At the start of the season, there are three games you can write off as a realistic Blackburn Rovers fan.

Those games are the trips to Old Trafford, The Emirates and, of course, Stamford Bridge.

I’m not saying a result in those games is impossible, just very unlikely.

If you assume from the beginning of the season that those nine points will not be won, then anything more than a defeat is a real bonus.

Yesterday was no exception. A lot of people were feeling positive given our recent form and Chelsea’s apparent lack of it, and perhaps that was a little misguided.

Of course, if you’re going to get a result at Chelsea, this was as good a time as any to play them, but by no means was I getting over-excited.

I thought it was a very good defensive display from Rovers with some excellent last ditch tackles. But Chelsea were all over us.

We had a couple of chances but, taking my blue and white spectacles off, if we had got anything from this game it would have been a travesty.

Moving on, and as this was Steve Kean’s sixth Premier League game in charge, it’s a perfect time to reflect on his performance so far.

I did not hide my anger at the sacking of Sam Allardyce, or the appointment of a complete novice in Kean, when it happened. It seemed outrageous at the time.

But it happened. We have to move on.

My anger, and that of many other Rovers fans, was not helped by Kean’s first two matches – the 1-1 draw with West Ham followed by a disgusting home defeat to Stoke.

The win at West Brom was pleasing – especially as it showed the new-look Niko Kalinic at his best (until the dosy Croat got sent off), before a disappointing performance and 3-0 defeat at Sunderland. But Sunderland have one of the best home records in the Premier League, so there was no real shame in the defeat.

That was followed by an incredible night at Ewood, one of the best Rovers performances in a long while and an excellent 3-1 win over Liverpool. Granted, the Scousers were in a bit of bother and not playing very well, but we are not Brazil and had to outperform them to guarantee an excellent result.

Follow that with cup progress. QPR at home was not an easy tie on paper and they caused us some problems. But the job was done and we got through to the next round of the cup.

Then, of course, yesterday’s match.

So a bit of a mixed bag really. The Bolton game – Big Sam’s last in charge – saw us drop to 13th in the table, although I doubt we’d have stayed there. We are now 11th, on 28 points – four wins away from the magic 40 points, although I don’t believe avoiding relegation is still our primary objective.

Mrs Desai’s – as well as most of the footballing world’s – quarm with Big Sam was not his ability to get results on limited resources, but the manner in which he did that. Unattractive “hoofball” is how it was labelled. Although I often felt we weren’t given the credit we deserved when we did play some decent stuff.

Steve Kean has changed things. He’s using quick wingers – Olsson and Hoilett – to burst down the flanks, with two strikers – One being Kalinic who is now encouraged to run at defenders and not play with his back to goal, often resulting in him falling over, and a big, strong, target man for Niko to play off – be that Diouf, Benjani or Roberts.

This more attacking, quick approach is more pleasing on the eye, and is proven to work.

As my mate Rick says, football is a very simple game, and the tactics Kenny Dalglish used when he brought the title to Ewood are still effective today.

You need a big bruiser centre back accompanied by one who can pass a bit. Two full backs who, as well as being good defenders, are capable of bringing the ball forward and putting a decent cross in, who work well with two speedy wingers who can take on the opposition full backs and cross well. You then need two good central midfielders, one more defensive than the other, who can pass and shoot and channel the balls out to the wide men. Then you need two strikers, as described above, one that can hold the ball up and play through the more skillful, quick striker that has a bit of flair.

I know that’s all very “ideal world” stuff. But from what I’ve seen fo Steve Kean’s tactics, he’s trying to go about football in a way that is proven to work.

NOTE: If you have tried to comment but get an error message saying “Forbidden”, I have not blocked you or anything like that. There is a problem somewhere, I can’t even leave comments myself

4,000 Holes issue 80

A Happy New Year to all Rovers fans.

I’ve been busy of late on other projects, most notably the Rovers fanzine, 4,000 Holes, which I began designing at the start of this season.

If you haven’t seen or heard of it, 4,000 Holes has been around since 1989 and is now at its 80th issue – with the current issue and the last one having been done by yours truly.

