Report by North Derbyshire Radio’s Senior Football Correspondent Ben Smith
Chesterfield issued League Two with a reminder of their play-off credentials on Thursday evening, dismantling Doncaster Rovers 5-2 at the SMH Group Stadium.
Dylan Duffy, Bim Pepple and Michael Olakigbe all netted their first goals in a Blues shirt, with the second of that trio going on to make it a brace before substitute Ollie Banks rounded off the scoring.
Luke Molyneux and Joe Ironside did find the net for Doncaster, but their side’s short excursion to North Derbyshire would ultimately end as one to forget.
After falling to defeat during Saturday’s trip to Cheltenham Town thanks to a stoppage time goal, the Spireites began this game much brighter than they ended their last, going in front after just 11 minutes.
Armando Dobra‘s smart ball released Duffy in behind, and his admittedly powerful effort went straight through visiting ‘keeper Ted Sharman-Lowe, who looked to have slipped as the shot came in.
The Spireites’ second came as Olakigbe kept a set-piece alive by floating an inviting ball up for Tom Naylor, and the midfielder’s cushioned header left Pepple with the simplest of finishes to open his account for the club.
At that point the away fans may have already started to sense it wasn’t going to be their night, and that feeling likely deepened after an incredible sequence of goalkeeping by Max Thompson, who was somehow able to deny three quick-fire attempts to force the ball over the line.
Rovers would eventually find a potential route back into the game just before the break, with the dangerous Molyneux firing home to halve the deficit in time added on.
Those hopes would be rather extinguished less than 10 minutes after the restart, however, as Olakigbe latched on to a delicious Darren Oldaker through ball before applying a composed finish to join Duffy and Pepple in the first time scorers club.
And three quickly became four as the hosts truly took charge of proceedings, with Pepple poking in a cross from yet another of Paul Cook’s winter additions in Jack Sparkes.
The drama wasn’t quite done there, however, as Ironside headed in at the end of a set-piece scramble to make it 4-2 in second half stoppage-time.
But the visitors wouldn’t even been granted the consolation of registering the game’s final significant action as Banks promptly raced up the other end to add a fifth and close out a truly gripping game.
Chesterfield will now look to follow up the positive momentum from Thursday’s result when they visit current table-toppers Walsall on Saturday February 15.
