I find it bizarre and hypocritical that you was advocating dropping Dack (attacking talisman and consistently has scored and assisted throughout this and last season) after a couple of poor games whereas you would make Bennett undroppable regardless of form. Out wide is possibly our weakest area in terms of having players to rely upon to score and assist to contribute.

To be fair I think there are no questions now regarding the team spirit across the team. So not sure that criticism is relevant any more. Bennett shouldnt be shoehorned in solely due to his attitude and spirit. He should only play when his form and performances dictate that he is the best choice in a certain position. He has the capability to be able to do that and is an important member of the squad but hes got to merit his place. For example, to merit a place wide he needs to provide more of an attacking threat and goals/assists. That being said, so do all of our wide men.

What makes you suggest that Travis and Davenport are ready to become regular first team players any time soon? I personally dont see Rothwell becoming a central midfielder anytime soon either, his strength is running at players which needs to be done in the final third. If Reed does as expected go back then he will need replacing. The likes of Smallwood, Bennett and to a much lesser extent Evans are all very useful players to have around but if we have genuine promotion contenders then I dont see it happening with all of them as regulars in the team.

Evans and Smallwood dont deserve to be coupled together in that Evans has been a key player for us this season and has been a level or two above Smallwood, who should only be a squad player max. I would also prefer Evans in central midfield anyday over Bennett who isnt a central midfielder, Rodwell who does deserve more of a chance to be fair in central midfield and Travis at the moment should be loaned out.

I would prefer Evans in the centre of midfield to all of them personally. Hes been one of our best players this season and signing him for a couple of years is a wise move, albeit a gamble as hes never too far away from an injury. You touch on an interesting point regarding new contracts. Its all about striking a balance between stability and improvement. The likes of Raya and Lenihan signing new deals is positive in that they are young and have plenty of improvement in them. The likes of Evans and in particular Mulgrew are also crucial in terms of them being important players in their last years. It is players like Smallwood, Williams and maybe even Bennett (considering he had 2 years left) that have been given them solely as a reward that im not sure about. None are at risk of being nabbed by bigger teams and im not sure you should dish out contracts across the board to reward players, so I dont understand the urgency.

Raya Nyambe Lenihan Mulgrew Williams Reed Evans Conway Dack Rothwell Graham Subs: Leutweiler, Downing, Smallwood, Rodwell, Brereton, Palmer, Armstrong Would like to finally see Rothwell start and give us a more attacking edge with Reed in central midfield. Harsh on Downing who I do feel has to be 3rd choice at centre back over unnaturals Williams and Rodwell but Lenihan is a better player. Think its crucial we win with the games we have coming up.

Last year he thrived on the wing though, we signed him based on that form. I dont know whats happened to his game, 2 games aside hes been really, really poor and hes not getting the goals he got last season. Maybe the step up has been the problem, maybe a lack of confidence as his goals came in a particularly hot spell last year, either way Rothwell and Palmer deserve a chance before him.

As I said though, that cynical viewpoint of there being financial reasons behind Breretons lack of starts is very much held by only a minority. I personally dont buy that at all but can understand that such a theory isnt totally unfounded under these owners. You make a very valid point about needing numerous goalscorers. Thats why I keep going back to this summers recruitment. I think theres a number of reasons and circumstances as to why, but based on their lack of goal contributions thus far, I fail to see how anyone can justify their signings so far as a success. The 4 attacking players have 2 league goals between them. Do I think that they are poor players? No. Have I written any of them off? No. They arent yet poor signings, but they have yet to prove themselves to be good signings, and we are basing any judgements on what they achieved so far, at this point in time, mindful that we dont know for sure what could or could not happen in the future. I look at Palmer for example, proven as a number 10 capable of contributing towards promotion. Our best player plays there, thus Palmer has been in and out playing wide. Same with Rothwell. Brereton has yet to start and keeps being shunted wide. Armstrong I have doubts he is capable of stepping up (terrific loan signing last season so hats off for that) but even he would argue that he wants to play down the middle. I agree on having Brereton as a central striker when Graham is unavailable. I dont understand why your natural instinct is to take the very valid point that very few Mowbray signings are first team regulars as a sole argument of poor management. Mulgrews an example. A terrific signing but often played in midfield under Coyle, in a very disorganised team. Now he seems fitter than ever, happier and thriving as captain. I think you could argue that Mowbrays management here has been built on man management and the ability to get the most out of the players he inherited, even more so than a hit and miss transfer recruitment.