Yes this is a shameless plug, and yes, I’m going to try to sell you one – you can pick one up online here or by finding one of our sellers near the Aqueduct or near the entrance to the ground, near McDonalds.

Despite not blogging, I have been watching on as our club is taken apart, bit by bit, by Venky’s, the Indian chicken cowboys.

They came in saying all the right things. We’ll let the board and manager run the club, give them time, while promoting the club as a brand in India before hopefully expanding our brand to the European market. That’s fine. Give and take.

We get a bit of transfer money. They get a lot of exposure for their company. Win-win. Yes?

Not quite. Within a month they’ve forced our reluctant chairman John Williams into sacking his ally, Sam Allardyce, totally without reason.

Allardyce had been a success at Ewood. Saving us from relegation in his first season. Taking us to 10th in his second season and, had it not been for Bolton scabbing us in a game we should have won at the Reebok Stadium the day before he was given the boot, Big Sam would have taken us to something like 6th or 7th in the Premier League table! A remarkable achievement when you look at the transfer budget.

Their reasons? They don’t want us to be fighting relegation and they want to concentrate more on youth.

As I’ve just said, a win would have seen us in the European places, so we were not fighting relegation. Secondly, how can you say Sam doesn’t work with youth, when he’s brought through Phil Jones, Grant Hanley, Josh Morris and Junior Hoilett; transformed Martin Olsson into an exciting attacking full back; and signed Niko Kalinic, Steven N’Zonzi and Amine Linganzi?

It certainly boggles my mind.

That’s all in the past, though. We have to move on and accept it. What will the future bring? Who will be the new man at the helm? Exciting times could be ahead.

With Neil McDonald – a man Sam brought in as his assistant who knows the club and players well and has worked extensively with them – also sacked, Steve Kean, a man hardly anyone has ever heard of was placed in temporary charge.

Then, Venky’s shock the footballing world, by announcing that Steve Kean will indeed be the man to lead Rovers until the end of the season. Eh?

These decisions are being made by a woman who, be her own admission, knows nothing about football. The same woman who then says that two coaches will be appointed to assist Kean, and she’ll be the one doing the interviews.

Now I know she is the owner, but surely the interviews should be done by people like the manager and the chairman, and not a cricket obsessed bird who has seen three football matches in her lifetime.

With all this going on, it has become obvious to me that Venky’s are not looking for a proper manager. They want a nobody like Kean to front the club while they dictate everything from above. They make the signings. They make the decisions. Kean picks the team and stands on the touchline in his ridiculous suit.

It is my firm belief that Venky’s never intended to keep Sam Allardyce in charge, and having seen events unfold I am amazed that he survived after the 7-1 defeat at Old Trafford. To me, it seems the owners were looking for an excuse to get rid of Sam, and that would have been the obvious one. They got rid of their man soon after, though, and now, instead of a man who would be able to keep us midtable at least in their first season without having to spend massive amounts of money, we have a man who has as much managerial experience as I do at the helm who will need a heck of a lot more than £5m or £10m to take us anywhere.

That draw with West Ham and the defeat to Stoke were embarrassing results, and surely with Sam in charge we would have come away with more than a point from those two games. The win at West Brom made it seem as though maybe things were looking up, but as with anyone else who was at Sunderland yesterday, any optimism was ripped away.

Granted, we had players out with injuries and suspensions, and Samba is a player we miss dearly when he’s not in. But we may need to get used to having no Samba come the end of January. Supposed key players like Dunn, Pedersen and Emerton were totally ineffective. The defence was all over the shop. And how Benjani can be described as a footballer is beyond me.

January is a very important month for Blackburn Rovers.

Once more, a happy and prosperous New Year to you all.

We must accept that if things continue as they are, we are in the relegation battle.

Today’s defeat at Liverpool was disappointing, not just because of the result – to be honest, it’s not often you expect points from Anfield -  but the manner in which defeat came.

Yes, we were without Samba and Nelsen. But that doesn’t mean our defence should cave in the way it did for Liverpool’s goals. They were poor – but there should have been more.

Paul Robinson was undoubtedly the Rovers’ man of the match, it’s just unfortunate he couldn’t do anything for the two goals. When the goalkeeper gets man of the match two games running, questions must surely need answering.

