Ahh yes Roy of the Rovers - loved it! I see they’ve just released compilation books of the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s - will order one. I used to spend hours studying the Match - match stats section, covering all the results over the past week with the player ratings. For some reason I can still picture the Rovers defeat to Notts County in the FA Cup under Dalglish in our promotion year. I think our near fatal slump followed that.

Pretty sure it is heavily discounted at the moment, 66% off? Plus you get a lot of game play for your money. I got Rovers promoted first season, cleared out those on big wages and have settled as a very competitive Champions League(ish) side over the next 4 seasons. Good times are back!

I’ve still got all mine in 2 boxes in the garage. Great magazine, I remember being gutted when I was told by the newsagent that it was no more. I still buy WSC.

Agreed. £120k can’t be sniffed at, especially in these times and presumably for the club. Ive previously written about tightening the squad a little (2-3 players), using the academy players to cover, with the savings used to cut the admission price back towards £20 to try and get fans back. (It looks like that is happening, though the savings being used toward the (presumed) loss in income due to COVID.)

Key with Gallagher is he is a striker, a target man in a 4-4-2, not a wide forward / winger. If TM wants him to deliver he must be used there. A mix of Bereton and Gallagher to partner Armstrong should work in a 4-4-2.

If TM plays everyone in their positions, top half. If he randomly allocates players, bottom half. I am excited about our young players, plus Armstrong, Dack and no Walton... Fingers crossed hey!

Good shouts. You’d suspect Dunn will hope to utilise his connection

Not all is lost, I just had a 3 way battle with Liverpool and Real Madrid on FM 20! Seriously though good post ??

Yes. The BBC Sport website is very poor - content and navigation wise.

The Nations League / Cup if far better than (random) friendlies - however surely with so little pre-season / break why did they bother with this round? I suspect that was reflected in the performance. Also I am not convinced Southgate as a manager / motivator / tactician is the right choice. Very articulate etc, but...

Maybe so, but it’d fill the coffers unlike a mid table where we have shelved out for journey men and loans.

Is it me or is there hardly any (incoming) transfer activity in the Championship full stop? I suspect many clubs are looking at dire finances, with normality still some way off - Rovers included. Therefore perhaps we might not see (m)any further additions? If that is the case I am relaxed. We are all in the same boat, though we have our (great) young players in the mix, plus I’d rather we didn’t risk doing a Bolton / Wigan. Just a hunch?

Sounds like Barrow were unlucky, losing on penalties.

So if Rovers were to be receptive to a loan or two to help out Dunn, who would you send if you were TM?

A very tough gig after the ongoing financial issues saw them demoted last season.

Fisher 6. Missed opportunity with a sloppy 2nd goal that slipped through. JRC 7. Looked lively, keen to venture, growing in statue. Will deserve a run further up the field. Lenihan 6. Okay, nothing more. Wharton 8. Solid, grabbed his chance by the scruff of the neck. He has racked up games and crucially winning games on loan and it showed. Good distribution. Bell 4. Oh my... Travis 6.5. Battled away, better than the friendlies. Johnson 6. Okay, but are the legs going / gone? Holtby 7. Cracking goal, and nice touches - we lost our way without him for a while. Chapman 4.5. Another missed opportunity, game passed him by. Brereton 7. Pressed, harried and chased. Missed a sitter, but goals will come with performances like that. Armstrong 7. Like Bereton, good performance. Rothwell 5. I am a fan, but another to miss an opportunity to stake a claim to start. Will be frustrated as had plenty of touches. Dolan 8. Great, exciting cameo. Deserves a chance to start, set to entertain. A good match, with a deserved win. Doncaster battled hard, so will have been a helpful run out ahead of the league start. Credit to @Ewood Ace - I copied & pasted your review and added my scores / summary ??

I hope Wharton gets the nod, he has had two good, solid loan seasons so has some racked up some decent experience. As it’s Doncaster, I’d start Dolan, an opportunity to show what he can do, though suspect Chapman will get the nod from Mowbry. Presume Fisher will be in goal as he got to start both friendlies. Should be a good game if the friendlies are anything to go by - I’ll pay the £10.

Yes agreed. Lots of good potential on show.

Yeah, to be fair in these unusual times I’d pay that

Some very good merit in that! If a few come good (and our Academy has in the past delivered) that could get us more hope in the coming seasons.

Is there no chance one of our younger keepers couldn’t step up? Certainly looks like they’ll get a chance in the first friendly.

Perhaps they’ll just let everyone take turns in goal, 10 mins a go? I would always hope I’d get missed, but when it was my turn I looked like I could be pretty decent (shouting and organising) and then promptly couldn’t catch a cold when the ball headed in my direction. Mind you, soon allowed back outfield.

Lots of fair (critical) comments, but he has that something extra if he can click. He needs a run of games (where he hasn’t got the pressure of either being a late sub, or hauled off) in an attacking position. We can’t afford the finished product, but there is a chance with him he could become one.

Big fanfare on a future star when we paid over the odds for Jimmy Corbett, a Woy signing? Ashley Ward / Nathan Blake as it showed how far we’d sunk from Shearer. Diouf, an embarrassment with the spitting.

Have to say I feel for Wigan and their fans. 12 point rule is rightly in place to stop clubs gaining an unfair advantage on budget, but it does seem they were unlucky, very unlucky on a new owner defaulting.