DAMIEN Johnson admits it is with great pride that he has seen a number of his Under-23s group make the step up to the Rovers first team in recent weeks.

Johnson was without four of his regular starters for last Friday’s defeat to Swansea as they travelled with Owen Coyle’s squad for the FA Cup tie at QPR.

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Ryan Nyambe, Connor Mahoney, Lewis Travis and Willem Tomlinson were all named in the Rovers matchday squad at Loftus Road.

Scott Wharton has also had a taste of first team action this year, and Johnson says when the young players have been given the opportunities they haven’t let anyone down.

“You want the manager to know that if he needs to rely on your group then he can,” Johnson said.

“He has been able to do that with Scott earlier in the season, Ryan of late, Connor has been floating around all season , and obvious Lewis and Willem have come in to the reckoning in recent weeks.

“It’s really promising and we hope that when they do get that chance they can take it and don’t let themselves down. In fairness, I think the lads have done that.”

Being without a number of his regular starters for the game against the Swans last week, Johnson was able to hand starts to some of the club’s Under-18s.

Tyler Magloire, Stefan Mols and Joe Rankin-Costello were all included from the start, while Tre Pemberton and Dan Butterworth were both second-half substitutes. Johnson added: “That’s what it’s all about for us really. We had four lads travelling down with the first team and that gives some of the Under-18s the chance to come with us and that’s what it’s all about.

“At Blackburn there is that pathway and it’s important that we push them on and although we had those boys travelling, the challenge is there for the other lads to be on that bus.”“We will keep working with them and then hopefully we will get another few on there.”There was further good news this week as left-back Jack Doyle and midfielder Connor Thomson both put pen to paper on deals until 2019 with the club.First team boss Owen Coyle says he is keen to follow the club’s tradition of blooding home-grown talent, having already handed debuts to Nyambe and Wharton already this season.

Despite not getting any game-time at QPR, Coyle says it won’t be long before they’re seen in the first-team.

He said: “We have young players coming through at the club which Blackburn Rovers have always been known for.

“I had a host of young lads on the bench waiting to come on.

“They will all get their chance in due course.”

“We brought on Nyambe and he did very well and he’s played a few times in the first-team now.

“If we had a bigger margin it would have been easier to bring those kids in, but I’ve have had no fear about putting them in at any time.”