Blue and white till I die.

Blackburn Rovers dreams of Wembley diminished this evening after a shameful defensive performance left no room for attack, and allowed Danny Shittu to score the winner minutes before half time.

  As Milwall fans celebrated euphorically knowing they were to face Wigan Athletic in the semi final of the FA cup at Wembley, hearts of Rovers fans sunk as the all too familiar feeling of disappointment filled Ewood Park once again.

David Dunn sheds tears for Rovers 

  After accepting that the season was over regarding play-offs, I was clinging on to the Wembley dream. The prospect of Wembley lured me into a false sense of security in which I had huge amounts of hope for Rovers to succeed. Tonight's match, composed of defensive play, brief spells on the counter, and too many an unsuccessful long ball, left me feeling hollow. As the added time elapsed I was unable to prevent the tear rolling down my cheek.

 

  Generally I try to be positive when viewing Rovers situation, but tonight was too much. I became increasingly angry as the game went on, and tactically nothing changed. Appleton is a highly like-able man, and earned my respect through honest comments, attracting loanee's and dropping Murphy. Tonight, however, I simply lost my normally controlled temper. I was amazed at the lack of competence Appleton displayed when there was an apparent need to change the tactics of the game. When fans can agree unanimously that the style of football in question is blatantly not working, it baffle's me how the manager and coaching staff appear oblivious to it.

    

One positive I managed to retrieve from the dark and gloomy cave that is Rovers, is that the man who bleeds blue and white, and the man who walked off the pitch looking heartbroken - David Dunn, managed 90 minutes. I think David Dunn will play a crucial part if we are to obtain anything from the Lancashire derby against Burnley on Sunday. Nuno Gomes came on after half time which was also pleasing. Gomes deserves far more than what he has received as of late at Ewood. A veteran, international player who provides class, elegance and grace on the pitch, and it's taken this long for him to get a full 45 minutes under Appleton. 

  

 I am concerned about the amount of injuries the squad is suffering at the moment with Henley, Orr and Bentley picking up knocks during Sunday's cup tie. Josh King also suffered a hamstring injury tonight whilst Markus Olsson was hurt. Dickson Etuhu is still out along with Colin Kazim-Richards. Our squad is under copious amounts of pressure at the moment and we're running out of replacements. I expect Dave Jones to play the role of main man on Sunday.

  

 A midweek FA cup quarter tie at Ewood tempted a crowd of only 8635. I would have gone to the game had I been able to get there, however travelling 2 hours up the motorway is rather difficult when your dad is at work and you can't drive yourself. The attendance really disappointed me as I genuinely believe higher attendances will lead to higher performances. It is frequently said that Venky's have ruined the club, but without the fans, what would Blackburn Rovers be? I understand not everyone can get to the matches for various economic, location and family reasons but I doubt that 12,000 people fit that criteria. To go from 20,000 fans attending games last season to just over 8,500 at an FA cup quarter final is, to put it bluntly, shocking. Yes, the players don't always give the performance that fans deserve, but performances will just decrease as attendance numbers dwindle. What will the squad have to play for if we aren't there supporting them? 

    

   Despite my continual attempts of justification for poor performances, I can not argue with myself any more. Admittedly, in my head tonight, a terrifying series of events kept replaying. I can only envisage Rovers spiraling down a staircase of football leagues, unable to climb back up due to too many steps being broken.

   

   Getting attached to a football club is probably one of the best and worst things you could possibly do. The pride, euphoria, and excitement one feels resembles the positive aspects of becoming attached. The heartbreak, resentment and fury fill the band of emotions sitting on the other side of the scales.

  Nights like this do make being a Blackburn Rovers fan difficult, and caring too much may be problematic in that it results in extreme emotions which occasionally prove difficult to cope with, but I wouldn't change it for the world. I will be blue and white till the day I die and after.