Defensive brilliance, rampant Richards, flying full backs: Talking points from Doncaster Rovers' win at Charlton Athletic

A rain-sodden day when a commanding lead was washed away by the match being called off in farcical fashion, ultimately helping to send Rovers down the relegation plughole. A wonderful, brave performance on a battling play-off night which ended in penalty heartache.

But now Rovers have a bright, brilliant performance and a noteworthy win to help banish some of those dark thoughts about visits past.

Vibrant, aggressive, attacking and rock solid, they were well worth their 3-1 triumph over Charlton Athletic - and it would not have been unjust had the scoreline been a little wider.

It was the sort of result that will make a few in League One sit up and take notice. The performance even more so.

STORY OF THE GAME

It was the hosts who started the game on the front foot, pushing Rovers increasingly deeper, in particular with attacks down the flanks.

But, just as it did the week before against MK Dons, a goal from Madger Gomes changed the complexion of the fixture.

The Spanish midfielder showed his increased confidence by lashing in a shot that caught Charlton keeper Ben Amos off-guard.

From then on, Rovers dominated the ball, keeping possession deep in the Charlton half and always with an eye on adding to their tally.

The second goal gave them comfort. A wonderful overlap from Ben Whiteman gave him space to drive in a low ball which Charlie Baker could only turn into his own net as he attempted to block.

And the icing on the cake came when Tyreece John-Jules, impatient at waiting for an option to appear, dropped his shoulder, beat his man and lashed a shot that was too powerful for Amos to handle.

Charlton were buoyed when Conor Washington headed in a goal back and they pushed Rovers for a sustained period.

But their efforts waned as time ran out on their comeback hopes, and Rovers saw out a brilliant win in relative comfort.

A WELCOME RETURN

It is not at all unfair to suggest there were a few lumps in throats when noise erupted from the stands as the hosts made their way onto the pitch.

It has been a long six months since such a noise was last heard in a stadium anywhere in this country.

After operating in quiet for the last few weeks, it was a welcome reminder of the power of a football crowd.

There may have only been around 1,000 people in The Valley but it sounded like there was plenty more. The Charlton supporters were delighted to be there and made that known.

They were also incredibly well-behaved and followed the instructions given regularly from the tannoy system superbly. Such behaviour is vital if football is going to see a return of fans on a wider basis.

It was an important step for the future stability of the game. Fans in grounds equals survival for many clubs.

And it was a timely suggestion that things might just be all right in the end - even if the mere existence of the pilots somewhat at odds with the current direction of travel surrounding Covid-19.

THE ROCKS

It is getting quite difficult to find anything to say about the Rovers defence that has not already been said.

But here is one thing - they keep getting better.

It was a magnificent performance again from Joe Wright and Tom Anderson in particular, which allowed the creativity to flow higher up the pitch.

Both men provide reassurance to the rest of the side with their sheer presence and composure. They also allow a young goalkeeper to settle into the side quicker as he continues to find his feet.

On Saturday, so much of Anderson’s heading and clearing came outside the box as he reacted quickly to prevent Charlton attacks from even starting.

And then there is Wright’s growing ability to spot a coming pass and surge out of defence to cut it out. Often, he will then carry the ball up the pitch himself.

The pillars of strength hold up the platform for others to perform and they are a delight to behold.

FLYING FULL BACKS

A major component of Rovers’ play on Saturday was pushing the two full backs deep into opposition territory as much as possible.

So much of the time were Brad Halliday and Reece James actually ahead of the wide attacker, providing options for a pass or use of an overlap.

It gave Rovers a fresh attacking dynamic and ensured they had so much presence in the Charlton half, helping them to dominate the ball for long stretches of the game.

Vital to Rovers not being caught out by this approach was the covering work that other members of the team carried out when attacks broke down. Ben Whiteman and Jon Taylor in particular were excellent at this.

TAYLOR MADE

Arguably the player to be most excited about at Rovers so far this season has been Taylor Richards.

And on Saturday he produced a performance to suggest that plenty of people in the wider footballing world should be excited about him as well.

On arrival, you would have been forgiven for thinking Rovers had signed a luxury ball-player, spraying passes around from the middle of the park and looking to work opportunities for a shot himself.

But in Richards, Rovers have so much more.

It is somewhat baffling that there had been questions about his work rate and desire off the ball before he arrived at the Keepmoat.

He rushes and harries the opposition to prevent them from playing out from the back with any comfort. He may not be in the blocking position but so much of his game is spent fulfilling the role much higher up the pitch.

And it is becoming an increasingly vital component of Rovers’ play.

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