BLACKBURN boss Graeme Souness had dubbed last night's clash with Aston Villa as 'D-day' as far as Rovers' survival hopes were concerned.
How right he turned out to be as deadly double act Damien Duff and David Dunn delivered the killers blows necessary to send Villa packing on another night of twists and turns in the FA Barclaycard Premiership - though Rovers left it late to wrap up the points.
Rovers' home-grown heroes both grabbed a wonder goal apiece as Souness's troops secured what was only their second home win since the middle of October.
With fellow strugglers Bolton and Derby also crashing 1-0 on their travels, things could hardly have gone better in 'Operation Great Escape.'
Midfield general Dunn was the first man to breach enemy lines when he cut in from the right before unleashing a left-foot exocet which exploded into the roof of the net in the seventh minute.
And wing commander Duff then finally settled the home fans' nerves with an equally explosive finish of his own in the 85th minute.
Just for good measure, destroyer-in-chief Andy Cole then finished the job off with a cheeky strike of his own in the penultimate minute as Peter Schmeichel was left stranded in no-man's land.
Had the woodwork not come to the visitors' rescue on three other separate occasions, the extent of the damage could have been even more devastating for Villa boss Graham Taylor as he picked through the wreckage of what was only his second defeat since succeeding John Gregory.
"I thought we deserved to win on the overall balance of play," said a jubilant Souness. "We played very, very well in the first half and could easily have had three or four goals in that period.
"And, had we got a second goal at that point, it would have relieved the pressure on us. But we then started the second half a bit nervously and we suddenly found ourselves on the rack.
"However, when Duffer finally got the second that obviously killed them off so, apart from a 20 minute period in the second half, I thought we were well in command."
It was fitting that Duff should spark the victory parade after he had teased and tormented the Villa defence all night.
In the first half, especially, he was at his mesmerising best launching a series of electric raids down the left.
And, then when he appeared to have run himself to a standstill after the break, he suddenly summoned up enough energy to unleash a stunning strike which screamed past Schmeichel into the far corner from the edge of the box.
"I thought Duffer was on fire in the first half but, then in that 20 minute period after the break, I thought he was shot at," said Souness.
"But if you watch Damien regularly he never ceases to amaze you because, when he looks down and out, he suddenly finds a burst of energy from somewhere.
"And that's what he did to get the second goal and it was a super strike."
With just one win to show from their last nine league games, Rovers began the night desperate for a victory to boost their chances of beating the drop.
And, judging by the way they flew out of the blocks, their recent Worthington Cup triumph in Cardiff has clearly injected some much-needed confidence and belief into a squad of players who had previously looked resigned to their fate.
Now, there's a spirit and togetherness coursing through the veins and, if they can sustain that over the next two months, then anything is possible as they scrap for their Premiership lives.
Apart from a 20 minute period in the second half when Villa called all the shots, Rovers were always in control.
But what they have got to start doing is killing teams off when they are well on top, otherwise we could be in for a nerve-jangling finale as the scramble for safety looks set to go to the wire.
For now, though, let's concentrate on the positives and there were some big performances right through the side.
Once again, goalkeeper Brad Friedel was rock solid at the back as he comfortably dealt with everything Villa threw at him.
And Tugay and Garry Flitcroft completely ran the show in midfield in the first half, to such an extent that Taylor had to throw on both Paul Merson and Lee Hendrie at the interval as part of a major reshuffle.
Cole and Matt Jansen also formed a deadly alliance up front which threw Villa's leaky defence into a state of panic.
And, with Dunn and Duff looking menacing down the flanks, there was an irresistible quality about Rovers going forward in a totally one-sided first half.
In fact, Rovers could have been three up inside the opening 10 minutes as Villa were swamped by a blue and white tide.
Cole struck the crossbar in the fifth minute when he flicked on a header from Henning Berg but Schmeichel was then left clutching thin air two minutes later.
Hakan Unsal -- who made a solid home debut at left-back -- drilled a sublime cross-field pass out to Dunn on the right and the England Under 21 international drifted in from the by-line before lashing a wonderful left-foot shot into the roof of the net from fully 20 yards.
Things could have got worse for the visitors when Cole headed straight at Schmeichel after a brilliant cross from Duff.
And the England striker was left ruing his luck again soon after when his shot came back off a post after further clever prompting from Dunn.
Little was seen of Villa as an attacking force, in contrast, but Friedel was forced to make his one meaningful stop in the 21st minute when he scooped away an effort by the dangerous Darius Vassell after great work from Jlloyd Samuel.
The arrival of second half substitutes Merson and Hendrie seemed to breathe new life into the visitors as Rovers' game suddenly went to pot, but Duff then settled the home fans' nerves when his thumping left-foot drive from the edge of the box flew past Schmeichel into the far corner with five minutes left.
It was left to Cole to complete an excellent night's work with the third in the 89th minute after Schmeichel made a mess of an attempted clearance 30 yards from goal.
"We've had a dodgy three or four months and I think we are in a false position in the league -- we're a lot better side than our league position suggests," said Duff. "But what happened in Cardiff has given the whole town, the players and the club a boost so, hopefully, we can carry that on between now and the end of the season."
ROVERS...3
Scorers: Dunn 7, Duff 85, Cole 89
ASTON VILLA...0
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