HOPE Akpan reckons Blackburn Rovers are beginning to build up momentum – and is urging them to carry it on into the international break with victory over Ipswich Town this weekend.

Gary Bowyer’s side stretched their unbeaten run to three matches on Saturday when top-scorer Jordan Rhodes struck in injury-time to secure a deserved 1-1 draw at Hull City.

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Akpan maintains he always believed results would turn for Rovers after a six-game winless start to the season left them in the bottom three.

But, having hauled themselves out of the relegation places with draws with Hull and QPR and a win over Charlton Athletic, the midfielder wants the upturn to continue at home to the Tractor Boys.

“I was always confident results would pick up,” said Akpan, who impressed off the bench against the Tigers.

“As a team we work hard and do the right things and I think we were just lacking that little bit of luck.

“But we’ve had some good performances and some good results now and we feel like we’re building something and that we’ve got some momentum building.

“So hopefully we can win that last game before the international break as that will stand us in good stead for the rest of the season, compared to the start of the season.

“That’s what we’re all gearing to and if we can finish off with a home win, we’d be delighted.”

Ipswich reached the play-offs last season and will go into Saturday’s Ewood Park clash level on points with sixth place.

But Akpan insists the way new-look Rovers have played against Fulham, QPR and Hull in recent weeks shows they can compete with teams tipped to be at the top end of the table.

“We’ve matched them and on another day we would have won those games if we’d taken our chances,” said the Nigeria international.

“We’ve got a good group of lads who work very hard and I think we’ve got more ability than maybe some people give us credit for.

“We know other teams have spent more money than us but we don’t care, we just want to go out there and show what we can do.”

After Rhodes pegged the Tigers back with his fifth goal in four games Akpan went close to winning it for Rovers.

“When we conceded I was thinking, ‘how are we going to lose this game?’” said the summer signing from Reading.

“We’d played really well and been the better side against a team who were in the Premiership last year.

“The lads did really well and I’m just glad we got the equaliser at the end – and we could have won it.

“I shank them in in training all the time but I managed to connect with it very, very sweetly and the keeper has got lucky. I was wheeling away to the fans as I thought it had gone in.

“On another day we get the goal and we get the win but a point is a good result.”

Akpan came on for Danny Guthrie after his former Reading team-mate went off with a thigh injury.

Guthrie underwent a scan yesterday and Rovers boss Bowyer said: “He was experienced enough to come off straight away, so hopefully that’s stopped any long-lasting damage.”

Defender Matt Kilgallon and striker Fode Koita, who both missed the trip to the KC Stadium with knocks, continued to receive treatment at Brockhall yesterday.