Following Rovers’ convincing 3-1 win over League 2 side Coventry City in the first round of the 2017-18 Carabao Cup, Rovers’ manager Tony Mowbray sat down with BBC Radio Lancashire to discuss his feelings following Rovers’ advancement into the 2nd round of the competition.
Detailing his thoughts on the tie, Mowbray said; “Tonight, I thought we responded really well after the weekend. We performed at a much higher level (than against Southend) and it’s important that we get back to doing what we do and how we play.
“We are going to lose games along the way, but we have to try and put our quality on show and the players have to perform every game.
“We have to turn our attention now to Saturday at home against Doncaster, who have a very experienced manager in Darren Ferguson, and start to accumulate the points if we can.”
Mowbray, whilst praising his players, admitted that due to the size of the squad, there weren’t many changes he could make, however he gave some indication as to who would be returning to the squad for the Doncaster game; “I thought they applied themselves well tonight, I think we’ve got Craig Conway back at the weekend who we’ll throw into the equation as he fits into our system really well but he also gives an outstanding work ethic and a goal threat. We needed to make sure we had certain types of footballers who could play in the areas of the pitch we wanted them to.
“The players who came off the bench (Harry Chapman and Ben Gladwin) gave a really good account of themselves as Harry took two or three shots on their goal & Ben glides past people as if they’re not even there as he shifts the ball from foot to foot.”
Richie Smallwood & Corry Evans, both of whom were goal scorers on the night, were singled out by the gaffer for praise as he stated that their technical ability and work rate would be essential for the remainder of the season. However the 53 year old did hint that he was closing in on bringing another midfielder into the football club, stating that he hoped the deal would be finalised ‘in the next day or so’.
Speaking about the absent Darragh Lenihan, who was ruled out of the tie by a foot injury he picked up in the opening day defeat to Southend, Mowbray claimed the 23 year old had several scans, however would not be in contention for Saturday’s game; “I’ve got no news on Lenihan, specialists are trying to work it out, it may be an old injury or a bruise, we’ll wait and see.”
The former Celtic man also stated that he was working on bringing another defender into the club, however he gave no indication as to how close the deal was to be completed; “That’s why you have a squad full of players, I think we potentially need another centre-half in the squad so we’re working hard on that behind the scenes as well, but hopefully it’s (Lenihan’s injury) not serious.”
