Rovers ended their eight game wait for a win with an impressive display in a 2-0 victory at Millwall.

Bradley Dack scored in the first half, the returning Sam Gallagher on target in the second, the win built on an impressive defensive platform.

Tyrhys Dolan led the line with distinction in a surprise call from Tony Mowbray that was fully vindicated, playing a key part in the victory, as did all the changes the manager made.

The defensive resilience showed by Rovers throughout was the basis for the result however, restricting a Millwall side who coming into this one had lost just one of their previous 11.

The six changes included returns from injury for Joe Rankin-Costello who played down the right flank together, while Barry Douglas, John Buckley, Bradley Dack and Tyrhys Dolan were all recalled.

Top scorer Adam Armstrong was ruled out through injury, which saw Dolan, making his first start in the Championship since November, play as the central striker.

That was a surprise move, but the early signs were good, and certainly not what the Millwall back three would have expected.

Ben Brereton, playing from the right, was offside when firing over from a Dack pass, with the early stages offering much to report on what was a very dry surface.

The positives for Rovers were the amount of second balls in which they were winning the majority of second balls.

And they had a goal lead to show for it, so often conceding first in matches, but getting themselves ahead in the 18th minute courtesy of Bradley Dack’s second of the season. It came from good work initially from Dolan, and ended with some vintage back to goal play on the edge of the box, his shot on the turn taking a deflection off Shaun Hutchinson and wrong-footing Bartosz Bialkowski as the ball nestled in the roof of the net.

That was the start of what would be an excellent period for the visitors, who without peppering the Millwall goal, were well on top, helped by winning the ball back quickly after losing it.

Either side of the half hour mark, Dolan showed his threat, taking a Gallagher pass before flashing a ball across the six-yard box as Jake Cooper got to the ball ahead of Brereton.

Dolan then went himself, cutting in from the left before his curling effort flashed narrowly wide of the far post.

A third shot in as many minutes saw Tom Trybull trouble Bialkowski, his shot swerving just before the Millwall keeper who was off balance when palming it away.

Rovers went into the break having restricted Millwall to just two shots off target.

Their efforts to find a second goal early in the second half saw a short corner worked to Dolan, and then Dack whose shot with his left foot was wayward, and over the top.

Gary Rowett sensed  the need to change, as Rovers continued to have the better of things, abandoning his back three and sending on a third striker in Matt Smith just 10 minutes into the second half.

He had an almost impact, a Scott Malone cross from the left delivered perfectly for Smith to attack, and he should have done better when outjumping Douglas but nodding wide of the target.

What the change had done was opened up spaces for Rovers going the other way. A 58th minute move down the move saw Gallagher feed Dolan whose break into the box saw him work a shooting angle, Bialkowski equal to his well-hit effort as Dack waited on any rebound.

While there was more pressure from the hosts, their first shot on target finally came in the 65th minute, a Malone free kick curled goalwards, but comfortably saved by Kaminski.

The clearer opportunities kept coming from Rovers, Buckley’s pass into the area seconds later found Gallagher who went for power with his shot which Bialkowski was equal to, but an effort either side would likely have had the Millwall man struggling.

Rovers then wanted a penalty as Buckley crossed for Dack, who shot wide but looked to be caught by Woods, already booked, the referee consulting his linesman, who was unmoved, before giving a corner by way of something as a compromise.

It looked a clear call, with Rovers left furious, that being Dack’s final touch of the game as he was replaced as part of a triple substitution.

The luck that evaded Rovers came their way in the 76th minute. Dolan was found by one of the subs, Harvey Elliott, and although his shot was blocked by Hutchinson, the ball ricocheted off Gallagher and into the empty net.

It was no less than Rovers deserved for their display, typified by some excellent defending from Taylor Harwood-Bellis who celebrated like he’d scored when putting in a goal-saving block to deny Smith.

Millwall went close two minutes before the end, Malone coming forward from left back to thump an effort off the post, the rebound from Bodvarsson excellently denied by Kaminski.

But their was no denying Rovers a deserved victory, and clean sheet, as they won for the first time since the end of January and did so in impressive fashion.

Millwall: Bialkowski, Evans, Hutchinson, Cooper, Romeo (McNamara, 73), Malone, Woods (Williams, 84), Mitchell (Smith, 54), Wallace (Burey, 73), Bodvarsson, Bennett (Ferguson, 73)

Subs: Fielding, Thompson, Pearce, Tiensia

Rovers: Kaminski, Rankin-Costello (Nyambe, 62), Lenihan, Harwood-Bellis, Douglas, Buckley (Johnson, 71), Trybull (Evans, 90), Dack (Rothwell, 71), Gallagher, Dolan, Brereton (Elliott, 71)

Subs: Pears, Downing, Travis, Bennett