Tony Mowbray says he ‘can see the faults’ as Rovers conceded four more goals in defeat at Sheffield Wednesday.

Rovers scored twice for the fourth time in five away games but that couldn’t stop them slipping to a seventh defeat in nine league games.

The Owls scored from three crosses in to the box, with Steven Fletcher, Adthe Nuhiu, Dominic Iorfa and Marco Matias all on target.

Craig Conway reduced the arrears to 2-1 with 17 minutes to go, with Elliott Bennett scoring a consolation in the closing stages.

But it was again defensive lapses that cost them as Wednesday scored from all four of their efforts on target.

“The faults are there. I can see the faults, you can see the faults,” Mowbray said.

“Three of the goals were from crosses in to our box but there was a lack of physicality in the backline and it was what stood out to me.

“I thought there was lots of good play and build up play, moving the ball around well. But at the end of the day you have to defend well and we didn’t have the personnel to defend well enough against a physical and experienced strikeforce.”

Rovers, again without Charlie Mulgrew, Jack Rodwell and Darragh Lenihan because of injury, went with a back three but moved to a four having gone 1-0 down.

Nuhiu headed in unmarked for 2-0 on the hour mark, before Iorfa added a third seven minutes after Conway had brought Rovers back in to it.

Mowbray added: “Let’s take it for what it was. We were pretty weak at the back today physically, up against Steven Fletcher, and the big Nuhiu comes on and it was like boys against men physically.

“I thought we looked a good footballing team and the positives we need to take from that is that we will get better when we get the right players in and we become a physical unit as well as a decent footballing team.

“At this moment, without three central defenders, it’s tough.”

Mowbray hopes to have his three absent central defenders all fit for when Rovers return to action at Aston Villa on March 30.

He added: “What matters to me is that we’re short in an area of the pitch that will hopefully be strengthened by the start of the next game after the international break.

“I thought we looked a decent football team for long spells of the game, yet simple crosses in to the box and free headers in to the net. Goals change games.”

Mowbray saw his side dominate the ball for long periods, and said: “I thought we moved the ball around well, caused them plenty of problems, and we let them off the hook with the nature of the goals.

“I thought our quality in the final third could open them up but we didn’t punish them enough. The final pass, again.

“At this moment we’re not good enough in both boxes.”