Blackburn boss Paul Ince has come out and defended his comments following Rovers 2 - 2 draw away to West Bromwich Albion in which forward Benni McCarthy was shown soft two yellows.

Via BBC

Following the match Ince said, “Everything seemed to go their way. The game is hard enough at the moment. The Premier League is a physical league, it is fast and furious, and people are going to make tackles.”

“Give red cards for dangerous and malicious tackles where the studs are up, fair enough. It is not a game for women.”

And this morning on Blackburn’s Official Website

“My comments were taken out of context, for there is no way that I would ever make disparaging remarks about women’s football.

“In response to a question, I was simply trying to illustrate that the Premier League is a physically tough and very demanding environment.”

image via Telegraph

Paul Ince has confirmed that free agent Robbie Fowler has earned himself a three month incentive laden deal with Blackburn Rovers after leaving Cardiff and will be in the squad that faces Arsenal at Ewood Park at the weekend.

Paul Ince said: ‘I am pleased he has signed as a is a proven goalscorer. It is not so long ago he was banging in the goals at Anfield.

‘I believe he can still do it at this level. If he does well there is no reason why we can’t extend the deal.’

Ahhhh… The classic Sniff heard round the world.

image via VirginMedia

With all the drama surrounding Newcastle recently, it looks like they may be adding more fuel to the fire. Apparently Paul Ince who is in his first year in charge of Blackburn Rovers has been added to the short list of potential replacements for Kevin Keegan. This seems like it would be a pretty shock choice for the Newcastle hierarchy, especially given the fact that there has got to be a pretty big buoyout clause for Ince, but who knows, especially given the fact that Ince and Dennis Wise are boys.

[Mirror]

With continued speculation throughout the summer transfer window that Blackburn striker Roque Santa Cruz was on his way out of Ewood Park, worry no more as the 27 year old Paraguayan put pen to paper on a 4 year deal that will end in 2012.

Not bad for a guy that dropped 23 goals and 7 assists in all competitions in the 2007/08 season and already is on the scorers sheet for Blackburn in this year’s Premiership campaign in a 3-2 win at Everton.

image via GetMinted

The Guv’na has made his first move at Blackburn bringing in esteemed No. 2 Archie Knox, the man who’s been at the side of managers like Sir Alex and Walter Smith.

The 61 year old Scot has a resume that includes such names as Aberdeen, Manchester United, Glasgow Rangers, Everton and Bolton.

Great move by Ince, recognizing early in his Premiership management career that a guy like Knox could really help out with the little things that need to be addressed day in and day out and trust me, Knox will do that.

Back in 1997 Buka and I spent three months at Glasgow Rangers with Archie Knox running the training sessions while Walter Smith sat back, watching and jumping in to give information when necessary.   Knox was ran some of the best sessions I’ve ever been a part of, focusing on passing and movement while keeping as much possession as possible.

image via Yimg

UPDATE -  Ince has taken charge at Ewood Park and will be formally announced as Blackburn head coach at a press conference on Tuesday according the official PremierLeague website.

Paul Ince is set to become the first black Briton to take charge of a Premiership Club after receiving official backing from the Premier League.

The Guv’nor will have two years to finish his UEFA Pro Licence, similar to what Middlesbrough’s Gareth Southgate had to do.

This after getting the same backing from the League Managers Association, allowing the 40 year old to become the new Blackburn boss this weekend.

If this does happen it’ll be a great day in British football as a guy like Ince deserves his shot at the highest level due to his level of play and commitment during his playing days, similar to Southgate at Middlesbrough and Keane at Sunderland.

image via TheFA