Blackburn Rovers midfielder Keith Andrews is thrilled with his call-up to the Republic of Ireland squad.

The former MK Dons captain said: "It has all gone very quickly from the end of last season.

"I was hopeful of a move and not quite sure where that was going to be, but to end up in the Premier League was obviously a fantastic move for me, and it has gone very well since.

"I sit down after games and reflect on them and how well I have been doing and how quickly things have been moving, and you do have to put things into perspective.

"But at the same time, it can be taken away in a flash, so you have got to be grateful and I am going to enjoy every minute of it."

While Andrews knows he has made the step up from League Two to the international stage with breathtaking speed, he insists he has not found it too big a challenge.

That in part is down to the pressure Paul Ince, the man who paid MK Dons £1.3million to persuade them to allow the midfielder to follow him to Blackburn, has put on him to fulfil his potential.

Andrews said: "It's fair to say he has been a massive influence, first and foremost as a player a few years ago, but more so since he came to MK Dons as manager and then bringing me to Blackburn.

"I have a hell of a lot to be grateful to him for. I have learned a hell of a lot from him.

"People say I have made that step, but last year, for example, I wasn't setting myself League Two standards every day in training.

"I was trying to be, if I am being honest, a Championship player, a top Championship player.

"Where Paul Ince would set standards for other players, he would probably set higher standards for me, so they were the standards I tried to live up to on a daily basis to try to kick forward because I wasn't happy with where I was in my career.

"It is obviously big step, but it is one I feel I have taken in my stride and done quite well at so far."