ROVERS reporter Rich Sharpe picks out five talking points from the home defeat to AFC Wimbledon.

TEAM SELECTION

TONY Mowbray opted to make just the one change, with a straight swap on the left as Craig Conway returned in place of the injured Rekeem Harper.

The boss will have contemplated making more, particularly with the options at his disposal, and with this being the third game within a week.

But it is hard to criticise going with the majority of the side who had won so impressively at Rochdale and Scunthorpe United.

Mowbray made the substitutions that many would have wanted to see, and couldn’t have ended the game with many more attackers on the pitch, but Rovers couldn’t find the winning formula. 

SECOND HOME DEFEAT

WHILE Rovers’ form on the road has been impressive, with wins against three sides who had particularly strong home records last term, things have been less than secure at Ewood Park.

That is now two defeats for Rovers in front of their home fans.  The first came against a Doncaster Rovers side who have only recorded one win this season, while AFC Wimbledon collected just a second three points of the campaign when they left Ewood Park victorious.

Then again, Rovers did blow MK Dons away in the latter stages of their last home game and will have been confident coming in to this one.

The pressure obviously mounts in the home games, particularly after an impressive run of form, but Rovers must learn to manage those expectations, and start putting the points on the board in those home matches.

It remains 17 years since they won five consecutive league games.

STUBBORN RESISTANCE

ROVERS have shown away from home in their last three outings how hard to beat they themselves can be.

Indeed, they have kept three consecutive clean sheets on the road, so know how hard it can be to break through a side who are defensively resilient.

They knew coming in to the game that Wimbledon would have a game plan, which would include trying to frustrate them.  The long stoppages for injuries, as well as some poor officiating, contributed to that frustrating building up around Ewood Park.

That being said, Rovers lacked the intensity to break their way through, when things had looked promising after Dominic Samuel saw an effort saved just 22 seconds in.

Only in the latter stages of the second half did Rovers step things up, having been too slow and ponderous for long periods.

DIFFERENCE WITHOUT DARRAGH

WITH Darragh Lenihan sidelined, and Elliott Ward in the team, Rovers do have to go about things slightly differently.

Without Lenihan’s mobility, they have to operate slightly deeper, but Rovers were still troubled here by the mobility and strength of Kwesi Appiah.

At times, particularly on the bigger pitches should as Ewood, it can create gaps between each of the Rovers lines.

That makes it much more difficult at times for the likes of Corry Evans and Richie Smallwood to pick up the second balls when things break down in attack.

With that can also come a tendency to play longer from back to front, rather than in to midfield, which at times doesn’t suit Rovers as an attacking force.

DACK GIVEN THE NOD

WHILE disappointing to see Craig Conway limp off in the early stages, it gave Bradley Dack an extended run out after his respective injury troubles.

Mowbray opted for Dack over Harry Chapman, as he operated from the left, just as he had done against Scunthorpe in midweek.

Dack looked to get involved in the play as much as he could, ending the game in a more familiar number 10 role.

It is only glimpses of his quality that we have seen so far in the opening weeks of the season, but the attacker is surely pushing his claims for a starting spot with every minute he completes.

And he would have grabbed his first Rovers goal were George Long not have managed to scramble his header off the line midway late on in the second half.