Wilpshire Blue
Senior Member
FT 2-1 phew
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NEXT GAME:no idea
Sometime in August
Kick off unknown pm
No idea where
Definitely the Championship
Rovers v Millwall
- Thread starter Alan
- Start date
Old Darwen Blue
Prediction Champion 2021, 2022 & 2023
No problem at all. Millwall still appealing for handball back in the dressing room.
Ha Ha
Ha Ha
Wilpshire Blue
Senior Member
3 points behind second place.
Another of those OOT matches that you win ugly
Another of those OOT matches that you win ugly
2 games running now. If you can't be good, be lucky.
We're due a decent game soon though.
Barmitzvah Boy
Global winner of the 2021 Christmas Quiz 👊🤩🤩
It was handball. Ayala also did one in the first half. A lucky win but that is what Champions do.
OnlyOneTugay
Prediction Champion 2019 & 2020
“ Fantastic 3 points against a ( another ) useful side . Good to see Rovers winning ugly , scrappy , scruffy “ ( see Barnsley thread )
6 priceless points against Barnsley and Millwall when Rovers probably only deserved two at best .
The next run of games in December will give us some idea how far this Rovers team can go . I still don’t see a ‘ unit ‘ that plays to a pattern , more a team of individuals .
Up the Rovers
6 priceless points against Barnsley and Millwall when Rovers probably only deserved two at best .
The next run of games in December will give us some idea how far this Rovers team can go . I still don’t see a ‘ unit ‘ that plays to a pattern , more a team of individuals .
Up the Rovers
Wilpshire Blue
Senior Member
Highlights.
Playing with fire with those handballs
www.skysports.com
Playing with fire with those handballs
Blackburn 2-1 Millwall: Adam Armstrong fires in late Rovers winner
Adam Armstrong's deflected late strike snatched Blackburn a 2-1 win over Millwall.
Old Darwen Blue
Prediction Champion 2021, 2022 & 2023
Hand of God
The one in the first half looked a bit dodgy after Ayala (who looks very league 1) passed it straight to their striker.
Not so sure about those others late on. Certainly not the one where they fluffed a header at Kaminsky, though WTF was Lenihan? doing with his hand in the air I'll never know.
A similar thing seemed to happen with the last kick of the game. Though we shouldn't have even been playing then, and in the 5th minute of injury time I think we should have had a throw in in their half which would have meant game over, but instead Millwall got the call and were able to launch another attack.
The officiating was not the worst i've seen, but still pretty crap overall - which as we know is standard for this league.
Not so sure about those others late on. Certainly not the one where they fluffed a header at Kaminsky, though WTF was Lenihan? doing with his hand in the air I'll never know.
A similar thing seemed to happen with the last kick of the game. Though we shouldn't have even been playing then, and in the 5th minute of injury time I think we should have had a throw in in their half which would have meant game over, but instead Millwall got the call and were able to launch another attack.
The officiating was not the worst i've seen, but still pretty crap overall - which as we know is standard for this league.
Phew... a late goal out of the blue to wrap up the three points. It's frequently said there are no easy games in the Championship and that no game can be taken for granted. Top six clubs Bournemouth, Norwich, Watford, Swansea and Reading all found that out in this latest round of mid week fixtures. If any team is off the pace they can lose to any other. Odd then that we have just won two matches which we could so easily have lost, the difference between us and the other teams is that it might seem that we could even be attempting to lose them! After the marvellous display at PNE TM has put out two teams that have been ill prepared for the task in hand and only the predatory instincts of Adam Armstrong have seen us bring home the bacon. For the hurly burly of the Championship and particularly since Travis got injured it seems to me that we are selecting too many bricklayers and not enough hod carriers to compete in the middle of the park. Other teams have sussed this and appear to have adopted the tactic of playing a pressing game high up the field to stop us building from the back. It's obvious that we must amend our tactics and personnel to combat and nullify this. We are allowing far too many crosses to fly across our 6 yard line and sooner or later our luck will run out. Let's face it, leave the defenders out of the equation and the only outfield player with anything like a tackle in him is Bradley Johnson. Brereton, Gallagher, Elliot, Holtby and Rothwell are creators not destroyers. It isn't easy that's for sure, four matches ago TM paired Johnson and Trybull together against Luton, they didn't gel and it was almost disastrous. I don't know what the answer is but it's down to Mowbray and his team to find it.
