Mattyisared

Seems to have been a weird game. Swansea put out a very strong team and the sags put out a decent quality team with a few younger players in it. In fact second half the sags had almost an U23s team. But yeah, Swansea definitely weren't playing their youth team. I'm not getting overly excited because two losses to Championship level opposition is, well, expected for them. They play Plymouth away in a friendly on Saturday. If they get battered by them, reminiscent of their 4-0 drubbing to Exeter last season, that will be the time to get excited. With Bury and Bolton both on minus 12 points, depleted squads and Clarke-Harris imo looking like he's not going to leave then relegation seems unlikely to me. Their financial situation is a completely different beast though, which is clear through the fact they haven't spent anything this window! EDIT: Think about it like this. The longer Rovers are in League 1, the more we get to see them lose, and the higher the probability of them getting even worse financially.

I have a dream. I have a dream that one day there will be 3 forums. One for the sags, one for us and a third. The legendary third forum should consist of a community. Sags could talk about Teds and Teds could talk about sags. Sags could pretend to be teds and talk about the sags to teds, and teds could pretend to be sags and talk about teds to the sags. The third forum has a wonderful community if you ask me. I mean, the probability of picking a random forum member and them having more than 10 fingers does shoot up dramatically, but they're not a bad bunch really...

Turned down Ipswich so probably nothing to do with wages

Anssi Jaakkola their latest signing. Backup for Reading last season. Reading fans seem to surprisingly rate him as a good goalkeeper who's good enough to be backup lower end of Championship level. Seems to be being chucked out due to injuries. So my prediction is he'll be great until he gets injured and then they'll have Van shotstopper or whatever his name is who will be the worst goalkeeper League 1 has ever seen. Also seem to have pretty much sealed up a deal for UCD defender Liam Scales. Irish CB aged 20, he's actually somehow been targeted a lot by Manchester City U23s, which is of course a good sign for little clubs like Rovers to look at when deciding the quality of a player. But seems decent, of course, Gasalogical sags overhyping him and not realising Manchester City look at a large quantity of U23s and even if they're signed that doesn't mean they're class. But for Gas standards, probably 2 good signings. But just a testament how big the gap is that we've got a better keeper and a goalkeeper only a little worse as what seems to be our third choice and a more experienced defender today.

Completely agree. Not sure they have the money to, have seen they hold a lot of interest in 3 players who I suppose would be considered marquee by their standards; Nicky Maynard, Danny Mayor and Ched Evans. Ched Evans has got to be completely unachievable. Even if they did have the money, a player who scores 17 goals in their league last season won't be wanting to play for a club that finished worse than the team he was playing for. I think though, that the lack of money may not be as relevant as you may think for those two considering they play for Bury and the complete fiasco that is going on there financially. May be great news for the sags. They'll have a lot of interest in them for sure from League 1, but I actually think either are achievable. Potentially both. But even if they did sign both I honestly think Maynard would completely flop but Mayor would do well. Edit: Saw the sags had a transfer rumours page and Mayor is out of contract. Pirate (one of the few fans on that shit website I actually respect who is surprisingly knowledgeable on players who don't play for the sags has him as his top target. Not been linked with almost any League 1 club. Seems actually pretty realistic for a lot of Sag rumours. Albeit some of them did suggest Leon Clarke, which is well...

By the way, please don't confuse me meaning good signings on paper and good signings in reality. Stefan Payne was a good signing on paper, so was Tom Nichols. And Clarke-Harris wasn't. We never know who'll perform for those lot, if anyone. So it could be these 3 completely flop and Van Stoppershot or whatever his name is is class. Who knows?

We all know he could definitely perform for them though. Bolton fans seem to speak pretty highly of him. Defensively he wasn't great you're right, but him and the non-league right back are definitely big step ups from the two RBs they had. One of which they released and the other they just sold back to Eastleigh.

Little definitely is, a TOTS Conference RB is, and have a Coventry mate who really rates Davies and speaks very highly of him. I think judging them on status and on paper alone they've all been good signings. Of course whether there'll turn out to be is a completely different case.

It's obvious that the Al Qadis want out tbh. But that doesn't inherently make their signings bad obviously. Davies is decent, Little is good, and reading a bit on Hare (got nothing else to do as I wait for either Kalas or DaSilva or hopefully both!) he seems decent. Former League 1 youngster who got ditched due to injuries but was in the Conference TOTS, it's like us signing a very promising player from League 2 really. Obviously I'm defending the Gas here but that's because I genuinely think their business so far has been very good all jokes aside and I don't really believe in mindless "if they were good they wouldn't be going to Rovers," because we all know Little is a good player, no matter his injury record or his time at Bolton. Obviously we'll blow them completely out of the water with the transfer window we're bound to have, but I've always been a believer in credit where credit's due, despite the intent of this forum obviously. Of course we all know any decent signing they make usually ends up shit, but for now, give them credit.

It's all relative. They wouldn't be half decent to us, but they're half decent for a club in the sags' position.

Have heard this too from various sources unfortunately. Are they actually get the boys back together? Who next? Emmanuel-Thomas? Wes Burns?

But they're essentially upgrading, just adding extra players doesn't mean they're improving. There's a difference between adding squad depth and quality. And they do actually seem to be upgrading on what's gone, minus Lockyer probably. But if Little plays CB that's definitely an upgrade imo

I do admire Rovers business plan though, making themselves seem like an attractive club by signing from non-league and the only two clubs that will be in League 1 that are less appealing than the sags given current issues (Bolton and Coventry).

