Nigel Clough has backed Doncaster Rovers to climb away from the foot of League One. The Mansfield Town manager offered his assessment of Grant McCann's side ahead of his own team's trip to Burton Albion.

Doncaster sit 24th in the table with three points from six matches, having lost three and drawn three. Their last outing was a 1-0 defeat at AFC Wimbledon on September 12. The opening day of the season also brought a 2-1 loss at Mansfield, where Jack Senior scored Rovers' first league goal of the campaign.

Clough, whose side beat Doncaster that day with goals from Rhys Oates and Louis Reed, believes the quality of the division is the primary factor in their lowly position. "Doncaster are not a bottom of the league team by any means," he told Mansfield's club media. "And they won't stay there either, but again that's the strength of the league."

He pointed to the increased competition this season as a reason for the slow start, suggesting Rovers will improve. "Yeah, we've seen enough in those six games to suggest when everybody settles down hopefully everybody gets fit, I think we can be an improving team on last season," Clough said. "But only the points tally at the end of the season will show that."

Rovers have drawn with Barnsley, Stevenage, and Notts County this term, while also suffering defeats to Plymouth Argyle and AFC Wimbledon. Their upcoming schedule sees them travel to face Peterborough United at the Weston Homes Stadium before the international break. Peterborough currently sit 21st in the standings.

With six goals scored and nine conceded, Rovers have a goal difference of minus three and are ten points behind early leaders Sheffield Wednesday. The team has scored those six goals in 540 minutes of football, an average of a goal every 90 minutes. They are also 12 points adrift of the playoff places. The team will be looking to turn their recent form of three straight losses into a positive result on the road. The full squad list and current injury news is available on our squad page.

The original report is at Doncaster Free Press