Blackburn Rovers' 2017/18 season
League Position: 2nd (Sky Bet League One)
Average league attendance: 12,832
Top league goalscorer: Bradley Dack (18)
Relegated at Griffin Park 12 months previously, a 1-0 victory over Doncaster Rovers in late April returned Blackburn to the second tier and capped off an impressive season for Tony Mowbray's men.
It was a summer of big change following relegation with 27 players coming and going as Mowbray shaped his squad for the League One campaign ahead. Among those to arrive were Bradley Dack and Richie Smallwood, both of whom would go on to have a huge say in Rovers' promotion push.
After a slow start to the season which yielded just six wins from their first 12 games, Rovers really got going in October, embarking on an 18-match unbeaten run which took them into the top two by late January.
Defeat to Plymouth Argyle proved just a temporary blip as another 14 match run without defeat saw Rovers earn promotion at the first time of asking. A 1-0 loss at Charlton Athletic on the penultimate day of the season, only their second since mid-October handed the title to Wigan Athletic but it was very much a case of job done for the Lancashire side.
The Ground
Ewood Park
Miles from Brentford: 225 miles
Capacity: 31,367
Address: Nuttall Street, Blackburn BB2 4JF
Directions to Ewood Park
The Manager
Tony Mowbray became Rovers ninth manager in four-and-a-half seasons when he took over at Ewood Park in February 2017. As a player Mowbray is best remembered for his decade-long stay at home-town club Middlesbrough, captaining The Teesiders from the brink of liquidation to the top tier of English football in the late 1980's. Mowbray moved to Celtic in 1991 and spent four seasons at Parkhead before finishing his career at Ipswich Town, where he won promotion to the Premier League in 2000 shortly before his retirement.
Mowbray began his managerial career with a brief stint at Portman Road before spells with Hibs, West Bromwich Albion, Celtic, Middlesbrough, and Coventry City. Before promotion with Rovers last season, his only previous managerial honour came guiding West Brom back to the Premier League in 2008.
The Key Man
Bradley Dack - 2017/18: 45 appearances, 18 goals
Bradley's performances last season saw him earn a second League One Player of the Year title, and second EFL Team of the Season inclusion, in three years as he masterminded Rovers' return to the second tier. The 24-year-old summer arrival from Gillingham led Rovers' scoring charts with 18 and also topped the assists chart with nine as he became an instant fans favourite at Ewood Park.
Last Time
Head to Head
Brentford wins: 12
Draws: 4
Blackburn Rovers wins: 17
2018/19 Odds with Leo Vegas Sport UK
Championship Winners: 30/1
Promotion 15/2
Odds correct at time of writing.
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