It’s been the same every game so far this season – where are the goals going to come from?

Benjani and Diouf linked up well for our short-lived equaliser. But apart from that, Pepe Reina was practically on holiday today.

Last week, Sunderland’s visit was another non-event. We could have taken something from the game had Samba not allowed himself to get distracted, which let Bent through on goal only for the big man to take him down from behind. A definite red.

At 10 men, we were never able to match Sunderland and did well to come away with a point. A point at home against Sunderland – and we were relatively happy with that. Not good enough.

It’s these games we need to win to prove we are a solid Premier League side with no real danger of being sucked into a relegation battle. Home games against Fulham and Sunderland are the ones we need to win, but we aren’t.

I’m not going to jump on the ‘Sam out’ bandwagon just yet.

It’s not his fault. He does the best he can on limited resources and plays a style of football he knows can be successful. Unfortunately, this style of football is awful on the eye and frustrating as hell at times, especially when it doesn’t work.

We play so deep that when we do try to attack there’s nothing there, and if there is someone up front it’s usually Niko Kalinic fighting a lost cause on his own.

Surely it’s time to look at the options and have a tactical rethink? This is not Sam’s way.

On the ‘Sam out’ bandwaggoners – who would you replace Big Sam with? We’re hardly spoiled for choice in the management world. And who would want to take on the poisoned chalice that could be Blackburn Rovers if Sam left?

Onwards and upwards. At least we’ve got a nice home banker next week, eh? Chelsea at home. Three points guaranteed . . .

We’re an easy target, as the majority of British media will lap it up. “Danny Murphy joins long line of football ambassadors to slam Rovers tactics”. What a prick.

Firstly, I’ll deal with Murphy. As Lancashire Telegraph sports editor Paul Plunkett correctly points out on Twitter, Mark Hughes, Danny Murphy’s current manager at Fulham, had a far dirtier team at when he was in charge at Ewood than Big Sam. Murphy doesn’t seem to understand the difference between ‘dirty’ and ‘physical’.

Take a look at the Premier League Fair Play League, Rovers are currently eighth. Above Murphy’s Fulham. Granted, Murhpy’s other targets, Wolves and Stoke, occupy 16th and 20th, but why bring us into it?

His implication that the tactics of managers dictate their side’s nasty play, which in turn leads to injuries to opposition players, is another myth. No bad tackle under the stewardship of Sam Allardyce has resulted in a broken leg, or ankle, or whatever else (that I can remember – correct me if I’m wrong).

Lastly, aside from the question, “who is Danny Murphy to comment on the tactics of managers who have been in the game far longer than the gobby little Scouser himself?”, the Fulham midfielder himself received six yellow cards and a red last season.

Anyway, he’s not the first to hit out at our style, and that of other sides who resort to a more physical game when they can’t compete with the money men.

What I want to know is, who decided that the free-flowing, passing, keep it on the floor, Arsenal-esque style of football is what football is supposed to be?

Fair enough, it may be nicer to watch, but who decided football is meant to be nice to watch?

Blackburn Rovers Football Club is, by definition, a football club. FOOTBALL club. Therefore, whatever style of football its manager tells its players to play, is football. Not  “anti-football” and not “hoofball” but football.

Just because it does not conform to a style of play decided by some purist who was born in Exeter but supports Liverpool, or a Torquay resident that supports Chelsea, doesn’t mean it isn’t football.

Since my last post, apart from a fantastic day out and win at Blackpool, things have been relatively bleak.

It’s nothing new, really. Sam has stuck with the same tactics that somehow got us to 10th last season. It’s not pretty, but it can be effective.

It can also be pretty rubbish.

We’ve developed the uncanny knack of not scoring goals. And when we do score them, we have developed another talent – allowing the opposition to come back and equalise, usually in the second half.

Negatives aside, it’s not all doom and gloom – we’ve got a trip to Anfield coming up, so there’s a guaranteed three points.

There are whisperings of discontent among the Rovers faithful at the current management of the side, but what’s new? Take a look back at last December, three defeats against the top sides in the league saw us stuck in the lower reaches of the Premier League. Talk began. Allardyce had “three games to save his job”. It was all bullshit.

At the end of the day, maybe we have just become slow starters.

