IT only seems five minutes since Ray Parlour first burst onto the scene as a tousle-haired teenager.

But, incredibly, the 28-year-old England midfielder is due a testimonial later this season in recognition of 11 years' service at Highbury.

However, happily for Rovers, the Essex born mop-top has been left out of tonight's Ewood clash despite the fact he is currently in the form of his life as the Gunners close in on their first piece of silverware since 1998.

For there might be more flamboyant players on view tonight as Arsene Wenger's star-studded squad prepare to descend on Ewood in the Worthington Cup, but few can claim to be more durable than Parlour, pictured right, after surviving for more than decade at one of England's finest clubs.

Over the last three or four weeks, his partnership alongside Patrick Vieira in the centre of midfield has been one of the key ingredients in the Gunners' impressive victories over European superpowers Manchester United and Juventus.

But, with players of the calibre of Giovanni Van Bronckhorst, Robert Pires, Freddie Ljungberg, Gilles Grimandi and Edu currently breathing down his neck, Parlour knows he cannot afford to take his eye off the ball for a second for fear of losing his place.

"It's always going to be like that at a place like Arsenal because we've got a big squad, everyone wants to play and there's only 11 places available," said Parlour.

"I didn't get as many starts as I'd have liked earlier in the season, for instance, but I kept working hard in training and you're always going to get a chance at some point.

"But when you do get a chance, you've got to take it and I'm in the team now so, hopefully, I can stay in it for a little while.

"In the last few games the team have performed excellently and I think we've done well in the middle of the park.

"We've worked hard and hassled well, which you have to do in midfield, and personally I think my game's got a bit better defensively recently in terms of my positioning and shielding the back four. I'm feeling fit and I've lost a bit of weight as well, it's just a case of taking my chance now."

To most clubs in England, finishing runners up in both the Premiership and the FA Cup would have constituted success last season -- but not at Highbury.

So manager Arsene Wenger splashed the cash again this summer, drafting in high profile signings like Van Bronckhorst, Francis Jeffers, Sol Campbell and Richard Wright to reinvigorate a squad which was in danger of going stale.

And after a sticky start, Parlour now believes the new boys are settling in just as the chase for trophies starts to hot-up ahead of the festive period.

"We've had our bad November and now got over that.

"We're just off the top of the Premiership table and, thanks to our win over Juve last week, we've now got back into things in Europe.

"So, hopefully, we'll be challenging for the Premier League right until the end of the season now."

Just where the Worthington Cup figures on that list of priorities, though, remains unclear.

Parlour and his pals clearly feel they have bigger fish to fry this season and they intend to be the ones to cash in on Manchester United's current failings.

But, after losing out to Liverpool in last season's FA Cup final at Cardiff, they would also dearly love to set the record straight with a triumphant return to the Welsh capital in February.