sport news Blackburn 1-0 Cardiff: Bradley Dack snatches three points for Rovers to keep ... trends now Blackburn 1-0 Cardiff: Bradley Dack scores the only goal as Rovers shutout goal-shy bluebirds, with Jon Dahl Tomasson's side now drawless in their last 31 league games Blackburn struggled against Cardiff on New Year's Day but took the three points Bradley Dack scored the only goal of the game after his strike took a deflection Rovers have now gone an incredible 31 league games without drawing They sit third in the Championship despite having lost 12 of their 26 games By Ian Whittell for MailOnline Published: 14:23 GMT, 1 January 2023 | Updated: 14:26 GMT, 1 January 2023 Viewcomments Bradley Dack ensured that draw-shy Blackburn opened the new year in the thick of the play-off picture following a nervy 1-0 win over lowly Cardiff - but it was a close-run thing. Rovers needed a lucky deflection to maintain their record of not having recorded a solitary stalemate all season. In fact, that drawless sequence now dates back 31 league games, to early April, and helps explain how Jon Dahl Tomasson’s side is sitting pretty in third, despite having already lost an astonishing 12 times this term. Bradley Dack scored the only goal of the game as Blackburn beat Cardiff 1-0 His strike took a deflection and flew past Ryan Allsop in the Cardiff goal But when Dack broke the deadlock three minutes after the restart, he needed the assistance of defender Jack Simpson who provided a fortunate deflection. It was still a well-worked, if rare, clear-cut opening from the promotion hopefuls as Jake Garrett’s long ball found Ben Brereton-Diaz on the left wing. His quick pass found Dack, just inside the Bluebirds’ area, and his shot took a wicked deviation off Simpson on its way past Ryan Allsop. The goal finally broke the deadlock after a first half in which struggling Cardiff gave as good as they got. Blackburn have now gone an incredible 31 league games without drawing It took a blinding tackle by Garrett to deny Gavin Whyte as he was poised to unleash a shot from City’s best chance of the half and keeper Thomas Kaminski was tested by a powerful blast from Callum Robinson. It might have been a very different story if Rovers had been able to capitalise on a Cedric Kipre error inside the opening two minutes. Sam Gallagher broke clear, and spotted Allsop off his line, but the Cardiff keeper recovered well to stick out a boot and deflect his long-range effort clear. Instead, Rovers struggled to turn possession into chances although Brereton-Diaz had the ball in the net early, only to have his effort ruled out for offside after he mis-timed his run. They sit third in the Championship despite having lost 12 out of their 26 games Chile international Brereton-Diaz might also have put the game beyond Cardiff’s reach after 64 minutes when clean through, only to hit his shot straight at Allsop. And the striker, who is bound to attract some Premier League interest in the current transfer window, also might have done better soon after, with a long-range effort he hit too close to the keeper. Cardiff, whose 20 goals in 26 league games is comfortably the worst strike rate in the Championship, battled for an unlikely equaliser. But, after failing to score in their previous two Christmas fixtures, it was a depressingly familiar story for manager Mark Hudson as the Bluebirds made it 326 minutes without a goal. PLAYER RATINGS Blackburn (4-2-3-1): Kaminski 6; Rankin-Costello 6 (S Wharton 53, 6), Ayala 7, Hyam 6, Pickering 7 (Edun 78, 5); Morton 6 (A Wharton 88), Garrett 8 (Travis 78, 5); Hedges 6, Dack 7, Brereton 7; Gallagher 7. Substitutes (not used) Pears, Markanday, Vale. Cardiff (5-2-2-1): Allsop 6; Sang 6, Ng 6, Kipre 6, Simpson 5 (Colwill 57, 6), O’Dowda 7; Ralls 7 (Ojo 57, 5), Wintle 6; Whyte 5 (Rinomhota 58, 5), Robinson 5 (Davies 66, 7); M Harris 5 (Philogene 77, 5). Substitutes (not used) Luthra, Nelson. Referee: T Bramall 5 Advertisement Share or comment on this article: All rights reserved for this news site (dailymail) and under his responsibility