John Eustace was delighted to see Ryan Hedges come through his return from injury unscathed.

The Blackburn Rovers winger has been out since April with a second serious hamstring injury. The Welshman had already missed four months of the campaign after tearing the same area at Ipswich Town in September.

Disaster struck when the injury reoccured at home to Norwich City, ruling Hedges out for another lengthy period. His summer has been spent with the physios working on his rehabilitation.

His involvement in pre-season training has been slow and steady. Rovers were determined not to rush him back and risk a setback.

READ MORE: EUSTACE LAYS OUT LONG-TERM AIMS FOR ROVERS

However, he made his first appearance of the summer against Morecambe, scoring in the first half. He was taken off at half-time in a pre-planned change.

"That's his first 45 minutes for five months possibly. It's really important that we look after him in the right way," Eustace told The Lancashire Telegraph.

"He got a vital 45 minutes in his legs today, he's only been with the group this week too. It was a nice reward for him and for us.

"The rehab he's had has been a long journey for him, the medical staff have been magnificent with him. He has history with injuries so it's really important we look after him in the right way. 

"Ryan is a top, top player. I'm a huge fan of Ryan and we have to keep him on the pitch as much as possible."

Hedges' involvement saw Dilan Markanday move into a new, central role. The Rovers winger had played the bulk of his football on the right but suited the middle of the pitch.

"Dilan is a very intelligent football, it allowed Ryan to play out in his natural position," Eustace explained.

"I wanted to look at something different. I thought his link-up play, at times, was really good. He got 90 minutes in his legs.

"He has a responsibility from a defensive point of view to look after the centre of the pitch for us as well. You can see his touches of quality which are good."