Following the closure of the transfer window, Rovers boss Tony Mowbray talked to the club’s official media team about the transfer activity within Ewood Park and how he believed his recruits would fit in the current squad.
“It’s been a long day; we started early this morning, watched a bit of training whilst also taking some calls. We’ve had a lot of staff staying behind working longer hours in order to get deals done. We had a spell of 2 or 3 hours where it was extremely hectic as we dealt with lots of agents at the same time to get the deals finished, yet here we are, we’ve brought a few players in and let one move on. I think we’ve got some good, important, experienced footballers in the squad and I felt that we needed to add some fresh, youthful, energetic footballers to the squad as well.
“Young Rekeem Harper has had glowing reports from the people I trust in football and despite him being of such a tender age, his talent is evident to everyone that watches him and this has been shown due to the fact that he’s already played in the Premier League. The deal is an exciting project for both us and him so hopefully he’ll enjoy himself and show everybody his talent.
“Sam Hart is somebody we’ve had our eye on for a while; he’s athletic, aggressive and likes a tackle. He’s come in from a massive football club in Liverpool, he’s got some experience in this league as he was with Port Vale last year on loan. Sam, like Rekeem, is a nice lad and is looking forward to the challenge here, however first and foremost they need to be in and around the first team, which they understand. I’m looking forward to helping Sam progress, who we’ve managed to sign on a permanent deal, by giving him some experience and helping him build his career. Hopefully we can give Rekeem some playing experience which will hopefully help him, but will also help us achieve our goals for this season.
“Paul Downing is a player I know from my time at West Brom where he was progressing out of the youth team. He’s been at Walsall and had a very good time there, so he knows what it’s like to be at the top of League One and how to handle the pressure that comes with it. He’s a footballing centre-half, who has the physical and technical attributes to not only defend, but to play the ball out from the back. Having spoken to him and knowing what he’s like as a character, I can sense that he’s looking forward to the challenge and adding depth in positions that we needed depth is important for the season ahead.”
In addition to the incomings at the club, the boss also talked about the loan departure of Liam Feeney, who during deadline day, joined Cardiff City, who are currently top of the Championship, on a 6-month loan.
“I’ve always said that I like Liam Feeney as a person, he gives everything every day in training, he suffers some disappointment when he gets left out of the squad and when he gets brought off, yet he deals with it pretty well. I just thought that it was an opportunity that came around for him and we have to be respectful that he’s going to the team that is currently leading the Championship. I spoke to Neil Warnock a few times about him and I wish him well, I think, when I looked at the breakdown of the team when everyone would be fit, there would be times where he wouldn’t make the team and I didn’t want to stand in his way. I think that going to Cardiff City is a massive opportunity for him and a challenge he’s looking forward to, so let’s see how he gets on.”
Mowbray was also asked about whether he thought the squad was deep enough to withstand the number of games that Rovers would be playing this season.
“We have to be conscious of keeping everyone fit; it’s a tight squad, which I’m happy with as we’re not overloaded with players. This allows us to keep them all together, enjoying each other’s company and allows them to work hard for each other. We’ve got a balance between experienced players and younger, more athletic players and hopefully with the chemistry in the squad, we can achieve the aims we set in pre-season.”
