[Archived] Official: Paul Lambert Appointed Blackburn Rovers Manager

[arbitro]

I was interested to read that Lambert had invited Sir Dave Brailsford to Brockhall to speak to the players and staff. For anybody who doesn't know who he is he is the man who has turned British Cycling around and won countless Olympics and major cycling events. He was there for over three hours and Lambert said it was really interesting and thought provoking. Brailsford is really big into the science behind sport and I'm sure that Rovers will be applying some of his methods in the not too distant future. He coined the phrase 'marginal gains' which is essentially looking after the small things and doing them right.

[Rover_Shaun]

No, asking a question of you that you won't answer when, once again, your posts express the opposite of what you have written previously.You are continually asking questions of others, it seems courteous to me that you respond as you expect others to do.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

Perhaps he was thinking that it might be a good idea for supporters to back a manager who was likely to/was struggling. Sometimes known as being supportive, although I appreciate that this is a difficult concept for some.

It's difficult to support appointments when you can see they aren't going to work out. It's a bit liking supporting Tony Blair's intervention in Iraq. Anybody with half a brain could see that was a disaster in the making.

[Roverthechimp]

Current budget (ie pay DG + JG with Rhodes wage) + 5m straight fees with Lambert in sole charge of recruitment would be great but suspect many would be disappointed.

Realistic aim has to be top 4 with a hope to sneaking automatic but also having a squad/team that can be afforded over 2-3 seasons to maximise the chance of promotion.

Time for Lambert to utilise current good feeling and the club to choose 1 game that will be free attendence with the challenge from PL to hit 20 000 to show the owners why they should care.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

It'll be interesting to see how the rest of the season pans out. We're not safe yet but a couple more wins should sort that out. In theory then we won't have much to play for. Hopefully Lambert won't be having any of that old rubbish and he'll be pushing the squad even harder to play out the season in good style.

[JHRover]

Current budget (ie pay DG + JG with Rhodes wage) + 5m straight fees with Lambert in sole charge of recruitment would be great but suspect many would be disappointed.

Realistic aim has to be top 4 with a hope to sneaking automatic but also having a squad/team that can be afforded over 2-3 seasons to maximise the chance of promotion.

Time for Lambert to utilise current good feeling and the club to choose 1 game that will be free attendence with the challenge from PL to hit 20 000 to show the owners why they should care.

I'm sorry but I don't think the club should be offering free attendance.

For starters it would deprive the club of ticket revenue which is important re. FFP compliance.

Secondly there would be many season ticket holders who would be unhappy that they have committed to a season ticket only for less committed supporters to be able to get in for free.

Thirdly the club is already offering the lowest ticket prices in the division. I don't see why the obligation is on them to reduce even further. Last night was cheaper than Accrington Stanley was earlier this season.

I sit in the Riverside and I reckon last night was by far the lowest gate of the season. Even areas around where I sit and chunks of the Blackburn Lower tier were more empty than usual. This despite winning our last 3 home games in a row and the week before being our best performance and result of the season against Middlesbrough. Bizarre to say the least.

The club have done their side of the bargain - cheapest tickets in the league and the 3 game deal to make it even cheaper.

The manager has done his side of the bargain - 4 straight home wins and significant improvement on the pitch.

Now its time for the supporters to do their side and turn up in greater numbers, starting with Leeds on Saturday. If another couple of thousand turn up along with the away support it would be a great atmosphere.

[bob fleming]

Time for Lambert to utilise current good feeling and the club to choose 1 game that will be free attendence with the challenge from PL to hit 20 000 to show the owners why they should care.

The £150m that promotion to the Premier League brings should also be in their thoughts you would hope.

Then again maybe they aren't aware that we can get promoted.

[rigger]

Current budget (ie pay DG + JG with Rhodes wage) + 5m straight fees with Lambert in sole charge of recruitment would be great but suspect many would be disappointed.

Realistic aim has to be top 4 with a hope to sneaking automatic but also having a squad/team that can be afforded over 2-3 seasons to maximise the chance of promotion.

Time for Lambert to utilise current good feeling and the club to choose 1 game that will be free attendence with the challenge from PL to hit 20 000 to show the owners why they should care.

I think the free game is a great idea, the only down side is that some season ticket holders will say it is not fair. perhaps they could be given a free scarf to compensate for this. I still think that making scarves the focal point of support rather that shirts is the way to go (ala, the old cop at Liverpool, and the wall at Dortmund ).

