It's time for reconnection, writes Doncaster Rovers fan Andrew Taylor

Apparently, Ray had never visited the city before. England were 2-1 down to Iceland by the 18th minute and spent the remainder of the match without a clear gameplan and with Harry Kane taking more corners than I had ever seen in one game. It turns out it was only seven, the memory plays tricks on you when your six foot two, record breaking goal threat is pumping the ball in to five foot nothing wingers.

The moral of Hodgson’s England tenure was that complacency breeds contempt. The then England Manager faced the usual, perspective-less, nothing else matters as much as this, pack your bags backlash.

For the Rovers hierarchy, they are experiencing their own Doncaster-sized version, featuring a general atmosphere of angst, a divided fanbase and flags containing defunct supermarket chain logos which leave you thinking ‘we are better than that’.

As tempting as it is to pick a side in today’s binary world of right and wrong, and as bonkers as the level of hatred aimed at the Rovers hierarchy seems considering clubs are falling out of existence like 2p’s out of a slots machine lately, the evidence seems to suggest that the truth lies somewhere in the middle.

The Rovers hierarchy do seem to have sailed down the river, gawping at the Eiffel Tower, into England’s fourth tier, taking the club’s League One status for granted. All whilst our competitors were building stable squads, hatching out highly scientific strategies like ensuring the first training session of each new season isn’t essentially a five-a-side team.

Alan Hansen’s ‘you can’t win anything with kids’ rant became iconic when Manchester United won everything with kids. But when applied to League One, especially when most of those kids are the ringers that bring the team from a five-a-side team to 11, especially when most of those kids are on loan, Hansen’s rant looks bang on the money.

The quality of the kids that Rovers brought in up to the start of last season masked the short-sightedness of Rovers’ overall strategy. Taylor-Richards and co made the Eco-Power turf feel like a bowling green. Galbraith and Smith aside, many of the recent loanees have made it feel like treacle.

Another blemish on the Rovers hierarchy lies with our recent injury record. From a fans’ perspective, admittedly without the X-Rays and the graphs, most Rovers players that pick up an injury of late tend to serve a jail term in the treatment room.

The Rovers hierarchy should be held accountable for these errors. But before we start getting all 1998 and demanding wholesale change, should we not call off the mock funeral and ask whether the grass really is greener? And whether we have seen signs of admission and improvement in the Rovers on and off field strategies of late?

It is important to consider how many multi-millionaires there are that a) hold a genuine interest in Doncaster b) are willing to buy the club and c) know how to sustainably run a club whilst beating the odds and climbing the football ladder? Comparatively, I suspect there are many more prospective rogue owners

Lots of anger at the Eco-Power seems to be aimed at the level of investment. FA accounts show that Rovers spent just below the average amount on agent fees last season. Putting aside just how that money was spent for a minute, does anyone really think we should have been chucking the kitchen sink at League One for a go at the Championship?

Rather than heads need to roll, might they just need to be screwed on a little tighter? If so, what about the signs of change in the Rovers’ strategy of late?

I, for one, find it much easier to forgive somebody that has upset me once they acknowledge their mistakes and begin to amend their behaviour. Over the last six months the Rovers hierarchy have made changes to the recruitment team, the medical team and have appointed James Coppinger to role of head of football operations. Is this not evidence that lessons are being learnt?

The appointment of Coppinger represents a risk but a calculated one. Those that fear the lack of prior experience might hurt Coppinger’s reputation might look towards Paulo Maldini for optimism. There is a fair distance in miles and culture between Milan and the Rovers, but Maldini provides a shining example of an inexperienced club legend putting his playing reputation on the line to take an executive role and steering a club from regularly finishing outside of Europe to their first Serie A title in 11 years.

Coppinger’s first priority is to ‘reconnect’ the club and the fans. The identification of this issue as priority number one gives me huge early optimism.

Considering Coppinger’s interest in professional mindsets, we can also be confident that he will look to bring people into the Rovers with a willingness to learn and who want to be here. Already, by all accounts Coppinger is visiting other clubs and pinching ideas that he will look to mould into his own at the Eco-Power. As I type this paragraph, for the first time in over a year, I can feel a tingling sense of giddiness as I think about the Rovers’ future.

If Coppinger is to achieve his objective and reconnect the club and the fans, what can we, the fans, do to help? Is it down to the club and the players to give the fans a lift or is this a two-way street? As well as contemplate the decision making of our hierarchy, should we not contemplate our own role in this upcoming season?

Judging the upcoming season on its own merit seems like a good place to start. If we continue to look at yesterday’s mistakes and bring the atmosphere of angst back to the Eco-Power, might this rub off on the players? Our groans and moans don’t happen in isolation, they do impact the players.

Chris Waddle, speaking of his playing days, said that he felt invincible when he could hear chairs flap as fans stood in expectation of his dribbles and feints. He also spoke of how he stiffened up and couldn’t find his rhythm if fans groaned when he lost the ball, particularly when he was feeling low in confidence.

I suspect the Rovers playing squad could do with a bit of confidence as they find their feet in League Two. Let’s help them find it. Let’s leave behind the angst of last season, and just maybe in return we will begin to feel reconnected to the club.