Elliott Bennett wants to continue to be a positive influence around the club – even if his game-time has been limited of late.

The club captain has played just 11 minutes of football this season but believes with a young group of players he still has an important role to play when he’s not on the pitch.

Not that it changes his desire to win back his place in the starting XI as since being in the side for the first five games post-lockdown, he’s started just one of the next 12 in all competitions.

Bennett went through a long spell under Owen Coyle of not even making a matchday squad, but since Tony Mowbray’s arrival in February 2017 he’s been a firm fixture in the side.

That hasn’t been the case quite so much in 2020, but as he approaches five years at the club, the 31-year-old says he still has a big role to play.

“I’ve been at this club a long time now and had spells where I didn’t look like I was going to get on the pitch under a previous manager,” he said.

“Since this manager has been here it’s been a bed of roses for me to be honest.

“I make no secret that I love being at this football club, playing for this team and this manager, and if that means my part is from the bench and in training and keeping people’s standards high and motivate in that way then I want to play my part in any way I can for this football club to be successful.

“An old youth coach of mine said ‘when the team wins, everyone wins whether you’re in the team or not’.

“So what’s the point in sulking about not being in the team?  You have to give your all to the football club, to the fans, to the people who pay your wages and your team-mates, your friends.

“I want to play every game but if I’m not then I want to be a positive influence around the play and help anyone in anyway possible.”

Rovers went into the international break with seven points from their four Championship fixtures, with Bennett believing it should be more given the displays they have put in.

He told the club website: “I think performance-wise we have been excellent, even in the game we lost down at AFC Bournemouth on the opening day of the season.

“I said in the dressing room that I was proud to watch the lads perform at the level they did against a team who had just been relegated from the Premier League.

“We didn’t get what we deserved there, but showed at Newcastle a few days later that we’re a good team, before the work paid off the following two games against Wycombe and Derby

“We were also very unlucky not to get all three points against Cardiff last time out.

“We’ve been excellent and have probably deserved more than what we’ve got so far, but we just need to keep the levels up. If we do that then we’ll win a lot of games.”