Rovers must make better use of the ball if they are to prosper in the Championship, according to Tony Mowbray.

Mowbray's side his manage just 35 per cent possession at Derby County on Tuesday and rued their lack of composure on the ball.

The Rovers boss knows they will be punished against a better quality of opposition this term, despite praising the resilience within his group which saw them hold out for a goal-less draw.

Mowbray says the players within his squad will be given every chance to prove they can progress with where he hopes to take the club, or if not, it will require further dealings in the transfer market along the way.

“Someone said to me this week that I am downplaying how well we’re doing yet if you come and watch that you’ll see our quality against theirs,” Mowbray said of the Derby draw.

“They’re further on than us, more developed and it’s almost as if they have three or four Bradley Dacks whereas we have one.

“The top teams have more than one talented, creative player and that seems as if I’m being critical of the team but I’m not because the character, the drive, the spirit, in our team is huge.

“But if we are to move on as a team then we have to be better with the ball, we can’t keep giving it back to good teams.

“Whether we buy new players to do that or keep working with this group, because this group are nodding their heads knowing they need to be better with the ball than they were.

“We will keep going on the training ground and see if we can improve the team.”

Southampton loanee Harrison Reed, yet to make a start for the club, could help in Rovers' quest to use the ball better, with the boss adding: “Harrison Reed has showed in snippets what a talent he is but let’s wait and see.”

Derby sit just outside the top six after their opening eight games. The 0-0 stalemate with Rovers was their first draw of the campaign to go with four wins and three defeats.

One of those losses came at home to Leeds United who are setting the early pace in the Championship and are yet to be beaten.

Mowbray added: “They (Derby) are a good team this year and we should know that they are going to take a lot of points off teams this year.

“What I do think is that if Leeds United came here and win 4-1 then I look forward to playing them. I say look forward…”