Grant McCann clarifies stance on Doncaster Rovers position with logjam beginning to form

Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com 
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Visit Shots! now
There's plenty of selection headaches for Doncaster Rovers boss Grant McCann to contend with ahead of tonight's short hop to Barnsley.

McCann's men travel to Oakwell for their final EFL Trophy group game to take on hosts who cannot qualify for the next stage, regardless of the outcome. After a superb win in the league at Bradford City last Saturday, McCann is almost certain to shake it up and make wholesale changes.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Centre-half Tom Anderson will return to the fold after his six-match ban was completed at the weekend. Tom Nixon, Ben Close and Joe Sbarra are other players likely to be handed starts as Rovers chase the win that would guarantee them progress to the round of 32. Kick-off tonight is at the earlier time of 7pm. If the game is level after 90 minutes, a penalty shoot-out will see the winning side earn an extra point.

Regarding Nixon, he is one of six full-backs now available for selection after his return from injury. It is widely considered James Maxwell, fully recovered from an injury lay-off himself, is first choice on the left side with Jamie Sterry more often than not being picked on the right. But Jack Senior's hugely impressive showing at Bradford has thrown him right back into the conversation, whilst Nixon was also impressing prior to sustaining injury at Everton early on in the season.

That leaves question marks over the remaining two players in this position: Brandon Fleming and Josh Emmanuel. Hull loanee Fleming has featured sporadically since Maxwell's return whilst Emmanuel, who arrived in early September on what Rovers described as a "short-term deal", has just two league appearances from the bench to his name.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Ahead of tonight's match, which both are surely targeting for some rare game-time, McCann clarified his stance on the full-back situation.

"I've had conversations with both Brandon and Josh," McCann told the Free Press. “And by the way, they could both probably play for most teams in League One, never mind League Two.

"We're blessed to have some very, very good full-backs at the football club with three on each side. When I spoke to Brandon, when we knew James Maxwell would be out for a while, I was very clear and asked if he wanted to come in and compete for that spot and he was fine with it so he knows where he's at with that.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad
Grant McCann has six full-backs competing with each other, now that everyone is fully fit.Grant McCann has six full-backs competing with each other, now that everyone is fully fit.
Grant McCann has six full-backs competing with each other, now that everyone is fully fit.

"The same with Josh when I spoke to him. The deal was for us to try and get Josh fit and healthy and help him rediscover what he's about. I'd have no problems playing Josh or any of the full-backs for that matter. They all train really well and we'll just have to see how it goes over the next couple of weeks and how Tom (Nixon) reacts to the load in training."

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.