Wasn't too sure exactly where to put this. But has anyone been down to Ewood lately? Have you noticed how filthy it is? Have a little look if you drive past. Rust on the gates/fencing. The stands are filthy on the outside with clear brown streaks below the wording for the JW stand. It is terrible, and truly a sign of the times under Venky's. Needs a good clean and painting, but our billionaire owners will have trouble covering the costs no doubt, until Marshall and Duffy are sold anyways.

It's about time we produced some good homegrown talent as it's been distinctly lacking for a while. Although, I do think that was more due to the nature of the Prem, where young English prospects rarely make it. It is good to see that the u21s are performing so well. Always nice to see a former player doing well at the club in some capacity. I'd say he's been far more successful than Short has in his influence. I guess it does come back to Bowyer as it's useless developing the players if they won't get a game. O'Connor, O'Connell and R.Hanley are notable (supposed) talents who have left quite recently. Hope to see the likes of Lenihan, Mahoney and those on the brink of the first team get a shot soon. Rather see them succeed at Rovers than elsewhere. I guess it is a ray of light from the dark clouds encircling Ewood.

I know a relative of one of our current u21 squad members. I've heard how there is a bit of frustration from those pushing for the first team as they're being told different things. One minute Bowyer is telling them they'll be given a shot in the first team then just the other week he came out and said how he wouldn't. Despite his youth coach background, I hear he's not universally liked.

It does make you wonder how none of the attacking players from our academy/u21s can even make the bench when we have no first team strikers fit (except Rhodes). When we go a goal down, we have no one to chuck on and even try and change the game. Perhaps they aren't ready to feature in the first team regularly but surely they aren't all complete rubbish and one of them could make the bench here and there?

Anyone else just see Neuer's save from a Walcott header? Amazing.

Quick, add this to the positivity thread before it's too late! It will come off once in the entire season and Bowyer will be creaming to the press about it. It can be useful (got a pretty good throw myself which is occasionally utilised) but it can be more effective to throw it short and keep possession or to put a cross in. It depends on how accurate the thrower is, the personnel in the box and the opposition. In our case, Spurr can throw it long with little accuracy, we don't have many tall players and usually the opposition CBs or keeper mop it up.

Imagine Bowyer was in charge of ADO. That keeper would have been banned from going up, would have been fined for defying orders and dropped for the next game.

I think the squad we had last year was more than capable of making play-offs. With that strike force, especially. I think Bowyer held the team back last season and that shall continue this time round. Now, we have a squad capable of top half IMO, but a manager who won't be able to deliver this. At what point would you say Bowyer deserves the job til PB? Let's say he has us lower half this season and we are out of the embargo next summer. Then he's been in the job nearly four years with (unless we have a miraculous play-off flirt at some point this season) only getting into the play-offs on two occasions for less than a week. That's poor. Surely the onus would then be on promotion or Bowyer goes if we get out the embargo next summer? He just seems to have a job for life in the eyes of some and I think that's wrong. In fact, I think he knows his job is secure, hence the complacency. I felt he should have gone last year, should certainly be replaced now but I know he won't. Worry is, the future of Gary Bowyer seems to be taking precedence over the future of BRFC. How many more years can we plod along mid-table (if we're lucky) under Bowyer whilst the club racks up hundreds of millions in debt? IMO, Bowyer's recent employment has and will continue to damage the club. The lack of ambition to push for promotion is startling. This could solve our financial plight, instead we continue to lay our trust in a poor manager who can not get the best out of a talented team, never mind a depleted one. If we stay up this year and Bowyer isn't potted when/if we are out of the embargo, then I will be convinced he has a job for life. He spent money before the embargo and had a go at promotion. It didn't work. Twice. I doubt third time will be a charm. He might be decent at bringing players in but we can not continue to place trust in a man who is tactically inept. We can't afford to. We'll just end up back in the embargo, saying the same things.

I'd imagine under 50% of readers are Utd fans. And if you're not a Utd fan and you don't despise them even just a little bit then you're not right!

Playing as lone striker in a 4-5-1 tonight. Appears to be working.

Agreed. Nice goal, good flick and move to then finish the cross with a strong header.

Kalinic just bagged in Europa League final

I'm not. Some who attended wanted to see the youngsters given a run out. The hilarity was in the defence by posters who insisted Bowyer was resting them for the youth cup final and made a huge deal out of it, only to be proven wrong by their omission. If anyone seemed so sure they were privy to Bowyer's "logic", it was those in his defence. Regardless of him not playing the youth vs Reading, I still find it bizarre that no further subs were made after the 60th.

You've clearly misunderstood. I wasn't talking about tonight. The issue is why were they left out vs Reading? Some defended Bowyer by claiming they were being rested for the youth cup game, as it was their "biggest game of the season". They clearly weren't, as they didn't play. Yes, O'Sullivan played tonight, which is great, but I see no reason why they weren't given at least a run out on Saturday. After the backlash from some posters defending Bowyer's decision to rest them at Reading citing it was specifically for the youth final, it is a little humorous how they didn't feature.

I'd say he gets selections and subs wrong more often than he gets it right. I'd wager that if I was put in charge of Rovers now (assuming I had a footballing background and thus would command at least a bit of respect from the players) that I would make the odd correct selection/sub. And that applies for almost everyone. One example I use as to why he is certainly lacking tactically. When I saw us play Norwich at home. Olsson and Redmond on Norwich's left flank = lots of pace and overlapping. So he plays Baptiste RB with Cairney on the wing. Cairney, as a natural CM was clearly going to get sucked inside and leave Baptiste exposed. A couple of times Olsson got in behind due to this but luckily nothing came of it, and even more luckily Baptiste had an absolute stormer. It was obvious to a blind man that this would happen yet Bowyer seemingly didn't account for this. Little things like this make a difference over the course of the season and, forgetting the consistently inverted wingers and the hoofball tactics, I think he has proven time again that he just doesn't have the brains to outwit the better managers in this league (which explains our record against the teams above us).

Not making another sub after the standard one made in the 60th minute whilst our team delivers a lacklustre performance in a nothing game. It just stinks of the guy not having a clue/not being arsed/being too scared to even play the kids. I don't understand why he wouldn't make a couple of changes to at least bring a spark to a woeful away showing in front of paying, travelling fans. We've all seen how dodgy he is with subs throughout the season Jbizzle.

Fair enough. I'm not questioning the progression of the academy after Kean et al systematically tore it apart. What I am questioning is Bowyer's decision to not throw any kids on vs Reading, the subsequent excuses of those who defend him claiming it was for the u21 cup final, only to be proven that they weren't included in that game due to first team commitments, highlighting that Bowyer did in fact leave them out of the Reading game as he's tactically clueless.

So just to confirm, Bowyer didn't play the youth players vs Reading as they needed resting for the cup final and was defended to the hilt for his decision to not chuck them on... Now the same youth players didn't feature in the youth cup game in prep for a first team game? Still waiting for some to defend Bowyer's decision to not play them now... Let's just all agree, Bowyer is clueless.