Cambridge United will look to bounce back following Saturday's defeat to Shrewsbury as they prepare for a clash with Doncaster...
Form
In the U’s last outing, Mark Bonner’s men struggled to contain marksman Ryan Bowman as the striker scored a hat-trick for Shrewsbury to help see off the U’s by a scoreline of 4-1.
Cambridge United form: LDDDL
In a game full of incident - which included the withdrawal of Dimitar Mitov due to a head injury and a red card for Adam May - it was the hosts who took the lead during the early goings before a super strike from Jack Iredale drew the team’s level at the midpoint of the second half. Three further goals from the home side in the second half following the dismissal of Adam May meant for a miserable afternoon in Shropshire for United and their travelling fans.
Prior to Saturday’s defeat, United had only tasted defeat on two of their previous ten outings in all competitions and had earned respectable draws against pre-season favourites Ipswich Town and Sheffield Wednesday in their previous two games.
For the first time since matchday five, Doncaster Rovers lifted themselves off the foot of the League One table following a fine win and performance against Cheltenham Town in their last outing. Richie Wellens’ side found themselves sitting comfortably three goals to the good before newly-promoted Cheltenham mounted a spirited second half comeback attempt, with the game eventually finishing 3-2 to the hosts.
Doncaster Rovers form: LWLLW
Despite early season woes, home form has been of little worry to Richie Wellens’ side, having picked up all ten of their points this season in front of the Keepmoat faithful. Their dismal away form was encapsulated in their previous outing away from home as they were frustratingly beaten by Gillingham, despite having the game’s share of attempts.
Club Details
Name: Doncaster Rovers
Year founded: 1879
Stadium: Keepmoat Stadium
Stadium capacity: 15,231
Key Player: John Bostock
The once tipped ‘wonderkid’ – who reportedly turned down a ten-year contract at Barcelona after making his Crystal Palace debut aged just 15, arguably hasn’t lived up to his initial hype. However, 12 transfers later, the 29-year-old seems to have found a home sitting in front of the Doncaster defence. Despite his defensive responsibility, the midfielder has chipped in with two assists this season already, with one coming in Donny’s previous outing – a 3-2 win over Cheltenham on Saturday.
Down Memory Lane
It is Tuesday’s hosts that boast the historical advantage when it comes to head-to-head fixtures between the two sides, with Doncaster winning on 10 of the 29 occasions. The U’s have prevailed 8 times - but not since November 2005 - a 3-2 win in the LDV Vans Trophy at the Abbey Stadium.
The most recent clash between both sides came back in February 2017, with Doncaster, who were later promoted to League One, winning 3-2 in front of 4,236 at the Abbey Stadium.
Quick Quotes
U’s Head Coach Mark Bonner is expecting a tough battle on Tuesday: “We know how hard it is to win at this level and we know how every game is a challenging game. We have got to be at our best to compete against a Doncaster side who, similarly to Shrewsbury, have picked up a few more wins recently.
“They are a team that play some really good football and we know they are going to stress us in our defensive shape. They have some quality players who are good in possession, but we know we have got good players ourselves and we know we carry a threat as well as being able to make ourselves hard to beat. We will have to try to do all of those things against Doncaster in a slightly different way.”
Officials
Andy Haines has been appointed as referee for the clash at the Keepmoat Stadium, with Billy Smallwood and Mark Cunliffe coming in as his assistants. Oliver Bickle will oversee the game as fourth official.
Tickets
Tickets for the 7:45pm clash are available for fans to buy from the Keepmoat Stadium on the evening of the game.
For fans who are not able to attend, the next best way to get behind the U's is by streaming the action with iFollow.
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