Looking at the games to come, and putting form to one side, we’ve got a host of winnable games this side of New Year.

Sunderland, Wigan, Wolves, West Ham and Stoke all have to visit Ewood, while we travel to places where we should be able to pick up points – Newcastle, Bolton and West Brom, to name three.

Moving on to individual performances – most impressive has been El Hadji Diouf.

I’ve always thought Diouf was a handy player. He absolutely loves playing and can be a real handful for defenders. He’s also great at winding up opposition players, and fans. His temperament, as we all know, is annoying. In fact, he’s just stupid. And if I’d had my way he’d have had all his bones broken after taking that dive at Ewood to give Bolton the winning penalty a few years ago.

But now, with my blue and white shades well and truly on, Diouf has been arguably our best player this year – he certainly has if you eliminate the defence before choosing.

Looking back, and Phil Jones has continued to impress. He’s been pushed forward into a more forward role, but I think, if he isn’t to be used in the centre of defence where he was solid as a rock last season, he ma be better used pushed further forward into a more attacking role.

Chris Samba has probably been the best player of the season, simply continuing the outstanding form he has carried throughout his entire Rovers career, and Paul Robinson has been faultless between the sticks.

Disappointment comes in the form of Vince Grella who, having returned from injury has proved shocking on the pitch, and the new Diouf, Mame Biram. Despite starting impressively, he has become something of a passenger, although he has played much of the time out of position.

What is beyond doubt right now is our need for a bit of creativity in midfield. We need David Dunn.

Apologies for the absence recently. I hope to get back to normal service now I’ve broken the duck!

It does have its upsides, and I’m not just talking about the lack of cretins such as Gary Lineker, Lee Dixon et al spouting bullshit every Saturday night.

It is a time of excitement, a time of transfer talk, a time of forward planning.

Rumours come, rumours go. Will Guti sign? Who knows. Will Grella go? Who knows. Who will partner Niko next season? Who knows.

Who’s coming to Fleetwood on July 17? Who knows. Huddersfield away anyone?

There’s also the prospect of renewed rivalries. Blackpool are back in the top flight. It’s truly unbelievable to think that the Seasiders are up.

Everyone was surprised when Burnley found themselves in the Premier League last season. But Blackpool? Who do they think they are?

Congratulations all round to the Tangerines, and we look forward to planning our weekend’s excursion to the seaside. Whether we can get one of the 27 tickets available for the 350-seater stadium only time will tell, but whether that happens or not, there will definitely be a weekend at sea.

On a serious note, I’m hoping that Blackpool away comes late in the season and would urge the Rovers board to get fans to apply for Blackpool away tickets, such will be the demand.

We also welcome back Newcastle (such a massive club, oooh) and West Brom back into the league. West Brom is the new club of Rovers midfielder Steven Reid and we wish him all the best. So the Premier League definitely has some better quality sides in it this year, having lost Pompey, Hull and Burnley who all fully deserve to ply their trade at a lower level.

I think Rovers fans can be confident going into the 2010/11 season. Big Sam’s Rovers revolution is now in full swing. Yet more dead weight will hopefully be shed.

We’ve already got shut of Reid, who despite his qualities spent too much time being injured, and Di Santo, who just isn’t good enough.

I expect to see a goalkeeper depart. We have three Premiership quality goalkeepers in Robbo, Brown and Bunn, so it wouldn’t hurt to let one of them move on in a bid to find first team football. We’ve also got Frank Fielding who I’d like to see in the first team when Robbo isn’t playing.

In defence, it’s time to let Khizanishvilli go. He wants to leave, and who can blame him as his first team future is now non-existent. He’s been decent, nothing more, and can forge himself a solid career in the Championship. We also have too many right backs. Lars Jacobsen, when fit, is spot on, and we’ve seen how good Salgado is now he has hit form. But Chimbonda has only just signed and I predict he’s on a good contract. However, he was very poor after a promising start to his Rovers career and I hope we look to get him off the wage bill.

