GARY Bowyer labelled Blackburn Rovers’ 1-0 derby win at home to Bolton Wanderers last night as their ‘best of the season’ – and reiterated his stance that match-winner Jordan Rhodes will not be leaving on loan.

Rhodes struck with virtually the last kick of the game to ensure Rovers made it back-to-back Championship victories for the first time since November.

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It is a victory, coming hot on the heels of Sunday’s superb FA Cup quarter-final 0-0 draw at Liverpool, that means they will head to Charlton Athletic on Saturday 11 points behind the play-off places with 10 league games to play.

With Rovers still in with a chance of making the top six it is understood that owners Venky’s have no intention of letting Rhodes leave for a league rival.

Middlesbrough, Nottingham Forest, Norwich City and Derby County have all expressed an interest in the 14-goal striker.

And it is believed that fourth-placed Boro, who are level on points with the three teams at the top of the table, would be willing to pay around £10m for Rhodes in the summer on the condition they win promotion to the Premier League.

But after the last-gasp success over Bolton, Bowyer, as he did on Tuesday, insisted the 25-year-old, who also scored in his first match after seeing a big-money move to Hull City in August rejected by Venky’s, would not be loaned out and that he will play against Charlton on Saturday .

The Rovers boss said: “He just handles the speculation enormously well.

“In the summer window he was supposed to be off and he scored against Bournemouth so I was quietly confident of him scoring tonight to be perfectly honest because that’s what he does when there’s all the paper talk.

“He’s just scored the winner and will be starting at Charlton.

“If it was a maths equation it just wouldn’t add up, would it? Why would you loan our top (league) goalscorer out? I think my five-year-old nephew might be able to work that one out.”

Bowyer, who lost midfielder Corry Evans to a dead leg and left-back Markus Olsson to a tight hamstring, preferred to focus on his side’s performance and result.

“This is our best win of the season,” said Bowyer, who was delighted by the performance of home debutant Doneil Henry.

“This is our best win of the season by far because of the emotion, mental energy and physical energy that the players put in on Sunday.

“It was always going to be difficult this game for that reason alone let alone the pressure that Bolton would apply but we stood up to it well.

“I thought we should have been in the lead in the first half with Ben Marshall’s header and then we dug in so much and I’ve got nothing but praise for this group.

“They are getting stronger and they’re learning and getting better with age and like you say the majority of them are young and they are showing real character.”