Tony Mowbray said Blackburn “lacked a bit of nous” after 10-man Cardiff left Ewood Park with a 0-0 draw.

Nothing could separate the sides, with chances few and far between, but Lee Tomlin’s 69th-minute sending off for a second bookable offence since the interval gave the hosts renewed hope of stretching their winning run to three.

But they could not take advantage of that hope, as Tomlin’s team-mates produced a composed defensive performance that meant they left Ewood with a second goalless draw in successive seasons, without really being troubled.

Adam Armstrong had a first-half effort well saved by Alex Smithies, but that was it for gilt-edged chances.

Rovers remain sixth and have not conceded in three league games. Mowbray said his team can take positives but was unhappy that they could not find a winner.

He said: “We’re all very disappointed. You’ve got to give them huge credit. They made it difficult for us.

“They’re a very, very experienced team. It was a difficult game, we knew it was going to be difficult because we couldn’t play to our strengths and yet when we got asked in the last 20 minutes to break down a packed defence, we didn’t have the answers really.

“We got into lots of good positions but considering the way we’ve been scoring goals, it was frustration for us that against a really deep block, it was hard to get through. But that’s the challenge for a lot of clubs.

“The positives are the clean sheet, the work ethic, the desire is there to do well, to run and work for each other.

“At the top end of the pitch, we’re a young football team. We lacked a bit of nous at the top end to break them down when we had to try and break down a deep block.”

Cardiff’s impressive away form continues. They have kept six clean sheets in 11 league outings on the road, stretching back to last season.

And Neil Harris recognised the ‘resilience’ of his side in claiming a “fair” point.

He said: “In the circumstances, playing the last 20 minutes with 10 men, a clean sheet was a resilient point. I’m really proud of the players for their backs-to-the-wall bit of defending at the end.

“I think a point was probably fair. The best chance of the game was Adam Armstrong one-on-one and Alex Smithies made a great save, but a lot of the pressure was from us.”

The Cardiff manager was critical of the refereeing performance of Darren Bond but felt Tomlin’s experience could have prevented the dismissal.

“I need to see the second one [yellow] from a different angle because I saw it from distance and didn’t have any complaints at the time. If he’s caught the player, I understand,” he said.

“The first one is never a yellow card. I thought the referee was abysmal at best for both teams.

“But Lee is a really experienced player and should know he can’t put himself in that situation with the second one.”