We won't talk about play-offs yet, says Blackburn Rovers boss

1:20pm Monday 11th February 2013 in Sport Photograph of the Author By Andy Cryer, Blackburn Rovers reporter

MICHAEL Appleton insists no-one will be getting carried away at Ewood Park after seeing his side move just four points off the Championship play-off positions on Saturday.

The Rovers boss was delighted as a third successive clean sheet saw them jump five places with the 1-0 win over Ipswich – but he was adamant his squad won’t be talking about the play-offs.

Rovers travel to Brighton tomorrow as they prepare for a hectic next few weeks and Appleton knows there is plenty of work still left to do.

He said: “It has to be that way. You would be a silly, silly man to do anything different. We have got six or seven games in such a short period of time and we have a hell of a lot of points to play for.

“If you get carried away yourself, I have been in football long enough to know that it bites you on the bum quickly.

“We have some tough away games coming up and it is what we do in between each game and how we look after the players, to make sure they are physically right.”

The Rovers boss is though urging owners Venky’s to again back him in the transfer market – as he looks for four more signings to boost the club’s promotion prospects.

“We won’t be daunted. We will look after the players in between games and from my point of view I will sleep a lot easier if we have three or four new faces in.

“If key players in the team do get injured I don’t want players who are only going to affect the bench, I want players who, while they might start on the bench, once they get their opportunity they don’t make us any weaker – if anything they will make us stronger.

“That will be the message I will be giving to the owners and the people above and hopefully they will back me.

“I would like to think I will get one in before Tuesday night. I would be disappointed if I don’t and then we have a week until the next league game.”

Appleton was also unfazed by Saturday’s win not being pleasing on the eye – after insisting the priority has to be being hard to beat.

He said: “If you try to be too pretty in this league you get thumped, it is as simple as that. I think we have come up against a good side and we cancelled each other out a bit.

“I think the first half, with Jordan going off the pitch, they pinned us in our own half a bit and even when he came back they had a bit of momentum and it took 10 to 15 minutes to turn that round.

“I thought the second half was a much better performance. We created some really decent opportunities and I think DJ coming on gave us a bit of an impetus, it lifted the crowd as well.

“He is a threat in behind, as well as Jordan was, and I think Kaz going to the right hand side gave us a bit more composure at times in the wide area. We are delighted with how we went about it in the second half.”

Comments(30)

hasslem hasslem says...
1:31pm Mon 11 Feb 13

Vajazzle: Definition

A dingle wearing a gold chain

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To.guy says...
2:30pm Mon 11 Feb 13

It's so close in this league, it will be like snakes and ladders till the end. I dont totally agree with Appleton about pretty football. Even as we were on Saturday, it wasnt convincing and we could easily have conceded at the end. I didnt think Ipswich were that good but were well organised, a McCarthy type set up. When they did get a rare chance, our defence were left wanting. Ipswich had a free header. No team will win promotion purely by hard graft. Some skill is needed too

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Dukes says...
2:43pm Mon 11 Feb 13

job not done until it is Appleton.

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Fan@clared says...
2:52pm Mon 11 Feb 13

Why not they are not conceding? The top teams are all losing ground and all the bottom teams won. A real topsy-turvy league tis one.

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Is Eckersley playing? says...
2:58pm Mon 11 Feb 13

I'll not get 'carried away' till I see how the fairy godmother backs him (or not!). He was on about new players last week and allegedly gave her a list. How much thinking time does she need? On another tack,I see another Portugeezer or whoever has been shipped out to......Bulgaria!

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Angry From Accrington says...
3:07pm Mon 11 Feb 13

It's disappointing that Appleton does not have more confidence in himself and his team but it's understandable considering the departures and arrivals that he has engineered.

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owd nick says...
3:11pm Mon 11 Feb 13

Obviously needs to move the no hoper's on before he can bring his own people in, and doing a good job to boot.

Still need defensive and midfield cover, lets hope that's what he is looking for.

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French Rover says...
3:31pm Mon 11 Feb 13

owd nick wrote:
Obviously needs to move the no hoper's on before he can bring his own people in, and doing a good job to boot.

Still need defensive and midfield cover, lets hope that's what he is looking for.
MA is trying to get a Latvian central defender from Reading - Kaspars Gorkss. Looks a decent player and has been in Championship winning teams twice in two years with QPR and Reading. Wolves are looking to sign the lad too...but I reckon MA can talk him into coming to Ewood..just what we need plus he bags the odd goal or two.

