Rovers win thriller in entertaining local derby.
Doncaster Rovers-3 Tyson (7), Bennett (33), McCombe (50)Chesterfield FC- 2 Clucas (41), (Doyle, 61)
Keepmoat Stadium
Saturday 20th September 2014
Sky Bet Football League
Rovers have finally taken off at home, with a 3-2 win against Chesterfield.
Paul Dickov made two changes from Tuesday nights draw, which saw Mark De-Val and Dean Furman replace Paul Keegan and Theo Robinson.
The changes saw a switch in system, which seemed to work wonders early on for Rovers who created three chances in the opening 5 minutes. The best fell to Nathan Tyson who was played through on goal, but he took a heavy touch and Tommy Lee closed the Rovers man down.
Tyson made up for the bad touch minutes later, when he nodded in Wabara cross, however it was unsure whether his first effort went over the line. He did however tap in the follow, to end any debate.
Rovers continued to attack the Spirites defence and created plenty of opportunities, Tyson had another chance and his header was accurate but lacked the power to double Rovers lead.
Dickov’s side counter attacked superbly on 33 minutes and Kyle Bennett made it 2-0, thanks to a great bit of play down the Rovers right. Wellens picked Bennett out with a low cross, for the winger’s third goal of the season.
With just 4 minutes of the first half to go, Daniel Johnson had a shot from the edge of the box, which Steer saved onto the post. However Sam Clucas beat the offside trap to tap in and get his side back into the match.
Rovers came out for the second half on the front foot once more, as attack seemed like the best form of defence for Dickov’s side. James Coppinger was denied by the bar as Rovers looked to get their two goal lead back.
From the resulting corner, Coppinger once again had a chance, but he headed at keeper Lee. However, the ball fell to Jamie McComebe who tapped home from three yards.
Going two-goals down once again saw The Spireites come to life and manager Paul Cook made two changes, with O’shea and Gnanduillet entering the field. Gnanduillet scored, but was flagged offside. Then on 61 minutes Doyle scored his 12th of the season to make it a nervy final third of the match for Rovers.
Paul Cook’s side threw everything at a resilient Rovers defence, and they missed an array of chances. The best fell to Doyle, who somehow missed from a yard out, with just minutes remaining.
Theo Robinson came on for Tyson and could have wrapped the match up late on, but put his effort over. The miss didn’t cost Paul Dickov’s men, as Rovers recorded their first three points at home this season, to the delight of the Keepmoat faithful.
Team details -
Rovers: Steer, Evina, Wabara, McCombe, McCullough, De-Val (Keegan, 63), Wellens, Furman, Bennett, Coppinger ©, Tyson (Robinson, 82).
Subs not used – Marosi, Wakefield, Peterson, Askins, Ferguson.
Cautions – McCombe (63)
Chesterfield: Lee, Darikwa, Evatt ©, Raglan, Humphreys (O’shea, 50), Ryan, Morsy (Banks, 22), Clucas, Boco (Gnanduillet, 55), Johnson, Doyle
Subs not used – Chapman, Broadhead, Lamb , Gardner.
Cautions – Raglan (51)
Attendance – 7954 (2493)