Pretty early for shouting at Mowbray, even at this stage.

He will get through it. He just needs to win football matches.

Same apples to Mowbray... However, a good manager does not dig out his players in public. He defends them, shoulders the blame, shields them from criticism. Especially young players. The bollocks them in private. Still, Mani tells me the players and their mum’s are delighted so what do I know.

Before or after his three head-scratching substitutions?

“I’m never going to reach the goal before a tackle comes in - shit!”

Mowbray’s transfer failings and injuries/suspensions have forced his hand in having to play youngsters. Needs must. How many has he successfully inducted? One. Bowyer has a better record of utilising the academy. Even last night, Lenihan, Bennett and Adarabioyo all injured - or is Mowbray choosing to blood the youngsters and exaggerating the injuries? Which is it? If you take Waggott or even Mowbray at his word and not his actions - and listen to players (I’ve already explained why this is folly) then you are fooling yourself. It’s no surprise that you are apparently well connected at the club. Those who champion failure on here usually are. However, if someone changes your objectivity as a poster.

“All you haters”. It’s pretty pathetic really. No-one can change “where we were” when he came in but that argument could be used to keep Mowbray here indefinitely. We need to kick on and he isn’t going to do that. People need to remember that Mowbray get criticised for what he does and not who he is. Starting line ups and substitutions are becoming increasingly bizarre and we are not picking up points in the league. It’s a very simple equation. It applies to every in the club and manager in the football pyramid. Just for some reason not here.

You’ll trust hearsay over facts? Players will never say anything bad against their manager in public - especially to fans - and particularly youngsters. I guess we do need to leave it.

So he doesn’t criticise the young players in public while turning a blind eye to the failures of the older players? He didn’t say that he thought academies were a waste of money which could be used for the first team? (Money that he is incapable of spending well) Ok then.

Evans and Smallwood were a known quantity and we gained nothing from starting them. Nothing. Playing them at all was a strange decision. The fact they were terrible - particularly Smallwood who has fallen away rapidly and needs to resurrect his career back in League One - was the curdled icing on a bitter cake. We should have been trying out Buckley in the middle alongside a first teamer. I thought they were poor too. In fairness, although they’ve played together at U23 level it should have been one of them next to an older head. The other option tonight would have been sending out an entirely youthful side with some quality mixed in. The side chosen tonight was neither an experimental side nor one to go out and beat Oldham.

The way Mowbray handles (mishandles) the development team youngsters is appalling. Their confidence must plummet. Youngsters he buys don’t tend to get dug out in public though. Just the academy - that he is on record as not valuing. It’s starting to look like he has removed Johnson from the U23s so as to stop making himself look bad. “Why can’t you use these players that are coming through?”. Problem solved. (Still no manager - I’d bet on relegation this season) He needs to stop trying to make every player an everyman footballer and look at making the team functional. Specialists in the right positions, not utility players and everyone being able to play a bit anywhere on the pitch.

I think Brereton’s biggest problem is his lack of pace. It can cover a lot of evils even if you don’t necessarily have other attributes. He needs develop his upper body strength and learn from two masters (Dack and Graham) about winning and keeping the ball. Maybe a loan is the answer and rely on Gallagher and Rothwell as cover.

This is what troubles me most.

Bloody hell. Just what we need! If only someone could have spotted that we were... how does Mowbray put it... ...oh yes, “really thin” at the back. That bloke really has some brass neck.

Where has that come from, Tom?

Nice to see three goals and a win by my word we made hard work of that. If nothing else I was delighted to get one over on their muppet fans - absolute Neanderthals. The positives were all off the bench with our second string section of the first team squad being utterly incapable of unlocking a team almost at the foot of the football league. I’d even go as far as to say that the best team lost. We made Oldham look like a decent Championship side for about 75 minutes of that game. Not good enough. Our quality off the bench (including Chapman) changed that game although our defence continues to be a puzzle that Mowbray is incapable of solving. We still need to score three goals to win a match - even against lowly opposition. That suggests we have got things wrong tactically when all-comers can put two past us. There were a lot of boos at half time from the 5,000 hardy fans going in at 1-0. A satisfactory end to the evening (just) and definitely worth £2 to watch - maybe even a great game second half for the neutral - but it changes nothing regarding Mowbray. He still has it all to do. I just hope that this gives the team a lift and we can take some belief into the weekend. Oh and Brereton was awful again. There was a moment in the first half where he was played in, beat the offside trap and was bearing down on goal. Despite his head start he always looked second best and was easily beaten to the ball. This project needs shelving.

Trying to work out our formation. Downing has gone to CM, Cunningham seems to be covering the left wing and Buckley our the right with Chapman further forward of him. Wing backs with two CBs (Nyambe and Grayson)? Dack AM and Graham and Brereton right and left of attack? Making my head spin!

No changes at half time.

This is embarrassing. Have we forgotten how to play football?

Cunningham shot! Out for a throw.

You’re not here? Oh. Tonight I’d have picked a strong side or a youthful one. Our engine room has all the drive of a Sherman tank if it was made out of wet paper towels. Buckley is about the only one of our midfielders who isn’t due a hip replacement. And our warm up looks like a Year 9 P.E. lesson with Lowe tooting on his sergeant major whistle. Just missing Brereton stood on the side in his school uniform, hopping from foot to foot, shivering, with his arms folded because he forgot his P.E. kit. Besides, everyone knows the first half of the pint is the best half!

Once again, neither one thing nor the other. Evans and (is he not on loan yet) Smallwood in their depressingly familiar role. Opting not to keep his current first choice centre backs in the team? Cotton wool or giving Platt and Grayson their chance. Fisher should have been in behind Platt and Grayson. Other than that a team devoid of any spark or even drive. Long balls up to Graham and no crosses. Let’s hope Oldham aren’t up to much. Should be a nothing game but having started the season badly, Mowbray needs to not lose this one as well.

For the money he has spent, his return in the Championship is abysmal.

Except we spent £5m on one player.