The 2014–15 season was Blackburn Rovers 127th season as a professional football club and its third playing in the Football League Championship since the club's relegation during the 2011–12 Premier League season. Manager Gary Bowyer, in his second full season in charge, led the club to a 9th-place finish in The Championship and to the FA Cup quarter-finals.
Summer activity
On 7 May, Tommy Spurr signed a new contract keeping him at Blackburn Rovers until the summer of 2016.
On 16 May, Leeds United confirmed that Luke Varney had been released. Varney had been on loan at Rovers from 8 February 2014 until 11 May 2014 with a view to a permanent move.
On 19 May, it was confirmed that Liam Feeney, who ended the 2013–14 campaign on loan at Blackburn Rovers following six appearances, would join Bolton Wanderers when his contract at fellow Championship club Millwall expired in the summer.
On 21 May, it was reported that a £300,000 investment had been made in order to replicate the high standards of Ewood Park's surface last season in preparation for the new campaign. The substantial outlay, sanctioned by the owners, also covered the cost of new machinery and an irrigation upgrade on the sprinkler system at the Academy.
On 24 May, Blackburn Rovers announced that Leon Best, D.J. Campbell, Dickson Etuhu, David Goodwillie, Alex Marrow, and Jordan Slew had been placed on the transfer list.
On 26 May, Blackburn Rovers announced one of the best-value season ticket deals in the country for the forthcoming campaign, along with the return of the Premier League Pledge. So, should Rovers achieve promotion in May 2015, then season ticket holders will be able to purchase a 2015–16 season ticket in the top flight for just 25% of the Championship price.
On 27 May, Gary Bowyer stated that he wanted to sign Manchester United defender Michael Keane on a permanent basis after a successful loan spell with Rovers.
On 2 June, following a successful loan spell and 22 appearances for Brentford in the 2013–14 season, Alan Judge returned to Griffin Park permanently, putting pen-to-paper on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee.
On 20 June, David Goodwillie departed the club by mutual agreement.
On 23 June, Rovers made their first signing of the summer with the capture of Chris Brown from Doncaster.
On 30 June, midfielder John O'Sullivan announced he had signed a new contract with the club with a one-year extension. The 20-year-old, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Southport, took to Twitter to announce he has penned fresh terms.
On 1 July, following the expiration of his Leeds contract, Varney signed a one-year permanent deal with Blackburn.
On 1 July, Dickson Etuhu and DJ Campbell departed the club by mutual agreement.
Also on 1 July, it was announced that a number of young prospects had put pen to paper on new deals at the football club. Jack O'Connell, who had been on loan with Rochdale during a season in which they clinched promotion from League Two, signed a new two-year deal that sees him contacted to Rovers until the summer of 2016. Fellow youth graduates Bradley Bauress, Kellen Daly, and Darragh Lenihan all signed one-year extensions, whilst Academy forward Modou Cham signed a two-year professional contract. Finally Midfielder David Carson officially arrived at Rovers following a successful trial during the previous season. The 18-year-old joined on a one-year deal.
Again on 1 July, it was reported that eighteen-year-old striker Devarn Green had signed terms on a two-year professional deal.
On 10 July, it was confirmed that Josh Morris would link up with Fleetwood Town once more on a six-month loan deal until 3 January 2015.
On 10 July, Jordan Rhodes signed a two-year extension to his existing deal, committing his future to Rovers for the next five years until the summer of 2019.
On 11 July, David Dunn and Markus Olsson re-signed on new one-year deals after their contracts expired.
Also on 11 July, Alex Baptiste became the third player to sign on a busy day of transfer activity at Ewood Park, the defender joined on a season long loan deal from Bolton Wanderers.
On 14 July, Blackburn Rovers announced Zebra Claims Limited as their main sponsor.
On 15 July, Alex Marrow was released by Rovers by mutual consent.
On 4 August, Leon Best joined Derby County on a season-long loan deal.
Also on 4 August, Anthony O'Connor joined Plymouth Argyle on loan until the turn of the year.
On 5 August, Rubén Rochina returned to his homeland by completing a move to Granada CF.
On 22 August, The owners Venky's block a final £10 million+ bid from Hull City, putting an end to news of Rhodes' on-off move to Hull City.
