A “gutted” Grant McCann told his players after Doncaster Rovers’ play-off exit: “Let’s not go through that again.”
Rovers missed out on the League Two play-off final after a penalty shoot-out defeat to Crewe Alexandra.
That is came to that was improbable on two counts: First that Doncaster got into the play-offs in the first place having been 22nd at the start of February, but then that they were taken to penalties having won the Gresty Road leg 2-0.
That was wiped out within 16 minutes of the second leg, and although Doncaster were much the better team once they got their act together, all they had to show for it was Luke Molyneux’s shot against a post.
It was horrible to see McCann put through that, and he told his players that next season they have to bypass the play-offs – which his 2018-19 side were also knocked out of on penalties in a semi-final (that time in League One) – by winning the division outright.
The defeat was all the more surprising because Doncaster had been so good in the 13-match unbeaten run that had taken them this far.
“I’m just gutted,” admitted a downbeat manager.
“I’m really disappointed, the changing room’s really flat and down. We just didn’t get going in the first half.
“We were poor, we lost too many duels, second balls, no energy about us. Two poor goals to concede.
“Crewe will say the first one is well worked and they did a number us in the first half. We lacked the energy they showed, fair play to them, their front four caused us problems in the press and the transitions.
“The boys knew that at half-time.
“I didn’t really need to tell them, they said it themselves.
“From half-time onwards we showed what we have been but we just didn’t get that magic or quality to be where we needed to be.”
In the immediate aftermath, McCann was at a loss to explain what had gone wrong.
“We wanted to be positive – I know it didn’t look like that in the first half,” he said.
“I was on the sidelines saying to Cliff (Byrne, his assistant) was it a mentality issue in one or two or three or four players thinking we don’t really need to win?
“Has that taken over some of them? I don’t know because it certainly didn’t come from us as a coaching staff. Our message was to win this game tonight, it wasn’t to sit back.
“But it probably looked like we did and that was a concern for us.”
But his solution was a straight-forward one, led by a determination to avoid the sort of slow start which made this season so much more difficult.
“This club shouldn’t be in League Two,” he insisted. “Ultimately we haven’t done the job and that’s really hurtful for me.
“I said to the players it’s hard and players might be disappointed but I said we’ll be going to win the league next season, there’s no question.
“I said if there’s anyone who doesn’t think they can, tell your agent to call me and find a new club because there’s no way I’m waiting for my team to get going for another three r four months like we did at the start of this season.
“Some of the players have got a decision to make. If they’re not ready to win the league, don’t come back.”
