'Calm' Doncaster Rovers boss Grant McCann remains confident of another turnaround after fraught run
KEEP calm and carry on.
That's the mantra of Doncaster Rovers manager Grant McCann, who remains confident that the League One strugglers' fortunes will take a turn for the better in the new year after a punishing run.
Lowly Rovers headed into Monday's game at Stockport on the back of a grim sequence of one league win in 15 outings.
It's hardly the sort of form that McCann envisaged at the season's outset. Equally, he has not prone to panic and his previous experiences at the Rovers' helm have shown he has the capacity to turn around adverse situations.
That was spectacularly manifested in the final third of the 2023-24 campaign.
Back in the late winter of 2024, McCann's side were third from bottom in League Two and after drawing at the side just below them in Sutton, they lost just one of their remaining 17 matches, winning 13 and taking 42 points from a possible 51 and reaching the play-offs. McCann said: "It's just staying calm.
"I say this all the time - you probably think I'm boring when I say it again - it's where you finish after 46 games. That's it. During the season, you're going to have spells where you are poor."
At the start of this week, Rovers’ fellow strugglers Port Vale made a managerial change with ex-Doncaster boss Darren Moore leaving the club.
Vale were promoted alongside Doncaster last spring. But despite Rovers' travails, McCann retains the backing of the club's board.
Speaking recently, McCann confirmed the club have finalised deals for two new permanent signings, to be announced on January 1 - with another two incoming transfers also lined up.
McCann added: "I think it's important to pick up some wins and keep yourself ticking over in that department. (But) I think the season starts to take shape towards the end of January. The table, I’d say.
"So we just have to keep believing and do better than what we're doing and trying to move up this table. Because we believe we can.
"We believe if we can get the right personnel in to help us in January, we can create that positivity again that we can start winning."