Rovers boss not hyping up Plymouth clash
As Doncaster Rovers sit at the top of the tree heading into the bulk of the festive fixtures, manager Darren Ferguson now has the task of handling the pressure that comes with being in pole position in Sky Bet League Two.
Ferguson’s side travel to Plymouth on Saturday with the gap between the teams standing at a solitary point after 19 games, with Rovers going above their opponents following last weekend’s win at Stevenage, which was their fourth on the bounce.
The boss has regularly pointed out that he isn ot interested in what other teams do as it is out of his control, but now the time has come for the trip to Home Park in what will be one of the toughest games of the season – the Scot is treating it as just another game.
He said: “The game against Plymouth is no bigger than the one last week, there are still three points to play for. They are a good team so it will be a good game.
“The concentration for me has been about the points total, it’s irrelevant what Plymouth do and we can only control what they do when we play them.
“Three points is all that matters on Saturday, our away form has to be better - our results at Exeter and Stevenage were good but our performances not so good.”
Rovers moved to the top of the table with a 4-3 win at Stevenage last week. Rovers had to hold on in the end at the Lamex Stadium, but Ferguson is adamant he won’t change the way the team plays and risk losing the attacking flare he has going forward.
He said: “The important thing for us is that we’re still learning and looking for ways to improve, but were also winning games at the same time. We won’t change the way we play.”
Ferguson was keeping his cards close to his chest when talking about possible team selection for the weekend.
Striker Andy Williams netted in the Checkatrade Trophy defeat to Blackpool in midweek, in what was the 30 year-old’s first start since October 8 when he bagged the winner against Barnet, but John Marquis and Liam Mandeville have been in great goalscoring form during his enforced absence..
He added: “Andy grew into the game on Tuesday, it was about getting his timing back. He’ll play a part on Saturday, but next week’s an important week for him depending how much game time he gets at Plymouth.”