[VinjayV4]

Current budget (ie pay DG + JG with Rhodes wage) + 5m straight fees with Lambert in sole charge of recruitment would be great but suspect many would be disappointed.

Realistic aim has to be top 4 with a hope to sneaking automatic but also having a squad/team that can be afforded over 2-3 seasons to maximise the chance of promotion.

Time for Lambert to utilise current good feeling and the club to choose 1 game that will be free attendence with the challenge from PL to hit 20 000 to show the owners why they should care.

They should do that in pre season. I'm sure Balaji in particular would want to see Rovers play some extremely high profile opposition. Playing Wigan at Ewood pre season was a joke (isn't it smaller clubs supposed to play bigger clubs at home?) a couple of years ago Bournemouth managed to get a date against Real Madrid in 2013. Play it a week before the first game and let season ticket holders at least in for free. Then there would be a significant number of walkons (including Madrid fans and neutrals) and the catering obviously wouldn't be free. Corporate sales would be good too. Rovers have a much bigger stadium so there's absolutely no reason they wouldn't come here. Barcelona did years ago of course (exhibitions seemed to attract increasingly worse opponents after that probably due to cost) so someone like Madrid, Juventus, etc more than possible or even Barcelona again. I guess the concern could be if Rovers got thrashed 4 or 5 nil but I don't think that would damage confidence against such teams. Bournemouth lost 6-0 and it didn't do them any harm that season.

Apparently it cost Bournemouth 1 million though they probably made a lot back by charging vastly inflated ticket prices. Their owner isn't richer than most PL owners I believe (though there's a difference between cash rich and worth not sure which he is) so Venkys could feasibly pay it for sure. FUP surely wouldn't be that big a deal for a one off sum like that.

[gumboots]

I agree that it was difficult to see why last night's attendance was so low. It wasn't cold or wet. It wasn't expensive. It wasn't a really late or early kick off. And performances and lately results have been improving. I know there was champions league on TV but most people have some kind of recoding device nowadays. Lambert is clearly frustrated that he and his team are delivering and there aren't that many people in the ground to help them over the line when legs are tiring

[tomphil]

I agree that it was difficult to see why last night's attendance was so low. It wasn't cold or wet. It wasn't expensive. It wasn't a really late or early kick off. And performances and lately results have been improving. I know there was champions league on TV but most people have some kind of recoding device nowadays. Lambert is clearly frustrated that he and his team are delivering and there aren't that many people in the ground to help them over the line when legs are tiring

It usually happens like that after a Burnley defeat and it does seem at times we have some of the most spineless fans in the league if they stay away because of that.

Swerving the night matches at Ewood does look to be an increasing trend amongst ST holders although the sheer number of games recently doesn't help I suppose.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

I agree that it was difficult to see why last night's attendance was so low. It wasn't cold or wet. It wasn't expensive. It wasn't a really late or early kick off. And performances and lately results have been improving. I know there was champions league on TV but most people have some kind of recoding device nowadays. Lambert is clearly frustrated that he and his team are delivering and there aren't that many people in the ground to help them over the line when legs are tiring

Games have been coming thick and fast lately. If you haven't got a season ticket it's still quite expensive even at our prices.

[DE.]

There have been five solid years of turgid performances at Ewood, it's probably going to take more than a month's worth of decent performances for people to start believing again. A good end to the season and some investment in the summer will hopefully see gates increase for the start of next season. I'm not sure there will be much change during this campaign, particularly as we don't really have anything to play for.

[tomphil]

I was interested to read that Lambert had invited Sir Dave Brailsford to Brockhall to speak to the players and staff. For anybody who doesn't know who he is he is the man who has turned British Cycling around and won countless Olympics and major cycling events. He was there for over three hours and Lambert said it was really interesting and thought provoking. Brailsford is really big into the science behind sport and I'm sure that Rovers will be applying some of his methods in the not too distant future. He coined the phrase 'marginal gains' which is essentially looking after the small things and doing them right.

I'd love to have sat in on that one and the more they do of that kind of thing the better. More similarities to the Hughes era and whenever you have a manager who's so heavily into fitness and work ethic I don't think you'll go far wrong.

There have been five solid years of turgid performances at Ewood, it's probably going to take more than a month's worth of decent performances for people to start believing again. A good end to the season and some investment in the summer will hopefully see gates increase for the start of next season. I'm not sure there will be much change during this campaign, particularly as we don't really have anything to play for.

