Thing is chaddy, for a lot of other people the choice is not that straightforward. I missed matches when I worked because I was contractually obliged to attend parents evenings, open evening, speech night and others. I couldn't have got out of them at all. I even went back into school for a speech night when I had a ticket for Rovers away in Bradford once because I'd been off ill that day but everyone knew I was wanting to go to Rovers so I didn't dare stay at home. Cash is more of an issue for many families than it seems to be for you. Many couldn't afford luxuries like season tickets if they lost their jobs or even if they thought they might lose their jobs, because they'd want to put that money aside against the day they might need it. Life is far more complicated than I go to Rovers no matter what for most people. It's that way for you, but you are very fortunate that it is. For most of us its not.

For many people a season ticket does not represent good value either. If they live at a distance or their working hours mean that their attendance is, of necessity irregular, it's simply not worth buying a season ticket other than out of loyalty to the club i.e. I want to support them anyway and any money I overpay doesn't really matter. Making walk on tickets too expensive means that coming in from work and thinking "hey I'm back in time to get to Rovers in time for the match" won't be most peoples first thought. I don't whinge about the cost of walk on tickets. If I wanted one I'd buy one and pay the price. But I can see that it's not encouraging young parents with all their other bills to meet, or people with incomes that just cover the bills but leave little for extras to just up and decide to attend because they like going to matches live but can't justify having a season ticket. The club is, as someone else said, perfectly within its rights to close the Darwen end to home fans, as it was in closing the BBE upper a couple of seasons ago. However, the lesson they haven't learnt is that doing it without open and transparent consultation gets people's backs up and leads to some fans walking away. Perhaps people shouldn't but they do care almost as much about the place they sit with familiar faces around them as they do about the match. It's reassuring to see every year that that big guys still getting there, that old guys still around etc. People can accept change but do so more easily if they are part of the process that brings it about. Rovers have lost sight of that fact in their desire to streamline their seating arrangements. We may have won Family club awards but there is still a lot more to do to reengage with fans across the board.

For what it's worth, I do feel sorry for Smith in the sense that it must be hard when, from being a kid, everyone has fawned over you and basically let you get away with whatever you've done. Then suddenly you expect to get away with yet another thing and you get caught out. Suddenly you're career as captain goes, your adulation dries up and what have you left. It must be hard being a superstar. Do I feel the punishment is too harsh? Do I heck! He cheated, admitted to cheating, and thought he'd get away with a rap on the knuckles as usual. His arrogance beggars belief. As for Warner, just par for the course. The one I do feel a twinge of actual sympathy for is Bancroft. He's obviously been singled out as the weak fall guy by Warner and whoever. Younger guy who probably looks up to others and does as asked. No excuses still though. Bans all about right

So was Shearer but we still did well out of him

I did say to name but a few as a catch all! ☺

That depends on a number of factors out of our control though. Do his parent club want to sell? Does he want to join us? What league will we be asking him to play in? How much will he cost? And JAL's favourite "who's his agent " to name but a few

Wouldn't fancy any of Russia atm. We flew up over China and Mongolia then across North Russia en route to Frankfurt on Wednesday. Bleakest places you could imagine. And vast beyond imagination. The distances you could end up travelling if you have to change location, even though all the stadia are, for Russia, relatively close together, are mind blowing.

Misquote. Money isn't the root of all evil. It's the love of it ie putting it above anything else that is the root of evil. Look at scrooge. It's not his money, which he later puts to good use, that's the problem. It's his putting it above family, friends, the needs of others. Anyway, sermon over. Have a merry Christmas

How about being on hols in Italy?

I don't think he meant that at all. It's more a case of those casual supporters who might have been tempted to attend might have been more inclined to do so if there had been signs of something to excite them in performances to date

Probably because you keep repeating yourself. We've heard it all before. You go to your matches and leave the rest of us to wallow and we'll all be happy.

I've been there and done that and, while I think it's good for keeping our plight out there, I'm not sure it makes much difference to Venkys leaving

Thing is we've all known for years that they need to go but the problem is, den, how do we make them do it

Wouldn't be going anyway. No means no, but as it turns out I'm on my hols

I thought that word was banned

Surely you have to have a plan B or C if your plan A isn't working. The important thing is to find a plan A that suits your best players and use it most of the time, but have the flexibility to change if the opposition find a way of neutralising it. That's what I'd mean by having other plans available. Not to tinker from week to week but to change in play if necessary

He did indeed. We lost ground the weekend of the cup because other teams played when we didn't but we were so buoyed up by the cup we were able to pull ourselves up away from danger

Winning is a habit. When we were promoted from the championship last time we didn't rest people in cup games that I remember. Souness was of the belief that winning wasn't just physical it was mental and when you were winning you got far less tired and far fewer injuries. Now he might have been wrong about some things, but he knew about battling and about being strong physically and mentally

Winning every game they can.

As long as he doesn't believe a word they say, I have no problem with him going now either, except for the fact that by the time he gets back, realises he's been led up a very long garden path and resigns, it will be too late to get a new manager and decent signings over the doorstep before the transfer windows closes and all our better players will have been sold

Long time since they did

It's not really a local paper any more though is it so the only local news they are interested in is the bland stuff that offends few people. I'd imagine many of those who still buy it for Rovers news are those who sit passively in the stands or those who go on the comments bit of Rovers stories and say we need Venky's. It's therefore not in the papers interest to upset the apple cart. Readership is down massively in the last few years. They can't afford to lose more.

Id love it but ill believe it when i see it

I don't think Dunn is a fans favourite, certainly not as a managerial prospect but he is a local lad and former player and therefore quite easy to sell to Venkys as being a good appointment

Huddersfield have broken a rule and should be punished. Will that punishment be one that makes a happorth of difference to us? Of course not! How can it be?