MIDFIELD general Garry Flitcroft has no intention of being neighbourly as Rovers and Bolton prepare to do battle at Ewood tonight.

Flitcroft and Wanderers boss Sam Allardyce live barely a stone's throw away from each other in a village on the outskirts of Bolton.

And the Rovers skipper is fiercely determined to ensure he returns back down the A666 with the bragging rights as the Premiership new-boys get ready to go head-to-head.

"I live about a mile away from Sam and when he passes me in the village he never waves or anything so it should be interesting to see what happens tonight," said Flitcroft.

"But I've got a lot of respect for the job Sam has done.

"He puts a lot of time and effort into what he does with the team.

"I think if you're organised and hard to break down, as well as having someone upfront who can score you goals, then it can work for you and it's certainly working for Bolton at the moment.

"I've watched them twice already this season and they look a good side."

Flitcroft has bitter-sweet memories of last season's epic clashes between the two clubs, seeing red when the sides drew 1-1 in the FA Cup at the Reebok then bouncing back to score one of Rovers' goals in a 3-0 win in the replay.

But, despite the fierce rivalry between the two clubs, the former Manchester City star insists he still has a soft spot for the super whites.

"I'm a Bolton lad so I obviously look for their results but then I do that with Manchester City as well," said Flitcroft.

"When I scored against them last season I got loads of stick but it was all good natured to be honest.

"And the stick's been flying again this time, not to mention plenty of fans asking me for tickets as well."

Wanderers have been the surprise package of the Premiership so far, storming to the top of the table on the back of impressive wins over Leicester and Liverpool only to be toppled by Leeds at the weekend.

But, in the likes of former Ewood team-mate, Paul Warhurst, Flitcroft believes Wanderers possess the quality necessary to continue causing upsets.

"They've got some good players in the likes of Warhurst and Per Frandsen who seem to have come back to form," said Flitcroft.

"I know Paul had a few injuries when he was here and that's something which seems to have plagued him throughout his career.

"But when he's in top form he's a good player.

"He just sits in front of the back four and makes them tick.

"And he's done a really good job for them so far."

For tonight at least, however, Flitcroft is more concerned with how his own side fair.

And, after an indifferent start in which Rovers have won just one of their opening five games, he is calling on his team-mates to make the most of two back-to-back home games.

"We've started okay," said Flitcroft.

"We are playing some decent stuff and we could have got results at both Derby and Sunderland but we didn't, so we've got to pick up on our away form.

"At home, though, I feel we always look capable of getting results and, hopefully, we can pick up another three points tonight.

"There's going to be a lot of passion involved and these derbies are always really tough games to play.

"But that's just the kind of challenge I relish."