The 2017–18 season was Blackburn Rovers' 130th season as a professional football club and its first playing in the League One following its relegation from the Championship the previous season. Along with competing in the League One, the club also participated in the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

EFL Cup The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...

and

EFL Trophy The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Le ...

. Thanks to a 0–1 win against Doncaster Rovers on 24 April, Blackburn were promoted to the Championship. The season covers the period from 1 July 2017 to 30 June 2018.

Summer Activity

May

On 8 May Rovers announced Paul Senior has resigned from his role as Director of Football & Operations. On 16 May Rovers owners Venky's have brought in accountancy firms Deloitte and KPMG to carry out an overview of the club. On 18 May Rovers announced their retained list:

Adam Henley Adam David Henley (born 14 June 1994) is a professional footballer who plays as a defender for National League North club Chorley. He primarily operates as a right-back, but can also be deployed at left-back. Born in the United States and rai ...

Gordon Greer Gordon Greer (born 14 December 1980) is a Scottish former professional footballer who played as a defender. Greer played for Clyde, Blackburn Rovers (two spells), Stockport County, Kilmarnock (two spells), Doncaster Rovers, Swindon Town and Br ...

, Jason Lowe,

Hope Akpan Hope Ini Ita Akpan (born 14 August 1991) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Widnes. He came through the youth ranks at Everton, making his first-team debut in 2009. He later played for Hull City (on loan), Crawley Town ...

Danny Guthrie Danny Sean Guthrie (born 18 April 1987) is an unattached English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder, who last played for Fram in Iceland. He has made more than 200 appearances in the Premier League and Football League and repres ...

, Wes Brown, Ramirez Howarth and Joshua Askew have not been offered further terms. The following academy scholars will not be retained: Ben Ascroft, Alex Curran,

Mason Fawns Mason Fawns (born 10 January 1999) is an English semi-professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Mossley AFC. He previously played professionally in the English Football League for Oldham Athletic. Playing career Fawns joined the you ...

, Callum Hendry, Matthew Makinson, Tre Pemberton, Joel Steer and Ben Williams with non-contracted player Joshua Powell also released. The club also announced that new contract offers had been made to

Connor Mahoney Connor Anthony Mahoney (born 12 February 1997) is an English professional footballer who plays as a winger for EFL Championship side Huddersfield Town. He played for Accrington Stanley and Blackburn Rovers before joining AFC Bournemouth in 2017 ...

and

Lewis Travis Lewis Travis (born 16 October 1997) is an English professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for EFL Championship club Ipswich Town, on loan from EFL Championship club Blackburn Rovers. Youth career Having come through the r ...

. Whilst professional contract offers have been made to youngsters Charley Doyle,

Joe Grayson Joseph Nicholas Grayson (born 26 March 1999) is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender and midfielder who plays for Gateshead. Having come through the youth academy at Blackburn Rovers, he spent time on loan with Grimsby To ...

Tyler Magloire Tyler Jordan Magloire (born 21 December 1998) is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender for Northampton Town. Career Blackburn Rovers Magloire made his Rovers academy debut in the 2014–15 season. He progressed through the ...

and Stefan Mols.

June

On 2 June Rovers announced

Mark Venus Mark Venus (born 6 April 1967) is an English football coach and former player. He works as assistant head coach of Sunderland. As a player, he spent the majority of his career with Wolverhampton Wanderers and Ipswich Town. As a coach, he has s ...

had joined as the club's Assistant Manager. On 8 June Rovers confirmed Tony Mowbray's backroom staff after the appointment of

, David Lowe will take up the role as first team coach, David Dunn will revert to his role as assistant coach of the under 23s & Ben Benson will remain as goalkeeping coach. On 9 June Rovers announced Tony Mowbray has committed his long-term future to the club signing a new 2-year contract with the option of a further 12 months. On 13 June Rovers announced the signing of midfielder

Peter Whittingham Peter Michael Whittingham (; 8 September 1984 – 18 March 2020) was an English professional footballer. His primary position was as a central midfielder, although he operated as a winger on both the left and right, as well as a second-striker ...

on a free from

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...

