A sense of impatience as Blackburn Rovers look to sell their vision

Yet while the head coach outlined he is seeing signs of progress and improvements on the pitch, some supporters would like that to speed up just as much as the club’s transfer business.

Rovers have played effective football under Tomasson. It has allowed them to win half of their 28 league games, collecting 43 points along the way.

Rovers are wanting to sell the fans a vision, so it is key that in the first season of the new-look structure that they’re given something to hold on to.

Tomasson was pleased with the level of control Rovers showed, but that doesn’t always lend itself to high-octane football.

Out of possession, they were well drilled, limiting space in behind and working effectively as a unit.

That has been a feature of this side at their best.

In possession, there were long passages of play of Rovers keeping the ball well, being neat and tidy and working their way out of tight spaces, but followed by ambitious forward passes that rarely amounted to anything.

Over time we will learn more about Tomasson’s direction for this team and whether it has been a case of him best utilising the options available to him.

He has stressed that increasing the average of the squad, and adding more ready-made players, would be the quickest way to find greater consistency, though knows his remit is that of developing and improving individuals.

Jack Vale got the nod at the head of the attack and Tomasson linked his selection to the club’s desire to create value in a bid to become more sustainable.

However, it is far from not an easy task for the 21-year-old in a side that creates precious little - but until he finds his feet, there is a need to strengthen at the top end of the pitch.

The current make-up of the squad lacks pace, and something that needs to be addressed to boost Rovers’ weapons to hurt the opposition.

Tomasson will want more strength in depth to also feel that he can best utilise his bench to greater effect, with the Rovers squad beginning to look stretched amid a handful of injuries and absences.

Rovers’ shot count was again low, only six attempts across the 90 minutes of which just two were on target.

One of those was a nicely worked goal, while Ben Brereton should have put them ahead in the 12th minute, a chance fashioned by a Ryan Hedges cross.

But Rovers are reliant upon clinical finishing, particularly on their travels where they have scored only eight times in their last 14 away fixtures.

The goal they did score however highlighted the quality they do possess, and in Bradley Dack they have a player whose influence on the side is only going to grow.

There has been so much emphasis from the head coach on Rovers’ young players, but it was their three most experienced  who were at the forefront of the game-changing moments.

First was Dack, pouncing for his third goal since the World Cup, finishing off Rovers’ best move of the match to give them the lead early in the second half.

He finished the game with the captain’s armband and was just reward for the leadership qualities he demonstrates and for the way he’s battled to win back his place in the side.

On recent evidence, he’s becoming a first pick.

If that was the good, then the disappointing was Thomas Kaminski, Rovers’ usually reliable No.1, not dealing with Zak Vyner’s shot as he palmed the ball straight into the path of Antoine Semenyo to tap home the equaliser.

Rovers’ position of ascendancy at 1-0 had been let slip, and then it was always likely to be a survival mission in the final 15 minutes after Daniel Ayala picked up a second yellow card for pulling back Nahki Wells.

Rovers’ strength in the first half of the season was turning winning positions into three points. The first 13 times they took the lead, they claimed maximum points in them all.

Then, naivety cost them in the Boxing Day defeat at Sunderland, a moment of petulance against Middlesbrough, and then a soft goal conceded saw them have to settle for a first draw of the season at Ashton Gate.

Rovers did manage to hold out for a first draw of an increasingly peculiar season, but given their struggles at finding a way back into matches when conceding first, they can ill-afford to not make the most of winning positions.  

The New Year’s Day victory over Cardiff City, and the FA Cup success at Norwich City, demonstrated that the most effective way of doing that is to follow the ‘hold what we have’ mantra.

That would likely have been the route against the Robins, had they not been pegged back within 14 minutes of getting their noses infront

The equalising goal came at a time when there was a growing sense the home fans were ready to turn.

Ayala’s red card then gave them further incentive to get behind their side though, and it is to Rovers’ credit they did a professional job to see the game out.

Sam Bell thought he won just as six additional minutes were being signalled, but to Rovers’ relief the offside flag came.  

That meant Rovers took a point back to East Lancashire, and their efforts were deserving of that.

It ended the long wait for a draw, one that will be reflected upon as a point gained in the circumstances of the closing stages, even if they did pass up the ascendancy and the chance to take all three.

Attention will now turn to the remaining days of the window and Rovers’ bid to conclude deals, with this their final Championship fixture of a month that will conclude with the FA Cup tie against Birmingham City.

The window then closes on January 31 and while Rovers’ season may not be defined by the business done, it could well be a sign of their intentions.

After 11 years away from the Premier League, promotion couldn’t come too soon, even if there is no expectation for it to happen this season.

Having missed out on a top-six finish last season, there was a thought as to how quickly they would get that chance again.

Even with everything that has gone on this season, and their current form, with 18 games to go they are in with a chance once again.

Even if the view being taken is longer-term, there’s plenty to fight for in the here and now.