John Doolan felt there were plenty of positives to take – and a few lessons to learn – from their 2-1 defeat against Rovers.
Charlie Caton took his goal well early in the second half after latching onto Anjola Popoola’s through ball, and Doolan has been impressed with the 22-year-old since his return for pre-season.
The Reds made nine changes at the break to get valuable minutes into the legs ahead of the upcoming League Two campaign.
“You've got some really top talent there, haven't you? From the Championship, pushing for the play-offs last year and a really talented squad of players,” Doolan said after the final whistle.
“We got what we needed to get out of it and I was pleased with the way we went about it. The structure was good, with and without the ball.
“The goal we scored from the back was outstanding. Charlie Caton's finished it lovely, a great ball from Anjola as well, so it was pleasing.
“He [Caton] has come back in good nick. He seems to have the bit between his teeth, he’s got something to prove which is great and only bodes well for the future.
“The way he's running, the way he's at the front of everything, and he's improving technically and tactically. Then to get on the end of that and finish it the way he did was great for him.”
There were some new faces in action for the Reds including Isaac Sinclair and Freddie Sass, who both played the opening 45 minutes.
Goalkeeper Ollie Wright came on for the second half, having joined on a season-long loan from Southampton earlier in the week.
When asked about the new additions, Doolan replied: “Yeah just trying to find their feet, aren’t they?
“Isaac was good in midfield at times and then Freddie was getting caught a couple of times when Ryan Hedges was going into the pocket. We had young Fin playing there so they had to get an understanding.
“That's not Fin's position, by the way, but we had him as a wing-back because of his energy, and he can get up and down the pitch.
“They just needed to have that understanding. Once we ironed that out, we got to grips with it and we were alright.
“You take everyone off for half-time and I think they didn't make any changes for an hour. All our lads go on and start on the front foot really well. As I said, we were really pleased.
“They made their subs on 60 minutes and it sort of upsets the rhythm of the game, if you like. They've brought on Gueye, he's a top Championship striker and scored a lot of goals for them last year.
“The lads dealt with him physically because he's a presence, but I was just saying about dangling a foot when he gets half a turn. Ollie Wright in goal is unsighted, he has just seen it at the last minute. But there’s loads to learn from it, it has been good.”
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