THE owner of a blue and white scarf that has been waved on Ewood Park for 59 years is hoping it will be a lucky charm against relegation.

Lifelong Blackburn Rovers fan Wendy Howarth, 49, of Hamilton Street, in the Infirmary area of Blackburn, was handed the scarf in the late 1990s by her dad, Raymond Rushton, when heart problems stopped him making the pilgrimage to Ewood.

And now the scarf, knitted by her grandma Martha Rushton in the 1949/1950 season, is being sported by a third generation of the family in the form of Wendy’s son, Robert Howarth, 12.

Wendy said: “My dad, who still lives in Blackburn, used to scream and shout when he went on Ewood, but when he had his heart attack he decided it made sense to hand the scarf to me because he couldn’t go any more.

“It has seen some great players. I loved Colin Hendry and Ken Beamish, and my dad used to enjoy the greats such as Ronnie Clayton.”

But with Rovers hovering above the relegation zone, Wendy said she praying that the scarf will mark its 60th year in the Premier League.

She said: “I hope its top- flight football next season, but I must admit I’m worried.

“Robert suffers from dyspraxia and we take him on the Blackburn End to let out his frustrations – and he’s certainly had a lot of frustration this season with the chances we’ve missed.

“If we’ve lost a game Robert told me it’s because I’d forgotten to take the scarf with me, but it’ll be there from now until the end of the season. I think Big Sam can do it and keep us up.”