Stoke brace sees off dismal Rovers

IF Blackburn’s new Indian owners had hoped to bring stability to the club by announcing that caretaker manager Steve Kean will remain in charge until the end of the season, it has not worked.

Blackburn’s followers voiced their displeasure after Rovers reached the midway point of a season, which has been thrown into turmoil by Sam Allardyce’s sacking, with a terrible defeat at Ewood Park.

Kean’s reign is only two games old, yet the Scot has now presided over one defeat and one draw — both at home — ahead of back-to-back away games at West Brom and Sunderland.

If the unexpected removal of Allardyce by Venky’s, the owners, was meant to aid the Lancashire club, there has been little sign of any improvement so far.

Indeed, Blackburn appear to be going backwards not forwards. They are now closer to the relegation zone than a European spot and there has been little evidence in the last 180 minutes that they will be climbing the table any time soon.

This was as poor a performance as Rovers fans have witnessed from their team for a long time. Allardyce’s style might not have pleased everyone but Rovers were at least able to grind out results.

Kean confirmed after the game that Christopher Samba has been stripped of the captaincy after expressing his desire to leave.

“Samba would have played, but he failed a fitness test,” Kean said. “He wouldn’t have been captain because he’s looking to possibly get away from here, so until he can come back and say he’s happy to stay, then Ryan Nelsen will be leading the club.”

This was a poor advert for the Premier League, and it was Stoke who eventually showed a desire to win and a work rate that saw them claim all three points.

Stoke defender Danny Higginbotham has added his voice to a growing list of people asking for a winter break after being left frustrated by a lack of training since the cold snap began. Yet a lack of training was no excuse for the abysmal opening 45 minutes these two teams served up.

Blackburn were handicapped by the absence of several key players - Samba, Jason Roberts and Steven N’Zonzi among those missing - but the hosts failed to test visiting keeper Asmir Begovic once before half time, Brett Emerton’s 15-yard effort the closest they came to breaking the deadlock in the 19th minute.

By then Kean’s side should have been trailing after an astonishing miss by Matthew Etherington. A long throw by Rory Delap was flicked into Etherington’s path by Ryan Shawcross, but with the goal at his mercy, the unmarked midfielder missed the target from close range.

Fortunately, Etherington recovered to play a key role in Robert Huth’s fourth goal of the season.

More schoolboy defending allowed Stoke’s German defender to beat Mame Biram Diouf in the air and power Etherington’s 51st corner beyond Paul Robinson.

It would have been 2-0 but for an outstanding save by Robinson to keep out Kenwyne Jones’s 67th minute header after Jermaine Pennant had whipped in a dangerous cross.

With Diouf and Nikola Kalinic failing to cause problems, there was no way back for Rovers. Indeed it was teenager Grant Hanley, making his first Ewood Park league start, who forced Begovic into his best save.

But Blackburn’s miserable day was complete when Gael Givet’s error allowed Ricardo Fuller to whip in a cross for substitute Marc Wilson to fire into the bottom corner in stoppage time.

“I can understand the frustration of the fans,” added Kean. “Everyone’s under pressure when you lose games. You just have to try and move forward, and I just hope the fans can see that the lads are positive.”

Stoke’s first win since November 20 has catapulted Tony Pulis’s side up to eighth in the table ahead of home games against Fulham and Everton over the new few days.

“Usually when a new manager takes over their results start to pick up, so you don’t know whether this is a good time to play them or not,” Pulis said.

“We created a lot of chances and the disappointing thing at half time was that it was 0-0. But I thought we stepped up a bit in the second half.”