Doncaster Rovers v Crawley Town: Rovers look to turn positives into points

THE template that visiting sides followed at the Keepmoat Stadium was self-evident in a chronically bad second half of last season for Doncaster Rovers.
Doncaster Rovers boss Darren Ferguson with assistant Gavin Strachan. (Picture: Tony Johnson)Doncaster Rovers boss Darren Ferguson with assistant Gavin Strachan. (Picture: Tony Johnson)
Doncaster Rovers boss Darren Ferguson with assistant Gavin Strachan. (Picture: Tony Johnson)

It revolved around sitting in and preying upon anxious home fans’ nerves and heaping the pressure on a Rovers side who lacked ruthlessness in both penalty areas by taking a chance when it came along – quite often late on in matches.

All told in the league, five sides have triumphed at the Keepmoat this year and assistant manager Gavin Strachan is under no illusions that the record must be set straight.

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He believes that the blueprint that visitors follow will not be much different in League Two, with Rovers needing to adapt quickly to the division, with bellwether home games against Crawley and Cambridge United being as good a time as any.

He said: “We have watched a lot of games in this league over the close season. You have to adapt to different types of teams at different times of the year as well.

“You see a lot of scrappy games, for instance around Christmas and also at the end of the season when pitches dry out and bobble.

“We have tried to assemble a squad that can deal with all those eventualities.”

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The early signs in terms of performances have not been without merit this season, with promise arriving against Accrington and Nottingham Forrest, but Strachan acknowledges that it is a results-based business with the players eager to banish some frustration.

He added: “We obviously hoped to get points on the board in the first game and also felt we could have nicked the game on Tuesday, certainly with the second-half performance.

“There is a bit of frustration among the players, but we see a lot of positives and it is about turning those into points.”