Ball practice pays off for Blackburn

PRACTICE invariably makes perfect and a week spent working with a new ball reaped rich rewards for Blackburn Rovers yesterday.

Booking their place in the fourth round of the FA Cup with a display crammed full of endeavour, manager Mark Hughes revealed that most of his side’s preparations for their third round clash with Everton involved getting used to the competition’s ball of choice.

Lighter than the one used in the Premiership, Hughes had urged Blackburn’s forwards to shoot on sight at Goodison Park but even he would have been taken aback by events in the first 20 minutes of this encounter which saw them establish an unassailable lead.