The points target that Darren Moore set Doncaster Rovers for the festive period

With victories over Oxford and Peterborough United plus a draw with Accrington Stanley, Rovers picked up seven points from 12 available, including the defeat to Sunderland.

And Moore - who rarely makes his targets public - admitted he set seven points as the minimum goal for the intensive period of four games in 12 days.

“I look at it as four games including the Accrington one so 12 points up for grabs,” he said.

“We got seven points and I’m absolutely delighted because we went into the Oxford game knowing he had to win.

“The minimum points tally that we wanted was seven and we got that in the end so I’m delighted with that.”

As well as the points tally - which helped Rovers move five points off the top six with three games in hand over plenty of their rivals - Moore was pleased to see his side pick up points with different styles of performance.

And he believes that has been ideal for the adaptability of his players.

“We competed with one of the top teams on Wednesday and we had to show a different side to ourselves,” he said.

“This league has horses for courses in terms of the different teams.

“We’ve played against a team that is more direct into the front man and we played a team on Wednesday that is total football. We’ve had to adjust to that in 48 hours.

“It gives a clear indication of the different types of teams in the division that you’ve got to plan and prepare for.

“The players will take a lot out of it in terms of the detail and their learning.”