Doncaster Rovers duo praise defender after return from injury in Salford City draw

The Scottish full-back played 81 minutes in Rovers' 1-1 draw at the Peninsula Stadium on Tuesday night. The result keeps Rovers in the hunt for an automatic promotion spot as they drew level on points with third-placed Walsall.

Whilst the outcome wasn't the one McCann wanted, he was happy to have Maxwell back for what was his first appearance since the defeat at Bromley on March 4.

"To play that long is a testament to James," McCann told the Free Press, when asked about the former Glasgow Rangers' man's return from a broken toe.

"But he's pain-free too now, which is good. He's feeling well and training good. He'll benefit from that 80-odd minutes that he had tonight."

Teammate Owen Bailey also praised his colleague's return to action. "It's good to see him back because I know how hard Maxi's been working," said the stand-in skipper.

"He's been in a lot of pain and discomfort from his broken toe. He was just desperate to get back and be a part of it and it's credit to the lad that he is that he's gone through the pain barrier to play. He said he felt good coming off so all positive on that front."

Rovers have little time to ponder the draw in Greater Manchester, with another road trip to Tranmere Rovers on Good Friday.

"We'll be back in training on Wednesday," McCann confirmed.

"We need to get the boys back in and go through the protocols and recoveries. We'll get them in and train with the boys that need to do work just to keep them ready. We're at the stage now where we need to win games if we want to get to where we want to get to. We need to respond at Tranmere and go there and get three points."