In midfield we are quite overcrowded as well, although Reid’s departure was confirmed yesterday. There’s definitely more that can be shed though, Andrews and Grella to name two. Andrews is by no means a fan’s favourite and I can’t see him being missed too much. Grella has spent the majority of his Rovers career in the treatment room, despite carrying that £4million price tag round with him. He’s become something of a joke to Rovers fans, despite being a decent player, and we should look to offload him.

If Diouf goes down for assault, we should probably try to no longer be associated with him, either.

It’s all been relatively quiet on the transfer front so far, with the odd bit of speculation often no coming to anything. So we wait and see what Big Sam can pull off in the transfer market.

Outside Ewood, it could be Alex Ferguson’s last chance as United manager, as the dour Scot could retire next summer. So they will be desperate to reclaim the title from Chelsea. A feat I fully expect them to achieve.

In fact, I’ll be so bold as to predict my Premier League positions right now:

1. United, 2. Chelsea, 3. Man City, 4. Arsenal, 5. Liverpool, 6. Tottenham, 7. Everton, 8. Villa, 9. ROVERS, 10. Birmingham, 11. Fulham, 12. Newcastle, 13. West Ham, 14. Sunderland, 15. Bolton, 16. Stoke, 17. Wolves, 18. Wigan, 19. WBA, 20. Blackpool.

I know that’s an optimistic vision for next season. But if you can’t be an optimist before a ball has been kicked, when can you be?

If you think you know better than The Rovers Return and want to predict your own 2010/11 Premier League table – Feel free to do so in the comments section

Sky Sports reports that Rovers’ manager Big Sam is on the West Ham board’s shortlist of replacements for Gianfranco Zola, along with Avram Grant, Dave Jones and Ian Holloway.

I, personally, can’t see Sam going down there. His wife is a proper Boltonian and a move away from the area would not appeal to her.

He’s got a good thing going at Ewood. A well run club with a top notch chairman. He’s made the team his own since he took charge and developed a good team spirit.

He’s also pretty popular with the majority of fans now.

With that in mind, why would he consider a move to a club in financial turmoil with a pair of idiots at the helm?

On top of that, I reckon Avram Grant must be odds on for it. He’s somehow come out of the Pompey fiasco as some sort of hero, but will be hoping to secure a Premier League job while he still clings on to that status.

I also don’t think West Ham fans want Allardyce, as his perceived “ugly” style of football is not something they would relish.

These rumours do tend to come around on a regular basis whenever Rovers start looking to be even the tiniest bit successful.

Despite having a reasonable amount of success over the past couple of decades, we are always considered a “smaller” club than teams with significantly less success.

I’ve done the old big club little club debate before, and you can argue about what makes a “big” club until you’re blue in the face.

What you can’t argue with is the fact that Rovers consistently finish higher in the league than West Ham. With the exception of last season, our league position has been better than the Hammers’ every time since the 2001/02 season.

Yet, when discussing the size of clubs, I bet most people would place West Ham higher than us, despite their comparative lack of success next to Rovers.

I just don’t understand it …

Fabio Capello has said, on numerous occasions, that he will make his selections for the English national team based on form.

Is that right, Mr Capello?

Let’s look at the form books then shall we.

Paul Robinson has been extremely safe for Rovers this season, pulling off numerous quality saves and has been a crucial part of a solid defensive back-line.

He has also kept 13 clean sheets. That’s more than any other English goalkeeper in the Premier League.

I’m not saying he’s perfect, and some argue he is prone to mistakes when playing for England.

Yes, he cocked up once against Russia, but he made 41 appearances for his country, and you don’t get that many through making mistakes.

In the 2006 World Cup, he kept four clean sheets, so don’t try telling me he’s not good enough.

He also plays for a team that finished 10th in the Premier League. Not one that finished bottom of the league – and would have still been bottom had they not been deducted points, don’t give me any of that romantic Pompey bollocks, they weren’t good enough whether they were skint or not – or five points clear of the relegation zone.

I’m not arguing with the inclusion of Joe Hart. He’s proved himself to be a good goalkeeper this year and could represent the future of England goalkeeping.

But it seems to me that David Jame has been picked purely because he’s been around so long. He’s automatically selected because, hey, he’s David James. Maybe he’s just there to be an experienced guide for the inexperienced Hart. Who knows?

But Robert Green is not as good as Paul Robinson. And his “form” hasn’t been as good as Paul Robinson’s. These are facts.

