v Birmingham (h) - 18/12/21

[RevidgeBlue]

What a great win. 

What a ball from Wharton to Nyambe for the first. 

Well done to everyone who refused to be beaten by the virus and risked their Christmas plans to turn out and support the team.

Heroes all.

[JonnyP]

9 minutes ago, Blue blood said:

And whilst we are on the topic of automatic promotion - Bournemouth have a huge weakness in Parker. More worried about WBA as Ishmael I think is a good manager and when he gets in a couple more players suited to his site they will be favourites for me to grab 2nd. 

They look good in defence, very hard to break down but haven’t been as good going forward, last night being a good example, they don’t concede many but aren’t the best goal scoring side in the league.

I’m hoping our defensive form can continue, I find over the course of a season at times goals can sometimes be hard to get and forwards can have quiet periods where something doesn’t quite click but if we keep it solid in the back it can make it easier to pick up 1-0 wins along the way when we aren’t firing on all cylinders. I feel that a solid back 3/5 that we have could be the back bone to our promotion push.

[simongarnerisgod]

birmingham are not very good,but credit to the back 3,they did`nt give them a sniff,van hecke in particular is a step above the championship,he reads the game superbly,having a good goalie and a settled defence gives the others confidence to express themselves,im`e amazed really,i thought this season would be a nightmare,cmon rovers,we can do it☺️

[Dolly blue]

All of my posts over the last 2 seasons have been very anti Mowbray ..his negativity, his blaming of younger players, his playing of square pegs in round holes, his criticism of fans and his crazy team selections . 

….tonight I have to acknowledge what he is doing..whether he’s “ fallen “ on this selection , whether he’s decided that football is better than possession, whether he’s happy without his journeymen …not too sure but long may it continue.

Cant believe I’m going to write this but…well done Mowbray and the boys in the shirts .. dreaming ???

[TruRover]

7 minutes ago, booth said:

If Bournemouth and Fulham carry on their poor form they are they are going to drop into the play off spots. I think QPR  and WBA are the ones that will compete for the top two spots.

Fulham are 100% going up as number 1. 
 

2nd is up for grabs.

Edited December 18, 2021 by TruRover

[Waggy76]

I honestly thought the days of Rovers absolutely battering teams had gone .....

An excellent performance again ...

[Beanie01289]

Time to be bold don't sell anyone use the money we had from the arma deal and we are on.

[DE.]

29 minutes ago, roverandout said:

Hats off to Mowbray. Hes finally learned.  Still think he should be binned if we go up. Worked well for Southampton when they appointed pochetinho

Southampton didn't sack him until January though. I'm not sure any promoted team has ever sacked their manager before the new season started?

[Exiled in Toronto]

32 minutes ago, roverandout said:

Hats off to Mowbray. Hes finally learned.  Still think he should be binned if we go up. Worked well for Southampton when they appointed pochetinho

Learned what? Playing the back five has been the season-changer.

[davulsukur]

Can't remember the last time team's expected defeat against Rovers but reading the Birmingham twitter comments, that's definitely a common theme. 

[TruRover]

47 minutes ago, Waggy76 said:

I honestly thought the days of Rovers absolutely battering teams had gone .....

An excellent performance again ...

Tbf over the last 18 months weve tended to batter teams by 4-5goals margins fairly regularly. I agree tho, before then we never won games by impressive margins. 

Edited December 18, 2021 by TruRover

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

Having a system that suits the skill set of the players you have and sticking with it week in, week out works. Who’d have thought it !

Edited December 18, 2021 by Tyrone Shoelaces

[glen9mullan]

Its just all clicking into a place, a team that to a man is playing with confidence and at the top of their game.

Mowbray tried the three centre halves a few times previously and it didnt work, he's stuck with his beliefs and now not only is it working, but has totally transformed the team. 

Its beginning to feel a little bit special, with the postponed games today too, we've put some great daylight between us and 7th.

The manager, coaching staff and players deserve so much credit, they are giving us a team to be proud of, and have got so many of us dreaming of what could be?

What a great Xmas present 42 points, 3rd in the league, goal difference looking good and hopefully a few quid to spend in january given we didnt spend our budget in the summer.

[arbitro]

Wednesday 3rd of November this year around 9.45 will be written into the annals of Rovers history as the worst home league defeat in our history and the performance reflected the score. Players threw the towel in, gave up and looked dispirited. Relegation seemed a damned sight nearer than promotion that fateful night. Nobody will have seen what was coming then as we have suddenly started to keep clean sheets, score goals, win tackles, win headers and win games looking more and more confident every game. For example who would have thought Darragh Lenihan was capable of places pass like he did for the second goal today? The attitude of the players has gone a full 360 and a system which suits them has been found which has been the foundation of a great period for us fans. Today typified the change as we largely dominated the game. I have always said the key to success in this league is clean sheets and who knows where this can end up if we keep the opposition out.

Football never ceases to surprise me.

[chaddyrovers]

what a fantastic four star performance from start to finish. delighted with the performance and the manner of the win. plenty of goals and clean sheet again. 

This team has a really work ethic and togetherness about it. They never said working for each other. 

Delighted with Buckley scoring and his overall performances this season. 

Brereton Diaz scoring his double delighted me alot since I had a bet on him getting a double. 

Big shout out to all the players, management and fans for the way we have all come together after the Fulham game and can we get the top 2 now. Lets hope so. 

The fans was in good voice today and the attendance today was 12,148. 

The staff checking the Covid-19 passes was excellent and quick. So a shout out to them

Anyway I will enjoy my quiet night in with the missus after that fantastic win

COYB! RTID! 🔵⚪

 

Edited December 18, 2021 by chaddyrovers

[chaddyrovers]

 

 

[chaddyrovers]

5 hours ago, only2garners said:

I thought you went straight to your seats?

