AS the old saying goes, if it isn't broke don't fix it.

Whatever message Gary Bowyer was trying to send to Jordan Rhodes when he shoved him on the bench for Saturday's game at Brighton I hope it did the trick.

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And if that wasn't the reason why the striker was not in the starting line-up alongside Rudy Gestede, then it seems an odd decision.

We went to Millwall with two up front and should have won.

There was nothing wrong with the tactics, it was just one of those nights.

Perhaps the atmosphere got to the players, but either way we had the right game plan and we were unlucky to come away with just a point having been two up with so little time left.

So the logical thing, for me anyway, would have been to go into the following game against another side struggling at the wrong end of the league table in the same vein.

Starting with one up front gave Brighton a great deal of respect and, from listening on the radio, it sounded like we were struggling to create anything up top.

Rhodes has not been scoring in recent weeks but he is still a vital part of the team.

He still strikes fear into the heart of opposing defenders who may well give him a bit too much attention, leaving Rudy open to capitalise.

Rovers legend Simon Garner tweeted after the match he felt we had dropped four points over the course of the week and I had to agree.

Once again when within spitting distance of the top six we have blown our chance to get in there - and how good it would have felt sitting there for a fortnight as we head into the international break.

All that being said, all is not lost, and looking on the bright side two points gained in tricky games in London and on the south coast should not be sniffed at.

We took our unbeaten run to seven games and can look forward to a home game against Leeds where, if we play like we have been doing and remain solid, we can get the points we need to get into that 'promised land'.

* I wrote a story for the day job this week on the funeral of Rovers fan Dougie Raith and it was extremely heartening to see fans of Rovers and Burnley coming together to pay their respects.

Dougie's daughter told me 'Burnley' was a swear-word in the family home, but we all know some things are more important than our petty football rivalries.

By all accounts Dougie was very well known across East Lancashire and a group of Clarets fans even headed over to the Reading game for what would be his last trip to Ewood - although they stayed in Ewood WMC throughout the game! Fair play to them.