Away Match Build Up 6/2/2021 L1 Doncaster Rovers v OUFC

[Oufcrealist]

Whoops, just noticed I had Henry playing on the left. I’ve edited the original post to reflect the change you mentioned.

After listening to ‘Wasn’t At The Game’ last night, I am VERY excited to see what Barker can do. As they mentioned, he has played at a higher level for several clubs so I can see him hitting the ground running and making an immediate impact. He is match fit and ready to go!

I think Henry HAS to play in the middle now. He came on last night and played really well in CM and that’s been the case, whenever he has played well this season.

That’s a VERY exciting team! Dare I say it, better than any we have had in previous years. We also have some really good options off of the bench. Can’t wait to see what Lee can do!

Spot on with Henry. We now have options with pace out wide. Henry who has undoubted technical craft is now more suited to the middle. He can still get his crosses in when he's supporting the wide players and boy does he have a shot on him from 20-25 yards out.

 

[LeftSideBoy]

As you've hinted on the last line of the post, I'd also like to see Lee get quite a few minutes on Saturday. If he can reproduce the form of when Luton got promoted, then he surely has to be pushing for a starting place.

You would like to think so! I remember him ripping us to bits and that was only a couple of seasons ago. Since then, he’s remained injury free and until recently, has been playing a lot of football. He and Barker are the 2 signings that really get me excited! I would love to see him come on for Henry at the 70 minute mark, and really get at them!

 

[ttg17]

Got a bit of a soft spot for Doncaster. No idea why. If not us, I'd love to see them and Lincoln go up in the autos. It would have the fans of your Pompeys, Sunderlands, Ipswiches and Hulls absolutely seething, and would hopefully give two very promising young English managers more of the credit they deserve. Saturday should be a cracker, the division's two form sides over both the last six and the last ten games. I really wouldn't mind it being called off. I don't think we would win at present, and I think, while they've been on a great run of form, losing someone of Whiteman's quality (8 goals, their second top scorer, and 6 assists in the league before he was sold) will surely start to tell over the coming weeks and months. It would also give our new lads more time to bed in, especially given the relatively less challenging fixtures they would be debuting in instead (BR away, Wigan at home).

If it does go ahead, I fear they would come out on top. We've been winning without playing brilliantly well recently, and a better side will probably punish us. A loss certainly wouldn't be the end of the world - we won't have a more difficult match, on paper, all season, so no reason to panic - but a win would be massive.

 

[ttg17]

Got a feeling we will win against Donny then lose/draw at Brizzle on Tuesday

Here is what Donny think about the match. https://www.drfc-vsc.co.uk/index.php?topic=279468.0

Interesting. Hope they do rotate a bit for Saturday.

I find comments like this noteworthy: "Their last six away games have yielded 4 wins and 2 draws but Portsmouth are they only decent team they have come up against and that was way back at the start of that run in late November." I know the poster is only referring to away games, but more generally it is relatively easy to now look at the table and come to the conclusion that we haven't played any really good teams in our unbeaten run. But you have to remember, at the time, the likes of Ipswich were fifth in the table, and Blackpool were on a great run and were sniffing around the playoffs, if memory serves. Hull were top of the league and Pompey were sweeping aside all comers. While undeniably the winning run, with the exception perhaps of Plymouth, has been against the dross of the division, it's not the case that we haven't shown we can compete with the division's top sides.

 

[Mad Dog]

Stevens
Long Moore Atkinson Ruffels
Gorrin
Henry Brannagan
Sykes Taylor Barker​

As others have said, Henry has looked pretty class in midfield, and pulled the strings when he came on yesterday, so with Mcguane out, it’s a no brainier really.

A toss up between Sykes and Shodipo on the right, but after last night’s performance, for me, if ever there was a time to show a bit of faith in Sykes, and give him a confidence boost by leaving him in the side, with a chance to go out and stake a claim for that wide right spot, it’s now.

However, there is an argument to keep the team the same as last Saturday, so as not to change a winning formula.

Either way, a huge game, as it will let us see where we’re really at, against a top team, and a win could get us right in amongst the playoffs!

COYY

 

[Oufcad30]

Would happily take a point, biggest test for a while, if we win then absolutely fantastic

 

[oufc1991]

I find it interesting that plenty of people are saying that our winning run has only been against the shite of this league but at the start of the season we wouldn’t have beaten those teams and also you can only beat what’s put in front of you which we have been doing but I do agree the real test comes this Saturday and for what it’s worth I think we will carry on winning

 

[brassmonkey]

I would guess that as Donny have one of the best midfields in the league KR will pick the wide men that are best at defending rather than attacking. Maybe Sykes will start on the left.

