Tony Mowbray makes Blackburn Rovers play-off claim after late Coventry City setback

Blackburn Rovers boss Tony Mowbray is confident his side will win the games needed to secure their place in the top six at the end of the season, speaking to Lancs Live after their draw against Coventry City.

The Lancashire outfit looked to have won the game when Scott Wharton’s header in the 82nd minute put the visitors 2-1 up at the CBS Arena, a vital victory considering their recent form and loss against relegation battlers Reading before the international break.

However, Viktor Gyokeres’ strike in the ninth minute of stoppage time stole a point for the hosts in yet another late home strike for the Sky Blues, keeping them in the promotion mix and dealing Mowbray’s men a fresh setback.

Blackburn remain in sixth place – but have played three more games than Nottingham Forest who currently sit just one point behind them in seventh with Steve Cooper’s men establishing themselves as genuine promotion contenders over the course of the season.

Eight-placed outfit Sheffield United will also go above the Lancashire club if they win their game in hand, transforming Rovers from top-six favourites to outsiders if the duo make the most of their extra matches.

However, they still have some reasonably favourable fixtures coming up and Mowbray is confident they can remain within the promotion mix when the campaign comes to an end.

He said: “We just have to win three or four games [to get into the play-offs], and I’m pretty sure we will.

“If we can keep the strikers available and fit we can score goals and we know we can defend well.”

The Verdict:

They can still recover – but they are under an enormous amount of pressure to win a top-six place now after spending the majority of the campaign competing at the top end of the table.

It