Doncaster Rovers v Scunthorpe United

DONCASTER ROVERS
 - V - 
SCUNTHORPE UNITED

 1st January 2011 and off we all go, nursing our hangovers to watch a traditional New Year Derby at the Keepmoat, with Rovers entertaining the Iron.  Scunny were down at the bottom of the Championship and looking every inch the relegation fodder they became.  Donny occupied fourteenth  position but having just recruited a star centre-back on loan (Matt Kilgallon) looked like they may be planning a push for the play-offs.  

After a long delay due to the lack of an ambulance, Rovers predictably overwhelmed the Iron with a strong first half display that saw Billy Sharp, James Hayter and Joe Mills getting the 3-goals that gave Donny victory on that day.

We Rovers fans woke-up 5 months later having just avoided relegation and of course followed the Iron down to League 1 the next season.  No offence to Iron fans, but I now hope our tendency of following Scunny over the last couple of seasons is coming to an end.

DONCASTER ROVERS

I don’t think the way we are playing at home is a lot different to how we are playing away from home; we are just scoring at the right time on our travels. - Dean Saunders

OK - who writes the headlines in the Star?  "Dean backs home form" ?  Now we all know our home form hasn't been all that but I'm going to go along with Dean's obvious strategy here.  This is the "Elephant in the Room" strategy so SHHHHHHH!

Deano knows it, we all know it.  If Rovers get it together at home, with the fantastic away form  that we have, this league should be for our taking.  Like everyone else, I can only guess at what needs to be done, but one thing I would say is please keep off the player's backs.

Gary Woods - Decent Season

I noticed while participating on the Lucky Pint on Tuesday Night.  Gary Woods had done nothing wrong all evening and had in fact drawn a couple of positive comments from the commentators.  

A first slight mistake from a corner and in came the first mention of Woodsy on the match thread.  Four teams are conceding fewer goals than Donny this season.  On that Stat, Gary Woods is having a decent season.  Read the forums though and you wouldn't think it.

It's not only the written word either where Rovers' players are unduly criticized.  Listen to any home commentary and you will hear somebody with an overly big mouth voice an ill-considered opinion about what they are seeing.  So, if you're going to the match today, could you do me a favour?  Could you please tell the big-mouthed boo-boys that "Fuzzy says SHUT UP!"  - Thank you.

SCUNTHORPE UNITED

I don't think you should ever treat them (derbies) as a normal game. I think you're foolish to actually think that - Brian Laws

It looks like Brian is trying to spice things up a bit ahead of the todays Derby.  

Before he returned to the Iron for his third spell, I'd have had this fixture as a sure fire opportunity for Rovers to end the Keepmoat-Blues.  But with Laws back in the driving seat?  Just 2 draws in 7 outing before his appointment, since then, two wins and a draw in 5.  Sure, I still think Rovers should be too strong but since Laws returned, fans are at least seeing some signs of life.

Looking at the recent performances, and the first I looked at was Scunny's home defeat to fellow relegation candidates, Bury.   In an attacking sense, what struck me as encouraging was the relationship between Karl Hawley and Leon Clarke.  There were two occasions on which Hawley flicked a header on for Clarke, one was a goal and one would have been but for a good save from the Bury 'keeper.

In defence, I didn't see the disaster that was Carlisle, but did see small points in need of improvement.  WIngers on occasions suckering the centre-backs in too deep and so allowing the ball to be pulled back to for easy efforts from the edge of the area and lacks of concentration, one of which resulted in the winner for Bury.  Two players, who otherwise looked OK, had simply switched off , challenges that should have been made simply weren't made, and Scunny paid.

Mark Duffy - caught the eye.

Against Notts County, the Iron won a very creditable point.  For me, Mark Duffy caught the eye in the first half.  He ran at the County defence very strongly and brought other players into moves very intelligently.  This was never better shown than how he played a simple pass down the wing that allowed Christian Ribeiro to cut in for Scunny's first.

Their second was another clever move started and finished by Damien Mozika.

It looked a largely competent performance at the back too against a team who are one of the league's leading scorers.  The only things they failed consistently to cope with were crosses that allowed the strikers to move to attack them.  Other than that, they largely had County limited to long range efforts.

Prediction:

The Iron that I watched in those highlights are better than 23rd in this division.  But I still believe Rovers to be stronger.  2 : 0 to Rovers and Billy Paynter to open the scoring.