As the transfer window ticks along, Rovers have announced that defender Sam Hart, who was recently recalled by the Blues from a loan spell at Rochdale, has gone back out on loan, this time to Southend United of League 1, until the end of the season.
The 22-year old left-back, who signed for Rovers on the final day of the 2017 summer transfer window, has only accumulated 7 games for his parent club and with a decision regarding the renewal of his current contract, which is set to expire at the end of the current season, in the balance, this loan deal will give the former Liverpool defender a chance to try and potentially secure a contract elsewhere, if Rovers opt against extending Hart’s deal.
Despite spending the tail end of last season and the beginning of this season at Rochdale, Hart failed to nail down a starting spot in Keith Hill’s side as he only managed 16 appearances, which included 1 assist.
With his loan deal at Rochdale cut short, Hart’s attentions now turn to his upcoming stint at Roots Hall where he’ll work under former Southend full-back, Chris Powell, as the Shrimpers look to try and build on their indifferent first-half of the season in the third tier, which sees them sat in 12th, after 27 games.
After making the switch Hart spoke to Southend’s media team, as he discussed his excitement following the conclusion of the deal.
“I’m delighted to be here, and I want to get started as soon as possible. I was in League 1 last year with both Blackburn and Rochdale, so I have been in and around the league for a couple of years and I know what to expect.
“Hopefully I can use the invaluable experience earnt from both clubs as well as previous loan spells in order to push on and continue my learning process here. I want to play as much as possible to try and, both, help the team and further my development, which is what excited me the most about the prospect of joining.”
