TONY Mowbray is keen to supplement his Rovers squad with a couple of new faces as he bids to maintain his side's strong start to the season.

Rovers return to action on Saturday at Preston in the first game after the international break.

A victory could take Rovers into the top six in a competitive Championship and having tied down Charlie Mulgrew and Elliott Bennett to new contracts, and with deals for Danny Graham and Corry Evans in the pipeline, Mowbray knows he has the core of a strong squad.

But the Ewood boss is still keen to add when the transfer window opens in January.

“We need to progress and if we have a desire to get promoted, we need that support mechanism behind the club. That support has been there throughout my time at the club," Mowbray said.

“But we’re fighting in a division with lots of big teams. I look at Derby County, Aston Villa, Middlesbrough, Leeds United, we’re fighting with all those clubs.

“We’re in negotiations with one or two others, identifying the building blocks to make us competitive in this league and hopefully the next level as well.

“My career history suggests you can have a very good team, but if you don’t build then you’ll see that good team go very quickly.

“When you have good players, you have to keep them together and secure them. We need players to lead the way as the new signings come into the building."