Exactly! If you want the social media and the press to change the conversation throw a dead cat on the table. Don’t fall for it.

The Raos don't think or act with unity of purpose. They are a multi-headed beast.

And why he was banned from speaking to the media. We thought it was so he couldn't rant about the f**k up/sabotage over the McGuire deal - but actually it was probably even more crazy shit than that which caused him to gagged. They are some family, they really are.

And you can be sure that Mrs D's reinstatement was nothing to do with her knowledge or belief in who the best coach for a relegation scrap is - it would be to do with the fact the she won't sanction any money spent on a pay off and a replacement. I hope JDT is up for the scrap that we now have facing us for survival. It's him, the players and the fans v the club & the owners now!

Many pages back someone argued that ultimately it will be good if the McGuire deal does not go through, because it will push the Raos closer to a sale of the club. I wonder if it’s the other way round and that the £500k fee could be what forces the issue within the family. If one part of the family is refusing to fund us and another part of the family is trying to fight this (my theory only), then the overturning of the Slyvester/Waggot sabotage attempt by the EFL actually stirs up the tension in Pune. An EFL decision to void the transfer leaves us more likely to continue with this (hypothetical) status quo. Where we are caught in their civil war (perhaps) and the stop sending £ side of the family is winning, but not decisively enough. My hypothetical status quo (Conspiracy Theory #99) btw, is that one part of the family is wanting to cling on so as to eventually give a job to a younger Rao, whilst the rest of the family have given up and just want rid of the damn thing. The more I reflect the more it fits, but maybe I am thinking too hard - like all conspiracy theorists!

I thought with the situation in the summer that it was possible that one member(s) of the family may be acting to undermine other(s) members of the family. This is a theory that can't be proved, but perhaps, for example, Balaji was responsible for selling the dream to Broughton and giving permission and assurances that money raised could be re-invested, but Mrs or Mr D thought "sod that" and then told their man at the club - perhaps Slyvestor - to sabotage the deals. We know that their is tension between Waggot and Broughton and Waggot and JDT. Is it possible that Waggot and Slyvestor and maybe Suhail work at the command of the real boss - perhaps Mrs D, but Broughton only has the ears of the wannabe boss - perhaps Balji? Maybe some Rao's are despearte to rid themsleves of the club (understandable) and deliberatley screwing things up, but other Rao's are still clinging on to it and hiring people and making them promises that in reality they can not always fulfill. It is all conjecture - but there is nothing at this club in the last 13 years which doesn't fit with the scenario of warring siblings giving lesser minions different and often contradictory instructions.

The Birmingham guy makes sense for two reasons: 1) He looks like he could buy a round of drinks without being IDd. 2) He is not a dwarf. Both are qualities we desperately need right now.

Ben Chrisene for Hill Buckley for Travis It's hardly going to make the teams around us in the league quake with fear, but it seems to be the reality of where we are at right now with our budget. Ouch!

Just looked at the stats on the Rovers website. It says we have had 58% possession. You could nearly laugh if it wasn’t so fucking tragic. Btw, I was firmly in the pro-JDT camp. I won’t be defending him now, no way. Best possible outcome for us would be Sweden national team come to our rescue like Newcastle did when Souness lost the plot. As for a return of Mark Hughes - yes please - a return to the ‘dogs of war’ attitude would be absolutely fine right now.

Waggot does ‘secret handshakes’? I can believe it. It explains how such a useless cunt can come to be earning so much money. I hope you enjoyed probing him 😳

Maybe true, maybe bullshit, but Waggot bitching about one of his colleagues - essentially in public (he must know you post here) - makes him look like a total prick to me.

Biting back: JDT, Hyam, Britain, Hill, Tronstadt, Siggurdson, Moran, Smzodics, new contracts for several key players and not a single asset leaving for £0 since he rocked up, unless it was strategically decided to let them leave (like Dack, which is looking a good call), (or BBD - which was a contract problem left over from the previous regime). It’s hardly “one credit on the the entry side”. The recruitment/contract side of the club is better than it was - if you deny that you are basing it on an irrational dislike of the man, not on the evidence of where we are at compared to previous regimes. We had reasonable recruitment for a period under Bowyer and Mowbray, but under Mowbray the contract situation with the players at the end was an absolute disaster for us and there were too many big contracts for loyalty rather than sound financial decisions. When Bowyer was sacked we also lost his generally O.K recruitment (courtesy of his Dad, if rumours are to be believed). The whole point with a DOF is that when JDT does go we’re not completely rudderless again - only the coach changes. We have some long term stability now. I stand by what I said. The football side of the club is not in quite such a dire situation as we were last time V’s turned the taps off or when dark forces were running recruitment. That doesn’t mean I’m completely happy with the age of all our signings, the noticeable lack of height of most of our signings or this sometimes suicidal style of football. However, I can see a long term plan - to make £ from player trading. I never saw any plan before under any V’s appointed administrator - unless it was a nefarious one.

