IVIC’S MEN GO UP A GEAR

BORING, boring Watford? Not a bit of it. Having gained a reputation as 1-0 specialists in the early weeks of the season, the Hornets found their scoring touch to see off Blackburn. After a series of binary scorelines, Vladimir Ivic’s team moved up a gear in attack as Joao Pedro and Tom Cleverley strikes, plus Darragh Lenihan’s own goal, fuelled hopes of an immediate Premier League return. With Troy Deeney and Andre Gray yet to return, Watford should be able to out-gun most of their promotion rivals as the season progresses. Rovers have a formidable front line of their own and Ben Brereton scored a cracker to reduce the arrears to 2-1. Indeed, had it not been for a string of Ben Foster saves, including from a second-half Adam Armstrong penalty, they might have returned to Lancashire with at least a point. Foster saved from Armstrong’s curling effort early on before Watford came alive with two goals inside four minutes. Pedro scored the first, side-footing into the bottom corner after Kiko Femenia had crossed low from the right. That was only Watford’s fourth league goal of the season and the young Brazilian had three of them. Others soon got in on the act, with Cleverley on hand to nod home after Rovers keeper Thomas Kaminski could only glove Ismaila Sarr’s powerful strike into his path. Rovers responded well and Foster could not keep out Brereton’s volley. But Watford were gifted their third early in the second-half when Lenihan got his feet in a tangle and turned Ken Sema’s cross into his own net. Watford’s Craig Cathcart bundled over Lewis Holtby but Foster repelled Armstrong’s spot-kick.