Paul Ince's hold on his position as Blackburn Rovers manager weakened yesterday when the club's chairman, John Williams, refused to offer him public backing.

In his first statement since Blackburn's sixth straight defeat left them five points adrift in the relegation zone, Williams said his sympathies lay squarely with the supporters who had travelled to Wigan in force on Saturday to witness a performance he described as "bitterly disappointing".

Given the importance of this Saturday's home fixture with Stoke, Williams is under intense pressure to declare whether Ince will be allowed to take charge of a team that returns to training at Brockhall this morning after a break in Dublin for its Christmas party.

Williams appeared to offer little comfort to those insisting that Ince should be allowed both Saturday's game and the Boxing Day fixture at Sunderland before a judgment is made.

He said "time was obviously running away" and that he was dismayed by Blackburn's lack of fight after public statements made by Ince's players that they were ready to fight for their manager.

"After all the signs coming out of Brockhall last week, I was led to believe we would get a top performance," said Williams. "Without taking anything away from Wigan, I have to say I was very disappointed with what I saw.

"I feel very sorry for the supporters, not least the 12 dressed as Father Christmas who I thought sung their hearts out and really got behind their side. They paid their £20 after reading the same stuff about the team's togetherness and they came out to show the team their support. They gave them a great welcome on to the pitch and they must now be bitterly disappointed."

Removing Ince would placate what appears to be a majority of Blackburn fans, who at the JJB Stadium and during their Carling Cup defeat at Old Trafford turned on their manager.

However, dismissing Ince six months into a three-year contract would be ­expensive and painful for Williams who championed the cause of a man who at Macclesfield and Milton Keynes had chosen a hard climb up the managerial ladder rather than look to join a Premier League club immediately.

Were they to lose to Stoke and ­Sunderland, Blackburn face being cast adrift at the bottom of the Premier League."The worry is the league table is beginning to stretch out and we need two wins just to get us among the pack at the bottom," said Williams.

"This was not the first time we have gone behind in games but at least before we have shown spirit in trying to come back."