Doncaster Rovers manager Gary McSheffrey knows his side’s main priority at Barrow tomorrow night.
On the eve of the game he told the club supporters – “We have to match their work rate. If we do that we feel we’re more than a match for anyone in this league.”
He respects what opposite number Pete Wild did at Halifax Town and how he’s set-up Barrow this season.
McSheffrey said: “I think they’ve taken everybody by surprise but Pete did that last year at Halifax, when he really overachieved and I’m not surprised he’s started so well at Barrow.”
Coventry-born McSheffrey played over 250 games for his home-town club and also made appearances for Birmingham (83) and Scunthorpe (80) among others.
When he made his first-team debut for Coventry against local rivals Aston Villa at the age of 16 years and 198 days on 27 February 1999, a game that Coventry won 4–1, he became the youngest player ever to play in the Premier League. He held the record for over four years until Aaron Lennon made his Leeds United debut at a younger age in August 2003,
He played a dozen games for Doncaster in the 2016/17 season and in 2018 joined their coaching staff as professional development phase coach working with the under-18 team.
On December 2 last year McSheffrey was appointed caretaker manager following the sacking of manager Richie Wellens with the club 23rd in the table. After four matches in charge, he was appointed manager on a permanent basis.
He was unable to keep them up but took them to within one win of survival but Rovers have started the new campaign well with only one defeat and four wins in their seven games to date to lie sixth a point behind Barrow.
McSheffrey gave his players Saturday off following the postponement of Rovers’ clash against Hartlepool Utd and the squad returned to training on Sunday.
“We’ve got the exact same 19-man squad we had named for the weekend,” said McSheffrey, although he admitted two players had picked up knocks in the previous game and were facing a race against time to be fit for Hartlepool.
“They’re available for selection. Players are always going to play with knocks. You’re never really going to be one-hundred per cent fit, so you just crack on.
“Everyone that was available for the weekend is available for tomorrow. That includes one or two that were carrying knocks,” he insisted.