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Rover since 1947 says...
3:41pm Mon 11 Feb 13

More sense has come from M A in the last two weeks than anything we have heard from Ewood in the last two years

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earwego says...
3:48pm Mon 11 Feb 13

hasslem hasslem wrote:
Vajazzle: Definition

A dingle wearing a gold chain
After the Bolton v Burnley game,it has been revealed that, after tests, parts of the Burnley team where found to contain 100% donkey

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oreilly21 says...
3:50pm Mon 11 Feb 13

yeah Gorkss is a decent player and will slip in seamlessly, hope that one is true.

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R0BB0 says...
3:52pm Mon 11 Feb 13

obviously doing something right as i havent heard the words

'Agent Apple' branded about from our 6 fingered neighbours

'look up' !!!

as for BRAG's 'back the badge' ... the less said the better, i did have a little chuckle at the attendance only being 803 bigger than against Bristol, and to be honest, Ipswich brought alot more than Bristol...

END THE GROUP !!!

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leitchy says...
4:04pm Mon 11 Feb 13

French Rover wrote:
owd nick wrote: Obviously needs to move the no hoper's on before he can bring his own people in, and doing a good job to boot. Still need defensive and midfield cover, lets hope that's what he is looking for.
MA is trying to get a Latvian central defender from Reading - Kaspars Gorkss. Looks a decent player and has been in Championship winning teams twice in two years with QPR and Reading. Wolves are looking to sign the lad too...but I reckon MA can talk him into coming to Ewood..just what we need plus he bags the odd goal or two.
Snap ive heard that too along with Bentley and Buttner from united ! Lets wait n see!

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Angry From Accrington says...
4:25pm Mon 11 Feb 13

It's disappointing that Appleton does not have more confidence in himself and his team but it's understandable considering the departures and arrivals that he has engineered.

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waggyonthewing says...
4:28pm Mon 11 Feb 13

it,s so refreshing to hear a manager talk sense,for to many years now we win a couple of games and its europe this and europe that,how many times do the players need telling "do your talking on the pitch"you have achieved nothing yet,if you get to the play offs,then it is only what is expected anyway.MA seems to know what he,s doing(thank god)the feelgood factor is slowly returning to Ewood,but lets all just calm down and let him get on with the job in hand,he dosent need anymore pressure on him than there already is,im sure if it dosent happen this year and he is allowed to do things his way then it will all come together next season,and anyway i can stand another season battering burnley and showing them their place in the food chain!!!

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1952 rover says...
4:41pm Mon 11 Feb 13

Angry From Accrington wrote:
It's disappointing that Appleton does not have more confidence in himself and his team but it's understandable considering the departures and arrivals that he has engineered.
get a life will you.

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To.guy says...
5:33pm Mon 11 Feb 13

Rover since 1947 wrote:
More sense has come from M A in the last two weeks than anything we have heard from Ewood in the last two years
That doesn't take much intelligence though does it? The big guy who stands next to me, sings in flat key, disappears at half time and doesn't come back, talks more sense than anybody at Ewood since JW left. In fact all the fans around me talk as much tactical sense as Appleton. We are used to listening to such utter tosh that anybody of normal football intelligence is capable of leading us onwards. Here's hoping.

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Captain Dreckley says...
6:12pm Mon 11 Feb 13

We can only judge Appleton on results and we cannot have many complaints. Good to see he has prioritised a central defender as we are light in that area. Where we also need to strengthen is with a dead ball specialist. We have MGP who can blow a bit hot and cold and Dunny who spends precious little time on the pitch these days. Otherwise we lack a little creativity in that department and, when you have arguably the best front line in the championship, we have to provide the service. For that reason I would like to see Bentley back in a Rovers shirt. And what we would give for a new Tugay for that final ball to unlock a defence. But when we put things in perspective we have to look how far we have come under Appleton in a short time. Under Black and Berg relegation was looking a real possibility, now we are looking at the other end of the division. I do hope Venkys back Appleton now with his requests. I know that some on here would moan if we signed the entire Barca and Real first teams but at the moment this is the most optimistic I've felt in months for Rovers.
Carry on Mr Appleton

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Angry From Accrington says...
6:37pm Mon 11 Feb 13

1952 rover wrote:
Angry From Accrington wrote:
It's disappointing that Appleton does not have more confidence in himself and his team but it's understandable considering the departures and arrivals that he has engineered.
get a life will you.
Not sure what that expression means. Could you be a little more explicit?

