Boss speaks ahead of battle with Bantams.
Paul Dickov says he will shelve any birthday celebrations until his side have got three points against Bradford City at Valley Parade.The Doncaster Rovers boss turns 42 on Saturday, but experience has told him not to get too far ahead of himself.
“I never plan anything on a Saturday night, regardless of whose birthday it is but hopefully I’ll be able to celebrate it,” Dickov said.
“If we win our game on Saturday, then we could easily be mid-table with a couple of games in hand.
“We’ve seen too many times this season that anybody can beat anybody though. Phil [Parkinson] has got a good team there so we won’t be taking them lightly; he’s got a good squad at his disposal with plenty of experience at this level.”
Rovers are on the hunt for a maximum after failing in their last three attempts to notch three points and have not played Bradford in the league since Boxing Day 2006 – a 1-0 win in West Yorkshire.
“It’s a little frustrating, we are where we are and we have to get on with it. We were expecting it to be tough due to the circumstances in pre-season, we knew performances and results wouldn’t always be great but we’ve got a long term plan which myself and the board talk about and stick to it and see where it takes us.
“I want to succeed; I want my team and my club to succeed. As for pressure from elsewhere, the board are fantastic with me and we have long and short term plans which we want to stick to.
“I speak with Gavin up to five times a day so there’s regular contact there and we both know where we want to go and the main thing for me is that its long term and we’re in it together.
“There are different factors – not just footballing – we’re trying to build the academy and in the community and it’s something I’m a big part of here,” he finished.