THREE apiece at Gresty Road last night eh? I did say it wouldn’t be the goal fest of the previous time the two sides met in this competition …

A further brace of goals from Paul Heffernan, who once again bestrideth a football pitch less a mere mortal, more a collosus, along with a Brian Stock strike ensured a share of the spoils, rendering the Football League Trophy return at Fortress Keepmoat as good as a one off knock-out with the final at Cardiff at stake. Breaking from the tradition, Rovers had begun the first half like the proverbial house afire rather than mooning about for the first 45 minutes and conceding long range goals for a laugh. Two nil to the good at half time and the large away following of 1,100 spent the 15 minute interval arranging bed and breakfasts in Cardiff for 1 April.

An unusual pattern of reservation cancellations was reported amongst hoteleers in the Welsh capital at around 9.20PM, as Alex had roared back (as much as a roar that could be mustered anyway, with barely 3,000 home fans in the ground) to 2-2. Though deity Heffernan temporarily restored the Rovers advantage, it was not to be, and Crewe came back one more time to, in effect, make this game a wasted exercise in terms of the influence on the overall result of the tie, as away goals do not count at any stage in the return fixture.

Needless to say, Dario Gradi was suitably frisky over Rovers attacking verility, as he gushed:

What a game! Highly entertaining and a really good standard I thought. They started off like Real Madrid but twice as quick, they were very impressive. I was very impressed with their start, their passing was good, their movement was good, they had a game plan I thought they were excellent.”

Sean O’Driscoll was playing it a bit more cool, understandable really after watching us chase away a two goal lead in much the same way as one might chase away a tab end with a stream of piss in a urinal - not a Keepmoat urinal though, as of course smoking is not permitted in any part of the stadium!

If you had asked me before the game would I have settled for a draw I would have said it was more about the performance and I would have settled for the way we played. On another night we would have converted the chances but it was good that we played good football and made plenty of opportunities. We now have a good base for the second leg at home in two weeks time.

He’s right of course, and I’m sure he will be focussing on our recently surfaced defensive deficiencies between now and then to restore our parity as the Awesome Clean Sheeting machine that Rovers once were a few weeks ago.

Finally for today, I note Leeds have signed a goalkeeper on loan until the end of the season. A couple of days ago they signed Graham Stack on loan for the remainder of the season who, before an injury, was widely regarded as Leeds’ No1. By my reckoning, we have 10 hours before the close of the January transfer window, and I really must insist that Mssrs Ryan and O’Driscoll kindly get into gear and sign up Neil Sullivan poste haste!

TONIGHT Rovers revisit the scene of their heaviest defeat under the tutulage of former boss Dave Penney. In December 2002 a Rovers side were spanked 8-0 by a rampant Crewe Alexandra featuring such luminaries as Dean Ashton and David Vaughan. Rovers meanwhile had signalled their attacking intent by deploying Chris Beech in an advanced left sided midfield role.

It’s pretty safe to say we won’t be seeing a similar result tonight. Sean O’Driscoll may rest one or more of James Coppinger, Jason Price and Jonathan Forte as befits his approach to this competition, affording run-outs to the likes of Sean Thornton and Lewis Guy. I expect to see Mark McCammon back in the starting eleven tonight, while Crewe will have to do without talismanic striker Nicky Maynard, who scored at Belle Vue early this season when the two sides last met.

Paul Heffernan is sure that a result tonight will stand us in good stead for Cardiff:

“Apart from the FA Cup game against Bolton, where we were given a bit of a lesson, we have settled in well at our new home and all the lads love playing here, it’s completely different to Belle Vue and we are thriving on it. The first leg is going to be very tough, but if we can get a decent result, we can bring them back to the Keepmoat and hopefully finish the job off. I have never been to the Millennium so it would be nice to get to the final – but right now we have to be focused on beating Crewe.”

As of yesterday over 1,000 tickets had been sold to Rovers fans for tonights 1st leg at Gresty Road, ensuring a healthy backing for the team as they strive to make their first appearance at the Millenium Stadium.

SO, another three points on the board, as the Rovers bizarre second-half juggernaught once again rolls into action to utterly destroy all before them like some kind of arrogant parent who deliberately plays poorly against his young child on the park, builds their confidence and expectations, only to roar back and blaze them off the grass with incisive skills and multiple goals.

Rotherham were the latest to be “sonned” at what has now become Fortess Keepmoat (the regrettable Bolton incident apart), and in turn become inaugral winners of the John Preen “Recipients of the Most Deceptively One-sided 3-2 Battering Ever” Trophy. Well done fellas.

The aforementioned web-toed curiosities gathered in the away end of our grand arena on Saturday for their last Cup Final of the season, and to have a look at our new stadium in the forlorn hope they could laugh it off as some puny-sized shoebox. Of course, they couldn’t, and it all got too much for some Millers fans whom partook in typical Rotherham fayre of getting horrendously pissed-up and involving themselves in some sundry windmilling of fists. This time it was with the shy, retiring stewards towards the North West corner of the stadium.

Ones mind is drawn to the previous fixture between the two sides when “London Miller” - someone apparently with the good sense to get himself as far toward the other side of the country from his home town as was feasible on a thimble of corn oil and a 1927 Ford Model T - declared that he’d

“rather not talk about todays visitors, Doncaster Rovers, as I find a significant proportion of their fans to be violent half-wits”.

The irony of such a statement given Saturdays events would be hilarious but for the fact my Mum always told me not to laugh at those less fortunate than me, and lets face it, you’ve got it only slightly better than a parasitic tapeworm if you are a typical Rotherham fan. Drunken scrapping at an age where they should know better aside, they also carry the knowledge that the club they support are too scrote-like to even pay the debts that they racked up chasing an immediate return to the Championship after their relegation.

Of course, they eventually forced creditors into accepting one Penny for every Pound they were owed, but mooned about deciding what to do long enough, that the according 10 point deduction did not take place last season, which would have seen them relegated again, but this season, which gave them a fighting chance of survival and 46 games to turn the deficit over.

I won’t go on. I will though, leave you with highlights of Saturdays’ match from a Rotherham slant on YouTube though. Someone has obviously gone to an awful lot of trouble with the “hilarious” backing track, so it’d be rude not to leave them a comment for their efforts ..?

HELLO, welcome to Donblog. Having idly whiled away several hours of time that really should have been spent doing more important things in my life, I have set up a weblog. However, I’m going to go to bed now, before writing any real content, as my incessant meddling with PHP code almost led to the loss of the entire design of the site just now. Admittedly, I’ve nicked enough of it from elsewhere to be back up to speed relatively quickly, but if the worst had come to the worst, this may have been the most shortlived website venture since Lewis Coady set up a similar online presence to catalogue his long and varied Rovers career in 1996.