Have a Coventry mate who actually rates Davies highly. New manager came in and didn't rate him so that was that. And tbf to them the other Coventry signings have turned out decent, especially Clarke-Harris. They're doing a lot of early business which is unusual for them, and we all know Little is actually a very good signing for them, despite his lack of playing time at Bolton. Despite my praise of sorts, let's keep a couple of things in perspective. My "decent," I mean decent for them. Mid-table League 1 quality, around where Coventry are at the moment tbf. Of course if he could never dream of trying to compete with the likes of Webster or Kalas. But I suppose the Gas have made some good signings so far, but of course looking at the larger picture, I think we should all be rooting for them to be signing great players! Of course it's the Gas so none of these high-quality players will perform whilst taking a chunk off the wage bill, spiralling them into more debt and then voile, the Gas will be gone.

"It was the size of the club that, when I found out about the interest, just ticked in my brain that I wanted to come here." - Rovers' new signing Tom Davies Sometimes, I feel a bit sad for the sags, I mean when the Post are telling you you're now the 6th richest club in England, and muppets like Tom here making stuff up, it's no wonder some of them actually think they're anything better than what they are, utter shit. I just find it hysterical he went from former Premiership team Coventry to Rovers because apparently the club is massivv

THEIR BEST DEFENDER JUST REJECTED A NEW DEAL TO JOIN DOPEY IN LEAGUE TWO. HOW DO THESE LOT MANAGE TO BE SO EMBARRASSING

It's not at all like Chelsea...Chelsea give us some of their best loanees! Not their cast offs

Something I've found quite comedic that hasn't been mentioned on this thread whatsoever is Rovers and Coventry. Last summer, Rovers signed the Coventry head of recruitment Tommy Widdrington. In that summer they also brought in his son Theo Widdrington after he was released by Portsmouth. On deadline day in January, Rovers signed two Coventry cast-offs. One that was not wanted anymore in Jonson Clarke-Harris and the other who had been released by Coventry, Abu Ogogo. Although to be fair to them they seem to have been decent signings, Clarke-Harris especially. They're now linked to two Coventry centre-backs, and apparently want both. Both not wanted at Coventry anymore; Jack Grimmer and Tom Davies. Considering Coventry are a team that Rovers didn't even lose to this season, it seems hilarious they're signing their cast-offs. And so many of them!

Wouldn't really criticise them for this. He said essentially say he's been offered it in the interview.

But this is my point, you're completely spot on those were horrendous signings. But £500k combined is nothing. It's half of what they got for Ellis Harrison who scored 1 goal in 16 for Ipswich this season. They had Bodin and good old Taylor and somehow managed to scam themselves to only receiving 700k for both. Plus looking at their record this season they're very good defensively compared to clubs around them. So I guess you could argue he made some good signings there. It just indicates to me he was let down as they'd be much better had they kept Harrison, Bodin and Taylor and have the defence they have now. Wasn't Taylor top goalscorer when he left? I can't see how you'd be able to replace that given their budget, although Payne and Nichols have been exceptionally poor to be honest.

I've never really thought in all honesty the leagues thing was a good argument for any manager You'd be spot on if it was an underperforming club with a great squad, me personally I'd be embarrassed if we were in League 2 and got anything other than an unbeaten 1st finish. But compare resources too. They're playing in a lower quality league yes, but they've also got a lower quality squad and a transfer budget which is less than half of what we spend on players like Eisa. A lot of good managers like Chris Wilder, Eddie Howe, Nathan Jones (done awful at Stoke so far but think it'll work out for him), Sam Allardyce etc. What is dopey? 40? I wouldn't be surprised if he becomes a lower-end Championship manager someday, just like I wouldn't be surprised if Johnson was mid-table Championship, whether with us or not. Chris Wilder especially, didn't do well at Halifax or Oxford. It'll be interesting to see how he does, me personally I hope he does well just to **** off the sags and remind them of their success under him and they dive into mediocrity. Never really hated dopey and actually kinda feel for him, is he the manager sags make him out to be? No. Probably just got fed up of Rovers as a club and its fans. Hollowhead on the other hand was a c***

Wouldn't be surprised to see them sign the tramp and Chris Lines

Despite his shoestring budget he did do pretty well at the sags. Conference wasn't impressive whatsoever but given their mediocrity in League 2 for previous seasons getting up to League 2 and 10th in League 1 with very limited funds was impressive. The richest owners in all of Jordan let him down in a way by under-selling his best players and expected him to get better with half the budget. The sags have always been a deluded bunch, and I wouldn't be surprised if he takes Walsall much further than he took the sags. They've definitely got a much bigger capacity to growth than Rovers ever had, despite what the pashunate gazheds might say.

People may think differently but I actually want him to do well. Will show the sags that he did wonders with their pathetic squad and the way they hounded him out was embarrassing. Will also show they won't have a manager like him for decades. Will give them a bit of reality, that they are nowhere near the clubs around them. Even shit clubs like Fleetwood and Gillingham. They may wish him well, but me personally I'd think it'd be hysterical if Dopey does wonders at Walsall and progresses in his career whilst the Gazheds hire Hollowhead who flops after Cockhead leaves them for a League 2 club.

To be fair to them, it's much more important where they end up rather than certain places they are. Walsall spent over a month in the top 6 and went down. So I don't really see why that's a means of criticism. When they went down in 2016 and went down in 2014 they'd barely been in the promotion and relegation spots all season.