Ryan dreams of lucrative Cup run

Rovers host Leeds United in a second round derby this evening, with Ryan dreaming of landing a plum tie at a Premier League giant if they see off the Whites, who they have never beaten at the Keepmoat Stadium.

Sides that have qualified for the Champions League or UEFA Europa League join the competition in the third round, with their number including Manchester United, Arsenal and Manchester City.

Ryan, whose Rovers side famously reached the quarter-finals of the League Cup back in December 2005 when they lost out in heart-breaking fashion following a penalty shoot-out loss to the Gunners, admits an away assignment against either the North Londoners, City or United would be his perfect scenario.

With the purse strings tight at the Keepmoat, the financial benefits of such a tie in the next round would be immense for Rovers, operating under one of the smallest budgets in the Championship.

Throughout the summer, takeover talk has been rife at the club, with Irish-led consortium Sequentia Capital – who are bankrolled by a Belize-based tycoon – rumoured to be willing to invest £40m.

But, as it stands, Ryan admits that it looks likely that there will be no change in ownership, with the clubs three major shareholders – himself, Dick Watson and Terry Bramall – set to continue to run the club with a potential takeover having stalled for now.

Admitting the stakes are high ahead of tonight’s encounter with Leeds, Ryan, hoping for a crowd in the region of 12,000 this evening, told the Yorkshire Post: “We will be going all out to win it because Paul (Dickov) knows that if we get a big draw somewhere, it will help us keep players like Richie Wellens and (Reece) Wabara, who are both on short-term deals.

“If we get a terrific away draw that brings in some money, it makes all the difference. Because we are running a very tight ship.

“Manchester United, Arsenal or Man City away would be my perfect tie – they are my preferred three.”

Providing an update on the takeover situation, he added: “I think the status quo will prevail. But the bottom line is that Rovers fans should be delighted that we have managed to put together a decent squad, although obviously, we are living within our means.”

Rovers enter tonight’s clash with a burning sense of injustice following the controversial weekend postponement of their game at Charlton Athletic, called off at half-time due to the saturated state of parts of the rain-soaked pitch at The Valley – when the South Yorkshiremen were leading 3-1.

Despite the conditions, Rovers were adamant the game should have continued with both sets of players happy to carry on playing, with the visitors down to 10 men following the dismissal of midfielder Paul Keegan for two bookable offences.

To add to Rovers’ ire, the sending off of Keegan will stand, despite the game being abandoned and having to be replayed, with the Irishman serving a one-match ban and sitting out this evening’s game.

Ryan said: “We had a young referee (Lee Collins) who I think is new to the list. The referee should have been stronger.

“We played brilliantly and did everything right and then end up with a player suspended. This is Championship football and they should make it the referee’s duty to get the game on, first and foremost.

“A more experienced referee would have got the game on (finished).”

Despite a wholly frustrating afternoon in the capital, Ryan admits he has been delighted by the performances of Rovers this term, with Dickov’s troops, despite being written off as relegation fodder by many pundits before the season, having taken to Championship life again impressively – singling out particular praise for talented teenager James Husband, who faces his hometown club this evening.

He said: “All in all, I have been pleased with the form of the whole team really and in Husband, we have a star of the future. I think he will command a big fee one day.

“We lost to Leeds in the competition two seasons ago, but I think we are a lot stronger team now. I predict we will give Leeds a real good run for their money.

“We will certainly be going all out to beat Leeds at home. We feel well equipped for the Championship and will give it a good go.

“Leeds games are special. Until recent years, we have never been competitive with them. Before then, there were well ahead of us.

“But in recent years, we’ve played them quite a bit. Unfortunately, there are a lot of Leeds fans in Doncaster and it would be nice to let them know their local club is just as good!

“It would be nice to have a cup run. We did similar to what Bradford did in the competition (in 2005), although we didn’t go as far as them.

“We only lost to Arsenal on penalties after extra-time and were cruelly robbed by an injury-time goal in ‘mystery time’. There should not have been any extra-time at the end of it!”