Rovers gain some breathing space

Blackburn 2 Wigan 0: Blackburn captain Ryan Nelsen could hardly have picked a more perfect time to score his first Premier League goal as his side took a giant stride towards safety with victory over Wigan at Ewood Park. The result moves Rovers six points clear of the relegation zone.

After four years and 111 league games, Nelsen finally got on the scoresheet when he rose in the box on the hour to flick Benni McCarthy’s right-wing free-kick past Chris Kirkland in the Latics goal.

Nelsen’s strike put the seal on a magnificent afternoon for Sam Allardyce’s men who had grabbed the lead through McCarthy on the stroke of half-time and as a result of their win move above Hull and Sunderland into 15th place.

While boss Allardyce will admit nothing of the sort, the win is likely to secure another top-flight season for Rovers with a favourable run-in including home games against Portsmouth and West Brom to come.

But it had been a different story at the start of the day as Rovers went into this Lancashire derby hovering just two places and three points above the drop zone and hardly daring to contemplate the prospect of defeat.

Hampered by a continued shortage of attacking options which once again meant centre-back Chris Samba was pressed into action as a forward, the home side’s early jitters were plain to see.

With just three minutes on the clock Antonio Valencia casually skipped past Stephen Warnock on the right and floated a shot over Paul Robinson which crashed down off the underside of the bar before bouncing to safety.

But after a shaky start it was Samba who would pose most threat for Rovers in front of goal as he was picked out by Morten Gamst Pedersen’s high crosses and almost got a crucial touch on Warnock’s 11th-minute cross.

The visitors continued to shade the action up to the break, threatening from a series of Watson corners, while Allardyce’s shortage of attacking options was underlined again by his side’s absence of clear-cut chances.

However, just as the half seemed destined to end in stalemate, McCarthy rose to meet Pedersen’s corner in the final minute and steered their potentially priceless opener past Kirkland.

Rovers took another huge stride towards safety on the hour when they grabbed their second goal, McCarthy flinging in a free-kick from the left and captain Nelsen rising to flick home his famous first goal.

Robinson denied Wigan an opportunity to reduce the deficit in the 65th minute with a series of fine saves which started when he tipped an N’Zogbia header over the bar for a corner.

From Watson’s set-piece Emmerson Boyce saw his initial shot cleared off the line before Robinson parried Valencia’s long-range follow-up then Scharner’s goalbound close-range header.

Robinson continued to deny the Latics a chance at getting back in the match, stretching well to parry another sharp effort from the dangerous Rodallega in the 72nd minute.

To their credit Wigan pressed to the end and Robinson was called into action in injury-time to save again from substitute Daniel De Ridder, and Ooijer booting a late Titus Bramble effort off the line.