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Still early days for Manning, obviously, but the change is an avoidable setback. I suspect we’d have got more from today and at QPR if the change hadn’t been made but here we are.

I liked him too, but it’s worth remembering he left us as a striker or right-sided forward and wasn’t made into the RWB he is now until much later. Szmodics is the one that annoys me now as he would walk into our team and system right now. Burns, I’m not so sure unless we play with wing-backs.

I can’t see anyone in their right mind paying £200m for BS, nor should they be expected to in the current market. So that leaves us with nothing, and the prospect of the Lansdowns bumbling on for another decade is so depressing. If BCFC was up for sale, however, surely a deal would be done.

Deschamps is another to add to the list, certainly at international level. Simeone was also a top player in the ‘90s who’s done well with Atleti. Conte’s another one who’s won plenty as a manager. The list is pretty endless in all fairness.

With Wells out, that’s our best option up top right now. Conway isn’t ready physically (and I think there is development to come with that) to play on his own and he looked on his arse after about 50 minutes last night. He needs a partner to play alongside at this stage. What that does to the rest of the XI, I don’t know. It probably looks like a 3-5-2, but that will put the focus on our wing backs.

Decent first half; dross after the break. Got to take our chances when we’re on top. Top six still on, JL?

We usually get the better of Russell Martin’s sides and that first half is no different. Conway had to take that one-on-one chance but looked caught in two minds. Deserve to go in leading at the break.

With a liability like Dael Fry at CB, it’s not that amazing they lost IMO. I struggle to recall a worse CB performance at this level.

Surprised you weren’t aware of him. He’s scored something like 5 goals in 7 games against us now, playing for Rotherham and Boro. The new David Kelly!

Maybe he had a sizeable bet on! (That’s a joke!)

Good three points. A few opinions from me: Dael Fry should’ve seen red in the first half, no idea how he stayed on. He was awful. Conway could, and probably should, have done better with his one on one. TGH’s was excellent, particularly in the first half, and his goal was worthy of winning any game. I missed the penalty and still haven’t seen that. After the break, two awful goals to concede. I don’t know what Vyner was trying to do; both Tanner and Max should’ve done better for their other goal. We were very nervy at the back. Crooks usually scores against us. Cornick did well when he came on and Mehmeti looked lively. An entertaining game in which a point was probably a fairer result, but I’ll take it! Tough call between TGH and Dickie for MOTM.

Brilliance from Gardner-Hickman. What a goal from our best player so far.

I’ve got nothing against Manning and hope he does well, but I don’t support those running the club. That’s my opinion and it’s based on facts. If you don’t like it, ignore it. And who are you to tell me what to do? Bore off, sunshine

I read what Carrick said about international breaks with interest earlier: I also saw that Mowbray gave Jobe Bellingham 10 days off over the international break and let Bradley Dack go to Dubai, so a) clearly it wasn’t just NP doing it and b) I guess in the eyes of JL and Tinnion, Carrick and Mowbray don’t know what they’re doing either. I’d take a point tomorrow, but am fearing worse.

JL was up The George at Abbots Leigh at lunchtime today

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All of that unequivocally shows that the top six (minimum) is the board’s aim this season. What that also shows is how misguided and unrealistic a goal that is and that they are clueless. I also feel for Manning as they’ve set him up to fail. There is no way this squad is good enough or has the strength in depth to be at the “top end of the table” in May and IMO our best chance of gatecrashing the play-offs was with Nige. Now I think there’s way more chance of a bottom six finish and that is on the board.

I peaked on 77/92 a while back, but a few of those can no longer be counted as they’ve dropped out of the league. Down to 62 now

Early impressions — it looks to me that a) some have been rushed back from injury too soon, and b) the players didn’t show anything like the desire they mostly did under Nige. Of course, it’s very early days for Manning. But if this is anything to go by, Pearson may well have been getting the most of out of this squad and we could well be in a dogfight if this is not a performance in isolation. Top six? My arse! Lansdowns out.

“I believe we’ve got a good squad; it’s the best since I’ve been involved here.” Jon Lansdown, 2023.

Is he fit enough, though? He’s was in a protective boot two weeks ago and yet leapt off the treatment table after Rennie was sacked. Or could it be losing that expertise meant he was rushed back

Exactly. The previous regime had a habit of getting positive results from games like these. I’m not holding out much hope for the same today on that first-half evidence.

Nail on the head, and those are just some of the big decisions they’ve got wrong. There are loads of other things they’ve done over the years that’ve increasingly irritated me. There’s the “it’s my club and I’ll do as I please” statement, the lies “we have a top-10 budget” (to give one example), and the nepotistic appointments. There’s the Bristol Sport fallacy that makes it unnecessarily difficult for BCFC to be sold and the total lack of direction from the top. There are the farces over the kit deal and the robin splat, and the total lack of open communication that stands up to the slightest bit of scrutiny. When you add into the pot things like the BS bots coming on here to try an influence matters and it takes the piss IMO. I could go on and on but in short the sooner they go, the better.

Some points I agree with, others I don’t. Manning certainly hasn’t said or done anything to excite me and the Lansdowns deserve criticism IMO, for reasons that go deeper than simply sacking Pearson.

I remember that game for being out sung by 26 Rotherham fans, who had the whole East End to themselves! Pretty sure one of their midfielders - who was the target of “gypo” chants - scored twice, including one screamer.