‘He’s had a setback’ - Grant McCann’s verdict on Doncaster Rovers’ draw with Notts County amid new injury blow

Grant McCann believes his Doncaster Rovers team will grow into the season in the weeks and months to come after experiencing their third league draw in a row against Notts County on Tuesday evening.

The Rovers are still waiting for their first league victory of the season after Notts County came back from a goal down at half-time to clinch a point in an evenly contested match at the Club Doncaster Sports Village.

Reflecting on the match, McCann said: “I thought we deserved to be in the lead in the first half, obviously they had a couple of good chances but I felt we defended them well.Tommy made a good save, Jay made a good block.

“I think their chances came from us being over eager on the press which was something we tried to address at half-time.

“I was relatively pleased with the first-half but I think we lost control for around 15-20 minutes in the second. We went too long. But then I felt we came strong again in the last 15-20 minutes.

“It looked like we had a couple of chances to go in, one off the line, probably a penalty decision that could go our way on another night So, on reflection, probably a fair result, but I felt we had more chances to probably win the game and win it again.”

The match marked Isaac Hutchinson’s second goal since his move to South Yorkshire following a hugely successful season with Cheltenham where he scored 18 across all competitions.

Hutchinson was subbed at half-time in both of his first two appearances for The Rovers, but is now beginning to show signs of what he’s capable of.

McCann said: “Yeah, I'm really pleased, he's getting up to speed really nicely. I thought he put another big shift in for us tonight and obviously we freshened things up with a change towards the last 15 minutes of the game. But, I'm delighted for him, he's getting fitter all the time.

“As I said, these new players will take a wee bit of time to adapt to us and how we play. Hutch has worked really hard understanding how we play, also working on his fitness and his sharpness, so I'm really pleased for him.

“He's a goalscorer midfielder, that's two goals he's got now for us, he could have a few more.A couple of opportunities, half chances tonight as well. So, I'm sure he'll just grow as we go.”

Hutchinson is one of 11 new signings through the door in a summer of change for the club.

However, one man supporters are yet to see is striker Frankie Okoronkwo. The former Everton forward was signed on a free transfer after showing signs of his potential during the mid-point of last season, but hasn’t featured since January due to a hamstring issue.

He’s missed a combined total of eight months of football after suffering a setback in March. He was understood to be back in training and close to featuring in mid-August but now faces another blow in his road to recovery.

“He's had a setback, unfortunately,” said McCann after the Notts County draw.

“So timeframe, I don't know.”