Doncaster Rovers united heading in to final stages of the season, according to gaffer.
Paul Dickov has lauded the team spirit that he has engendered during his tenure at Keepmoat Stadium.A revamped fines list and an increased sense of responsibility is just one of the things on Dickov’s agenda to help Rovers push for a play-off berth come the end of the campaign.
“It’s something that we’ve been trying to build since I got here. I had a friend from the press down recently and the first thing that hit him about the training ground was the atmosphere and the fact that everyone gets along with each other; there are no cliques and it’s jovial,” he said.
“The serious business and professionalism is evident during training and then they’ll stick around afterwards.
“I’ve got a group of players that get on which is good but we need a serious side too and that’s where my serious pros help.”
Dickov and his side are preparing for back to back home games, something which on paper is easier than the reality.
“We finished the game the other night and we looked at the table after the game to see that we’re eleventh, just three points off the play-offs and you don’t finish in fifth or sixth in the middle of February,” he said.
“We have to be in and around in the last month or so of the season and then we’d be happy with that.
“We’ve got to make sure that we have the same performance levels as the other night and people were asking me to pick individuals out the other night and it was so difficult because everyone was a 7/10 and above. They [Yeovil] will come here and be tough and disciplined but we’ve got to start where we left off.”
Dickov eluded to the fact that he is hoping for a bit of give and take from his staff in a bid to hit the end of season lottery of the top six.
“The players know what I’m like as a manager, I’ll back them all the way and get along well with them but there are points when I’ve got to come down on top of them and I’m not afraid to do that. They appreciate me letting them being a team and having fun but they know that once we get going, we mean business,” he said.
“I let the players manager their own fines and if there’s any contention, they come up and see me and its rare they do that.
“Right throughout football, they tend to finish at Christmas and it goes to the Christmas party so they don’t mind paying up because they’ll get it back but then it dwindles out in the New Year.
“We’ve nailed them on it this year though and I know there’s nothing better than stitching your teammates up and it could be the stupidest little thing but it creates a good atmosphere and discipline. It’s built on trust, and because they want to manage it themselves, they’re involved.
“I like to give them responsibility but have a laugh and a joke with.”