Blackburn Rovers: Flying on chicken wings

Rover (n): one who leads a wandering, unsettled life

One wonders, what drove the founders to name their club Rovers — especially with the tradition as rich as Blackburn’s? The Lancashire-based side was one of the most sought after clubs in England in the mid-90s and, in fact, are one of the four sides who have won the Premier League. However, history, in today’s context, means nothing. How apt does the name sound now!

With just one win in seven matches, survival at stake and the fans gunning for the manager’s head, the club is at an all-time low. Add to that the uncertainty caused after the sacking of their assistant coach John Jensen a week ago and things begin to get murkier (an assistant does play an important role as he is the one who directly communicates with the players on a day-to-day basis. One just needs to look at the turmoil Chelsea were in last season after they sacked Ray Wilkins, assistant to Carlo Ancelotti).

In such a crisis situation, say experts, an international break would have given ample time to Blackburn manager Steve Kean to re-strategise and come out fresh when the Premier League resumes next week. But in an era driven by commerce, it’s the boardroom that formulates the strategies. Seldom are the decisions taken by the men who manage the team on the field. Kean’s situation was no different. His owners, Pune-based poultry giants Venkys, had a commitment to fulfil — that of getting their club here and thus making them the first EPL side to play on Indian soil. Described as a ‘Yes man’, there was very little Kean could do.

Venkys director, Balaji Rao, argues the trip couldn’t have been timed better and that it would also be a step towards improving Indian football. “Perhaps, the visit could not have been better timed,” Rao said without even a hint of irony.

“The club is riding on a high after its big win over Arsenal, and the players are eager to share the glory with their Indian fans,” he added, ignoring the fact that his side was beaten just last week by Manchester City, which meant Rovers are now second from the bottom on the league table.

Both his claims, however, seem to defy logic. According to the British media reports, some within his team are ‘exasperated’ that the trip to India went ahead when solid work on the training ground would appear the obvious solution to fixing the problems on the pitch.

‘Fowl’ play, anyone? Well, not really. Most clubs with foreign ownership do tend to organise such ultimately lucrative, commercial trips abroad. Over the summer, Manchester United fulfilled their obligations in the USA, while Arsenal participated in the Emirates Cup, and Chelsea pandered to their jersey sponsors’ every request with painstaking commitment. But while these trips are undoubtedly pointless and tiresome, the crucial distinction is that Blackburn, quite remarkably, are obliging in the middle of the season.

Consequently, the Indian owners have lost quite a bit of credibility with the fans as well. Their antics, since taking over the club last year, have enraged the supporters, who claim to have been made a laughing stock.

They tried to get Maradona as the coach, but that didn’t happen. Then the reports of them chasing Ronaldinho furnished.

Venkys confirmed the report but failed to sign the Brazilian superstar. Then, the advertisement that has had a nearly million hits on the YouTube, the fans — who form an integral part of a club — have had too much to suffer.

“For a lot of fans back home, a lot of the anger is caused by not knowing the intention of the owners. There hasn’t been a great deal of interaction between owners and the club. From our point of view, we hope to still have that dialogue,” Neil Duckworth, one of the fans who has been invited by Venkys to discuss the way forward for the club, was quoted as saying by a football website.

From an Indian perspective too, the relevance of Friday’s match in developing the game in the country is debatable. Several teams have come and gone in the past but in no way has it done any good for the game in the country. Bayern Munich, New York Cosmos (led by the legendary Pele), and more recently, Argentina and Venezuela have all endeared themselves to the Indian fans. But nothing good has come out of it. At least the international friendly last month in Kolkata forced the authorities to refurbish the Salt Lake Stadium, which has come near to matching international standards consequently.

One of the positives out of Blackburn’s trip is that it brings big-time football to western India. And fittingly it is Pune FC, who have set remarkably high standards in Indian football as far as professionalising the set-up is concerned. With I-League set to begin in a fortnight, the match can be a good learning experience for the Derrick Pereira-coached side.

The Raos also hope that this trip will help them develop a fan-base in India. And if they manage that in a country where Manchester United has more fan-following than the national team, they will consider the tour a success.