IT was just 20 years ago, 1979, that Ewood Park last experienced that sinking feeling.

Then it was even worse, for Rovers dropped from the old Second Division (now the First) into the Third.

The writing had been on the wall long before a 3-1 home defeat by Newcastle on April 25 officially condemned them to the drop with four games still to go. Typically, they won three of those four matches!

Duncan McKenzie scored his first Rovers goal that night against Newcastle but a Peter Withe hat-trick gave Newcastle a somewhat fortunate victory.

Jim Iley had been sacked earlier in the season, with John Pickering taking over until the end of a campaign which ended in ignominy.

Rovers returned the following season and have never since been out of the top two divisions.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.