TOP-SCORER Jordan Rhodes insists Blackburn Rovers cannot afford to dwell on their desperately disappointing defeat at Ipswich Town.

Former Ipswich forward Rhodes, who netted his 11th goal of the season in Tuesday’s 3-1 loss, admits the result was tough to swallow for both players and supporters.

But Rhodes is now eyeing a surprise win at a QPR side who have not lost at home all campaign when Rovers travel to Loftus Road on Saturday.

And the Scotland striker believes cutting out the silly mistakes that have blighted Rovers’ away performances, coupled with hard work, can help Gary Bowyer’s men find just their second victory on the road this season.

Rhodes said: “It (the mistakes) is something we have to eradicate and try and put right on the training field.

“We have to knuckle down and get on with it, starting on Saturday at QPR, where we will do our best to try and get a result.

“It’s going to be an even tougher test. They are right at the top of the table and rightly so.

“They’re full of good players while our form away from home hasn’t been great so we are really going to have to knuckle down.

“We’ve got to go there, give it our all and hopefully come the end of the 90 minutes we’ll have the same goals as them or, even better, more than them.”

Rhodes felt the midweek reverse to Ipswich was an opportunity missed.

“We did ever so well to get ourselves back in the game and going in at half-time we firmly believed we could kick on from there and get something, whether it was a draw or a win,” said Rhodes, who had brought Rovers level.

“But to give away two poor goals and shoot ourselves in the foot like we did in the second half was hard to take.”

Rhodes’ goal and performance was the highlight of an otherwise night to forget at Portman Road.

The goal was a moment to savour for Rhodes on his first return to his boyhood club after being controversially sold by then Ipswich boss Roy Keane in July 2009.

“The circumstances in which I left were not nice and as a 19-year-old you kind of think that’s the norm,” said Rhodes, who has now netted 126 times in 214 matches, for Rovers and Huddersfield Town, since being unceremoniously shown the door by Keane.

“It was hard to take at the time as never for one moment did I want to leave Ipswich Town.

“I grew up supporting them – I still do – and I always wanted to run out there at 3pm in the shirt.

“So I enjoyed the goal, for personal and family reasons, but it was not the result I would have liked.”

Todd Kane will be suspended against QPR after being shown his fifth booking of the season on Tuesday.

Grant Hanley, who came off with an arm injury, will be assessed at Brockhall today.