ADAM Armstrong is hoping a move to Rovers and a reunion with Tony Mowbray can be the spark he needs to get him firing in front of goal again.

The Newcastle striker has signed on loan until the end of the season and trained with his new team-mates for the first time yesterday.

Mowbray is an admirer of Armstrong having worked with the England youth international at Coventry City in the 2015/16 campaign where the striker netted 20 times.

Rovers tried to bring the 20-year-old to East Lancashire in the summer and, after a loan spell with Championship side Bolton Wanderers was cut short last week, Mowbray was able to get his man.

And former Barnsley man Armstrong is equally delighted to be reunited with Mowbray as he eyes a Rovers debut in Saturday’s crunch League One home game with Shrewsbury Town.

“He just said to get back to enjoying my football and hopefully get a lot of games and bring a lot of goals,” Armstrong said of the Rovers boss.

“I didn’t score that many goals at Bolton or Barnsley so I’m looking to get back on form and show the crowd what I can do.

“That was my first loan at Coventry under Mowbray. I got 20 league goals and I would like to bring some goals to this team as well.

“He (Mowbray) lets you enjoy your football and tells you to go out there and doesn’t put too many demands on you. He lets you play freely which is a good thing.

“He’s a top manager and he’s proven that everywhere he has been. I’m looking forward to working with again.”

Since his spell with the Sky Blues spell Armstrong has spent the last 18 months on loan with Championship sides Barnsley and Bolton.

He has netted just nine times in that time with three of those coming in 23 outings for Wanderers.

And despite a return to League One, Armstrong doesn’t believe joining Rovers is a step down.

“No because the stature of this club is a Championship or even Premier League club,” he said.

“I think that’s what we have to push for and firstly that’s getting promoted out of this league and back where they belong.

“The facilities are great here, we need to take that to the next level, keep winning games and putting three points on the board.”

Armstrong was used by Mowbray as a central striker during their time together at the Ricoh Arena but was mainly deployed out wide by Bolton boss Phil Parkinson earlier this term.

When asked if that brought the best out of him, he said: “I don’t think so. Striker is my position but I like playing in any of the positions across the front four.

“It didn’t really bother me but because Bolton went so direct I wouldn’t really say that it was the club for me with the way they play, I like the ball on the ground.

“I’ve seen Blackburn play a lot and they like to play football so I want to add to that.”

Armstrong was part of the England Under-20 squad that won the World Cup in South Korea last summer where he was a team-mate of fellow Rovers loanee Harry Chapman.

Of the Middlesbrough man, Armstrong added: “I spoke to Harry, he’s doing his rehab back in Middlesbrough and working hard and he said that he can’t wait to come back.”