LOAN star Tom Cairney says he would be more than happy if his time as a Blackburn Rovers player is extended – after making regular football his biggest priority.

Cairney’s loan spell from Hull expires in January and the midfielder admits he still does not know where his future lies.

But Rovers boss Gary Bowyer has said he wants to keep Cairney at Ewood Park and the 22-year-old has concerns about how regularly he might feature if he returns to Hull, even though he is ambitious to play in the Premier League.

Cairney’s contract expires in the summer and Rovers could look at either a permanent deal or a loan extension until the end of the season.

“I suppose in the next couple of weeks I’ll hear more and see what my future is, if it’s at Hull or at Blackburn,” said Cairney.

“It’s all a bit up in the air at the minute but I’m definitely enjoying my time at Blackburn and I’ll be happy if it continues.

“If I went back to Hull I’d get the odd game in the Premier League, which is fantastic obviously, but I can’t see it being week in week out.

“They’ve bought players for £5m so it would be tough, although I’d always be confident in my ability to eventually start playing.

“The key is to play football. That’s what makes me happy.

“I’m 22 and I need to playing football as much as I can, although at the same time the Premier League is obviously where every player wants to be.

“But there’s no reason why I couldn’t do that with Blackburn. Maybe we could do it this year or the year after.”

Bowyer has been in contact with Steve Bruce about retaining Cairney, although the player himself says he has not heard from his Hull boss at this stage.

“I haven’t spoken to him personally but I think he was at the Leeds game the other week,” said the midfielder, who missed a large chunk of Hull’s promotion season last term with a serious knee injury.

“I’ll probably speak to him if I go back to Hull and take it from there really.

“I feel like I’ve played well here, I think my game has got a lot better as well.

“But I still feel like there’s more to come.

“Obviously I had the injury last season which kept me out for quite a few months.

“I was part of a promotion squad but I think playing week in week out and playing with these players has helped to bring me on. The manager and the staff have brought me on.

“I’d be happy to keep playing football at Blackburn.

“The manager is definitely building something here. There’s a lot of young British players and it’s really good to be a part of it.

“I’m loving every minute of it and if that continues then I think I’ll be happy.”