OWEN Coyle admits his side can’t continue to concede the volume of goals they are after losing 3-2 for a second successive game.

Rovers slipped back in to the bottom three after defeat to high-flying Brighton at Ewood Park, finishing the game with 10 men after Gordon Greer was sent off.

Sam Gallagher scored twice to bring Rovers within one at 2-1 and 3-2, but goals from Shane Duffy, Dale Stephens and Glenn Murray helped the visitors to all three points.

Rovers conceded first for the fourth goal in five games, and made it hard for themselves once again, and Coyle said: “We know that we can score goals, but we’re conceding far too many and when you’re missing the likes of Hoban and Mulgrew it will have an effect on you.

“It was always going to be challenging, but we have shown that we can score goals against a very good team, but we need to make sure we’re more solid.”

“I thought we started well against a team that along with Newcastle will be one of the favourites for promotion.

“They are a very good side, as they were last year, and have invested very heavily this year, and we knew it was going to be a very tough game, particularly with the injuries that we have.

“There was a disappointment with the first goal that we conceded from a set play, I thought we could have done more to stop it and ironically it was Shane getting on the end of it and we found ourselves 1-0 down and that suited them because the love to get men behind the ball and hit you on the counter.

“That being said, I thought we created some good chances, the keeper made a wonder save from Danny Graham and we had one or two other things that we had.

“Second half was even, we felt we could get back in to it, but then from a set plays it’s cleared to Dale Stephens who catches one on the volley and it finds the bottom corner.  That’s the quality they’ve got.

“We showed plenty of heart and spirit and got back in to the game through Sam Gallagher and at 2-1 you’re right back in it.

“We kept going until the end and scored another good goal through Gallagher at the end, it was a very good team goal, but then only a minute to try and salvage something with 10 men.”

Greer was sent off with 17 minutes remaining for a second bookable offence against his former side.

And Coyle admitted it was a big turning point in the game, having come just moments after Gallagher had reduced the arrears to 2-1.

It will rule Greer out of the home game with Reading on Saturday, at a time when Rovers are already without Charlie Mulgrew, Tommie Hoban and Elliott Ward through injury.

“The sending off was a huge turning point in the game and Gordon knows that on one yellow card he can’t be making those challenges as it gives the referee a decision to make,” the Rovers boss added.

“There was contact with the lad, was it a lot of contact, no, but enough to make the referee decide whether we wanted to be lenient and down to 10 men against one of the toughest teams in the league, was always going to be difficult.

“Football is an emotional game, we’ve all done silly things, and Gordon knows that.

“He’s beside himself in the dressing room because he knows it was a huge turning point.

“That put us on the back foot and it gave us an awful lot to do from that point on.”