ANOTHER decent result on Saturday. As I predicted last week we were comfortably up to the task of matching another of the so-called "big clubs" in grinding out another richly deserved point.

There was little to commend the game to the neutral. Helped by the fact Jimmy Floyd played like Keith Floyd after a bender, Rovers put in a masterful defensive display in which the whole team fought like tigers.

Feeble Chelsea were restricted to the merest of half chances; their fans of the view the Chelsea Pensioners would have carried more menace.

Rovers were not helped by a complete abdication of responsibility from referee Graham Poll who 'bottled' the most blatant penalty award you will ever see.

Clean through on goal early on Alan Mahon dinked the ball over Chelsea keeper Cudicini and would have been faced with a tap-in to an empty net.

That is, had he not been pole axed. Cue a convenient bout of myopia for one of our newly appointed professional referees. In giving the obvious penalty decision he would have been obliged to send the home keeper off.

And that wouldn't do at a big glamorous club like Chelsea would it? (Before the editor has a coronary these are my own views and do not necessarily reflect the views of this fine publication)!

Meanwhile it appears my fantasy football curse has translated itself into real life.

My call for Marcus Bent to be restored to first team action instead saw him bound on the first tractor to Ipswich.

His departure has left me seriously worried.

We are told we couldn't afford to refuse the £3m offer. Are we that hard up for money?

Reduced to one available Premiership quality striker, an injury to Jansen does not bear thinking about.

To me the striker situation could see a very promising season go up in smoke unless the situation is resolved within a matter of days.

We are in with a real sniff of winning the Worthington Cup.

In a mediocre Premiership we are only a couple of quality additions away from being a real force. Instead we appear to be going the other way, reducing ourselves to the barest of bones.

Can we dare to hope this wheeling and dealing combined with the recent Grabbi speculation means we are clearing the decks in preparation for a Fowler-like arrival?

Given Souey's recent low key comments and the move for Kuqi from Stockport, I will unfortunately only tend to believe that when I see it.

At least following Friday's events at the PFA we have been spared an extra day's Christmas shopping on Saturday.

Middlesbrough will have no legitimate excuse if they take it upon themselves not to turn up again.

Never mind the TV companies.

The sight of multi millionaire players who pay £1.50 per week union dues going on strike would surely also have been the straw that broke the camel's back in the eyes of most long-suffering supporters.

I know several hardened fans who refused to make the trip to Chelsea because in the words of one of them £28 for a ticket was 'a bridge too far'.

One thing occurred to me as the orgy of back slapping and mutual congratulation broke out following Friday's deal.

For the 25th year running the only people not to benefit from the increased wealth pouring into the game were the fans.

Any chance of a reduction in ticket prices out of the massively increased TV pot? What do you think?