relegated are being given at about 350-500 to 1. Guess you should put a fiver down?

They are good odds and I hope Mercer is listening!

[Mercer]

12 hours ago, jim mk2 said:

And it is badly led by a negative and weak manager who is tactically suspect and has failed to address defensive failings that have been apparent throughout his time at the club.

And is Mowbray the right man to continue managing the club ?  Some big changes are required because even at this early stage the portents for next season do not look good at all. 

 

A good post.

How poor has Mowbray been this season?  Well, in my opinion, based on some of our abysmal performances, it might well have been Kean or C o y l e stood on the touchline - that to me is the unpalatable fact.

Edited March 3, 2019 by Mercer

[jim mk2]

Just now, RoverCanada said:

Current odds on getting relegated are being given at about 350-500 to 1. Guess you should put a fiver down?

 A few seasons ago Birmingham were in an identical position to us at present and managed to stay up by scraping a point on the last day of the season

Looks like a decent bet ! 

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

1 hour ago, RoverCanada said:

Current odds on getting relegated are being given at about 350-500 to 1. Guess you should put a fiver down?

I remember Blackpool going down years ago. They'd never been in the drop zone all season until the last ten minutes of their last game ! After Xmas they were safely mid table.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

1 hour ago, Mercer said:

A good post.

How poor has Mowbray been this season?  Well, in my opinion, based on some of our abysmal performances, it might well have been Kean or C o y l e stood on the touchline - that to me is the unpalatable fact.

I don't agree with equating Mowbray and Coyle as managers at all  but at the moment talking purely in team performance terms what is the difference?  All the failings that haunted Coyles time here have returned with a vengeance.

[Mercer]

1 minute ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

I don't agree with equating Mowbray and Coyle as managers at all  but at the moment talking purely in team performance terms what is the difference?  All the failings that haunted Coyles time here have returned with a vengeance.

I think the only difference is Mowbray bangs on and on about his values and purports to operate by them.

Well to me, Mowbray's Rovers are mentally and physically unfit, he can't set a team up, his tactics are bewildering and Dack apart, his player trading is appalling (at least Coyle secured Mulgrew and Graham).  So, other than perhaps values, what is the difference between Mowbray and C o y l e ?

[Exiled in Toronto]

1 hour ago, Mercer said:

I think the only difference is Mowbray bangs on and on about his values and purports to operate by them.

Well to me, Mowbray's Rovers are mentally and physically unfit, he can't set a team up, his tactics are bewildering and Dack apart, his player trading is appalling (at least Coyle secured Mulgrew and Graham).  So, other than perhaps values, what is the difference between Mowbray and C o y l e ?

None whatsoever, Alan

[alcd]

Time to resurrect the relegation thread after (another) disastrous weekend. Currently Rovers have the worst results over the last 6 matches of any team in the 4 divisions. Reading and Rotherham - between them - have lost only once. Apart from the New Year blip of 4 wins this losing habit stretches back for 3 months now. On current form and with non-league standard defending there are probably just 3 matches that offer a realistic prospect of picking up any further points - the home fixtures v Wigan, Bolton and Swansea (and last match nerves might screw that up too). If both Reading or Rotherham win 3 (out of 11) and draw 3 each then more points will be required - where from - and recent form suggests they may well do just that. Mowbray needs to stop chuntering on about next season and do the job he's paid to for this season.

[Blue blood]

15 minutes ago, alcd said:

Time to resurrect the relegation thread after (another) disastrous weekend. Currently Rovers have the worst results over the last 6 matches of any team in the 4 divisions. Reading and Rotherham - between them - have lost only once. Apart from the New Year blip of 4 wins this losing habit stretches back for 3 months now. On current form and with non-league standard defending there are probably just 3 matches that offer a realistic prospect of picking up any further points - the home fixtures v Wigan, Bolton and Swansea (and last match nerves might screw that up too). If both Reading or Rotherham win 3 (out of 11) and draw 3 each then more points will be required - where from - and recent form suggests they may well do just that. Mowbray needs to stop chuntering on about next season and do the job he's paid to for this season.

Really don't think that relegation is going to happen despite our appalling form for a number of reasons. 

1) There's realistically only one relegation place to "play" for - 2 are nailed on certs, thus minimizing the danger. 

2) These teams in serious relegation trouble are 10/11 points behind us, This means they need 3 maybe 4 wins - I'll go with 4 on the basis that we'll scab/fluke a couple of points a la last weekend. 4 wins out of 11 is decent form and It's roughly winning a 3rd of games which is form that Millwall, Rotherham and Reading have not had all season. Indeed, in the last 6 games only Rotherham have that form and I question whether they can maintain it. (Incidentally had we drawn vs Reading and Rotherham, we'd have an extra 3 point margin and would take the task to 5 wins in 11 seeing us virtually safe but that's another flaw of TM). 

3) There are 3 teams below us by a significant margin of points. The odds of all 3 of them picking up a good run of form is very, very unlikely. Of late only Rotherham really look like they're doing it. Millwall have lost 3 on the bounce which gives the impression they're not going to get the 4 wins needed anytime soon. 

4) There are other teams in the relegation mix. also currently below us. The added bonus is QPR have lost 4 of the last 5. We're not the only team imploding. There's a decent chance that at least one of these teams - QPR and Millwall, - will keep on a downward spiral saving us from relegation. 

5) This division is poor, anyone can beat anyone and if that means that there's a chance that other poor teams pick up points, that's also the case for us too. We've been poor for quite a while and still managed a 4 game winning streak within this, so it's not inconceivable that we can pick up points, as well as other poor teams picking up points. I think we're at least good for a few draws, and another 3 draws would see the below mentioned team needing an extra win to overtake us. 

6) For now our goal difference is still the least worst. 

I'd like to say it's on merit due to quality players, some promising pieces of play and a manager I trust that makes me think we'll avoid relegation. Not a bit of it, but I still think the situation is more than compelling to say we won't go down this season. Next year is a different story though...