KEY POINTS:
New Zealand defender Ryan Nelsen has given firm backing to his beseiged Blackburn manager Paul Ince despite Rovers having slumped to second-last in the English soccer Premiership.
Blackburn are 19th after a run of 10 winless games stretching back to September.
Captain and central defender Nelsen squashed reports
Ince, who took over from Mark Hughes in the summer, has lost the support of the dressing room.
"Everyone's training, working hard, heads aren't down; we're not slumping around feeling sorry for ourselves," Nelsen told reporters.
"We know the situation we're in and we're working hard with the staff, with the gaffer, to get up this league.
"Paul's been great. He's taken a lot of flak when the players should have, we've made the mistakes; all the players have made mistakes we weren't making under Hughes so I feel bad for the manager."
Nelsen has played in 15 of Blackburn's 16 matches, in the heart of defence that has leaked a league-worst 31 goals.
With three wins to their name, they sit just one point ahead of last-placed West Bromwich Albion.
Nelsen is frank about the defensive struggles that has seen 14 goals conceded in their last five games, including Sunday's (NZT) 1-3 loss to Liverpool.
"It's horrible, it's the worst I've ever been in in my career, to be honest," he said.
"We've probably had the better of a game, gone behind and you can kind of see it seep through the team, there's this panic.
"But I'd be more worried if we didn't have the types of personalities that we have and it's a matter of time before we get out of it."
Nelsen insisted reports of unrest among the players are wide of the mark.
"I don't know where it comes from," he said.
"It's been going on from pre-season to now. Whenever you hear there's sources from within, flags go up. It sounds a bit dodgy.
"It's not the case. Everybody seems to be extremely happy. Obviously we're disappointed with where we are but there's nothing like that."
Ince regretted the departure last week of former Manchester United teammate Roy Keane, who resigned as manager of Sunderland.
He blamed the media for forcing Keane out.
"There are certain people out there who want to put you down and it's more so the young managers and that's the annoying thing, they don't want to give people a chance.
"Sometimes they can drive you out of a job and that's probably what they've done with Keano.
"I was very disappointed because Keano's an excellent young manager and we've been clamouring for new managers for years. We've had the same managers for the last 20 years doing the rounds."
- NZPA
