Doncaster Rovers dragged back into relegation picture after chastening Exeter City defeat
Doncaster Rovers endured a miserable day down in Devon as they were sucked back into the relegation picture in League One after a 3-0 defeat to Exeter City.
Against opponents who hadn't won a league game since late January, Rovers simply wilted and they are now just four points clear of Exeter, who occupy the last relegation place, albeit with a game in hand.
Manager Grant McCann went to a back three for the long trip south, with a box midfield deployed as has been the case on a handful of occasions this season. It meant recalls for the likes of Ben Close and Harry Clifton, with Glenn Middleton also drafted in as part of a mini-refresh.
Clifton was lively in the early exchanges, seeing a shot deflected behind for a corner and playing his part in some intricate moves as the visitors went in search of an early opener. The hosts, in a desperate battle to preserve their League One status, slowly worked their way into the contest from an attacking point of view. After Ed James planted a back-post header straight at Thimothee Lo-Tutala, Carlos Mendes Gomes then went on a mazy run down the left flank before seeing a dangerous centre evade everyone on its way across goal.
Fresh from those warning signs Rovers suffered not one but two big defensive blows midway through the half when centre-back duo Neill Byrne and Matty Pearson both went off injured within eight minutes of each other. Whilst Byrne's injury was hard to nail down, Pearson's looked to have come from an early incident where he appeared to be pushed into Lo-Tutala by Jayden Wareham when trying to shield the ball.
Not long after the hosts were celebrating opening the scoring when the lively Wareham latched onto a good through-ball from Reece Cole that caught Bailey - now operating in the middle of a back three - off-guard and he fired home.
Elliot Lee - on in place of Pearson first half - fashioned a decent chance just after the restart which drew a good save from home stopper Jack Bycroft. The Grecians were indebted to a terrific piece of goalkeeping when Bycroft pawed away a goal-bound Clifton header just after.
Middleton was the next to try his luck but again Bycroft proved more than equal to his rasping shot from the left-hand side of the box. And that proved to be key as Exeter were soon toasting a second goal of the afternoon. A simple throw was flicked on and Bailey - at fault again - misjudged the bounce allowing sub Josh Magennis to rifle home from the right-hand side of the box.
There was still time for it to get worse, when Wareham lashed home inside the box after a corner fell his way a few yards out.
Here’s how we rated the Rovers players:
Rovers: Lo-Tutala 4, Senior 4, Byrne 5, Pearson 5, Bailey 4, Gotts 5, Close 4, Clifton 5, Middleton 4, Hanlan 4, Molyneux 4
Substitutes: Sterry 4 (for Byrne 29); Lee 5 (for Pearson 37); McGrath 4 (for Close 69); Gibson 4 (for Clifton 69); Adelakun 4 (for Middleton 69).
Not used: Clark, Broadbent.
Attendance: 6,638 (553 away).