Bentley and Santa Cruz star in all change side
Sunderland Blackburn
Mark Hughes stayed with the formation that beat Birmingham City in the Cup - and that meant no place in the 16 for Benni McCarthy, Jason Roberts missing through injury and Morten Gamst Pedersen on the bench. Brad continued to carry the captains armband. Maceo Rigters even had chance to get a few minutes. And the new strategy seemed to work well. Blackburn dominated the full 90 minutes, but it took until 53rd minute for David Bentley to break the deadlock picking up on the rebound from a Santa Cruz shot.. And then just one minute later Roque Santa Cruz made it two. All seemed well - but with 4 minutes of time added on Sunderland claimed their first goal back through Grant Leadbitter and continued to apply the pressure. But Rovers held on to claim all three points. A great away win and after two back to back defeats - two back to back wins. The victory takes Blackburn up to 6th place and ABOVE Chelsea!
Mark Hughes told reporters that he thought they were 'excellent'. He said he was disappointed by the late goal they conceded - but pleased with the performance and the result. He said he believed that they could have won more comfortably.
"I made a few changes but it shows the quality we have to come to Sunderland and win and we have showed signs in the last two games that we can cause problems to other teams. I always knew Roque Santa Cruz was a quality player - he was at Bayern Munich for many years and you don't do that without being quality. We were grateful for the two quick goals after the break and they basically won the game for us." (29th September 2007)
bbc co.uk (report) ALSO goal0708 AND t&t0708

Rovers drawn away in 4th Round
Blackburn get Portsmouth in the Carling Cup
After their decisive 3-0 win over Birmingham City - Blackburn collected another all Premiere tie - but this time away. The final 16 only offers two top tier ties - Portsmouth v Blackburn and Bolton at home to Manchester City.
The complete draw is: Luton Town v Everton ~ Portsmouth v Blackburn Rovers ~ Chelsea v Leicester City ~ Sheffield United v Arsenal ~ Tottenham Hotspur v Blackpool ~ Bolton Wanderers v Manchester City ~ Coventry City v West Ham United ~ Liverpool v Cardiff City
Games to be played w/c Monday 29 October. (29th September 2007)
carling0708

Rovers Cruz to 4th round of the Carling Cup
Blackburn Rovers 3 - 0 Birmingham City
Roque Santa Cruz put the icing on the cake of a conclusive 3-0 win over fellow Premier League side Birmingham City. The Rovers striker found the target for the first time at Ewood - and with just seconds to go. Steve Bruce said he had no complaints - after making 11 changes to his side - that saw starts for three former rovers Tiny Taylor, Neil Dans and captain Damien Johnson. But it was a very one sided game - with half dozen chances before the break. City suffered a head injury to their keeper Richard Kingson who collided with his own post and was stretched off to hospital. Rovers too lost a key player when Jason Roberts was taken off injured. 53 minutes played before half time - and still remarkably 0-0. But when the first goal came it was a stunning David Bentley long distance screamer on 65 minutes. Matt Derbyshire was fouled in the box by sub Rafael Schmitz and converted the penalty with ease to make it 2-0 (79'00) and the game was all but over. However there was still time for Santa Cruz to find the net with a diving head on 89 minutes to complete the evening. Hughes made a number of changes, resting among others Benni McCarthy, Robbie Savage and Morten Gamst Pedersen. Martin Olsson impressed, Aaron Mokoena had a good game, and David Dunn picked up man of the match. Mark Hughes told RADIO ROVERS: "I thought we were excellent. I thought our general play, the quality of our passing and movement, the way we circulated the ball was first class. We could have won even more comfortably but I think it was all to do with our attitude."
So it's Rovers in the 4th round draw at the weekend ... and all memories of the past two defeats dispatched in fine style. (26th September 2007)
bbc.co.uk (report) PLUS rovers.co.uk (report) ALSO goal0708 AND carling0708

Oh Dear ....
Blackburn Rovers 0 - 1 Portsmouth
After the defeat in Greece - Mark Hughes had expected a bounce back at home to Portsmouth in he league, but the best laid plans ...
things seemed to get off to a great start - with first Roque Santa Cruz finding the woodwork - and minutes later Beni McCarthy coming close. But from that point on the visitors seemed to kick into action - and stated to test Captain for the day - Brad Friedel. He made a couple of fantastic saves - and just when you thought it was safe - Kanu had got behind Samba and tucked one past the Rovers keeper. And that was that ... despite another bright start after the break - and some late opportunities, David James was never really tested, and the wonderful unbroken run came to an end. Mark Hughes told RADIO ROVERS : "We opened quite brightly I thought in the first 20-odd minutes or so. We had a good chance and hit the bar, and if that had gone in that would have settled us down and possibly we would have had a better performance." Rovers dropped to 10th place in the League ...
So after back to back defeats - next up it's the Carling Cup on Wednesday - and the first of two meeting with Birmingham City. (23rd September 2007)
bbc.co.uk (report) AND bbc.co.uk (Hughes talks to BBC Sport) PLUS rovers.co.uk (report)
ALSO goal0708 AND t&t0708

