The Rovers Christmas Wish List

Long gone are the days when, as fans of Blackburn Rovers, all we used to hope for on a month by month basis is for the club to go on a good run of results and maybe look forward to the odd exciting purchase in the upcoming transfer window.

Under the Jack Walker Trust (post-Jack of course) ownership we lacked any real ambition to make the club a big hitter at the top of the footballing ladder but we had pride, we had an attachment to the club and as supporters we had a universal trust in the administration that they could expertly maximise the Rovers' limited means to the best effect.

Unfortunately under the current owners it's become an awful lot more complex than that. It's become a chore to support the team and to even the most stoic of the Ewood faithful the loyalty has been stretched to the limit.

We all know why, we've walked down that road of discussion more times than we'd all care to remember.

To many... football is no longer enjoyable. At least in our small part of the world.

So in blind hope rather than expectation, I am going to give you the Blackburn Rovers Christmas Wish List for 2012.

OWNERS

Let's start at the top and get the obvious out of the way - up to the present day Venky's have failed. They've failed as owners to provide what they promised and on top of that they've failed to rectify the real problems that have grown like a nasty fungus at Ewood Park since they spent millions back in 2010 to purchase the club.

In an ideal world, I'd ask them to sell the club to someone with the know how and the clout to run a niche business like a football club.

But let's face it, there is more chance of this flaming Mayan Apocalypse striking us all down than our much maligned owners selling up, they're stubborn and live in the mindset that they know best. We can do as much shouting for the hills as we want, they're not going anywhere.

So...


RUN THE CLUB PROPERLY

In 2013 it would be nice to see a proper infrastructure at the club in place. Call me bias but when the likes of John Williams, Tom Finn and Martin Goodman were running the show at Rovers we were the best run club in the country. Yes they were all handsomely paid, but they knew exactly what they were doing and created an environment for a club with reasonable yet minimal resources to exceed the sum of their parts.

We've gone from having a chief executive, a chairman and a chain of command to having "Global Advisors" and "General Managers". There is no set framework in place, the large majority of fans couldn't tell you who makes what call and when, who reports to who and where the accountability and responsibility for decisions lie.

Worst of all, I am not even sure some of the staff are aware of who's running the show either.

So let's cut out the confusion and the baffling management, let's get back to basics and appoint some proper footballing authority figures.

Having the final call from halfway across the world in India isn't helping either. I think Mrs Desai has been to (at most) about three Rovers games in two years, the brothers slightly more but are hardly regulars. How can they realistically expect to best protect their investment when they have limited experience of it live and in person?

If it's flagging up as a concern to a mere simpleton like me, how can it not be a cause for worry to someone who I can only imagine is a shade more intelligent and has their own money on the line?

The club accounts leave more questions than they do answers, there is no clear indicator that the manager of the team actually gets to, err, manage the team free of interference and the player transfer policy is about as scattergun as my Christmas shopping has been.

There isn't a set blueprint on how to best manage this badboy, and I can personally tell you as much about running a business as I can about running along a zipwire at 40,000 feet. But I can tell you when something is wrong and this current set up isn't working.

Let's change it.

PLAY FOR THE BADGE, ARTE ET LABORE

Playing for Blackburn Rovers used to mean something. You can stretch it back as far as you like, Ronnie Clayton, Bryan Douglas, Derek Fazackerley, Simon Garner, Colin Hendry, Tugay, hell even Ryan Nelsen and Robbie Savage.

All players that would bust a gut and even more importantly embrace Blackburn Rovers. Playing in blue and white halves meant that you tried your best even if you weren't have the greatest day at the office.

In 2012 there are FAR too many players who just don't get it. They're happy to do their professional duty and play their part, but there's no fire and certainly no acceptance that you play for more than just the obscene sums of cash that hit your bank balance.

Let's see some pride in playing for the shirt. Yes, for the men on the field part of that has to come from the environment created from the club itself and even from those fans, who wouldn't care to admit they help add to the negative atmosphere on matchdays themselves. But I still believe we have one of the best starting match day squads in the division, we're just not showing it.

A lot of that in the main is there is no desire to play for Blackburn Rovers.

There is no point in players telling us that "we're playing with passion". Players can say it all they want, we can see that they're not.

Let's see the players playing for the badge, as the old saying goes... actions speak louder than words.

RESPECT

This isn't aimed at anyone up in the directors box or an individual lacing up their boots. It's aimed at you... yes you, and me. It's aimed at the fans.

It's all so easy in the current situation to get frustrated and lash out. We're all annoyed at the shambles the club is becoming with anger manifesting itself as a result. But we're taking it out on each other far too often, rather than channelling it in the direction it should be heading.

Matchdays are now spent listening to groans of discontent as fans bicker amongst themselves over a variety of topics - Venky's Out, supporting the players, a fan being stood up and blocking another's view, someone, somewhere making too much noise, do you or don't you boo, when or when don't you boo, which supporters group are you in affiliation with, who is to blame for the latest goal conceded.

Popular social media platforms and websites are now turf war arenas for your point of view. It's your opinion, it's right, anyone that disagrees with you is wrong and they need to be told. if they continue to disagree let's get personal and commence the slating. If your glass is half empty then you're moaning and on suicide watch, if your glass is, heaven forbid, half full then you're gullible and blinkered.

Gone are the days of reasoned debate and a simple acceptance that people are/think different. It's just pure frustration release and we've all been guilty of it at some point, I know I have.

The season of goodwill is upon us and without trying to sound like some pompous preacher and naive idealist isn't it time we got back to being a whole? Or at the very least call a truce and play our part.

Let's show some respect for each other, as we're all suffering the same ordeal.

SUPPORTERS GROUPS

Outside of the obvious Kean and Venky's dynamic I am not aware of a bigger issue of contention in 2012 than that of the supporter groups.

The groups, the BRFC Action Group (BRAG), The Rovers Trust and the long standing Fans Forum have spent the latter part of this calender year point scoring and jostling for position in a fairly small market space.

It's not made for pleasant reading or viewing from the outside looking in.

I can't pretend to know all the elements of the disputes that are ongoing therefore I can't reason or even understand what's gone wrong, but what I would plea for is the squabbling to stop, at the risk of patronisation and treading on toes I have no intention of stomping on, agree to disagree and move on.

From a personal point of view I know certain sections and members of each group - there are some very passionate and well meaning people involved in these organisations.

But I do believe the shots across the bow need to stop.

Each group serves a purpose, let's get back to supporting the club in our own way. We certainly don't need another reason to fall out - the battle is out there, not in here.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Most of all, thank you for the support shown to this blog over the last calendar year. I wish everyone a very happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year. Let's hope that 2013 is better than 2012 for our club, we certainly deserve it.