Soccer:Blackburn boss Steve Kean has vowed to bounce back as his team were relegated from the Barclays Premier League. Kean was barracked mercilessly by the home support as Rovers crashed to a late 1-0 defeat against Wigan at Ewood Park to suffer the drop into the npower Championship.

The Scot, who has withstood protests throughout Rovers’ miserable season, wants to stay on despite the vitriol and is convinced controversial owners Venky’s will continue to back him. Kean said: “It is difficult to put into words what the atmosphere is like in the dressing room.

“A few things were thrown our way in the media last week, questioning our attitude, but I felt tonight we gave it a real good go. The disappointing thing is we couldn’t take it to the last game. I will sit down with the owners and discuss a plan on how to assemble a squad to help us bounce back up straight away.

“We need to try to keep the majority of the squad together and add one or two experienced players that can help us, so from the first game of the season we are ready to bounce back and make sure we are in the division we should be in.

Rovers went into the game knowing they had to win to retain any hope — already slim — of survival. Yet at times it seemed fans had already resigned themselves to that fate as they spent most of the game directing their ire at Kean and Indian poultry giants Venky’s.

A live chicken was released early in the game while by the end some fans were throwing away their shirts and others invaded the pitch. A small section protested after the match and had still not left the ground more than an hour after the full-time whistle.

When asked why he wanted to continue working in such an atmosphere, Kean said: “I am a big believer in my own ability and a big believer in the guys I have got in the dressing room.

“I have spoken to each and every one of them and they are devastated but I can’t fault their commitment. I am convinced we can go on and build a side that can move us forward again, but this is a massive setback.”

Kean allayed fears defender Gael Givet, who has a known heart condition, had suffered a further scare before he was substituted at half-time. “I was informed by the medical team at half-time he was struggling. He had a couple of injuries — groin and hamstring. He was struggling and we will get the full extent of that today.”

When told there had been reports of a heart scare, Kean said: “I’m not aware of that.” Givet himself took up a seat in the stand to watch the second half.