Craig Conway says the Rovers players are buying in to what Tony Mowbray is trying to build at Ewood Park.

Conway agreed a new deal at Rovers last month and will be one of the most experienced campaigners in next season’s squad.

Mowbray has signed two players so far this summer, both fitting the young and hungry profile the boss wants to add.

The boss also wants to bring in Championship experience as he seeks to strengthen the squad which earned promotion last term.

And Conway, the club’s second longest serving player, is excited by what the future holds at Rovers under Mowbray, who has won more than half of his 70 games in charge.

“That’s something the manager stressed pretty early on, that he wanted to keep everyone together. That’s really important,” said the 33-year-old.

“The manager said right from the start he’s trying to build something and I think you need a core of players and staff together. That’s definitely showed on the pitch, definitely last season.

“Hopefully it will show again this year.

“I think the manager will still want to add a few but I think we’ve got that good core of lads that we’ve had for the last couple of years and I think that can only be a positive.”

As he did last summer against Barrow, Conway scored Rovers’ first goal of pre-season in the victory at Hibs last weekend.

He, along with the rest of the squad, will be looking for more game-time when Rovers head to Port Vale on Saturday.

Conway joked about there being the need for a water break in the match in his native Scotland.

But the hot temperatures have certainly added to the toughness of pre-season as Rovers prepare for life back in the Championship.

Mowbray named two separate teams for the opening friendly against Hibs and will likely to do the same at Vale Park.

However, with Liverpool due at Ewood on July 19, the boss may look to give the senior players more minutes from then on.

Conway added: “That’s normally what we do, starting it with 45 and up it to 60 and then 70 and 90.

“That was definitely enough. When you play 45 minutes, especially in that heat, it was tough.”

As well as the Liverpool friendly on July 19, Rovers will entertain Everton at Ewood on July 26.

Completing the schedule is a trip to Lincoln City on July 22 before a visit to neighbours on Accrington Stanley a week before the new season gets underway.

The Premier League home friendlies have added an extra spice to pre-season this time around.

But Conway says the focus of the whole squad is on the first game of the season at Ipswich on August 4

“Everyone looks forward to the friendly games but more importantly the competitive games, once they start that’s what everyone wants to be involved in,” said Conway who joined from Cardiff City in January 2014.

“Back in the Championship as well, there are a lot of games to look forward to.

“We’ll be thinking about that first game at Ipswich but we’ve got a lot of games before then.”