On 31 August, deadline-day for summer transfers, Rovers signed defender Shane Duffy on a permanent deal from Everton (worth around £400,000 plus add-ons). Rovers also agreed to season-long loan deals for Middlesbrough goalkeeper Jason Steele and Fulham midfielder Ryan Tunnicliffe.
New Year Activity On 1 January, Jason Steele signed a permanent 3.5 year deal at Rovers after a successful loan from Middlesbrough.
On 1 January, Ryan Tunnicliffe recalled early by Fulham boss Kit Symons after a season-long loan deal was cut short.
On 6 January, Leon Best's season-long loan deal was cancelled by Derby County after failing to impress boss Steve McClaren.
On 8 January, Josh Morris re-joined Fleetwood Town on loan for the remainder of the season.
On 10 January, Marcus Olsson has contract extended until summer of 2016 on account of the defender's impressive start to the season.
On 17 January, Rudy Gestede was left out of squad for away game against Wigan Athletic, as talks with an unnamed premier league club were still ongoing with Rovers over the topscorer.
On 19 January, it was announced later that Crystal Palace were the club that had officially placed a bid for the striker Rudy Gestede, supposedly worth £3.5m.
On 20 January, Leon Best is signed on loan by Brighton for the remainder of the season.
On 30 January, Jake Kean joined Oldham Athletic on loan until the end of the season.
Also on 30 January, Jay Spearing signed for Rovers on loan, the midfielder joined from Bolton Wanderers until the end of May.
On 2 February, Jordan Slew left the club after his contract was terminated, whilst Jack O'Connell and Anthony O'Connor joined Brentford and Plymouth respectively on deadline day.
Pre-season friendlies Blackburn Rovers kicked off their pre-season campaign against newly promoted Conference side Telford United. Rovers then flew off to Portugal for a week of warm-weather training. On their return Rovers faced Accrington Stanley and Bury (of League Two) and Bradford City of League One. Pre-season ended with friendly at home against Premier League club Stoke City managed by ex-Rover Mark Hughes.
Sky Bet Championship League table
Fixtures
Blackburn Rovers 2014–15 Championship season opener with Cardiff City moved a day forward to Friday 8 August for live TV coverage.
August
September
October
November
December
January
February
March
April
May
Results
FA Cup
Rovers entered the FA Cup in the Third Round Proper which commenced on Saturday 3 January 2015.
Football League Cup
The first round draw of the 2014-15 Football League Cup took place on Tuesday 17 June at 10:00am.
Rovers hosted Scunthorpe United in the first round.
Club Staff
Technical Staff
Medical Staff
Squad statistics Appearances and goals
|colspan="14"|Players out on loan:
|colspan="14"|Players that played for Blackburn Rovers this season that have left the club:
Goalscorers
RankNo.Pos.NameLeagueFA CupLeague CupTotal139FW Rudy Gestede202022211FW Jordan Rhodes210021312MF Ben Marshall600647FW Josh King1304=19MF Chris Taylor1304=32MF Craig Conway3104715DF Alex Baptiste3003=10MF Tom Cairney300395DF Grant Hanley1001=25MF Ryan Tunnicliffe1001=22DF Shane Duffy1001=29MF Corry Evans1001=2DF Adam Henley1001=25MF Jay Spearing1001=4DF Matthew Kilgallon1001Total0
Assists
RankNo.Pos.NameLeagueFA CupLeague CupTotal132MF Craig Conway101011210MF Tom Cairney6208312MF Ben Marshall7007439FW Rudy Gestede4206514DF Marcus Olsson4105611FW Jordan Rhodes4004=9FW Chris Brown3104822DF Shane Duffy1102917MF Lee Williamson1001=19MF Chris Taylor1001=2DF Adam Henley1001=23DF Doneil Henry1001——— No assist221017Total659074