You're right but we are talking regulars here who have turned up through all that crap and now we have a team giving us something back a lot aren't bothering which is a bit odd. Although like has been said the sheer number of midweek home games recently does become a bind after a while.

[gumboots]

I love night matches. I understand that for some work commitments or distance to travel makes it hard and kids can't attend easily if they've to get up for school but the atmosphere, that being in a cocoon of light while the night is darkly visible all round makes it all the more exciting

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

If you had to choose between the " Big Club " home game or the Leeds home game most people would choose the Leeds game I think.

Let's see what Saturday brings ? Having said that the early kick off won't help.

[oldjamfan1]

I love night matches. I understand that for some work commitments or distance to travel makes it hard impossible and kids can't attend easily if they've to get up for school but the atmosphere, that being in a cocoon of light while the night is darkly visible all round makes it all the more exciting

Corrected for you gumboots - people should not underestimate just how many folk simply cannot attend midweek games, including many season ticket holders who would normally be there on a Saturday.

[ABBEY]

If you had to choose between the " Big Club " home game or the Leeds home game most people would choose the Leeds game I think.

Let's see what Saturday brings ? Having said that the early kick off won't help.

Another game for me with lost overtime .

[Amo]

When can we expect the overdue apology for ruining the club?

http://www.skysports.com/football/news/11676/9321727/championship-venkys-apologise-for-failing-to-bring-success-to-blackburn-rovers

[VinjayV4]

http://www.skysports.com/football/news/11676/9321727/championship-venkys-apologise-for-failing-to-bring-success-to-blackburn-rovers

Probably meant a public apology not via their palatial palace in Pune.

[Rover_Shaun]

http://www.skysports.com/football/news/11676/9321727/championship-venkys-apologise-for-failing-to-bring-success-to-blackburn-rovers

Nope. Nowhere near enough or on the right topic. To$$ers

[Lancaster Rover]

I love night matches. I understand that for some work commitments or distance to travel makes it hard and kids can't attend easily if they've to get up for school but the atmosphere, that being in a cocoon of light while the night is darkly visible all round makes it all the more exciting

I love night matches but I was one of the absentees last night, my job takes me all over and unfortunately night gamse often have to be missed. My cousin who has ST's with his 2 sons doesn't take them on for term time night games as they are 9 and 11 respectively. So that's 3 that would have been there had it been a Saturday fixture, multiply similar reasons across our match going fan base and its easy to see why the attendance was poor IMO. I think the run of fixtures hasn't helped as if you're not a season ticket holder it could be an expensive month for some families if they hadn't budgeted for the rearranged games, cup fixtures, etc.

[Mattyblue]

It isn't unique to Rovers, there are so many night games in this league, people just pick and choose- especially if there's another home game a few days later.

I'd say up to a third of ST holders didn't bother last night.

[Steve Kean's Hypnotoad]

Is it due to the club devaluing the product by lowering ticket prices by so much? I've forgotten where they were at before the first big reduction under Hughes in summer 2007, but I think it was about £460 for an adult ST. In the PL that was £24 a game, which is £31.70 in today's money according to an internet inflation conversion site. I don't think people would be so keen to miss a game if they'd paid £31.70 for it, but at the current £10 its a case of big deal.

[Stuart]

Rovers need to keep doing brilliant deals for children, juniors and young adults. With the job market the way it is, young people don't have the means to buy their own so the burden is added on to the parents. It's one thing forking out £400 for a season ticket but £1000 because two teens are wanting to go as well? More difficult.

Plus, if you get the youngsters hooked the are more likely to purchase when the are adults themselves.

Higher season tickets would also make walk-on prices ridiculous to avoid putting noses out of joint. Season ticket holders paying £20 a match (pro rata) would mean walk on prices set at about £30-£40 or people will just pick and choose games.

For me Rovers have got exactly the right pricing strategy, and more clubs should do the same. What they need now is to rebuild bridges and combat apathy with supporters. Being competitive at the right end of the table helps but as Parsonblue has said it's PL football that people want - even then it needs to be competitive.

Why do people like PL football? Is it because the best players in the world come to Ewood? Nope, it's because they believe the Sky marketing. Which is why we could do to improve the marketing of our own players to locals - particularly school kids, and local kids who play football, who will drag their parents down at our prices.

They need to combat the idea that bigger clubs are better. I've taken my team down to Ewood a few times and one year I had a kid who refused to come because he supported Liverpool! And I was paying!! He doesn't play for us any more.