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champs95 says...
6:57pm Mon 11 Feb 13

R0BB0 wrote:
obviously doing something right as i havent heard the words

'Agent Apple' branded about from our 6 fingered neighbours

'look up' !!!

as for BRAG's 'back the badge' ... the less said the better, i did have a little chuckle at the attendance only being 803 bigger than against Bristol, and to be honest, Ipswich brought alot more than Bristol...

END THE GROUP !!!
Maybe they should just call themselves BRG.

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Truerover says...
7:55pm Mon 11 Feb 13

i hope Bentley comes bk as we have missed his crosses and free kicks since he left its a shame his career went down hill after he left us he would of been a England regular if he stayed at ewood I just hope it's a loan with a view to a permanent move in the summer and hopefully stay with us for a long time that's if he can fined the forum he had in his last spell with us

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unclejacklegend says...
10:11pm Mon 11 Feb 13

1952 rover wrote:
Angry From Accrington wrote:
It's disappointing that Appleton does not have more confidence in himself and his team but it's understandable considering the departures and arrivals that he has engineered.
get a life will you.
To be fair to AFA, I think there's something in that comment. My only minor criticism ( and I mean minor) is that he does seem to lack the confidence to make substitutions at key times to see games out. For example, at the end of the Brighton game we were completely under the cosh and we had two available substitutions which could of used up some of the injury time and taken the momentum from Brighton. I remember tugay getting as far away from the dugout as humanly possible when he saw aaron mokoena getting ready to come on and then ambling off at a snails pace applauding every corner of the ground. We had Dunn available, an experienced calm head was just what was needed. Likewise we could so easily have conceded late on against Ipswich, again with a couple of subs available. It just seems like we get a lead and then hope to hold on to it until the end regardless of how much pressure we're under. What do I know anyway, 3 consecutive wins, clean sheets galore and more sensible talk than i know what to do with. Appletons blue white army!

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footballninjah says...
11:11pm Mon 11 Feb 13

Where has Shebby Singh gone ?

I am a nuetral ninjah supporter looking in on the actions at your club, comments on my blog would be welcome.

Appleton, Asset Stripping, Agents and a Malaysian

http://bringbackthet
erraces.wordpress.co
m/

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footballninjah says...
11:18pm Mon 11 Feb 13

Where has Shebby Singh gone ?

I am a nuetral ninjah supporter looking in on the actions at your club, comments on my blog would be welcome.

Appleton, Asset Stripping, Agents and a Malaysian

http://tinyurl.com/d
6ndvw5

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MattNewcastle says...
12:10am Tue 12 Feb 13

Realism?

Just a thought with

Brighton (A)
Hull (A)
Leeds (H)
Leicester (A)

in February probably need to be scoring at least two a game.

Great that three of the 4 are above us so would in effect be catching up on key targets an putting us a distance away from Leeds a point behind us.

How many points is realistic from the next 12?

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footballninjah says...
12:22am Tue 12 Feb 13

I would say 1 at Brighton, 1 at Hull and maybe a win against Leeds but nothing at Leicester. That's if you play well, unpredictable league the championship

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Angry From Accrington says...
8:36am Tue 12 Feb 13

Jarrod Schulz Bearded Wonder wrote:
Angry From Accrington wrote:
It's disappointing that Appleton does not have more confidence in himself and his team but it's understandable considering the departures and arrivals that he has engineered.
It was ignored the first time dingle fag.
No it wasn't you Muppet. 6 lovely thumbs down! Back of the net!

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Angry From Accrington says...
8:36am Tue 12 Feb 13

Jarrod Schulz Bearded Wonder wrote:
Angry From Accrington wrote:
It's disappointing that Appleton does not have more confidence in himself and his team but it's understandable considering the departures and arrivals that he has engineered.
It was ignored the first time dingle fag.
No it wasn't you Muppet. 6 lovely thumbs down! Back of the net!

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French Rover says...
8:44am Tue 12 Feb 13

MattNewcastle wrote:
Realism?

Just a thought with

Brighton (A)
Hull (A)
Leeds (H)
Leicester (A)

in February probably need to be scoring at least two a game.

Great that three of the 4 are above us so would in effect be catching up on key targets an putting us a distance away from Leeds a point behind us.

How many points is realistic from the next 12?
12 of course....we already beat two of these sides and drew with the other two so in four games we have no defeats and we are better now than we were then...so yes 12 points easily!

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noddy57 says...
12:17pm Tue 12 Feb 13

err,,l fink we should concentrate on free ponts at brighton,,what do you fink appy ?

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