Manager Darren Moore felt his side showed a real determination to seal victory after outbattling Lincoln City at the Keepmoat Stadium.
A stunning strike from Niall Ennis gave Rovers a first-half lead, and although Jorge Grant levelled for the Imps it was the home side who found a winning goal when Kazaiah Sterling fought to win the ball back in the final third and setup Jon Taylor for his first goal since joining the club.
“They’ve shown a real commitment and desire, the energy and the work rate was superb and they had great mental capacity to reset themselves after Lincoln got one back which was great to see,” said Moore.
“I thought it was a really pulsating local derby, Lincoln were a very strong test for us and neither side really gave too much away, they came here and set their stalls out very early doors and they really are an impressive side to come up against.
“They’ve had so much success over the past two or three years, they know what they’re about and the Cowley brothers are a great management team there, so we knew we’d have to compete well to get anything from the game.”
Moore made a double change with just under 20 minutes to go with Sterling and Taylor coming on, a switch that proved fruitful with the two combining for the winner.
“We brought the two subs on at the right time, and it was great to see them combine for the goal, I’m really pleased that we’ve got the three points because it was no more than we deserved,” added the boss.
“I said to the team before the game that it’d have to be a team effort to get something from this, we wanted to put a marker down in terms of getting a result against a team like Lincoln - it proved difficult but it was great from the boys that came on.
“They impacted the game exactly how we wanted, and they combined for the second goal which proved to be crucial in getting the three points. There’s a great spirit in the group and we’re starting to really come together as a team.”