Notts County 3-0 Doncaster Rovers (EFL League Two) 26.12.23
Four successive matches league and cup have seen Notts County’s season slip of late, but a resurgent performance of old Luke Williams ways had the Magpies back pleasing their fans of which 12,000 frequented Meadow Lane, most leaving happy after a Boxing Day performance of pure pleasure.
County were dominant from the get go but a soft penalty awarded for a tug at the back post had Ironside given opportunity to attempt Doncaster a lead against the run of play, his effort slashed wide to the cheers of the Kop behind the goal.
It didn’t take Notts long to punish that miss, the superbly busy Dan Crowley on the end of a wonderful Jodi Jones cross and the home team cheer began on minute 33.
That goal should have opened the floodgates. Macaulay Langstaff had already missed a couple of chances before he was unleashed inside the box after neat work by McGoldrick and Nemane, the former Gateshead striker doing what he does best to net his fifteenth of the season on the stroke of half time.
Notts had over 80% possession in a dominant first half and although that relinquished a little in the second forty-five, it was still largely one way traffic with McGoldrick and Crowley in particular enjoying themselves in the creative third of the park.
McGoldrick jinking around to set up Langstaff who’s shot was palmed into the path of Aaron Nemane, he couldn’t miss on 53 and the remainder of the match became a procession, Notts enjoying themselves with a terrific performance, slightly helped by the lack of creation or belief in Doncaster Rovers play.
That win, a first since November 28 in the league, has Notts up to fifth in the table and back in the playoff picture. Play like that every week and the six-point gap on the automatic places could be next on target to take? Hopefully now that sticky patch has been left behind and back to winning ways, the Magpies can begin again to march up the table and set their sights on a second promotion in successive seasons.
Magpies: Stone, Brindley (Rawlinson 68), Baldwin, Cameron (Tipton 68), Crowley, Bostock, Austin, Jones (O’Brien 69), Nemane (Adebayo-Rowling 78), McGoldrick (Sanderson 77), Langstaff.
*Main image @Official_NCFC celebrations for Notts who make light work of Doncaster.
