SIX months down the line since the day he breezed into Brockhall, Roy Hodgson has no misgivings.

In fact, he says without hesitation - I wouldn't change a thing.

Blackburn Rovers have undergone a remarkable transformation since Hodgson took up the managerial reins in July and they go into the New Year on a high.

So, looking back, would the manager have changed anything if he could turn back the clock?

"Nothing at all. I think it's been a magnificent six months and the team has responded marvellously to the change of manager but not a change of management staff," he declared.

"There has been an enormous change of personnel but, in most cases, it has been a good change in the sense that the people who have come in have settled very well and while people have left us - even though they have been very good players - we've been able to fill the gaps they left.

"And it's made the club obviously a lot richer in terms of our capital status and we are still doing well in the League.

"So that's a nice position to be in and, starting a New Year, we have to hope we can keep it up for the next five months and finish the season in the way we have gone so far.

"But football is a game where nothing can be taken for granted and every week poses new problems."

Hodgson believes in the quality of his squad, especially the back-up players who, he says, are more important in some respects than the first-choice players.

"Looking at our bench I see some players I would dearly love to put into the team," he explained.

"At the moment, the others who have been given my confidence are doing so well they have just kept them out.

"But there's no doubt that a Wilcox, a Bohinen, a Pedersen, a Fettis and an Andersson and all these types of people - Marlon Broomes is another - are all Premiership players. "One, they are important to the quality of our training sessions and putting the other players under so much pressure that they have to perform at a high level all the time.

"And, secondly, they are very good to have in tactical terms, because you can make changes in the side which will maybe bring about a slight difference in the result.

"Either by shoring up defensively or putting even more attacking power onto the field.

"You can only do that if you are confident the players you have got on the bench are every bit as good as the ones who are on the field.

"I know that when I have players on the bench they are good enough."

Hodgson is also aware that such an outstanding first half of the season has raised the club's own expectations.

"It will only be a good year when it's over," he said.

"Obviously we have avoided disaster and we could probably say our Premiership status has been secured.

"But anything other than a place in the top five or six now would probably disappoint us.

"It wouldn't be a disastrous season for the club to finish in the top half of the table. Because, as Blackburn Rovers, that's never a bad thing.

"But, having done so well and shown that we are so capable, anything other than a European place now would be a big disappointment to us.

"So we have got our heads down now and we are looking for that." If he has one slight regret it is the number of draws Rovers have had so far.

"Unfortunately, we have drawn a few too many but through no fault of our own," he said.

"We haven't drawn them through being negative or through being too cautious.

"In fact, we have drawn several of them through rank and sheer bad luck and injustice, like last Sunday when I thought we were so clearly the better side and so far superior to the opposition."

Hodgson went into this afternoon's tie against Wigan, renewing acquaintances with the FA Cup competition for the first time in around 16 years.

He was in charge of Bristol City in the early 1980s when they lost FA Cup ties against Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa, who were both top clubs at the time.

"I have led a team out at Wembley but in an international fixture. It would be very nice to take Blackburn to a Wembley cup final and that has got to be our ambition," he added.

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