. The 32-year-old, became manager Tony Mowbray's first signing, putting pen-to-paper on a two-year deal at Ewood Park, which runs through to the summer of 2019. On 14 June Rovers announced promising young defender

has signed a new 1-year deal. On 16 June Rovers were drawn against

Coventry City Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, Championship, the second tier of the English footbal ...

at the Ricoh Arena in First Round of the

, Tony Mowbray old club. On 17 June Rovers announced three of Rovers rising stars midfielders

and Stefan Mols and defender Charley Doyle had all signed their first professional contracts, signing two-year deals. On 20 June Rovers announced the signing of midfielder Richie Smallwood on a free from Rotherham United, putting pen-to-paper on a two-year deal with the option of a further year. On 26 June Rovers announced that another rising star, defender

, has signed his first professional contract, signing a two-year deal. On 26 June Rovers announced that first team coach David Lowe has pledged his commitment to the club by putting pen-to-paper on a new long-term contract. On 27 June Rovers announced the signing of attacking midfielder

Bradley Dack Bradley Paul Dack (born 31 December 1993) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Blackburn Rovers. He will leave the club at the end of June 2023. Early life Dack was born in the London Borough of Greenwich, and att ...

from Gillingham for a reported £750,000 plus add-ons, on a 3-year deal. On 28 June Rovers announced the signing of midfielder

Ben Gladwin Benjamin Thomas Charles Gladwin (born 8 June 1992) is an English footballer who plays as a midfielder for League Two club Crawley Town. Gladwin has played for 11 clubs including Swindon Town (three previous spells), Queens Park Rangers, Blackbu ...

from Queens Park Rangers for an undisclosed fee, on a 2-year deal. On 29 June Rovers commenced pre-season training.

July

On 4 July

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...

announced the signing of midfielder

on a 4-year deal after rejecting a new contract at Rovers, compensation to be agreed. On 11 July Rovers announced that Eric Kinder has left his position as the club's Head of Academy. On 18 July Rovers announced rising stars will continue to compete at the highest level of youth football after the club confirmed it will remain a Category One Academy. On 18 July Burton Albion announced the signing of midfielder

on a 1-year deal following his release from Rovers. On 19 July Rovers announced the signing of striker Dominic Samuel from

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

for an undisclosed fee, on a 3-year deal. On 20 July Rovers announced the signing of defender

Paul Caddis Paul McLean Caddis (born 19 April 1988) is a Scottish football coach and former professional footballer who played in more than 350 professional matches at club level and represented his country at youth and senior levels. Having predominantly ...

following a successful trial at the club on a 2-year deal, he was a free agent following his release from

Bury Bury may refer to: *The burial of human remains *-bury, a suffix in English placenames Places England * Bury, Cambridgeshire, a village * Bury, Greater Manchester, a town, historically in Lancashire ** Bury (UK Parliament constituency) (1832–19 ...

. On 21 July Rovers announced the departure of striker

Anthony Stokes Anthony Christopher Stokes (born 25 July 1988) is an Irish professional footballer, who plays as a striker. He was also an Irish international, having played at the under-21, team B and Republic of Ireland national football team. He began hi ...

by mutual consent. On 21 July Rovers announced that defender

Ryan Nyambe Ryan Nyambe (born 4 December 1997) is a Namibian professional footballer who plays as a defender for EFL Championship side Wigan Athletic. He previously played for Blackburn Rovers, making over 150 first team appearances for the club, and is al ...

had signed a new long term contract, signing a 3-year deal, with the option of a further 12 months. On 22 July Rovers announced the signing of striker Joe Nuttall following a successful trial scoring 5 goals in 2 games for the u23s, on a 12-month deal with option of a further 12 months, he was a free agent following his release from

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

. On 24 July Rovers announced the appointment of Stuart Jones as Head of Academy, he joined as the Academy as Head of Education in 2011, before moving up to the role of Head of Academy Operations four years later. On 26 July Rovers announced Jason Steele has joined

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...

for an undisclosed fee. On 31 July

Kilmarnock Kilmarnock (, sco, Kilmaurnock; gd, Cill Mheàrnaig (IPA: ʰʲɪʎˈveaːɾnəkʲ, "Marnock's church") is a large town and former burgh in East Ayrshire, Scotland and is the administrative centre of East Ayrshire, East Ayrshire Council. ...

announced the signing of defender

following his release from Rovers. On 31 July Rovers announced Goalkeeping Coach Ben Benson has signed a new long term deal at the club.

