Steve Kean says he will not quit Blackburn after relegation

Blackburn boss Steve Kean wants to stay to help rebuild Rovers after they were relegated from the Premier League.

Large sections of the Ewood Park crowd chanted "Kean out!" throughout Monday's 1-0 defeat by Wigan which sent Rovers down after 11 years in the top flight.

But afterwards Kean said: "I am not going to walk away.

"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."

There were numerous protests by Rovers fans against Kean and Blackburn's owners during the game against the Latics, including a chicken being draped in a Blackburn flag and released on to the pitch in the first half, a reference to the Venky's poultry business.

Blackburn needed a win to have any chance of staying up, but lost out to Antolin Alcaraz's 87th-minute header.

"We are devastated, the players are numb," Kean added. "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 after our defeat by Tottenham, but I felt tonight we gave it a real good go. The disappointing thing is we couldn't take it to the last game."

Kean, who replaced Sam Allardyce as Blackburn boss in December 2010, has faced calls to be sacked all season but the 44-year-old wants to stay on at Ewood Park to try to make an immediate return to the Premier League.

"We will be back to fight another day," Kean explained. "I've got to keep as many players as possible, a little like West Ham did, and add a little more experience and then we can bounce back.

"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.

"I believe we can be in a position where we can be very competitive from the first game of next season.

"I have spoken with the owners, like I do every day. We haven't mentioned what has happened tonight, but I am confident we will have a sit down and have a plan in place as quickly as possible."

Blackburn defender Bradley Orr backed Kean to stay on as Rovers boss and says he should not be blamed for a disastrous season.

Orr, who joined Rovers from QPR in January, said: "In the short space of time that I have been here Steve Kean has been absolutely magnificent - if anything it is the players that have fallen short.

"In the game that we are in the easy thing to do is point the finger and pass the blame but one man who can look himself in the mirror and say to himself that he has done everything he could, under difficult circumstances, is the manager of Blackburn Rovers."

Orr says he and his team-mates know what Rovers fans think about Kean, but feels the players are as culpable as their manager.

"We were very much aware of the atmosphere inside the ground," Orr said. "It was not just tonight, it has been a while now, but I have nothing but respect and admiration for the manager.

"He is very down and devastated because he is a proud man. Behind the scenes, the things that people do not see - training, motivation, determination and attitude - he has been absolutely different class and I am gutted that we fell short as a group of players.

"I am gutted for the manager more than anyone.

"Everyone is entitled to their opinion but I think that sometimes it goes over the line and I want to commend Steve Kean for staying positive on a daily basis."