Tony Mowbray says opportunity could lie ahead for Rovers’ top prospects in the remaining eight games.

Rovers have had at least one Academy graduate in their squad for the last 537 consecutive matches and Mowbray says he and the club are committed to bring more players through.

Connor McBride and Dan Pike have both been in the matchday squad this season, and with the Under-23s riding high in Premier League 2, Mowbray says more chances could be handed out.

Hayden Carter last season and Dan Butterworth in 2018/19 were both beneficiaries of debuts in the final games and Mowbray says the performances of Billy Barr’s side aren’t going unnoticed.

“I’m hoping a positive from this season might be that more young players get opportunities as this season unfolds infront of us,” Mowbray explained.

“Then they have to grab that chance. We have to try and win football matches, it’s not a case of give them a game and test them and it doesn’t matter about the result, the result always matters.

“They have to show they’re capable of helping the team get victories and when they get an opportunity they have to try and grab it, as Tyrhys did.

“All the Under-23s have that opportunity, they’re doing pretty well at the moment, they’re winning games in that league against lots of Premier League sides. They have a structure, they’re all working hard to get into the first-team and they need opportunities young players."

Joe Rankin-Costello, Darragh Lenihan and John Buckley all started Rovers’ last Championship fixture against Norwich City, with Ryan Nyambe on the bench, while Lewis Travis, who was out injured, is a firm fixture in the side.

Scott Wharton is another who looked to be establishing himself in the side, before serious injury struck in December, but he went down a different route to the others in that he spent several seasons out on loan.

Carter, Tyler Magloire and Joe Grayson are among those on a similar path, and Mowbray believes more of Barr’s side could be primed for loan moves next season.

“We have a lot of young players, we’re excited about the future of the club,” he added.

“I’ve talked about building the club. I think some of them could do with going out on loan, League One, League Two, SPL, if that’s what happens then it will, but if some get fast-tracked in then they have to try and grab that opportunity.”

Mowbray wouldn’t be drawn on the names of players who could get their chance, but he is a known admirer of full back Pike, and attacker Butterworth who has had injury issues since the end of 2019.

And the manager says that if players don’t quite make the grade at Ewood Park, hopefully the club’s development pathway will mean they can stay in the game further down the leagues.

He said: “I don’t want to sit here and single people out, other than you try and put a blueprint in place that people have to try and follow and then hopefully you help that production line.

“There’s never just dozens of players coming through, there’s two or three in a given year group which drives everyone else on

“That’s what Academies are about, to try and get players through and if they don’t hit the heights you’re trying to achieve then they can still get a career in the league. That’s the job.

“We’re trying to get some through into the first-team that can help us win, not just to get them in to create some statistics. At this moment the players are in an environment where they want to come in and learn."

“Fingers crossed we get a few more through.”