Constant moaning and cynicism? You are cherry picking what you want to read. I have only seen one poster refer to the conspiracy theories, and whilst I understand the distrust due to this happening before under our terrible owners, I dont subscribe to these theories in this instance at all. I think that Mowbray is doing a good job, as I keep saying, and the most important thing is results. First season, he failed his task but it was a very difficult task to keep us in the league. Was happy to see him remain. Very good last season and again we are doing pretty well this season. The fambase is united behind him, and people (bar maybe an isolated exception) are not asking for him to be removed or against him, contrary to what some are saying. So results are what matters and Mowbrays have been good throughout his time here. I also feel like the key to his success has been more reliant on the players he inherited and the extra he has got from them. Said that many times and feel like hes excelled in that area far more than hit and miss recruitment whereby as @K-Hod correctly points out AT THE MOMENT which is when we judge only a couple of his signings are actually in the team. You keep saying how excited they are by Brereton. May I ask your opinion on these issues: (please dont say Mowbray knows best he seems him in training, just interested in your view, not Mowbrays) Do you not understand and empathise with people wanting to see more of such an "exciting" talent? Would you not rather see him in his natural position as a central striker when he does feature? As he played at Forest to command said reputation. With Brereton presumably intended to play a much more prominent role as the season progresses, do you still think that a striker should be first priority in January? Lets say Danny Graham picks a knock up in training. Everyone else is fit for Birmingham at the weekend. Who do you start up front? I dont have a problem with you or your opinion. My only issue is with the undercurrent of arrogance in terms of implying you know better than others.

@Paul Mani I totally agree that Mowbray did very well to get promoted, hes done a good job in general, and hes got the fanbase united beind him. Hes done more right than wrong. But not everything he has done is right. Nor can we expect it to be. But we can point it out. Alex Ferguson is as good a manager as there has ever been. He signed Eric Djemba and Bebe. Ive no idea if you are claiming superior knowledge in a ironic sense, or it is genuine arrogance but either way you surely appreciate that constantly going round teling people that whilst shooting any constructive criticism down on the sole notion that Mowbray knows better than us and thats that, is going to rub people up the wrong way.

@Paul Mani theres an undercurrent of cryptic arrogance throughout your post. Firstly, please can you state what your job is in football? Apologies if ive missed it but its the elephant in the room in every one of your posts, you clearly want people to know. I find your angle really strange. You come onto an internet messageboard, which is a vessel for fans to discuss their opinions. You arent doing that, you are just saying Mowbray knows more than us all as if that is a valid way to shoot down your posts. Did you join the forum expecting posts to consist of people just echoing Mowbrays decisions and saying I agree because he knows more than us? No one is claiming to be a better potential manager than Mowbray. If he signed players in League 1 solely to guarantee promotion, may I ask why such a short term objective has been totally flipped on his head, going from signing players solely for the upcoming season, to signing players solely for the future, not expected to contribute anything at first? I also disagree with the notion that we signed players solely with a short term aim in mind anyway, supported with quotes below: https://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/sport/15565159.i-think-the-signs-are-there-that-it-will-be-a-good-combination-tony-mowbray-on-rovers-duo-bradley-dack-and-dominic-samuel/ “I was very aware of not trying to burden two 23-year-old boys to fire us out of this league." “But I do think that Samuel and Dack were brought here for some money that we had to spend and in the long-term help this club progress back up the leagues." Your comment that only Whittingham didnt contribute is nonsense too. Whittingham contributed far more than quite a few players, notably Hart, Leutweiler and Gladwin. Mowbray knows far more than me, but I signed up on here before he even joined, solely for the purpose of giving my own personal opinions, under no illusions that I am not qualified to actually become the manager. I also stand by my criticisms on the summer business we did too, and the lack of impact most have had so far. But hey, I dont know as much about football as you.

