YOU have to go back to March 14, 1992 for the last time Blackburn Rovers got the better of today’s hosts Brighton & Hove Albion.

A first goal for the club from new £1.1m signing Roy Wegerle, following earlier strikes from David Speedie and Colin Hendry, rounded off a 3-0 win at the old Goldstone Ground.

If lifted Rovers three points clear of eventual Division Two champions Ipswich Town in second and four clear of Cambridge United in third with 10 games to play.

At that stage of the season Kenny Dalglish’s side looked certain for automatic promotion or, at the very least, a top-three finish.

But they lost their next six matches and it was not until the final day of the campaign, when top-scorer Speedie strengthened his hero status with a hat-trick in a 3-1 victory at Plymouth Argyle, that they secured sixth spot.

Rovers famously went on to win the play-offs but one of the heroes from that magical day at Wembley, Mark Atkins, remembers well what hard work they made of earning a place in the inaugural Premier League.

Fast forward 23 years and the current Ewood Park crop head to the Seagulls’ new Amex home this afternoon searching for their first win of a Championship season they hope will end with a return to the top flight.

“I think there were about 10 games left and we were walking the league,” remembers Atkins, who was part of the last Rovers side to beat Brighton.

“We were top of the league and then we lost six on the trot, which eventually meant we had to win our last game even to get into the play-offs.

“So that goes to show you can’t take anything for granted in this division – and that’s the same today.

“If you’re not 100 per cent at it and ready for it, and you don’t have the right tactics, then you’re going to get beat or drop points.

“At the minute the results aren’t going right for Blackburn but that could turn. The players have just got to keep believing in themselves, the fans need to stay behind them, and they should push on.”

Rovers have drawn their last two league games, 1-1 against Cardiff City and Huddersfield Town, having lost to Wolves, another of Atkins’ former clubs, on the opening day.

Their former midfielder expected a stronger start but he accepts that the fact they have been unable to spend the money generated by the sales of key players like Rudy Gestede, who rescued a point in last season’s corresponding clash with the Seagulls, was always going to have an impact.

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“I would have thought with three games gone they would have had more points on the board but losing one of their top strikers was obviously a blow,” said Atkins, who scored 39 goals in 314 appearances for Rovers, including six in the club’s 1995 Premiership title-winning campaign.

“And there’s been a lot of talk about Jordan Rhodes, as well, so there has been a bit of uncertainty.

“Usually if you lose one or two of your top players, and get you get good money for them, you go out straight away and buy two or three more.

“But they’ve not been able to do that with the financial restraints. That’s been one of the biggest problems they’ve got – that they’ve sold one of their best players (Gestede), who contributed really well last season, and not really replaced him as yet.

“But football has always been about the players you’ve got at the club, the ones who can help you. When somebody goes, you’ve just got to get on with it.

“That’s what Blackburn have to do and sometimes you just need a scrappy win, rather than playing well and winning. A bad performance but a 1-0 win can set you off on a run.

“But it’s early days, there are only three games gone, but you don’t want to be too far behind if you want to be pushing for those play-offs.

“That’s what Blackburn have got to be looking to do. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a very hard league to get out of.

“I watched some of Blackburn’s games last season and there are some good sides – and it will be the same again this season; you can already name the sides who are going to be up there.

“But Blackburn, and the standing that they’ve got, and what they’ve done in the past two seasons, should be looking to get into the play-offs, or improve on what they did last season.

“There’s a long way to go and one or two wins in the next three or four and everything could look different.”

It will be 20 years next month since Atkins left Rovers for Wolves but he still calls Ewood Park ‘home’.

He was back at the ground for the end-of-season celebrations to mark the 20th anniversary of the club’s Premiership title triumph.

And he said: “Blackburn will always be my club from the time I had there and the success we had together.

“It’s a great club and I love coming back. It was great to be back for the dos and I did a couple of games for the radio last season too.

“It was great to see everybody and nice to see all the fans and some familiar faces from back in the day.

“It was a great couple of weeks at the end of the season.”

And Rovers could be seeing more of Atkins this season.

After six years as manager of non-league Matlock Town, he is enjoying time out from the game.

“I’ve been really glad of the break,” said Atkins, who turned 47 earlier this month.

“It’s been my first summer since I finished playing 12 years ago that I’ve not been talking to players and sorting stuff out, so it’s been nice to have a summer off, and I’m quite enjoying the time off still.

“If anything else comes around then maybe I’ll look at things, but I’m quite happy doing what I’m doing, doing a bit of radio work and scouting for different people, so it’s quite nice at the minute.”