“All I heard was them shouting at me to shoot!”

In a blistering start to the second half, Sam Szmodics’ brace of dinked finishes over John Ruddy had put Rovers 2-0 up and looking fairly comfortable against Wayne Rooney’s visitors.

Better came the way of Jon Dahl Tomasson’s hosts just before the hour mark when Hill let fly, with his strike far too powerful for the experienced Ruddy to keep out.

Were it not for the Rovers supporters, Hill may well have opted to keep possession. However, the encouragement from the stands meant the AFC Bournemouth loanee was egged on for the spectacular. And it turned out to be a pretty good decision!

Hill said to RoversTV: “I turned around and stuck my thumb up to the crowd (after the celebration) because all I heard was them shouting at me to shoot!

Did you come to Ewood Park on Wednesday night to watch us beat Birmingham City 4-2? If that’s the case, James Hill believes you should be credited with the assist on his maiden goal in Rovers colours!

“I had no idea where the goal was; I just assumed I’d take a touch and hit it.”

“There have been a few occasions when I’ve gone for goal. I struck the crossbar against Coventry and had a handful of more chances.

“You have to take chances, and it was nice to see it go in.”

“To be honest, I didn’t believe it! It was a bizarre and fantastic feeling that I will remember for a long time.

“It was the knee slide for me and it was nice to celebrate it with the fans, it was a nice moment.”

Many would have thought Hill’s effort and a 3-0 lead would have been enough to put Rovers out of the game points in the bag, but Siriki Dembele’s double ensured a nervy end in freezing conditions before Harry Leonard saw off the visitors in the 90th minute with his third goal of the season.

The points are ultimately what matter, and Hill believed Rovers deserved them after a strong showing, particularly in the second half.

“We made it difficult for ourselves in moments but I thought the lads were resilient throughout the game and it was a good performance,” the strong defensive player said.

“I thought there were times when we were outstanding on the ball and pressed to get it back.” Throughout the game, we appeared to be dangerous.”