FORGET Norwich City on the first day of the Championship campaign – returning fans’ favourite Danny Graham cannot wait for Blackburn Rovers’ pre-season opener.

Owen Coyle’s side kick-start their preparations for the 2016-17 season when they round off a week-long Austrian training camp with a friendly against SV Ried in Ried im Innkreis on Saturday night.

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And Graham, who will pull on a Rovers shirt for the first time since penning a permanent two-year deal following his release from Sunderland, said: “All I’m thinking about is the first pre-season game.

“Obviously you’ve got to have a couple of weeks when you do the running and all the high intensity stuff.

“But nothing beats match fitness for me. The more games you play in pre-season the better, because you can’t get that fitness in training that you get in games.

“So I’m looking forward to that first game and pulling on the shirt again.”

Graham scored seven goals in 18 appearances for Rovers last season after joining on loan from Sunderland in January.

That impressive strike return ensured he ended the campaign as the club’s leading scorer and came despite the fact that he was troubled by a niggling hamstring injury for most of his initial stay at Ewood Park.

Graham is now fully recovered after working hard over the summer with his friend and personal trainer, Andy Coulson, of Unit 29 Fitness, in his native north east.

And, fit and at a club where he is wanted, the former Watford and Swansea City frontman has told Rovers supporters the best is yet to come.

“I’ve done it in the past, when I had a great season at Watford, where I scored 24 league goals,” said Graham, who ended the 2010-11 campaign as the Championship’s leading marksman after his exploits for the Hornets.

“Playing a full season is massive, you get into the rhythm, you get into that matchday environment every week, whereas at Sunderland I was in and out of the team and not in the squad.

“So I’m very much looking forward to being part of it all year round and, yes, I do think there’s a lot more to come.”

Graham, along with fellow forward Anthony Stokes, left-back Stephen Hendrie, winger Liam Feeney and midfielder Jack Byrne, is one of five summer signings made by new Rovers boss Owen Coyle.

And with Coyle still looking to add another striker, left-back and goalkeeper to his squad, Graham: “It’s been a great start.

“I think the gaffer has done some business so far and I’m sure there’s more to come.

“If he can get a couple more in of that sort of standard then I’m sure we’ll be looking up the table.”

Last night Rovers rounded off their third day at their picturesque training base in the Austrian town of Obertraun.

The players are being put through double training sessions which start first thing in the morning and end in the evening.

Team-bonding exercises are planned for today, including white water rafting, before the squad begins to build up to Saturday’s clash with SV Ried, for whom it will be their final friendly before their season gets under way.

Rovers have taken 26 players to Austria and Coyle is expected to give most of them a run out in the Keine Sorgen Arena encounter, which will kick off at 7pm BST.