Greek Tragedy - Don't ask!
Larissa 2 - 0 Blackburn Rovers
They say - don't trust Greeks bearing gifts - well former Rovers Georgios Donis had told Blackburn fans not to fear his side. And he must have been as surprised as the rest of us to watch such a poor away performance from his old outfit. Rovers never really got going and everyone was silenced when the home side scored the first strike with a terrific long range Ibrahim Bakayoko shot that took a deflection before passing Friedel.
Then before they could even regroup Larissa had their second! It all went wrong at the back, and Silva Cleyton slotting past Brad And that's the long and short of it - the Greek side could have scored more - Rovers probably couldn't. To add to the sadness of the trip, Captain Ryan Nelsen suffered a hamstring injury, and could now miss the next month. Mark Hughes said: "It is the hamstring that he had the operation on - we think it is just a bit of scar tissue. We hope it's not serious but he will be out for about three to four weeks."
Of the game - the manager added: "It was not a performance we were expecting, in particular after our excellent run of 15 games unbeaten. Up until now we have shown quality and energy, but they were missing tonight. We have left ourselves a lot to do. I'm sure against Portsmouth on Sunday our performance will be a lot better, but tonight is a mystery to us."
So the unbeaten run ends - and Rovers have two games in three days coming up at Ewood - Portsmouth in the league - and Birmingham City in the cup. (20th September 2007)
There's much better news on Ryan Nelesen - rovers.co.uk report that could be back sooner than expected. Hughes said: "He's a little bit sore, but it is similar to when he had an episode concerning his hamstring at Bolton last year. I think he missed something like 10 or 15 days and he felt similar pain that he's having now. It isn't the actual hamstring as such - it' just a pain that he gets when the scar tissue releases."
bbc.co.uk (report) AND bbc.co.uk (Hughes talks to BBC Sport) PLUS rovers.co.uk (report)
ALSO goal0708 AND UEFA 0708

Jose goes ...
Rovers last Premier League side to play Chelsea under Mourinho
Last weeks 0-0 at Stamford Bridge against Blackburn, might well have hammered some fatal nails in the Jose coffin. After last nights 1-1 draw against Rosenborg there are reports tonight that the 'iconic' manager has either quit or been sacked by the club. It's come as a big shock to most pundits and the BBC's Jonathan Legard says that Mourinho has texted senior players, including skipper John Terry, with the news of his departure.
When the history books report his remarkable reign in London - Blackburn Rovers will figure as the last Premier League side to play and hold Chelsea under Jose. (20th September 2007)
bbc.co.uk (report) AND bbc.co.uk (audio - Jonathan Legard)

Brad does it again ...
Chelsea 0 - 0 Blackburn Rovers
Rovers extended their unbeaten run to 15 today at Stamford Bridge - and much of the praise should go to Brad Friedel. Among his finest efforts, keeping Chelsea at bay with a fine save stopping Michael Essien and then another important Shevchenko block late on.
Rovers chances included Morten Gamst Pedersen, who hit the side netting just before the break, and Dunny almost made it count with a long range shot.
But to be fair to Chelsea - they did get the ball in the back of the net - but officials ruled against the goal. Jose Mourinho told reporters: "Only the referee and linesman can explain why they made the decision to disallow the goal. We played without scorers Didier Drogba, Claudio Pizarro and Frank Lampard - that's a big thing."
The down side for Rovers was the loss of Chris Samba with a head injury. Shevchenko could have given his side the lead with just five minutes left, heading straight at Brad at close range. But then Samba completed the clearance and seemed to get kicked in the head by Shevchenko. Mark Hughes said: "I hope it's just a knock and Christopher will be groggy just for a couple of days. We know we're a good side at this level. We've come here and set out our stall and made sure we didn't go under. Maybe we would have a couple of seasons ago."
The point keeps Blackburn in 7th place with 9 points - Europe and a trip to Greece on Thursday
bbc.co.uk (report) AND bbc.co.uk (Hughes talks to BBC Video) PLUS goals0708 AND t&t0708

Benni's Back!
Blackburn Rovers 1 - 0 Manchester City
Benni McCarthy scored his first goal of the season, and the only one in the match, to secure all three points for Rovers on a soggy afternoon at Ewood Park. The visitors had a good start, and seemed to take charge for the first 10 minutes. But then from a David Bentley corner, Chris Samba forced a Kasper Schmeichel save & Benni was on hand to put away the loose ball. From then on, Rovers created chance after chance - the young keeper did well, and some of the finishing could have been better, but 1-0 at the break was a the least they deserved.
After the break Tugay saw two quick yellow cards and Rovers were down to ten men with most of the half to play. Referee Mike Dean continued to shuffle his pack of cards, and handed them out freely. But it wasn't just Blackburn players that saw his hand, on 64 minutes City's Richard Dunne also saw a second yellow and also went for an early bath. Ten men each, and the game continued to be end to end. Rovers looked certain to bag another, and City spurned a number of free kick chances. But they hung on and completed the game to claim all the points - 7th place in the league, and their best start for a decade!
Rovers also lost the services of Robbie Savage, who hobbled off injured after 16 minutes, to be replaced by Tugay. Mark Hughes confirmed post match that a scan had shown nothing serious, and the midfielder should be fine.
The manager found it hard to disguise his delight at the result, and told RADIO ROVERS "I thought we were excellent, our general play was really dominant. Man City are a good side with individual talent in the team and if you allow them to play the football that they want to play then they have players that will cause you a problem. We caused them problems and always looked the more likely team to win. I don't think that Brad has had a great deal to do all game and that was even when we were down a man less."
rovers.co.uk (reaction) ALSO bbc.co.uk (report) AND bbc.co.uk (Hughes talks to BBC Video)
PLUS goals0708 AND t&t0708

