After watching his side finally exit their rot of 7 games without a win, a relieved Tony Mowbray spoke to the club’s media team, following Rovers’ convincing 3-0 win over Wigan Athletic on Tuesday evening, to discuss his reaction following his side’s first victory since the end of January.
“I believe that we were full value for that victory in the end, despite coming into the game with some nerves, due to our recent form. Wigan would have been hurting from their last couple of results, so we ended up with 2 different shapes playing against each other. I was happy with the resilience of the team tonight, because I sensed that they were quite quiet prior to kick-off in the dressing room, due to the nervousness, which can sometimes be a good thing, but it showed me that they were fully concentrating on getting the victory.
“We talked this week about the reverse fixture and how we were bullied into defeat, so I do think that the team were mentally ready for this game, despite having problems with the injuries to the defenders. I’m delighted for Tyler (Magloire) because he’s come in under difficult circumstances and performed really well. It just shows the quality of our dressing room when everyone is giving him a standing ovation as he gets back in. He’s been with this club since he was 9 years old, and for him to earn a clean sheet on his debut, on top of the win, is fantastic for him and will be a game he will forever remember.
“I was toying with giving Danny Graham a break tonight, but obviously the right decision was to play him, and that showed with his goals. I think the big players’ personalities shone through today. Graham got on the scoresheet, as did Bradley (Dack) whilst Elliott (Bennett) was immense at the back, playing at both right wing-back and left full-back throughout the game, which I find amazing. Elliott sets the tone of what’s expected from the team, but overall, I’m delighted for them and delighted we got the 3 points that will allow our total to keep ticking on after stagnating a bit over the past few weeks. Once we win a couple more games and get to a points tally where we’re not overly concerned of those who are below us, there will be a real incentive to give the young lads, like Tyler, who are in the under-23s, a go in the team in order to see how they get on.
“I was impressed with Tyler in the first period because he displayed his strength up against a physical Wigan forward, in Joe Garner. He is by no means the finished article, and still has a lot of areas in which he can improve upon, yet for a young lad, he has a steely determination and hunger about him which are fantastic attributes for a defender to have, whilst it also makes him hard to get past, which, coupled in with his electric pace, is a nightmare for attackers. I’m delighted for him because we really needed him tonight because, with all due respect to Ryan (Nyambe) and Derrick (Williams), our centre-back pairing was not natural, with them being naturally full-backs, so I think the inclusion of a natural defender in Tyler allowed him to show his assurance.
“I’m delighted for everyone and that includes the fans because this result puts a bit of calmness back around the place because it’s been a tough number of weeks for us. Saying that however, we now turn our focus to Sheffield Wednesday away on Saturday, before enjoying the time off during the international break.
“The clean sheet is massive for our confidence, because you can feel the delight in the dressing room. We’ve talked about our poor defensive stats, and the ridiculous goals we’ve been conceding, such as the header from a throw-in at Rotherham United. The defenders ultimately have to defend. They have to get their body shape right, they have to attack the ball and do all the basics of football right. We’ve been trying to focus on it and I’m delighted that they managed to earn a clean sheet today. I’d also have to say that I’m pleased for David Raya as well because I know I’ve been giving him plenty of stick recently, but that’s only because I want him to be positive, I want him to come for crosses and claim them, and yet, if he misses the odd one, I won’t mind because I’d rather have him affect the cross and try to deal with the danger, rather than remaining static on his line. I think the modern-day goalkeeper has to come out and affect crosses, particularly if he doesn’t have big headers of the ball in-front of him, as was the case today. That aside, however, the main thing to take away form tonight are the 3 points and the clean sheet.
“I thought Danny’s penalty was brilliant, because it was a pressure penalty, given the circumstances that we were in coming into the game. His anticipation is brilliant and that paid dividends for him with the second, which is what Danny’s all about. He wasn’t on my teamsheet yesterday morning as I was setting up the shape and yet after I slept on it, I thought that it was crucial that he did play, because he brought his experience, character and drive to the squad. He’s also vital for us defensively because he’s a great asset to have in order to help clear opposition set-pieces. I thought he was immense today. His hold-up play was good, and he shouldered all the responsibility for the penalty. I think that the character of the players tonight was fantastic, which really helped the younger players in the side, to adapt.
“There were frustrations for us from that game, which were the injuries to Amari’i Bell and Danny Graham, whilst Bradley Dack was also hobbling towards the full-time whistle. I think we’ve got to that point in the campaign where the energy levels and the work-rate of the players has finally caught up with them, leading to fatigue and injuries. They’ve been playing at their maximum for the whole season and yet I can see it catching up with them. They’ve worked extraordinarily hard all season to stick with some of the teams in this division, having just come out of League 1, and I think they’re feeling the strains of their efforts. I think they’re finding this latter period tough and I believe we need more depth in quality within the squad, which we’re hoping to achieve in the summer if we can, but between now and then, the young players will be given an opportunity to showcase their talents.
“Bradley (Dack) has been amazing for us since he’s joined over the past 2 years, and yet, when he falls below the targets that he set for himself with his performances last season, he becomes an easy target for criticism. He works ever so hard for our team because he cares for our team and I’m delighted that he got himself his first goal in a couple of games. The camaraderie of this group is good and it’s important that the people at the top end of the pitch score goals, because it’s been a while since we’ve scored here at Ewood Park.
“I don’t think we should have ever been looking over our shoulder at the relegation zone, even before the start of the poor run, because ultimately, we’re now 11 points clear. We’re pretty cemented in mid-table at the moment and the teams at the bottom will most probably find it difficult to win 4 games out of the remaining 10, so I don’t think there will be a need to look over our shoulder anymore, although it is human nature to check.
“We’ve always tried to look upwards and be positive, because I’ve been telling the players that, if we get ourselves on a run of 4 or 5 wins on the bounce, we could end up back in the playoff mix, with another 4 or 5 games to go, which would make things really exciting come the end of the season. We just have to concentrate on what we’re doing. We need to keep going, recuperate ahead of Saturday and then we can take the international break as a period of getting everyone back to full fitness.”