 

[IsleofWightYellow]

I would guess that as Donny have one of the best midfields in the league KR will pick the wide men that are best at defending rather than attacking. Maybe Sykes will start on the left.

I hope we don’t just go with a defensive attitude and try and keep it tight, especially if we go 1-0 up. We’ve seen before that this approach just invites pressure on us and the defence sits deeper and deeper.

If they’re going to attack us, great, let’s have pace on the wings and hit them on the counter, and keep playing our normal, possession based game. We need to have the confidence to think that we have the attacking players to win the game, not think ‘Oh God, who do we have who can play out wide and defend, as we’ll be doing that all game for sure!’

 

[Grumpy Git]

A quote from their forum,
"a signature of his [KR] teams wherever he has been, and we need a strong referee who is up to the off the ball and cynical fouls his teams employ in those areas.
Oxfords right back in our away game last season wanted his leg breaking, as he spent most of the game trying to do it to our lads and got away with it."

Not sure he has that right to put it mildly. I've always seen us as one of the 'soft' teams.

Northern softies.

 

[mooro]

I can see us beating these! With the new additions and the current form, we should fear no one! I would like to see the following 11:

Stevens
Long Moore Atkinson Ruffels
Gorrin
Henry Brannagan
Shodipo Taylor Barker

I would perhaps leave Barker out at teh moment as he'll have had a big week uprooting himself to come down here. If we re going to introduce any of the newbies from the off then instead I'd go with Lee

 

[Lincoln.yellow1]

Our best form of defence is our attack, we have started to concede chances and goals over the last half a dozen games so to win this game we will probably need to score 2 or even 3 goals.
We have let in soft goals against AFC Wimbledon, Rochdale and Burton and to be fair Fleetwood created chances so we will have to be tighter at the back which may mean Ruffles and Long looking more at their defensive duties rather than overlapping our wide men and Alex Gorrin will certainly be told to sit tight in front of the back 4.
Some of the Lincoln supporters I work with said that the Doncaster team were nothing special when they met last Saturday and the fact that Lincoln missed TWO penalties would have probably beaten them, Appleton has his team playing our style of football which Doncaster could not cope with so let’s hope we have enough to get the 3 points....

 

[ttg17]

A quote from their forum,
"a signature of his [KR] teams wherever he has been, and we need a strong referee who is up to the off the ball and cynical fouls his teams employ in those areas.
Oxfords right back in our away game last season wanted his leg breaking, as he spent most of the game trying to do it to our lads and got away with it."

Not sure he has that right to put it mildly. I've always seen us as one of the 'soft' teams.

To be fair that's Gorrin all over

 

[LeftSideBoy]

I would perhaps leave Barker out at teh moment as he'll have had a big week uprooting himself to come down here. If we re going to introduce any of the newbies from the off then instead I'd go with Lee

He’d have been training with the lads for 5 days before the game on Saturday so I would hope that he’s over his move and ready to play. I would definitely like to see Lee get some minutes.

 

[bazzer9461]

Got a feeling we will win against Donny then lose/draw at Brizzle on Tuesday

Here is what Donny think about the match. https://www.drfc-vsc.co.uk/index.php?topic=279468.0

An interesting comment of that forum

Oxfords right back in our away game last season wanted his leg breaking, as he spent most of the game trying to do it to our lads and got away with it.

 

[bazzer9461]

Just hope the ref can count toTen

 

[tonyw]

So this game is #1 (Us) vs. #2 (Them) in the League One form table - regardless of whether you pick 6 or 8 games as your sample size.

Both teams have won every league game they've played in 2021, with the only blemish for either side this year being Doncaster losing at West Ham in the Cup.

Should be an absolute cracker.

If we can pull this one off, then glory awaits us this season. But I would settle for a point.......

 

[stokeu]

I'm going for posponed frozen pitch on this one, if it does go ahead a draw would be a good result and will keep us in the mix for the play offs. Don't think we have enough to win this one but if somehow we do we need to follow it up with a good result at the Gas.

More chance of Boris Johnson joining us as an out of contract player and scoring a hat trick in the first 15 minutes than a postponement for a frozen pitch

 

[Essexyellows]

Consistently I have gone for a draw and will be most pleased with a win.

 

[Big Ronaldo]

Really enjoyed the day out at the keepmoat a couple of seasons ago.
Proper fans and a cracking stadium.
So sad this awayday is off the agenda.
Should be a good game though. They are going well too.
A win there would be absolutely huge.