Kaminsky... 7 Usual strong performance from Christian, I've just one crib in that he seemed to go down rather than up as he was beaten for Millwall's goal.
Nyambe.... 6 Again not his best match as Millwall kept his marauding down the wing to a minimum.
Lenihan... 6 Not his most polished performance.
Ayala... 6 Slotted in OK as he was pressed into action for the injured Wharton.
Bell.... 6 So inconsistent. Does both good and bad play within minutes of each other.
Elliot.... 6 Largely quiet but scored an absolute belter from an Armstrong assist.
Holtby... 5 Poor match by his standards. As against Barnsley he is much better dictating play than being dictated too.
Johnson... 6 Some timely interventions but never able to influence proceedings.
Gallagher.... 5 Brought in after a couple of good displays from the bench. Won the ball in the air plenty of times but contributed little to the cause. One of those players that suits being a sub.
Brereton... 5 Another ineffective showing. His flame flickered a few times in recent weeks but Barnsley and Millwall managed to extinguish it with relative ease. Provided a comic moment as only he can by missing a completely open goal from just a few yards out!!! 'Fortunately' for him he was judged offside. He'd have struggled to live that by down if he hadn't strayed too far fwd.
Armstrong... 7 Again the man who looked most likely to score but struggled through lack of quality supply and decent support. An unremarkable performance by his standards but still claimed an assist and the winning goal in the 90th minute.
Subs
Dolan (for Brereton 58 mins).... 6 Brought energy and enthusiasm to proceedings after he came on for the injured Ben B.
Rothwell (for Holtby 74 minutes)... 6 A quiet introduction except for a few trademark runs with the ball. Carried the ball forward from deep before off loading to Downing whose shot was blocked but fell kindly to Armstrong to react quickly and strike it home via a deflection for the winner.
Downing... (for Gallagher 74) 6 Unremarkable showing overall but his mazy run and blocked shot proved an assist for Armstrong's late winner.
Buckley... (for Elliot 74) 6 Offered a bit more in general than Elliot had been providing. Good to see him thickening out a bit. I can see Buckley turning into a decent player.
Trybull... (for Armstrong 90+4) Not on long enough to even mark him. His substitution was just the age old tactic of taking steam out of a situation whilst the clock winds down.
Tony Mowbray....4 Again sent out what I see as the wrong team and out thought by Rowett. We have to be set up to compete in midfield. We know from experience that the Fat lady doesn't linger around Ewood park for long.
Referee Michael Salisbury 5 Not much experience in the Championship, he appears to have refereed more matches in Leagues 1 and 2. Rather too much whistle and not enough control.
Kaminsky... 7 Usual strong performance from Christian, I've just one crib in that he seemed to go down rather than up as he was beaten for Millwall's goal.
Nyambe.... 6 Again not his best match as Millwall kept his marauding down the wing to a minimum.
Lenihan... 6 Not his most polished performance.
Ayala... 6 Slotted in OK as he was pressed into action for the injured Wharton.
Bell.... 6 So inconsistent. Does both good and bad play within minutes of each other.
Elliot.... 6 Largely quiet but scored an absolute belter from an Armstrong assist.
Holtby... 5 Poor match by his standards. As against Barnsley he is much better dictating play than being dictated too.
Johnson... 6 Some timely interventions but never able to influence proceedings.
Gallagher.... 5 Brought in after a couple of good displays from the bench. Won the ball in the air plenty of times but contributed little to the cause. One of those players that suits being a sub.
Brereton... 5 Another ineffective showing. His flame flickered a few times in recent weeks but Barnsley and Millwall managed to extinguish it with relative ease. Provided a comic moment as only he can by missing a completely open goal from just a few yards out!!! 'Fortunately' for him he was judged offside. He'd have struggled to live that by down if he hadn't strayed too far fwd.