With the Villa v Burnley game off we’re now the highest placed club in England kicking off at 3 pm so I think we can expect plenty of media coverage, which is usually a bad omen for Rovers.

Well just for the record, I didn't bother with the club shop, I go down in the Morning when they are opening to spend my club cash before the deadline. 

Burger van weren't there so Just had my chocolate instead. 

very happy days! 

[riverholmes]

1 hour ago, joey_big_nose said:

Since we switched to three at the back (that was the Peterborough game) we've benen unstoppable. No one's even made us sweat let alone score.

Its outrageous how solid we look. 

Genuinely beginning to feel automatic promotion is possible.

The team has really fallen into place. It's now or, perhaps, never for Mowbray, I feel - though, it'll be difficult to keep the form up and get an automatic spot. For a few seasons he's fumbled with a decent squad in a poor standard league. We had Armstrong, Brereton and Harvey Elliot in the forward line last year but the 4-3-3 and attempts at a possession-based game failed, as the team failed to click or work hard enough, conceding too many - and we finished 15th. As an opposition manager said earlier this season (I can't remember who) - we have good individuals, implying, I believe - 'but a dysfunctional team.'

Brereton has got the headlines, but, I think a really key man to this run is, as others have mentioned, Scott Wharton. We had experimented with 3-5-2 earlier this season, first against Coventry and, also, in pre-season, but I don't think we had anyone left-footed to play as the left CB. Against Coventry, I believe, it was Lenihan who played on the left of the three. Wharton has slotted in there with a full fit van Hecke and Lenihan on the right. 

The team is working immensely hard now, it seems. The forwards are working together to get forward and to defend, it seems, to protect the wing backs. When the keeper gets the ball, Brereton starts sprinting upfield to be picked out. The individual talent in the team is now, seemingly, matched by excellent organisation, structure and work ethic. And, of course, pace in the forward line makes all the difference, at times.

I think it's agreed that the league is of a poor standard in general. If we can maintain this and keep hold of the players and, perhaps, add real quality in January, we should be aiming for third at least.  A concern might be if Brighton want their players back (the pandemic might hasten it) or a huge offer comes in for Brereton, so there's going to bumps along the way. I think we really need to enjoy it because as quickly as this team has come together, it may well come apart, at some point.

Butterworth came on today and seemed to do well. I think we need to get these sort of players getting game time and some form because inevitably, we'll need the back-ups to stand up as the season progresses.

 

 

 

 

Edited December 18, 2021 by riverholmes

[tomphil]

33 minutes ago, Dolly blue said:

All of my posts over the last 2 seasons have been very anti Mowbray ..his negativity, his blaming of younger players, his playing of square pegs in round holes, his criticism of fans and his crazy team selections . 

….tonight I have to acknowledge what he is doing..whether he’s “ fallen “ on this selection , whether he’s decided that football is better than possession, whether he’s happy without his journeymen …not too sure but long may it continue.

Cant believe I’m going to write this but…well done Mowbray and the boys in the shirts .. dreaming ???

A lot of it was justified but now so are the plaudits he finally seems to have found his niche however its come about.

Key to all this though is legs and desire each player both individually as a team have. They want to win every game not just turn up and from front to back they are also striving for clean sheets. We've never had balance or every player looking comfortable in their positions under TM, ever.

We have now, i pray he doesn't alter it we've nothing to lose and everything to gain.

[USABlue]

58 minutes ago, Blue blood said:

Goodness. It's the exact opposite of the last few years. 

A strong defensive foundation. 

A settled team. 

Settled formations with a couple of go to plans. 

Mental fortitude when near (and in!) top 6.

I don't think even our most positive of supporters would have suspected this. And I'm totally shocked and delighted to be way out on my expectations. 

This may be a tad heretical but there seems to be something of the Burnley team that got promoted first time round in this team. By that I mean limited resources and squad depth but a good team with a strong spine that has a game plan that works well. Less fingers and better kits as well obviously but there's something of that steely ilk to this team. Shocked as I think TM is a duffer but the job this season with what he has (regardless of how we got to this situation and his part in it) is, so far, looking very impressive indeed.

Dare we begin to dream? 

 

I think we have some players with flair and skill that the dingles did not, to be fair I don't think we quite match their pressing from the front ir work rate, close for sure.  To be fair to js I only saw a couple if dingle games from that time.

[joey_big_nose]

45 minutes ago, RevidgeBlue said:

What a great win. 

What a ball from Wharton to Nyambe for the first. 

Well done to everyone who refused to be beaten by the virus and risked their Christmas plans to turn out and support the team.

Heroes all.

Lenihans pass for Khadra for the second one was great too.

 

[Hasta]

If we were in the top 2 and they sold Brereton in January it would decimate season ticket sales even further for years.

Edited December 18, 2021 by Hasta

[Doug]

Just back from the game, excellent win, great team spirit, very enjoyable. Only downer was the poor attendance again, but there was a decent atmosphere. Dare we dream!! 

[Gav]

Absolutely gutted I missed it, been walking around the house kicking a dog I don’t have……

We’ll done to the players, the fans and most importantly to the manager who is making this happen.

Onwards and upwards. 

Edited December 18, 2021 by Gav

[joey_big_nose]

What's great about this team is you can see how it's a real conundrum for opposition managers to figure out how to get any change out of us....

Play it in the air - our three massive CBs will hoover everything up

Play it in the channels - Lenihan or Wharton will sweep it up in partnership with the wing backs.

Try to possess the ball - our front three will close you down relentlessly till you make a mistake

Play a high line - Khadra and Breretons pace will get in behind

Sit deep - Buckley and Rothwell will pass through you

Usually there's at least a couple of obvious ways to hurt us. But I really struggle to see what options the other teams have at the moment.