Couldnt agree more. Makes this place totally pointless for one. As long as they are the opinions of a professional manager or coach? @JacknOry responds to these points in excellent detail. There is a myth circulating that Rovers fans are expecting loads from Brereton already and its blatantly not true. There is also a myth that it is ok for him to be solely a project, as if hes an untested kid. Hes got plenty of game time under his belt at Forest at this level. Point 1 defunct. The reason point 2 is moot is because Mowbray wont consider Brereton to be a striker, one of the key elements of the whole debate. Armstrong doesnt play up front either. Thats point 3. Understand that he will take a bit of time to acclimatise but hes part of the squad and again going back to the myth, just having him as a second choice striker with Graham ahead of him is hardly expecting loads. The Palmer and Dack experiment, and the Dack up top experiment simply didnt work. Surely testing the waters with a young, talented striker with Championship experience made more sense. Surely you cant really defend them choices.

I dont subscribe to any of the conspiracy theories about financial reasons etc. I just dont get the quote I have put in bold. I dont see why it is arrogance to give your own opinion. One of his primary reasons has been that Brereton lacks the physique to play as a centre forward. The fact that he made his name as a striker at this level, and also that the 2 players he chose ahead of Brereton are far slighter in build, means that it is fair to question the logic of that statement, without that being considered arrogant or like we know more than a professional football manager.

You dont know Gallagher is on 24k. You take Mowbrays word as gospel even if your opinion is the total opposite. You then shoot those down who share your initial view and defend Mowbray. Yes, he sees him more on the training ground and yes he has more football management credentials than you or I. But if thats your attitude then an internet messageboard is not the place for you. You dont acknowledge that many are of the view that we are not in a position to be signing players SOLELY for the future. That does not come down to anything on the training ground. Even though you yourself want Brereton to be starting games as a striker. My plan for Brereton would be as a striker, initially second choice behind Graham, playing whenever Graham is unfit or lacking in form, or as a strong alternative. May I ask, if your main defence of the Brereton situation is that we cant fit him Graham and Dack in together. Which has a degree of logic to it. Why are we so desperate for us to sign another striker? That problem will double. Here are a few articles of Coyle being open with fans. Took 1 minute to find a few random articles. Mowbrays openness is not a unique trait, its a byproduct of an era in which interviews are done numerous times a week. Didnt make a difference. He was still useless. https://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/14804095.Owen_Coyle_believes_Ryan_Nyambe_is_one_of_a_number_of_young_players_who_have_a_chance_at_Blackburn_Rovers/ Coyle on our academy players. https://www.thisislancashire.co.uk/sport/14624311.Owen_Coyle__Newcastle_United_not_the_only_club_interested_in_signing_Blackburn_Rovers_captain_Grant_Hanley/ Coyle on bids for our best player. https://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/sport/14626876.hes-blackburn-rovers-through-and-through-jason-lowe-can-be-our-leader-if-grant-hanley-leaves-insists-I have been stopped from posting this by moderators.-coyle/ Coyle on his debatable choice of captain! Did you empathise with Coyle solely because he explained himself?

I find your first paragraph slightly hypocritical considering thatt I would hazard a guess that at least half of the team lineups that you have recommended in the last couple of months have had Brereton in them. @JHRover is bang on the money with his post. Firstly in terms of the money we have spent, which belittles the "newly promoted" inferiority complex that people mention. And also, the problem many have, including one you have aired many times, is HOW Brereton is used, positionally, not that he should be first choice in that role. Just because Mowbray explains something doesnt mean thats 100% right, logical or to be agreed with.

Not for me. The wide areas are a position that we need to develop in terms of players who can have a more immediate impact. Chapman is riddled with injury issues and is publically not a potential starter under Mowbray. We need players to come into those roles and contribute goals and assists as we are overly reliant on our central 2. Mowbrays summer recruitment has yet to bear fruit with none of his 4 attacking players making a significant impact. Which is illogical anyway baring in mind his prime alternative has been to stick Dack up front! 100%. I struggle to empathise with those so staunchly defending our summer recruitment. So should we totally withold all opinion until x amount of months have passed? We are on a messageboard and can only judge at this point in time. At which point, are there any signs that significant attacking recruitment in the summer has really developed us or enhanced us at the moment? Id suggest not. A prime argument is that Mowbrays summer recruitment has *yet* to show signs of developing us at all as an attacking force, with very little in the way of attacking contribution aside from Dack and Graham, despite plenty of money being spent.

