ROVERS have earned their two-week breather during the international break, but the hard work will continue on the training pitch according to head coach Tony Mowbray.

Blackburn will be aiming to sign off on a high with a victory over Preston today that could move them further away from the relegation zone.

After six games unbeaten under their new boss so far, the mood around Ewood Park has lifted over the last three weeks.

And while the players who aren’t travelling to meet up with their national squads will get some time off, Mowbray outlined his plans to keep the momentum going for when they travel to high-flying Brighton on Saturday, April 1.

“We’re looking forward to some time on the grass, yet we do have to balance that,” he explained.

“It’s been such a long, hard run over this last three weeks for the players.

“They do deserve a day or two off, just to rest their bodies and to spend some time with their families – they’ve spent a lot of time away from home, in hotels and travelling.

“But I can’t sit here and complain about lack of preparation time when we’ve got two full weeks to prepare for the next game.

“We know there’s a lot of work still to be done.

“I don’t sit here and think we’re still unbeaten, isn’t that great? I sit here and think we’ve drawn four and only won two, and we have to win some football matches.

“Hopefully that will be just around the corner.

“We’ll get the balance right hopefully and get some work done, and get ready for the final eight games.”

The run under Mowbray sees Rovers sitting a point above the relegation line heading into the final straight.

But he is keen for his side to take the initiative when they face North End in today early kick-off after they’ve been forced to come from behind in their last three matches.

He added: “You never go into a football match wanting to go a goal down.

“I think the credit to our team is that we managed to get some results on the back of going a goal down.

“The times we’ve gone in front we’ve managed to generally hang on, apart from Burton. Derby and Wigan we took the maximum points from scoring first.

“I think the first goal in any football match is a huge goal. Sometimes a bit of discipline can go in derby matches, of the players and the game plan. As the game rolls on it can get a bit emotional and there’s generally goals in them.

“So it’s important to score the first goal, of course, because it allows you to play from a more solid base and potentially counter-attack and score a second if they over-commit.

“I don’t know how the game is going to unfold but we will try to start on the front foot, try to be positive and see how it goes.”