Fine start for Fergie down by the sea
DONCASTER manager Darren Ferguson praised the character of his side as they made it four wins in six since he took charge with victory against Blackpool.
First-half goals from Andy Williams and Aaron Taylor-Sinclair secured the win for Doncaster which moved them up to 16th in the table.
Defeat sees Blackpool slip back into the relegation zone and means they have now lost their last five games in all competitions.
Ferguson picked out the mindset of his players as a key factor in their victory.“Their mentality is the thing that pleases me the most – we deserved to win,” Ferguson said.
“We did the ugly things right and we had to be careful as it was wet and slippy. We knew it would be difficult and we felt that the first goal would be important.
“It was a test of our character because some people would probably think we would have got beat.We have to keep the desire to keep winning games.The players take a lot of the credit because a new manager brings in a new system.Three clean sheets on the bounce is good too.”
Doncaster took the lead in the fifth minute when Charles Dunne’s weak defensive header fell to Williams, who curled the ball into the corner for his fourth goal in his last three games.
Nathan Tyson almost made it two when he volleyed just over from 20 yards after 13 minutes, sparking boos from frustrated Blackpool fans.
But the Tangerines came agonisingly close to an equaliser after 17 minutes when Mark Cullen glanced Jarrett Rivers’ cross inches wide from eight yards.
Doncaster applied relentless pressure and it told after 37 minutes when Taylor-Sinclair tapped home Conor Grant’s corner from two yards to double the lead.
Grant surged forward after 49 minutes and Dean Lyness produced a terrific save low to deny the midfielder, and he was on hand again to deny Williams after 70 minutes.
Blackpool boss Neil McDonald believes it was his side’s worst home display of the season. “That’s the most disappointed I’ve been all season, especially with the home form,” said McDonald.“I thought we had turned a corner but we were outplayed and we didn’t perform half as well as we could do.
“We are in a fragile state I suppose. It’s not for lack of trying but we’re just not good enough at the moment.
“I’ve always asked for a performance and the performance wasn’t very good.
“The fans had every right to boo.They’ve been coming to support the team and they had every right to shout at the team.”