Absolutely shocking.

Whilst I think Mercer is going well overboard with his statements. Not being a bullshitter or a tosspot is no benchmark or barometer to judge our manager against. He certainly has done a good job and I am happy to see him continue and have no doubts at all about his immediate future. It doesnt sit right with me however that he deserves or gains credit for not being Coyle, not being Kean, essentially not being a useless prick. Not many are that bad! I also think Mercer made a very fair comment amidst his posts, that Mowbrays recritment is very hit and miss. The key is to appreciate our season this far without going overboard. We seem to be consistently inconsistent, only winning back to back games once, and only losing back to back games once. Therefore, theres not much evidence to be able to confidently predict a sustained push at the top 6, nor is there much evidence to be overly fearful of a slide down into trouble. The football has been pretty uninspiring at times, direct, pragmatic and full of long balls. The signings with healthy backing have IMO raised more questions than answers and failed to develop the team much if at all from last seasons convincing promotion winners. There are questions about ruthlessness and game management. The most pleasing thing to see is the spirit that has undoubtedly continued to drive the team and has seen us get results against teams such as Leeds, Villa, Derby, Forest and WBA. I certainly think we are going pretty well, Mowbray is a popular manager who is deserving of an almost unanimous backing with credit in the bank from last season.

Our position or perceived overachievement is totally irrelevant. No one is saying they could do a better job than Mowbray. Just critiquing one of his signings. On an internet messageboard. Not mutualy exclusive to enjoying the league campaign in general.

Couldnt agree more on McCarthy.

But surely the manager and his coaching staff, equipped with countless hours of coaching experience, know better than us mere mortals who were naively happy with the signing?

You dont seem to be able to fathom the points I am making: - I dont think we are far enough in our development to be able to spend the majority of our budget on a player who isnt even in the thinking in terms of naming a starting 11, half way through the season. - I dont think the player from what I have seen of him and what I have read up on him is raw to the extent where he cannot even contribute, not even play when Graham is unavailable, or is not a better bet as a striker compared to Dack. I would have him as our second choice central striker at the moment, whereby a degree of cautiousness can still be used. - I dont think the player is best suited to a wide role. The fact that the manager and his staff have more experience of coaching than me doesnt make me any less entitled to an opinion, it doesnt make Mowbrays opinion 100% water tight and to be taken as gospel, and it isnt a valid counter argument on a fans messageboard designed for fans to air their own opinions.

What does "they dont feel the time is right" even mean! I find it baffling that you think people will respond to the implication that we can sign a big money signing SOLELY for the future, not even considered for a start, and people will just shrug their shoulders and say fair enough. Signing a cherry when we are nowhere near making our cake. Hes not as raw or as unready as you claim, as he showed at Forest. If people were moaning that he wasnt scoring goal after goal then maybe patience would be a valid buzzword but they arent. They are wondering why he is not even considered to be a striker, even on the occasions when our only alternative is unfit, and we play Dack up there instead. If people were moaning that he hasnt started most or all of our games, again, call for patience all you want. But they arent, just why he hasnt started even one, even when Graham was unable to.

Whilst that is true, it doesnt justify why his points per game total, albeit in a very limited sample size, is considerably LOWER than Hursts feeble record with them same players.

That doesnt explain any of my points though. It doesnt explain why a 7 million pound striker is not considered even as a back up in a position he played well at Nottingham Forest at this level, even preferring to move midfielders up front. You mention not having the players but he has had 3 windows, spent plenty of money, and the likes of Rothwell, Armstrong, Brereton and Palmer have all failed to establish themselves in the team. None of those at the moment can be argued as unqualified successes. Nor does them "being whats available" wash as an excuse. I also understand a degree of pragmatism and conservatism but it is very much one extreme to another, expecting to change from playing the most long balls in the league to playing free flowing football.