Robbo’s problem is nothing new. Rovers players, historically, have to be something very special to get into the England team.

Just look at the players we’ve had who have missed out. Stephen Warnock, David Dunn, Matt Jansen, Chris Sutton, Stuart Ripley, Tim Sherwood, Jason Wilcox, David Thompson.

They’re all players who should have played a bigger part in the England team of their generations, and all would have done had they played for West Ham, or Birmingham, or any of those sides considered bigger than us while never actually winning anything.

One case in point is Stephen Warnock. Last season he hardly got a look in. He was given that one pathetic chance to shine in a friendly in Trinidad. I mean, I’d look good against Trinidad and Tobago … Now, he’s suddenly in the England side because he plays for Aston Villa.

He hasn’t done anything spectacular this season. He’s merely continued to put in solid performances week in, week out, but at Villa Park, those performances do not go unnoticed. At Ewood, on the national scene, it’s like they never happened. Just watch how much time is devoted to showing and talking about Blackburn Rovers on our nation’s great Match of the Day.

David Dunn was fantastic when he first emerged. He may have been better had Souey not taken a dislike to him. Matt Jansen was so depressed after Martin Keown – who didn’t play a single match – was taken to the World Cup in 2002 that he went on holiday to Italy and nearly killed himself in a motorbike accident. He may have lived but it killed his career and any aspirations he had of playing international football.

Jansen had scored 16 goals for Rovers that season. How could he have been overlooked?

David Thompson was another who showed real class for Rovers and was rewarded with one substitute appearance. Chris Sutton, half of the deadly SAS with Alan Shearer, was persecuted after refusing to play for the England B team. It was something he shouldn’t have done, but to kill of his England career was ridiculous. That season he scored 21 goals for Rovers as we put in our last genuine title challenge – I can see why he was insulted by Glenn Hoddle’s offer.

I can go on, but I fear this rant has gone on too long. I’ll leave you with Big Sam’s thoughts on Robbo’s exclusion:

“I’m staggered, totally. I think it’s the wrong decision completely. Fabio has made the biggest mistake of his selection process.

“If you look at his form for Blackburn Rovers, there’s not a better English goalkeeper who has consistently performed as well as he has. So it clearly can’t be anything else other than something that Fabio has against him.

“He’s always said that people who are in good form would get selected and there’s nobody in better form than Paul Robinson — 12 clean sheets in the Premier League speak for themselves. I don’t know what more he wants.”

Now we can just live in the hope that Rob Green gets injured … Although, if that did happen, he’d probably recall Scott Carson.

May 14, 1995. Where were you?

I’ll tell you where I was.

As an eight-year-old lad, just making my first forays into becoming a Rovers fan, I was sat on my Dad’s settee in Oswaldtwistle.

There, with my Dad, I was watching Rovers take on Liverpool at Anfield in the final game of the Premier League season – the third season in the league’s history.

Rovers, at that point, were two points clear of Manchester United at the top of the league. United, champions for two seasons running, were playing West Ham United at Upton Park, knowing only a win would suffice.

Throughout a frantic hour-and-a-half, my Dad was up and down, constantly flicking between the two channels to monitor the situation at both grounds. This was in the days of Sky before remote controls, so he probably got a fair bit of exercise.

Rovers took the lead through Alan Shearer. Stuart Ripley tearing down the right and playing it along the ground towards the centre spot, where Shearer slotted the ball through John Scales’s legs to put us ahead.

Unfortunately, John Barnes equalised, making things very nervy.

At West Ham, United were drawing and Ludek Miklosko, the West Ham goalkeeper was on fire, while United’s record signing Andy Cole floundered in front of goal.

As Rovers fans begun preparations for a title party, with United being held 1-1 by West Ham and Rovers level with Liverpool, Paul Warhurst brought down Steve McManaman on the edge of the box. Jamie Redknapp took the free kick and, to the dismay of just about everyone at Anfield – Liverpool fans wanting us to win the title almost as much as we did, just to prevent it from going to Old Trafford – it flew into the top corner.

Everyone went pale. This couldn’t be happening. We’d been top for months. It can’t be thrown away now.

