A bit about you:
Name: Niall Harkin
Current home town: Blackburn, Lancashire Birthplace: Lancaster
How long have you supported your team? I’ve been going since 1997/98, and have been a season ticket holder since the following season. The earliest game I can remember attending was a 1-0 home victory over Derby County.
Overview of your club:
Favourite thing about your home ground: The statue of Jack Walker outside the Blackburn End Stand, a reminder to all if we ever needed it of the club’s greatest ever patron, without whom we would never have achieved what we did in the 1990’s, or even the modern Ewood Park we play in today.
Favourite match played by your team & why: There are a few matches that still raise the hairs on the back of my neck when I recall them today, mainly the derby victories over our most fierce rivals Burnley, but for me the greatest game I have attended is the League Cup final in 2002. It was the first match on British soil to be played under a roof, and when Andy Cole scored the winning goal it was nearly blown off.
Favourite player of all time who played for your club: My favourite player ever probably has to be Simon Garner, the all-time leading scorer and man who relegated Burnley from the penalty spot at Ewood Park. The best player since I have attended games however is probably Tugay, a real class act.
About our forthcoming match against you:
Your favourite current player in your squad and why? Goalkeeper Paul Robinson. He is a stopper of international quality and we are lucky to still have him as our number one. He has a great rapport with fans and always gives everything on the pitch.
Player in your squad we should most fear and why? Colin Kazim-Richards. He is only on loan but I imagine he still thinks he has something to prove here in England. He is an ambitious and well-rounded player and has already hit the ground running with a goal in his first game last week at Portman Road (editor note: and a 2nd the winner against Hull after this article was submitted)
Player in our squad you most fear and why? As a fan of the Republic of Ireland, I have followed the progress of Sean St Ledger since his time at Preston North End, when he first broke into the international setup. He is probably the player I admire most in the Leicester City squad, and he could easily play in the Premier League.
Up and coming prospect in your squad? Two products of the youth system I expect to see get a run out this season are Raheem Hanley and John O’Sullivan. I watched Raheem play for the U18’s in the FA Cup semi-final last season where he impressed supporters, and reports from coaches and the academy suggest that O’Sullivan also has great potential and has a chance of breaking into the first team.
Where do you think you’ll finish this season? Under Steve Kean’s management I can see us struggling around mid-table. If we start badly and he is removed then I think another manager could mount a serious promotion challenge, given the amount we have spent and the experience we have brought in. I never turn up wanting to see us do anything other than win, but given the current atmosphere and situation at the club, I believe that I speak on behalf of a huge number of supporters when I say that him taking the club forward is near impossible.
How do you think you’ll do against us? I think that both clashes between two of the Championship’s financially strongest clubs will be tight, and think that we will edge it at Ewood Park this time. I would be happy for us to get a point at the King Power but that may change depending on how this first half season goes.
Any other comments? Good luck for the season, and here’s hoping that neither former Rover Paul Gallagher or former Claret David Nugent are able to cause Rovers any problems this weekend.