[Archived] News Article -> Rovers Hit The Headlines

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[caption id=attachment_827" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Picture Courtesy of CN174][/caption]Rovers have been at the centre of more media attention and speculation over the weekend with stories of manager Steve Kean getting sacked and impending financial disaster rounded off by an attack from a Daily Mirror columnist, who suggested that most people will not care if Rovers go down.

Friday lunchtime saw a story break that Steve Kean was about to be sacked. It seems that the source for this was speculation on social networking site Twitter, which led to the odds on Steve Kean being sacked falling considerably. This was picked up by media outlets and speculation mounted concerning Steve Kean's position. Venky's were forced to come out for a second time in a matter of weeks and give Kean the dreaded vote of confidence. Co-owner Venkatesh Rao told Sky Sports News that Kean still had their full backing. Sources at Venky's have told BRFCS that it is inconceivable that Kean would be sacked at this stage of the season and that Venky's support him. Sources at Brockhall have also confirmed that the players are "100%" behind the manager.

Yesterday journalist Alan Nixon reported in The People that relegation could stretch Venky's financial resources due to players who have recently signed new contracts not having relegation clauses inserted into their contracts and who therefore would not see their wages cut if Rovers were relegated. Venky's sources have again indicated that whilst relegation would be a disaster for the club, it would not result in a financial collapse.

Finally, yesterday saw Mirror columnist Michael Calvin issue a harsh critique of the club and the owners and their advisors SEM and Kentaro, highlighting the involvement of Jerome Anderson and then likening manager Steve Kean to a Thunderbirds puppet. In his column he also said: "In an ideal world Wolves, a proper club run by a proper football man, Mick McCarthy, will save themselves by sending Rovers down, on the last day of the season. And no one will care a jot.". While it is true that the way Venky's have handled things since the takeover has been poor, this latest attack shows a total lack of respect for the club, the good people who work at Ewood and the fans.

Calvin's suggestion that others will not care a jot about Rovers getting relegated may be there for effect and designed to provoke reaction, yet it underestimates how much Rovers fans do care about the club and their fears for the well-being of the club should Rovers get relegated. With no further breaks for international fixtures until the end of the season, Rovers now face eight weeks of a battle with their destiny firmly in their own hands. Fans will be hoping that Steve Kean and the players can turn the fortunes of the club round so as to secure Premier League survival and allow the club to address its problems in a more stable environment. Discuss

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