Matty Platt is hoping to follow in Darragh Lenihan’s footsteps and use his loan experience to boost his Rovers career.

Platt is currently on loan at Accrington Stanley where he has made one start for John Coleman’s side so far this term.

And the 20-year-old believes leaving Ewood, where he was a mainstay of the Under-23 side that won the Premier League 2 Division 2 title last season, was the best move for his development, pointing to the progress of Lenihan as inspiration.

The Irishman made 17 appearances in League Two for Burton Albion in the 2014-15 campaign and returned to earn a place in the Rovers side for the final three games of that campaign.

He has since gone on to be a Rovers regular and a Republic of Ireland international and that career trajectory gives Platt hope.

“Darragh was in a similar position to me when he was my age,” said Platt.

“He went to Burton on loan and came back a much improved player and you can see what he has done. He has pushed into the first team and is a first team regular and an Ireland international. He is someone I would like to follow in the footsteps of.”

Platt knows he has taken a leap into the unknown and has so far struggled to break into the Stanley starting XI, but he feels the experience of fighting for a place is all part of the learning curve.

He added: “It is not easy, but this is the industry that we are in I suppose, we have to get used to these things and you have to learn and grow up quickly.

“That is part of the loan experience, learning about the other sides of football and not just what you see on a Saturday afternoon.”

The youngster, who is in regular contact with Rovers Under-23 boss Damien Johnson, added: “I have been at Rovers since I was nine or 10, speaking to the gaffer here (John Coleman) it was about getting experience to hopefully develop at Blackburn in the future.

“It is all well and good doing it at Under 23 level, we did very well and won the league last year but just because we were doing well then doesn’t mean much when you come to a league club.

“It is completely different and it is big step up. To bridge the gap between the Under-23s and the first team at Blackburn you need to come out on loan.”