Doncaster 2 Barnsley 1: Rovers’ passion rewarded in the end – Jones

On an afternoon when to most observers, his Doncaster Rovers side picked the pockets of their South Yorkshire rivals and pilfered a win that any highwayman in days of yore would have been proud of, Jones’s post-match observations were delivered with a straight face.

We earned the win from start to finish was his take, which differed wildly from the sentiments of his counterpart Lee Johnson, who was probably musing on the fact that at least Dick Turpin had the decency to wear a mask after his Barnsley side lost a game in which they dominated for large parts.

For Rovers, without a win in five league games heading into the game, you take anything you get, especially when you are down among the dead men at the foot of the table.

Interim manager Jones was not particularly minded to appreciate the irony of a dramatic late development going his side’s way four days on from a last-gasp hammer blow against Swindon either for that matter.

He is not the sort to do irony. What you get, you graft for, never mind irony.

And while Rovers were, in most people’s eyes, second best on Saturday, they worked their socks off, with their attitude and persistence exemplary, culminating in their late reward.

Jones is one for controlling the controllables and will not be losing sleep on whether he will land the full-time Rovers post he craves or if Saturday’s win has enhanced his hopes.

The here and now remains his sole concern with points not self being his modus operandi on Saturday, accrued thanks to Richard Chaplow’s dramatic late strike.

Jones, who claimed his maiden win of his tenure at the fifth time of asking, said: “The boys were terrific all the way through.

“The passion and desire was there and we got our rewards and it was a bit of payback for the past four, five or six weeks.

“I say to the players, give me everything you have got and we have got a chance. Don’t and you won’t play, it’s as simple as that.”

And on the win boosting his own long-term job prospects, he added: “It is not about me; I am not interested in me. For the group as a whole, it’s massive.

“Now that belief I had in the players, they have in themselves.

“They understand that Rob is not taking rubbish.

“That (full-time job) is someone else’s decision to make. As soon as I took the job, I said I would give it everything I have got and try and stamp my authority on the team off and on the pitch. And I think I have done that.

“Have I improved performances? Yes. Have I improved results, yes I have.”

For Johnson and the 2,906 Reds followers, Chaplow’s late strike represented a bitter pill after his side dominated the derby exchanges, with Rovers’ goal being their first effort on target in the second half.

Barnsley possessed the best player on the pitch in loanee Kadeem Harris, who was denied twice in the second period by Thorsten Stuckmann, while other chances went begging.

The visitors’ only reward arrived on the hour when Sam Winnall’s steered header from Conor Hourihane’s corner cancelled out a second goal in successive matches for Keshi Anderson, who got a faint touch to Chaplow’s 35th-minute cross.

Chaplow saved his best for the end, with his thumping near-post shot too much for Nick Townsend after the Reds rearguard fatally switched off at the death.

On the smash-and-grab loss, Johnson rued: “It was a killer blow. I thought we were excellent and ran the game from 10 minutes into the game.

“I think our supporters will go home probably thinking: ‘How have we lost that game?’

“They deserved a win and the players tried to give it to them. But for whatever reason, the footballing gods weren’t on our side.

“On another day, maybe we win the game quite comfortably.”

A first half that was not particularly memorable saw most of the polish come from Barnsley, but Rovers take in an interval lead when Anderson further endeared himself to home punters when he turned in Chaplow’s cross, showing true predatory instincts.

With Harris giving loanee James Horsfield a bit of a run-around on occasions, the Reds looked the most likely, but couldn’t find a way through until Winnall’s smart header drew them level.

The portents did not look particularly great for Rovers, with it hard to comprehend that they were the home side in the second half and not Barnsley, who bossed the territory.

If anyone was likely to get a winner, it was the Reds, with Harris denied by the legs of Stuckmann after galloping clear 18 minutes from time and then seeing a piledriver turned away by the Rovers custodian as the visitors pressed.

But the sting was proved by Rovers, with substitute Harry Middleton slipping in Chaplow and while the Reds dozed, the midfielder slammed in the winner in front of the Black Bank.

Doncaster Rovers: Stuckmann; Horsfield (Taylor-Sinclair 74), McCullough, Butler, Evina; Coppinger (Middleton 57), Wellens, Chaplow; Williams, Anderson, N’Guessan (Mandeville 81). Unused substitutes: Marosi, Forrester, Keegan, Stewart.

Barnsley: Townsend; Wabara (Roberts 80), Mawson, Nyatanga, G Smith (M Smith 81); Pearson; Watkins, Scowen (Crowley 80), Hourihane, Harris; Winnall. Unused substitutes: Davies, Jackson, Bree, Rothwell.

Referee: D Handley (Lancashire).