Bethnal

Meanwhile I can very distantly hear “North London Forever” being sung at the Emirates from my window.

Reckon Kevin Gallagher would beat Forshaw in a foot race

An unexpectedly pleasant end to a torrid day (hangover and bad news are a lethal combo). Such a torrid day had me primed for a battering, but the golden boys were fully at it. I say that with the qualification that we are not a squad filled with quality, but there was a lot of graft and that’s always satisfying. Pratt got through a debut in a hostile environment, under the lights, in front of the cameras and a strong and vocal away following. Excellent blocks, little bit of naïveté, but I’ll be more interested in his future performances to get a measure on him. Deserves a pat on the back. Tronstad, Mori and Miller impressed me, but Hedges really was everywhere. I groaned entering Ewood for the Derby game and working out that we had him at LCB, but the fact is, he is our most reliable player right now and he’s got so much running in him. He gets a lot of grief, he deserves the credit for his performances recently. He’s clearly setting a standard of application. I like to think I can get the measure of a player early on for Rovers, but I couldn’t tell you what I think of Baradji. I’m inclined to believe he’s showing the signs of a difficult lay-off and will need a gradual introduction to Championship. No pre-season means you never catch up, so I’ll reserve my opinion until I’ve seen a lot more. Bit of urgency needed in his play by the looks. Friday night win makes the weekend easier, so I hope it’s as such for all of you.

The problem for Wharton last night was England wanted to build to the edge of the Albanian box and play through at that point, in the first half. He was asked to stay deep and found himself caught amongst the high sitting defenders/Stones moving into midfield. Second half was more to his style, as the Albanians went more direct and the game stretched out. He doesn’t necessarily need much time on the ball, but he does need his forward players to be finding space. Anderson is more useful against teams sitting in, as he’s busy and constantly shouting for the ball, also being more likely to run at the opposition to create openings for others. For more open games, Wharton would be the better choice to find clever runs or opportunities. There weren’t many opportunities for him to play the key balls into the forwards. Having said that, he looked like he felt the pressure, which is unfortunate. He could do well to improve his off-the-ball further, too. England had a good general shape last night and he didn’t sit well amongst it fir periods.

Ewood Park existing and needing to drain into the river isn't a choice made by the council, though. It's not causing an environmental hazard when the water level is high. As I understand it, there were enquiries made by the club for an alternative (viable) solution and were presented with one. Guess the "who" and "why" those enquiries weren't pursued?

Where was “135/15” today?

That Roberts lad has to be one of the worst defenders I’ve seen at this level. Is he playing out of position?

Particularly enjoyed him pleading his innocence, as though the ref wasn’t five yards away.

No, quite, the 400 mile round-trip for me should be light work for a true fan and the business I’ve built down here can fend for itself, I suppose, while I take the days away to prolong the inevitable. Because as we’ve seen over the last 15 years, the likes of yourself and your friends have been making huge strides on our behalf.

That is a tenuous and disingenuous argument, which is either completely naïve or wilfully ignorant. They couldn’t send money over when they were under the cosh with their own government on financial grounds. The conversation was had ant that time across a lot of fan groups, a bunch of fans (some of them very visible) cried “poor me” at the prospect of a boycott being called for. If a boycott was called for, any fans not adhering to it would be apologists/complicit, not sage, forward thinkers, who are fighting the good fight against corrupt owners. There are many, many people at Ewood today (relative to the paltry attendance) who would still attend, the point is that they’re not the hardcore, they’re just a combination of selfish, ignorant, stubborn or not very bright. It’s not a crime to be any of those but it doesn’t preclude them from criticism.

We’re roughly 24 hours from witnessing a boycott and NAPM campaign ousting a delinquent owner from a football club. Forgive those of us who are frustrated at the people who refuse to back a boycott campaign because they’re in denial.

Hardcore is N01, the rest are literally happy clappers and day trippers. Most of those couldn’t tell you who Suhail Pasha was or pick him out of a lineup.

Figured this out a while ago and didn’t want to believe it. Have a look at the visible Rovers supporter personalities that refused to back a boycott early on in the Coalition campaign, for example. “I won’t let Venkys take my enjoyment away from me.” You have to submit to a higher purpose to achieve something like ousting your ownership and you have to do it in numbers. Too many would rather moan about it on Twitter or podcasts than actually take action. They’ve also all got an opinion on the actions of others trying to make a difference. Anyone trying to do so for this club is on a hiding to nothing.

Just a brief reminder that the manager signed a 3.5-year deal and is absolutely not getting sacked by Rudy “we are not a sacking club” Gestede or Suhail “spending money does not guarantee success” Pasha. Rao family will be updated on tonight’s scoreline and “bad luck” at breakfast in a few hours, before moving onto more pressing matters.

Minutes 45+2 - 45+17 (spent in the dressing room) made us weaker. Came out with less intensity and lower concentration.