Despite the fact that league football at Accy will detract from Rovers' crowds (far from merging for the Drog, clubs in Lancashire are increasing in number!) I want them to come back and prove Butcher Bob wrong. Accy Stanley are four points clear in the Conference but their attendances of around 1,500 puts them in the bottom half of Conference average attendances.

For some unfathomable reason, Alan Green allocated the entire World Football programme on the BBC to an interview with Souness. Is it any wonder that it is so difficult to raise interest in the Rovers when the Belfast ignoramus mentioned Souness' meagre achievements as a Manager without including Promotion and League Cup and the only mention of Rovers was: Green: "and then you went to Blackburn for a few years but obviously you jumped at the opportunity when a big club like Newcastle came along." Souness: "That's correct." The hoot was that the remainder of the interview was all about how Newcastle never win anything! One other point- Souness talked in glowing terms about how the great Liverpool side trained- a few sprints and ball work- and how Joe Fagan yelled at him when he asked for matchday instructions after he had just signed for Liverpool: "We didn't pay all the money for you to have to tell you how to play football." OK for football geniuses but when Souness had got rid of the Rovers' crown jewels, we saw what that approach did for Rovers. Who are going to thrash Newcastle tomorrow...?

Ugh, we have got Scrooge on here. The much maligned and vinjayed Walker Trust is the difference between us being an also-run second division outfit and where we are now. If we continue haemoraging support at the rate of 2,000 per year we will slip down but that is the choice of the Blackburn public. On the other hand, if we can get back to the level of support in 1998 (when we truly crap), we should be OK in the top flight for some good time to come.

Get your cash on the Rovers, enjoy the long odds before they fall!

This morning's interview with David Dunn. Pandiani must be delighted he joined such a Big Club by the way.

Sky didn't even put a march report of Boro v Rovers on their web site!

Boro local paper has nice things to say about Rovers (except our ability in front of goal). PS Smart move by Savage to clear Pogatetz- to do otherwise would have given Boro a sense of grievance they could have nursed into the Boxing Day fixture. As it is, they know Pogatetz has been rather fortunate.

It's Christmas so there is an easy question in the quizz today folks. Who wrote this? It seems to happen so often that teams meet again in the league days after a cup tie! Blackburn won in the sides' Carling Cup match on Wednesday - and deserved their victory. But I expect a reaction from Middlesbrough and I think they will up the ante and come out on top this time. Full match preview Verdict: 2-1

Not wishing to tempt fate but there's an FA Cup 3rd Round replay and 4th round tie to fit in as well. The bet on gates will be cheering up irrespective of Wigan having a semi-final as well. At least we have some really juicy home fixtures coming up. Perhaps they are coming too close together for some wallets though.

Stop and think: 1) Is the experience of going to Rovers games going to be better if we recover getting 23,000 home supporters or continue sliding down to 17,000? 2) Will the loyal supporters who went to Boro and/or Charlton boycott the Man U home semi-final? As you said yourself, you will be in your usual seat for the game so you would benefit from the idea either if you hold a season ticket or if you don't but in different ways. 3) Does my suggestion unduly disadvantage people who don't go to the Man U semi-final at home?

Spot on Bob! The Manchester Evening News have just noted that Rovers are unbeaten in our last four games against the Mancs.

...and your suggestion for making sure we sell 23,000 tickets for a game which will be televised live on a Wednesday evening is?

Presumably Mancs get all the Darwen End. So if we sell the 23,000 in the rest of the Ground, its a 31,000 capacity sell out. One very simple marketing tool for the Rovers- if we (IF) get to Cardiff, the club will give priority to people with stubs from the semi-final. So, Season ticket holders with semi-final stubs can by two final tickets, those without can buy one, open sale for semi-final stub holders two days before completely open sale etc. Incidentally, I won't be betting against Wigan knocking out Arsenal- with Arsenal likely to be making FA Cup progress, in urgent need of getting into the Prem top four and Real Madrid just around the corner, Wenger is already indicating he will stick with the kids.

How we do in the league game is a function of injury recoveries. From what I can see, Boro will have some back and we won't have Bellamy. Sounded like Dickov was a real problem for the Boro defence and will be badly missed. If Bellamy has broken down again, I'd bring Jansen in- his work rate is more like Dickov's than Bentley.

Surely, we'll get a full house at Ewood for this. Really looking forwards to us doing the Mancs. Big incentive to get out and buy someone before the semi-final. I won't be surprised if Wigan upset Arsenal- Wigan WILL have strengthened before the SF.

1-1

But you obviously would prefer tobacco and alcohol to be illegal in an ideal world judging by that reply.

So you would ban tobacco and alcohol as well?

Not waving but drowning...

Two quite astonishing contributions to the Guardian's request for comments on the Government's approach to drugs: "The government is serious about reducing problem drug use and its many harms. There is no room for complacency, but the progress being made, particularly on drug treatment, is probably one of the government's best-kept secrets. There is record spending on drug treatment, with a 40% increase next year. The target of doubling numbers in treatment may be met two years ahead of schedule, but much more needs to be done to improve treatment quality and effectiveness. "The upward trend in drug use has stabilised, with promising signs of falling use among children and young people, particularly for cannabis and some class A drugs. The government has introduced restrictions on bail for drug-related offences, compulsory drug testing on arrest and, should the test be positive, a requirement to undergo an assessment. The aim is to get more offenders, or potential offenders, into treatment. Cannabis reclassification was not a "soft" response, but based on evidence of its relative harm and the strategy to concentrate on even more harmful drugs such as heroin, cocaine and crack. The predicted increase in cannabis use has not happened. Indeed, the reverse has happened. "Danny Kushlick Director, Transform "On page six of the UK updated Drug Strategy 2002 it says: "We will maintain prohibition. . ." In 2003, the prime minister's strategy unit produced a report for the cabinet that showed that, far from tackling drugs, its policy of enforcing the drug laws was actually creating many of our drug problems. As a result of supply-side drug law enforcement, heroin and cocaine are worth more than their weight in gold and, consequently, organised criminals run the market. We have some of the toughest drug laws in Europe, the highest levels of drug use in Europe, the highest per capita prison population in Europe. Nearly a fifth of UK prisoners are drug law offenders, and more than half are there as a result of committing acquisitive crime to support a habit. "The crime costs associated with prohibition are estimated at £16bn a year. Prohibition creates crime and criminal opportunities, increases public ill-health and drug-related dangers (especially for young people), wastes billions of pounds, contributes to political instability in producer countries, and infringes human rights. We should plan an exit strategy from the global "war on drugs" and replace it with a more effective system of legal control and regulation. "Edward Garnier Shadow home affairs minister" So the British Conservative Party agrees with me!

Injuries, suspensions, Christmas spirit... Another good preview or previews. These two are in the any result possible category. Who are our penalty takers? We'll need them as I cannot see an obvious winner between the likely two starting XIs tomorrow night unless both Bellamy and Nelsen are on a miracle cure. Think Boro will shade the League game with a big crowd behind them and Neill suspended.

Supporters' Trusts ownerships of clubs.

Troy Archibald-Henville has scored an o.g. to give the Rovers the lead in the Youth Cup tie against Spurs at Ewood (and I typed that without a hint of a chuckle).

Strongest team for tonight's PA Youth tie at Ewood.

Hughes on Jansen (Correct link this time?) So no loan, no departure and no strarting place! He's one of Rovers' four forwards- Bellamy, Kuqui, Dickov, Bentley, Johnson and Jansen.