Darren Moore searching for balance to get Doncaster Rovers back on track

The all or nothing trend with defensive resilience and quality on the ball for Doncaster Rovers must end quickly according to boss Darren Moore.
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Rovers picked up wins over promotion rivals Lincoln City and Oxford United with tremendous resolve but struggled to ease pressure after failing to maintain possession.

And they were carved open when their resilience evaded them at Sunderland on Saturday - a situation compounded by the fact they did not use the ball well until already 3-0 down - following on from a similar collapse at Fleetwood Town in midweek.

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Moore says Rovers must find the balance between the two elements of the game as they look to get results back on track.

Darren Moore with Sunderland boss Lee Johnson. Picture: Craig Brough/AHPIXDarren Moore with Sunderland boss Lee Johnson. Picture: Craig Brough/AHPIX
Darren Moore with Sunderland boss Lee Johnson. Picture: Craig Brough/AHPIX

“The goal after six minutes on Saturday knocked the stuffing out of us and we never reset ourselves and brought that bit of composure,” Moore said. “Then we gave away the next two goals and I think that mentally rocked us in terms of settling into our game.

“We reset ourselves in the second half and we were much better on the ball because that has been missing in recent weeks.

“The second half is probably the best I’ve seen us doing that and using the ball in spaces in a while.

“That was a positive on the game.

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“On the flip side, we’ve conceded four poor goals whereas before there was a resilience to us but we didn’t use the ball as well in recent weeks.

“This time, we did use the ball but we gave away four goal which is not right.

“We’ve got to find the balance. On Monday we’ll come in on Wednesday.”

Rovers host Accrington Stanley on Wednesday night as the intense schedule continues.

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With little time to work on the training ground, Moore says the players must discover the balance he seeks during matches.

“It has to come in games,” he said.

“In the fixture list we’ve got now, they’re coming thick and fast and we have to quickly focus again.

“We’ve got the game on Wednesday to look forward to ]. THere’s some work to be done before Wednesday’s game.

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