Blackburn Rovers 0-0 Ipswich Town - Half-Time Saturday, 20th Sep 2025 15:57 The Blues’ game at Blackburn Rovers remains 0-0 at half-time at a very rainy Ewood Park. Town named the same XI that started last week’s 5-0 hammering of Sheffield United with the only switch of personnel in the 20-man squad Ashley Young, who missed the Blades game with a muscle strain, replacing Ben Johnson on the bench. Alex Palmer was in goal behind a back four of Darnell Furlong, skipper Dara O’Shea, Jacob Greaves and Leif Davis. Azor Matusiwa and Jens Cajuste were the midfield pairing behind Kasey McAteer, Chuba Akpom and hat-trick hero Jaden Philogene. Former Rovers loanee George Hirst started as the number nine. Sammie Szmodics, who joined the Blues after an impressive two years at Ewood Park, and another one-time Blackburn loanee, Christian Walton, were among the Town subs. For the Lancastrians, Australian international right-back Lewis Miller came in for Hayden Carter, who had picked up a knock. Rovers were forced into a late change with Taylor Gardner-Hickman replacing Sidnei Tavares, who picked up an injury in the warm-up. No one was added to the bench. Defender Sean McLoughlin was back on the bench following a suspension for a red card against Norwich. The Blues officially unveiled their previously leaked third kit ahead of kick-off, a grey strip with a light blue trim, which is available from Planet Blue now. With the game being played in persistent rain and standing water in areas of the pitch slowing the ball down, Town keeper Palmer was forced into the game’s first save in the fourth minute, Miller’s long throw bouncing awkwardly, the Blues number one having to back-pedal and tip over from under his bar. The Blues created their first chance in the ninth minute via a slick move down the right. Hirst swept the ball wide to the right and McAteer sent a low cross towards the edge of the area from where Philogene hit a low first-time effort through to Balasz Toth in the Rovers goal. Moments later, Hirst was shown the first yellow card of the game for a challenge on Yuri Ribeiro. The Scotland international looked aggrieved and with good cause having won the ball. As the game moved towards the quarter hour, having been a scrappy affair largely due to the sodden conditions, Cajuste was fed in on the left of the box but Toth dived low to claim his ball across the six-yard box. On 16, some sloppy passing on the Town left allowed Ryoya Morishita a run towards the area, the Japanese international’s shot hitting Greaves’s toe before Palmer saved down to his left and then claimed the loose ball ahead of Rovers captain and ex-Norwich man Todd Cantwell, who had been booed by the Blues support behind that goal. A minute later, Gardner-Hickman was booked for hauling back Matusiwa on the Town right, the referee potentially making a rod for his own back with the early bookings given the conditions. In the 27th minute, with the Blues not always finding it easy to play their football on the slow pitch, Philogene cut in from the left and hit a shot wide. Soon after at the other end, Akpom slid in to make a superb block after the ball had fallen to Gardner-Hickman on the edge of the box. On 35, Ryan Alebiosu flighted a cross from the right just beyond Ryan Hedges at the far post. A minute later, Hirst will feel he should have given the Blues the lead against his old club. O’Shea played a great defence-splitting pass from deep to the right of the box. The Town striker was through one-on-one but Toth was quickly off his line to block. Hirst’s effort had been from a relatively tight angle but he will still feel he ought to have been celebrating his third goal of the season. Cantwell volleyed over after a long throw from the right had been cleared on 43 with conditions continuing to have an impact on the quality of the game. Just before an additional one minute was announced, the Blues added a bit of tempo their approach play, Davis cutting in from the left before hitting a left-foot shot which Toth batted away. Town kept the ball in the final third and eventually Matusiwa hit an effort over from an angle on the right, the Dutchman clearly feeling he might have done better with his strike. The players left the field with the rain continuing to fall steadily with the wet pitch having had a major effect on proceedings. Town had tried their best to pass the ball around on the slow pitch but not always effectively with Blackburn’s best moments coming after they had seized on Blues errors. The best chance of the half was Hirst’s with Palmer having saved a couple of efforts from distance at the other end. As was the case with this fixture two years ago in similar conditions, it may well be that one goal proves enough to settle it one way or the other. Blackburn: Toth, Alebiosu, Miller, Wharton, Ribeiro, Gardner-Hickman, Tronstad, Hedges, Cantwell (c), Morishita, Ohashi. Subs: Pears, Pickering, Kargbo, Gueye, Gudjohnsen, De Neve, McLoughlin, Montgomery. Town: Palmer, Furlong, O’Shea (c), Greaves, Davis, Matusiwa, Cajuste, McAteer, Akpom, Philogene, Hirst. Subs: Walton, Kipre, Young, Taylor, Nunez, Szmodics, Walle Egeli, J Clarke, Azon. Referee: Stephen Martin (Staffordshire).
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