TONY MOWBRAY is determined to tread carefully with Ross Stewart, in order to give the Sunderland striker the best possible chance of being in peak form for the second half of the season.

Stewart continues to recover from the thigh injury he suffered during the warm-up ahead of last month’s Tees-Wear derby with Middlesbrough, and while he is making good progress, he is yet to take part in any outdoor training.

There is a chance he could be available before the break for the World Cup in the middle of next month, although Mowbray is adamant he will not be taking any chances with the Scotland international.

The Black Cats boss regards the period from February to May as the critical stage of the season, and wants to ensure Stewart is in peak form for the business end of the campaign.

“Ross is coming along well, but I don’t think we need to make a decision about comeback plans until the boy feels that he’s ready to put his boots back on and get back out on the grass, and we’re not at that stage yet,” said Mowbray, who returns to Ewood Park this evening as Sunderland take on Blackburn Rovers.

“We won’t be taking a chance on him, that’s the main thing. I always believe that after Christmas and the transfer window, those months from February through to May are the crucial part of the season. That’s when you really need to be firing and winning games.

“I’m hoping this club will be really strong then, with Ross coming back and hopefully Ellis (Simms) and Dan Ballard too. Hopefully, the team will be stronger and more powerful then, and the competition for places will be more extreme. I hope that drives the players on.”

As well as acting cautiously around Stewart, Mowbray is also keen to take things slowly with Niall Huggins, who returned to action with the Under-21s last week after being sidelined for more than a year through a combination of back and heel injuries.

Huggins, who joined Sunderland from Leeds United almost a year-and-a-half ago played for 45 minutes with the Black Cats’ second string, and while Mowbray has considered reintroducing him to the first-team training group this week, he does not want to stray from the training programme that was agreed for the defender.

“We’ve spoken about whether we should integrate him back into the first-team training group, but I think at this moment, my view is to keep him on the plan we've got for him,” he said. “He’ll stay with the Under-21s for the moment so he can manage himself through the training and build himself up.

“He needs to build to a 60-minute game for the Under-21s, then maybe 75, and then 90. Then once he's done that down the line, he’ll come back into our group.

“I don’t want to rush Niall back because it’s been a long, long time. I want the plan to come to fruition, so he has that confidence in his body again."