Then, the final whistle blew at West Ham, sparking jubilant scenes across the Blackburn area. As I said, I was only a nipper then, but I can still remember being driven home by my Dad and seeing all the fans outside the pubs. My Dad pipping his horn at them as we drove by. Magical.

At the time, I didn’t really recognise the magnitutde of the situation. In the time I started to become aware of football and Rovers, Jack Walker’s millions had already had their effect. I knew no better – I still don’t, really.

But Rovers winning the title then was unthinkable. An unfashionable small town team with barely a receptacle to urinate into taking the biggest prize in English football.

I said the other week we are the most successful town team in English football. What more proof do you need than a Premier League trophy?

What some brand as ‘anti-football’, ‘hoofball’ or ‘thuggery’, Big Sam brands a legitimate tactic – and it’s a tactic that works.

Yesterday was yet another example of why it works.

Rovers have no money, Arsenal have lots. We have a decent Premier League team. Arsenal have a world class team. Who won? The underdogs.

Why did the underdogs win? Because we played to our strengths and attacked the few Arsenal weaknesses that do exist.

If Sam told Dunny, Keith Andrews and MGP to pass the ball fluidly and play Arsenal off the park. “Go on lads, use your flair,” we would lose … Heavily.

That’s why our tactics are more rugged and physical.

Arsenal are a team of young European pansies with a crap Polish goalkeeper. And our tactics reflected that. Be more physical, hard in the tackles. Play it long into the box and put the keeper under pressure and you give yourself a chance. Luckily, for once, we took our chances.

Arsene Whinger hates Rovers. He has done since the days of Mark Hughes, when Rovers first established themselves as a “bully boy” team.

The mere fact we are revered is a proven fact that we are feared. No one complains about Wigan’s awful brand of football, because they know Wigan are not very good and, if you put in a decent performance against them, you’ll come away with a result.

This season, especially at Ewood, teams are fearful of playing Rovers, which is a testament to Sam Allardyce’s management style which, no matter how frustrating it can be at times – and I know people who still won’t accept him as the best man for the job - is very effective.

As the season nears its end, Rover are 10th. For a side with our budget, this is a magnificent achievement. Without knowing the facts, I’d guess at saying ours is the 19th biggest out of the 20 sides in the Premier League, with only Burnley having less money to spend than us – and look where they are.

A quick word on yesterday’s win over Arsenal. It was such a good way for Rovers to send off the fans at Ewood. Having lost only three all season – none against “Big Four” sides - it was awesome to remain unbeaten against the top four, and to finally beat one of those sides in the league … It’s been a while.

Yet again, it was a poor start from Rovers and Arsenal took the lead with one of their few early chances. We were giving them too much room – a complaint we’ve had all too often this season – but luckily the Gunners chose not to create anything and the score remained 1-0.

Just as I had put three pints on a little table in the concourse under the stands (my Dad and I winding down after a boozy weekend) Dunny fired in the equaliser and suddenly hope was restored.

I can’t really recall much of the second half, apart from the fact Jason Roberts was immense. He’s often referred to as our strong good-at-holding-the-ball-up back-to-goal striker, but this isn’t always reflected in his performances. Yesterday, he did that superbly. We could do with Roberts getting some form back for next season and he looked good.

David Dunn also played his socks off, with our defence looking excellent again, including some nice runs from Salgado, who continues to look full of class. Keith Andrews, who I finally criticised recently, also contributed with a solid, never-say-die display.

As for claims that the goals should have been disallowed for fouls on the goalkeeper – I haven’t seen replays of the game, but keepers have long been afforded too much protection by referees. In fact, even in this match, I can recall several fouls given on Fabianski. If he was a better goalkeeper he would have a better command of his area and wouldn’t allow himself to become crowded out.

I’m not going to Villa, so the 2-1 win was a great way to end the season and has left me already feeling excited about the 2010/11 season.

I’m going to spend the entire close season frantically hunting down an Arsenal fan who can accept defeat with grace … I wouldn’t hold your breath.

• The Rovers Return offers its congratulations to Steven N’Zonzi, Rovers’ Player of the Year, and Martin Olsson, who won the Peter White Memorial Trophy for goal of the season.