Holt is the anti-Waggott. One is all about growing the fanbase by engaging the local community. The other is about increasing revenue by growing commercial partnerships. And selling tickets. To the same people who always buy them. Burmley have already overtaken us - entirely down to Venkys and their poor administrators. How long before Accy are level?

I don’t think Newcastle will ever sign the world’s best striker ever again. Amazing really they he went there when he should have been playing in the Champions League. Non-Rovers fans will use that to put him behind some far inferior strikers.

It’ll certainly be interesting to see if they need to score 3 goals to win a game.

Is he replacing Rodwell or Reed? Or both? Very difficult to second guess what is going on with our recruitment/replacement strategy. Johnson is going to need to slot in alongside Travis and hit the ground running but I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see him on the bench while Evans or Smallwood take to the pitch instead.

Why can’t you wait? Surely we all want what’s best for Rovers. The main reason there was a backlash with Bauer was that Mowbray said we couldn’t meet his wage/signing demands. Yet PNE can? We then later hear that it’s not wages, it’s the player’s attitude. Hmm. Meanwhile we are still talking about midfielders despite having an awful defence and our most experienced keeper has made 5 league appearances courtesy of a contrived spell at the end of last season.

Sounds like Brentford just leach off the rest of the academy clubs, hoovering up their surplus products and with the money saved, and then made on then selling them on, outbid us for players. Great stuff. I still find it hard to believe that it makes them FFP compliant given that academy spend is exempt and transfers are scrutinised.

Strange that nobody thanked me at the time. The next one is Butterworth.

He got a really good wage packet to commit. Fans got a price rise. Yeah, not quite the same is it Steve?

Exactly. I’m also finding it quite amusing that people are now using Travis as a reason to celebrate Mowbray’s influence yet when I was promoting him and complaining when he was left out for Evans and Smallwood folks were telling me that Mowbray knows best.

We’ve promoted him without anyone else lined up. That doesn’t feel like a well thought out approach but more like a knee-jerk reaction to Johnson saying I’ve proven myself and I want a promotion or I’m going to look elsewhere. Mowbray may have a long term goal where he sees the club being but he doesn’t seem to have much in the way of short term planning.

If that’s true then Mowbray has made a rod for his own back. No use blaming “greedy agents and clubs” when he has handed out ridiculous contracts to players he wants to get rid of 12 months later. We are mean to have the same budget as last year - which patently isn’t true. Yet we are looking to spend money we don’t have buying another striker when we urgently need a goalkeeper and a centre back first.

Vale?

He wasn’t really fired, he was only there on lawn.

Nearly

Think you might need to explain this one to me, Eddie. I don’t get it.

You’ve really blown this out of all proportion. If you are that bothered, go back and read my first post on it. I stand by that. Tell you what though, people are getting really antsy at the moment. The sooner we fix the glaring holes in the First XI the better!

Yeah, because that’s just what our first team is missing right now - another midfielder.

“White is initially expected to join up with Rovers Under-23s, before pushing for a place in manager Tony Mowbray's senior squad.” Doesn't sound like they they think he’ll be there long.

Considering how generally well liked Mowbray is (a proper football man and all that) it does make you wonder why there is so much apathy. I honestly think that leaving it so late each season doesn’t help. Get a great offer out on the day of the last home fixture with a good early bird incentive. I expect people have now spent - or are spending on holidays.

The development section of the website is available to everyone. We have no U23 manager, no first team goalkeeper, a defence in dire need of reinforcements, pre-season preparation with a makeshift defensive unit, and one decent striker. I never said signing a lad for the reserves is a bad thing but making this appear like a “proper signing” is disingenuous. Same as it was last season with the likes of Candlin and even Lyons.

Things aren’t going all that well are they?

The only way it makes sense is if you can by a membership for £10 and then pay £20 for the big games while away fans pay £40. Personally I still think it’s the wrong thing to do. We certainly wouldn’t (and don’t) like it if it happens to us.

You got there in the end. Good lad.

This is exactly the problem, U23 signings should be a short news story in the development section of the website, not front page with a photo signing a contract with the first team manager and feature article. Once again though our priorities are questionable. We don’t even have an U23 manager at the moment. That said, it’s telling that someone felt the need to put “White is initially expected to join up with Rovers Under-23s, before pushing for a place in manager Tony Mowbray's senior squad.” Is this really the calibre of player we are looking at for the bench, or is this another case of jobs for the “good friends” of existing players?

You’re missing the point, Imy. I suspect deliberately so I’ll leave it there.