'This would have been a massive lesson for us' - Darren Moore on Doncaster Rovers' defeat to West Ham United

Darren Moore insists his Doncaster Rovers players will learn from the harsh lessons of their FA Cup humbling at West Ham United.
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Rovers suffered a 4-0 defeat to the Premier League side at the London Stadium to end their impressive cup run.

And Moore feels his players did not make life easy for themselves as the quality of their hosts made the difference on the day.

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“We gave ourselves a mountain to climb after the first few minutes,” he said.

Darren MooreDarren Moore
Darren Moore

“What the players will have learned from today’s game is when we came up against that quality of opposition our game had to be more safe and secure in possession of the ball and using it better.

“The first two goals were mistakes by ourselves and ultimately we got punished by the real quality of the opposition that we were up against.

“The players grew into the game but by the time they had the game was already away from us.

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“What the players will have learned from is the speed and the quality of the effectiveness of the opposition in closing us down.

“I just thought we were a bit loose with our ball and our touches.

“There were times in the game when we did get it together, we played through them and got into the final third.

“But looking back on it, there is loads to learn from it.”

The approach to the game implemented by Moore stuck to his principles of playing out from the back and through the thirds, despite the standard of the opposition.

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And he feels the manner of the defeat delivered a clear indication of where there is room for improvement.

“We know what we’re about and the key to us is continuously getting better.

“That is why I’m looking at the game, certainly from the younger players perspective and us as a team, playing against that quality of opposition.

“Certainly if we’re aspiring to get on in the game and progress, we know the levels that we have to approach.

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“It clearly identifies that we’re still working towards reaching those levels.

“We’re on a journey, we’ve made huge strides but this would have been a massive lesson for us in terms of getting better.”

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