Fleetwood Town v Doncaster Rovers: Grant McCann on inspiration from Sir Alex Ferguson plus update on veteran defender

Ferguson’s famous quote about attackers winning you games, but defences winning you titles is one that is particularly resonating with the Doncaster Rovers chief at the minute.

McCann’s Rovers side may have drawn their last three league matches - but their rearguard resolve has certainly been pleasing the Northern Irishman of late.

Rovers have lost just once in their past 12 matches in all competitions and their defensive consistency in recent times has been worthy of note in that regard.

McCann said: "I think we’ve been really good, defensively.

"As much as I am an attacking manager and attacking players can win you games, for sure, defences win you titles - that is something that was a famous quote that one manager said before and that is so true.

"Defensively, we have been really strong and we are starting to get much better as well.

"What we want to do now is convert it to the top end where we know we have got good players who can score goals and bring those two together to start really getting to where we want to get to.

"But defensively, we have looked better and look strong. We’ve looked strong all season defensively and we don’t give many opportunities away and when we do and teams do have opportunities, it’s long shots or maybe conceding a goal off somebody that we probably couldn’t prevent.

"At set-plays, we’re looking strong and we are getting better at attacking set-plays, so there’s a lot of positives.

"But we know we can be better at certain moments of games.”

Rovers’ order at the back has been all the more impressive given that defensive lieutenant Richard Wood has been out since mid-August with the former Rotherham United and Sheffield Wednesday centre-half still no nearer to a return yet.

One player who is back this evening is Jay McGrath, who served a one-match ban in weekend cup win at Kettering.

On Wood, McCann added: "Woody is still struggling a little bit. He’s in and he’s out and it’s just trying to get to the bottom of this problem he’s got in his ankle.

"So there’s no real timeframe of when he will return to action, really. We’ll just play it day by day.

"There’s some days when he feels good and some when he doesn’t. It’s frustrating for him as I know it’s really frustrating when you have played football your whole career and Woody was one who was never really injured (before).

"Since he’s been here, he missed near enough the first half of last season, probably after the first four or five games and now there’s this season.

"But I’ve no doubt, being the character he is, he will be ready when he gets back and can help us."

Rovers have won just once in their past eight league outings with Fleetwood, losing on six occasions.

They have also never picked up three points on seven previous visits to the Fylde coast to face the Fishermen.