Off to Ewood
01/03/2025 05:26 PM
We're back on the road tomorrow for the first away game of 2025 and it's the shortest trip of the lot, just down the M65 to Ewood.
One of the fixtures picked out on release day, we go there in second place in the Championship having moved up a place with the New Year's Day draw against Stoke.
We are in a good position, of that there is no doubt, but there has been a lot of frustration regarding the lack of goals. Having scored nine in the first two games of the season, before losing five of the seven goalscorers, we've netted only another 21 in 23 games, less than one per game.
If that is a negative then the big positive comes at the other end of the pitch. We went into the Boxing Day game at Sheffield United with thirteen clean sheets, two less than their total. They remain on fifteen but we've moved ahead with sixteen, just five behind the club record for a season which was achieved two years ago.
Tomorrow is going to be a special day for one of our players. If selected, and there is no reason to suggest he won't be, Connor Roberts will be making his 400th appearance for club and country with sixty of those coming for Wales. A total of 109 have come with Burnley since he joined us in the summer of 21 and at the age of 29, that's some achievement.
Speaking with the club ahead of tomorrow's game, he said: "I've achieved way more than I ever thought I would. To say I have scored in the Euros for Wales, played in the World Cup, scored in the Premier League, it's something that I'll always be proud of.
"Hopefully, there's still a few more to go and it's a big game on Saturday that I'm looking forward to. I've won the league at Ewood, not many people can say that. We're going there with real confidence, second in the table, a strong defensive record and all we can do is go there to try get the best result for the team, the club and most importantly the fans."
There are players at Burnley, more experienced players, who can boast having played more games than his current 399. Jay Rodriguez is one as is new signing Ashley Barnes who is already getting close to three hundred for Burnley alone.
Barnes, who of course needs no introduction to our fans or their goalkeepers, is the second of our two signings so far this window. The first, Oliver Sonne from Silkeborg, would now be available to play with his transfer having gone through on the first day of the window, but he's currently serving a suspension so won't be available until next week's FA Cup tie at Reading.
Scott Parker offered an update on the injured players yesterday. Although none are available for this weekend, there is good news on Jordan Beyer and Aaron Ramsey although both are still some way away from playing again.
On the reverse of that, Hannibal is starting a three-match ban tomorrow following his red card on Wednesday while Mike Trésor, having recovered from his dead leg, is now ill so he won't be making his first appearance of the season.
I suspect we might see Bashir Humphreys, Josh Laurent and Zian Flemming back in the starting eleven with Parker reverting as close as possible to the team that had started the three games prior to Wednesday.
That team against Stoke was: James Trafford, Connor Roberts, CJ Egan-Riley, Maxime Estève, Lucas Pires, Josh Cullen, Josh Brownhill, Luca Koleosho, Jeremy Sarmiento, Jaidon Anthony, Jay Rodriguez. Subs: Václav Hladký, John Egan, Joe Worrall, Bashir Humphreys, Josh Laurent, Hannibal, Jay Rodriguez, Andréas Hountondji, Lyle Foster.
Our opponents are currently seventh in the table, out of the play-off positions on goal difference although they do have a game in hand on all of the six teams above them.
They've won eleven times, drawn six and lost seven. Three of those defeats have come at home. They were beaten 2-0 by both Sheffield United and Stoke in November and 1-0 by Hull in their most recent home game.
They did draw 1-1 at Leeds on New Year's Day when their team was: Aynsley Pears, Callum Brittain, Dominic Hyam, Danny Baath, Owen Beck, Sondre Tronstad, Lewis Baker, Tyrhys Dolan, Ryan Hedges, Andreas Weimann, Yuki Ohashi. Subs: Balazs Tóth John Buckley, Amario Cozier-Duberry, Makhtar Gueye, Harry Leonard, Matty Litherland, Kyle McFadzean, Harley O'Grady-Macken, Joe Rankin-Costello.
LAST TIME WE WERE THERE
We won the league at Ewood. That's exactly what we did on our last visit in April 2023. We'd won promotion five games earlier but then with team changes aplenty, we'd won only one of the next four.
Sheffield United having games in hand had held us up but we went into this game, our 44th of the season, on 92 points, ten points ahead of Sheffield United who could potentially end the season on 94, a total they didn't achieve with a defeat at Huddersfield still to come.
We had to wait until the 66th minute of the game to win it and it was a bit special when it did come. We hadn't been at our best but we made two substitutions just before the hour and the two players coming on, Jack Cork and Manuel Benson, played a major role.
Cork won the ball from Hayden Carter and played the ball to Anass Zaroury. He got it back and this time moved it out wide to Benson who had scored in the previous two games with superb goals having moved in from the right flank.
He was no more than ten yards past the half way line but got forward until he was just inside the penalty box line. He came inside the defender and I thought there was no way he was going to try it again. Oh yes he did, and it sailed into the far corner past Aynsley Pears right in front of those Burnley fans permitted to attend.
We had some defending to do but Benson nearly put even more icing on the cake right at the end with an audacious effort having got clear down the left wing with the home goalkeeper trying to get back having gone up for a corner. It hit the bar but we'd won the game and we'd won the league at Ewood.
The teams were;
Blackburn: Aynsley Pears, Joe Rankin-Costello, Hayden Carter, Dominic Hyam, Harry Pickering (Callum Brittain 74), Lewis Travis (Harry Leonard 85), Adam Wharton, Ryan Hedges (Sorba Thomas 74), Sammie Szmodics, Ben Brereton, Tyrhys Dolan (Bradley Dack 75). Subs not used: Thomas Kaminski, Ashley Phillips, Jake Garrett.
Burnley: Arijanet Muric, Connor Roberts, Ameen Al-Dakhil, Charlie Taylor, Ian Maatsen (Taylor Harwood-Bellis 90+5), Josh Cullen, Josh Brownhill, Vitinho (Manuel Benson 58), Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson (Jack Cork 58), Anass Zaroury (Jay Rodriguez 90+5), Ashley Barnes. Subs not used: Bailey Peacock-Farrell, Michael Obafemi, Lyle Foster.
LAST TWENTY SEASONS
2004/05
Home: D 0-0 (FA Cup)
Away: L 1-2, Hyde (FA Cup)
2009/10
Away: L 2-3. Blake, Eagles
Home: L 0-1
2012/13
Home: D 1-1, Vokes
Away: D 1-1, Shackell
2013/14
Home: D 1-1, Stanislas
Away: W 2-1, Shackell, Ings
2015/16
Away: W 1-0, Arfield
Home: W 1-0, Gray(pen)
2017/18
Away: W 2-0, Cork, Brady (League Cup)
2022/23
Home: W 3-0, Barnes(2), Zaroury
Away: W 1-0, Benson
2024/25
Home: D 1-1, Foster
