Tony Mowbray says Rovers must become better at what they’re trying to achieve, rather than rip it up and start again.

Mowbray called for a more possession-based style at the start of the season, believing it would bring about a better chance of Rovers challenging for a top six spot.

That hasn’t worked out, as despite having the second highest average of possession, they have managed just 12 wins in their 40 games.

Their three away wins this calendar year have all come while having less than 50 per cent off the ball, while the percentage was in excess of 60 against Nottingham Forest, Reading, Preston North End and Wycombe during their current run of one win in 14 games.

Rovers have managed just 22 points, and 21 goals, in their most recent 25 matches during their slide down the table, but Mowbray is sticking to his beliefs.

“Every football club wants to go in a direction, I’ve talked a lot about a journey and making this team a more possession-based and ball orientated team,” he said

“I’ve spent my career not liking stats, it’s down to whether you win or lose, but there is a correlation out there between having more possession and losing.

“That shouldn’t be the case, you should have more control and be able to create chances and the more you have the ball the less chance the opposition should have.

“We just have to improve the direction we’re going down and become better at it and that’s how I see it.”

Meanwhile, the manager says Rovers must be braced for a reaction from Cardiff City tomorrow afternoon.

Both sides failed to win either of their Easter fixtures, and while Rovers lost to basement boys Wycombe Wanderers on Good Friday, the Bluebirds were thumped 5-0 by second bottom Sheffield Wednesday on Monday.

That, added to the 1-0 home defeat to Nottingham Forest, leaves Cardiff City requiring something of a miracle to finish in the play-offs, sitting eight points behind sixth-placed Reading.

They had moved into contention after seven wins and four draws in Mick McCarthy’s opening 11 games in charge, but their progress has been checked of late, something they will aim to put right against a Rovers side who have won just one in 14.

“We expect a reaction from them, I don’t think they’re just going to accept that they go to Sheffield Wednesday and lose and think it’s okay, and then lose the next one,” Mowbray explained.

“They obviously hit a really hot streak when Mick came in but have lost a few games recently.

“Mick is a proud man, recently just had 1,000 games, he’s a wonderful man and football manager and he’ll be wanting his team to bounce back from a 5-0 defeat, as every manager would. He’s a very experienced manager, he won’t like and you look for a reaction from your players.

“We’ll go there and play how we do, they’ll do what they do, and we’ll see who comes out on top.”

Rovers have won just four matches in 2021, but three of those have come on the road, as well as a point at league leaders Norwich City last month.

Yet that was followed by defeat to Wycombe last time out, and Mowbray added: “Every game is difficult in this league as we’ve found by going and getting a draw at top of the league and then losing to the team at the bottom.

“They’re all tough, every game stands on its own two feet, and we’ll go to Cardiff knowing what’s coming and try and instil our own way of playing on them and see if we can get a result.”