Danny Graham is a busy man, whether it be teacher and entertainer for his three children, DIY Dan around the house or budding entrepreneur, there’s plenty to keep him occupied during the lockdown.

And that’s alongside following the training programme set up by Rovers’ head of athletic performance Chris Rush, though Graham says a 10k run at the end of the day is something of a light relief.

This is the fourth week in a row where the Rovers players have had to train from home, with the senior training centre at Brockhall having been closed since March 16, and the striker admits he’s missing the camaraderie associated with being around the squad every day.

That now comes in the form of WhatsApp conversations, while a competitive spirit remains as the squad as they look to beat each other’s times on the various challenges set by the sports science team.

Graham hopes the season, which he admits is very much alive for Rovers with nine games remaining, can resume soon, but the extra time at home has afforded him the opportunity to launch a clothing brand.

While football remains the priority and number one focus, the 34-year-old says the new venture is one he’s excited about, with the website launch of his brand, ‘Fugati’, just a few weeks away.

“It’s been in the pipeline for a number of months now, back and forward with meetings on the designs,” Graham explained.

“It’s moving forward nicely and having this time off has allowed me to push that a little bit more.

“When I’m playing I want to concentrate on football because there aren’t many games left and we’re close to the play-offs, so it was at the back of my mind, but with this time off it’s allowed me to push it a bit more.

“We’re looking to go live in six to eight weeks and hopefully it’s a success and we can have some fun along the way.”

The striker is in to the final months of his deal at Ewood Park, having first signed on loan in January 2016. He is a popular figure in both the stands at the dressing room, and has stated his intention to finish his career at the club, should the opportunity arise.

He rejected a move to Australia earlier in the season, still feeling he has plenty left to give in the Championship. And while he may have turned down the offer of trying his hand in a new league, a new business venture was an opportunity he couldn’t resist.

He added: “It came from a mate, a couple of months ago, he had the idea and went deep with it, searching a few things, and I came on board with it and liked the idea, like the products and what we’d designed.

“I liked everything about the concept, it was something different, something different to focus on my mind on away from football and these few weeks have allowed me to push it a bit more.

“Once the season starts I’ll let the other guys involved push it a bit more. It’s something I’m excited about and looking forward to being involved in.”

The experienced frontman is now in to his 17th season in the game since first starting out at Middlesbrough and making his senior debut during a loan spell at Darlington.

But the 2019/20 campaign still holds plenty of excitement for Rovers, sitting just three points outside of the Championship play-off spots with nine games left, with the EFL having stated their intention to finish the season when possible.

That’s the outcome Graham would like, and sees no reason why it can’t be a positive one for Rovers.

“Football is always going to be number one, especially where we are at this stage of this season. We have a really good chance of getting in the play-offs so that’s number one in my eyes,” he said.

“With the season we’ve had so far we’ll want to maintain our fitness and give everything we’ve got in these remaining games.

“Hopefully this doesn’t go on too much longer, and the main thing is that everyone is safe first and foremost, but as footballers we want the season to be finished.

“I’m sure that’s across all league across Europe. Hopefully we can get the season up and running and if it has to be played behind closed doors, and whatever  the FA and the Government think is right, then we go with it and hopefully it’ll allow us to play those games and try and get in the play-offs.”

Football isn’t the only sport to have been hit by the lockdown, and Graham admits it is making him all the more appreciative of how much the game means.

“Even if you can’t go and watch your team there’s always some football on, or all kinds of sports,” he said.

“There’s nothing on the TV to watch and you don’t realise how you miss it, matchday, going in to training every day, interacting with people, it’s a big miss for everyone and hopefully it will be back soon.

“I’ll never moan about 10k runs again after having this time off.”