Disciplinary record
No.Pos.NameChampionshipFA CupLeague CupTotal 1 GK Paul Robinson 10000001006MF Jason Lowe 20000002007MF Josh King 100001020012MF Ben Marshall 400000040014MF Marcus Olsson 300000030016FW Luke Varney 200001030017MF Lee Williamson 600201090019MF Chris Taylor 100000010029MF Corry Evans 11002000130039FW Rudy Gestede 300000030010MF Tom Cairney 51030008105DF Grant Hanley 500000050022DF Shane Duffy 50010006004DF Matthew Kilgallon 310100041025MF Ryan Tunnicliffe 200000020015DF Alex Baptiste 200000020032MF Craig Conway 200000020025MF Jay Spearing 30000003003DF Tommy Spurr 10000001002DF Adam Henley 20000002009FW Chris Brown 200000020023DF Doneil Henry 100000010030GK Jason Steele 100000010023DF Paul Taylor 100000010011FW Jordan Rhodes 100000010026MF Darragh Lenihan 1000000100Total712090308320
Suspensions served Date Missed Player Reason Opponent Missed 30 Sep 1 Corry Evans 5 Huddersfield Town 21 Oct 1 Matthew Kilgallon Birmingham City 22 Nov 1 Tom Cairney Middlesbrough 26 Dec 2 Corry Evans 10 Middlesbrough, Charlton Athletic(FA Cup)
Transfers Summer In DatePos.NameFromFeeSource 23 June 2014 FW Chris Brown Doncaster Rovers Free Transfer 1 July 2014 FW Luke Varney Leeds United Free Transfer 1 September 2014 DF Shane Duffy Everton Undisclosed (est ~£400,000 + add-ons) Total spent ~ Undisclosed (~ £400,000+)
Youth DatePos.NameFromFeeSource 1 July 2014 MF David Carson Ashington Undisclosed Fee 27 August 2014 GK Ryan Crump Liverpool Free 16 October 2014 DF Sam Jones Unattached Free 19 December 2014 DF Connor Thomson Carlisle United Free
Out DatePos.NameToFeeSource 16 May 2014 DF Will Beesley Southport Released 16 May 2014 MF Robbie Cotton Sheffield Released 16 May 2014 DF Ryan Edwards Morecambe Released 16 May 2014 MF Hugo Fernandez Free agent Released 16 May 2014 MF Timothy Payne Auckland City Released 16 May 2014 FW Deniz Pero Bucaspor Released 16 May 2014 GK Matthew Urwin Bradford City Released 2 June 2014 MF Alan Judge Brentford £350,000 20 June 2014 FW David Goodwillie Aberdeen Mutual Consent 1 July 2014 MF Dickson Etuhu AIK Mutual Consent 1 July 2014 FW DJ Campbell Maidenhead United Mutual Consent 15 July 2014 MF Alex Marrow Carlisle United Mutual Consent 5 August 2014 FW Rubén Rochina Granada Undisclosed Total sold £350,000 + undisclosed fees
Loan In DatePos.NameFromLoan lengthSource 11 July 2014 DF Alex Baptiste Bolton Wanderers Season-Long Loan 1 September 2014 GK Jason Steele Middlesbrough Season-Long Loan 1 September 2014 MF Ryan Tunnicliffe Fulham Season-Long Loan (recalled)
Loan Out DatePos.NameToLoan lengthSource 10 July 2014 MF Josh Morris Fleetwood Town 6 Month Loan (3 January 2015) (Extended) 4 August 2014 FW Leon Best Derby County Season-Long Loan (Sent Back) 4 August 2014 DF Anthony O'Connor Plymouth Argyle 5 Month Loan (10 January 2015) 29 August 2014 FW Jordan Slew Port Vale 4 Month Loan (3 January 2015) 1 September 2014 DF Jack O'Connell Rochdale 4 Month Loan (6 January 2015) 15 September 2014 GK Jake Kean Yeovil Town 1 Month Loan (12 October 2014) 19 September 2014 GK David Raya Southport 1 Month Loan (18 October 2014) (Extended) 19 September 2014 MF John O'Sullivan Accrington Stanley 1 Month Loan (18 October 2014) (Extended) 21 October 2014 MF Darragh Lenihan Burton Albion 1 Month Loan (22 November 2014) (Extended)
Winter In DatePos.NameFromFeeSource 1 January 2015 GK Jason Steele Middlesbrough Undisclosed (est £100,000) Total spent ~ Undisclosed (~ £100,000+)
Out