An Eiran Cashin own goal and Jack Taylor’s first of the season have given Town a 2-0 half-time lead against Blackburn Rovers at Portman Road.

George Hirst returned to the XI as the Blues made seven changes from the team which beat Blackpool 2-1 in the FA Cup last weekend.

One-time Rovers loanee Hirst was back as the number nine having recovered from his groin injury with another one-time Blackburn loanee Christian Walton, Darnell Furlong, skipper Dara O’Shea, Leif Davis, Sindre Walle Egeli and Marcelino Nunez also returning to the team.

Alex Palmer, Ashley Young, Ben Johnson, Jacob Greaves, Wes Burns and Jack Clarke dropped to the bench, while Kasey McAteer and Cedric Akpom absent from the 20-man squad.

Blackburn made five changes from their on-penalties FA Cup defeat at Hull City last week with skipper Todd Cantwell, Sondre Tronstad, Sean McLoughlin, Yuki Ohashi and Moussa Baradji came into the team.

New signing Mathias Jorgensen, who joined from Bodo/Glimt in Norway earlier in the week, was on the bench but Lewis Miller, Kristi Montgomery and regular first-choice keeper Aynsley Pears missed out due to injury.

Town went ahead via the first attack of the game in the third minute. Nunez swept the ball wide to Jaden Philogene on the left, the Chilean then breaking forward and receiving a pass from the Blues’ top scorer before sending over a low cross which central defender Cashin, making his league debut for Rovers having joined on loan from Brighton, slammed into his own net.

Portman Road rejoiced the Blues taking the lead against Rovers for the first time this season having played almost two games at Ewood Park, while Cashin, who came close to joining Town in his time at Derby, grabbed the ball and looked to get straight back on with the game.

After successfully passing their way out of some tricky situations in their own area, the Blues threatened again on eight when Davis sent a free-kick towards the far post from midway inside the half to the left but O’Shea headed against a defender.

Soon after, Walle Egeli went closer, the Norwegian powerfully striking a bouncing ball on the edge of the area and looking certain to score until Rovers keeper Balazs Toth somehow got a hand to it to tip over.

Town were looking likely to score with every attack and in the 12th minute they doubled their lead.

Nunez sent over a corner from the left and O’Shea headed back towards goal from the far post, Taylor getting a toe on it as keeper Toth sought to save. The ball ran loose off the Hungarian’s legs and the Blues midfielder stabbed his first goal of the season - and first in a year and five days - over the line.

There was a scare for Town in the 22nd minute when Ohashi put the ball in their net but with the whistle having already been blown, referee Andrew Kitchen having adjudged - probably correctly - that Baradji had fouled Matusiwa on the edge of the area as the Blues passed out from the back.

Two minutes later, Ohashi was played in on the right of the box with the linesman surprisingly indicating he was onside before hitting a shot which O’Shea did well to dive in and block.

Despite those moments, it was still mainly Town. On 31, Philogene brought the ball a long way forward before cutting inside and playing towards Walle Egeli, who had it stolen off his boot by Nunez as he was about to shoot from the edge of the box.

A minute later, Hirst worked space on the left of the area at the byline and cut back towards Nunez, but Axel Henriksson got in ahead of the former Norwich man to stab behind for a corner.

The Blues were forced into a change in the 40th minute when Philogene made way for Clarke, the former Aston Villa man having undergone treatment for a knock which he may have suffered in an earlier incident when Cantwell had collided with him having been fouled by Furlong.

A minute after the change, Walle Egeli cut in from the right but failed to get any power on his left-footed shot, Toth saving comfortably.

As the half moved into its final scheduled minute, Tronstad struck an effort from just outside the Town area to the right which deflected off a Blues defender, across the face of goal and wide with Walton momentarily looking concerned.

That was the last action of a half which the Blues had got the all-important early goal and then backed it up with a second during a spell in which they were creating chances with great frequency.

After that, the game had become flat with Blackburn seeing more of the ball but without looking particularly dangerous, while the Blues looked for a third on the counter-attack.

Adding to their lead after the break will make everyone at Portman Road feel more comfortable, but nevertheless Town already ought to have done enough to secure the three points.

Town: Walton, Furlong, O’Shea (c), Kipre, Davis, Taylor, Matusiwa, Walle Egeli, Nunez, Philogene (Clarke 40), Hirst. Subs: Palmer, Burns, Cajuste, Young, Johnson, Szmodics, Greaves, Azon.

Blackburn: Toth, Atcheson, McLoughlin, Cashin, Gardner-Hickman, Tronstad, Baradji, Cantwell (c), De Neve, Henriksson, Ohashi. Subs: Michalski, Pickering, Ribeiro, O’Riordan, Pratt, Forshaw, Powell, Doherty, Jorgensen. Referee: Andrew Kitchen (Durham).

Photo: Matchday Images