twofootedtackle.com

Doncaster Rovers announced this morning that Sean O’Driscoll’s reign as manager was over. With Rovers winless in the Championship this season, O’Driscoll and his assistant Richard O’Kelly have been put on “gardening leave” - a term now used frustratingly casually in these situations - by the club’s shareholders. According to Sky Sports, chairman John Ryan said only on Wednesday that “I’ve never responded to hotheads who want to sack somebody, I don’t think it’s ever worked”. Dean Saunders has left high-flying Conference side Wrexham to take on the job at the Keepmoat.

O’Driscoll’s departure reflects the fact that this is, ultimately, a results business - at least to those in control of it. Doncaster haven’t been getting them, and their disastrous run of form stretches back far beyond one draw and six defeat this term. Rovers’ last win came way back on March 1st, a 3-1 away win itself preceded by a six-game winless patch. They finished one place and six points clear of the relegation zone; a good start would have been a minimum requirement this season.

And yet there remains a good deal of sympathy for O’Driscoll even among those who look at the facts and concede that his sacking can hardly be considered a surprise. He is well-liked in football and has the respect of supporters and professionals he’s worked with as a player and manager. His greatest legacy before Doncaster was on the south coast at AFC Bournemouth, for whom he signed in 1984 and played for a decade before becoming a coach - during an exceptionally difficult spell in the club’s history - and eventually replacing Mel Machin as manager in 2000.

Life as Bournemouth manager is a pursuit of small victories, and on top of having over 400 appearances under his belt and holding the genuine affection of a community to which he frequently dedicated time and effort, O’Driscoll made short work of success in the dugout to further cement his status as a legend.

In 2006 Dave Penney resigned at Doncaster and O’Driscoll moved to Belle Vue. Since then, Rovers have arguably over-achieved, winning promotion to the Championship in 2008 thanks to a goal by James Hayter - nurtured by O’Driscoll at Bournemouth - in the playoff final against Leeds United at Wembley. In 2007 Rovers had won the JP Trophy final at the Millennium Stadium, the site of the Black Country-born manager’s crowning moment as Cherries boss. And to his great credit Doncaster are, despite seemingly constant threat, still in the Championship.

The point of this potted history is not to argue that O’Driscoll has been harshly treated, but to point out that these are not the achievements of a bad manager. He has taken two clubs to historical, showpiece occasions - and he’s won them. His list of successes - the various promotions, avoided relegations, won finals, players developed - is impressive in a relatively young managerial career, and I still believe that O’Driscoll has real quality as a coach and a manager.

Clubs that over-achieve inevitably fall back to earth without enormous investment, and Rovers have clearly hit a ceiling and perhaps gone a little stale under O’Driscoll’s tutelage. But this is just a reality of football and O’Driscoll shouldn’t face too many ill effects from it in the future; someone will take a chance and will, in my opinion, benefit. Managers like O’Driscoll, who can achieve those small victories without throwing endless money at them, might not be headline-makers or celebrity managers, and they might not ever manage a team in the Premier League. But they can be worth their weight in gold.

The appointment of Saunders is perhaps the most puzzling aspect of this morning’s developments. Despite an impressive start to the season with Wrexham in admittedly troublesome circumstances, the jump to the Championship relegation battle is a large one. He may yet be capable but, like O’Driscoll’s next move, time will tell.