Aston Villa pair John Carew and Freddy Bouma both came through 45 minutes of action in yesterday's closed-doors friendly against Derby.

And in a triple injury boost for Villa, Martin O'Neill is hopeful that utility player Nigel Reo-Coker will be fit to return at Blackburn in nine days' time.

Carew, who has been out of action for nearly three months, missed a penalty in the 2-1 defeat to a strong County side.