Stevenage boast 'best-in-division' status in one key area ahead of Doncaster Rovers visit
Doncaster Rovers manager Grant McCann is braced for a tough day at the office this weekend as he takes his side to high-flying Stevenage.
Alex Revell's side have surprised some this term, sitting in the final play-off spot in the League One table ahead of the weekend's fixtures. They also boast a mightily strong home record with five wins and one draw from their six league games so far at the Lamex Stadium - and crucially they have scored the most set-piece goals (eight) in the whole division.
That is something McCann is acutely aware of ahead of the first meeting between the two sides in more than two-and-a-half years.
"We're playing against the best team in the division in terms of set-plays," said the Northern Irishman ahead of the fixture. "It'll be a real good test but hopefully our work this week will put us in a good place for Saturday.
"I think Alex has done brilliant since going in there. That was straight after Steve Evans, who had real, good success. They've got players I'm familiar with and they have an ethos of hard work and have a good shape about them.
"But also what they've done really well this year, having spoken to Alex and their head of recruitment (Leon Hunter), is the players recruited. That's been key for them and evident in what they've brought in. Because they have a clear identity of how they want to play. It's always tough there because the pitch is tight, tighter than most in the division."
McCann, who will have to watch on from the stands owing to a touchline ban, will be desperate for three points given Rovers' long winless run now stands at nine games.
Whilst there is a smattering of fans getting twitchy, the manager still believes fully in the players and made the point that there's still two-thirds of the campaign left to go.
"I get that some fans could be disappointed or frustrated," McCann told the Free Press. "But I've been in the game a long time and I know what it takes to be successful, particularly at this club.
"My message, as I always say, is to judge us at the end of the season. There's 30 games - an absolute marathon - still left to play until the end of the season. We know we're playing well at this moment in time. We just have to start converting our chances."