Tony Mowbray has confirmed Jayson Leutwiler will play in goal for Rovers tomorrow despite a shortage of game-time.

Leutwiler has played just five times for Rovers since signing from Shrewsbury Town in 2016, with just one league start.

Andrew Fisher, 20, played three times last season for the first team, all in the Checkatrade Trophy, and has been a regular for the Under-23s.

But with David Raya unavailable because of a facial injury picked up in last weekend’s game at West Brom, Mowbray says Leutwiler will get an opportunity against QPR.

Mowbray said: “I watch them train every day and, on a personal note, I think it would be wrong for a number two goalkeeper who trains extremely hard every day and does all the work a number one does, not to play.

“The individual side of goalkeeping means they probably work harder than all of the outfield players with the intensity of their work.

“If we are doing shooting practice there is one goalie making all the saves, getting up and down, yet the players are probably taking one shot in 20.

“My personality is that Leutwiler deserves to play, Jayson will play this game.

“I fully understand the argument though and have had that discussion with the goalkeeping coach Ben (Benson) about whether Fisher is more game ready if it’s just a one-off game. There’s a logic there to put him in.

“Jayson has been on standby in the last few international breaks so it’s been a while since he has played.

“Fisher is going to have a big career I think, he’s a really good goalkeeper, and I have no fears that his time will come, but I’m not sure this weekend is his time.”

Raya saw a specialist last night after suffering a broken nose and requiring stitches to a facial injury picked up in the draw at West Brom.

The best case scenario could see the 23-year-old available to play next weekend with the aid of a mask. However, should surgery be required, then the Spaniard could face around six weeks on the sidelines.

“My hope is that he can put a facial mask and play next weekend,” Mowbray said.

“Looking at him you wouldn’t have thought so because his face was swollen up, stitches across the bridge of his nose. The bridge of nose wasn’t really there, it was pressed in to his skull.

“He has a very different face to the face we are used to.

“Give him another week or so and the swelling will have gone down, the discolouration will have gone, the decision will be on whether he needs some sort of operation to restructure the nose back to what it was.

“If not, and the specialist thinks it will be fine and he can just put a mask on, then he could play next weekend.”

Leutwiler was a regular during his spell at Shrewsbury, playing 140 times in three years, but has been behind Raya since moving to East Lancashire.

On the mindset of a number two, Mowbray added: “I’m not sure I would have been able to do it, but that’s not a slur on anyone.

“Premier League teams all have number two, three and four goalkeepers.

“It seems strange that they work hard all week long and they don’t have any reward at the end of it.

“Yet it’s the life they mentally have to adjust to, knowing they have to be ready at any given time.

“You have to be ready and that’s why they train so hard every day and why I think when an opportunity comes the logic is to punish the number two goalie because he’s not had enough game-time because he’s been sat on the bench and the number three has been playing for the Under-23s.

“The number two goalie should be good enough to play in goal, otherwise he wouldn’t be at the club.

“Let’s hope Jayson comes in and does well, let’s hope he doesn’t have much to do, and hopefully we can get a clean sheet.”