Most of the time I just scroll past Chaddy’s waffle - apologies, no offence intended. However, on days like this when 80% of the board are on suicide watch, I actually bother to glance over Chaddy’s optimistic offerings. I am very grateful for the different, sunnier perspective. Somebody mentioned being in the trenches earlier - you know it’s good to have an eternal optimist around in such situations. The budget constraints are clearly damaging the squad and everyone is sick of seeing a revolving assortment of naive light-weight tiny kids being bullied off the ball. However, we are not currently being run by incompetents of the likes of Owen Coyle and Paul Senior and I firmly believe GB and JDT (whilst he lasts) are more intelligent, more ambitious, more knowledgeable and more honest than previous regimes under V’s. The hatred of some towards GB seems to be based on prejudice rather than evidence. Maybe he’s too posh, too southern, too ugly - I am not sure - but we are in a terrible run of form and that is clouding many people’s judgement of where we’re at. Long term V’s ownership is slow brutal torture, but this is not yet the free fall situation of our first season after relegation from the PL or of the Coyle relegation season. Hang tight, it only takes one lucky season - same as always in this league.

I will judge the window at the end of the month. However, biggest alarm bell for me is that the new guy is only 5’ 8”! We are terrible at set pieces and are crying out for height. A team needs taller players. By the end of the window I am hoping for experienced, strong, TALL players to be added to the team. One more short arse isn’t the end of the world, we do need more quality creative attacking options from the bench. But if we keep on signing guys under six foot we are always going to be losing tons of points from being totally inept at attacking and defending set pieces.

If he was playing for us we would have won yesterday - comfortably. I see he’s 25, 90 Championship games, 1 cap for Sweden. Transfermarkt rates him at €3million. Seems he’s contracted until end of next season and ‘news’ stories are linking him to Sheffield Utd. Rotherham’s keeper is probably out of grasp I am sorry to discover! Shame, I thought he looked great.

That is fate well and truly tempted now then.

I don’t mind the academy being the foundation of the team. However, what it needs is far more quality senior, savvy and experienced pros to help see them through games. A couple of battle hardened warriors is what we need - to give the kids a helping hand.

Except we're not mongrel dogs anymore, - we're a classy bred but hopelessly underweight and incredibly young puppy.

Just a list for my own satisfaction. I’ve been following Rovers since Don MacKay’s first play-off season. Here’s my ranking of managers since then, from worst to best: Kean - Agent of Satan Coyle - Anyone fancy a doughnut? Berg - Ouch! Ince - Shoot! Kidd - signed Jansen, otherwise an idiot Appleton - Halloween everyday Lambert - No fool, but too dour Harford - the greatest no.2 though Bowyer - gave it a right good go Mowbray - the lemon drizzle went stale Hodgson - Good at first, but not for Tim Parkes - 5 in midfield before its time JDT - with potential to rise higher on list Mackay - so, so near I cried Allardyce - Did what he was hired to do Hughes - Bellamy, Benni, Santa Cruz! Souness - fell out with everyone though Dalglish - Was it a dream? Hope I’ve not missed anyone.

Is it not just the £3m to Akon (whoever that is) that is Illegal? If that £ went through VLL then it brings Rovers into the picture, but it doesn’t mean the funding of the club is Illegal - even if the article is trying to imply that. I don’t like the BJP and their right wing nationalist ideology one jot, but they have not, as far as I am aware, abandoned the rule of law. Nor would they be able to overturn the rule of law easily in a seventy+ year democracy with long established divisions of power. However fucked the Raos are they can still afford top lawyers. No way can the government of India seize land or assets for all Venkys money into Rovers by suddenly declaring those payments to have been illegal. The BJP are a shower of shit, but this is not the Bolsheviks in Russia or the Nazis in Germany - the Indian Government have to follow rules and laws. The payments to Akon were clearly breaking rules - as was the house purchase - and the Raos will be punished. But to suddenly suggest that their funding of Rovers has been illegal is nonsense. Unless Indian democracy and the rule of law over there is in a far bigger mess than I realise and somebody who knows more would care to enlighten me?

I’m not sure he’s got the balls to try and even if he did I doubt JDT would give a shit.

Three at back with Britain LWB and JRC RWB - surely?

I traveled through east Texas Where many martyrs fell And I know no one can sing the blues Like … …. Apologies, I couldn’t help it.

I wish I could disagree with you. However, Russel Martin’s ridiculous appointment as Soton boss is strong evidence you might well be right. I think the man is a hilarious joke of a manager. He has never achieved bugger all (except possession stats), moans and whines about the opposition like a sore loser - and now he’s managing ex-premiership players and a parachute payment budget. It is insanity!

Sunderland and Preston out. What a good night it turned into.