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The question should be is SL willing to back any manager ever again after the money squandered under LJ and MA. No manager worth their salt would be willing to touch us with a 10-foot barge pole if he’s not — because the waste that’s gone before puts us at risk or breaching FFP now.

One unnamed member of the squad has had the virus. My best guess, despite my own reservations over him not being anywhere near up to the grade at this level, is it might be him.

Win, lose or draw it’s been a rudderless ship under SL’s watch for two decades. But why we’re choosing now to moan about it, after we’ve unsurprisingly been soundly beaten by a side relegated from the PL last season, I don’t know.

Makes you wonder what their annual salaries are if that’s true. It was only a matter of time before the axe fell on them, but I have to question the club signing off those deals on big wages during the middle of a pandemic.

I remember that day well. Am I right in thinking that's the last time we got anything from the Hawthorns, 22 years and 8 months ago?

You're right in that LJ had to sell players, but don't be fooled into thinking he didn't want any of the "mostly (inferior) ones" he did sign. He was the head coach and could've said "no" to Ashton or done the principled thing as resigned if Ashton was buying players without his input. LJ insisted on the signings of Brownhill and Webster, he could've vetoed signing the likes of Diony or Palmer (to name just two) if he really wanted to but he wanted his clubs in the bag. All my opinion, of course.

I'm glad to added the first part of that sentence as, for context, LJ had the likes of Reid, Bryan, Brownhill and Webster to call upon at various times. He also spent the most in a failed bid to get us over the line. What's left is largely his squad and they're nowhere near decent or consistent enough to challenge in the top half, IMO. Looking at the signings of Atkinson and Tanner, I'd rather NP had the amounts of cash that LJ/MA burnt through, but we are where we are.

Williams, King and Semenyo are all out tomorrow. Wiliams and Semenyo are meant to be two weeks away, King will be out for longer than that. I agree with Pearson that KP, COD and TB are passengers; Vyner's not up to it at this level for me. I'd like to see Benarous given a decent run-out.

Great anecdote but what surprised me was Dicks saying “10 or 12 years ago, I offered my services to the club again but was politely declined”. Reading between the lines, does anyone else think that he threw his hat in to succeed either GJ or Coppell?

Sorry to be pedantic but they’re not. Bristol Live is part of Reach (formerly Trinity Mirror), the Mail belongs to DMG. Two different publishers.

Because we have no strength in depth whatsoever, and that's on the previous regime. If we had a fully-fit squad to choose from, I'd say we're probably a pacy winger away from having a top-half-of-the-table starting XI. Beyond that, there's no quality at all. The signings NP has made have improved us, IMO.

Nail on the head. Nobody can legislate for Scott missing an open goal before he scored, Wells hitting the post when he should've scored, and the ref ignoring a stonewall penalty either. Forest came here last night towards the top of the form table and on another night, we could've beaten them comprehensively.

He was, but I’m looking at the bigger picture in terms of what he’s done in his time here. Not singling him out at all, hence the “possibly Wells”. Has he returned ROI? No, although there are mitigating circumstances.

So far in the league this year (four, all at home): • Lavery (Blackpool 90+3) • Hylton (Luton 90+1) • Taylor (Forest 90+1, 90+2) When will the penny drop that many of the players we have simply aren’t up to the job. We’ve signed Atkinson and Tanner, the types we need to go for. But for every one of those we’re hamstrung by the likes of COD, Bakinson, Vyner, Moore, Palmer and possibly Wells who simply aren’t adding anything in any scenario. It’s infuriating and it will take time to sort.

The home form is abysmal, no getting away from it, but I’m on board with a three-year project to rebuild the club from the rabble left by Mark Ashton and nobody should be under any illusions as to the mess he’s left. The signings of Atkinson and Tanner give me hope that more of those types will follow. Maybe not this year as I firmly expect a bottom-six struggle, but certainly the deeper we move into the project. The bottom line is how much time people are willing to give it, but in my experience nothing lasts for ever and this home form has to turn at some point soon (I always thought Barnsley was more likely than a rejuvenated Forest).

Tanner is exactly the type of player Nige wants to us to have — young, hungry, potential for growth, versatile. Great signing, and I hope we make more signings like him (eg Prem schooled, released, desire, resale if we don’t match his growth etc).

Bakinson should be nowhere near the starting XI, IMO, and surely Massengo is only in contention to start if he was fit enough to be on the bench on Saturday? As he wasn't, I think it might be a big risk to throw him straight in to start. Pring's a better option wide left, not at LB.

Let’s hope so, but I don’t think Forest will be down there under Cooper at the end of the season. Barnsley will be. Forest and Barnsley both offer more hope of a home win than Bournemouth, mind.

This wretched home record was never going to end today. It’ll be the home games against the likes of Barnsley that we need to win.

Yates, Foakes and Mahmood would’ve made my squad. Foakes is the best keeper/batsman in the country by a mile. How he gets overlooked for Bairstow is beyond me.

Fair points. Based on this season though, we’re better than Northants, Surrey and Kent and on a par with Somerset in red-ball cricket. I’m confident we’ll keep the squad together over the winter and we’ve already signed Marcus Harris to bolster the top-order batting. Gohar would be the icing on the cake

For me, that 7-1 second-half capitulation at Swansea took the biscuit. We conceded on the stroke of half-time and folded like a pack of cards after the break. I remember trying to leave the Liberty after Britton scored their fourth only to be told to stay put as we were in a bubble. It was a slow death and the demise of a legend. Notable mentions for debacles at Blackpool under Millen and Bradford, I think under Wilson.

He owned Hedgehunter and Ballabriggs, too.

Same season I started following, too. My top three are: Liverpool 0-1 City, January 1994 Cardiff 1-3 City, December 2001 Palace 1-2 City, May 2008 I was gutted to miss the 5-4 win at Mansfield in 2002 (had a ticket but was ill), and the 6-0 win at Bradford in 2015 (having seen us get dicked 5-0 and 4-1 on my only two trips to Valley Parade).