TONY Mowbray has revealed he shared tips from his own playing days to educate youngster John Buckley.

Rovers ended their 3-0 defeat at Derby County with 10 men after the 20-year-old was red carded for a late challenge on Curtis Davies.

But Mowbray said the incident was down to inexperience as opposed to intent.

“He’s just a young guy trying to block a centre half clearing the ball up the pitch.

“If anything Curtis’s reaction got John sent off because if he hadn’t have reacted in the manner he did I think a yellow card would have sufficed. He’s tried to block the clearance.

“When I was a young player at Middlesbrough Malcolm Allison was my manager and he told me to tackle six inches in front of the ball. Never tackle the ball, tackle six inches in front of the ball.

“I’ve passed that advice on because if he’d have tackled six inches in front of the ball the clearance would have come off his foot and it would have been a great block, whereas he’s gone to tackle the ball, the foot that was still there has been kicked through and it looked like it was a challenge going in with his studs whereas really Curtis has kicked the bottom of John’s boot as he’s tried to block it. There’s no malice in it.

“Hopefully it’s a learning curve for him and he’s going to be a very talented young player for this club moving forward as we’ve said before.

“Hopefully it’s a lesson he learns.”

He added: “He’s a young boy, enthusiastic, tried to make an impact on the pitch. I told him to go on and put himself about and win some tackles and have an impact on the game, and I think he did that. Before that he had two or three really good blocks and got the ball off Derby a few times high up the pitch and showed good intensity.”