Armstrong... 7 Again the man who looked most likely to score but struggled through lack of quality supply and decent support. An unremarkable performance by his standards but still claimed an assist and the winning goal in the 90th minute.
Subs
Dolan (for Brereton 58 mins).... 6 Brought energy and enthusiasm to proceedings after he came on for the injured Ben B.
Rothwell (for Holtby 74 minutes)... 6 A quiet introduction except for a few trademark runs with the ball. Carried the ball forward from deep before off loading to Downing whose shot was blocked but fell kindly to Armstrong to react quickly and strike it home via a deflection for the winner.
Downing... (for Gallagher 74) 6 Unremarkable showing overall but his mazy run and blocked shot proved an assist for Armstrong's late winner.
Buckley... (for Elliot 74) 6 Offered a bit more in general than Elliot had been providing. Good to see him thickening out a bit. I can see Buckley turning into a decent player.
Trybull... (for Armstrong 90+4) Not on long enough to even mark him. His substitution was just the age old tactic of taking steam out of a situation whilst the clock winds down.
Tony Mowbray....4 Again sent out what I see as the wrong team and out thought by Rowett. We have to be set up to compete in midfield. We know from experience that the Fat lady doesn't linger around Ewood park for long.
Referee Michael Salisbury 5 Not much experience in the Championship, he appears to have refereed more matches in Leagues 1 and 2. Rather too much whistle and not enough control.
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Smells Like Kean Spirit
Senior Member
Missed yesterday's match, so appreciate the report Theno. Sounds like we were on the back foot like Saturday and had to rely on our old acquaintance, Lady Luck. Some of the players were looking a bit leggy against Barnsley, which is not surprising given the intensity of, and number of games they're playing. So, kudos to Mowbray for having faith in his bench last night - possibly no coincidence that we scored so late with some fresh legs on the pitch. You've identified the problem, there's barely one tackle in the whole midfield, except maybe one in Johnson, and that's holding him together! The centre backs are going to be forced into errors, and bed decisions, if the midfield are not providing enough cover for them. Not sure we can wait for the return of Travis and Mowbray needs to find a Terry Hurlock or a David Batty currently polishing the boots at Brockhall. Maybe push one of the centre half's into midfield. Maybe Wharton could do a job in midfield until Travis returns? I dunno!
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With regulars Travis and Evans injured Davenport / Buckley / trybull can all graft and put a foot in slks. I must say from the little I've seen of Davenport he looks like he might be the answer but obviously Mowbray and his coaches will be much more aware of his positives and negatives. He looks to me a similar player to travis. We've hardly seen him through injury but I notice he is one of our highest earners so he must have been well scrutinised before we signed him. I think the formation is perhaps the key with too much reliance placed on our attacking wingers.
I know odb will raise his eyes skywards but if I were picking the team I would struggle to find a starting spot for brereton and Gallagher either together or individually. Gallagher brings physicality to the equation and provides an outlet for the long ball when he is out wide against smaller full backs (too often last night the defenders struggling to clear their lines at times and lumped it towards Armstrong). Personally I see Gallagher as being more effective coming off the bench. Some players are like that tbh.
I'd much rather see rothwell in the line up who is an attacking midfielder than an attacker who can't defend..... Armstrong excepted of course.
I know odb will raise his eyes skywards but if I were picking the team I would struggle to find a starting spot for brereton and Gallagher either together or individually. Gallagher brings physicality to the equation and provides an outlet for the long ball when he is out wide against smaller full backs (too often last night the defenders struggling to clear their lines at times and lumped it towards Armstrong). Personally I see Gallagher as being more effective coming off the bench. Some players are like that tbh.
I'd much rather see rothwell in the line up who is an attacking midfielder than an attacker who can't defend..... Armstrong excepted of course.
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khmerblue
Senior Member
I do not like Holtby playing deep so maybe the return of Trybull may be on the Cards..Looks like BB may be missing for a while so maybe the formation may have to change.We may have to go with 2 up front and 4 in midfield.With Harvey being what I would call a luxury a player we need to get our Midfield right.I would not rule out Davenport or Buckley playing as Johnson and Trybull seemed to be tripping over one another at Luton.Intresting days ahead and December may make or break us.