Richie Wellens confident he can bring better out of 'first class' Omar Bogle at Doncaster Rovers

Richie Wellens believes it would be wrong to judge striker Omar Bogle on his performances for Doncaster Rovers in the later stages of last season.
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Bogle joined Rovers in January from Charlton Athletic and managed to score just twice in 17 appearances for the club.

Wellens says the style of play last term made it difficult for strikers at the club to find the net.

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The Rovers boss has been pleased with Bogle’s contributions in training so far in pre-season and is confident the style of play he will implement at Rovers will bring more threat from the 28-year-old.

Omar BogleOmar Bogle
Omar Bogle

“I watched the last ten or 12 games of the season and it would have been difficult for any striker to score goals because the play was that slow, the build-up was that slow,” Wellens told the Free Press.

“We’ll get the best out of the players because we’ll mix the play up.

“It’s not a testimonial where the ball turns over and we’re looking to slow the game down all the time.

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“At times we will slow the game down and keep the ball, but it needs that change of intensity.

“On turnovers we can get Bogle into the game and I think that’s where he’s at his strongest.”

Wellens pledged to give both Bogle and Fejiri Okenabirhie the opportunity to impress in pre-season before deciding the extent to which he needs to recruit in attacking areas.

He admits his view on Bogle could have been coloured by talk surrounding the striker within the game.

But he says Bogle has made a strong first impression.

“He’s a really good lad,” Wellens said.

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“Because the football world is really small, you hear certain stories about players but I’ve always taken things at face value.

“I had a player called Anthony Grant at Swindon and people told me not to touch him because of this and that.

“But I actually played with Granty as a young kid.

“As long as you treat the lads in the correct manner, you can nip a lot of things in the bud before they become bigger things.

“I’ve heard things about Bogle before but I have to say he’s been different class.

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“He’s worked like a Trojan so if he continues like that, then let’s see where it takes us.”

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