HEDGES WANTS TO MAKE THE CUT FOR QATAR
Looking Ryan mighty for a spot in Wales squad
RYAN HEDGES hopes his Blackburn form will power him to a place in the Wales World Cup squad.
And judging by his will, tenacity and determination for Jon Dahl Tomasson’s high-fliers, his dream might just happen.
Hedges (right), 27, has chalked up three senior caps with Wales, having progressed through the Under-19 and U-21 sides – and he went to the same school as Michael Owen and Gary Speed.
Hedges was only denied a goal by Lions goalkeeper George Long, who then got into a mix-up with skipper Jake Cooper, which gave Tyrhys Dolan his chance to open the scoring. Chile International Ben Brereton Diaz scored his fifth goal of the season, only for Cooper to set-up a tense finish with his headed goal with 15 minutes to go.
Rovers’ sixth win of the season puts them in a play-off spot, much to the delight of Hedges, who said: “Good club form is the key to getting into the international team and I will do everything I can to get into that squad.
“Wales getting to the World Cup is an unbelievable achievement, and every footballer’s dream is to get there. I’ve got three senior caps, and I was on standby for the Nations League. I just have to keep at it.”
One selection surprise was that Hedges played as a right wing-back, rather than in his more usual forward position.
But he revealed: “I have played there before when I was at Aberdeen. The manager knows he can rely on me playing anywhere. He wanted my energy as a wingback and it worked.
“Now we go into a month and a half of constant Saturday and midweek matches. We need to put a good run together.” Millwall are still chasing their first away win, paying the price for yet another costly mistake that led to Blackburn’s breakthrough first goal.
Boss Gary Rowett left Ewood Park smartly, due to his commitment to run in the London Marathon, but his No.2, Andy Barrett admitted: “We have to cut out those mistakes and we have to regroup before our fixture at Rotherham on Wednesday.”
Substitute Tyler Burey stood out for the Lions and set-up their goal, and Barrett added: “We know Tyler can be a threat when he comes on. The challenge for him is to be more consistent. He has a bright future but he has to keep learning.”