Sam Szmodics admitted injuries are making things tough for Blackburn Rovers after suffering more setbacks last week.

Tyrhys Dolan joined a lengthy absentee list last week whilst Arnor Sigurdsson didn't travel with the squad after picking up a groin issue. It meant the average age of the bench at Hillsborough was just over 20 with nine first-team players unavailable at the weekend.

Academy graduates Pat Gamble, Tom Atcheson, Leo Duru and Kristi Montgomery were all on the bench, having never made a league appearance for the club. Altogether, there were only nine Championship starts between the substitutes, coming from Dilan Markanday (5) and Jake Garrett (4).

That took its toll on Saturday with Rovers slow out of the traps in the first half an hour, though they improved as the game wore on. Szmodics admitted the group is stretched at the moment but insists they can't complain about injuries.

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"Yeah, it's a young bench, a young team," he said. "We have been hit with loads of injuries. Tyrhys Dolan really, Sigurdsson didn't travel, we have been hit with lots of them.

"We can't complain, these things happen in football. The squad isn't humungous, the starting XI has been consistent over the season. The bench was very young and it was a great experience for them.

"We are all disappointed with the result today and we will go again. It's the perfect time for a free week, everyone is hurting in there, everyone is tired.

"The bench is very young, we have found consistency in our form and the manager wants to keep the team the same because we have formed relationships in these games and played well.

"I think we did it again today, we played well, at times. We have to score when we're on top and we don't. We're disappointed to walk away with a loss. It felt like when the goal went in, the confidence went up and we were playing in their half. They couldn't get out.

"I think it was one of my few-headed goals, it was behind me and I could have volleyed it. I went down early and managed to get enough power in it to get it in the back of the net."

Szmodics was also high in praise for the opposition, who have been much improved under Danny Rohl. Although Sheffield Wednesday have won only two of their eight games since he arrived, there has been a noticeable improvement in their performance levels.

Tomasson warned his group before kick-off and Szmodics was also quick to point out that the Championship table doesn't reflect the ability of the Owls under Rohl.

"Their league position doesn't show out," he explained. "They're a good team, it's a tough place to come, they're well drilled and tough individuals. They're a big team and they know what they're doing.

"Their manager has come in the last six games and he's changed a lot here. We looked at their last results, Leicester didn't deserve to get the point here, they deserved to win it. We knew it would be a tough place to come, we are disappointed.

"It's difficult when you play Wednesday, Saturday. Now we can recover and rest, a big game to look forward to at Ewood.

"Everyone beats everyone. There are no easy games in the Championship. I am sure people had their bets on for us to beat Wednesday quite easily but the manager reiterated they're a good team before the game, he's changed how they do things.

"We spoke to John Buckley, he told us how good a team it is. It's my first time at Hillsborough and it's a massive stadium, the crowd get behind them and it's a tough place to go as an opposition player.

"Maybe we deserved more from the game but we're disappointed with how it finished."