August

On 2 August Rovers announced the signing of

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

International Goalkeeper Jayson Leutwiler from Shrewsbury Town on a 2-year deal for an undisclosed fee. On 2 August Hibernian announced the signing of striker

on a 2-year deal following his release from Rovers. On 4 August Rovers announced the signing of midfielder Harry Chapman on loan for the season from

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

. On 11 August Rovers announced the signing of forward Marcus Antonsson on loan for the season from Leeds United. On 14 August Rovers announced the appointment of

Tony Carss Anthony John Carss (born 31 March 1976) is an English football coach and former professional player, who currently works for Aston Villa Academy as Emerging Talent Programme Manager. Carss started his career with Blackburn Rovers, and went on t ...

as the academy's Head of Coaching. On 15 August Kerala Blasters announced the signing of Wes Brown for the upcoming

Indian Super League The Indian Super League (ISL) is an Indian professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the Indian football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Organised by the All India Football Federat ...

season, following his release from Rovers. On 31 August

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Since 2011, the first te ...

announced the signing of Jason Lowe on a 12-month contract following his release from Rovers. On 31 August Rovers announced the signings of midfielder

Rekeem Harper Rekeem Jordan Harper (born 8 March 2000) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Burton Albion. A product of West Bromwich Albion's academy, Harper made his first appearance for the club in August 2017 and later spen ...

on loan for the season from West Brom, defender

Sam Hart Samuel James Hart (born 10 September 1996) is an English professional footballer who plays as a left-back for club Sutton United. He began his career at Liverpool, where he made his first-team debut in a pre-season friendly in August 2016. He ...

from

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

on a 2-year deal for an Undisclosed fee and defender

Paul Downing Paul Milton Downing (November 27, 1873 – December 11, 1944) was an American college football player and coach. He played at Stanford University and was the head coach at Oregon Agricultural College (today's Oregon State University). While a ...

on loan for a season from Milton Keynes Dons. It was also announced that midfielder

Liam Feeney Liam Michael Feeney-Howard (born 21 January 1987) is an English footballer who plays as a midfielder for National League North team Scunthorpe United. He became a free agent on 30 June 2023. Career Early career Feeney joined League One side So ...

has gone out on loan to

until 1 January 2018.

September

On 11 September Rovers announced that defender Scott Wharton had signed a new 3-year contract.

October

On 5 October Rovers announced that striker Daniel Butterworth had signed his 1st professional contract, a 2-year deal. On 5 October Rovers announced that midfielder Elliott Bennett had signed a new 2-year contract.

November

On 3 November Rovers announced that midfielder Willem Tomlinson had signed a new & extended contract until 2019. On 13 November Rovers announced that goalkeeper Andy Fisher had signed a new & extended contract until 2019. On 28 November Rovers announced that midfielder Lewis Hardcastle had signed a new & extended contract until 2019.

December

On 18 December Rovers announced that defender Matthew Platt had signed a new & extended contract until 2019. On 18 December Rovers announced the appointment of Steve Waggott as the club's new chief executive.

Winter Activity

January

On 2 January Rovers announced West Brom have recalled

from his loan spell. On 5 January Rovers announced that midfielder

will remain on loan at

until the end of the season. On 8 January Rovers announced that defender

has signed permanently from Milton Keynes Dons following his loan spell for an undisclosed fee. On 9 January Rovers announced that striker Adam Armstrong has joined on loan for the remainder of the season from

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...

. On 16 January Rovers announced that attacking midfielder Jack Payne has joined on loan for the remainder of the season from Huddersfield Town. On 17 January Rovers announced that defender

has joined

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...

on loan for the remainder of the season. On 18 January Rovers announced that striker Joe Nuttall has signed a new 3 a half year deal, until 2021. On 19 January Rovers announced the signing of defender

Amari'i Bell Amari'i Kyren Bell (born 5 May 1994) is a professional footballer who plays as a left back for club Luton Town and the Jamaica national team. Bell joined Birmingham City's Academy in 2011 and turned professional the following year. He spent ...

from

Fleetwood Town Fleetwood Town Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Fleetwood, Lancashire. Established in 1997, the current Fleetwood Town F.C. is the fourth incarnation of the club; it was originally formed in ...

for an undisclosed fee on a 2 and half year contract. On 26 January Rovers announced that midfielder John Buckley had signed his 1st professional contract, until 2020. On 30 January Rovers announced that defender

Elliott Ward Elliott Leslie Ward (born 19 January 1985) is a retired English professional footballer who played as a defender. He played in the Premier League for West Ham United and Norwich City. Playing career West Ham United Ward was born in Harrow, ...

has joined Milton Keynes Dons on loan for the remainder of the season. On 31 January Rovers announced that the club has agreed to terminate the contract of young midfielder Connor Thomson by mutual consent, young center-back Scott Wharton has joined Lincoln City on loan until the end of the season, academy midfielder Callum Wright has joined Leicester City for an undisclosed fee.

