'Peaking at the right time': Doncaster Rovers in pole position for promotion after perfect Easter

No one in League Two’s top seven has won a match over the Bank Holiday weekend, Rovers have won twice.

Results at this juncture of the season always have an extra resonance and in the space of two 3-0 wins Rovers have gone from chasing pack to top of the pile, one win from promotion to League One.

No wonder Doncaster fans were gleefully chanting ‘we’re going to win the league’ from the moment Harry Clifton opened the scoring on nine minutes and again after Patrick Kelly settled matters in stoppage time.

No wonder Grant McCann strayed from the usual post-match script of ‘one game at a time’ to acknowledge the importance of hitting their straps at the opportune moment.

“Hopefully we're peaking at the right time,” he said as Rovers moved onto 78 points, one better than Port Vale who needed a late equaliser against Grimsby, three more than Bradford who conceded a late equaliser at Chesterfield, and most crucially of all, four clear of Walsall who haven’t won for 12 games.

“We've done well over this Easter period. Six goals, two clean sheets, two tough games against form teams - I couldn't be more pleased.”

Just as good teams rise to the top at times like these, so do good players and Luke Molyneux has stepped up when Rovers needed a talisman.

On Good Friday it was a hat-trick in the 3-0 win at Tranmere.

On Easter Monday a treble of goal involvements as they’re known these days, two old-fashioned assists, one of which saw him beat three players before releasing Jordan Gibson for the second, and a hand in the third which came after a physical Colchester had been reduced to 10 men following a red card for Owura Edwards.

As much as another headline-grabbing performance from Molyneux deserved praise, McCann reserved special mention for Gibson, the beneficiary of the former’s slalom down the right in the 22nd minute.

“It was great play from Luke and two good finishes from Harry and Gibbo,” said McCann.

“I was really pleased for Gibbo, he’s been getting in those positions and not taking the chance, so I just reminded him today of how good he is, don’t be questioning yourself or doubting your ability, just go and put a performance in and get yourselves into a position to score.”

Rovers fans played their part, too. Sensing what was at stake, they began in fine voice, determined to lift their team from the start and nine minutes in their energy was rewarded.

Jamie Sterry had already had two opportunities to burst into space from right-back and on the third occasion he cut inside on the edge of the area, swivelled and released Molyneux down the right. His ball across the face of the six-yard box was too inviting for Clifton to pass up.

Then after two Colchester players collided trying to stop Molyneux collecting the ball in his own half, right under the nose of Us boss Danny Cowley who went ballistic at the fourth official, Rovers’ game-changer set off at a tangent, beating two men on the byline and then cutting inside a third on his left, before that delightfully weighted pass for Gibson to run onto. Colchester upped the ante in the second half - they have a play-off place to secure after all - and Ted Sharman-Lowe produced a fine save from Edwards, but the sting was taken out of the visitors when Edwards was dismissed for arguing with the referee.

McCann sent fresh legs on from the bench. Zian Westbrooke nearly sealed it after being played through, before Molyneux set up Ethan Ennis whose initial shot was cleared off the line, only for Kelly to mop up.

“I thought it was a really controlled performance against a strong Colchester team," said McCann.

“Colchester have been really strong for three or four months in all aspects, but first half I thought we were outstanding, our energy was great, the intensity, the press, two smashing goals. We started the second half slow but once we made the changes we were better and the freshness we then scored a really good goal to get the win.

“We were strong at the back too, as a unit.”

Bradford next on Saturday should be a cracking Yorkshire derby with plenty at stake. For a peaking Rovers, there is a title as well as promotion.

Doncaster Rovers: Sharman-Lowe, Sterry, Bailey, Anderson, Senior (Maxwell 68), Crew (Westbrooke 82), Broadbent, Molyneux, Clifton (Kelly 62), Gibson (Ennis 62), Street (Sbarra 81). Unused substitutes: Lawlor, Nixon.

Colchester: Macey, Egbo, Kelleher (Scully 56), Flanagan, Iandolo, McDonnell (Tucker 38), Bishop (Vincent-Young 77), Lisbie (Gordon 77), Read, Edwards, Simpson (Tovide 56). Unused substitutes: Smith, Hunt.

Referee: A Young (Cambridgeshire).