CARLING CUP 2007-8
Rovers get home tie against Birmingham City
Blackburn Rovers have an all Premier League tie in the third round of this year Carling Cup. First out of the hat, the draw sees them at home to Birmingham City. The two sides last played each other in this competition in Rovers' title winning season. That year (94/95) over two legs, Blackburn beat Birmingham 2-0 at Ewood with goals from Chris Sutton and Jason Wilcox, and drew 1-1 at St Andrews. Chris Sutton again the Rovers scorer. The game will be played w/c 24 September 2007. Last season Rovers were drawn at home to Chelsea and lost 2-0 on a dreadful night at Ewood.
The full draw is:-
Blackburn v Birmingham ~ Reading v Liverpool ~ Manchester United v Coventry ~ Tottenham v Middlesbrough ~ Hull v Chelsea ~ Blackpool v Southend ~ West Ham v Plymouth ~ Arsenal v Newcastle ~ Luton v Charlton ~ Manchester City v Norwich ~ Sheffield United v Morecambe ~ Sheffield Wednesday v Everton ~ Fulham v Bolton ~ Burnley v Portsmouth ~ Aston Villa v Nottingham Forest or Leicester ~ West Brom v Cardiff
(1st September 2007)

Gally goes out on loan 'till January
PNE - take on Rovers striker at time of need!
Preston North End have agreed to take Paul Gallagher on loan 'till the new year, and he goes straight into the side for tomorrow's away tie in the Championship at Coventry City.
On the bench last night for the game with MyPa 47 - Gally didn't get chance to play, but Mark Hughes is keen that the youngster should now get games with neighbors PNE.
Hughes told rovers.co.uk "I've let Paul go out for three months, he's going to go to Preston. I just feel he needs some football, he's a very good player and I don't really want exceptional players to go out of the football club for any period of time, but I just think he needs to get some game time under his belt and we'll give him that opportunity. It is on his doorstep as well so he can fit in quite quickly, there'll be no disruption so he can hit the ground running, and hopefully when he comes back he'll be match fit and a real option for us in the new year."

Gallagher told the PNE website: "I'm really happy, I wanted to go out and play first team football, which I weren't getting quite a lot at Blackburn. Hopefully I can come here and score a few goals and help the team. I know the assistant Rob Kelly, who is a great coach, from my time in the Rovers Under 19 squad. I also know Lonners and I have scored a few past Hendo but apart from that I'm looking forward to meeting the rest of the lads. Stoke wanted to take me back there and there was also interest from Hull and QPR but I chose Preston because it is a good move for my career and me personally. Deepdale is a great place to play football and it is ideal for me to stay in the area because my girl is at Primary School locally."
Good luck Gally - they need you! (31st August 2007)

rovers.co.uk (full details) ALSO pnefc (reaction at Preston)

England call for Bentley (at last)
David named in squad to face Israel and Russia
David Bentley has been named in the England squad who'll face Israel and Russia in the Euro 2008 qualifiers.
David has just celebrated his 23rd birthday and joins Ashley Young (22), after coach Steve McClaren had to rule out both David Beckham and Kieron Dyer through injury. Talking on RADIO ROVERS last night, David hoped that his withdrawal from the European Under-21 championships would now be forgotten and that he might get his chance. McClaren told reporters that he thought Bentley had now paid the price, saying: "I thought it was the right decision to leave him out last time. "He accepted that and he paid the consequences but this is a new squad and he is in it and deserves to be in it."
FULL TEAM Goalkeepers: Paul Robinson (Tottenham), David James (Portsmouth), Scott Carson (Aston Villa). Defenders: Micah Richards (Man City), Wes Brown (Man Utd), Rio Ferdinand (Man Utd), John Terry (Chelsea), Ashley Cole (Chelsea), Sol Campbell (Portsmouth), Phil Neville (Everton), Nicky Shorey (Reading). Midfielders: David Bentley (Blackburn), Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Frank Lampard (Chelsea), Joe Cole (Chelsea), Shaun Wright-Phillips (Chelsea), Michael Carrick (Man Utd), Gareth Barry (Aston Villa) Stewart Downing (Middlesbrough), Owen Hargreaves (Man Utd). Forwards: Ashley Young (Aston Villa), Alan Smith (Newcastle), Michael Owen (Newcastle), Peter Crouch (Liverpool), Andrew Johnson (Everton), Jermain Defoe (Tottenham).
Both games will be played Wembley on 8 and 12 September. (31st August 2007)

bbc.co.uk (full details) ALSO rovers.co.uk (reaction)