UNDER PRESSURE

There was a lot to admire about the football Rovers played on Saturday, not least the flowing move that would have ended with Markus Olsson marking his 100th appearance for the club with a rare goal had it not been for a linesman’s flag. But arguably the most impressive facet of their performance was the work they did when out of possession. They have hustled and harried opponents before but rarely with this intensity. The standing ovation from the inspirational Ewood Park crowd granted to the tireless Tom Lawrence, when was taken off late on, could have been afforded to his strike-partner Jordan Rhodes or any of Rovers’ midfield four.


BEN MARSHALL

Gary Bowyer was reluctant to pick out any one player for particular praise after the ‘most complete performance’ of his Rovers reign. That was totally understandable; this was a true team triumph. But while Jordan Rhodes will rightly grab the headlines after his sixth and seventh goals in his last five games moved him level at the top of the Championship scoring charts, special mention, too, to Ben Marshall. It has not quite happened for the winger yet so far this season but, as the adage goes, if you work hard enough you will get your rewards, and Marshall put in a prodigious shift down the flank, helping prevent Ipswich from playing out from the back.

Lancashire Telegraph:
 

CLEAN SHEETS

With a goalscorer as good as Jordan Rhodes in their ranks Rovers will win more games than they lose if they can keep it tight at the back. And Saturday’s shutout means they have now kept three straight clean sheets at home for the first time since April 2014. Rovers’ defence, and Shane Duffy in particular, were in imperious form before the break. But, after Ipswich threw on two further strikers in the second half, Adam Henley and captain Grant Hanley would have been punished for careless mistakes had it not been for the smart reactions of Jason Steele. The excellent Duffy, too, played with fire when trying an ambitious pass across his own box after the restart. So, while not perfect, definitely encouraging.