Todd Cantwell opened his account as Rovers won a hard-fought Roses clash against Leeds United at Ewood Park.
Cantwell provided an emphatic finish from the penalty spot as John Eustace’s men made it three successive wins in the Championship.
Eustace made one change from the side that won at Middlesbrough in midweek, with Owen Beck starting and Ryan Hedges dropping to the bench.
There were two changes for the visitors, with Dan James and Junior Firpo both returning to the line-up.
The opening stages were cagey, with a few welcoming boos for Joe Rothwell on his return to East Lancashire.
Suddenly, the game exploded into life and Rovers were inches away from going in front when Callum Brittain’s pinpoint cross found Yuki Ohashi in the middle, but the Japanese forward could only head onto the crossbar.
At the other end, Willy Gnonto was gifted a big chance after Aynsley Pears’ pass put Sondre Tronstad under pressure, but the goalkeeper recovered well to rush out and make an important save.
Gnonto continued to look dangerous, cutting in from the left and sending a curling effort towards the far corner, but Pears was again equal to the danger.
Then came a big call for referee Lewis Smith as Tyrhys Dolan skipped past Pascal Struijk and went down under Ao Tanaka’s challenge. The man in black took a moment before eventually pointing to the spot.
Illan Meslier went the right way but couldn’t keep out Todd Cantwell’s cool finish from 12 yards as the summer signing netted his first Rovers goal.
Leeds nearly got back on level terms immediately after another self-inflicted error, this time an under-hit backpass by Dom Hyam, but Pears did enough to put off Joel Piroe.
The Rovers keeper was called into action again after the break, making a smart stop to keep out Struijk’s towering header before Sondre Tronstad made a brave block to deny Gnonto from the rebound.
Leeds boss Daniel Farke turned to the bench in a bid to change their fortunes, with Largie Ramazani, Manor Solomon and Patrick Bamford all joining the fray.
But it was Rovers who almost doubled their lead when Cantwell broke through on goal after a slice of luck with a deflection, but this time the midfielder could only drag a volley wide.
The summer signing found himself in the thick of the action again moments later but his strike hit a defender and looped just over the bar.
The Leeds fans packed into the Darwen End thought they had found an equaliser nine minutes from time following a scramble in the box, but the offside flag had gone up well before the ball crossed the line.
Hearts were in mouths when nine minutes of stoppage time were added on, but Rovers stood firm to preserve their clean sheet and secure all three points.
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