GARY Bowyer will take his Blackburn Rovers side to Blackpool tomorrow with praise ringing in his ears from his opposite number Paul Ince.

Blackpool boss Ince, who endured an unhappy six-month spell in the Ewood Park hotseat in 2008, believes Bowyer deserves credit for bringing stability back to his former club.

Rovers went through three full-time managers last season and only narrowly survived a second successive relegation.

Ince has been impressed by the way Bowyer has rebuilt a side which, going into the tomorrow’s Lancashire derby, are seven points behind the play-off places and as many points above the relegation spots.

“Gary Bowyer has done a fantastic job, he was actually my U18s boss when I was there,” said Ince, who was sacked as Rovers manager in December 2008 after 21 games and 177 days in charge.

“He’s a top, top man and I’m glad he’s been given the chance.

“In a way Blackburn have been like Blackpool, they’ve had managers come and go.

“To have success you need stability, you can’t keep swapping managers.

“I hope for Blackburn’s sake – because they are a fantastic club – they have stability with Gary Bowyer.

“He’s a good coach, a good man-manager and he’s getting results.”

Ince will not go head-to-head with Bowyer on the touchline tomorrow.

The former England midfielder must serve the second match of a five-game stadium ban incurred for his conduct towards the fourth official after his side’s 2-1 victory at Bournemouth last month.

Ince was forced to watch the Seasiders’ 1-0 win over Wigan Athletic last Saturday on Sky Sports from the comfort of his own home.

And Bowyer said: “Paul might like the idea of working from home full-time if they keep winning!”

Ince’s first – and, because of his stadium ban – so far only meeting with Rovers came in March when Blackpool drew 1-1 at Ewood.

That match was also Bowyer’s first since being installed as Rovers’ caretaker boss for the second time in the space of three months.

“Paul’s a top bloke and when he was here as a manager I was the youth-team coach and he was fantastic with me,” said Bowyer, who was made Rovers’ permanent boss in May after guiding the club to safety.

“He was also very supportive of me when we played them down at Ewood.

“It’ll be strange not hearing him on the line, shouting at people.

“It’s a strange one for everybody involved but I’m sure it will not affect Blackpool’s performance, him not being there.

“We’ve just got to go there and compete and try and put a performance on for our fans.”

Rovers will be roared on by 2,200 supporters tomorrow after selling out their allocation.

Bowyer said: “It is magnificent. I’ve got nothing but praise for the supporters for how they have been with us.

“To have sold-out this weekend is great for us and it will give us a big boost going into the game.”