Doncaster Rovers: Ferguson may have more transfer business ahead

Darren Ferguson confessed he may be forced to continue his work in the transfer market after landing Sunderland forward Lynden Gooch on loan.
New Doncaster Rovers signing Lynden Gooch, who has joined on loan from Sunderland.New Doncaster Rovers signing Lynden Gooch, who has joined on loan from Sunderland.
New Doncaster Rovers signing Lynden Gooch, who has joined on loan from Sunderland.

By signing United States U20 international Gooch, Ferguson has fulfilled his desire for an attacker with different attributes to those already at the club.

But a fresh spate of injuries has left the Rovers boss concerned one new signing may not be enough.

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Harry Middleton, Andy Butler and Cameron Stewart have all been ruled out of Saturday’s trip to Fleetwood Town with Nathan Tyson also a major doubt.

“Whether we bring any more in will depend once we get through this weekend and the Tuesday night game with Port Vale,” Ferguson told the Star.

“I’ll probably get an idea on how quickly they will progress. Certainly on Sunday we’ll know more.

“But we’ll wait until then and probably make a decision.”

Stewart suffered a horrible fall on the back of his neck during last weekend’s draw with Gillingham and despite suffering no major damage, Ferguson says there is no current timeline on his return.

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Middleton is recovering from a hamstring problem while Butler suffered a groin injury after falling awkwardly.

He said: “Cameron was a very lucky boy and we were just relieved that it wasn’t something really serious with the area of the body it was.

“It’s more relief that he’s ok and whatever time it takes for him to come back, that’s what it takes.

“There’s obviously a lot of swelling and stiffness so we’ll take it day by day.

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“It could have been really bad with the impact on his head and neck.”

Ferguson is comfortable with his defensive cover with either Gary MacKenzie or Mitchell Lund set to replace Butler in the side. Rob Jones is also due to return to full training next week.

The Rovers boss was understandably pleased with the timing of the signing of Gooch, who has joined on an initial month-long loan.

He said: “Lynden is that different type of forward.

“He can play as a nine, as a ten, he can play in the wide areas if we went that way. He’s a good all round player.

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“He understands the game well and he fits into the way we want to play.

A”s soon as Saturday finished we just concentrated on trying to get Gooch in.

“We’ve managed to do it. It was my main focus when I knew about the injuries.”