Bradley Johnson hopes to not be looking back at this season as a missed opportunity – with Rovers sitting on the brink of the top six.

They missed the chance to break in to the play-off spots for the first time this season when beaten 3-0 at Johnson’s former club Derby County last time out.

That was a third consecutive game without a win for Tony Mowbray’s men following frustrating home draws with Stoke City and Swansea City which leaves them in 10th place.

With nine games remaining of the season, currently suspended indefinitely, Johnson hopes Rovers will get the chance to make the season a memorable one by gatecrashing the top six.

But he feels Rovers have made their mark on the league this year and shown they can be a threat to any team in the division.

“This is the hardest league I’ve played in because you can never predict what will happen,” said Johnson, whose played in the play-offs for five of the last six seasons.

“Every season you always look back at games.

“Teams that come to us and play, we do well. When teams come and sit back and counter-attack, put everyone behind the ball they’re the hardest games.

“If you can get that one goal, that’s why you see a lot of games where one team scores they have to come out and you see more goals. The first goal is vital.

“When teams have come and sat back we’ve struggled to get that first goal.

“When teams play against us it shows how far we’ve come as a team, the respect we’re getting.

“Everyone knows we’re a threat, and a good team. You can’t guarantee wins, but when you’re expected to win and you don’t win, we’re disappointed.”

The EFL took the decision last week to suspend the season indefinitely, having previous pushed back a possible resumption date of April 3 to April 30.

It now appears unlikely the season won’t be re-started until at least June, with the prospect of playing games behind doors a possibility.

Johnson feels there is too much at stake for the season to be scrapped or become void, with promotion and relegation yet to be decided.

That brings with it financial implications, and will also impact on next season, but the central midfielder feels there would be ‘uproar’ if any decision other than completing the season is taken.

“If you asked me two weeks I’d have just thought they would have cancelled the season, but the more you think about, the Championship, the play-off final is the most expensive game in football," he told the Counter Attack Podcast

“I heard rumours of promoting the top two and not relegating anyone, but you can’t do that.

“There’s nine games left, ourselves we’re not in the play-offs but with nine games left we have a chance of getting in there, and then you never know.

“It would cause too much commotion I think, the legal side of it, I think everyone would be in uproar.

“It’s not just the Premier League and Championship, League One and League Two, there’s a lot of teams who might not afford to run, it’s a big problem and hopefully it can be sorted soon.”