Doncaster Rovers: Darren Ferguson calls for '˜common sense' approach on Newport's shocking pitch

Ferguson has been praised several times by his players this season for his meticulous preparation for games.

And this week has been a fine example of that as the Scot has taken his players away from the pristine pitches at Cantley Park in preparation for what they will face at Rodney Parade tomorrow evening.

Rovers started the week on a 3G surface before switching to a worn 11-a-side surface within the Keepmoat Stadium complex.

Newport manager Graham Westley recently branded his club’s playing surface as “a disgrace”.

County are tenants at the ground, which is also used by rugby teams Newport Gwent Dragons and Newport RFC.

“Training this week has been about finding the worst pitch we could really,” said Ferguson.

“But no matter which one we go on, I don’t think anything will be as bad the pitch we’re playing on on Friday night.

“It’s more about getting the players in the right frame of mind.

“We have to tinker with how we want to do things in certain areas of the pitch, there’s no getting away from that.

“So it’s just getting into the players’ minds to make them understand when the ball is in certain areas we have to do certain things that we might not normally do.

“We certainly can’t be taking any risks in our own defensive half.

“It’s common sense really.

“But then in other areas of the pitch, particularly when we’re attacking, we want to play our normal game. We don’t want to change anything in that sense.”

n Doncaster Rovers yesterday announced a new commercial partnership with Doncaster Sheffield Airport (DSA) and Flybe.