February

On 1 February Rovers announced that goalkeeper

David Raya David Raya Martín (; born 15 September 1995) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Arsenal, on loan from Brentford, and the Spain national team. Raya began his senior career in England with Blackburn Rove ...

has signed a new 3 a half year deal, until 2021. On 2 February Rovers announced that young versatile midfielder

has signed a new 3 a half year deal, until 2021. On 7 February Rovers announced that midfielder Jack Evans had signed his 1st professional contract, until 2020. On 14 February Rovers announced the signing of highly rated young forward Okera Simmonds from

on a 1 and half year contract & will link up with the u23s squad. On 16 February Rovers announced that defender Hayden Carter had signed his 1st professional contract, until 2020. On 14 February Rovers announced the signing of goalkeeper Oliver Byrne who was recently with

on a 1 and half year contract & will link up with the u23s squad. On 22 February Rovers announced that defender Jack Doyle has joined

Derry City Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

on loan for the remainder of the season.

March

On 3 March Rovers announced that young Canadian midfielder Ben Paton had signed his 1st professional contract, until 2019. On 16 March Rovers announced that young attacking midfielder Jack Vale had signed his 1st professional contract, until 2020. On 20 March Rovers announced that young defender Lewis Thompson had signed his 1st professional contract, until 2019.

April

On 3 April Rovers trio

Charlie Mulgrew Charles Patrick Mulgrew (born 6 March 1986) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Scottish Premiership side Dundee United. Mulgrew began his career at Celtic, during which time he spent time on loan at Dundee U ...

have all been included in the

EFL League One The English Football League One (often referred to as League One for short or Sky Bet League One for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League One from 2004 until 2016) is the second-highest division of the English Football Leag ...

Team of the Year. On 15 April Rovers star

has been named as the League One Player of the Year. On 18 April Rovers players

Danny Graham Daniel Graham (born 1978) is an American football player. Daniel Graham may also refer to: * Bob Graham (born 1936), Daniel Robert Graham, American politician *Daniel O. Graham (1926–1995), American general and political activist *Danny Graham ( ...

were announced in the PFA League One Team of the Year. On 20 April Rovers U23 were crowned champions of the Premier League 2 Division 2. On 24 April Rovers won promotion back to the Championship, following a 1–0 at Doncaster Rovers.

May

On 5 May Rovers announced

as the Player of the Season, he also won Goal of the Season with his goal against Peterborough. On 7 May Rovers held their end of season awards the winners follow: Young Player –

, Players’ Player –

, Best Newcomer – Richie Smallwood, Unsung Hero – Elliott Bennett, Man of the Match (Seasonal) –

, Goal of the Season –

, Player of the Year –

, Special Achievement – Tony Mowbray.

Squad information

Pre-Season Friendlies

As of 17 June 2017, Blackburn Rovers have announced six pre-season friendlies against

Barrow Barrow may refer to: Places England * Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria ** Borough of Barrow-in-Furness, local authority encompassing the wider area ** Barrow and Furness (UK Parliament constituency) * Barrow, Cheshire * Barrow, Gloucestershire * Barro ...

Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district in Lancashire, England. It is in Morecambe Bay on the Irish Sea. Name The first use of the name was by John Whitaker in his ''History of Manchester'' (1771), w ...

, Grimsby Town, York City,

Carlisle United Carlisle United Football Club ( , ) is a professional association football club based in Carlisle, Cumbria, England. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They have played their home games at Brunton Par ...

Summer Activity

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Winter Activity

January

February

March

April

May

Squad information

Pre-Season Friendlies

League One

League table

Result by round

Matchday

EFL Cup

EFL Trophy

Group C

Backroom staff

1st Team squad statistics

Appearances and goals

Goalscorers

Disciplinary record

Transfers

Summer

Transfers in

Transfers out

Loans in

Loans out

Winter

Transfers In

Transfers Out

Loans In

Loans Out

References