Rovers will be looking to get back to winning ways when they take on Northampton Town at the Keepmoat Stadium this weekend.
Andy Butler’s side were narrowly beaten at Crewe Alexandra in their last league outing, which was the first defeat since his appointment.
Northampton’s recent form
The Cobblers have won two of their past six league outings stretching back to a 4-3 defeat at MK Dons on February 20. They followed that up with a goalless draw at home to Rochdale, before being beaten 2-1 on the road at Swindon Town.
The month of March has brought about a couple of positive results though, with a 2-0 win at home to Plymouth Argyle backed up by a 4-1 hammering of Portsmouth last weekend. They were beaten 2-1 by Charlton Athletic in their last outing.
The man in charge
Jon Brady was appointed as caretaker manager in February after the departure of Keith Curle. He has been tasked with the job of turning results around as the Cobblers look to avoid an immediate return to Sky Bet League Two.
Ones to watch
Ryan Watson
After coming through the ranks at Leicester City, Watson enjoyed two loan spells with Northampton between 2014 and 2016. He joined Barnet on a permanent deal in 2016 and spent two years with the Bees before a switch to MK Dons. He played 22 times in the 2018/19 campaign as they won promotion to Sky Bet League One, before returning to Northampton. He scored seven goals in his first season with the club and added another promotion to his CV. The 27-year-old has already matched that goal tally so far this season and is currently the club’s top scorer.
Sam Hoskins
After starting his career with Southampton, Hoskins spent time on loan with Rotherham and Stevenage before a permanent move to Yeovil Town in 2013. He spent two years at Huish Park before joining Northampton after a successful trial period. He has gone on to become an integral part of the setup at Sixfields, scoring the club’s goal of the season in 2018/19, before netting in the play-off final victory over Exeter last season. He signed a new deal with the club in the summer of 2020 and has scored five goals so far this season.
Ryan Edmondson
The young forward made a loan switch to Northampton in January after spending the first-half of the season with Scottish Premership side Aberdeen. The 19-year-old is still on the books at Premier League side Leeds United, and has made two substitute appearances for the club since coming through in 2017.
Last time out
Goals from Tyreece John-Jules and Joe Wright sealed a comfortable 2-0 win for Rovers when the two sides last met in Sky Bet League One at Sixfields in December.
More ahead of this match
