Only the bad guessers.

Many fans were scoffing at £10m last Summer and in January. Sadly Dack is another Dunn, a poor man’s Gazza. Much like Mowbray, he found his level in the third tier and helped Rovers but similar to when Jon Stead saved Souness and Rovers from relegation, both had a limited shelf life before they lost their magic.

Maybe we need a manager who is a good guesser because Mowbray isn’t!

Since when has football ever been like the real world? Managers are sacked every other month. It’s the nature of the industry. Anyone who wants to be a football manager cannot expect longevity, that’s why they get paid a lot of money to compensate for that uncertainty.

That’s a really poor post. Not only will you not admit people were right to be concerned but you now sarcastically congratulate them for being good guessers. Shame.

It’s a good point about Raya’s penalty save feeling like a turning point. It did. And yet, apart from a load of huffing and puffing, it wasn’t. Apathy is so prevalent in the stands and that’s the bigger worry: “Stay, go, we don’t care either way” and it is permeating onto the pitch. Ultimate, this club needs a change of owner. A new board and a change in regime. On paper Venkys are covering losses and supporting a Cat 1 Academy. In reality the losses are, and continue to be, their own making and the academy isn’t being used - Mowbray made no secret early on in his tenure that he doesn’t value the development squad and just wants the money for the first team (people seem to have forgotten this). If we aren’t going to get a change of owner then we need a manager who can get results operating in this environment, not just one who is a likeable front for them. Mowbray helps make Venkys lives easier.

Reminds me of another number 6...

They’ll sack their manager before we do.

Despite being a fan, I actually think dropping Graham to the bench next season is the right thing to do. He is another year older but could become the direct option for later on in games where we are struggling. Less time on the pitch to get the most out of him.

He was at the heart of everything good we did today. He was also one of the first players racing back to halt their wingers forays forward.

Several players seem to have got worse in the second half of this season. Armstrong is bang out of form. Bennett looks a shadow of his former self and lacking energy. Evans is poor, Smallwood lacks teeth. Mulgrew looks about 50yo, Nyambe was beaten every time in the first half today. Graham is still Graham but while being the target for everything he has so little support. They look so low on confidence. A change is needed.

Yes, Mowbray is a decent manager in League One with the biggest resources and best facilities. The problem have arisen whenhe has tried to use that same resource at a level beyond them.

They struck gold with Mowbray because he has completely shut the dissenting fans up. Good post though.

Wonder how many of their fans think he should have been given more time...

We are still on that downward trajectory. With Venkys money we are too good for League One. With Mowbray in charge we aren’t good enough for the Championship. He doesn’t promote our U23s. The fact that we have good players being brought through by Johnson is a reason to replace Mowbray, not keep him. Your last para I almost agree with. IMV he has run out of time. Another Summer window will not see us do anything differently. He will replace what he is forced to - replacing players out of contract - but he will not bring in better players than Bennett, Evans and Smallwood. Only supplements.

I take back the plant comment. But... I still can’t get on board with the idea that Mowbray has somehow earned extra time (longer than he has already been given), nor can I accept the “we won’t get anyone better” argument. That’s not just me being belligerent, it’s down to what has happened at the club over the last 8.5 years. (Bloody hell, Venkys will have been here a decade soon!). We have managed to keep going despite changing managers - even under Venkys watch. They sacked Bowyer (too late) and brought in Lambert. They sacked Coyle (too late) and brought in Mowbray. The problems in both those cases were as much down to the “too late” as what happened with the replacement.

The uptake this time will be very interesting. A very short early bird/claim your seat deadline possibly.

I actually thought it was an odd game to pick to get the kids interested. AND - still no STs on sale!! Someone needs to get their finger out.

We had the strongest squad in the division last year. When you have a weaker squad the manager’s ability is tested far more.

Three-quarters

Well, yes, I do but not enough people to refute the point you are making. I just think people are losing interest in the process. The fact is that the time to bring in a new manager is now and not when we are in a relegation battle.

I don’t know where they were all sat. It looked pretty normal to me. Maybe the JW upper was full?

I’m not convinced it’s unequivocal across the fanbase but clearly the section you sit in is. I’d wager that there is now a lot of apathy that has replaced what would have been anger a few years ago.

I think you are being extremely generous and ignoring our situation, and overplaying Mowbray’s abilities. Just look at his historic record. He has already had four windows and money to bring in players to play “his preferred style of play” - two in this division. He still has glaring holes. He let our only defensive cover leave. These were his decisions. Our current plight is down to him. The situation last season was a one-off and was more down to the players than the manager. We could get away with the lack of tactical nouse because we had better players than the opposition and we were frequently let off the hook, whereas we have been found out this season.

Promotion for Rovers from L1 is absolutely what is keeping him afloat. However, harsh but factual, is that he also has a relegation at Rovers on his CV, which he also gets a free pass for because “that was Coyle’s fault”. But the Coyle appointment was welcomed by folk because “he got that lot promoted on buttons”. At the end of the day, some fans are simply blinded by the blues-and-white halves and want to be seen as a proper, thick-and-thin, RTID supporter.