Rovers begin the defence of their Lancashire Senior Cup crown today as they host Accrington Stanley.

The re-arranged 2019/20 final was held in July with Rovers comfortably seeing off Wigan Athletic to become 20 times winners of the competition.

It wasn’t held last season, meaning Rovers’ bid to make it three successive Senior Cup titles starts this afternoon (1pm) at their Academy base at Brockhall, with the match open to supporters.

The sides met in the quarter finals of the 2019/20 competition, with Rovers squeezing past an experienced Stanley side on penalties after a 2-2 draw.

Tony Mowbray has previously used the competition as a chance to get minutes into senior players, if required, but despite playing 45 minutes in the Under-23s 3-3 draw with Tottenham Hotspur on Friday night, midfielder Bradley Johnson is set to focus instead on his fitness on the training pitch.

Mike Sheron will lead the side which will have an Under-23s look to it, though there could be opportunities for Jacob Davenport and Dan Butterworth who have been short of minutes of late.

Antonis Stergiakis was the hero of the Spurs draw, saving an injury time penalty as Rovers came from 2-0 and 3-2 down to earn a point, but Jordan Eastham could get his chance against Stanley as the pair continue to share the gloves.

Rovers have handed opportunities to scholars in recent weeks, with defenders Joe Ferguson, Jay Haddow, George Pratt and Patrick Gamble, as well as striker Harry Leonard, all having made their Under-23s debuts in recent weeks.

Midfielder Isaac Whitehall underwent surgery last week so will be out injured for the foreseeable future, with Charlie Weston and Joe Nolan set to start in central midfield.

As for Stanley, they have entered a side into the Central League this season, with back-to-back fixtures against Bolton Wanderers ending in a 2-1 defeat and 3-3 draw.

John Coleman’s side are without a game in midweek so he could include several of his fringe players, having named strong line-ups in their opening two reserve games, following a weekend defeat to Wigan Athletic.