MR Blackburn Rovers Tony Parkes believes owners Venky’s are still paying for their cull of “good footballing people” early in their tenure – and fears the club will be counting the costs for years to come.

Parkes joined the playing staff at the age of 21 and went on to make almost 400 appearances for the club before becoming a coach, assistant manager, caretaker boss several times over, and a scout.

The 63-year-old has described Henning Berg’s sacking as “the latest farce in a farcical reign” and admits he has no faith in Venky’s getting things right at the club.

Parkes dates Rovers’ downfall back to the day chairman John Williams was forced out of the door, quickly followed by the likes of Tom Finn and Martin Goodman.

He said: “They have made many mistakes but the first decision they made to get rid of John Williams and others was the biggest. The good footballing people left the club and since that day we have been on the slide.

“It is ridiculous. No-one has any faith in the club getting anything right these days and it is so sad. I have no sympathy for the owners or for Shebby Singh – they deserve what they get.

“I do have sympathy for the fans and the players though. The football club deserves better than this but you struggle to see how that is going to happen in this set up.

“When Steve Kean went, Venky’s and Shebby Singh should have gone with him.”

Parkes admits he believes the appointment of the inexperienced Berg was wrong in the first place but is adamant, after appointing him, the Norwegian deserved to be backed.

“It just isn’t right,” he said. “The decision to appoint Berg has obviously been proven to be wrong and I think we would all have preferred a more experienced appointment.

“But the decision was taken by the owners, the board and Singh and by doing that they have to back it. You can’t just change your manager after two months, that is crazy. He didn’t get the chance to put his mark on the squad, he didn’t even get a January transfer window and I don’t think that is right.”

Parkes believes the club will struggle to find too many people willing to take the Ewood Park hotseat.

“Who would take this job? Venky’s would scare anyone off,” he added.

“They need an experienced manager now. They needed that last time though and failed to get him so you have to question whether there is any chance of them getting one this time round.

“The fans want a proven manager and I think the players do, so it is very hard to explain why the owners don’t seem to.”